Volume One: The Infernal Lord’s World Chapter 87: Supplies on the Road

Seeing the information about his territory change, Chen Gu immediately understood what had happened. The addition of a new city brought a bright smile to his face.

After his laughter faded, Chen Gu turned his attention back to the work at hand. While he waited for the Hungry Wolf and the Fire Spirit Raven to search for materials, he had already made his way through all the carriages at the rear.

Though the carriages kept moving forward, there were narrow corridors connecting each of them. Chen Gu, though not especially agile, could still move safely through these passageways. It was clear these corridors were designed to facilitate communication between carriages while on the move.

Only one person could pass through at a time. If they needed to transport anything large, the convoy would have to halt. This was also why construction on the carriages progressed about fifty percent slower than normal.

This didn’t bother Chen Gu much. According to the map, if he continued south for another ten to eighteen hours, he would come upon the southernmost city of the Elven Kingdom—Cape City.

Cape City was also the gateway to the ancestral lands of the elves. Only ships built here could find the island where the elven race had first been born. Vessels setting sail from elsewhere would encounter nothing but storms or whirlpools if they headed south, and would inevitably return empty-handed.

What troubled Chen Gu now was the uncertain fate of Cape City. If the city had also fallen to the undead, there would be no clever way for him to seize it—he would have to rely on his own strength to take this vital city.

Given his current forces, this was an impossible task. Chen Gu began to consider whether he might encounter suitable creatures along the way to synthesize into new pet troops. Only then could he be confident in his bid for Cape City.

As Chen Gu pressed onward, Kebas was also making his way south. Chen Gu hadn’t left any deliberate traces, but the trail left by so many carriages was impossible to miss. Kebas pursued his steps relentlessly.

Neither man’s journey was smooth. Chen Gu’s recent storm-making within the realm of lords had already drawn the attention of many undead. His activities had even been reported to Black Fortress. While Black Fortress had not issued an explicit kill order against him, they had taken targeted measures: granting all undead cities the freedom to hunt him, and sending out troops to attack cities he had already seized.

Of course, on the surface, the only cities Chen Gu had occupied were the newly built Fire Volume Valley and the freshly liberated Raven Nest City. Packs of wandering undead had already set their sights on these two cities. As Kebas marched south, he happened upon these undead troops on the move.

Kebas was forced into constant battle along the way. Fortunately, he had brought a sizable force—every burrowing worm and mosquito swarm he commanded accompanied him. The mosquito swarms had little advantage against skeletons and ghosts, but they could still deal with other undead—draining the blood even from zombies, ghouls, and corpse mages.

The burrowing worms were even more formidable. Ghosts aside, they could drag almost any enemy underground. Fighting beneath the earth, unless the enemy had their own subterranean units, they wouldn’t even be able to find the burrowers’ trails.

Thus, Kebas carved a bloody path southward. Meanwhile, Chen Gu’s convoy, large and conspicuous as it was, moved swiftly. Since he’d departed Raven Nest City early, he avoided the undead converging on that place, and so his journey remained smooth and unimpeded.

After seven hours on the road, the Hungry Wolf and Fire Spirit Raven returned with the herbs and materials they’d found. The Fire Spirit Raven brought back a variety of fruits—some large, some small, all easily distinguishable, and all of fine quality. Their heft was immediately apparent when held in the hand.

[You have obtained 3 Greencondense Fruits (Common)]
[You have obtained 1 Bloodpetal Fruit (Common)]
[You have obtained…]
[Greencondense Fruit (Common): A fruit with a strong spicy flavor, excellent as a seasoning.]
[Bloodpetal Fruit (Common): A fruit brimming with life force, edible and useful for making healing potions.]
[…]

Chen Gu identified each fruit’s properties and sorted them accordingly. The Fire Spirit Raven had done well, bringing back three suitable materials. Seeing this, the Hungry Wolf quickly delivered his own findings.

The Hungry Wolf had mostly gathered roots, herbs, and mushrooms. The quantity was greater, and to the Hungry Wolf, each item was a treasure.

[You have obtained 7 Humanface Mushrooms (Common)]
[You have obtained 3 Ghostvine Roots (Common)]
[You have obtained 3 Witheredleaf Grass (Uncommon)]
[You have obtained…]
[Humanface Mushroom (Common): A mushroom that absorbs dark energy, edible and useful as a synthesis material.]
[Ghostvine Root (Common): A vine that grows on corpses, unable to devour them but absorbs their nutrients; edible and suitable for synthesis.]
[Witheredleaf Grass (Uncommon): A pale yellow herb growing along cliff faces, usable for alchemy and synthesis.]
[…]

The Hungry Wolf’s haul was both more plentiful and more varied. While most of these weren’t useful for brewing, they could serve other purposes. This pleased Chen Gu—these wolves were proving quite useful.

“Good. You’ve both done well, but it’s still not enough. We need five types of liquor, and the materials you’ve found can only make four. We’re still missing one. Go search again.”

With a wave of his hand, Chen Gu sent them out once more. The materials just gathered were all stored in the carriage he’d set aside for the warehouse.

Once the materials were stowed away, Chen Gu selected those suitable for brewing and returned to his own carriage. The task only required him to find the right ingredients—he didn’t need to make the liquor himself, nor did it have to be done in the carriage tavern; anywhere would do.

With the ingredients in hand, Chen Gu quickly produced four different types of liquor. Three were common, varying only in flavor. The fourth was an uncommon liquor, crafted from Witheredleaf Grass.

[Withered Soul Liquor (Uncommon): Brewed from Witheredleaf Grass and Life Fruit, this liquor restores 300 health points upon consumption.]