Chapter 667: Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s Statement

Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was an imperial spy by nature, and his mindset was inherently prone to overthinking and overanalyzing everything.

In his imagination, the arms dealer backing the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps harbored immense ambition. This arms dealer had a voracious appetite, seeking to make massive investments in Ice Sculpture Island.

“To advance into the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, this arms dealer has gone to extraordinary lengths.”

“Initially, he deliberately dispatched a special silver level mercenary like Long Fu to challenge Teng Dong Lang, using the duel to make a name for himself.”

“From this alone, it's clear the arms dealer conducted thorough preliminary research into the Ice Sculpture King's populace.”

“Later, leveraging my connections, he directed the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to form an alliance with the Li Jian Clan.”

"The arms dealer proved quite astute, spotting the hidden market for mount potions within the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. They secured the Li Jian Clan's cooperation through massive profit-sharing agreements."

“Long Fu and Yao Ma's journey to the capital signaled the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' formal entry into the kingdom's upper echelons. They established tacit agreements with native factions, securing an initial foothold.”

"Following this, the arms dealer's next scheme was to expand and strengthen the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' capabilities. After all, this mercenary group served as his overt proxy and protective umbrella."

"As the arms trade expanded, profits surged dramatically. By then, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps needed formidable strength to stabilize the business, intimidate rivals, and safeguard the arms dealer's interests."

“Thus, from the very beginning, the arms dealer secretly planted a pawn.”

“This was the entity known as ‘Sleeping Man’, a seemingly dim-witted giant.”

"This giant had long been a member of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, its sole giant. Who could have imagined he harbored potential to reach the saint level?"

"As time passes and the moment ripens, the giant will ascend step by step to the saint level. The kingdom will have long since accepted him in their hearts, making the emergence of a fourth saint level figure far less jarring."

"Who exactly is this arms dealer? Their tactics are truly masterful!"

The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord couldn't help but speculate about the mysterious arms dealer, secretly harboring admiration.

"The reason the big oaf is so dim-witted is likely the arms dealer's doing as well. Only a dim-witted saint level being poses less threat, making it easier for the populace to accept."

“People naturally feel sympathy for fools.”

“On the other hand, this might very well be the price the arms dealer paid to control this giant!”

"A mentally sound transcendent, upon ascending to saint level, would inevitably demand much. But a fool is different."

A sharp gleam flashed in the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's eyes: “So it seems the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was meticulously handpicked and painstakingly assembled by the arms dealers as their proxy.”

"Long Fu, those peculiar silver levels, perhaps even hidden gold levels, were handpicked."

"The organization previously recruited their boatswain (Lan Zao), who shows extraordinary loyalty to the entire mercenary group. This indicates that even these low level transcendents have undergone cultivation."

"Finally, the big oaf. This hidden saint level is the true game-changer. Once the saint level emerges, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps will leap to become a top-level power across the entire Ice Sculpture Kingdom!"

As Snow Bird Harbor City Lord pondered, the figure of the arms dealer behind the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps gradually came into sharp focus.

His interest in this arms dealer, which didn't actually exist, grew ever stronger.

“To wield a saint level pawn suggests this arms dealer is at least saint level themselves.”

“Legend level or even backed by deities or churches... it's entirely possible.”

“After all, international arms dealing is beyond the reach of anyone too weak.”

Uncovering such an entity would be a monumental achievement for the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.

At the same time, he held no fear of confronting this arms dealer. For he was a secret agent, not a combat operative.

All along, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had been steadily deepening his connections with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, striving to earn their trust to the greatest extent possible. This would enhance his future prospects of uncovering the shadowy arms dealer behind the scenes.

This explained why, when duelists attacked the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' merchant convoys and the alchemy workshops in Snow Bird Harbor, the city lord repeatedly intervened. He even deployed merchant ships under his covert control to assist the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps with their cargo.

“Additionally, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' boatswain has become ‘Hen Fa’.”

"If he can return and pledge renewed loyalty, then ‘Hen Fa’ can rejoin the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to conduct espionage."

“But... the secret agent at Tranquil Hill hasn't relayed any intelligence for quite some time.”

Snow Bird Harbor City Lord harbored some hope, though not much.

In truth, over a dozen espionage operations targeting Tranquil Hill under his command had all ended in failure.

Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was fully prepared for this outcome.

"Treat that big oaf well but keep him under house arrest. Investigate his bloodline origins immediately and uncover how the arms dealer controls him!" the city lord planned inwardly.

Generally speaking, methods for controlling sentient beings were often tied to bloodlines.

For instance, human enchantment spells and goblin enchantment spells were developed based on specific races.

As far as Snow Bird Harbor City Lord knew, the method Bing Xiao possessed to control his gold level giant slave was also rooted in giant bloodlines.

“If we're lucky, we might even remove the control from the big oaf and take direct command of him!”

“Achieving that would be absolutely brilliant.”

“A saint level subordinate...”

Snow Bird Harbor City Lord couldn't help but feel his heart race at the thought of such a possibility.

Even if it meant antagonizing the arms dealer, he would likely detain the big guy and make him serve his own purposes.

A saint was truly different, holding extraordinary significance, a whole different level from gold.

"As for Da Dou, he must be placed under house arrest. We must verify if he carries any monitoring devices. If not, eliminating him becomes a viable option."

“After all, should the big oaf become my pawn in the future, Da Dou would be the one in the know.”

"As for Hong Zhu... Hmph. A mere treasure hunter... Interrogate her directly. Use torture if necessary. If she knows the reason behind the earth elemental tribe's uprising on Magnet Archipelago, that would be ideal."

He dined while his thoughts raced.

Soon, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord finished his last sip of milk, wiped his mouth, and rose from his seat.

The investigation phase was about to begin.

“In any case, I must make Tan Mo leave as soon as possible.”

“His continued presence here poses a serious obstacle to my plans for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”

Instead of leaving the city government palace, Snow Bird Harbor's ruler took a secret passageway down into the underground.

One cell in the dungeon beneath the residence had been hastily converted into an interrogation room.

Snow Bird Harbor City Lord entered to find Tan Mo already waiting.

Only the two of them occupied the room.

Tan Mo smiled at Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, maintaining a cordial demeanor. After adjusting the alchemy apparatus, he preemptively reassured the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, there was no need for tension, he could speak freely. However, caution was still advised, as this recorded magic image would ultimately be submitted for higher review.

“Seems my ‘welcome gift’ did the trick,” the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord thought to himself.

The interrogation commenced.

Facing the alchemy recording device, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord began his introduction with a composed expression: "My codename is [Emancipator]. I am a subordinate recruited by Lord [Usurper]. My primary mission is to cooperate with and assist Lord [Usurper], cultivating high-level connections within the Ice Sculpture Kingdom to serve the Empire's future objectives..."

"Several years ago, through the efforts of Lord Usurper and others, I was appointed as Snow Bird Harbor City Lord. The specific orders I received from Lord Usurper were to actively develop Snow Bird Harbor, ensuring complete control over it. If necessary, I was authorized to overthrow the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's rule within a single day, transforming it into an imperial naval landing site."

"Upon taking office, I vigorously restructured the city, purging loyalists to the kingdom and gradually replacing them with our own people. Simultaneously, I began eliminating other factions within Snow Bird Harbor."

"Snow Bird Harbor was dominated by three main factions. These were the city government palace, the Sea Bird Church, and the Bayonet Gang."

"Thanks to Lord Usurper, the Sea Bird Church became our close and loyal ally. Thus, only the Bayonet Gang remained as our target."

“Eradicating this local gang was no easy task.”

"The Bayonet Gang boasted a large membership and extensive grassroots support among Snow Bird Harbor's populace. Their leader, a former military officer, possessed unyielding resolve and formidable individual strength. I had to account for their military background and connections."

“Thus, without justifiable cause, mobilizing the city guards against the Bayonet Gang was impossible.”

“While actively awaiting the right moment, I'd attempted to infiltrate spies into the Bayonet Gang.”

"The spies codenamed [Snowflake] and [Flute] were the fruits of these efforts. They infiltrated the Bayonet Gang's upper echelons, becoming two of the six ringleaders: the human ringleader and demon hybrid ringleader."

"The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, as outsiders, clashed with Bing Xiao. Consequently, Long Fu, the silver level commander of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, publicly challenged Teng Dong Lang, the leader of the Bayonet Gang, to a duel."

"This sudden incident quickly spread throughout the port. I immediately realized this could be an opportunity."

“Based on my assessment, as a gold level fighter, Teng Dong Lang could not refuse a silver level challenger. As the prominent leader of the Bayonet Gang, he would never avoid battle and risk being branded a coward.”

“Events unfolded exactly as I predicted. Teng Dong Lang accepted the challenge but simultaneously dispatched six ringleaders, ostensibly to test Long Fu's combat prowess, but in reality to ambush him.”

"If there was no opportunity, I would create one. My first move was to order the demon hybrid ringleader to intervene outside the duel arena, commanding him to use his Evil Eye to aid Xiong Ju in defeating Long Fu. This way, I could expose the truth after the battle, ruining Xiong Ju and the Bayonet Gang's reputation, stripping them of their public support!"

“The operation wasn't entirely successful.”

“Though [Flute] used the Evil Eye, Xiong Ju refused to accept it. He held strong principles about duels and despised such underhanded tactics, so he crushed the Evil Eye on the spot.”