Grote's expression grew a bit serious. "That's right. It's a Behemoth that's only one step away from stepping into the Transcendent rank.
This type of lifeform, capable of matching dragons, is the beastmen' most powerful ultimate creature.
Legend has it that the Beastmen Royal Court has a Legendary-ranked Behemoth. Back in the day, the Nolan Empire reached the Beastmen Royal Court during their campaign, but failed to destroy the beastmen kingdom precisely because of that Behemoth's presence."
Li De's expression turned slightly grave. Even a creature of the Behemoth's level had appeared, there was no longer any doubt that the Beastmen Crown Prince was determined to take Risel City.
But what should they do once Risel City falls?
Behind Risel City was Green City. Li De didn't care much about Green City itself, but the Dark Pact and Crimson Mage Tower within it were another matter. He couldn't ignore those.
If the lips perish, the teeth grow cold. With the crisis approaching, it would be difficult for him to stay uninvolved, unless he was willing to abandon the long-term operations of Dark Pact and the Crimson Mage Tower and relocate both forces.
"What's the intel on the goblins?"
Li De shook his head. It was still too soon to worry about that. With a Transcendent presiding over Green City, even if it wasn't an immovable fortress, it certainly wasn't a soft target that could be easily taken.
For now, his top priority remained the goblins and the alchemical bombs, that was the real target of this operation.
However, the biggest current problem was that the forces of both the beastmen and Risel City were too strong.
When the crane and the clam fight, the fisherman profits, but the prerequisite for profiting was that both sides needed to be evenly matched, and the fisherman also had to be qualified to reap the benefits. Otherwise, they would just end up as cannon fodder.
Directly participating in a massive war involving hundreds of thousands of troops was still far beyond what Dawn City could handle.
He would need to approach this through other means.
"Because the explosives depot was destroyed, Risel City's limited reserve of alchemical bombs is utterly insufficient to fend off the beastmen' endless assaults.
They couldn't hold back and secretly dispatched agents to reconnect with the goblins hiding in a small section of the Underground World.
Unfortunately, it was a trap laid by the beastmen, designed specifically to lure Risel City into reaching out to the goblins.
However, Risel City's military acted decisively and used a large-scale teleportation scroll to transfer over a thousand goblins directly into the city.
Now, that group of goblins is already inside Risel City."
Grote couldn't help but sigh. He knew just how much Li De craved access to those goblins who understood alchemical bomb-making.
But the beastmen had mobilized tens of thousands of troops for the ambush, this wasn't something just anyone could interfere with. Besides, by the time he received the information, the incident had already passed.
"A small Underground World?" Li De wasn't disappointed by the news. Instead, he grew interested in another detail.
"That's right. The Underground World is isolated and not interconnected like the surface.
Some Underground Worlds are enormous, with an area comparable to a large country, while others aren't even the size of a normal human city and have extremely limited resources.
The goblins' habitat is one of those small Underground Worlds, its area is barely half the size of the Moonlight Plains."
"What about that Underground World now?"
"It's already been occupied by the beastmen," Grote shook his head. "That place had only goblins and no other lifeforms of value. Without mineral veins or biological diversity, a dark Underground World like that truly has little worth. After all, the surface is far richer in resources and a much more habitable environment."
Li De's eyes flashed with sharp light, as if he'd thought of something. "Is there a way to infiltrate Risel City?"
Infiltrate Risel City? Grote's expression shifted slightly. Risel City was now a literal powder keg, and one that was already exploding.
A battlefield where hundreds of thousands of troops clashed was far too dangerous. Even for someone like him, a powerful vampire who had reached Level 17 and possessed the Fearless Bloodline, he couldn't guarantee he'd make it out alive.
"Your Majesty…"
Before Grote could speak, Li De already knew what he wanted to say.
Waving his hand, he smiled.
"Don't worry, I never said I'd go to Risel City right this moment. Besides, if I really do go, I have Castro and the Level 18 Bone Dragon with me. As long as I avoid the frontlines and don't confront the Behemoth head-on, who could possibly stop me?"
Those two top-tier combatants, unmatched in mobility, were his trump cards for intervening in this war and reaping the spoils.
Castro's Transcendent armor had one trait that couldn't be ignored: Super Dexterity (After special forging, grants 100% increased agility in the air while worn, and flight speed is increased by 100%).
A 100% speed boost, that was the power of Transcendent-grade equipment.
Castro's original top speed was nearly 700 kilometers per hour. After doubling, it directly surpassed 1,000 km/h.
1,278 km/h was supersonic speed, Castro was now even faster. One could say he was more formidable than fighter jets on Earth.
As long as he wanted to escape, there were very few lifeforms capable of stopping him. Not to mention he also had the Level 18 Bone Dragon. As long as they stayed off the front lines, such high-tier beings could dominate almost anywhere.
Hearing Li De's words, Grote finally breathed a little easier. He really didn't want his lord to take such a risk.
After some thought, he said, "Although Risel City is still under lockdown, thanks to years of effort by Green City's adventurers and mercenaries, there are many secret ways to slip into the city.
But it's far too dangerous, Your Majesty. Your status is extremely noble, no one can compare to you. You don't need to personally take that risk."
Li De nodded, not saying much, his peripheral gaze landing on Castro, now returned to palm size, perched on his shoulder, his eyes contemplative.
Him going on an adventure? He wasn't some lone ranger. As a final boss-level figure, he had plenty of options.