Survival in Sequences: Eighteen Years Old, Slaying Monsters Like Horses

The head of the City Lord of Jinshi rolled twice on the bluestone ground before finally coming to rest at the edge of a crevice soaked in blood. The doubt and resentment in his lion eyes solidified into the final image.

The Deerman City Lord knelt on one knee, his greatsword stuck in a crack in the stone slab in front of him, the blade still trembling slightly.

His breathing was heavy and rapid, and the wound at the base of his thumb had torn open even wider, with blood flowing down the hilt of the sword and forming a dark red stream on the blade.

The remaining lion-man warriors in the square paused briefly when the city lord fell, and the dark golden line of defense loosened a bit, like a fence that had lost its backbone.

The deer-man city lord did not rise, but he raised his head, his amber beastly eyes sweeping over the bewildered lion-men's faces. His voice was hoarse yet as firm as iron: "The Golden Stone City Lord is dead. Will you die with him, or lay down your weapons and seek your own survival?"

The silence lasted for three breaths.

Then, the first dagger fell to the ground with a crisp sound, like porcelain shattering.

Then came the second and the third, and the dark gold chainmail loosened and receded in large swaths across the plaza, making the lion warriors look like crabs left on the mudflats when the tide went out.

One by one, they lowered their heads and were then bound together by the thorns on the wall.

The Deerman Lord remained kneeling until the last row of Lionmen disappeared into the shadows of the city gate. Only then did he slowly exhale a breath of stale air and pull the greatsword from the crack in the stone slab.

His gaze passed over the corpses lying haphazardly in the square and landed on a shadowy spot above the city wall.

He wondered if the mysterious person would intervene, and he thought he might be able to weather this crisis.

But he never expected everything to go so smoothly.

Xu Si descended from the city wall, holding the scepter in his hand, his gaze fixed on the crystal core.

"This thing... doesn't seem to be a weapon."

Xu Si turned the scepter over and over, his fingertips slowly tracing the surface of the crystal core.

There was no influx of energy, no resonance of laws, but the feeling of "disharmony" became increasingly clear.

It's like a door with the most magnificent lock, but no keyhole. Is it a unique way to open it in this world?

The Deerman City Lord stood up, leaning on his greatsword; the blood from his tiger's mouth had congealed into a dark brown scab.

He walked over, his gaze falling on the crystal core, the dark line between his brows furrowing even more deeply: "The Golden Lion found the 'power of our ancestors' in this thing. He was willing to start a war and destroy the centuries-old alliance between our two cities for it."

"But he didn't really master it," Xu Si said.

Although the Golden Lion used some mysterious power in its final attack, it seemed somewhat incongruous to Xu Si.

The Deer-Man City Lord remained silent for a moment, his amber beast eyes swirling with complex emotions.

He took the scepter from Xu Si, his rough fingertips tracing the fine lines on the surface of the crystal core, and suddenly whispered, "This thing... was dug out from underground in the mining area, but this is the first time I've ever seen one."

During this period, he never stopped mining in the area, but gained nothing.

"Mining area?"

"Yes, it's very close to Deerman City. That mine was originally used for mining ordinary ore, jointly by Deerman City and Goldstone City. Three months ago, miners discovered a collapsed tunnel in a deep cavern, leading to a sealed stone chamber. The most valuable thing inside is probably this crystal core. Golden Lion got the news before us, and that's how the conflict between our two cities began!"

His voice was filled with regret and pain.

"So what are you planning to do next?" Xu Si asked.

Now that the Golden Lion is dead, it's the perfect time to press our advantage, if the Deer-Man City Lord is determined.

The city lord of Deer City did not answer Xu Si's question immediately.

He stood there, leaning on his greatsword, his amber beastly eyes slowly shifting from the crystal core on his scepter to the corpses lying haphazardly in the plaza.

Lionmen, werewolves, crushed mine carts, and crimson crystals scattered all over the ground; blood flowed in the cracks of the bluestone slabs, forming tiny streams that gleamed with a dark luster in the dim light.

"Why did it have to come to this!"

"Take this crystal core! I will also send people to blow up the mine. As for the hatred between the two cities, it would be best if it could be resolved. If it cannot be resolved, let time heal all wounds!" The Deer-Man City Lord's eyes were filled with indescribable sorrow.

At this moment, Ilya seemed to have received the news as well, and hurriedly rode over on her night-walking lizard.

He glanced one last time at Xu Si, who was standing beside his father.

Xu Si bowed politely and then disappeared into the square.

"I...I don't even know your name yet?" Ilya murmured.

Jinshicheng

City Lord's Mansion

"It seems the Deer-Man City Lord wasn't lying! This crystal core might really be the most valuable thing in the entire city!"

The city lord's mansion in Jinshi City was much more magnificent than that in Deerman City, but it was also much more spacious.

Xu Si stood in the center of the main hall. The disguise of the Crystal Clan had been removed, and he had returned to his original appearance.

He held the dark red crystal core between his fingertips, examining it repeatedly in the cold light streaming down from the dome.

The fine lines on the surface exhibit a kind of light-and-dark rhythm that is almost like breathing under the light, with each three flashes forming a cycle, like some kind of signal.

"Wanliuchun, have you seen this thing before?" he asked in his mind.

Wanliuchun's figure emerged halfway out of the dark building, her gaze fixed on the crystal core, her brows furrowing slightly.

"I've never been inside. It doesn't seem like the core of some strange entity, nor does it seem like a natural creation. It's a bit odd!"

Xu Si had never seen such a strange way of preserving energy.

It was somewhat like a strange object, but Xu Si couldn't find the trick to activate it.

"Perhaps we can find the answer in Gray Fog City?" Wanliuchun said.

"Gray Mist City?" Xu Si chuckled lightly, putting the crystal core into the inner pocket of his spatial cloak and placing it next to the stack of crimson crystals.

"Then let's go," he said.

I'll have to go sooner or later anyway.

Wanliuchun didn't reply, but simply withdrew her protruding half-body and disappeared back into the dark building.

Xu Si did not linger in Jinshi City.

This city was even more desolate than the Deer City. The families of the Lion Warriors gathered at a street corner, whispering among themselves. When they saw him walk out of the main gate of the city lord's mansion in a grand manner, they all made way to make way for him.

He remained perfectly concealed; to the indigenous people, he was merely a blurry, insignificant shadow.

As we walked out of the west gate, the sky began to darken.

The constant light source, which seemed to come from nowhere, appeared to have changed. The world transitioned from a warm yellow to a silvery-white with a grayish tint, like an old painting that had been washed too many times.

The road surface underfoot had changed from bluestone slabs to rough sand, with clusters of dark green, dwarf plants with thick leaves growing along the edges.

"The direction of the desert is..." Xu Si turned his head to identify the direction, his gaze falling on the area at the end of the horizon that was faintly glowing with a pale golden halo.

The map of the Deerman City Lord clearly marked that to the east, across the desert, lay the location of Graymist City.

His senses spread forward, like water flowing over a barren beach.

The desert was more vast than he had imagined. Beneath the sandy soil was a solid rock mass. Occasionally, he could detect some extremely faint remnants of energy deep within the rock mass, which were vaguely similar to the aura emitted by the crystal core, but much thinner and more ancient, like bone fragments that had been polished by wind and sand for millions of years.

"If Gray Mist City truly is the 'origin of our ancestors,' then there should be no shortage of similar traces along this route."

[One chapter owed, will be added tomorrow. Found a great book, already reading it all day, preparing to work overtime tonight.]