Tian Yang grinned in satisfaction. Damien's final words and overall attitude were extremely arrogant considering who he was facing, but with his current position, this kind of arrogance was necessary if he didn't want to become a tool in the future.
Belief in his own strength and potential, problem-solving ability that wasn't perfect, but growing at a steady pace, and a cool head that could view the situation objectively, Damien was slowly beginning to embody the traits that an expert should have.
'His cheeky attitude will probably never disappear though.' Tian Yang thought to himself.
"Brat, your final demand might sound reasonable, but words don't mean anything if there's no substance behind them. Although I can acknowledge you like this, for others, you must prove your value through strength.
"Your contributions thus far cannot be spread, because if the fact that you are a Star Master were to become public knowledge, you'd be walking with a target on your back at all times. Therefore, even if the three of us agree with you, we can only support you secretly."
Damien nodded. He expected this much. He didn't want to use a meeting like this, where more important matters were being discussed, to secure personal benefit, but he didn't have a choice. It wasn't a common thing for him to be in the presence of so many world leaders.
Until now, his journey had been incredibly smooth because he was never on the Nox's radar. After all, he was far too weak for them to take notice of him. However, it was mainly because he hadn't encountered many true-blooded Nox before. The two that he had met were both dead, therefore his information wouldn't spread.
'It would be terrible if they had some sort of mental link skill that allowed them to glean information from their fallen soldiers, but even then I should be fine. Since 3rd class Nox have limited sentience, the one I killed shouldn't apply to that kind of skill. As for the Demigod, I wasn't present during his death, and Alaric died along with him, so there should be nothing from that encounter as well.'
Damien's thoughts suddenly drifted towards a certain sibling duo.
'Although I'm aware that they aren't working for the Nox out of their own free will, that's what makes it more dangerous. There's no way a conniving race like the Nox would only use hostages to guarantee the submission of those they use. If there's some sort of technique to forcefully extract information from the two…'
He might've already become a target unknowingly. Even if he didn't play a pivotal role in what happened in the 3000 Beast Mountain Range, his role was still an important one.
'On the Cloud Plane, I'm safe. But I don't know what kind of dangers await me in the wider universe. From now on, I can no longer move with the goal of adventuring. But I can no longer stay on the Cloud Plane either.'
Damien furrowed his brows as he fell into thought. But before he could think too deeply, he was interrupted by Tian Yang's voice.
"With the extermination plan coming into effect, it seems the other plan must be put on hold for a bit. We can't afford to divert our attention from either matter."
Bai Xieren nodded. "6 months should be enough to finish off the traitors without alerting too much suspicion. What matters is how we deal with the situation once we finish. There's no way the Nox won't be alerted after so many of their forces are wiped."
"According to the information, there are two 4th class Nox beings currently residing here. One is on the Central Continent while the other is on the Western Continent. Both of these Nox must be eliminated simultaneously in case they share some sort of connection that will alert them." Shangguan Yu continued.
"Even then, killing them might alert the Nox that we are aware of their plans. Will we still be able to carry out the attack plan under this kind of suspicion?" Bai Xieren questioned.
Tian Yang shook his head. "Even if it is so, we don't have another choice. Interference from their side is becoming more and more frequent. The large number of Nox Worshippers in the world is most likely due to their involvement as well. Destroying them down to the roots will play a pivotal part in the coming war."
Shangguan Yu rubbed his chin in thought. "How have our communications with other worlds been? An alliance needs to be formed soon if we want to properly fight against the Nox."
"There have been both positive and negative responses. From what we've gathered so far, it doesn't look like a conclusion will be reached any time soon. An assembly will be called sometime within the next 2 years for all of our powers to meet in person and speak of these important matters. Until then, we must work on our own."
Damien felt like his brain would melt from all the information he was second-handedly receiving. As it turned out, his extended help was unnecessary.
He smiled wryly. 'Perhaps I was looking down on them too much. After all, they are the leaders of the Cloud Plane as a whole, along with being prominent sect masters. It seems that plans for the war have already been in formation for a while now.'
The fact that an alliance was forming interested him the most. He had already experienced the alliance of races during the Forgotten War, so he was somewhat aware of their structure.
From what he gathered based on the tidbits of information that seeped through the conversation of the other three, talks of the alliance were most likely being stalled due to politics between these world leaders.
Damien sighed inwardly. 'Politics and personal gain…human greed is really a disgusting thing.'
He shook his head. There was a reason he stayed away from leadership positions and political matters. He abhorred the whole idea of it, even though he knew it was necessary.
Because politics without corruption was such a rare concept that it wasn't even ironic anymore.
'Still, I must attend the assembly they were speaking about. Being present for the donation of the alliance is of incredible importance. Since the next 6 months will be spent on the extermination plan, I'll need to plan my steps for what to do after that.'
Damien shifted his attention away from the alliance after having this thought. He had at least the next 6 months to secure himself a spot in that assembly. For now, he should focus on the more pressing matters.
And after he finished thinking about the alliance, his attention shifted to the other matter that the three experts were speaking about.
"Old man, what is this attack plan you mentioned?" He questioned. Since they were on equal standing at the moment, there was no reason for information to be hidden from him.
And as he expected, Tian Yang readily answered his question. "Oh? You're curious, are you? Well, since you were to be included in the mission anyway, there's no harm in telling you."
Tian Yang looked toward the other two leaders for confirmation. Only after receiving their consent did he continue.
"Brat, how much do you know about the force called Niflheim?"
