Chapter 73

Fertilizer?! Angge reacted, turning to look at Nagris.

"Yes, volcanic ash, fertilizer, and volcanic rock, which is porous and loose, with excellent water permeability. When mixed into the soil, it doesn't easily become compacted," Nagris explained.

What Angge disliked most right now was the soil compaction problem. The loss of fertility was less of an issue; the fertility of a plot of land could still support three to five crop cycles. However, the compaction problem was hard to solve unless the land was deeply plowed, bringing the soil from below to the surface.

In the Palace of Rest, Angge would do just that, after all, with only three thousand acres of land, it had been rotated countless times over a thousand years.

But on the wasteland, with so much land, Angge didn't plan to expend the effort to plow it before it all became compacted.

"Devil's Valley." Angge pointed in a certain direction and said to Lightning.

...

Devil's Valley was the farthest settlement from the World Transfer Station, with a substantial population of several thousand. However, most of the inhabitants couldn't be considered "people" in the past; they were more like livestock.

Back then, this place was the site of the Rebirth Altar—River of the Dead. The Rebirth Altar was presided over by succubi and managed by demons, which is likely why it became known as Devil's Valley.

As for why the Rebirth Altar for the undead was presided over by succubi, the story is long. A necromancer from the past had a succubus as a companion in life. After his death, the succubus remained devoted to him.

To give the succubus something to do and distract her from constantly pestering him to have children, he used his lifetime of knowledge to invent a Rebirth Altar that was most suitable for the succubus to manage.

Because succubi have powerful mental charms, they are particularly suited to preside over the Rebirth Altar, and it became a tradition for succubi to manage these altars.

Of course, necromancers could also preside over the Rebirth Altar with a high success rate, but who could argue with the inventor's choice?

At first, the Rebirth Altar could only transform living beings into liches and undead. Later, the inventor found necromancers boring and adjusted the Rebirth Altar to transform himself into a Black Knight, becoming the first artificially created undead being—the Black Knight Emperor Piero.

Talent is just that任性 (reckless).

When the World Transfer Station closed and the Wind of Rest blew, the Rebirth Altar gradually deteriorated and was eventually sealed in a cave.

Without the Rebirth Altar and the World Transfer Station, the succubi lost their value and eventually became slaves. The powerful demons, such as lava demons and fire demons, dominated Devil's Valley, turning other species into slaves.

Due to its advantageous terrain, Devil's Valley could produce two crops a year, making its food production relatively high. It could not only sustain the slaves but also export surplus grain.

The population of Ice City was the largest, with about 70,000 to 80,000 people. They had a sufficient population base to maintain the human race without degeneration, and the creatures in Lich City mainly intermarried with those in Ice City.

Devil's Valley, on the other hand, was a more isolated community. After several hundred years of reproduction, the demon leaders discovered an increase in congenital disabilities and mental retardation among the slave newborns, forcing them to take measures to address the issue.

When Angge and his group arrived, Devil's Valley was in chaos. Some areas were already on fire, but no one was trying to put them out, perhaps because they weren't afraid of the flames. Most of the slaves were so poor that they had nothing flammable.

Everyone gathered together, arguing and debating, and eventually started fighting over what to do next.

Three leaders were dead, but Devil's Valley didn't fall into chaos. It continued to function according to its established patterns. After all, in a stable power structure, the leaders are the least important; their presence or absence doesn't matter much. Only those with an expansionary and progressive agenda need strong leaders.

However, no power structure can function without a middle management. Yesterday, all the demons were slaughtered by angels, clearing out the middle management of Devil's Valley.

Humans, who had been slaves for a thousand years, had no management skills, making chaos inevitable.

Some suggested staying in Devil's Valley, where there was water, fields, and food, and they could continue farming and living as before.

Others suggested joining Ice City, where they could find dignity and a place among humans, rather than returning to slavery.

Still, others suggested going to Lich City, where all races were equal, and no one would care about their past as slaves or consider them stupid, at least not as stupid as minotaurs.

No one could convince the others. Those who wanted to stay didn't want too many to leave, as fewer people would make farming the terraced fields more dangerous.

Those who wanted to leave thought the terraced fields were too dangerous and that continuing to farm was a death sentence. Now, without slave masters or noble emperors, no one could oppress them.

"Who's oppressing who? Who's the slave master? Try saying that again."

"Try it, and I'll show you. You want to be a slave master, you want to oppress people, you want to... ouch."

They fought for a while, but no one died. Most of the slaves were responsible for farming and weren't skilled fighters.

When Angge arrived, he saw this chaotic scene.

Before coming, Nagris was worried about potential dangers, like if there were city defense crossbows like in Ice City, they would have to avoid them.

But now, it looked like a market.

Deciding not to avoid it, they drove their beasts straight into the valley. Everyone was stunned into silence: This... is overloaded...

Regardless of whether it was overloaded, the formation was quite intimidating. As Angge rode, he had healed the angel skeleton's wings, making it even more intimidating.

A skeleton with angel wings, especially after a valley full of demons had been slaughtered by an angel the day before, couldn't help but make people think the worst.

"Was the winged one killed and turned into a skeleton?"

"Who are they? They're so powerful. The horse is the most impressive."

"Is that a dragon? A wise bronze dragon? It's so small, smaller than a demon cocoon, must be premature."

As everyone speculated, Nagris suddenly flew up and shouted, "Who knows where the Rebirth Altar is!"

Everyone, who had already been scaring themselves, immediately knelt down.

"Uh, just asking for directions, no need to bow so deeply, right?" Nagris was startled and muttered.

He couldn't have predicted that Angge's group, with their intimidating formation, would break the delicate balance in Devil's Valley. These directionless slaves seemed to find a new sense of purpose and began to act according to their old habits.

"Lord Bronze Dragon, I've heard a little about the altar. Please follow me."

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