Chapter 43: What, I'm the Demon Boss?

"Eagle?" Liu Zhi raised his head in surprise. Over the past few days, he had pored over the myths and legends of the three great South American civilizations, forcibly cramming all kinds of esoteric knowledge into his mind until he reached Level 2. Naturally, he understood what the eagle symbolized in South American mythology.

The Aztecs, after all, had founded their city on the very spot where they saw an eagle gripping a snake land upon a cactus, believing it to be a land blessed by the gods.

Among the three great warrior orders of the Aztec civilization, the Eagle Warriors were as renowned as the Jaguar Warriors and the Archers.

So when an eagle appeared in the sky, Liu Zhi couldn’t help but tense up.

The eagle seemed to notice Liu Zhi as well. Just as it was about to fly past, it abruptly wheeled around and dove straight toward him.

Corpse Soul Naga instantly flashed in front of Liu Zhi, four weapons raised and pointed at the sky.

The eagle swooped directly at the Naga’s face.

Seeing this, Liu Zhi didn’t hesitate. He raised his Staff of Death, and a bolt of lightning shot from its tip, striking the eagle down.

Corpse Soul Naga picked up the now scorched giant eagle and handed it to Liu Zhi.

Examining the eagle, Liu Zhi’s expression grew grave. Hanging from the eagle’s leg was a copper message capsule, inside which was a piece of parchment densely covered with writing.

Liu Zhi pulled out the parchment and skimmed it. “Damn competitors—it’s more like outright enemies at this point.”

He flung the parchment to the ground, fuming as he spoke.

No wonder he was so angry. The content of the parchment was brief, but every line was aimed squarely at him.

The message was sent by a force calling itself the Serpent Raid Tribe to other tribes, targeting seven or eight jungle tribes of varying sizes, including the so-called Deer-Eater Tribe and Eagle Tribe.

It stated that the demon sealed in the Golden City had found a way to escape during the giant serpent guardian’s once-every-seven-years feeding, and was about to break free. It urged all tribes to honor the ancient pact, unite, hunt down, and reseal the demon.

Additionally, it claimed that white-skinned men from the east, upon learning of the demon, were willing to provide their cursed weapons to aid in the battle. Any tribe that joined the fight would receive ten fire-spitting cursed weapons.

Of course, transporting these weapons would take time, so they would first send scouts to verify whether the demon had indeed been released.

This period was to be used for preparations, and the official assault would commence in ninety days, continuing until the demon was either sealed or slain.

So what did this mean? Did these people already consider him dead?

Liu Zhi nearly exploded with anger as he read the message.

All he’d done was inherit the legacy of the Golden City and take up the profession of Necromancer—a class the game itself recognized—and somehow that made him a demon.

And now they were organizing an expedition. The whole situation reminded him of Imhotep being besieged by an angry mob. But at least Imhotep was a legendary mummy, while he was just one man facing seven or eight jungle tribes—armed with guns, no less!

The thought made Liu Zhi’s scalp prickle with anxiety.

He glanced at Corpse Soul Naga, ever watchful by his side, and finally rallied his spirits.

“Fine. We still have a chance, don’t we? Maybe if we take out the organizer, the others won’t come. Or maybe we should eliminate the white-skinned man supplying the cursed weapons… Why does that sound so familiar? Could they be talking about the Xisai people outside the jungle? But where did they get those weapons? Wait—at this point in time, the only ones in the jungle would be Perkin and his group, wouldn’t it?”

The realization made Liu Zhi anxious. He now regretted not dealing with Perkin and Lloyd before coming to seek the Golden City.

Muttering to himself for a moment, Liu Zhi finally remembered the dead eagle still lying before him.

His eyes lit up as he quickly grabbed the corpse.

Since entering the Golden City, it had been a long time since he’d seen any flesh and blood. Gripping the dead eagle, Liu Zhi pressed his hand to the pyramid-shaped ornament at his waist. “Corpse Soul Naga, wait here. I’m going into the Underworld Palace for a bit.”

After a moment’s hesitation, he added, “By the way, if any other enemies attempt to sneak in, just kill them outright.”

With that, Liu Zhi pressed the altar at his waist and vanished from Corpse Soul Naga’s sight.

Having received her orders, Corpse Soul Naga immediately began to move, her purpose clear: scout the surroundings for any infiltrators. After all, the eagle had come from outside the valley, and it was unlikely it was simply surveying the area—it must have been delivering a message.

At the very least, Corpse Soul Naga could determine where the eagle had intended to go.

Meanwhile, back in the Underworld Palace, Liu Zhi frowned. The daylight here in the underworld was particularly unsettling; there was no sun in the sky, only an irksome golden glow.

Beneath that light, he felt as if he himself would turn into gold. There was none of the tranquil beauty found under the red moon at night.

But Liu Zhi had no time to dwell on that now. He hurried toward the pyramid ruins.

That was the main base of the Underworld Palace, and only there could he easily control everything within the domain.

Upon reaching the ruins, Liu Zhi stretched out his hand and the Staff of Death, which had been floating behind him, fell into his left hand. In his right hand appeared a model resembling a small burial mound—the Mass Grave Design.

He’d had this item for quite some time. There was plenty of empty space within the Underworld Palace, yet he’d never built it.

It wasn’t for lack of materials, but because he’d never found the flesh and blood required to activate the Mass Grave.

Within the Golden City, Liu Zhi had subsisted on fruit alone; he hadn’t even found a single earthworm, much less any meat.

Now, with a foolish eagle having delivered itself to his door, Liu Zhi quickly decided: he could feast on meat later, but right now, with his competitors branding him a demon, he needed a force that could fight for him.

He tossed the mound-shaped model into the air, then picked up the dead eagle.

As the model flew forth, a small hill covered in green, unmarked graves appeared in the corner of the Underworld Palace, the mounds stacked high and numerous.

Only then did Liu Zhi throw the eagle carcass onto the hill.

In the next instant, a bloody rain fell upon the mass grave. Amid the downpour, skeletal and rotting hands stretched up from the graves, clawing their way out.