A New Decision

"What method?"

Staring intently at the old man before him, the king clenched his fists and asked in a deep voice. Faced with his murderous gaze, the old man hesitated for a moment before slowly uttering two words.

"Sue for peace."

"What did you say!!"

Although the old man's voice wasn't loud, his words still caused a great uproar in the entire hall.

"Sue for peace? You mean we should sue for peace with the evil Magic Empire? What a joke! We'd rather die fighting than compromise with wolves!"

Soon, some people loudly objected, refusing to believe it was a good idea. Seek peace? To the Magic Empire? What a joke! That was a truly evil nation; seeking peace with them wouldn't represent oneself... However, others weren't so opposed, and they too had their own valid reasons.

"What's wrong with seeking peace? It's your business if you're willing to die, but don't forget to look at those civilians, those women, those children outside the window. You can take weapons and go to the battlefield to die with the enemy, but what about them? Can they? Do you want Kudel to be completely destroyed like the Federation? Not even a trace left? The current situation is very clear. We have no way to resist the invasion of the Magic Empire. Lalia is pressing us hard, completely disregarding the Magic Empire's undead legion. And the Sea-Encircled Country has already blocked our last supply line. What can we do now? What can we possibly do? Xialuo and Dideyasi are far away, they have no spare capacity to help us through this crisis. Seeking peace is the only wise choice we can make!"

"Bullshit!! You must be a spy for the Magic Empire, otherwise why would you support such an absurd suggestion! We, Kudel, are one of the nations founded by the Five Heroes! They destroyed the Magic Empire, and now we're going to hand over the nation our ancestors built to others?"

"So what if we have books? Only by surviving can we think about what comes next! If we don't survive, the Kudel bloodline will end, and what right do we have to look to the future? We have no future! Only peace is the only way."

"Enough!!!"

Just as everyone was arguing, the King of Kudel roared, and everyone immediately calmed down and fell silent again.

However, they did not lower their heads, but instead gazed at their king. At that moment, the king was gently tapping the edge of his table, his expression serious and profound. He seemed oblivious to the gazes of others, but it was clear that the king was moved.

After a long while, the king sighed softly, then turned to the old man.

"Then tell me, why do you have this idea?"

"Because we're about to die."

The old man remained unfazed by the king's question.

"Your Majesty, although I admit it's a rather foolish idea, we have no other choice." The old man gave a bitter smile, then continued, "Before today's court assembly, I took stock of our food reserves—at most, it's only enough to last us another month. Even if Your Majesty eats only one meal a day, we can only last a month and a half at most. Most of the food in the capital is already depleted, and many are living a life of intermittent hunger. In the slums, hundreds have already starved to death, and the accompanying plague is now spreading to the city center. Not only here, but other surrounding cities have also been in dire straits recently; clearly, they, like us, have run out of food."

At this point, the old man turned around and looked at the crowd before him, speaking each word clearly.

"At this rate, even if we aren't killed by those terrifying undead creatures, we'll starve to death. There's no third way."

At this point, the old man sighed self-deprecatingly.

"Although we could abandon these people and leave ourselves, though that's not the way of a ruler, at least we could leave a bloodline for Kudel. But what about now? The Sea-Encircled Country has blockaded our sea lanes. I guarantee that the moment we leave port, we'll be sunk by that terrifying behemoth floating on the sea. We have no way out, gentlemen. We must think about how to keep our people alive, instead of sending them to their deaths in vain!!"

"We can contact Lalia!"

A young general, seemingly unable to withstand the heavy atmosphere, spoke up in argument.

"After all, they are also part of the Five-Nation Alliance. Given the urgency of the situation, they should be well aware of this..."

"Out of the ordinary!!"

The old man interrupted the other person sharply.

"You're the sergeant major of the royal city garrison, aren't you? You must have attended all the court assemblies these past few days. You should know how many times His Majesty the King has sent envoys to Lalia since the Federation's destruction, and what their replies were!"

Upon hearing this, the young general froze, speechless. In fact, since the Federation's destruction, the King of Kudel had sent over a dozen envoys to Lalia, hoping they would temporarily set aside their differences and unite against their enemy out of consideration for the Five-Nation Alliance. The King of Kudel had even privately offered to cede some of his territory as an apology for his previous aggression against Lalia. However, Lalia's new Grand Duke was unmoved. Every envoy sent to Lalia returned missing limbs. And their messages were essentially the same. "Those useless undead creatures are more than enough for Lalia to handle. We don't need your weak Kudel forces. The weak deserve to die. If the undead can help me with this, that would be wonderful."

Grand Duke Lalia's attitude was clear: he would absolutely not ally with Kudel, and he seemed very confident that he could withstand those undead creatures, so he had no interest in Kudel's suggestion.

Of course, it wasn't unheard of for some to try and escape into the territory of Lalia by blending in with the refugees. However, this idea was not forgotten by others. Long before the appearance of the undead army, many border residents and nobles of Kudel had attempted to flee towards Lalia. However, without exception, they were all shot dead by the Lalia guarding the border, none escaping with their lives. So it was clear that this route was simply impassable.

The other route to Lalia is the Underground Black Road —but everyone knows that humans have no way to negotiate with the Dark Elf over the land they control. Moreover, the Dark Elf have recently been invading the territory of the Kudel as well. They simply cannot allow these Kudel to escape through the Black Road.

Kudel's geographical location is also very unfavorable. Although it seems to occupy most of the southern plains, the surrounding areas are all impassable mountains. Simply put, Kudel's territory is like being surrounded by a semi-circular mountain range, leaving only small gaps on both sides for passage. Since the Federation doesn't pose a significant threat on a daily basis, Kudel hasn't paid much attention to it. However, the situation is different in Lalia. Kudel understands that while its geographical location is relatively easy to defend, it's crucial to control key locations. Unfortunately, the gap to the north lies within Lalia's territory. Therefore, if Lalia closes its borders, it will have a significant impact on Kudel. That's why Kudel launched that war to seize this vital strategic location, but unfortunately, its plan backfired...

It can be said that Kudel has now truly reached a dead end.

Either sue for peace, or the entire nation perishes.

The Federation has been utterly destroyed, and no one knows whether they will face the same fate next.

"But..."

Others raised their doubts and concerns from other perspectives.

"Even if we were to concede that the Magic Empire agrees to our peace request, what could we possibly do? By then, other countries would likely be our enemies! We still wouldn't be able to obtain the resources we need, nor would we be able to maintain our current lifestyle! No country would want to engage in trade with a nation subservient to the Magic Empire!"

I don't think so.

The old man slowly shook his head.

"At the very least, the Sea-Encircled Country should lift their encirclement. I'm certain they've already reached an agreement with the Magic Empire. Everyone knows what kind of country the Sea-Encircled Country is—a Wildlands with no weapons or technology. And now, where did that ridiculously large sea fortress come from? Do those sea barbarians possess such skills? It's conceivable that the sea fortress is a product of the Magic Empire! And the Sea-Encircled Country has clearly paid a price to become an ally of the Magic Empire! Think about it, what does this mean? It means the Magic Empire isn't just a country that wants to destroy the world; at least for now, it's still engaging in normal, superficial diplomatic relations! Although we don't yet know exactly what the Magic Empire wants, we should always try, shouldn't we?"

Perhaps because he had spoken so much in one breath, the old man was a little out of breath. He took a few deep breaths before raising his head again.

"Choose. To die bravely in battle, or to live... even if it means selling your dignity to live."

"No need to consider it."

The king quickly spoke, announcing his decision.

"I will personally write a letter... and send it to the Magic Empire. Hopefully, those undead creatures won't harm them."

"His Majesty!!"

Upon hearing this, several generals immediately rushed out of the crowd and knelt before the king.

"You don't need to make this decision. By doing so, you are destroying the glory and history of our great ancestors. By doing so, you are also destroying the Five-Nation Alliance..."

"Don't mention the Five-Nation Alliance to me again!!"

Suddenly, the king roared and slammed his fist on the table.

"The Five-Nation Alliance is gone! The Federation is destroyed, Lalia is putting constant pressure on us. Xialuo and Dideyasi are of no use to us. What use is this Five-Nation Alliance anymore! From this day forward, Kudel is Kudel! We are no longer members of the Five-Nation Alliance. We will break away from this damned alliance and re-establish our new status!!"

The decision has been made.

At this moment, Li Lin was unaware of the decision Kudel had made. He was currently standing on the high tower of the training ground, looking down at the Undead Knights below.

As one of the Seven Ring Spirit Envoys, Miu'erkasi is one of the very few Weapon Spirit capable of controlling a large number of Magic Scholars. Whether it's Nia, Kalin, Anna, or Yi Aier, most are accustomed to one-on-one or one-on-many combat. Although they have had similar combat units before, they are mostly disorganized. For example, Nia's "Scholars of Law" are mostly used for gathering knowledge, intelligence, observation, mastery, and innovation. While there are many powerful mages among them, they are individually strong but not accustomed to group combat. Anna's "Eye of Death" is even less so; assassins are inherently solitary beings, and even when they are organized, this doesn't change anything. Kalin's elven archers, while technically a unit, mostly fight based on instinct and habit, without any special group training. As for Yi Aier —she has a bunch of technicians, more suitable for assembling Mercedes and Apple products, but not for actual combat.

Therefore, among the Seven Ring Spirit Envoys, the one possessing the strongest group combat power is none other than the sacred Sword of Judgment.

At this moment, Miu'erkasi was riding a white warhorse. With her calls and commands, the dark mass of undead knights carried out military maneuvers in perfect order, including retreating, dispersing, and regrouping. Their movements were fluid and graceful, exceptionally majestic and awe-inspiring. According to Li Lin's observation, the undead knight order led by Miu'erkasi was far more powerful than the ones she had led before.

This is understandable. Although Miu'erkasi possesses the power to manipulate knights, she previously controlled living beings. While she could make them feel her will in the shortest time, living beings are still living beings with their own independent consciousness. She couldn't command them as easily as she pleased. Undead creatures, however, are different. They no longer have their own will, so Miu'erkasi can command them however she wants. Moreover, as the only Weapon Spirit among the Seven Ring Spirit Envoys has ever led a large army, Miu'erkasi also has her own unique insights into military strategy and tactics.

As he observed, Li Lin had noticed some changes. In the current charge, Miu'erkasi had completely abandoned the unnecessary resistance and evasion, reducing them entirely and using the rest to increase attack power. After all, undead creatures don't fear death, so the tactics used by human cavalry naturally had to be modified against the undead army. This significantly increased the cavalry's firepower and allowed for more flexible charges.

What puzzled Li Lin was that although the cavalry's charge was executed according to Miu'erkasi's plan, the timing of when to draw their swords and when to slash was not. This was understandable, as Miu'erkasi couldn't control the movements with such precision. In addition, with thousands of undead creatures present, it would be too exhausting to control even when they slashed or charged.

Of course, if it were a strategy game Li Lin was playing on his computer, even if it was controlled by AI, the AI would automatically determine the attack range and then fire. However, Li Lin knew very well that these thousands of undead knights were native creatures, without implants or internal chips, so how could they possibly achieve such precision?

He had also tried to raise this issue with Miu'erkasi, who clearly already had her own opinion on it. When Miu'erkasi Li Lin asked her, she unusually looked slightly somber and spoke in a low voice.

"Perhaps their bodies still remember how to attack their enemies."

That's all.

After manipulating the knights into another charge drill, Miu'erkasi finally stopped. At her command, the Death Knights lined up neatly, but they did not leave or dismount. Instead, they stood quietly and silently in place, the crimson light in their eyes gradually fading.

"Thanks for your hard work."

Seeing Miu'erkasi walking towards him, Li Lin nodded to her.

"How is the situation? From what I've observed, they are already comparable to a powerful army."

"Indeed, Your Majesty."

Miu'erkasi nodded.

"They will indeed become the most fearsome knights on the battlefield, the most powerful troops... but, to be honest, I don't like this kind of training."

"Oh?"

Hearing this, Li Lin raised an eyebrow.

"Look at them."

As she spoke, Miu'erkasi tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear and looked at the undead legion on the field.

"They're just puppets, not humans. To be honest, I still miss the legions I used to command. Although they weren't this obedient, whenever I announced the end of training, they would laugh and jump off their horses to go drink, rest, and chat with their friends... But now, even if I give the order to disband, it's meaningless."

At this point, Miu'erkasi's expression turned somewhat somber.

"I long for that serious, intense yet enjoyable training to reappear before my eyes. I hope that after I give the order, those soldiers can leave here happily, with satisfaction and anticipation, instead of like this... cold, unresponsive puppets."

"We have no choice but to do this now; these are extraordinary times, and we must act accordingly."

Li Lin patted Miu'erkasi on the shoulder.

"This will all pass, believe me."

"Of course, Your Majesty."

Responding to Li Lin's words of comfort, Miu'erkasi nodded slightly, then bowed to Li Lin before turning to leave—but then stopped in her tracks.

Li Lin.

Nia appeared before them without their noticing, and contrary to her usual self, she had a serious expression.

What happened?

Seeing Nia's unusual expression, Li Lin immediately became serious as well.

"The urgent communication from Catherine seems to indicate a very serious problem."