The leader of that faction then said. "Your faction has a lot of room to grow. So if we ally now, we can help you gain more influence within the Church with less difficulty and, in return, reap the fruits of that once the Black Plain Empire becomes stronger."
"So my group is an opportunity for yours? Do you intend to help us now so we can help you in the future?" Gloria asked.
"You can see it this way." That man nodded positively.
Another person in that group, a bald but young-looking man, said. "We can see it as one hand washing the other. Our faction has connections with several smaller church groups that we can direct to your side.
You could easily gain alliances that way and even manage to absorb some of these groups.
We also have access to information that your group may not have, things that just numbers and cultivation levels are not enough to achieve certain paraments."
A black-haired woman added. "We have some authorizations that your group could take decades to get if no one tries to make things difficult for you. So we can use that to help you at this time that you don't have such a thing yet in exchange for future support."
"And what would that support look like exactly?" One of Gloria's allies in her faction, level 79, asked.
The group leader looked at that woman from Vogel's post and said. "There are several ways to support a group within the Church.
The point of factions is to control the power of the Church. This is done through appointments to relevant positions, administration of territories, etc.
For the moment, your group only has influence by being part of the Black Plain Empire and having members with much potential. But one day, you will become more actively involved in Church politics and get positions within the Church that will give you more power.
That's what interests us most!"
A Church member could pursue a career within that organization. One day they would be young disciples, but one day they could become elders.
Depending on their contacts, talents, and merits, this person could reach a position that would give them rights and powers over others, such as the possibility of giving recommendations.
They could appoint someone to observe an area or manage a group of outposts in the Church, which would put the appointee directly in touch with many resources.
This would benefit the appointee, so those who reached these positions would also benefit in return for these appointees.
In short, all that mattered was the resources one could obtain, and a group like Gloria's had great potential to become influential and be able to appoint people to relevant positions within the Church.
These people judged that as promising as the Black Plain Empire was, they had a better chance of advancing with Church resources. So what interested them most was not the resources of this state but the influence it could achieve to appoint positions within the Church.
Gloria understood what these people wanted and didn't mind because no gratuitous favors existed in the cultivation world. One would always want to benefit from the other, so saying this openly was best.
Pretending to want to help another without exposing one's interest in receiving future benefits was a mistake that would only make everything more difficult. So hearing from these people that they wanted to exchange favors, she was more than satisfied.
"That can be done. Obviously, I won't promise what kind of indications I can make in the future. It will all depend on what we can achieve and what has been made possible because of your support." She said as the group on the other side enjoyed what they were hearing.
...
A few days passed after Gloria's agreement with that other Church group.
In the meantime, she confirmed her agreements with that and other groups that came to Dry City during the period, gaining important support for the future.
Her faction was growing in numbers and influence, something that would not change so much in the short term but had the potential to transform the power relations of that faction in the future.
On the other hand, Minos had confirmed his Soul Contracts with the previous Spiritual Sages, having already introduced them to the Spatial Kingdom and determined their functions.
Some would cultivate in that shrine to become stronger for the sake of the empire's future. But others would position themselves around that state to maintain the imperial family's presence in all the cities with local assemblies.
In addition, some had to stay to protect Dry City, and others would join Oswald in developing the network of local wormhole ports.
And so, as the church visitors returned to their posts and Bridget's group was already away from this state, slowly, the empire began its journey of peace and development that would lie ahead.
...
For the next few months, nothing troublesome would arise to torment the lives of the local leaders, allowing Minos and his family a peaceful period that would extend indefinitely.
But eventually, the day of the imperial wedding of Minos and Isabella would come, a feast long awaited by the local powers and those of the Flaming Empire.
Then, amidst ever-increasing continental tension, the day of Minos' wedding would arrive, with high-level Spiritual Saints and low-level Spiritual Sages from different parts of the continent coming to Dry City.
On the eve of Minos' wedding, leaders from more than 50 organizations were already in Dry City when a level 72 winged tigress landed at one of the entrances to this capital city with a young red-haired woman on her back.
This beauty had Gloria's hair and Minos's eyes and soul cultivation at level 57.
This was Emperor Stuart's eldest daughter, Sarah, who had just returned from weeks of travel outside the capital!
"Your Highness, you were almost late. The wedding will take place in a few hours!" One of the imperial guards in charge of Sarah shouted this when he saw her, feeling relieved that she was not late for the wedding.
"I know that," Sarah said while having a not-so-happy expression on her face.
She had grown used to the idea that her father had several women, but she didn't like the idea of having her free time disrupted by a wedding...
In any case, she was afraid her father would punish her, so she returned to Dry City at short notice.
"How are the preparations going? What about the guests? Have they arrived yet?" She asked as she climbed down from Maida.
Even though she didn't like being interrupted, she was looking forward to seeing some relatives and friends again, so since she had to go through the wedding anyway, she decided to take advantage of the situation.
"Everyone is already in the city..."
She continued walking towards the interior of the capital as she listened to that man's words.
