Chapter 1378: The Queen in White
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Many people fled across the mountains as though they were running for their lives. Everyone had a flustered look on their face, and they kept turning their heads to look behind them. It was as if they were afraid that a demon was coming after them.
These were the indigenous people from the city whom Mu Chen had saved. After they had left the city, they rushed the entire way, in fear of being captured by the Fiend Blood Tribe again. They did not dare to stop moving. Even though some of their team members dropped off along the way, most of them continued to press on.
Mu Chen stood in the sky above these people. He withdrew his spiritual energy and hid himself in the void. As he looked at the indigenous people, he went deep in thought. Mu Chen had been following them for some time, and he could tell that the people knew where they were going. Apparently, they knew where they had to go in order to be safe.
"Is it the queen whom they were referring to?" Mu Chen muttered to himself, and he found it strange. Is it possible that the indigenous people have the power to fend for themselves in the Lower Planes? However, he found it unlikely. How can they gather together when the Fiend Blood Tribe is ruling over them?
Mu Chen did not show himself to these people for several reasons as he followed them secretly. He wanted them to lead him to the queen whom they were talking about. Mu Chen did not want to associate with them before he knew more about the queen. He had come alone to the Fiend Blood Tribe's territory, and he had to be careful.
As Mu Chen thought of this, he lowered his head once again to look at the people who were on the run. After hurrying along for two days, Mu Chen felt that they had started to slow down. He then looked into the distance, and his gaze froze.
He saw many towering cities beyond the mountains. The cities were bustling with noise, and they were joined together with high city walls. From far, they looked like a large city-state.
Mu Chen glanced at it, and he was unable to see the end of the city-state. According to his estimation, there were about 100,000,000 indigenous people staying in the city-state.
He found it puzzling that the Fiend Blood Tribe had allowed such a large number of indigenous people to exist. As Mu Chen was still thinking about this, those people who had reached the city-state shouted out in joy. They then flooded toward the city-state.
As they neared the city-state, a few hundred figures darted out and stopped them from entering.
"Where did you come from?" those people shouted as they looked at the large amount of people moving toward the city-state. Apparently, they were the sentries.
"We come from Battle City," the girl whom Mu Chen had saved earlier said loudly as she stepped out.
"Battle City?" The sentries looked at one another in amazement and asked, "That place is being guarded by a Blood Demon General. How did you manage to escape from him?"
The girl said excitedly, "A deity has come down from the heavens and killed the top powers of the Fiend Blood Tribe in Battle City. He even killed the Blood Demon General with one blow!"
The sentries widened their eyes and rebuked her at the same time, saying, "You are spouting nonsense!"
The sentries were aware of the ruthless Fiend Blood Tribe. They could not fend off the Fiend Blood Tribe's power, and the Blood Demon General was even more terrifying. However, the girl standing before them said that the Blood Demon General had been killed by someone with one blow, which made it sound ridiculous! However, the rest of the indigenous people backed up her claims, and they looked so excited that the sentries were taken aback.
One of the sentries asked the leader softly, "Captain, could they be telling the truth?"
The captain furrowed his brows. Although he found it ridiculous, since so many people had corroborated the story, what the girl had said might be true.
"If this is true, we will have to report to the queen immediately." The look in the captain's eyes changed, and he waved his hand and said, "Let them in." He then looked at the girl and said, "Follow me. We shall report this to the queen and fill her in with the details!" Having said that, he turned around. The city gate behind him slowly opened, and the people flooded in with joy, having escaped from the calamity.
A towering palace was located at the center of the city. After the captain had reported the matter, quick chiming sounds resounded in the palace. The people at the top levels of the city-state quickly gathered together in the main hall.
Mu Chen hid himself in the void and looked at the main hall. He was surprised to see that there were many fluctuations around the people in the main hall, and they were not weak. Apparently, Mu Chen had compared their strength to those indigenous people whom he had met earlier.
There were still some of them who seemed to be powerful. According to Mu Chen's speculation, the power of these people should be on par with that of the Blood Demon General. If they were in the Great Thousand World, their power would be comparable to that of the Upper Earthly Sovereigns.
When Mu Chen sensed it more carefully, he noticed that these people indistinctly exuded a cold aura that was similar to that of the Fiend Blood Tribe. These people have the power of the Fiend Blood Tribe in their bodies. Mu Chen squinted. Although the city-state looked as though it was independent, it was still being eyed by the Fiend Blood Tribe.
"Greetings, your majesty!" everyone shouted and kneeled down on one knee as Mu Chen was sizing up the power of the top levels in the city-state. He sensed that a lady in white was slowly making her way to the main hall. He was surprised to see that the lady, who was supposed to be the queen, was a ravishingly beautiful girl.
The girl looked elegant, and her skin was fair like snow. She had a voluptuous figure, and her brows made her look heroic. She looked awe-inspiring and exuded an oppressive aura.
Mu Chen was not amazed by her age or looks, but he was shocked by the powerful fluctuations she exuded. Her strength was comparable to that of the Blood Demon General's.
There is no cold aura of the Fiend Blood Tribe in her. That is to say, she has cultivated the strength on her own. However, her strength is not refined. Part of it must be from external forces, Mu Chen exclaimed in his heart, and he looked at the girl with admiration. He knew that she had to have obtained many opportunities and be talented in order to reach her current level in the Lower Planes.
If Mu Chen was right in his speculation, the girl must have been the most powerful person among the indigenous people in the Lower Planes. It seemed that in every place, whenever a tribe was about to be exterminated, a hero would stand out to take the lead and save his people.
As Mu Chen was thinking about this, the girl in white sat in the main seat in the hall. She looked at the kneeling girl and asked gently, "Can you tell me in detail what has happened in Battle City?"
The girl lifted up her head and looked emotionally at the girl in white, who was looking gently at her. When all the creatures in the entire world had been slaughtered ruthlessly by the Fiend Blood Tribe, the girl in white was the only one who had stood up for them. She had gone through much pain and suffering in order to give the people a safe place to live. Many of them looked upon her as their savior for what she had done during the great despair.
"Your Majesty, what we have said is true. A deity has come down from the heavens and killed the Blood Demon General with only one blow. He is extremely powerful." The girl became excited when she related the matter to the queen. Her voice resounded in the main hall, and as expected, there was another uproar.
The girl in white was moved when she heard it. She was well aware of the Blood Demon Captain's strength. Although she was able to defeat him, it would be impossible for her to kill the Blood Demon Captain with one blow.
"Ha, what deity are you talking about!? This is absurd!" Someone suddenly sneered as the people in the main hall were filled with amazement. All of them looked at the front of the hall and saw an umbrageous-looking elder smiling coldly.
"I don't think that this is the time to talk about the absurd deity. We should be thinking about how to deal with the Fiend Blood Tribe. They must be angry with us!" The umbrageous-looking elder scanned around, looked the queen in the face, and said, "The Blood Demon General and so many top powers from the Fiend Blood Tribe have been killed, thus they will not take it lying down. They will certainly track these people down.
"I suggest that Your Majesty send these people back and give the Fiend Blood Tribe another 5,000,000 men as compensation to appease them. If they get angry with us, we may even lose this piece of land where we can enjoy some peace!"
Three other people echoed what the umbrageous looking elder had said. They were three middle-aged men whose eyes were filled with killing intent. "What the Grand Advisor has said is right. We have to quickly appease the Fiend Blood Tribe before they jump on us. We must send these people back to them."
Many people who were at the high level turned ghastly pale when they heard what the three men had said. They clenched their fists, but they dared not say a word. The Grand Advisors' power was second only to the queen's, and most importantly, they were related to the Fiend Blood Tribe and had obtained their strength from the Fiend Blood Tribe.
"Your Majesty, please don't send us back!" the girl in the main hall cried out. She looked pale and bowed down with her face to the ground, begging the queen.
The queen clenched her fists. Her fingernails poked into her palms and caused her much pain.
A man wearing armor turned pale. He could no longer remain silent, and he shouted, "Grand Advisor, these people look upon us as their refuge, and they have come all the way here. How can you be so heartless to send them back to the demons!?"
The Grand Advisor looked coldly at the man and said mockingly, "General, you are such a nice person. Are you willing to fight the Fiend Blood Tribe if we enrage them?"
The general gritted his teeth and said, "Even if I were to die, it would be better than being in our current situation! The rest of the people thought that we would be able to survive here because of our strength. However, all of us know that every year, we have to send 5,000,000 men to the Fiend Blood Tribe as slaves!
"We have to do this in order to survive. Do we want to continue living without dignity? Instead of doing this year after year, why don't we fight it out with the Fiend Blood Tribe, even if it costs us our lives!" Having said that, his eyes turned red. His anger filled the main hall, and all the people who were at the high level shared his sentiment.
The queen sat on the throne, shivering. Her fingernails poked deep into her palms, causing blood to flow out. Although many of them looked upon her as their savior, she knew that she was not powerful enough to save them. The country could survive, not because of her, but because the Fiend Blood Tribe needed a continual supply of food.
Every time she handed over the thousands of people to the Fiend Blood Tribe and saw the despair on the faces of her people, she hated herself for being incompetent. She had wanted to fight it out with the Fiend Blood Tribe on several occasions, but she knew that if she did that, they would have no more opportunities to escape from them, and they would be utterly destroyed.
Mu Chen hid in the void and looked at what was going on before him. He suddenly came to a realization that the country was able to exist because the Fiend Blood Tribe had allowed them to, as they needed a large supply of food. This country appeared to be a place of refuge, but in actual fact, it was depending on its people to help them survive.
It was pathetic to be in such a situation. Mu Chen sighed in his heart. At this instant, he suddenly saw the queen lifting up her head to look at the void where he was hiding. Her gaze shocked Mu Chen. He had hidden himself well in the void, and no one had noticed him. Has she discovered my presence?
As Mu Chen was feeling baffled, the queen stood up and bit her lips. She then bowed slightly in his direction and said in a hoarse voice, "Sir, since you are here, why not show yourself."