I, Legendary, Give Me Money!

Chapter 26: I, Legendary, Pay Up!

On this Continent where the Nine Kingdoms constantly bicker, many intelligent beings are actually divided by differing stances rather than strict distinctions between good and evil.

For example, the Lyne Empire's extreme hatred for the Undead doesn't mean that an Undead like Amber Xiu is truly irredeemable, nor does it mean that from Amber Xiu's perspective, the Lyne Empire is a heartless cult.

This is a matter of position, not something that can be simply measured by good and evil.

But Hags are different; they are inherently evil creatures, the most cruel and malicious beings from the moment of their birth.

Hags appear as ugly, twisted old women, their hearts as ugly as their exteriors.

Their method of reproduction alone reveals the extremity and perversion of these creatures.

Hags cannot reproduce on their own. They steal babies from cradles or even from their mothers' wombs, then completely absorb the unfortunate infant. A week later, the Hag will give birth to a female infant that looks human, maintaining a human appearance as it grows. It will only transform into a Hag identical to its mother on its thirteenth birthday.

Under normal circumstances, a Hag will give its offspring to a couple who has lost their child. The child will grow in a normal human form until around ten years old.

More than a decade is enough time for them to become a true family.

When the Hag's soul matures, the child will suddenly change its personality, becoming cruel and malicious, catching its adoptive parents completely off guard. However, no matter what the parents do, they cannot awaken the child's conscience. They are often killed by the child they raised after experiencing countless betrayals and harms.

And as they die, they will witness their child transform into the Hag's ugly form, realizing that the child they raised for over a decade was a monster, a monster that grew by consuming their own child.

This cruel torment will leave mortal souls riddled with holes, while the Hag will be immensely pleased by the human's rage and despair.

This is the essence of Hags; their existence is solely to inflict suffering on other lives.

Upon reaching adulthood, Hags quickly master a vast array of evil magic, and then begin to become arrogant and conceited. Some Hags even believe that Deities are nothing special and that they will eventually trample all the gods underfoot.

This extreme arrogance leads Hags to enjoy toying with humans, one of the ways they prove they are "also gods." Typically, Hags will play games of trade with humans. For instance, they might poison someone and then, at the moment of their despair, appear and tell them that they can live only if they sacrifice their most beloved family member.

By deceiving humans into sacrificing their loved ones, Hags gleefully watch the humans' breakdown and despair when the truth is revealed.

For this, they are even willing to pay a price.

It can be said that Hags are inherently evil beings, more outrageous than demons from hell.

Amber Xiu meticulously explained the information about Hags to Naomi, leaving Naomi's mouth agape for a long time.

"By Sylvanus, can such evil monsters exist in this world? Eating children and then fabricating a monster to be raised by the child's parents… it's too vicious!"

Just hearing Amber Xiu's description sent shivers down Naomi's spine. Her own people had encountered such a terrifying monster.

Amber Xiu continued, "The vast majority of Hags are skilled in illusions. Large-scale illusions are not difficult for Hags. Not only do they possess powerful casting abilities, but their claws are capable of tearing through steel. Furthermore, Hags are never alone; their greatest skill is deceiving humans into becoming their puppets.

"Even a fully prepared army would likely suffer heavy casualties against a Hag. What's even more terrifying is that most Hags are skilled at escaping. If you can't kill her in one go, she will seek revenge again and again until she kills you!

"I heard a rumor that three Hags joined forces and created a terrible plague in the Elven capital, turning entire cities into dead zones and causing thousands of deaths. If not for the intervention of a Legendary expert of the High Elves who drove away the three Hags, the casualties would have been even greater."

Amber Xiu's words turned Naomi's face pale. This sounded like an incredibly terrifying monster. Were her people in grave danger?

"Master Ultraman, what do we do now?" Naomi asked nervously.

"It's difficult. Hags are not easy to deal with. Only those at the Legendary rank have a ten-tenths chance of defeating them. If you were to hire a professional adventurer team, it would cost at least tens of thousands of Gold Coins for anyone to even consider accepting the commission. But that was the price a few years ago. Recently, prices in Alchemy City have skyrocketed, and it's likely doubled."

Naomi became even more anxious at Amber Xiu's words. Where would she get tens of thousands of Gold Coins to hire adventurers? Were her people truly beyond saving?

"However…" Amber Xiu suddenly changed the subject.

Naomi quickly pressed, "However, what?"

Amber Xiu said, "However, I happen to know an expert who deals with Hags. With my influence, he can guarantee the elimination of this Hag for at most ten thousand Gold Coins."

"Really?" Naomi asked doubtfully. She had a vague feeling that something was wrong; these words sounded suspiciously like a scam.

Amber Xiu patted his chest and said, "Of course. If you don't believe me, I can swear on the name of the Undead God. The expert I know can definitely deal with the Hag, and for only ten thousand Gold Coins. If he fails, even if the Hag escapes, you won't pay a single cent."

Naomi said helplessly, "But I don't have that much money. I don't have anything valuable on me."

Amber Xiu smiled and said, "That's easily solved. Aren't you going to rescue your tribal companions? Their belongings combined should be enough for ten thousand Gold Coins. The nature magic equipment crafted by Druids sells very well in the Nine Kingdoms. You can pay after the service is rendered."

Naomi felt that something was still not quite right, but she seemed to have no other choice at the moment.

She had to rescue her tribespeople. That ten thousand Gold Coins would definitely be worth it. If they pooled their resources, they could surely gather the amount.

If she failed to rescue them, what would she lose?

With that thought, Naomi immediately agreed.

"Then shall we go find the expert you mentioned now? Where is he?" Naomi urged anxiously.

Amber Xiu smiled slightly and said, "No need to rush. He's already here."

After saying this, Amber Xiu's body began to emit layers of ethereal light.

The effect of the Transformation Spell was dispelled, and the original black-haired youth quickly transformed into a stark white skeleton. Clad in a black Robe, with Soul Fire burning in its eye sockets, it floated without touching the ground, holding a long magic staff.

With such an appearance, Amber Xiu didn't need to introduce himself. Naomi exclaimed, "Lich? You're a Lich?!"

The variety of Undead was vast. Naomi had initially guessed Amber Xiu might be a Vampire or something similar, but she never expected him to be a Lich.

Among the Undead, Liches were probably the most powerful spellcasters. No wonder his magic was so potent.

"Wait, the expert you mentioned, it's you?"

Naomi suddenly felt like she'd been tricked.

"That's right, I have a lot of experience dealing with Hags, don't worry," Amber Xiu said with utmost confidence.

However, after resuming his Lich form, his speech turned into magical vibrations, sounding like a chilling wind blowing through a mass grave, making it particularly eerie to listen to.

Naomi still felt something was off and continued to question him, "But you just said that only a Legendary could deal with a Hag alone."

Amber Xiu lightly waved his staff, and the mutated rat corpses on the ground all exploded. Amidst the blurred flesh and blood, countless bones clicked and assembled themselves, forming dozens of uniquely shaped Skeletons.

Standing before the Skeleton army, Amber Xiu said to Naomi, "Allow me to reintroduce myself. I am Tiga Ultraman, a Legendary Lich!"