Chapter 446: Chapter 342: This is Not a Big Deal!
Just a moment ago, one of Little Zi’s female demon avatars stumbled upon a phony dwarf. The imposter bore the physique of a dwarf, but there was no way to disguise the unique wave of his soul. All dwarves possessed a distinctive soul, imperceptible to humans and dwarves alike. But demons were different, as they were energy creatures centered around the soul. They could effortlessly discern the unique soul signature of each being.
And thus, amidst a group of dwarves, the human soul stood out glaringly.
Following that, Little Zi sent out all thirteen of her avatars who began swarming the entire Furnace Fortress. They set out to search for any suspicious targets.
Eventually, including the initial phony dwarf, the demons found three suspects in total.
They were all stationed at different posts. None of them were in charge of armored combat. The demons marked each of them uniquely, thus ensuring Little Zi could locate them instantly, anywhere they went.
Long Yi had been in Furnace Fortress for two days. During that time, the animosity towards humans had simmered down. It was because of Long Yi’s presence that the dwarves had restrained themselves. After all, most of them held Long Yi in high esteem.
Nevertheless, the three individuals the demons had discovered were hard at work, deliberately causing trouble at every opportunity. Their method was straightforward. They would casually vilify humans, stirring up debates among the dwarves. Then, they would make themselves scarce.
However, their methods were not as effective anymore.
Piers had been hiding among the dwarves for three years now. To become an excellent dwarf, he underwent a series of surgeries. He had also learned various dwarfish knowledge from dwarf prisoners. He had no regrets about all he had done for the Black Dragon Empire. Recently, Piers received an order to incite chaos between the dwarves and White Dragon Empire, something he was exceptionally good at.
As chaos ensued, Piers took advantage of the situation and stole several pieces of battle armor. All those pieces were supposed to be destroyed because they were defective, and since their numbers were small, nobody noticed their absence. However, Piers has yet to get a chance to transport them out of the fortress.
Long Yi’s presence irked Piers. Having infiltrated the dwarves for three years, Piers knew full well what the name ’Long Yi’ meant to the dwarves. He wasn’t a real dwarf, so he couldn’t truly understand their feelings, but he noticed that Long Yi’s presence was enough to cool down the uncontrollable agitation progressively and even bring a sense of calmness. Long Yi’s influence was indeed enormous.
Piers figured that if Long Yi intervened and tried to mediate the spat between humans and dwarves, the chaos he painstakingly created would dissipate in no time.
What worried Piers even more was Long Yi’s companion, Little Zi, the female demon. Demons, as creatures capable of magic, could expose all falsehoods.
No, he thought, this can’t go on—we must retreat!
Piers reached his two assistants, who like him had undergone surgery to look like dwarves. Both were new spies added after Long Yi established contact with the dwarves.
The trio secretly band together and discussed their next steps. In the end, they all agreed that retreating was the best option. But if they only brought a few stray parts back, their three-year infiltration period would have been meaningless. Consequently, the trio conceived several audacious plans.
They decided to steal an entire battle armor!
If they successfully brought the battle armor back to the Black Dragon Empire, the emperor was sure to reward their bravery and contributions. After restoring their appearances, all that would be left was to enjoy their spoils.
Easy to say, difficult to do.
The machine shop that assembled the protection suits was in a restricted zone they couldn’t even dream of entering.
What now?
Just then, news came in. Long Yi had decided to hold a grand feast for all the dwarves involved in manufacturing the battle armor. At the news, almost all the dwarves were delighted. Their everyday life was tiresome, and drinking was their favorite pastime. With their heavy workload, they couldn’t drink to their heart’s content. On regular days, they had a quota on the amount of liquor they could consume. However, with Long Yi being an respected dwarf elder, it was obvious that the upcoming banquet would not have any such quota. Hence, almost all eligible dwarves were excited, except for Piers and his team.
As Piers and his two companions made their way to the workshop to assemble the armor, they tried to come up with different methods to get their hands on the armor, but no approach seemed feasible.
Unexpectedly, Elder Morton appeared.
"Hey, you three? Are you free right now?"
Caught off guard, Piers quickly approached him, "Yes, Elder Morton."
Morton sighed in relief, "That’s great. You three, hurry up and bring a set of armor to temporary storage. All those rascals went to drink. It’s exasperating how they chose now of all times to betray their commitments!"
The trio was ecstatic!
The saying be careful what you wish for! came true.
As they hurried to the assembly workshop, indeed, a set of combat armor lay silently in a wooden box.
"Let’s go!"
Piers ordered.
"Where do we go?"
"What kind of question is that! Where else can we go? Outside, of course! Call for the hidden Dragon Knights to come and support us! This time, we are going to make a great achievement!"
"Will it work?"
"It will! Today is the banquet hosted by Long Yi. Given the foolish nature of these dwarves, everyone, from the smith to the guard, is sure to attend! This is also when everyone is least alert. If we miss this opportunity, it won’t be so easy next time!"
As a matter of fact, Piers guessed correctly. The trio managed to push the battle armor forth without encountering any guard. Even if they did bump into anyone, they barely took a glance.
It was way too smooth! Beforehand, Piers was worried about not having space equipment, but now it seems, even without it, so what?
They left the Furnace Fortress through a remote side door, arriving at the back mountain, which was the designated rendezvous point.
Typically, the Dragon Knight from the Black Dragon Empire, who was here to support, lurked around. Upon receiving a signal, they should be waiting here. Why haven’t they shown up yet?
As time ticked by, there was still no sign of the waiting Dragon Knight, Piers felt increasingly alarmed.
"Damn it."
Piers exhaled loudly.
At this moment, the dwarves had already surrounded them from all sides.
"It’s too late."
Long Yi, who was walking in front, said with a smile.
"Long Yi... Elder..." Piers muttered with a bitter smile on his face.
"Don’t call me that. You guys are not dwarves. Are you not afraid that your Black Dragon Emperor will decapitate you?" Long Yi said.
"Elder, you must be joking. I don’t understand what you mean by ’Black Dragon Emperor’..." Piers looked very pale, but his anxiety was hidden behind his thick beard, unnoticed by anyone.
"Whether I’m joking or not isn’t important. But where were you guys planning to take my stuff?" Long Yi pointed at the wooden box containing the battle armor.
Piers’ brain spun quickly, coming up with a minimum loss explanation. Obviously, getting caught in the act did not mean the end of him!
"I..."
"Never mind, hearing your explanation is a waste of time, let me speak for you instead." Long Yi stepped forward, squatted down, and suddenly punched Piers in the head, knocking him out cold.
"Alright, I’m done speaking."
Piers’ two followers were completely taken aback. They had heard many rumors about Long Yi. But in this world of dwarves, what they heard most about is Long Yi’s contribution to the dwarves. They didn’t have a solid impression of Long Yi’s character, so his swift punch took them by surprise.
"Okay, now it’s your turn. Would you prefer to be knocked out first, then face interrogation by a Female Demon alone, or just tell me everything you know?"
The two of them intended to struggle initially, but they saw a huge shadow passing over them in the sky. It was Bajie, with a dragon in his mouth, flying low. Seeing the dragon’s black body, they realized it was the dragon that was supposed to come to their aid! The dragon’s back was already sealed with molten iron, and there was a person-shaped figure on it. It was clear that they had been sealed inside by Bajie’s Dragon Breath.
Seeing their only hope destroyed, they had Little Zi chuckling beside them. Without any reservation, they told everything they knew.
Black Dragon Empire transformed ordinary humans into dwarves through a series of surgeries. The wounds on their hands and feet were the result of bone removal. However, the dense body hair transplanted onto them concealed these wounds, and the dwarves usually wore thick clothes, so no one noticed!
Elder Morton looked at the scars on their bodies and listened to their descriptions. The more he heard, the angrier he got. He never expected Black Dragon Empire to target them this way! Although these three didn’t manage to spy on the dwarves’ most crucial secrets, this kind of pervasive espionage was clearly hostile.
The dwarves always maintained neutrality in various wars on the continent. Metals and money were their favorite things. They hated starting a war for no reason. But this time, the Black Dragon Empire’s actions utterly disgusted the dwarves.
The confessions of these three were verified by Little Zi and confirmed to be true.
At this point, Long Yi stepped forward.
"Brothers!" Long Yi shouted loudly, and everyone turned to look at him.
"My brothers, I admit, the recent conduct of the officials from the White Dragon Empire may have been a bit improper, causing you to feel disgusted. But, my fellow dwarves are magnanimous, and certainly won’t let such trivial things bother them! But the real culprits behind all this are these three people! They were the ones who incited discord among us, damaging our precious friendship! These scum from Black Dragon are utterly unscrupulous! But! Their plot will never succeed! Because we, dwarves, possess wisdom that they cannot comprehend! Our will is much stronger than theirs!" (To be continued... If you like this work, please come to Qidian (qidian.com) and vote for it. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)
