"Whoosh..."
A deep, clear exclamation of surprise rang out, and all the onlookers, including Andrew's men, exchanged bewildered glances and involuntarily uttered their own words.
To everyone's surprise, the entire exchange between Andrew and Dikor lasted less than a breath.
Andrew flashed above Dikor as if teleporting; he opened his right hand and grabbed downwards; Dikor raised his sword to stab Andrew's right hand, the rapier bending like a fully drawn bow; Dikor's face turned ashen, and he remained motionless as Andrew grabbed the back of his neck.
The battle everyone had been waiting for has now come to an end.
"Disperse, everyone." Andrew glanced around and said softly. He carried the unconscious Dikor, stepped into the void, and disappeared, as if he had never been there at all.
Only a very few people on the field managed to spot him.
"So powerful!"
"So powerful!"
Everyone who witnessed this battle, whether ordinary Highgod or powerful demons, couldn't help but secretly admire it.
A Seven-Star Fiend was captured alive with a simple grab; this strength was top-tier even among Asura. Many people certainly thought so. They had witnessed battles between Asura powerhouses and Seven-Star Fiend, and those people were never as easily defeated as Andrew.
The proudest were Moli and his Prefecture Army. As Andrew's subordinates, their master's strength gave them a powerful backer.
"Let's go, there are still a few more to capture!" Moli tucked his double axes into his belt, waved his hand forcefully, and led more than 20,000 Prefecture Army away. Not long after, a powerful cultivator of Laws of Earth arrived, filled in the large crater in the ground, and restored the vanished courtyard.
Soon, news of the lone bandit Dikor's capture by the Bloodflame Prefecture Lord spread throughout Bloodflame City. Subsequently, Moli and his group captured more than a dozen criminals, including a Seven-Star Fiend. However, he did not have Dikor's ability to escape and was killed on the spot.
The Bloodflame Prefecture's soldiers' actions swept through the city like a tornado, greatly deterring the ambitions of the powerful outsiders.
Half a day later, Bloodflame City returned to calm. However, everyone could sense that explosive power was hidden within this calm.
Because the auction is about to begin, and the Sovereign’s Might is about to appear.
Returning to the castle with Dikor, Andrew dismissed Pusluo. In his view, this demonstration of authority wasn't perfect, as no blood was drawn. However, he had no regrets. Originally, he intended to kill Dikor, but after meeting him in person, Andrew was impressed by his talent and decided to recruit him.
"In terms of strength, Moli and the others are not bad, but they are all offensive warriors and lack speed... The appearance of Dikor perfectly makes up for this."
With a flick of his index finger, a divine Divine Power revived Dikor.
Having just transmigrated to the Coiling Dragon World, Andrew had no intention of building a powerful force. He had initially established his duchy for his family's sake. His true wish had always been to transcend this universe. In the Material Plane, Andrew discovered that building a power wouldn't significantly aid his cultivation, so he naturally didn't want to waste time on it. However, after arriving in the Infernal Realm, his thinking changed.
Especially after he mastered the method of extracting the Sovereign’s Might from Inkstone.
Infernal Realm is vast and boundless, teeming with powerful beings. However, when it comes to the possession of the Infernal Realm's resources, the forces large and small, such as families, cities, and islands, are the most powerful. Their wealth and other cultivation resources are simply immeasurable.
Many top-tier powerhouses have also established their own forces. For example, Dunnington gathered many subordinates in the Chaotic Sea, as did Mosi, and even Beirut had four envoys under his command. These people naturally discovered the benefits of establishing their forces.
Thinking about all this, Andrew felt more and more that he should also build a powerful force. Now that he had the Bloodflame Prefecture as a foundation, he had taken the first step.
The most important thing in building a powerful force is to recruit strong subordinates; otherwise, you will have to do everything yourself, and instead of the force serving you, you will serve the force.
In the Infernal Realm, Five-Star Fiend are already considered experts, capable of living quite comfortably. Six-Star Fiend are even more so. However, when it comes to peak strength, it has to be the seven-star Seven-Star Fiend. Generally speaking, a faction is evaluated based on the number of Seven-Star Fiend it possesses.
Over the centuries, Andrew has gained a basic understanding of the division of power. In the Infernal Realm, generally speaking, only those powers possessing Seven-Star Fiend can be considered third-rate powers. Those without Seven-Star Fiend are all second-rate. Those with two or more Seven-Star Fiend are considered second-rate. Those with ten or more are considered first-rate. The top-tier powers, in addition to having more than twenty Seven-Star Fiend, must also have Asura- level experts.
Of course, a powerful lord like Andrew is naturally a top-tier force. With his strength, even without a single Seven-Star Fiend as a subordinate, he would still be a top-tier force.
Andrew now wants to expand his forces, which means increasing his own strength and recruiting more powerful subordinates.
"With more subordinates, the speed of collecting Inkstone will be much faster." Just for this reason alone, Andrew needs to recruit more subordinates.
Under these circumstances, Dikor survived.
When recruiting subordinates, Andrew doesn't just take anyone who comes his way; he selects those with outstanding strength and special abilities. This is similar to how the Sovereign selects its Sovereign's Emissary, only on a different level.
Undoubtedly, Dikor possessed such qualifications. He was fast and adept at disguise; these two qualities alone made him far superior to the other Seven-Star Fiend. As for the other Seven-Star Fiend, Andrew didn't even bother to glance at him, allowing Moli and the others to kill him directly.
When Dikor awoke from his coma, he immediately realized his predicament. Before him, Andrew was sitting in a chair drinking tea.
"I'm not dead." Dikor was somewhat surprised. He had always been fearless in the face of death, but this time, he actually felt a desire for life and a sense of relief at being alive.
Having experienced the despair of death, Dikor changed a lot.
"Death doesn't taste good, does it?" Andrew chuckled, watching his changing expression.
Dikor slowly got up and sat down in another chair.
"Yes, I was too arrogant to challenge the Lord of the Manor's authority." Dikor was completely convinced by Andrew, and his tone was devoid of arrogance.
"Lord of the Manor, why aren't you killing me?" Dikor couldn't help but ask.
Andrew cut to the chase. "I have too few men. You're quite capable; you can join me."
Faced with Andrew's assertiveness, Dikor frowned, then firmly said, "My lord, I am used to freedom and cannot stand being restrained. I'm afraid I cannot comply."
His refusal was exactly what Andrew had expected. It would be strange if someone like that were so easily won over.
"Being my subordinate has its advantages," Andrew chuckled. "The salary is one drop of Sovereign’s Might every ten thousand years. Are you still going to refuse?"
Dikor raised an eyebrow and opened his mouth slightly, as if in disbelief.
" The Sovereign’s Might? Did I hear that right?" Dikor asked.
Andrew said, "Of course not. One drop of the Sovereign’s Might every 100,000 years—that's my payment to you. Besides, if you perform a great service, I won't be stingy with rewards. Rest assured, I mean what I say."
And so, through the allure of the Sovereign’s Might, Andrew subdued Dikor.
Before long, it was time for the auction. On this day, the Bloodflame City was filled with soldiers from the city and the Bloodridge Army. To protect his family's safety, Andrew left Pusluo at the castle and personally presided over the auction.
This auction, due to its exceptionally high reputation, amassed a particularly large collection of items. From artifacts, Deathgod Golem, poisons, and potions to specialties from various Divine Plane, it had everything imaginable, and the quality was several levels higher than that of the Fiend Castle's products. Even Andrew himself couldn't resist bidding on quite a few items.
The highlight of the auction was, of course, the Sovereign’s Might. This time, Andrew offered four drops of the Sovereign’s Might for auction, far exceeding outside expectations.
"Let them fight, let them fight, the more intense the better." Andrew watched the fierce bidding below, feeling extremely smug. He realized that he had underestimated the value of the Sovereign’s Might. He originally thought that a drop of Sovereign’s Might would fetch at least a trillion Inkstone, but it hadn't been long before the price was already heading towards twenty trillion Inkstone.
Among the bidders, Andrew was surprised to discover that Miluo Island had also sent representatives. With Mosi in charge, Miluo Island was one of the super powers in the Infernal Realm, and they were also involved in the struggle for the Sovereign’s Might.
Apart from Miluo Island, Andrew doesn't take any other forces seriously. To him, any force without a top-tier expert is easily defeated.
"Good heavens, these merchant guilds are rolling in money! They can afford to pay 30 trillion Inkstone!" Andrew was dumbfounded when the first drop of Sovereign’s Might was sold for 30 trillion. The buyer was a merchant guild that spanned two continents. It wasn't particularly powerful, but it was very wealthy, which gave Andrew the urge to raid their entire estate.
"In that case, I'll also open a chamber of commerce and directly monopolize the commodity trading within Bloodflame Prefecture... The speed at which I accumulate wealth will definitely be faster than having Pusluo rob bandits!" Andrew's mind lit up, and he had another idea.