"Patriarch, I know my request is unreasonable. After all, if you shelter us, you could end up opposing the Four Divine Beasts Clan."
Seeing Hanjin sink into thought, Barbary grew a little anxious and continued:
"Though you certainly aren't afraid of the Four Divine Beasts Clan, you wouldn't want to make enemies of them for no reason."
"For that, I'm willing to offer up all my clan's wealth. And every member of my clan who is a Seven-Star Fiend or above, myself included, is willing to swear an oath to the Overgod to serve the Augusta Clan!"
"Oh? Patriarch Barbary, you're being too generous."
Hanjin looked at Barbary in surprise. He hadn't expected him to be so decisive, or to be willing to swear an oath to the Overgod.
No one could break an oath to the Overgod—not even a Sovereign. This was the true law of the Coiling Dragon Universe, the highest rule.
"Barbary only asks that you save my clan. From now on, I, Barbary, will serve you with all my strength."
Barbary clenched his teeth and dropped to his knees with a thud.
Asura-level experts usually knelt only when a Sovereign descended. They wouldn't even kneel outright before a Paragon.
This time, Barbary was betting everything he had—his dignity, his wealth, his future—all to secure a way for his clan to survive.
"Th-this isn't necessary. You don't have to do this."
Hanjin was taken aback. He immediately helped Barbary to his feet and began to think.
"How about this, Patriarch Barbary? Stay here for now. I'll need to discuss this with my clan."
Hanjin's mind raced as he pulled Barbary up and spoke.
"Yes, you're right. I was too anxious. I'll stay here and wait for your answer, Patriarch."
Barbary didn't remain on his knees. He got up at once. He knew that in some matters, showing your resolve was enough. He couldn't pressure Hanjin.
After Barbary left, Hanjin sat alone in the great hall, lost in thought.
His claim that he needed to discuss it with his clan was just an excuse. He had the authority to decide this himself. It would take only a word.
In great clans like theirs, the patriarch usually held considerable power. When the Chief Sovereign remained silent, the patriarch could decide nearly everything with a single word.
In the Four Divine Beasts Clan, even if the Azure Dragon Clan's elders unanimously approved something, Patriarch Gaiselesen could overturn it with a word. Only Grand Elder Gaia could try to persuade him.
When Linley fought Emmanuel to the death, Gaiselesen had also overturned the elders' decision outright. If they hadn't been in the middle of a war with the Eight Great Clans, Linley's defiance could have gotten him killed.
Such was the patriarch's absolute authority.
Of course, authority needed strength to back it up. Later, when Linley became a Paragon, even all four patriarchs together couldn't order him to do anything.
By comparison, the Four Divine Beasts Clan had four patriarchs, and the four of them had to decide matters together.
That said, Gaiselesen was the eldest in name, so he still made most of the decisions.
Truthfully, from Hanjin's personal perspective, he didn't want to take on this matter. It would bring some benefits to the clan, but the trouble it caused would outweigh them.
Over the years, the Augusta Clan and the Four Divine Beasts Clan had clashed repeatedly, but for the most part, they had kept to their own affairs.
The Augusta Clan's main power base was in the Radiant Plane, while the Four Divine Beasts Clan's was in other planes. Neither side deliberately targeted the other.
In a sense, this was an unspoken understanding between them.
It wasn't worth provoking a direct confrontation with them over Barbary.
But Hanjin remembered that several hundred million years ago, his father Augusta had summoned him in person and given him a task.
The task was to provoke a conflict with the Four Divine Beasts Clan, if possible, without leaving the Radiant Plane—but they couldn't be the ones to start it.
Ideally, the Four Divine Beasts Clan would come to pick a fight, giving them a chance to kill some of its people.
When he'd first received the order, Hanjin had been completely baffled.
Ever since their last clash, the Four Divine Beasts Clan had kept only a small number of its people in the Radiant Plane, and they never picked fights with the Augusta Clan.
Meanwhile, his clan had always operated in the Radiant Plane, and the Four Divine Beasts Clan didn't take part in the Plane War. This would be hard to accomplish.
And what was the task even for? For a time, Hanjin hadn't had the slightest idea.
Fortunately, Augusta hadn't demanded that he complete it. He'd only told him to do his best.
Hanjin had seen no opportunity over the years and had nearly forgotten about it. But today, he was tempted to give it a try.
"There are undercurrents even among the Sovereigns."
Hanjin rubbed his temples, took a deep breath, and murmured softly.
His father had never explained why he wanted this done, but Hanjin knew it had to be part of a plan targeting the Four Divine Beast Sovereigns.
Even though his father Augusta hadn't told him the reason, he could more or less guess.
His father was probably planning to make a move against the Four Divine Beast Sovereigns and kill them.
When Hanjin reached that conclusion, he was startled. Then he forced himself to put the thought out of his mind and never mentioned it to anyone.
As the most outstanding son of the Chief Sovereign of Light, he knew a little about the secrets between the Sovereigns.
He didn't know the details of the agreement among the Sovereigns, but he knew the Four Rule Sovereigns were the true rulers of this world.
Although his father, the Chief Sovereign of Light, was powerful, he was still far inferior to the Four Rule Sovereigns and had to abide by their rules.
The Chief Sovereign of Light wasn't afraid of the Four Divine Beast Sovereigns, but if he fought them without cause, he might attract the attention of the Four Rule Sovereigns.
So his father planned to exploit the conflict between the Four Divine Beasts Clan and the Augusta Clan. Ideally, they would anger Gaiselesen enough to make him come straight to the Radiant Plane. Then his father would arrange for someone to kill Gaiselesen.
The Azure Dragon Sovereign would certainly seek revenge. Then his father could step in to stop him, making a clash between the two sides inevitable.
That way, his father would have the moral high ground. The Four Divine Beasts Clan would have struck first, so no rules would have been broken.
At the same time, with the Four Divine Beast Sovereigns away from Hell, the Destruction Sovereign couldn't interfere, allowing his father to obtain a Sovereign Spark.
Having made up his mind, Hanjin decided that tomorrow he would announce Barbary's entry into the Augusta Clan as an honorary elder, with his clansmen joining as outer disciples.
Then he would publicly declare that no one was allowed to harm them. He wouldn't name the Four Divine Beasts Clan directly, but he was sure that, given its temperament, the clan wouldn't be able to let this go.
So the next day, at the Augusta Clan's assembly, Hanjin issued the patriarch's decree, announcing Barbary's appointment as an honorary elder.
True to his word, Barbary swore in front of everyone, in the name of the Overgod, that he would remain loyal to Patriarch Hanjin forever.
The news spread quickly throughout the Radiant Plane. Some well-informed great clans immediately realized that trouble was brewing.
Fifteen years later, news of Barbary reached Hell. At the Skyrite Mountains, the entire Four Divine Beasts Clan erupted in fury.
One elder after another rushed to see the patriarch, shouting that they should go to war with the Augusta Clan and fight to the death.
Even several conservative elders, known for their mild temperaments, asked the patriarch to let them fight.
The four patriarchs were at a loss. For the first time, even the normally hotheaded ones among them thought the elders were being too aggressive.
Gaiselesen and the others were usually overbearing and unquestionably hawkish themselves.
But as patriarchs, they also bore responsibility. They knew that when a truly serious matter arose, they first had to stay calm.
So they could only reassure their people, telling them not to get worked up and promising that the clan would not let the matter go. They sent them away to wait.
Some of the elders, however, were deeply dissatisfied with this answer.
In Azure Dragon Hall, Gaiselesen sat at the head of the hall, glaring angrily at the figure below.
"Bru, are you saying you won't listen to me?"
Gaiselesen's voice was low, his anger barely contained.
The one who had defied him was an elder of the clan, Bru.
Bru was one of the clan's talented young men, with a chance of becoming an Asura in the future. If he had been an ordinary elder, Gaiselesen would have thrown him out long ago.
"Patriarch, I wouldn't dare. I'm only doing this for the clan's honor."
Bru claimed he wouldn't dare, but he still answered stubbornly.
"Bru, it's not that we're afraid of the Augusta Clan. This matter is too serious. We have to be prepared."
Gaiselesen could only try to persuade him, feeling helpless.
Bru cared far too much about the clan's honor. And since he wasn't the patriarch, he couldn't understand the weight of the responsibility. He was very willful in everything he did.
"Big Brother, we're here!"
At the sound of a clear voice, Gaia entered with the other three patriarchs.
"Grand Elder. Patriarchs."
Bru didn't dare act out again and hurriedly bowed.
"Enough, Bru. You can leave. We have something to discuss."
Gaia glanced at Bru and dismissed him outright.
"Yes. I'll take my leave."
Bru replied, then quickly left Azure Dragon Hall.
"Big Brother, quite a few elders have come to see us lately. The whole clan is fired up now."
The Vermilion Bird Patriarch sat down and spoke first.
"Yes. Everyone's emotions are running high, and it's getting hard to keep them under control. If this goes on, someone might sneak off and attack them."
The Black Tortoise Clan Leader sat down on the other side and added his thoughts.
"But do we really want to fight the Augusta Clan?"
Only the White Tiger Patriarch hesitated, speaking in a low voice.
"Then let's fight! Are we supposed to be afraid of them? They dared to shelter the Barbary Clan. They clearly don't take our Four Divine Beasts Clan seriously."
The Black Tortoise Clan Leader slapped the table angrily in response.
"I never said I was afraid of them. I'm just worried there'll be too many casualties!"
The White Tiger Patriarch immediately shot back.
"Enough, you two. Stop arguing."
Seeing this, Gaiselesen barked at them and cut them off, then continued:
"The key isn't whether we're willing to go to war. It's whether the Sovereigns will be affected. Of course we're not afraid of them, but the Augusta Clan is still a Sovereign's clan. A full-scale war could cause a conflict between Sovereigns. How about I ask Father first?"
Before you continue