Chapter 239: Underground Cave
The surging corpses were completely wiped out. Rosalia hurled the Greatsword of Gluttony and blasted apart the ceiling. Falling stone slabs crashed down, sealing the entrance tightly.
"Done. This way, the corpses won’t be able to get in."
No longer bothering with the remaining corpses inside, Rosalia went from one entrance to another along the wall, sealing them all.
After recovering her combat strength, Tisiana fought alongside the greatsword warriors, slaughtering the corpses floor by floor, room by room.
The battle continued until nightfall. The two Divine Chosen were nearly exhausted to death.
After coming down from the wall, Rosalia kept belching, while Tisiana felt dizzy, her body trembling as she reported the situation to Phield.
"You’ve both worked hard. You are my wings." Phield was deeply moved and quickly massaged their shoulders. "Go back and rest. I’ve already instructed the servants. They’ve prepared hot water and food."
"It’s nothing, hic. My life energy is almost overflowing, but my stamina and mental strength are nearly depleted."
Rosalia waved her hand. Her once elegant and refined face was now filled with a strange "wisdom."
Tisiana held her waist and said weakly, "Same here."
The number of corpses in Starnight City was astonishing. According to known information, corpses would grow out of the gray mist. If the clearing was too slow, all efforts would be wasted.
"The entrances on the southern wall have been sealed. Once we take the wall, we can strike from above. The corpses will only be able to wage a siege."
The next morning, Phield personally observed the first execution in the Nightfall Domain.
Anwei, tortured beyond recognition, was paraded around once more before being pushed onto a temporary gallows built in the slave camp.
The slaves below were terrified, each of them too afraid to speak.
But after Tate carefully explained Anwei’s attempt to incite a rebellion, the slaves began whispering among themselves.
"I didn’t expect him to start a revolt."
"Yeah, that took guts."
"I thought he was a good person before. He even gave me half a piece of black bread. Could there be some misunderstanding?"
The slaves voiced all kinds of opinions.
"According to our investigation, many slaves knew about Anwei’s actions. But you new slaves all chose to conceal it. Not a single one of you reported it. As punishment, your food rations will be reduced by half for three meals."
The moment these words were spoken, the slaves erupted.
They did not dare hold any resentment toward the lord, so they vented their anger on Anwei on the platform.
"Kill him, kill him, kill him!"
The slaves, who had previously held differing opinions, now felt the pain of having their own interests harmed and quickly unified in their stance.
Tate, who was responsible for carrying out the sentence, declared sternly, "Slave Anwei, for endangering the lives of the people and maliciously harming the baron’s interests, you are sentenced to death. Do you have any objections?"
Anwei, his face bruised and swollen, could not speak. Though he struggled and tried to curse, only muffled sounds came out.
"Silence means no objections."
Tate had served as a warden in Maple Leaf City and was extremely familiar with penal procedures. He gave no time for nonsense and directly placed the noose around Anwei’s neck.
Amid countless curses, Anwei was hanged like a piece of meat.
In his final moments, his mind was filled with endless regret. He hated his own recklessness and regretted listening to Simon’s nonsense.
Phield, standing to the side, shook his head silently. "I wonder if this is too excessive. After all, most of the slaves are good."
Tisiana clasped her hands in prayer. "Yes, my lord. Many people suffered unjustly. It’s just like what is written in the Church’s holy scriptures, the flesh of the innocent is devoured by vultures..."
"Not at all. When dealing with the ignorant, one must use ruthless methods."
Ashina’s crimson eyes were filled with dominance as she crossed her arms. "If this were in a wolf-kin tribe, those who lived in the same house as the rebels, along with their blood relatives, would all be executed. The lord is already very merciful."
"Harsh laws are needed in chaotic times. That is indeed true. But in the future, it’s best to stop problems at their source."
Thinking of many systems that could be improved, Phield made a mental note and sighed. "There’s still a lot I need to learn and master."
"Let’s go. We’ll head to Starnight City and continue reclaiming the wall today."
Phield straightened his collar, cleared his cluttered thoughts, and with a light push of his foot, mounted his warhorse.
At that moment, a rapid sound of hoofbeats approached. A wolf-kin cavalryman arrived to report.
The cavalryman dismounted and said, "My lord, one of the slaves we were escorting fell into a strange place, like the underground nest of some creature. His fate is unknown."
"Oh? What happened?"
The previous night, Kai had led the demi-human cavalry to escort the rebellious slaves to the salt mines for long-term labor, while also establishing an outpost.
"One of the slaves lost his footing and fell into a dark underground hole." The cavalryman gestured a large circle. "We heard terrifying howling sounds and something like a waterfall. It was extremely frightening."
"An underground hole? There is such a place in the Nightfall Domain?"
According to the detailed map left by the Starnight family, there should not have been any underground holes in the Nightfall Domain.
Phield pondered for a moment. He initially thought of simply filling it in, but considering that the northern province hid many secrets, he said, "I understand. You will guide us there later."
"Yes." The cavalryman responded loudly.
"An underground hole. It would be nice if there were treasure, but that’s unlikely. The worst case is the emergence of powerful subterranean monsters. If one of them digs its way to the Starnight Grand Winery, it would be a disaster. Or if it ambushes us along the way, it would cause serious trouble."
Burrowing magical beasts such as explosive earth bears, sandworms, or earth dragons were all formidable creatures.
Another possibility was that the slave who fell in might not have died, but instead obtained some artifact inheritance or cultivation technique and return for revenge. Phield was unwilling to accept that outcome.
Even though it sounded absurd.
But with the territory at a critical stage of development, Phield could no longer tolerate potential threats.
"You lead the way. We’ll go take a look at the hole first."
Selecting fifty soldiers and bringing along Ashina and Tisiana, Phield set off immediately.
After traveling along the road for quite some time, they could already see the location of the salt mine. The wolf-kin cavalryman then pointed at a newly erected warning sign and reported, "My lord, it’s over there. We were worried someone else might fall in, so we set up a warning."
The entrance to the hole was concealed by dense corrupted plants and tendrils. From the outside, it looked no different from flat ground.
Without proper reconnaissance, no one would imagine it was a pit.
"You’ve done well."
Nodding in approval, Phield ordered the soldiers to surround the hole and set up simple defenses such as chevaux-de-frise.
"It’s pitch black. I can’t see anything."