“This battle was bound to happen sooner or later. Any thoughts, Lord Reynolds?” Billy responded with a question.
“Based on the information I have gathered so far, the military strength of Northfortia cannot be underestimated!” James Reynolds said after a brief moment of contemplation. “Moreover, in the past few days, it seems that many people from the central part have been heading to the Western Polar Domain, with a majority of them being from Northfortia. In terms of overall power, we are slightly inferior to them. If we were to engage in a full-scale conflict, it is highly likely that both sides would suffer heavy losses.”
“What are your thoughts?” Billy nodded slightly.
“Here’s what I’m thinking: Is it possible to settle the matter with Northfortia through a martial arts competition, where the losing side withdraws from the Polar Domain?” James Reynolds continued. “Just like the Global Martial Arts Competition, both sides would send a certain number of powerful individuals to participate in a life-and-death duel. This way, at least we can ensure that our comrades below won’t be affected…”
“Your idea is theoretically feasible!” Billy interrupted him. “However, in practice, it would be very difficult to execute. If we were to lose the competition, knowing Northfortia’s style, they would never simply let the matter rest and would definitely take advantage to target our comrades below. And even if we were to win the competition, don’t expect Northfortia to honor the agreement and withdraw from the Polar Domain.”
“I understand your concerns, Lord Dragon, but…” James Reynolds nodded slightly.
“It’s time we settle the old scores between Glavale and Northfortia that have accumulated over the past century.” Billy interrupted him again. “Killing just a few of their high-level fighters won’t be enough to console the souls of our comrades who died at their hands!” At this point, his tone suddenly turned grave. “All debts must be repaid with blood!”
“Understood!” Upon hearing this, James understood Billy’s intentions and no longer insisted on his own opinion.
“Don’t worry too much, Lord Reynolds.” Billy continued. “Our war with Northfortia won’t rely on numbers to win! As long as the main battlefield is not within Glavale’s territory, the impact on our comrades below will be minimal.”
James nodded in agreement.
After chatting for a while, Otis Hum briskly walked in.
“Lord Dragon, Lord Reynolds!” Otis Hum greeted them as he entered the courtyard.
“Is there something, Mr Hum?” Billy turned his head and asked.
“The guards at the city gate said that the Prime Minister of Aquilandia is outside, requesting an audience!” Otis Hum replied.
“Oh?” Billy smiled faintly. “Let him in!”
“Alright!” After Otis Hum responded, he turned and left.
After about a quarter of an hour, Otis led Caruno and several important officials from Aquilandia into the courtyard.
“Lord Dragon, forgive the intrusion!” Caruno first looked at Billy and spoke.
“No worries, Minister Caruno!” Billy gestured towards a nearby stone bench. “Conditions are limited here, please don’t mind.”
“You are too kind!” Caruno responded. “I must thank you for saving Princess Eligina’s life. To express the sincerity of Aquilandia, at the request of our ruler, I have brought some spiritual fruits and stones today. I hope you can accept them.”
After speaking, he shouted towards the entrance, “Bring them in!”
Then, several men walked in carrying six large wooden crates. Among the six crates, four were filled with high-grade spiritual stones, while the other two contained various types of spiritual fruits and some precious materials.
“Wow, quite the grand gesture!” Judge clicked his tongue in admiration.
“Aquilandia is really making an investment here!” Azure Fang retorted.
“Lord Dragon, just a small token of our appreciation. Please accept it!” Caruno continued, looking at Billy.
“Lord Reynolds, since Minister Caruno is so sincere, then let’s accept it!” Billy smiled at James Reynolds.
James nodded and turned to Caruno. “Thank you, Minister Caruno!”
“You’re very welcome!” Caruno replied with a smile.
“Is there something else on your mind, Minister Caruno?” Billy then asked.
“To be frank, I do have something I would like to discuss with you, Lord Dragon,” Caruno responded. “I wonder if you could spare some time to talk privately?”
“Of course, I also have some matters to discuss with you too.” Billy stood up and said. “Please, Minister Caruno, let’s go to the study!”
Though he had no secrets to hide from his people, James and Otis, Billy was not familiar with the people from Aquilandia, and some matters were better discussed in private.
After about an hour, Billy and Caruno walked out of the study. Then, Caruno bid farewell to Billy, James, and the others and left with his entourage. After Caruno and his group left, Billy continued to chat with James and Otis for almost an hour.
The next morning, Billy and his entourage boarded the snow carriage and headed towards the Western Polar Domain.
“Boss, are we going straight through the central part?” Stout asked as he drove the carriage. “Based on my estimation, that way we can save several hours!” he added.
“Stout, are you sure we can just enter the Central Domain without knowing anything and still have a chance to come out?” Azure Dragon gave Stout a disdainful look.
“Forget about it! Let’s go in first and figure it out later!” Stout replied earnestly. “If things don’t work out, we can always find boss’s mother and have her guide us…”
“Just focus on driving your carriage!” Ivy glared at Stout. “The Central Polar Domain is so vast, do you even know where Billy’s mother is?”
“Uh… well, that’s true!” Stout clicked his tongue.
“The central part is not that simple,” Amber spoke up. “It is said that many areas there are privately controlled by experts at the late-stage Saint realm and above. If outsiders trespass without permission, they are in constant danger of losing their lives.”
“Really? They think they can treat the Polar Domain as their home?” Soul Chaser chimed in.
“In the world of martial artists, the strong rule. If you have enough strength, you can even treat the entire Polar Domain as your home.” Amber chuckled.
“That’s true!” Soul Chaser grinned in response.
Under normal circumstances, it would take about thirty hours to travel from the city of Glavale to Westbridge City. However, Billy and his group were not in a rush and made frequent stops along the way, exploring every public city they passed through. As a result, it took them nearly fifty to sixty hours to arrive at their destination. During their journey, they encountered seven or eight waves of fierce beast attacks. However, the strongest of them were only Ninth-tier Demonic Beasts, posing no threat to the group whatsoever.
Around six or seven in the evening, they entered Westbridge City. After sending the snow carriage to the stable, they walked into the city on foot.