Chapter 188 - 181: Battle of the Ten Thousand Races... My Ass

"Anton Silver Moon."

Gathering his thoughts, Anton gave a slight nod to the man and the Elf before him.

Seeing the hidden meaning beneath Anton's calm expression, Grant and Alicia exchanged a glance, both somewhat surprised.

"You know who we are?" Grant asked with great interest.

Anton smiled faintly. "The youngest Legendary Sword Saint of the Freedom Alliance and the youngest holder of the 'Sacred Star' title from the Jade Royal Court. It would be hard not to know you."

Grant let out a hearty laugh at his words, his curiosity about Anton growing.

He and Alicia were certainly well-known on the Dawn Continent, but they were hardly household names.

Besides, from the looks of it, Anton had clearly guessed their identities before they even introduced themselves.

This wasn't the kind of knowledge an Elf from a minor clan would possess.

Of course, slaying a Giant Dragon wasn't something an ordinary Elf could do either.

Anton was clearly not as simple as they had imagined.

However, neither Grant nor Alicia intended to probe any deeper.

Who didn't have a secret or two?

All that mattered was knowing that Anton was on their side.

After the pleasantries, Grant's smile faded, his expression turning a bit more serious.

"Anton, this is a matter of great importance. There's something I need to confirm one more time." He looked directly into Anton's eyes. "Isaac really is dead at your hands, isn't he?"

"That's right." Anton knew what he was getting at and answered directly, "He never used the Dragon God's power, not even at the very end."

Although he had already suspected as much, hearing the definitive answer from Anton's lips made Grant take a sharp breath, his eyes shining with unprecedented brightness.

Alicia said nothing, but the turmoil in her eyes was equally hard to conceal.

They had traveled thousands of miles to this very place, all to find this answer.

"It seems the Dragon God really is in trouble." A grin of irrepressible delight spread across Grant's face. "Those stinking lizards are in for some major trouble now."

After his initial elation, he turned to Anton, his smile deepening.

"Thanks to you for exposing the lizards' secret, otherwise, who knows how long we would have been kept in the dark. What you've done today is far more significant than you can imagine."

"We owe you a huge favor."

Anton's expression was a little strange.

'Strictly speaking, all of this praise should belong to the man standing before me. Hearing it from his mouth instead gives me a truly bizarre feeling.'

"It's nothing, really. I was forced into it, after all," Anton said calmly.

He was being completely sincere.

If Isaac hadn't suddenly lost his mind and attacked the Silver Moon Forest, he never would have killed him.

'Wouldn't it have been nice to just lay low and develop for a few more centuries?'

Now, even though he had won this battle, he had also pushed himself and his clan into the eye of the storm.

More importantly, it had caused a drastic change in the timeline, greatly weakening his prophetic advantage.

Grant, however, was unaware of this. He just assumed Anton was being modest and grew to admire his composure in the face of praise all the more.

Just then, Alicia suddenly spoke up. "Anton, I have a proposal. I wonder if you'd be willing to hear it."

Seeing Anton's quizzical look, she continued, "Would you and your clan be interested in joining the Jade Royal Court?"

"The Silver Moon Clan is already a vassal of the Jade Royal Court," Anton said.

"That is merely a nominal allegiance." Alicia shook her head, her gaze sincere. "I hope that you and your clan will fully join the Jade Royal Court and become a true part of it."

"With your strength and talent, I'm confident I can persuade the Elder Council to grant you the 'Sacred Star' title, allowing you to enjoy the corresponding status and benefits."

"Your people could also relocate to the City of Ten Thousand Trees, receive official status within the Court, and enjoy its resources and protection."

This time, Anton was genuinely surprised.

He hadn't expected Alicia to take the initiative to recruit him and the Silver Moon Clan.

Grant glanced at Anton and said with a chuckle, "I think Alicia's proposal is a good one. If you join the Jade Royal Court, with your strength and talent, you might even become one of the Twelve Seats of the Star Ring in the future."

At this critical juncture, any Legendary-Tier combatant was incredibly valuable.

Grant would be more than happy to see the Jade Royal Court gain another Legendary Combat Power with immense potential.

But to their surprise, Anton shook his head with barely a moment's thought. "Thank you for the invitation, but we have no plans to leave the Silver Moon Forest for now."

Alicia was taken aback, clearly not expecting such a direct refusal.

Her gaze lingered on Anton's face for a moment. Seeing that he wasn't just holding out for a better offer but was genuinely refusing, a flicker of regret crossed her eyes.

"That's a real shame."

She sighed softly. "If you change your mind, you can contact me anytime."

"Thank you," Anton nodded.

Seeing his resolute attitude, Grant didn't press the matter further. He smiled and said, "We need to get back and make preparations, so we'll take our leave here. Let's grab a drink sometime if we get the chance."

"Sounds good," Anton replied with a smile.

He had a rather good impression of the Freedom Alliance's Legendary Sword Saint.

Grant was a free-spirited person. As soon as he finished speaking, he gave a wave and leaped onto the giant eagle's back without a hint of hesitation.

Alicia gave Anton a slight nod in farewell and followed him up.

The giant eagle beat its wings, kicking up a fierce gale. It soared into the sky with the two of them, quickly disappearing into the clouds.

Watching the giant eagle fly away, Anton sighed inwardly.

He had to admit, Alicia's proposal would be incredibly appealing to most Elves.

The Jade Royal Court was one of the top factions on the Dawn Continent. Its profound heritage was far beyond anything the Silver Moon Clan could compare to.

The Jade Royal Court had an almost endless supply of rare resources like the Moonflower Spiritual Liquid.

If he joined the Jade Royal Court and gained access to its resources and connections, the speed of his future power growth would undoubtedly increase dramatically.

But there's no such thing as a free lunch in this world.

The Jade Royal Court was certainly a top-tier faction, but it also suffered from the chronic illness that plagued most major powers: a tangled web of relationships, countless conflicts of interest, and even internal factional struggles.

Anton had far too many secrets.

It was manageable in the Silver Moon Clan, where the entire clan's development depended on him. The Elder Council and his fellow clan members supported him wholeheartedly and wouldn't pry into his secrets.

He had enough power to control the entire clan.

But if he joined the Jade Royal Court, he would inevitably lose that independence.

In the future, simply dealing with all the probing and covetous gazes would take up most of his time and energy. How could he possibly focus on increasing his strength?

If the reasons above had both pros and cons, then another reason made Anton completely abandon the idea of joining the Jade Royal Court.

Grant and Alicia were still racking their brains over the upcoming Dragon Slaying War, but Anton's gaze was already fixed on something much farther in the future.

After the Dragon Slaying War ended and the Dragon Race was annihilated, the great mountain that had weighed down the Ten Thousand Races would finally collapse.

But the races that had once fought side by side would not find true peace.

On the contrary, with the threat of the Dragon Race gone, the long-accumulated contradictions, suspicions, and conflicts of interest among the major races would erupt overnight like a long-suppressed volcano.

To fight over the territory and resources left behind by the dragons, to vie for the new position of hegemonic power on the continent, former allies would turn on each other and go to war.

The Dawn Continent would thus enter the Era of Ten Thousand Races' Struggle for Hegemony.

This war, which would engulf the entire Dawn Continent and draw in countless races, would be even more brutal than the Dragon Slaying War.

Countless heroes who had achieved great merits in the Dragon Slaying War didn't die under the claws of Giant Dragons, but at the hands of their former "comrades-in-arms."

And the Fallen Dragon Association would also fall apart during this civil war.

Four of the five Star Pillars would eventually have a falling out due to their respective stances and the interests of their races.

Only Grant, by virtue of his special background and unique charisma, would manage to maintain good relations with the other four Star Pillars.

If he joined the Jade Royal Court now, what would await him over the next several hundred to a thousand years would be constant slaughter and warfare.

He could die in the flames of war at any moment.

Compared to the high risks of war, the resources of the Jade Royal Court were nothing.

In the end, the so-called "struggle for hegemony" was a complete joke.

Once the Undead Calamity arrived, everyone would be in over their heads.

All the territory they fought so hard to seize would ultimately fall into the hands of those Undead.

Only then would the major races realize that all those years of fighting had been nothing but a passing cloud.

Rather than get involved in those meaningless disputes, it was better to use this time to quietly build up strength.

That way, he would have enough power to protect himself when the Undead Calamity erupted.

Of course, Anton would definitely participate in the Dragon Slaying War.

If for no other reason, then for the Giant Dragons themselves.

A single Legendary Giant Dragon provided a massive boost to his Sword Pill.

After devouring the flesh and blood essence of Isaac, the Profound Light of his Sword Pill had grown visibly stronger.

Anton estimated that after devouring a few more, his Sword Pill could advance to the level of a mid-grade Profound Artifact.

Another reason was that during this war, the allied army of the Ten Thousand Races would offer up a vast amount of rare resources to incentivize their troops.

This was an excellent opportunity to acquire a large amount of resources.

Whether for the sake of his own power or for the growth of his clan, this was an opportunity not to be missed.

At the very least, during the Dragon Slaying War, he was confident he could keep his clan's casualty rate to an absolute minimum.

He stood before the gates of Kresol Dragon City, lost in thought for a long time. Only after a rough plan had formed in his mind did Anton let out a long breath and return to his senses.

In the distance, the last streak of golden-red on the horizon was being swallowed by the indigo sky.

Dusk was deepening.

The war on the Eldron Plain had come to a close with Isaac's death.

But what came next would be the real storm.

The Dragon Slaying War had arrived several hundred years ahead of its original history.

Those "epic battles" that had only existed in his memory would now become real, unfolding history.

And he and the Silver Moon Clan were about to experience it all firsthand.

However, he was not afraid.

From the moment he had awakened his memories, he had been preparing for this day's arrival.

Now, he had enough strength to face the coming storm.