NOVPUB"I wiped out these spider demons because they attacked me. However, what do you want now? Should I kill you too?" Ely took out the insect repellent spray.
"!!!" The Little Spider Queen tried her best to convey her intention with body gestures. She wanted the dark knight to return the human-sized silk cocoon to her, and in return, she would give a massive treasure.
"You want to follow me and give me something?" Ely felt confused and could only assume what this spider was trying to convey.
The burgundy spider demon then pointed in a direction. Ely glanced sideways with her Sacred Vision active. She could see a sparkling fluctuation of something, a pile of precious things rich in spiritual energy.
A treasure trove was hidden there. Ely might have missed it if she hadn’t paid more attention to the hidden area deep in the cave.
Ely sensed almost no hostility from this burgundy spider demon. So, she assumed this burgundy spider demon was not in the same group as the other black spider demons she had just exterminated.
The cave had many bundles of cobwebs, and she could notice some dead monsters inside, mostly other demonic insects. Spiders could eat other spiders, and this burgundy spider was probably those black spiders’ prey.
"You are such a weak spider, but you are lucky to meet me. Since you are kind enough to show me a nice thing, I will give you a present." Ely gave the spider a book about how to cultivate and become a powerful creature.
"..." The Little Spider Queen felt slighted, but she was indeed a weak little spider right now.
She was a Form Synthesis Realm Spider Queen, yet this dark knight wanted to teach her how to cultivate?
If it wasn’t because of her Spider Queen’s body, she would have obviously run away from here.
She still had a chance to retrieve her Spider Queen body since this dark knight might not know the truth yet. Her real body was in the dark knight’s storage pouch.
"Hey, are you familiar with this dark forest?" Ely got an idea. Since this burgundy spider demon was sensible, she could get some help getting out of the forbidden zone.
The Little Spider Queen nodded. This area was her territory. Of course, no one knew more about this place than her.
"Good, then work for me. I will reward you accordingly." Ely took out a piece of paper and wrote a contract.
She was dealing with a little demon and couldn’t allow her to be deceived in her current situation.
She would release this little spider once she finished with this Ancient Night Secret Realm. But before that, she would bind this little spider within a contract.
"???" The Little Spider Queen looked at the written contract before her.
The deal was unfair because she had to obey the dark knight’s orders unconditionally and must not lie. If she violated that, she would be punished. In exchange, she would receive some benefits, and her life would be guaranteed to be safe.
If she thought about it, this contract might bind her blood and flesh like a contracted beast or slave. However, she was just a little spider. She would never suffer loss if she managed to retrieve her real body because the little spider would practically die afterward.
With that in mind, the Little Spider Queen put her blood in that contract.
’E-eh?’ The Little Spider Queen was stunned because she felt something was missing from her soul.
Ely was satisfied. If this spider lied or deceived her, she could punish this spider.
It was like a scam contract. It possessed no actual binding effect, but she could punish her employee and enforce the agreement like a boss. In fact, the contract could only be used for a few days before it lost its effect...
After Ely collected enough red spider crystals, she put the other dead spiders into the storage pouch. She also secured the giant spider’s carcass.
’That’s it!’ The Little Spider Queen peeked into the storage pouch and found the big bundle of silk. Her real body was there. 𝓷ℴ𝓿𝓹𝓾𝓫.𝓬ℴ𝓶
However, she was suddenly pulled out by the dark knight.
"You need to be my little guide." Ely put the little spider in a small cage, then went to the treasure trove.
She plundered everything, leaving no more valuables behind.
The Little Spider Queen felt like crying because her treasures were plundered. She has just experienced betrayal, her clan’s demise, and a catastrophic loss...
She didn’t know what she had done in the past, but this kind of misfortune was excruciating.
Ely then headed north with the little spider as her guide. She also used her new loot for something useful.
The spider’s red crystal bits strengthened the long-distance telecommunication signal to bypass the jamming effect in the air. They also disguised it as a demon’s signal.
The first thing she did after leaving the restricted zone was to contact her disciples using a telecommunication talisman, but only in a text message because she didn’t want third parties to overhear her conversation.
"The invaders from the outside world have started to be hunted."
"Keke, they were suppressed to 3rd Rank because of our realm’s ancient laws."
"Nevertheless, our task now is only to drive more monsters toward the realm’s portal."
"Yeah, let’s ignore those invaders for now. The executioners will deal with them. We need to handle the overpopulated monsters first. They became troublesome once their numbers exploded beyond normal in the last three hundred years."
Ely overheard the conversation of a group of low-class demons not far from her current position. She observed them, and they weren’t wearing the dark purple outfit typical of the Nightmare Clan.
So, other demons worked together to eliminate the invaders and sent many demonic monsters to the outside world. It was the first stage of the invasion plan!
The following question came To Ely’s mind about the location of the realm’s portal. This secret realm was previously sealed, and the seal would probably be repaired soon. At that time, she and her disciples would be trapped here.
The demons thrust several iron rods into the ground and activated those magic items.
*Oouuiiwooouiuiwiii*
Those iron rods let out a terrifying sound. Yet, it also sounded like an alarm that would torment any monster within a three-kilometer radius.
The excruciating noises forced the surrounding monsters to flee in panic to escape the sound’s source.
Unfortunately, the noises didn’t sound threatening to the surrounding demons since they had already prepared themselves with earplugs.
*Rumble!* *Rumble!* *Rumble!*
The monsters rushed to flee away, and several other demon teams activated their magic items too. They began herding thousands of monsters from the dark forest to the northwest.
Ely observed the demonic monsters, and they varied from 3rd Rank to 5th Rank. There were also several 6th Rank giant monsters. Nevertheless, they ran so fast, and she couldn’t use those monsters to get to the realm’s portal.
After that, she decided to squeeze a bit of information out of those demons’ mouths.
"Where are you going to send the monsters to?" Ely tapped the nearby demon on the shoulder.
"!!!" The mouse demonic-kin gasped in surprise. He couldn’t notice anyone coming behind him. Either the other party was too strong or weak to detect. Nevertheless, he needed to determine whether this dark knight was an enemy or a friend. "Who are you?"
"..." Ely took out a jade plaque. She got it from that dark bedroom. She also activated her artifact to create a sense of oppression.
"Young, young lord of the Nightmare Clan!?" One of the demons knelt down, unable to withstand the pressure.
They soon begged for mercy for failing to recognize the esteemed young lord.
Ely asked, and the demons immediately answered all of her questions obediently. Unfortunately, they didn’t know much vital information.
Even so, she got information on the location of the realm’s portal. It was in the Umbra Valley, also known as Desolate Valley. Some distance to the northwest.
"Good, now back to your duty." Ely raised her hand in farewell and headed northwest.
"Phew, it scares me to death. The young lord of the Nightmare Fear Family reportedly went 37 years ago to the outside world. He may have reached the 10th Rank or become the Nightmare Demon God!"
"Wow, no wonder we can’t sense anything from him. He is the first to break the curse and achieve true immortality!"
"O-oh! Fortunately, we are Nigmare Clan’s lackeys. We will also be splashed with nightmare demon’s glory."
The low-class demons cheered happily. Meanwhile, Ely informed her disciples about the information she had just discovered.
[Master, do you need us to teleport to your location?]
[No, there’s no need. Stay in a group and gain experience in this realm. Everyone from the outside world is suppressed to 3rd Rank, but we have an anti-debuff talisman. We can get something from this chaos.]
[Master is wise. We’ll first slaughter some demons and monsters, then plunder many precious treasures and spirit stones in our way.]
[I will join you after handling a small obstacle on my side. These nightmare demons think I’m their long-lost young lord somehow. I need to devise a plan. Please wait for my further instructions.]
[Ah, alright, master. Please stay in touch with us.]
Ely exchanged information with her disciples through the talisman. Her disciples were somewhere in the dark forest and on their way to her current location. Nevertheless, they have already encountered many demons and monsters.
Due to the anti-debuff artifacts, her disciples could easily slaughter all their enemies without suffering the secret realm’s suppression. However, she had no idea about the others.
Regardless, that wasn’t a problem she needed to consider, either. The thing she needed to do right now was to get rid of the hidden stalkers who were still following her from a distance.
They lost her tracks several times, but it was a matter of time until they found her whereabouts.
