"..."

Upon hearing the Fire Phoenix Patriarch's question, the elders looked at each other, seemingly appearing to be clueless as the others.

Patriarch Killian Zenflame's brows squinted as he frowned. None of the elders knew who this female Fire Phoenix named Zahara was? How can that be?

He quickly commanded a few people to investigate this issue, and within a minute, that person delivered a report.

"Reporting to the Patriarch. I've gained information that she is a young character who is as powerful and talented as our Clan Mistress, but due to the scandalous past of her parents, Grand Elder Talkon decided to prioritize Clan Mistress over her and kept her out of the scene for a smooth succession."

"Oh..."

Patriarch Killian Zenflame nodded, but his gaze was elsewhere, contemplating a bit before he nodded.

"So she recently joined the Aurora Cloud Gate. That's not bad. On the other hand, the two grandchildren of Elder Nagon don't seem to be making any progress in the short term."

"Patriarch..." The one who was called Elder Nagon couldn't help but interject with a difficult expression on his face.

He was none other than the grandfather of Tegon Zenflame and Egon Zenflame.

"I'm not blaming them." However, Patriarch Killian Zenflame shook his head, "Perhaps, our Immortal Inheritor's animosity is towards men. In that case, send Zahara to deal with Inheritor s.h.i.+rley and see what happens. We must bring her to our side no matter what."

"Yes!"

The elders echoed in unison. On the other hand, the Earth Dragon Patriarch Klavius Rocksunder finally opened his mouth.

"Patriarch Killian Zenflame, it looks like you forgot about warring with the Aurora Cloud Gate."

Instantly, Fire Phoenix Patriarch's expression turned into a scowl before he lightly harrumphed.

"Those old birds refuse to move even when I went to implore them. Who would've thought that the Aurora Cloud Gate has so much weight in the older generation that the old birds indicated for me to wait and not come into direct conflict with them? I could only resort to persuading methods like these..."

"Aye, you are younger than me and were in the Northern Divide for a significant part of your life. You don't know much about the Aurora Cloud Gate and its deep history. They're not just any ancient power that managed to survive by simply being closed off for most of the time."

Patriarch Klavius Rocksunder shook his head, not opting to elaborate further even as the Fire Phoenix Patriarch expected more.

The latter then informed them of some more methods to attract Inheritor s.h.i.+rley to his elders, telling them of the importance of the inheritance and also the inheritors.

"There will come a time soon when our inheritors will stand unified and lead the Fire Phoenix Clan to glory, but for that, we must give us our full support. To combat the heavenly geniuses, we can only rely on our human and fey brothers and sisters. However, we magical beasts will not sit back and watch."

"Even though our Kings and Emperors from history have already ascended, we will do our very best."

Hearing Patriarch Killian Zenflame's words, the human and fey elders nodded their heads with emotion.

"I'm not just saying this to soothe our hearts. Our young magical beast warriors have not inherited the royal bloodline of Kings and Emperors. But we can no longer hold back. Once we lose one of our inheritors, the chances that we are able to fulfill our main clan's wishes will significantly drop. To prevent that from happening, I plan to use the Inheritance Lands to reinvigorate the bloodline of our heavenly geniuses in order for them to support our inheritors."

"...!"

The elders became shocked, but Patriarch Killian Zenflame continued, "I will need the support of all you Elders in convincing the Grand Elders and Ancestors. This concerns the fate of our Fire Phoenix Clan."

It was not only the Fire Phoenix Clan's elders who were dumbfounded but even the Earth Dragon Clan's Patriarch was shaken, his eyes narrowing.

"Killian, have you gone crazy? That is reserved for when the Candidacy is declared. After all, the Inheritance Lands are already at the end of their usefulness. If you use them one more time, then they're completely gone forever!"

"I am aware." Patriarch Killian Zenflame took a deep breath, feeling some pressure.

"For some reason, I already feel that it is close. The recent attack from the Vacuous Beasts is a sign that the end is near. If we keep waiting for the last inheritor to join, I'm afraid something bad might happen because that Divergent is already strong enough to battle Immortal Kings with his death-attributed wolf mount. Have you ever seen an immortal beast that is so powerful?"

"..." His words shook the elders.

"The rumors that it is an Emperor-Tier Immortal Beast is most likely true, so in that case, we need to improve the prowess of heavenly geniuses, or else, they're only going to be slaughtered in front of them."

"It is time for millions of years of harvest our people have cultivated to be reaped and gifted back to the main clan in the immortal world. Their sacrifices of the main clan will not be forgotten under any circ.u.mstances."

Patriarch Killian Zenflame's voice was grave and heroic that the elders couldn't help but suck in a breath of cold air.

They had thought that they could deal with a brat like the Emperor of Death as it would take tens of years for him to reach their level, even in the worst-case scenario, as it was not easy for humans to cultivate faster, unlike magical beasts and spirits when it was already difficult for them.

This was their estimate, with him having heavenly resources in hand instead of immortal crystals, which, in that case, would take even more time, like hundreds and thousands of years, depending on the quality.

But now, their Patriarch had rated the threat even higher and decided to use one of their trump cards earlier than planned by some unknown years. It could be a very short or extremely long period of time as they had no idea when the Candidacy would begin.

Nonetheless, to use the Inheritance Lands, this matter could not be initiated by the elders and Patriarch alone but could only be diverted to the true rulers of the Fire Phoenix Clan with all of their approval. Only after the approval of the true rulers descended could they use the inheritance resources. Otherwise, they could only wait until the Emperor of Death arrived outside to make their move.

Realizing the consequences, they pa.s.sionately echoed their support for Patriarch Killian Zenflame.

Seeing this scene, Patriarch Klavius Rocksunder also became hesitant.

If they activated the Inheritance Lands early and failed to support the inheritors at the right time when the Candidacy appeared, then things would quickly turn awry for their powers. He couldn't believe that the Fire Phoenix Patriarch was truly...

'... playing with fire!' He had to internally scream despite their natural affinity for fire.

After all, the Candidacy was one thing, and dealing with the Emperor of Death was another. Even without the last inheritors, they could still attempt to secure a better future, but undoubtedly, it would be even more difficult.

"That's right..." Patriarch Killian Zenflame suddenly spoke up as his eyes narrowed, "... if that Zahara girl manages to woo back our Young Inheritor, tell her we can give her a spot in the Inheritance Land. That will motivate her and allow her to be more serious regardless of her new affiliation as a Fire Phoenix will always return to its nest."

"Yes!"

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