Lord of Rot

Leech closed his eyes again and transferred his consciousness to the body of the Snake-man, Biqi. Her abilities were also the flesh-enhancing type. Aside from being exceptionally flexible, he found this body the most comfortable to use.

They advanced in fits and starts, the journey quiet and uneventful.

Upon reaching the deepest part, the group discovered a hidden chamber.

It was less of a chamber and more of a cavern.

The inside looked just like a bird trap. A gleaming Golden Cup sat right in the middle, like a woman waving at the group, giggling and calling out, ”Come and play, handsome~” No, that wasn’t it. It was more like, ”There’s a trap here. Hurry up and walk into it.”

”A wondrous item!”

Leech had seen his fair share of wondrous items and knew they were inextricably linked to the existence of Transcendents. The moment he saw the Golden Cup, he knew. ’That’s a wondrous item.’

And it was likely an item from a tier above Extraordinary, not some common artifact.

”Just this one cup? I doubt it’s even worth five Jinri. Was this trip really worth it?” The speaker was one of the two Transcendent Mercenaries. Leech had no idea where he’d been hired from.

The other nodded. ”Let’s just grab it and go get our money.”

They might not have seen the Immortal Spirit’s legacy, but the thirty Jinri was the real deal. They were a group of Transcendents, powerful enough to flatten the entire Bonta Market, so they weren’t afraid Kuer Oasis would dare to back out of the deal.

This confidence was precisely why they dared to take the item before demanding payment.

’But is the money really that easy to make?’

The Transcendent Mercenary reached out and picked up the Golden Cup, seeming to awaken something.

The ground beneath them began to tremble. The walls shook as if countless hands were about to burst out. Only when they focused their gaze did they realize they weren’t hands at all, but exposed tree roots.

They had seen the dense network of roots on their way in. Now, those roots came to life, and the group felt as if they had been plunged into an endless sea of them.

”Run!”

Someone shouted, and everyone snapped to their senses, turning to flee.

Leech, still on his horse, stared at the quiet cave entrance, finding it strange. Inside, it sounded like the world was ending, as if the cavern was about to collapse at any moment. Yet outside, there was only a slight tremor. A light breeze drifted by, and his uneasy horse merely snorted.

They had gone so deep, the exit probably tens of miles away. It was like two different worlds.

”Save me!” A hand reached out toward Leech. He snapped back to his senses, his consciousness returning to the underground cavern.

The roots had woven themselves into a net, blocking the path forward.

The root-filled passage that had seemed so boring on the way down had now become a deathtrap.

Two figures were caught by the roots. One was the Mercenary holding the Golden Cup. The other’s cloak was torn open in their struggle, revealing a full head of silver hair and delicate features.

Her ears were long and pointed, very much like an elf’s.

The one who had cried for help was the Mercenary. The roots weren’t moving quickly, but once entangled, the two of them showed none of the power expected of Transcendents, hanging helplessly in midair.

”Help... help...” His face was aging rapidly.

The female Transcendent from the Northern Territory and the other Mercenary took action, hacking through the roots to free them.

The Mercenary had aged so much his hair had turned white. When he opened his mouth, his teeth fell out in clumps. His skin was covered in wrinkles and age spots, and his back was bent and stooped, as if the roots had siphoned away decades of his life.

As for the silver-haired, elf-eared girl, she thanked the female Transcendent from the Northern Territory who had saved her. Her body appeared unchanged, but her pretty face was etched with caution. This must have been her first time encountering something so strange.

”Don’t let the roots touch you! They drain your life force!”

Easier said than done. The escape route was already sealed, and the roots were lashing out aggressively, making it almost impossible to avoid being caught.

Only Leech’s Corpse Ghosts had their own internal way of communicating. With Leech himself multitasking to assist them, the roots were completely unable to grab them.

Trevor, ’the Four-Armed’, was nearly ensnared by the roots. Gripping four scimitars in his four hands, he rushed over to the Corpse Ghost squad, seeking protection. He was nearly relieved of his nose by a sword for his trouble.

He immediately dropped to the ground and yelled, ”My lords, we’re on the same side! Friendlies!”

One of the Corpse Ghosts spoke. ”You two, cover the rear!”

Allen, ’the Scorpion’, had followed him over and quickly agreed.

It was a clear case of seeking shelter under a bigger tree.

Compared to their good fortune, the Mercenary who had been caught and aged so rapidly was grabbed again. This time, no one managed to save him. A few breaths later, he had become a desiccated corpse and was dragged into the earth by the roots, vanishing without a trace.

Only the Golden Cup remained, falling and landing at someone’s feet.

The man who had once given Leech the dragon-ore gem casually picked up the Golden Cup at his feet. ”The rest of us need to stick together,” he said, ”or we’re all going to die in here!”

He had seen how powerful the Corpse Ghost squad was. Compared to his own disorganized group, Baron Leech’s subordinates worked in perfect sync. They were all different heights with different abilities, yet they coordinated as seamlessly as a person’s own left and right hands. They didn’t need words. ’It was as if one thought, ’I’ll attack the front,’ and the other would automatically guard his back.’ They didn’t even need to exchange glances.

He had no idea how they had trained to achieve such cohesion, or if it was just that former Soldiers were naturally superior to common folk like them.

No matter how the roots surged and coiled, they couldn’t trap them. It was like a snake made of snow trying to circle a bonfire; it wanted to strike the flickering red shadow, but it would melt the moment it drew near.

The remaining Transcendent Mercenary, the woman from the Northern Territory, the silver-haired girl, the man, and another mysterious figure in black formed their own small group of five. They stuck together, slowly making their way toward the exit.

「Outside the cave」

Leech dismounted his horse.

”My lord?” Kuer Oasis swallowed hard. He thought Baron Leech already knew what was happening inside, but then dismissed it as impossible.

The distance between the surface and the cavern was immense, with the passage winding for tens of miles.

’Even if Leech is a Transcendent, he can’t possibly see that far, can he?’

’As long as I deny everything, the Baron can’t do a thing to me.’

It had just been a guess moments ago, but seeing Kuer Oasis’s expression, Leech’s suspicions were instantly confirmed.

He reached out, grabbed Kuer Oasis by the shoulder, and lifted him effortlessly into the air. ”Look,” he said, ”you’ve gotten taller.”

Kuer Oasis’s legs kicked wildly in the air. ”M-My lord! What are you doing!”

He seemed to forget that when power and status are so mismatched, there is no need for a polite conversation, nor any need for proof.

”What’s in there?” Leech asked, holding the man so easily it looked less like he was holding a person and more like he was holding up a rag.

”The... the Immortal Spirit’s legacy, my lord. I told you before.”

Leech shook his head. ”You’re not being honest. How about I send you down there myself?”

”I’ll talk! Inside, there’s a Golden Holy Grail! It can heal anything, even reverse life and death...”

With just a little intimidation from Leech, Kuer Oasis spilled his guts.

It turned out his family had acquired an exquisite Golden Cup many years ago. During the blood moon two years prior, it had suddenly begun to glow. A servant who touched it aged rapidly soon after. At first, no one paid it much mind, but as more strange incidents occurred, they confirmed the Golden Cup was the cause.

His father ordered him to dispose of the accursed thing immediately.

So, Kuer arranged for men to dig a cavern here, intending to bury the Golden Holy Grail within it. However, he couldn’t suppress his curiosity and began to research it, eventually discovering the cup’s connection to the myths of the Immortal Spirits.

The myths spoke of a ”Cauldron of Plenty.” The broth boiled within it could grant bountiful harvests, heal all wounds, cure any disease, reverse death, dispel darkness, and bring light. The Golden Holy Grail was the vessel used to hold the broth poured from this cauldron.

After enlisting scholars to study the matter for a long time, Kuer Oasis came to a realization: by feeding the Golden Holy Grail with Transcendents, he might be able to produce the legendary broth.

He couldn’t bring himself to bury the Golden Holy Grail forever, so he made a few modifications to the cavern, turning it into a crude trap.

The trap was simple, but no matter how powerful the people who entered were, none had ever emerged.

”...But I have no idea why those roots suddenly appeared, my lord!” Kuer Oasis pleaded, even though Leech hadn’t laid a finger on him besides lifting him up.

’The sudden appearance of the roots is probably related to the Immortal Spirit myths,’ Leech mused.

’Then again, a better way to find out if he’s telling the truth would be to turn Kuer Oasis into one of my undead.’

”Did you ever think about how you were going to get the Golden Holy Grail out?” Leech asked.

Seeing him hesitate, Leech tightened his grip slightly. ”Well?!”

Kuer hurriedly blurted out, ”I tried it before! Believers of the Immortal Spirit aren’t harmed by the roots!”

Leech couldn’t tell if he was lying.

But now he understood why Kuer Oasis’s traps were always successful. He always spoke the truth—or at least, his lies were wrapped in seven parts truth. Even a Transcendent with the ability to detect falsehoods would probably be fooled.

The trap was simple, but it had never failed.

Unfortunately for him, he had run into Leech—a single person capable of splitting his consciousness to control multiple bodies at once.

It was too late to find any Believers of the Immortal Spirit now, and it was impossible to know if Kuer was even telling the truth. Leech could only wait for his Corpse Ghosts to fight their way out.

The Corpse Ghosts were doing fine. They weren’t truly locked in a desperate struggle; they were just steadily making their way out.

But back in the cavern, the situation had changed again.

A root shot toward the man holding the Golden Holy Grail. He reacted in a flash, his left hand lashing out to grab it. The root snapped.

But he failed to dodge another one attacking from behind, and it scraped a cut across the side of his face.

Blood dripped down.

”Look out!”

The makeshift team of five was a far cry from the Corpse Ghosts, but by following behind Leech’s squad, the pressure on them was much lighter.

One of the Corpse Ghosts suddenly opened its mouth, a Fireball coalescing before its face.

BOOM!

As the wheel-sized Fireball blasted forth, the Corpse Ghost’s head snapped back from the recoil, its body trembling.

A huge section of roots was incinerated. The others found the resulting wave of hot air unbearable. As they stared at the figure fully encased in iron armor, their hearts filled with shock.

’The Fireball was incredibly fast, and its power was terrifying—far beyond what a normal Transcendent could unleash. If that had been aimed at me, could I have blocked it?’

’And that was just the aftershock we felt from the rear!’

’The answer was an unequivocal no!’

”We’re almost out!” the silver-haired girl shouted with delight. She could faintly see the upward-sloping passage ahead. They probably only had a few miles left to go.

They had been fighting for who knew how long, but they were finally about to escape. Unfortunately, the other Mercenary had also died, succumbing to old age.

She suddenly noticed something was off about the man walking in front of her. He was holding the Golden Cup, and he had a pained expression on his face.

”What’s wrong?”

”I’ve never felt better!” The man was overjoyed. ”My sickness is gone! It’s gone! Hahaha!”

”Gone?”

Even the Corpse Ghosts in the distance turned a sliver of their attention toward him.

’Does the Golden Holy Grail really contain a broth that can heal anything?’ Leech was astonished.

”M-My lord...” Kuer Oasis’s strained plea for mercy reached him. Leech’s consciousness snapped back from the environment of clashing steel to the desolate desert. He looked at Kuer Oasis, still held aloft in one hand. The man’s shoulder was now deformed; while controlling the Corpse Ghosts in battle, Leech’s physical body had inadvertently tightened its grip.

Leech let go, letting the man fall to the ground with a heavy THUD. He writhed on the sand like a maggot.

”I can overlook the fact that you tricked those people and sent them to their deaths,” Leech said. ”After all, they were willing participants in their own fleecing.”

Kuer was overjoyed, ignoring the pain from his broken shoulder. ”Thank you, my lord...”

”But,” Leech cut him off, ”thirty Jinri per person. You still have to settle that bill. That comes to a total of 420 Jinri.”

Though not everyone who went into the cavern was his subordinate, Leech selflessly took on the difficult responsibility of collecting their debts.

”I...”

Kuer was stunned. He’d been luring people to their deaths for over a year, and he had never once paid. No one had ever managed to come back alive to ask for their money.

’Oh,’ he thought. ’So I’m actually supposed to pay.’

”But I don’t have the money,” he said, his face a mask of misery.

’I knew you didn’t have any money!’

”Then you can pay with your assets,” Leech said calmly. ”Compensate me with the Bonta Market.”

”What?!”