This Lich Requests More Remuneration
Chapter 406 - 378 Demons’ Ambush

Chapter 406: Chapter 378 Demons’ Ambush

The Old Bone Dragon’s whereabouts were unknown, the Githyanki were engaging in a conspiratorial sacrifice, and Laine was fragmenting... There were many important matters in the world that Amberser needed to consider.

But now he had something he cared about more.

He had fiddled with the black ring in his hand many times, but he still couldn’t completely understand its purpose.

It was definitely a Divine Artifact, able to exert the power of a Concept God within the Dragon Tomb, condensing a large amount of Dark Magic Power, and even granting this magic power miraculous characteristics.

However, no matter how hard Amberser pondered, he could only use one of its features.

That was to convert Dark Magic Power with this ring... But wasn’t this a Lich’s innate ability? As a professional Lich, Amberser didn’t need this ring to convert Dark Magic Power at all.

At best, this ring converted it faster, but being faster also had an effect.

As for the Divine Power contained within this Dark Magic Power, it was far too scarce; who knew how many years it would take to accumulate enough to unleash that move from before the Dragon Tomb.

Amberser had used up thousands of years of accumulation with just one move, which was a not-so-great cost-performance ratio.

Regrettably, when he quietly asked the Elegy Poetry Society leader how to use the ring, there was completely no response.

This society leader seemed to enjoy sleeping, occasionally dozing off for decades. Since Amberser had transformed into a Lich, the society leader had only appeared once.

It was unlikely that the society leader would wake up unless it was the end of the world or a new member joined.

This was somewhat troublesome; since Amberser couldn’t get information from his master, he could only try to figure it out by trial and error.

"I refuse to believe it."

He could clearly sense the power contained within the ring, but Amberser simply couldn’t utilize it. It was like having an entire vault in front of him, and yet Amberser didn’t have a crowbar!

He couldn’t stand this and could only keep trying to communicate with the ring using his own Magic Power.

Perhaps ’seduce’ would be a more fitting term, as Amberser’s Magic Power continuously attempted to infiltrate the ring. The effect, however, was not very good; the ring still looked the same, showing no signs of change.

Amberser was not in a hurry; he simply stuffed the ring into his chest to see when he could decipher it.

Once Pale Bone had delivered the other few Little Bone Dragons to the secret chamber below the Isle of Slumber, everyone boarded the Ghost Ship, Aige, bound for the islands where the other Dragon Races resided.

There were only 102 surviving members of the Dragon Race, and the number of islands in this vast sea suitable for the habitation of Giant Dragons was not that many. Hence, the originally solitary Giant Dragons were divided into three Dragon Islands, with the Isle of Slumber where the Dragon Tomb was located being the fourth.

Once solitary, the Giant Dragons were forced to start living in groups. It had taken them more than a thousand years to adapt, but they still found it hard to completely change their nature. Even siblings who grew up together would start to dislike each other after reaching adulthood, often fighting and injuring each other to the point of bloodshed.

Some Dragons, unable to bear it, flew to live alone on isolated islands at sea, only to be found a few months later reduced to a few bones.

The sea was full of monsters and Legendary strongmen, as well as the mighty power of the Ocean Deities; the Dragons no longer had that powerful King to protect them.

It was exactly this threat to their survival that made the Dragon Race tolerate their genetic trait of solitary living and stay together, albeit temporarily.

But a mere seventeen hundred years was indeed too short. Being crammed on just a few islands was truly unbearable for the Dragon Race.

Therefore, all the Giant Dragons longed to return to that vast land. There, in their old homeland, was an abundance of various creatures the Dragons couldn’t even finish eating, not just fish every day. There were deserts of gold, with real shimmering Gold beneath the sands, and plenty of intelligent life that could serve as slaves to the Dragons, providing them with all sorts of resources... They really wanted to return to the past when the Giant Dragons still ruled the continent.

One very important reason Amberser thought Arthur Laine was naïve and foolish was this.

Human nature dictates that all intelligent beings will only reminisce about their glorious days, but will not remember the mistakes they made during that era. Whether it’s for any nation or any Race, there are only two ways to completely eliminate conflict.

The first way is total annihilation; if one party is wiped out, naturally there’s no conflict left. The second way is complete integration; once societies are mixed and intermarriages occur, after a dozen generations, there are no conflicts to speak of.

As for other superficial efforts, they are pointless, merely delaying these conflicts until a few years later when a different pretext arises to fight to the death again.

At the end of the day, it all comes down to insufficient resources, with scarce wealth forcing all races into competition and strife.

Over a thousand years ago, it was the emergence of Arthur Laine that made the war seem somewhat just. If the Holy King hadn’t been there, it probably wouldn’t have been much different from other changes of dynasties.

And since it has nothing to do with justice but merely a dispute over interests, it could be negotiable.

Is it just that the islands are too small? The World Weaving Spell is most suitable for transforming terrain. With enough land, naturally, most problems can be solved.

As long as the group of Giant Dragons can offer something substantial, Amberser is willing to sell anything.

However, there is one key issue right now, and that is what exactly happened to Sevres, the Old Dragon?

Following logical reasoning, if Sevres was considered the patriarch who raised this group of Giant Dragons, these Dragon Race members, no matter how cold-hearted they seemed, wouldn’t have joined forces with outsiders to take down Sevres.

But in this world, there are often many unnatural events that occur. Should anything unexpected happen to Sevres, Pale Bone and Gareth certainly won’t let those Giant Dragons and Githyanki off the hook. Then, Amberser would have no choice but to begrudgingly collect some dragon corpses to cover his combat expenses.

Amberser wouldn’t possibly stir up trouble with Gareth over a bunch of ungrateful Giant Dragons. No matter how he crunched the numbers, it didn’t add up.

So now, he could only hope that the group of Giant Dragons had enough intelligence. If they were all fools, then it could only be said they were courting death.

Aige was continuously moving toward the largest of the Dragon Islands, having just traversed an entire undersea volcano. However, Aige’s speed slowed down.

Aige said to everyone, "There’s something ahead, I detect a stench that makes me feel nauseous."

Amberser extended his perception and also quickly caught the disgusting odor—a demon’s stink.

"It’s Yixi Manta Rays, and there are quite a few of them... How could this be? Is the area ahead Dimogorgen’s territory?"

The Demon Prince of the Abyss, Dimogorgen, is a baboon with two heads and many tentacles. In the deep sea, there are also followers who worship Dimogorgen—those Yixi Manta Rays. These mutated creatures are so large they can be used as mounts, and their blood also contains abyssal toxins which can be brewed into a fine wine that intoxicates the undead.

The Yixi Manta Rays’ habitat was naturally Dimogorgen’s territory. Amberser thought Aige had chosen to go straight ahead to quicken the journey and had accidentally entered Dimogorgen’s domain.

This was troublesome, because the poison in a demon’s blood could intoxicate the souls of the undead. In small amounts, it was manageable, like being drunk, but a large quantity could severely harm the soul once inhaled.

In other words, if they encountered demons, Aige’s ability to consume flesh and bone directly could not be used.

"Let’s go around, we’re not short of distance," Amberser suggested.

But Aige shook her head, "We’ve been surrounded. It’s an ambush they’ve set up."

Just after Aige spoke, those enormous Yixi Manta Rays converged from all directions.

At first glance, the Yixi Manta Rays looked similar to ordinary manta rays, just much larger. But a closer look would reveal that these Yixi Manta Rays had several rows of sharp teeth in their mouths and on their back were thick tentacles with hooks.

This was very much in line with Dimogorgen’s aesthetic. A demon without tentacles was as unsightly as a human without a nose.

These Yixi Manta Rays were innumerable, blanketing the skies.

Moreover, once they gathered, a vast whirlpool formed in the ocean, enshrouding Aige, as if the currents aimed to tear apart the mighty ship.

Aige remained still; she could maintain her travel in an alternate plane for an extended period, and mere currents couldn’t affect her.

But Amberser immediately sensed something amiss, "Something’s not right. Quick, let’s get out of here!"

"Why?" Aige inquired, puzzled, "Shouldn’t we find out who the mastermind behind this is first?"

The Githyanki had arrived riding Yixi Manta Rays, and here they encountered an ambush of a vast number of Yixi Manta Rays. Certainly, this was not the work of the Dragon Race; someone was plotting against everyone from the Elegy Poetry Society.

Aige was curious, what impact could these few Yixi Manta Rays have on her?

But Amberser said, "Staying within the enemy’s trap is a gamble. As you mentioned, if there is an unknown mastermind behind this, they surely want us to stay here."

Aige accepted Amberser’s reasoning and asked, "So what do we do now? Break through from the seabed?"

Aige could navigate through the seabed. As long as there was water, she could pass through in an ethereal state.

Amberser shook his head, "No, upwards!"

Aige said, puzzled, "But Yixi Manta Rays can leap out of the water. I can’t fly; stealth is the best option."

This ability to sail indefinitely could only be used in water. After all, she was a ship.

Amberser shook his head, "I don’t know the details, but this is my intuition."

Aige hesitated for a moment, then finally said to Amberser, "Alright, I trust you. Everyone get ready; I’m going to accelerate!"

After Aige said this, the Ghost Ship trembled. She had been floating evenly in the water, but now the bow was raised, charging toward the surface.

They were over a thousand meters deep in the sea. Reaching the surface was not easy, especially with the thick swarm of Yixi Manta Rays above.

It wasn’t an ideal choice, but it was the right one.

Just as Aige accelerated upward, the seafloor erupted like a volcano—except what spewed forth wasn’t lava, but pus-filled blood carrying the stench of filth, accumulating over time, and now chasing up behind Aige.