Chapter 4: Family? (Please Subscribe)

Compared to the Mortuary Officers integrated into the administrative organizations of various realms, the Death Mercenaries belonged to a neutral and independent class of hired swords.

After all, the entire realm was vast, and the Mortuary Officer system could not control every corner of it. They could only maintain authority over the major population centers. Those who perished in the swamps had their souls corroded by the spectral Netherworld, transforming into all manner of bizarre entities.

It was at this juncture that the Death Mercenaries stepped in. They undertook diverse missions to hunt down the aberrations that surfaced across the realm, safeguarding its security.

However, they operated without oversight from the Mortuary Officer system, moving freely and independently, thus constituting a neutral mercenary faction.

On the other hand, the Blood Servants were essentially the antagonists to the Mortuary Officers. To seek greater power, they engaged in blood sacrifices, which directly provoked invasions from the spectral Netherworld. As such, Blood Servants were collectively regarded as enemies by the entire realm.

Yet, wherever there are people, there are always ambitious ones. Many players, unable to advance their strength through conventional means, resorted to various methods. Using blood sacrifices to enhance their abilities was comparatively moderate; some even fully embraced the Netherworld, becoming players aligned with it.

Compared to the three classifications of Necromancers, Liu Zhi paid less detailed attention to the categories of Death Knights. He only knew that there were three distinct types: Dark Knights, Bone Guardians, and Necroknights.

These seemed to be divided according to their own wills. Dark Knights were those willing to follow the main army into the spectral Netherworld, fighting on the front lines. Like the Mortuary Officers, they belonged to the official organizations of the various realms.

The Bone Guardians were likely the white-boned armored soldiers Liu Zhi had seen before. Their primary task was to guard each city, maintaining internal security.

As for the Necroknights, like the Death Mercenaries, they were neutral and free mercenaries responsible for dealing with aberrations outside the cities.

Among these three categories, except for the Dark Knights—who, like Mortuary Officers, had to serve a set term before retirement—the others could freely switch between roles. This indicated that the realm sought to attract players rather than suppress them.

These insights gave Liu Zhi a general understanding of the Southern Swamp realm. However, he noticed there seemed to be more content at the back of the book, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t turn the pages.

“Don’t flip so hard. Your current strength isn’t enough. The content beyond requires level five and VIP3 privileges to access. Focus on improving yourself first,” said the skull on the cover, finally ceasing its shrieks and speaking plainly.

Liu Zhi shot the skull a glare and tossed the book onto the table. Just as he was about to retort, a mummy guarding the library approached to intervene.

“Student, don’t be angry. Anger is useless. Your level is too low. Some knowledge is not beneficial to you at this stage. It’s better to focus on leveling up—this is the key to your growth.”

With the mummy’s words, Liu Zhi said no more. He put the book down and left the library with Vednina.

Outside the library, Liu Zhi saw several Bone Guardians standing by the entrance.

As soon as they saw Liu Zhi emerge, the leader removed his bone helmet, revealing a face that was reasonably handsome. “You must be Sandru of the Ide family. I didn’t notice you earlier. I heard you chose the path of the Mortuary Officer. That’s rare. Didn’t you initially refuse to accept the Ide family tradition, wanting to become a free Death Mercenary? What changed?”

Liu Zhi was puzzled. Although he had accepted Sandru’s memories, they were fragmented, lacking much of the interpersonal context. He was sure he recognized the man before him but couldn’t recall exactly who he was.

At that moment, the man continued, “But you did well today. When Duwar of the Owen family came looking for me, I intended to bring you to the guard room for protection. I didn’t expect you to fight back like that and even defeat the Owen family’s prodigy. Your uncle and the others will be quite pleased.”

Those words triggered a flicker of memories in Liu Zhi’s mind.

It seemed to be quite a melodramatic tale. The Ide family, to which Sandru belonged, and the Owen family, to which the prodigy Duwar belonged, were both noble families in a small city near the Bonewind Academy. The city had a population of less than thirty million.

These two families formed the aristocratic class of the city, but their relationship was like fighting dogs thrown into an arena—they clashed incessantly at every meeting.

They constantly compared their family wealth and descendants, even competing over several students attending Bonewind Academy.

Sandru had failed his appointments three times consecutively, which had caused a stir in the Owen family. Rumors spread that Sandru’s failures were due to his reluctance to become a Mortuary Officer, as if the Ide family had invested all their resources in him but gained nothing.

Who knew how such gossip started? Sandru only had a V3 level after all, whereas those prodigies started at V5.

But now, Liu Zhi had defeated Duwar, the Owen family’s prodigy, which was a form of vindication. Moreover, he used legitimate reasons, so even if the Owen family wanted revenge, they had no grounds.

A thought flashed through Liu Zhi’s mind, and he finally replied, “Why leave alive those who plot against me? Are they here for New Year’s celebrations?”

Liu Zhi’s words made the Bone Guardian opposite him let out a small laugh. He appraised Liu Zhi from head to toe. “I didn’t expect you, Sandru, to have such a side. It seems that finally securing an appointment has set you on a different path. Keep up the good work. But honestly, if I were you, I’d visit home once. Even if you don’t intend to serve as a Mortuary Officer in Sulk City, having family support means you wouldn’t be sent to the frontier regions.”

After speaking, the Bone Guardian patted Liu Zhi lightly on the shoulder and turned to leave.

Watching him go, Liu Zhi stroked his chin.

“Do you think I should visit my family? From what I remember, the Ide family has no close relatives left. My grandfather and parents were outliers in the family, choosing the neutral Death Mercenary route. They died fighting aberrations, which is why the Ide family doesn’t want Sandru to become a Death Mercenary. In their eyes, those who choose that path are simply courting death.”