Choice

Edward understood the Shinigami King was powerful for two reasons: he had a great understanding and control of Death Rules, and his domain was more perfect compared to his. The Shinigami King can more effortlessly use his rules through the Domain.

So, he learned from the latter and blessed his domains with his Space-Time, Death, Life, Curse, and Soul Rules. Edward used numbers to his advantage as he surrounded the king.

And as expected, the Shinigami was rendered useless after being surrounded by this domain. He could no longer use his Death Rules, and the Chakra in his body was also sealed.

Edward observed the Shinigami King to be a soul-type of life form. However, even the latter's soul strength was rendered useless by the domain.

'Is this what it feels like to be under the Gods' Divine Kingdom?' thought Edward, gazing at the ugly expression of the king. He could tell the latter was trying everything possible to mobilize his power.

'According to the previous strategy, I should use violent energy outbursts to remove the restrictions when dealing with the Divine Kingdom's projection. However, based on the Shinigami King's reaction, this method might be useless.

'Morgana, what do you have to say for yourself?'

This strategy was based on her simulation.

'First of all, we have never faced a Divine Kingdom Projection, so most of our data is purely theoretical.

'Secondly, the conclusion is still valid. Mana is different from Chakra—especially our mana that has sublimated into Aether.'

'I see. When we go back, we need to find ways to finish Project False God.'

Project False God is a research group led by Edward to create a false god using clones. One clone is chosen as the god and trained until Tier 6. Then, he manufactures billions of clones and implants memories of worshiping the Tier 6 Clones.

Then, the Tier 6 Clone embarks on the path of Godhood. It will gather faith from the billions of clones to cast its Divine Body and Soul, Divine Spark that contains its chosen [Authority], the Divine Flame that purifies faith and creates Divine Energy.

However, this god created in this project is not false because it was artificially created. It is a False God because it does not have a Divine Kingdom full of believers.

Over the years, by studying Herpo, or the Death God, Set from the Mummy 4 Worlds, and the gods from Konosuba, Edward has managed to deduce the path of Godhood to this level.

Unfortunately, he is stuck in the phase of the Divine Kingdom. Herpo did not have a kingdom and used the Underworld. Meanwhile, Set and the Konosuba Gods live in a place different from Divine Kingdoms.

Their Godly Abodes were habited by many Gods and were similar to the residents of a Patheon.

Lastly, the knowledge of the Divine Kingdom is highly guarded in the Harry Potter Universe. These Tier 10 Gods did it on purpose so they could use this knowledge to force False Gods to become their subordinates.

This act created a vicious hierarchy. Most races have a Soul Limit and can no longer reach higher Tiers. So, they embark on the path of Faith. However, these people will soon discover that they need to rely on higher Tier Gods to get the knowledge they want.

And oftentimes, they have to sell themselves into servitude to get such knowledge.

'There are five methods to accelerate the progress,' said Morgana. 'The Akashic Record, ask Merlin, try your luck in the multiverse, try cheating again, and lastly, kill a God and get the information.'

'The Akashic Record is too expensive,' replied Edward. 'Merlin will most likely tell me not to bother him for such a trivial matter. However, there is also a chance he might just give it to me.

'The multiverse is out of the question. The last time when creating the Tier 10 Floating City, the rabid plundering alerted some entity, so it's dangerous to return there now. In the current situation, I cannot mess with the space-time continuum, so cheating is out of the equation.

'So, our best choice is to kill Guzznad and search his soul for information.'

'I will label it as a priority.'

Edward nodded before continuing to observe the Shinigami King. After a few tests, he concluded the king was similar to the Ancient Gods in his universe who was born with [Authority].

The purpose of the Shinigami is nothing more than to overview the afterlife, so the Universe WIll create it and give it access to the [Death Authority].

Edward became interested in whether this Pure Land served as the afterlife only for the Ninja Planet or for the entire world. After a little research, he discovered each galaxy contained one Pure Land controlled by a Shinigami King. However, not all of them were Tier 8.

So, Edward placed them on the list of things to plunder. Well, he was planning on stealing the entire timeline anyway.

Edward quickly finished his work here after capturing the Shinigami King. Then, he left as he had to meet the ambassadors from the Sage Clan and the Chakra Race.

The group wanted to experience the culture of the Empire before deciding whether to surrender or not. And under Edward's guidance and display of might, most decided to surrender.

However, the Sage Clan was composed of many different species, making their faction very diverse and also more challenging to unite–especially for such an occasion.

Edward did not want to waste time, so he welcomed the people who surrendered and used force on those who resisted. Unfortunately, a few people would rather die than surrender–even after their defeat. So, he had to remove these unstable factors.

Meanwhile, the Automatons continued their missions to plunder resources in other timelines.

A few days later, Edward went to see Tsunade.

"So, why did you call me? Did you make a decision?" asked Edward as he entered the former Hokage's room and sat opposite her.

"Yes."

"Oh?" he replied, slightly flustered. Based on his analysis, things could go either way. No, the odds were not in his favor.

Tsunade paused, trying to see his reactions or any emotions of worry and such. Unfortunately, she was disappointed as he looked as usual. She then understood this man in front of her was an Emperor, so knowing how to hide his emotions and thoughts was necessary for any capable ruler.

"I decided to accept your offer," said Tsunade calmly.

"Really? I have to say I'm surprised," replied Edward. He knew Tsunade had feelings for him, but he also knew this was not enough for her to get into a relationship with her.

After all, he had too many things she found unacceptable; things like his gray morality or his multiple wives.

"Can I ask why? Did you really fall for my unparalleled charm?"

"You think too much," said Tsunade, rolling her eyes. "I think it would benefit the Shinobi World if I had the status of a Queen."

"So, it's a Marriage of Alliance? I can accept that."

His marriage with Wiz was of similar nature as one of the main reasons he accepted was to use her status as an undead to facilitate the welcoming of the undead as citizens of the Empire.

And now, Tsunade wanted to do something similar for the Shinobi of this world.

"We are immortal, so we can have time to get to know each other and develop feelings," said Edward, who paused briefly.

"Since our marriage is of this nature, we will need to have a grand wedding broadcast to all the Empire's territory. The Media Department will work overtime to portray you and the Ninjas in a positive light, in a way that you will benefit the Empire."

Tsunade frowned as she felt this would be a hassle. However, since she wanted a better future and status for the Ninjas, it was necessary.

"Will I have any official power?" asked Tsunade.

"You can be in charge of the Medical Department. However, you should understand that the current Medical Ninjutsu is nothing in the Empire. If you want to make a difference and hold such power, you need to innovate."

"No problem." Tsunade felt this position was perfect for her. Furthermore, she did not fear any challenge. As long as she absorbs the Empire's knowledge, she believes she can either elevate Medical Ninjutsus to new heights or innovate the Magic Healing Department of the Empire.