Chapter 410: The Undead Research Institute
"September 14, Year 1786 of the New Calendar: Transformed 70,000 skeletons on the Okagrar Plain for His Majesty Cassius."
"September 16, Year 1786 of the New Calendar: Transformed 200 Frost Giant corpses on the Storm Highlands for His Majesty Cassius."
"September 16, Year 1786: Transformed 6,000 skeletons on the plains for His Majesty Cassius."
"September 18, Year 1786: For His Majesty Cassius—"
"..."
Within Soulweeper Castle, the bone pen continued to scribble across the pages of "The Great and Immortal Orest' Journal".
Orest had a habit of keeping a diary. He linked this bone pen to his soul, making it a pseudo-living undead creature capable of sensing and recording the lich's emotions at any time.
"Imperial Special Operations in progress!"
"All undead inside, stay put! Or you'll be obliterated!"
Suddenly, a team of tieflings armed with custom necromantic weapons broke down the door and stormed into the defenseless Soulweeper Castle.
The bone pen immediately stopped writing in fright and leapt onto a shelf, while the human-skin journal slowly closed.
The mages from the Spell Division inspected the magical formations and traps within Soulweeper Castle and disabled them. Although most of the spells had already been rendered ineffective when Cassius breached the fortress, a few hidden remnants remained in the corners.
After the tiefling guards confirmed the area was safe, officials from the Empire's Engineering Department, most of whom were human, entered.
They walked through every part of the fortress, pointing and commenting on everything.
"These human head decorations are too gory—they harm the Empire's image."
"And this human-skin chair? Too grotesque! What would the Starfallers think if they saw it? Get rid of it!"
"The Chief Minister personally ordered that this place should showcase the Empire's grandeur! Don't let a lich's disgusting aesthetics pollute it!"
Meanwhile, the Empire's construction team stood ready at the entrance. Ogre and bear goblin workers pushed large construction equipment, while Frost Giant slaves carried heavy steel beams and concrete materials.
After the construction of Isthalia, the Empire's construction team had become highly skilled. Even without player assistance, they could handle projects efficiently—especially with large-scale machinery provided by the Machine God Cult.
Without a doubt, this centuries-old Soulweeper Castle was about to undergo a complete transformation.
"Boom!"
A heavy iron ball dropped from the crane, smashing through the skull-engraved stone gate.
"Careful! Don't hit the load-bearing walls!"
In the Empire's territory, on the Afferton Plain.
Orest, who was preparing to transform more undead, suddenly shivered, his expression darkening.
Through his soul link, he saw strange scenes unfolding in Soulweeper Castle—such as a giant iron ball crashing through walls.
But those scenes were from a few days ago.
After some thought, he cautiously tested the waters, "Master, my Soulweeper Castle..."
"Your Soulweeper Castle?"
"Didn't you offer the Bewilderment Valley and Soulweeper Castle as gifts to the Empire?"
Cassius "innocently" responded.
The lich nodded repeatedly, not daring to slack off. "Of course, of course. Everything in the Bewilderment Valley belongs to the Empire."
"I just wanted to ask—what changes are being made to the Empire's Soulweeper Castle?"
"After all... it will be my future workplace."
Cassius glanced at him and said calmly, "That place is now a public facility of the Empire, and imperial specialists will handle the arrangements. You don't need to worry about it. Just focus on transforming undead for me."
"As for the changes to Soulweeper Castle—you'll know when the time comes."
"Yes, Master."
Orest nodded again in agreement.
After days of relentless exploitation, the once-legendary lich, who wielded vast soul energy and held a legendary rank, had become visibly worn out.
The ghostly fire in his eye sockets flickered weakly, and his body no longer emanated the dense aura of death—it had to be conserved, just to maintain his existence and avoid degrading into a half-lich state.
Cassius spoke calmly:
"Orest, you've made significant contributions to the Empire recently, and I've taken note of them. This batch in Afferton will be the last."
"In two days, you can return to the Bewilderment Valley to work."
"Yes, Master!"
The lich knelt, trembling, overwhelmed with the urge to cry tears of joy.
Over these past days, Orest had transformed over 100,000 undead creatures, exhausting the soul energy he had accumulated over centuries, leaving only enough to sustain himself.
It was finally coming to an end!
At least he could return to the Bewilderment Valley and escape this "serving the emperor is like serving a tiger" situation!
But Cassius spoke again, "However... your soul seems insufficient."
"How about this: I'll allow you to keep 500 of the undead you transform this time as your personal property."
"Th-thank you, Master!"
After days of Cassius's subtle indoctrination and control, the order that "the undead belong solely to His Majesty" had nearly been carved into the lich's soul.
Owning the undead he transformed should have been a given.
But at this moment, Orest felt a surge of excitement and disbelief.
He was excited because it had been days since he last experienced the sweet return of souls and the thrill of controlling the undead.
He was incredulous because his greedy, stingy red dragon master was actually allowing him to own undead creatures!
"Master, is... is this real?"
The lich's skeletal hand, gripping his staff, trembled slightly. He even thought he had misheard and was overwhelmed with emotion.
"This is a special exception."
"I've said it before—the Empire won't shortchange anyone who contributes."
"Now, get to work."
The lich nodded, raising his staff and beginning the familiar chant.
Over 10,000 skeletons broke through the soil, rising as a massive undead army—this time, 500 of them belonged to Orest himself.
"Good."
"We've reached the standard."
Cassius observed the undead skeletons and nodded slightly.
There were already 100,000 undead skeletons in the Bewilderment Valley. Given the Empire's immense military power, they didn't need to be used as soldiers.
These undead could be utilized for mining, transportation, and exploration in underground or dark areas—cheap labor and expendable resources.
When the players' technology tree advanced enough, these undead could even be used to generate electricity.
"And Orest."
"This valuable lich shouldn't be wasted—of course, he'll be put to good use serving the players in a sustainable manner."
Cassius's face twisted into a sinister smile.
Under his meticulous plans, these undead creatures would seamlessly integrate into the Empire's system—and so would the lich.
After receiving Cassius's verbal approval, the lich finally returned to the Bewilderment Valley.
But Orest stood motionless before the newly renovated "Soulweeper Castle," staring at the familiar yet foreign structure.
This was no longer the old, eerie castle it once was. The severed limbs and bloodstains had all been cleared away.
Replacing them were cold metal gates, clean, smooth walls, and the Empire's unique, grand industrial aesthetic.
Even at night, the interior remained brightly lit, thanks to modern electric lamps.
A metal plaque at the entrance stood out prominently.
——The Undead Research Institute.
"My Soulweeper Castle..."
Orest gazed at the words on the plaque, murmuring to himself.