Chapter 575: Chapter 575. The First Steppingstone
"Linzu, call all the guard puppets to the main gate!" Won Xulao ordered his aide. He then jumped down from the battlement. He shouted as he flew down, "Invaders! We will never surrender!"
Won Xulao was heading toward the man who had broken through the town gate. That man was Amon.
Amon used the same trick as when he breached Bright Rock City’s barrier. He channeled his mixed aether and used the Elder God Tentacles. The barrier couldn’t withstand the tentacles’ eroding power. They eroded both the barrier and the engraving on the gate, weakening its structure, before blowing it up.
Amon looked up at the one who shouted at him. From Won Xulao’s attire, cultivation, and manner, Amon immediately knew that he was the leader of this town.
The nearby enemy battle puppets and town guards advanced on Amon. Before they could reach him, Amon released the battle puppets from his black space ring. The enemies were taken aback when numerous battle puppets suddenly materialized amidst them. Seizing their surprise, Amon’s battle puppets launched an immediate attack.
Amon flew up to face Won Xulao.
Won Xulao was an Intermediate Spirit Stage. He sensed Amon’s cultivation was at the Intermediate Mystic Stage. He brandished his axe, a high-tier engraved weapon. The words of power on the surface of the axe flashed red. This caused the edge of the axe to burst into flames.
He swung the flaming axe while yelling, "Die, invader!!"
Amon’s skin turned scaly. Moments earlier, outside the gate, he had activated the body-strengthening meridian points technique. Because Won Xulao had misjudged Amon’s cultivation level, the mayor was completely unprepared for the strength Amon displayed, which surpassed that of an average Peak Spirit Stage combatant.
Amon swung his ceremonial dagger at the incoming flaming axe. The impact broke a portion of the axe. The collision was so hard that Won Xulao lost grip of his weapon. Before Won Xulao came to terms with what had happened, Amon performed a second swing.
This second swing swiped past Won Xulao’s neck. His eyes were staring straight ahead, seemingly unaware that his head had detached from his body.
Amon caught Won Xulao’s head before it fell alongside the body. Holding it high, he shouted, "Your leader has fallen!!! Those who surrender will be spared. Lay down your weapons and kneel! Those who continue fighting will receive no mercy...!!!"
The First Demon Legion rushed in from the gate. They coordinated with Amon’s battle puppets to fight the defenders.
The town guards were shocked to see their mayor lost in such a short instant. They were also intimidated by the number of enemies that poured in from the open gate. Everything seemed like a bad dream. They knew there were invaders outside, but they never thought these invaders could enter the town, especially not so quickly.
They were unprepared and were further demoralized by the fall of their leader. This rendered them unable to fight properly. When they saw their comrades die while resisting the attackers, they finally gave in. They threw down their weapons and dropped to their knees.
Among the defenders were some civilians. These were cultivators with a patriotic spirit. They joined the battle to help the guards repel the invaders. But when they saw these guards drop their weapons and surrender, their spirit was also doused. They stopped fighting and fled.
Before the assault, Amon had told his army leaders to warn the soldiers to stop attacking the enemies who surrendered and to avoid killing civilians. He didn’t give this warning out of the goodness of his heart. He had a design for this town and its denizens.
While most town guards surrendered, the town’s guard puppets continued to fight. They had no fear. They continued to carry out their functions either until they broke down or were told by their handler to stop.
Amon landed in front of someone he suspected of being one of these handlers. "What’s your name?" He asked.
"Xia... Xia Linzu," The woman, who was also Won Xulao’s aide, answered with a stammer. She was daunted by Amon’s appearance and aura. Amon no longer concealed his cultivation level, and she had just seen this man slay her superior with ease. She was only at the Peak Mystic Stage. She knew she had no chance against him.
"I assume you have control over those battle puppets?" Amon asked. His voice sounded polite, even friendly.
"I...," Xia Linzu stopped herself. She almost replied honestly. It felt so natural to obey this man. "I don’t have the control. The Chief Puppet Maker who stays inside the town hall does."
"Does he? If I recall correctly, your leader, whom I killed, ordered you to command the battle puppets," Amon said. "Are you trying to lie to me?"
Xia Linzu was speechless. She didn’t expect Amon to have such sharp hearing and to pay attention to such a small detail.
"I... I can’t betray my country!" Xia Linzu exclaimed. She tried to sound as determined as possible.
"I commend that," Amon uttered. His hand abruptly grabbed Xia Linzu’s jaws, forcing her mouth to open. Before she could do anything, Amon flicked a small pill into her throat.
She coughed due to the forceful feeding, but it was too late. The pill had entered her body. The effect was immediate. She screamed, dropped to the floor, and convulsed while her skin underwent continuous damage and repair.
The pill Amon fed her was the Eternal Anguish Poison. He gave her one with a small dose that lasted only one minute. But in her perception, six days had passed.
After one minute had passed, she stayed on the floor. She was full of sweat and shaking uncontrollably. "What... What...?" She couldn’t formulate a coherent speech.
Amon let her mind regain its senses before he asked her, "Are you willing to speak honestly now? Or should I feed you another pill?"
"No...! No... Please, mercy...," Xia Linzu pleaded.
"Order all the battle puppets to stand down," Amon demanded.
Xia Linzu nodded reluctantly. She took out a talisman to issue an order to one of the battle puppets. Thanks to their mind links, the order could be transferred to all the other puppets. Soon, the battle puppets stopped moving.
The sound of battle all around the town slowed before stopping altogether. The battle had ended. The defenders had either given up or gone into hiding.
Amon sent his battle puppets all over the town to establish order. All civilians were ordered to remain in their homes. After all his troops had entered the town, he gathered his leaders and gave them commands.
"Wuming, round up the town guards and tie them up. Shi Hei, take some smiths and repair the main gate. Diao Xin, you lead the engravers to repair the engraving that forms the barrier. Zhong Yuan, get the control code of the enemy battle puppets and override their command. You will now control the enemy battle puppets we captured."
Zhong Yuan was surprised by the order. He asked, "Are you sure? You are giving me that kind of power?"
"You have earned a little of my trust," Amon replied. "You are one of us, for now. Continue to work well for me, and you will earn a better position in my force."
"In that case, I happily accept," Zhong Yuan said.
"Baili, build camps near the town hall. Implement a curfew. Organized regular patrols to maintain order. If the civilians dare to oppose, capture, and punish them. Qiang Dan, you interrogate our captives and find out the location of the storehouses. Confiscate all their supplies. Wu Di, take your regiment and meet with Xu Bao. The two of you will escort our supplies here."
After ensuring everyone understood his orders, he bellowed, "Everyone! The enemy army is heading here as we speak. We must be ready before they arrive. Go!"
*
Amon used the town hall as his base. He was inside Won Xulao’s office while studying the town’s map. He received continuous information about the town by having his soldiers bring Khode officials who used to work in the town hall to be questioned.
This town proved to be more strategic than he expected. It had its own farms and a water well within its defensive wall. It also had a large smith workshop that produced much of Khode’s advanced techs. These facilities were built when the town was still developed as a defensive fortress, so it could defend against an enemy siege for a long time.
These facilities had benefited them instead. Even so, Amon had no intention to be on the defensive. This town was an excellent foothold, but it was just the first steppingstone. His conquest would not stop here.
He also learned a great deal about its citizens. It turned out there was a huge rift between the aristocrats and the commoners. The aristocrats were clans who owned many of the worker puppets. A majority of the town’s workforce was handled by these puppets. Hence, a large portion of the population was jobless. The town officials didn’t seem to do much to address this issue. In fact, some of the officials Amon questioned said that this was the state of affairs across the nation.
Amon grinned at the news.