But she didn't know that by doing this, she had already taken the "Divine Scroll" away. Prince Yu and Prince Leland didn't accept it and insisted that Elara choose more.
Elara couldn't reveal the spatial divine artifact she had taken from the "Core Palace," so after thinking for a while, she picked the lowest-grade item from the pile, the [Shadow Cloak].
However, because "there were eleven items left, and it was an odd number that couldn't be evenly split between two people," she was once again urged by Prince Yu and Prince Leland to take the [Scaled Armor] as well.
Only then did Prince Yu and Prince Leland divide the remaining divine items.
"These divine items may be temporarily assigned to the three of us now, but in the future, if any of us need them, you may come to me to borrow them." Prince Yu picked two from the chosen items to keep with him and gave the rest to Gareth for safekeeping.
Prince Leland also put away his divine items and nodded, saying in a clear voice, "Same here. If you ever need something, just send someone to ask for it."
Elara naturally nodded as well. Meeting two smart and reliable allies in this strange world wasn't easy. "Same for me."
After dividing the most important war spoils, all three parties were very satisfied with the unexpectedly large gain.
Although the secret treasure expedition had ended, their ultimate goal to launch a northern campaign together against Salvia had not yet begun.
Now that they had divine items to protect themselves, and since Salvia and its subordinate nations had already fallen into their trap inside the treasure grounds, they were most likely still entangled with Louhanze and other forces, held back inside the Geranium Kingdom.
At this moment, the attention of Salvia and its subordinates would surely be focused on matters inside the Geranium Kingdom.
If they could seize this opportunity, strike quickly while Salvia and its allies were still caught up in internal affairs, their chances of winning would greatly increase.
Previously, they had been coordinating preparations with their home nations remotely. After these past few days of adjustments, the iron weapons that Prince Leland wanted had already been transported by Yang Yu from within Plumera's borders, completing a crucial strategic and commercial deal.
Plumera, Dahlia, and Gladiolus had all finished their preparations.
The only issue left to resolve was the mid-tier divine artifact the Divine Mirror located within the royal palace of Salvia.
Elara had already decided long ago that she would handle the matter of the Divine Mirror herself.
So after the four of them finished dividing the divine items, they stayed in the carriage to discuss the northern campaign to defeat Salvia a little longer. Then they each returned to their carriages to rest and wrote letters back to their countries to continue coordinating preparations in secret.
By the afternoon of the next day, after finishing letters to Mathias, Yang Yu, and General Qi, the System in Elara's mind suddenly spoke:
[Master! The hostility points from the Shadow Temple toward you have suddenly increased by ninety points!]
Elara paused and opened the [National Relations Panel]. Sure enough, in the second interface, a new entry appeared showing negative affection from the Shadow Temple.
Elara frowned slightly.
Changes in the [National Relations Panel] required the opposing side to clearly know her identity before they could generate feelings of liking or hatred toward her as the Empress of Plumera.
But on this journey, she had been extremely careful to hide her identity. Emory had even created at least five different face disguises for her.
How could the people of the Shadow Temple possibly recognize her?
She had never even clashed with the Shadow Temple directly.
While thinking this, Elara suddenly stopped.
Lucian had mentioned that the Blood Cloak Tower was under the Shadow Temple's control.
Could it be after she framed the Blood Cloak Tower, they ran to the Shadow Temple to report it, and the Shadow Temple used some divine artifact or other method to find her?
Elara touched the shielding necklace on her chest. The advanced shielding tool she had gotten from the "Core Palace" could block anyone from using any direct divine artifact to probe her. But what if they had found some other indirect method?
She had never had any direct contact with the Shadow Temple. She had even left the Geranium Kingdom a full day ago. Yet the Shadow Temple's hostility toward her had just now increased. The only possible explanation was that they had somehow found out she was the one who had caused the Blood Cloak Tower's downfall.
This was troublesome.
Elara furrowed her brows tightly. The System in her mind continued:
[Master, don't panic. If the Shadow Temple had fully confirmed you were the cause of the Blood Cloak Tower's current state, their hostility toward you would be far more than just ninety points. It's likely that someone in the Shadow Temple has only just made some guesses or developed suspicion, which is why only ninety hostility points were generated.]
[If it really comes to it, you might have to grit your teeth and spend some more national fortune points to get rid of that person or block them from spreading the information. But doing so would involve the karma of a major force, and the amount of fortune needed would be enormous. You might have to go into debt again.]
The Yellow Spring Hall was a top-tier force on the continent, mainly involved in assassination, demonic arts, and other dark dealings. Elara absolutely did not want to encounter it at this point in time.
With her and Plumera's current strength, if they were targeted by Yellow Spring Hall, it would almost certainly lead to a collapse and a bad ending.
[Then just overdraft...] Elara definitely didn't want Yellow Spring Hall to focus on her now. Even if it meant overdrawing the national fortune again, she had to crush the possibility of this bad ending before it could sprout.
Only then would she and Plumera have the time to continue growing and survive.
But before she could finish her thought, the System suddenly exclaimed.
[Hey? Master! The ninety hostility points from Yellow Spring Hall toward you just disappeared!]
...
Southern border of the central continent.
The most admired and envied fertile and prosperous region among all the small countries of the world.
A rich and bustling large city sat nestled among layered green mountains and shimmering waves.
This city was a huge transportation hub. Because of its unique geographical position, it connected with all nearby countries and forces, so the people coming and going were mostly from powerful nations.
In the noble northern district of the large city, in the northwest corner, stood a dark gold twelve-story luxurious high-rise.
The building was built on a grand scale, with understated luxury in its interior design, but there was also an unspeakable aura of bloodlust and aggression.
Everyone who entered or exited this building was either incredibly wealthy or powerful, or... they were the kind of individuals whose names on the top three ranking lists could terrify entire regions.
Today, the lavish building remained busy as always.
On the street outside, among the lively crowd, a tall figure suddenly appeared. The man stood a full eight feet tall, with a slender build, wearing a veiled hat that concealed his face.
Though his appearance was hidden, his magnificent red robe exuded a unique charm. His gestures were casual and lazy, and beneath the white gauze veil of his hat, vivid red curls of hair flowed freely.
From behind, even his smallest movements radiated a beauty that transcended gender.
But from the front, a surprising scene unfolded. The man's tall, slender torso had a prominently rounded belly that was full and firm.
At first glance, it looked just like the high curve of a pregnant woman about to give birth.
Fortunately, this city was near the matriarchal nations of the eastern continent. Seeing pregnant men walking around wasn't uncommon, so even with his prominent belly, people were more captivated by his stunning presence and the glimpses of his peerless beauty beneath the veil.
As he gently caressed his belly with elegant, pale fingers, soothing the discomfort of pregnancy, he walked with ease into the dark gold building.
He moved as if no one else were around, heading straight upstairs. Everyone secretly watching quickly restrained themselves and dared not act rashly.
After all, not everyone was allowed in this building.
The man climbed the stairs slowly. Occasionally, when the child in his womb kicked too hard, he would let out a muffled groan, pause, and look down at his belly with a mixture of helplessness and affection.
"Big sister... the baby kicked me again..."
His voice was soft and syrupy, as if thick with some kind of sweet essence.
He leaned on the handrail, waiting for the child to calm down. Then, rubbing his belly, he continued walking upstairs.
On every floor, the staff and attendants who saw him were all visibly startled. Their eyes naturally filled with fear and dread.
But due to the man's identity, they didn't dare ignore him. Otherwise, the consequences would be far worse.
Even so, they were so afraid that none of them even noticed the abnormal roundness of his belly.
The man didn't even glance at them. He just rubbed his stomach and slowly ascended to the top floor of the building.
When he reached the twelfth floor, there were no other guests.
The decorations and furnishings on the twelfth floor were completely different from the ones below. It was clearly a secret space reserved for someone specific.
Without hesitation, the man entered the hall on the twelfth floor.
There were no staff or attendants on this level.
Only a hunchbacked old man with one blind eye sat behind a large counter.