The Underdark—a subterranean realm buried deep beneath the earth, spanning an expanse greater than the Nine Kingdoms combined. In this place untouched by sunlight throughout the year, illumination relied entirely on luminescent mosses and glowing crystals unique to the depths.
Yet such a harsh environment was home to many races rarely seen on the surface.
Drow, deep gnomes, duergar, myconids, and more were all remarkably well adapted to this peculiar environment.
Still, when it came to adaptability, none of those races could compare to the undead.
Because the undead did not breathe, did not eat, and were immune to the vast majority of toxins, they could thrive comfortably in the harshest regions where even subterranean races could not survive.
In a certain area of the Underdark lay a massive lake composed entirely of liquid mercury.
The surface reflected the faint radiance of luminescent ores, glittering and sparkling like a field of stars.
Yet such breathtaking beauty concealed terrible peril: the ubiquitous mercury vapor was deadly poison to most species. Only the undead could live along the shores of this lake, erecting colossal castles and mining its precious ores.
Inside the opulent castle, a noble undead queen meticulously perused an account book. Her skin was pale and pristine, while her lips and eyes were the color of crimson. She was Rose of Decay, the wealthy lady of the Elegy Poetry Society.
By classification, Rose of Decay was also a lich. Back when she was still alive, she had been relentlessly hunted down by the Ryan Empire, fleeing all the way to Mercury Lake in the Underdark before being forced to leap into the depths.
Master Morgan had retrieved her corpse and soul from Mercury Lake, assisting her in transforming into a lich. Every inch of muscle and bone in Rose of Decay's body had been saturated with mercury, keeping her flesh from decaying. She appeared little different from an ordinary human, yet such a body was far sturdier than a common frame of bare bones.
Following that, Rose of Decay remained at Master Morgan's side to study necromancy. She accompanied him back to the surface and built her own mage tower in the Desert Kingdom.
Later, Master Morgan was slain by a paladin of the Ryan Empire, forcing Rose of Decay to return once more to the Underdark and this lake of mercury.
Rose of Decay then spent many long years here, eventually forging an undead kingdom of her own.
It had been exceedingly difficult at the start. A minor lich all on her own, fighting for territory among the subterranean races. Several times, her soul fire was on the verge of being completely extinguished; she endured only thanks to a lich's immortality and the geographical advantage of Mercury Lake.
Then came endless wars—against drow, duergar, myconids... Countless deaths allowed Rose of Decay to amass a massive undead army, ultimately driving neighboring races to the brink of extinction.
The drow were the first to beg for mercy, signing an indentured pact with Rose of Decay that reduced them to vassals. The duergar followed closely behind, though because they hesitated for too long, they were reduced to slaves.
The myconids, having suffered heavy casualties, migrated far away and abandoned their territory entirely.
Rose of Decay carved out a vast kingdom spanning an area nearly one-quarter the size of the Ryan Empire.
The reason Rose of Decay dared to propose a business deal worth billions of gold coins with Anbaixiu was precisely because her territory boasted exceptionally abundant mineral resources. Millions of undead mined ore day and night without rest, enabling her to amass untold wealth. Leveraging such colossal trade volume, manipulating ore prices across the Nine Kingdoms was hardly difficult for Rose of Decay—so long as she was willing to pay a certain price.
To mortals, this might represent an unimaginably horrific financial loss, but to Rose of Decay, money was merely a tool to achieve her desire. And her desire was to destroy the Ryan Empire. She would spare no expense to reach that goal.
After carefully calculating market trends for ore, Rose of Decay made a broad stroke of her quill and handed the ledger to a drow handmaiden. She said calmly, "Lower the export price of ore for next month and increase shipment volume. Follow the exact figures I've calculated."
The dark-skinned elven handmaiden responded respectfully, "By your command, Your Majesty."
Rose of Decay waved a hand to dismiss the handmaiden, murmuring to herself, "Dumping this volume will be enough to shake ore prices throughout the Nine Kingdoms, sending them plummeting in short order. Given the economic climate in the City of Alchemy, bankruptcy for those small-scale mines is practically guaranteed.
"When the time comes, transferring another three million gold coins to him should be enough to take over a small mine. What a pity. If only he were willing to come to my kingdom and work for me, none of this trouble would even be necessary."
Rose of Decay was very satisfied with Anbaixiu's design and held the junior's wits and brilliance in high regard. However, when she extended an invitation for Anbaixiu to relocate to the Underdark, Anbaixiu had refused without hesitation.
As for the reason Anbaixiu gave, it was exceedingly blunt: not enough money.
Billions of gold coins could buy his long-term cooperation and prompt him to drop other work to prioritize Rose of Decay. But if she wanted Anbaixiu to submit completely, that amount of gold fell far short.
Even a freeman who only knew how to till fields and couldn't earn a single silver coin a year would cost a hundredfold to purchase as a slave.
For a lich capable of earning billions of gold coins with an infinite lifespan, the buyout price was far beyond a mere hundredfold. The price Anbaixiu demanded was more than even Rose of Decay could produce—perhaps only the entire wealth of the Ryan Empire would make Anbaixiu willingly bend the knee.
Yet Rose of Decay had not given up hope. The undead lived forever; anything was possible. A bone dragon could marry a headless horseman, and a vampire could join with a human. As long as she had enough patience, she would eventually find an opportunity to make Anbaixiu gladly risk his neck for her—or marrying into her kingdom as a consort wouldn't be out of the question either.
Speaking of bone dragons and headless horsemen, Rose of Decay brought out her Necrotic Codex, opened the group chat, and sent a message:
[Rose of Decay: Little Sister Pale Bone, has that man of yours been behaving lately?]
She had originally intended to inquire of this young lady from the bone dragon clan about how to subdue a powerful, proud legendary undead.
Unexpectedly, the bone dragon miss's reply took Rose of Decay by surprise.
[Pale Little Skeleton: That heartless bastard! He actually ran away from home! I'm definitely going to drag him back and whip him thoroughly with my tail!]
[Rose of Decay: Huh? Ran away from home? The Dragon Tomb is so far from the mainland, where could he possibly go?]
[Pale Little Skeleton: I don't know, but I know he used a teleportation array to escape. I bet it has something to do with that Tiga Ultraman! I'm heading to the City of Alchemy to track down that heartless bastard!]
Rose of Decay pondered for a moment, and a bold thought suddenly struck her. She sent a reply:
[Rose of Decay: I'll go with you. It just so happens that I'd like to meet little brother Tiga in person too.]
Chapter 42