My Beautiful Duchess Wife

Immediately afterward, the horned demon led them to collect a set of the master craftsman's robes, and then Eileen led them back to the hotel. Now was not the time to expose Lin Peng.

After exchanging a few words with Eileen, Lin Peng headed towards Xiaolong's room. As soon as he entered, he saw the woman from yesterday. She was now wearing a rather ladylike long dress and was having an unusually good time with Xiaolong; the two of them were playing a game of Animal Chess.

This game of Animal Chess is said to have been invented by the guild leader of the Dark Sage Guild. Not only can it better develop one's mental abilities, but it can also provide insights into something.

Of course, Lin Peng wouldn't stoop to that level.

Just like in a past life, no matter how smart you are, if you don't have those so-called connections, you still won't be popular anywhere.

Looking at the large pile of things behind Xiaolong, Lin Peng's lips twitched again. It seemed Xiaolong had clearly won a considerable amount of money from this woman.

Sure enough, it's a greedy dragon. Even injured, poisoned, and sick, it hasn't changed its habit of accumulating wealth. He shook his head slightly and simply sat down to watch quietly.

The woman seemed to have noticed Lin Peng as well, and snorted, "I'm not playing with you anymore. You, come here, I'll play chess with you!" She said with a sly grin.

She and Xiaolong had been playing chess for almost the entire morning, and she only won the first game. Then, starting from the second game, she'd been losing ever since.

Lin Peng was naturally curious as well. After chuckling, he sat down, asked about the rules, and started playing. Compared to Chinese chess in his previous life, Animal Chess wasn't much different.

However, it's just a matter of which magical beast is placed at the front, what its abilities are, and where it's positioned. In a way, it really is like the military flag of that world.

After the two players distributed the pieces, Xiaolong acted as the referee. This greedy dragon, after winning a considerable amount of money, was grinning from ear to ear.

Originally, the two didn't gamble. However, after playing a few rounds of chess, Xiaolong suddenly thought of a way to gamble. Behind him, there were already dozens of black crystal coins and tens of thousands of dark gold coins. It seemed he had won in an instant.

From the very first move, Lin Peng was killed three times in a row by Laura. Xiao Long was so frustrated he almost punched Lin Peng! However, when the fourth move began, Laura surprisingly didn't kill a single piece for a long time.

Moreover, they even managed to kill two of their opponents.

Just when Laura thought she might be entering a long period of division, she was somewhat frustrated to find that from now on, she was like a routed army, about to be completely defeated.

They didn't kill a single one of Lin Peng's pieces, nor did they occupy any of his territory. Speechless... Laura was truly speechless at this moment.

You could say she was giving Xiaolong a slight advantage in the game. That's why she lost money. Of course, it was also because she couldn't bear to see such a delicate child cry.

However, she couldn't stand playing with Lin Peng like this!

Chapter Fifteen: The Necromancer

The game was over, and Laura snorted angrily, "Again!" She immediately began to play aggressively, placing her pieces. However, despite her best efforts, she was ultimately defeated thirty minutes later.

Of course, this also ignited Laura's competitive spirit. She immediately shouted, "Again!" Unfortunately, this round was even faster, and in just twenty minutes, Laura was completely defeated.

Frustrated, Laura suddenly began to doubt her own intelligence. This Lin Peng knew perfectly well which beast pieces she had placed in which locations. And yet, there seemed to be no defensive forces in those areas. "Impossible!" Laura shouted inwardly. "This is absolutely impossible! How could someone as clever as me lose to this guy?"

"One more round, the last round!" Laura emphasized the last round, partly because the outcome would be decided in one round.

Lin Peng yawned, looking at the very serious face. He shook his head: "Alright then, it's a deal, the last round. I'm really busy!"

As they talked, the two began setting up the chessboard once more. However, this game seemed to take a very long time. But that was only relative to Laura, because each time she pondered deeply before making her next move.

Twenty minutes later, he had the girl dealt with in no time. Lin Peng stood up, cracked his neck, and said, "This simple Animal Chess is too boring. You know, I grew up playing much more difficult games!" He chuckled, seemingly showing off.

A surge of anger rose within Laura. From childhood to adulthood, no one, man or woman, had ever been able to surpass her, not only in her family but also in the entire territory.

Since she was five years old, who would dare doubt her intelligence? In an instant, her eyes blazed as she stared at Lin Peng. Only then did she realize that Lin Peng was actually wearing the robe of a master weapon refiner.

The simple black robe, paired with his deep black eyes and hair, gave him an unusually somber air. He scoffed, "So, you're a master weapon refiner? But just a master. Hmm, you said earlier you had something even more difficult than this; why don't you show it to us?"

It was obvious that she absolutely did not believe Lin Peng's words. At this moment, Xiao Long finally understood that Laura had been giving in to him the whole time.

If it were a real game of chess, he would definitely be no match for her.

"Tomorrow! I'm quite busy today!" Lin Peng waved his hand and walked straight out of the room!

Upon entering the hall, I noticed its somewhat desolate state; everyone was probably resting or doing something else they enjoyed. I shook my head idly, just as I saw the kid from the Shadow Empire rush out the door. He seemed to be accompanied only by a butler-like figure.

His brow furrowed; judging from the kid's expression, he'd definitely run into something urgent. But that was fine too; if it could be sabotaged, it would be best to just destroy it.

Thinking of this, I followed them out the door!

After tracking for about fifteen minutes, Lin Peng realized that they were heading out of the city. It was obvious they had some unspeakable secret.

That butler is just a great demon king. If you really think about it, he's much more powerful than that kid. That kid is only a low-level demon king.

Thinking of this, Lin Peng chuckled. Should he just kill them halfway through? That might save some trouble. After tracking for another half hour, they finally stopped in what looked like a valley.

It's only a little over an hour's drive from here to the capital. If the Fiery Chariots were deployed, they could definitely get there in half an hour.

The valley was very quiet, but it seemed to be shrouded in an aura of death, and the path was never clearly visible. Lin Peng immediately became suspicious; thankfully, he hadn't killed anyone earlier.

I never expected to encounter something like this here.

Such a powerful aura of death... perhaps it belongs to some kind of necromancer. In the demon realm, there are quite a few necromancers.

Even the most powerful necromancers would never allow themselves to harm ordinary demons. This infuriates the demons! However, they are relatively forgiving towards their own kind.

Seeing the two hesitate before the aura of death, the old butler waved his hand, and the deathly aura slowly dissipated. Then, he shouted, "Second Young Master, this is the Dark Empire, not our Shadow Empire! Why are you creating so many zombies? Aren't you afraid that the experts of the Dark Empire will come after you?"

The young man, on the other hand, looked like he couldn't take it anymore: "You bastard, get out here! Creating zombies here, if we're discovered, neither of us will escape!"

"Second Young Master?" Lin Peng was somewhat stunned. He hadn't expected that this kid was the eldest son of a powerful family in the Shadow Empire.

However, judging from its appearance, it's not a good person either. It seems that guy isn't a good person either. At least, there's this guy who likes to create zombies.

The aura of death slowly dissipated, eventually thinning out. It was only then that Lin Peng could see clearly. Unexpectedly, it was a village.

Judging from this village, there seem to be very few people. From the black soil, corpses that appear to be beginning to decompose slowly crawl out.

Some of them even have horns; they are definitely horned demons.

Lin Peng clenched his fists tightly. Although the demons were fond of fighting and brawling, Lin Peng still loved this place after all his time in the Demon Realm.

With that even more radiant red moon, it seemed not much different from the so-called human realm. However, the ordinary demons Lin Peng saw now had been transformed into zombies. Instantly, his anger towards them intensified.

“Serabil, heh heh, you’ve always enjoyed that kind of life in the family. You’d never understand how I feel right now. Hahaha… I’m someone who was expelled from the family, so what, you still want to tell me what to do?”

Slowly, a figure that appeared to be composed of an aura of death gathered on the ground. It wasn't very tall, but it spoke in a terrifying voice.

"Hmph, being expelled from the Blade family is your own fault. If it weren't for you, our family would have been the number one family in the Shadow Empire long ago!" Serabil seemed extremely angry, exuding a powerful aura. He seemed to be the patriarch himself.

"The Blade family? I've never cared about them. I, Garen, belong to the Shadow Empire, not the Blade family. Hahaha... Betraying you, a once powerful family. If you hadn't climbed up to that number one family, would you have your current status? And yet, you'd betray even your benefactor's family. I couldn't stand this about you, which is why I betrayed you. But now, the Blade family has truly grown strong; they don't seem to want to make a move against you immediately. Judging from the current situation, you're contacting people in the Dark Empire, aren't you?"

Galein looked down on Serabil, and his voice, already sharp, now sounded like a zombie's roar in his excitement.

Serabil and the butler-like man next to him exchanged a glance, then Serabil stepped back while the butler charged straight at you.

The speed was extremely fast; in an instant, a dark shadow emerged.

"Shadow Assassin!" Lin Peng frowned slightly, recalling the profession Roland had mentioned. It was said that Shadow Assassins were practically identical to those Shadowfire Assassins.

However, the Shadowfire Assassins only exist within the Crimson Demon Territory. Moreover, one of them is under their own control. In particular, that extremely powerful army is currently being maintained in the mountain stronghold at the crystal mine.

However, what Lin Peng just said surprised him somewhat.

Judging from this situation, the Shadow Empire isn't absolutely powerful. There are quite a few conflicts among them. There's talk of the First Family, and the Blade Family. Although I haven't heard of them, I'm sure I'll find out once I get back by asking around.

This necromancer is definitely a powerful expert at the level of a great demon king. Moreover, in the current situation, although there are many zombies, they can't catch that shadow assassin.

However, all the zombies rushed towards Serabil. They moved erratically, appearing as slow as ants. The Shadow Assassin, on the other hand, moved with the speed of true darkness. His entire body transformed into a shadow, instantly increasing his speed dramatically. In the blink of an eye, he appeared beside the necromancer.

However, the necromancer seemed quite fragile. With just a flick of his cold dagger, the undead aura dissipated instantly. Lin Peng watched with some surprise.

"Ignore those clones. His real body is definitely hidden underground or high up. That's how we can command these zombies. Go find his real body immediately!"

"From behind," Serabil roared. The butler instantly reappeared, then his entire body was enveloped in black mist once more, as if he had vanished in an instant.

However, with Lin Peng's keen eyesight and perception, he discovered that this shadow assassin didn't actually disappear. Instead, using the shadow he emitted, as if possessed, he could quickly reach the shadow he had created.

Therefore, any sudden appearance of a shadow is worth noting.

Through their senses, they also discovered that about ten meters underground, there seemed to be a person whose entire body was bathed in blue light. This necromancer was indeed extraordinary.

Surprisingly, it's a blue body with heat.

The shadow assassin was still searching aimlessly, while the zombies had already reached Serabil's side. Judging from Garen's condition, it seemed he intended to eliminate his brother.

Chapter Sixteen: Give Me a Reason

Hundreds of zombies were undeniably frightening. However, at this moment, Sierra Bill was completely unresponsive, as if he were asleep.

He still had his hands clasped together and his eyes closed, but when the zombie was only about ten meters away, he suddenly opened his eyes: "He's down there, kick him out right now!"

Suddenly, with that loud shout, Lin Peng clearly felt Galen's body tremble slightly beneath him. Immediately afterward, the zombies charged towards Serabil with even greater speed.

Each of them was covered in a ghastly green corpse poison. From afar, the green mist was already hurtling towards Serabil. At the same time, the butler seemed to have located Garen's position. He was about to deliver a punch to blast Garen out from below when, just as he raised his fist, a sudden premonition struck him. Abruptly, his body sprang to the side.

Boom...

A huge crater appeared in the ground, and in the center of the crater stood a person completely shrouded in a cloak. Patches of green clouds swirled around him, making him look somewhat terrifying.

Beside the original pit stood a person dressed in tight leather. In his right hand, he held a small dagger. It was clear at a glance that he was an assassin.

The butler frowned slightly. Luckily, he dodged quickly. Otherwise, that sword strike would have either killed him or left him half-dead.

Today, there really wasn't something I should have done wrong. That Demon Emperor-level guy, chasing after a Great Demon King-level demon, still hasn't returned. Basically, something must have happened to him. Now, a Great Demon King-level demon and a mere novice Demon King... it seems that if it really comes down to a fight, they're no match for this second young master who's already a necromancer.

After all, necromancers have a clear advantage in numbers. That assassin necromancer from earlier, although wearing a mask, was clearly a low-level demon lord.

Perhaps there's some deadly move hidden somewhere we don't yet know? The butler looked at Serabil's location with a worried expression.

Serabil, of course, also noticed this undead assassin who was a low-level demon king, and sneered inwardly. Suddenly, he took out a bottle of potion and let out a cold laugh: "Second brother, as the eldest son of the family, as the next successor, no matter how high your cultivation or how good your talent, it's useless. Do you know why?"

"Potions? I knew about that a long time ago! So what if you're a little better than me at potions? Hmph, you can only concoct master-level potions now. You still can't concoct grandmaster-level potions, can you?" Garen sneered, seemingly very disdainful.

Serabil seemed momentarily speechless, then paused for a moment before letting out a sinister laugh. He then drank the potion. As he drank it, a dazzling red flame seemed to erupt from his entire body. Instantly, none of the zombies dared to take a step forward.

Lin Peng, who had been staring intently from a nearby mountain peak, was suddenly taken aback. His stockpile of such potions was truly enormous. It seemed to be a True Fire potion that increased attack power by thirty percent and could also cause the demonic flames within his body to transform into real burning flames! However, he had basically overlooked this type of potion.

Only after seeing so many potions could he realize that those potions were nothing special. But only he could do that.

Such a potion would be extremely powerful even in battles between great demon kings. After all, it instantly boosts your attack power. Moreover, it adds a powerful attack element like fire.

If you were to equip yourself with an even more powerful enchanted weapon, your survivability would increase by at least several times.

Moreover, in battles of the same level, defeating the opponent is absolutely certain.

Garen seemed to become somewhat serious, his entire body turning a ghastly green. Then, wisps of green clouds appeared once more, spreading out and instantly enveloping the entire area.

The butler paused, and the instant the green cloud rose, he attacked Garen. The shadowy figures burst forth, forming an encirclement from all sides, and instantly surged into the center of the green cloud.