Chapter 969

At the moment Ang plucked the fruit, Anthony on the ground opened his eyes and asked, “All set? Are you satisfied with the result?”

The Grand Councilor said nothing about satisfaction, but sized him up and said, “So you’re one of the Lord of Life’s people—why pretend to be the Lord of Radiance? Do you think I can’t hear the Whisper of the Forest? The Lord of Life vanished for so long—I never thought it was still alive, only to find it fled to the Flier Empire?”

Anthony’s heart lurched; he wore just the right look of embarrassment and muttered, “You know about the Whisper of the Forest? Well, I don’t know where the Lord of Life came from, but it’s definitely in the Flier Empire.”

“It was right here—this was the Lord of Life’s homeland. A colossal tree, towering and ancient, but it fell a few years ago, lying across the land like a mountain range. I thought it was dead—never imagined it had run off to the Flier Empire. I even cut its branches to sell to alchemists for constructing constructs. Could it be… because I cut too much, it ran away?” The Grand Councilor rambled on.

Anthony’s face darkened; he grinned awkwardly, not knowing how to respond. Was the Grand Councilor an enemy or an ally of the Lord of Life?

Everyone knew the Alliance of Divine Light had a World Tree—the wood used in constructs was proof enough, and the material wasn’t expensive, since even the lowest-grade constructs used it.

But no one expected the World Tree to be right here on this plane—and that the wood might even have been sold by the Grand Councilor himself. This drastically reduced the space Anthony had to manipulate.

He knew perfectly well what the Whisper of the Forest was—it had nothing to do with the Lord of Life. Now that the Grand Councilor had recognized it, and he’d gone along with the lie, he was on the defensive.

“You probably don’t know any of this. Forget it. Where is the Lord of Life? Bring it out—let it meet an old friend. I owe it thanks for saving my plane.”

Anthony shook his head. “I can’t decide that. But I’ll pass along your message. Are you satisfied with the result, Grand Councilor?”

“Satisfied? More than satisfied! No wonder it’s the Lord of Life—it’s saved me hundreds of millions of jin of grain! Thank you so much!”

“Glad you’re satisfied. Glad you’re satisfied. Now, let’s talk about payment, shall we?” Anthony rubbed his hands together, his expression full of coins.

The Grand Councilor stared, stunned. “Wasn’t this free? You never said you’d charge.”

Anthony chuckled. “Think back—did I ever say it was free? Didn’t I say, ‘Are you annoying me?’…”

Seeing the Grand Councilor’s face darken, Anthony reluctantly added, “Of course, even if I didn’t say it was free, I won’t charge you this time—consider it a trial. You’re satisfied with the result, right? But what about next year? The Light Plague may last forever. Are you just going to stop planting?”

The Grand Councilor’s face was black. “How do you know the Light Plague will last forever? Did you cause it? Why else would it strike the moment you arrived?”

Anthony smiled. “Grand Councilor, that’s unreasonable. If we had the power to unleash such a catastrophe, we wouldn’t have been driven from our homeland by the Flier Empress. The Light Plague comes from the sun—it won’t spare only your plane. Ask other planes. The Alliance of Divine Light has six major factions—surely your plane isn’t the only one?”

The Grand Councilor studied Anthony deeply. “Come with me.” He turned and walked away.

Anthony followed and soon saw a massive structure—like a table supported by countless stone pillars. The tabletop was flat, covered with countless buildings.

Beneath the tabletop, thousands of towering stone pillars crowded together, varying in length—long ones propping up the table, short ones enclosing space, leaving only narrow passages leading inward.

Sensing Anthony’s curiosity, the Grand Councilor explained, “Impressive, isn’t it? These pillars are unique to this plane—nobody knows how they formed. They stand in neat rows along coastal cliffs.”

“So I had everyone haul them back, plant them in the ground, then lay slate slabs on top. Each layer was fused together by mages—layer upon layer—until we got this. The living dwell on top; the undead move inside.”

“If you remove just one pillar, you create a deep pit a kilometer high. Lying in it is incredibly comfortable—the rising air draws in air from all around.”

But the pit is too deep. The breath of death sinks and pools at the bottom, creating the perfect environment for the undead. We call this place Zhuoshan—doesn’t it look like a table?

Anthony, well-versed in the undead, understood at once. The giant pillars clustered like a bundle of bamboo skewers; remove a few, and you get vertical shafts running through.

These shafts, a kilometer high, naturally created chimney effects due to temperature differences—drawing air in from all sides like dwarven forges.

But the breath of death sank—it never rose to the top, only pooled thickly at the bottom, forming a dense layer of death-soil.

This environment—dry, well-ventilated, yet rich in the breath of death—was naturally ideal for the undead.

But using pillars a thousand meters tall as building material? That was no easy feat.

Anthony said nothing, only wore a thoughtful expression—as if pondering something.

The Grand Councilor’s explanation might be a trap. If he truly were the Lord of Life’s servant, how could he instantly recognize this as an ideal undead habitat?

Following the Grand Councilor onto the tabletop, they entered a grand building. Judging by its scale and position, it resembled a government hall or governor’s residence.

But thick curtains had been drawn across every window and opening, blocking all light. Inside, wailing filled the air like a slaughterhouse.

The stench of rotting biological tissue was trapped inside, nearly knocking Anthony back as he stepped in.

The Grand Councilor couldn’t smell it, but the scene alone told him how dire it was. He hurriedly explained, “All the sunburned victims are gathered here. Their skin is rotting—no cure works. Even my top aide, who runs this place, is affected. I’ll go get him—let’s talk outside.”

But Anthony didn’t care. He rubbed his hands and smiled. “No need to go outside. Grand Councilor, you know I came to you in the name of the Lord of Radiance—so I’m also skilled in healing. Hehe.”