Family system-Chapter 244: The world will kneel

Ela, ever the economist, had already begun charting the trade routes they would need to manipulate to destabilize the next set of kingdoms.

Selene, her sword strapped to her back, observed silently, her battle-hardened gaze locked on the military targets highlighted across the map.

Jack took his seat at the head of the table. The room fell silent.

Then, he spoke. "It's time. We move forward."

Amaterasu tilted her head. "Where do we begin?"

Jack tapped the map, and immediately, several territories lit up.

Jack pointed to the vast expanse of snow-covered fortresses and war camps comprising the Northern Kingdoms. These were brutal warriors, battle-hardened survivors who had never bowed to an empire.

"The North is filled with warlords who only recognize strength," Jack stated. "They will not be won over by trade or faith. They must be conquered."

Kali grinned. "Sounds like my kind of people. Let me take care of them."

Jack smirked. "They're yours. Crush their strongest, and the rest will fall in line."

Next, Jack gestured toward a coalition of small city-states and trade republics, wealthy but politically fractured.

"The East doesn't fear war—they fear losing control of their wealth," Ela remarked, already pulling financial records from her side of the table. "If we control their economy, we control their leaders."

Jack nodded. "Exactly. We buy out the merchants who hold the real power. The rulers will fold under the pressure once they realize their coin belongs to us."

A massive map section was dedicated to a powerful religious empire, a theocracy devoted to an old pantheon. Their influence stretched wide, and their faith was deeply ingrained in the people's hearts.

Amaterasu's eyes gleamed with amusement. "I assume I will be handling this personally?"

Jack smirked. "The people are faithful. They just worship the wrong gods. Fix that."

Amaterasu chuckled. "By the time I am done, they will beg to serve you."

Finally, Jack turned to the last remaining powerful kingdoms, a coalition already preparing their defenses against his empire. They knew he was coming.

Selene narrowed her eyes at the map. "They've fortified their borders. They will not fall easily."

Jack leaned back, his golden gaze burning with certainty. "That's what they think. We'll make them surrender before stepping on their soil."

Ela smirked. "Economic warfare?"

Jack nodded. "Yes. But also fear. When we march on them, they'll believe that fighting us is pointless."

Selene nodded. "I'll ensure our forces are prepared for when the time comes."

Jack stood, his aura pulsing. "You all have your tasks. Do not waste time. Begin immediately."

Each bowed before dispersing, leaving Jack alone in the war chamber.

He exhaled slowly, his mind racing with possibilities. The power he had taken from the abyss had given him insight beyond mortal understanding. He could now see the cracks in reality, the weaknesses in the world's systems that no other god had ever dared exploit.

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He would use them all.

Jack turned back toward the map one last time.

"The world is ours. They just don't know it yet."

Amaterasu stood on the grand balcony of the Temple of Eternal Light, overlooking the vast city of Aetheria, her divine presence radiating across the land. Golden sunlight reflected off the marble pillars and cascading waterfalls below, giving the city an ethereal glow. This was no longer just a center of power—it was a divine beacon, a foundation of faith that she had nurtured in Jack's absence.

And now, it was time to expand further.

The Southern Theocracy was one of the last bastions of false gods, an empire built upon the worship of old deities that had long outlived their worth. Their faith was stagnant, an ancient relic of a time before Jack's ascension.

That would change soon.

Amaterasu's golden eyes flickered with divine fire as she turned toward the gathering of her priestesses and high-ranking clergy. These women had spread Jack's name, guiding the faith in Aetheria and beyond, converting entire cities with unwavering belief.

Now, they would go further than before.

She raised her hand, her voice resonating through the sacred halls of the temple. "The time has come. The South still clings to their ancient gods, but they are false, their strength fading. We will not allow their deception to persist."

The gathered priestesses bowed their heads in reverence. One among them, High Priestess Lysara, stepped forward, her silver hair glowing in the sunlight.

"How shall we proceed, Divine One?" she asked, her voice steady yet filled with anticipation.

Amaterasu turned toward the war table, a large map of the region spread out before them. The Southern Theocracy was vast, stretching across multiple cities, each devoted to an ancient pantheon that no longer had true influence in this world.

She traced her fingers along the map. "We will begin with the weakest first. The cities that waver in their faith, those that have already begun questioning their gods. That is where we strike."

Lysara nodded. "And the strongholds of the faithful? They will not surrender easily."

Amaterasu smirked. "That is why we will not fight them directly. We do not need war—we need their people. When their followers turn to us, their faith will collapse from within."

She turned her divine aura flaring, filling the chamber with radiant light. "Send emissaries, healers, and scholars. Offer them what their gods cannot—prosperity, truth, and divine guidance. We will break their faith by showing them something greater."

The priestesses bowed in unison, their eyes burning with devotion. They knew their task—to dismantle and replace the old belief system with one devoted to Jack.

As they left to carry out their mission, Amaterasu gazed again toward the horizon.

The South would fall—not through conquest, not through bloodshed, but through something far more powerful:

Faith.

And when it was done, when the last remnants of the old gods were erased, the people would bow before the one true divine force that ruled this world—Jack.

A smirk played on her lips.

Let the conversion begin.

Kali stood atop a jagged cliff, the cold wind of the Northern Wastes howling around her. Below, a vast tundra stretched endlessly, broken only by war camps and massive fortresses carved into the ice-covered mountains. This was the land of the Northern Warlords, where only strength dictated power.

And they had no idea what was coming.

Kali smirked, her emerald eyes gleaming with raw anticipation. Unlike Amaterasu's approach with faith, she knew exactly what would make these warriors bow.

Violence. Absolute, crushing dominance.

She turned her gaze to the warriors standing behind her—her chosen elite, a mixture of hardened fighters and berserkers trained in the arts of divine combat. These were not mere soldiers. They were executioners, bloodborn titans who thrived in battle.

Kali swung her massive scythe, the wicked black blade humming with destructive power. "We do not convert these people with words. We take their strongest and break them. We will give them a choice—serve us or be buried beneath the snow."

Her warriors grinned in response, eager for the bloodshed to come.

Kali approached the war table, and her generals gathered around a map depicting the North. The warlords of this land were fractured, each ruling their fortified strongholds, locked in a near-constant state of war with one another.

She tapped the three largest strongholds marked in blood-red ink. "These are our first targets. Each one is ruled by a 'King' who believes himself the most powerful. We will destroy them one by one."

One of her commanders, a towering warrior named Ragnar, grinned. "And when the strongest fall, the rest will submit. Just like always."

Kali smirked. "Exactly. But we won't just kill them. We'll humiliate them. Make them kneel before us and let the rest of their warriors see that their so-called 'legends' are nothing compared to us."

She turned to her army, raising her scythe high. The air crackled with divine energy.

"Tonight, we march. And by sunrise, the first of these so-called warlords will kneel at our feet."

The first stronghold was Skelgard, home to King Ulfrik the Unbreakable, a warlord who had never lost a battle. His fortress was heavily guarded, its walls lined with archers, siege weapons, and warriors bred for war.

But they had never faced Kali.

Her forces moved under the cover of darkness, spreading through the blizzard-covered landscape like ghosts. The warriors of Skelgard never saw them coming.

Kali herself led the charge, her scythe carving through the first line of defenders like they were nothing. Her movements were a blur of destruction, each swing shattering weapons, armor, and bodies.

Ulfrik emerged, a massive brute covered in black steel, wielding a greatsword that had cleaved through armies. He locked eyes with Kali, and for a moment, she saw it—

He believed he could win.

Kali grinned. "Come then, Unbreakable. Let's see if your title holds up."

The duel was short, brutal, and humiliating.

Ulfrik fought like a man possessed, swinging with the strength of a titan. But Kali was faster, stronger, and ruthless. She dodged every strike, carving into him with surgical precision, breaking him piece by piece.

Then, with a final devastating blow, she brought him to his knees, pressing the edge of her scythe against his throat.

The warriors of Skelgard watched in horrified silence. Their legend, their invincible king, had been broken in minutes.

Kali laughed, stepping back. "You lost. Submit, or your people will burn with you."

Ulfrik looked up at her, his pride shattered. He could see the power radiating from her, feel the divine authority behind her words. There was no point in fighting anymore.

Slowly, painfully, he bowed his head.

"Skelgard is yours."

The warriors followed, dropping their weapons and pledging their loyalty to her.

Kali turned to her army. "One warlord down. Two more to go."

The North would kneel.

And she would make sure they remembered who conquered them.