My mom is waiting for treatment, and you're summoning me to be a hero?

The door was heavy and made a low rumble when pushed open.

One by one, the magic lamps in the treasure room lit up.

The light gradually brightened, illuminating everything before our eyes.

Lin Mo stood at the door, looking at the scene inside, and remained silent for a moment.

gold.

Piles of gold coins, stacked into small mountains, gleamed dazzlingly under the lights.

It's not the kind of stockpiled goods that ordinary nobles have in boxes and cabinets, but a mountain in the truest sense.

Piled up from the ground to the ceiling, stretching endlessly.

Next to the gold coins were boxes of gemstones—red, blue, green, and purple—perfectly cut, refracting mesmerizing light under the lamplight.

Further inside, there were all sorts of magical artifacts... armor, staves, amulets, scrolls, each radiating a considerable energy fluctuation.

Blood flew from his shoulder, his crimson eyes blazing with excitement. "We've struck it rich! The Holy Ancient Empire's centuries of accumulated wealth is all here!"

Mianmian poked her head out from her arms, her eight compound eyes wide open, and she made a soft hissing sound.

She looked at the sparkling gems, her mouth practically watering.

Lin Mo didn't look at the gold coins and gems.

He possessed the forging skills of the dwarves, so money meant nothing to him.

He walked deeper into the treasure room.

There, he could find what he truly needed.

The essence.

The essences were neatly arranged on a specially made shelf, each about the size of a fist and emitting a different color of light.

They are carefully categorized and arranged by rank, from low to high, stretching as far as the eye can see.

From level 60 to level 90.

Lin Mo's gaze swept over the labels, and his pace quickened.

Then he stopped.

At the very top of the shelf, a few exceptionally rich essences were displayed alone.

The label reads: Level 100 - Flame Dragon.

Level 100 - Frost Dragon.

Level 100 - Lord of the Earth.

Three level 100 Beast King Essences.

Yin Xue floated onto his shoulder, and he looked at the three essences as well, his expression unusually serious.

"A level 100 Beast King, if left out in the open, could easily start a war between nations."

Lin Mo nodded.

He is currently lacking in essence, especially these high-level ones.

On one hand, there is a steady supply of food.

This little guy is now only consuming essences, besides the corpses of the Divine Guides.

Another, and even more important, issue is Liu Yishou's side.

Each delivery of medicine requires the consumption of essence.

Thinking this, he was about to reach out...

"etc."

Yin Xue's voice suddenly changed, becoming somewhat trembling.

She flew off his shoulder and drifted toward the deepest part of the shelf.

There was also a separate small compartment, containing only one essence.

The essence was only the size of a walnut, completely black, without any luster, lying there quietly like an ordinary stone.

Yin Xue floated before it, remaining silent for a long time.

"This is... the essence of a demigod-level monster."

Lin Mo walked over and looked down at the black essence.

It showed no energy fluctuations, as if it were dead.

But he could sense that the energy contained within was even more terrifying than the three level-100 essences outside combined.

Mianmian peeked her head out from her arms.

Looking at that black essence, his mouth watered even more.

She hissed and gestured with her little paws in the air, as if saying, "I want it, I want it, I want it."

Lin Mo picked up the demigod essence, weighed it in his hand, and then put it in his pocket.

Mianmian immediately shrank back.

It held the essence tightly with its eight tiny paws, making satisfied purring sounds.

"Don't eat it."

Lin Mo said.

Mianmian stammered, "I just... want a hug."

Lin Mo continued walking inside.

At the deepest part of the treasure room was a slightly open space.

There were no gold coins, no gems, only a stone platform.

On the stone platform, a long sword was placed.

The sword was entirely silver-white, with gemstones inlaid on its scabbard and intricate patterns engraved on its hilt.

It lay there quietly, radiating a faint holy light, looking sacred and solemn.

Just then, a voice came from the black sword.

"This is... the Sword of the Hero."

Zhou Yue's voice was a little hoarse, but very clear.

Lin Mo lowered his head and looked at the black sword at his waist.

"The Sword of the Hero?"

"Um."

Zhou Yue's voice came from the sword.

"It is said that the one who pulls it out is the hero destined to defeat the Demon King."

Lin Mo raised an eyebrow and reached out to grasp the sword hilt.

"Did you pull it out back then?"

Zhou Yue remained silent for a while.

"No, this sword seems to be bound by the laws of fate. I've tried many times, but it won't budge."

Lin Mo nodded.

He gripped the hilt of the sword tightly and gently pulled it out—whoosh.

The sword slid out of the stone platform without any resistance.

The silver-white blade gleamed coldly under the light, its edge sharp, with a faint holy light flowing around it.

Lin Mo held up the sword, looked at it, and then swung it twice.

"This doesn't seem to be working."

Yin Xuepiao stood to the side, stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter, clutching his stomach.

The laughter was sharp and piercing, echoing through the treasure room.

"Hahaha! This is hilarious! The hero destined to defeat the Demon King... turns out to be the Demon King himself! It seems you'll defeat yourself in the future! Hahaha!"

Zhou Yue's voice came from the black sword, tinged with a hint of speechlessness.

"How is this possible..."

Lin Mo shook his head, a slight smile playing on his lips.

"Senior, there are many scams in this world."

He casually tossed the silver-white sword of the hero onto the ground.

With a clang.

The sword bounced twice on the floor tiles, rolled to the corner of the wall, and mingled with the gold coins and gems, never to be seen again.

Lin Mo turned around and continued wandering around the treasure room.

Yin Xue was also busy.

She flew to the pile of gems and picked out a few of the largest ones, stuffing them into Lin Mo's collar.

She kept muttering, "This looks good," "This looks good too," and "Mianmian, can you hold this for me?"

He looks just like a bandit.

Mianmian was holding the demigod essence, unable to free her hands.

He nudged the gems with his head, stuffed them into his bosom, and squeezed them together with the essence.

Just as Lin Mo was about to leave, footsteps came from the doorway.

Laihu stood at the door, completely stunned.

He stared at the essences radiating various colors, his mouth agape enough to fit a fist.

He swallowed hard, finally managing to tear his gaze away from the pile of treasure.

He cupped his hands in greeting to Lin Mo.

"Your Majesty, hundreds of warriors have gathered outside the city. They...they say they want to attack you."

Lin Mo frowned.

"Why not just suppress them directly?"

Laihu scratched his head, looking somewhat embarrassed.

"After your previous battles, the capital city doesn't have many soldiers left to use. Besides, those were brave warriors, and their strength was considerable..."

Lin Mo shrugged.

He first took another essence from the shelf and casually tossed it at Laihu.

"then."

Laihu instinctively reached out and caught it.

Looking down, I was completely dumbfounded.

That was a level 90 Beast King Essence.

Its aura is rich and its light flows; if it were left out, it would cause a group of nobles to fight tooth and nail.

"Your Majesty... this is..."

Lin Mo walked past him and headed towards the entrance of the treasure room.

"Let's build together... uh, brothers in rebellion, the essence needed for future upgrades will be given to us directly."

Laihu stood there, watching Lin Mo's retreating figure.

Looking again at the level 90 essence in his hand, his heart skipped a beat.

He recalled what he was thinking when he joined Li Yiguang in the rebellion.

It's a gamble, a chance to make a living, a risky path to wealth.

He never imagined that one day someone would casually toss him a level 90 essence.

They even said each person could pick one piece.

He lowered his head and gripped the essence tightly.

"His Majesty!"

He called out to the departing figure.

Lin Mo didn't turn around, he just waved his hand.

Laihu stood there, his eyes stinging.

He sniffed, carefully tucked the essence into his pocket, and then strode after him.