The Goblin King's royal palace was situated in a place nestled by mountains and water.
At this moment, almost all the high-ranking officials of the Goblin Kingdom were gathered in the royal palace.
The goblins in the palace all wore expressions of worry and anger, and even the Goblin King was no exception.
The Goblin King was clad in silver-white armor and wore a golden crown.
Currently, he sat on his throne, his brows furrowed, his gaze constantly sweeping over the faces of the goblin elites in the hall.
"Your Majesty, the army of the Immortal-Demon Small City has already pushed into the southern sub-district. I fear they will soon reach the main city, and even the royal palace. I implore Your Majesty to make a decision soon!"
At this moment, a high-ranking goblin bowed respectfully to the king and said with a face full of sorrow.
"Please, Your Majesty, make a decision soon!"
Following this, several more high-ranking officials stepped forward and urged the Goblin King.
"Your Majesty, whether to fight or surrender, please make it clear!"
The Goblin who stood at the head of the group also stepped forward to persuade the king.
His Majesty the King was truly indecisive, or perhaps a little stubborn.
He had always believed that the Goblin Kingdom was powerful enough that even the dragon race might not be able to breach the royal capital, let alone an otherworldly territory force that had only developed for twenty-odd days.
However, the reality was that the defenses on the walls of the Goblin royal capital had not even held back their army for a single minute before being directly breached.
Clearly, this otherworldly territory force, the Immortal-Demon Small City, possessed a strength far beyond that of the dragon race.
Therefore, the Goblin Kingdom now faced only two choices: fight to the bitter end or surrender.
As for retreating, it was as futile as talking about the moon. Firstly, there were so many goblin citizens in the royal capital.
Secondly, where to retreat to was a major problem.
When the ancestors of the Goblin Kingdom built the royal capital, they had only considered the beautiful environment and the ease of defense, never thinking about leaving a way out.
If there had been a retreat route, His Majesty the King could have temporarily made a strategic withdrawal and returned after this crisis was resolved.
Even the younger bloodlines could have left, at least to carry on the lineage of this goblin tribe.
However, all of this was clearly impossible now.
The Goblin Kingdom would either surrender or fight to the death.
"Hmph! I don't believe the territorial army of the Immortal-Demon Small City is so powerful. I have decided to fight to the death against the territorial army of the Immortal-Demon Small City!"
Suddenly, the Goblin King stood up abruptly and roared, his eyes burning with fierce flames.
Seeing the king's resolute attitude, some of the high-ranking officials below were excited, while others were anxious.
"Your Majesty, fighting to the death is the correct choice. We goblins will never surrender to the evil forces of another world!"
"Indeed! Your Majesty, this subject is willing to follow Your Majesty's footsteps forever and will never bow to evil forces!"
Two excited high-ranking officials began to pledge their loyalty to the Goblin King.
However, the anxious high-ranking officials were immediately displeased.
"Your Majesty, we absolutely cannot fight to the death! The territorial army of the Immortal-Demon Small City is extremely powerful. It is said that there are over forty Emperor-level powerhouses alone. Although the army is not large, the weakest among them are all above Ninth Tier! Your Majesty, please reconsider!"
"I second that! Your Majesty, I also do not believe we should fight to the death with the Immortal-Demon Small City. If we are defeated, it is very likely that all 400,000 citizens of the royal capital will be slaughtered. Your Majesty must consider those citizens!"
"Walter, what do you mean?! You think we will fail just as the war begins. Are you a spy sent by the enemy? Are you not afraid that Your Majesty will charge you with treason?"
...
Instantly, the entire hall erupted into a cacophony of arguments. For a moment, the royal hall seemed to have transformed into a lively marketplace.
"Stop arguing!"
Just as the two factions with opposing views were about to come to blows, the Goblin King roared.
The hall immediately fell silent, but the two factions of high-ranking officials still eyed each other like fighting cocks, none pleased with the other.
"Grand Preceptor Kading, what do you think of this matter?"
Unable to bear the incessant chatter of the high-ranking officials below, the Goblin King, with no other recourse, turned to the old Grand Preceptor.
Upon hearing the king inquire about his opinion, Kading quickly cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, do you know of the matter concerning the Natural Woodmen?"
The Goblin King nodded. "Of course, I do!"
"Then does Your Majesty know that the Natural Woodmen have lost themselves and become puppets of the territorial lord, living a life worse than death!"
Kading said with a pained expression, as if truly mourning for the Natural Woodmen.
"Your Majesty, if we surrender, we will also become like that. But if it truly comes to that, it is better to fight to the death with a bang!"
As Kading's words fell, the Goblin King's expression immediately changed. At the same time, the faces of the high-ranking officials who supported surrender also changed. However, they immediately glared at the old Grand Preceptor with gritted teeth.
This harmful old Grand Preceptor only knew one side of the story and not the other.
Had they not seen the growing strength of the Natural Woodmen tribe?
They were originally just a tribe, and although their racial tier was high, their overall strength was far inferior to that of the Goblin Kingdom.
But what about the Natural Woodmen tribe now?
Their population was multiplying faster and faster, and their strength was advancing by leaps and bounds.
All of this had happened after they pledged allegiance to that territorial force.
Furthermore, the Dwarf Kingdom had also surrendered to that territorial force, but their current overall strength was no less than before, and it seemed to be steadily and rapidly improving.
Then, the old Grand Preceptor continued, "All races that have submitted to that territorial force have undergone a drastic change in their temperament."
"The Natural Woodmen used to love peace the most, and they got along amicably with all the races in the Endless Abyss, but what about now?"
"They have become bloodthirsty and warlike, and they show no mercy to our goblin warriors!"
"Your Majesty, we truly cannot submit to that evil territorial force!"
By the end of his speech, Grand Preceptor Kading was even shedding tears.
This directly stirred the emotions of all the high-ranking officials present, whether they supported fighting to the death or surrendering.
Thinking of the future of the Goblin Kingdom, they all felt a pang of despair in their hearts.
At that time, Mu Ya, the Spirit of Natural Wood from the Natural Woodmen, had come with Saint-level power to exert pressure. They had ultimately managed to get by by using the excuse of waiting to see the outcome of the battle between the Immortal-Demon Small City and the dragon race.
The reason for saying this at the time was to hope that the most powerful dragon race in the Endless Abyss would annihilate the Immortal-Demon Small City and nip this danger in the bud.
But now, not only had the Immortal-Demon Small City not engaged in direct combat with the dragon race, but they had also attacked the Goblin Kingdom first.
This was clearly bullying. They bullied whoever they took a disliking to.
If they were so capable, why didn't they go and bully the dragon race? What kind of skill was it to pick on their Goblin Kingdom?
With this thought, the entire hall became even quieter, and every goblin high-ranking official felt a sense of unease...