Become Overpowered CEO of Hero Clan

The Great War of Humans and Demons (10)

After serving food and judging that the atmosphere had sufficiently mellowed, Overlord Mordu revealed his true intentions.

“They say even a chance encounter can lead to a meaningful relationship. I believe our meeting at this time is a kind of destiny. I won’t beat around the bush. I recently obtained something called an Iron Jade Stone and I’m trying to soften it, but unfortunately, the Iron Jade Stone cannot be handled with yin energy alone. I’d like you to help with softening the Iron Jade Stone.”

“The Iron Jade Stone?”

“Yes. The Iron Jade Stone is a legendary-grade mineral, but I have prepared a ritual technique and an assistant in advance. If we add your help to this, we should be able to soften the Iron Jade Stone within a week.”

A week of cooperation.

It was far too cheap a price for one’s life.

Mordu thought that a 5-star Ethereal would never be able to refuse his offer.

Unknowingly entering a tiger’s den, only to be told that if you help for just a week, you’ll be allowed to leave alive.

What a reasonable proposal this was.

But to his surprise, the warrior named Lee Geon-ha boldly responded without so much as blinking an eye.

“I’ll decide after hearing the conditions.”

“Conditions?”

Conditions, he says.

Shouldn’t he be falling to his knees in gratitude just for being allowed to leave alive?

Overlord Mordu wondered if his benevolent attitude had caused the other party to misread the situation, but he decided to hear what nonsense the man might spout.

“I came to the Euncheon Forest in search of a legendary-grade medicinal herb called the Purple Spirit Root. Do you have it?”

Purple Spirit Root.

It was a medicinal herb coveted by both monsters and Ethereals alike. Mordu’s brow furrowed slightly at the other’s arrogant attitude.

“I do have one root, but I can’t give away a Purple Spirit Root for just a week’s assistance.”

“Let’s resolve any shortfall through negotiation, shall we?”

“I wonder if you have anything that would satisfy me. How many magic stones do you have?”

“That’s actually what I wanted to ask. I happened to obtain a Blue Magic Stone, and I too was looking for someone or a faction that could exchange it for me.”

“A Blue Magic Stone!”

The Blue Magic Stone was a Tier 2 magic stone that could only be obtained outside the veil, and was nearly impossible to acquire within this small world.

If the Ethereal’s words were true, he would have to complete the trade even if it meant giving up not just the Purple Spirit Root but his entire fortune.

After all, the Blue Magic Stone was a high-grade magic stone that could only be obtained from Tier 2 monsters, beings so formidable they were almost too terrifying to even look upon. Simply consuming and absorbing it might trigger a new mutation.

‘How on earth did a 5-star Ethereal get a Blue Magic Stone?’

The prospect of absorbing a Blue Magic Stone was even more enticing than softening the Iron Jade Stone, which was the main ingredient for legendary-grade armaments.

Overlord Mordu could barely contain his excitement.

“I propose a trade for one Purple Spirit Root, 10,000 magic stones, and 2 top-grade magic stones!”

“That’s not enough. I want an additional 40,000 magic stones.”

To his chagrin, the other party shook his head slightly.

‘50,000 magic stones!’

For a moment, Overlord Mordu considered killing this 5-star warrior named Lee Geon-ha and seizing his mana space, but that thought didn’t last long.

Although the other party’s power was merely at the peak of 5-star, he couldn’t be an ordinary Ethereal if he had obtained a Blue Magic Stone.

Perhaps he could break through the barrier of the hideout with some mysterious technique and escape, or prove difficult to subdue easily.

If such a thing were to happen, he would lose not only the Blue Magic Stone but also the opportunity to soften the Iron Jade Stone.

“Wait a moment. Hmm… How about this? In a few days, a warrior of my caliber will arrive here. He’s the assistant who agreed to help with softening the Iron Jade Stone. I’ll borrow magic stones from him to make up the 50,000, so how about we trade then?”

“Let’s do that. And I’d like to receive an additional 500 magic stones as compensation for helping to soften the Iron Jade Stone.”

“Kuhehehe! What’s 500 magic stones when we’re trading a Blue Magic Stone? One Purple Spirit Root, 50,500 magic stones, and 2 top-grade magic stones. I never thought I’d see the day when such a big trade would happen in the Euncheon Forest.”

“I’m surprised too. For someone living in seclusion in the mountains, you sure have a lot of money.”

“Hehehe. I may be a fugitive now, but I once ruled half of the Western Wasteland. More importantly, how on earth were you able to obtain a Blue Magic Stone?”

“I’d rather not talk about that.”

“Kuhehel! How bold. To speak so freely in front of me. It’s been a while since I’ve met a human I’ve taken a liking to.”

In a good mood, Mordu began to guzzle alcohol and devour meat while guffawing. His gluttonous eating habits were reminiscent of a wild beast tearing into its prey alive.

Two hours later, he provided Isaac, who wanted some time alone, with a luxurious room.

“The assistant will arrive tomorrow morning. We’ll complete the trade right away and start the softening process, so keep that in mind.”

“Just make sure you prepare the magic stones well.”

“Hehe! An insolent human to the very end.”

Isaac entered the room without replying and sat cross-legged. It was to gather his scattered energy.

Sneer.

Meanwhile, a cold smile had appeared on Overlord Mordu’s face as he descended to the underground workshop.

A quiet night fell even on the village stained with the smell of blood.

====

***

====

A day later.

The barrier surrounding the village rippled, and a middle-aged man with a sharp appearance, wearing blue armor, entered inside the castle walls.

The villagers and green-skinned monsters bowed deeply with utmost respect as soon as they encountered the blue-armored middle-aged man.

“Orcish! My brother, you’ve come just in time.”

“For the Black Hammer! It’s good to see you, Overlord Mordu.”

Orcish.

He was an Emperor-class monster of the same Greenkin race as Mordu.

As the grand general of the Black Hammer tribe led by Overlord Mordu, he was the most beloved comrade and colleague of Mordu, who had led the tribe.

“I hate to ask this right after meeting, but I need to borrow some magic stones.”

“Foolish talk. What is there to be sorry about between us who dream of the revival of the Black Hammer!”

“Oh! Then lend me 20,000 magic stones.”

“…What?”

“Calm down and put that axe down. You see…”

Overlord Mordu shared in detail with Grand General Orcish the story of the deal with the 5-star peak Ethereal named Isaac.

Orcish’s face twisted moment by moment, but by the end, he nodded with an excited expression.

And they shared important information through mental communication to prevent any sound from leaking out.

―First, we need to complete the trade and obtain the blue magic stone. Then, if we succeed in softening the iron jade stone, there’s no reason to hesitate after that.

―I understand. You mean to use that Ethereal to soften the iron jade stone, and then kill him and plunder his magic space. My goodness! What luck has rolled into our Black Hammer tribe!

Last night, all preparations were completed to prevent him from escaping.

No matter how much heavenly power an Ethereal possessed, the opponent was still only 5-star.

Whatever method he was confident in, to Emperor-class monsters, a 5-star Ethereal was nothing more than tempting prey whose spirit essence and magic space could be taken at any time.

―But it’s strange. What confidence did that guy have to stay in a village where two Emperor-class monsters gather? Surely he must have experienced and felt something to reach the 5-star realm?

―Perhaps he was born a peculiar one from the start. Or more likely, he has an ace up his sleeve that allows him to escape from any situation. But don’t worry. The moment he participates in the softening process… Hehe. He’ll already be like a mouse trapped in a bottle.

The weak and stupid prey is eaten by the strong and cunning predator. This food chain of nature was the natural order of the world.

Slander and political maneuvering are essential in building and leading a force. This was something Overlord Mordu had painfully realized after losing his position as tribal chief and becoming a fugitive.

An Ethereal one rank lower was like a walking treasure chest to them.

What predator wouldn’t take such prey when it comes walking in, begging to be eaten?

“Follow me.”

Having finished their scheming, Overlord Mordu briefly introduced Orcish to the 5-star Ethereal who had introduced himself as Isaac, and then led them to the underground workshop.

There, three layers of magic circles and an iron vessel supporting the mineral were placed.

“I’ve implemented the magic technique obtained from a master craftsman of the Phantom Kingdom. I’ll take full control of the technique, so you two just need to emit yin and yang energy according to my orders.”

“Sounds simple. Got it.”

“Before that, let’s make the trade. Here, as promised.”

Mordu handed over a magic space ring containing 50,500 magic stones, 2 top-grade magic stones, and one root of the Purple Spirit Root to Isaac.

Seemingly satisfied with the contents, Isaac also took out a low-grade blue magic stone from his inventory and handed it to Mordu.

“This is the blue magic stone! Oh, what tremendous yin energy!”

“It seems to be a real blue magic stone! Human, do you happen to have more blue magic stones?!”

What was a blue magic stone?

It was none other than a 2-tier treasure.

It was a magic stone from the middle realm that couldn’t be found at all in the lower realm.

Honestly, Overlord Mordu couldn’t believe Isaac’s words until he actually saw the blue magic stone.

He had simply held his tongue out of concern that the deal might fall through if he offended him.

‘So it was real!’

Of course, unless he was insane, a 5-star Ethereal wouldn’t lie to an Emperor-class monster. However, upon actually receiving the blue magic stone, he couldn’t contain his trembling heart.

He wanted to eat and absorb the blue magic stone right away, forget about softening the iron jade stone.

Swish.

However, Isaac merely shook his head a couple of times at the excited fuss of the two Greenkin Emperors.

General Orcish inwardly sneered at the lukewarm attitude of the human who had shown no emotions whatsoever since earlier.

‘He’ll find out soon enough anyway.’

Orcish hoped that the guy’s magic space was abundantly filled with blue magic stones.

Helping with the softening of the iron jade stone and generously giving up his magic space, such grateful prey. His fate was already sealed.

“Ahem! I lost my composure for a moment. Everyone, gather your wits. We’ll start the softening process soon.”

They had already obtained the blue magic stone.

They also planned to forcibly recover the 50,500 magic stones, 2 top-grade magic stones, and one Purple Spirit Root given in the trade.

To exploit the Ethereal to the bone, they needed to soften the iron jade stone as soon as possible.

Wooooong!

As Overlord Mordu, standing in the center, infused yin energy into the magic circle, the three intersecting circular magic circles began to sparkle sequentially in red, yellow, and green light.

Then, a resounding boom erupted from the iron vessel placed in the center of the magic circle, and a lumpy spherical iron jade stone slowly rose up.

Mordu carefully manipulated the yin energy, flexibly adjusting the brightness of the three magic circles.

“Now! Infuse yang energy moderately.”

At Mordu’s booming order, Isaac raised his spiritual power moderately, just as instructed.

Then, the colorful magic circles all emitted a pure white light at once. The iron jade stone floating in the air was enveloped in bright light and continuously emitted strange bursting sounds.

“This time it’s your turn, Orcish. Emit yin energy very strongly!”

Kuooooo…!

As Orcish emitted a dark red aura, this time the three magic circles turned black, and energy currents tinged with darkness seethed endlessly.

Crack-crack-crack!

Crack-crack―

The iron jade stone that had been engulfed in white light was now lashed with darkness, causing sparks to fly in succession.

In the eyes of Overlord Mordu, who was controlling the technique, keen intelligence and malice alternately flickered.