Chapter 1047: Inviting Alliances, New Coins

"It isn't? But President Zhenna, didn't you just say—"

"Indeed, the cooperation I came to discuss with you does concern Ascension, but it is also true that Ascension is not my goal. Do you understand what a contingency plan is?"

"..."

Xia Duo was speechless. If everyone here comes up with a contingency plan, isn't that still an "Ascension Race"!

After thinking for a moment, he looked calmly at Zhenna and said, "Then, President Zhenna, what do you need me to do? And what can I gain?"

A flash of approval crossed Zhenna's eyes. She took a large, thick, bound parchment book from her Dimensional Bag and gestured with her right hand, sending it automatically to Xia Duo with an invisible force: "Take a look at this first!"

Xia Duo was puzzled, but he took the book. The cover was blank. He opened the first page, scanned it briefly, and then slammed it shut with a *thud*.

His heart pounded, filled with a trace of nervousness, excitement, and eagerness. Xia Duo stared straight into Zhenna's eyes:

"President Zhenna, this, this is—"

"Yes, this is the Princess's Ascension Ritual. Of course, what I obtained is only the version originally provided by the Elves. The Princess later made some adjustments and improvements to it, and I haven't obtained that part yet."

Zhenna's affirmative answer made Xia Duo's heart rate jump significantly. Having transmigrated into a real world of Magic, it would be pure hypocrisy to say Xia Duo didn't want to become a god. But before, he could only think about it, and now—

The data for the Ascension Ritual was in his hands, and there was even a successful case for this data. At this moment, Xia Duo really wanted to stuff the data into his Personal Space and run away immediately.

Fortunately, even the temptation of Ascension could not bury his reason. He resisted the urge to look at the heavy, thick book in his hands and asked again:

"President Zhenna, what do you want me to do? Is the reward the data related to the Ascension Ritual?"

"Lord Xia Duo, do you remember what I just said? Cooperation. What I want to discuss is true cooperation, win-win cooperation, not hiring a subordinate without a sense of belonging using this data."

So that's how it is!

Recalling some of the content he had just seen in this thick book, Xia Duo roughly understood where his value lay—

Territory, subjects!

Especially the latter!

He had just seen the part about the Faith Statue in the book, which involved Faith Power. Without a doubt, this was closely related to the nearly ten thousand subjects under his command.

However, the Princess's Ascension did not seem to involve setting up idols for the masses to worship, so what exactly did President Zhenna want to do?

Cooperation? How exactly were they to cooperate?

At this moment, Xia Duo's curiosity was raised to the extreme. He really wanted to open the book in his hand to find the answer, but he hadn't opened it when he had the chance, and now that the cooperation hadn't been negotiated yet, it was somewhat inappropriate to take the reward in advance.

Then, Zhenna stated the content of the so-called cooperation:

"The book in your hand is a gift from me to a partner. As for the content of the cooperation, it is actually very simple: I hope that before you and I successfully ascend, we will maintain a consistent attitude when dealing with matters related to Ascension."

"Ah? It's that simple?"

Xia Duo could hardly believe his ears, but the facts were right in front of him. Zhenna was looking for allies for the Ascension Race, and it just so happened that she found him!

"President Zhenna, are you so sure that I can become a qualified ally?"

Zhenna's gaze was clear and bright. She did not avoid Xia Duo's eyes and said very frankly: "Of course not now, but I am optimistic about your future!"

"Why?" Xia Duo still found it hard to believe.

The two sides had not had much interaction. Counting this time, they had only met twice. Was it because he saved Saide?

Perhaps there was such a consideration, but Xia Duo absolutely did not believe this would be the main reason.

If he didn't get a clear answer to this question, let alone becoming an ally, he probably wouldn't even be able to sleep soundly. Being noticed by a Great Arcanist like this, it would be a wonder if he could sleep well!

Seeming to see the doubts in Xia Duo's heart, Zhenna smiled slightly and explained: "I followed Master Bailun to study Magic for a long time and can be considered a student of the Master. I have known Princess Xiya since childhood. Naturally, they told me about your situation!"

"Furthermore, even if they hadn't told me, you became a Senior Arcanist at such an age, and your style of doing things is very much to my liking. You are enough to be our future ally."

"Our?"

Xia Duo noticed the detail in Zhenna's words and asked hurriedly: "Who else is among 'us'?"

"I can only tell you about Master Bailun. However, you don't need to worry. Not everyone among us has an Ascension Plan, and not everyone needs you to do anything. For now, you can understand this cooperation as an alliance between just the two of us."

After saying this, Zhenna stopped speaking and just waited quietly for Xia Duo to make a decision.

In fact, Xia Duo did not have much room for choice. Not to mention the risk of refusing a Great Arcanist to her face, the mere fact that Master Bailun was an ally made it very difficult for him to refuse.

Master Bailun was the Princess's teacher and also a close friend of Iolum, while the Princess was Niya's teacher, and Iolum was also the teacher of Niya's great-grandfather.

Or rather, the allies Zhenna didn't mention might include Iolum, and perhaps even the Princess—this new god of today.

How could he refuse this?

With almost no consideration, Xia Duo immediately replied: "Since President Zhenna values Xia Duo so much, how could Xia Duo refuse! I wish us a pleasant cooperation in the future!"

At this moment, Xia Duo had a sense of taking on the responsibility. If he could really win over a group of Great Arcanists, perhaps it would save him a lot of effort in the construction of future magical civilization.

"President Zhenna, can you tell me what specifically you want me to do now?"

"Lord Xia Duo, you really are impatient."

Zhenna smiled and signaled for Xia Duo to put away the book in his hand before saying: "Actually, there is only one thing I need you to do in the initial stage, and this thing is as easy as blinking for you!"

"Oh? What is it?"

"I just need you to promote the Ming Shui Chamber of Commerce's New Coin in your Territory. Princess Xiya should mention this to your wife regarding the Savile Territory. If not, you will need to handle it properly."

As she spoke, Zhenna took three coins from her Dimensional Bag and, just like the Ascension Book earlier, sent them to Xia Duo with an invisible force.

Xia Duo reached out and plucked the three coins from the void in front of him, pinching them between his fingers to examine them carefully—

These three coins were gold, silver, and copper, respectively. They were almost the same size as the three types of coins currently used in Netheril, but the quality seemed better.

Additionally, there was one major difference: the front of the New Coin featured the profile of a mysterious lady, while the back bore the emblem of the Ming Shui Chamber of Commerce.

Xia Duo looked at the coins in his hand and then looked up at President Zhenna. Clearly, the mysterious lady with only a profile on the front of the New Coin was President Zhenna herself.

What a novel object indeed!