Mushroom Lord in the Underground City

Chapter 507 - 497: Xiao Xi’s Loyalty

In the royal hall after the council, Sigmund did not leave immediately.

The Empire had always respected the strong.

Just now he had completely defeated Mofulei in a clash of Spiritual Power, and His Majesty had deliberately glossed over his mistakes in the meeting to preserve his dignity; this was the respect he deserved.

But that didn’t mean the matter of his command error, which had led to heavy losses for the army and dragged down subsequent strategic deployments, would just be brushed aside.

Bear in mind, even a Prince who failed only because of the irresistible force of Rage had received a certain level of punishment in the council, let alone him.

However, Sigmund had come prepared.

In the shadows below the stone steps, Sigmund knelt on one knee, holding up in both hands a platinum vessel engraved with intricate runes.

Before the Emperor could speak, he said first, "Your Majesty, please allow me to present ’Twilight Kiss’."

"Twilight Kiss..." Mortis leaned back on the throne, motioned for a guard to take the vessel and lift the lid. Inside was only some seemingly ordinary fresh blood.

"This is a special Half-Elf heart’s blood, carefully screened and cultivated over a long period." Sigmund maintained a humble posture. "Every drop contains the ultimate Deliciousness."

Mortis looked at the crimson liquid within, but his expression hardly changed.

He knew Sigmund wanted to use this to curry favor with him, in exchange for a lighter subsequent punishment, but just a jar of blood like this...

To the Blood Race, the taste of different Races’ blood might vary a little, but in the end what they savored was the Power within.

The stronger the person, the more power their blood contained.

As for cultivating blood like this, it wasn’t as if no Blood Race had tried it before. The result was always spending enormous effort and time only to make some negligible improvement in flavor; really nothing to look forward to.

And he’d even taken it upon himself to use the name "Twilight"...

Looking at this jar of blood, Mortis instead thought of that human Sword Saint.

The one who had left a wound on his neck that had yet to heal, forcing him to rely on a blood armor to conceal it.

That one’s blood should have been brimming with Power. Whether eaten directly or used to cast [Blood Manipulation], it would’ve been top tier. Unfortunately, back then he’d been in a rush because of the Demon King’s unsealing and had no time to deal with the corpse. A pity.

He glanced at Sigmund, still kneeling below. Though he had little expectation, Mortis would still give him some face.

The ring on the ring finger of his right hand flashed several times, and a faint Magic Power fluctuation enveloped the entire vessel, detecting no toxins.

Only then did Mortis take a light sip.

At the foot of the steps, Sigmund remained kneeling with his head lowered; from his angle he could only catch a glimpse of the hem of His Majesty’s long black robe.

Suddenly, the feet in those long boots with dark gold-thread patterns tensed ever so slightly.

Though it was gone in an instant, that subtle change did not escape Sigmund’s eyes.

It worked!

A clear swallowing sound came from the throne, followed by a second sip, a third sip...

Mortis was still the Emperor, possessed of extraordinary self-control.

After three sips, he set down the jar; half the blood remained inside.

"Sigmund," the Emperor strove to keep his voice steady, "you should be well aware that the leniency shown in today’s council does not mean the Empire will forget your mistakes."

"I understand, Your Majesty." Sigmund replied with his head lowered.

"However, your original judgment cannot be said to be wrong either. At Dragon Roar Valley, we merely suffered from bad intelligence..." Mortis tapped the armrest of the throne with his fingertip. "Hand over the management rights to the two mines in the Eastern Region, and use twenty percent of the taxes from the next three years to compensate Virelis for her losses."

This punishment was far lighter than he’d anticipated.

Sigmund rejoiced inwardly, while outwardly he maintained his deference. "I shall obey Your Majesty’s decree."

After a brief silence, Mortis asked in a seemingly casual tone, "This ’Twilight Kiss’... it must take quite some time to cultivate, does it not?"

"It indeed requires meticulous care. These special, pure Half-Elves feed only on [Delicious] fruits; they eat better than most nobles. Coupled with special rituals and secret medicines, only then can such a result be achieved..."

In his mind, Lin Jun watched Little Xi spouting nonsense. How could he possibly know where this blood came from.

"Pure" Half-Elves, who are you kidding!

Lin Jun knew perfectly well what his own D Level personnel were like.

No Half-Elves to be found, but plenty of burly brutes with hairy legs and chests.

This guy Little Xi... he’s got potential as a salesman!

After spinning a whole tragic cultivating-backstory that didn’t exist, Sigmund finally said the words the Emperor most wanted to hear: "If Your Majesty enjoys it, your servant can present one jar every month."

"So be it," Mortis nodded in satisfaction, then gave his final instruction. "The war has paused for now; it’s time we found a way to retrieve the Holy Scripture. I’m not at ease sending Eleanor alone. You will go and assist him as well."

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

After Sigmund left, Mortis pressed a hand to his brow, pondering his various arrangements.

The Demon Race had always had a means of roughly locating the Holy Scripture. Previously, when it had fallen into the Underground City in human territory, they’d had no way to move on it.

And now the latest location showed the Holy Scripture had actually appeared in the north, perhaps connected to the abnormal severe cold over that land.

It was time to retrieve the Holy Scripture. Leaving it to wander outside was ultimately a hidden danger.

When the seal was first broken, the Holy Scripture had been their prime suspect.

But after they completed the location tracing, that possibility was ruled out.

What remained a mystery to this day was: who had actually broken the Barrier, and how.

There was a mole.

In Mortis’s view, this was obvious.

The Demon King had escaped the seal, the Hero was still growing, and there were still traitors within who had not been rooted out...

Internal turmoil and external threats made even this ruler of the strongest Empire on the Continent feel weary.

He raised the gold vessel unconsciously and took a light sip.

Gulp—

[Delicious Level 6]

An unprecedentedly fresh and savory flavor blossomed between his lips and teeth. For an instant, all his accumulated worries seemed to melt along with this mouthful of delicacy in his mouth.

Sadly, wonderful moments are always brief.

When he came back to his senses, the vessel was already empty.

He knew Sigmund must have kept some for himself, but the amount was surely limited.

Such a rarity was supposed to be hard to obtain. As an Emperor, he wouldn’t stoop to scheming over his vassal’s private stash just for a single taste.

"Once a month, huh..."

His low murmur gently echoed through the vast, empty hall.

...

At the same time, on the post road back to High Castle Fortress, Sigmund was tilting his head back and chugging.

Gulp gulp gulp—

Unlike the fine vessel he’d offered the Emperor, what he held now was just an ordinary glass jar, and the contents were slightly different—the one he was drinking was [Delicious Level 10].

As resupply for this trip, they’d prepared two whole big sacks of these blood jars.

Having just escaped punishment, Sigmund rarely allowed himself to indulge, downing jar after jar in quick succession. The sweet, rich blood slid down his throat, bringing a sense of satisfaction he’d never felt before.

"Speaking of which, that old guy wants you to go look for some Holy Scripture. What are you planning to do?" Lin Jun asked.

Sigmund wiped the blood from the corner of his lips, long since used to his roommate speaking of the Emperor with such utter lack of reverence.

"It’s merely assisting that fool Eleanor in carrying out a mission. Even if it fails, she’ll be punished first." He gently swirled the half-full glass jar in his hand, watching the rippling crimson within. "Compared to that, His Majesty’s recent redeployments of the Blood Guard and dark agents are far more worth paying attention to. My intuition tells me there must be some important secret hidden in there."

Lin Jun smacked his lips twice.

Listen to you. Little Xi, aren’t you being a bit disloyal here...

I like it!