This dungeon has mushrooms growing on it.

Chapter 216, Section 215: Special Envoy
In the midst of the snow and ice, a hunting dog lay quietly on the ground, its body covered in white snow.

Under the extreme cold, even the tough mycelium inside the mushroom was frozen stiff, and fine ice crystals covered the surface of the mushroom cap.

A heavy boot covered in thick fur stepped mercilessly on Puji's body, which was half-buried in snow.

The owner of the boots casually rubbed his ankle, roughly sweeping away the snow on the surface to reveal the hardened snow underneath.

The person who came bent over slightly, and his breath condensed into white mist in the cold wind.

He was wrapped in a dark coat bearing the imperial insignia of the two-headed bat with winged wings, and his eyes beneath the brim of his hat carefully examined the strange corpse on the ground.

“Strange,” his voice, muffled by the wind and snow, said with a hint of doubt, “I’ve never seen such a monster before.”

"Who cares what it is!" another companion, equally bundled up but with a clearly impatient voice, urged. "This godforsaken place is freezing! Can't we just hurry up and get going?"

"Is the temperature-controlled pendant they gave you just for show?" The observer asked without turning his head, his tone carrying a hint of barely perceptible contempt.

"Maintaining it without consuming magic power?!" His companion's voice rose slightly, tinged with resentment. "Isn't it tiring to keep maintaining a constant low magic output? It's just a frozen, unknown monster, what's there to study?"

Although I despise the other party's weakness, there is really no need to waste time on a monster's corpse.

With a slight push of his foot, and with a crisp sound, the body shattered into pieces on the ground.

The two continued on their way, heading straight for the Demon Tribe.

……

"An envoy from the Empire?"

While Shou was taking stock of the tribe's dwindling supplies with the help of his clansmen, he frowned upon hearing Xinghuo's report.

Will the Empire send someone to contact them?
This is the first time he has ever encountered something like this since he was born, which is obviously abnormal.

But... we still have to meet.

Moreover, he did intend to move south, and dealing with the empire was inevitable sooner or later.

He gestured for Xinghuo to lead the messenger to the main tent.

"Tsk... This place isn't even warm inside the tents." The guy with the thermostat pendant around his neck complained as soon as he came in.

His exposed pale skin easily reminded people of his vampire identity.

However, Shou was only staring at another figure, from whom he felt a strange and peculiar sense of blood affinity.

The man seemed to have no intention of hiding it, and casually rolled up his sleeves, revealing the demonic markings on his arms.

"Demon!" Hunt's pupils contracted slightly.

However, unlike the uniform deep blue magic markings of the tribe, the magic markings on the arm of this imperial kin were a fiery crimson, like lava!
As the patterns flow, they exude an invisible, scorching heat.

"In the name of the Red Moon and the laws of the Empire!" The vampire arrogantly raised his chin, his voice carrying an unquestionable authority, "I am Viscount Hao Henderson, the Northern Envoy appointed by His Majesty Mortis Dracon, Emperor of the Hermit Empire, Protector of the Demon Race, and Lord of the Continent! This gentleman beside me is Gray. We have come to bestow grace upon you by His Majesty's decree. Where is your patriarch?"

His gaze swept over the broken sleeve of the empty-handed man, and finally landed on Xinghuo with obvious confusion, not understanding why he had brought them to see a disabled person.
"Hunting, the current clan leader." Hunting's voice was calm and calm.

The single-character name made Gray pause for a moment.

"You?" Viscount Hao looked Shou up and down incredulously, his expression changing slightly. "As far as I know, the leader of this tribe should be an older demon. And... where are the other diamond-level members?"

Shou did not directly answer his question, but instead fixed his gaze on the other party: "Now I am the clan chief. You two special envoys, please state your purpose." Viscount Hao took two steps back and came to Gray's side: "Gray, this doesn't match the description given by those snake people at all! Just two diamond-level? One of them is even... disabled. They seem worthless!"

Although his voice wasn't loud, he wasn't deliberately trying to be inaudible.

"You—!" Starfire's eyes widened in fury, his fists clenched instantly, but the vampire opposite him completely ignored his anger.

“If you don’t mind, leave it to me,” Gray said.

Viscount Hao shrugged and took a few steps back indifferently. The intelligence was wrong, and in his opinion, this tribe was no longer of any value.

Gray looked directly at the Hunting Clan Chief and said, "The Empire has prepared a rich land for you, with a mild climate, abundant resources, and far from the harshness and threats of the North. The Empire is willing to open its doors and welcome you as its protected subjects."

Viscount Hao interrupted sharply, elegantly flicking non-existent dust off his fingertips: "Viscount Henderson reminds you that this 'gift' is based on intelligence provided by the Serpent People regarding their possession of several Diamond-level combatants."

He glanced meaningfully around the tent, which now seemed particularly empty.

Gray nodded slightly: "The Empire has seen your current situation. However, His Majesty Mortis's benevolence remains unchanged. The Empire is still willing to accept you, even if the land is not as fertile as initially said, it is still better than this barren ice plain."

"Then, what's the price?" Ignoring their promises, Shou asked the crucial question directly.

Gray met Hunter's gaze and spoke with conviction: "There are two conditions. First, all the tribe's fighting force must immediately join the Empire's war, obey orders, and fight until victory! Second, your 'cradle' must be handed over to us. The Empire's demon descendants only need one 'cradle'."

"Please leave, both envoys." Shou's voice was firm and decisive. He didn't even bother to ask what kind of war it was; upon hearing the second point, refusal was inevitable.

Viscount Hao, standing to the side, let out a loud sneer: "Ungrateful wretch!"

Gray's eyes lingered on Hunt's face for a moment, revealing neither his joy nor anger.

He rose, and as he was about to step out of the tent, he paused slightly without turning back. His deep voice, however, clearly echoed back into the tent: "Chief of the Hunting Clan, the gates of the Empire will remain open to you for the next three months. If you change your mind, simply send someone to inform us. We are all of the same race, and we will eventually unite as one."

After saying that, the two walked out of the tribe without hesitation.

Broke up unhappily.

Watching the two figures disappear outside the tent as the wind and snow began to rise, Xinghuo turned to Shou: "Why did you refuse so decisively? Even if the conditions are harsh, perhaps... we could still talk?"

"Regardless of their initial purpose, it now appears that what they want is not us, but the 'Cradle,' the magic core..."

Xinghuo nodded. "The cradle is the foundation of the tribe. If we hand it over, the tribe will cease to exist."

Shou was thinking a little more. Given the unequal strength between the two sides, if they coveted the magic core, would they deliberately send their people to their deaths so that the magic core could be retrieved?
This was just his worst-case scenario, but once it came to that, the easier it was to enter the Empire, the harder it would be to escape!

"Then... what about our plan to move south?" Xinghuo's voice carried a hint of confusion.

Shou sighed deeply; he was now pondering this difficult problem as well.

Originally, if the empire continued to ignore the northern border as before, the main consideration for migrating south would be the friction between the location and other tribes.

But now, they suddenly discover that the demonic descendants in the empire seem to have designs on them, and they dare not migrate south at will.

What exactly happened to make the empire that previously ignored them suddenly start paying attention to them?

Unfortunately, the tribe was too isolated and lacked sufficient information for the hunter to make a judgment.

"Speaking of which..." Shou forced down his chaotic thoughts and changed the subject, "Where's Qiong? I haven't seen him all day."

(End of this chapter)