Baator Hell Promotion

"Sacrifice or escape, they're both methods, there's no difference." The old orc curled his lips. "Besides, I have an additional condition - you need to take them away in their original form before the ceremony, and let all the orcs in the tribe see it."

"I smell the fragrance of a power struggle," the demon laughed and licked his lips. "But are you sure you want to tell me this?"

"As long as you agree to my terms"

"Of course I agree." Hopper stretched out her hand and shook it tightly with Daluk. As she agreed, the chain sprang out from the void like a snake, biting on the wrists of both of them and forming a silver light.

"The Hollow Witch's Witness." The succubus looked at the fading mark on his hand with interest. "I thought the One-Eyed Sons never paid attention to so-called promises."

"We simply have a different understanding of promise than the inhabitants of the Nine Hells." The orc also looked at the mark on his hand and sighed. "But under Kolog's leadership, our traditions of honor, commitment, and faith are fading rapidly."

"And one of the driving forces is the devil of the Nine Hells." Daluk snorted disdainfully, loosened his raised fist, and let the eye in the palm of his hand fall directly into the water.

As soon as the eyeball fell, the entire basin began to churn violently, and a thick fog surging like a fountain covered the surface of the basin. However, as Daluk took a handful of leaves from his pocket and threw them in, the basin quickly calmed down.

At this moment, the leaves, the eyeballs, and even the water disappeared. The image that appeared in the basin was the bloat demon that Hopper had been obsessed with.

The bloat demon's upper limbs were chained to the ceiling, its pink tentacles twitching erratically. Three transparent crystals, half a man's height, were held upright on delicate golden supports. Green light cords stretched from the crystals' centers and bound around the bloat demon's obese body. Surrounding each crystal were two robed orcs, their hands resting on them, seemingly providing them with power.

Directly beneath the bloat demon, a huge crucible filled with gray slime lazily bubbled with sticky bubbles.

"I don't understand. The Bloat Demon isn't considered a powerful character. What is he doing?"

The old orc removed his hand, and the image dissipated into ripples in the basin, leaving only a basin of clear water. He took a breath, exhausted from casting the spell, and his voice was hoarse. "This is the fuse of everything."

"The messenger brought this monster, called the bloat demon, to Kolog and trained a warlock for him. Under her command, the warlock used the bloat demon's body as a base to open a passage. The power of Hell then dripped through the bloat demon's slime into the solution. The slime then dripped into the furnace, forging a sword capable of splitting rock."

"These weapons equipped Korog and his soldiers, and within a few weeks he swept through Eagle's Nest and became the new High Chief."

Hopper had no interest in Kellogg's rise to power, but she keenly caught one word: "She? The messenger you're talking about is a woman?"

The old orc looked at Hopper deeply, and then spoke after burning: "To be precise, she is one of your kind."

"A succubus, you say?" Hopper narrowed his eyes, immediately thinking of the target the Inquisitor had been pursuing. "You call her a 'messenger,' then whose messenger is she?"

"I don't know," the old orc said frankly. "Many One-Eyed Sons, including me, have seen her from behind and felt the terrifying aura of the Nine Hells emanating from her. But only Kolog has seen the Messenger's true appearance. I assume there are no other female devils in the Nine Hells, right?"

"As for who she is the messenger for? This is top secret, known only to the Great Chief himself. I suspect it must be a noble in the harbor below, otherwise she wouldn't have proposed killing as few humans as possible and more other races."

The succubus frowned and reached out to touch his crown out of habit, but he only touched the orc's coarse hair.

"The clues you mentioned are almost an open accusation against the Archbishop of the Perfect Man," she said.

Dalyuk grinned.

"Feathered Kuk-Kuk, who can say for sure? The Wufang people love to play politics. There's more than one archbishop who covets the land outside the city, and there's more than one archbishop who hates non-humans. Otherwise, how could a foreign missionary gain a foothold in that port full of conspiracy?"

The succubus sneered and mercilessly exposed Daluk: "But you are just like the unfanged people you hate, playing tricks and politics."

"Yes," Daluk admitted readily, "It seems you have guessed my plan."

Hopper stood up to stretch his legs, which had gone numb from sitting. He pondered for a moment, then said, "I'm already regretting my low offer. You wanted me, a succubus, to ruin your grand ceremony. No orc would suspect you were the mastermind, since you're a devout shaman."

"My appearance will only make the One-Eyed Sons think that it was the Warchief and his demonic allies who favored humans who ruined their most important sacrifice. It's a simple and crude frame-up, but it's effective. How can the Warchief prove that the succubus that appeared wasn't his ally? After all, no orc would believe that two succubus appeared in such a short time in a small eagle's nest."

Chapter 138: Indestructible Shackles

"Very good, very good, devil," Daluk clapped his hands, his irises flashing red with excitement. "I can understand why Kolog wants to cooperate with you. Very few of my people are willing to think."

"I'm curious about your purpose. Are you challenging the position of Great Chief? From what you've said, Kolog is no incompetent man. I think it would be difficult for you to defeat him. Why don't you consider joining forces with him?"

The light in Daluk's eyes faded, and he looked old and gloomy again. After a moment, the old beastman spoke: "Believe it or not, everything I do is for Korog and the entire Eagle's Nest."

"My people, including Kolog, are the most outstanding race in the world. We drove away the pointy-eared people, enslaved the short-stacked people, and all the non-fanged people were trampled under our feet."

Hopper rolled his eyes silently, ignoring the boast.

"I once lived among the Wu Liao people in the south, even learning their language and customs. I witnessed many powerful Wu Liao people ultimately destroy themselves due to greed and arrogance." Daluk stared at the top of the tent, his thoughts drifting far away. "Later, I returned to my people."

He turned and stared at Hopper, saying with deep sorrow, "What surprises me is that even with the guidance of the gods, my people have still contracted the common disease among the Wufang people - arrogance. Among them, Kolog is the most serious. I have tried to persuade him, but I can't stop him from joining forces with your people."

"Why are you against Kolog? What's wrong with becoming powerful? Isn't that what the One-Eyed God taught us?"

Daluk waved his hand. "Strength is like a raging fire. The One-Eyed God guides us to use flames to burn the weak Unfanged People and their land to the ground. This is the way of survival for the Sons of the One-Eyed."

"But Krog has crossed a line. He considers himself the wisest and most powerful of the One-Eyed Sons. He refuses to follow the teachings of the One-Eyed God, the Flesh Pot Witch Mother, or any other deity. I will not allow him to turn the Aerie into another human society."

"And," Daluk's voice sharpened, "do you think I would believe that the succubus from that harbor below would provide such great assistance to the Eagle's Nest without asking for any reward? Humph, an ally, or even a slave!"

Hopper raised an eyebrow. The orc with sparse hair looked very funny when doing this. She seemed to have grasped some information. Would the succubus develop followers among the orcs?

"Slaves? What? The messenger asked you to convert to her god? So, as a shaman, you feel your position is being challenged?"

Unexpectedly, Daluk scoffed and shook his head. "You and Kolog are both convinced I must have ulterior motives. I will soon return to the Flesh Pot Witch Mother's embrace. What use is status to me?"

"Though I'm not aware of the messenger's request, I doubt Korog would be foolish enough to put himself at odds with all of the One-Eyed. You don't know him. Our chieftain is so arrogant that he feels he doesn't need anyone's help. He believes he can control not only the Eagle's Nest but also his new allies, and he won't bow to the messenger or her god."

"However, his arrogance has made him lose his guard. Look at what he has done. Our chief has signed a pact with the devil in the name of the tribe, made peace with the unarmed people, and yielded again and again. Regardless of what Kolog feels, the fact is that he has been played by the applause of others."

"His actions not only betray his father's ways, but also completely enslave him to power and status," the old orc said. "I don't want to see him playing with fire with Eagle's Nest and getting burned. So, I need to remind him that flames can burn your hands."

"You want me to sabotage the festival, not just to frame Kolog," Hopper understood his purpose, "but also to make him and the other orcs understand that demons are unreliable. Even as allies, they might betray them at any time for personal gain."

"Only when the scars are deep enough can my people remember the price of power."

The succubus shook his head and said, "Daluk, you oversimplify things. I don't believe the imposter's attack can awaken your chief. The other one-eyed sons might make a mistake, but Kolog will certainly not mistake his allies."

Daluk shook his head helplessly. "I understand. But I don't expect Kolog to suddenly realize his mistake. I no longer have the strength or wisdom to become a reformer. Not every orc supports Kolog. All I can do now is sow the seeds of faith in the hearts of others. Even after my death, those seeds still have a chance to sprout."

"Actually, I have another suggestion." The succubus rolled her eyes, unwilling to follow the old orc's lead. "Why not address the source of all this? Whether it's the bloat demon or the succubus, if they were reduced to corpses, wouldn't that prove your point? The devil isn't stronger than your god, and you can persuade Krog to return to the traditional path once again, eliminating the need for such roundabout framing."

"If you find it difficult to deal with the succubus, I can help," Hopper added.

The old orc decisively rejected the proposal. "I can't do that. The method you mentioned is what I considered from the beginning. But I know it won't work. Kolog was happy to show me his new power. He told me that the shackles on the bloat demon were specially made by the emissary. I tried, and my magic couldn't leave the slightest mark on them."

"And according to what our chief boasted, this passage only needs to utilize the body of the bloated demon, it doesn't need to be alive."

Hopper immediately thought of the extremely tough chains as the shackles of the dark elves, but he immediately denied his own thoughts.

The dark elf's shackles might indeed have been forged here, but they were far from indestructible. That night, they were severed by an adamantine dagger. If the bloat demon's shackles were truly formidable, I'd probably have to find a way to remove them first.

Of course, fighting his way out with the bloat demon and the entire ceiling was indeed a very tempting option. Just thinking about the scene of rivers of blood and widespread wailing made Hopper so excited that his tailbone trembled.

"That's enough. You shouldn't let desire take over," Hopper warned himself. "The bloat demon is hanging there and can't escape for a while. I can go to Emerald Harbor and start with the messenger to find out what those strange shackles are."

"Daluuk, have any dark elves ever come to the Eagle's Nest?"

In the darkness, Daluk showed a puzzled expression. After a moment's thought, he answered this sudden question, "I haven't seen any long-eared monsters come here. Even if Kolog is corrupt, he wouldn't cooperate with long-eared monsters."

Hopper rolled his eyes again. It turned out that in orc society, cooperating with elves (even dark elves) was more depraved than cooperating with the devil?

"But..." the old orc changed the subject. "Kolog did order the hunting teams to focus on collecting long-eared demon products. Is this related to what you want to know? Or will it affect your actions?"

The succubus shook her head, indicating she wasn't sure. She vaguely remembered hearing about someone somewhere in Emerald Harbor who truly appreciated elven craftsmanship, but she couldn't recall the specifics at the moment, let alone whether it was related to the Eagle's Nest.

She squatted down, lifted the animal skin on the ground, and a black and gray broken arm rolled out.

"Kellogg gave it to me today. Perhaps you didn't notice, but it's a dark elf's arm," Hopper said cunningly. She enjoyed trading the other party's known information for her own unknown information.

"I really don't know about this. How about this, Kuk-Kuk," the old orc said after a moment's silence, "I'll have the boys go to the warehouse tomorrow morning to check if there are any of the long-eared demons' belongings. Since it was a public order from Kolog, it can't be considered a secret. If these things really exist, they certainly wouldn't be kept separately."

"I will also tell Shenkeng that you will examine the captured Wu Liao people for me. The Shenkeng holds all the captives. You can go and investigate yourself to see if there are any black-eared monsters among them."

"That's very generous of you." Hopper held out his hand again.

"After all, you also need to familiarize yourself with the environment of the deep pit. I hope this will make our plan go more smoothly."

The old orc stretched out his hand, shook her hand, and left the tent.

Chapter 139 A Beam of Light in the Deep Pit

When she was awakened by the shrill, flattering voices of the jailers, Judith thought they were going to poke her with sticks again for fun.

The high fever made her dizzy, her eyelids heavy as if glued shut. The poet's brows knitted together, and she finally managed to open her eyes, her dry, cracked lips trembling slightly. Every inch of her skin burned and stung, the pain so intense she had no strength left to struggle.

A single silver spark ignited in the incomparable darkness. Someone nearby heard her moan—it was Edimu. The knight, stripped naked and filthy, lay curled up in the adjacent cage, relying on meditation and maximum stillness to maintain his strength. Even so, he still tried to reach out, offering the spark to her, attempting to ease her pain.

The spark lasted only a moment—the knight's physical and mental strength were reaching their limits. But the brief flash of light was enough to make Judith feel better, and it also allowed her to hear the faint conversation and footsteps more clearly.

"Yes, yes, my lord. Those black-eared monsters you just saw were captured recently by the messenger. Their meat is so tender and delicious. The chief allowed us to gnaw on the remaining bones. Thank you, messenger, and chief." This was the goblin who often tortured her. Its voice made Judith feel physically nauseous - it was it that broke her fingers one by one.

Then a much deeper voice sounded, and Judith also felt somewhat familiar.

"Very good, very good, Snotlout. I will report your work faithfully to Dalyuk."

Then there was a loud unlocking sound and the creaking of the wooden door being pushed open. As the cell door opened, a beam of orange-yellow firelight shone in from outside. The human, who had not seen the light for many days, felt his eyes hurt by the sudden brightness.

The goblin pushed open the cell door, and the scene inside was illuminated by the fire, and the panoramic view of the dungeon appeared before Hopper.

No matter what Korog or Daruk boasted, the Eagle's Nest was essentially just an orcish outpost. Perhaps the messengers had brought some changes, but those changes had not benefited the Deep Pit. Its location at the bottom of the valley meant not only darkness but also dampness, stench, and filth. Even orcs were unwilling to work in the Deep Pit—all its jailers were goblins.

When the door opened, the first thing that came into view was an empty cell. Hopper thought that calling it a "cell" was a bit of a compliment. It was essentially a small, wide-bellied mud cave, with a single exit hastily built with stone blocks. The cell door was the most presentable piece of furniture in the entire space.

The cave was a bit too empty, with a dozen wooden cages crookedly squeezed into the recesses of the cave wall. Most of the cages were empty, and many still had the last traces of the previous residents left on this world.

"There's a woman!" Kuk Kuk said hoarsely, looking at the goblin jailer whose eyes were rolling. "Ahem, I need to interrogate the fangless people separately."

The goblin looked at the dried meat stuffed into his hand, winked at the tall orc with understanding, closed the door considerately, and expressed regret that Lord Cook Cook did not want the stick.

Kuk Kuk glanced at the muddy ground with disdain, and with a lightness that was totally disproportionate to his sturdy body, he jumped onto Edim's cage. The moldy wood groaned under the weight of his heavy footsteps.

"Good day, knight. Is your nose feeling better?" The orc casually placed his torch on the empty cage and sat cross-legged, examining the knight curiously. The young knight was covered in mud, barely covered by a tattered loincloth. But he remained calm, his eyes closed and his breathing steady, as if he hadn't noticed anyone entering the cell.

It was not until the child's screams broke his eardrums that he suddenly opened his eyes. In the dim firelight, he saw an orc pulling a girl's hair and smiling at him viciously.

"Very good, Knight. You see, it's not that difficult to open your eyes and talk to me, right?" He let go of the girl and jumped lightly onto Judith's cage again.

Edim closed his eyes. Due to the pain and worry, he really didn't feel like wasting time with the orcs. He spoke in a hoarse voice, "What do you want?"

"I want to get you out!" As soon as he said this, before the knight could react, Judith below became excited. She struggled to stand up and tried to speak, but because of her high fever, she could hardly speak.

The knight stood up, looked at the orc sitting upright on the top of the cage, and said shockingly: "You are not an orc. Who are you?"

Cook Cook covered his mouth with his hands and let out a creepy hoarse laugh. "Oh, was I so obvious?"

The ugly orc twirled the ring on his stubby finger.

Starting from the tip of his nose, his entire face began to fade, the black color drifting back from his face like green smoke, condensing on his rapidly growing hair. A cyan light spread in her pupils, and a dreamy face appeared in the knight's vision.

"Ms. Hopper!"

"It's you!"

Two voices sounded at the same time. Edim's voice was full of confusion and surprise, while Judith's was filled with a lot of annoyance.

Under the flickering torchlight, even though she wore ill-fitting orc armor, her beautiful face felt incredibly familiar to Judith. Even in the dungeon, the herbalist's gaze remained impassive, as if he were looking at an empty cage. It was this arrogance, this indifference to her, that made Judith particularly resentful.

Yidimu's voice was so excited that he said, "Why are you here?"

"Why else?" Judith was hurt by the knight's behavior. She endured the pain and sneered, "She's a witch! She's here to take advantage of your misfortune! She'll only laugh at you while asking you to pawn your most precious things to her, and then sell you completely worthless junk."

"Ah, Ms. Judith," Hopper said, as if realizing for the first time that she was also in the cell, "I'm sorry, I didn't see you. What happened to you? Is your hand hurt?"

Judith's face paled, and she put her festering hands behind her back to avoid Hopper's gaze. As a poet, the mental torture of having both her fingers broken was more unbearable than the fever and excruciating pain. The despair of becoming a cripple choked her.

Edim also calmed down from the enthusiasm of the reunion and realized that something was wrong. But he still answered Hopper's question, "Judith has been tortured inhumanely and she needs timely help. Do you have any way to help us?"

"Of course it's because of the praiseworthy love," Hopper answered the first question he asked with a smile. The smile on his cold face seemed to make the dark room a little brighter.

The knight knew she was teasing him, but his heart still beat wildly. He swallowed and opened his mouth, only to find he couldn't speak due to thirst.

Then, before he could react, Hopper had already jumped onto his cage, reached out a warm hand to touch his face, and handed the water bag to his mouth. The cool water instantly moistened his throat.

"But, Ms. Judith is right." Her next words almost made the knight swallow water. "I'm here to do business. Saving you won't be free."

Chapter 140 Are you playing word games with me?

Judith laughed out loud, and she felt her dry throat taste rusty from laughing, but that didn't stop her from laughing out loud.

"See what I said, knight," she said smugly, her eyes bulging from torture reflecting the firelight. "She is a vicious witch who only cares about profit."

The knight's expression changed. He stood as far away from Hopper as possible with a serious face, and put his hand on the stigma on his left shoulder: "I should have thought of it earlier. You are not Ms. Hopper at all. What on earth are you?"

Hopper held his forehead, thinking, "Hasn't this little knight always been suspicious of me? Is it because I'm disguising myself too well?"

"I am indeed Hopper, the one you know." Hopper sat back on Judith's cage. The firelight fluttered constantly because of the airflow she brought up. The distorted light source made her shadow dance ostentatiously, as if she had come alive.

"If you don't want to believe me, I can tell you some little secrets between us," the demon said with a smile, but the smile had disappeared from his eyes. "For example, that night..."

Noticing that the two prisoners in the cage were listening intently to what he was saying, Hopper paused for a moment, only continuing when he saw the knight shift uncomfortably.