City of Ten Thousand Stones

Your feeling is correct.

Li Lin pretended not to care and lagged a few steps behind. He came to Mina's side, who was still silent, and looked ahead as he spoke to her.

"Why?"

Mina looked up in surprise.

You mean...?

"There were indeed a few people in the passageway nearby, but I can't be sure what they are. They could be dwarves, or even Dark Elf. After all, this is a place where dwarves and Dark Elf often frequent."

"But, Master, how could you...?"

"Magic."

Li Lin snapped his fingers.

"It enables people to do things they couldn't do before, and that's one of them."

After traversing the narrow, serpentine path, the group finally arrived at the city of the Duergar — City of Ten Thousand Stones.

In Li Lin's eyes, the scale of City of Ten Thousand Stones was somewhat similar to that of the City of a Thousand Towers, with caves carved into the stone walls for habitation. However, unlike the City of a Thousand Towers, the city of the Duergar also featured many stepped, tiered structures of houses, making it far more advanced than the City of a Thousand Towers. Hot, crimson lava flowed outside the towering walls, accessible only via stone bridges at the gates. Using magical detection, Li Lin easily ascertained the city's structure, but even he had to admit that even the most powerful army would likely only be able to launch a close-quarters assault against such a city. It seemed the Dark Elf were indeed fortunate to have completely subdued the Duergar as soon as they entered the Underdark; otherwise, once the Duergar established such a formidable fortress, the Dark Elf would have faced a much more difficult situation.

"Master, look."

Mina suddenly strode forward and whispered in Li Lin's ear, then looked towards the city wall. Li Lin followed her gaze and saw several Dark Elf carrying bows and crossbows, solemnly and attentively patrolling the surroundings. Dark Elf guarding their city in the city of the Duergar?

"City of Ten Thousand Stones is the only passage for surface-to-underground invasion, so it will naturally be heavily guarded."

The Dark Elf had been listening intently, turned around and respectfully explained to Li Lin.

"In this city, the number of Dark Elf and Duergar is about 50/50, and my clan's high priest was once in charge of maintaining order in this city."

Because of Li Lin, the Dark Elf warriors were no longer treated as poorly as before, and their tone was filled with respect and fear towards this powerful mage.

"So, what about now?"

The Dark Elf were indeed not stupid. They knew that if they didn't intervene, the Duergar of City of Ten Thousand Stones would eventually use their fortress to launch a rebellion. So they simply moved in as "friendly allies," helping them defend against external enemies while weakening their own control. Perhaps even the ruling class of City of Ten Thousand Stones wasn't entirely composed of Duergar.

"Jointly ruled by the eldest daughter of the First House Linalis City and Nafa Stonehammer, the king of the Duergar."

Just as I expected.

While Li Lin and the Dark Elf were exchanging information, their group had already arrived at the edge of City of Ten Thousand Stones.

The Duergar's eyesight wasn't as good as the Dark Elf', and moreover, for various reasons, Li Lin and his group had no intention of using torches for illumination. Therefore, it wasn't until they emerged from the dark cave that the Duergar noticed their presence. Two Duergar, clad in full armor, immediately gripped their heavy, massive axes, ready to retaliate. However, when they realized that twenty Dark Elf were approaching, their expressions changed drastically.

Twenty Dark Elf? Although it's unknown which family these Dark Elf belong to, their armor clearly indicates that they are elite warriors!

That's strange. Without a priest leading them, warriors like these rarely leave their cities. As for those behind them... could they be humans? Judging from their appearance, could they have been captured? Humans are so foolish; do they think they can just wander into the Underdark at will? Now that they've been captured by the Dark Elf, they're in for a world of hurt...

Before the two Duergar could even finish processing their thoughts, they were utterly terrified by what they saw—the twenty fully armed high-ranking Dark Elf warriors were neatly arranged in two rows, slightly bowed. And the person they were facing was none other than the "prisoner" they had in mind!?

What's going on? Gems just popped out of thin air? Thousands upon thousands of stones! Am I seeing things? Those arrogant Dark Elf actually bowing down to a human?!

The two Duergar stared wide-eyed in astonishment, rubbing their eyes hard. What a joke! This man should be human, right? And judging by his clothes, he doesn't seem like a priest. These proud Dark Elf only act like this in front of their priests, right? Who is this human? How could he...?

Despite his thoughts, since these Dark Elf treated this human with such respect, the Duergar, whose life was in their hands, had even less right to speak. So, the two Duergar soldiers didn't ask any further questions and quickly cleared the path into the city. However, some people weren't so oblivious.

"Incite!"

Just as Li Lin was about to step into the city, a whooshing sound suddenly rang out, followed by a jet-black arrow that stuck into the ground in front of Li Lin.

"Stop, human."

The Dark Elf who were originally patrolling the city wall drew their bows and aimed at Li Lin.

You are not allowed to take another step forward.

"Cardiff! What do you mean by this?!"

Seeing that their distinguished guest was threatened, the Dark Elf captain immediately stepped forward. The guy upstairs was just a high-level warrior like himself, and besides, they should have already informed the person in charge of the place about their arrival.

It doesn't mean anything.

The Dark Elf known as Cardiff continued speaking while keeping his eyes fixed on Li Lin.

"I simply can't stand that Dark Elf would willingly bow down before these lowly humans. Besides, he's not even my lord's priest; what right does he have to receive such treatment? I..."

Before the Dark Elf could finish speaking, Li Lin raised his hand, and then, a flash of magical runes appeared.

With a deafening roar, the explosion unfolded right before Cardiff's eyes, the immense energy completely engulfing his body. He was tossed into the air, then slammed heavily to the ground like a tattered tablecloth. The other Dark Elf stared in disbelief at the horrific scene, unsure of what to do.

Li Lin, completely oblivious to the gazes of others, withdrew his right hand and even yawned.

"Let's go."

He spoke casually, glancing, whether intentionally or unintentionally, at the dark cave not far from the gate of City of Ten Thousand Stones, before turning and walking inside.

In the darkness, several pairs of eyes held their breath, intently watching the man.

"He is a very powerful mage."

A deep voice rang out.

"And he's human, so perhaps we can ask him for help."

"But didn't you see how many Dark Elf were around him? If you ask me, guys who hang out with Dark Elf aren't good people..."

Another shrill voice rang out, clearly disagreeing with the proposal.

"Alright, that's enough."

A third sound appeared.

"Regardless, he's a human. Although we don't know his true identity, we don't have much time to waste right now... Since he's different from others and commands the respect of the Dark Elf, perhaps he can help us achieve our goal... In any case, we must give it a try."

As the only city connecting the underground and the surface, City of Ten Thousand Stones naturally possesses scenery unlike any other underground city. Here, one can not only see the underground "specialties" of Duergar and Dark Elf, but also some humans. Of course, unlike the Duergar and Dark Elf, the humans here, whether merchants or mercenaries, are all tense and cautiously watching their surroundings, fearing that they might inadvertently violate the rules of City of Ten Thousand Stones, which would then bring them trouble. Those who come here to trade with the Dark Elf are generally ruthless and naturally cherish their lives even more. The Dark Elf' excellent poison-making techniques and the weapons forged by the Duergar are the most sought-after commodities by these people of the darkness.

Li Lin's entry naturally attracted the attention of these humans. As a human, he dared to blast a Dark Elf to smithereens outside the city walls, and then dared to swagger into City of Ten Thousand Stones. This news spread throughout the city in a very short time. Although some people doubted the truth of the rumors, they all shut their mouths after seeing the Dark Elf's corpse, which had been blasted to a near-charred state.

This person has some nerve! How dare they so openly commit murder on the territory of the Dark Elf!

Naturally, some busybodies would report this to the Dark Elf patrol, hoping to receive a reward. However, they were surprised to find that the young man was not only not arrested and punished by the Dark Elf, but on the contrary, shortly after Li Lin entered the city, a heavyweight figure appeared before him.

"I have been informed that you would be here, Your Excellency Arcane Mage."

The Dark Elf, dressed in a silk robe, didn't look like a female priest; she resembled more of a graceful noblewoman.

"I regret what happened on the city wall; after all, I haven't been able to control all my men yet."

"Hello, Miss 'Pastor'."

Facing one of the de facto leaders of City of Ten Thousand Stones, Li Lin emphasized his words, signaling her to understand his current identity.

"I don't care about this, because the offender has already been punished enough. Of course, I don't want to see this happen again."

I truly admire your magnanimity.

Faced with Li Lin's "threat" and hints, the Dark Elf chuckled softly.

"However, you must be very tired after traveling such a long way. Although we have many issues to discuss, we can do so after you've rested. So, would you like to take a shower first? Or have a meal first? Or perhaps..."

The Dark Elf took a small half-step forward, letting her long, slender legs appear and disappear between the hem of her skirt.

"Would you like to come with me for afternoon tea?"