Chapter 125: Subhuman Kingdom and the Northern Witch

Low‑level subhumans possess only beast‑like consciousness and a strength slightly greater than that of ordinary humans.

The purpose of this kind of subhuman is, aside from becoming slaves, to be reduced to breeding machines in hopes of producing mid‑ or high‑level subhumans.

The higher a subhuman's rank, the greater its intelligence, and consequently the higher the chance it will comprehend elemental power.

Among high‑level subhumans, besides the previously mentioned cave dwellers who excel at elemental enchantment, Gray Dwarves who excel at alchemical forging, and Lemonfolk who excel at communicating mysterious forces, there are many other subhuman races, each with its own strengths.

Fulade's purpose in coming this time is, of course, to purchase slave creatures and make early preparations for the upcoming Plane War.

War is not as easy as imagined, nor is it something decided on a whim with everyone simply shouldering the burden.

Between nations, war—absent special circumstances—requires at least six months to a year just for early material procurement and military mobilization, and often several years, even a decade or more, to prepare.

Moreover, a Plane War involves collisions and "exchanges" between worlds.

A Plane War is not a conflict of a single faction; it is a battle involving an entire planet and its world.

That is why Fulade established the Dark Parliament to court the major powers.

Since this time he knows the major subhuman races of the Underground World exist, Fulade naturally came to investigate whether they are worth courting.

Courting is not simply a meeting of leaders and a quick agreement; it also involves numerous interests, calculations, and lingering historical grievances between the underground and the surface, which will be discussed later.

Even if the courting fails, securing an order for slave creatures would still be a fairly good option.

Given the severe material shortage in the Underground World, no one would refuse such a massive temptation; after all, these low‑level subhumans are merely a burden to them.

Traveling with Fulade this time are Angelique, Kuretiya, and Cinderella.

Also included are Annie, the head guard Dumitelu, and the Solomon Sisters who have been serving as Fulade's Floating Ship commanders.

As spellcasters, they naturally feel curiosity and a strong thirst for knowledge toward any mysterious, unknown things.

Fulade will not hinder them in their tireless pursuit and exploration of knowledge and truth.

Under Kuretiya's lead, the party set off toward the depths of the Underground World.

Even Kuretiya needs a map to navigate this tangled Underground World.

The Underground World is not inhabited solely by subhuman races; many monsters also dwell there.

Monsters is the human umbrella term for magical creatures; beast‑monsters, tree spirits, wraiths, and the like are all called monsters.

Strictly speaking, the various subhuman races, including Fulade himself, can be counted as a branch of monsters.

Fulade and his companions advanced deeper into the Underground World without deliberately suppressing their own aura.

A Level Three strongman's life tier can be said to be the pinnacle of the entire Dark World; even subhumans who spot them would not be courting trouble.

Aside from dealing with a few short‑sighted monster beasts along the way, the party soon reached the deep Underground.

Lava City, a settlement near an underground volcano, is also the first Underground Subhuman City Fulade has arrived at.

From a distance one can see a low volcanic crater continuously spewing thick fumes, with streaks of red light constantly illuminating the city above.

Lava City, a border town of the Gray Dwarf Kingdom, received the party without any obstruction.

Fulade and his group could clearly see that within this Gray Dwarf city there were numerous Witch and demon‑hunter figures.

According to Kuretiya's explanation, these Witches belong to the Northern Witch, and the demon hunters are its vassal knights.

After nearly a millennium of development, the Northern Witch organization has long formed certain understandings with some Underground World groups; this city is one of the Gray Dwarf Kingdom's cities open to the Northern Witch.

Through Kuretiya, Fulade learned that the Northern Witch's continued orderly development relies on its secret connections with certain Underground World factions.

Before Fulade's rise, the Northern Witch already had three Level Two Witches, indicating its terrifying strength.

Among them, the Northern Witch leader Vivian's power is even more unfathomable.

Whether she has reached Level Three is unknown, but Fulade judges that even if not, a breakthrough is likely close.

"First, take us to the best shop; I've heard Gray Dwarves excel at alchemical forging, so let's see if they have the items I need," Angelique said to Kuretiya.

After obtaining Fulade's approval, the party headed for the city's finest shop.

Along the way, everyone inevitably surveyed the surrounding architecture; the city's first impression is rugged, likely reflecting the Gray Dwarves' temperament.

Since low‑ranking Gray Dwarves lack entry rights, the subhumans encountered here are composed of relatively intelligent mid‑level Gray Dwarves.

It is precisely these relatively intelligent mid‑ and higher‑level subhumans that have built a Subhuman Kingdom rivaling human civilization.

Their clothing differs little from humans', though it appears more shabby and, in some respects, even less refined than the common folk of a typical human town.

This likely ties to their social system or chronic material scarcity.

"Sorry, madam Witch, I'm afraid this shop cannot fulfill your request," said the courteous Gray Dwarf shopkeeper—standing 1.5 m tall, clad in a lavish black robe and a single‑frame metal eyeglass.

He is a senior Gray Dwarf, a stark contrast to the filthy, mouse‑like, rag‑clad mid‑ and low‑level subhumans outside.

Thus, the Subhuman Kingdom exhibits class consciousness even more severe than that of humans.

The best micro‑alchemical furnace in this shop is slightly inferior to the one Angelique currently uses; to acquire the desired equipment, she'll likely need to go to the Gray Dwarf Kingdom's capital, Edgeblade City.

Conveniently, whether buying large quantities of slave cannon fodder or courting Gray Dwarves, a trip there is required.

After the Solomon Sisters each selected a high‑magnification elemental microscope, Fulade and his group left.

"Kuretiya, we won't cause any trouble entering the Gray Dwarf King's City, will we?" Fulade asked.

"Don't worry, this Gray Dwarf King gets along well with us; many of the resources we need flow from his hands," Kuretiya whispered.

It seems the Northern Witch organization and these Underground subhumans have been swapping resources behind the scenes.

Aren't they afraid of a future backlash? Or is there another hidden agenda?

Fulade gave Kuretiya a look full of meaning.

Under Kuretiya's lead, Fulade's party headed toward the Edgeblade of the Gray Dwarf King's City.

Along the way, Kuretiya briefly explained the origins of the relationship between the Gray Dwarf Kingdom and the Northern Witch.

In the dark Underground World, numerous subhuman groups—including Gray Dwarves—have established four Subhuman Kingdoms, and beyond those, many other subhuman tribes survive scattered in tribal forms. As the ancients said, "Those not of our kind have different hearts."

This saying aptly reflects the current state of the dark Underground World, where population growth, resource scarcity, and food shortages prevail.

Among the major subhuman groups, endless conflicts over interests and living space have raged for centuries, accumulating countless blood‑soaked grudges, schemes, and profit‑driven machinations throughout the dark Underground World.

Because of this, these subhuman groups lack the power and ambition to break out of the underground.

Their minds had long been consumed by their internal disputes, spiraling beyond control.

As for whether any human powerhouses had intervened and sowed discord among the various sub-race factions amid these conflicts of interest.

Heh, following the principle of whoever benefits is the most suspicious.

One need only look at the current development of the Northern Witches and the various hidden connections between them and the sub-races to know what role the Northern Witches played in all this.

And indeed, that was exactly the case.

Through Cretia's somewhat vague description, Fulade's conjecture was indeed confirmed.

Besides the aforementioned nations established by the gray dwarves and the troglodytes, there were also nations founded by the Lemonites, who excelled at communing with mystical forces, and by the minotaurs, who were skilled at commanding magical beasts and cultivating magical herbs.

These four great sub-race nations warred against one another, and in turn dragged numerous large and small sub-race groups deep into the conflict.

As for who originally provoked the conflict and what kind of chaos ensued, Cretia did not reveal, or perhaps she herself was not entirely clear.

She only told Fulade that the Northern Witches had once saved the Dwarf King, and thereby earned the friendship of the gray dwarf nation.

In addition, quite a few sub-race groups had certain interests entangled with the Witches.

From this it could be seen that the Northern Witches were far from simple.

As such, Fulade had no choice but to adjust his next strategy.

The moment he made contact with the Dwarf King, he feared that the very next instant, it would immediately draw the Northern Witches' attention, and Cretia, this piece on his board, would be exposed at once, provoking the Northern Witches' unwarranted suspicion toward him.

For Fulade, this not only violated his original intent in establishing the Dark Council, but was also an entirely unnecessary conflict.

"Angel, you don't need to follow along on the upcoming journey to Moor Forest. When the time comes, you'll be responsible for making contact with the Northern Witches, and through the Northern Witches' hands, for making contact with the sub-races.

As for purchasing slave creatures, that will also be your responsibility. I'll send people to assist you!"

Without hesitation, Fulade immediately made new arrangements.

As they spoke, they had already arrived at the gray dwarf royal city, Blade City.

This was a towering, magnificent city built entirely of obsidian. Within this city permeated with the auras of countless gray dwarf creatures, Fulade was startled to discover over a dozen auras that clearly belonged to Level One Witches and Witchers.

"It seems my decision was quite correct," Fulade thought to himself.

With a thought, Fulade immediately suppressed his aura to the Level One range, so as not to stand out.

As they passed through the city gates, several waves of spiritual power indeed swept toward them, withdrawing upon detecting Cretia. One of those spiritual power waves came from a member of the Northern Witches.

Silently nodding, the group did not hesitate either. Under Cretia's lead, they headed straight for the finest alchemy shop in Blade City.

He had heard Cretia say before that high-ranking gray dwarves possessed alchemy and forging craftsmanship that would put the vast majority of casters to shame, and those words were indeed true.

At this alchemy shop, Angelique found a miniature alchemy power furnace that met her requirements, and even a set of large-scale alchemy equipment that Sky Island was currently in dire need of, equipment that demanded even higher precision.

It was precisely due to the lack of higher-precision alchemy equipment that certain strategic weapons and armaments being developed for the Plane War had remained stalled to this day.

According to Angelique, if they waited for Sky Island's Alchemy Laboratory to develop them on its own, it would likely take no less than twenty to thirty years.

If they had such a set of samples available to disassemble and study, they could develop their own in under ten years and begin mass production.

When Fulade heard this, he thought that there was actually such a good deal — buy it! At the same time, he cast a rather appreciative glance at Angelique. Though the original goal had not been achieved this time, reaping such a harvest made the trip worthwhile.

"Thank you for your patronage. Thirty Level Two Energy Essences, or three hundred Level One Energy Essences." This high-ranking gray dwarf attending to Fulade and his group was a rare Level One sub-race member, but his mercenary demeanor was truly infuriating.

Hearing this number, Fulade was visibly taken aback — not because he thought it was too expensive, but because it was much cheaper than he had imagined.

So, he very readily produced thirty Level Two Energy Essences, which made the shop owner's eyes visibly light up: "A fat sheep~!"

"Ahem, honored guests, this shop has just acquired a Starlight Stone capable of communicating with other planes. I wonder if you might be interested."

Clearly, this alchemy shop owner had been drawn in by Fulade's lavish spending. After completing this transaction, he immediately began promoting other merchandise.

Cretia clearly knew that Fulade had very little knowledge of the magical resources of the Underdark, so she quietly introduced them to the group.

The Starlight Stone, also called the Starlight Gate, was a rare one-time Space Item used to communicate with unknown alternate planes.

On the other side of the Starlight Gate, there might be a powerful Level Four or above powerhouse, or there might be a weak ordinary creature from an alternate plane. Whether one could actually obtain benefits from the Starlight Gate depended entirely on personal luck and character! "You can rest assured, sirs. I smuggled this from the Raider nation, and it has been authenticated by the Northern Witches as well as our gray dwarf race's forging masters. It is absolutely top-grade goods." The high-ranking gray dwarf owner pitched enthusiastically.

The Raiders excelled at communing with mystical forces, and their accomplishments in astrology were no inferior to those of astrologers, perhaps even slightly superior. The gray dwarf owner's introduction indeed held great practical value.

"How much?" Angelique asked. Space Items capable of communicating with alternate planes were indeed very rare, especially ones of this random nature.

"Fifteen Level Two Energy Essences." The sub-race owner happily rubbed his hands together and said.

At this point, one had to talk about the currency used in the transcendent world today.

Under normal circumstances, everyone tried to use gold coins as the primary unit of trade.

Only when transactions involved important Magic Materials or items and similar resources would Energy Essences be used.

Energy Essences existed as a vital energy resource. Whether for assisting cultivation, for alchemy and magic experiments, or for Magic Arrays and equipment manufacturing, they were all put to use.

Given the barrenness of the Dark World today, every bit used was one bit less — they were non-renewable precious resources.

The Plane War was not only about spending money; its purpose was also to acquire greater resources to feed back into itself. Otherwise, given the Dark World's current resources, it would be very difficult to birth a single Level Four creature.

The most basic energy unit was the energy crystal, suitable for creatures below Level One, while Level One Energy Essence was suitable for Level One creatures.

The highest-grade Energy Essence discovered in the Dark World so far was Level Two, and it was extremely scarce.

This was also related to the Dark World's barren energy environment.

(End of this chapter)