Time didn't stop while Michael was busy growing closer to his people. Everything continued to move on at its usual pace as the young Lord in the Untamed Jungle spent his time refining his body, mind, and War Rune.
While Michael was busy, the Valyr Lordess, the Zynur Lord, and the Laprix Lord began with the expansion of their territory. They divided the territory of the late Kitsun Lord equally and split up the assets evenly as well. Their armies conquered the territory, killing every Kitsun without a shred of hesitation.
In a matter of mere days close to 500,000 Kitsun were killed, their corpses burned or fed to the carnivores raised in their territories. Meanwhile, the slaves of the late Kitsun Lord were freed and given a choice to make. Either they would become part of the three Lords' territories by creating a Link of Loyalty with the respective Lord, or they would have to leave the territories and search for a new place to stay.
Most slaves didn't want to give up their newfound freedom. They decided to leave the late Kitsun Lord's territory or their new Lord's territory and search for a new place to stay. The three Lords accepted their decision. They provided enough food and water before giving the slaves a grace period of ten days. By the time the grace period ended the freed slaves had to be outside their territory, otherwise, they would be captured or killed on the spot.
Expanding one's territory was an expensive task. It was even worse if the claimed area was larger than their entire territory. To manage and protect their new territory, the three Lords had to spend a fortune to create new settlements, split up their forces to place guards across all the settlements, and send over civilians to reside in the newly constructed settlements. Watch towers had to be constructed and the network system had to be expanded rapidly. Information about the newly claimed area had to be collected and new ways to earn money were researched.
Last but not least, the three Lords had to find out about the threats within and adjacent to the new area.
The Valyr Lordess and the Laprix Lord learned a lot about new enemies. These enemies were both Awakened Lords and Monster Overlords, who had been reigning over a small area of the Savannah region for years. They sensed the changes alongside the border to the late Kitsun Lord and quickly realized that a new Lord claimed the Kitsun Lord's land. It was not long after that they began to test the combat prowess of these new Lords. All they wanted was to test how strong these new Rulers were and if they were capable of managing such a large piece of land as the Kitsun Lord had been capable of.
Forced to send their army deeper into their newly claimed region, the Valyr Lordess and the Laprix Lord had no choice but to act more vigilant. Their older settlements were not as well guarded as before since the army had been deployed. Therefore, their old enemies grasped the golden opportunity and attacked.
The Valyr Lordess and the Laprix Lord were able to hold their stronghold. However, they could only fight back against their enemies after the Zynur Lord chose to give them a helping hand. The Zynur Lord's territory was surrounded by the Valyr Lordess' land and the Laprix Lord's territory. Expanding his territory wasn't that troublesome because the only new border he received was the border leading straight to the Untamed Jungle. The only threats looming in the Untamed Jungle were Monsters, and they didn't leave the Untamed Jungle under normal circumstances.
If anything, the Untamed Jungle was a treasure trove for the Zynur Lord. After all, Michael resided somewhere inside the Untamed Jungle. The Zynur Lord hoped that Michael would soon message him through the communication crystal. He wanted to establish a firm business relationship with Michael. Being friendly and trading with each other was a much better option than fighting a crazy maniac, who fought tens of thousands of enemies and a bunch of Peak Tier-3 Awakened while merely being a Low Tier-2 Lord.
The Zynur Lord hadn't witnessed Michael's combat prowess first-hand, but he'd heard enough from the Valyr Lordess' daughter and her Valyries – the elite troupe of the Valyr Lordess – to know that Michael Fang was not someone he should fight against.
Since the Zynur Lord didn't want the Valyr Lordess and the Laprix Lord to lose their territory either he decided to give them a helping hand when they faced attacks from multiple sides. He demanded some reimbursement for his help and simultaneously ensured that neither the Lordess nor the Lord bordering his territory would dare to attack him anytime soon. He used the Lordess and the Lord as protective shields against other Lords, and established three new settlements alongside his new land – with one of the settlements scratching the border to the Untamed Jungle. It was an invitation for Michael, a sign of trust, and an opportunity for the young Lord to establish a trading route with the Zynur Lord.
Over the course of three weeks, all Lords of the Savannah region found out about the death of the Kitsun Lord. Not many knew what exactly happened because the three neighboring Lords concealed the news about the truth as if their lives depended on it, but everyone realized that the Valyr, Zynur, and Laprix had joined hands to defeat the Kitsun Lord. Therefore, the Lords in the Savannah Region considered the three Lords allies. They presumed that they formed an alliance, and that the Alliance might continue to exist until the entire Savannah region was in their control.
Because of these thoughts, and worries infesting their minds, the Lords of the Savannah region began to change their tactics. They began to pay more attention to their defenses, summoned more Combat Summons, and communicated more with their neighbors to learn about their intentions and future plans. Some Alliances were formed, while others began to wage an all-out war due to complications and misunderstandings during their communication.
The balance of power shifted all over the Savannah region, chaos ensued slowly, and the first of many big clashes to determine the Ruler of the Savannah began.
The power shift all over the Savannah region was not the only change that would affect Michael. It was just one of many changes. Even bigger events occurred in the Zentika Empire. To pinpoint the precise location, the border between the Southern Ice Mountains and the Zentika Empire was where the bigger events occurred.
The Council of the Zentika Empire had faced various losses after the Lord Rift closed. The only survivor of the Zentika Empire's participants was Tac Lec. However, Tac Lec received his Lord Rift entrance ticket through hard work. He never signed a soul contract with the Zentika Empire. Therefore, he never had to pay the Zentika Empire with a percentage of the gains he made in the Lord Rift.
In the first place, Tac Lec escaped the Lord Rift barely alive. He was lethally injured and half-burned when he emerged from the Lord Rift. He barely escaped outside the Origin Expanse where his servants found him lying on the ground, writhing in pain. His life was on the line as he was brought to the medics of his race. But even they couldn't help him immediately. Tac Lec spent several weeks in a coma, and he had to recuperate for even longer. Even after so much time had passed, Tac Lec barely regained his former strength, allowing him to make use of the items he procured and earned in the Lord Rift.
The only participant of the Lord Rift who hadn't sustained any injuries was Taros. Taros was uninjured and he made most gains as well. Not only did rumors state that he was granted a powerful Soultrait Symbol as a reward for his contributions and achievements in the Lord Rift, but he brought back something else from the Lord Rift. Hushed but excited discussions of how he brought back a Dragon Egg – the egg of the Red Dragon, were ripe. It was the same Red Dragon that had wreaked havoc near the end of the Lord Rift's countdown.
Had Michael known about the Dragon Egg, he would have concluded that Taros stole the Dragon Egg, thus enraging the Red Dragon. Michael wouldn't hesitate to travel to the Southern Ice Mountains to wreak havoc in Taros' territory, killing him and his pet altogether. After all, Taros' actions were the sole reason Masked Saber – Daniel Fang – died in the Lord Rift.
Fortunately, Michael was oblivious to the truth. The Zentika Empire and Taros were engaged in a cold-blooded war for the last few months after all. From the day the Red Dragon youngling was born, Taros began to wreak havoc alongside the borders of the Zentika Empire. He first attacked some small villages and towns. He devoured them and used his Soultrait to grow stronger rapidly.
Simultaneously, he taught his Red Dragon to fight and hunt alongside him. The Red Dragon grew rapidly. As a Mythical Creature, even the weakest Dragon was capable of hunting Elite Tier-1 Awakened. Common Tier-2 Guards were not difficult to hunt as well. However, the most important aspect of Mythical Creatures was that their growth rate depended on the amount of energy they absorbed.
The Red Dragon killed thousands of enemies in its first battle. It absorbed the energy influx of those thousands and grew rapidly. Not even a full day passed before it advanced to Tier-1. Two weeks later it broke through the next barrier, reaching the 2nd Tier. By that time, the Red Dragon was already big enough to carry Taros on its back. The Red Dragon, capable of fighting Elite Tier-3 Awakened, crossed hundreds of kilometers in no time.
Taros guided the Red Dragon across the Zentika Empire to obliterate two settlements. Both Taros with Gluttony and the Red Dragon with its unfathomable power as a Mythical Creature grew stronger at a much faster rate than anyone else. Their natural limits shattered and they advanced until they finally conquered one of the Zentika Empire's cities.
From that moment onward, the Zentika Empire couldn't ignore Taros and the Red Dragon anymore. They gathered their forces, and their magical devices and initiated their counterattack.
The Council forgot about the ancient ruins they had wanted to conquer in the Untamed Jungle as well as the young Lord residing in the Untamed Jungle. Since the Untamed Jungle wasn't a threat as of this moment, the Council focused on the extermination of Taros and the Red Dragon. They had to hunt both and get rid of them before it was too late.
Their full power was utilized and a fierce battle ensued against Taros, his army, and the Red Dragon.
Meanwhile, Michael could finally spend some time at ease. All while the Origin Expanse around him was set on fire, Michael spent his time growing stronger and getting closer to his subjects.
It was not yet his time to shed blood, sweat, and tears.
ker1
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