Death... and me

Three days, four days, five days, six days, one week...

Slowly but surely, losses accumulated on both sides, but the demon beasts that were attacking the Humk, Freten, and Gargoc Regions were making clear advances, clearing both battles and normal formations little by little. There were a lot of times where even Roan was put on the backfoot in some places, but overall, he was far ahead of the Zasfins.

On the other hand, the Aite and Wesdin Regions were different. Not only were they not losing, but they also began to force the demon beasts back, reclaiming some of their territories there. Of course, the main factor for that advance was the Hafel Clan and the twins' plan. At this point, the Hafel Clan was already the main factor in those two regions, accumulating more merits than any other clan there.

At the end of the seventh day, Fikin and the other Transition Realm cultivators looked quite exhausted as they consumed pills and other healing treasures available in the Soul Rulers organization. At the same time, Fikin looked at the war reports, saying, "Losing in three fronts and winning on the other two. However, the territories that we can acquire on those two winning sides aren't as important as the three territories that the demon beasts are approaching."

Fikin knew why things were going so awry on the Humk, Freten, and Gargoc Regions. Simply put, all the clans in the Soul Rulers organization didn't want to lose their own forces, so they didn't want to go all out. Naturally, the demon beasts, who didn't care about losses, were gaining an advantage. The worst thing was that he was also part of one of the Soul Rulers' clans, so he knew he would act the exact same way. Self-preservation had already become a deeply rooted characteristic in the Soul Rulers' clans.

The Hafel Clan, on the other hand, was basically the only clan who put those thoughts aside and was going all out. Because of that, they were acquiring strategic victories in the Aite and Wesdin Regions. That allowed them to drive the demon beasts back and reclaim lost areas.

Of course, that wasn't all. The clans in the other three regions kept losing territories, which put them in a bad light compared to the clans in the Aite and Wesdin Regions. At the same time, the Hafel Clan was getting on the good side of the clans on the Aite and Wesdin Regions, acquiring quite the favors. That only helped the Hafel Clan, making their accomplishments stand out above everyone.

Fikin pondered over the matter for a bit as he looked over the situation, muttering inwardly, 'Should I move the Hafel Clan to the other three areas? However, the Aite and Wesdin Regions are very close to each other, while the other three are quite far away. Although the Hafel Clan is showing results, that's coming at the cost of some big losses on their side. Putting these two factors together, the Hafel Clan wouldn't be able to help more than just one of the three losing fronts. Not only that, if I take them away from the Aite and Wesdin Regions, the demon beasts might gain a second wind and advance once again.'

Fikin knew that the clans there would have to stop holding back their forces for his side to make a comeback on the other three losing fronts. Unfortunately, that would mean receiving losses similar to the Hafel Clan. On top of that, Fikin's clan just so happened to be there as well.

Suddenly, Vance Hafel called Fikin's attention, telling him, "Fikin, it has been a week already, and the other clans are still holding back. Our clan doesn't mind it since it can help our situation. By now, quite a few of them are owing us favors or had gotten back into good terms." Vance stopped for a second before continuing, "However, our clan is reaching the limits of what we can do with our army. We need some reinforcements from the other clans. I would rather not do it myself since the clans giving reinforcements might complain. Can you arrange for some of them to spare a few Zasfins? It should help us keep up the good results in the Aite and Wesdin Regions."

Sure enough, what Fikin thought to be the main problem of the Hafel Clan indeed happened. He could only nod after hearing Vance's words, saying in response, "Very well. I'll have all the clans send you a small number of cultivators to make up for your losses. However, you have to keep the results coming."

Fikin then stopped for a moment before asking Vance, "What do you think about the Humk, Freten, and Gargoc Regions? Do you think your clan would be able to rescue those areas?"

Vance pondered over the question for a bit before shaking his head. "It's too hard. It's the proximity of the Aite and Wesdin Regions that allows us to react in time when bad things happen. We won't be able to do such a thing with an army at our size."

"Does that mean you could do something if I allow you to control a bigger army? Your Hafel Clan is only in control of 3% of the Soul Rulers' forces, including your personal army. Could you change something if I give you control over 20% or so?" Fikin asked, much to Vance's surprise.

"This..." Vance didn't know how to answer. After all, it wasn't him commanding the Hafel Clan's forces. However, he quickly spotted a big issue. "Even if we could make a change, you would need to deal with the principal problem first."

"Which one?"

"Their willingness." Vance pointed out. "If they aren't ready to go all out at the very moment we ask them, they would only hold us back. However, this 20% or so that you talk about would mostly be filled with the other clans' forces. If we ask the clan to simply fill the gaps in our actual army, we can still achieve the same effect we have at the moment. After all, our Hafel Clan would be the majority in this army, so the cultivators filling up the deceased warriors' spots would have to follow our orders regardless of the situation."

"However, once our forces become the minority in the army, the forces of the other clans wouldn't want to go out and follow our orders, afraid of us using them to save our troops." That's the problem Vance identified.

With that, Fikin went silent. In the end, that issue was still the main problem regardless of whether the Hafel Clan was willing or not.