Colluding in Disgrace (Part 1 - 4th Update 3)

This is the third chapter update today, where are the recommendation votes?

The sun hung reluctantly on the western horizon, and the light on the plains had already dimmed considerably.

A dense, blood-red sunset covered the entire sky, mirroring the large bloodstains on the plains, creating a dazzling spectacle.

Yin Xuege sat cross-legged in the carriage of Farnburg's mount. Four beautiful Blood Demon girls knelt respectfully in a corner of the carriage, their eyes fixed on Yin Xuege. The four girls, who looked no older than fifteen or sixteen, were all stunningly beautiful and exuded a faint, ethereal fragrance. They were maids gifted to Yin Xuege by Farnburg, the kind of gift that couldn't be refused.

The vital essence of three thousand-year-old Dukes slowly released within him. Yin Xuege unfurled his innate bat wings, gently fanning them as he focused all his energy on absorbing the power from this vital essence. Not all of this vital essence could be used to enhance his demonic power; the vast majority of its strength had to be channeled into strengthening his physical body, expanding his life origin, increasing his soul's intensity, and enhancing the capabilities of his innate bat wings.

Like a surging tide, the blood-qi energy churned within him. Every strand of Yin Xuege's hair stood on end, his dark hair faintly tinged with a dark red hue due to the impact of the overwhelmingly powerful blood-qi energy.

His body continuously emitted popping sounds like exploding beans, his muscles, bones, tendons, blood vessels, and internal organs were all being strengthened. His bones became tougher, his muscles more powerful and elastic, his tendons as flexible as steel cables, his blood vessels wider and more pliable, and the life energy contained within his internal organs was increasing tenfold!

His tongue, nose, eyes, ears, and even the sense of touch on his skin, his five senses were constantly growing stronger, becoming inhumanly powerful. Even as a young child, Yin Xuege could smell the scent of a drop of fresh blood from tens of miles away. Now, with just a slight sniff, he could detect the aura of all living beings within hundreds of miles.

His soul power was also gradually growing stronger. Originally, Yin Xuege's soul power was as weak as a candle flame, but as the energy from the vital essence of the three thousand-year-old Dukes was continuously injected, his soul had become as fiery and bright as a torch. His soul had been enhanced by more than a hundredfold, and its intensity had reached the level expected of a seasoned Duke!

A large number of secret Blood Demon arts quietly sprouted within his soul, and countless ancient demonic scripts and Demon Talismans transformed into blood-red seals, integrating into his entire being. He could run faster, exert greater strength, and react more acutely. The powerful innate instincts hidden within his bloodline were awakening, a primal instinct akin to that of a beast was quietly emerging.

All external disturbances were irrelevant to Yin Xuege. This carriage was an extremely famous demonic artifact of the Stuttgart Family, passed down for over ten thousand years. Forged by a peerless Great Demon capable of shattering the void, using the bones of legendary Flying Dragons mixed with a large quantity of rare materials from before the Era of Dharma Decline, this carriage was so sturdy that even dozens of powerful individuals with strength comparable to Farnburg could not break it.

Yin Xuege, seated inside the carriage, was absolutely safe. Moreover, around this carriage, eight thousand-year-old Dukes of the Stuttgart Family stood guard, strictly protecting him. With such a formidable escort, even the Grand Arbiter of the Great Berlin City-State would be forced to retreat in disarray.

The plains outside were in complete chaos. Under the frenzied assault of the Blood Servant army led by Wumu, and the rampage of a hundred Hell Three-Headed Dragon Eagles, the elite army of the Great Berlin City-State led by Bright collapsed completely within two hours. Bright, ambushed from behind by a Marquis of the Yin Clan who gouged out several pounds of flesh from his back, fled in disarray, only to be captured alive in the end.

Among the other captives, thirty-five young men and women with identities similar to Bright, Sander, and Fennice, who commanded various strange natural powers, were imprisoned in a heavily guarded magic carriage, bound by various restraints placed by the experts of the Yin Clan and the Stuttgart Family.

Currently, the Yin Clan's army, with the assistance of numerous experts from the Stuttgart Family, was scouring the plains for fleeing soldiers and civilians from Fanlu'er City. Over five hundred thousand citizens of Fanlu'er City had been rounded up and were being prepared for transport back to the Yin Clan. However, hundreds of thousands of soldiers and civilians had scattered, and the Yin Clan's army was actively hunting them down.

Fanlu'er City was a crucial supply point for fresh fish and metals for the Great Berlin City-State. By conquering Fanlu'er City, the Yin Clan had also seized its treasuries. Hundreds of thousands of tons of lake fish and shrimp that couldn't be transported in time, over a million tons of various metal ingots, fifty-odd tons of freshly refined gold ingots, hundreds of tons of silver ingots, and other treasures of immeasurable value became the spoils of war for the Yin Clan.

What pleased the Yin Clan even more was the discovery of a rich crystal ore vein in a secret mine outside Fanlu'er City. A captured administrative official from Fanlu'er City betrayed his own kind, offering this mine to the Yin Clan in exchange for the safety of himself and his family, as well as future prosperity.

Time ticked by, and the Yin Clan's army thoroughly searched the surrounding plains, capturing over ninety percent of the fleeing soldiers and civilians. Over a million humans were gathered together in a state of terrified confusion. Bonfires were lit everywhere on the plains, and the Yin Clan's Blood Servant army moved among the crowds, meticulously looting the private property of these civilians according to the instructions of the Yin Clan's high command.

Necklaces and bracelets made of precious metals, rings inlaid with various colored gemstones, including artifacts left by famous artists from the Era of Dharma Decline – these were all targets of the Yin Clan's looting.

Simultaneously, they were also conducting preliminary registration of these captured civilians. Those elderly and frail civilians would disappear without a trace shortly after being sent back to the Yin Clan. The young and strong men and women would be sent to various mines and farms to toil diligently for the Yin Clan.

The luckiest among them were the handsome or beautiful young men and women. They were considered precious assets and would become the Yin Clan's top-tier Blood Slaves. They would receive the most comfortable living conditions and could even be paired up to have children. They could spend the rest of their lives without worry, their only duty being to offer a certain proportion of their fresh blood to the Yin Clan each month!

The Yin Clan deeply understood the foolishness of "draining the pond to catch the fish." Therefore, long before the Era of Dharma Decline, they had begun establishing massive Blood Nests to secretly raise Blood Slaves. With the continuous replenishment of exceptionally gifted Blood Slaves into the Blood Nests year after year, the total number of Blood Slaves owned by the Yin Clan had become an astronomical figure!

However, the exact location of the Yin Clan's Blood Nests, the number of Blood Slaves within them, and the scale of the Blood Nests were unknown to anyone except the Yin Clan's elders and a specific group of senior elders. Even powerful figures within the family like Yin Jihuang and Yin Jiwu had no clue about any traces of the Blood Nests.

Within the Yin Clan, the Blood Nests were an absolute forbidden zone, the foundation of the Yin Clan's prosperity.

After a night of busy work, the Yin Clan's hundred magic carriages were loaded with a large number of captives, with each magic carriage dragging over ten thousand people! As the sun rose, the Yin Clan's magic carriages slowly took to the sky, preparing to transport these captives back to the Yin Clan City-State.

According to the plan formulated by Yin Tianjue and others, the Yin Clan's army was also instructed to slow down their return journey as much as possible.

Thus, the Yin Clan's army mingled with the people of the Stuttgart Family and slowly made their way back along the path they had taken towards the Yin Clan City-State. This time, with over a million captives marching along, the Yin Clan's army's advance speed was indeed slowed to an absolute crawl. It took them a full seven days to return to the outskirts of the Great Berlin City-State.

Moreover, intentionally or unintentionally, the marching convoy made every effort to approach the Great Berlin City-State, passing by almost brushing against its city walls. At their closest point, the Yin Clan's army was less than three kilometers away from the metal walls of the Great Berlin City-State!

At this point, Yin Xuege ceased absorbing the vital essence of the three thousand-year-old Dukes. He stepped out of Farnburg's carriage and stood on the carriage shaft, gazing in the direction of the Great Berlin City-State. He heard the roars and curses of countless people on the city walls, and even the desperate cries of many.

"Why aren't they reacting at all?" Yin Xuege frowned. "Could it be that the Grand Arbiters of the Great Berlin City-State are no longer in the city? If that's the case, Yin Wufeng, launch a probing attack on the Great Berlin City-State!"

The vast Yin Clan procession halted. Accompanied by sharp commands, dozens of giant catapults were pulled out by the Blood Servant army and positioned in a suitable location. The clamor on the walls of the Great Berlin City-State grew even louder, followed by a deep rumbling sound as dozens of red beams whistled towards the Yin Clan's catapult positions.

"Defensive barrier, activate!" Yin Xuege raised a hand.

On the thirteen magic carriages surrounding the catapults, demonic script talismans rapidly lit up. A faint blood-red light screen enveloped the catapult positions. The red beams whistled through the air, accurately striking this defensive barrier.

A huge explosion erupted, the ground trembled slightly, and the blood-red light screen violently vibrated a few times.

Farnburg suddenly appeared beside Yin Xuege. With his hands behind his back, he squinted at the distant city walls of the Great Berlin City-State, looking at Yin Xuege thoughtfully. "I found it strange a few days ago. This operation by the Yin Clan seems to have a deliberate provocative tone! Aren't you trying to lure out the Grand Arbiters of the Great Berlin City-State?"

Yin Xuege smiled and shook his head at Farnburg. "Only if they were actually in the city! You should have realized something was amiss earlier. When we attacked Fanlu'er City, only Bright and his small army were sent to reinforce us. That in itself is illogical."

"A group of young people with weak strength!" Farnburg frowned. "Where are the experts of the Great Berlin City-State? Excluding the Grand Arbiters, where is the real core strength? Why are only these youngsters left to hold the fort?" (To be continued)