Chapter 1799: Discussing Evacuation, the Sorrow of the Weak

After the thunderous avalanche ended, the south side of the World Spine fell silent in an instant, but the subsequent waves of wailing, crying, and cursing became a melody that was difficult to soothe.

Further south, beyond the Milar River, the Ilusk People witnessed almost the entire process of the World Spine's lightning-struck peaks turning from snow-white to ash-gray.

Even the most ignorant person knew what had happened; looking far into the distance now, the snow-white that originally covered only the upper half of the mountain range had all shifted to the lower half.

Some began to cheer, believing their mortal enemies, the Orcs, had received divine retribution, but the more rational ones knew clearly that such a natural disaster alone could not completely annihilate the Orc tribes.

Not to mention, the Orcs did not all live on the mountains; even if the Orcs on the mountains were wiped out, a large number of Orcs still existed in the hills below.

Having lost the restraint of the large tribes above, this year's Orc Tide would likely be even harder to survive!

At the confluence of the Milar River and the Western Ice Ocean, in the largest settlement of the Ilusk People, the Ilusk Lord Laian summoned the leaders of other large settlements without a moment's delay after receiving reports from his subordinates.

"Everyone, something bad has happened. You must have seen the natural disaster just now. In the long run, this is a good thing for us Ilusk People, but the problem is that we are too weak; I fear we won't last until the day we can enjoy the benefits!"

The major settlements of the Ilusk People were far apart, and on the way here, each leader had already discussed countermeasures with their respective subordinates.

In their view, after this natural disaster, the Orcs had suffered heavy losses and should not be able to continue launching an Orc Tide.

After all, in the past, the Orc Tide was entirely due to there being too many Orcs; now that so many had died, and food had not decreased—perhaps even increased—what reason could there be to continue launching an Orc Tide?

"Lord Laian, you are overthinking it, aren't you? Having just experienced such a terrifying disaster, I think it is more likely that those Orcs are worried about the Elves in the south coming to sweep them away, rather than worrying about them crossing the Milar River."

"That's right. Even if they really do cross over, we can retreat into the Liweier Forest and rely on the Elven Magic within the forest to defend and counterattack."

The few leaders spoke one after another, the gist being that Laian was overthinking things. After all, they had survived the Orc Tides for so many years; now that the Orcs' strength was greatly damaged, could they not survive it?

But Laian, as the leader unanimously recommended by everyone, could not consider things so one-sidedly. He turned his gaze to the north, as if he could already see a massive Orc Tide roaring and surging toward them, and said gloomily:

"What if the Orcs really do come? If we wait until then to retreat, a large number of people will surely be left behind. This is a responsibility we leaders must bear."

"Furthermore, the commotion in the north this time is too great. It is hard to believe the Elves in the south won't have some ideas of their own. When the time comes, will they still let us retreat into the Liweier Forest?"

"Is it possible they might make us their cannon fodder to block the Orcs' frontal assault for them?"

As the leader unanimously recommended by the major Ilusk settlements, Laian had seen the world. He did not believe the Elves were any more noble than them; on the contrary, because they possessed more and desired more, their evil intentions were also greater!

"We cannot continue to use the experience of past Orc Tides to infer this year's sudden situation!"

"Then what plan does Lord Laian have?"

"First, of course, is to seek aid. We must seek aid from the Northland Alliance, Illefarn, and even Netheril to the east. We are the weak, so naturally, we should receive protection."

When it came to seeking aid or protection, Laian felt no embarrassment at all. Surviving in such a world was already difficult enough; if one still wanted to save face, wouldn't it be even harder?

Face was something only those great nations could afford to have. As for the Ilusk People, they were actually not even as good as a small city-state; not only were their population and territory inferior, but their strength was not even a fraction of theirs.

"Secondly, immediately organize the people for the autumn harvest. Within two days at the latest, we must retreat to the south. We don't have to enter the Liweier Forest for now, but we must be prepared to enter at any time."

After Laian finished speaking, one of the leaders began to complain, "There will be a great loss in the autumn harvest now! Can we delay it a bit? The weather hasn't turned cold yet; even if the Orcs really want to come, they won't be that fast!"

"I know there will be some loss in food, but we cannot bear the risk of a massive loss of life among the people. If the Orcs really come, will you still be able to keep that food of yours?"

As a lord, Laian did not have absolute power, but having been unanimously recommended by everyone, he did not lack prestige.

At this moment, he insisted repeatedly and claimed he would be responsible for all possible consequences. Although the other leaders were still somewhat reluctant, they were willing to follow Laian and give it a try.

After all, of the two misjudgments, the consequences of their own misjudgment were unbearable; by comparison, the consequences of Laian's misjudgment would be much smaller.

"By the way, regarding the choice of Magic, we must make a decision as soon as possible: whether to choose Elven Magic or Netheril Magic."

The topic changed, but the worry on everyone's faces did not dissipate in the slightest. Elven Magic was more suitable for Elves, and Netheril Magic was more suitable for humans, but the problem was they were too close to Illefarn and too far from Netheril!

If they chose to fully embrace Netheril Magic, before they gained the strength to protect themselves, Illefarn wouldn't even need to do anything extra; they would only need to forbid the Ilusk People from entering the Liweier Forest during the annual Orc Tide. After a few times, even if the Ilusk People weren't wiped out, they would suffer heavy losses.

But if they chose Elven Magic, it would be no different from the early days of Netheril—becoming another kind of vassal to the Elves. Although they were already that now, who didn't have a desire for true independence?

But Netheril had the Nether Scroll to turn things around; what did the Ilusk People have?

Regarding this topic, several leaders showed difficulty, "Lord Laian, is it that Illefarn is urging us again?"

"They aren't urging us yet, but we don't have much time to hesitate."

"If you ask me, we might as well just merge into Netheril. Anyway, they are currently developing new lands there, so there's no need to worry about crowding their original territory."

Indeed, it was not just a few individuals who had this thought. After someone voiced their inner feelings, several leaders showed expressions of being tempted.

In fact, the Ilusk People were just a nation forcibly pieced together. If they were allowed to develop on their own, they might eventually form a union, but it would not have the current efficiency.

After all, even the name of the country was created by imitating "Illefarn"; how much national or ethnic identity could the people have?

Being able to join a powerful human nation was naturally a great thing they were eager for.

But Laian, who had seen the world, did not think so. He knew very well that the greatest value of the Ilusk People lay in their status as a member state of the Northland Alliance.

If they lost that, the Ilusk People would likely be no different from the barbarians in the wilderness in the eyes of the Elves and even the Netherese.