Chapter 2191: A New Journey

————Impersonating, currently grinding~

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"What should be restricted is the abuse of War Spells, not War Spells themselves. Every country has the right to protect itself and to develop armed forces for that protection."

As soon as Xia Duo said this, Jialanuode fell silent. The look in Badijiaer's eyes also held confusion, as if to say, we've reached the critical moment of "dividing the spoils," why are you still putting on such an act!

"Sigh—"

Xia Duo sighed inwardly. The orderly voting scene at the Alliance Assembly just now had almost made him forget that this era was still dominated by power-based thinking, even though things weren't much better on Earth.

But under power, there is always resistance; why not establish a relatively fair system from the very beginning?

Furthermore, most importantly—no power can remain strong forever. If one gets used to treating others with power, once that power declines one day, will submission then become a matter of course?

Even without considering the decline of power, this world is vast. Being able to exert influence in the Northland for a time does not necessarily mean the same is true for the entire Main Plane.

If one day a powerful force invades, or even rules through power, would one still be able to muster the heart to resist?

This question seems trivial, but it actually concerns the essence of a country or an organization. If it cannot be correctly understood, the result will be internal division at best, and destruction at worst.

Xia Duo held high hopes for the Northland Alliance; he did not want such a promising organization to be ruined by the power-based thinking of a few countries.

"Lord Jialanuode, do you believe that Keman can resolve all the disputes in the Northland single-handedly?"

"How is that possible? If Keman were that strong, it would have unified the Listar Forest long ago!"

Jialanuode accidentally revealed his truest thoughts. However, Xia Duo did not mind; since they hadn't been able to "unify" in the past, under the order of the Northland Alliance, it would be even harder to complete such a "unification" in the future.

"Then, Lord Badijiaer, do you believe that Netheril can resolve all the problems in the Northland single-handedly?" Xia Duo asked again.

"Of course not!"

Badijiaer seemed a bit impatient. "Lord Xia Duo, just say what you want to say. I am not the type of person who cannot listen to others' opinions, and Netheril is not a country that completely disregards the opinions of its lords."

"What I want to say is—there are some things in the Northland Alliance that even if Netheril, Keman, and even Yierlan and Yinerfalang were to unite, they might not be able to handle well. The attitudes of other countries are also very important."

"For example?"

"Do I even need to say it? The clues to the Dragon Madness Mythallar, the Demon Descendant problem—which one of these can you solve independently?"

"This—"

Badijiaer reacted immediately. Indeed, there exist countless problems in this world that are difficult to solve by power alone, and even if they could be solved by power, that level of power is not something the current countries of the Northland possess.

But so what?

"If we can't solve it, do you think Aifuruisi and the others can?"

"That's not what I mean. I'm saying that if all countries could work together, wouldn't it be easier to solve?"

Following this, Xia Duo used the "last straw that breaks the camel's back" as an example to explain to Badijiaer that even a meager effort is not without significance.

Take the crisis of the Dragon Madness Mythallar collapsing as an example; perhaps a key clue is hidden in the hands of some small country. If major powers like Netheril could act justly and treat them as equals, perhaps they would just hand it over.

Otherwise, they could simply wait for the countries to collapse and then clean up the mess themselves.

One must know that the difference between large and small countries in the Northland is merely one of scale; the technical level is not so great that it cannot be bridged. And at the same technical level, the smaller the scale, the easier it is to survive when facing a crisis.

The extreme state is an individual high-level Mage; if the Northland fails, they can just run somewhere else. If the Main Plane fails, they can switch to a new Plane.

A large ship may not necessarily withstand the waves, but a small ship is certainly easy to turn around.

"Lord Xia Duo's thoughts are profound indeed; Jialanuode feels inferior. Then, according to your opinion, how should these War Spells be restricted so that it is beneficial to all countries?"

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Jialanuode's sudden change of tone caught Badijiaer off guard. In reality, he was also nearly persuaded by Xia Duo, but he had found it hard to accept the fact that "major powers need the support of small countries at certain times," which was why he had been stunned for a moment. Now that he had reacted, he hurriedly tried to make amends:

"Lord Xia Duo, the Seven Towers are also formed by the union of various Mage Tower organizations. Some are strong and some are weak, but almost all Mage Tower organizations can pass down their legacy. The key factor in this is the Seven Towers Covenant."

"Yes!"

Xia Duo affirmed Badijiaer's statement. "The Seven Towers Covenant has detailed rules, which is why it can play a practical role. But the Northland Alliance only has a relatively broad charter; it still needs us to continuously improve and refine it to form a Northland order that benefits all countries."

Xia Duo believed that Badijiaer could understand what he was saying, but human nature is selfish, and double standards are inevitable. However, Jialanuode's change in attitude was so fast that it surprised him a little.

But regardless, as long as everything is laid out and they see the pros and cons, combined with a little bit of his deterrence, he thought they would be able to make a decision that satisfies everyone.

So he continued: "I still hold the same view as before: any country has the right to protect itself and to develop armed forces for that protection, and this naturally includes War Spells."

"Therefore, I do not advocate restricting War Spells or War Magic Artifacts themselves, but rather restricting the scenarios in which War Spells are used."

"Simply put—they can be used for self-defense, but cannot be used for offense."

"They can only be used for self-defense? Then what if a country deliberately designs another country to attack it, and then uses that as an excuse to use them?" Jialanuode immediately pointed out the loophole.

However, this was already within Xia Duo's considerations. In terms of influence, War Spells are similar to nuclear weapons on Earth, and Earth has very complete rules for the use of nuclear weapons that can be used as a reference.

"Of course, it is impossible for every self-defense scenario to require the use of War Spells. We can fully discuss the details of this with representatives of all countries at the Alliance Assembly, but I can briefly state my point of view here."

Subsequently, Xia Duo introduced the principle of reciprocity from Earth to the two, meaning that if one side uses a War Spell, the other side can also use one.

As well as the right to survival, meaning that when a specific and real attack already threatens the survival of one side, using any means is not excessive, including War Spells.

However, Jialanuode did not respond immediately to Xia Duo's point of view. It could be said that once Xia Duo's vision is realized, in the current situation of the Northland, major powers will lose the vast majority of their ability to threaten small countries.

Like Akaola, which has been closed off for many years and still lives well. If the Northland Alliance cannot give small countries the treatment they deserve, then why should small countries play along with the major powers!

This is actually a problem with extremely far-reaching implications. Jialanuode could not make up his mind for a moment, but for his own part, he was actually quite looking forward to the atmosphere of the Northland Alliance that Xia Duo described.