Chapter 292: Pushing Too Hard Isn't Good Business
Ulan Plane, Ulan City.
Under Star Alliance's management for over thirty years, this city had expanded four to five times its original size, transforming into a massive armory.
Every day, various Constructs and War Machines flowed out of Ulan City, joining the ranks of the Star Alliance's army.
A vast amount of resources continuously poured into Ulan City, fueling Star Alliance's military strength and causing it to grow steadily.
At the very center of Ulan City, the majestic Starlight Wizard Tower stood tall.
Inside the study, Su Nan sat behind his desk, reviewing reports on the army's expansion.
It had been nearly ten years since the capture of West Ge Plane.
The Star Alliance had intentionally slowed down their offensive, partly to avoid excessively provoking Black Suo Tower, fearing they might shift more focus toward the Star Alliance, and partly to allow time to develop and fully digest their two major acquisitions: Ulan Plane and West Ge Plane.
It must be said that the capture of Ulan Plane and West Ge Plane had significantly promoted the Star Alliance's growth.
Given more time, the number of Wizards would have also shown a substantial increase.
Additionally, the expansion of territory had provided the Star Alliance with more resource points, including various metals, mines, and magical plant gardens left behind by Black Suo Tower.
At the same time, the Star Alliance was artificially developing a large number of Sub Magic Stone Mines in both planes.
With a sufficient supply of resources, the Star Alliance's military power had expanded rapidly in recent years.
Just three months ago, the Star Alliance's seventh Golem Army Group was completed, and they were now in the process of establishing their eighth Army Corps.
The number of Magical Knights had also exceeded two hundred thousand, officially implementing the Legion system.
The original legion structure had been adjusted to create groups consisting of ten thousand official members and forty thousand reserve members.
Every five legions formed a Legion, totaling fifty thousand official members and two hundred thousand reserve members.
In the end, they formed four Legions in total.
The surplus reserve members were temporarily assigned to non-commissioned legions, awaiting the equipping of more Magical Constructs before being assigned to the regular forces.
Overall, the number of reserve members in the Magic Knight Order had exceeded one million!
"For the time being, we need to concentrate on increasing the production of Magic Pattern Constructs and converting as many probationary members into full members as possible," Su Nan said, glancing up at Lize, who was seated across from him.
Lize considered this for a moment. "We're already producing a significant amount of goods, and our logistics are operating at full capacity. I'm afraid we can't allocate any more resources to producing Magic Pattern Constructs in the short term. If we want to acquire more, I suggest we purchase them from external sources."
"You mean the City of All Things?" Su Nan asked, stroking his chin thoughtfully.
The external trade list of the Wisdom Codex does include Magic Pattern Constructs, but given the current war, they are also short on resources, making it unlikely they will allow the Star Alliance to purchase in large quantities.
The other Wizard Factions are out of the question.
Currently, within the entire Multiverse, there is only one City of All Things capable of selling large quantities of Magic Pattern Constructs.
Lize nodded. "I've had inquiries made, and various chambers of commerce in the City of All Things, especially the House of All Things and the Hall of Truth, have quite a stock of Magic Pattern Constructs available. We can buy from them, but the only issue will be the higher prices."
Goods in the City of All Things are already more expensive than the internal trade prices of the Wisdom Codex, and now, due to the war, prices for all sorts of materials have surged.
Buying Magic Pattern Constructs from the City of All Things would be significantly costlier than trading with the Wisdom Codex.
However, this isn't a major concern for the Star Alliance.
Su Nan waved his hand decisively. "It doesn't matter; we'll purchase from the City of All Things."
The Star Alliance is not lacking in anything else at the moment—Magic Stones are plentiful.
In a few decades, once the cultivation of the Sub Magic Stone Mines in the Ulan Plane and the West Ge Plane is complete and they begin producing large quantities of Sub Magic Stones, the reserves of Magic Stones in the Star Alliance will become even more abundant.
"You don't need to worry about the Magic Stones. Just procure the Magic Pattern Constructs and establish another Magic Pattern Knight Legion as quickly as possible."
"Understood."
Su Nan shifted his focus back to the documents in his hands.
Over the years, he had concentrated on cultivation, upgrading the Starlight Wizard Tower, and manufacturing enhanced Wizard Tower facilities. He hadn’t had the time to continue upgrading Twilight Valley, so the hatching limit of the Biological Nest remained unchanged.
More than ten years had passed, and the Black Wolf Pack, which had suffered heavy losses in the war, had now recovered to its maximum capacity.
"Twilight Wolf, however, due to its excessively long incubation period, currently numbers just over four hundred—still quite a way from the upper limit of six hundred and two.
On the other hand, the Witch Hunter Legion has finally broken through two thousand, reaching a total of two thousand two hundred and eighty-two.
Counting all the Wizard Towers built within the Star Alliance, the total number of Wizard-Level Puppets has already exceeded three thousand.
Even within a Second Rate Wizard Force, this number of Wizard-Level Puppets is considerable, significantly compensating for the relatively small number of Wizards in the Star Alliance.
"In another two or three centuries, once the population advantage of the Ulan Plane is fully realized, the number of Wizards in Star Alliance will at least double," Su Nan mused to himself.
"By then, the number of Wizards in the Star Alliance might just catch up with those in the Second Rate Wizard Forces."
In terms of War Creation, the Star Alliance currently possesses a total of fifty-six Wizard Towers.
Including the Starlight Wizard Tower, only four of these Wizard Towers were built by the Star Alliance itself; the rest were seized through war and subsequently repaired and modified.
In this regard, the Star Alliance stands out among numerous Wizard Factions.
Wars between ordinary Wizard Factions usually result in mutual losses; it is rare to see a situation like that of the Star Alliance, where the number of Wizard Towers increases with each battle, almost becoming prosperous through warfare.
In terms of the number of Wizard Towers alone, the Star Alliance has far surpassed third-rate Wizard Factions and is now comparable to some weaker Second Rate Wizard Forces.
Moreover, the Wizard Towers within the Star Alliance have all been reinforced, and their combat power, without exception, exceeds that of other Wizard Towers of the same level!
Aside from Wizard Towers, Star Fortresses and Flying Fleets are also key focuses of the Star Alliance's significant resource investment in recent years.
Currently, the Star Alliance possesses a total of one hundred and three Star Fortresses—nearly double the number before the outbreak of war.
The number of Flying Fleets has also skyrocketed to twenty-three units.
The reason Su Nan has concentrated his resource investments on these two types of War Creation is based on his own strategic considerations.
One reason is that the construction time for Star Fortresses and Flying Magic Ships is much shorter than that for Wizard Towers, allowing for a rapid increase in the combat power of War Creation within the Star Alliance."
"Another reason was to acquire more Wizard Towers.
The fact that the Star Alliance has seized so many Wizard Towers to this day is entirely due to the extremely high attrition rate of the Star Fortress and Flying Magic Ships!
In every battle, it can be said that the Star Alliance has exchanged Star Fortresses and Flying Magic Ships for Wizard Towers.
Each capture of a Wizard Tower inevitably results in the destruction of many Star Fortresses and Flying Magic Ships.
However, in Su Nan's view, this "trade" is absolutely worthwhile.
If that weren't the case, the number of Wizard Towers possessed by the Star Alliance wouldn't have grown so rapidly.
As he flipped to the last page, Su Nan's expression shifted slightly.
"One hundred and twenty-five Dragons! The numbers are increasing so quickly?"
Lize smiled faintly. "The number of high-level Sub-Dragons evolving has clearly increased in recent years. We should be entering a period of rapid growth."
Su Nan nodded thoughtfully.
The high-level Sub-Dragon Bloodline Enhancement Project has been in place for over a thousand years.
The foundation built up during this time is quite profound.
Considering the timing, it seems we are on the verge of a qualitative change resulting from quantitative accumulation.
It is expected that more high-level Sub-Dragons will evolve and break through in the future.
In a few hundred years, the Star Alliance might even be able to form a true Dragon Legion.
"In that case, we can invest more resources into Long Lin to accelerate the evolution speed of high-level Sub-Dragons," Su Nan suggested.
Lize nodded in agreement. "I was just about to propose that."
After further discussing the details of the military expansion, Su Nan set down the documents and said seriously, "The Star Alliance has rested long enough; it's time to take the next step."
"With our current strength, conquering the Man Luo Plane is no problem," Lize pondered for a moment. "The key is, what do we do after conquering the Man Luo Plane? Should we support the Thousand-Headed Bird?"
The Star Alliance's goal is definitely not limited to merely three Planes; even the conquest of the Man Luo Plane won't satisfy them.
Still, the subsequent plans should be carefully considered.
Supporting the Thousand-Headed Bird is one option, but the key question is how to allocate the benefits.
The Thousand-Headed Bird has invested a significant amount of troops and resources in the war in recent years. If the Star Alliance intervenes at this time, will the Thousand-Headed Bird be willing to cooperate?
Even if the Thousand-Headed Bird is agreeable, how should the benefits be shared?"
How much pressure must the Star Alliance bear?
These matters should be discussed between the two parties beforehand.
After a moment of contemplation, Su Nan quickly reached a decision.
"Once we take Man Luo Plane, there's no need to hasten our support for Thousand Headed Bird. Let's first assess the situation on their side."
Lize immediately understood, raising an eyebrow. "You want to wait for Thousand Headed Bird to call for help?"
Su Nan offered a knowing smile. "Being overly eager can be detrimental to our interests."
Lize wholeheartedly agreed.
In contrast to the Star Alliance, Thousand Headed Bird had remained on the defensive throughout the war with Black Suo Tower.
Although the Star Alliance had successfully captured two planes, prompting Black Suo Tower to divert some of its troops to reinforce Man Luo Plane—which indirectly alleviated some pressure on Thousand Headed Bird—the latter still exhibited signs of exhaustion as time wore on.
It was likely that, given more time, Thousand Headed Bird would have no choice but to seek assistance from the Star Alliance.
At that point, the Star Alliance, as the one being appealed to for help, would be in a stronger position to negotiate for better terms.
There was no pressure on them to comply, after all.
The original mission of the Star Alliance was to contain the three planes of Wulan, Manro, and Xige, and they had exceeded that goal. Thus, they had no obligation to assist Thousand Headed Bird.
If Thousand Headed Bird wanted their support, they would certainly need to provide adequate compensation.
Even the Wisdom Codex would have no grounds to criticize the actions of the Star Alliance.
Moreover, during this time, the Star Alliance could focus on consolidating Man Luo Plane, further enhancing their strength.
For the current Star Alliance, what they needed most was time.
With each passing day, their power would grow stronger.
As long as they had enough time, they were confident that they could eventually crush even the formidable Black Suo Tower beneath their feet.
"Send the order to prepare for our advance on Man Luo Plane."
Su Nan commanded.
After Lize turned to execute the orders, he returned to the top floor of the Wizard Tower.
During this period, he had been diligently upgrading the Starlight Wizard Tower, including enhancements to the Tower Spirit, the Mystic Lock Defense Energy Field, the Levitation Ring, the Central Crystal Energy Transmission System, and various turrets, all of which had received significant upgrades.
The current Starlight Wizard Tower had completely surpassed the capabilities of a Large Wizard Tower and stood on an entirely different level.
Even if he had to face five opponents simultaneously, including five Large Wizard Towers, Su Nan believed that victory would ultimately be his.
On the main battlefield, unless a True Spirit Wizard intervened to suppress them, the Starlight Wizard Towers were invincible war machines!
The formidable strength of the Star Alliance in War Creation could largely be attributed to the Starlight Wizard Towers.
"It's a pity that the current simplified version of the Elemental Furnace has reached its limit. The energy supply can't be upgraded any further, and enhancing the Starlight Wizard Towers to this level is also at its peak," Su Nan sighed regretfully.
To advance further, he would need to wait until he was promoted to True Spirit Wizard before he could begin constructing the Floating City.
In the year 2309 of the Starlight Calendar, the Star Alliance launched a full-scale attack on the Man Luo Plane.
In just three days, the Star Alliance army broke through the blockade set by the Manro garrison surrounding their base. Like ants, they surged out in all directions, initiating a rapid campaign of conquest.
The dominant race of the Man Luo Plane consisted of various giants, but their population was sparse.
Only about a million of them were capable of fighting.
Although their individual strength was impressive, they were gradually worn down by the overwhelming numbers of the Star Alliance forces.
The Golem Legion and War Creation stationed on the Man Luo Plane by the Black Suo Tower were significantly weaker in combat power compared to the Star Alliance.
After several direct clashes with the Star Alliance, the Golem Legion and War Creation of the Black Suo Tower suffered heavy losses, while the Star Alliance managed to capture seven more Wizard Towers.
In the year 2313 of the Starlight Calendar, the Star Alliance conquered the Golden Giant Tribe Lair, known as the Giant Royalty, successfully dismantling the giant forces of the Man Luo Plane.
During this process, the Manro garrison of the Black Suo Tower appeared to have vanished, never showing up from beginning to end.
By the year 2316 of the Starlight Calendar, the Star Alliance had completely occupied the Man Luo Plane, bringing it under its control.
With this, the Star Alliance achieved a resounding victory!
The news spread quickly, creating quite a stir in the Wizarding World.
The Wizard Civil War erupted less than fifty years ago, and the Star Alliance successively conquered three planes, more than doubling its territory. What’s more, they seized territory from the formidable Black Suo Tower, demonstrating extraordinary courage and strength.
After conquering Man Luo Plane, the Star Alliance altered its previously aggressive stance. Rather than attacking other territories of Black Suo Tower, it focused on managing the three planes it had already acquired, disappointing many who had hoped to see Black Suo Tower embarrass itself.
In contrast, the situation for the Thousand Headed Bird grew increasingly dire.
Realizing it could not halt the Star Alliance's advance, Black Suo Tower decisively abandoned Man Luo Plane to preserve its valuable forces, redirecting them to the battlefield against the Thousand Headed Bird.
As a result, the pressure on the Thousand Headed Bird intensified rather than subsided.
Especially after the Star Alliance paused its offensive to consolidate its gains, Black Suo Tower seemed to sense an opportunity and unhesitatingly escalated its attacks on the Thousand Headed Bird, wanting to crush or at least weaken it as much as possible.
Under these circumstances, the Thousand Headed Bird could not endure for long.
Less than three years after the Star Alliance conquered Man Luo Plane, the Thousand Headed Bird found itself facing an urgent threat at its doorstep.
Comments