Rebirth : The Alchemist's Path

"What? He said ten trillion magic crystals per life?" Upon hearing Boone's words, everyone around frowned.

Truth be told, the price wasn't actually unreasonable. After all, the twelve kings were all Ruler-level experts. Just one of them could wipe out everyone here. If money could solve the problem, it wouldn't be an issue.

But the problem was that they had to lure all twelve kings to Holy City, and that would be extremely difficult. With their strength, not to mention luring twelve kings, just surviving would be a blessing. Moreover, these twelve kings were not fools; they would definitely see through their intentions. If they failed, they were as good as dead.

"If we don't use this method, it'll be one hundred trillion per life, and we can't afford that," Ronald said, frowning.

"This Sylvus must be mad for money. If he doesn't want to help, fine, but why give us false hope and then take it away?" someone grumbled.

"Exactly, giving us hope only to make us despair again. He might as well just kill us outright."

Hearing everyone's complaints, Boone didn't dare say much. Although he was an emperor, the people in front of him were Mage Emperor-level experts, making his authority rather insignificant.

-Enjoy!

"Actually, there might be a way to lure the twelve kings to Holy City," Elena suddenly said.

Upon hearing her, everyone turned their gaze to her.

"Queen, what do you mean? Please tell us if there's anything we can do," someone asked urgently.

Elena smiled. "The undead came to Aisral Continent to conquer it and turn us all into their slaves, right? In that case, let's agree to it."

"What? Agree to them? Then why have we been maintaining this barrier with our lives? We might as well surrender now," someone shouted, and others shook their heads.

"Everyone, please don't rush. The Queen surely doesn't mean it literally," Boone said, gesturing for Elena to continue.

"This is actually a gamble. In the name of Sylvus, we will send the twelve kings a challenge. If they can defeat Sylvus, then even if we don't submit, we wouldn't be able to resist. But if Sylvus defeats the twelve kings, you know what that means, right?" Elena said with a smile.

Everyone present frowned. This was indeed a good way to lure the twelve kings to Holy City, but it was also very risky. If the twelve kings figured out their true intentions, they would still face destruction.

"Everyone, we have no other options now. The barrier could break at any moment. The worst outcome is our death and the continent's fall. We might as well take a chance," Elena said, looking at everyone.

They looked at each other, not rushing to answer, and began discussing among themselves. After more than half an hour, they finally turned back to Elena.

"Queen Elena, it seems that this is our only option now. As you said, we have no other choice but to try and gain the trust of the twelve kings," said an old man who stood up.

This old man was named Sly, a Nine-Star Mage Emperor and currently the most senior figure on the continent. His words carried significant weight.

"Lord Sly, how do we gain the trust of the twelve kings?" Elena asked curiously.

"If we're going to send a challenge, then when facing the twelve kings, we need to act disdainful and boast about Sylvus's immense power, enough to provoke them," Sly said.

"This way, they'll believe that there is a powerful figure on our continent, one even stronger than them, and that only by defeating this powerful figure can they enslave us all."

Elena nodded. They would have done this anyway, even if Sly hadn't mentioned it.

"In addition, I have a bold idea—let the undead come through!" Sly continued.

Everyone's faces changed. Let the undead come through? That was suicide!

"Are you suggesting that we make it seem like we don't care about them at all?" Boone asked, squinting.

"Exactly. They are proud as kings of the undead. If we act even prouder than they are, they will inevitably become suspicious. Then, when we issue the challenge, their pride will make it more likely they will accept," Sly said, nodding.

His words left everyone in deep thought, while Boone looked at Sly with admiration. No wonder he was a monster who had lived for over a thousand years—he was already planning ahead.

"I think this plan might work. If we do the opposite of what they expect, the undead might not dare to make a move once they come through," Boone said, nodding.

"I agree. It's only a matter of time anyway—either the undead die, or we do. There is no other outcome," Ronald added.

"The elves have no objections either, but we need to communicate with Boss Sylvus first, confirm the timing, and then assist in opening the passage for the undead," Elena said after some thought.

Seeing Boone, Ronald, and Elena all nodding in agreement, the others, though still hesitant, realized there was no other way. Dragging things out day by day wasn't helping them; it was better to resolve this sooner rather than later.

"If no one has any objections, then I will go and discuss this with Boss Sylvus. Once we settle on a date, I will inform you all. In the meantime, you can all take some rest," Boone said, and he headed back to the Polk Empire.

After Boone left, everyone looked at the trembling barrier below the Abyssal Lands and decided to leave it alone. After all, it would still take some time before it could be fully broken through. They had been channeling power into this barrier day after day and were already exhausted. Many of them simply sat on the ground and fell asleep.

In the undead realm, within the Tower of the Undead.

"What's going on? The ants of Aisral Continent seem to have stopped resisting. What are they up to?"

"Could it be that they realized they can't beat us and decided to give up?"

"Impossible. If they were that weak, they would have surrendered three thousand years ago. There must be a plot."

The twelve kings discussed, and the power they were using to open the passage naturally weakened. They simply couldn't understand why the people of Aisral Continent had stopped resisting.

At that moment, a powerful aura suddenly enveloped the Tower of the Undead. The twelve kings' expressions changed as they looked in the same direction.

"Welcome, my lord," they said in unison.

"Hmm. Once the passage between the two realms is broken, you have another task—to find someone named Sylvus," a voice echoed, and a figure appeared amidst the dark clouds. It was none other than the fallen angel, Grey.