IMC Chapter 68

The entire army outside the protective shield was decimated, and the massive horde of monsters surrounded the city, leaving no escape. The three magical dragons were positioned at the forefront of this monstrous legion.

The intense pressure even made those hiding inside the shield lose their sense of safety. They anxiously huddled within the city walls, feeling like chicks without the protection of a hen.

In preparation for this major battle, nearly everyone capable of fighting had left the city. Their initial plan was sound—they believed that even though their enemies had three dragons, sheer numbers would eventually wear them down.

However, it seemed their opponents had a similar strategy. What started as a manageable situation rapidly escalated. The number of monsters increased exponentially, eventually enveloping them like a black cloud, overwhelming them through sheer numbers.

The people inside the shield were of average strength and were incapable of combating the vast horde outside. The shield wasn’t an impenetrable barrier; it had its limits. If the monsters continued their assault in unison, the shield would likely be breached soon.

As they faced this dire predicament, someone spoke from atop the three dragons—not a person, but rather a mouse.

“We’re only here to transport things, not to kill,” Shu Bao said sincerely. “I think this shield is quite nice and would prefer not to break it. What do you think?” Shu Bao was genuinely tempted by the shield; possessing it would significantly enhance the security level of his own base.

Fu Qing glanced at the fluffy companion and, seeing this, Lan Qing quickly added, “I also think the shield is great. It should go to Shu Bao. Two to one, the minority should yield to the majority!”

Fu Qing: “…” He simply thought the beautiful teammate was very clever, but the shield was a magical item that wouldn’t be of much use at his base.

The people inside the shield found themselves in a tough spot. If they didn’t agree, the enemy could force their way in soon and potentially wreak havoc. Agreeing might just save their lives.

As the people inside hesitated, the commander being carried by the dragon was enraged. He was defiant, berating them for lacking backbone, and declared that anyone who dared to lower the shield would be a traitor to the Empire.

The people inside the shield felt somewhat ashamed at his harsh words. Just as they were wavering, they saw the commander being flung by the dragon and then swallowed in one gulp. His curses instantly vanished, while the mouse on the dragon remained notably calm, saying, “Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid. I just thought he was too noisy and wanted him to be quiet for a while.”

The people inside the shield: “…”

Shu Bao’s nonchalant behavior and casual reassurance seemed entirely unconvincing.

After a brief discussion, the shield was lowered. The inhabitants of the city were thoroughly intimidated by the dragonling’s act of swallowing a person whole and Shu Bao’s calm demeanor. They hadn’t expected a mere mouse to be so bloodthirsty—more terrifying than even the masked man.

Once the shield was down, a large number of monsters flooded into the city. The people inside huddled quietly in a corner, afraid to make a sound. As they braced themselves for their fate, they were astonished to see that the monsters acted as if they had not noticed them. Instead, they swaggered into the city and began their raid.

The Empire’s people watched in stunned silence as the fierce monsters transformed into pack animals. They saw a ferocious steel-toothed tiger carefully carrying a sack of rice, walking on tiptoes as if afraid of accidentally tearing the sack.

They also saw a fierce copper-furred brown bear carrying two crates of copper ore, hauling them one after another with impressive dedication!

Both the people inside the shield and those outside who were captured were dumbfounded. They truly didn’t expect that their opponents would stick to their word, only moving things and not actively killing. What was even more unsettling was that someone could tame monsters to such an extent!

It’s important to note that monsters are proud creatures. Even the Empire’s most powerful beast tamers could only force monsters into submission through years of whipping and harsh methods, compelling them to sign a contract. However, these contracts also had limits; if the terms were too excessive, monsters would refuse to contract, even to the point of suicide.

The scene before them was completely abnormal. Not only was the number of monsters unusual, but also their docility. Could the masked figure be a beast tamer? Yes, it must be so. He had tamed three giant dragons, a high-level monster snake, and a monster mouse!

Not only that, he had tamed such a vast number of monsters! This was undoubtedly a terrifying existence!

In the face of such eerie circumstances, the Empire’s people no longer had any thoughts of resistance. They stood quietly in place, silently watching as the monster army emptied the entire resource point.

The resources were quickly moved to a central open area and would soon be divided. The massive amount of resources was depleted in the blink of an eye. When the resource point was finally cleaned out, the Empire’s people thought everything was about to end. However, they didn’t expect the now enormous green snake to start interrogating them one by one, “Tell me! Where does your Empire keep its ducks? How can there be none at all!”

The Empire’s people were nearly in tears. They were in the Land of Gold Sources; how could they possibly keep ducks! But seeing the fierce green snake, after racking their brains, they finally had a flash of inspiration, “Duck eggs! Duck eggs! There’s a nest of gold and silver ducks waiting to hatch!”

Seeing this, Shu Bao and Fu Qing immediately retrieved their recent haul. Shu Bao pulled out a one-meter-wide grass nest from the bracelet space, neatly arranged with a pile of silver and gold eggs.

“That’s right! This is it!”

“These are gold and silver duck eggs! They haven’t hatched yet!”

“These ducks lay eggs that are either gold or silver, they’re very valuable!”

People spoke over each other to add to their persuasion. Lan Qing, who had been diligently searching for ducks, finally got his wish. Lan Qing extended his head towards the nest of duck eggs, carefully tapping them with the tip of his tail, and finally joyfully announced, “I’ve finally stolen all their ducks!”

Shu Bao wiped the cold sweat from his brow and nodded affirmatively, “That’s right!”

Fu Qing looked at the scene for a moment and said, “Save a few for me once they hatch!” With such a good source of gold and silver, it was only natural to keep some. Besides, they could be cooked and eaten later—perfect!

In any case, the three were very satisfied with the sweep. Shu Bao even lamented to the Empire’s people, “It’s truly fantastic! We don’t regret giving you so many days to concentrate on your supplies. Otherwise, collecting resources from each point would have been a huge hassle! You don’t know how many times we got lost despite having set targets…”

The Empire’s people: “…” This lament made them want to hit someone! And was it really because of this that they failed their defenses every time? They were left wondering if their luck was just that bad or if the opponents’ luck was that good.

With the sweep finished, the vast army of monsters prepared to leave. The Empire’s people, cowering like quails, dared not make a sound as they watched the group of bandits swagger out. Before leaving, the mouse even took the time to carefully inquire about the use of the protective shield, an insult that was almost too much to bear!

As the last dragon was about to leave the base gate, everyone suddenly saw the mouse give the giant dragon’s head a pat. The dragon then turned and spat, and they watched as their previously formidable commander was expelled!

The commander wasn’t dead, but he was soaked in saliva. He pointed at the dragon, but the dragon didn’t look at him again. Instead, the mouse on the dragon’s head spoke, “Jinzi says you’re a bit salty. You should take a good bath.”

The commander was so enraged that he fainted.

The onlookers dared not assist, waiting until the dragon was far enough away before checking the commander’s condition. Confirming that he was not in immediate danger, they carried him back to the camp.

After leaving for a while, Shu Bao and the others put away the monsters into the bracelet space and then found a vacant spot to divide the loot. The hurried collection earlier now needed to be properly tallied.

To their surprise, upon counting, they found an unexpected delight: in addition to the golden snails that Shu Bao had been looking for—there were dozens of snail shells—there were also golden snail eggs, meaning they could hatch baby snails in the future.

Besides the golden snails, there was also a large quantity of Qingmu Dye, which seemed to be a type of food for some monsters. The Empire had stored a lot of it, which turned out to be very convenient for Shu Bao. With this sorted, the only remaining goal was the Thick Earth Crystal.

The three divided the spoils: most of the magic potions went to Lan Qing, along with the nest of duck eggs. Although Fu Qing was quite envious, seeing that Lan Qing had already settled down in the grass nest to incubate the eggs in his smaller form, Fu Qing decided not to say anything further.

This time, they did not capture any monsters. It seemed that before the thirty-seventh prince arrived, the Land of Gold Sources had already gathered all the monsters that needed to be relocated into one place, leaving only some eggs and larvae to be hatched.

The remaining items were divided between Shu Bao and Fu Qing. Shu Bao received a large amount of urgently needed metal ore and various rare metals, as well as many gems and some precious ores suitable for crafting magical items.

In addition to the basic resources, Shu Bao also acquired a protective shield, two space rings, and a top-grade magic wand, which was snatched from the hands of the magic and martial arts dual-practice commander. Of course, there were also magic items and wands taken from the captives.

Fu Qing obtained a large number of weapons collected during the sweep. Since there were no mages in his base, the weapons were mainly swords, knives, and bows. He also acquired two storage items. After the sweep, except for Lan Qing, who only needed magic potions, both Fu Qing and Shu Bao’s system spaces were already full.

The three, having gathered plenty of loot, found a nearby tavern to celebrate thoroughly. Fu Qing was envisioning the future of his base, Shu Bao borrowed the kitchen to roast grasshoppers, and Lan Qing was carefully incubating the duck eggs.

After a night of rest, the dedicated trio immediately turned their attention to their next target: the Thick Soil Gobi. This was the area where the Empire’s miners had previously fled. The environment was harsh, composed of desert and gravel as its name suggested, but amidst this hellish terrain, a particularly beautiful type of ore, the Thick Earth Crystal, was abundantly found.

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