I Bound Myself to a Destructive Witch

When they heard the words "thirty years," a group of old soldiers was thoroughly perplexed.

Thirty years? How could it be thirty years?!

The lead old soldier in red armor hurriedly stepped forward, "But a colleague of ours entered the island twenty years ago, he said the Bailu Battle was still ongoing, fiercely contested against the Evil Clan, and we, the guards of White Emperor City, were key to the entire battle, essential in holding the fortress!"

"Guards of White Emperor City?" Lin Musen's brown pupils suddenly changed, "You are...."

"Guards of White Emperor City, Bailu newly-formed 11th Division, formerly part of the Yinlong Army, Level 5 soldier Li Zaisi," said the red-armored old soldier with a hoarse voice.

Following him, other old soldiers also stood up straight and respectfully spoke up.

"Guards of White Emperor City, Bailu newly-formed 8th Division, formerly part of the Yama Army, Level 4 soldier Chen Fan."

"Guards of White Emperor City...."

The Bailu newly-formed was an army that had been temporarily assembled from the Yinlong and Yama Legions thirty years ago, a hundred thousand strong, defending White Emperor City.

According to historical records, thirty years ago the hundred thousand strong army of White Emperor City mutinied en masse and eventually was annihilated by the heart of the Empire...

Lin Musen was puzzled, his brown eyes deepened, "So, you are actually remnants of the White Emperor Rebel Army?"

"Rebel army?"

The atmosphere at the scene froze, and the soldiers looked confused.

An old soldier's eyes widened as he stared intently at the man in the helmet, "Are you *bleeping* saying we're rebels?"

"The hundred thousand strong army of White Emperor City mutinied against the Empire."

Lin Musen's tone was grave, his voice cold, "This is a fact that the Empire had already ascertained, what have you to explain?"

"!!!"

"Damn it all!" A soldier, inflamed with rage, swore and lunged forward to start a brawl but was held back by someone nearby.

The most composed red-armored old soldier also seemed somewhat bewildered,

After he opened his mouth wordlessly and then managed a laugh out of sheer frustration, his hoarse voice wavered, and a gaze filled with boundless anger emerged, "We have been trapped guarding this lonely city for thirty years, and you're telling me we are rebels?!"

Lin Musen fell silent; although he believed the Empire would not misjudge, considering what these old soldiers were saying, the truth seemed to be very different from the historical accounts.

Xia Feng, who had been silently observing all this time, furrowed his brows, he had a creeping suspicion.

This island must be where White Emperor City is located.

And it was very likely that these hundred thousand soldiers had been betrayed by some of the Empire's authority figures, for a mutiny of such scale surely would have undergone rigorous investigation before the pronouncement of guilt; there was very little chance of a misunderstanding.

Therefore, if it wasn't true mutiny, then it must have been a premeditated frame-up.

But why would these authority figures do this, and what goal were they trying to achieve?

Xia Feng couldn't help but recall the half-dragon he had encountered earlier; could it be for the secret experiments of the half-dragons?

The man in the helmet had said that the investigative team came to the Bailu Sea Domain to trace the Garden's mastermind but were chased and obstructed by half-dragons from continuing their investigation.

With this in mind, all clues indicated––

That the authority figures who framed the hundred thousand strong army of White Emperor City had a substantial connection with the Garden's mastermind, perhaps they were even the same person.

Xia Feng felt the clues were gradually becoming clearer; according to the half-dragon itself, it was born in the Bern Island Laboratory, and Bern was a subordinate of Xize Walker.

However, those who could betray an army of one hundred thousand on such a scale could not possibly be just a walker.

Behind Xize Walker must stand someone else...

Xize Walker belonged to the Lidong Army and was one of the three great walkers under Lord Lidong.

It appeared, then, that Lord Lidong was the most likely mastermind.

After a long silence, under the persistent questioning of the old soldiers, Lin Musen sighed and briefly explained the current historical records and evaluations of the guards of White Emperor City to them.

He would have been better off not explaining, because once he did, the old soldiers were completely dumbfounded, their bodies wounded and shaking, their spirits in a daze.

They harbored belief and fearlessly faced death, dedicating themselves to the Empire on this lonely island and fortress for thirty years, yet the world deemed them a group of cowards, traitors...

It was hard to imagine how the history books, thousands of years later, would record their deeds.

It was even harder to imagine the kind of slander and accusations their families would face in the outside world.

"We have devoted half our lives to the Empire, only to be labeled as traitors to the country, ha ha~ How laughable, how absurd..." The veteran in red armor stood in the middle of the bloody battlefield, looking up with a vacant gaze, muttering to himself.

Seeing this, Lin Musen stopped himself from speaking and ultimately fell into silence as well.

He had originally come to investigate the matter of the Garden, but he hadn't expected to uncover such a truth. For a moment, his feelings were indescribable, and his heart trembled with fear.

It was no wonder those Half-Dragon were pursuing their investigative team, probably not wanting them to discover the truth about White Emperor City.

"The Empire has already decayed."

At that moment, a cool, indifferent voice echoed in Xia Feng's mind,

Xia Feng couldn't help but look up and after thinking for a moment, nodded, "Indeed, given the Empire's current administrative efficiency and aristocratic system that is as outdated as the imperial age, decay is only a matter of time."

The imperial age was a period that existed before the Empire unified as the sole human domain.

"Mr. Xia."

"Hmm?"

"In such a world ruled by the weak, can you bear it?"

The cool female voice sounded again. Xia Feng was stunned and slightly alarmed. What is this? Can I bear it? Miss Mu, your question is kind of frightening me...

He looked toward Mu Qingtong in the distance, meeting her eyes through the red Q-shaped mask, her pale golden eyes calm.

Mu Qingtong's gaze was steady.

The Empire truly had decayed, such a rotten hierarchy ruling the world she existed in, full of selfish desires and intrigue, how utterly uninteresting.

She couldn't help but feel disgust.

Mu Qingtong understood that Mr. Xia had not yet realized how bad this world was.

But it didn't matter, Mr. Xia would realize eventually—

That the various problems arising from the Garden to White Emperor City were due to this world lacking a true king.

A king who could command everything, with clear, unbreakable decrees!

...

The forest was shrouded in gray mist, and after a while, the soldiers within, whether silent or angry, did not linger in this mood for long, but quickly readied themselves for action.

Regardless of what the truth was, there were still enemies of humanity on this island, and they could not afford to slack off.

"These years the island has been completely sealed off by the Evil Clan, constantly under attack from Evil Beasts, Evils, and lizardmen. We have held out for thirty years, and now from an original hundred thousand soldiers in the city, including women and children, only slightly more than five hundred remain."

Xia Feng and his two companions followed a group of veterans through the forest, and soon, the sight of a majestic, desolate city wall came into view.

The lizardmen mentioned by the old soldier were probably the Half-Dragon, and the Evils as well as the Evil Beasts were likely also products of the laboratory.

If this was true, then it was highly likely that the attacks on the city over the years were not actually by the Evil Clan, but by the Human Race itself.

However, Xia Feng did not voice this speculation.

"Yesterday, our scouts heard a piece of intelligence in a lizardman camp, the Evil Clan has apparently been collecting a spiritual material called 'Origin Water' for years."

"Now they have gathered the last drop and thus plan to stop skirmishing with us, preparing a major assault to completely destroy White Emperor City."

Origin Water?

Xia Feng's gaze froze, his pupils gradually dilating.

This thing sounds related to the Origin Egg!

His heart instantly lifted with excitement, Evil Dragon Miss, please be patient just a bit longer, your most loyal Believer has already found a clue to the Origin Egg!