Thousand-Faced Dragon

Chapter 81 The Arrival of the Demonic Tide
Even after Rean mysteriously disappeared for a whole day, the world didn't stop its rhythm.

The truth is quite the opposite; the day of the awarding of the medal was a landmark moment, and everything began at that moment.

Princess Dania of the royal family has made her official debut, and at the same time, the entire city of Radiant City must consider the threat from the underground. Regardless of where Her Highness obtained the information, when this intelligence is combined with the Beast Order's activities (the Tail Hunting Case), it is highly credible.

When the royal family brings this crisis into the open, burying their heads in the sand is no longer an option; everyone and every organization must confront this threat head-on.

"Compared to the same period last year, the concentrations of magic essence and elemental particles have increased by 7% to 11%, marking seven consecutive years of growth, while this year's growth has more than doubled." The spellcasters brought a rather subtle piece of good news.

When the magical tide arrives, the magic and elements of nature become more active, and spellcasters and magical creatures become more powerful.

If this growth rate were extended over ten or twenty years, it might have already secretly doubled or tripled.

However, nests with higher elemental concentrations also mean that more sleepers and reclusive races have the potential to take action.

Previously, the spellcasters were only focused on having fun, and their spells were noticeably more powerful.

"The astrological observatory reports that sightings of super monsters and dragons have increased by 32% this year, a trend that has been on the rise for the past decade."

As magic becomes more active, all kinds of extraordinary life forms become more active, and by observing their activity frequency, one can indirectly observe the increase in the magic tide.

In particular, some ancient gods and ancient beings from previous eras may also be born from this.

"We communicated with the elders of the Elven Manifestation Sect and confirmed that the arrival of the demonic tide was indeed a fact."

When the verification message arrived, no one was surprised or skeptical. They seemed to have known all along that this moment was about to involve a classic mainland joke.

"The demonic tide is coming soon, and the entire continent will soon be engulfed in flames!" This was a prophecy issued by Sigra, a giant sage of great renown throughout the continent.
The current situation seems to confirm this prediction?

"But this prophecy was made more than two hundred years ago. Isn't 'soon' far too slow?" The sage almost ruined his reputation back then because of this prophecy.

Many countries and races have indeed prepared for war, but those who made the decisions have all grown old and died, and the damned demonic tide has yet to arrive.

"There's nothing we can do about it, that's just how long-lived species are, they have no sense of time." This prophecy has even become a classic joke for short-lived species to mock long-lived species.

It's coming soon? Why hasn't it come in two hundred years? Is this prophecy meant for my grandson?

"Looking back now, the rise of the elemental tide should have started around that time, and it has been rising faster and faster. They experienced several demonic tides, so they may have sensed the signs in advance."

Now, the demonic tide has finally arrived as scheduled, and a new era has begun.
"That's too slow. The fortresses built back then are now abandoned, and the legions trained back then have all died of old age."

When faced with reality, the short-lived creatures are left speechless with despair.

For over a hundred years, anyone who mentions the Demon Tide will be considered a fool, and anyone who actually requests to prepare for war will be laughed at.

But now that the storm is coming, it seems that none of the countries inhabited by the beastmen are prepared.

Prophecies made too early are practically no prophecy at all, and they inevitably cause the short-lived creatures who are waiting in vain to become complacent.

"Don't trust these ancient people too much; they might be doing it on purpose."

Princess Dania, who hosted the event, made no attempt to hide her wariness of the foreign race.

The more you know, the less you believe those big guys with pointed ears. How could they, who were once the masters of the continent, give up the possibility of returning to the center of the world?

They may be trustworthy in peacetime, serving as long-term and stable business allies and friends, but a proper orc royal family and high-ranking nobles will not forget their actions during the Demon Tide.

The confirmation of the impending demonic tide, which also implies the resurgence of the underground "evil god," is likely true.

One aspect is considering the long-term impact of the demonic tide; if the current crisis cannot be overcome, the kingdom may perish.

"The kingdom can no longer do without Radiant City." The kingdom's finances are in dire straits, and among the few remaining cities, Radiant City has become a pillar.

These are not just extraordinary materials from underground ruins; along with the development of these materials, a great deal of commerce, deep processing, magic, and new industries have also moved here.

As the parties involved, the royal family has an inescapable responsibility.

Following the royal announcement, Dania also convened local churches and various international organizations to address the issue of the underground ruins.

The primary task, of course, was to exchange various pieces of information about the underground ruins, but the results were quite frustrating.

"It's terrible, we basically only have records of hunting in the shallows." This refers to the hunting team's area of ​​activity, but more importantly, it refers to the safe, deep routes, which are a treasure trove for each exploration team.

“There are lone strongmen and small teams that conduct deep hunts, but they do not leave behind systematic records.” Hunts targeting a specific material are also not systematic.

"Why is our map of the underworld so blurry? Has no one been specifically managing it before?"

"Who's in charge? A dozen years ago, this was just a fourth-tier city in a kingdom." That's the key to everything. The exploration efforts that were previously not taken seriously were a laissez-faire approach by the people.

Radiant City is a newly emerging city in the kingdom; just over a decade ago, it was an ordinary city.

It will become the pillar of the kingdom today, mainly because the kingdom no longer has many cities.

When it comes to "unstable factors" in a remote area, major powers tend to suppress them if possible.

The initial appointment of the current Earl of Radiance as the city lord was, in a sense, to block up this underground ruin complex, with no intention of further development.

The kingdom back then wasn't lacking in these extraordinary materials. Therefore, in their past plans, they never considered attacking. In their plans, the worst-case scenario was simply abandoning the city.

"For the kingdom of the past, this city is not worth the garrisoning of a legion, much less worth the bloodshed and sacrifice of several legions for it." The kingdom has declined far too quickly; the plans from back then haven't been revised at all.

But the kingdom today cannot do without this city.

"Information on the underground ruins is limited to the last few years. Our main job is to block the entrance and collect taxes and entrance fees; we just need to wait for the adventurers to produce the materials."

The more underground intelligence is gathered, the more helpless the decision-makers become.

Most maps are shallow, making this the safest area, and 90% of adventurers stop here.

Once you venture deeper, not only are the paths complex and easy to get lost on, but the danger also increases significantly as the monsters become stronger.

"We need to build logistics for adventurers." This is the biggest problem at present.

The biggest obstacle to exploring deeper areas is always logistical support. Adventurers who are responsible for their own profits and losses will not venture too deep into the underground ruins; that would be tantamount to suicide.

“Actually, we could ask the gray dwarves and dark elves. They all came from underground ruins, and I highly suspect they have tribes down there.” Someone suggested another idea.

"I did ask about that. They said there's a passage in the underground ruins that leads to the underworld, and that's how they got here."

"Uh, you actually believe them?" Both races are notorious throughout the multiverse.

The underground ruins are home not only to various monsters, but also to alien races, cultists, exiles, and slave traders.

On the contrary, the "Beast Order" and the "Beast Clan," who are the enemies, are basically unknown to anyone.

"I heard there's a swarm of lion scorpions inside, probably from the underworld." These monsters are quite famous, and each one requires a Grand Knight-level warrior to deal with.

"Ha, I've also heard there's a black dragon inside." The eyewitness report of a real dragon is now just a rumor.

When many high-ranking officials spoke up and began exchanging eyewitness accounts from within their respective organizations, the results were chilling.

The troubles that exist outside are also present inside, and it seems that there are quite a few dragons, high-level beast groups, and cultists that don't exist outside either.

Actually, a dozen years ago, this underground ruin wasn't this outrageous, and the monsters roaming the surface weren't that strong.

However, with the resurgence of the demonic tide in recent years, more areas seem to have "awakened," and more underground passages and monster groups have appeared.

"We need intelligence." Under such circumstances, it would be extremely foolish to forcibly send a large army to conquer.

Either you're busy for nothing and can't find your goal, or you perish inexplicably.

"Offer a bounty." This is the most practical approach; as long as the money is right, adventurers will even dare to venture into the abyss and the devil's hell.

"We can deploy the Holy Knights and have them establish a forward base." The high-ranking officials of the various churches reached a consensus: it was time to deploy the Holy Knights.

The Church of the True God will not easily back down in the face of the threat of the beast.

"The adventurers should bring more information. I will extend invitations to some of the continent's most renowned dungeon explorers." The Explorers' Association made its decision.

This time, surprisingly, none of the parties shirked their responsibilities.

After all, this is their territory, their long-term livelihood, and if it is destroyed, the consequences will be endless.

In fact, they have all benefited from the rise in the quality of "materials" over the years. Looking back now, it should be that the Demon Tide period awakened some of the beasts, bringing more monsters and materials.

We've finally started to eat well these past few years, it's not easy to go back to eating coarse food and wild vegetables.

Seeing the rare cooperation from the various organizations, Dania felt both delighted and vaguely uneasy.

After all, they don't really need to give face to the royal family; what truly drives them is always self-interest.
“For them, the beasts might just be a new opportunity or a resource point.” Dania’s dragon eyes could tell that these guys were talking about serious things, but there was a hint of joy and anticipation in their eyes.

For them, more monsters meant more resources, and exploring more underground ruins meant more wealth.

This is a crisis for the kingdom and for the city's inhabitants.

For these transnational organizations and churches, this is a joint effort to "gain benefits."

"The safety of the city must not be entrusted to them." Heaven knows what they might do once they have seized the profits.

They were capable of doing it, establishing their own hunting outposts in underground ruins and driving hunters to their deaths.

If the war with the beasts would bring lasting benefits, they would not expect the war to end. And at this time, the kingdom would have to rely on them.

For some reason, at this moment, Dania thought of that jerk who never gave her any face.

If it were him, or one of the inheritors of the heroic spirits, he would probably fight solely for the sake of this city and his own life.

"Hopefully, the next inheritance of heroic souls will begin soon. They need to act quickly; time is running out."

(End of this chapter)