Chapter 502

Chapter 502: Regret Comes Too Late

"Surrendered? The Spirit Heart Tribe surrendered as a whole?"

"Is that true? I thought there would be a great battle, but now it seems that just breaking through the first line of defense of the Spirit Heart Tribe led to their complete surrender?"

"This Spirit Heart Tribe is too weak; they didn’t even fight seriously before giving in. Moreover, this means they will easily accept the rule of the Great Flame Empire in the future."

The news quickly spread, and the soldiers of humanity and the Demon Race, after a brief moment of surprise, soon fell into a joyous celebration.

Because this meant the war ended in a confusing manner.

This was a huge blessing for any soldier.

They achieved victory without a battle, simply by launching a strong attack to destroy the enemy’s defenses.

This was the perfect victory in the minds of all soldiers.

There were no casualties, yet they still received their Military Achievements.

However, the soldiers from the Black Tiger Tribe wore uneasy expressions.

From start to finish, all the soldiers from the Black Tiger Tribe were calculating how to play both sides against each other and create trouble for the Great Flame Empire.

They dared not rebel because the methods displayed by the Great Flame Empire were too powerful and cunning.

They could almost predict that the consequences of a rebellion would surely be a decisive suppression by the Great Flame Empire.

Furthermore, before any strong suppression from the Great Flame Empire, they would likely first face a round of suppression from the high-ranking leaders and strong fighters of the Black Tiger Tribe.

Thus, they only dared to think of ways to create some trouble for the Great Flame Empire’s invasion of the Spirit Heart Tribe within the limits of the law.

They either slacked off deliberately or refrained from using their strongest attack methods during the assault.

In this way, they hoped to slow down the Great Flame Empire’s invasion and maybe even see it fail at the last moment.

They wanted the Great Flame Empire to realize that without the Black Tiger Tribe, they could accomplish nothing.

But in the end…

While they tried to work without exerting themselves, the Leader of the Spirit Heart Tribe and the high-ranking leaders unexpectedly announced their complete surrender.

This was a full surrender.

What were the Leader of the Spirit Heart Tribe and the high-ranking leaders thinking?

A million years ago, when the Undying Race unified the entire Tianling Star Cluster, it took tens of thousands of years and the extermination of countless tribes. Only then did the major races of the Tianling Star Cluster truly submit to the overwhelming power of the Undying Race, accepting their rule.

The major races of the Tianling Star Cluster thus entered a dark age.

Not only did they lose their territories, but all their resources and treasures were nearly plundered by the Undying Race.

Those powerful races suffered relentless blows.

Countless strong fighters and geniuses were killed or thrown into the coliseum of the Undying Star System, becoming gladiators for the entertainment of the Undying Race.

Countless members of the Undying Race wielded their power throughout the Tianling Star Cluster, even treating the members of various tribes as slaves, selling them to other powerful races in different star systems.

For millions of years, countless tribes were wiped out in resistance.

But countless tribes still tried to resist.

Because the consequence of not resisting was the complete decline of their entire race, making it even harder to defy the rule of the Undying Race.

It wasn’t until a few thousand years ago, when the Undying Race fell into internal conflict, that the major tribes of the Tianling Star Cluster found their opportunity to regain control over the star cluster.

Without knowing that the rule of the Great Flame Empire was a thousand times more lenient than that of the Undying Race, the soldiers of the Black Tiger Tribe believed the Spirit Heart Tribe, if they had any spirit at all, would never surrender without a fight.

Yet, the Spirit Heart Tribe did just that and surrendered completely.

"This Spirit Heart Tribe is insane; they surrendered completely after only breaking through the first line of defense."

"If that’s the case, doesn’t that mean we, the Black Tiger Tribe, won’t gain much contribution?"

"All the contributions will be split between the Great Flame Empire and the Demon Race. Since we didn’t participate in breaking the first line of defense, naturally, we won’t gain anything."

"That might not be true. Although the Great Flame Empire is arrogant and strong, which makes people angry, they are fair and just when it comes to contributions."

"Even though we didn’t attack the Spirit Heart Tribe’s first line of defense, we did put pressure on them. Our one hundred million soldiers from the Black Tiger Tribe were the main force, providing the most pressure on the Spirit Heart Tribe."

"In terms of contribution, we will definitely receive some, just maybe not as much as the Demon Race, who directly participated in the attack."

"The full surrender of the Spirit Heart Tribe means seven life planets have become part of the Great Flame Empire’s territory. Even if we don’t gain any spoils, the contribution value will still be ridiculously high. If I had known…"

"Not only that, but as punishment for the rebellion of the Black Tiger Tribe, all the strong from various tribes originally managed by us have been assigned to the Demon Race, greatly enhancing their high-end combatants."

"Now, with the Spirit Heart Tribe surrendering, it’s very possible that their strong fighters will also be assigned to the Demon Race. And the leader of the Spirit Heart Tribe is a level 130 strong fighter."

"When you add it up, the strong under the Demon Race might be even more powerful than the Black Tiger Tribe."

Soon, the soldiers of the Black Tiger Tribe came to understand how much loss the internal conflict and their enmity toward the Great Flame Empire had brought to the entire tribe.

As a result, not only did the Black Tiger Tribe miss out on massive contributions this time, but their status and strength among the Great Flame Empire’s vassal races would also be overtaken by the Demon Race, who had originally played a minor role.

Consequently, in future battles, it was likely that their contribution would continually lag behind the Demon Race.

This loss was so severe that it made the soldiers of the Black Tiger Tribe feel a pain in their hearts, making it difficult to breathe.

They never expected that an internal conflict would not only lead to countless deaths and injuries among the Black Tiger Tribe but also significantly decrease their future earnings.

The root cause, based on past experiences, was that, regardless of how arrogant and powerful the Great Flame Empire appeared, it must be said that they were indeed generous in distributing spoils and rewarding military achievements.

As long as one could achieve military merit, the corresponding resources and treasures were absolutely guaranteed.

Unfortunately, no matter how late the regret came, it was too late.

A big mistake had already been made.

"Let it go! Regardless, the laws of the Great Flame Empire are still very favorable and friendly to us vassal races."

"Yes! I don’t know what some people are thinking; it’s just that we lost our territory. The Great Flame Empire has already assigned us a residence and has not stripped us of our autonomy."

"The benefits from territory are nothing compared to the benefits from military achievements."

"Moreover, although the benefits from territory are gone, the Great Flame Empire has also provided us with many other benefits. Even without military achievements, the resources and treasures we can obtain in the future won’t be less than the benefits from our territory."

"The real damage to interests and power comes from the high-ranking leaders and strong fighters of the Black Tiger Tribe. The ordinary members of the Black Tiger Tribe aren’t at a loss."

"Our internal conflict over territory was just helping the high-ranking leaders and strong fighters of the Black Tiger Tribe fight for their interests and positions. But the ones suppressing us were actually the high-ranking leaders and strong fighters of the Black Tiger Tribe."

"As a result, after suffering such significant losses, there are still people thinking of playing both sides against each other regarding the orders of the Great Flame Empire, continuing to help the leaders and strong fighters of the Black Tiger Tribe fight for their interests and positions."

The soldiers of the Black Tiger Tribe changed their attitudes.

Their resentment toward the Great Flame Empire vanished.

Instead, they turned all their anger toward the high-ranking leaders and strong fighters of the Black Tiger Tribe.

The surrender of the Spirit Heart Tribe not only dramatically increased the territory of the Great Flame Empire but also led the Black Tiger Tribe, now dependent on the Great Flame Empire, to fully accept and recognize the rule of the Great Flame Empire.