A meeting was taking place in the Black Dragon Clan's main headquarters on Beast Emperor Star.
This meeting was one of many that took place other the past few days, and many more that were slated to take place as long as the plan was ongoing.
The Black Dragon Clan absolutely could not tolerate failures during this time, and as such, they were always moving to make sure they were a step ahead of their enemies.
"Progress has been relatively according to plan. Minor chaos has been caused among the common people, and the Golden Dragon Clan's response has been slow enough to cause a slight shift in public sentiment, however, it isn't nearly enough." A man reported.
"We must hasten our progress. We cannot continue with our originally planned trajectory with the amount of backlash we've been facing," a nearby woman continued.
"The mysterious summoner has gone quiet for almost a day. It is not a welcome sign."
Elena's interference and subsequent withdrawal from battle with the clan was taken into account long ago, and multiple groups of assassins had already been sent out to deal with her, each assassin at the late stages of 4th class.
"Have the investigation results for the disappearances of the previous teams come back?"
"Negative. We have yet to find traces of their mana or bodies, however, there is a large patch of abandoned land containing clear scars of battles. It is likely that they were lured to and killed there."
"The current teams?"
"They have yet to find traces of the summoner. They are either in hiding or at the royal palace, though the latter seems more likely."
"Indeed…"
"There is no need to worry about the summoner. Once they leave the royal palace, they will immediately be dealt with by the teams we sent out. More than that, we should be concerned about the royal children!"
"Correct. As we know, all of the emperor's children have heaven-defying combat potential. Only the little princess is a target that can be taken easily…"
The conversation continued as every possible variable was discussed and countermeasures were formed to combat them.
At that time, a man suddenly barged into the room.
"Bad news! The tertiary base camp has gone up in flames! We have lost contact with all forces stationed at the base, and it is almost impossible to enter its premises without being swallowed by waves of flames!"
The man immediately gave his report without waiting for anyone to be surprised by his presence. The officials in the room snapped their attention to him, some of them even standing up in shock.
"When did this happen?!" The man named Pretus questioned in a commanding voice.
"Three hours ago, sir! The base's destruction was not noticed immediately due to an unrelated spatial phenomenon that disrupted our transmission waves."
"Understood. You may leave."
Pretus gritted his teeth and glanced at those in the room with him.
"This is an extreme oversight! While we were sitting here planning, the enemy took the opportunity to strike us first!"
"How could they have found the base location?"
"That's obvious. The missing teams should be the answer."
"Dammit! They made it around the restriction?! We must immediately—"
"Enough!"
Pretus roared, silencing the meeting room.
His cold gaze immediately forced any voices of objection to entertain this silence.
"We do not know how, but the enemy has a way to evade our information restriction. There is only one thing that could mean…"
"…they will be coming here for war as soon as possible!"
Pretus sighed to himself as he spoke. Thinking further, even this small change was able to force them into a corner due to the precarious nature of their plan.
There was no other choice but to take drastic measures to readjust their path forward.
"We need to begin the third phase immediately," he said with determination.
"T-the third phase? But sir…!"
"I know what you want to say, but save it! Have you forgotten our reason for doing all of this in the first place?!"
The room went silent again. Everyone was clearly aware of the gruesome trajectory that the Black Dragon Clan's fate was currently on.
It wasn't just one or two unwilling sighs that echoed through the room, but nobody spoke up in objection.
Indeed, if they wanted to gain the upper hand against the Golden Dragon Clan here, if they wanted to preserve their chance at victory…
"Pass down the order! Activate phase 3! All units remain on standby until further notice!"
The command was sent down the chain, and multiple moving parts came together to form the activation process of the plan.
In a certain area devoid of anything but the sound of furious typing, technological experts readied the mechanisms necessary to execute such a large-scale plan.
Throughout the Golden Dragon Estate, hidden members of the Black Dragon Clan buried strange canisters in the ground and hid them within the buildings before vanishing entirely.
A different group of teams spread through the seas and skies, planting their own strange devices in specific locations determined by the logistics division.
And while all these clansmen moved as a cohesive unit, the activation of Phase 3 became imminent.
"All systems go. Phase 3 will begin in 15 minutes!"
A report came back from the logistics division. All soldiers remained in wait, hoping that these 15 minutes could pass in an instant.
But the universe was never so forgiving.
With such an important moment on the horizon, another report spread through the base like wildfire:
The enemy had arrived at their doorstep!
***
It was amazing the wonders that power could bring.
The Golden Dragon Clan's army appeared within an instant, several tens of millions of forces standing in the air or on the ground, facing the direction of the Black Dragon Clan's main hidden base with a dense aura of killing intent surrounding them.
They were led by a domineering man with bright golden hair and eyes, donning armor shining in the same hue. He was none other than the Golden Dragon Emperor's 2nd son, known as the Draconic War God.
Several hundred thousand kilometers away, the common people were still eagerly enjoying their festival, however, the visiting experts could sense gunpowder clouding the air.
The distant and terrifying fluctuations…
They had to find the source!
A small and hidden crowd began to gather as an army stood alone, awaiting its partner on the battlefield.
And from the Imperial Palace, the Golden Dragon Emperor watched the proceedings carefully.
As a Demigod himself, he was unable to directly take part in the confrontation, but that didn't mean he would just leave it to others.
A projection of his figure floated in the sky above the armor, this mere fragment of his presence spreading fear and awe among the onlookers.
And finally, among the rapidly boiling atmosphere…
The Black Dragon Clan took the stage, matching the Golden Dragons in both numbers and force.
Pretus stood at the head of the Black Dragons donning a menacing battle armor that made him look like a demon god.
He held his massive greatsword in the air, gathering mana towards his body.
15 minutes.
Until this time passed, the Golden Dragon Army needed to be held here.
And after that time passed…
He was excited to see the way they panicked and struggled to save themselves.
