To be fair, if it weren't for the requirement to become a skeleton to join the Skeleton Alliance, Sailesi would have had almost no negative feelings towards this faction.
The system here is very well-established, the administration is highly efficient, and the subordinates are loyal and capable—it's simply far superior to other forces!
And most importantly, the Skeleton Alliance is a true "parliamentary system," although there are only five councilors at the top, it is still a genuine parliamentary system!
Here, power was truly distributed, and the five councilors cooperated and understood each other—it was practically Sailesi's dreamland!
The former Theocracy may have been a parliamentary system, but the four or even three cardinals always had their own agendas and could not work together effectively.
Just like his own Stained Ones Project, how grand, how visionary, how self-sacrificing (the self-sacrifice of whom?)!
But Luxiusi, that old fogey, actually refused!
Luxiusi's sabotage forced him to engage in a decades-long, relentless struggle with his opponent in every corner of the Holy City and the Theocracy. And what did he ultimately gain from this charade?
He escaped death and changed his appearance, while Luxiusi died directly in the Holy City!
In the end, it was Geliwusi who bowed down and then brought out that experimental Son of God appeared out of nowhere to reap the rewards!
They're practically fruit thieves!
Whenever he thought of this, Sailesi felt a burning hatred welling up inside him.
The situation is much better now.
After becoming a member of parliament and being accepted by the remaining four, Sailesi truly experienced what it felt like to have someone cooperate with his plans instead of hindering them.
Although he knew that such privilege might not be for " Sailesi," but for " Giant Arms " or " Nether Crossing," that didn't stop him from doing things under the guise of " Nether Crossing."
This fact made Sailesi feel extremely pleased.
This may be because this "fallen cardinal" was, at heart, a person who "selectively opposed the imperial system"—if he was not the emperor, he would choose to oppose it.
Life experience has taught Sailesi that in this world, ravaged by the Demonic Tide, becoming an emperor, king, or pope is extremely difficult.
Not only do they face numerous obstacles, but one person cannot handle everything alone.
So why not form a council like the Skeleton Alliance, divide power and break down tasks, and work together to get things done?
As expected, things turned out exactly as he had predicted.
After posing their three questions, the five skeletal figures, each with distinct characteristics, began a heated discussion.
The skeletal people, who communicate using a mixture of Psionic Energy and non-psionic information, are highly efficient at transmitting messages.
Although the place appeared completely silent at the moment, the five of them were actually arguing fiercely.
The vote on the first two questions was quickly passed.
There is not much difference between Wens and Rosalind.
Since that's the case, why not choose what suits you better?
Thus, Wens was completely abandoned by everyone, and all hunting targets turned to Rosalind.
Therefore, the conclusion of the discussion on the first two questions is: fight, don't retreat.
The real point of contention among the participants was the third issue: if a fight was to be fought, then there certainly wouldn't be enough people.
How do we call in reinforcements? Whose reinforcements should we call in? And who can go to help in the battle?
The first to speak was [ Whale Tail ], and even through the projection of his half-body, it was clear that this skeleton was currently submerged in the Floating Corpse Sea:
"I can go myself, but as you know, my fighting ability will be greatly reduced once I'm out of the water."
Sailesi nodded; he had anticipated [ Whale Tail's ] possible excuses, so he had prepared a "way out" for the other party in advance:
"I specifically chose a flat location for the camp, where there is a wide river nearby."
"If you are certain you can come, I will immediately order the digging of more artificial canals, or move the camp to the riverbank."
[ Whale Tail ] was stunned upon hearing this, never expecting [ Nether Crossing ] to act so appropriately.
Although she was slightly annoyed at being tricked, [ Whale Tail ] was indeed not afraid of anyone in the water, so she nodded anyway.
"Okay, let's do both methods. The more water we have, the better my legion and I will perform."
[ Nether Crossing ] nodded, immediately gave orders to Chalco, and then said to the others:
"Now we have two congressmen joining the fight, so where are the reinforcements?"
"At its peak, a vampire legion had around one million Blood Corpse."
"But that was more than half a century ago. Now, after decades of internal strife and self-devouring, the Rosalind Lineage still has a conservative estimate of 800,000 Blood Corpse."
"Without sending reinforcements, this battle is unwinnable."
Several councilors remained silent for a moment upon hearing this, but it was [ Crown ], who was in charge of coordinating things from the center in Sand Capital, who spoke first, his tone extremely serious:
"[ Nether Crossing ], your performance has proven you to be a qualified councilor, excelling in combat, analysis, and leadership, therefore..."
"From this day forward, the '[ Giant Arms ] Legion' is officially renamed the '[ Nether Crossing ] Legion'. Command is now fully granted to Councilor [ Nether Crossing ]. Your first wave of reinforcements consists of the remaining [ Nether Crossing ] Legion troops currently stationed near Sand Capital. They consist of 80,000 elite soldiers and four Border Garrison Warlord, one of whom has even reached the High Tier."
"I arranged for them to send it immediately after the meeting."
"Does everyone have any objections to this arrangement?"
[ The Crown ] announced the end, glancing at the remaining skeletal council members.
Sailesi naturally agreed with this move, and the remaining [ Whale Tail ], [ Divine Wings ], and [ Hard Armor ] also nodded in agreement.
Then [ the Whale Tail ] spoke again:
"If that river is really as wide as you say, then I can draw half of my forty thousand troops on the shore to cross with me."
"Don't look at me like that. The harbor by the sea must be guarded; otherwise, if the battle fails, we won't be able to escape even if we want to."
Regarding the [ Whale Tail ] proposal, the remaining four people initiated another vote, and the result was unanimously passed.
The third to speak was [ Hard Armor ]. His anger had subsided somewhat; after a moment's hesitation, this councilor, who was one with the tortoise-shell-like armor, looked at [ Crown ]:
"I can allocate manpower here, but you must agree to two conditions."
"You speak, we're all listening."
[ Crown ] nodded, signaling [ Hard Armor ] to speak boldly.
"Firstly, my main focus is on defensive warfare, and I will seek an opportunity to engage in a direct confrontation with the Imperial Marshal later. Therefore, the heavy cavalry and heavy infantry under my command are of great use and cannot be allocated to you. I hope you understand."
Sailesi nodded, genuinely understanding—if it were him, he wouldn't have sent the heavily armored soldiers across the ocean either.
"Therefore, if troops are to be transferred from me, there will only be two types of soldiers: ordinary soldiers from the border sand fortresses, and... those Soul Returner mercenaries from the Theocracy."