Otherworld Bone Dragon Operation Guide

Chapter 199 Reconstruction of the Princess Kidnapping Incident
Su Ming felt a little embarrassed, but suddenly realized that this was indeed a serious problem. He was always criticized here for being indecisive, but there was actually room for improvement in this regard.

But if Violet were to go to Earth, given her ruthless and bloodthirsty nature—

“I will teach you properly!” Su Ming said firmly.

“I accept your control over me using the Bone Mark, restricting me from doing things that violate Earth's laws and morals.” Violet’s tone was unusually serious. “If I cause trouble and become an enemy of the whole world over there, then I really will have nowhere to go!”

****
Arriving before the soul of the Feathered Archmage, the two gracefully leaped down from their staffs.

"If Steward Brunlev were still alive, you would not have won!" The dark blue soul flame flickered violently in the air, emanating a mental fluctuation filled with resentment.

Brunlev, the Grand Puppet Master, is one of the strongest warriors in the noble army, playing a crucial role on the battlefield. In Catherine's wargame simulations, he has repeatedly disrupted the course of battles. The Youth Civilization has yet to directly confront him on its journey.

So he's already dead?

"I remember you said you had a good relationship with the Feather Clan?" Su Ming asked. "This person seems to hate us a lot."

“I have a good relationship with their entire clan, but individuals who have sided with nobles as lackeys are not among them,” Zijin said calmly.

The spirit in the air continued to release mental fluctuations: "Chairman Dimit will definitely avenge me and kill you all!"

"Why is he so fierce?" Su Ming asked, puzzled.

"Er Gouzi is fiercer than his master. Isn't that the case where you are?" Zi Jin retorted.

“...They’re the same,” Su Ming said.

Violet sensed it for a moment, "The Divine Favor Scepter is quite obedient this time."

Su Ming also looked at his wrist. "The Dawn and Dusk Bracelet didn't take shape. It seems it has no interest in this level of 'material'."

Thinking about how the Dawn and Dusk Bracelet had absorbed Yesia's corpse, Violet complained with slight dissatisfaction, "I wonder which creator was so willful to use a Saint-level corpse as material." She pouted, "How extravagant!"

Su Ming wanted to say that, from Earth's perspective, the Gospel Father was the real extravagant waste. A mere Saint-level being would pale in comparison to the true god of industry.

Su Ming reached out and conjured the spell "Soul Punishment," with black, ghostly light surrounding the souls in the air.

“Answer a few questions and I won’t let you suffer, how about that?” he asked.

The soul seemed oblivious, only continuing to emit resentful mutterings, "You will go to hell!"

Zi Jin suddenly stopped Su Ming, blocking his spell. "This soul state is wrong." She focused her gaze and observed carefully. "Oh no, it's already dissipated!"

Su Ming looked at the corpse and noticed a collar around the winged mage's neck, with faint runes indicating the disintegration of the wearer's soul after death. Dimit must have been unwilling to equip himself with proper magical items for exorcism, using a cheap substitute instead.

"If the soul is scattered, you can't get any information?" Su Ming frowned.

“Yes, you could say he’s lost his mind,” Violet replied. “But this cheap solution doesn’t completely solve the problem; the memory still lingers. I have another way!”

She took Su Ming's hand, initiated a telepathic connection, and raised her other hand, 'Soul Reflection!'

The souls of the Feathered Clan were directly decomposed, transforming into countless tiny specks of light that surrounded Su Ming and Zi Jin. Zi Jin extracted and integrated the memory components from them, and a series of images unfolded in their mental seas.

Su Ming hadn't seen this spell described in any spellbooks; it was clearly something the scholar had modified herself. She always rewrote the rules in this way.

****
Violet selected the nearest image, and the scene immediately expanded, unfolding the memories of the Feathered Clan Archmage:

Bang! A bone spear pierced through his body, revealing the scene of their final battle.

Su Ming found it novel; the memories remaining in his soul were presented from the perspective of a winged mage. In the memory scene, he was standing on the opposite side, launching a follow-up attack on the winged race.

At that time, Su Ming deliberately kept his distance, used the thorn whip to cast "Arcane Collapse" to destroy the opponent's defense, and then used "Elemental Fading" to eliminate his flight technique.

Knowing he had no hope of survival, the Feathered Clan attempted to unleash all his magic power to perish together with Su Ming. But before he could even do so, a distant 'Negative Energy Torrent' from Violet completely ended his life.

Su Ming couldn't help but sigh, the saddest thing is to do everything in your power to perish together with the enemy, only to find that the enemy has no idea about it.

"Maintaining distance is the right thing to do," Violet commented. "This tactical discipline should be maintained."

Thank you for the compliment, I'm just afraid of dying.

Those who do not know the fear of death have already gotten what they wanted.

****
Memory runs out, images fade, and the system automatically switches to the next scene.
Four hours earlier, Dimit was giving instructions to the winged mage, with a companion by his side.

"Quasimodo, you and Castor go to Bird Bay together."

This appears to be a scene of Dimitri assigning tasks before departure. Quasimodo then sets off with his companions.

Zijin manipulated the scene, quickly skipping over the two winged beings traveling and switching to the moment they approached the battlefield.

Quasimodo, realizing that the battle had begun, left the weaker Castor to observe from a distance while he went deep into the battlefield to investigate the details.

Violet noted down Castor's hiding place, and then the scene changed again.

****
This was a military meeting held a day earlier. Quasimodo and two other winged warriors were assigned to stand guard outside the command post, while the officers gathered inside the temporary command post to discuss matters.

Su Ming shook his head. The Feathered Race was highly mobile, making them suitable for battlefield reconnaissance and intelligence transmission, and Dimitri clearly liked using them. However, he excluded them from military decision-making, and Quasimodo knew nothing about core military secrets.

Violet continued to switch scenes, but they were all insignificant. As time progressed, the scenes became fragmented, indicating that the Feather Clan's memories were becoming incomplete, with only the most memorable events remaining in their recollections.

About ten days ago, the scene had become sparse. But suddenly, a scene caught Su Ming's attention: "[It's Ries City, look at this!]"

Zi Jin immediately led Su Ming into this memory, where Quasimodo and another person were standing on the balcony of a building in Lis City, gazing ahead.

Su Ming immediately recognized that what they were looking at was Acosta's residence—the house of the businessman who kidnapped a girl, had nowhere else to turn, and ultimately detonated explosives to perish together with her.

The other person on the balcony was a very large, fat man. Strangely, his body kept switching between gears and human form, appearing as if it were collapsing.

"Who is this?" Violet asked, puzzled. Her memories were often hazy or fragmented, but this was the first time she had ever witnessed such a rapid switching between scenes.

[The build and clothing are those of Alessandro.] Su Ming recognized the person, [but the face is nothing like his.]

Violet pondered for a moment, then suddenly realized, "[Brenlev?]" This was a puppet controlled by Brunlev!

This memory comes from Quasimodo, who knows that the "person" in front of him with the appearance of Alessandro is actually a puppet controlled by Brunlev, which is why such a bizarre scene is presented.

Alessandro was actually a puppet? Su Ming immediately realized that what happened in Ries City was far more complicated than it appeared!

"View all related memories!" he said to Violet.

****
Ten days ago, in the tower of Lisbon.

Brunrev, the chief deacon of the Lords' Alliance, watched as Iser led his squad of priests into the hut opposite the human trafficker Acosta. A satisfied smile appeared on his face, which bore a striking resemblance to the real Alessandro.

He himself was not present, but rather controlled the puppet through a soul-splitting technique. This technique allowed him to advance multiple projects simultaneously, and even if the puppet encountered an accident, his split soul could return to his main body. Although this came at a considerable cost, it was absolutely worthwhile compared to the convenience and benefits it brought.

At this moment, he is carrying out an important plan—to assassinate Daphne!
Killing Daphne wasn't the hardest part; the real challenge was preventing the Cold Mountain royal family from finding fault, which required a sufficient number and weight of scapegoats. Therefore, he carried out this task with extreme caution and intricate procedures.

First, there was Astako, the greedy merchant, and his mercenaries. When they received the commission to transport Princess Daflin out of the North, they actually dared to accept it. Astako demanded an exorbitant price, and Brunrev paid half as a deposit, successfully handing Daflin over to these madmen.

Then there are the buyers. Recently, a group of extremely wealthy clients have appeared in the Ice Age, buying up young girls on a large scale. Their identities and backgrounds are unknown, but it doesn't matter; they can be used as scapegoats regardless of their powerful connections. Astako, in order to get rid of the ordinary girls he has, has already arranged to meet with this group for a transaction that night. Whether these customers come or not, they will be framed as princess buyers in the subsequent investigation.

Finally, there was the heavyweight squad: the priests of the Northern Temple of Light! Brunlev knew that Iser and his men would operate at night, but the specifics didn't matter. They would storm in regardless, subdue or kill the mercenaries, and rescue the kidnapped girls.

But here's the trump card: the girls tied up in the cellar with Princess Daphne were all planted there by him! They will poison Daphne after nightfall, turning her into a corpse. Then, even if Iser has a thousand mouths to speak, he won't be able to clear his name of responsibility during the rescue operation!
These girls will testify to each other, and no one would suspect that these kidnapped girls are the real murderers!
****
Brunelev led Quasimodo to the Sheriff's Office in Lys. They entered the sheriff's office, opened a closet, and inside lay an unconscious fat man—the real Alessandro.

Brunlev checked his breathing to confirm that the fat man was still alive.

This was the fourth scapegoat he had prepared. He was operating here under the identity of Alessandro, pushing forward all matters and overseeing the plan's smooth execution. Once it was done, all he needed to do was destroy the puppet, and all the additional blame would fall on this poor fat man and the defenseless Lord Morton.

Let the wrath of the Cold Mountain Kingdom be borne by them!
Brunlev smugly imagined the plan going perfectly, and even if he was lucky, the group of mysterious young female buyers would arrive before Iser's operation, and the three parties would converge for a chaotic battle, making things even more ideal!
All of this came to an abrupt end when he saw a unicorn enter the police station!

When Kira, disguised as a little girl, strode in and reported that Astako had kidnapped a girl and was hiding her in the cellar, Brunrev was nearly speechless. What on earth was going on? Why was a unicorn here? And she even knew what had happened!

Brunlev couldn't understand the situation, but he decided to proceed with the plan ahead of schedule. He was very good at adapting to changing circumstances, so he quickly came up with a solution.

Using his identity as Acting Sheriff Alessandro, he gathered the guards from the Sheriff's Office and made a grand entrance to Acosta's residence. Of course, he wouldn't actually go inside; he just needed to make a scene at the entrance to alert the priest squad led by Isher, forcing them to act ahead of schedule.

At the same time, he ordered Quasimodo to immediately inform the girls in the cellar to poison Daphne immediately, without waiting until nightfall.

Just as Quasimodo was gathering his magic to send a message, the unicorn suddenly pricked up its ears and looked over warily. In the gentle breeze, the little girl's green hair fluttered against the wind.

Damn it! Brunlev suddenly realized: the wind is the unicorn's ally! Using Wind Message at such close range is tantamount to exposing the conspiracy.

Kill her?

Brunlev quickly dismissed the idea. Unicorns are tough and resilient; a quick victory wouldn't suffice. If things escalated, the entire plan would be exposed.

Just then, a waiter carrying a food basket passed by. Brunrev recognized him as the person delivering food to the mercenaries and immediately attached a hamster puppet to him.

The man seemed to sense something and looked back, puzzled. But his winter clothes were thick, and he didn't notice the extra little thing on his body.

Brunlev breathed a sigh of relief. The waiter went in to collect the dishes and brought the puppet hamster inside. He continued to pretend to argue at the door while secretly controlling the hamster puppet to kill people.

perfect!

Just as Brunlev was secretly pleased with his cleverness, the man was stopped by a young man near their destination. The man then handed his apron and basket to the young man and ran away.

Why did they have to change people at the last minute just to get some cutlery?

Brunlev felt his blood rush to his head. He forced himself to calm down; Iser and the priest squad were right there, he couldn't make any rash moves, he couldn't expose himself.

"Stay here. If things go wrong, evacuate immediately," he whispered to Quasimodo, while tucking another puppet hamster into his robes.

He had no choice but to handle it himself!

In the illusory memory scene, Zi Jin and Su Ming were dumbfounded.

"This Brunlev must have had the worst luck to run into you guys," Violet sighed.

Brunlev puts himself in the situation, bringing the hamster puppet into the house and releasing it. However, when the little hamster crawls into the cellar, it discovers that the princess has already been taken away by the mercenary servants with a strong will to survive, and is being used as a hostage to threaten Iser.

Brunlev was too exhausted to curse anymore, so he simply stopped pretending and went straight for the kill. The advanced puppet he controlled far surpassed humans in both weight and strength; with a single strike, he could cleave the mercenary and that damned Princess Daphne into four pieces!

But at the critical moment, the young man who had taken over the food delivery suddenly transformed into an alchemical gunslinger, striking the puppet's vitals repeatedly. The meticulously crafted possessed puppet instantly became paralyzed and completely out of control.

****
Quasimodo's remnant soul energy was exhausted, the memory reversal spell ended, and the two returned to the battlefield shrouded in night.

"I never expected it to be so complicated," Su Ming murmured.

"I don't understand either. Brunlev only lost a part of his soul, so how could he be completely dead?" Violet frowned in thought.

In Quasimodo's memory, he only saw the Brunlev puppet destroyed, and his remnant soul intercepted by the quick-witted Kira on its way back.

“Let’s ask Qiluo later,” Su Ming said. “The northern nobles want to kill Princess Daphne, and then the Cold Mountain royal family joins them in besieging Catherine. What a mess this is.”

"Let's ask Catherine later," Violet mimicked Su Ming's tone.

The two looked at each other and smiled bitterly.

"Anyway, it's good news," Violet said. "Brlenreif is confirmed dead. Puppetmasters are like half necromancers on the battlefield, and their advantage is even more obvious when dealing with elite units."

"Can I understand that your undead creatures can't defeat his puppets, and using Elisa form will only result in your being worn down by his puppets?"

“It’s not difficult to kill him in Elisa form,” Violet replied. “It’s just that dismantling the puppet takes too much time, making the fight very tedious.”

The girl flew towards Castor's hiding place, not surprised to find that he had been gone for some time. She flew back to the train, waved to Su Ming, and said, "I'm going to rest."

"Goodnight." Su Ming waved to her.

There's another battle tomorrow morning, and Violet needs to be in top condition. He turned to Hanster and Eunil, "Let's clean up the mess quickly, then we'll leave!"

"Ok!"

****
Su Ming inspected the battlefield again to ensure that no detail was overlooked.

Meanwhile, Hanster and Eunice completed all the preparations. They began shunting, swapping empty coal cars with fully loaded ones.

"Let's swap locomotives number one and two as well," Su Ming arranged. "It's too crowded to be commanding them together with Fuyin."

Locomotive number one is positioned at the rear, and its driving functions remain unchanged. Fuyin can still control the Youth Civilization train via radar and monitoring screens. Meanwhile, the spacious locomotive number two will provide Su Ming with a better field of vision, making it easier for him to operate drones and other equipment.

After making some changes to the data wiring and system settings, the shunting and regrouping of the Youth Civilization Train was completed.

The train was restarted, and Fuyin adjusted quickly after a few movements. He used the terrain radar to find a flat spot and maneuvered the train to turn around in a circle.

Currently, on the battlefield from Hongguopo to Guiniao Bay, only the second echelon of the noble army, numbering approximately 4000 men, remains as combat force. Su Ming decides to return to Peacock Valley to eliminate this force, resolving the problem once and for all, and to bring back Catherine and Qiluo.

Although he failed to obtain military intelligence from Quasimodo of the Feathered Clan, he identified several officers among the captured prisoners. After some "exchange," Su Ming gathered a considerable amount of information.

With the aim of concentrating combat power, Dimitri arranged for the vanguard regiment to carry the most advanced war machines. However, due to the surprise attack by the Youth Civilization, the vanguard regiment was routed before it could even deploy.

These weapons were subsequently destroyed by Su Ming.

This arrangement meant that the vanguard regiment, marching at breakneck speed, was unable to carry much in the way of supplies. Therefore, the second echelon primarily carried food and other necessities to provide logistical support to the vanguard regiment.

This makes the current second-tier fighting force relatively weak!
It was nearly midnight. Su Ming calculated the enemy's marching speed and instructed Hanster to keep the train's speed at around 10 kilometers per hour, so that they would make contact with the enemy around 5 a.m.

Dimitri must already know about the incident at Gui Niao Slope. Now that the true speed of the Youth Civilization has been exposed, Su Ming has chosen to slow down. This way, if a battle breaks out at dawn, the enemy will be in their most exhausted state, while his own side will get the necessary rest.

Under the starry sky, the steam locomotive clattered rhythmically as it returned along the route it had come from, heading straight for the final enemy.

****
160 kilometers outside of Bubing City, a military unit has already set up camp.

In just one day, the White Scattering Cavalry marched from Bubing City to this location. Such a marching speed was astonishing, especially considering the adverse weather conditions of the snowy plains.

The exhausted soldiers had already rested, while the middle and high-ranking officers of the cavalry regiment gathered in a brightly lit tent to study the battle situation.

A commotion arose outside, and a sentry came in to announce, "Princess Daphne has arrived!"

Upon hearing this, General Price immediately stood up, preparing to go out of the tent to greet them, when he saw Daphne and Emilio, the commander of the city's defense forces, walking into the tent together.

Daphne's exhaustion was undeniable. Immediately after her rescue, she was transported to Bubing City, where she traveled day and night for four days under the escort of priests and guards from the Temple of Light.

But as soon as she settled down, she heard that there were unusual movements at Red Fruit Slope, and the White Scatter Cavalry had been dispatched urgently. She hurriedly led her personal guard and the city guard cavalry regiment to catch up.

"Is it confirmed that it's related to Catherine?" Emilio asked.

“No,” General Price readily admitted. “We haven’t received any information about Princess Catherine, only an unusual troop buildup at Red Fruit Slope.” He pointed to the map and said, “We don’t know their identities yet, but there shouldn’t be any noble troops here, nor does it resemble the Temple of Light’s cavalry.” He stated firmly, “In such extraordinary times, the appearance of an unidentified, organized army must indicate something is amiss!”

To wage war in the dead of winter is extremely costly, and no one takes military matters lightly. Price believes there is a connection between these two situations!
"You mobilized the troops just for this?" Emilio shouted, assuming Price had discovered concrete information about Queen Catherine. "His Highness's orders were to search for her and only mobilize the main force as needed after obtaining her whereabouts—you're disobeying orders!"

“This unusual activity is very likely related to that matter,” General Price replied.

"You're just making excuses—"

“Alright, stop.” Daphne waved her hand to interrupt the two. “I’ll give you the order to immediately switch to formal military action. We’ll discuss the punishment for General Price’s procedural violation later.”

Seeing that Daphne had already made up her mind, Emilio stopped arguing.

General Price breathed a sigh of relief; if it was just a matter of procedural violation, things were easy to handle, and he wasn't wronged in that respect. If investigated thoroughly, however, mobilizing troops without orders would be a very serious offense.

(End of this chapter)