Hidden treasure, legendary thunder magic!

Cao Xing looked at King Velen with a scrutinizing gaze and asked, "Do you mean to say that a kingdom as large as the Velen Kingdom has no hidden resources whatsoever? You've kept all the kingdom's wealth inside the royal palace?"

"You better think carefully. The content of the contract is that you cannot hide anything from me."

"Otherwise, you will be punished by the rules."

Facing his aggressive questioning, King Velen, a dignified Legendary, actually felt a sense of trepidation in his heart.

A moment later, as if he had made some sort of decision, he gritted his teeth and whispered, "There is indeed… one more secret location."

"I hid a portion of the kingdom's wealth… there."

"Inside, besides a massive amount of crowns and other resources, there are also rare treasures I've collected from all over the world… and among them—there is even a Legendary weapon!"

Cao Xing nodded inwardly. This guy really was hiding something.

Upon hearing the last sentence, his interest was piqued once again.

"What kind of Legendary weapon is it?"

Zevelin said slowly, "It is an ancient greatbow. It is said that it even possesses a trace of the power of time."

"The power of time?"

A glint flashed in Cao Xing's eyes as he pressed, "Tell me, where is this place?"

King Velen hesitated for a moment before whispering, "I can tell you, but I hope you can agree to one condition."

Hearing this guy trying to bargain with him, a flash of displeasure crossed Cao Xing's face, and his gaze became cold and stern.

Facing his gaze, King Velen felt immense pressure, seemingly terrified that this young man would call someone over to slaughter him.

However, in the end, Cao Xing shook his head and said.

"Let's hear it. What is your condition?"

King Velen breathed a sigh of relief and then said solemnly, "I want the same power that you all have!"

"I can feel that the strong individuals in this territory all contain a magical power within their bodies."

"This power allows them to possess combat strength that surpasses those of the same rank."

"Especially that assassin, and that Saint Light Sage from the church; they have just broken through, yet they are even stronger than an existence like me who reached Legendary status hundreds of years ago."

After hearing this, Cao Xing immediately chuckled.

He thought it was some major condition; turns out, it was just this?

In fact, even if King Velen hadn't brought it up, Cao Xing would have granted him these status buffs anyway.

After all, he still needed him to act as cannon fodder and charge into the fray in the future.

Since he brought it up himself, it saved quite a bit of trouble.

"Fine, I can agree to this condition."

"Now, tell me the location of the treasure vault."

Hearing Cao Xing agree, King Velen gradually exhaled in relief.

He scanned his surroundings, then whispered cautiously:

"That hidden treasure vault is buried in the deepest part of the Great Black Bal Lake. There is a powerful guardian in that lake that attacks any living being that dares to enter it."

"I have also placed a special seal on the vault. No one can open it except me."

"I can take you there."

Cao Xing nodded, having already made his calculations.

Under the restrictions of the rule contract, King Velen would not dare to deceive him.

"Fine, I understand."

"Now, I will call people over to bestow blessings upon you."

Consequently, Cao Xing summoned all the strong individuals in the territory who possessed status-enhancing skills and began to cast various status skills on King Velen.

"Hum! Humming!"

As one skill after another was cast, the aura on King Velen began to grow continuously.

Those minor skills didn't seem to have much effect on a Legendary powerhouse like him.

However, they added up, and the cumulative bonus was quite considerable.

Furthermore, once status buffs like [Thunder Dragon Descent], [Blessing of Strength], and [Frost Magic Shield], which provide percentage-based increases, were applied.

King Velen's aura surged significantly in an instant!

His Spirit and Strength increased by 20%, and the damage he received was reduced by 20%.

For a Legendary powerhouse, this 20% could be considered a massive improvement!

Additionally, the Black Smoke Totem and the Sacrifice of Calamity combined to increase critical hit rate by 50%.

There were also status buffs that increased movement speed, such as Queens Will, Black Mist Totem, Wind Wings, and War Horn.

It increased by a full 200%!

The movement speed of a Legendary powerhouse was already decent, and with an increase of nearly two times, it could truly be said to be as fast as lightning!

In a state of extreme burst, he could even dash over a dozen kilometers in a single second!

Even King Velen felt the surging power in his body, his face flushed with excitement.

"Incredible! I feel like my strength is even approaching that of a High-Tier Legendary!"

"Lord, this power is truly too magical!"

Cao Xing smiled and sighed inwardly, "Percentage-based buff skills are truly powerful."

"If only Muxue could break through to Legendary. Not only could she learn that Legendary status skill which can increase four-dimensional attributes by 50%."

"At the same time, the values of skills like 'Blessing of Courage' and 'Aurora Blessing' would also surge significantly!"

"By then, with a single blessing from her, even a Level 1 Arctic People would probably be able to possess over a hundred thousand attack power!"

Thinking of this, a bit of anticipation also arose in his heart.

Then, Cao Xing looked King Velen over and saw that his HP was in a very unhealthy state, only about one-tenth remaining.

Even in his status, there was an additional [Weakened] effect.

During the time he fell into the hands of the Watchers, this guy clearly suffered quite a bit.

With such a weakened Legendary, he would just be feeding kills if he went out.

Cao Xing instructed, "Isabelle, cast Revelation: Hymn on him."

"Yes, Lord."

The Saint Light Sage slowly raised her staff, and a ball of light containing vast life force descended.

"Hum!"

A brilliant light blazed upon King Velen.

+ 409618454

A full 400 million in healing value instantly pulled his HP to the maximum.

Zevelin felt the changes in his body with an expression of astonishment.

"By the gods, my injuries have actually all recovered!"

"Is this the healing ability of the Saint Light Sage? Truly terrifying!"

As an old guy who had lived for over a thousand years, he was now acting like a child seeing the world for the first time. Cao Xing was speechless, then asked, "Zevelin, what weapon do you use to fight?"

Hearing this question, Zevelin lowered his head and said somewhat embarrassedly, "That… actually, I am a Thunder-element Mage."

"A Thunder-element Mage?"

Cao Xing immediately chuckled.

Before this, he had obtained a [Crystal Dragon Scale].

This thing possessed the ability to be immune to all Thunder-attribute attacks; it was the bane of all Thunder-element classes!

In other words, if they really fought, this guy Zevelin might not even be his match.

However, regardless of that, a Legendary Mage was still quite powerful, especially since he was a Thunder-element Mage, known for having the strongest attack power!

He rummaged through his backpack and actually found a Level 110 Epic staff.

It was called [Sacrificer's Wand (Orange)], and its stats were quite good.

The Epic special effect on it was to consume 30% of one's own HP to increase the damage of the next skill by 100%, and it could even affect Legendary skills.

He threw this wand directly over to him.

"Catch."

King Velen caught it instinctively.

Then, he slowly gripped the wand, and his aura changed instantly.

The previous wretchedness was swept away, replaced by a sense of majesty and domineering power.

A vast aura of magic erupted from his body, which also contained the power of thunder.

"Crack! Crackle!"

His black robe moved without wind, and his whole person seemed to be bathed in lightning, surrounded by electric light, like a god of thunder descending.

The entire territory seemed to be shrouded by this powerful thunderous force, and the air was filled with heart-palpitating energy fluctuations.

But fortunately, these lightning bolts would not cause any harm to others.

This guy was worthy of being a veteran Legendary; the strength he displayed at this moment even surpassed Isabelle, who had broken through not long ago.

In the distance, Volibear and Weinmne—this man and this bear—both mastered the power of the Thunder attribute.

Bathed in the thunder at this moment, they felt their own power surge significantly!

Dragon Shaman Weinmne sighed, "A Thunder-element Legendary Mage? Truly very powerful!"

"If it is him, perhaps there is hope to tame that Legendary-level Thunder Dragon—"

His gaze shifted to King Velen, then to his own lord, a look of contemplation appearing in his eyes.

At this moment, after Zevelin returned to his peak state, he also withdrew all the thunderous power on his body back into himself.

His demeanor became wretched again, and he said with a fawning smile, "That… Thank you, Cao… Lord."

Cao Xing waved his hand and took a look at his attribute panel.

[ Zevelin Donchi ]

[ Race: Human ]

[ Level: 125 (17.2343 million / 2.7 billion) (Legendary creature) ]

[ Potential: Overlord ]

[ Divine Power: 78 / 350 (Recovers 3 points of Divine Power naturally per day) ]

[ HP: 418 million / 418 million (Pale Tree bonus) ]

[ Attack Power: 10,541,621,085,252 (Domination + Blessing of Courage + Blessing of Strength) ]

[ Armor: 71,492 ~ 73,521 ]

[ Attributes: Strength 115,242 (Blessing of Strength), Agility 96,372, Spirit 163,925 (Thunder Dragon Descent), Constitution 93,112 ]

[ Skills: Legendary Thunder Element Mastery (Includes 'Chain Lightning', 'Lightning Strike', 'Static Entanglement', etc., totaling 24 minor spells, 7 medium spells, 3 advanced spells — — — —) ]

[ Commander-level Skill: Thunder Sky Wings (Condenses a large amount of thunder elements to generate a pair of giant wings, increasing own movement speed by 50%, and every attack has a chance to trigger 'Chain Lightning', lasts 120 seconds, Cooldown: 30 minutes) ]

[ Overlord-level Domain: Thunder Domain (Reduces the thunder resistance of all surrounding enemies by 30%, and increases the paralysis probability by 30% when hit by thunder-attribute attacks) ]

[ Hero Spell: Forbidden Spell · Thousand Birds (Summons a large flock of Thunder Wing Birds to conduct suicide attacks on enemies. Each Thunder Wing Bird can deal 158% of own attack power as damage. Maximum summon quantity is: Spirit * 10, Forbidden Spell Cooldown: 10 hours) ]

[ Legendary Spell: Five Thunders Divine Punishment (Consumes 10 points of Divine Power, chants for 5 seconds, condenses a large amount of thunder power to deal 5 destructive thunder strikes to a single target below. Each thunder strike that hits reduces the target's thunder resistance by 10%. The first thunder strike deals 2500% of own attack power, and each subsequent thunder strike's damage coefficient increases by 500%, but it also accelerates the consumption of mental power, Cooldown: 24 hours) ]

[ Talent: Advanced Thunder Element Affinity (Increases casting speed by 40% when communicating with thunder elements) ]

[ Satiety: 54 ]

[ Loyalty: 68 ]

After reading this guy's attributes, Cao Xing's eyes gradually lit up.

"Holy crap, this thunder mage seems a bit powerful!"

Unlike Assam, Sarah, and the others, who only had a few skills.

As a thunder mage who had lived for over nine hundred years, Zevelin had mastered various thunder spells.

Therefore, all his various spells were integrated into [Legendary Thunder Element Mastery].

Furthermore, he also had a Hero-level Forbidden Spell and a Legendary-level large-scale spell!

Especially that Legendary spell, Five Thunders Divine Punishment.

This turned out to be a single-target Legendary spell!

Five thunder strikes, the damage coefficient of the first one reached 2500%, and after five times, it went straight to 4500%!

If all of these hit, that's at least one or two hundred million in damage!

Even a Legendary of the same rank couldn't withstand this kind of output.

Cao Xing said, "Zevelin, you son of a bitch, you really are a talent!"

King Velen looked at him with a blank expression.

"Not bad. Follow me properly, and you'll be living the good life from now on."

Hearing this, the King's mouth twitched again.

Because the scene before him felt somewhat familiar.

When he first organized his armed forces and established the Velen Kingdom, he had said the exact same thing to his subordinates.

He also knew that Cao Xing was just feeding him empty promises, and that he would likely be the one sent into dangerous battles in the future, but now that he was under someone else's roof, he had to bow his head.

Moreover, Cao Xing had just demonstrated a powerful healing ability, so he wasn't too worried about getting injured.

Zevelin said with a beaming smile, "G-good, Lord!"

"I will perform well."

Cao Xing patted his shoulder with satisfaction and then told him to stand aside and wait.

Thus, he had finished digesting his gains from this time.

The improvement could be described as huge.

The territory had added two Legendary-level combatants and four Hero-level combatants!

The potential of Muxue and Braum had also been raised to Commander.

Cao Xing sighed, "Everything is ready now."

"Next, it is time for me to take the initiative and deal with the Blood Legion!"

Meanwhile, Cao Xing opened the chat channel.

A large amount of information instantly scrolled before his eyes.

The Survivor lords of the entire four major regions were mainly distributed in the Ice Crystal Kingdom area, with a minority distributed in other kingdoms.

However, because of the last update, the system had removed the map restrictions, and now everyone could freely travel to the regions where other major districts were located.

After spending about three minutes scanning the information in the chat channel.

Cao Xing had more or less understood the current situation.

Currently, the number of Blood Teleportation Pillars in the entire world had jumped from the original 38 to 45.

In less than two hours, it had increased by another 7.

This also meant that another thirty million-plus Blood Legion troops had been teleported into this world!

The number of kingdoms under attack had gone from the original four or five to six or seven.

In the Ice Crystal Kingdom alone, there were a full seven Blood Teleportation Pillars.

There was one in the Gale Snowfield where Cao Xing was located, and there was also a Blood Teleportation Pillar in the Brisbane Wilds adjacent to the snowfield.

Hundreds of millions of Blood Legion troops were rampaging everywhere, and a large number of Survivors were suffering from their attacks.

Cao Xing closed the chat channel, thought for a while in his mind, and quickly made a plan for his next actions.

"The key to this expansion pack lies in those Blood Teleportation Pillars. We need to destroy as many of them as possible to have any hope of defeating the Blood Legion."

"In that case, let's first pull out this Teleportation Pillar in the Gale Snowfield, and then head to the Brisbane Wilds to pull out the other one."

"Then we will head north all the way to the Eternal Frost Main City, and follow the map to clear all the Blood Teleportation Pillars in the entire Ice Crystal Kingdom."

"In this way, once the combat forces in the Ice Crystal Kingdom are freed up, we can send troops to support other countries, thereby achieving the effect of containing the Blood Legion!"

"And finally, drive the Blood Legion completely out of this world!"

Of course, the imagination is beautiful, but in actual implementation, various accidents will definitely happen.

If Cao Xing's entire force set out, the defense capability in the territory would inevitably be insufficient.

If they faced a situation where the Blood Legion invaded the territory on a large scale at that time, it would be too late to return for reinforcements.

"So, if I want to carry out the operation, I must have a sufficiently safe rear area."

"At the very least, I must first clear out the Blood Legion in the entire Gale Snowfield. There cannot be any shadow of the Blood Legion within five hundred kilometers of the territory."

Thinking of this, his gaze gradually became firm.

Then, he pressed the communication device on his ear and quickly asked, "Duke Baradin, this is Cao Xing."

"Static—static—"

"Ding! Clack!"

Before long, the sound of static and the clashing of various weapons rang in his ear.

On Duke Baradin's side, some kind of large-scale battle seemed to be taking place.

However, soon, the Undead Duke said from the side, "Lord Cao Xing, please speak."

"Your Grace, have you encountered a battle on your side?"

Duke Baradin replied, "Yes, a Blood Legion unit of about fifty thousand people is being besieged by the Undead Legion."

"General Tirnis has already led troops to break up their formation, Lord Cao Xing need not worry."

Cao Xing felt slightly relieved, knowing that for enemies of this scale, given their strength, it was indeed not a big problem.

He continued to ask, "Your Grace, tell me now, what is the number of your Undead Legion?"

The sound of sword aura being swung rang out from the other side again.

Duke Baradin casually slew a Blood Legion Centurion and then replied.

"According to the intelligence you provided, we have been rushing at full speed these past few days to areas where large numbers of undead gather, and have converted them all into Ascalon undead."

"Currently, the number of the Undead Legion under General Tirnis and myself has exceeded 500,000."

"There are also about three who have reached the strength of General Tirnis, an Eighth-rank Overlord."

Hearing this number, a smile appeared on Cao Xing's face.

Although a few Heroes didn't mean much to him anymore.

But this 500,000-strong Undead Legion was still a quite formidable force.