Chapter 28: Heading to Doom Town
The afternoon sun was bright and pleasant, with carriages occasionally passing through the streets. The battle lines on all sides of Angor City had reported victories, and several surrounding cities had been captured, with various resources being sent back to Angor City.
At the current pace, within half a month, Angor City's army could pacify the situation across several hundred kilometers of surrounding territory. Restoring its former glory would be difficult, requiring who knows how many years of recovery.
Inside the temporary alchemy laboratory on the second floor of a small building, Su Xiao was concocting a potion. The formula for this potion was incomplete, half of it burned away, which was a pity—it was a recipe for an epic-grade recovery item. Potions and equipment weren't on the same level of concept; this was a regular consumable.
Councilor Rose had kept her word. After multiple inquiries, she confirmed that Elvis Gru was indeed dead. The Wood Vassal faction was in chaos, embroiled in internal strife.
Councilor Frost Snake had somehow learned of this news through unknown means, causing both Councilor Rose and Councilor Frost Snake to become wary of each other.
Pacifying the central continent was only a matter of time, which meant the embryonic form of the Light and Dark Empire was reviving. It had been many years since power had been so centralized.
Both councilors were ambitious. Who would become the next Great Emperor or Empress was anyone's guess. One thing was certain—it wouldn't be King Lehman.
Before the external threat was fully eliminated, internal power struggles were already brewing. There was nothing contemptible about this; this was simply how those in power survived. If you didn't sit on the throne, you were as good as dead. Those with great power didn't even have the chance to submit to a new king.
The old councilor remained unconscious. King Lehman still didn't understand the situation. Su Xiao didn't meddle in any affairs, yet he was very difficult to provoke. This situation had Councilor Rose and Councilor Frost Snake practically seeing green with desire. There had never been a better time to become the Great Emperor or Empress.
At noon, Councilor Rose came to visit. She hinted that if Su Xiao supported her, once the Light and Dark Empire stabilized, the western territories would belong to Su Xiao. Aside from law and currency, everything else would be under Su Xiao's jurisdiction. He would be the lord of the west, able to raise an army, and even a high lord who could slightly influence the laws of the western territories. Taxes, trade, and such would all be his decision.
No sooner had Councilor Rose left than Councilor Frost Snake arrived. The conversation was similar. This Frost Snake fellow, rarely seen smiling, was beaming. From the sound of it, he intended to stay for lunch before leaving. This left Puli utterly stunned, to the point of suspecting that Councilor Frost Snake had been mind-controlled.
Su Xiao had no use for the western continent. His conditions were Starlight Iron and anything related to alchemy. If the two councilors wanted to fight, let them. In a few days, Su Xiao would head to Doom Town. There, power meant nothing. Even if you had millions of soldiers, once inside, they'd all be dead within minutes.
After this condition was proposed, at 5 PM that evening, Councilor Rose sent 49 grams of Starlight Iron. She didn't appear in person, nor did she ask Su Xiao to sign any secret treaties.
Councilor Frost Snake's side remained silent for a long time. Clearly, these resources weren't in his hands.
Then, early the next morning, the most amusing scene unfolded. Word spread from the underground city that it was haunted. Every late night, sounds could be heard coming from below.
This startled Councilor Rose greatly. Although she was engaged in internal strife, she believed the people were the foundation of everything. She immediately sent people to search underground. King Lehman's guard, Nancy Erna, the old councilor's side's Azaz, and three of Councilor Rose's trusted subordinates all went down to the underground city to search.
The result was that no ghosts were found, but they caught two miners from Apocalypse Paradise. Who knew how these two siblings managed to talk their way in, but they successfully joined Councilor Rose's ranks.
Originally, these two siblings thought Su Xiao was a plot character representing Councilor Rose. Relying on their Charm attribute, they came to negotiate with Su Xiao.
The result was predictable. When the miner + Charm-specialist sibling duo arrived, they nearly fainted. They were indeed seventh rank, but not very skilled in combat. Mistaking a madman from Reincarnation Paradise for a plot character and coming to visit him was practically spiral-jetting suicide.
Now, these two siblings were locked in the basement of the second-floor small building, guarded by Amu, waiting for Councilor Rose to ransom them. These two siblings knew how to read the situation. After guessing Su Xiao's intentions, the younger sister poured out her grievances to Councilor Rose's trusted subordinate.
Councilor Rose paid 60,000 gold pounds to spare the siblings' lives. Since Su Xiao wasn't ready to fall out with Councilor Rose, he had the two siblings sign a contract from Reincarnation Paradise and then released them. Signing the contract was more profitable than killing them.
At first, the two siblings naturally didn't want to sign. Their attitude was firm. But under the "kind and amiable" persuasion of Amu and Baha, they signed, nearly shedding tears of "gratitude." When they left, they were somewhat "reluctant," not even bothering to close the door.
The battle lines outside the city grew longer. Civilians began to appear on the streets of Angor City. The entire city gradually became lively, except for one thing—no one mentioned the Secret Patterns anymore, as if the matter had been forgotten.
Councilor Rose and Councilor Frost Snake weren't easy to fool. After obtaining 49 grams of Starlight Iron, both sides went quiet. They were probably busy with their internal struggles, especially since the situation was becoming clearer by the day.
"These two guys. When Gru was still alive, they showed no ambition at all. He's only been dead a few days, and they're already ready to fight to the death."
Baha crouched by the windowsill, sighing. Bubu Wang wasn't around; he had gone to observe the two councilors' internal strife, claiming he wanted to learn about thick black studies.
"This is normal. Only one of them will survive. King Lehman is the smartest."
"That iron-blooded king? Doesn't seem like it."
Baha was a bit puzzled. In his impression, King Lehman was very reckless.
"He handed over a third of his military authority to Councilor Rose."
Su Xiao inserted a metal needle into a gelatinous substance, testing its structure. He hadn't left Angor City yet. If something unexpected happened here, he'd capsize in a ditch. The 150-point attribute barrier breakthrough would fail.
"Oh ho~, this guy is surprisingly clever. Is Councilor Rose sure to win?"
"Not necessarily. Frost Snake's preparations are very thorough."
Su Xiao placed the semi-finished materials on the table into a wooden box. There was no progress on Apollo's development because this world lacked sun remnants. It wasn't that they weren't produced, but this material's characteristic was Scorching Flame. Ancient God power was almost everywhere in this world, not enough to turn people into monsters, but it affected materials with Scorching Flame properties.
This was also why Gru could create so many Wood Vassals. The commoners had long-term exposure to Grain God power. If not activated, it could have some beneficial effects. Once activated, those with weak constitutions would immediately transform into Wood Vassals.
[Tip: Main Mission · Fourth Ring (Completed).]
[You have received Light and Dark Talisman ×5.]
[Light and Dark Talisman: Can resist the erosion of Ancient God power. If internal energy is depleted, it can be recharged by consuming Soul Coins.]
[After the Hunter arrives at Doom Town, Main Mission · Fifth Ring will be activated.]
[Light and Dark are about to collide. The Hunter must choose the 'Gap' opening location.]
...
The Gap was about to open. This meant Su Xiao would soon be able to enter Doom Town. It was certainly dangerous, but Su Xiao was also looking forward to it.
After deliberating for a moment, Su Xiao decided to set the Gap inside the temporary alchemy laboratory on the second floor of the small building. The old councilor was still unconscious, and Azaz was guarding him 24/7. It was safe enough here. One side of the Gap was in the second-floor small building, the other side was in a small cabin outside Doom Town.
As soon as he finished setting it up, Su Xiao heard a loud crash from above.
Boom!!
It was like a comet collision. In an instant, the sky above Angor City underwent a drastic change. Black and white each occupied half the sky, eroding each other. The civilians in the city were stunned for a moment before letting out screams and cries. Some were so terrified they collapsed, yellow liquid soaking their pants.
Some civilians having this reaction was not an exaggeration at all. They were survivors of the "Kingdom Annihilation Plan," having witnessed with their own eyes how Gru dealt with the four kingdoms. Only those who had gazed into the abyss knew how terrifying it truly was.
At the same time, in the room where Su Xiao was, a pitch-black crack appeared on the wall, revealing surging darkness within.
The surging darkness split open, revealing a passage. This time, there was no need to squeeze into the surging darkness.
A few minutes later, Bubu Wang and Amu returned. Su Xiao took one Light and Dark Talisman for himself and stored the remaining four in the team storage space. Bubu Wang, Amu, and Baha each took one, leaving one left.
Approaching the Gap, Su Xiao stepped inside first. Bubu Wang, Amu, and Baha followed closely behind. Once all were inside, the black crack gradually closed, leaving only a black scar. Only Su Xiao could open this thing.
Walking through the passage formed by the surging darkness, Su Xiao rested one hand on the sword hilt at his waist. To explore Doom Town, he had been preparing for the past few days. And that Immortal blocking the door was the perfect test subject for his Azure Shadow King.
PS: (I can see the chapter comments again. Happy.)