Airship safety was indeed a major problem; the vessel had broken apart even faster than Anbaixiu anticipated.
There was no helping it—substandard materials, flawed design.
Even though he could copy the outer shapes of aircraft from his previous life, Anbaixiu still had to research and reinvent all the internal details from scratch.
Yet regardless of whether Catherine agreed or not, this was a business he had to pursue, and he absolutely had to put the drow elves to work in this industry.
Anbaixiu possessed an overwhelming advantage in connections, enabling him to build both a political monopoly and a technological monopoly over the field. Coupled with a workforce of drow elves who demanded no wages, it would be foolish to pass up such easy money.
What, the drow dared to ask for pay? Then send them off to the Underdark for reform through labor.
A gang of convicts—given a chance at rehabilitation and they still had the gall to be picky? Then they didn't deserve to live.
With the airship destroyed, Anbaixiu didn't build a second one right away. Instead, he summoned Naomi and had her transform into a dragon to carry him home.
Melina and Anbaixiu rode together on the dragon's back, while Catherine summoned her giant eagle. Thus, they flew all the way back to Anbaixiu's desert factory.
Catherine had been gone for quite a while. Gazing at the dungeon, which had now transformed beyond recognition, she remarked with feeling, "You really did turn this place into an alchemical factory."
"Naturally. Unlike you, I can't just eat and drink my fill while daring to do nothing, supported by an entire kingdom. Here, I have to earn every single copper myself."
Catherine countered, "Do you liches even need food or drink? Lie on the ground, and you can go a hundred years with zero consumption. Isn't your doing all this purely out of greed?"
Hearing Catherine say that, Anbaixiu wasn't angry in the least. On the contrary, he said cheerfully, "Not bad, not bad at all. You've really made progress. In that case, the task I have lined up for you next shouldn't be too difficult."
Catherine eyed Anbaixiu warily. What wicked scheme was this lich concocting now?
Anbaixiu led Catherine into his library, where he browsed the shelves and picked out over a dozen exceptionally thick tomes, setting them all down before her.
Catherine glanced at the titles and asked in bewilderment, "These... are all historical texts? What do you want me to do with them?"
Anbaixiu explained, "Read them, of course. These books record not only the history following the Demonic Dragon Tyrant, but also extensive material on various ancient dynasties. Read them thoroughly. And don't just read them—take notes. Summarize the life of every single ruler throughout every dynasty, give careful thought to their actions, categorize those deeds into good and bad, and analyze the causes behind the collapse of each kingdom. Once you're finished, come back to me."
This time Catherine understood: Anbaixiu wanted her to draw lessons from history and learn how to be a capable monarch.
Yet Catherine smiled faintly, pointed at the very first book, and said, "This covers the history of the Kingdom of Gore from five thousand seven hundred years ago. Its first ruler was born in the desert and orphaned from childhood..."
Catherine went on without a pause, rattling off the entire contents of the book.
Anbaixiu flipped open the volume to check—it was verbatim.
"You've read this?"
"Not just this one; I've read every single book here. The Silvermoon High Court has even more comprehensive editions. Did you really think I was completely ignorant? I've lived for several centuries; I've probably read far more books than you have."
Watching Catherine's triumphant look, Anbaixiu realized he had underestimated this elven girl.
She hadn't read too little; she was just genuinely dense.
"All right, then. Let's skip past the basics."
Anbaixiu retrieved the Necrotic Codex and sent a message to the Rose of Decay: [You mentioned last time that you'd give me some drow elves. Is now convenient? Could you send ten over?]
The Rose of Decay replied shortly after: [I'll give you twenty beautiful drow elves. Open your teleportation array.]
One had to admit, the Undead Queen was truly generous. If drow elves were sold into slavery, their price was extraordinarily steep—even higher than high elves.
Twenty beautiful drow elves had to be worth several hundred thousand gold coins.
Before long, with flashes of light and humming chimes, a group of dark-skinned elven maidens emerged from the teleportation array. Every one of them was a top-tier beauty, with exquisite features and figures.
However, each bore a distinct brand on her forehead.
At a glance, Anbaixiu recognized it as a method unique to the undead. The souls of these drow elves had been branded by the Rose of Decay, rendering them completely incapable of resistance.
Anbaixiu brought the twenty beautiful drow elves before Catherine and said, "Since you know the lives of so many rulers, use the knowledge you have to win over these twenty drow elves and make them your own."
Catherine hadn't expected Anbaixiu to skip straight to the main event, but she wasn't frightened; in fact, she was eager to try.
Restoring the drow elves to the ranks of the elven race was the greatest of endeavors, and Catherine intended to dedicate her utmost efforts to it. What Catherine didn't know, however, was that while inspecting them, Anbaixiu had quietly used his own power to erase the brands from five of their souls.
In other words, those five drow elves had regained their freedom.
Seeing Catherine itching to get started, Anbaixiu thought to himself: as long as this girl can realize that even one of the drow elves is different, she'll have passed.
While Catherine busied herself trying to connect with her new sisters heart to heart, Anbaixiu set off without delay, taking Melina toward the Underdark.
Carrying a divine portfolio prevented teleportation, leaving them no choice but to travel on foot.
Fortunately, this stretch of desert had tunnels leading directly down into the Underdark. Anbaixiu and Melina journeyed together, taking two days before finally returning to the City of Quicksilver.
When Melina handed the finger-sized box over to the Rose of Decay, the queen didn't spare it a second look. Instead, her eyes locked onto Anbaixiu. "There's something I just found out, and I need to discuss it with you."
Noticing the Rose of Decay's grave expression, Anbaixiu asked in surprise, "Did something happen?"
"A short while ago, Ryan held a grand celebration."
Anbaixiu did the math in his head, then said, "Oh, Arthur Ryan's birthday, right? That's also Ryan's founding day, the most important day of the year."
"That's right. Under normal circumstances, this celebration would have been no different from the past, but something went wrong this time. That young emperor—he donned the Dragon Tyrant Armament."
The Rose of Decay's tone turned exceedingly grim, and even her body trembled faintly.
Anbaixiu was equally stunned. He pressed, "When you say donned, you don't just mean slipping it over his body, do you? Can he actually tap into the power of the Dragon Tyrant Armament?"
"Yes. At the celebration, he invoked the power of the Dragon Tyrant Armament to reverse time, making every citizen attending the festival one year younger."
"No way."
Anbaixiu knew the Dragon Tyrant Armament was potent, but several million Ryan citizens had been gathered at that celebration. Reversing time for every single one of them to make them a year younger? That was a miracle—scarcely different from the power of a true deity.
Anbaixiu knew this artifact set was terrifyingly powerful; otherwise, it would never have served as the paramount national treasure of Ryan. But this bordered on the preposterous.
If such power were unleashed upon Anbaixiu, wouldn't it reduce him directly to nothingness?
"Didn't you say the Ryan royal bloodline had thinned so much that they could no longer wield the Dragon Tyrant Armament?" Anbaixiu asked quickly.
The Rose of Decay gritted her teeth. "I don't know. Something unexpected must have happened without my knowledge. Most likely, those old zombies underground did something."
"Old zombies? What are those?"
"A bunch of old fogies from the Ryan family, elders of the royal house. They chose hibernation as a means to prolong their lives; some can stretch their lifespans to two hundred years that way. The price, however, is that they must spend most of their existence lying inside coffin-like boxes, so we refer to them as zombies.
"Normally, these old zombies do nothing, but at critical junctures, they awaken from their boxes, and their decisions carry the weight to sway the entire empire."
Anbaixiu chuckled. "Quite traditional, aren't they, choosing that over a Potion of Youth."
"That's about the only thing they could be praised for. None of those old zombies are good people. Everything they think about is solely for the preservation of the Ryan royal family. It was those very relics who pushed the royal house's obsession with bloodlines to a sickening degree."
Anbaixiu thoroughly agreed with the Rose of Decay's words. Most likely, the Demonic Dragon's bloodline was at work, warping their minds toward extremism and ultimately causing Ryan's present turmoil.
Yet now was not the time to ponder that. Regardless of what method they had used, the fact remained that the Dragon Tyrant Armament was functional again, making it far more terrifying than the Silvermoon Knight.
Seeing the Rose of Decay so worked up, Anbaixiu hastened to comfort her: "I'll look into this matter. That old fellow James Watson should know a thing or two. There's no need to rush, either; the fracturing of Ryan is already a foregone conclusion. Whether we wait three years, ten years, or fifty years, we can afford the time. When that day comes, the Dragon Tyrant Armament won't be aimed at us, but at the Ryans on the other side."
Unable to hold back, the Rose of Decay leaned her head against Anbaixiu's shoulder and murmured softly, "Thank you. I'm so lucky to have you around."
Where her obsession was concerned, the Rose of Decay had almost lost her reason moments ago.
The reactivation of the Dragon Tyrant Armament implied that Ryan was invincible. The mere thought flooded her soul with rage and terror.
If Anbaixiu's comforting words hadn't offered her a shred of hope, she might truly have gone mad and made an utterly foolish decision.
Her judgment had not failed her after all: Anbaixiu was someone she could entrust with everything. With his help, the destruction of Ryan was sure to succeed.
Knowing that her obsession made it impossible for her to calm down, Anbaixiu simply changed the subject: "This is the divine portfolio of Corruption. Which deity do you plan to trade it to?"
Having regained some composure, the Rose of Decay looked at Anbaixiu and asked, "Shar, Goddess of Darkness. What do you think?"
Chapter 294