The Martial Unity

Rael grew thoughtful.

He had not expected to be confronted by this problem when it came to setting up the dungeon.

“…How hostile is the alien creature to life within the dungeon?”

“Quite,” the Divine Doctor calmly remarked. “It actively enslaves most creatures within it and forces them to breed while creating a gradient of resources that increases the closer you get to the center of the dungeon. This increases competition for resources as the area decreases the closer one gets to the center of the dungeon, allowing only the fittest survive. In other words, last time, it created a self-improving slave army. I cannot help but wonder what it would create this time.”

Emperor Rael narrowed his eyes. “You say that like it cannot be inferred from the last time.”

“Correct,” the Divine Doctor replied. “It is not something that can be inferred from the last time. The reason is quite simple yet infinitely fascinating. You see…”

A glint of inhuman excitement and curiosity flashed in his eyes.

“The creature is sentient.”

Emperor Rael’s expression grew a shade more severe.

“Not just sentient…” His gaze returned to it. “It is intelligent.”

Emperor Rael’s gaze grew sharper. “None of your reports mentioned anything about this.”

“That’s because you wanted scientific certainty.” The Divine Doctor’s tone was clinical. “I have yet to discover the exact biochemical mechanisms for the apparatus that serves as its intelligence, but there is no doubt that the creature is intelligent based on its responses to stimuli. They demonstrate a capacity for pattern recognition, temporal and spatial awareness, problem-solving, among other things.”

“In other words, you personally believe that it is intelligent but have yet to secure enough evidence to constitute incontrovertible proof,” Emperor Rael surmised. “Be that as it may, I’m inclined to trust your expertise in this particular matter. What are the risk factors involved with an ill-understood intelligent hostile force in control of such a powerful dungeon?”

“…Anything is possible,” the Divine Doctor calmly remarked. “It could resort to something other than hypnosis and enslaving. After all, its circumstances are entirely different than before. It could create an environment that is hostile to all life. It could potentially use a more subtle and tricky means of sabotage that could eventually end up harming all its captors. In the worst case scenario, it could potentially end up undertaking risks of its own to try and master its control over the esoteric crystal fragment it has embedded in its body to eventually become a Sage-level creature with potent space-time power.”

“…Anything is possible,” the Divine Doctor calmly remarked. “It could resort to something other than hypnosis and enslaving. After all, its circumstances are entirely different than before. It could create an environment that is hostile to all life. It could potentially use a more subtle and tricky means of sabotage that could eventually end up harming all its captors. In the worst case scenario, it could potentially end up undertaking risks of its own to try and master its control over the esoteric crystal fragment it has embedded in its body to eventually become a Sage-level creature with potent space-time power.”

His tone was light, but his words were heavy. Emperor Rael would be lying if he said that undertaking risks in order to maximize the benefits was something that wasn’t deeply attractive. However, hearing about the possibilities brought him back to reality.

“The risks that you have elucidated upon are far beyond tolerable thresholds.”

His tone was one of certainty.

At this point, what he needed was more certainty and confidence in his plans, not more time acceleration for the dungeon. If he decided to undertake the risks of the dungeon, he could potentially destroy all his plans and bring about ruin.

He was already dealing with countless different variables for when he eventually would begin using all three super treasures to their absolute limit.

He had painstakingly accounted for countless different scenarios, building many different failsafes and contingencies.

He could not afford to take such immense risks atop all of this.

“Are you certain that you can get rid of all these risks with the price being that the time acceleration factor is reduced to one-tenth of the original?” Emperor Rael asked, staring at the doctor with wary eyes.

“Yes,” the Divine Doctor calmly replied. “I have identified the metabolic processes responsible for secondary function in relation to the crystal fragments that the body has absorbed. I can cripple them without compromising the primary health and metabolic function of the alien lifeform.”

“That is a satisfactory result,” Emperor Rael remarked, nodding. “Then, proceed with this plan immediately. Give me timelines, requirements, conditions, and constraints for the creation of the dungeon. I shall commence the creation and appoint you as the head of the operation, along with a team of invigilators overseeing it. I will also rely on Martial Sages to verify the truthfulness and sincerity of your words.”

The Divine Doctor didn’t deign to respond, yet he didn’t object either. His circumstances were such that he had no choice to comply if he didn’t want to lose a once in a lifetime opportunity.

Some days, he considered relying on force to take the alien lifeform for himself. However, he knew that he simply did not have the power to do so. Else, he would have never allowed Rui to take it in the first place.

Then there was Rui himself, who he also needed and could not afford to lose as an ally.

Emperor Rael had already verified exactly how much power over the Divine Doctor these agreements had, thus he had already mapped out precisely what he could get away with.

Thus continued an unusual cooperation between the Divine Doctor and the Kandrian Empire, where both sides got what they wanted from the other.

The preparations for the dungeon went smoothly as Emperor Rael found the perfect spot in the Kandrian Empire to plant the domain. The Kandrian Empire was utterly enormous that even if a piece of land a hundred kilometers in diameter disappeared, not a single person would notice. However, he still needed to set up an entire system of administration that managed the dungeon. After all, the only way that people could enter or exit the manifold was if the manifold was dispelled. Thus, he needed to set up the system such that there were slots for a year of training so that the manifold would only be opened every time a year passed in it.

This way, there wouldn’t be an unnecessary amount of exposure due to frequent opening and closing of the manifold. He wanted to ensure that the manifold remained as much of a secret from the rest of the world for as long as possible.

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