Chapter 5: The Fick Continent

Today is a holiday, so I am uploading early and wish everyone a joyful festival!

Standing on the land of the Fick continent, Li Bin and his companions were waiting for Jessica’s family to send troops to receive them.

Three days earlier, Li Bin had led his forces out of the abandoned elven city, and their journey since then had been smooth. It wasn’t long before they found the teleportation array leading to the Fick continent.

However, upon arrival, they discovered a complication. Although their location was not far from the city governed by Jessica’s father, they were actually standing within the territory of the enemy nation, the Empire of Bialu.

Originally, according to Reid’s suggestion, they could have fought their way through and simply returned Jessica to Abira City in the Principality of Warner. But Li Bin disagreed.

He felt that since Warner and Bialu were sworn enemies, it would be a waste not to exploit this situation. Moreover, perhaps Warner might want to use Li Bin’s forces against Bialu, too.

For this reason, they only had Jessica send a carrier pigeon to her father, informing him of their current location, and left the rest to be discussed face-to-face.

After waiting about a day, a colossal golden dragon appeared, trailing innumerable troops and massive battle flags. Led by a halfling, a heavily armored knight mounted on a dragon horse—his intense, penetrating gaze visible beneath the helmet—rode up to Li Bin.

Behind him, Li Bin saw crusaders, griffins, elven archers, human clerics, and knights, all assembled in battalions.

The moment Jessica saw him, she rushed forward, shouting loudly, “Uncle Leon, why are you the one who came?”

“My little Jessica has returned; how could I not come?” Leon, the heavy knight, replied with a smile.

Then he fixed Li Bin with a cold glare and said fiercely, “So you’re the evil undead who abducted my Jessica? Just wait—I’ll make you regret it.”

“Oh? Then perhaps I shouldn’t have brought Jessica back,” Li Bin replied casually, unfazed by Leon’s threat.

“Hmph.” Leon did not bother to argue further. Instead, he demanded, “Tell me what you want—money, treasures, resources, even troops—I have them all. Name your price.”

“I’m not negotiating with you. I want to speak with her father,” Li Bin replied, ignoring Leon and pointing at Jessica.

“Don’t push your luck, boy!” Leon roared, ready to move in and strike.

Reid and Ted, standing behind Li Bin, immediately drew their weapons, but Li Bin waved them off. “I’m not overstepping. This is my request. The teleportation array to my territory is still within yours, so I must ask you to ensure our safety.”

Leon stared at Li Bin for a long time before finally growling, “Fine, follow behind. If you get lost, don’t blame me.”

After saying this, he ushered Jessica into a nearby carriage, and with troops guarding the vehicle, quickly departed.

Li Bin was not surprised by Leon’s attempt to leave him behind. He ordered Shenling to lead the team after Leon’s troops, while he followed with the other heroes and soldiers.

As long as Leon didn’t try anything underhanded, Li Bin felt like a novice player stalking Leon’s unit for a sneak attack; traveling through Bialu’s territory posed little real danger.

Keeping a distance, Li Bin skirted several small cities, finally reaching Jessica’s father’s domain. As soon as he crossed into the territory, an elderly mage appeared before him, his hair white as snow.

Holding a short crystal staff and possessing an extraordinarily handsome visage, the old man glanced at Li Bin and asked, “Boy, are you the one who took my daughter?”

“Your daughter? You’re Jessica’s father?” Li Bin looked the mage up and down, replying offhandedly, “You don’t look it—you’re so young.”

“Is that so? I do feel my skin has improved lately,” the mage said, touching his face. “Don’t be fooled by my youthful appearance—I truly am Jessica’s father. My name is Damon Hughes Elins. You may call me Mr. Damon.”

“Very well, Mr. Damon,” Li Bin said with a smile. “You must already know the truth of the matter from your daughter. I think there are some things we should discuss.”

“You want to talk about her ransom? No problem. I am both a mage and a lord—I can afford it,” Damon laughed heartily.

“No, not that. I want to discuss the situation regarding the Empire of Bialu,” Li Bin replied quietly.

“Oh? Are you planning to move against Bialu?” Damon furrowed his brow.

“In a manner of speaking. Otherwise, I’d have let a merchant send you word, and after you paid, returned your daughter, rather than crossing continents to bring her back,” Li Bin replied. He was sure Damon would catch his meaning.

Indeed, without hesitation, Damon pulled out a map and spread it before Li Bin. “Tell me, which city have you set your sights on? I can help you take it.”

“No, I don’t want a city. I want a life—the life of a mage named Carter,” Li Bin said calmly.

“Carter? The lord of Yoyada City?” Damon burst out laughing. “Boy, you’ve come to the right person. That man is my archrival. If anyone can kill him, it’s me.”

“Is that so? Then killing him benefits you as well,” Li Bin replied with a casual smile.

“Of course. His city borders my domain. Once he’s dead, that city will…” Damon suddenly stopped, staring intently at Li Bin.

“Then we can consider this a partnership,” Li Bin continued, ignoring Damon’s reaction. “With that assurance, I think we can talk about your daughter.”

“What? Still negotiating about my daughter? Haven’t I already agreed to kill Carter for you?” Damon exclaimed.

“Killing Carter won’t grant me his city—it’ll simply fall to you. That doesn’t count,” Li Bin replied, shamelessly.

“No! Killing Carter settles my daughter’s debt,” Damon insisted.

“Then I’ll sell Carter’s city to you—that should at least earn me something,” Li Bin said with a laugh, not pressing his point.

Damon was left speechless. No matter how he calculated, the payment would end up going to Li Bin. Finally, he could only ask helplessly, “Tell me, what do you want?”