Upon hearing the keywords " Theocracy " and " Soul Returner," Sailesi looked up as if he had been electrocuted.
The other councilors were already used to this—if the warlords and lords below didn't know who [ Nether Crossing ] was, how could they not know?
"What's wrong, [ Nether Crossing ]? Is there a problem?"
[ Crown ] heard this and came to ask in confusion.
"No... I was just a little surprised to hear about the Soul Returner."
As he said this, Sailesi looked at [ the Hard Armor ] with a questioning expression:
"Are these mercenaries... really risking their lives for us?"
[ Hard Armor ] slowly nodded:
"It sounds unbelievable, but it's true... Maybe it's because we were given a lot of funding?"
Sailesi sighed upon hearing this:
Even so, I still maintain my previous view—the use of Soul Returner must be approached with extreme caution!
[ Hard Armor ] showed no sign of impatience and nodded again in reply:
"I understand what you mean. That's why the crystal cluster restriction we jointly developed is operating smoothly. If they launch a backstab, they will die instantly."
Hearing this assurance, Sailesi finally felt relieved.
"That's good. I was just worried that these guys' defection at the last minute would affect morale..."
Seeing that [ Hard Armor Nether Crossing continued:
"In this way, it is estimated that a total of 100,000 skeleton warriors and mercenaries can be transferred away."
"However, don't have too high expectations for their combat capabilities. While ordinary soldiers are loyal, their strength is really low. Mercenaries are fierce, but they are prone to disobeying orders, and their loyalty is questionable in critical moments."
"I understand, so I will assign them suitable tasks."
Sailesi nodded. "It's just rotten fish and shrimp, isn't it?"
When he was at the Holy See, he had only a bunch of incompetent people under his command, but he still managed to survive, didn't he?
Ultimately, he's just good at using rotten fish and shrimp!
Seeing that no one objected, [ Hard Armor ] still sighed slightly and raised a question that all four former councilors present were well aware of:
"Now that everyone has made the decision, I will no longer object. However, you all need to understand that our bone resources are limited and cannot be used for multiple transfers."
"The reason everyone was so eager to get the fleet from the Graycast Corridor was for this reason. This all-or-nothing gamble has already crippled us."
"In other words, if this operation fails, a large number of soldiers may not be able to return to the Alliance homeland. I hope everyone is prepared for this."
Seeing that everyone nodded, [ Hard Armor ] then stated his second condition:
"Gentlemen, my second condition is that since so many soldiers have been withdrawn from the front lines, shouldn't the time for tightening the defensive lines be brought forward slightly?"
"Otherwise, our legion's elite troops will inevitably be exhausted, and in the end, we will only suffer losses."
"I have no objection."
[ Nether Crossing ] and [ Whale Tail ], who are far away overseas, were the first to express their opinions.
After a moment's thought, [ the Crown ] also agreed:
"Yes, after we transfer those soldiers away, we can begin to steadily shrink our defensive lines."
"Using the city ruins and large fortresses of the second level as a foundation, you can then use your legions to build a second line of defense."
"No problem."
[ Hard Armor ] nodded, and [ Divine Wings ] added:
"The second line of defense is hundreds of miles wide from the border. Once the retreat begins, I will have the ' Wing Army ' destroy all valuable fortresses and oases along the way, leaving nothing of value behind."
"I'd like to see how the Imperials will maintain their military supplies with such a long supply line."
As a tall, winged skeleton, [ Divine Wings ] revealed a sinister expression after saying these words, as if he could already see hordes of imperial troops dying of thirst and hunger.
"Okay, I have no more questions."
[ Hard Armor ] indicates that he has finished speaking.
Within minutes, the five councilors had finalized the Skeleton Alliance's strategy for the coming period.
In the following days, Sailesi's army swelled from 20,000 to 220,000.
Given the combat strength of the skeletal soldiers, if they were only fighting a defensive battle, they could indeed put up a fight against a number of Blood Corpse that outnumbered them several times over.
Although they are still outnumbered, the Skeleton Alliance can replenish its troops through battle. As long as the enemy's troops are depleted faster than their own, they can keep the battle in a stalemate!
At the same time, [ Nether Crossing ] will also receive assistance from [ Whale Tail ], a councilor.
The power of the [ Whale Tail ] was terrifying, as evidenced by the previous incident of rescuing the retreating creature from the Great Labyrinth City.
As long as the river next to the camp keeps flowing, the [ Whale Tail ] will definitely be able to play a huge role!
Just when everyone thought the discussion was coming to an end, [ Divine Wings ] suddenly spoke again, but what he said shocked everyone:
"I'll also be heading to the Demon Realm later."
"What?"
The other members of parliament were immediately surprised.
[ Divine Wings ] rarely intervenes directly in combat matters; these are usually left to [ Giant Arms ] (now [ Nether Crossing ]) and [ Hard Armor ] to handle.
Faced with everyone's questions, [ Divine Wings ] did not explain, but simply nodded:
"I have made my decision. Rosalind's Authority is very important, and only by deploying three senators can we ensure that everything goes smoothly."
"Don't worry, I'll go alone. The entire ' Wing Army ' will be temporarily handed over to [ Crown ]'s command. The scorched earth plan will proceed as scheduled."
The other four nodded solemnly upon hearing this.
Apart from Sailesi, the other four members of parliament understood what this meant.
Since the establishment of the Skeleton Alliance, there has never been a time when more than half of the councilors left the Alliance's home territory at the same time.
This puts immense pressure on [ Crown ] who remained in Sand Capital and [ Hard Armor ] who was responsible for the defense line.
If the battle in the Demon Realm cannot be resolved quickly, the Skeleton Alliance's homeland may face a collapse of its defenses, leading to the annihilation of its own nation in a single battle...
After a moment of silence, just before the communication was cut off, [ Crown ] spoke solemnly:
"For the great Alliance, for... everything in the future, let us all strive together."
After the communication ended, Sailesi let out a long sigh of relief, and another round of thoughts began to run through his mind:
He deliberately displayed characteristics that were completely different from [ Giant Arms ], but the four councilors didn't seem to care much about it.
Do they really think it doesn't matter who occupies the body, as long as they are loyal to the Alliance?
If that's the case, then what exactly is the ultimate goal of the Skeleton Alliance?
Have they themselves experienced death?
If so, are the senators who regain consciousness the same senators they were before?
Filled with doubts, Sailesi slowly rose up, floating in the air and looking down at the construction of the camp.
A large group of skeleton soldiers were piling up bones that couldn't be recycled in the center of the camp, while several of Chalco's men were inscribing runes they couldn't understand.
[ Giant Arms ]'s memories told Sailesi that this was a secret technique unique to the Skeleton Alliance. Whether it was projection or communication, it was a testament to the skeletons' deep understanding and application of Psionic Energy.
However, [ Giant Arms ]'s memory is ultimately limited. Apart from combat experience, it only has some worthless information, and it doesn't even have the memory of how to understand these runes.
This made Sailesi suspect that [ Giant Arms ] himself didn't understand these runes...
Whether they understood it or not, the skeleton magic circle was eventually set up. A large group of skeletons sang and danced around the huge magic circle, making it seem as if someone was possessed.
And it was in this eerie atmosphere that the magic circle gradually lit up.