Dragon Cypress: "Have you thought it through? How will we handle it?"
Butterfly King Nupur pondered, speaking slowly, one phrase at a time:
"We find a way to transport it back to the Bayonet Continent!"
"The Ocean Godâs Scepter is at its most formidable when placed within the ocean."
"We absolutely cannot allow a second âStone Hunt Blue Ant Kingdomâ to appear."
"Within the territory of the Wave Tree Bay United Kingdom there happens to be a stretch of semiâarid rocky wasteland. We move the Ocean Godâs Scepter to a patch of arid wasteland rich in Origin Force. That will prevent any Insect from once again using the Scepterâs Divine Might to stir up trouble, and at the same time make it convenient for everyone to comprehend Water System Ability through the Scepter."
Butterfly King Nupur spoke bluntly: "Over the past two hundred years of war, the number of Butterfly Kings our Saint Butterfly Tribe has committed to battle has never dropped below thirty, and at its peak reached sixty. We also provided a vast amount of resources, including Divine-Grade Fruit, to sponsor the war. Our Saint Butterfly Tribe came here for the Ocean Godâs Scepter; we want control over the Scepter and the right to use it."
The five Leaders repeatedly tapped their Tentacles.
These were terms that had already been agreed upon back in the era of the One Fruit Bee Queen.
Bloodvine Bee King: "Those other Great Tribes on the Zhibai Continent that supplied both resources and warriors, they didnât come to help for no reason either. Once this is done, the Wave Tree Bay United Kingdom will add two more Leader positions, increasing from the current five Leaders to seven. One seat will be permanently reserved for the Saint Butterfly Tribeâs âWhite Crystal Butterfly Kingâ; the other seat will be chosen from among the other five Great Tribes."
"In addition, on the Bayonet Continent side, the five Leader seats of the Wave Tree Bay United Kingdom will remain unchanged, and the rules will remain unchanged: the elder generation of Leaders nominate, and the Insects collectively deliberate and select."
Bee King Sedge added, "The number of Deputy Leaders will increase from seventeen to twentyâseven, with ten new seats added on the Zhibai Continent side."
Mountain Pepper Ant King said, "Dragon Cypress Ant King, you are the first Great Leader of the Wave Tree Bay United Kingdom, and also the last. After you, the seven Leaders and twentyâseven Deputy Leaders will jointly manage the Ocean Godâs Scepter."
"That is relatively reasonable..."
Dragon Cypress mused, then said, "I wonder if you feel the same way. According to my understanding of Natural God Civilization, its core principles are twofold: first, balance and diversity; second, flourishing and development."
"The war has been fought for more than three thousand years. Especially in the last hundred or two hundred years, with the appearance of the âKirin Beastâ, the entire Southern Hemisphere has been thrown into turmoil. Many Kingdoms and Tribes have had no choice but to divert more Time and Strength into preparing for war and enhancing battle power, thereby delaying development. This runs counter to the central tenets of Natural God Civilization, and it is not what normal Insects would wish for."
"Since our generation has the ability to end war and hostility, then let it come to a complete end. We should avoid, as far as possible, another continentâwide upheaval of this scale."
Dragon Cypress paused, then continued:
"My suggestion is to moderately relax the usage scope of the Ocean Godâs Scepter. Especially on the Zhibai Continent side, we should open the right to use it to more Tribes, and spread out and balance the surge in Strength brought by the Ocean Godâs Scepter as much as possible."
"Of course, this usage right definitely cannot be given away for free. Hasnât the war been short of money? Whoever wants it must purchase it with Divine-Given Origin Force Food and Divine-Grade Fruit. Open and transparent pricing: one permanent quota, three hundred million? Five hundred million? Divine-Given Origin Force Food is priced normally; Divine-Grade Fruit can be calculated at twice or thrice the Caravan acquisition price."
"For fairnessâ sake, we trace back two hundred years. In the last two hundred years, which Kingdoms or Tribes have donated resources to support the war? How much did they donate? We tally it up and ask them whether they want to purchase quotas for the younger generation of their Tribe. If they want to, we offset more against less; if they donât, then we return what they donated, principal plus interest."
"By this calculation, if we release fifty or a hundred quotas, how many resources can we recover? Twenty billion? Thirty billion?"
"Hasnât the war been short of money? If we operate like this, thereâll be no need for everyone to go grovelling around the World for donations. On the contrary, I believe that once the news is out, plenty of Insects will come begging us, currying favour with us."
"Also, the Wild God-Given Seed of the Stone Hunt Blue Ant Tribe, the Source Stone Mine on Blue Island, and the fertile landâthese are all the wealthful income of our victory in this war."
"We distribute this income together. What can be eaten, we eat; what can be taken away, we take away. Which Insects are eligible to share? Naturally, those who directly participated in the war: the Bee Clan, the Ant Clan Kingdoms, and the Insect Clan Warriors who have been actively fighting."
"You five Leaders have all been on the battlefield for more than three hundred years, havenât you? You began taking part in the war at Lord-Level, doing logistics and transport. After reaching King-Level you entered the frontâline battlefields. Itâs no exaggeration to say that more than half your lives have been spent opposing Blue Island."
"All Insects of the Wave Tree Bay United Kingdom, as well as numerous allied Kingdoms, permanent belligerent Kingdoms, and allies like the Saint Butterfly Tribe from the Zhibai Continentâeveryone fought in blood, made contributions, and paid in sacrifice. With the war won, all should enjoy the fruits of victory."
"Roughly calculated, the corresponding Ant Kings, Bee Kings, and Insect Kings probably number over a thousand, right? Therefore, the fruits of victory must be large enough, otherwise they cannot be divided evenly."
Dragon Cypressâs meaning was very clear: everyone should cash out all benefits from the destruction of Blue Island and split them up, without leaving too much behind for the Wave Tree Bay United Kingdom of the next generation.
This would balance the Strength on the continent and prevent the Wave Tree Bay United Kingdom from becoming too powerful and one day turning into the next âStone Hunt Blue Ant Kingdomâ, once again unleashing a continentâscouring, tragic war.
While balancing Strength, everyone would also receive extremely generous rewards.
It sounded like a solution that could perfectly resolve all problems.
"..."
A long silence.
In the end,
Mountain Pepper Ant King said, "Great Leader Dragon Cypress is right. The war has lasted three thousand years. Yuâe Island rises fifty metres above sea level, and forty of those metres are piled up from the corpses of our Insect Clan. For such a catastrophe to end in our generation is a blessing. Tracing back to the root, all of this was triggered by the Ocean Godâs Scepter. Since we are to end it, let it end completely."
Bee King Sedge raised his claw and said, "Seconded! We must not let our descendants repeat Blue Islandâs mistake."
Dark Maple Dragonfly King moved his Tentacles and said, "I agree with Great Leader Dragon Cypressâs decision."
Bloodvine Bee King and Azure Mica Ant King both nodded heavily, their Tentacles moving in assent.
Seeing this, Dragon Cypress said, "Very well, then itâs decided. For this matter weâll need the Flame Spider Roving Merchant to coordinate from the middle. Once the Snow Velvet Spider King arrives, we will all discuss the details together."
"Bee King Sedge, Dark Maple Dragonfly King, you two are in charge of the Allianceâs finances, correct? Later, youâll tell me the detailed records of donations over the last two hundred years."
Dragon Cypress added, "Do not spread this news here on the Bayonet Continent for now. As for the Zhibai Continent side, I will go there first and test things out, release a few quotas appropriately as a probe, and observe the reactions of the various Tribes."
"Based on the reaction of the various Tribes, we will then decide whether to sell at three hundred million, five hundred million, or even one billion. There is no need to rush to a final price. We must first figure out how many Insect Clan Warriors at most can comprehend at one time each time the Ocean Godâs Scepter is activated."
"We can collect a suitable amount of deposit as operating funds for the upcoming final Great Battle."