Chapter 80: The Traitor
In the empty room, Su Xiao sat leaning against a wall covered in cracks. He was severely injured. Without the [Vitality Concentrate], even a Holy Spirit-grade recovery potion wouldn't be enough to suppress his wounds.
Compared to the life-and-death battle against the Blood God, this confrontation with King Duoyin was actually more dangerous. Over 90% of the Blood God's attacks could have their trajectories tracked. Even if he couldn't dodge them, he could avoid vital spots when tanking them head-on.
Fighting against a technique-type like King Duoyin was different. Most of the enemy's attacks couldn't be trusted based solely on perceived attack trajectories—they were far too unpredictable.
One moment, King Duoyin might be gathering momentum, and the next instant, he would appear behind Su Xiao, his war sickle hooking toward his neck.
Not only that, King Duoyin's weapon was also troublesome. While the enemy was alive, every second after being cut by him, Su Xiao suffered internal flame burn damage. Now that the enemy was dead, the high-intensity bleeding damage persisted.
In front of Su Xiao were eight bottles of [Vitality Concentrate]. Every half minute, he drank one to prevent the continuous bleeding damage from dropping his health below 20%.
He pulled the cork from the seventh bottle of [Vitality Concentrate]. The potion had a faint, bitter taste upon entering his mouth—this was due to the plant-based life force within it. After drinking it, the pain in his ribs subsided significantly, and his injuries stabilized.
Fortunately, he had prepared enough potions this time. Otherwise, he would have had to give up on several subsequent tasks.
Standing up from the wall, Su Xiao moved his left arm. It was basically fine now. He stepped toward the elevator.
This battle gave Su Xiao more confidence in [Vitality Concentrate]. It was a recovery potion formula recorded in the Alchemy Codex and had great development potential.
Recently, Su Xiao had been developing other uses for [Vitality Concentrate], such as making it penetrate the skin to achieve a recovery effect.
An aerosol inhalation form would also be good. During battle, he could take it out and inhale the vaporized potion into his body. This would be several times faster than drinking the potion, and the aerosol form would allow a single bottle to be used multiple times.
The elevator shuddered and stopped. Su Xiao arrived at the first underground floor of the royal palace. It looked as if a typhoon had swept through—the walls, floor, and ceiling were covered in cracks and bloodstains, with ice crystals everywhere.
A severed arm was frozen in ice, with blood spreading outward. Seeing this, Su Xiao knew that the enemy who had been fighting Amu had escaped. Amu's pursuit ability wasn't strong.
That was precisely why Amu and Baha often acted together. Those who could defeat Baha couldn't beat Amu, and those who could outrun Amu couldn't escape Baha.
At the moment, Baha wasn't near the palace. It needed to ensure one thing: that the city guards outside wouldn't desperately charge into the palace. As for reinforcing Su Xiao, a technique-type like King Duoyin could kill Baha in an extremely short time, just as Su Xiao wasn't afraid of assassination-type enemies.
When Su Xiao walked out of the charred palace, the wolf cavalry and city guards within the capital were already engaged in chaotic battles throughout the city. Corpses littered the ground, and black smoke billowed from collapsed buildings, rising straight into the sky.
Seeing Su Xiao emerge from the palace, Baha, who had been scouting from above, dove down.
"Retreat."
"Got it."
Baha spread its wings and flew off to notify Wobol and Youya to withdraw.
At this point, the wolf cavalry legion had fully suppressed the city guards. But one must not forget that this was Duoyin's capital. The main army from the primary battlefield was rushing here at full speed.
Not only that, troops from other major cities of Duoyin were also converging here. Soon, the wolf cavalry might be surrounded.
Bang.
A signal flare shot into the sky, followed by a long horn call. All wolf cavalry immediately advanced toward the eastern side of the capital, ignoring the city guards pursuing them.
Su Xiao flipped onto the back of a wolf mount. Thanks to the armored saddle, riding the wolf was quite stable. He ordered a full retreat.
Rumble...
The wolf cavalry legion charged forward, shaking the earth. This time, it wasn't the Demon Flame Dragon Barbatos leading at the front, but Bubu Wang running ahead.
After a rapid march of over ten kilometers, the wolf cavalry legion encountered the first wave of enemy reinforcements.
A strange scene unfolded. The two armies veered away from each other, neither wanting to engage. This was normal. Su Xiao needed to withdraw from Duoyin's territory as quickly as possible, while the reinforcements needed to rush to the capital.
As dusk fell, it was past three in the morning when Su Xiao reached the western border and returned to his own territory. At the border between the central and western regions, a force of grey orcs and war tree soldiers was stationed.
Su Xiao headed straight for the new main city, Black Ring City. The original Black Ring Fortress in Black Lava City had been abandoned. To commemorate that historically significant fortress, the new main city was named Black Ring City.
When Su Xiao arrived at Black Ring City, it was six in the morning. Cooking smoke rose from within the city. Several hundred meters outside the city walls, large tracts of farmland had been cultivated.
Even at six in the morning, many grey orc and serpentfolk commoners were working in the fields. Private land ownership was a new law recently enacted by the old serpentman.
Grey orcs, serpentfolk, and the ancient tree clan were all intelligent races. If there was no need for war, no one wanted to fight. Moreover, compared to the first two, the ancient tree clan was very laid-back. Give them a piece of territory, and they would root there for over a decade without moving.
Finally, there were the demonic ghosts. This was not a peaceful group. They loved absorbing soul energy.
Due to the recent string of victories, the few demonic ghosts in power had been frequently contacting the northern border. It looked like they were preparing to defect to the north, where internal strife was ongoing and there was no shortage of war and battlefields.
The gates of Black Ring City were wide open. After the wolf cavalry entered the city, Su Xiao ordered a rest. Hearing this command, the wolf cavalry cheered. They now had plenty of gold coins. Previously, while fighting abroad, they had no place to spend it. Now, in Black Ring City, taverns, restaurants, and several sizable markets had already opened.
Before even entering the city, Su Xiao spotted High Lord Hila on the city wall. She was leaning back in a recliner, with a wine glass on the table beside her.
Seeing this, Youya made as if to charge up the wall on her wolf mount to capture Hila. She and Wobol knew part of the secrets of the Burning Land.
When Su Xiao climbed the inner stairs of the city wall and reached the top, several wolf cavalrymen had already surrounded Hila. These wolf cavalrymen didn't care whether Hila was a High Lord or not.
These wolf cavalrymen had followed Su Xiao through all the campaigns. If Su Xiao ordered them to attack the Dark Lord Agamemnon, they wouldn't hesitate. The wolf cavalry weren't stupid. They had seen the grey orc souls that scattered into the air when some of the flame demons died.
"No matter what, I am still a High Lord of the Chaos Legion. Killing me now—are you sure that's okay?"
Hila leaned back in her recliner, looking at Su Xiao with a half-smile. At that moment, a serrated greatsword pressed against her neck. The wolf cavalryman holding the sword had a calm expression. On the battlefield, he had long lost count of how many enemies he had killed.
"It seems killing me is fine."
Hila sat up, slowly raising both hands.
"Where is that demonic ghost?"
The demonic ghost Su Xiao referred to was the one who had helped Agamemnon collect grey orc souls to create the flame demons. This was a hidden threat that needed to be dealt with before taking on Agamemnon.
"She's right beside you. Haven't you noticed? She's stronger than other demonic ghosts and more obedient to your commands. She abandoned her former pride to serve as your attendant. Once upon a time, she was a self-proclaimed king. The Ancient Tree King and the Ghost Princess—the Ghost Princess is her."
Hila revealed a shocking piece of news. Another of Agamemnon's spies had been by Su Xiao's side all along.
Hila was escorted away by several wolf cavalrymen and handed over to Wobol, who imprisoned her in a secret dungeon.
The return of the wolf cavalry legion made the city much livelier. Imperial gold coins circulated freely in Black Ring City, so every wolf cavalryman had considerable wealth.
Inside a three-story building, bright sunlight streamed through the window. A breeze stirred the curtains. Su Xiao, his hair still dripping water, sat by the window. The weather was clear today. After finishing one task, he would leave this world.
At present, the Chaos Legion and the Duoyin Empire had ceased hostilities. The reason was that after King Duoyin's death, the power-holders who had been suppressed by him all emerged. The central region was about to descend into chaos. As for the northern border, the fighting there was even more intense.
The dwarves, barbarian forces, and lizard tribe had formed a temporary alliance to guard against the Chaos Legion. The Elf Queen chose to latch onto a powerful ally and formed an alliance with the Chaos Legion.
In short, the most peaceful place right now was the Chaos Legion's western and southern territories. 450,000 wolf cavalry guarded the interior, and 360,000 grey orc soldiers guarded the borders. Though the numbers were small, other forces dared not invade. The reputation of the wolf cavalry legion had been earned through countless battles.
By the end, all sides had suffered heavy losses, but no large-scale battles would break out again. No one had the resources for that. The decisive battle between Su Xiao and King Duoyin might have been the largest battle in nearly a century.
A grey bird landed on the windowsill. It was a signal from Youya—something could now begin.