People in Terra, governing a bizarre little country

Is there any possibility of a counterattack?

Aurus asked.

"If the Church of the Deep Sea can easily conquer Terra, then we might as well give it a try."

Cicero made a sarcastic remark in a leisurely manner.

The Deep Sea Church doesn't have that ability. Their deity, [The Firstborn of the Sea], can indeed invoke the Great Tranquility, but the last Firstborn, [Isamara], was killed in a surprise attack by a Deep Sea Hunter. Now, a part of her remains within the body of a Deep Sea Hunter named [Skadi], awaiting awakening. As for the remaining [Firstborns], finding and instigating them will not be an easy task.

Take the [Primordial Lifeline] as an example. It is the most powerful of the [Firstborn] because it is already one with the ocean; unless the ocean evaporates, it is virtually impossible to kill. Once enraged, it causes the greatest destruction. The Great Stillness that destroyed the entire Iberian Peninsula, a land so vulnerable to attack that even now makes the nations of Terra hesitant to act against it, is its masterpiece!

But to provoke Him is tantamount to provoking the entire ocean, and the price to pay is unimaginable.

Can the Deep Sea Cultists do that?

Yes, but that would require the true core of the Deep Sea Church—the part of the Deep Sea Church in the sea—to pay a tremendous price for any chance of success.

Their deep-sea church on land doesn't have that ability.

However, facing the nations of Terra, the few sea creatures they could summon were no match for them.

Not only was he no match for them, but Cicero also felt that it might not be wise to retaliate now.

The current counter-terrorism forces are still targeting the Deep Sea Church. But while the Deep Sea Church may be destroyed, the Deep Sea faith will not disappear. As long as the Sea Heirs exist, they will always find successors.

But if we summon the Sea Heirs at this moment to launch a counterattack on land, whether we win or not is one thing; the real problem is whether it will alert the land and make the Terran nations, who currently have no time to worry about the ocean, realize that there is such a threat in the sea!

It's important to understand that before finding a new "newborn," Haisi's evolutionary capabilities are significantly reduced. It's like a bee colony without a queen; information can only circulate between certain groups, unable to be uploaded to the entire colony, thus hindering the evolution of the entire group.

At this stage, although the probability is extremely slim, it is indeed possible for Haisi to be defeated!

Hai Si is a development-type boss. As long as you honestly camp in the pit and stack Q, you will be invincible when you come out in the late game. Why do anything strange at this time?

If something really goes wrong, they can't afford to take the responsibility!

"Then what do we do next?"

Aurus asked.

“Retreat,” Amaya answered decisively.

“Let the sea creatures retreat to the ocean, Cicero, and you too, cease all activity immediately and hide, especially you, Cicero.”

Cicero nodded.

Although Amaya's words sounded like an order, he knew that Amaya was indeed thinking of him.

He had been studying the evolution of the sea creatures and their integration with humans, and had also conducted numerous experiments on himself. His current appearance was indeed not something he could easily show to others.

If you run into anti-terrorism forces outside, they'll shoot you without even asking any questions!

As for Aurus, his face was only slightly paler, but he still looked somewhat human. It was best if he chose to hide; if not, then good luck to him.

Amaya had no authority to command him; she could only offer suggestions.

"how about you?"

Oulus did not respond to Amaya's arrangements, but instead asked with great interest.

Amaya glanced at Oulus. She didn't know what he was up to, but since things had come to this point, there was no harm in telling him her plans.

"Among the existing deep-sea bishops, only my appearance has been kept secret."

"I plan to go back to Granfalo. I'll go to the counterterrorism base and gather some intelligence."

"Oh?" Aulus's squinty eyes widened slightly. "That's a military base, isn't it? How did you get in?"

Amaya was silent for a moment, her fingers tapping on the table, until Aurus stopped smiling and made a promise:

"Don't worry, I won't interfere with your plans."

She then replied:

“别9忘了，伊比4利亚还8有一艘2船，4飘在海上。”3305÷

"The reason they chose Granfalo as the location for their military base is because of the Eye of Iberia and that ship, isn't it?"

Leave slip: There's something in my eyes.

I don't know if any of you guys have experienced this, but even though your vision and eyesight are fine, when you look at things, there are those lines that are all jumbled together in front of your eyes. Sometimes they're there, and sometimes they're gone. They don't disappear when you blink.

The problem is that my eyes don't hurt or itch, which is strange. They've felt quite uncomfortable for the past two days, and I haven't found any reliable answers on Baidu's online consultation service, so after thinking about it, I made an appointment with an ophthalmologist at the hospital tomorrow morning. I'll take the day off today and avoid staying up late.

Hopefully there won't be any major problems.

Goodnight everybody.

Chapter 738 When a ship disappears into the horizon

"So, you've come here seeking help?"

In front of Carmen, Ernst asked with some curiosity.

Amaya nodded seriously.

"I think I have shown my sincerity. The Stutifaira is a treasure of Iberia and even the whole of Terra, which we all agree on."

"I have its approximate location, and I hope you can help bring this warship back to Iberia!"

"Or are you simply going to ignore this treasure?"

Ernst was speechless for a moment.

It wasn't that he was truly stumped by Amaya's questions. The woman in front of him, who claimed to be a descendant of the sailors of the Stutifaira, seemed suspicious in every way. Her crude attempt at provocation was completely ineffective against Ernst.

However, her repeated use of the word "treasure" always made Ernst feel a little guilty.

Don't talk nonsense!

Laurentina was watching from the sidelines. She had openly admitted to Ernst that she could communicate with Precys to some extent.

You came here and spread the news that "the Stutifaela is still alive," are you trying to sabotage me and the Inquisition? Ernst can't say for sure. But if that cybernetic ghost hears you repeatedly mentioning the word "treasure," you'd better think twice!

Amaya clearly couldn't possibly know this, and seeing Ernst's troubled expression, a barely perceptible smile flashed across her face before her tone became even more urgent:

"The Stutifaira is a legacy of our Iberian Golden Age, the largest warship ever built on the entire Terran continent, capable of ocean voyages! Are you really going to abandon it?"

As she spoke, she glanced at Carmen, a perfectly timed expression of disdain and apprehension on her face, but quickly pursed her lips as if in resignation, and asked:

"Even if the World Summit refuses to intervene, do you think the Iberians themselves don't care about that ship?"

That was our golden age.

After she finished speaking, she clenched her teeth, turned her head slightly to the side, her eyes revealing a sense of reluctance, and her disappointment was palpable.

Compared to the expectant expression on her face when she arrived at the entrance of the Granfalo anti-terrorism base, she truly evoked a feeling of pity and shame!

Ernst's expression darkened, and his gaze sharpened.

He glanced discreetly at Carmen, who was sitting on the side armchair.

Sure enough, a flicker of struggle crossed Carmen's face. Ernst knew that the old man's expression meant he wasn't simply persuaded; he was already thinking about how to convince him.

Seeing this, Ernst could only sigh inwardly.

When Zero taught Vina, Defiance, and Viviana, he often mentioned this concept.

There are two types of schemes: covert and overt.

Among them, overt strategies leverage the prevailing trend, while covert strategies create smaller opportunities. The former is clever, but not applicable in every situation, nor is it always feasible. The latter is insidious, but its strength lies in its numerous brilliant schemes that lay the foundation for a decisive victory. As long as it is used extensively, with each step linked to the next, the goal is ultimately achieved, and no one cares whether you are cunning or treacherous.

But most of the time, Ernst used overt strategies and rarely resorted to underhanded tactics. Not because he didn't want to, but because using underhanded tactics was too difficult.

Aside from unconventional combat capabilities, the overall strength of the Sherag nation is far inferior to that of the Terra nations. To achieve great things with minimal effort through intrigue, you need to possess the necessary resources. Just as one must borrow money without stealing, leveraging external forces becomes a convenient tactic, enabling Ernst to accomplish many things that would be difficult for him to achieve on his own.

Moreover, the biggest problem with conspiracies is that they are prone to going wrong.

The more steps a plan involves, and the more people are involved in the scheming, the easier it is for things to go wrong. Because people, once they unleash their initiative, can survive a near-death experience and even cut off a portion of the fifty great paths. Especially in the nations of Terra, where technology is often skewed and morality is often disregarded, scheming is something they are all incredibly shrewd about. If you scheme against someone and get away with it once or twice, can you really keep it a secret forever?

Ernst could not afford the consequences of his conspiracy being exposed.

Is there a way to minimize the chances of a conspiracy being exposed?

Have!

It's very simple: reduce the number of intrigues in a nested doll-like arrangement.

For example, if you want to assassinate someone, you can first arrange for a beautiful woman to approach that person's guard. After seducing the guard, you can then have the woman and the person have a chance encounter. Nothing actually needs to happen; you just need to make the guard think something has occurred. Then, you can use this incident to sow discord between the two. Finally, based on the guard's combat skills, you can decide whether to have him turn a blind eye and send an assassin to kill the person, or to have him directly stab his adoptive father with a halberd and then burn him alive.

This method is more complex, involving a honey trap and a counter-espionage plot. The overall framework is a series of interconnected schemes, and a series of unexpected events may occur along the way. For example, the guard might be very loyal, or the guard might not be interested in women, or the guard might be deliberately trying to please the assassination target by simply offering up the beautiful woman.

Then you'll lose both your wife and your army.

So, there's another, simpler option—don't worry about all that, I'll just send someone to assassinate you.

The Amayas used this method.

It's clumsy, you can tell at a glance, but it's very effective.

Just like with assassinations, the assassin I sent was the world's greatest warrior, so naturally, there was no need for any superfluous schemes. Amaya also grasped Carmen's psychology—as an old man who had lived through the Golden Age and raised the torch in the darkest hour, he couldn't possibly abandon the Stutifaela!

Carmen has lived to this age, and her heart is no longer burdened with many things, but Iberia is certainly the most important among them.

He knew very well that Amaya's self-proclaimed identity as a "descendant of sailors" was completely unreliable. She was very likely a spy sent by the Deep Sea Church. He could lock Amaya up right now and interrogate her severely, even if she probably wouldn't say anything.

But so what?

How could he not go looking for the Stutifaira?

No.

Because that is Iberia's hope.

Ernst used the same theory to persuade Carmen to accept Iberia's terminal illness and to take a gamble for Iberia's future.

That is, the summit of nations will bring hope to Iberia, even if that hope comes at a price.

The same is true for the Amayas.

The Stutifaira is no ordinary ship; it is a ship of the Golden Age, the largest, strongest, and only ship on Terra with the technology of Agor and the assistance of Breogan in its construction! It is the flagship of the Golden Fleet!

It was laden with countless treasures from Iberia, and it is said that even the captain's cabin was made of gold! Moreover, its true value lies not in the wealth itself, but in the technology left behind by the golden Iberians that was preserved on board!

Even if decades have passed, and those ancient records have been damaged by wind and rain and water vapor corrosion on the ocean, it doesn't matter.

If Iberia can find that ship, even if there is no hope of restoration technology, simply dismantling it would give Iberia hope for revival!

There's no reason why, because it contains Agor's technology and the technology of the Golden Iberia. It's the product of the first perfect fusion of land and sea civilizations!

Carmen may have disliked the Agorians, but he didn't dislike their technology. As someone from the Golden Age, he truly knew how far Iberia had developed during that era, thanks to the Agor-Iberian technological alliance!

So, despite the current tense atmosphere in Iberia, it is actually one of the most tolerant and open countries in the Terra region towards scientific research! Perhaps second only to Colombia!

Therefore, no matter what, he had to find that ship.

The only difference is whether the World Summit supports it or not, and if so, whether it's just verbal support or whether they actually go together.

Ernst glanced at Carmen again, and this time, their eyes met.

There was a clear struggle in the old man's eyes.

He definitely needs to find a boat. But whether or not Qi should let Wan Guofeng get involved is something he himself hasn't decided yet.

Ernst knew what Ernst was worried about. Without the intervention of the International Summit, Iberia alone might not be able to find it. After all, they had been searching for so many years and hadn't found anything.

But if the World Summit gets involved, and the Fool is found, will Iberia be able to get it immediately?

Carmen wasn't the only one who knew the origins of Iberia's past glory. Even if some of the leaders of the Terran kingdoms hadn't lived through that era, their advisors were no pushovers.

These people may not be intimidated by the "Agor guilt theory" that the court has been promoting for years, and may not think that anything that has been touched by Agor's technology is poisonous.

Especially Ernst, the man in front of me.

The number of Agor's female companions has been increasing over the past month!

Carmen sighed, and before she could answer, Ernst spoke first:

"Miss Amaya, is your information reliable?"

Yes, is the information reliable?

Carmen was somewhat taken aback. Perhaps it was because he was too concerned, but after decades, hearing news of the Stutifaira again made him lose his head for a moment. Without even asking where the news came from or whether it was true, he began to think about finding the ship.

Amaya's answer was decisive and fluent:

"Of course! This news came from my father! He used to be a sailor on the Stutifaira, but he got drunk that day and didn't board the ship. Luckily, the ship had a tracking device, and he planned to sneak back to his post in a small boat, but then..."

Amaya didn't finish her sentence, looking as if she was about to cry.