This time, it wasn't experience points but faith?
"Youyou, what's going on here?"
As the worm in Luo Yan's belly, Youyou certainly knew what surprised him.
"Ah! That might be the faith the slave rats contributed to that big rat. You and your players killed him, so naturally, his faith value was transferred to you."
Luo Yan was stunned for a moment.
"Faith value can be transferred??"
Youyou explained.
"Strictly speaking, what's transferred is actually divinity... If you didn't have your own divinity, it wouldn't transfer to you, but since you do, you can absorb it."
Luo Yan pondered deeply.
"Divinity... I always thought he was something like a chosen of the gods or is it that the chosen are actually a type of deity."
Youyou: "Hard to say, huh? Speaking of which, the Demon King is kind of similar, right? The core of the Demon King Territory clearly has the characteristics of divinity, it's just incomplete."
It seems that in this world, enfeoffment isn't limited to terrestrial authority.
Silently noting down this clue, Luo Yan checked his spoils of war.
Here, there were crates and bundles of wheat, dried meats such as chicken, duck, beef, and sheep, dairy products, and some odd goods, as well as coins likely scrounged from the merchants.
Luo Yan was seeing the currency of the human world for the first time.
There were several stacks of notes with a faint holy aura, and some silver and copper coins stamped with a variety of crests.
Who knew what that fat old rat was planning to do with these trinkets, maybe he was also planning to buy a house in the Holy City?
Regardless, all these things were his now.
Just as Luo Yan was considering whether to move these spoils to the Demon King Territory or to leave them here for now, the preemptive magic circle he had casually deployed at the entrance of the cave was suddenly triggered.
Noticing the situation at the cave entrance, Luo Yan's eyebrows lifted slightly.
"Today is quite lively; another visitor is here."
Though he said this, he wasn't surprised at all.
After all, the North Peak Mine was one of the entrances to the Underground Maze of Thunder City.
It's just that due to its remote location, adventurers seldom came here.
"Shall we capture them? Lock them up to accrue faith value!" Youyou excitedly urged, looking somewhat influenced by the core of the Demon King Territory, almost more like a Demon King than himself.
"Let's see the situation first."
Luo Yan waved his hand, and 'Bond', who had collapsed on the ground, picked up his greatsword and shakily stood up.
Then, he shouted to his players behind him.
"Apart from the equipment, don't touch the spoils here for now! Your king has his own plans!"
Actually, "Calamity OL" had no built-in storage space, and the players could only carry so much with their hands, so Luo Yan wasn't worried about them rummaging through his territory.
Having dropped this last line, he left Jiaqi's "palace" with Bond and headed towards the mine entrance.
Since he was uncertain of the identity of the opponents, this time he didn't bring the players along and hurriedly disappeared around the corner.
The whole North Peak Mine had complex branches, but only one exit, making it not very difficult to find a few intruders.
As for passing by them unnoticed, Luo Yan wasn't worried at all.
Once the adventurers triggered the warning spell, they were tainted with the aura of the Undead, and as long as he wasn't too far away, he could vaguely sense them.
Clearly, this time it was still a team that couldn't afford to hire a Mage or a Priest.
But just to be safe, Luo Yan still chose to have 'Bond' lead, with Youyou floating as far forward as possible, and himself following at the back.
Progressing through the mine, Luo Yan quickly caught sight of torchlight at a bend in the cave.
Listening to the adventurers' conversation, it seemed they were already thinking of calling it quits...
"Boss, something feels off here... I've been to the North Peak Mine before, it wasn't like this."
"These sword marks... they must be Reksen's. No doubt! And these are axe marks left by Am, surely!"
"But where did they go? Into the maze?"
"Hmm... I might have an idea about what that girl Chris is up to, but if that's the case, they didn't need to enter the maze; they could have stayed near the entrance."
Hearing familiar names in their conversation, Luo Yan's eyes narrowed slightly.
It looks like they're here to rescue their fellow teammates.
Then, there wasn't much to discuss.
He gave Bond, who was standing next to him, a look, and the latter silently lifted his great sword and charged toward the light source not far away.
"Dull Light!"
Simultaneously, Luo Yan raised his wand, pointing it at the cave ahead.
This was an Iron-level Undead Magic spell, capable of extinguishing flames not too hot and other Iron-level Lighting Techniques.
While at the Demon King Academy, he often used it to extinguish oil lamps or candles.
The torches in the adventurers' hands extinguished in an instant, and the mine was plunged into darkness. Along with it, their eyes were engulfed in darkness as well.
The sensation of pitch-black darkness crawling all over his body made Jack shudder.
He almost instinctively raised his sword blade, and then a tremendous force struck the side of his sword, sending painful shocks through his wrists.
When his eyes met his attacker's, his heart almost leapt into his throat!
"Bond?!"
No, that wasn't right—
This guy had become an Undead!
Moreover, he had been revived by Undead Magic of at least the Bronze level!
"Wait a second!"
Having barely parried the violent great sword, Jack took a leaping step back to create distance while simultaneously raising his left hand.
"Please, wait a minute! Honorable Mage Sir, we have no grudges, there really is no need for battle!"
"No grudges?"
Standing in the darkness, Luo Yan chuckled softly and said deliberately, "You have seen my spell, do you think I would let you leave?"
A drop of cold sweat ran down Jack's forehead.
From the opponent's words, he heard absolute confidence—this guy was completely sure he could keep them all here!
Driven by the desire to survive, his mind raced and suddenly, an idea struck him, and he spoke up.
"Why not? This is the Ryan Kingdom, and our devotion to Saint Sis isn't that profound..."
"And then?" Luo Yan said indifferently, continuing to manipulate Bond to keep advancing.
Meanwhile, the chains from the Soul Drain spell firmly ensnared the seemingly strongest man.
"We can cooperate!" Feeling death closing in, Jack shouted sharply, "Damn it, you're an Undead Mage, not an Undead! You must need something, right?"
Luo Yan paused, looking at the line of people standing in the dark with interest.
"You want to make a deal with me?"
Jack lifted his head toward the pitch-black cave, speaking boldly.
"Yes... many of my friends, they actually do jobs that would cost them their heads if found out, pretty much no different from an Undead Mage... What I mean is! I'm not opposed to you! Nor can I possibly betray you! Whatever you need, I can get it for you!"
"What if I wanted an elf slave?"
At these words, Jack's breath hitched, but he didn't utter the word "no."
"That would cost a lot... a lot a lot, since elves are allies of the Aus Empire."
Watching Jack, drenched in sweat, Luo Yan smiled faintly, speaking in a casual tone.
"I was just asking casually; it seems you indeed have some extraordinary channels."
This guy was clearly no saint, but at least his words and promises seemed to have been thought through, unlike some mere mouse, merely farting against the wind, acting opportunistically.
Seeing that the Mage hidden in the darkness finally took an interest in him, Jack finally breathed a sigh of relief and wiped the sweat from his palms on his trousers.
"Of course! You will find my services useful! I swear it! Also, my name is Jack... may I know your name?"
Luo Yan was about to casually fabricate a name, but quickly remembered he could no longer rely on the faith of the Demon God.
He would eventually have to develop his own beliefs, letting his name resonate throughout the Thundering City, and even across the Ryan Kingdom...
"I am Luo Yan. Besides, swearing to me is useless, swear to this."
As he said this, a dull gray crystal ball rolled to Jack's feet.
Looking at the bewildered man, Luo Yan said with a casual tone.
"This is a Recording Crystal."
"I want you and your companions to swear to it, saying 'Long live the Demon God, long live Lord Demon King, long live Youyou...'
'And also, Saint Sis is a pile of shit.'"