On Earth, Aurora now had the title 'World's Most Beautiful Woman.' Word of her beauty spread all over the information network of the system. Many people talked of her beauty and many more desired to make it belong to them. Her beauty and innate charm won the hearts of many lords, causing them to fall under the banner of the alliance she had been asked to start by Will.
The looming invasion, the charm of Aurora and the name of the world's most talented and mysterious user. All these factors combined together to create a behemoth that could cause any major power headaches, especially the empire that wanted to take advantage of the fact that North America was not unified. The Earth Alliance was now the largest power in North America, controlling all of the West Coast and most of the Middle and parts of at least half of the East Coast. The majority of the other half was under the control of the United States Alliance. Their lord was the man who had been the president of the USA when the system had just begun.
He received a very powerful class and was the most powerful Lord before Aurora's expansion. He, like Aurora, also expanded thanks to the impending crisis of the invasion. Using that and his claim of true orthodoxy in being the representative of true democracy helped him sweep in a lot of lords. There were now only a few independent lords left on the east coast. Just days ago there were far more, but now most had either been taken but the US Alliance or the empire.
There had been a unique development while Will was away. All the remaining independent Lords in America banded behind the strongest user remaining in the West. This user shot to fame because they were a King for a moment. Kings were the highest levelled users on the planet. His name was Crouching Tiger. While he was still a King, he rallied the remaining independent Lords and created the Free Alliance. That meant that North America was now home to the Earth Alliance, The US Alliance and the Free Alliance!
Will's territory was one of the only few territories left that were not aligned with these three alliances. Now known collective as the Northern Triangle Alliance, they agreed to temporarily come together and fight back against the invasion by the empire! Crouching Tiger, Aurora Phoenix and Iron Patriot would lead the Northern Triangle Alliance with Aurora at the helm. The Earth Alliance made up almost 75% of the alliance, so there was no need to discuss why she had been given power. She had also been given power by Peerless, the number one Sovereign of earth.
Peerless was often seen as America's only hope of matching beings such as Musashi and Dragonheart, hence despite people not liking his personality or way of doing things, they still backed him as he was the better option for them.
Alice was trying to figure out how to use the forces that this alliance brought effectively against the invading troops. Through the system, she was getting regular updates about the empire's movements from information brokers. Now it seemed there was suspicious movement in Silverton's territory.
Originally, when Will had just joined the Empire, his orders were simple. Have the free Lords near Miami either die or submit to the empire under very enticing terms. Each of the experts under Will was to carry out this mission. Anyone in the group except Alexa could challenge any lord. But failure was unacceptable. The result would be an execution. So if you were chosen to challenge someone, you better be confident in your own strength.
Ibrahim, the strongest former Supreme Candidate present, was meant to clear out the remaining Lords while Will and the others focused on levelling Will up, unfortunately, Will had his own plans.
Thanks to the recruitment incident, Will gained a clue into the Dragonheart Empire's strength.
To be a ghost, one had to be above level 125. To become a Supreme under Arthur, one had to be capable of defeating all 498 Ghosts under Arthur in a one-on-one battle in one sitting.
From Will's own evaluation, the average Ghost was as strong as a full-powered Gianluigi Remus at level 99. Will was not sure how strong Gianluigi was if he fully utilized his bloodline and class skills, but he could estimate.
The fact that Earth, as a Lower World, had 500 plus such individuals in a single faction was stunning to Will and the others. But Earth was still fractured and underdeveloped. This talent was useless without the foundation of knowledge and resources that other worlds possessed.
Now it seemed that an unknown military force was gathering in Florida. No one was sure what kind of force it was, but Alice was willing to bet her last penny that it was the ghosts. Their ability to both fight and collect intel was top-notch. Only Musashi's shinobi could compare.
In other parts of the world, the power balance was simple. Musashi's 9 Rings Clan controlled all of Asia except China and India, which was the territory of Genesis and his Sect.
The Dragonheart Empire controlled Europe and certain parts of South America and a few nations in North America. Africa was under the control of the Golden Tribe.
The empire's goal was to simplify things. Only these superpowers should remain in power by the time Eridium came: The Dragonheart Empire, The Golden Tribe, The Samsara Sect and the Nine Rings Clan.
Four major powers, and four different types of governance. An empire, clan, tribe, and sect. The only major power which kept expanding was the empire. The Clan used the chaos caused by this to gain more experts by swallowing the defeated enemies of the empire. They cared less about land and cared more about experts. The Samsara Sect would provide Asylum for anyone who made it into their land while The Golden Tribe was like a black hole, anything can go in but nothing comes out.
Alice had been appointed by Will to be their core information handler. Her job was to know everything and present the necessary information to Duke, who had been appointed as the strategist. Hence she often spent long periods of time ruminating over the information she had. The more she knew, the better they could plan ahead.
Alice sat in an empty chair and placed a hand on her chin contemplating the success of her companions. Thanks to the new Contract, she could communicate with Duke, Letty and Will easily from any distance telepathically. Provided they were not in a unique space.
Duke was currently conquering other villages and towns in the nearby regions, getting used to divine power and receiving Hou Yi's guidance. She knew everything he was doing and was up to date. Letty and Will were currently unreachable but Alice did not fret. Letty was in Hela's inheritance ground, challenging the dungeon while Will was in a special dungeon. It would take a miracle for her to gain a connection to either one.
Thankfully, it did not take her long to wait. It was at this very moment, that the Village was about to receive an attack from Reinhardt's family, that Alice received her first message from Will.
"Hey Alice, I have a present for you, but it needs you to get serious. You ready?"
Alice quickly sat up from her seat and resolved her facial expression. This was the moment she had been waiting for since Will had left. The final piece of the puzzle needed to turn her into a true cultivator capable of helping Will achieve his dreams. A cultivator capable of helping get her revenge.
"I'm ready Will. I'm ready for Invictus" A small glint of Killing Intent flashed in Alice's eyes as an odd divine glow showered her from above.
'Hattori Hanzo. I'm going to kill you with my own hands.'
…
Two days earlier, at a distant location.
The battlefield was alive with the dance of arrows, the air humming with the tension of impending combat. Duke, the ever-charismatic cultivator with golden locks, faced the trials laid out by the legendary archer deity, Hou Yi. Hou Yi, a figure shrouded in mystery, was bald, donned a trench coat, and wore a Tengu mask that concealed his divine features.
The duo were fighting an army of cultivators that were chasing Duke for his Sun Chasing Bow. Reinhardt had released information on the value of the bow to many interested parties, resulting in a large manhunt for Duke spanning Kolladas Tis Moira and Ta Dasi. Duke welcomed this chase as the continuous battles were exactly what he needed to grow.
"Duke, my pupil, let the dance of the arrows commence," declared Hou Yi, his voice resonating with the authority of a deity. Duke nodded, his witty demeanour intact, "Alright, old man. Let's see if you can keep up with the pace of my dazzling arrows."
As Duke unleashed a flurry of arrows, each striking with unparalleled precision, Hou Yi observed with a subtle nod of approval. The battles continued, Duke, alternating between clever strategic traps and surprising initiatives that left his enemies bewildered. Hou Yi, the master tactician, guided Duke with silent whispers of archer wisdom.
In moments of peril, Duke tapped into the Yang arts, invoking spells such as Phoenix Arrows that obliterated his foes in bursts of fiery energy. The power of Yang, the masculine force, coursed through his arrows, leaving a trail of defeated adversaries in their wake. Hou Yi watched with a keen eye, a smile playing on his lips as Duke seamlessly blended skill and humour in the art of archery.