Chapter 406 - 198: Give a Chance

The Snake Women of the Viper Race were much shorter than the male Snake-men, generally standing between 164 and 167 centimeters tall.

The Snake-man Race was skilled with poison and favored swords or daggers as weapons. Male Snake-men were much taller than the females, with more robust physiques, and generally served as Warriors. The Snake Women, with their supple bodies and greater speed, became assassins.

Hundreds of Snake-men were gathered together, looking uneasily at Li Ziyu. They were awaiting the judgment of their fate.

Seeing Li Ziyu’s gaze lingering on his people, Zaliki couldn’t help but speak up. "My Lord..."

Li Ziyu pulled his gaze away from the Snake Women to look at Zaliki. He cleared his throat, nodded, and said, "Alright, let’s talk. Why did you and your people come here? Even if you didn’t know this was the territory of the Undead Race, you should have known that the Wraith Mountain Range is a forbidden land, correct?"

What was a forbidden land? To the Natives of the Wasteland, it was a place of death. Each forbidden land had its own unique characteristics, but they all had one thing in common: entering was tantamount to suicide. Furthermore, each Tribe had its own territory, which they would not leave lightly.

Zaliki had been very clear when he introduced himself moments ago. These Snake-men belonged to a Tribe called Senunet. Li Ziyu had never heard of it, which meant it wasn’t one of the Tribes neighboring the Wraith Mountain Range. ’So why did they travel all this way?’ Li Ziyu couldn’t figure it out.

Zaliki glanced at his people. With his head lowered, he said in a grief-stricken tone, "Our Tribe was attacked. The Tribe... is gone."

Li Ziyu nodded in understanding. This sort of thing was quite common. There was no law in the Wasteland; might made right. Tribes being attacked and wiped out was a frequent occurrence, and it was precisely how many refugees were created.

These Snake-men probably had no idea where they were. They had simply fled in this direction and accidentally stumbled into the Undead Territory within the Wraith Mountain Range.

After a moment of thought, Li Ziyu said to Zaliki, "I cannot allow you to go any further. This is where you stop. What are your plans now? To become wanderers?"

As he spoke, Li Ziyu’s gaze drifted back toward the Snake-men. ’The Snake Women are really beautiful... ahem, I mean, the Snake-men are so pitiful. Like homeless children wandering far from home. Their future won’t be easy.’

The Wasteland was a cruel and merciless place. As refugees, they would be attacked without restraint. Even ordinary Tribe members showed no mercy to them; they wouldn’t hesitate to act like robbers when faced with such people. After all, no one would intervene if they bullied these poor souls.

Zaliki naturally knew everything Li Ziyu was thinking. He made a bold decision—he had to find a way out for his people. Zaliki prostrated himself on the ground, his hands placed under his forehead in a gesture resembling a human kowtow. "Master of the Undead, I beg you! Please, give us a chance! Give us, the Snake-men of the Senunet Tribe, a path to survival!"

’What’s going on?’

’Why did he suddenly throw himself to the ground?’

Li Ziyu blinked, turning to Tas Tuling beside him with a look of complete confusion.

Tas Tuling quickly explained, "This is the highest rite of the Snake-men. It signifies absolute submission."

’Oh, so that’s it. I was wondering why he suddenly hit the dirt. It’s a rite of submission. But he’s submitting already? I haven’t even unleashed my Heaven-Shaking Qi.’

Li Ziyu slowly addressed Zaliki. "You asked me to give you a chance. What kind of chance are you asking for?"

Still prostrate on the ground, Zaliki said in a muffled voice, "Allow us to live within your territory, just like the Minotaur Race."

Li Ziyu glanced at Tas Tuling. Seeing the Minotaur look back at his own kind with a helpless expression, Li Ziyu turned to Zaliki and asked, "Do you know why they’re able to coexist with us?"

Zaliki lifted his head and shook it. How could he possibly know? All he knew was that the Minotaurs were living well; no one had told him anything else.

’*Sigh*. He really is something else, daring to ask to live in the Undead Territory without knowing a thing.’ Li Ziyu looked up at the other Snake-men behind Zaliki. Their faces were filled with confusion and uncertainty. Pledging allegiance to the Undead had been Zaliki’s decision alone; he hadn’t discussed it with the other Snake-men at all.

In his heart, Li Ziyu wasn’t opposed to the Snake-men joining his Undead forces. In fact, he would be quite happy to have them live in the Fortress.

Although the Race under his command was the Undead Race, Li Ziyu himself was Human. And as everyone knows, Humans are social creatures who need interaction and enjoy a lively atmosphere. The Undead, obviously, couldn’t provide that. Compared to living races, the Undead were silent.

Instead of lively chatter, the Undead preferred silent slumber. Even with a convenient communication method like the Soul Network, Low Level Undead rarely communicated. Typically, only High Level Undead sent messages back and forth. This was likely because the Low Level Undead lacked sufficient intelligence.

Li Ziyu had long entertained the idea of having more people live in the Fortress. It would make the place feel more "alive," rather than cold and lifeless. His initial decision to take in the Tabu Minotaur had been based on this very thought.

Besides, doing so offered great benefits. While they currently had the Corpse Remains from the Wraith Mountain Range, that supply would eventually run out, no matter how vast. The Undead Race’s demand for Corpse Remains was enormous—practically endless. No amount would ever be enough to satisfy their consumption.

’Take the battle against the Cancerous Tumor Alliance Army, for example. Millions of Low Level Skeleton Undead were consumed. By that measure, how many more wars like that could the Corpse Remains in the Wraith Mountain Range sustain? What happens when they’re all used up?’