hapter 146: The Calm Before the Storm

[Server 1476, Wasteland City eliminated]

[Server 5953, Zombie Kingdom eliminated]

Then ten days passed in a blink of an eye, and the remaining two servers ran off one after another.

Indeed, it was fleeing, not failure; those surviving on these two servers were mostly Lords of Rank 5 or above, each one wealthy enough to exchange for a Server Transfer Token, which was quite normal.

The previous several activities had definitely earned quite a bit.

So, seeing the bad momentum, naturally, everyone ran off one by one. Otherwise, would they stay here and wait for death?

Without the Lords, the server naturally lost its meaning and would soon collapse and be absorbed by both the Magic Continent and Mysterious Village servers.

Qin Muye had thought that a great war would break out immediately, but in reality, everything remained calm, much like the quiet before a storm.

The current rank of the lords only had 11 people remaining, with Qin Muye ranked ninth. Apart from Jiang Tianjun, all the others were lords from the Magic Continent and were left behind.

The last two were also 4th Rank Lords, and although they were Champion Level, they were still somewhat inferior compared to Qin Muye.

Beyond that, seventh and eighth were Champion Level Rank 5, and beyond that was Rank 6.

This time, many survived, thanks mostly to the True Dragon Emperor's lead. Without him mitigating the pressure up front, Qin Muye would not have had it easy.

Right now, he worried about Jiang Tianjun suddenly attacking the other lords aside from the True Dragon Emperor.

To Rank 6, his Rank 4 was still of certain value, and Rank 5 was also a small piece of fatty meat; among Rank 6, apart from the powerful True Dragon Emperor, others like Wang Junzi and the Demon Subduing Scholar were tough old beef, but not impossible to chew.

If it really came to a fight, Qin Muye would indeed not be able to withstand it.

Then, he could only use the Server Transfer Token to escape.

But now he was really too reluctant to run. This time, many Lords had perished, and in future activities—not to mention the difficulty of getting into the top ten had greatly decreased—as long as you weren't the last, you could still scrape together some rewards.

If he wanted to be ruthless, simply wiping out one lord would suffice. At that time, only ten people would remain, and securing the tenth place for Qin Muye wouldn't be a problem.

The Spirit Monsters who had been sent out had also returned, bringing back quite a haul, especially in terms of corresponding knowledge—about the Ocean Divine Power of the Rich Ocean and various aspects of faith. Qin Muye had just recently completed his understanding of them, and now a new batch had come in.

This also smoothly helped Qin Muye complete the destruction task in his advancement mission. Now, he only needed an S-Rank instance evaluation to finish the mission.

It was now like the Cold War; he didn't dare to enter an instance either. Who knew what the situation would be when he came out? If he encountered a mysterious smear-faced person, wouldn't that seal his death?

If Jiang Tianjun indeed attacked unscrupulously, Qin Muye could completely use the Server Transfer Token to run away. If he was absent, the loss would be severe.

Who knows if he could use a Server Transfer Token while in an instance—such matters he didn't want to gamble on for the sake of immediate benefits. Instances could be visited anytime after this situation ended.

"Master, the latest news, the True Dragon Emperor seems to be preparing to negotiate with Jiang Tianjun." Black Hand rushed over in a hurry.

Qin Muye, aboard the ship in the Linlin Deer Sea, was baffled: "Negotiate? How can we negotiate?"

"Use Wang Junzi and the Demon Subduing Scholar." Black Hand whispered.

His pupils narrowed as Qin Muye understood how to negotiate; he would hand over the two people to Jiang Tianjun, who would then use the Server Transfer Token to leave this server.

With this, the Mysterious Village would undoubtedly fail.

Jiang Tianjun could also use this to take all the heroes within the Mysterious Village server under his command, either follow him or wait for death.

As for running away? As long as the True Dragon Emperor cooperated, people from the Mysterious Village wouldn't even think of setting foot in the Magic Continent.

Thus, it's a win-win situation. The True Dragon Emperor eliminates dissenters and sets an example, Jiang Tianjun gains substance, and Qin Muye ensures his spot in the top ten.

Apart from Wang Junzi and the Demon Subduing Scholar, the two unlucky ones, no one else incurred any losses.

But with this, upon promotion of the server, the True Dragon Emperor would undoubtedly act again to try to incorporate other Lords.

Just like Qin Muye, the other party has already tried to recruit him several times, seemingly valuing his research capabilities. Not to mention, this time, a hundred thousand Dragon Armors for the True Dragon Emperor meant significantly reducing his losses.

Currently, the True Dragon Emperor also did not dare to really kill all the Lords; if he did, he would end up isolated and without support, just like Jiang Tianjun.

If not for Jiang Tianjun's world being extremely Mysterious, coupled with his formidable strength, the True Dragon Emperor might have already attacked.

Qin Muye naturally shunned the True Dragon Emperor's recruitment, but if Wang Junzi and the Demon Subduing Resident truly died this time, he would then dominate alone.

Neither one alone was a match for the True Dragon Emperor, but the two had long since formed an alliance.

"Worrying, each one of them is a handful." Qin Muye felt somewhat helpless.

"Master, this is probably going to be tough. If it doesn't work out, that's fine, the Magic Continent remains balanced. But if it does, we're most likely going to have to run for it," Black Hand said, his tone heavy.

They had already studied the nature of the True Dragon Emperor, and his inherent dominion was not something he could conceal.

If they were really subjugated, divine artifacts would probably have to be handed over, and they'd have to work themselves to the bone. Though safer, this safety was predicated on others and could collapse at any moment.

Even if Qin Muye did join the True Dragon Emperor, there was a high probability he would be stripped of military power, because his loyal Spirit Monsters were too feared; not to mention, just this loyalty alone would keep the True Dragon Emperor uneasy.

So allegiance was impossible. The only option left was to corner the True Dragon Emperor.

"Actually, could it be possible that this is all a psychological tactic by Jiang Tianjun?" Qin Muye suddenly remembered that he could afford a Server Transfer Token, so certainly others could as well.

If the True Dragon Emperor really took such actions, it's highly likely that all the intimidated lords would use the Server Transfer Token to escape—there are other places to stay if this one doesn't keep them.

Qin Muye voiced his speculations, which essentially suggested that Jiang Tianjun was deliberately spreading rumors to cause other lords to become wary. If the True Dragon Emperor did anything slightly out of line, that could very well be the straw that broke the camel's back.

You don't need to think about what comes next. Resistance won't win; the only option left is to leave.

Wang Junzi and the Demon Subduing Scholar might also act, to avoid being sold out by the True Dragon Emperor and then having to run for it.

"Given the current situation, it is possible, but not very likely. A more significant possibility is that the True Dragon Emperor already had this intention and was then exploited by Jiang Tianjun, otherwise, this news would not likely have leaked."

"The True Dragon Emperor is not foolish. If he really were to make a deal with Jiang Tianjun, such secrecy wouldn't be revealed to us."

"To say that the elimination of Wang Junzi and the Demon Subduing Scholar is definitely true, so… I'm not sure."

Black Hand pondered for a moment, but in the end, he made no concrete judgment.

"Let it be then; lately, pull back all the Spirit Monsters, we might leave this server at any time. In any case, we might get caught up in this fight of gods, and we definitely can't withstand it." Qin Muye was also resigned.

The strength of the forces was still not enough, otherwise, they wouldn't be so passive.

"Yes, Master." Black Hand also knew that this was the calm before the storm. If things went wrong and exploded, their server might just cool down.

Qin Muye continued his research, but his thoughts began to diverge: 'With a 5th Rank Spirit Monster, Stone Statue Ghost Armor, and Floating City, once I have completed these three, I can arm-wrestle with a 6th Rank Lord with the strength of a 5th Rank.'

"Even without Demon Statue Level Mecha, just relying on Stone Statue Ghost Armor is enough," he thought. His Demon Statue Level Mecha wasn't ready due to lack of time and, secondly, he wanted the biological technology of the Pioneer Empire's opening beast.

As for Titan Level colossal structure, just wait for that; it will involve more interstellar technology.

This, for now, Qin Muye couldn't manage. He could only wait to delve deeper into developing the Horror Universe later.

'Oh, before upgrading my territory to Rank 5, I still have to complete the title mission, but now, upgrading to Rank 5 isn't so simple.' Qin Muye thought about the conditions for upgrading his territory's rank, which were also somewhat difficult, lacking three types of special buildings, followed by the Hero's Level.