“So this is Vastport City, the famous capital of the Althea Kingdom,” Kent said, standing beside Uncle Drew and overlooking the vast city with its towering walls and great buildings.
“It’s beautiful and well-protected,” he added.
“Indeed. I was born and raised here, you know,” Uncle Drew said, looking rather smug. Kent smiled but didn’t comment on his smugness. Instead, he asked a more personal question.
“Do you still have relatives here?”
Uncle Drew smiled and shook his head. “They are all dead. I was from a merchant family that met an unfortunate incident on our way to the Elven Empire. It was about 40 years ago, give or take.”
Kent’s attention was drawn to the mention of a different race. “Sorry to hear that, but can I ask how it happened?”
Perhaps seeing the beautiful long ears on Nyxira, Elsa’s Assassin Soul Sentinel, he wanted to meet the elves and perhaps find himself a long ear or two.
“It’s an unfortunate incident with bandits and sea monsters. To get to the other continents, one must cross the Doom Seas. Of course, there are easier ways to get there, but it’s not cheap, so most just traverse the Doom Seas.
On our way, we were attacked by bandits, and, well, because of the chaos, the sea beasts used the opportunity to attack. I managed to escape, but up until now, I never knew how I escaped. It’s a bit bizarre now, thinking about it.”
Kent didn’t say anything, but his mind raced with many conclusions, one of them being fate. Perhaps it was fate that played a hand.
It wouldn’t be a coincidence if it turned out that he survived so he could one day become Kael Duskbane, the captain of the Night Riders. It was no coincidence.
“So, have you been to any other continents?” Kent asked.
“Yes. I have been to the Elven continent, the Dwarven continent, and the Orc continent. But it was brief, as it was merely for business,” Uncle Drew recalled, his expression thoughtful.
He was a very wealthy person back then, but after the incident on the Doom Seas, he had become a mere carriage driver in a low-level merchant family. That was indeed a fall from grace, one might say.
“Thank you for sharing this with me, but I have one last question.” Kent smiled. “These sea beasts—how strong are they?”
A plan was already forming in his mind, and he wanted to satiate his curiosity. First, he craved adventure, and he could easily request a quest from the Universe Quest Pool.
Second, he needed bodies to create undead beings. That meant acquiring more bodies. If he could execute his plans effectively, he wouldn’t have to worry about the looming possibility of an apocalypse descending and ending all life.
“From what I know, just like on the surface, there are different species of beasts in the sea. Nobody knows how powerful they are, but many have said that the sea is the strongest force in this world.
According to several rumors, there have been over 15 sightings of peak Spirit Core Formation experts in the sea. And in case you don’t know, the Spirit Core Formation stage is the pinnacle of this world.
Beings at that level are considered unkillable.”
Kent smiled, shaking his head. “Unkillable? I don’t think so. But 15 sightings certainly make them extremely dangerous. If they can afford to reveal 15 peak Spirit Core Formation experts, then there’s only one possibility…
They have more than 15 Spirit Core Formation experts, and as such, they want to show the surface world that they are not afraid of them.”
Uncle Drew nodded.
“You know what, let’s forget about them for now. I want to know more about your new persona, Kael Duskbane.”
Kent’s curiosity had already been satiated, so his next move was to commit himself to taking his swordsmanship to a higher level, one where he could roam freely.
The current him was strong, but he was not invincible. Any mistake or slip-up could land him in hot water. For now, he wanted to assess all of his strengths.
He and Uncle Drew spent the next few hours talking about the Night Riders. Of course, he never expected to learn their full backstory, so he only asked about what Uncle Drew knew.
But he was disappointed to find out that Uncle Drew knew very little. From what he gathered, it seemed the Night Riders had a long legacy, one that, at some point, wreaked havoc across the universe.
Uncle Drew told him that all Night Riders have a powerful connection to the underworld. And it’s not the underworld, one might think—it’s the real underworld, where the 13 levels of hell exist.
The Night Riders were like a legion that once rose from the depths of hell—even beyond the 13th level. They rose and scorched the night with their fury.
While Uncle Drew was speaking, Kent could swear he experienced a state of déjà vu, as though he had been there. The feeling was one of kinship, the kind you only get from doing something that transcends common sense.
This made him want to understand more about the origin of the Night Riders. He wanted to understand their power, nature, and innate ability to ride the night into battle.
However, in the end, he only learned a little. But even that little told him he might have just inherited the strongest underworld army the universe has ever known.
After a few more conversations, they entered the city and were greeted by the bustling sight of people moving to and fro, going about their business.
Kent quickly found an inn, rented a private room, and immediately entered the tower. A few minutes later, he returned with Saintess Selene, who sincerely thanked Uncle Drew for saving her life.
After that, he sent her back inside the tower and took Uncle Drew out. Kent chose to use the day he had to go around the city and buy some ingredients.
He was still 30 Tier 2 pills short of completing the second requirement of the quest he had received, which he must finish before officially becoming a Pill Grandmaster.
After wandering the city for a couple of hours, Kent and Uncle Drew stopped in front of a herb store called [The Alchemist’s Dream.]
It was quite large, and without even entering, Kent could already sense its reputation by using his Enchanted Eyes to appraise it.
Essentially, [The Alchemist’s Dream] was the largest alchemy shop in the entire kingdom. It was the oldest, and the only store where most herbs one might need could be found.
Through his appraisal, Kent also learned that, across the human continent, [The Alchemist’s Dream] was the second-largest alchemy store. Alchemists from various cities and kingdoms came here to buy and sell.
In fact, just standing outside confirmed its reputation was well-deserved.
The number of carriages parked or coming and going spoke volumes. Thankfully, Kent wasn’t in an ordinary carriage himself. Uncle Drew had done an excellent job spending the spirit stones Kent had given him.
Their carriage looked majestic.
“Uncle Drew, I’ll be gone for a few hours, maybe,” Kent said.
“I’ll wait here for the young master,” Uncle Drew replied, making Kent nod before he started walking inside. He just wanted to buy some herbs.
“Stop there, show some identification…” Of course, he was stopped before he could enter.
