Chapter 190: Dark Night

Li En held a torch, his footsteps echoing far through the pitch-black cave.

But he actually didn't need much light; the range his Dragon Eyes could see far exceeded this darkness.

If it were only him.

"Friend, it's so dark."

Little Lana dragged his cloak, a bit uneasy, yet the excitement in her twin pupils was utterly impossible to hide.

Li En glanced back, seeing her dragging the True Sword while walking briskly, and smiled.

His gaze shot forward, glaring at the lurker in the shadows!

"... I mean no harm." That thief stepped forward voluntarily, holding his sheathed dagger downwards to signal he didn't intend to cause trouble.

"My party is nearby; I was just passing through." He slowly retreated, gradually vanishing into the shadows.

But the others in Li En's party glared at him fiercely; after something, they were not very friendly toward thieves.

Even though the thief had retreated and vanished, they still stared dead at his direction.

"Damn stray dogs."

"If our condition is bad, they'll strike. 'Just passing through'? Only a fool would believe that."

Li En turned back, slightly surprised.

We've only just entered the underground ruin, and the situation is this complicated? Didn't they say adventurers get along quite well?

"Precisely because it's the shallow layer, they are active. They have organizations both on the surface and below, specializing in work like vultures and stray dogs."

Vultures and stray dogs? Eating corpses, and taking advantage of the weak and fearing the strong?

I'm afraid if adventurers returning from the lower levels are in poor condition, they would also be robbed.

"No one manages it? Oh, I'm an idiot."

Manage? Who manages? With the local regime unable even to sort out affairs above, they certainly can't manage things below.

"They also dare not go too far; for returning injured parties, they usually only dare to collect some tolls. But if you die inside, they will take everything of yours. Sometimes, they even steal supplies and spoils."

Parna was puffed up with anger; her injury this time was mostly caused by these thieves.

These guys would actively create rockfalls and sinkholes to cause trouble for other adventurers.

They wouldn't dare to kill people indiscriminately, at least not murders that leaked information, after all, this is still just the shallow layer.

Once a murder truly occurred, the relationship between the two sides would be more hostile than at this moment, and then they would truly be unable to make money.

"Actually, Lord Li En could have attacked directly; he approached us in stealth, which can be viewed as having already launched an attack. One slash and cut him down; if he died, he deserved it."

Every region has its own "house rules"; these thief organizations dare to play like this, so don't blame adventurers and explorers for being extreme.

"I see, no wonder he was so terrified."

Li En's Desire Snake Eyes saw that when that thief was stared at by him, he was full of fear and unease.

Li En didn't know that when that thief made eye contact with his Dragon Eyes, the killing desire within terrified the thief to the point where he lost the courage to flee, honestly revealing himself and admitting defeat.

In their line of work, this would be the most shameful thing to spread.

I'm afraid soon, news will spread through the shallow layer that "a very troublesome figure" has entered.

Li En sighed; the original idea of "everyone cooperating to clear the underground ruin" was gone. Indeed, in most cases, a person's greatest opponent is still their own kind.

"The situation in the lower levels is better; the pressure from monsters is great, so everyone is relatively kind. Giving others a way to live is also leaving a way to live for oneself. No one comes down only once. Many people will even actively inform others about mechanisms and traps."

"Pfft." At this moment, the snake on Li En's shoulder suddenly laughed out loud.

"Do you have a high opinion?"

"No, no. What upper and lower layers? They haven't even pierced the very top layer of the seal, yet they speak as if they've gone very far."

The snake sneered at the adventurers' mistake, but Li En knew he absolutely had his own purpose.

"Do you have information on the lower levels?"

"I have the entire map; I drew it myself. I can reveal a bit: the deepest man-made structure part they think exists is less than one-tenth of the entire underground ruin. Below is a completely different terrain, with snow mountains, volcanoes, and even interdimensional passages. One slip and you'll get lost in another world."

The snake wagged its tail, speaking cheerfully.

Li En continued moving forward to scout, communicating with the snake only via mental ability.

He hesitated; of course, he knew the importance of a complete map to the entire exploration plan.

One could even say that if one opened a full-map cheat, a fifty percent increase in success rate would be an understatement.

However, precisely because it was so important, could he bear this karma?

Every bit of help from the snake would ultimately be paid for by Li En himself.

"The price?"

"Uh, let me think... how about this? The same promise, that 'I love you, spend your life with me' invitation, said once to a specific person at a specific time and place."

Just that? Li En became even more unwilling to agree.

"Dai Niya?" It seemed only that person had enough weight.

"Let you choose between two. How nice of me." The snake, flicking its tongue, cheerfully tempted Li En to agree.

"The Queen and Dai Niya? Don't tell me the time and place for the confession is the day the Queen arrives. Alright, I know, I refuse."

The snake sighed, as if lamenting that Li En was becoming smarter, avoiding the inevitable death line.

But after walking for a while, the utilitarian Li En still felt a bit unwilling.

"May I ask, if I really do this, will I die?"

The transaction between the snake and Li En had already taken effect; Li En already felt he could perhaps exploit a bug.

But this time, there was no luck; once done, there would be no other route.

"You will be impaled on a trident, from top to bottom, the tip piercing out from your chest, howling for ten days before dying. Beside you will be a priest dispatched by the Queen to heal you." The snake couldn't directly observe Li En, but the subsequent newspaper reports and others' perceptions could roughly reconstruct that bloody scene.

Li En fell silent. Then you let me do it?

"No choice. This karma is too heavy. Sacrificing for the continuation of humanity; you'd be willing too, right?" The snake remained cheerful.

"By the way, it would be even more interesting if you confessed to the Queen. Tsk tsk tsk, that deathly expression is truly rare."

"Take your map and get lost!"

Li En sighed; he was not that noble. This was a death trap through and through.

The journey over the past few hours had been quite boring; the first layer seemed to have been cleaned out completely.

Occasionally, thieves would move at the edge of his vision, only to be glared back by Li En.

Finally, they reached a checkpoint piled with rubble, the gateway leading downward.

This was a relatively large stone chamber with some stall-keeping merchants, mainly selling supplies and materials from underground monsters; signs on the stalls also advertised the purchase of materials.

Their business was not good, but Li En noticed people gathered in front of a few Goblin stalls.

Upon getting closer, he noticed they were selling emergency medical supplies and antidotes.

On the stalls, there were also various maps and intelligence on the lower levels, though the prices were as expensive as ever.

In the open space, there were scattered warriors looking like mercenaries, trying to sell themselves to passing groups. But having to resort to pushing themselves to wild parties rather than finding groups on the surface, the reputation and abilities of these people were mostly questionable. Li En's party was in good shape; without stopping, they prepared to continue downward. When someone tried to block the group to make a sales pitch, Li En gave them a look, and they silently made way.

In the eyes of those with sensitive perception, Li En in combat state was probably a dragon-slayer ready to be activated at any moment.

This was the result of passing through one battlefield after another; having experienced life-or-death battles against the Saintess, the Beast Prince, the Brain, and the Shadow Dragon, Li En had gradually developed an aura more suited to the battlefield.

And having passed this last safe zone, from here on, the other members of the squad began to get busy.

A Centaur Knight holding a spear in one hand and a shield in the other walked in front of Li En. On one hand, this fulfilled his duty as the vanguard; on the other, it facilitated leading the way, as they were about to enter the underground ruins where there were many forks.

The Werewolf disappeared into the darkness; she was likely a dual-class Ranger and Thief, simultaneously shouldering the duty of scouting the path.

Dungeon exploration and traveling through the wild are two different things; knowing the opponents one might encounter in advance is of great help.

Watching them cooperate in an orderly fashion, Li En did not continue to take on the task of clearing the path. With the certainty that they might not encounter enemies even on the first day, he fell back to a position slightly behind Palna, chatting intermittently with Dimon.

"How is the situation in the Dock District? I heard your first batch of goods has shipped; no one caused trouble, right? If gangs or corrupt cops cause trouble, let me know."

Although it sounded like they were discussing unspeakable things, the goods Li En referred to were normal textiles.

The first batch of goods was not high-end, even somewhat inferior, but as long as it could prove they could make money and sell the goods, it proved this path was viable, giving many people a stable channel for livelihood.

He had been paying attention; calculating the time, it was about right, so he spoke up to ask.

"There were those causing trouble, and others coming to collect protection money. But they didn't need you; I've already thrown them into the sea. It's a small matter."

The other members of the squad were sweating profusely. Weren't they two Paladins? Why did it sound like gangsters discussing unspeakable things?

"Alright, remember to tell us if you need anything. What about our young men?"

"Very good. They've already started working on the streets and even got into conflicts with some local police. Heh, they beat the hell out of those bastards."

The police in the Dock District were basically private property of certain factions; nine out of ten were corrupt.

Dimon wanted order in the Dock District; these things were unavoidable. Some bastards didn't care about your new order; they were only angry that their monthly cut had decreased.

"What about our lovely police friend?"

"She doesn't want to get involved; she used her annual leave early. This is already a statement." As the top expert of the local police force, Talia's decision to step back from the conflict already implicitly placed her on Dimon's side.

In chaotic times, extraordinary measures are used; if the police department were truly functioning, the Dock District wouldn't be this chaotic.

"She actually has annual leave. By the way, there's that noble above the police station, that... what was his name, Baron Pa-something? Will he interfere?"

"He certainly will. We're planning to find a time to deal with him; let him drown in his own washbasin."

Palna was already trembling; were these really two Paladins? What were they even discussing?

An evil plan to occupy the Dock District? Invading territory and attacking the police station, and even having the audacity to murder a noble blocking their way?

Hearing this, Li En was somewhat surprised.

"That won't do. We are Paladins; we cannot murder."

You remember you're a Paladin now?! Didn't everything you said before constitute a crime?!

Several people in the squad wanted to retort but didn't dare.

"He is a bastard. He collects money from the slave market; he is a shareholder and local protector of the slave market."

"Is the information confirmed?"

"Confirmed. We found the ledgers of his transactions. This is also the main reason Sister Talia is slacking off and not getting involved; she even wants to handle it personally."

"Very well, since it is evil, deal with him. If you need me to step in and help, just say so."

In a sense, Kuk spoke truly.

Setting aside the rather noble purposes, looking solely at their style of conduct and methods, many Paladins are not much different from ruthless bandits, and are even more direct and unreasonable than thieves.

Especially these two walking the path of Judgment; they had no intention of following the "unwritten rules" of the local noble circle.

Li En asked about the situation at the weaving factories, and Dimon responded to each point.

These things made the surrounding squad members breathe a sigh of relief; so it was a legitimate business after all.

The first batch of goods from the textile factory has all shipped, and the selling price was acceptable.

But it mainly went through Labor's commercial channels, and Dimon was not entirely at ease.

"Of course, I am not doubting Brother Larry; I just don't trust Labor."

"It is good that you have this suspicion. Labor is indeed not trustworthy, but as long as Dai Niya still has a good relationship with us, he will be quite friendly toward us."

When the topic mentioned Her Highness the Princess, Li En lowered his voice, but Palna was still too scared to turn around.

Could this knight who lifts people up really be the legendary Princess's black glove?

Dimon was still somewhat hesitant; he felt Labor wouldn't give up this part of the market so easily. Li En explained slightly: Labor no longer cared about this industry; he aspired to become a noble with actual power and begin involving himself in the kingdom's upper echelons.

And the low-end weaving industry they abandoned would not cause him heartache; on the contrary, he would be happy.

"I actually inquired; they themselves find the returns from these low-end textiles too low, wasting their human resources. Their main business is still various magic fabrics, industrial fabrics, and high-end fabrics."

A noble's robe and a commoner's cloth garment, with roughly the same weight of material, see the finished material cost five or ten times more, while the finished product easily exceeds a hundredfold.

If you really sell clothes measured in copper coins to a noble, he will feel you are insulting him.

Thus, with the same labor, it is very normal to prefer producing higher value-added goods; it is simply the elimination of backward capacity in another sense.

At the same time, various flags, armor linings, house decorations, high-end tablecloths, and carpets were all supplied by the Labor industry, except that...

"Labor actually doesn't even want to do these mid-tier things; they only want to make noble garments and magic cloth."

There were things Li En only knew partially; even Larry, one of their own, was unclear about them.

Labor's main funds had long entered the lending business, targeting the high-end market; their real industry was merely a front for credit guarantees, and the capital they operated with was already more than ten times their family's total assets. This was also one of the main reasons they needed support from the kingdom's high officials.

Li En's words put Dimon at ease.

He too was in a delicate situation: wanting to expand production but worried that taking too much would suddenly offend his "allies."

It wasn't that he feared Labor; rather, too many people were tied to this industry now, and making a scene with Labor at this moment was far from worthwhile.

Li En and Dimon chatted casually, but when it came to the dock district, some things could not be avoided.

"Senior Brother Li En... couldn't you speak with Princess Dai Niya to shut down the slave market? If economic profit is truly needed, the underground ruins alone are far more profitable. The kingdom no longer needs to maintain this thing, either." Some words, Dimon still gritted his teeth and asked.

The slave market in the dock district was simply too obstructive; it was an incurable tumor.

Dimon knew the slave market was colluding with the High Priest and the great nobles, but if the royal family acted directly, could they eliminate this tumor?

Li En shook his head, however. Dimon probably communicated too little with Dai Niya, and Larry hadn't explained the details to him clearly either (later it was verified that Larry himself wasn't very clear).

"Dai Niya hates the slave market, but she lacks the ability to shut it down." Li En sighed, noticing the adventurers all perking up their ears.

After weighing it, he still spoke out, so these little ones wouldn't fail to grasp the weight of this information.

"The largest shareholders of the slave market are those transnational organizations and churches; three major churches alone hold over forty percent of the shares and are the de facto rulers. They need some people to do dirty work, and some stable 'human resources'."

Seeing the adventurers all wear shocked expressions actually surprised Li En. You find this outrageous? You're too naive. Don't you think those so-called Shanshen Sect churches are without blemish? Those things all employ professionals to do dirty work.

(End of this chapter)