Chapter 2493: Advance Opening of the Three Planes

One day later.

News about the Eaerlann Elf Ambassador being given the cold shoulder by Xia Duo began to ferment in Seventon; Xia Duo guessed that it might be the Seven Towers cooperating with the Elves to pressure him.

Yet he did not take it to heart at all, and even more than once, in public settings at the Arcane Union, he high-profilely stated his opposition to Eaerlann joining the New Covenant.

Due to his firm opposition, some among the Great Arcanists began to waver, especially Yinaole; although he had not yet explicitly expressed opposition, as long as more people opposed it, Yinaole taking advantage of the momentum to oppose it was not unforeseeable.

Especially when Xia Duo proposed using the reduction of the Mythallar construction cycle as a bargaining chip, almost everyone's attitude became ambiguous.

Although the Great Arcanists of Netheril had not yet fallen to the point of being purely profit-driven, the reason they did not oppose Eaerlann joining the New Covenant was more because they felt this matter was no big deal; however, if they could obtain more benefits under the same conditions, they were not stupid and certainly would not refuse.

Now that Xia Duo had jumped out to act as a foil to the Elves, those Great Arcanists, believing there was no obvious harm, were naturally happy to stand on the sidelines and watch the show.

For Xia Duo, shortening the Mythallar manufacturing cycle was nothing, because the manufacturing cycle he had proposed earlier already had the intention of stalling; now it was just no longer stalling, and it was still far from the point of needing to work overtime to rush the work.

But for the Eaerlann Elves, the wait-and-see attitude of the other Great Arcanists was not a good thing; this meant that regardless of what Xia Duo's true thoughts were, they would need to pay a lower price.

And besides the Mythallar, Xia Duo did not have many places to pinch others, but he still held a super trump card in his hand—that was Puman, and the at least twenty-four Great Arcanists standing behind him.

Even if there were not, another twenty-plus Great Arcanists could dilute the voting power of the existing dozen or so Great Arcanists; if the Elves still insisted on joining the New Covenant, the price they would need to pay would also increase exponentially.

When approaching, the crowd naturally parted into a path; this was not because of Xia Duo, but because this area itself had been enchanted, and the space naturally expanded upon approach. From the outside, it looked like a bustling scene, but once close, because the space had become larger, the crowd actually appeared somewhat dense.

That evening, Xia Duo had just finished his talks with Braun and was preparing to oppose the Nan Jing taking Puman out of the Stasis Chamber, and then using Puman to pressure the Seven Towers to demand the opening of the three planes including Tianshui, so that the twenty-plus Great Arcanists inside could join the decision-making.

Therefore, if the price of accomplishing this matter was too high, the Elves would seriously consider whether to continue.

Now, the more difficult the Elves' problem was to handle, the more they could not do without those Great Arcanists in the three Tianshui planes; Xia Duo was eighty or ninety percent certain he could make the Seven Towers open the three Tianshui planes in advance.

The Elves' country was not a place where one person had the final say, but rather a system of checks and balances between the Crown King and the Council; perhaps they might agree readily now, but once old accounts were settled in the future, it was estimated that neither the Crown King nor the Council Elders would wish to see it.

……

"Human friends of Netheril, what you are seeing now is the most popular banquet gown in Taiweimansa this summer. The inspiration comes from the monsoon winds passing through the Lai Er Zhi of Taiweimansa. Wearing it, you will feel as if you are strolling on the giant leaves of Lai Er Zhi, light and elegant."

The impact of the Elves joining the New Covenant was not immediately effective, and there might even never be an opportunity to use it. For a country, paying a certain price for just this one possibility was not a problem, but if the price was too high, then it might not be appropriate.

If not for this business with the Elves, the consultations between the Seven Towers and Xia Duo regarding the New Covenant would soon enter a critical stage, which was the discussion on whether to connect the three planes including Tianshui in advance.

The sooner the three Tianshui planes were opened by one day, the sooner the New Covenant could be finalized.

And it was not just clothing; on this long display stand, there were also other exhibits, such as exquisite and complex ornaments, magic weapons emitting intense spiritual light, peerless paintings that were captivating at a single glance, and so on. Thus, one could deduce backwards that a New Covenant without the participation of the twenty-four Great Arcanists from those three planes was incomplete; it was just that the number of Great Arcanists in those three planes was higher, and the people of the Main Plane were more inclined to finalize the majority of the New Covenant's terms first, and then use the momentum of opening the planes to make the people there agree later.

After all, the consultations regarding the New Covenant were almost at the stage of opening the three Tianshui planes; most of the principled terms in the covenant had already been determined, and the rest were more about some detailed issues, as well as problems that the few people inside could hardly discuss to a definitive result.

Xia Duo did not get too close, but looking from afar, his excellent eyesight was enough for him to see most of the non-magical details on the gown; judging from the appearance alone, it was indeed worthy of being called a master's work.

But in the current situation, with the Elves having arrived, Xia Duo felt that opening those three planes in advance might not necessarily be a good thing; those three planes had been in a closed state for the past several hundred years, and the "ancient style" inside was relatively well-preserved.

Leaving the Arcane Union, Xia Duo had originally intended to go straight through the Arcane Plaza back to Azure Manor, and then take the Portal there back to the Nan Jing, but a scene in the Arcane Plaza made him unable to help but slow his pace.

"In fact, this gown will indeed grant the wearer the ability to walk on leaf tips, and through the master's craftsmanship, the first time it is worn, one will also gain the effect of restoring Youth."

……

It was just that he had been in Netheril for many years, and before today, he had never heard of any Elves coming to Netheril to hold any fashion show!

This was actually not a problem that required repeated consultation, because one of the results after the New Covenant was signed was the opening of those three planes, and the Great Arcanists in those three planes would all return to the Main Plane.

This subtle mindset was something even Xia Duo tacitly accepted.

Of course, the price Xia Duo thought of and the price the Elves thought of might not be on the same channel, but regardless, suddenly having twenty-plus more Great Arcanists would, more or less, make the Elves hesitate for a moment.

The "ancient style" here was not just more active magical exchanges, but also the vigilance and even hostility toward the Elves—or rather, toward the Arcanists—left behind when those three planes were first pioneered.

Anyway, it was on the way, Xia Duo thought, and walked toward the north side of the plaza in the direction of the Seventon Council, where a large crowd of onlookers was gathered, and in the center of the crowd was a long, display-stand-like area.

The issue of the Elves joining the New Covenant could be put aside for now; opening the Tianshui and other planes was the top priority. With Xia Duo having already increased the stakes, presumably others would also be happy to have more companions, so as to make the Elves bleed a little more.

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