For those willing to support, here's the link:
patreon.com/GodofGreed
I am now back to 29 thanks for the support guys đ€§
The Centaur King stood up from the ground with an indifferent expression and said calmly to his guards, "Let the tribe retreat toward the Darknest territory in the middle of the wasteland."
The guard lowered his head and replied, "Yes," only to feel a breeze blowing. When he raised his head, he saw that the king had disappeared and was nowhere to be seen.
To the north of the Northern Wilderness lay the southernmost reaches of the once-proud Albit Kingdomâa fractured territory now only a shadow of its former glory.
Several years ago, these lands were seized by the rising might of the Centaur clans, who swept in like a storm, claiming the fertile plains and highlands for their own. Yet with the sudden and violent arrival of the barbarian hordes last year, the Centaur King Mohandersen made the strategic decision to retreat, gradually relinquishing parts of the occupied Albit territory to avoid inciting a full-scale conflict with the barbarian tribes.
The same cautious expansion strategy could be said for the Kingdom of Dal. But Unlike every kingdom on the continent, Dal did not retreat. With the destruction of seven kingdoms It surged outward like a devouring tide, its borders swelling to nearly three times their original size. Its ambitions were fueled by the chaos sweeping the continentâplagues of Pestilence and waves of Famine that now spread unchecked in the wake of wars waged by the continent's great powers.
As civilization fractured and alliances crumbled, the population of the Central Continent fled northward in desperationâseeking safety, stability, and shelter. But with so many racesâhumans, elves, dwarves, beastmen, orcs, and othersâforced into tight proximity, the exodus birthed catastrophe. Disease festered in overcrowded settlements. Crops failed. Supplies ran dry. Pestilence and famine were no longer consequences of war; they had become weapons of their own, indiscriminately cutting down the weak and the strong alike.
Anyway, for the centaurs, the number of their tribe is only about 100,000, so they don't need such a large territory.
Even the resources and territory in the northern part of the wasteland alone are enough for the entire Centaur clan to survive.
"Tolerance only results in invasion, barbarian." Mohandersen's eyes were cold.
As long as the barbarian royal court was polite and offered some resources in exchange for the right to use the territory in the southern part of the kingdom, Mohandersen would be able to endure it.
After all, he had no confidence in dealing with the Barbarian King.
It had been several years since he was promoted to Legend. Of course, if you included comprehending the true meaning of Legend, it would have been more than ten years.
For more than ten years, due to the influence of the Finger of Death spell, the progress and transformation of his body and energy had been slow. In addition, the profession of cultivation was not a very powerful profession, so now, in terms of physical strength and energy, Mohandersen was almost the same as an ordinary first-level legendary powerhouse and was still far from the second-level one.
Only in the understanding of the true meaning of Legend, due to his excellent comprehension, had the Centaur King made rapid progress, and two years ago, he had even developed a unique skill.
At that time, the demon dragon Diaharut came to harass Mohandersen. Back then, the Centaur King had not yet developed his unique skills, and he only wounded the demon dragon and drove it away every time.
But now, if the demon dragon with ordinary legendary strength came again, Mohandersen would be absolutely sure he could kill it.
This kind of strength was also considered strong among first-level Legends.
However, facing the Barbarian King, who had been promoted to Legend for hundreds of years and was suspected of breaking through to the second level of Legend, Mohandersen had no confidence that he could win.
Therefore, Mohandersen had been unwilling to conflict with the barbarians.
But now, he hadn't thought about conflict. Instead, the barbarians had taken advantage of the situation and invaded.
"Things and ideas are always opposite. In this world, strength will ultimately speak for itself." After Mohandersen made his decision, his mood became very calm.
The breeze blew through the grass, setting off waves of blue.
The ground shook slightly.
On the distant skyline, black barbarians moved like dark clouds, marching toward the prairie.
The three barbarian generals were riding high-level domesticated ligers, chatting and laughing all the way.
"That's... a centaur?"
One of the barbarian generals, several kilometers away, sharply noticed a centaur standing on the grassland in front of the barbarian army.
From the looks of it, he was probably waiting for their arrival.
The three barbarian generals looked at each other and couldn't help but laugh.
"The courage is commendable. This centaur is probably the king of the Centaur clan." One of the barbarian generals chuckled, then said to his two companions,
"Don't fight with me. If I discovered him first, then this guy's head belongs to me!"
"Hmph, you're so lucky." The barbarian general on his left shook his head helplessly.
"Be careful. This guy also has a record of killing level 19 professionals, so don't underestimate him," another barbarian general reminded. For some reason, he felt a little uneasy.
Why would a 19th-level centaur dare to stand in front of their barbarian army?
Just by virtue of courage?
At this time, under the command of the three generals, the barbarian army stopped as a whole and stood still.
The barbarian general who had spoken first got off his tamed high-level liger monster, took the large sword off his back, and looked at the centaur figure in the distance in front of him. As soon as he stepped forward, his figure turned into a stream of red light, charging toward his opponent.
The distance between the two sides rapidly closed.
"King of Centaur, right? Give meâ" Before the confident barbarian general could finish speaking, a breeze blew by, and his strong body, which was two and a half meters tall, split in two from the middle.
The blood and internal organs did not even spill out immediately but remained as smooth as a flat mirror.
After a few seconds, the internal organs and blood spurted out, splattering across the grass.
The two barbarian generals, several kilometers away, were dumbfounded when they saw this, then became horrified.
The strength of the three of them was almost at the peak of level 19. At the same level, the only ones who could be stronger than them were those perverts with pseudo-legendary strength.
But the number of such perversions was still rare.
Even among true dragons, not all could achieve pseudo-legendary strength at the 19th order. Generally, only gold dragons and red dragons could achieve it. Silver dragons struggled unless they pursued the caster profession.
Not to mention other dragons like blue, green, black, bronze, and brass. Generally, only those who diligently trained in a second profession and cultivated it to a very high level could attain pseudo-legendary strength.
It was evident that the strength threshold of pseudo-legend was a difficult target for most 19th-order dragons, let alone other ordinary intelligent races. The three barbarian generals were already geniuses, standing out among tens of millions of barbarians, yet they were still far from reaching the threshold of pseudo-legendary strength.
"This guy..."
The two barbarian generals were both frightened and furious at the death of their companion.
If he had died in a fierce battle, they wouldn't be so angry, but this was a meaningless instant kill!
"Inform the king of this news. This is not something we can handle."
The two barbarian generals made a decision. One of them took out a bone bead from his arms. Just as he was about to convey the message, a breeze blew by.
The barbarian general split into two halves along with the bone bead.
The last remaining barbarian general reacted quickly, roaring as he swung his sword. His skin turned red, instantly entering a high-level berserk state, greatly enhancing his strength. Thenâ
The long sword he swung only struck empty air, and he himself was split into two pieces by the breeze.
Mohandersen had appeared atop the corpses of the two barbarian generals, his green sword unstained by blood. His expression did not change at all as he calmly said,
"My people haven't completed their retreat yet. How can I let the news get out?"
The 10,000 intermediate barbarian berserkers at the front, along with the hundreds of berserkers who had witnessed everything, seemed to awaken from a dream.
Were the three generals who led them... dead?
Shocked. Horrified.
Mohandersen looked at them, pointing the green sword in his hand at the 10,000 barbarian berserker warriors.
The battlefield trembled under a blood-red sky. Thunder growled like an ancient beast overhead, and the stench of steel, sweat, and scorched flesh hung heavy in the air.
Across from the raging barbarian horde stood the Centaur Kingâtall, regal, his body etched with battle scars and his eyes calm as a still lake before the storm. In his grasp, the verdant longblade pulsed with an eerie, living light.
He raised it skyward. The winds around him howled like ghosts freed from the abyss.
"It's an honor to die in a hurricane," he said, voice like the roar of mountains cracking.
Before the barbarians could even say some words, a shard of green light burst from the tip of his blade, silent as death and swift as judgment. It streaked through the sky, weaving past jagged spears and broken banners, and struck the center of their army like a divine spear.
Time seemed to halt.
A low hum beganâsubtle at first, like the earth whisperingâbut then the soil cracked. The air warped. And from that single point of green fire, a miniature tornado screamed into existence, spinning faster than they could see, swallowing dust, men, and steel.
In the blink of an eye, it surged into the heavensâa thousand-meter-high demon of wind and fury. Blades of air sharper than any sword shredded flesh from bone. Armor crumpled like paper. Screams were ripped from throats only to be torn apart by the very storm that carried them.
Barbarians were lifted into the sky like ragdolls and pulverized midair, limbs and entrails raining like crimson hail. Blood mist sprayed so thick that the very air turned red, and not a single soul within the storm survived to scream twice.
Moments passed.
Then silence.
No bodies. No bones. No bloodied banners. The earth where the horde once stood was scoured cleanâflattened, blackened, smoking. Only the roaring wind lingered, drenched in the scent of slaughter.
And above it all, the Centaur King stood motionless, his blade humming softly, his expression unchanged.
A god of the storm. A butcher of legions.
---
"Master, the Centaur King of the wasteland wants to see you."
A smooth black rock, nearly a kilometer in size, floated above the water vapor in the center of the vast Dragon Pond.
On top of the black rock, the huge black dragon stopped practicing, opened its crimson vertical pupils, and looked at the dragon maid, Sophia, who was reporting the news.
"The King of Centaur?" He was a little surprised. "Why is this guy looking for me?"
After thinking about it, I still agreed to meet this guy.
After all, he is a legend.
"Yes." Sophia retreated.
After a while, there was a slight clatter of horse hooves.
I looked over.
The body shape was similar to that of an ordinary centaur warrior, with a height of 2.78 meters, but the temperament of this Centaur King was very impressive. He had deep blue pupils, long black hair that spread out half-curly, a hooked nose, a tough face, and scars all over his body.
Powerful energy surged within his body without any cover-up.
I was stunned for a moment and then smiled. The Centaur King's unabashed behavior was obviously very sincere.
No one in the outside world knew that the Centaur King had become a legend. Under such circumstances, the Centaur King's behavior undoubtedly revealed his biggest trump card.
"I know you, King of Centaurs, so why have you come to see me?" I said in a calm tone.
Mohandersen raised his head. Half of the majestic dragon's body in his sight was hidden in the mist, with only part of it exposed. The looming figure had an even stronger visual impact.
After seeing the Black Dragon Lord, Mohandersen knew he had found the right dragon. He lowered his head slightly and said with a hint of respect in his tone,
"I have met the Great Black Dragon King of the Black Wing. The purpose of my visit is to seek refuge with Black Wing, hoping that Black Wing can take in the Gale Clan."
Although I had speculated about this possibility, I was still a little surprised.
With the strength of the Centaur King and the small size of the Gale Clan, as long as their ambitions were not too grand, they could live a good life anywhere on the mainland. So why join me?
Has my reputation grown so much outside?
"I am naturally happy to be joined by a legendary centaur strongman, but what is the reason?" I asked curiously.
Facing my inquiry, Mohandersen did not hesitate and said directly, "I have offended the Barbarian Court."
Immediately, Mohandersen briefly described the conflict with the barbarians from beginning to end.
After hearing this, I nodded in understanding.
Because he had offended the Barbarian Royal Court, he felt that he was no match for the Barbarian King, and he did not want to lead his clan into exile in today's chaotic situation of Pestilence, Famine, and War being everywhere.
This was a king who was responsible for his people.
Once exiled or forced to migrate, the women and children of the clan would undoubtedly suffer a large number of casualties. Not every centaur was a powerful warriorâmost were ordinary centaurs with mediocre strength.
After Mohandersen finished speaking, he felt a little uneasy.
He was sure that the Black Dragon Lord had the strength to resist the Barbarian King, but he was not sure whether the other party was willing to fight against the Barbarian King for the Gale Clan.
According to rumors from the outside world, this Black Dragon Lord was from the neutral camp. Although the forces in the neutral and good camps did not trust the Black Dragon Lord due to the evil dragon craze caused by the Crimson Nest, Mohandersen was willing to trust him.
This was not without reason.
Many years ago, the Black Wing Nest suddenly emerged and drove the centaur women and children out of the dark forest without killing a single woman or child. This alone was enough to prove that the Black Nest's behavior had a certain bottom line.
If it were a true evil dragon, Mohandersen had no doubt that the group of centaur women and children would have been slaughtered.
"For the sake of fate, you will follow me from now on." After thinking for a while, I responded in a lazy tone.
After hearing this, Mohandersen was stunned for a moment. He didn't understand what the Black Dragon Lord meant by "fate," but he understood that the Black Dragon Lord had agreed to take in the Gale Clan. The Centaur King felt relieved. He took a deep breath, then knelt down without hesitation, swearing allegiance.
I also took advantage of the situation and granted the Centaur King a family contract, completely binding him to the Black Wing Lair.
After the family contract was completed, I gave instructions:
"As for the location of the Gale Clan's residence and other matters, discuss it with Skye. We have plenty of fertile land here. The two of you can sort it out together."
"Yes." Mohandersen nodded and then stepped back.
I watched his departing figure and couldn't help feeling a little emotional.
More than ten or twenty years ago, the Centaur King was undoubtedly a towering mountain to me.
Unexpectedly, in the blink of an eye, this guy had become my subordinate. Mother must be really jealous.
As for whether I hesitated to offend the Barbarian Royal Court and accept the Gale Clan because of the fate I mentioned?
Not entirely, but generally.
When I was still weak, still hiding in the dark forest and struggling to develop, the Centaur King and the Black Dragon Ladyâhorse and dragonâresisted the threats of the Kingdom of Albit and the Principality of Cass. Although they weren't specifically protecting me, I unintentionally benefited from their actions.
Without the Centaur King defending the wilderness against adventurers and the threats of kingdoms and principalities, and without the Black Dragon Lady taking the blame for everything (although I deliberately shifted it to her), I wouldn't have been able to develop so smoothly.
This was what I meant by fateâI had unknowingly inherited the benefits of the Centaur Clan's actions.
The Centaur King obviously didn't know about this, because he never imagined that such a terrifying Black Dragon Lord was only in his twenties.
Twelve thousand would have sounded more convincing.
"Barbarian Royal Court?" I grinned.
If the barbarians truly came to attack, then I would be quite pleased.
The main force of the sea expansion war was the Sahuagin and the dragon army. The ghost plane had only dispatched thousands of elite Black Wing warriors. In reality, the Black Wing Nest's main army hadn't fought a large-scale war for a long time. Many Black Wing warriors had been itching for battle.
War and plunder were still among the fastest ways to grow.
"Furthermore, conquering the ghost plane and ruling the Tal Plane in the future will require a large number of grassroots dependents, so it's time to expand a little."
Occupy more territory, breed more monsters, and then select the most talented among them as bearers of the power of the void to create an elite legion.
This elite army didn't necessarily have to be used in battles, because with my current management in the Abyss, it wasn't difficult for a few demon subordinates to quickly raise a mid-to-high-level demon army numbering in the tens of thousands. If counting low-level cannon fodder demons, they could easily raise hundreds of thousands, which was much more time-efficient than cultivating them through war.
*****
Thanks, you can read up to 30 chapters ahead on my Patreon.
patreon.com/GodofGreed