“A temporary... dam?” Everyone was stunned. Even Leona cast a curious gaze toward him.
The concept of a dam certainly existed in this world; many nations had built their own.
Zhang Ye nodded. “Yes, a temporary dam.”
“A million-strong beast tide can't possibly consist entirely of high-tier magical beasts. At least seventy percent must be below Tier Six!” This wasn't a wild guess; he had deduced it from the literature and records he had read in the library.
Many nations had suffered from beast tides in the past, leaving behind numerous records from which Zhang Ye could make his calculations.
Zhang Ye continued, “And these magical beasts cannot easily resist the power of nature.”
“We build a temporary dam at the upstream lake to let the water accumulate. When the beast tide arrives, we blow up the dam and release the water!”
“With hundreds of millions of tons of floodwaters carrying massive boulders and mud rushing down the mountain slopes and crashing into the river, how much of that million-strong beast tide do you think will survive this man-made flash flood?”
As soon as he spoke, his words resonated in everyone's minds like a tolling bell.
Everyone immediately fell into deep thought, considering the feasibility of the plan.
And the more they thought about it, the more amazed they became.
“With the lake's water flow, it would only take three days of accumulation to trigger a cataclysmic flood. Pouring down at a terrifying speed with rolling rocks and mud, that kind of force is indeed something magical beasts below Tier Six have little hope of resisting!” a minister said excitedly.
“But if we do that, the southern plains of our kingdom will be turned into a flooded wetland...”
“So what? Compared to the devastation of a beast tide, how can a mere flood compare?!” another minister retorted immediately.
Zhang Ye nodded with a smile. “Exactly. Besides, aren't your kingdom's water mages very strong? Clearing the flooded plains after the battle should be relatively easy. You just need to redirect the water back into the river.”
“Furthermore, your kingdom's position is relatively elevated compared to the surrounding terrain, so you won't be affected by the flood.”
“However, the villages and towns downstream must be evacuated in advance.”
“Good! Good! Good!” The general's eyes grew brighter the more he listened. “Wiping out seventy percent of the beast tide without losing a single soldier... This is simply... a grand victory!”
“But what about the remaining thirty percent?”
“What else can we do?” Zhang Ye shrugged. “If we can't even handle the remaining thirty percent, then this beast tide was never something we could have fought against in the first place.”
“In any case, let the neighboring nations assemble their armies first.”
“According to the map, that forest is only a little over a thousand kilometers from the riverbank. They will arrive in ten days at most. We must make all our preparations within ten days.”
Hearing this, everyone nodded solemnly. The King immediately issued orders to call a joint conference with the surrounding nations.
This concerned the fate of several nations; there was not a moment to lose!
Over the next three days, the entire nation bustled with activity. Some went to monitor the movements of the beast tide, some began mobilizing the army, some went to survey the lake Zhang Ye had mentioned, and others were responsible for evacuating the downstream towns and villages. The King also held meetings with the kings and ministers of the neighboring nations for two consecutive days to draft strategic plans.
Zhang Ye's plan was indeed the best option anyone could have come up with.
However, one country felt it was unsafe. Believing that a beast tide of this scale was beyond their ability to resist, they rejected the Eros Kingdom's proposal and decided to evacuate their entire nation.
But this so-called national evacuation was, to put it bluntly, nothing but a flight for survival!
Crucially, it wasn't an orderly evacuation of the entire country. Instead, starting with the royal family, they packed up vast amounts of treasure and fled alongside the nobility under the protection of the state army and private forces, leaving the commoners of that kingdom completely in the dark without any explanation.
This irresponsible behavior laid bare the utter incompetence of the kingdom's royal family, driving the commoners to near-despair and plunging the entire nation into chaos.
A country that had been relatively orderly became like a refugee camp in just three days.
The Eros Kingdom could not bear to watch. Out of humanitarian concern and strategic considerations for future national development—since a nation's foundation relies on its people—the Eros Kingdom chose to take in and accommodate those refugees.
This decision made Zhang Ye and the others look at the King of Eros in a whole new light.
Soon, on the fourth day, the coalition army finished assembling. They gathered on the plains in front of the Eros Kingdom and began establishing a defensive line.
According to projections, the floodwaters would not reach this area, but the remaining beast tide would pass through here, so they had to stop the beasts at this very spot.
Zhang Ye and his group also made their way to the lake.
This was a mountaintop lake, which had now been sealed off from all sides by magic.
The lake was over a kilometer in diameter, making this a massive project, but the Saint-tiers of the various nations executed it flawlessly.
The lake's water level began to rise steadily, climbing dozens of meters each day.
On both sides of the mountaintop, channels and walls had also been constructed with magic to guide the floodwaters.
Everything was proceeding in an orderly fashion.
The various teams from the All Souls Magic Academy soon gathered in the Eros Kingdom as well.
None of them had suffered any casualties, but the moment they assembled, they discovered that Gajeel was dead.
This sent a shockwave through everyone.
The death of the Second Prince of the Black Dragon Empire was no small matter!
In particular, the face of the mentor from the Black Dragon Empire darkened instantly.
He looked directly at Leona and demanded, “How did he die? Was it...”
As he spoke, his eyes swept over Zhang Ye several times.
He was naturally aware of the conflict between Zhang Ye and Gajeel, so his immediate suspicion was that Zhang Ye had murdered Gajeel.
Leona's face darkened, and her aura suddenly erupted, instantly exerting a terrifying pressure upon the mentor.
A Four-star Saint-tier against a Three-star Saint-tier—not to mention that the former practiced Magic-Martial Dual Cultivation. In terms of combat strength, she was fully comparable to a Five-star Saint-tier. Even ten of the latter would be no match for her.
The terrifying pressure caused cold sweat to instantly drench the mentor, and he finally realized who he was talking to.
“He was killed by an unknown Demon Realm creature while exploring a ruin alone. The Demon Realm aura left on his body is ironclad proof!”
“So put away your ridiculous suspicions and watch your attitude. Otherwise... my fists won't be reasonable with you!” Leona said coldly. Behind her, Mentor Camilo also took out a coffin and placed it right in front of the mentor.
“Gajeel's death was indeed an accident, so no one will be held responsible for it,” Mentor Camilo said seriously.
In his eyes, this was the truth.
The mentor from the Black Dragon Empire examined Gajeel's body, and his face turned incredibly unsightly.
Because that Demon Realm aura was indeed present, which proved it was definitely not a man-made act.
His face was pale, but he finally nodded. “I understand. I was too emotional...”
Gajeel's death was no small matter. When the time came, he might even be implicated himself. Thus... an accident was the best explanation. If Gajeel had indeed been murdered, his own responsibility would have been even greater.
With that, the matter was laid to rest.
After enjoying a sumptuous lunch, everyone rested in the palace gardens.
Zhang Ye noticed that Lina seemed a bit unhappy, so he walked over to her.
“What's wrong, girl?” Zhang Ye asked.
“Brother Ye...” Lina turned her head and said softly, “Will many people die in this battle?”
“Yes,” Zhang Ye nodded. “War always claims many lives. And not just humans.”
“Even more magical beasts will die...”
“Did they... originally not have to die?” Lina asked.
“Yeah, they originally didn't have to die. But because of the geological changes caused by the great earthquake, the magical beasts have no choice but to migrate. They are doing so merely to survive. And humans want to eliminate them only to defend their country and protect their families. In the end, it is all for survival,” Zhang Ye said slowly.
“This is the law of this world—a cruel and realistic law.”
Hearing this, Lina nodded gently and said in a low voice, “It was supposed to be a secret realm exploration, but suddenly it turned into a war... It's just too sudden.”
“Yeah, too sudden...” Zhang Ye leaned against a railing, gazing up at the high-hanging bright moon. “You never know which will come first: tomorrow, or an unexpected accident.”
“And isn't this exactly why we strive to become stronger?”
Lina looked at Zhang Ye, her eyes shimmering with a faint light.
Zhang Ye turned his head to meet her gaze and smiled. “Only by becoming strong can we calmly face unexpected events. Only then will we have the power to fight against them and steer the course of events toward the outcome we want to see.”
“We can even nip potential accidents in the bud.”
“Strength is the foundation of all of this.”
“Since the law of this world is the survival of the fittest, then we shall become the strong side.”
“Only in this way can we protect ourselves and the people and things we want to protect!”
“Before we have grown strong enough, let's not obsess over right and wrong.”
“Because right and wrong are merely concepts—concepts that only the strong have the right to judge!”
Looking at Zhang Ye's handsome face, Lina's eyes dazed for a moment.
She felt that the Zhang Ye in front of her looked too much like the figure from the distant future she had seen before.
His existence seemed to be there to guide her, warm her, and act as a guiding star, leading her through the darkness toward the light.
He was the light...
“I understand!” Lina nodded, the gloom in her eyes vanishing without a trace, replaced by a stubborn resolve.
Zhang Ye smiled and rubbed her head. “Come on, don't think too much. Let's go listen to me sing.”
“Okay!”
...
...
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