The struggle and crushing between interests is just this bloody and heartless.
Luca had absolutely no sympathy for these captives.
Perhaps the new generation of Wizards might feel some confusion, but having experienced the turmoil of the Central Continent, the hostility of the
"Once we reach White Phosphorus City and complete the handover, everyone can finally get some proper rest!"
Luca shouted loudly, eliciting a large chorus of happy responses, mixed with the terrified weeping of some captives, making for a rather interesting scene.
"Also, everyone knows the rules, I shouldn't need to say more, right?"
Immediately after, Luca's sinister gaze swept directly over the group below, the warning within it exceptionally clear.
The other Wizards stiffened momentarily, before Rockde managed a strained smile: "Rest assured! Absolutely none of us will show any disrespect to the three mistresses of White Phosphorus City..."
"Very good!" Luca said, and although he knew many Wizards were still inwardly defiant, his facial expression softened.
White Phosphorus City, while technically a force under that Lord's command, clearly maintained considerable autonomy. It wasn't just that it didn't answer to the entire Ouroboros Ring; they even had personnel entirely loyal to them, firmly holding the other end of the trade between the two sides.
If it weren't for the fact that their force was newly established and lacked sufficient manpower, this sort of extermination task wouldn't have fallen to Luca and his group.
Even so, these Wizards had been repeatedly ordered before entering the underground to obey White Phosphorus City's command without the slightest deviation.
All who had dared to offend this point had their bones turned to ash, with only their souls left to repent in the endless prisons of the White Phosphorus Serpent...
Of course, there were faint rumors circulating that the reason for this situation was related to some unclear relationship between those three mistresses and Lord Lei Lin.
Although he had long been certain in his heart, it was obvious Luca would take this secret to his grave.
Gradually, the massive outline of White Phosphorus City began to emerge before their party. Especially that eternal light upon the buildings, which was dazzlingly brilliant, carrying a very particular flavor.
"According to rumor, this White Phosphorus City was directly established by that Lord using terrifying Wizardry, built in an instant, and blessed by that Lord, possessing an eternal effect..."
Seeing the massive flow of people entering and leaving, as well as the envy and awe on the faces of the young men in their group, Luca felt an indescribable sense of pride.
"No matter how many times I see it, it's truly unbelievable!"
Rockte approached Luca, his eyes filled with unmistakable envy. This kind of power to move mountains and reshape seas was clearly something he could only look up to. In truth, whether he could even touch the edges of such power in his lifetime was a near-impossible notion.
"The Underground Trade City — White Phosphorus!" Luca's voice carried a rare hint of excitement. "Once we hand in the mission, we can go home!"
"Home! Home!!" The crowd of young men erupted in cheers.
"Pah!" Right in the midst of the celebration, a sharp spit of contempt cut through the noise. It was jarring.
"Hm?!" Luca's eyes flicked toward the source, and he spotted a young wizard. There was something unmistakable about his bearing — a particular air that only those of wizard nobility could possess, cultivated by high station or centuries of refined lineage.
"I remember you — the eldest son of a family that was just eradicated. Rumor has it you carry noble blood. The highest grade of slave!"
Luca walked up to the young man and saw his flushed face. It was clear that the word "slave" had stung him deeply.
"You damn invaders! The great Underground Wizard Alliance won't let you get away with this!" Though the young wizard's face was still marked with wounds and his body bound by magic-suppressing iron chains, he lifted his chin stubbornly.
"The Underground Wizard Alliance? That disorganized resistance?" Luca nearly laughed. "I'm sorry, but your hopes are probably all going to be crushed..."
"Everything is witnessed by the great Abyss Mother..." The young man's gaze was unwavering. That kind of resolve made Luca furrow his brow slightly.
It wasn't the steadfastness of conviction — it was the confidence of someone holding a hidden card.
"Then... would you care to tell me where your confidence lies?" Luca asked, genuinely curious.
In the current situation, he saw absolutely no possibility of the other party turning the tide.
The young man was about to be sold into slavery. In the best-case scenario, some high-ranking wizard taken with his appearance and bloodline might take him as a consort or plaything — but Luca didn't mind chatting a little longer.
"You'll find out soon enough!"
The young wizard shot Luca a hateful glare, then turned his head away.
"This damned pig. Who do you think you are now? What status do you still hold? Under the rule of our Ouroboros Ring, you still dare to stage a rebellion!"
Rockte's voice was sharp and biting, the whip in his hand already itching to come down.
"Enough, Rockte!" Luca caught Rockte's arm, his voice turning unusually gentle. When dealing with a beaten dog, he felt he could afford to show a little mercy and compassion.
"Hmph! Once we reach the slave market, I'll make sure to 'take good care' of you — I'll see to it the rest of your life is spent crawling in the mud, the lowest grade of experimental livestock..."
Rockte delivered a fierce round of threats, making the young man's face turn somewhat pale. His knuckles were clenched so tightly they had gone white, yet he still refused to lower his proudly held head.
"This is the Trade Capital — the City of White Phosphorus! Remember to present your credentials and maintain order! Failure to comply will result in expulsion or even arrest!"
At the city gate, several of White Phosphorus City's own patrol wizards were shouting through amplification spells, their voices broadcasting outward in waves.
The numerous merchants and wandering wizards, however, seemed thoroughly familiar with the procedure. They queued up unhurriedly, and everything appeared remarkably well-organized.
"Hm! How much are the contribution points from wiping out the hostile faction this time, plus these high-grade slaves, all together worth?"
At this point, even the other warlocks in the group couldn't help but break into wide grins after tallying up their gains.
But just then, the distant sky suddenly underwent a strange transformation. A massive mass of dark clouds, filled with eerie skull runes, came surging after them at tremendous speed.
"Put down Bik!!!"
An aged roar clearly rang out from within the black clouds, and under the force of that sound wave, the area around the city gate descended into chaos. Even Luca, who possessed third-tier strength, felt his legs go weak.
"This… this kind of presence… fifth tier! No — above sixth tier! I thought they were just a small family? How could they be connected to a force like this?"
Meanwhile, the young prisoner's face was instantly filled with laughter and elation.
"Grandfather! I'm here!" A layer of dark crimson light radiated from the young man's body — clearly some kind of positional marker.
"Grandfather? A conspiracy? Or coincidence?" Luca's mind was thrown into confusion.
The first layer of the underground world certainly had more than just Arthur the King as a Solar-ranked powerhouse. However, most of the other old monsters were in seclusion, spending their days holed up in laboratories. White Phosphorus City clearly wouldn't go out of its way to offend them over something like this, so both sides had always exercised considerable restraint.
But now, it was obvious that one of those old monsters had been dragged into the affair.
"How dare you lay a hand on my distant kin!" The fury was palpable in the voice that emerged from the black clouds.
The materialized soul pressure forced every wizard and warlock to collapse to the ground. Only the prisoners remained standing, their faces brimming with delight.
"Haha… haha… you lowly blood-mixed mongrels actually dared to offend the noble young master Bik! This time I'll execute every last one of you! No — before executing you, I'll make sure you experience every torture the underground has to offer!"
The young man burst into wild laughter.
"It's over! Unless Lord Lin or Arthur the King just happen to be here, even the patriarch of the Lias family wouldn't be a match for a sixth-tier existence…"
Watching the massive white bone hand emerge from the black storm clouds, Luka's eyes were filled with despair.
"Our interests as bloodline warlocks must not be violated by anyone!!!"
At that moment, a thunderous voice suddenly rang out from within White Phosphorus City.
Accompanying the voice was a terrifying bloodline power, as though infinite and eternal. Crimson light dyed the entire sky red, pressing the dark clouds off to one side.
"What bloodline is that? It's definitely not the giant Comorin Python!!!"
An alarmed and furious voice came from within the clouds, tinged with an unmistakable note of fear.
"I am Ouroboros! The Serpent of Infinity and Eternity — Ouroboros!!!" In the next moment, Luka witnessed an enormous serpentine phantom, so vast it was terrifying, as though its body stretched across the entirety of the void itself, erupting from the very center of White Phosphorus City.
Whether it was the colossal serpentine body or the strange scales covering it, everything looked completely different from the giant Comorin Python, yet it filled Luka with an overwhelming urge to prostrate in worship.
"This is... this is the legendary Emperor's Bloodline?"
Even as a veteran warlock within the Serpent's Ring, this was the first time he had directly witnessed the eruption of the Emperor's Bloodline.
But the familiar sensation within his blood, along with the command that stemmed from the depths of his very genes, drove Luka straight to his knees. Tears welled uncontrollably in his eyes.
As the direct bloodline descendant of Lin, the Emperor's Bloodline had inherited that same power of absolute dominion — the authority of life and death — over all the Comorin bloodline descendants.
Now, having witnessed the majesty of the Emperor's Bloodline firsthand, Luka finally understood why the other bloodline families had acted as they did.
A bloodline this terrifying was indeed worth pursuing at any cost.