For now, he would first dispatch a group of Slime Scholars and Dwarf Artisans to come over and study under Silver Sparrow. They needed to build a solid foundation before anything else.
After gaining control of the castle, Chen Yu brought in the main force of the Demon Legion waiting outside.
The Demon Legion rested on the estate outside the castle. As Arthur passed by a garden in full bloom, he stopped dead in his tracks.
The Gloomy Blue Soul Fire beneath his helmet flickered violently, as if he had seen a precious treasure. He even crouched down and extended an iron-clad finger to gently touch a golden sunflower dotted with dewdrops. His movement was so delicate it was as if he were afraid of startling it.
His posture was exactly like that of an old farmer discovering a new, fertile continent he had never seen before, filled with curiosity and joy.
"Beautiful..." Arthur murmured, his voice hoarse but filled with an indescribable emotion.
Count Brand was even more excited, squawking wildly as he flapped his wings, circling and zipping all over the sky above the castle.
One moment he was flying to the top of a tall spire to gaze out, the next he was diving into a wisteria-covered arcade to explore. Then he tried to peck at the self-moving furniture with his beak, only to end up being chased all over the grand hall by a broom, losing several feathers in the process, yet he enjoyed it immensely.
Olivia walked over, following Chen Yu, who was floating on his sword. Her gaze fell upon Arthur, who was crouching dazedly by the flowers, and a pale silver eyebrow arched slightly.
"The way of nature?" she muttered to herself, then looked at Chen Yu, a smile playing on her lips. "It seems the outside world is far more wonderful than I imagined."
"Your Majesty." Arthur, noticing their gazes, stood up and gave Olivia and Chen Yu a standard knight’s salute.
This made Olivia all the more interested in this peculiar Undead Knight.
"You’ve never been outside?" Chen Yu looked at Olivia, a little surprised.
’I thought this Silver Dragon would have already snuck out to observe the swamp and its surroundings long ago. But now it seems she has rarely ever left the castle.’
Olivia shrugged. "My apologies for disappointing Our Majesty. For certain special reasons, I cannot stray too far from this castle."
"The farthest I’ve gone was probably to visit a certain reclusive tree spirit Wise Man deep in the swamp. I’ve also seen the fortress the goblins built at the pass from a distance, but I have yet to formally visit your Slime Kingdom."
’She’s met Violet?’
’Just how many things has this woman not told me?’
Chen Yu thought for a moment. ’Actually, this isn’t so bad.’
’As a Silver Dragon, it’ll be easy for Olivia to reach the Gold rank after she matures.’
’With her guarding the planar rift in the Snowfield, at least no strange creatures will come out of the rift to cause trouble.’
’She’s basically a free, powerful mercenary and a guard dog—er, guard dragon.’
He couldn’t wait for Olivia to stay for a few more decades, so he tacitly avoided any discussion about her departure.
Afterwards, aside from some Gargoyles that were to remain stationed in the Snowfield to help guard the rift and establish an outpost, the main force of the Demon Legion split into two. One group, led by Chen Yu, headed for Split Stone Pass to completely reclaim the mines.
The other group, led by Arthur and Count Brand, returned directly to Storm Fortress to prevent their rear from being left vulnerable to a surprise attack by the resurgent Demon Legion.
Olivia seemed to know Split Stone Pass very well. Before Chen Yu left, she stopped him and handed him a small, flask-mouthed Crystal Bottle containing about half a bottle of liquid that shimmered with a faint, silvery light.
Olivia looked at Chen Yu with her pale silver eyes and said meaningfully, "The situation there is even more interesting than you think. If you encounter any ’stubborn rocks’ that won’t melt, just pour this on them. You’ll get what you’re looking for."
Although Chen Yu was a bit confused, he accepted the potion, stored it in his Gel stomach, and, after a temporary farewell to Olivia and the castle, set off on his return journey.
「Half an hour later, at Split Stone Pass.」
The Demon Legion easily took control of the now-empty goblin fortress. Chen Yu stood on the fortress’s ruined battlements, gazing down into the bottomless mineshaft below.
Now he finally understood what Olivia meant by "stubborn rocks."
Near the entrance to the mineshaft lay a massive body.
It wasn’t an ordinary rock, but the completely petrified corpse of a flying dragon. Furthermore, judging by the remaining contours of its skull, its thick bone structure, and the faint draconic aura it still exuded despite being petrified, this was no Sub-Dragon, but a pure-blooded Black Dragon.
The dragon’s body blocked almost the entire entrance to the mine. It was frozen in its death throes—head held high, jaw agape, as if letting out a silent roar.
’So the Magic Power surge that happened at the pass last time was so severe that it even attracted a dragon, which was then completely petrified.’
He finally realized that what had been blocking the mine entrance before wasn’t ordinary stone at all. And what Anvil had used to forge the frame for the Goblin Ripper’s cannon barrel wasn’t some special metal, but scales that had flaked off this petrified Black Dragon.
A dead dragon’s scales, claws, teeth, and bones... all were extremely valuable, top-tier Magic Materials and forging components.
The heart, in particular, was special. It was said that a hero who bathed in the blood from a dragon’s heart would undergo a complete, transformative rebirth.
But this entire dragon corpse before him was completely petrified. Its heart had probably long since turned to stone, losing all of its life and energy.
’But...’
Chen Yu looked at the pale silver potion floating in his Gel stomach and understood Olivia’s intention.
...
「White Horse Kingdom, the eastern city of Falan.」
Inside a dimly lit room in the noble district, the curtains were drawn tight.
On the floor, fresh blood had not yet fully congealed. The lines of the sacrificial Magic Array it formed seemed to writhe and squirm, emitting a nauseating, metallic stench.
Several knights and ministers in opulent attire stood solemnly around the room. They stared intently at the two figures standing in the center of the sacrificial Magic Array, the air thick with suffocating tension.
In the center of the Magic Array stood a young man who appeared to be in his early twenties.
He wore a well-tailored princely uniform, the fabric a top-grade velvet from the Jade River valley to the south. Pinned to his collar was a White Horse Badge, signifying his royal status.
He had meticulously combed chestnut-brown hair and handsome features, but his face was currently pale and bloodless. His lips were pressed into a thin line, and a fine sheen of cold sweat beaded on his forehead.
He was Alek von Whitman, the third in line to the throne of the White Horse Kingdom.
Standing beside him was a tall, terrifying Demon—none other than the Iron Cavalry Demon, Yax, who had escaped from Storm Fortress.
Alek took a deep breath, trying to calm the heart that was about to leap out of his chest. He could clearly hear the sound of his own blood rushing, and he could feel the hand gripping his sword hilt trembling slightly.
He turned to the silent Yax beside him and spoke with as steady a voice as he could muster:
"Lord Yax, please... begin the sacrificial rite."
As the third in line to the throne, Alek knew full well that his mediocre self stood no chance of winning the supreme throne. He was caught between his brilliant elder brother, First Prince Carl, who was doted on by their father the King, and his second brother, Prince William, who had outstanding military achievements and the backing of the Northern Noble Group.
He was like an unremarkable piece of scenery at a court banquet—no one paid him any mind, and no one had any expectations for him.
He still clearly remembered when he was ten years old. The biting winter wind had made his face ache and his nose turn red. Dressed in a solemn ceremonial robe, he had followed his two older brothers in Radiant Square before the Royal Capital. Together, they had sworn a solemn oath to his father, Frederick von Whitman: "In the name of Ignis, the sun, I will be loyal to the Kingdom, protect its people, and defend the honor of the Whiteman Clan for all my life!"
But his father’s blue eyes had only lingered on him for a fleeting moment before moving on, shifting to his more outstanding brothers.
Although he had long grown accustomed to that indifference, the memory was still deeply etched in his mind.