Chapter 35: Overlord Equipment
Inside the priest’s treehouse of the Holy Serpent Tribe.
“You’re saying you searched all day and didn’t find even half a trace of an aberrant beast?”
Baha spoke with a look of frustration, while Egein remained silent. He had been ordered to hunt aberrant beasts, yet neither the Centaur Heavy Cavalry Legion nor the Abyssal Dragon’s eldest son flying overhead had found a single trace of any aberrant beast within the vast surrounding area.
It was as if, after the aberrant beast Urba was eliminated, all the aberrant beasts on the tribal faction’s territory sensed the danger and hid without leaving a single clue behind.
This made Su Xiao think of one thing: the conflicts and hatred between the Beast Clan and the Sea Clan today were originally caused by aberrant beasts. After the Beast Clan and Sea Clan rose to power, did they never retaliate against the aberrant beasts?
The answer was, of course, they retaliated, and frequently. It was only in the last hundred years or so that they stopped hunting aberrant beasts. It was precisely because of this retaliation from the Beast Clan and Sea Clan that the aberrant beasts were forced to hide in the tribal faction’s territory. Through the long years of retaliation and pursuit, they had honed a strong ability to survive.
This was also why, right after Su Xiao finished hunting the aberrant beast Urba, all other aberrant beasts on the tribal territory vanished without a trace.
Thinking this way, continuing to hunt here would yield an imbalance between effort and reward. He simply ordered Egein to lead the Centaur Heavy Cavalry back to Iron Fortress City via the teleportation array provided by the Holy Serpent Tribe, and then proceed to the main battlefield.
Before leaving, Egein looked as if he wanted to say something but hesitated. Seeing this, Su Xiao frowned and said, “If you have something to say, spit it out.”
It wasn’t that Su Xiao deliberately treated Egein this way, but if he showed even a hint of kindness, this guy’s rebellious streak would suddenly emerge.
“My lord, I…”
As Egein spoke, his nose actually seemed to sting. His dozens of personal guards quickly surrounded Su Xiao and Egein, blocking the view of others so no one would see their leader’s current expression.
“…”
Su Xiao narrowed his eyes. He could already guess what schemes Egein, this bastard, was cooking up without needing to drag them out.
“I have always been sincerely grateful for your lordship’s favor in recognizing my talent, so I prepared to repay this kindness with all my ability. But Harvey has repeatedly obstructed me from repaying your lordship.”
Hearing this, Su Xiao understood. Harvey, who had always been loyal to him, would certainly often prevent Egein from going too far. If it were anyone else, Egein would have killed them long ago. The problem was that this person was the Silent Beast Harvey, who usually seemed inconspicuous but was the one Su Xiao trusted most in the entire Winter Legion.
Egein suppressed his colleagues and formed factions, and Su Xiao turned a blind eye to all of this. But if Egein dared to kill Harvey, he wouldn’t see the sun the next day.
What made Egein even more uncomfortable was that Harvey held the same official rank as him. This meant that even if they disagreed, they couldn’t completely fall out. At most, they would argue a few words, then cold-shoulder each other and pretend the other didn’t exist.
“Alright, tell me, in what matter did Harvey make things difficult for you?”
Baha spoke. This was Baha’s strength. Sometimes, when Su Xiao wasn’t convenient to speak, Baha would be the first to say it, and he wouldn’t say it wrong.
“He didn’t let me attack White Hoof Port before.”
“What the hell!”
Baha was genuinely startled. After weighing his words, he pacified, “Egein, that was indeed reckless of you.”
“…”
Su Xiao didn’t speak. Letting Harvey restrain Egein was indeed effective, but the problem was that it sometimes hindered Egein’s performance. When Egein said he would attack White Hoof Port, it wasn’t boasting. This guy really could do it.
After weighing the situation, Su Xiao decided to grant Egein a bit more authority. Although this would increase the growth of this guy’s rebelliousness, it would also greatly increase the speed of gaining reputation. At present, the competition for resources in their faction’s shop was becoming increasingly fierce. Playing it safe would leave them with no meat to eat.
With even more authority in his hands, Egein left with a smile on his face. Judging by his demeanor, he walked with even more presence. This guy’s desire for power was beyond ordinary comparison.
Returning to the priest’s treehouse, Su Xiao found that Kaiser, the Priest, and Voodoo Sorcerer Baze were all there. The cooperation had ended, and Kaiser and the Priest should have left by now.
“There’s something you might be interested in.”
As Kaiser spoke, he took out a semi-transparent fragment. It was actually a fragment of the [Initial Mark]. Voodoo Sorcerer Baze looked suspicious, but when he noticed the calm gazes of Su Xiao and the Priest, he secretly guessed that this item must be of considerable value.
“The ownership of this fragment isn’t with me. Someone entrusted me to sell it.”
Kaiser displayed the ownership of the item. Indeed, it wasn’t his, but belonged to a Sea Clan member. Kaiser didn’t show more specific information.
“Let me state upfront, I’m helping someone sell this thing this time. I’m not taking a cut; I’m repaying a favor.”
Kaiser’s meaning was simple: the transaction process had nothing to do with him; he was just the middleman.
Upon hearing this news, Su Xiao’s vigilance relaxed a bit. If he were to buy a consigned item that Kaiser had taken over, that would be deadly. As for why he knew this so well, he had often entrusted Kaiser to sell things for him. In those situations, Kaiser went all out, and the buyer’s heart was especially pained.
This time, Kaiser wouldn’t interfere with the transaction. The problem was, how should this 1.2% [Initial Mark] fragment be priced?
Seeing that the timing was right, Kaiser cleared his throat and said, “The little friend who obtained this fragment has a dream of becoming a strong one, so his asking price is to be taught a few supernatural abilities.”
After speaking, Kaiser still had his usual sly smile. But as Su Xiao’s collaborator in this world, this guy knew how busy Su Xiao was: dealing with the Wolf Tomb, killing an Absolute Strong Spellcaster, rescuing the legendary blacksmith Dwarf King, and developing the insect race.
Under such circumstances, having Su Xiao go to the Sea Clan’s territory to teach a child supernatural abilities was clearly impossible. It seemed that Kaiser was deliberately doing this, or rather, Kaiser deliberately didn’t want Su Xiao to become the buyer of this [Initial Mark] fragment. There must be some hidden reason.
As for why he took out this [Initial Mark] fragment while Su Xiao was present, the reason was simple: to have Su Xiao help put up a front. If he only approached the Priest or Voodoo Sorcerer Baze, these two old yinbis would inevitably become suspicious. Conversely, if Su Xiao, the Priest, and Voodoo Sorcerer Baze were all competing for this [Initial Mark] fragment, it would look much more normal.
What situation would cause Kaiser to do this? Su Xiao could only think of one possibility: the seller this time, that little friend living in the Sea Clan’s main city, was not simple. Or rather, it was a quite dangerous existence. This was Wind Sea Continent, which had experienced a large-scale Abyss invasion. Having some bizarre existence was perfectly normal.
It was very likely that Kaiser had to be in a state of “person-pot unity” to safely negotiate with that ‘little friend.’ Thinking this way, going to teach that little friend supernatural abilities suddenly became extremely sinister in terms of danger.
Due to restrictions like a [Contract] or [Weird Promise], Kaiser couldn’t say that the seller was dangerous. Therefore, he deliberately took out this [Initial Mark] fragment under circumstances where Su Xiao absolutely couldn’t become the buyer.
One could only say that the daily life of the four good teammates was so colorful that one misstep could land them in a pit.
“Unfortunately, this thing has no fate with me.”
Su Xiao’s gaze showed some ‘hesitation,’ but in the end, he had to give up on this [Initial Mark] fragment.
“I do have the time. I just don’t know if your friend is interested in mastering poison-type abilities.”
Voodoo Sorcerer Baze spoke. He didn’t know what the [Initial Mark] fragment was used for, but he knew that the contractors in this world all craved it. Demand and desire brought value.
“I wouldn’t know about that. You’re not the only interested buyer. Besides, this isn’t all the seller can offer. As far as I know, the seller holds at least 20% or more of the [Initial Mark] fragments. The [Initial Mark] fragments in the Sea Clan’s hands are basically all with him.”
Kaiser looked envious, revealing in bits and pieces that this seller held a high position in the Sea Clan.
When Su Xiao heard this, combined with his previous speculation, it formed a piece of intelligence: the competition for this [Initial Mark] fragment would be fiercer than expected. Some terrifying and bizarre existences had already gotten involved.
The Priest was very interested in this matter and prepared to go to the Sea Clan’s main city, Yatuo Ancient City, a magnificent giant city half above the sea and half below.
Beside the round stone table, seeing that Su Xiao was no longer paying attention to this matter, Kaiser’s treacherous smile became more relaxed. As a long-term collaborator, he certainly wouldn’t let Su Xiao get involved in this matter. After all, that seller was truly both bizarre and terrifying.
The Priest and Kaiser left together. Seeing this, Su Xiao also prepared to return to Midwinter City. But just as he was about to stand up from the stone table, he saw Voodoo Sorcerer Baze studying an ancient tome. Judging by his expression, this guy hadn’t even fully recognized the script in the tome and was frowning as he studied it.
Seeing Su Xiao’s gaze, Voodoo Sorcerer Baze dragged the ancient tome across the table and said, “This should be an ancient tome from the previous era. In that era, they couldn’t withstand the Abyss’s invasion and eventually perished. At least, that’s my guess.”
Picking up the ancient tome from the table, Su Xiao found it very peculiar. It felt like paper to the touch, but actually had a metallic heaviness. Its age was so ancient that it was impossible to determine.
It wasn’t that older knowledge was higher-level. On the contrary, various secret arts were perfected through repeated refinements, becoming more powerful. The knowledge recorded in this ancient tome was the product of a civilization at its peak. However, the civilization of that era couldn’t withstand the Abyss’s invasion.
After flipping through it for a while, Su Xiao couldn’t understand a single word. Trying to resonate with his mental energy also failed. But he roughly understood the illustrations and inscriptions in the tome. They were about the application of World Force.
The value of this ancient tome was unquestionable, but it was completely unreadable. Nevertheless, he was still very interested in it because he could try selling it to the Soul Library and see how many Library Silver Coins he could get.
“This ancient tome is good. Name your price.”
Su Xiao spoke while flipping through the tome. Hearing this, Voodoo Sorcerer Baze looked wary and said seriously, “This is high-level knowledge from the previous era. Can it be measured by money?”
“…”
Without speaking, Su Xiao took out several valuable books on alchemy and placed them on the table, letting Voodoo Sorcerer Baze choose one.
Seeing these alchemy books, Voodoo Sorcerer Baze couldn’t take his eyes off them. As a master of poison, how could he not be obsessed with alchemy? But obsession was useless; he had no way to obtain such knowledge.
“One book for all of these?”
Voodoo Sorcerer Baze’s gaze was exceptionally sincere, even though he was saying things that would get him beaten up without anyone stopping it.
“One for one.”
“Deal. Wait a moment.”
Voodoo Sorcerer Baze stood up and quickly left. After a moment, with a bang, a large wooden box was placed on the table, causing the stone table to groan painfully under the weight.
After both parties were very satisfied with the transaction, Su Xiao began setting up a teleportation array in the open space behind the treehouse. Bubu Wang, Baha, and Xian Lulu all stepped onto the array, and the Storm Flame Dragon squeezed in as well.
“This teleportation array looks so special. The array pattern seems high-level.”
Xian Lulu jumped onto Su Xiao’s shoulder. It could be seen that she was in a good mood, like returning from a business trip. And judging by the rank of this array pattern, it was first-class.
Boom!
The array activated. Xian Lulu suddenly felt nostalgic for her childhood, when she often ran carefreely across the wilderness with her friends. The fragrance of grass and trees from her childhood play seemed to linger in her nose and mouth. Suddenly, Xian Lulu recalled her entire journey of growth, scenes replaying in her mind like a… lantern show?!
When Xian Lulu opened her eyes again, she found herself lying on a small bed, covered with a soft, dry blanket. Amu, who was yawning, sat by the window not far away.
“Meow?”
Xian Lulu let out a confused meow, then asked, “What happened to me?”
“Your spatial resistance is a bit low. But don’t worry, it should increase quite a bit in the near future.”
As Baha spoke, he changed the IV bottle for Xian Lulu.
“Meow?”
Xian Lulu was very confused. She was thinking, wasn’t she attacked by an enemy during the teleportation? Why was she being told her spatial resistance was low? And what about the prompts that appeared every now and then, saying her spatial resistance had permanently increased by 1 point?
Ignoring Xian Lulu’s confusion, Su Xiao left the treatment room and went to the inner hall on the second floor. As soon as he entered, the waiting Viper and a thin Snake Clan member quickly stood up.
This Snake Clan scout was one of Viper’s trusted subordinates, very skilled in concealment and infiltration. Viper had brought him here because he had discovered information Su Xiao wanted to know. Viper could have reported this alone, taken Su Xiao’s reward, and then casually given his trusted subordinate a small share afterward.
But Viper didn’t do that. This guy was often a fence-sitter, but he was always loyal and righteous to those who followed him faithfully.
“Don’t be nervous. Speak slowly, don’t miss any details.”
Hearing Viper’s words, the Snake Clan scout’s breathing steadied. As a scout, he certainly had a strong psychological quality. He began to narrate what he had seen on Floating Light Island, a Sea Clan territory.
“So, you’re sure that was the Moon Wolf’s Wolf Tomb?”
Baha spoke in a deep voice. The Snake Clan scout nodded firmly and said, “The moonlight reflected off that several-meter-tall tombstone, giving off a cyan sheen. Also, I learned that the Sea Clan strongmen on the island offer fresh meat every month. Given the Sea Clan’s pride, they would only show such respect to their own people or to the Moon Wolf’s Wolf Tomb.”
The Snake Clan scout wasn’t flattering the Moon Wolves. The Abyss Wardens were not just for show. When the Beast Clan and Sea Clan resisted the Abyss back then, the Moon Wolves were also present. Even today, among the weapons inserted into the Sea Clan’s throne, there was still a Wolf Sword.
As for the Beast Clan’s seven great families and the royal family, all the wolf elements directly represented on their family crests basically represented the Moon Wolves.
Confirming that the Wolf Tomb was on Floating Light Island was undoubtedly good news. The Snake Clan scout continued, “My lord, there seems to be an undead near that Wolf Tomb. I don’t know why the Sea Clan doesn’t eliminate it.”
“Undead?”
Su Xiao was puzzled. He didn’t understand how an undead could dare to approach the Wolf Tomb of the Silver Moon Wolf.
“I saw a bone hand reach out from the wall. It didn’t look big, about the size of a child’s palm.”
Hearing the Snake Clan scout’s words, Su Xiao was quite surprised. He asked, “That bone hand, did it also emit a faint white light? And when you got close, it retracted into the wall?”
“Yes, exactly as you said, my lord. It also seemed to make a ‘lu lu’ sound?”
Hearing this, Baha laughed and corrected, “That’s not ‘lu lu,’ it’s ‘du du, gu gu,’ greeting you. Don’t spread this around.”
“Understood, subordinate obeys.”
“Good work. Follow me, I’ll get you something nice.”
Baha led the Snake Clan scout out of the inner hall. Only then did Viper, with a flattering smile, say, “My lord, I handled this matter well enough, right?”
“Tell me, what do you want?”
“My lord, just being able to work under you is an honor. I don’t want anything. Really. I do things for you, not for rewards.”
Viper almost slapped his chest to guarantee that everything he said came from the heart.
“Alright, you’ve worked hard.”
With that, Su Xiao leaned back on a single sofa, closed his eyes to rest, and at the same time, thought about how to handle an Overlord Equipment.
This left Viper, who was waiting nearby, feeling uncertain. His scheme this time was very ambitious, so he planned to show his loyalty first. But who knew he might have overdone it.
After a half-hour nap, Su Xiao opened his eyes. Just as he was about to stand up, he noticed Viper still waiting nearby. With a hint of ‘surprise,’ he asked, “Why are you still here?”
“This…”
Viper had already put on a mask of pain.
“Can you defeat Fenris?”
Su Xiao suddenly brought up City Lord Fenris.
“Very likely… no.”
“Tell me, why did Fenris rush to defect to me? Why was he willing to take such a big risk?”
“Subordinate… does not know.”
As Viper spoke, the mask of pain on his face gradually disappeared. He had come this time aiming for a city lord position. Midwinter City had ten great cities and nine city lord positions. Viper wanted to secure one.
Su Xiao’s implication was simple: among the nine city lords, why did Fenris risk defecting to him? He was already a city lord, with almost no chance of climbing higher. He defected to Su Xiao because he couldn’t compete with the other eight city lords and didn’t want to be pushed out by them.
If Viper couldn’t even defeat Fenris, he had even less chance against the other eight city lords. These eight not only had outstanding personal abilities, but their ancestors had been city lords here for generations, with deeply entrenched networks in the great cities they governed.
This was also why, before Su Xiao even arrived at the Winter Fiefdom, he used over 9,000 units of grain resources to feed these guys. Killing these local snakes themselves wasn’t hard, but doing so would make it impossible to continue as the lord of the Winter Fiefdom.
After letting Viper go to the Spotted Fox Clan’s Pylu to receive this round’s rewards, only Su Xiao remained in the inner hall. He felt that Dudu Gugu appearing near the Wolf Tomb wasn’t a coincidence, but it didn’t have much meaning either. It was probably just attracted to the area by the Wolf Tomb.
Floating Light Island was Sea Clan territory, making it very difficult to go there. Compared to this matter, Su Xiao had two more urgent things to handle.
He opened the faction shop and found that his reputation had reached 81,550 points. This included the points he had saved up before, plus the daily fiefdom settlements from the past few days. But the bulk came from providing fungal carpets to Grand Commander Kane, with each fungal carpet worth 300 reputation points, and he had provided over 200 of them.
Aside from faction reputation, the fungal carpets he provided would need to be retrieved in about three days. This was to take back the soul energy and bio-energy stored inside. By then, he would have a large number of evolution points in hand.
Su Xiao browsed the faction shop. [Soul Crystal] had already been exchanged, and not only that, the 2,190 Soul Crystal Cores were also completely gone. Su Xiao wasn’t concerned about this. His supply plan with Kaiser was proceeding steadily. Compared to competing with the Beast Clan faction’s contractors for these Soul Crystal Cores, sourcing them from the Sea Clan was much more satisfying.
Besides, Su Xiao needed to save up reputation to exchange for the technique-type set he had his eye on.
[You have consumed 78,000 reputation points.]
[You have obtained the Silver Moonlight Set (3/3 pieces · Technique-Type Set).]
…
As Su Xiao completed the exchange, the Void Tree teleported a silver-white metal chest in front of him. This silver chest was about 50 centimeters tall, exuding a sense of age that made its silver color subdued. Its surface had faint blood patterns, as if it required blood to open each time.
[Tip: As this set has been unused for a long time, it has entered a dormant state. You can awaken it through the following methods.]