The Herb King



Aethelwolf and the other two found Xymera inside the ice palace. She was surrounded by a group of Level 5 Espers who were flattering her endlessly. Her face was no longer pale and her breathing was normal now. 

Aethelwolf used his observation skills on her and noticed that she had already recovered to her best state. The aura in her body was concealed, but there was a faint air of suppression around her that unconsciously made everyone stay one meter away from her. 

Xymera smiled when she saw Aethelwolf and the others. 

"Congratulations on your recovery, Ancestor Xymera." Aethelwolf muttered with a smile. 

"It is all thanks to you guys that I can stand here and chat with you. If it weren't for your help, I would still be trapped in the ice coffin." Xymera shook her head lightly as she uttered those words. 

Suddenly, the smile on Aethelwolf's face faded as he said. "Ancestor, now that you have recovered, we should return to the continent soon. The world essence inside the pocket dimension has lessened and it won't be long before this dimension's energy is sucked dry by all of us. We should leave immediately and let it recover its energy." 

The Frigid Snow Dimension or the Glacial Breeding Ground might be of some use to them in the future and it wasn't a good idea to deplete its energy since it would slowly destroy all signs of life in the pocket dimension. 

Hearing this, the others blushed in embarrassment. In the past few months, they crazily absorbed the energy of the pocket dimension in hopes that they could increase their levels before their return to the continent. 

Xymera nodded her head. "Alright, but we should wait for the others to come back first. I heard that some of them are still exploring the Frigid Snow Dimension." 

"Don't worry, Ancestor. They will be back soon." Estes chuckled. With the upgraded version of the Communication Rune, it was very easy to contact the rest. After saying those words, he whispered to Victor. "Go and tell those who aren't here to come back as soon as possible." 

Victor nodded his head and left right away. 

A few days later, everyone returned to the ice palace. 

"Everyone, we will now return to the continent." Estes muttered as he took out an object from his storage ring. It was an item that was capable of summoning the portal that leads to the exit. 

Seeing this item, Aethelwolf couldn't help but recall all the ordeals he had to go through just to find the exit. 

Not long later, a door emerged in front of the ice palace. 

***

In the Snowy Pond, Aethelwolf and the others came out one by one. Their emergence immediately alerted the personnel of the Mystic Island. 

"Father, you guys are back!" Nocturna's eyes lit up when she saw her father and the rest. Her gaze then moved towards the beautiful woman dressed in thin white clothes. "Greetings, Ancestor!" She hurriedly greeted the woman after seeing the pair of wings behind her back.

Xymera smiled gently at Nocturna. "You must be a descendant of mine. To reach Level 5 Esper at your age, you are quite talented. Not bad." 

Nocturna smiled shyly upon hearing her words. "Thank you for your praise, Ancestor. I'll work harder in the future so as to not disappoint you." She muttered.

Xymera merely smiled at her words. She then turned her gaze to Aethelwolf and asked. "Aethelwolf, what do you want me to do in the coming battle against the Underworlders?" 

Aethelwolf furrowed his eyebrows as he replied. "Ancestor, I just hope that you can stop the Underworlders' Transcendent level expert. As for the rest, we will take care of it." He didn't know how strong was the Transcendent being of the Underworlders compared to Xymera. 

Xymera nodded her head. "Alright. You guys tell me the current state of things, including the strength of our continent's army. If you have some information about the enemy's strength, that would be much better." 

"Yes, Ancestor." 

***

Meanwhile, in the Northern Region. The army of Underworlders had already gathered more than ten million soldiers! Multiple Underworlder camps were built in the Northern Region as temporary shelters for their massive army. 

At this moment, Gozgel was sitting cross-legged as he absorbed the energy in the surroundings. He was already a Transcendent being, but among the three Underworlder Kings, he was the weakest. 

The Transcendent Level was subdivided into 5 minor levels. Gozgel was still a Level 1 Transcendent. The progress of leveling was so slow that it wasn't an exaggeration to say that he would need a century to reach the next minor level. 

Gozgel opened his eyes and shook his head. "I'm still very far from reaching the next minor level. Perhaps I would need seven more decades..." He was dissatisfied with his advancement speed. That was also why he volunteered to become the vanguard force in attacking the Regalis Continent. The Ancient Lord promised him that he would receive bountiful rewards for this mission and he also had priority in picking up the rare treasures that they would find in the Regalis Continent. 

The other two Underworlder Kings were Level 2 Transcendents. They were a lot stronger than him. He wanted to bridge the gap between them through this vanguard mission! 

Suddenly, Gozgel frowned and turned his gaze to a certain location. "I'm sensing a strong aura in that direction. This aura... This is the aura of a Transcendent level expert!" He was surprised by this discovery. 

According to the Ancient Lord, all of the Transcendent experts of the Regalis Continent were either dead or sealed so he was shocked by what he discovered. "Is it a Transcendent expert during the Ancient Lord's time or a newly ascended Transcendent being?" He muttered to himself as he frowned deeply. He thought that this mission would be easy. Who would have thought that he would actually encounter an unknown variable? 

"Summon Wulong here!" He shouted. 

Soon, a lion-headed Underworlder arrived and kneeled in front of him. "What are your orders, Lord Gozgel?"

"I want you to attack the nearest enemy settlement. You can bring one million soldiers with you. I'm giving you the permission to plunder all our enemy's wealth and kill all their Espers!" Gozgel muttered in a cold voice. He wanted to see if he could make the enemy's Transcendent being take action. Wulong was one of his strongest subordinates and his power was among the best beneath the Transcendent. Even peak stage Level 5 Espers wouldn't be able to defeat him! 

Wulong, the lion-headed Underworlder was excited when he heard this. He has been waiting for Gozgel to say this. "Yes, Lord Gozgel! I will destroy the enemies and offer their wealth to you!" He shouted ferociously. 

Gozgel grinned at his words. "Take this. With this token, you can mobilize one million of our soldiers." He tossed a black token with skull patterns to Wulong. It was a token that represented authority. 

Wulong grabbed the token and kept it. "I obey your commands, Lord Gozgel!" He couldn't wait to show off his power to Gozgel. 

"You may leave." Gozgel waved his hand indifferently. 

Wulong bowed his head and stood up before leaving. 

Looking at his departing figure, Gozgel was deep in thought. 

***

With the power of Gozgel's token, Wulong managed to mobilize one million Underworlders. When these Underworlders heard that they would be attacking a nearby settlement, they cheered excitedly which attracted the attention of the other Underworlders. 

"What?! You guys are chosen to attack!" 

"I'm envious of you guys. If only I knew..."

The Underworlders who weren't chosen to join the attack were envious of the one million chosen soldiers. 

Under the lead of Wulong, one million Underworlders marched towards the Jasper Empire. It was the nearest empire in the Northern Region. It was only a small empire that doesn't even have a Level 5 Esper overseeing it.

The Jasper Empire was also unqualified to join the grand competition so they were unaware of the recent events that happened in the Northern Region. 

The movement of Wulong's army soon reached the ears of Irithel who was still in the process of escorting the remaining Barbarian tribes to the Barden Territory. 

"What?! An army of one million Underworlders is coming marching towards Jasper Empire?!" Irithel was stunned when she heard the report. They all thought that the Underworlders wouldn't attack for the time being, but it seemed like they were wrong. 

"Contact King Aethelwolf and inform him about this!" Irithel commanded the Shadow Guard. 

"Yes, Miss Irithel!" The Shadow Guard saluted and turned around before leaving.

Irithel's face turned grave. She then looked at the Barbarian camp in front of her. Her team was still in the process of making the Transportation Rune for them. "The Jasper Empire is quite far from here. I heard that Ramiel's army is already in the borders of the Northern Region. In that case, they might encounter this Underworlder army." She grabbed her Communication Rune and called Ramiel.