Chapter 217 - 177: Xiaoyue Saw Nothing
Shen Zechuan sighed.
"We have gathered some intelligence... I’ll let Alliance Leader Luo Sen explain the specifics."
With that, he looked across the table at Luo Sen, who was tapping his fingers impatiently.
Luo Sen took a deep breath and stood up.
For once, he wasn’t smiling.
"All of you, please look at the main screen."
As Luo Sen walked over to the projector, a global map of Blue Star appeared on the screen. Black markers indicated the invasion points of the Abyssal Exotic Beasts.
Five years ago, there were a total of 132 markers. 125 of them were within the Purity Abyss Alliance’s territory—which aligns with their responsibilities.
In the last year, however, the number of markers has surged to 1,142, with only 593 appearing within the Purity Abyss Alliance’s domain.
The expressions of the other Alliance Leaders grew grim. This meant the surprise attacks from the Abyssal Exotic Beasts were becoming harder and harder to defend against.
You Gu, however, looked grimly confused. "How are you able to control the Purity Abyss Alliance’s equipment..."
"That’s not important."
Luo Sen flashed a grin, revealing blood-red teeth.
Then his expression turned serious again.
"I’m sure you all remember the recent anomalies in the Secret Realms. Just this afternoon, we detected Abyssal Energy fluctuations in the Secret Realm of the Land of Flash Gold. My alliance has since sealed it off as an emergency measure."
"We don’t know how this Abyssal Energy is getting into the Secret Realms. But whether it’s the constant contamination of these realms or the increasingly frequent Abyssal Exotic Beast invasions, it all points to one thing: the Abyssals are preparing for war."
"Let me put it in perspective for you."
"We’re looking at a second Abyssal Invasion in five years at the latest, and two years at the earliest."
The Alliance Leaders broke out in an uproar.
"And that’s the optimistic estimate. It’s based on the Abyssals’ current capabilities. We have no way of knowing how they’ll evolve."
"If we extrapolate based on the current trends, the next Abyssal Invasion could happen within three months."
"Now that you understand the gravity of the situation..." Shen Zechuan took a deep breath.
Then, the Grand Alliance Leader—who had held his position for three hundred and fifty-two years—rose to his feet and swept his gaze over the other Alliance Leaders.
"Everyone, the civilization of Blue Star has reached its most perilous hour. Three months is a very short time. We cannot possibly prepare fully."
"Even so, we must rise to the challenge. It is our only choice. We are the Common Defense Alliance."
"Though Blue Star is vast, there is nowhere left for us to retreat!"
Luo Sen cracked a grin. "Don’t get ahead of yourself. I was just kidding."
"..." The corner of Shen Zechuan’s mouth twitched as he sat back down.
In the entire Common Defense Alliance, only Luo Sen dared to joke with the old man like that.
The other Alliance Leaders chuckled softly, and the oppressive atmosphere in the meeting eased a little.
"In reality, three months would have been a real possibility... if not for the Divine Strategy Alliance."
Luo Sen pulled up another long string of data. He didn’t bother explaining it in detail; it wasn’t like any of the others would understand it anyway.
He just gave them the conclusion:
"Thanks to the Divine Strategy Alliance’s technological intervention, the second Abyssal Invasion will not happen any sooner than 28 months from now."
"Alright. We’ll proceed with deployments based on a two-year timeframe."
Shen Zechuan cleared his throat.
"Over the next two years, industrial and agricultural production, Beast Taming education, Beast Taming tournaments, and so on will all have to be adjusted to prepare for the second war against the Abyssals."
"We will convene an expanded meeting with all Alliance Leaders later to decide on specific policies."
"Effective immediately, all alliances are to raise the alert level within their jurisdictions. If necessary, they are to enter a state of level-two wartime readiness!"
"Yes!"
The Alliance Leaders replied in unison.
The fate of the world rests on the shoulders of all its inhabitants. I will relay this to my people and see that my clan is prepared.
Jiuyou also gave a slight nod.
Chopper glanced over the records again. "By the way, I see Su Zhi was also involved in this recent attack?"
"Ah, yes."
You Gu nodded. "It was mainly the daughter of the Shao Alliance. Her Beast Taming Talent is well-suited for forest combat... Of course, Su Zhi bought a considerable amount of time as well."
"Good kid. To think he could even handle a Two-star Exotic Beast..."
Chopper raised an eyebrow.
The Alliance Leaders weren’t particularly shocked by Su Zhi and Shao Ya’s performance. After all, those present were used to seeing exceptional talent.
"But doesn’t it strike you all as strange? What was the Demon Abyss Claw’s motive for attacking Su Zhi?"
Chopper asked curiously. "Does Su Zhi possess some resource that would attract the Abyssals’ attention? Or was it just trying to kill him? Neither explanation makes sense... It’s like it was just there to throw its life away."
"That, I don’t know. A pity we didn’t call the Dark Alliance to this meeting. I have other business to attend to, so if you’ll excuse me!"
With a grin, Luo Sen left the meeting room.
The other Alliance Leaders didn’t react. They were used to him.
Shen Zechuan rose and looked around. "If there is nothing else, this meeting is adjourned."
"Yes!"
·
「Ten kilometers outside the Ancient Jing Forest—Huichun Alliance Hospital No. 10, Pet Beast Intensive Care Unit.」
Su Zhi paced anxiously outside the door. Yu Bao and Wu Bao stood guard nearby, equally on edge.
Just then, the door to the ICU slowly opened, and a doctor in a white lab coat emerged.
Su Zhi shot to his feet. "How is my Pet Beast?"
"Don’t worry, the surgery was a success."
The doctor patted his shoulder, letting out a clear sigh of relief as he removed his mask.
"It’s a good thing you put her in your Beast Taming Space before you came. Her condition was stable and didn’t worsen. If you’d been even a minute or two later, we might not have been able to save her."
"Whew... I’m just glad she’s okay."
Su Zhi let out a long sigh of relief.
"Woof..." Yu Bao also let out a long sigh of relief and collapsed to the floor.
"WUH! WUH!"
Wu Bao’s eyes sparkled as it looked at the doctor. It pointed to itself, then to the hospital room, its massive, Riding Lance-like horn bobbing up and down.