This Lich Requests More Remuneration
Chapter 352 - 329: Threatening the Hell Lords

Chapter 352: Chapter 329: Threatening the Hell Lords

Amberser looked at the infuriated Zariel, hastily offering a conciliatory smile and said, "How could this be considered blasphemy? My respect for you has not diminished one bit, it’s just that I genuinely can’t find a warrior who matches Melina. You’ve also seen Melina’s power, there really isn’t anyone in Gloomyland who could give her a fierce and satisfying battle."

Zariel snorted coldly and told Amberser, "You could capture a paladin from Laine, I’m quite interested in that."

"What a coincidence, that’s exactly what I had in mind, which is why I summoned you. Do you have any interest in Laine?"

Looking at Amberser’s beaming face, Zariel suddenly had a bizarre feeling: was this Lich setting a trap for her to fall into?

After their last encounter, Amberser had left Zariel with a very unpleasant feeling. No wonder so many Deities loathed this Lich to their bones — his words sounded pleasant, yet Zariel felt deeply unsettled.

Being this cunning, to the extent that even Deities could sense it, how had this Lich not ascended to godhood?

At the very least, he could be a god of weak divine power, perhaps the God of Deceit?

Amberser had no idea what Zariel was thinking at that moment, continuing to pitch, "I know Hell needs a great number of souls, and I happen to specialize in creating souls. Whatever kind you want, I can weave. If I capture a paladin, I could clone his soul dozens of times. Surely if I presented them to you, it would be a fine gift, right?"

The soul of a paladin, ah, that could be made into the finest Soul Coins, which are hard currency in Hell. Could this Lich really pull it off?

"You can create souls?" inquired Zariel.

Without wasting words, Amberser took out a pile of materials and crafted a Death Knight right in front of Zariel.

Due to the limited materials, the Death Knight that Amberser created was somewhat fragile, barely qualifying as a High-order Undead, but Amberser embedded the trait of courage into his soul.

"Most esteemed Duke Afnas, please forgive my presumption," Amberser bowed to Zariel, then addressed the Death Knight, "The one before you is Zariel, ruler of the First Layer of Hell. Now, draw your sword against her!"

The Death Knight looked at Zariel and, after a brief hesitation, drew his sword and charged at Zariel.

Zariel was somewhat shocked; this Undead actually dared to swing his sword at her? The pressure of a Deity penetrates the soul directly, affecting even Undead, who shouldn’t be able to act without their master’s command.

This soul had its own will!

Zariel extended a finger and flicked the Death Knight’s sword along with both his hands away, then grabbed the Death Knight’s head, her fingertips sending countless Hellfire flames into his skull. Zariel forcefully extracted the Death Knight’s soul and then forged it into a dark red coin with Hellfire.

Zariel looked at the Soul Coin silently for a long time.

Damn, it was that feeling of being tempted.

This Soul Coin’s quality was quite exceptional, and despite its flaws, it was valuable.

Never had Zariel expected Amberser to possess such means; she wished she could take Amberser to Hell right then and make him her coin-minting slave.

But that wouldn’t do, would it? After hearing from Goddess Tiamat and Shael, if one felt even the slightest bit tempted by this Lich’s proposals, deceit wasn’t far off.

Zariel quickly discarded this greed and sternly said to Amberser, "Lich, enough with your cunning words. You summoned me here, it must have something to do with the Kingdom of Impure Hymns, right? Speak quickly, I don’t have all day to waste with you."

Amberser, looking sadly regretful, said, "Ah, such a mutually beneficial plan this was. You help me catch some of Laine’s paladins, and I mass-produce these noble souls for you. Then in Hell, isn’t it like buying anything you want? With just a little modification, transform those mighty paladins into fallen ones, becoming your loyal warriors — how splendid that would be. But if you’re not interested, then let it be..."

"Wait a minute..." Zariel couldn’t help but envision the scene described by Amberser, which truly tempted her greatly.

Collecting valiant warriors was Zariel’s greatest weakness and hobby, but the attrition of her soldiers was high, and she was in dire need of replenishment. If this Lich could really deliver a steady supply of warrior souls...

Zariel struggled to suppress this desire. After the fall into a Devil, Zariel lacked the restraint once had as an Angel and could be easily swayed by emotions.

After a moment, Zariel managed to push down the urge and said to Amberser, "We’ll discuss the partnership another time. Lich, what do you really want?"

"Duke Afnas, would you please spare Uradimir? I can exchange him for a vast number of souls," said Amberser.

"That’s surprising," Zariel remarked, "I’ve inquired, and your relationship isn’t that great, not having interacted for centuries. For this Tiflin, you’re willing to pay such a price? Lich, it’s not like you, you’re the one who would sell gods for money."

Amberser didn’t explain but repeated the question, "So, how many souls would it take to get Uradimir back?"

Zariel shook her head, "Impossible, don’t bother thinking about it. I want him as my slave."

"No number of souls would suffice?" asked Amberser.

"Impossible."

...

Amberser remained silent for a long time, then said to Zariel, "Respected Duke Afnas, whatever you have him do for you, isn’t it safer to include me as well? You should be well aware that I too am a Legendary Diviner Mage. Uradimir may have tread further down the path of destiny than I have, but I am certain that there are many areas in which he is not my equal. Many times, I am more useful than he is."

Zariel looked at Amberser with suspicion, "Are you mad, or are you deceiving me? Do you wish to fall into Hell?"

Amberser quickly replied, "No, no, no, of course not. What I mean is, I help you accomplish what you desire, and then, what use would the two Diviner Mages be, right? Why not turn absolute subjugation into a one-time assistance? Of course, I would still provide you with enough souls."

Zariel fell silent.

Amberser knew he had guessed correctly.

Zariel and Goddess Tiamat only needed Mr. Misfortune to do one thing for them, and after that, Mr. Misfortune wouldn’t be of much use.

So long as souls were offered to make up the difference, these two Hell Lords should agree, right?

As for the cost of this rescue, Amberser would slowly settle with the entire Kingdom of Impure Hymns.

Those hundreds of thousands of nobles had gone to Hell, their wealth confiscated, and then given to the Lich as compensation. That seemed reasonable enough.

But what surprised Amberser was that Zariel still shook her head and said, "No, that won’t do, I don’t trust you. Lich, whatever you are plotting, I won’t fall for it."

Amberser asserted firmly, "I swear, there are absolutely no schemes or traps this time. I just want to save Uradimir."

Zariel mocked, "Ha, a swear? You, a Lich who should be in Hell, to whom would you swear, the Deity above all deities, Aeo?"

Mortals are different from deities. Deities fear the punishment that Aeo would issue should they break an oath sworn in Aeo’s name. But mortals do not care because Aeo never spares a glance for mortals. Even if you used Aeo’s name to write an erotic novel, you’d only end up on the stake set up by various churches; Aeo wouldn’t intervene.

Besides Aeo, to whom else could Amberser possibly swear?

This Lich worshiped no deities.

Amberser really wanted to swear by the name of the God of Alchemy, but he figured Zariel would slap him so hard he wouldn’t be able to get up if he did. His relationship with the God of Alchemy was probably well-known to all the gods by now, and to fool Zariel that way would be pure blasphemy.

Zariel continued her mockery, "I admit, you’re cunning enough to make deities wary, but precisely because of your reputation, no one will trust you anymore. So, wait peacefully for the time of judgment to come, it has nothing to do with you anyway."

Seeing that Zariel was about to leave, Amberser sighed helplessly and said to her, "I really wanted to solve the problem without offending you, but... not only can I weave souls, I can also weave destinies for others. Duke Afnas, my Destiny Weaving doesn’t affect you, but Uradimir is just a mortal. I can dissipate his soul, and then your plans will fail..."

The Hellfire on Zariel’s body flared up in an instant, turning the whole altar a bright red.

"Lich, are you threatening me?!"

Zariel’s rage materialized into tangible power, causing Amberser’s body to slowly sink as if crushed by a great mountain.

Amberser made no attempt to resist, simply waiting for this force to destroy his body.

However, Zariel did not do so. Just as Amberser’s body was about to fall apart, the roaring Hellfire slowly retracted into her.

Even the Grand Duke of Hell could not strike at mortals with abandon, for the divine prohibition by Aeo was something no deity dared to violate.

Amberser lamented internally; he had hoped to use Aeo to deal a heavy blow to Zariel, but it turned out that this seemingly rash and impulsive fallen angel was quite rational after all.

However, having already made his threats, Amberser dropped the act.

"Zariel, I’ve always wanted to solve this problem in a way that was peaceful and beneficial for both parties, but it seems that mortals are still too insignificant in the eyes of you Hell Lords. My suggestion seems worthless to you, so I will use all my power to stop you. Do you think that by killing Uradimir, it’s all over?

"No, you should be quite clear about my power and the forces I command. Half of the continental nations have close ties with me; I have high-placed friends in every country. I will have them hand over all their death row inmates to me, to extinguish their souls."

Zariel’s eyes widened, disbelievingly saying, "Do you know what you’re doing?"

Normally, those who received the death penalty were meant to go to Hell, where the souls of wrongdoers served as the universal currency of Hell. If Amberser were to obliterate their souls, this would impact all of Hell’s income.

While it wouldn’t cause much turmoil, this move would harm the interests of all devils—how could the Lich dare?

Amberser confidently stated, "I am fully aware. I will also make a great show of this, shifting all the blame onto you and Goddess Tiamat. You rejected the proposal for mutual benefit, forcing me to retaliate. I believe the lords of the other layers of Hell will have grievances against you."

"You too will die; you won’t withstand the fury of all Hell!" Zariel roared.

Amberser chuckled, "Of course not, because I can create souls. If you won’t trade with me, I can trade with other Hell Lords. I can even use Soul Currency to hire them against you and Goddess Tiamat. Zariel, I’m asking you one last time, mutual benefit or war? The choice is yours now!"