The True Martial Sacred Land was itself a loyal ally of the Eternal Sacred Land. On top of that, Jiang Chen had previously helped them out of a crisis, saving the very foundation of the True Martial Sacred Land's dominion.
On this matter, then, the True Martial Sacred Land had no choice but to step forward and rally support. The Eternal Sacred Land harbored ambitions for the position of alliance leader, but it was not convenient for them to speak up directly.
The task of breaking the ice naturally fell to the True Martial Sacred Land.
Once someone raised a proposal, others were bound to follow.
"That's right. Given the current state of affairs, if the Ten Great Sacred Lands refuse to form an alliance and stand together, fighting each on their own, the prospects on the extraterritorial battlefield look grim indeed."
"The situation has already deteriorated this far. We really ought to set aside our differences and focus our efforts on cooperating against the outside enemy. If we keep exhausting each other in internal conflict, the Myriad Abyss Island will burn through its meager resources sooner or later. When that day comes, we'll be the fish on the cutting board while others hold the blade. Everyone knows what that means."
"If the nest collapses, no egg remains whole. I support forming an alliance."
"Support the alliance! Only by working together in concert do we have any chance of turning the tide on the extraterritorial battlefield."
The various Sacred Lands voiced their positions one after another.
Forming an alliance served everyone's interests. It was like fingers on a hand — poke someone with one finger, no matter how hard, the damage won't be great. But clench all ten fingers into a fist, and the blow dealt becomes far more devastating.
The Ten Great Sacred Lands were currently like ten separate fingers, each fighting on its own, or at best with two or three pressed together for a strike.
An alliance meant clenching all ten fingers into a fist.
Even the Hundred Sacred Land had originally been among the strongest proponents of the alliance. Their motive was clear — they were gunning for the position of alliance leader.
But at this moment, the Hundred Sacred Land had fallen strangely silent. They were growing worried now — would the position of alliance leader really fall into their hands?
Earlier, they had prepared a wide array of measures to counter the Eternal Sacred Land and undermine its standing. Although Lu Mingye and the Poison Consort Shi Qinglu had both failed to suppress Jiang Chen, their performance falling well short of the trajectory the Hundred Sacred Land had mapped out.
Then Jiang Chen ventured into the Tenth Forbidden Island, which seemed to present the Hundred Sacred Land with a golden opportunity. Yet in the end, the outcome still dealt a crushing blow to them.
There was no denying it — their predetermined path had gone completely off course. The position of alliance leader, which they had considered virtually guaranteed, no longer looked so certain.
Under these circumstances, the Hundred Sacred Land found themselves hesitating. Should they continue to support the alliance or not?
Not forming an alliance would also damage the Hundred Sacred Land's interests.
But if the alliance formed and they failed to secure the leadership — especially if it fell into the hands of the Eternal Sacred Land — their days would be made very difficult.
That said, in a situation like this, the Hundred Sacred Land's silence did not affect the bigger picture. After all, the majority of Sacred Lands were in favor of the alliance.
This included even the Hundred Sacred Land's close allies, the Duowen Sacred Land and the Jimie Sacred Land.
Originally, the three factions had maintained close ties. Had they joined forces and rallied two or three others to back the Hundred Sacred Land, the position of alliance leader would have been all but assured.
But now, while the three still maintained a veneer of closeness, cracks had already begun to appear in their relationship.
As for the parties the Hundred Sacred Land hoped to recruit, they were visibly keeping their distance — clearly growing skeptical of the Hundred Sacred Land's character.