Master Changsheng

Chapter 116, Section 114: An Old Friend [Please Subscribe and Vote]

Years of warfare have severely depleted the professional warriors within Chaos City.

The residents sighed and complained.

Especially recently, after learning that the desert had been sealed off, the resentment of the professionals in the city reached its peak.

However, the city lord of Chaos City remained unmoved by this.

Whether in wartime or now, she has only one way of managing the city.

That's the power of force!

Those who obey will be spared, those who disobey will be executed!

The intense pressure brought by this power has made most residents of the inner city of Chaos City live cautiously.

Looking back carefully, this unbearable, inhuman life began after the town of the dead appeared in Chaos City.

Before this, they lived in the inner city of Chaos City, mostly willingly.

Although the city lord was present, he mostly did not interfere. Even if someone occasionally violated the city's most important rule and went to the outer city, they would only be fined and would not suffer any physical punishment.

After all, this is a privilege they enjoy as residents of the inner city, unlike residents of the outer city who would suffer physical punishment for littering.

But everything changed after the town of the dead appeared in Chaos City.

The city's rules suddenly became strict, and the residents were divided into small teams, where they ate, drank, and relieved themselves all together.

And they also bear joint liability.

If one person commits a crime, the entire squad is implicated.

That's right, it was for burial purposes.

Under intense pressure, everyone in the inner city of Chaos City was filled with fear and anxiety, and they began to treat their team members with kindness and gentleness.

It's no longer the beatings, verbal abuse, or threats of the past...

They were also afraid that their attitude would be too bad, causing the opposing team in their squad to be unable to bear it, and that they would deliberately cause trouble, implicating the entire squad and bringing them to suffer an undeserved disaster.

This shift only eased somewhat when the war with the orcs began, preventing the entire squad from being wiped out because one person littered...

If we're going to investigate, the Lord of Chaos City seems like a completely different person ever since he left the Town of the Dead.

She didn't care at all how the city's residents cursed her; all she cared about was how to further exploit these guys.

In terms of exploiting the residents alone, the Lord of Chaos City surpasses Ankai.

Ankai didn't kill the resident for littering...

Not to mention the unreasonable entanglements.

When Ankai and Malken infiltrated the inner city of Chaos City, he witnessed this strange sight.

There are often more than a dozen people, or as few as five or six, who are inseparable and always together, no matter where they go.

And even though they had made peace with the orcs, these people didn't show any signs of relaxation or leisure.

Instead, they felt even more tense and fearful.

Taking three steps forward and then looking back repeatedly, this wasn't just to observe the surrounding environment, but also to observe the behavior of those around them…

"This is?"

Ankai was quite puzzled, not knowing what these guys had gone through.

The side quests also don't mention any lifestyle within the inner city of Chaos City...

This eerie scene in the city made An Kai's heart skip a beat.

"Are these guys all broke?"

He frowned slightly, then gave Malken a command to follow a small group of six back to their home…

When Ankai saw the scene in their home, he was stunned...

It's no exaggeration to say that even mice would shed tears if they came.

The house was bare, and there wasn't a single piece of food in sight.

Someone pulled out a small, moldy black bread, no bigger than the palm of their hand, which immediately attracted everyone's attention.

Excitement lit up their faces as, with a more skilled professional distributing the loaves, all six of them received the same size piece of moldy bread.

It makes a crunching sound when you bite into it.

However, the six people showed satisfied expressions. The weakest of the six was at the third level of the second tier, while the strongest was at the third tier.

At this moment, however, I felt satisfied because I ate a piece of moldy bread that felt like a brick.

Ankai didn't know what they had gone through.

But through the performance of these six people, he became certain of one thing: the food shortage at Good House was far worse than here.

At the very least, the residents of a good house would not feel satisfied with eating a piece of moldy bread.

All they do is complain about how unfair life is…

Ankai and Mairken, who witnessed all of this, exchanged a glance, both seeing confusion and doubt in each other's eyes...

While Ankai and Mairken were still puzzled, the six of them finished eating the bread in their hands.

A look of annoyance crossed his face, as if he regretted not leaving any for the next meal…

"You bitch, don't let me leave here!"

"That bitch treats us like dirt, why isn't anyone fighting back?"

"Resist? You can fight against a fifth-tier professional? And a level 5 Earth [Elemental Mage] at that!"

"Damn it! One day, I'll kill her!"

"Save your energy. If the orcs come, we'll have to risk our lives..."

"Damn it! That filthy bitch!"

"Ah... the bread is so delicious..."

...

Inside the house, some of the six people angrily cursed the Lord of Chaos City, while others accepted reality. However, they all had one thing in common: they were all complaining about the injustice of their current lives.

Ankai and Mairken, who had been observing, suddenly widened their eyes!

In Malken's sight, a wisp of aura carrying curses rose into the air above the six people's heads, surging towards one direction...

In An Kai's eyes, however, were phantoms resembling the six of them, flying out from their bodies, their faces filled with anger, cursing the injustices of life, as they rose into the air.

Ankai stood in the roofless room, looking up at the sky, only to see a torrent of countless illusory figures...

As he looked down, he saw someone in the torrent reaching out to him, inviting him to join them.

At that moment, a feeling of unease suddenly welled up inside me…

An Kai subconsciously activated [meditation], and his troubled mood disappeared...

"My lord... this city might be a formation..."

Malken spoke slowly, his voice tinged with uncertainty.

There's no other reason than that a formation capable of covering an entire city and influencing the whole city cannot be set up overnight.

Furthermore, the requirements for the person who sets up the formation are also very high.

Before arriving in the desert, the most Malken had ever seen was a magic array that covered a single house…

Those who can set up such formations can already be called: formation masters!

however…

Upon arriving in the desert, Mairken was dumbfounded.

First, they encountered a formation that sealed off the entire desert, and now, in a city, they've encountered a formation that covers the entire city and can indiscriminately affect the emotions of its residents…

When did formations become so simple?

Ankai nodded upon hearing Malken's words. After the two exchanged their observations, Ankai confirmed that this was indeed a formation.

Malken, on the other hand, was curious and didn't understand why Ankai could see more clearly than him.

However, he didn't think much of it; he was already used to Ankai's amazing abilities...

Ankai saw more clearly than Malken because of his meditation.

Having transmigrated here, I possess the [Meditation] spell, and as my proficiency increases, its effects become more and more numerous…

After observing for a while, they found that the six people had vented their anger and then fallen asleep. Ankai and Malken then left the room.

At this moment, Ankai faced two choices: leave or continue exploring…

Having gone to great lengths and left behind the homes of the kind, it's not in Ankai's nature to leave empty-handed...

After much deliberation and confirmation with Malken, the two decided to leave after exploring the area.

At this moment, An Kai also understood why the Lord of Chaos City had left Chaos City so casually.

It turns out that this place, like his, also had a backup plan.

The existence of this formation provides the best protection, not to mention that at the end of the torrent of humanoid phantoms, there will surely be powerful beings.

The probability of it being a fifth-order item is very high...

Ankai was enveloped by the aura of Malken, and the two of them headed in the opposite direction of the torrent of phantoms.

As for what secrets lie at the end of the torrent?

An Kai wasn't interested, and he didn't like exploring the unknown...

He's here to make money; before he's exposed, scavenging resources is the right thing to do.

...

Deep within the inner city of Chaos City.

It is also the end of the torrent of humanoid phantoms.

There is an ancient castle built underground.

The castle was entirely black, with no doors or windows, and no entrances or exits.

Inside the castle, there is only one main hall, with no other rooms.

The spacious hall was pitch black, so dark you couldn't see your hand in front of your face.

Only the floor of the main hall emitted a faint glow, and upon closer inspection, one could discern the patterns of a six-pointed star array…

The torrent of humanoid phantoms converged at the very center of this six-pointed star array…

There, a figure dressed in a black robe sat cross-legged…

A torrent of illusory human figures surged into her body in an orderly fashion…

"Oh? Another unexpected promotion has occurred?"

"Oh!"

A cool, clear voice slowly echoed through the hall, and suddenly a round mirror appeared in front of the figure…

The mirror reflects the empty, deserted streets of the inner city of Chaos City…

"Trying to hide?"

"Boring!"

The figure sitting cross-legged on the six-pointed star array let out a disdainful snort, and the mirror disappeared.

For her, no accident mattered, as long as it didn't affect her promotion.

Everyone thought that the Lord of Chaos City had suddenly changed his personality.

That's not actually the case...

All of this is because of her!

"Did the orcs retreat because they discovered a secret?"

"Or perhaps the twenty-eighth prince is afraid of dying!"

"However, with the current strength of the Good Family, it is enough to meet my promotion needs."

"Ha! Old man, isolating the desert? I'd like to see who takes that first step!"

"Astrology, astrology... I am the brightest star..."

After a few muttered words, the dark castle fell silent once more.

Only the torrent of humanoid phantoms, their mouths constantly opening and closing, continued to surge into this place…

...

Searching in the opposite direction of the torrent, Ankai and Malken finally found the shop.

The first shop was an equipment forging shop.

After Ankai and Mairken entered with great joy...

"unlucky!"

Inside the shop, there was only a dried-up corpse that had been dead for an unknown period of time.

As for equipment or anything like that, there wasn't a single piece.

Even the wooden floorboards were completely stripped away by later generations.

In the empty streets, more and more shops appeared, and at the end of the street, An Kai also saw the bounty tower he had been longing for.

Unfortunately, the two silver pillars made of silver coins that used to stand in front of the bounty post are nowhere to be seen now.

Ankai and Malken searched room by room until they reached the entrance of the bounty tower, but they found nothing...

The shop exists, but there is nothing inside.

Each one was cleaner than the last…

The dust, only an inch thick, proved that no one had entered the shop for a long time.

The bounty tower is also the only shop open on this commercial street.

Unlike the bounty tower in the outer city, the cool and beautiful women who used to stand at the entrance to greet guests have disappeared.

Upon entering, a sense of decay immediately hits you.

The beautiful woman in charge of exchanging bounty items on the first floor of the building, who had a good figure and a voluptuous body, had turned into an old man who could barely breathe.

He leaned against the empty bar, panting heavily.

He looked like he could die at any moment...

At this moment, the feeling of "huge loss" reverberated in An Kai's heart...

"My lord... second tier, fourth level..."

Malken said something in a low voice, referring to the old man who was struggling to breathe.

Apart from that, Malken didn't say anything more.

An Kai's complexion was visibly becoming increasingly unpleasant.

Based on Malken's past experience, if he were to speak up now and say anything inappropriate, he would most likely become the unlucky one for Ankai to vent his anger on...

Looking at Ankai's increasingly unpleasant face, Malken thought to himself that it was a pity he hadn't brought Nurnexius along.

This gave An Kai an outlet for his frustrations, and he no longer had to live in fear and trembling...

"I was careless!" Malken silently noted to himself. If this happened again, he would definitely remember to bring that bastard Nurnexius along...

The bounty towers in the inner city of Chaos City are the same as those in the outer city.

It also has three layers.

Undeterred, Ankai and Malken continued walking up to the second floor.

Stepping onto the second floor, it's not much different from the first floor; the feeling of financial ruin hits you right in the face. The difference is that there isn't even a guard here, let alone someone struggling to breathe.

There was no one, nothing at all.

But Ankai smiled as soon as he stepped into the place, and he and Malken looked towards the stairs together.

A faint aroma of meat wafted from there.

In this situation, within the inner city of Chaos City, are there still people who can eat meat?

An Kai felt that this time, he wouldn't leave empty-handed...

Malken also breathed a sigh of relief. He had the same thought as Ankai; it seemed he wouldn't have to suffer any undeserved misfortune...

Hidden beneath the hazy aura, Ankai and Malken headed towards the third floor…

The two of them reached the third floor in just two seconds.

A fat man with his back to them was roasting fresh meat.

None of that mattered. What truly pleased Ankai were the scattered detectors and several wooden crates emitting magical stone fluctuations.

The detectors can be sold to refugees from the seven countries, which is a good source of income.

What truly surprised and delighted An Kai was that he unexpectedly met an old friend here.

And this old friend even prepared such a generous gift for me.

With Malken in front and Ankai behind, the two stepped into the third floor...

"Fifth rank! Fifth rank! Fifth rank!"

"Unknown... First Rank... Unknown..."

As soon as the two entered, two sharp voices suddenly rang out from the third floor.

The fat man grilling the meat suddenly jolted, quickly turned around, looked at the empty entrance, and then breathed a sigh of relief:

"Sir, the emotion detector hasn't been developed yet, but I estimate it will be soon."

"My body attribute detector is almost complete. When used in conjunction with the emotion detector, it will surely bring you the most suitable puppet."

"It's a bit of a shame that I don't have many magic stones and gold coins left. As you know, my detectors are all made from gold coins and magic stones..."

"If you could... hehehe..."

The fat man rubbed his hands together, his face jiggling as he spoke…

He assumed the visitor was a powerful figure from within the Chaos City, a fifth-tier entity, since that powerful figure always remained hidden whenever they came here…

As for the sounds from the first level, he automatically ignored them, assuming it was a malfunction...

Little did he know, it wasn't a detector malfunction, but rather the arrival of an old friend from the outer city of Chaos City.

An Kai took a step forward and stood in front of the fat man.

He grabbed the fat man by the neck and lifted him up: "You fatso, you're living quite comfortably in this inner city of Chaos City, aren't you!"

"Uh...it's you, you bastard..."

(End of this chapter)