Chapter 566: Hot Spring Peak Must Have Hot Springs

Hot Spring Peak, night falls.

It was midsummer, and the temperature at the foot of the mountain was often thirty or forty degrees, yet the temperature at the top of the mountain was cool and just right. In the open-air hot spring pool, the misty heat rose, rendering the starry sky hazy.

In that hazy mist, a young dragon with pale gold scales was floating comfortably on the water, its golden vertical pupils narrowed into an "L"-shaped slit.

Life in another world—

It was simply too comfortable.

"…Speaking of which, is it really okay not to help your subordinates?" Ta Fu said lazily, in the tone of an old person commenting on a junior.

"No need, my subordinates can take care of themselves." Luo Yan, leaning against the rock by the pool, closed his eyes slightly, his lazy voice revealing a casual composure, as if dismissing some meddlesome little ghost.

"Tsk, what a heartless man."

"It's not heartless; I'm just giving my subordinates a sense of participation; otherwise, how would they know who they are working for?"

Actually, besides this high-sounding reason, there was another reason.

That was that this was currently the garbage time of this war, and both sides had officially entered the stage of "neither can do anything to the other."

With the execution of the major shareholder Marius and the rescue of more and more Ryan people, the Academy's experiments in the Wan Ren Mountains completely lost their sponsorship from the Ryan Kingdom, and the Holy Water project had become a profitless and dangerous unfinished project.

Based on Luo Yan's understanding of that group of cold-blooded mages, they definitely wouldn't continue to waste resources on a project with no visible returns.

Professor Edgar Kaufman's head was partly to pay for losing something belonging to a big shot, and partly a signal released by the Academy to the three-race coalition—

They intended to move the laboratory back to the Northern Wasteland.

Anyway, the experiments that needed to be done had been done; they had successfully found a method to purify soul quality and had also completed the theoretical supplementation.

Next was production.

Purifying soul quality wasn't very difficult technically; the difficulty was just needing a large number of soul donors.

Although it was a pity for them not to be able to get more soul ore from the Ryan Kingdom, this so-called pity was far from fatal.

At worst, they could lower the standards for the magic apprentice exams and recruit more young men and women full of dreams from the vast vassal territories of the Os Empire… This group of mages could always get what they needed.

Thinking of this, Luo Yan felt a wave of emotion; when he was laying out his plans in the Academy, he hadn't discovered at all that they were doing such blasphemous things.

Perhaps, it was time for the School of Science to withdraw.

Although Luo Yan believed the Academy didn't have the guts or the necessity to attack the Empire's subjects, not all of his students were subjects of the Empire; children from the Luo De Kingdom and other vassal states still made up the majority.

Staying in such a place, it was inevitable that they would be affected.

In short, the Academy needed time to withdraw from the Wan Ren Mountains.

And the three-race coalition also needed time to digest the fruits of battle, consolidate the occupied areas, and lay that long supply line all the way from the territory of Count Spinor.

As for why they had to leave time for the Academy to withdraw?

That was, of course, because one should pick the soft persimmons to squeeze, and one must eat rice one mouthful at a time. The Demon King's next target wasn't the Academy, but Roland City.

Luo Yan was a Demon King with an extremely clear train of thought. From the beginning, he realized that the water in the Wan Ren Mountains was deeper than imagined, so he didn't throw everything onto the *Thunder City Daily*, only mentioning the plight of the Ryan people and the collusion between the Ryan Kingdom and the ratmen.

Otherwise, if the atmosphere was right, but nothing was done in the end, wouldn't that hurt his own people's morale?

And the relationship between the dwarves and the Academy wasn't bad; if they really moved against the Academy, the High Mountain Kingdom might not even be willing to deal with the ratmen in front of them.

This wasn't just Luo Yan's thinking, but also Edward's train of thought.

When closing the door, Edward didn't curse the mages in the Northern Wasteland for not acting like humans, but when holding a war meeting with the Dwarf King…

Both of them tacitly didn't mention those magic scrolls.

Ta Fu turned over, a pair of short legs splashing in the water, clearly sneering at Luo Yan's rhetoric.

"You guy… I've discovered that anything can turn into a good thing in your mouth."

Looking at Ta Fu swimming on her back on the water, Luo Yan smiled without saying a word.

Congratulations, Researcher Ta Fu from the Zeta Empire, you have once again explored the essence of mystery… The reward is a hot spring egg.

It was a pity that little Ta Fu didn't read the Demon King's intent in his eyes; otherwise, she would definitely have been scared into laying an egg on the spot.

Ta Fu floated for a while, narrowed her eyes comfortably, and let out a sigh.

"But speaking of which… I didn't expect there to be such a good place in the Wan Ren Mountains. When I was dominating the world, I actually missed this place."

"That means you didn't look carefully at the land you ruled at all, just playing a map-filling game."

Ta Fu pretended not to hear, turned her head to the side, and blew bubbles at the air.

Luo Yan didn't continue to bully her on this topic, just leaning comfortably against the rock wall behind him, feeling the warm spring water moisturizing every inch of his skin.

This was indeed a blessed land.

Mixi discovered this place while surveying the terrain of Hot Spring Peak and immediately presented it to the Demon King like a treasure.

Luo Yan simply surveyed the earth veins under the hot spring and found that there was a high probability that a high-quality magic crystal mine was buried under the hot spring.

It was precisely because of this that the misty fog was rich in concentrated magic, or rather, natural "spirit quality," which not only shielded the mosquitoes in the mountains but also acted like an invisible barrier, isolating the noise and disturbances of the outside world.

Soaking in this hot spring rich in spiritual energy was not only of great benefit to the body but also had the effect of relaxing the spirit.

Just as Luo Yan was relaxing his nerves, a soft voice came from behind.

"Demon King, please feel free to order me if you have any needs."

Sarah, wearing a maid outfit, had been waiting behind the Demon King. And this was the third time she had said this in ten minutes.

The moist water vapor dampened the black hair on her forehead, the pair of upright cat ears swaying gently, her amber eyes full of anticipation.

It could be seen that the loyal Sarah truly wanted to do something for her master, but Luo Yan indeed had nothing she needed to help with.

Luo Yan lifted his head, smiled at Sarah behind him, and said.

"No need, Sarah, you should relax for a while too. There are no outsiders here, no need to be so reserved."

"As you command."

A blush appeared on her soft face, Sarah nodded slightly, and then naturally reached out to unbutton her collar.

Seeing this, Luo Yan quickly said.

"There is another hot spring next door."

Sarah's fingers stopped at the second button, but it was clear she didn't want to stop.

"I know, is there something there?"

"No, I mean you can soak over there too…"

The air was quiet for a few seconds, with only the sound of the hot spring flowing, and the sound of Ta Fu burying her nose in the water and blowing bubbles.

Sarah stared at Luo Yan for a while, convinced that the Demon King was serious, and then said "Tsk" with regret, turning to walk behind the rock next door.

That back looked somewhat lonely.

Luo Yan breathed a sigh of relief; he almost couldn't focus on enjoying the hot spring.

Ta Fu, soaking in the water, made a "pfft pfft pfft" laughing sound and teased.

"Soak together, don't mind me, I'm just a dragon, I can dive into the water when necessary!"

It wasn't just Ta Fu who loved to watch the excitement; Hearing You You also popped out, the milky white mist ball melting into the fog, excitedly egging him on.

"Yeah, yeah, Demon King, listening to the prayers of believers and fulfilling the wishes of believers are all part of a god's work—"

"Hearing You You, shut up."

Luo Yan replied lightly, and at the same time, his index finger lifted slightly, and an invisible magic instantly shrouded the water surface.

Ever since breaking through to the Grandmaster level, his control over power had become more and more superb, and he didn't even need to be restricted to elements visible to the naked eye.

Almost in an instant, before the grinning Ta Fu could react, her little pale gold head was pressed into the hot spring by an irresistible force.

"Guh-huh-huh—!"

A series of bubbles rose from the bottom of the water, accompanied by the struggling of a certain meat-eating lizard.

A few seconds later, the force dissipated, and Ta Fu drilled out of the water, coughing while choking out a thin water column.

"You guy… actually using transcendental power to bully an ordinary person! Are you still human?!"

"You aren't human either."

Luo Yan replied lightly, not even opening his eyes.

"@%&#!"

The furious Ta Fu spat out a series of obscure and difficult Zeta-language trash talk, but Luo Yan couldn't understand it at all, so it was equivalent to not cursing.

Adjusting to a comfortable position and continuing to lean back, he let the spring water rich in spiritual energy submerge his shoulders, letting his spiritual power wander in the misty fog, fully merging with the spiritual energy of heaven and earth—or rather, the "Hive."

Players were charging at the front line, no need for him to worry personally.

Sure enough—

Leisure stolen from a busy schedule is truly refreshing.

Just as Luo Yan was enjoying this rare quiet time, a *da-pa* sound of bare feet stepping on moist rocks suddenly came from outside the thick fog.

The sound was very light, but it was exceptionally clear in the quiet night.

Luo Yan's eyebrows arched slightly, and the spiritual power immersed in the hot spring subconsciously stretched outward, sweeping toward the direction the sound came from.

However, it would have been better not to sweep; the image transmitted by the spiritual power through layers of white fog made even the Demon King feel a trace of embarrassment.

I saw that in the misty fog, Ailin was walking over wrapped in a thin bath towel, humming a soothing and brisk little tune.

The bath towel wasn't wide, only able to cover key parts, revealing a large area of milk-like snow white. Wet silver hair stuck to her shoulders and collarbones, and water droplets dripped down along the beautiful curves.

The two looked at each other through the thin fog, and the air pressed the pause button in an instant, and then was quickly boiled.

Almost in an instant, Ailin's cheeks were stained with a blush at a speed visible to the naked eye, and then the blush quickly spread to her earlobes and neck.

"!!!"

A God-Chosen powerhouse was not an ordinary person after all; this heroic and spirited Princess didn't let out a little girl's scream.

However, it was clear that she was still thrown into chaos by this sudden situation.

Luo Yan didn't expect that the Brave Lady's first reaction wasn't to turn and run, but to charge into the hot spring in one go.

*Splash—! *

Only a loud sound came, and the surging water splashed seven or eight meters away, not only splashing Luo Yan's face but also overturning Ta Fu, who was paddling on the hot spring, causing her to struggle several times in the surging "tsunami."

"…%￥#!"

A few national quintessences of the Zeta Empire blurted out.

However, when the little golden mother dragon stabilized her figure and poked her head out again, there was no anger in those vertical pupils, but rather anticipation for watching the excitement.

What's the situation?!

Is the exciting program finally coming?

Luo Yan was also confused by Ailin's sudden move, wiped the water droplets off his face, and only after a while did he tentatively ask.

"Ailin? Why are you…"

"Te… Theresa said the hot spring here can treat fatigue and recommended I come here to relax… Why are you here too?!"

Ailin's shoulders shrank smaller and smaller, just like her flustered and helpless voice, finally sinking into the warm spring water together, turning into bubbles on the water surface.

She hugged her knees with her arms, burying most of her face behind her knees, revealing only a pair of shame-filled emerald pupils, her gaze not knowing where to place.

Luo Yan was the same, not knowing where to place his gaze, and the arm he had casually placed on the rock was also cautiously retracted.

Coincidence.

He also heard the news from his subordinates; he didn't expect the little demon from the Nightmare Township to think of the same thing as the Brave Lady's personal guard.

"I… also heard it from my subordinates."

"Oh oh oh…" Ailin still buried herself in the water, like an ostrich burying its head in the sand, not realizing how strange her voice was.

"Calm down first, have a drink."

Luo Yan lifted his index finger slightly, and the space ring beside his clothes flashed with a faint light.

A bottle of iced honey water with a cork appeared out of thin air, slowly floating to Ailin under the push of magic.

Ailin subconsciously reached out with both hands to catch it, but as soon as her arms stretched out of the water, the bath towel was taken away by the water surface like melting soap bubbles, scaring her into sitting back in the water with a *splash*, blushing and tightly hugging her knees back in front of her.

Those flustered eyes darted around, like a startled little deer. Only at the end did she come to her senses, glaring at the "culprit" with slight anger, as if in silent accusation—

'Bad-hearted guy.'

Heaven and earth conscience.

Luo Yan really wasn't doing it on purpose; he never took advantage of people in such matters, and there was no need to play any tricks of feinting to the east and attacking the west, because there was no need at all.

"…Prior statement, I didn't do it on purpose."

"I believe you… you are not that kind of person." Ailin seemed to feel it was so, muttered in a small voice, holding the honey water hidden behind her knees, and twisted off the cork.

However, this statement of trust didn't make the atmosphere easier, but instead made the ambiguous taste in the air even richer, like sugar cubes gradually melting in black tea.

Ta Fu quietly swam behind a huge rock, excitedly wagging her tail, looking forward to the subsequent development.

The two soaked in silence for a while, and Luo Yan broke the silence first.

"Speaking of which, are you still used to it?"

Ailin was stunned for a moment, then reacted.

"Which aspect do you mean?"

"Blood race."

Luo Yan looked at her silver hair, and the skin that appeared even paler under the moonlight… then he took a bath towel from the side and covered himself up too.

"I'm okay."

Ailin took a gentle sip of the honey water, feeling the icy sweetness slide down her throat, paused for a moment, and continued.

"Maybe it's because the Holy Light power unique to the Campbell family flows in my blood; it suppresses my craving for blood to a certain extent. Except for becoming fond of eating medium-rare steak, it seems there is no difference from before."

"That's good." Luo Yan nodded.

Actually, he knew that the blood race of Hell couldn't live without blood, they just became listless if they didn't drink blood for a long time.

Just like the citizens of Thunder City who left black tea.

And Vivian's liking for Minotaur blood was more out of personal hobby. If there wasn't any, she could also not drink it at all, or use this as a threat to roll on the ground, clamoring to drink the Demon King's blood.

The quiet atmosphere flowed between the two, with only the sound of water coming from time to time.

Ailin looked at the young dragon floating not far away, recognized it as Kelin's pet, and then moved her gaze away.

"That… Kelin."

"What's wrong?"

Ailin hesitated, seemingly making a difficult decision.

"Do you think… I should tell my brother? About the fact that I've become a vampire. I think, at least… I should let him know the truth." ===== CHAPTER 567 =====