Chapter 5

Sulfur Mountain City is a good place. This is a consensus in the entire underground world.

To clearly explain what kind of place Sulfur Mountain City is, it is probably necessary to first explain what the underground world is.

The land of exile, this is probably the consensus of all surface races.

The underground world is the hollow area beneath the continent of Ais, its area is immeasurable, and the terrain is so complex that it cannot be measured. It is said that there are passages leading directly to the depths of hell.

Initially, there were not many residents, but with the changes of the times, it became a gathering place for the exiled.

The elves exiled the dark elves, the dwarves exiled the gray dwarves, the gnomes exiled the wild gnomes, and nearly forty percent of the orc tribes were driven into here by other races. Even the powerful dragons exiled the cruel red dragons and the cunning black dragons here. It is said that there are even volcanic giants exiled by the titans.

The dominant humans on the surface are no exception. Although they exiled their own kind, the composition is the most diverse, including witches, heretics, cultists, male witches, necromancers, revolutionaries, demon worshippers, and scientists. It seems that this underground world has become their garbage dump.

Time has passed, and today, the underground world is so racially diverse that it is impossible to count, but one thing is recognized.

Here, there is no order, the strongest rule, and the defeated become slaves.

Even in the chaotic neutral evil faction, this place is the most chaotic. The underground city lords have been waging wars for years, attacking and conquering territories without end.

They plunder territories, seize food, capture towns, and turn the residents into slaves. Of course, the various countries on the surface are similar, but due to the restraint of the Order of the Gods and the Kingdom Council, peace is the main theme. In the underground world, this land abandoned by the gods, there has never been a ceasefire.

Those who can survive in the chaotic underground city are not weaklings on the surface.

Well, in the game guide, the underground world is a high-risk area that opens in the mid-game, and players above level 40 are allowed to form teams to enter.

Most underground cities are dominated by a single race that rules over other races due to the extremely complex racial composition.

But Sulfur Mountain City is different.

This city, situated by the Sulfur River, has a short history, barely over a hundred years, which is just a moment in the eyes of long-lived races.

But they have achieved what the surrounding underground lords have failed to do for thousands of years.

There is no war, no nobility, no oppression.

There is not even a ruling race. Although the city lord, Adam Han, was once a very famous hero, he serves as the city lord alone as a human, and humans are a minority here. This city does not even have a ruling class of nobles.

And this guy, who is often mocked as having a brain full of muscles, is famous for having no interest in power or territory.

Unlike other underground cities with regular armies of over ten thousand, Sulfur Mountain City has only a few hundred ceremonial guards and police forces. The strongest armed force is the city management and law enforcement team, mainly composed of dark elves, but the full strength is only 800.

In the chaotic underground world, expecting peace and weakness are synonymous. Relying on the sulfur mine vein, Sulfur Mountain City's weak defense naturally attracted attacks from other underground city lords.

But after a few wars, no one dared to look at it anymore.

The reason? Just that the fists are hard enough.

No army? In fact, there is no need.

Einmeythus, the ancient red dragon with the "Bane of Belor" reputation, lives in the sulfur mine vein behind Sulfur Mountain City. This dragon, who once destroyed several human empires, has become the guardian of this city for some unknown reason.

Adam Han, one of the most famous heroes of the current era, once killed the undead emperor, the Eternal Night Lord, and saved the world. Even in the underground city, he once single-handedly destroyed a dark elf underground city, which had about 40,000 dark elves and over 100,000 other races. He is probably the most famous hero who can defeat tens of thousands of enemies.

Legend has it that the Eternal Night Lord was the only demigod-level undead ruler in modern times. Therefore, Adam, who could defeat him, is naturally a demigod, and thus, one of the strongest candidates of the current era.

The Great Sage Margaret, with the honorary title "Son of Heaven," is the Great Sage who sealed the Eternal Night Lord with Adam. It is said that she can summon an entire angelic army alone, an incredible existence.

It is said that the underground lords who once attacked Sulfur Mountain City were all "persuaded" by a giant before they even saw the city walls...

It is said that as long as these three giants of Sulfur Mountain City exist, Sulfur Mountain City is invincible.

In my system, these three are super bosses with perfect templates at levels 200-300. Even in several expansion packs later, they are still super powerful characters, far beyond the capabilities of the surrounding city lords, who are barely at the legendary level.

Due to this strong protection and the absence of an oppressive class, this place has become a sanctuary in the chaotic underground world.

Just being strong is not enough. The Great Sage, as the administrator, manages everything in an orderly manner. And as the Chief Justice, the Sleepless, that's me, I have established the fairest and most just legal code in all of Ais.

As for the city lord Adam, most of the time, he just needs to be a mascot and do nothing.

By chance, I, who am quite familiar with the three giants, am also one of the founders of Sulfur Mountain City.

When I was questioned by the city management, I did not lie. I am a good employee with a legitimate job, the highest judge of Sulfur Mountain City!

Although most of my memories have become fragmented after three deaths, the knowledge required is minimal, and most of it has been retained.

My legal knowledge from my previous life as a lawyer and judge gave me a significant advantage in theory and experience in this era. Therefore, the legal code and judicial system I established for Sulfur Mountain City have become a model for the entire underground world, and even scholars from the surface world come to study and reference it.

Racial conflicts caused by the cohabitation of multiple races? I copied Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" and engraved it in the city square and at the city gates. Everyone entering and leaving the city must read it, which is just the first step.

At the legal level, I established racial discrimination as a serious crime, then borrowed a series of policies for handling racial conflicts, and used a few foolish individuals as examples to warn others. At least on the surface, Sulfur Mountain City has achieved racial equality, which is unimaginable across the entire Ais continent.

And as someone with a keen interest in sociology, I know that as long as a rule is recognized and accepted on the surface and runs for a sufficient amount of time, when people are accustomed to its existence, it will become true morality and law.

As an undead lich, I have plenty of time and energy. Through years of subtle influence, at least in Sulfur City, everyone has the subconscious belief that we are all the same.

The relatively harmonious racial relations are the foundation of Sulfur Mountain City's prosperity, and the next step is law and order.

Murderers and robbers? In other underground cities, killing just requires compensation, and many wealthy merchants and nobles do not consider other races as human. But in my city, where there are no nobles, there is no leniency for capital punishment. As a result, the law and order have significantly improved.

Of course, necessary violence is indispensable. A peculiar dark elf knight order, exiled from their homeland due to their faith in holy light, became the best foundation for the police force. I invested a lot of resources to make them trusted protectors of the citizens.

Although sometimes I regret making the city management too well-equipped and too powerful, my daily tasks have become increasingly difficult, and I am being detained more frequently... Well, let's not talk about the self-inflicted consequences. Let's continue discussing this new era underground city, which is the result of the efforts of a穿越者 (穿越者 means "穿越者" in Chinese, which can be translated as "time traveler" or "transmigrant" in this context).

The most headache-inducing religious conflicts in other regions? Ha ha, it is indeed difficult to handle in other cities because, in the Ais continent where true gods exist, their rulers are often believers of a certain god, and with preconceived positions, how can they remain impartial? And if one side oppresses the other, conflicts will naturally continue.

But in this city... Among the three giants, the red dragon Einmeythus worships gold, the city lord Adam Han is a very famous non-believer, and the Sage worships knowledge and Adam...

Yes, I didn't say it wrong. The Sage has been secretly in love with the hero for a long time, and it is so obvious that even the wooden-headed me and Xiao Hong couldn't stand it anymore, which led to our two wedding disruptions.

Of course, I won't deny that I have my own selfish motives. Besides the evil points from causing huge chaos, seeing Adam's face on the verge of tears is the most pleasant thing.

Alright, I've gone off-topic again. Let's continue talking about our underground city.

The three giants themselves have unreliable beliefs, and if I have to say I have a belief, it is the spirit of the law from my previous life, such as "let the guilty receive their due" and "let the innocent be protected by the law." Therefore, I have established a surprising religious freedom in Sulfur Mountain City that transcends the times.

"Religious freedom is a personal choice. Religious preaching is allowed in the city, but no religious institution can use force to make people believe. Violators will be expelled from Sulfur Mountain City."

Here, there are believers in demons, holy light, and the mother earth. There are countless altars and temples, but anyone who uses religion to oppress others will be severely punished by the criminal law.

While other underground cities are constantly engaged in political power struggles, religious wars between churches, and the arbitrary plundering of the strong over the weak, our Sulfur Mountain City has extremely stable governance, a sound legal system, high administrative efficiency, and is peaceful and orderly, attracting countless residents and merchants, making it even more prosperous and naturally becoming the so-called underground paradise.

In reality, it does not mean that this place is really that good; it is just that other underground cities are too chaotic, making this place seem better by comparison.

And as a symbol of chaos, the underground city and the underground world continuously attract resources and talents to flow into our city, making Sulfur Mountain City even more prosperous.

Even the Holy Church on the surface is amazed by the peace in this chaotic place and sends paladins and priests to learn from us. Some paladins are shocked by the coexistence of multiple races and are willing to stay here, learning the "Bible of Holy Light's Blessings" and spreading the light of holy light to "evil underground residents."

But these paladins and priests are the ones I, as a lich, hate the most. Sometimes, I really want to take off my mask and tell them that the "Bible of Holy Light's Blessings" they consider as the "order of holy light" was personally created by an evil and chaotic lich. Would anyone's faith collapse because of this?

But at this moment, this skin is my best shield.

No one would expect that the fair and incorruptible Chief Justice, the Sleepless, who never makes mistakes, is actually the same person as the lich Roland, who always causes trouble and is considered to have water in his head.

When I was the Chief Justice, I insisted on wearing a mask, because due to the existence of this unreliable evil lich system, I am destined to be unable to maintain my dignity. As the one who holds the scales of justice, dignity and authority are the most important.

A legal code without authority and fear is just a piece of scrap paper.

And at this moment, the accumulated dignity over the years is taking effect.

Now, I stand here, silent, and the accumulated authority makes the city management team tremble, not daring to test the authenticity.

I turn around and look at the team leader, Captain Diana Sphinx.

"L-Lord!!"

Yes, her voice is trembling, clearly guilty.

I am their superior's superior's superior's superior, but I am not just a higher rank. They are members of the city management team, which is a subordinate institution of the law enforcement bureau, which is a subordinate institution of the Supreme Court, and I, the Sleepless, am the Chief Justice and President of the Supreme Court.

In the legal code I established, the city management team, as a subordinate law enforcement agency, does not have independent law enforcement authority. They can only follow the commands of their superiors, and if they want to conduct a large-scale law enforcement operation like a crackdown, they must report to the law enforcement bureau, which must, in turn, report to the Supreme Court.

And I, as the President of the Supreme Court, have not received any reports!

"Exceeding authority?"

Of course, it is exceeding authority. The city management headquarters I destroyed yesterday started the crackdown today. How could they have time to report and get approval? Even if they wanted to report, they would first need to sort out the application documents from the ruins, which is a huge task!

My seemingly self-talk made Diana's face pale instantly.

"No matter how eloquent the rhetoric, the use of public power by law enforcement is a violent act, and law enforcers are the violent tools of the rulers. If these tools have their own minds and act arbitrarily, then it is time for them to be scrapped."

This is my famous saying, and it is the warning on the first page of every city management officer's work manual.

I estimate they planned to launch a surprise attack and then make up the procedures later. In the past, the law enforcement bureau and the Supreme Court would turn a blind eye, but unfortunately, they did not expect my sudden appearance and were caught red-handed by their superior.

I just look at them silently. The dark elves, who are usually dark-skinned, now look as pale as the undead.

Exceeding authority in law enforcement? Regardless of the consequences or reasons, the nature of the act of the law enforcement team acting on their own is extremely serious. If you can exceed authority to crack down today, can you exceed authority to besiege the city lord's residence tomorrow?

According to the laws of Sulfur City, the least severe punishment for these law enforcement officers who exceeded their authority is to be expelled from Sulfur Mountain City.

The dark elves are in a desperate situation. If they encounter other superiors, they might be able to negotiate, and the consequences could be minor or major. But this person in front of them, who has turned the abstract justice of the legal code into a tangible force like holy light, is a miracle creator. There is no record of him ever showing leniency or making exceptions.

Captain Diana, the city defense team leader, looks bitter but knows she must step forward.

"Have we worked so hard, and the 'evil' dark elves finally gained the recognition of the citizens, only to fail at the last moment? If we leave the city, we will have to return to the bloody and brutal life outside... How can I explain this to my trusted sisters?"

The young woman's red lips are bleeding, and her purple eyes are filled with tears. She thinks back to the days of fighting outside and the thought of her and her people being expelled from the hard-earned happy home and good life. Her beautiful face is twisted with pain.

"Lord... It was my personal decision! If there must be punishment, please punish me alone!" The strong city management team leader, losing her dignity, kneels and pleads.

"Diana, Big Sister!"

"It's not Big Sister's fault. We were also for the security of Sulfur Mountain City!"

"Yes, why should we be punished?"

The surrounding city management knights are agitated, and some are already glaring at me, showing signs of disobedience or rebellion. So...

"Spell: Silence!!"

As I speak, an unknown magical force takes effect, and a silver gavel falls from the void, shaking the entire ground.

As the silver ripples spread, not only do all sounds disappear, but the intense anger of the crowd also dissipates.

In this magical world, when concepts like order and holy light can become sources of power, how can the faith in the legal code and justice lack supernatural support?

Although, when I was judging, and the fourth soul emblem, the Seal of Justice, condensed, I was probably the most surprised. This undoubtedly means that the fair legal code I created has been recognized by the roots of this world and has become part of the power of order.

Law is power, words are existence, the rules of this world are the law, and we are the ones who hold the rules and the legal code. My words are the rules of this world.

This is the Spell of Law.

A unique spell combining legal principles and magic, although derived from the true word spells of mages and the discipline spells of priests, it is much more powerful as long as the strict conditions for use are met.

At this moment, I am judging, and these city management officers are the defendants. This narrow alley is my courtroom.

I say silence, and everyone must be silent, listening to my spell of law.

The natural resistance to magic of the dark elves is meaningless in the face of my spell