Volume 3: Artifacts Chapter 86 Positioning
A group of headhunters ran out from the interconnected caves. They worked together to lift up Qingkong and ran towards one of the passages.
Niltye put away his sword and looked at the hunting fire spirit that fell in front of him.
Time, space, and the vigorous fire element energy gathered throughout the body. This hunting fire spirit was so strong that Niltye had no confidence in defeating it in a one-on-one fight.
The hunting angels landed behind Niltye and actually formed a confrontation with the hunting fire spirits.
At this time, Niltye couldn't help but feel extremely jealous.
Now that the Queen has obtained Qingkong, will she still care about the other hunting kings? Soon, the hunting fire spirits bred by the Queen and Qingkong will replace the hunting angels, and Qingkong will also enjoy the exclusive favor of the Queen.
Seeing that Niltye hadn't moved for a long time, the Hunting Fire Spirit reminded him, "Lord Hunting King Niltye, we have completed the mission of Her Majesty the Queen, and it's time to report to Her Majesty."
Niltye woke up from his jealousy and said, "Yes , let's go to see Her Majesty the Queen and witness the arrival of the new Hunting King together."
After saying that, Niltye turned around and chased after the departing headhunters.
Hunting Angels and Hunting Fire Spirits followed closely behind.
The Hunting Queen in the Magic Spring already knew the outcome of the battle through the pheromones found throughout the nest, and she was very satisfied with the strength of the Elf Qingkong.
No...I was very surprised.
Facing the siege of Niltye and several hunting angels, the elf Qingkong was able to gain a certain advantage in the battle. If Niltye had not attacked with his life, creating an opportunity for the hunting fire spirit to launch a sneak attack, Qingkong might not have been able to fight Niltye and the hunting fire spirit at the same time.
Strong, really too strong!
Now the body of this powerful elf is being transported here, and she will become my strongest king. Together we will breed more hunting fire spirits, and together we will expand the territory of the headhunters to the edge of the world.
The Hunting Queen soaked in the pool, waiting for her favorite gift to be delivered.
Soon, a passage opened up in the cave wall mucous membrane, and the headhunters carried Qingkong to the edge of the pool. They gently placed Qingkong in front of the queen and then crawled out.
The Hunting Queen couldn't wait to step forward and admire the elf, and reached out to wipe the blood from the corner of Qingkong's mouth.
"Your beauty makes me jealous and obsessed. Soon I will have you completely. With your company, I will not look at other hunting kings."
Niltje flew in from outside, and the Hunting Queen's praise for the Elf Clear Sky made his face even uglier. He knelt down to the Hunting Queen and said, "My Queen, your loyal Niltje has completed your mission."
"Very good!" Although the Hunting Queen praised Niltye, she did not even look at him. She only had eyes for the elf in front of her: "You can go out now!"
Niltye's whole body couldn't help but tremble. He said, "Your Majesty! Part of the power of the Elf Clear Sky comes from the Magic Spring. If she is allowed to come into contact with the Magic Spring again, I wonder if there will be uncontrollable changes."
"Do you think I can't see the relationship between her and the Magic Spring?" The Queen of Hunting still couldn't take her eyes away: "You should reflect on yourself. Why did you, an angel, not grow as well as an elf when you both came into contact with the Magic Spring?"
Niltye quickly defended himself: "Your Majesty! The power of the elf Qingkong does not only come from the magic spring. Her right arm comes from an angel, and she can use holy energy and angel magic without any obstacles. She also has a very strong affinity with ice elements and can create a frozen field.
All of these consume a lot of energy, but even when Qingkong was hunted, he did not run out of energy.
At the same time, Qingkong also has the authority of the World Tree. Now the World Tree has attracted the attention of the five ancient civilizations of Sky City, Shining Gold People, Dragon Country, Hell, and Shadow Clan. There must be a major reason.
I suspect that Qingkong is not a simple creature. She has too many secrets. Your Majesty, please be cautious when transforming her."
The Hunting Queen finally looked at Niltye, her eyes full of murderous intent: "Are you questioning me?"
Niltye lowered his head in fear: "I dare not question your majesty, I just... just express my concerns. My loyalty to your majesty is engraved in my soul and body!"
The Hunting Queen let Niltye go, and she admired the clear sky again: "Niltye, you know what the Magic Spring is. It is the overflow of the world's original energy. The turbulence of the original energy makes it lean towards extreme order.
The headhunters and I are the manifestation of this extreme order. I have absolute authority in the headhunters. This is the authority given to me by the original energy of the world. Is it not as good as the authority of a world tree?
Leave here, Niltje... conquer the Emerald Court for me and prove your worth to me. When I need you, I will call upon you to serve me."
Seeing that the Hunting Queen only had the Elf Clear Sky in her eyes, Niltye could only leave unwillingly.
The mucous membrane of the cave wall closed, and only the Hunting Queen and Clear Sky were left in the cave.
Without being disturbed, the hunting queen's skin flushed, and her eyes revealed a blurred feeling of passion. She reached out to touch Qingkong's cheek, and the water behind her shook with large ripples.
But when the Hunting Queen's hand touched the clear sky, it passed through unhindered.
What's going on!
The Hunting Queen's high spirits receded in an instant, and she looked at the stone in front of her in disbelief... Where did Qingkong's body go?
The Hunting Queen touched it again. It wasn’t invisible. It was really gone!
"ah!"
The Hunt Queen roared in anger, slapping the water with her wormtail.
…
In the spiritual starry sky, the scene of the hunting queen going crazy was frozen, and Qingkong said to Luke beside him: "If I take action, maybe I can kill her."
Luke was checking the status of the recovered characters: "The risk is too great! We cannot judge the true strength of the Hunting Queen. Qingkong is injured and will be besieged if he misses a single strike.
Anyway, we have obtained the exact coordinates of the Magic Spring. When we pull the Magic Spring into the encirclement, the recovered Clear Sky will be next to the Hunting Queen. She is yours, and no one will compete with you for her. "
"It seems I can only wait for a while longer." Qingkong said with some regret: "It's a pity that I didn't take a dip in the magic spring this time. I don't know what changes will happen next."
Luke said, "Didn't you hear what the Hunting Queen said? The Magic Spring is leaning towards extreme order due to the turbulence of the world's original energy. Let Qingkong enter such an unstable Magic Spring, and I don't know what changes will happen."
"Extreme order is not impossible to balance."
Luke understood what Qingkong meant, and he warned: "I have never used the Book of Disaster to open the Abyss, and you should not have such dangerous ideas."
Qingkong said disdainfully: "Do you think I would use such a low method? You do your job, and leave the stabilization of the magic spring to me. The outflow of the world's original energy only happens once every thousand years."
Luke didn't know what Qingkong wanted to do, but as long as she didn't misuse the Book of Disaster, it would be fine.
"I know you always know how to act in moderation. I'm going back now, and there are still many things waiting for me to deal with."
“Go, go…” Clear Sky waved her hand. After Luke left the spiritual starry sky, she looked at the Hunted Queen in the frozen image: “A worm that fell into the magic spring could have transformed into a colorful butterfly, but it got lost in the cocoon it wove.
Only those with pure hearts can harness that power, and only a kind heart will not be tainted by evil. Its true master is on the way, and divinity will cleanse everything and restore beauty. "
Luke withdrew his consciousness from the spiritual universe and immediately immersed himself in his busy work.
The Kirov was conducting various tests while sailing towards the Emerald Forest. For safety reasons, the airship stayed close to the continental shelf, and Luke took this opportunity to learn about the situation along the southeast coast of the empire.
Officials from coastal cities received orders from the Prime Minister and boarded the Kirov by airship to report their work to Luke.
At the beginning of the new era, the empire's rapid climb up the technology tree led to the extreme polarization of cities. Most of the resources produced by the country were concentrated in individual cities, which led to the rapid rise of the City of Raging Waves and the industrial miracle of the City of Saint Lun.
In areas that did not enjoy the benefits of industrialization, the impact of industrial products caused large-scale bankruptcy of artisans and farmers. The poorer the place, the more serious the land annexation and market monopoly.
In addition, war conscription and tax collection made it difficult for the lower-class people to breathe, and the number of thieves and bandits in the poor mountains and bad waters increased a lot.
Luke had a general understanding of the situation in various places through the visits of special spies sent by the Imperial Secret Intelligence Bureau. He also had a rough idea in his mind through the true and false reports of officials along the way.
The inland problems can be considered after the Tedega Hills are resolved, but we must not allow these termites to continue to run rampant along the coast.
To fight for sea power, it is necessary to build an empire's coastal trade network with Nutao City as the center, to enable multiple economic cities to share pressure and risks, to extend as many tentacles as possible to establish shipping routes, and to form more complex interest ties with more countries.
To achieve this vision, we need to build an efficient and united execution system. The current phenomenon of local officials taking advantage of others, deceiving their superiors and hiding the truth from their subordinates, and rampant corruption must not be tolerated.
When leaving Raging Waves City, Agatha sent a message that the Secret Intelligence Bureau had basically identified the evidence of the main participants who wanted to cause trouble at the Queen's coronation ceremony. Now they are collecting new evidence to find those who are hiding deeper.
Once the Prime Minister returns from the Emerald Forest, we can capture all of these people in one fell swoop.
The new nobles, mainly the Cross Society, will inevitably be hit hard, and those old nobles with royal titles and hereditary titles will also be stripped of their skin. Once this group of people go in, it will be much easier to clean up the lower levels.
We should take advantage of the great event of the Queen's accession to the throne to thoroughly clean up the cancer in the empire. Only by eliminating the poison can we have a healthy body to face external challenges.
However, it is easy to catch people, but it is not easy to find the right people to replace them.
Luke found that the longer he worked as the Prime Minister, the fewer people he had available. If the people in the Government Affairs Office of Nutao City were asked to work in the palace, they would definitely be happy. If they were sent down to suffer, few would be happy to take up the position.
well……
Dale, who was carving wood nearby, heard Luke sighing and couldn't help but say, "I don't know how many times I hear you sigh every day. You are the Prime Minister of the Empire. Are there so many things that worry you ? I saw that Gabriel was quite leisurely when he was the Prime Minister..."
Before Luke answered, Kylena, who was waiting beside him, said, "Your Highness, you don't know what a mess the Prime Minister has taken over. There are so many things, I feel overwhelmed just by looking at them, and the Prime Minister not only has to look at them, but also make decisions.
Every decision affects the fate of millions of people.”
"Is it really that bad? I always thought that although my father was not a good father, he should be a wise monarch."
Luke said: "As a monarch, Augustine the Great has done the best he can. But he is only a human being after all. Under the circumstances of autocracy, it is good enough for him to ensure that the empire is moving in the right direction. Things in the corners are not something he can see or think of."
Dai'er smiled and said, "I don't understand what I'm saying to you. But I believe you can do better, because I often see confusion in my father's eyes, but I only see unwavering faith in your eyes, as if you know where the road leads to."
Luke laughed. “You and Agatha both have very good observation skills. I wonder if it’s because you both like carving.”
"Agatha..." Dai'er thought of her sister and couldn't help but sigh: "I can't compare with her. She is an eagle that can fly against the wind. She is brave and responsible. She dares to pursue what she wants and has an unyielding belief.
As for me...I was avoiding my responsibilities out of selfishness, and just wanted to become an elf in the forest and live a carefree life."
Luke said to the self-pitying Adele: "Everyone has their own strengths, and everyone has the right to choose how to live their lives. You are not suitable for the court. When I saw you in the palace before, you were like a bird in a cage.
When you were at Emerald Magic Academy, you really opened your heart and soul to appreciate nature and enjoy the love from your friends, mentors, and people around you.”
Dai Er pointed the carving knife at Luke and pretended to be fierce: "You sent someone to monitor me! But you promised me that you would not send anyone to follow me."
Luke flicked the carving knife away with a flick of his finger. “I am an imperial spy. Lying is my professional ethics. And you must know that the empire will never allow the princess to go to a strange country alone without any protection.
I have heard from the spies who were protecting you many times that you often teased them, and the people protecting you closely had to be replaced several times."
Dai'er spun the carving knife nimbly with her fingers: "That's because they are too stupid. We can find them out at random. This time when we return to the Emerald Magic Academy, you must remove them all."
Luke answered casually, "Okay, Princess Dale! I will follow your orders and withdraw them all. The fact that you found them means they need to learn again."
Hearing that Luke was withdrawing his men, Dale was very happy at first, but then she thought, "Hey! Are you going to withdraw them and then replace them with another group of people to follow me?"
"you guess!"
