The Rise of the Black Plain

"That's a very generous offer..." Minos commented, smiling falsely. "From the looks of it, Prince Calvert thinks very highly of my state and the future of Gloria's faction."

"Yes, we hope that the support of Matriarch Frost's faction will be the differentiator of the faction to which we belong." That woman commented, sensing that these two were enjoying what they were hearing. "Then, if you agree to join His Highness now, we can begin preparations so that the Black Plain will already begin to receive the opportunities we have promised."

"Hmm, that only depends on your word. Even before the Soul Contracts are signed, we can already help you in many ways." The level 85 man said, showing these two how determined they were to do business locally.

"That's good to hear..." Gloria commented in a low voice as if she was thinking cautiously about the matter.

Minos asked. "But before we go through with it, answer me one thing. Do you have any relation to the Blood Triangle Pirates group? In the last few years, I have received some visits from people from that organization, but we still have unfinished business..."

Those two were aware of Minos' issues with that group and were not surprised by this.

The woman said. "Yes, we do have relations with that group, as it is one of the maritime arms of the Evergreen family, His Highness's family."

Calvert's faction was not the only one with connections to that group. Within the imperial family of that state, three factions were involved in the affairs of the Church. One was his, another was Emperor Evergreen's, and last was the group of the Emperor's grandson, son of the first and only princess of that state.

All of these factions were involved in the affairs of the Blood Triangle Pirates. However, the Emperor's faction was the one that dominated that institution.

"Oh? And what is Prince Calvert's relationship to the people who have come to my state in recent years?" Minos asked.

"None." The level 85 man replied. "His Highness knows about what happened and this organization's interest in relating to Your Majesty. But he is not behind the orders for these people to come to the Black Plain."

"And who would that be?" Gloria questioned.

'His Majesty, the emperor.' The two thought at the same time, but without answering them.

The entire imperial family and its factions would benefit from the success of the Blood Triangle Pirates. Obviously, the emperor could take better advantage, but that was not necessarily bad for his grandson or his son.

The emperor could not vie for the position to become the new Supreme Pontiff of the Church. Emperors had no such right.

Since Emperor Evergreen had no one as talented as Calvert to become his candidate, he was not supporting anyone in the contest for the leadership position in the Church.

He would prefer that this person is from his family, but whether it would be his grandson or one of his sons didn't matter to him.

As for the emperor's grandson, he was a bit stronger than Calvert, but he didn't have the same interests.

Not everyone was born with the ambition to lead!

As such, as much as there were different factions within the imperial family of that state, in this respect, they did not clash.

So the two did not answer Gloria's question.

Minos frowned and asked about something else. "What are the factions that rival Prince Calvert's?"

"Besides the groups of Your Majesty and His Highness Drogo with whom His Highness Calvert has healthy competition, there are also our real rivals within the Church. They are from the Supreme Pontiff's faction, Cardinal Quinn's group, and finally that of Cardinal Ray, who is behind the Church posts in the Flaming Empire, Rosser, Albano, Vogel, and Blackrock." That woman answered.

All these Cardinals were Spiritual Demigods, not just Spiritual Sages.

Within the Church, the Cardinals group was divided into two groups—the low-level ones, Spiritual Sages, and the high-level ones, Spiritual Demigods.

'Three groups, huh?' Minos' eyes narrowed. 'If this Calvert is being so quick to approach us, either he's the underdog in this power race, or he's the smartest and has already realized his potential if he can absorb us into his faction...

If that's the case, we're in trouble!'

"It looks like your group is racing into the leadership contest, huh?" Minos commented on this matter already known to all cultivators above level 70 within the Church.

The Supreme Pontiff was going to leave his position in a few decades, so the strongest factions of this organization were already moving to have maximum support when the time came for a new leader to ascend to the leadership position of the Church.

"That must be Prince Calvert's interest, right?" Minos questioned.

"Yes..."

"Well, if that is the case, I would like to discuss this with my wife alone for a while," Minos said. "We have just resolved some complicated issues and would like to evaluate our position better before we take a definitive stand."

"Yes, we don't even know if we will be strong enough to withstand the challenges of contending for the leadership of the Church in a few decades..." Gloria commented. "We are just Spiritual Saints now... And even if we look into the future, there is no guarantee that we will become more than low-level Spiritual Sages."

In the Spiritual Church, countless members were not part of any faction. The reason for this? Simple, these groups required powerful people, and even some level 70 people preferred not to join any of the factions.

People of that level would no longer be considered weak. But they were among the weakest within the strongest factions of the Church. Because of this, many people of this stage and even some low-level 9th-stage cultivators preferred to avoid joining these factions.

Eventually, if they became stronger, they would take a side. But until then, some preferred to remain neutral, not to gain anything of significance, but also not to lose or gain the enmity of many.

So the positioning of Gloria and Minos was not at all strange. In fact, being cautious was the norm within this institution. Hence, those two individuals were not so surprised by their words.

"It's only natural that you talk about it... After all, it may change the fate of your plans." The level 84 woman said as she got up to leave. "In any case, how much time do you need to decide? We can wait a year before we try to negotiate again."

"A year?" Minos remembered Hannah but judged that he would have no problem dealing with her and these people. "That sounds like enough to me."

Those two left Dry City without further ado, leaving to get to know this place better in the future when they returned.

Minos stood beside his wife, weighing the trouble they would have next. "Once we refuse them, we will face problems in our territory with our allies, and troublesome people will arise to test us."

"Yes, and within the Church, my superiors will be more strict with every decision of mine or news that comes to their attention." Gloria agreed with him, preparing herself psychologically for future challenges ahead of them.

"Those who are in the rain will obviously get wet!" Minos' eyes narrowed.