Chapter 144

Within the main tent, Danba sat quietly, but waves were churning deep in his heart.

Su Chen!

He was able to supply an eight thousand-strong army all by himself?

If it weren’t for the fact that Astin had sworn repeatedly that he was telling the truth, Danba might not have believed him.

He had harshly interrogated Astin repeatedly until he was finally able to confirm that Astin had really told him all that he knew. Only then did he finally stop asking.

“So you mean that he came here just to save his Instructor Shi Kaihuang? And his wealth came from selling his technique for reaching higher cultivation realms for cheap? And he has at least a billion Origin Stones now because of it?”

“Yes,” Astin replied. “Actually, I didn’t dare believe it myself when I first heard it either. However, this matter is no longer a secret amongst the Immortal Temple; after all, Su Chen had already collaborated with the Immortal Temple when he sold the Three Yangs Medicine. The Immortal Temple also got a ton of money from that. And two years ago, the prices of a few select rare medicinal ingredients began to surge because they were buying it in such great quantities. Not long ago, Su Chen again put out another useful technique known as the Hemolytic Totem. This kind of technique is exceptionally useful for lower-tier soldiers and can greatly increase their combat prowess. If my guess is correct, that technique should be the reason behind the Heavenly Might Battalion’s sudden increase in strength. Right, that Hemolytic Totem also made Su Chen a few hundreds of millions of Origin Stones…… This guy really has too much money.”

Astin’s tone was one who was sighing.

“Hemolytic Totem?” Danba said with shock. The word “totem” instinctively gave him a bad feeling.

“Yes, a secret technique that imparts more strength via the inscription of totemic inscriptions. It seems quite similar to the Ferocious Race’s techniques, doesn’t it?” Astin laughed. “I believe he managed to derive it from the Ferocious Race’s Totemic Inscriptions technique.”

“Hiss!”

Danba sucked in a breath of cold air.

That Su Chen! How had he managed to do something like that?

Su Chen’s image appeared in his mind, and Danba suddenly realized something.

If Su Chen were to continue developing like this, then perhaps not too long in the future, the Ferocious Race would be at death’s door.

He had to find a way to kill Su Chen at any cost!

This desire surfaced in Danba’s mind.

He glanced at Astin. “He never tried to look for you after coming here?”

Astin sighed and shook his head. “The Immortal Temple had already told him about us and that he could ask us for help if he needed it. However, Young Chieftain Danba, Su Chen truly never came looking for us. Perhaps he never intended on asking us for help from the very beginning. He might not trust us at all.”

“But you still gave him the map! Without the map, how could he come and go as he pleases in the Ferocious Race’s territory!?” Danba yelled angrily.

“This…… You cannot blame us for that. We gave it to the Immortal Temple, and they were the ones who gave it to him, not us,” Astin tried to explain.

“That is still part of your duty! You bunch of damned bastards! You’re willing to sell any secret as long as it turns you a profit!”

Astin cursed under his breath. If this wasn’t the case, why would I pass this information along to you? You want all the benefits but none of the drawbacks that come with it. Where does that kind of bargain exist?

Without the Resurrection Door, Su Chen still had other ways of getting a map, but Danba might have been schemed to death without ever fully realizing what was happening.

Having the Resurrection Door exist gave the Ferocious Race more benfits than drawbacks, which was the sole reason they had existed up till now. However, Danba’s tone made it seem like everything was their fault.

Even so, he had no choice but to accept that burden.

This was not a matter of right or wrong but rather a matter of the Ferocious Race’s strength.

The Ferocious Race was stronger, so the Arcana Race and Resurrection Door were therefore at fault.

Astin could only lower his head and say, “Selling him the map was done by Ryan of the Resurrection Door. I will go and kill him now to make up for this mistake to Young Chieftain.”

Ryan was always facing off against him, so why not use Danba’s hand to eliminate an opponent within the organization?”

Unfortunately, Danba didn’t fall for it. “If there is a single person whose severed head could give me peace, then it would probably be Su Chen’s. I don’t need anyone else’s head; I just need Su Chen’s.”

Astin was stunned. “Su Chen really never came looking for us!”

“So you can’t go look for him on your own?”

Astin replied, “We obviously need an excuse. If we just go looking for him just like that, he will definitely realize what’s happening.”

“So then find an excuse. I don’t care what method you use; you must get in contact with him. I’m going to kill him no matter what the cost is!” Danba said loudly. “Do this well and I will make Resurrection Door the masters of the southern regions!”

Astin’s heart trembled when he heard this.

If Danba had promised to make him the head of the Resurrection Door, he wouldn’t have believed him, since that was something that only the king of the Iron and Blood Country could do. However, if it was to make him the master of the southern regions, then it might really be a possibility given Danba’s prestige.

Danba’s words gave Astin quite the shock. “I am willing to serve the Young Chieftain!

“Then give me some suggestions. I don’t want some half-baked ideas. I want a complete plan!”

Astin began to rack his brains as quickly as he could.

After thinking for a while, he said, “It’s not appropriate for the Resurrection Door to just go and look for Su Chen, but if someone from the Immortal Temple is looking for him, that would be enough of an excuse.”

“Why would people from the Immortal Temple look for him?”

“Of course, we will need to fabricate a reason. For instance, we can have the Immortal Temple send a few people into the Ferocious Race territory and have them run into some trouble, and then ask him for help. However, this will require the Ferocious Race’s cooperation.”

“That’s not a problem. We will cooperate with you. But if that’s your plan, isn’t that the same as selling out the Immortal Temple? Are you not afraid of the effects this might have on your relationship with them?” Danba asked.

Astin replied, “It will have an effect, but so what? We all operate underground and need one another. The Immortal Temple won’t break off relations with the Resurrection Door over this, as Resurrection Door wouldn’t do that either. Of course, to smooth over relations, we will need to provide them with some restitution. As long as the payment is enough, none of this will be a problem.”

When he heard this, Danba chuckled. “You Arcana Race lot scheme all day long. It is truly dangerous to trust you too deeply.”

Astin replied straightforwardly, “When you live in a cave for too long, you become a rat even if you weren’t one in the first pace. If you aren’t skilled in betrayal and setting layers of fallback plans, how can you survive underground? Sacrificing others to strengthen yourself is an innate instinct of all lifeforms. If you don’t understand this, you will be sacrificed by others. I don’t want to be sacrificed, so I can only sacrifice someone else.”

“Well said. Then you’d better remember that while there are some people you can sell out, there are also some people that you can never sell out!” Danba said, his meaning clear.

Astin bowed and replied, “The Resurrection Door will always be loyal to the Ferocious Race, to the Gravel Lizard Tribe, and to Young Chieftain Danba.”

Danba didn’t take these words seriously, as if they were just a light breeze blowing past his face.

All he said was, “Right, Su Chen isn’t a person who will help just anyone. Even if it’s the Immortal Temple, he won’t be willing to make a move for just anyone. You will need to think carefully about your exact plans.”

Astin replied, “Then we will find someone he cares about. I can figure out who he has good relations with in the Immortal Temple.”