Thousand-Faced Dragon

Chapter 303 Commitment
Chaotic times may bring the end of the world, but they may also bring hope and benefits.

The most tragic end is not the decline following a painful war, but the silent demise.

"At least, we avoided the worst-case scenario."

Although no one explicitly predicted it, Rean had a vague sense of the kingdom's predetermined fate.

With the resurgence of the evil god, the silent demise of those who cried for help but received no response seems to be the only outcome.

Perhaps your end is tragic, perhaps your people are miserable. But what does it mean to outsiders in other countries?

If someone gazes at the ruins and sheds a couple of tears for you, if someone is willing to spend a few words recording the process of its existence, that is already considered merciful.

"In this world, it's hard enough to just take care of yourself."

Li En sighed. He didn't like this era, and perhaps no one else would either.

As an Easterner, a descendant of a former state-owned enterprise employee, and a former civil servant, he was a staunch advocate of centralized power.

However, he was not a blind worshipper of unification; on the contrary, he more rationally appreciated the high efficiency and distribution of responsibilities brought about by this centralized system.

He acknowledges that all of this is predicated on the premise that while the "central government" enjoys power, it should also fulfill its social contract of protecting the people's survival and development.

But the world isn't like that; there are always people trying to eat everything.

"It's one thing for each to fight their own battles, but every individual and every community has its own interests. This is an era destined for compromise."

The gods are powerful, the races on earth are powerful, the beasts, divine beasts, and strange creatures are powerful, the ancient races are powerful, and the outer gods and outsiders are also powerful.

This world has endured too much, and no single power can possibly absorb everything alone. A true ruler must learn to balance things and compromise, and try to keep this mess going as much as possible.

"Are half-elves trustworthy? Is your archmage teacher trustworthy?"

"It'll do, at least it's more trustworthy than the dark elves. They have no way out, they need us."

Rean is truly willing to use them because, in a sense, he has nothing left. He needs more combat power to replenish his forces and balance the pressure from the existing powers. The arrival of the archmages and half-elves will greatly ease the pressure on the front-line bases. If those damned nobles and high priests want to cause trouble, let's see if they'll beat you up.

"Uh, are dark elves reliable?" For Dania, a chosen one of the dark elf gods, to ask such a question is somewhat absurd.

But the more she came into contact with the dark elves, the more uneasy she felt. The racial differences and disparities not only existed, but were also significant and dangerous.

"Of course they're unreliable; in fact, all forces, including benevolent gods, are unreliable. But when they're in a favorable position, they can offer some assistance."

"Can't you at least comfort me and give me some peace of mind for a couple of days?"

Dania sighed; she was probably aware of the mess this situation was in.
The only reason this business can continue is because of the "national policy" proposed by Dania.

Breaking through the underground ruins benefits everyone; the constantly generated materials and wealth are feeding all the relevant factions.

Therefore, the royal family specifically had Dania lead the development of the underground ruins, and they were able to get their support. Compared to some "gray industries," the treasures of those underground ruins were more valuable.

The people of the kingdom are fighting for survival, while certain churches of benevolent gods and archmages are fighting to avoid losing this valuable resource point. Their interests may be aligned, but their fighting spirit is completely different.

Rean's words were direct: those seemingly powerful Church of the Good God, archmages, and foreign forces could be relied upon when things were going well, but they shouldn't be counted on when it came to a fight.

Even your so-called "God of the Mirror," how many gods have abandoned their worthless chosen ones?

Your glorious city and kingdom on earth are merely a pawn in His expansion plans. Once He discovers that the risks outweigh the rewards, He will naturally cut his losses and move on.

"The bigger the waves, the better for catching fish. On the bright side, it's better than before."

From the perspective of Queen Dania, if she had sufficient capital, real power, and military support, she would naturally control, even exclude, suppress, and eliminate emerging forces within the country.

To date, she has only gained the support of the city lord, a powerful noble relative, and possesses the city's Radiant Guard and city guards. But these forces are not even the strongest in the country.

If we were to assign a percentage to the power of the entire Radiant City, Dania would likely have direct control over less than 10% of it.

Given the presence of numerous powerful forces within the country, and since it is destined that he cannot become the sole "king," allowing more forces to emerge and form a balance with the existing nobles and church would actually give him greater influence.

The right to speak can further incentivize other forces to fight for the survival of the kingdom.

"Perhaps a church of a new god will join that church, which would be credible."

After thinking for a moment, Rean decided to let Dania give him some advice. "Wait?! A new god? Now? Here?! Why? Isn't it worth it? Can a god really be raised in this awful place?"

The girl was terrified by this sudden news.

She was a little confused. How could there be a god? And a new god at that?
This is no simple matter. Given my mess, are there any other deities willing to get involved?

"Explain yourself!!"

Suddenly, Dania panicked.

The direct intervention of the gods is similar to the Mirror Woman's investment in Dania, which is not the same as the Church of the Good Gods, which has simply given up.

The intervention of a god-like being can be seen as an investment, and the return on investment is what matters.

"Don't worry, it's the resurgence of an ancient god. It should be the god of drama and joy, a benevolent god from thousands of years ago."

An ancient god's resurgence? Right now? What a coincidence! If the person before her weren't the reincarnation of her father, a strange being constantly reincarnating, Dania would have questioned his allegiance, wondering if he was a pawn sent by some ancient god to cause trouble.
"Wait... He's also a reincarnation?" Dania suddenly realized.

When Dania received the information from her mother, she was shocked. Especially when she learned that in history, she probably had countless brothers and sisters, and might even have a so-called "Dragonborn race".

But when she recalled Suer, the familiar warmth she felt, which she could now take for granted, made her feel even more at ease.

She already knew a lot: there was Sull, there was Lex, and there was the reincarnated Rean in front of her. If she still didn't know that the so-called heroic spirits of the Hall of Heroes were likely all reincarnations of "Rean," then she would really be a bit foolish.

"He is very likely to be the next hero. If the situation is right, I will try to have him gather the past shepherds and believers, and establish a church headquarters and a paladin order in this city."

Rean also admitted directly that at this point, there was no point in hiding it anymore, and he knew that Dania was trustworthy.

The main church of God naturally gathers believers and pious people, which is completely different from the numerous dioceses of the large church.

If Rean's actions succeed, they will definitely affect the entire city, so it is only natural to inform Dania in advance.

If the situation doesn't allow it, we can make adjustments later. But Rean estimated that she wouldn't refuse, because in this environment, she herself didn't really want to lean towards the dark elf gods.

She is different from the real voters; she can voluntarily step down. Therefore, it might be a good thing if another church intervenes and balances the situation to some extent.

Upon hearing this, Dania fell into deep thought; she needed to consider the whole picture.
"A new father? Cough cough cough! I mean, a new heroic spirit?"

"Ah, yes, yes, the new heroic spirit is right!" Rean nodded hurriedly, but his expression towards Dania showed more sympathy.

It seems this child is quite ill and really needs treatment.

Touching her chin, the girl fell into deep thought. The resurrection of a god, even if it is brief and incomplete, can still change so many things.

A place where a deity is resurrected will naturally attract its devout followers and remnants. Perhaps I need to investigate the details of that deity before making any further decisions.

"What kind of person is he?"

But in the end, the girl still asked the question after some hesitation.

The new father, a new spirit, is actually a deity. Just what kind of person is he?

Will he be a good person? The differences between Rean, Lex, and Sull are too great to be counted. If the guess is correct, and Kuku is also included in the sample, then no one can know what kind of person the new Heroic Spirit is.

Even benevolent gods don't necessarily do good deeds; a god known as a god of joy can bring endless tragedy.

"Him? Isn't this him?"

Rean toyed with the chess piece in his hand, tossed it up casually, and caught it.

He personally placed the indistinct chess piece in front of the mirror.

"A self-destructing man?! Wait, you're saying he's a god?!" They even use code names to refer to the chess pieces; it seems Dania has played this game quite a bit.

"He wouldn't blow up the entire Radiant City, would he?" This doubt seemed perfectly reasonable.

"That's an overblown association! Be careful he doesn't sue you for defamation! This is a deity incarnate on earth; at least show some respect!"

"Respect? Pan-Continental, they self-destruct tens of thousands of times a day, what respect are we talking about?"

(End of this chapter)