When Anbaixiu demanded twenty billion, Rachel Angelo wished nothing more than to strike the lich down with Divine Smite on the spot.
Yet he knew it would be futile. No matter how much he looked down on the reckless brute that was the Silvermoon Knight, the knight possessed a prowess that surpassed all other paladins: the Silvermoon Knight's Divine Smite could pursue a lich's soul and shatter its phylactery alongside it.
Without that ability, facing a lich meant doing nothing more than destroying its physical body—it could never truly kill him.
Still, twenty billion was out of the question. Even if all of Liuyan City and Angelo himself were bundled up and sold, they wouldn't fetch that much gold.
With that in mind, Rachel Angelo forced a warm smile and said to Anbaixiu, "That was merely a misunderstanding, my friend. I apologize for my earlier rashness. But time is pressing. Even if you won't reveal the whole truth right now, could you at least save Frodo first? Since you know what's causing this, you must know how to cure it. You wouldn't deceive me, would you?"
Rachel Angelo emphasized those final words with deliberate weight.
Schemers through and through, Anbaixiu immediately caught Angelo's underlying threat.
A deal could be struck, but Anbaixiu had to produce proof of his worth, or else the pleasantries would end. Even if Angelo couldn't permanently slay Anbaixiu, he certainly wouldn't let him off easily.
Anbaixiu shook his head. "How am I supposed to resolve such occult methods? If you want to save him, you must snuff it out at the source. As I told you, this is the result of a deity colluding with tieflings. You either kill the hell lord or eradicate the Kingdom of the Unholy Hymn. Otherwise, there is no curing him—at best, you can only buy time."
"Even buying time is fine!" Rachel Angelo said anxiously, for Frodo's right arm had completely necrotized into undeath, the flesh already rotting and reeking.
Anbaixiu replied, "Time Stop! That is the only way to stall his demise. You have Time Stop spell scrolls, don't you?!"
"A Time Stop scroll?"
Rachel Angelo didn't care in the slightest how expensive such a thing was and immediately ordered his subordinates to fetch one.
One had to admit, the people of Ryan were truly wealthy. High-tier scrolls like this cost hundreds of thousands of gold coins each; after all, inscribing one drained a wizard's vitality so severely that it practically cost them their life. Yet Ryan produced three of these priceless treasures at once.
The Time Stop barrier unfurled, instantly plunging Frodo into stasis. Under its influence, all magical effects were suspended, and the undead curse consuming his body finally halted.
Yet Rachel Angelo's expression remained grim. Frodo's shoulder and half his chest were already undead tissue; if they amputated that portion, the boy would surely not survive.
Furthermore, this Time Stop barrier would only last a few minutes. Once it expired, the curse would resume its course, turning Frodo completely into an undead.
Rachel Angelo took a deep breath and turned to Anbaixiu. "Though time is short, we can have a proper talk now. Master Ultraman, how much do you actually know about this?"
"Not much, but I'd advise against trying any other methods to halt the necrotization. It will only bring him greater agony; you'd do better to grant him a swift end. Oh, unless you truly can't bear to let him go—in that case, I have a soul transplantation procedure that could let him live on in another form..."
Rachel Angelo scoffed coldly. "Wouldn't that still turn him into an undead? What wonderful advice!"
To Angelo, when a lich spoke of soul transfer and shifting forms, it meant nothing more than turning someone into an undead—at most retaining a shred of self-awareness. That was utterly unacceptable. A paladin transformed into an undead would be an indelible disgrace recorded in the history of Ryan.
Anbaixiu shrugged. He had actually intended to suggest using a mercury soul puppet as a vessel to house the paladin's soul, which would technically count as a living creature rather than an undead. Still, being a slime wasn't much better than an undead, so he dropped the thought.
"Fine. If you won't accept that proposal, you could try rewinding time. If Time Stop can halt the curse, then temporal reversal could naturally restore him to how he was before being cursed. Ryan has a way to rewind time, doesn't it? I heard that during the celebration in the Ryan Imperial Capital, your Emperor used the Dragon Tyrant Armament to rewind everyone's time by a whole year..."
Anbaixiu watched Rachel Angelo's face intently. This was his real objective here: fishing for intelligence on the Dragon Tyrant Armament. Could that set of artifacts truly be used without limitation?
Hearing this solution, Rachel Angelo did not sigh in relief. Instead, he quietly instructed his men, "I will write a letter to His Majesty at once. Take Frodo to the imperial capital, deliver my letter, and report the situation. Whether Frodo lives will depend on His Majesty's will."
Angelo's reaction made Anbaixiu uneasy. For the life of a single paladin, Rachel Angelo dared petition the Emperor to employ the Dragon Tyrant Armament. Could that thing really be used without restrictions?
If so, who could ever defeat Ryan on the battlefield?
A single temporal reversal could regress all enemies into babes and reduce entire cities to wilderness.
Yet Anbaixiu dared not probe further. Rachel Angelo was an old fox. It had only been the sudden catastrophe befalling his close retainer that threw him off balance; now that Frodo was being sent away, he was unlikely to let down his guard or leak more information.
Thus, Anbaixiu needed to create an opening of his own.
Once Angelo had finished writing the letter and dispatched it, Anbaixiu spoke up. "General Angelo, I trust I have demonstrated my sincerity. Can we discuss business now? I will tell you everything regarding this matter, and you will provide compensation that satisfies me."
Rachel Angelo shook his head. "Twenty billion is impossible; there is no negotiating that. Furthermore, though I lost my composure earlier, that doesn't make me a fool. A curse like this must have prerequisites. If it could be cast without limit, I would have died before Frodo. You may keep your secrets, but I will find the answers myself."
Anbaixiu asked, "Is that so? And might I ask how long that will take, and how many will die in the meantime?"
Rachel Angelo gave a cold sneer. "Master Ultraman, you underestimate us paladins. The unknown may fluster us, but we do not fear death. I will have my subordinates prepared."
Anbaixiu did not dispute him, because it was the truth.
When ordinary armies suffered more than thirty percent casualties in pitched battle, their morale would shatter. Yet Ryan's paladin legions routinely produced astonishing feats, shrugging off seventy to eighty percent casualties, often fighting down to the last man.
Otherwise, how could Ryan have remained undefeated for over a millennium? Situated at the crossroads of conflict, besieged from all directions, they had instead battered several neighboring nations to tears.
Religious fanatics might be easy to manipulate, but when their fervor took hold, they were truly terrifying.
"Very well. Since we cannot reach an agreement, I shall take my leave. Good luck, General Angelo."
Anbaixiu turned to leave, but Rachel Angelo barred his way.
"Master Ultraman, the intelligence you possess is of critical importance. I cannot allow you to leave for the time being."
"There's no reason for this. I came out of goodwill to warn you, and even provided useful information. Not only do you refuse to pay for the intelligence, but you also want to imprison me? General Angelo, I am an ordinary citizen of Ryan now. Is this how you treat civilians?"
Rachel Angelo shook his head. "No, you misunderstand. Detaining you here is not an imprisonment. In the letter I sent to the capital, I explained the situation here. I cannot produce that much gold, but His Majesty might not be unwilling. Why not wait here for His Majesty's reply?"
Angelo's hand had already gripped the hilt of his sword. Anbaixiu knew full well this was just an excuse; if he insisted on leaving right now, Angelo would draw his blade and keep this physical body right here.
Anbaixiu considered for a moment. "Fine, then I shall wait. However, I want to rest in peace and quiet. That isn't asking too much, is it?"
Rachel Angelo nodded. "Of course not. I will prepare a room for you and ensure no one disturbs you."
Rachel Angelo had Anbaixiu escorted into a simple standalone cottage within the castle grounds. A large contingent of paladins and clerics of light surrounded it inside and out, ensuring Anbaixiu had no chance of escape.
Anbaixiu was pushed inside, but the instant the door clicked shut behind him, he was already walking back out.
Leira's True Mirage—a formidable illusion capable of deceiving even deities.
Now that Leira had regained her godhood, the power of this illusion had grown even more potent. Not one of the dozens of paladins and clerics of light noticed that Anbaixiu had slipped away.
Fortunately, upon entering the city, Anbaixiu had obtained a token granting exemption from the defensive warding formations, allowing him to move freely throughout the city without triggering alarms—at least for the time being.
"That old fox is tough to deal with. A pity I don't have enough time."
Rachel Angelo was tricky to handle; he possessed rich experience, yet his mind moved as swiftly as a young man's. Several times Anbaixiu had attempted to dig pits for him, only for the old man to bypass them entirely. Since this old fox refused to take the bait, Anbaixiu had no time to waste on him. He would scout out Liuyan City's true strength first, then slip away.
Cloaked by his illusion, Anbaixiu toured the city at top speed without alerting a soul.
The armory, the granary—a quick glance at these two places was enough to deduce the troop strength Ryan was assembling. Paladins wore specialized standard-issue gear for battle, distinct from their everyday training equipment and recognizable at a glance; a brief tally gave a rough estimate of their numbers.
"A legion of paladins—that's ten thousand men. Plus a regiment of clerics of light, followed by regular conventional forces..."
Anbaixiu roughly estimated that the army Liuyan City alone could support was close to one hundred thousand.
And that didn't include the troops supplied by other border cities. Even without elite units like paladins in those other contingents, Ryan's army totaled three to four hundred thousand men.
Ryan's regular soldiers would be considered elite in any other kingdom. This wasn't an inflated figure bloated with logistical personnel, but three to four hundred thousand genuine fighting troops.
Without the Gates of Hell, the Kingdom of the Unholy Hymn would never be able to hold them off.
Anbaixiu sighed. "Alas, I'd better advise Senior Brother to face reality. There's truly no winning this time. Several hundred thousand Ryan elites, the Dragon Tyrant Armament, and who knows how many legends... Even Unholy Hymn and the Dwarf Kingdom combined can't beat them, unless the druids and orcs are all willing to send troops to resist together."
Just as Anbaixiu emerged from the armory and prepared to leave Liuyan City, he suddenly spotted a furtive figure clambering down from the distant city wall. Moving with astonishing speed, the figure slipped past patrolling soldiers, dodging left and right, and sprinted straight toward Anbaixiu's location.
When Anbaixiu got a clear look at the newcomer, he was startled. As the figure dashed past him, Anbaixiu reached out to seize him by the shoulder.
Yet as if possessing some sixth sense, the person scrambled aside the moment Anbaixiu reached out. Though the dodge looked rather clumsy, he successfully evaded Anbaixiu's sudden ambush.
One had to remember that Anbaixiu was currently a legendary ranger. Even if he was a sham among rangers, a sudden surprise attack like that should have been almost impossible to anticipate—yet the other man had dodged it.
Having avoided Anbaixiu's grasp, the figure immediately drew the sword at his waist and peered vigilantly in all directions.
Anbaixiu dispelled the illusion and materialized before him. Before the man could cry out, Anbaixiu spoke first: "Alan, what are you doing running over here?"
Chapter 324