The emperor's health was very likely deteriorating rapidly, and this sudden development caught both the Fourth Prince and the Eighth Prince off guard.
They both understood that if the emperor suddenly died now, the Second Prince would have a ninety percent chance of taking the throne!
Time waited for no one!
The two princes immediately forged an alliance under pressure, agreeing to support each other and join forces against their greatest threat, the Second Prince.
"Neither of us can afford to hold anything back. We need to secretly assemble a fleet near the Shattered Star Region as soon as possible and wait for our chance.
"Since you have an information channel in the Shattered Star Region, you'll closely monitor our second brother's latest movements. Once he makes his move, we can swoop in while he's busy hunting his prey!" the Fourth Prince said.
"Agreed!"
The two discussed several other details of their cooperation, focusing on curbing the expansion of the Second Prince's power and jointly suppressing his supporters.
They made a few mutually beneficial exchanges and shared some intelligence on the resources and forces at their disposal, giving their new ally a rough idea of their own strength.
As for whether either of them had concealed anything... did that even need asking?
Once they eliminated the Second Prince, they would still have to face each other in the finals. Neither was naive enough to believe the other would reveal every last trump card.
Brothers or not, they still had to fight for the throne!
After the Eighth Prince left, the Fourth Prince remained seated, repeatedly weighing the advantages and disadvantages of joining forces with him.
"Hmm... this is the best solution for now. Our second brother's advantage is too great. I can only rally every force willing to work with