Unsuccessful Operation, Fishing Plan
The Central Residential District, within the outermost two-courtyard structure.
This is a Byzantium- style house with some European influences. The house itself is not very large, but it has a fairly spacious courtyard.
It exudes a sense of refinement inside and out.
However, the lush weeds in the courtyard and the moss growing on the lower part of the surrounding walls indicate that the courtyard has been abandoned for some time.
In the Imperial Capital, this style of house would never have been something ordinary people could afford to buy and live in, as it was a place reserved for the nobility.
Even the lowest-ranking nobles—that was before the Blood Emperor ascended to the throne, of course.
In a spacious courtyard.
"Roar!" A shrill roar suddenly rang out, though the voice was clearly weak.
This is a Ogre.
It stands at around 2.5 meters tall, which is considered relatively short for an adult Ogre.
The other person was currently tied to a sturdy stone chair, his head twisting incessantly, but his massive body remained completely still, only occasionally twitching reflexively.
This peculiar condition proves that the Ogre suffered some kind of severe trauma, resulting in only its head being able to move.
"It fell again. It's not good for people nearby to hear this yelling."
Tang Zheng sighed softly and stepped out from behind the Ogre, holding two fist-sized, blood-soaked bones in his hands.
Judging from its shape, it is clearly a cervical vertebra, which he had just removed from the back of the Ogre's neck.
The cervical spine is severely damaged. The Ogre ' powerful regenerative abilities will not cause them to die, but they will lose control of their bodies and become paralyzed, with only their heads able to move.
Snap!
Tang Zheng casually tossed the two cervical vertebrae in his hand to the Lesser Barghest that had been waiting nearby.
"Sing."
The Lesser Barghest excitedly raised its head and bit down on both bones in one go.
"Eat slowly, the next time will be five days later."
Tang Zheng casually reminded the Lesser Barghest, stepped forward, and stuffed the tattered rag that had fallen to the ground back into the Ogre's mouth.
The roaring stopped abruptly.
The Ogre's regenerative abilities meant that Tang Zheng had to have his spine removed every five days or so to prevent the Ogre from breaking free of its restraints.
I glanced at the Lesser Barghest, which had grown noticeably larger, happily grinding its teeth against the Ogre's spine.
With ample food, the monsters grew much faster than Tang Zheng had anticipated.
When he left "Ye Lantier" a month ago, the Lesser Barghest only reached his calves when it raised its head; now, when it raises its head, it's past his knees.
Its body length exceeded eighty centimeters, giving it the dangerous aura of a demon!
That's right!
Tang Zheng left "Ye Lantier" on July 18th, and more than a month has passed since he entered the Baharuth Empire.
It is currently the 20th of August, the Mid-Fire Month.
The operation is not going well!
The "Rokubols" family, to which Lainas belonged, had long ago driven Lainas out after she was cursed and disfigured.
This matter also had some impact within the Empire. Tang Zheng originally planned to use the Adventurer's Guild's intelligence network to find Lainas's whereabouts.
But!
Even the Adventurer's Guild didn't know where Lainas was; after being expelled from her family, she seemed to have vanished into thin air.
Tang Zheng could only rely on the few clues he had to search, but he still came up with nothing. He couldn't even find a trace of the other party, and instead wasted half a month of his time.
His purpose in coming to the Baharuth Empire was twofold: first, to acquire the "Cursed Knight" and second, to acquire the "Immortal" profession.
Lainas's whereabouts are unknown.
Fluder's whereabouts are known, but the question is, what is Fluder's identity?
What is his current status?
Given the vast difference in their social status, it was impossible for them to even meet, let alone obtain each other's jobs.
The only person in the entire empire who could easily see Fluder was the Blood Emperor Jircniv, and even he wasn't someone you could just see whenever you wanted.
This is the situation.
This made Tang Zheng realize that he had to change his approach.
so.
For the next two weeks, Tang Zheng began making inexpensive Alchemical Potion and selling them to quickly establish his reputation.
And he intentionally spread rumors that he could create Alchemical Potion to heal any injury!
However, at present...
His "fishing plan" hasn't yielded any real catches yet.
Tang Zheng left the struggling Ogre and sat down at a stone table not far away, a headache on his face. "A month has already been wasted. I wonder if this plan will even work?"
If the fish don't bite,
Tang Zheng naturally couldn't stay there and wait any longer.
Whoosh!
Suddenly, a figure dressed in a long black robe climbed over the wall and entered the courtyard.
After confirming Tang Zheng's location, the figure strode over.
While walking!
The black robe was slightly open, revealing brown knee-high boots underneath, and the slender figure dressed as Scout in light leather armor.
The other person's head was covered by a black cloak, making it impossible to see their face.
"What a luxury, living in such a big yard all by yourself." A cold, detached voice came from the slender figure.
"Roar."
The Lesser Barghest was crawling at Tang Zheng's feet released the bone it was holding in its mouth, immediately got up, and stared fiercely at the slender figure.
"I paid 50 gold coins a month to rent this."
"These noble residences are quiet, well-located, and even patrolled by soldiers."
Tang Zheng glanced at the approaching figure, then calmly smiled and asked, "By the way, could you please come in through the front gate?"
Since the Blood Emperor Jircniv ascended the throne, he began to purge a large number of "mediocre" nobles. Not only minor nobles, but even some top nobles were purged, resulting in many residences becoming abandoned.
Due to the severe reduction in income, some lower-ranking nobles could not even afford basic daily expenses, yet in order to maintain appearances, they incurred debts.
This meant that although some nobles' mansions were nominally still under their names, they actually ended up in the hands of some merchants.
"Don't you know that many people are watching you right now?"
The slender figure retorted without hesitation, then revealed a pair of eyes beneath the cloak that, while seemingly gentle, appeared somewhat fierce due to their narrow eye sockets, and glared at the Lesser Barghest.
"What's up with your Blackie? This isn't my first time here."
Tang Zheng shrugged and smiled, "Perhaps it hates being called by its name, or perhaps it simply dislikes you."
"Snort."
The slender figure let out a soft snort, still retorting without hesitation, "I hate it too."
After saying that, he glared at the Lesser Barghest again.
This provoked the Lesser Barghest to spit its teeth.
Upon hearing this...
Tang Zheng's lips twitched. This kind of personality, which even the Lesser Barghest would argue with, would definitely have been labeled as "argumentative personality" in his previous life.
As the slender figure approached, the black robe she wore was simultaneously torn off.
A woman with long purple hair tied in pigtails and a cold expression appeared before Tang Zheng. Most striking were her pointed ears, indicating that she was not human, but a Half-Elf!
Imina.