I Became the Progenitor Vampire Chapter 364

Chapter 364: Chapter 366: The Fruitful Results of the Strategy Laid Two Years Ago (6000 words) Chapter 364: Chapter 366: The Fruitful Results of the Strategy Laid Two Years Ago (6000 words) The wind, carrying ice and frost, howled through the sky like the wailing of ghosts.

Snowflakes shrouded the light, turning the entire field of vision into a blanket of white.

As Lide pondered, the figure of Castro suddenly slowed down.

“Master, below us lies the Iron Hoof Tribe…”

His thoughts were interrupted by a voice as thunderous as rolling thunder, and when he looked down sideways, a vast expanse of buildings came into his view.

From high above, the edge was nowhere in sight; the houses, mostly single-storied, didn't seem low despite that, with snow piling up on the roofs, accumulating like rounded steamed buns.

On the crisscrossing streets, only a sparse number of Centaurs were seen clearing away the snow, with nearly no pedestrians to speak of.

This place was entirely like a human city–except for the lack of walls.

More than a year had passed since his last visit, and the Iron Hoof Tribe had been completely transformed.

After a slight sensing, Lide quickly detected Frey's presence within this vast stretch of buildings that seemed endless at first glance.

A subtle signal, and the remaining Castros immediately shot towards the center of the city.

This enormous beast, with a wingspan of 16 blades and clad in Extraordinary Armor, filled the snowy sky with a chilling, fearsome aura.

At that moment, the Centaurs below spotted the massive body of Li Castro, causing a huge commotion.

Wuu wuu~
The strident sounds of horns blared, and then the quiet city suddenly erupted into chaos.

In the towering watchtowers, torches were rapidly lit, crossbows readied, and Centaur Warriors, not yet fully equipped in armor, carrying huge helmets emerged from the dwellings and barracks with murderous intent.

Centaurs wielding longbows already had their bows drawn, and arrows gleaming with a cold light aimed at the beast in the sky, as if at any second the shrill whistling of arrows would erupt.

Hundreds of large figures rose from a barracks, their screams akin to demonic whispers–the Magic Language Bats.

But amid all the vigilance, the Centaurs below were astounded to find that after the Magic Language Bats took flight, they did not attack the terrifying beast; instead, they circled around it, escorting it.

Some Centaurs, upon witnessing this scene, seemed to remember something and hurriedly shouted for the others to lower their crossbows.

“It's the Kachar City Lord, the Hand of Glory of the Iron Hoof Tribe!”

If the title Kachar City Lord was unfamiliar to many Centaurs, Hand of Glory, the shining title that symbolized the strongest warrior of the Centaur tribe, was known to all.

As more and more Centaurs recognized the giant beast in the sky as belonging to the man who had once conquered them, the initial vigilance began to fade, and the drawn crossbows were slowly withdrawn.

Guided by the swarm of Magic Language Bats, Lide landed within their military camp.

By the time he emerged from the multitude of Magic Language Bats, he found the Level 15 tribal chief, Sam Ironhoof, and the second-generation Bloodline Frey, also Level 15, waiting for him at the entrance of the camp.

Upon seeing Lide, the towering Centaur Chieftain, as tall as 3.5 blades and as robust as a great tree, stepped forward, plunging his sturdy long-handled battle axe into the ground, and thumped his chest in salute.

“Good day, honored Hand of Glory, mighty Kachar City Lord, the Iron Hoof Tribe welcomes your arrival…”

“Welcome, Lord Hand of Glory,”
Behind them, a dozen strong Centaurs, each standing 3 blades tall, followed their Chieftain's lead, thumping their chests; their resonant voices echoed down several streets, attracting the curious gaze of countless Centaurs.

At this moment, Frey, dressed in a black mage's robe, also elegantly stepped forward. The somewhat proud second-generation Bloodline bowed slightly, “Good day, my lord.”

Lide nodded slightly, his gaze containing a smile as he looked towards Sam, “Chieftain Sam, it's been many days, it seems the Iron Hoof Tribe has progressed quite well…”

Although in essence, the Iron Hoof Tribe was already a part of Dawn City, with Frey being the true Power Holder, at least outwardly, the Iron Hoof Tribe was still independent; this was similar to the Lion Tribe in Dwarf Valley.

“Kachar City Lord, all of this is thanks to your support…”

Sam presented a very humble attitude, knowing full well the current situation of the Iron Hoof Tribe.

In fact, with Dawn City's growing influence over the hills, he had long since cast aside any other aspirations.

Once, Dawn City was already more than they could fend off; the incident where the Black Wind Tribe's twenty thousand Centaur Warriors were carpet-bombed by Alchemy Bombs from Magic Language Bats, and subsequently devoured by Blood Mages controlling tens of thousands of savage bats, still lingered vividly in his mind.

Not to mention the now even better developed Dawn City.

“Chieftain Sam, you are a smart man. Your wise choice has allowed the Iron Hoof Tribe to survive, and it has also won you a tomorrow.

Believe me, as long as you follow in the footsteps of Dawn City, the Iron Hoof Tribe will not only survive, it will grow even stronger.”

Lide's gaze was like a torch, blazing as he stared at this group of Centaur leaders of the Iron Hoof Tribe, his tone filled with confidence and dominance.

“That is Kachar's promise to you.”

Sam's expression was somewhat moved, “Kachar City Lord, the Iron Hoof Tribe will faithfully follow your lead to the death.”

After finishing his words, he turned his head to glance at the crowd, where an old centaur, who bore a striking resemblance to Sam, nodded with a complex expression.

Then Sam took a deep breath as if he had made up his mind. With a somewhat surprised look from Lide, Sam stepped forward and knelt on his front hooves to begin his oath of fealty.

“Oi…pf…nq…Great divine abode that controls death and souls, I am your loyal servant, I am your most devout believer, I am willing to use your power to sign a soul contract with my master…”

A soul contract?

Lide was completely astonished; he had not expected the centaur chieftain to be so resolute.

Seeing this scene, the dozen or so centaurs around Sam, as if they had already discussed it, also knelt down in loyalty.

In just a short moment, Lide felt more than a dozen strands of soul power added to his spiritual sea, and should he wish, he could use that soul power to end the lives of those who had taken the oath at any time.

The number of people one could bind with a soul contract depended on one's own soul strength; if the strength was insufficient, even binding with a level 1 apprentice would not succeed.

Lide was clearly not someone ordinary people could compare with. After several transformations, it was easy for him to contract hundreds or even thousands of people.

“Rise, Sam; your actions have once again secured a future for you and the Iron Hoof Tribe…”

After speaking, Lide gave a glance to the old centaur in the crowd, his eyes full of admiration. The Iron Hoof Tribe has wise individuals, indeed.

In fact, had Sam not sworn an oath, Lide would have used the power of faith to convert the other party.

The Dwarf Hills were becoming increasingly important, and he could not allow Sam, who had the greatest influence there, to slip out of his control.

“As you wish, my lord…”

After standing up, Sam immediately changed his tone of speech.

With the development of the Iron Hoof Tribe, he had long noticed that the Iron Hoof Tribe stood at a crossroads; its existence was merely at the whim of Lide.

Even thinking from the other's perspective, if he were in their place, he wouldn't allow a group of people outside his control to wield such important power; in fact, he had already begun purging and had started replacing everything here with his own people.

Now that Lide had arrived, he even felt it was somewhat late… A true master worthy of following should be one who makes decisions decisively and has a firm will.

Putting himself in others' shoes, Sam had thought about resistance, but the power displayed by Dawn City was simply beyond the capacity of the Iron Hoof Tribe to resist.

Even most centaurs had gradually accepted their identity as part of Dawn City under its rule, and many were adamantly against going to war with Dawn City.

With their own power weak and internal stability shaky, not to mention the existence of a faction ready to surrender, on one side was a bright and brilliant future, on the other, the abyss of death.

It was only at this juncture that Sam had quietly realized he no longer had a choice.

So when he proposed the idea of loyalty, he unexpectedly received unanimous agreement from all the high-ranking centaurs.

Swearing allegiance to a being who had conquered giant dragons and possessed immense strength did not seem humiliating to the centaurs; being under the protection of the stronger was an instinct for survival.

And only the strong could provide them with a better future.

This seemingly abrupt scene was the result of the strategy Lide had laid out two years ago.

At the time, Dawn City was weak and lacked the capacity to manage a tribe like the Iron Hoof Tribe, so they had adopted an alliance approach to win it over.

But as Dawn City developed rapidly in many aspects, the Iron Hoof Tribe was naturally enveloped by it, and by the time they realized the problem and thought of rebelling, it was already too late.

After the brief and sudden swearing of loyalty, Sam and a group of centaurs followed Lide to the central area's housing.

Most of the centaurs' previous buildings were temporary, typically tents made of sewn animal hides.

But after Frey took over the Iron Hoof Tribe, he began building a large number of permanent dwellings, greatly improving the living conditions of the centaurs.

After all, compared to houses that could shelter from wind and rain, animal hide tents were too crude.

It is easy to move from frugality to luxury, but difficult to revert; accustomed to a better life, the centaurs naturally did not want to return to their previous poor living conditions.

Entering the house, a wave of warmth hit them, and the hissing of burning charcoal filled the fireplace, making the air much warmer.

Lide casually surveyed the house; it was constructed of stone and wood. Although it lacked a bit of delicacy and appeared somewhat rough, it was still sturdier than tents and far more practical.

Inside, there were no chairs, but on the thick animal hide carpet, there were neatly arrayed tables.

After entering, the centaurs sat directly on the carpet, with each table marking one spot.

Fortunately, Lide did not mind these details. He sat down on the main spot, which was padded with thick animal hides.

Next to the large-bodied centaurs, both he and Frey appeared rather slender.

But with his strong presence, Lide still firmly controlled the situation.

His profound gaze swept over the group, and the centaurs who made eye contact quickly lowered their heads in submission. Without further formality, Lide dove straight into the matter at hand.

“Sam, report on the current situation of the Iron Hoof Tribe, starting with the population numbers…”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

The Level 15 Chieftain Sam immediately stood up, paid his respects, and then, feeling it was improper to look down on Lide from a standing position, sat back down and began his report earnestly.

“Your Highness, at present, the Iron Hoof Tribe has a population of 87,000 people, which includes 40,000 Heavy Cavalry and 30,000 Archers. The remaining are the elderly and weak who cannot be deployed to the battlefield…”

Sam's first statement brought Lide a huge surprise; he hadn't expected the Iron Hoof Tribe to have expanded to such an extent.

If he remembered correctly, the other party was originally just a small tribe with a population of less than 20,000. Now, the population had nearly reached 90,000 and was marching towards 100,000. Their expansion pace was not necessarily slower than that of Dawn City.

“How did these people come to be?” Lide asked curiously.

“Your Highness, through war and annexation.”

Sam spoke of this issue with a hint of excitement, “With the equipment support from Dawn City, the Iron Hoof Tribe encountered no match at the edge of the Dwarf Hills.

Our armored warriors in Heavy Cavalry charged like an unstoppable steel torrent that other tribes' Centaur Warriors could not withstand, and our Archers' arrows could easily tear through their Bone Armor and flesh, while their weapons couldn't even scratch our armor…”

“The area near the barren wastelands has been conquered by us. Apart from a few large tribes, all the smaller ones have been integrated into the Iron Hoof Tribe.

Additionally, as the reputation of the Iron Hoof Tribe has begun to spread, many small tribes have sought to join us voluntarily, which accounts for some of the population…”

Lide nodded, his eyes flickering with contemplation.

“What is the reaction of the other Centaur Tribes to the Iron Hoof Tribe's expansion? Has there been any movement from Gale City?”

The Dwarf Hills had an unavoidable central point — Gale City — which was the very heart of the Dwarf Hills.

Most of the large Centaur Tribe settlements were concentrated around Gale City, where the land was fertile and could support much larger populations than the fringe areas.

If the Iron Hoof Tribe wished to continue growing, it would inevitably have to confront Gale City.

As a city overseen by a Transcendent being, Gale City's stance could nearly dictate the direction of the Iron Hoof Tribe's development.

“Your Highness, there has been no movement from Gale City; we are still too far from them, and the central region is far richer than where we are…

As for the tribes around the Iron Hoof Tribe, they have remained silent about our expansion…”

“Oh? Are they not threatened by the swift expansion of the Iron Hoof Tribe?”

“Your Highness, in truth, outside of facing a common external enemy, there is not much interaction between races. As long as we don't encroach upon the larger tribes' territories, they do not concern themselves much with our expansion.”

Sam's response surprised Lide somewhat; he could understand the distance from Gale City, but were these surrounding Centaur Tribes unaware of the proverb 'When the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold'?

If the Iron Hoof Tribe grew strong, they might very well be the next target. Were they simply going to stand by and watch?

Lide was somewhat amused; he could not quite grasp the thought processes of these non-human races.

But, this too was a good thing — the Centaurs' lack of response meant that the Iron Hoof Tribe had more time to develop.

“Mm, very good. The Iron Hoof Tribe should increase its efforts to expand its population.

Employ 'Distant Diplomacy and Close Conquest', treat the larger tribes with gifts, and engage in trade to win their support, while continuing plans to annex the smaller tribes.

I hope that the population of the Iron Hoof Tribe can double by the time I visit next…”

Lide's eyes shone with the eagerness of ambitious enterprise.

“Sam, do you remember the promise I made to you before? In the future, I will build a city for the Iron Hoof Tribe.

And now, I give you a more specific commitment: once the population of the Iron Hoof Tribe reaches two hundred thousand, Dawn City will use all its power to establish Iron Hoof City in this land!

A city that bears the surname of the Iron Hoof Tribe as its name.”

Population, it always came back to population; whatever one wanted to do required a population as a prerequisite.

If there was room for development for the Iron Hoof Tribe, then they should keep on developing until they hit the ceiling.

Lide's thinking was clear; no matter when, the more power one had in hand, the better.

Let alone the situation now, where there might be a major change at the Divine Ruins in Risier City.

He needed an army potent enough to command.

The Divine Ruins were too valuable, and obtaining even a fraction of its treasures could bring a windfall to Dawn City. Though he had glimpsed the Chaos and Eye of Death, he was not about to be intimidated.

The timid could not savor the richness of crabs.

Moreover, unlike before, the changes in Risier City had now drawn the attention of Sects, adventurers, and factions everywhere.

To employ the power of Bloodline under these circumstances would be suicidal, and those humans might see Bloodline as an enemy.

The power shown by the Iron Hoof Tribe gave him additional plans, and the Centaurs would become another card in his hand.

40,000 Centaur Heavy Cavalry and 30,000 Centaur Archers, these two forces were the ace armies of the Centaur Tribe, and both had established illustrious military records in the Glory Main Plane.

It could be said that possessing such an army meant that as long as the situation in Risier City didn't spiral out of control, like the emergence of a complete Divine being, then the power in his hands absolutely could not be underestimated, as he would indeed be able to share a part of the spoils.

The arrangements from two years ago had finally borne abundant fruit.

“My lord, the Iron Hoof Tribe will not disappoint you!”

The promise from Lide had Sam almost jumping with excitement.

“We will honor your will with our lives, and within a year, the population of the Iron Hoof Tribe will surely surpass two hundred thousand!”

To build a city was an irresistible temptation for the Iron Hoof Tribe.

Thousands of years ago, the Iron Hoof Tribe had constituted the royal family of Gale City, where they once called the shots, but as the tribe declined, their former glory had long drifted away from them. It was precisely because of this that their obsession was so strong.

To have a city named after their own surname was simply an allure too strong for the Centaurs to resist.

Lide's eyes were sharp and piercing as he stared intensely at Sam, his tone deep.

“My promise never falls flat.

Shaman, get the Iron Hoof Tribe ready, for there might be a great war looming, and the battlefield will be in Risier City, the city now occupied by the Beastmen.”

Lide's words caused Sam's expression to tighten.

“My lord, 70,000 Centaur Warriors of the Iron Hoof Tribe are at your command, ready to fight for you at any moment!

The Iron Hoof Tribe, fears nothing!”

The other Centaurs also showed excitement. As a Strong Battle Race, the Centaurs were violence enthusiasts, and now with the support of high-grade equipment from Dawn City, they were eager to test the sharpness of their battle axes and arrows.

“I will instruct the weapon factories to forge even higher Level equipment for you, and at the same time, you must ensure that all warriors are mentally prepared.

This war may well be more brutal than you can imagine.”

Lide's dark eyes revealed a complexity that outsiders could not detect, yet he did not elaborate further on matters of the Divine, as this information did not need to be widely known.

After giving a precautionary warning, he changed the subject.

“Sam, Dawn City will establish a complete City Hall system soon, and all subordinate forces must obey the commands of City Hall.

I will also set up a subordinate department of City Hall in the Iron Hoof Tribe–the Department of Municipality.

In the future, you will serve as the head of this department, and Frey as the deputy head, with direct commands from City Hall transmitted to you…”

This matter was actually the true purpose of Lide's visit to the Iron Hoof Tribe–to establish a unified command system, reclaiming the powers previously delegated to various factions.

In the past he hadn't imposed this, leading to each internal power fighting independently, but now such a system clearly did not suit the future development of Dawn City.

He had to centralize power back to the City Hall and implement a centralization policy.

In both feudal monarchies and modern societies, centralizing power is essential. The result of dispersing power often leads to internal undermining, with irrational competition forming among the various factions.

With power in City Hall's hands, they could better regulate the development of all factions, balance and coordinate arrangements, and avoid falling into the vicious cycle of destructive competition.

If this were before his allegiance, such measures would undoubtedly have met with Sam's objections, but now Sam was more decisive than anyone in agreeing.

“My lord, we will faithfully execute your orders.”

Lide nodded slightly, turning his gaze to Frey, who had been silent all along.

“Frey, is there anything you'd like to say?”

“My lord,” Frey stood up, giving a slight bow, his eyes flickering sharply before he slowly spoke, “The Chief of the Black Wind Tribe, the Level 17 Centaur with the activated Gale Bloodline, Guido, has already secured a foothold by the sea, but currently his rate of development is still far too slow. Should we increase our support for him?”

“Guido?”

Lide nodded slightly; Guido's initial role in his plan was to attract the attention of Gale City by raising the banner of re-establishing the Centaur Empire, thus sharing the burden of the Iron Hoof Tribe's development.

But now, his development was clearly slow.

“Notify the Propaganda Department to send a group of propagandists there, and also have the Iron Hoof Tribe cooperate with the Propaganda Department's efforts. I want to promote Guido as the Centaur Savior!”

A playful glint crossed Lide's eyes; the half-task style reward he had received in the Underworld before–earning Legend Level for safely escorting 5 Half-Elves back to Black Iron Castle–he had yet to complete.

That is to say, although those 5 Half-Elves returned to Black Iron Castle, because he did not promote his conquest of the giants in the Muddy Swamps, he did not gain Legend Level.

Adding Lord Ilo's identity into the mix confirmed his suspicion–that as long as others are willing to believe your words, even if you haven't done that act, you can still gain Legend Level.

He planned to experiment with Guido.

The second Child of Destiny was about to emerge.

Players had already been hoodwinked, but it was uncertain how the Centaurs would react.

Chapter end