Full health is the kill threshold, no matter if you're a god or a demon!

A brief silence fell between them. Liu Nian and Shi Ri exchanged glances in the air, both of them quickly processing the information from the earth-shattering punch they had just received.

The players of the Demon Bear Clan are different from other factions; their entire clan is divided into three clans: Rock, Thunderclaw, and Fire.

Each of the three clans has a clan leader who is under the command of the Great Chieftain, Devourer of the Sun. In other words, the entire Demon Bear Clan has only one guild, which is the Demon Bear Guild.

Of course, a significant portion of the problem stems from the small number of members. However, being part of the same guild and under the same leader is actually an advantage in the current situation. This model boasts incredibly high mobilization efficiency, resource concentration, and tactical execution capabilities!

Consider the human faction, Dragon Abyss, the Azure Council, and other large and small forces. How much negotiation and compromise would it take to reach a consensus?

The Eagleborn have twelve dukes, and the goblins, ratmen, and pigmen all have similar problems.

But the Demon Bear Clan only needs to give the order to Devour the Sun!

An idea naturally arose in Liu Nian's mind—to form an alliance.

Making an enemy of such a powerful and internally unified force would be a very unwise move in the upcoming promotion war.

Especially with the three chaotic races eyeing them covetously...

But as soon as the idea of ​​forming an alliance arose, a cold and realistic problem loomed ahead—the number of upgrade slots.

Humanity has allied with the four Dukes of the Eagle Clan to fight against the Chaos faction.

That's fine, we have the same goal.

But what if we successfully wipe out the three Chaos factions? According to the rules of the Ascension War and the requirements for upgrading the main city, upgrading from level 1 to level 2 requires merging with or destroying two other level 1 main cities. The Chaos faction has three main cities, which can only meet the main city advancement requirements of one race at most.

At that time, a choice will inevitably be made between humans and eagle descendants: who will advance first?

Or will they continue their alliance and turn their attention to... the Demon Bear Clan? Or will they completely break off relations?

Based on Liu Nian's understanding of Wu Zhan, Wang Mian, and Duke Yang Lawi of the Eagle Clan, a direct confrontation is unlikely, but continuing to join forces to attack the Demon Bear Clan is probably one of the options.

After all, at the time, the Demon Bear Clan was perceived as an extremely xenophobic loner, confined to an isolated city, posing little threat.

But now, the situation is completely different!

The Demon Bear Clan possesses formidable individual strength, a high degree of internal unity, and a strategically powerful item called "Heart of Elune."

Let alone humans or eagles fighting alone, even if the two join forces, the outcome is still uncertain without full preparation and restraint.

After the destruction of the three Chaos races, the Demon Bear race is likely to become the next target of concentrated attacks. They themselves must be aware of this, so they will never wait to die.

So, what's the solution? Win over the Demon Bear Clan to form an "Order Alliance" among humans, Eagle Descendants, and Demon Bears, jointly divide the three Chaos Races, and then resolve the advancement issues within each of the three races.

It sounds great, but the core problem remains—there's only one slot for upgrading the main city, and the pie isn't big enough to go around!

Unless... the three races not only form an alliance, but also directly merge into one power.

But then another problem arises: after the merger, a dominant race needs to be chosen, and the other two races will exist as vassals. Who would be willing to be a vassal?

This is a near-unsolvable deadlock, a cruel elimination mechanism set by the rules of the promotion battle itself.

Liu Nian frowned, unable to think of a perfect solution for the time being.

He looked at the Sun Devourer.

He didn't know if Devourer of the Sun had thought of these things, but the other party didn't mention the alliance. Instead, they invited him to visit the Rust Dynasty and revealed that they had already formed an alliance with the NPC force Silverscale Naga of the Rust Dynasty.

Clearly, they also intended to demonstrate their strength.

Therefore, it's impossible that the Sun Devourer didn't consider the issue of the Upgrade War.

So, what are the Demon Bear Clan's plans?

Is she so confident that she can crush all opponents at the last moment with the blessing of "Heart of Elune"? Or does she have other plans?

"Please come with me," Sun Eater turned around, "The original dominant race of the Rust Dynasty is extinct, and now the Silverscale Naga are guarding this place."

As Shi Ri spoke, he casually summoned a peculiar tool. It was neither a traditional mount nor a goblin vehicle, but a relic left over from the Rust Dynasty. After being repaired and modified by the Demon Bear Clan, it became their tool for rapid movement in this area.

The vehicle resembles a giant metal beetle, made entirely of dark alloy covered with rusted patterns. It is about eight meters long and four meters wide, with a raised back that forms a closed cabin with a transparent observation window.

Instead of wheels, it has six pairs of sturdy mechanical feet with reverse joints, and sharp grappling hooks at the tips of the feet, allowing it to easily climb steep slopes and obstacles in the ruins.

The beetle's head is inlaid with several crystals that emit a faint blue light, which serve as both illumination and seem to have some kind of energy sensing or driving function.

"This is a 'Rusty Beast,' one of the large creatures we found deep in the ruins that was still able to move. It took a lot of effort to get it to obey us again." Devourer of the Sun patted the cold, hard carapace, making a dull sound. "This thing can dig tunnels. Using it for transportation can save a lot of trouble, since the roads here... are not easy to travel."

Liu Nian followed the Demon Bear Clan into the cabin. The interior space was more spacious than he had imagined, and the seats seemed to be thick animal hide cushions that had been added later. With a low hum of energy and the clicking of mechanical joints, the six pairs of mechanical legs of the "Rusty Beast" moved nimbly, carrying them smoothly and swiftly deeper into the ruins of the Rusty Dynasty.

On the way, Shi Ri briefly explained the current situation of the Rust Dynasty and the Silver Scale Naga to Liu Nian.

The Rust Dynasty was an ancient empire renowned for its highly advanced civilization combining mechanics and magic, whose territory once spanned multiple layers of the Underdark.

The cause of its demise remains a mystery, possibly related to over-reliance on some unstable energy source, internal rebellion, or an invasion by a terrifying entity from a deeper realm. Its core area is now occupied by powerful chaotic energy, out-of-control mechanical constructs, and various twisted monsters.

As deep-sea allies and ecological stewards during the dynasty's heyday, the Silverscale Naga retreated to this area connected to the underground sea after the dynasty's collapse, guarding the dynasty's "Tidal Core" and other underwater relics. Their ultimate goal is to purify and rebuild the dynasty's order, or at least protect its legacy from complete destruction or defilement.

The Demon Bear Clan, with their powerful individual combat abilities and adaptability to land, became allies of the Naga and learned how to craft and use the "Heart of Elune".

Of course, Shi Ri didn't tell Liu Nian much about the Heart of Elune.

Actually, this thing isn't that special, and its effect on other races is negligible.

This thing has two main functions. One is to temporarily generate a "field" that simulates the main city's signal, which is essentially meant to mislead the enemy's judgment. In other words, it is actually a "guiding beacon," except that it does contain a trace of energy, but for a limited time. However, this mechanism unexpectedly provides the Demon Bear Clan with an extremely strong home-field advantage.

The second function is that the two Hearts of Elune can teleport to each other, essentially acting as a temporary teleportation array...