Chapter 868: The Gap
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Right now, both the Andalusia Kingdom and the Odin Kingdom are preparing for this final battle. This is no longer just a matter for the royal families—it's the concern of every faction within the Andalusia Kingdom.
Because for us in the Andalusia Kingdom—and for the Odin Kingdom—there will only be one victor. The loser will be forced to withdraw completely from the Blazeforge Realm, regardless of how much land, how many resources, or how many fortresses they've controlled before. After defeat, it will all be lost.
There will be only one winner, who will gain everything. The loser will lose everything.
So I hope you all understand—this is a high-stakes gamble that affects everyone's interests. If we win, everyone will gain far more than what you currently have. If we lose, we will all be forced to leave the Blazeforge Realm forever and lose everything.
As soon as the Azure Sword Saint finished speaking, a minor faction leader seated at a small table in the back stood up.
"No! We absolutely won't agree to this. Why should the kingdom make this wager with the Odin Kingdom on our behalf? Your families are powerful and wealthy—you can afford to gamble, because if you win, you'll reap the biggest rewards. If you lose, you only lose the interests you had in the Blazeforge Realm.
But if we lose, we might be left with nothing. Besides, everyone knows how strong the Odin Kingdom is. If we know we can't win and still have to gamble, then whoever wants to take that risk can go ahead—but I absolutely won't agree. You make your bets; it has nothing to do with us!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the Azure Sword Saint let out a cold laugh.
Instead of the expected chorus of support, only a few minor faction members responded, while the rest looked over with the kind of gaze reserved for fools.
Even Star Sage Joey, who had been sitting at the round table with his eyes lowered and silent, couldn't help but glance over, his eyes filled with a sympathy reserved for fools.
Everyone stared, clearly shocked by this guy's lack of intelligence.
At a time like this, to say something so foolish—was his intelligence lower than a slime's?
Odin Kingdom has already united, and yet you still talk about only looking out for yourself. Do you think being isolated will make it easier for them to deal with you?
At a time like this, the only choice is to unite—if we win this gamble against Odin Kingdom, we survive. Otherwise, anyone left alone won’t even have their bones left.
Damn it, Odin Kingdom is way stronger than Andalusia Kingdom, isn’t it?
In terms of overall national strength, the number of powerful individuals, and their ranks, Odin Kingdom completely overwhelms Andalusia Kingdom.
Odin Kingdom’s Sky Rank experts—those who are publicly known, and have even appeared recently—number several, not to mention their Title Archmages far outnumber those in Andalusia Kingdom.
In Odin Kingdom, if a top faction doesn’t have a Sky Rank expert sitting in command, it isn’t even considered elite. Look at Andalusia Kingdom—their strongest powers, Cloudspire Tower and Black Tower, have Star Sage Joey and Heron as their strongest members, and both have only one foot in the Sky Rank, not fully advanced yet.
This is the gap!
You have to understand, Odin Kingdom is not just reputed to be the strongest kingdom in Northend World—it is universally acknowledged as the strongest. Its national strength is unmatched by any other kingdom.
Odin Kingdom claims descent from the Third Dynasty. Many people doubt this, and some think it’s just the royal family trying to glorify themselves.
But no one denies one fact: Odin Kingdom’s current capital is the royal court of the Third Dynasty.
After the fall of the Third Dynasty, much was destroyed, but many things were left behind. As the heir to the royal court, Odin Kingdom inherited countless legacies and rare treasures. No one knows how much survived and how much Odin Kingdom has inherited.
Odin Kingdom inherited the greatest legacy of the Third Dynasty—this is undeniable, and Odin Kingdom itself never bothers to explain.
That’s why Odin Kingdom is much stronger than Andalusia Kingdom, and stronger than any other kingdom.
Because of this, Odin Kingdom controls more realms and resources. The Blazeforge Realm is important to Odin Kingdom, but since it hasn’t been conquered and Andalusia Kingdom is involved, it’s far less important than the other realms already under Odin’s control.
Most of Odin Kingdom’s forces are tied up elsewhere—even their top factions can’t spare much strength for the conquest and struggle over the Blazeforge Realm.
The factions participating in the Blazeforge Realm’s conquest aren’t considered top-tier in Odin Kingdom, and their strength here isn’t enough to make Andalusia Kingdom despair.
That’s why Andalusia Kingdom has a slim chance to gamble. Azure Sword Saint is decisive—he immediately saw the coming crisis and the present opportunity.
If the Blazeforge Realm is fully conquered, then Andalusia and Odin Kingdom will jointly control it—and they’ll inevitably go to war over who gets to rule.
Right now, Andalusia Kingdom’s strength in the Blazeforge Realm looks comparable to Odin Kingdom’s, but almost all the power Andalusia could muster has already been committed here.
During this period, Odin Kingdom can’t send more forces, and their top factions are too busy to join the Blazeforge Realm’s grand offensive.
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But that doesn’t mean Odin Kingdom won’t be able to send more forces in the future.
It’s predictable—once the Blazeforge Realm is conquered and the Blazeforge Orcs wiped out, the final struggle between the two kingdoms will surely end with Andalusia’s defeat.
To risk everything—to bet on the Blazeforge Realm’s future—this is the best chance Andalusia Kingdom has.
If we lose, we were bound to lose anyway—there’s little regret. At least now, it’s a bold break, cutting future losses.
If we win, it’s a resounding victory. Odin Kingdom’s forces will withdraw from the Blazeforge Realm, and everyone’s gains will far exceed expectations—even for a long time to come, there will be no more turmoil.
This is what matters most—if the spoils are snatched away before you even get to taste them, what’s the point of conquering the Blazeforge Realm?
The odds of winning this gamble aren’t great, but there’s still some hope. It’s better than total defeat.
Except for a few minor faction leaders, most of the major powers and the majority of people agreed that Azure Sword Saint’s plan was the best.
Anyone with a bit of foresight could see things were looking grim for Andalusia Kingdom.
“Odin Kingdom’s people have already united. If we don’t do the same, we’re doomed. Do you really think if Odin Kingdom conquers the Sacred Mountain of the Blazeforge Realm first, any of us will have a foothold left? Do you think you’ll be able to hold onto your territory?”
A minor leader stood up, firmly supporting Prince Azure.
Once the first person stood up, others quickly followed.
“Right, everyone knows how strong Odin Kingdom is. If we don’t unite and win this gamble, everything we’ve gained here will vanish.”
“Exactly. If anyone opposes and only cares about themselves, don’t blame us for refusing to cooperate. If you oppose, leave the Blazeforge Realm now—don’t drag us down.”
............
Soon, the vast majority firmly supported this gamble. Even those reluctant understood that if they opposed, they’d lose everything before Odin Kingdom even made a move.
Lin Yun sat there silently, listening quietly. He couldn’t help but glance at Azure Sword Saint, admiring him inwardly.
To have such decisiveness and wisdom—no wonder the current king trusts him so much. This gamble is the best choice: turning an inevitable war into an all-out offensive now, turning certain defeat into a chance. It truly is the best option.
And Odin Kingdom can’t refuse this gamble either—it’s to their advantage. Their strength is greater, their odds of winning are higher, and taking full control of the Blazeforge Realm might go even smoother than planned.
This is an open scheme—one Odin Kingdom simply can’t refuse.
Soon, after heated discussion, everyone—whether they understood or not—recognized this as an opportunity; at least, the benefits outweighed the risks.
If we lose, we can still retreat with our strength intact. If we don’t gamble, once Odin Kingdom is free to settle scores, all these hard-won foundations will be washed away, and even our manpower will suffer heavy losses.
If we win, the benefits are enormous—far beyond expectations.
So, the proposal to gamble passed unanimously in just a dozen minutes.
But when it came time to discuss how much strength each faction would contribute to the offensive, the huge meeting room turned into a marketplace—a bunch of high-ranking mages rolling up their sleeves, arguing like haggling old ladies.
“The Blazeforge Orcs are strongest in the north. We can’t possibly commit all our strength to the offensive, right? Who knows if those despicable orcs will sneak around and attack us from behind? It’s happened before.”
“Exactly. We can send ten magisters and fifty grand mages—that’s our limit. Any more and our fortress won’t be safe.”
“I just heard your family secretly sent thirty magisters, yet you’re only offering ten. What’s your angle? Hoping we take the brunt so you can snatch victory at the end?”
“My family can only send three hundred grand mages, no more. We’ve already pulled guards from everywhere—our defenses are stretched thin. We can’t spare any more…”
“Ah, our family suffered huge losses before. Sending twenty magisters and one titled magister is all we have left…” (My novel ‘End of Magic Throne’ has more fresh content on the official WeChat platform, plus 100% prize draws! Open WeChat, tap the “+” in the top right, add friend, search “qdread” and follow. Hurry!)