Chapter 451: Imperial Rebellion

At the southern border of the Empire, the Dark Mountains.

The Shadow Owl glided silently through the gloom like a ghost merged with the night. On its back, Agrel gazed down at the land below.

He remembered that the last time he had come, this land beneath his feet had been nothing but desolation, covered in ruins.

Back then, there had been no lights here, not even a proper path. The entire Dark Mountains had been like a scar forgotten by the world.

But now, roads blazing with light wound through the mountains like glowing rivers, linking mines and workshops together.

White smoke rose from the chimneys of the mines, and warm yellow light spilled from the windows of the processing workshops, where round silhouettes could be vaguely seen bustling about inside.

He couldn't help but marvel that compared to the Dawn Council, which could argue for ten or even half a month over the smallest matter before reaching a conclusion, the changes here could only be described as miraculous.

However, he kept these words to himself, lest the old woman beside him overhear and seize the opportunity to make an issue of it.

Including himself, there were exactly ten people on the owl's back forming the inspection team. Everyone was wrapped in mage's robes that could withstand the freezing winds at high altitude, each quietly surveying the scenery below.

Sabrina seemed to sense something and glanced at him, then followed his gaze down to the spreading lights below.

Her eyes suddenly lingered on one spot for a moment, and she frowned slightly. "What are these slimes building? What kind of creature needs such a massive nest?"

Seeing the others turn their gazes toward her, she lifted her chin to indicate the direction.

In the mountains below, through a narrow cave entrance, one could glimpse a palatial nest that hadn't yet been completed. Even from the pillars that had yet to be erected, it was clear just how enormous the nest was.

The beast mage slime seated near the owl's head suddenly raised an arm, pointing into the distance. "Look, what is that?"

Everyone followed the direction of his finger.

In the dim sky behind them, thick clouds churned with silver-white light seeping through.

Moments later, over a dozen enormous silver creatures burst through the clouds, spreading their wings wide, forming a loose formation as they dove toward the nest.

Those were all young adult dragons.

The mages of the inspection team held their breath, their gazes turning almost in unison toward Beorne on the owl's back.

Beorne chuckled. "You saw correctly. The Empire accepts all lawful creatures, and of course, it accepts dragons as well."

"These children will undertake a seven-year planar study program in the southern part of the Empire. Once their studies are complete, they will return to the Astral Realm."

Agrel couldn't help but press further. "Then these nests..."

"Of course, a new batch of dragons will come to study later. This is a long-term exchange student program."

Sabrina's heart tightened as she read the old dragon's warning.

Of all the places the dragons could choose to build their nests, they had to pick the southern border of the Empire.

Was this a demonstration to them of the dragons' attitude toward the Empire?

Agrel coughed lightly, deliberately breaking the frozen atmosphere. "Rest assured, Mr. Beorne, we have only come here for inspection purposes, with no other intentions."

Beorne closed his eyes. "Ladies and gentlemen, just follow the standard inspection procedures. No need to mind me."

Sabrina sighed inwardly.

An ancient dragon who had lived for over a thousand years was sitting right beside them, and he had explicitly stated his support for the Empire. How were they supposed to not mind that?

But then again, precisely because Oros was present, this inspection had become nothing more than a formality.

It wasn't that the Empire's alignment judgment didn't matter, but rather because they had the silver dragon's endorsement.

Any faction capable of long-term cooperation with a silver dragon could generally only be of the lawful alignment.

Still, the Council needed a formal report, and the southern kingdoms were also watching the outcome of this trip, so the proper procedures still had to be followed.

They also had another secret mission concerning the internal affairs of the Empire.

She turned to the beast mage ahead. "Beorne, proceed according to the original inspection plan."

Beorne nodded, stood up, and gave a slight bow to everyone. "Then, ladies and gentlemen, we shall meet again in Dawn City."

Unlike Agrel and Sabrina's travel route to Slime City, his task was to covertly investigate the Empire's customs and culture, commonly known as a tour.

No matter how deeply a kingdom hid its true alignment, as long as the Council's observer could penetrate to the lower classes, walking among farmers and merchants, the carefully whitewashed facades of those in power would always reveal cracks.

The touring inspection seemed casual, but in reality, it was the most crucial part of the entire inspection process.

Unlike the formality of the main route, he approached the inspection of local customs with a more serious attitude.

He couldn't quite explain it himself, whether this faint anticipation toward a foreign kingdom of different beings stemmed from scholarly curiosity, or something else entirely.

Perhaps it was simply because he himself was a beast, and so he subconsciously felt a hidden sense of kinship with an empire built by another group of "outsiders."

He didn't say anything more. After bidding farewell to the others, he led three accompanying mages down into the dark wilderness.

They cast minor light spells, moving slowly toward the distant mountains like a few fireflies.

The Shadow Owl, meanwhile, continued flying forward, heading in the direction of Slime City.

However, what they didn't know was that from the moment they had stepped into the Dark Realm, all their movements had been under the Empire's surveillance.

The Empire's monitoring system was in full effect, and every move of the mages was transmitted in real time back to the Slime City Palace through the Gel Network.

Chen Yu sat in the palace, reviewing the real-time intelligence reports. Naturally, he also saw the news of the inspection team splitting up.

But this fell within the normal inspection procedures, so he didn't pay it much mind. He simply instructed Silver Sparrow to keep a close watch on Beorne's group's movements and report any anomalies immediately.

He wasn't worried that Beorne's inspection would uncover anything that shouldn't be found. The Empire truly had no dark side that couldn't be exposed to light.

But with a Legendary mage roaming freely within their territory, it was inevitable that he might do some strange things that confused the locals, or make small moves to probe the Empire's secrets. Routine surveillance was still necessary.

As for Agrel's group, who would soon arrive at Slime City, he merely notified the Slime Mages along the route to let them pass, without making any additional gestures, not even preparing a banquet.

This deliberate lack of a welcoming ceremony would instead make the other side feel that the Empire didn't know exactly when they would arrive.

After all, appropriate modesty not only made the Empire appear less threatening, but also put those southern mages, accustomed to controlling every situation, at ease.

.......

The Shadow Owl passed through the black mist at the edge of the Dark Realm, and the view ahead suddenly opened up, revealing a snow-covered swamp.

Along the way, they had encountered no obstacles whatsoever, not even a single checkpoint, as if they were passing through an ordinary kingdom's territory.

This relaxed atmosphere eased the tension in the inspection team's nerves somewhat.

The owl descended steadily, and soon the outline of a city emerged through the mist.

It was a city of modest size, with houses built primarily from oak, roofs covered in thick grayish-brown bark shingles. The streets, though not wide, were kept very clean.

Lizardfolk carrying woven baskets walked along the streets, human merchants led draft animals, and a few slimes rolled slowly along the roadside, purchasing freshly made maple syrup.

The city seemed lively enough, but compared to Dawn City, its scale was much smaller, more like a border town.

Was this Slime City?

This stark contrast disappointed several of the mages.

But Agrel spoke up at that moment. "This is Slime City's satellite town. The Empire's royal capital is still further ahead."

Sabrina was taken aback. She had assumed this city beneath her feet was the core of the Magical Creature Empire, never expecting it to be merely an outer satellite town.

Just as she was about to say something, the full view of Slime City slowly unfolded on the horizon in the distance.

It was a city far more magnificent than they had imagined.

The city walls stood tall, with arrow towers spaced at regular intervals, the Empire's flag flying from their tops.

Within the walls, the streets were wide and orderly, lined with all manner of buildings, from low, rounded Slime Treehouses to tall stone-built workshops, from blacksmith shops with iron signs hanging outside to dwarf taverns wafting the aroma of malt ale. Everything one could imagine was there.

The streets were crowded with all kinds of figures, human merchants, Lizardfolk warriors, elves draped in cloaks... and large clusters of round, bouncing slimes.

They hopped through the crowd, some balancing goods on their heads, others haggling with vendors.

Yet amid this most ordinary of daily city scenes, a massive behemoth slowly drifted overhead.

"Is this the Floating Fortress written about in the biography?"

The inspection team's mages craned their necks, staring at the colossal object sailing steadily across the sky above the city, their voices filled with astonishment.

Their gazes then fell upon several magical ships weaving through the lower sky.

The levitation principles of these magical ships seemed identical to those of the Floating Fortress, only much smaller in scale.

Although their size couldn't compare to that behemoth overhead, it still indicated that the Empire seemed to possess some highly advanced magical craftsmanship.

This made the mages present abandon their prejudice of magical creatures being stupid and barbaric, and begin to take this journey seriously.

Although Chen Yu had deliberately arranged for no one to welcome them, out of courtesy, the mages chose not to fly directly over the city.

The Shadow Owl landed gently in the open space before the city gate. One mage dismounted and identified himself to the slime guards standing watch at the gate, requesting permission to enter Slime City.

This was the Council's basic convention for showing respect to a kingdom's sovereignty.

The slime guard was stunned for a moment, let out a few "gurgle" sounds, then hastily bounced away from his post, hopping all the way through the gate.

After quite a while, the city gate slowly creaked open with the low rumbling of mechanisms.

The slime guard who had left earlier returned, leading several colleagues. They pushed open the heavy oak gate, raised their gel hands, and solemnly saluted the inspection team members.

"Welcome to the Imperial Capital, Slime City."

"Let's go." Agrel removed his mage's hat and returned the salute, then led the inspection team inside.

Once inside Slime City, they discovered that the number of slimes on the streets far exceeded their expectations. They could see slimes of various professions, as well as slime variants they had never seen before.

The mages of the inspection team tried their best not to appear overly astonished, but their gazes involuntarily followed these strange slime variants, attempting to identify their species and talents.

Under the guard's guidance, they boarded a magical ship waiting at a street corner.

The runes on both sides of the hull lit up, and the magical ship rose slowly, carrying them toward the towering royal palace at the city's center.

This smooth, seamless sensation of ascent made the mages, who were riding a magical ship for the first time, glance down at the vessel beneath their feet, only to find that they couldn't understand the magical craftsmanship on it no matter how they looked.

Sabrina looked down at the lively plaza below and suddenly asked, "What event is being held in the plaza? It's so bustling."

The slime guard at the front bounced around, his small face serious. "It's the Slumber Days, the Empire's statutory holiday. Most citizens don't need to work."

Magical creatures have statutory holidays?

This made Sabrina realize that aside from the residents' races and architectural styles being somewhat peculiar, this place was no different from any human kingdom she had visited.

The other members of the inspection team also visibly relaxed. At the very least, the subjects of their inspection were beings that could be understood and communicated with.

The magical ship descended slowly before the royal palace.

The slime guard bounced to the great door, used his gel body to push open the tall oak doors, and stepped aside to clear the way.

"His Majesty is waiting for you inside. Please, enter."

Agrel nodded in thanks, and the group crossed the threshold, stepping into the spacious, brightly lit hall.

The hall had excellent natural lighting. Sunlight slanted in, illuminating the entire space. At the far end, on the throne, sat a slime wearing a small crown.

Upon seeing the mages of the inspection team, he gave them a slight nod. "Welcome, mages from the Dawnlands. Please, have a seat."

Sabrina's gaze lingered on him for a moment.

From appearances alone, this Slime Majesty showed no obvious difference from the ordinary slimes she had seen on the streets.

Equally round, with gel of a translucent green. The only difference might be the crown and cloak he wore.

But she wouldn't dare underestimate this Slime Emperor because of that, after all, he was the first Legendary slime she had ever encountered.

No one knew what strange innate spells such a creature might possess once it stepped into the Legendary tier.

Until she could figure out his true capabilities, it was wise to remain cautious.

She followed Agrel in giving a slight bow toward the slime on the elevated platform. "We are honored by Your Majesty's audience."

Then she took her seat on a guest chair woven from soft vines. The sensation of sitting was surprisingly comfortable, and she couldn't help but subtly shift her weight.

Agrel spoke up directly at this point, explaining the purpose of their visit.

They had originally expected this Slime Emperor to make things difficult for them, but unexpectedly, the conversation went surprisingly smoothly.

Chen Yu shook his gel body and said, "The Empire will not make things difficult for you. You have all traveled a long way, whether for inspection or sightseeing, feel free to do as you please."

After Chen Yu expressed his stance, the atmosphere unconsciously became relaxed and harmonious, like a casual chat between friends.

This made them feel as if they were conversing with an experienced human monarch.

Such effortless poise would already be commendable in a human ruler, let alone when the one before them was a slime.

Sensing that the timing was right, Sabrina suddenly produced a letter from her pocket and cast a spell to make it float before him.

She said with meaningful emphasis, "Sovereign of the Slimes, this letter was sent to the Council by certain nobles of your country. As for what's written inside, you may see for yourself."

"According to our investigation, these people have recently been in contact with some demon-worshipping cults."

"The reason we know of this intelligence is because these cults also have believers active in the south. If the intelligence is accurate, then in five days, they will make their move."

"After today, we will also continue our inspection eastward as planned. I hope the Empire will be prepared."

Chen Yu swept his Divine Sense over the letter and found that it was far more significant than he had imagined, involving certain nobles who were plotting to rebel against the Empire.