Chapter 292 -: 291 The Summit.[3]
The conference continued for nearly four hours before a final decision was reached.
Every representative had been given the opportunity to voice their opinions, and every proposal had been examined from multiple perspectives.
Although the discussion had grown heated on more than one occasion, none present had allowed personal emotions to cloud their judgment entirely.
The conclusion that was ultimately reached was not the result of a single individual’s authority, but of countless arguments, historical records, military evaluations, and the facts gathered by the intelligence network throughout the past month.
Many among the representatives favored declaring war immediately.
To them, centuries of resentment had merely been waiting for an excuse to erupt, and the recent assassinations had provided precisely that.
Others, however, remained firmly opposed. Hatred alone was not enough to justify marching an entire civilization toward war.
Humans were not beasts to be slaughtered at will, nor were they an enemy whose destruction could be taken for granted.
Long before the Zlycon race had come into existence, humanity had already established civilizations that endured through countless eras.
According to the oldest surviving historical records, the Holy Empire, the Hayes Clan, the Velentina Clan, and the Thorne Clan possessed histories stretching back millions of years.
Their legacies had survived even the Forgotten Era itself.
Although the First Ancestor had once crippled their foundations, preventing humanity from reaching the heights it had once enjoyed, those ancient powers had never truly disappeared.
Even after suffering such devastating losses, humanity had still managed to force the Zlycons into a stalemate during the great war seven centuries ago.
That conflict had never been a true victory for the Zlycons. It had ended only because neither side possessed the strength to continue.
Seven hundred years had passed since then, and while the Zlycons had undoubtedly grown stronger, humanity had done the same.
Launching a full-scale invasion without sufficient preparation would not be courage. It would be suicide.
Fortunately, there remained one advantage that no other race possessed.
The Great Sanachi was not merely the Warmaster of the Zlycons but also the greatest diviner of their age.
Through countless divinations and careful analysis of the future, a different course of action had been proposed.
Rather than declaring war immediately, the Zlycons would first request a conference with humanity’s highest authorities.
During that conference, they would demand compensation for the deaths of their people.
Naturally, those demands would be intentionally unreasonable, far beyond what either side could realistically accept.
If humanity refused, then the Zlycons would possess a legitimate justification for war before both races and the neutral powers scattered across the world.
If, by some unlikely possibility, humanity accepted every demand without resistance, then the outcome would remain unchanged.
To the Zlycons, such submission would not be interpreted as goodwill but as weakness.
They were the children of a goddess, a race that had never believed itself equal to humanity. In their eyes, humans stood beneath them.
Whether those demands were rejected or accepted, war would eventually come. The conference would merely determine how history remembered its beginning.
That was the agreement the council had ultimately reached.
After the meeting concluded, Chakravartin and Sanachi quietly left the ceremonial hall and stepped onto the enormous stone balcony overlooking the capital.
The bustling city stretched far into the distance beneath them, its magnificent architecture standing proudly beneath a sky gradually being swallowed by thick gray clouds.
A cool wind drifted across the balcony, carrying with it the scent of approaching rain.
Neither of them spoke for several moments, simply watching the clouds slowly gather along the southern horizon.
"Is it time yet?" Chakravartin finally asked, his deep voice breaking the silence as his gaze remained fixed upon the distant sky.
Beside him, Sanachi remained motionless. His gray eyes gradually lost their focus, becoming strangely vacant as though they no longer perceived the world before them.
For several long moments, he stood completely still, his consciousness seemingly wandering somewhere beyond reality itself.
Then he blinked once, and the emptiness disappeared from his eyes as his awareness returned to the present.
"Yes," he replied calmly. "It is about time we make our move. Before disappearing, the Ancestor told us this period would eventually arrive, and every divination I have performed points toward the same conclusion.
There are still uncertainties clouding the future, more than I would prefer, but none of them alter the outcome. We can no longer delay our preparations."
He slowly turned his gaze toward the city below before continuing.
"War has already become inevitable. Once humanity realizes that he is destined to return, they will never allow his resurrection to be completed. They will attack without hesitation.
If that battle begins while he is still undergoing the trials, the consequences will be disastrous. Rather than waiting for humanity to strike first, it is better that we seize the initiative ourselves."
Having finished speaking, Sanachi quietly exhaled.
Once again, his gray eyes became distant, the pupils turning glass-like as another divination briefly unfolded before him.
"Hmm..." Chakravartin hummed softly, his expression growing increasingly thoughtful. His eyes slowly drifted toward the southern horizon before he spoke once more.
"But... is it truly necessary?" he asked after a long pause.
"Ever since I was a child, I have been taught that the greatest responsibility of every heir is to serve the Ancestor’s cause above all else. It has been engraved into our traditions for generations." He hesitated, struggling to organize his thoughts. "Still... I cannot help but wonder..."
Sanachi’s vacant eyes gradually regained their focus before settling upon the younger Patriarch.
"You are still young, Chakra," he said, his voice becoming noticeably sterner than before.
"Do not forget who our Ancestor is. He is our creator. Everything our race possesses exists because of him. As his descendants, fulfilling the duties he entrusted to us is not a choice. It is an obligation."
Chakravartin instinctively lowered his head.
Although his expression remained composed, a faint stiffness passed through his shoulders before he quietly nodded in acknowledgment.
"Good."
Sanachi allowed a brief silence to linger before releasing a slow sigh.
"I know exactly what troubles your mind. You were raised hearing only fragments of the Ancestor’s ultimate objective, and because you have lived your entire life during an era of peace, part of you believes those instructions may no longer be necessary."
His gaze slowly lifted toward the darkening heavens above. "But you have forgotten one crucial truth."
His expression remained calm, yet the words that followed carried an unmistakable chill.
"The moment the seal is broken... our existence will no longer be tolerated by him."
Another silence descended between them.
"The very first thing he will do..."
Sanachi’s gray eyes rested upon Chakravartin without the slightest trace of emotion.
"...is kill every one of us."
He allowed those words to settle before speaking one final sentence.
"So choose your words carefully before questioning the will of the Ancestor."