Chapter 293: Change of Node
“My dear Su Nan, you’ve been quite leisurely lately, haven't you?”
After the customary greetings, a hint of resentment crept into Gavin's tone as he spoke.
Su Nan smiled faintly and replied, “Leisurely is hardly the right word. The three new planes I recently acquired require a great deal of attention, and everyone in the Star Alliance has been extremely busy these days.”
“…”
Such a statement, tinged with irony, made the corners of Gavin's mouth twitch, causing his expression to grow even more sullen.
The Thousand Headed Bird faction had been fighting tooth and nail against Black Suo Tower, suffering considerable losses without managing to seize even a single plane.
In contrast, the Star Alliance had devoured three planes in one fell swoop, significantly expanding their territory as if they had just indulged in a great feast. It was hard not to feel envious!
In comparison, the Thousand Headed Bird felt particularly aggrieved.
With a sigh, Gavin got straight to the point.
Upon the mention of serious matters, Su Nan's smile vanished, and he said in a serious tone, “The Star Alliance is willing to ally with Thousand Headed Bird to confront Black Suo Tower, but the arrangement remains the same as before—each side will target different planes.”
“No problem!” Gavin agreed without hesitation.
Armies from different factions, lacking coordinated training, would only hamper efficiency if they mixed together in battle. It was far better to approach each plane separately; this would be more effective.
Both sides understood this, and there was no need for further discussion on the matter.
The real issue that required agreement was what came next.
“Which planes will the Star Alliance take responsibility for?” Gavin asked solemnly.
Among the nineteen remaining planes of Black Suo Tower, some were rich in resources, while others were barren.
Some were dominated by human races, while others were held by non-human civilizations.
The value disparity among the different planes was vast.
Both the Star Alliance and Thousand Headed Bird aimed to primarily target the more valuable planes.
Su Nan waved his hand, and nineteen three-dimensional holographic models materialized in midair.
Gavin’s gaze fell upon them, his eyes narrowing slightly.
These three-dimensional models depicted portions of the terrain and environment of the nineteen planes belonging to Black Suo Tower.
It was evident that the Star Alliance had done their homework in advance; it was no longer going to be easy for him to deceive them.
"Of these nineteen planes, three are dominated by humans, six are considered resource-rich, and only the headquarters' Dark Dragon Plane possesses both qualities," Su Nan explained.
"Forget about the Dark Dragon Plane. I want the other two: the Taino Plane and the Purple Moon Plane," he declared.
As the location of the main camp of the Black Suo Tower, the defenses of the Dark Dragon Plane were extremely strong—beyond what the Star Alliance could even contemplate. Thus, Su Nan decisively excluded it from consideration.
The Taino Plane was one of the two primarily inhabited by humans.
At the same time, it was also abundant in resources, practically a second Starlight Continent—a Starlight Continent before it was ravaged by the Elemental Desert two thousand years ago.
The Purple Moon Plane was another of the five resource-rich planes, apart from the Dark Dragon Plane.
It was worth mentioning that the Purple Moon Plane had no developed intelligent civilizations; it was inhabited solely by various Exotic Beasts, existing in a primitive state.
However, the Purple Moon Plane was home to countless rare Magic Plants, with vast natural gardens filled with single-Magic Plant flowers, equivalent to an exceptionally rich Large Magic Plant Garden.
Furthermore, the environment of the Purple Moon Plane was highly conducive to cultivating Magic Plants.
As far as Su Nan knew, the Black Suo Tower had established many plantations on the Purple Moon Plane.
If they could take this plane, the Star Alliance could essentially achieve self-sufficiency in potion materials, enabling them to cultivate more Magic Pattern Knights and Wizard Apprentices.
After hearing Su Nan's words, Gavin hesitated. After a moment of frowning contemplation, he said, "That's fine, but the Star Alliance will need to take responsibility for two additional planes."
"Which two?" Su Nan inquired.
"The Baikal Plane and the Barton Plane."
Su Nan pondered for a few seconds before nodding in agreement.
"Alright."
Unlike the Purple Moon Plane and the Taino Plane, the Baikal Plane and the Barton Plane had neither human inhabitants nor were they resource-rich.
Moreover, the combat power of the Indigenous Races on the two planes was formidable—hard challenges to overcome.
Su Nan had already anticipated Gavin's demands.
It was clear that the Thousand Headed Bird wouldn’t allow the Star Alliance to reap the benefits without taking on their share of the responsibility. While they granted the Star Alliance two high-value planes, they would undoubtedly ensure that the Star Alliance would bear even more pressure in return.
Having the Star Alliance attack Baikal Plane and Barton Plane—two relatively low-value planes—would effectively tie down a portion of the Black Suo Tower's forces.
This strategy would reduce the number of planes that the Thousand Headed Bird had to face to just fifteen, significantly alleviating their burden.
Although they had lost two high-value planes, the Purple Moon Plane and Taino Plane, the overall benefits outweighed the drawbacks.
After all, the Thousand Headed Bird may not have been able to capture the Purple Moon Plane and Taino Plane initially. They were not theirs to begin with, so what was there to lose?
"Happy cooperation!"
"Happy cooperation!"
Once the agreement was reached, Gavin quickly departed from Ulan City.
As the leader of the Thousand Headed Bird, he had many decisions to make and couldn’t stay away for too long.
"With four more planes freed up, the Thousand Headed Bird should intensify their attacks next," he had concluded.
After Gavin left, Lize entered the study.
She had overheard the entire conversation.
Su Nan smiled. "Isn’t this even better? With the Thousand Headed Bird on the front lines, our pressure will be reduced."
To the Black Suo Tower, regardless of the Star Alliance's past achievements, their threat was not as significant as that of the Thousand Headed Bird.
The disparity in strength was evident. The overall strength of the Thousand Headed Bird surpassed that of the Star Alliance.
Once the Black Suo Tower focused its energy on confronting the Star Alliance, the Thousand Headed Bird could seize the opportunity to strike, resulting in losses that would likely exceed just three planes.
Unless the Star Alliance could launch rapid attacks, defeating the four planes of Ziyue and Tainuo in a short time, the Black Suo Tower might reconsider their primary target for attack.
In truth, while the Star Alliance helped the Thousand Headed Bird alleviate some pressure, the Thousand Headed Bird had also taken on most of the pressure for the Star Alliance.
The essence of their cooperation was mutual benefit.
"What do we do next?" Lize inquired.
Su Nan pondered for a moment and said, "We continue as before, focusing on attacking Purple Moon Plane and Taino Plane while using the other two planes as diversions."
With three new planes in hand, the Star Alliance had already feasted enough. Now capable of advancing or retreating, it could fully exploit low-intensity warfare as a catalyst for gradual development, making steady progress.
Once sufficient strength was accumulated, it could erupt suddenly, engulfing those four planes in one gulp.
By that time, the conflict between Black Suo Tower and the Thousand Headed Bird would likely have escalated to its peak, leaving them with little capacity to address the Star Alliance.
During this period, command of the war could be delegated to others, allowing Su Nan to concentrate on his cultivation and strive to break through to Level 3 Crystallization as soon as possible.
In the year 2320 of the Starlight Calendar, the Star Alliance simultaneously launched military assaults on the Taino Plane, Purple Moon Plane, Baikal Plane, and Barton Plane.
After fierce initial battles, the Star Alliance army quickly captured several forward bases, establishing a firm foothold within the four planes.
However, instead of pressing its initial victories with an aggressive offensive, the Star Alliance chose to carefully and steadily fortify the occupied territories, transporting troops and expanding outward with a slow yet cautious and stable momentum. This left the garrison forces of the four planes somewhat bewildered.
Given the Star Alliance's track record of conquering three planes previously, Black Suo Tower, though surprised and uncertain, had to take decisive measures to address the situation.
Thus, a protracted war began.
Simultaneously, the Thousand Headed Bird, having withdrawn its forces from the four planes, was able to allocate more strength to attack other planes.
Eager for results, the Thousand Headed Bird opted against a slow advance, instead launching a swift and violent offensive all at once.
The conflict between Black Suo Tower and the Thousand Headed Bird suddenly intensified.
Time flew like an arrow, the sun and moon passing like a shuttle.
As the days went by, the Wizard Civil War showed no signs of abating. Instead, it intensified and began to spread from the upper echelons of power to the lower levels, involving an increasing number of second and third-rate Wizard factions.
In the year 2343 of the Starlight Calendar, Steel Construct declared war against the Green Wild Society, with millions of Golem Puppets marching toward the Qingyuan Plane, where the latter was based.
In the year 2384 of the Starlight Calendar, the Mithril Council launched a surprise attack on the forces of White Egret Tower, resulting in the deaths of over a hundred wizards, including two Level 3 wizards. Enraged, White Egret Tower mobilized a large army to retaliate against the Mithril Council's headquarters in the Silver Subplane.
In 2400, the Thousand Headed Bird and Black Suo Tower engaged in a major battle at the Saibas Plane. The total number of troops deployed by both sides exceeded five million, comprising over a hundred wizard towers and four to five hundred War Creators.
This intense battle lasted nearly two years and ultimately ended in a pyrrhic victory for the Thousand Headed Bird. The army of Black Suo Tower was driven out of the Saibas Plane, and the Thousand Headed Bird successfully seized this resource-rich territory.
This marked the first capture of a Black Suo Tower plane by the Thousand Headed Bird in over a hundred years since the outbreak of the Wizard Civil War, officially initiating their counterattack.
In 2424 of the Starlight Calendar, two Sea King Whale True Spirit wizards were ambushed by multiple True Spirit wizards from the Flame Pattern Society, Pale Mask, and Demon Cocoon Society in the Realm of Truth. After a fierce battle, one of the two Sea King Whale True Spirit wizards was killed, while the other managed to escape.
This news sent shockwaves throughout the Wizarding World. It was the first time in nearly two thousand years that a True Spirit wizard had been ambushed outside of the God Slaying Battle.
Following this encounter, the intensity of the Wizard Civil War escalated significantly, with many wizard factions abandoning their previous reservations. Attacks became increasingly aggressive, and the conflict intensified further.
In 2487 of the Starlight Calendar, Pale Mask True Spirit wizards were ambushed by a combined force of Sky Crow, Cliff Society, and Abyss Dawn True Spirit wizards affiliated with the Wisdom Codex. Tragically, both True Spirit wizards perished in this battle.
In 2502, the Wisdom Codex dispatched five True Spirit wizards, who joined forces with the True Spirit wizards of the Thousand Headed Bird to ambush the True Spirit wizards of Black Suo Tower in the Realm of Truth. Black Suo Tower lost two of their three True Spirit wizards, and the last was injured, resulting in significant damage to their strength.
In the following decades, ambushes against the True Spirit Wizard by various Wizard Factions occurred frequently, to the extent that the True Spirit Wizard began to live in seclusion, limiting their entries into the Realm of Truth.
In the year 2533 of the Starlight Calendar, the various Wizard Factions reached an agreement to cease targeting the True Spirit Wizard. However, the True Spirit Wizard was also forbidden from participating in the war, and any violation of this agreement would result in a siege by all Wizard Factions.
In the year 2587 of the Starlight Calendar, the Thousand Headed Bird, after more than a hundred years of recuperation, suddenly launched a powerful attack, capturing the Kurhe Plane in one fell swoop.
In the year 2596 of the Starlight Calendar, the Thousand Headed Bird captured the Gaiwu Plane, expanding its occupied territory further.
However, in the same year, the Black Suo Tower feigned an attack in one direction while secretly dispatching their main forces to raid the Kurhe Plane, regaining control of it.
The two sides exchanged blows, and once again, the battle quickly descended into a stalemate.
In the year 2658 of the Starlight Calendar, the Steel Construct captured the Qingyuan Plane and annihilated the headquarters of the Green Wild Society with the famous steel Torrent of the Multiverse, killing all of the latter's high-ranking Wizard officials.
The Green Wild Society became the first Wizard Faction to be completely destroyed since the outbreak of the Wizard Civil War!
It was also the first Wizard Faction to be annihilated in nearly ten thousand years!
Though it was only a third-rate Wizard Faction without even a True Spirit Wizard, its destruction caused a significant uproar, and its impact spread to many Plane forces beyond the Wizarding World.
As a result, the intensity of the ongoing Wizard War suddenly decreased significantly.
Many Wizard Factions seemed to have been doused with cold water. They calmed down somewhat and began to reflect on the meaning of this war.
The Wizard Civil War was clearly at a turning point. Whether it would gradually come to an end or become even more intense was being closely watched by many.
In the Holy Tree Plane, headquarters of the Wisdom Codex, Ronning stared at the documents on the table, his brow furrowed and his mood somewhat gloomy.
Lacking the support of affiliated organizations, the Wisdom Codex was at a disadvantage in the battle against the Gloomy Throne.
So far, six Planes had been captured by the Gloomy Throne.
Even though the loss of six planes was minor compared to the hundreds controlled by the Wisdom Codex, it still served as a bad omen.
The Wisdom Codex could manage for now, but if the situation didn’t improve, it would ultimately face collapse.
At that point, the domino effect would rapidly exacerbate the situation for the Wisdom Codex.
They needed to plan ahead!
Returning to his senses, Ronning looked at the adjutant standing before his desk and asked in a deep voice, “Is there still no news from the Thousand-Headed Bird?”
“Not yet, sir,” the adjutant replied, shaking his head. After a brief hesitation, he added, “The Thousand-Headed Bird won the battle at the Saibas Plane, but it was a pyrrhic victory, resulting in significant losses.”
“Initially, the foundations of the Thousand-Headed Bird were weaker than those of the Black Suo Tower, and it has only just begun to recover. Although it managed to capture two planes afterward, it lost one almost immediately after. Now, the Thousand-Headed Bird and the Black Suo Tower find themselves in a stalemate, and significant gains in the short term seem unlikely.”
Ronning's face darkened slightly.
He had previously urged the Wisdom Society to take action by dispatching multiple Great Scholars and uniting numerous affiliated True Spirit Wizard organizations to ambush the True Spirit Wizards of the Black Suo Tower. This strategy was intended to create pressure on the Black Suo Tower, distracting them so that the Thousand-Headed Bird could seize the opportunity to expand its advantage.
However, the Thousand-Headed Bird had failed to capitalize on this hard-earned opportunity, which was truly disappointing.
Ronning had hoped the Thousand-Headed Bird would swiftly resolve the Black Suo Tower issue, allowing them to free up resources to support the Wisdom Codex, but now that plan seemed impossible to realize.
After a long silence, Ronning suddenly asked, “What about the Star Alliance? I haven't heard much about it lately?”
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