Chapter 169: Untitled

In the System’s log, Su Lun saw five or six entries about gaining Dodge talent experience points. It seemed this training method was quite effective.

However, successfully acquiring the Dodge talent required long-term training. Aside from his basic daily training tasks, Su Lun added a new dodge training routine.

While Su Lun was practicing dodging, Chris, who found this training method very interesting, decided to try it too. With her Succubus physique, her initial dodge rate was much lower than Su Lun’s. But after some time practicing, her dodging became significantly more effective.

Seeing the results, Chris became a regular at the training ground. Succubi weren’t really good at direct fights with enemies; they much preferred directing their minions. But often, enemies wouldn’t just play along and fight the minions. So, learning extra skills was definitely useful.

Actually, within Zhenbei City, Chris’s power was second only to Su Lun’s. Among the Level Four superpowered professionals in Zhenbei City, besides Chris Carina, there was only the Barbarian Johnson. The other Heroes were somewhat weaker.

Advancing to Legendary wouldn’t be easy for Chris. Back in the Abyss, Succubi were really weak. She wasn’t a first-generation Succubus or a descendant of the Queen of Succubi, just a regular one. To advance, she’d need powerful force to shatter her bloodline limitations and become a Succubus Queen herself.

If Chris were still in the Abyss, becoming a Succubus Queen with the original Queen’s help wouldn’t be all that hard. But Su Lun wasn’t at all sure that if Chris went back, the Queen wouldn’t notice something off about her.

With Su Lun’s current strength, clashing with the Queen of Succubi was not a good idea. He definitely didn’t think he could take on a Demon Lord. The Queen loved tempting mortals on different Prime Material Worlds, then luring them to her ‘paradise’ – the 570th layer of the Abyss, Shendilaavia.

Unlike what people imagine the Abyss to be – full of toxic fumes, volcanoes, lava, and awful plants – if you just looked at the environment, Shendilaavia truly seemed like paradise. The scenery was beautiful and resources were plentiful. Anyone not in the know would think they’d reached Mount Celestia.

Green lands were neatly divided by mountains. Rich seas glowed red under an eternal sunset. The whole scene looked more like a romantic oil painting of paradise than the Abyss. Lush plains yielded juicy fruits and delicious grains. Picture-perfect valley vineyards produced the finest wines in the Abyss.

The wine made here was unforgettable… and addictive. That made it super popular among the elite in the Prime Material World. Think about it: incredible scenery, amazing wine, beautiful people. It was the ultimate high-class establishment.

As one unnamed big shot said: ‘If a brothel was built in a stinking garbage dump, would you go? No way! Unless you have… particular tastes, then forget I said anything.’

So, being one of the top brothels in the Multiverse meant it had to have top-notch surroundings. Obviously, not just anyone could get in.

The most eye-catching building in this Abyssal plane was a giant archway made of rose-colored stone blocks. Named after its creator, it was called the Eluvia Archway. The creator, they say, was a powerful Witch from a Material Plane.

But that wasn’t the main point. The key thing was, this arch celebrated the Queen of Succubi, Malkizid’s glorious achievements in the Material World. Those stunning carvings and fancy inscriptions? They told all about Malkizid’s many ‘glorious histories’. Basically, it showed off her deep, cross-planar ‘relationships’ with tons of heroes, princes, dukes, nobles, wizard families… the stuff of explicit, adults-only tales.

Imagine it: those carvings were basically a collection of all the steamy stuff the Queen had gotten into, starring her. And her co-stars? Famous guys from various planes. If you ever went there, you might spot some familiar faces! Rumor even said a spell made the carvings move like a movie.

According to whispers, some folks secretly copied those inscriptions down. They used them to blackmail nobles or other families back in the Prime Material World. It worked great! For those families, this was actually worse than death. There was even this wild rumor: if you watched the entire archway moving pictures, you’d unlock a special [Pink] ability. It gave you +30 in, well… techniques. Stuff like the infamous ‘Jiateng Eagle’s Finger’ was just one skill under it!

Still, the most longed-for spot was Shendilaavia’s capital: Heart’s Break. Su Lun privately thought ‘City of Depravity’ fit better. Legend said it fulfilled every forbidden desire. Seventy-two beauties? Done. Risky games? Easy. Want something more? Absolutely doable.

To Su Lun, this place was like an ultra-extreme version of a wild party down in the Abyss. The only thing that could rival it was the parties thrown by Sharess, the goddess of pleasure. Her parties? Just good times, no dying. But in Shendilaavia? Regular folks went in alive and… often didn’t come back out. Only legendary dudes powerful enough to treat the Abyss like a casual night spot came and went freely. Su Lun dreamed of becoming one of those big shots.

Without the Queen of Succubi’s help, Chris’s advancement relied entirely on the System. Thankfully, once she became a Hero, leveling up just took sufficient Experience Points.

Su Lun actually had his highest hopes pinned on Heatherway. A Wizard who also studied as a Warlock? With dual-class bonuses, her strength easily surpassed that of most ordinary Wizards. Of course, Wizards advanced slower; they spent ages studying. Every Legendary Wizard was a master of extensive knowledge. Though there was also that saying: every Wizard seems to court disaster…

Besides Chris, Carina was the other Level Four superpowered professional in their territory. Advancing to Legend wouldn’t be simple for her either. Making it to the Fourth Tier as a Warlock while constantly on the run was amazing talent. If she’d sworn allegiance to the Spider Queen back then, she might be Legendary today. But even if she tried it now? Given the Spider Queen’s personality, her fate definitely wouldn’t be pleasant.

Not many Drow Elf who betrayed the Spider Queen ended up living well. She used the cruelest means to torture and kill traitors. Surviving her wrath was rare luck. After all, not everyone gets to be like Third Master Cui – the absolute legend who sliced apart a form of Demogorgon, fought Malkizid, and even kissed the Spider Queen! Surviving those stunts? Cui Heizi was practically radiating main character plot armor!

Normally, betraying Drow got you melted into wax demons. That Carina had survived out in the Wilderness was fortunate enough on its own.

After defeating the Orc Alliance, Zhenbei City went back to building stuff. Loads of slaves were captured: besides a bunch of Orc Warriors, the rest were Hobgoblins, Bugbears, Kobolds, and Gnolls. Ordinary Goblins were rare.

All these slaves meant plenty of workers. Bugbears and Hobgoblins were tough, related to Goblins but much stronger. Su Lun had worried they might cause trouble. Turned out, nothing to fear. The Drow Elf effortlessly made them obedient.

The Gnolls and Kobolds got sent off to work in the Mine. The other slaves stayed in the Outer City area, building alongside the Goblins. For the Outer City, Su Lun had drawn up a detailed plan. In his vision, no land was wasted. Slums were absolutely banned within Zhenbei City.

When setting the city rules and Territory laws, Su Lun was crystal clear: all able-bodied beggars must work. Anyone with usable limbs and a working mind caught begging in Zhenbei City got thrown straight into Prison. Under the Militia’s watch, they’d do forced labor until their sentence was up. Then they could look for a job themselves or take one assigned by City Hall.

Jobs from City Hall weren’t usually great: cleaning out sewers, hauling away trash, scrubbing public toilets… though the pay was a bit higher than for other work.

Disabled folks or those with intellectual difficulties would get simpler, lighter work assigned by City Hall. Pay wasn’t high but covered living costs. Su Lun also set up orphanages in Zhenbei City to take in parentless kids. This kept them from being grabbed by shady gangs or other groups for bad ends.

Forcing kids to steal, or crippling them so they’d beg on sympathy… this garbage happened way too often in this world. Back in Caren City, Su Lun saw it countless times. Trouble was, those gangs usually had Nobles behind them. Without cutting off those noble ties, getting rid of the gangs was impossible.

Su Lun deeply detested this practice. Back in Caren City, he couldn’t do much. But Zhenbei City? He built it from the ground up. He wouldn’t allow that here.

If nothing went wrong, farming the land outside Zhenbei City would yield far more food yearly than the city could eat. Providing for some orphans really wasn’t a strain. Plus, these kids would likely grow up loyal to him, a secure base of support.

Who knew? Talent might even emerge from the orphanage. Compared to the potential future benefit, bringing in orphans was a smart deal.

Of course, picking the orphanage managers was crucial. Su Lun remembered all too well from his past life just how dark some orphanages could become. Building one here demanded serious care.