Chapter 523: 523. Alibi

Many nations had tried to rebel against the influence of the three big nations, but the Hive was the only organization that had managed to claim real independence.

The borders of the Coral archipelago were protected by the copying technique retrieved in Divine Demon's separate dimension, and a rank 6 existence ruled those islands, the three big nations couldn't affect that domain without suffering losses.

The Hive could develop away from the clutches of those forces, improving and solidifying its foundation, becoming something similar to a fourth influent power in the old continent.

Yet, the road to becoming the fourth big nation was still long, especially since the Hive was lacking in heroic assets, the only way to improve in that field was to nurture large numbers of human cultivators after all.

Heroic cultivators were so crucial in an organization that the Papral nation was ready to hire the Hive to make the other factions suffer some losses, the Council didn't want to be the only power weakened by the exploration of the new land.

"We can't become the disposable weapon of the Papral nation."

Noah said after Elder Austin explained the situation.

The Council's offer was extremely appealing, and he was sure that the reports about the new continent weren't the only rewards that the Hive could obtain from it.

However, messing with the big nations wasn't something that could be done easily, the Hive simply didn't have the power to endure possible aftermaths.

"True, but we can't continue exploring this land in secret either. All the coasts will eventually fall under the control of the three big nations, which will force us to return to the archipelago. We need the support of the Papral nation to remain here openly."

Elder Austin spoke, and Noah couldn't help but think that his words made sense.

The Hive had found only three areas from which it could gain some profits: The forest of White woods, the azure plain, and the wasteland filled with rivers of lava.

The desert with the sandworms and the grassland with the yellowish moss were quite barren and could only offer a stream of magical beasts and plants, and there wasn't much that could be gained from them.

The lake inhabited by the particular species of octopuses and the rivers occupied by the Poisonous frogs could hide something interesting, but exploring those areas was a difficult task, those missions would require a team of fully prepared heroic cultivators to be completed.

The mountainous landscape seemed interesting, but Noah had been forced to interrupt his exploration due to the appearance of Elder Cheryl, it would be impossible to return there after the forces of the Council had been alerted.

Those were the areas that the Hive had been able to explore in that short period and with that little manpower.

The main issue, though, was that the Hive needed time to obtain benefits from those zones.

The azure plain needed to be freed from the magical beasts so that the azure bushes growing there could be plundered and transformed into a stable source of income.

The forest of White woods needed to be deeply studied before those magical plants could be used as a defensive measure, Elder Laurel alone wasn't enough for the task since she could barely affect the strongest trees.

The lava lake had to be transformed into a proper cultivation area for elders with a fire aptitude, and even the source of its heat had to be seized, which was something that only Chasing Demon could be able to do.

All in all, the Hive needed time and the permission to remain in the new continent, things that only one of the three big nations could provide.

"I understand your concerns, but the archipelago can't let go of this chance. Our home is safe, and the possible gains outclass the possible losses, we just have to pay attention."

Elder Austin spoke again when he saw that Noah was lost in his thoughts.

'Paying attention isn't really enough, but he should have some sort of plan since he looks so confident.'

Noah returned to reality when he heard the leader's words and temporarily suppressed his doubts about that task to question him.

"What do you have in mind?"

Elder Austin revealed a smile when he saw that Noah had agreed to the mission and walked next to him as he pointed toward the eastern coast.

"We will form a small team lead by a rank 5 elder specialized in ambushes. The team will continue exploring the southern coast until it finds traces of the heroic cultivators of the Utra nation, only to take them by surprise and retreat."

Elder Austin's index traced red lines on the air, a small version of the continent was soon drawn in front of Noah.

"Anonymity is key, the Elbas family must think that the assassins come from one of the other two factions to force it to act against them. We will decide the next move after we understand how the Utra nation answers to our provocation."

Noah nodded at those words.

The presence of a rank 5 heroic cultivator specialized in ambushes would facilitate the task, especially if their targets were in the fourth rank.

"The threat of assassins running freely on the continent will force the three factions to slow down their exploration, giving us more time to stabilize our gains. I believe the Hive has already prepared an alibi in case its implication is questioned."

Noah continued the leader's speech, and the task became more doable the more he analyzed it in his mind.

Elder Austin nodded before explaining as he dispersed the flames still lingering in the air.

"Of course. The Hive will openly invade one of the nations in the area of influence of the Empire. We will use that war to train the new human assets and to pretend to be too busy to mind the new continent, it is a win-win situation."

Noah couldn't help but think about Odrea nation when he heard that the Hive wanted to train human cultivators through a war, but his mind quickly went back on the main topic as it gave voice to a request.

"I want the corpses of the cultivators that we kill."