Thousand-Faced Dragon

Chapter 488 Urging
Blood flowed across the land, and the corpses were either partially looted or completely disappeared.

But those bits of flesh and blood often disappear very quickly, as if the earth has swallowed them up.

Whether those lives lost here were swallowed up by this living labyrinth and became nourishment for the beasts is an answer no one can give.

Rean stood in the center of the battlefield, the monsters around him had lost their life force, and further away, there were also battlefields.

"It's become incredibly popular!"

Everywhere is a battlefield, and everyone is either hunting or looking for their next target.

For the first time, a strange sight appeared in the shallow layer of the underground ruins: there were more people than monsters.

A single demonstration ignited the passion of the entire city.

Too many people are involved, and they want everything, not just specific monster materials!
"One piece of dragon-type material!!"

"A rotten wood centaur is useless, isn't it?"

"You can find an alchemist to refine and synthesize it, how could it be useless? It's just that the market price is relatively low."

"But rare monsters of the 'horse' and 'centaur' types aren't very valuable, are they? They're too common in the Prime Material Plane."

The materials needed for "specifically hatching monsters" have also skyrocketed in price, naturally attracting a new wave of gold diggers.

Rean was one of them, but more importantly, he was a follower in the shadows who showed those around him the reality that "I am still underground," but he never left.

[Rean Sudar (Li Ensu), Beast Transformation: 17.9%, Dragon Transformation: 18.1%]

As a consequence, having not been exposed to the aura of ancient beasts for a long time, the beast transformation progress bar increased slightly again.

But Rean isn't so nervous now. His abilities as a high-level professional are already on track, and the slow growth of his dragon transformation due to his three-headed dragon bloodline is suppressing his transformation, making his beast form very stable.

Having faced the "snake," his tolerance for alienation has increased.

"How is the plan progressing?"

Rean was not fighting alone; his squad was always by his side.

"Still under research. A true dragon is not a sub-dragon after all; it requires dragon-type materials."

“I can provide my blood and scales, and if that’s not enough, there’s a blue dragon.”

"That's not what I meant. In the eyes of alchemists, gem dragons are no longer the same as chromatic dragons. Most of them have become elementalized, and are essentially elemental dragons rather than dragons. I need specialized supplies, and what's worse, it's also both light and wind attribute. Where am I supposed to get light attribute elemental creatures?"

Victoria muttered a lot, but Rean didn't listen attentively.

"How long will it take?" As the client, he had the right to be capricious.

"I don't know. Those great alchemists need to research new rules. Give me two more days. If it really doesn't work, I'll just pile on the materials."

As the second party, Victoria has the right to directly increase the price for unreasonable demands.

She wasn't lying. For alchemists, many problems aren't unsolvable, but simply a matter of what the cost would be.

No elemental dragons? Then use elemental crystals and dragon crystals. As long as you triple the materials, I don't believe you can't make it!
With monster-hunting teams everywhere, how can you not find materials? Just buy them.

"Let's just pile on the materials, there's not enough time."

"The cost estimate is between three thousand and ten thousand gold coins. Are you sure?"

"Uh, why is it so expensive?" Rean was instantly uncertain.

"And that doesn't even include the recent increase in material prices! It's all your fault; now the alchemists can't even afford to do experiments," the supplier said, feigning helplessness as always. "But they're making even more money. Fine, go talk to Dania; if she doesn't want to reimburse, just postpone it for a few days." The client instantly saw through everything. Your costs are higher, and that's all being passed on to upstream and downstream suppliers; even the contract manufacturing has doubled the price!
But since I really can't afford it, I guess I'll have to find a rich woman.

Victoria nodded happily; this was exactly what she had expected. Rean sighed; he, the private alchemist, had probably earned at least 30% commission again.

But when he communicated with Suliman and the others privately, he confirmed that it seemed only she could earn this money.

Her "soul alchemy" not only takes a different approach, but also allows her to create virtual objects using soul and flesh materials. The temporary creations are of subtle strength, but the alchemical materials are only slightly weaker.

Once gold is refined, it can be replaced with Philosopher's Gold (sulfide brass) for counterfeiting, making a fortune.

If she weren't afraid of incurring public wrath, she could probably single-handedly drive down the market price for second-tier material processing and potion purification.

Incidentally, after this new development, no matter how pitiful Victoria's cries are, the alchemists are destined to make a fortune. Whether the materials are expensive or not has little to do with them, since there are countless suckers willing to be fleeced.

"Three days, three days at most."

The conspiracy had already been completed silently.

A dream-like coordination allows the members of the alumni reunion to weave a super net. As Dania has already said, some people have been itching to act, and the information revealed by the spies shows that they are trying to seize this new opportunity.

The once neglected underground world has now become a treasure trove, and some former nobles have suddenly become envious.

In particular, the shallow "advanced monster hatching grounds" are extremely limited. This was originally a prerequisite for the relative stability of the front-line bases, but it has become a new treasure trove to be fought over.

The old nobles and the church had already requested that a new underground town be built, but Dania directly rejected them.

“Shallow areas won’t work, nor will areas near the two existing towns. Our limited resources must be used to explore lower-level spaces; otherwise, when the time comes, all our efforts will be in vain.”

Dania used the term "righteousness," which at least outwardly made it impossible for the other party to refute her. Such behavior of wasting resources for one's own benefit should be condemned.

But who wouldn't want to make money while lying down?
"Remember not to take in any adopted sons lately, or you might get killed and your family fortune will be taken away."

Dania spoke in a joking tone, saying things that were hard to respond to. If the background were two noble families who actually came to send their daughters over as concubines, Rean would be able to laugh.

Rean has no parents or children, so if he dies, the first heir in theory would be Suliman. However, the two are not married, and if he has an adopted son who can inherit the title, there is a real possibility that his lineage will be wiped out.

Dania was describing a rather extreme situation, and she was able to say it because someone had actually done it.

As for those minor nobles who sent their daughters to their homes, the situation was slightly better, but limited. Even without a wife, the concubine still had inheritance rights, and could at least compete with Suliman.

"I have overestimated the moral bottom line and the shamelessness of those people countless times."

Yes, they have no bottom line, but I'm the only one who's truly sincere towards you.

Sallyman smiled sweetly at herself, but if she didn't really understand this silly snake, she probably would have taken her words as a form of manipulation.

“However, given your status and situation, being single is indeed a bit inappropriate,” another Sallyman remarked, seemingly intentionally or unintentionally.

Rean was no longer a small business owned by just a few people. With his fiefdoms in the dock area and the town of Dania, the armed forces of the Weaver Knights, and a large number of half-elf core members under his command, if he weren't in the actual "royal city," he could easily be a powerful count.

"Uh, should I really get married and have a child with inheritance rights?"

Rean was a little confused. If he hadn't known about Suliman's situation, he would have thought she was pressuring him to get married.

"By the way, Mina and the others came specifically for our wedding. She asked me about the approximate time so she could prepare to be a bridesmaid?"

Okay, they really are pressuring me to get married.

(End of this chapter)