Chapter 26: The New King
The rumbling sounds outside the city of Aransas were incessant. Based on Su Xiao's observations just now, the city guard could hold out for at most 2 to 5 hours, especially since four large breaches had been torn in the city wall.
Amidst the collapsed buildings within the city, a giant war boar lay on the architectural debris, grunting unconsciously.
Bang!
A frost hammer struck the giant war boar's head. Its hind legs kicked out, and its grunting subsided.
Fully taming this giant war boar was essentially impossible. Moreover, as a war boss, it couldn't be bound by a summoning contract.
None of that mattered. Su Xiao had captured this giant war boar not for its help in battle, but to use its thick hide and tough skin to scout the path ahead.
Amu dragged the giant war boar by one ear with one hand, while holding a frost war hammer in the other. Whenever the boar showed signs of waking up, he aimed a hammer blow at the back of its head.
The city of Aransas was already completely surrounded by the Polar Cavalry, with reinforcements constantly arriving. As the capital of Sera, it naturally attracted a massive amount of firepower.
There was only one way left to leave Aransas: through the underground. Su Xiao had remained in the city precisely because he had made preparations.
After traveling less than half a kilometer within the city, Su Xiao detected a signal source directly below them.
Amu stomped his foot on the ground. With a loud crash, the ground began to sink, and the soil caved in.
Su Xiao descended about 30 meters before landing on the dirt. The surroundings were pitch black. He took several military-grade glow sticks from his storage space, snapped them all to activate them, and tossed one into the passage ahead.
The passage was about six meters wide, and the soil at the break was still damp, clearly excavated not long ago.
Amu walked at the front, dragging the giant war boar, occasionally delivering another hammer blow to keep it in a state of continuous dizziness.
Su Xiao traveled through the dark underground passage for nearly forty minutes before reaching a slope leading to the surface.
Soon, light appeared ahead. As Su Xiao stepped out of the earthen tunnel, he saw a wooden sign stuck in the grass nearby, with a communicator placed beside it. The sign read:
'Big shot from Reincarnation Paradise, as per your request, our cooperation ends here. Hope to work together again sometime. Next time, don't poison us, haha burp...'
Su Xiao glanced at the sign, then tossed both the sign and the communicator into the earthen tunnel, casually throwing in an alchemy bomb as well.
Boom~
Dirt and debris flew everywhere as the exit of the underground passage was blown shut.
Su Xiao looked back at the city of Aransas. From the giant war boar's earlier charges, the city wall had been smashed with four large holes. Coupled with long-term neglect of repairs, this section of the wall had already collapsed by more than half.
The Sera Empire, an empire that had stood for 1,180 years, had fallen. The rule of the Holy Descendants was officially declared over.
Su Xiao, along with Bubu Wang, Amu, and Baha, and their spoils of war—the giant war boar—headed west across the continent. To the east, south, and north of the continent lay the sea, but only the west remained unexplored, as the Abyss blocked people's curiosity.
Based on distance estimates from the map, if Su Xiao's team traveled at full speed, they could reach the vicinity of the Abyss in one to two days at most. With the giant war boar in tow, it would take three to four days.
Considering its value, the extra travel time was worthwhile. Using it to scout in specific situations could potentially avoid a total party wipe, as everything in the Abyss was unknown.
The journey wasn't boring. On the second day of travel, Aransas became history. The Holy Court was razed to the ground, and the Imperial Council table was smashed to pieces.
Holy Court District, Central Street.
A wooden platform was hastily erected, at least over ten meters high. Standing on it was a burly man with a thick braided beard—strong, iron-willed, and stern. He was Reid Barnard, the supreme ruler of the Northern Alliance.
Hundreds of thousands of civilians who hadn't managed to escape Aransas gathered below the platform. Their eyes held fear, helplessness, and mostly despair.
"I see despair in your eyes."
Reid Barnard spoke. He didn't shout deliberately, but his voice carried to every corner.
"I am not merciful, but my enemies have never been you. You just want to survive, and so do we."
Reid Barnard's gaze swept around. After a moment, he took a deep breath.
"You are free. Leave here, stay here—it's your choice. Your wealth and land remain yours. Private property cannot be seized. Fellow countrymen, open your eyes and re-examine this world. We still have many enemies: the Abyss, the Divine Kingdom, the Abyssal Serpent..."
Reid Barnard paused for a moment.
"I will do my utmost to ensure your safety. Perhaps I cannot, like your king, keep the Abyss monsters from crawling up, but I will do everything I can."
Reid Barnard's words left the civilians below both puzzled and overjoyed.
Reid Barnard had destroyed the Sera Empire not to avenge his ancestors—that was just to boost morale and find a reason to attack. His true purpose was both to occupy the Eastern Continent, allowing his people to leave the bitter cold lands, and because the Iron Feather King was dead.
The Iron Feather King's death meant the 'Non-Aggression Pact' was void. The Divine Kingdom's stance was unclear, as it was isolated from the world, but the Abyss would certainly not quiet down. The Abyssal Serpent there had been waiting for this opportunity.
Reid Barnard never considered himself a great man, but his people and his soldiers looked forward to every word he said with eager anticipation. Those were millions of yearning eyes, longing for warmth, abundant food, and the chance to continue living.
Chains clanked. A figure with a lowered head walked onto the platform, disheveled and covered with iron spikes embedded in her body.
Under the guard of five soldiers, Lady Moon Wolf stepped onto the platform and knelt.
A heavily obese man, bare-chested and wearing a beast-skin hood, climbed onto the platform. He dragged a bloodstained giant axe behind him.
The sound of the giant axe scraping across the wooden platform made Lady Moon Wolf tremble. She had never dreamed she would end up like this.
The giant axe was raised high. For some reason, Lady Moon Wolf smiled.
"Ice Emperor Reid Barnard, do you know something?"
Lady Moon Wolf's voice was low, but Reid Barnard heard her. He said nothing, only signaling the executioner to proceed.
"You think you've won? The Empire's king may have died of old age, but a monster still lives. A duke's chair belongs to him. He will return and wipe you all out. Let me tell you, that monster is different from the Iron Feather King. He won't reason with you at all. Just wait, he will return..."
Thud!
The axe fell, severing Lady Moon Wolf's head. Though she was a Holy Descendant, this became the final straw that broke the camel's back.
Below the platform, an old man watched the entire scene.
"How tragic, Moon Wolf. Don't say I didn't give you a chance. You chose to stay in Aransas."
A smile appeared on the old man's face. A faint cracking sound followed, and a small piece of his facial skin split open—this was a 'mask.'
"After being a duke for centuries, where should I go now?"
The old man blended into the crowd. If his facial 'mask' were torn off, it would reveal that this was none other than the Old Duke.
The Old Duke's strength lay in his ability to lie low. He had laid low until the Sera Empire fell, and he remained unscathed.