Chapter Seventy: Rania

"You haven't told us your name yet, ignorant lower race," Lantis had already begun her barrage.

"What? Do you think you have the right to speak here, you brainless busty woman? Am I right, Master?" Admittedly, the seductive allure radiating from this new arrival, with her mature charm, was fatally attractive to Li Ren. That one word—Master—was enough to fulfill the fantasies of countless shut-ins.

"Put away your charms. When it comes to our lord, you'd do well to show a little more respect. Otherwise, I won't mind helping our lord discipline an unruly brat like you," Lantis continued fiercely, deliberately thrusting out her chest as she spoke.

Li Ren was wise enough to keep his mouth shut. He even considered following Shadow's example and quietly slipping away, distancing himself from the conversation between these two stunningly beautiful and extraordinary women.

He had no idea why they were so quick to target each other.

Looking at Li Ren’s skeletal face, completely devoid of expression, one could hardly discern his mood unless he made a very pronounced effort. Perhaps this could be called a leader’s essential quality—never revealing one's emotions. Truly, he was born to lead—such talent left nothing to be desired.

Unable to grasp the situation, the newly arrived beauty could only submit resentfully. She tried to comfort herself that it was only because she couldn't figure out the hierarchy this time, but as she lowered her head, she failed to notice the fleeting cold smile on the queen’s lips.

"The queen’s authority is not to be challenged!" That was Shadow's thought, based on memories of a past life. He looked on with pity at the woman before him, who would later be known as the Crimson Eye of the Fallen Cloud, the vampire queen Lania. Was the queen who had oppressed you until the end in your past life so easy to defy?

"Honored Master, I am Lania, your most loyal servant." Lania bent in a courtly bow, but once again, Li Ren caught a glimpse of a benefit, and Lantis, seeing his reaction, flicked her fingers. A thread of black light shot from a strange angle and struck Li Ren’s arm.

Instantly, a stabbing pain forced him to look away. Li Ren felt like crying but had no tears.

"Enough, Lania. Stand up and step back for now." Li Ren’s voice was utterly without emotion, and further imbued with the power of divine fire and the vermilion bird spirit, a force capable of dispelling all evil. The pressure on Lania was overwhelming.

It was precisely because of this that Lania, upon being summoned, had tried her utmost to ingratiate herself with her new master—even going so far as to covertly challenge Lantis, who clearly already held sway in their lord’s camp.

Lania obediently positioned herself behind Li Ren, immediately shedding her earlier demeanor. The aura of the vampire queen was powerful enough. Li Ren didn’t bother with the rest; all those trivial matters would naturally be handled by someone else—perhaps Lantis?

For now, he ignored these concerns. Looking at the two million remaining souls, Li Ren pondered whether to continue summoning. The prospect of further powerful summons was tempting, but the cost of each one made his heart ache.

In truth, with the current lineup, defending Fallen Cloud City was no problem at all. But Li Ren was uneasy.

He feared encountering a task similar to the one he’d just accepted. What if, instead of attacking Yuxiao City, the next mission was to defend Fallen Cloud City? In that case, their opponents wouldn't be the current low-level players but the mid-tier forces of the entire Illusionary Mountain Range. A single misstep could end in ruin!

After some thought, he decided to set aside the idea of further summoning. The system was unlikely to issue two similar missions in a row, and even if it did, it would probably only involve the player world. If that world were to attack directly, Li Ren would have no fear at all.

By his calculation, there were only five days left before the assault on Yuxiao City. After returning to the lord’s castle with the other three, Li Ren began reviewing the latest reports on Fallen Cloud City.

Lania naturally took her place beside Shadow, her seat just one step below his. As the vampire queen, etiquette mattered greatly to her kind, and her conduct was impeccable.

The upcoming siege, scheduled for five days hence, had already become the talk of the human world. The recent trade records in Fallen Cloud City said it all: every potion, piece of equipment, and tool was being consumed at a staggering rate.

This, in turn, had driven up the price of raw materials even further.

Li Ren worried about what the mission required to be considered complete. Taking Yuxiao City in one stroke seemed unlikely, but if the goal was to attack for a set duration, maintain a certain intensity, or seize a particular item from Yuxiao City, any of these were possible.

Achieving these objectives would not be easy.

While Li Ren mulled over his troubles, a notification arrived: someone was requesting entry.

Ordinary players were unlikely to enter the lord’s castle—unless they launched a direct attack. Even in player-established guild cities, only members could apply for entry and trigger a notification.

In their current situation, there were no allied guild players. At a stretch, Soft Moon and her companions could apply, but it would never occur to them. In their eyes, Li Ren was acting as deputy lord; to request entry into the lord’s castle out of the blue was something they simply wouldn’t do.

That left only one possibility: the Eastern Tribe, the refugees Li Ren had once taken in.

Li Ren wondered, "Why would they come at a time like this?" Still, he didn’t dwell on it and granted them access.

Soon, the chieftain of the Eastern Tribe entered the main hall, accompanied by a young clansman.

"Greetings, Lord," the elder bowed low. Li Ren made no move to stop him, and, with what he considered a kindly tone, asked, "Elder, what brings you here? Is there some trouble among your people?"

"Thanks to your care, Lord, we need nothing more. Simply living peacefully here is more than enough for us. You have been more than generous; if we were to trouble you further, I would have no face left at all."

Li Ren smiled easily. "You are too kind, Elder. So, may I ask what brings you here today?"

"I have come for one thing alone—medicine!"