Extraordinary Rise: Starting Contract with the Silver Dragon Countess

Cohen maintained an enigmatic smile, neither confirming nor denying the three tomb masters' praise, and asked in a steady voice:

"So, should I use the title from the Kingdom of Seren and call you Prince Seren, or should I follow the Black Tomb's rules and call you the Third Tomb Master?"

The three tomb owners also replied with smiles:

"It's just a code name, nothing more than a disguise for one's identity. You can call me whatever you want."

The three tomb owners wore complex expressions, a mixture of reminiscence and indescribable emotions, and shook their heads slightly.

“Cohen, actually I started paying attention to you much earlier than you think.”

Cohen's eyebrows twitched slightly, a hint of surprise in his eyes, and he asked:

"What the Third Tomb Master said surprised me quite a bit."

The three tomb owners' gazes grew increasingly profound as they spoke slowly:
"Back then, you weren't called Cohen Corleone. The title you used when you first appeared in the Florence Arena was Lord of Shadows!"
Your debut was unstoppable, achieving a ten-game winning streak.

Your sharp and unpredictable fighting style was in stark contrast to your then-only first-tier transcendent level.

Almost on the very night you achieved your tenth consecutive victory, Black Tomb's branch in the Northwest region received a high-priced assassination commission from an anonymous employer.

The target is you, 'Lord of Shadows'.

He paused slightly, observing Cohen's reaction, and continued in that unhurried tone:

Although I wasn't directly in charge of the specific affairs of the Northwest region at the time, I was one of the core high-ranking members of the Black Tomb and had been infiltrating the Kingdom of Serene for a long time.

Therefore, the head of the Northwest branch, 'The Corpse Master,' would regularly send me a copy of important intelligence summaries.

It was through that briefing that I first became aware of your existence.

The sudden emergence of a genius in the otherwise unremarkable Effie who could easily fight opponents of higher levels successfully piqued my interest.

You may not know this, but since then, I have personally attended every single one of your public gladiatorial matches in Florence.

What shocked me even more was your next move.

You actually managed to summon a god while you were still at the Bronze rank, just as you entered the extraordinary system, and you were even able to communicate with the God of War on equal terms.

From that moment on, I secretly began investigating you!

The third tomb owner spoke those last words very softly.

It was like a heavy hammer striking the invisible air, bringing an indescribable sense of oppression.

It was as if he was telling Cohen, "I have already seen your growth trajectory all along!"

Cohen's pupils contracted slightly. Although he maintained a calm expression on his face, a cold sweat broke out on his back.

A wave of fear washed over me.

He had just begun his journey when he was closely watched by a terrifying being at the Saint level. He had probably unknowingly teetered on the brink of life and death countless times.

He said slowly:
"In that case, the Third Tomb Master must be very regretful that he didn't kill me back then."

Upon hearing this, the third tomb owner slowly shook his head, a complex and unfathomable expression in his eyes:

"On the contrary, I did not approve of taking action against you from the very beginning when I received the assassination commission for you."

Such a young yet mysterious superhuman, and most importantly, you possess a true identity disguised as something that even someone at my level cannot fully see through.

And that terrifying, bizarre ability to escape into a sub-dimension at any time.

Before thoroughly understanding your background and circumstances, rashly attacking someone with such great secrets and unknown potential could very well bring about unforeseen disasters.

Although the Black Tomb is powerful, it never easily makes enemies of the unknown abyss.

Moreover, my primary, and only, task at the time was to completely infiltrate and take control of the Kingdom of Serene.

Why would a saint like me, who has been lying low for decades and bears a great mission, risk having my identity exposed to kill a bronze-level superhuman with an unknown background?
This is a completely unnecessary risk.

To put it bluntly, the true value of your Effie lies with your queen, until you have sufficient confidence to strip Adele of her royal status and take away Effie's divine and demonic charter.

"We at Black Tomb will never easily launch any large-scale operation within the territory of Effie."

Then, a genuine sense of emotion crept into his voice:

"But I never expected that the 'Shadow Lord' who fought in the arena back then was actually the King of Efein."

Ultimately, this will become the biggest variable in our Black Tomb's plan to seize the Charter of Gods and Demons.

To say I have no regrets would be a lie, but since it has already happened, there's no point in regretting it anymore.

Moreover, it was precisely because we chose to wait and see that we have this interesting conversation today!

Cohen's lips curled into a half-smile, and he said:
"So the Third Tomb Master has come today to make up for the regret of not being able to act in time back then?"

Against the backdrop of war and deafening battle cries, the atmosphere between the two became strangely harmonious.

They seemed to be in an invisible barrier, with the life-and-death battles around them becoming distant background noise.

However, faced with Cohen's seemingly casual question, the three tomb masters suddenly fell into an unusually long silence.

After a long pause, he slowly said:

"Your Majesty Corleone."

This time, the three tomb owners surprisingly used honorifics:
"You may not know this, but within the highest decision-making level of our Black Tomb organization, there have always been two completely opposite opinions about how to deal with you."

The first, and currently the dominant opinion, lists your Leilei's crimes.

You are the son-in-law of our Black Tomb's mortal enemy, 'Pale Wings'. You once cooperated with them to uproot our Northwest branch, which we had built up over decades, and burned it to the ground.

They have repeatedly sabotaged our crucial plans and even successfully turned core members like Mammon and Garcia, who should have been loyal to the organization, against us.

Not to mention the countless Black Tomb experts who died directly or indirectly at your hands.

This faction hates you to the core.

They believe that your very existence is a continuous trampling on the dignity of the Black Tomb.

And the "kill order" personally issued by Lord 'Tomb' targeting you provided the strongest support for this sentiment.

However, the tone of the three tomb owners then subtly changed:

"However, I myself, along with a small group of other high-ranking members of the organization who do not have a direct blood feud with you, hold a completely different view. We believe that there may be a more valuable way to deal with someone like you, rather than destroying him at all costs."

The Third Tomb Master's voice suddenly became deep and seductive, and he leaned forward slightly:

To be fair, Your Majesty Corleone, from a broader strategic perspective...

There is actually no irreconcilable fundamental conflict between us at Black Tomb and you.

Kill a few members of the Black Tomb, turn a few so-called high-ranking members against them, and even sabotage a few local plans.

These losses are insignificant compared to the unparalleled value you have demonstrated.

You are an unparalleled genius who can touch and comprehend the rules and domains at the Gold level, and you are an existence who can call upon the gods with a mortal body and have an equal dialogue with the gods.

He is the 'Child of Prophecy' chosen by the God of Prophecy, and has the youngest legendary queen on the continent as his partner.

They control an increasingly powerful army and wealth beyond measure.

The words of the three tomb owners were like reciting an epic:

"Throughout your history, you have been able to join forces with demons of the abyss and cooperate with devils of hell."

This is enough to prove that you are not the kind of pedantic person who is bound by worldly notions of right and wrong.

Your stance leans more towards pragmatism and self-interest.

Imagine if we could put aside our past grievances and join forces.

Don't even mention being just the imperial consort of the Central Empire; you would be fully qualified to be the emperor of the Central Empire.

We, the Black Tomb, can even utilize all the hidden forces within the Central Empire.

"I will remove the obstacles from the House of Nobles and purge the stubborn forces within the military, so that you may truly hold supreme power over this vast empire."

A hint of surprise flashed in Cohen's eyes. He really hadn't expected that the third tomb master of the Black Tomb would go to such lengths to set up such a deadly trap.

The real purpose was not to kill him immediately, but to try to persuade him to surrender?

What surprised him even more was that there were two such differing opinions within the Black Tomb regarding him, their "mortal enemy."

But that's normal. How could a massive organization like Black Tomb, which is rooted in the abyss and worships demon gods, be a monolithic entity?
Factional infighting and power struggles are the norm in such organizations.

The three tomb owners and the faction they represented may have genuinely believed in the possibility of "cooperation" with Cohen.

However, the three tomb owners were too presumptuous.

There are no fundamental conflicts?

How can it be?

Not to mention that behind the Black Tomb stood the seventy-two demons under King Solomon's command.

These beings from the abyss, along with Cohen's allies and the gods of the Order side, are mortal enemies from the very beginning.

Needless to say, there's that deeply buried secret that's enough to ignite the entire continent.

Once a year has passed, the memory seal that the Ice Goddess Daphne and the God of Memory Loshien placed on the main plane continent will be lifted.

Once Black Tomb learned that Adele possessed a complete divine essence, there was no room for negotiation between them.

That will be a war to the death over who will be the god.

Seeing Cohen remain silent, the third tomb master's eyes flashed with understanding. He mistakenly thought that the young king was struggling to weigh the options before a life-or-death decision.

So he continued to bewitch her:
"Your Majesty Corleone, perhaps you are not yet fully aware of the situation you are in right now."

In fact, when I received the news that you were here, I had already informed Lord Mu. At this moment, Lord Mu must have already personally gone to 'entertain' those old-timers from Cobalt Soul Academy.

Without those meddlesome old guys, who else on the entire continent could rescue you from the hands of a hundred-star Saint like me?
Moreover, this area had already been forcibly separated from the main plane by me using the 'Abyss Stripping' technique.

Here, space is locked and rules are distorted; even if you possess the power to 'summon gods,' it is absolutely impossible to establish contact with any deity.

To put it bluntly, if you still hope to continue writing your legendary life, if you still yearn to return to your prosperous capital and share wealth and glory with your stunning queen and those beautiful confidantes.

Then you only have one path left: cooperate with us!

A barely perceptible glint flashed in Cohen's eyes; the information revealed by the three tomb masters made him slightly uneasy.

The other party even notified the Tomb and personally intercepted the Cobalt Soul Academy. The Black Tomb's determination and action were indeed far beyond what ordinary people could imagine.

However, this may be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, a window to glimpse the true core strategy of the Black Tomb.

Behind the Black Tomb lies the Demon God's side. What is the Demon God's side's attitude towards the upcoming announcement of the Covenant of the Gods?

Is the invasion of the divine realm related to the demon gods? Also, besides the fifty-eight demon gods Ami who had started laying out their plans in the northwest continent long ago, and the sixty-two demon gods Valak who had laid out their plans in the "Lost Lands", what else is there?

Are there other demons or gods plotting their own schemes on the human continent?

These are all issues that urgently need to be clarified.

Although Melantha holds a high position in the Black Tomb, she is at most a mid-level member.

What they can access are mostly specific tasks at the execution level, and their knowledge of the ultimate goal and top-level design of the behemoth that is the Black Tomb remains limited.

The value of the Third Tomb Master before us, as the absolute core of the organization, is self-evident.

Especially when the other party is confident of victory and sees him as a sitting duck, his guard will be at its lowest.

Then, a perfectly timed look of hesitation appeared on Cohen's face, and his voice softened:
“Your Excellency, the blood flowing through my veins and the mission I bear have long determined my stance.”

I am the son of the gods, the chosen son of prophecy by the god of prophecy.

The grace of the gods shines upon me, and the revelation of the prophetic god guides me.

I myself was chosen as the imperial consort by the Central Empire, a vast nation that symbolizes order and justice.

From the most fundamental perspective of identity and allegiance, my Black Tomb and the forces we represent, originating from the abyss and shadows, are destined to be irreconcilable.

Just recently, I received solid intelligence.

"You Black Tomb actually planted an Abyss Demon disguised as a human officer in the Wind's Breath Kingdom's expeditionary force!" (End of Chapter)