Zombie Doctor's Meeting

"Aquit's combat skill: Blade Toss activated..."

This is clearly the fourth skill that was not detected.

The blade sliced through the air with incredible speed; this attack relied solely on speed, making it difficult to dodge. Unfortunately, Aquit was surrounded when he made his move, limiting his possible angles. Bai Xiaowen had already anticipated his direction and made a preemptive move, dodging the attack with a serpentine weave.

However, the rapier somehow circled in mid-air and stabbed at Bai Xiaowen from behind, though its speed wasn't as fast as it had been at the beginning.

This insidious sword strike did not change the course of the battle. Even though Bai Xiaowen could not hear the sound of it cutting through the air, he could sense it with his Divine Might. He had no time to dodge, so he raised his hand and summoned a Skeleton Sword-and-Shield Soldier and shield-bearer, who held up a shield behind him.

Clang! The Skeleton Sword-and-Shield Soldier's iron shield was pierced through, bone fragments fell in a shower, and his Life Value dropped to rock bottom, but fortunately he did not die.

Aquit, making a last-ditch effort, found his Divine Might completely insufficient to withstand the draining effect of the Venomous Resentment skill, quickly dropping below 2 points and enduring a full 8 seconds of theoretical stun duration! The actual stun effect lasted 5.6 seconds. Such a long and irresistible period was unbearable even for someone with full Life Value.

The summoned creatures launched a barrage of attacks, reducing Aquit's Life Value to less than 20 points in just a few seconds. Bai Xiaowen then controlled the summoned creatures to launch precise attacks, further reducing Aquit's Life Value to below 5 points.

In this situation, even if Aquit were to wake up, he would be powerless to resist.

Two Skeleton Sword-and-Shield Soldier, one on each side, braced themselves against Aquit's arms.

"We...we concede!" Harold, the Ironthorn Family butler, stood up shakily and said.

"Mr. Harold, don't be in such a hurry," Bai Xiaowen walked slowly to Aquit. "I'll ask you one more time, who is this person?"

Harold sensed something was wrong, and his face quickly turned deathly pale.

Bai Xiaowen smiled and reached out, stroking Aquit's chin before slowly tearing it open.

A gasp of astonishment rippled through the crowd! A thin, incredibly realistic leather mask covered Aquit's face! Beneath it lay the sinister face of a middle-aged man, his eyes sunken and lifeless—a far cry from the youthful handsomeness of Baron Albert Stantin.

"Mr. Harold, are you telling me now that this person is Albert Stantin, the second in line to the Ironthorn Clan?" Bai Xiaowen said leisurely.

Harold's face turned from white to pale. However, he reacted quickly and said sternly, "Absolutely... absolutely not! This person, this person actually impersonated my young master, he's incredibly audacious... Dio, I beg you to hand him over to the Ironthorn Family for punishment, we will definitely not let him off!"

Bai Xiaowen said calmly, "Then, how do you explain this Silver Thorn Seal?" He walked up to Cecilia and unfolded the two signed life-and-death contracts. "These bear the name of Albert Stantin and the genuine thorn seal. Don't tell me that the Ironthorn Clan's important heirloom, the Silver Thorn Seal, would be stolen so easily!"

Harold was covered in sweat.

The Silver Thorn Seal is an important proof of the Ironthorn Clan's identity. Because the Northern Frontier is remote and lacks effective means of communication, it is normal that the appearances of some noble heirs who have never left their homes are not known to other nobles, and it is not surprising that they cannot be recognized.

At this point, a token is needed to prove identity.

Cecilia only believed Aquet's identity as the heir of the Ironthorn Clan of Blackrock City after seeing Aquit possess the Silver Thorn Seal. Of course, the Ironthorn Clan gave the imposter Aquit the seal precisely to prove this to White Stone City.

Harold felt caught in a dilemma.

If he says that the Silver Thorn Seal was stolen by Aquit, it would prove that the Ironthorn Clan Ironthorn Clan is incompetent, and their credibility would certainly be questioned. A nobleman who cannot even safeguard an important family heirloom would become a laughing stock among all the nobles.

But if they didn't say that, it would confirm that Aquit was colluding with the Ironthorn Clan, and expose the Ironthorn Clan's wolfish ambitions towards White Stone City. In that case, the Ironthorn Clan would not only be questioned, but their reputation would be completely ruined.

"Guards, take Harold away!" Bai Xiaowen waved his hand and said coldly, "The Ironthorn Clan must give me an explanation for this matter!"

Tim beckoned two city guards to escort Harold. He walked up to Bai Xiaowen, saluted, and asked, "Sir, should that imposter be taken away as well for rigorous interrogation?"

A complex glint appeared in Aquit's eyes. He glanced at Harold and shouted, "I won't say a word! Go ahead and kill me if you dare!"

Now, Aquit can only hope that the Ironthorn Family will save him, but of course he can't betray Ironthorn Clan. As the saying goes, "Confess and you'll be leniently imprisoned, resist and you'll be severely punished, going home for the New Year"... Aquit understands this principle.

Bai Xiaowen shook his head. "This person is useless, let's just kill him."

As he spoke, Bai Xiaowen raised his hand and fired a shot.

The instant the gun (a magical crossbow) was pointed at his head, Aquit finally felt fear, and he cried out, "No..."

Bang!

The bullet struck, leaving a bloody hole between Aquit's eyebrows, and his body went limp as he collapsed.

Accompanying Aquit and Harold were two servants of the Ironthorn Clan. Bai Xiaowen ordered the two to ride back to Blackrock City to report the news, and then ordered Harold to be imprisoned, while Aquit's body was hung outside the city wall as a warning.

As for Aquit's treasure chest, Bai Xiaowen naturally didn't miss it and pocketed it as well.

The people of White Stone City, having enjoyed a good show, returned home satisfied, still buzzing with discussion as they left. After this battle, those from Cecilia's territory finally witnessed the lord's power, while the native inhabitants of White Stone City recalled the fear of having their wallets controlled by "Baron Dio"...

The City Lord's Mansion.

"Dio, why did you kill that fake swordsman?"

As soon as she sat down, Cecilia asked, somewhat puzzled, "He's a crucial witness. We should interrogate him and expose the Ironthorn Family's conspiracy against White Stone City."

Bai Xiaowen smiled and said, "You're right."

"... Then?"

Seeing Cecilia's bewildered expression, Bai Xiaowen smiled and explained, "You and I can guess pretty much what kind of conspiracy the Ironthorn Family has against White Stone City. They simply want to seize control of White Stone City. Now that I, the lord, am dead and there is no heir, they, as the most powerful noble family in the Northern Frontier, are naturally entitled to demand temporary control. As for you, you will definitely be expelled."

Cecilia nodded slightly. Her title was inherited from her husband's family, and she had never had much contact with high society or the upper echelons of the empire. In fact, she felt somewhat out of place. If she were to compete for the right to administer White Stone City, she certainly couldn't compete with the Ironthorn Clan.

"White Stone City is so poor, it can't compare to Blackrock City's wealth at all. I really don't know what those nobles are thinking, their Greed is simply insatiable," Cecilia said.

Bai Xiaowen squinted and said, "Don't underestimate ourselves. Actually, White Stone City has quite a few good things..."

Just then, Knight Tim knocked on the door and reported, "My lords, I have brought the Doctor here."

"Let him in," Bai Xiaowen said with a smile.

The next second, Zombie Doctor's huge head appeared and squeezed in from behind Tim.

"Dear BOSS, you've finally arrived." Zombie Doctor's opening remarks were neither original nor enthusiastic.

After a few months, Zombie Doctor's appearance had changed. A pair of tortoiseshell glasses perched on his nose, covering his bulging goldfish eyes, and paired with his messy hair, he actually had the serious air of a scientist, much more pleasing to the eye than his original, obviously inhuman appearance.

"Hey there, how was your vacation these past few months?" Bai Xiaowen patted the chair, gesturing for Zombie Doctor to sit down. "Let's calculate how many mission quotas you owe me..."

The Zombie Doctor had barely sat down when he jumped up—no, he leaped up. "By the Light God! Boss, for the past few months, Lady Cecilia has been issuing orders to me in your name to produce anti- Zombie drugs, and I have perfectly completed all three monthly quotas!"

Cecilia nodded slightly. "When I lead troops into battle, I need to use this potion to sweep away Zombie hordes in unknown areas. The Zombie Doctor has done an excellent job with his missions these past few months."

Zombie Doctor was overwhelmed with gratitude. "Beautiful lady, your credit is as captivating as your figure!"

Bai Xiaowen was a little helpless; Cecilia was still too... serious. With her saying that, Bai Xiaowen couldn't use any cunning methods to deal with the Zombie Doctor, lest he lower his image, since the Kane Plane highly valued the spirit of contracts.

"Good, good. Doctor, you can go and enjoy your vacation now," Bai Xiaowen said, waving his hand.

"Really?" Zombie Doctor was a little skeptical. "You wouldn't secretly lock me in a dark room, would you?"

"Of course not..." Bai Xiaowen said with a laugh, "I have a research paper here left by a great scholar in the field of life sciences. I originally wanted to give it to you to study, but since you are about to take a vacation, I'll find someone else to do it."

Zombie Doctor tilted his large head and sized up Bai Xiaowen: "A great scholar in the field of life sciences? Who is it?"

"His name is Norton ... Of course, you don't know him," Bai Xiaowen shrugged. "He's an alchemy master from another advanced plane of existence. His research in life sciences has reached the realm of gods; he can piece together rotting corpses and imbue them with a considerable degree of intelligence... Without exaggeration, Mr. Norton is the greatest scholar I've ever met!"

Zombie Doctor shouted, "Impossible! How could a guy who dabbles in medieval alchemy be ahead of me? Boss, you must be lying, I won't believe you!"

Bai Xiaowen nodded. "That's right, alchemy is all just a bunch of nonsense. So, in the few months you've been here, have you learned any alchemical recipes? I'm sure such basic stuff shouldn't be a problem for a PhD like you."

The Zombie Doctor's face, which had been pale, turned ashen. He argued, "I'm a scientist, not a potion-making worker! I don't need to learn those formulas; what I need to understand is the principle of alchemy—that's what I'm after!"

Alchemy in the Western setting of the Spirit Realm is not a simple subject. It involves the most basic principle of converting Psionic Particles. This is similar to the modern life technology of the NESTS Organization in the KOF dimension, where Zombie Doctor originated. The product effects are similar, but the manufacturing process is very different.

Especially in the preparation of alchemical potions, meticulous hands-on skills and rich experience are required, which is very different from modern life sciences where sophisticated instruments can be used to accomplish this task.

In recent months, Zombie Doctor has devoted some of his energy to creating Zombie potions, but his main focus has been on exploring the alchemical mysteries of the Kane Plane. Unfortunately, exploring the principles of alchemy is an extremely difficult undertaking, and without the help of a team, Zombie Doctor has made very little progress on his own.

Bai Xiaowen was already mentally prepared for this; he only needed to check the territory control panel to see the items produced by the research institute.

Among the produced items, apart from Zombie potions, there are still only the most basic life-restoring potions. Not even one of the alchemical specialties of the Kane Plane has been added, which means that Zombie Doctor has not learned any new recipes.

Although the reason was that Zombie Doctor himself disdained to learn the specific recipe, this did not prevent Bai Xiaowen from seizing on this as a weakness to attack Zombie Doctor.

"The principles of alchemy, huh? I think Mr. Norton should know; he's a scholar who's almost reached the realm of gods," Bai Xiaowen said.

The deceased Norton could never have imagined that Bai Xiaowen would bestow upon him the title of a polymath.

"Okay, Boss, I've decided to forgo my vacation to help you study that notebook," Zombie Doctor suddenly changed his tune, patting his chest as he said, "How about that, aren't you touched? After I figure out the notebook, you have to give me an even longer vacation as compensation..."

"For example, leaving the Kane Plane?"

"NO, NO, NO," Zombie Doctor shook his large head repeatedly. "It's fine here. The Kane Plane is the birthplace of alchemy. I want to stay here, understand the mysteries of alchemy, and become a great scholar who has mastered both ancient and modern knowledge. The so-called realm of gods is nothing special. In the future, I will definitely be able to create super clones that can rival, or even surpass, real people!"

Bai Xiaowen felt a little uneasy; Zombie Doctor's words weren't really an exaggeration.

In the King of Fighters Universe, after the Orochi Saga comes the NESTS Saga. The NESTS Organization used the protagonist Kyo Kusanagi as a model to create many clones of Kyo Kusanagi. Among them, Kyo No. 1 and Kyo No. 2 even have fighting strength that is no less than that of the original Kyo Kusanagi. Moreover, one of the clones even believes that he is the real Kyo Kusanagi and treats the original Kyo as a clone.

"This guy... could he really do that? No, that's impossible. The NESTS Organization is a behemoth, with tens of thousands of researchers working together, plus the leadership of a genius scientific leader, to achieve those incredible breakthroughs in life sciences. Here, Zombie Doctor is all alone, without equipment or assistants, he shouldn't be able to do that..."