Chapter 270: The Ancestor's Legacy

Early the next morning, before the fiery red sun had even breached the horizon, it eagerly cast down its radiant heat. As the temperature steadily rose, slumbering Oqi City awoke.

In high spirits, Gurgalu chased his own shadow up the steps to the White Castle, climbing all the way to the grand gates at the top.

Two towering Ogre guards stood on either side of the White Castle's gilded doors. Clad in ornate white full-body armor, they wielded standard-issue Enchanted Single-Edged Greataxes. Blue-Backed Four White Dragon Ring Capes draped over their shoulders. They stood at the entrance like iron pillars driven halfway into the earth.

These Ogre guards were elites meticulously handpicked from the army by the White Dragon Lord. Every single one was a High-Tier Warrior; they were the very face of the White Castle.

"Prime Minister!"

Upon seeing Gurgalu, the Ogre guards bowed.

Gurgalu nodded. He noticed dense beads of morning dew clinging to their armor. The droplets showed no signs of rolling, proving that these two guards had stood perfectly motionless throughout the dead of night to protect the White Castle.

"Good work."

With that word of praise, Gurgalu stepped through the grand doors and made his way toward the White Tower.

Along the way, he encountered more Ogre guards stationed in pairs, securing every critical passage within the fortress.

This sight lifted his already excellent mood. Every visible guard in the White Castle was an Ogre.

It was a clear sign of the White Dragon Lord's favoritism toward the Ogre race.

This preferential treatment was an open secret across the Overseas Archipelago. The other races harbored jealousy and envy, but they voiced no complaints.

The Ogres possessed racial talents that other species simply couldn't match. Even a wild Ogre without any formal training would naturally reach a Creature Level of Level 7 or Level 8 upon reaching adulthood.

The Ogres raised in the White Castle, however, enjoyed abundant nutrition and rigorous discipline from childhood. While their raw Creature Level didn't jump significantly, their actual combat prowess was in a completely different realm from their wild kin. The gap was like comparing commoners to professional soldiers—specifically, elite soldiers groomed for war since birth.

Armed with custom armor and weapons forged by the Dwarves, and wielding qi cultivated since childhood, every Ogre in the White Castle's army boasted combat strength rivaling standard human high-tier professionals.

The seven hundred thousand Ogres scattered across the Overseas Archipelago effectively amounted to an army of seven hundred thousand high-tier professionals. The other races could only stare in awe, unable to catch up.

Upon arriving at the White Tower, Gurgalu found the White Dragon Lord deeply engrossed in a Spellbook. The Ogre quietly stood off to the side to wait.

A short while later, the White Dragon Lord lowered the Spellbook and shook his head, as if nursing a slight headache.

"Have you decided?"

Hearing this, Gurgalu answered.

"I have. I choose the Official Member Contract."

The White Dragon Lord nodded.

"Then let us go."

The White Dragon Lord led Gurgalu down the spiral staircase to the White Tower's Teleportation Chamber.

Master and servant stepped onto the Teleportation Platform. Immediately, the Tower Spirit began drawing power from the Elemental Pool to charge the platform.

A blinding radiance erupted, and the pair vanished from the White Castle.

City of the Sky, Samaria.

Inside the main tower that pierced the heavens, the private Teleportation Platform reserved for councilors flared to life. The White Dragon Lord and Gurgalu appeared within the white light.

"Welcome back to Samiria, Councilor Amos."

Tower Spirit One's customary greeting rang out. The White Dragon Lord brought Gurgalu to his private lounge. Designed specifically to accommodate massive creatures like him, the room utilized spatial folding technology to ensure there was more than enough space.

As high-ranking members of the Council, councilors enjoyed a host of other privileges beyond private Teleportation Platforms and personal lounges.

"Tower Spirit One, I nominate the descendant of the demon-slaying hero Caucasus—the two-headed ogre Gurgalu—to become an official member of the Council. Send over a formal contract."

"Understood. Please wait a moment."

The White Dragon Lord had sought out the records of Gurgalu's Bano Flame Demon-slaying ancestor right after joining the Council. The Ogre had indeed lived a legendary life.

Thirteen thousand years ago, the Abyss launched a massive invasion. During the early stages of the war, the various races fought independently and suffered crushing defeats, allowing half the continent to fall into the clutches of the Demons.

At the critical juncture of Nordhill's survival, the Elven Race—the overlords of the continent at the time—called upon every living creature in Nordhill to unite against the common enemy. Thus, the Continental Allied Forces were formed, marking the beginning of the war's middle phase.

Gurgalu's ancestor, the two-headed ogre Caucasus, joined the Allied Forces during this very period.

Under unified command, the Allied Forces gradually stabilized the front lines, dragging the conflict into a grinding stalemate that spanned decades.

While holding off the Demonic invasion, the Allied Forces actively reached out to the Star Realm in search of external allies, slowly turning the tide in their favor.

Amidst those years of iron and blood, a great number of legendary figures emerged. Caucasus was one of them. Earning illustrious military merits on the battlefield, he caught the attention of the Allied Forces' high command.

Thanks to the inherent advantage of having two heads—allowing him to wield the powers of two different classes simultaneously—Caucasus, at the Legendary Rank Tier, was practically invincible among his peers. Even when faced with a standard High-Tier Legend, he could hold his ground.

Such a formidable warrior drew significant attention from the military. The Allied Forces specially forged the Combat Staff of Caucasus as a reward for the legendary two-headed ogre.

Caucasus did not disappoint. Relying on the overpowering enchantments of the Combat Staff of Caucasus, he slaughtered dozens of Bano Flame Demons, carving out his fearsome moniker as their butcher.

During the final, apocalyptic decisive battle, even deities personally descended to fight. Nordhill lost more than a dozen High-Tier Legends, and the number of fallen legendary powerhouses was simply incalculable.

Caucasus tragically fell in battle, but before his death, he dragged a High-Tier Legendary Demon down to the grave with him.

The Demons were finally repelled, leaving behind a scarred and broken Nordhill Continent. On a battlefield defined by mountains of corpses and seas of blood, the various races signed a pact witnessed by the gods themselves. Thus, the Nordhill Guardian Council was born.

That was the origin of the Nordhill Guardian Council.

Following its establishment, the Council drafted numerous rules and regulations. The relics of fallen heroes were safely returned to their descendants. Without this protection, the Skull-Crusher Ogres of that era would never have been able to hold onto Legendary equipment like the Combat Staff of Caucasus.

Not long after, a magical servant delivered the contract. Gurgalu promptly signed it.

From that moment on, Gurgalu became an official member of the Guardian Council, granting him the right to roam freely within the Sky City.

The White Dragon Lord was just about to tell Gurgalu to go take a look around the Sky City when he saw the Ogre's body suddenly stiffen, a look of utter bewilderment spreading across his face.

"What is it?"

Gurgalu wore an incredibly strange expression.

"Master, the Tower Spirit just notified me that I am to inherit the legacy of my ancestor, Caucasus. It asked me to go verify my bloodline."

Since the Tower Spirit's voice could only be heard by the intended recipient, the White Dragon Lord had no idea what it had actually said. He was genuinely surprised. The Council had clearly been established after Caucasus's death.

Perhaps fallen legendary practitioners were posthumously awarded compensation points, waiting for a descendant to join the Council and claim their ancestor's inheritance.

The White Dragon Lord checked the Council's tens of thousands of regulations and, sure enough, found the clause regarding compensation for those killed in action.

The Council's systems were quite accommodating; this array of policies ensured that legendary practitioners had no worries about what they left behind.

Gurgalu was practically itching to go. The White Dragon Lord had already explained the immense value of points to him, and the Ogre began anticipating his ancestor's legacy.

"Go on. After you claim your inheritance, take a look at the mission hall and the exchange hall. You might find yourself visiting those two places very often in the future."

The relationship between an official member and the Council was somewhat similar to that between an adventurer and an adventurer's guild. Upon completing tasks issued by the Council, official members earned points, which could then be spent in the exchange hall for items.

Core members, on the other hand, received a fixed salary and had missions directly assigned to them by the Council, though these tasks still rewarded points. During their free time, core members would also browse the mission hall for suitable work.

Peripheral members were still in an observation period; after all, joining the Council carried a strict threshold.

Councilors belonged to an entirely different system altogether.

On the Nordhill Continent, the combined population of intelligent races and extraordinary creatures numbered in the hundreds of billions. While tens of thousands of legendary powerhouses were documented on record, there were only thirty or so High-Tier Legends.

Councilors were an incredibly scarce and precious resource, naturally enjoying a wide range of exclusive privileges.

The authority to directly command the Tower Spirits sat at the very core of a councilor's privileges.

Publicly, the Sky City claimed to house seven Tower Spirits. However, the White Dragon Lord knew there were actually nine. The final two were immensely mysterious; he only knew they existed and nothing more.

He was much more familiar with Tower Spirits One through Seven, which managed the day-to-day operations of the Council.

Tower Spirit One was the core Tower Spirit, possessing vast capabilities. It primarily managed the main tower of the Sky City. As the city's central hub, the main tower handled critical functions such as cross-plane teleportation and hosting the void conference room.

Tower Spirit No. 2 managed the point system; Tower Spirit No. 3 oversaw the exchange system; Tower Spirit No. 4 handled the mission system; Tower Spirit No. 5 maintained the Spatial Lockdown Magic Array; Tower Spirit No. 6 commanded the Floating Towers; and Tower Spirit No. 7 monitored the interior of the plane for abnormal magical fluctuations.

Since the official in charge of travel to the Star Realm had not yet returned, the White Dragon Lord found himself waiting in sheer boredom. Figuring he might as well try it out, he issued a mental command.

"Tower Spirit No. 3, pull up the material catalog."

This was the direct-access privilege of a councilor. Ordinary members had to physically travel to the exchange hall and use public crystal boards, but councilors could directly command the Tower Spirits.

As soon as he spoke, an incredibly magical—almost sci-fi-like—virtual interface materialized in front of him, displaying a dazzling array of magical materials.

The White Dragon Lord entered Weeping Soul Grass into the search bar. Blank.

Next, Exquisite Flower. Still nothing.

The next one, Celestial Crocodile Dragon Heart Blood. Also nothing.

Magical materials encompassed an impossibly vast range of items, and it was unrealistic to expect the Council to have everything in stock. The White Dragon Lord let out a sigh.

The very last one, Soil of Life. Still...

Hm?!

They had it!

The White Dragon Lord hurriedly bought it.

For the remaining three materials, he would just have to wait for the Star Realm official to return. Bored, he began leisurely scrolling through the magical materials catalog, much like window-shopping to kill time.

The Council classified magical materials into three tiers: Ordinary, Legendary, and Divine.

Ordinary materials were the less rare magical items commonly used by most legendary practitioners. Anything used by those beneath the Legendary Rank was not stocked by the Council, simply because reaching the Legendary Rank was the minimum requirement for membership.

Legendary materials were exceptionally rare. Most of the resources required by High-Tier Legends fell into this category.

Out of the one hundred and twenty magical materials required for an advanced Bloodline Advancement Ritual, over seventy were at the Legendary grade.

Divine materials, as the name implied, were resources that only deities or beings of similar stature could access.

The White Dragon Lord checked the box for the Divine tier. The resulting list was short, featuring a mere thirty items, but every single one of them was terrifying. Divinity was prominently listed among them.

However, what truly wounded his draconic heart was the fact that out of those thirty-plus materials, he couldn't afford a single one. The endless string of zeroes trailing the price tags filled the dragon with despair.

Glancing through them, he noticed the cheapest item demanded no less than one hundred thousand points. Building the White Tower had essentially drained his life's savings; even the points he had just used to buy the Bloodline Advancement Ritual material came from selling off a portion of his Elemental Crystals.

While he couldn't afford any of it, there was no harm in feasting his eyes and broadening his horizons.

The White Dragon Lord looked at the names of the providers. Half of the thirty-odd items had been put up by Merlin Heavenly Principle. The rest were listed by powerful figures on the same level as Grand Duke Silver Dragon. Only a rare few were listed anonymously, clearly wary of the truth that bearing a jade brings trouble.

Although the Sky City was incredibly safe, and the interior of the Nordhill Plane was constantly monitored by the Tower Spirits—making murder and robbery highly unlikely—once one traveled to other planes, survival relied entirely on sheer strength.

After all, missions involving foreign planes were the main focus of the Council.

The White Dragon Lord shifted his gaze to the very top of the Divine material list. It was a low-quality Heart of the World, bearing an astronomical price tag of fifty million points. The sheer cost was enough to leave anyone speechless.

Yet, this Heart of the World was absolutely worth the price.

A Heart of the World was not a physical entity; it was an amalgamation of rules, much like Divinity.

Every complete plane nurtured a Heart of the World. Once it was extracted, the plane would suffer catastrophic damage. On the lighter end, it would cause elemental chaos, endless landslides, tsunamis, and other natural disasters. On the heavier end, the plane would completely disintegrate into fragments lost in the void.

But extracting a Heart of the Plane was no easy feat. First and foremost, they were incredibly well-hidden, usually buried deep within the crust. Even if one managed to locate it, they had to be prepared to endure the devastating backlash of the entire plane upon taking it. This planar retaliation was unimaginably terrifying and could easily result in instant death.

Furthermore, whoever took the Heart of the Plane would be struck by a planar Curse, becoming forever despised by the natural world. It was said that being cursed by a plane could even affect a person's luck.

The higher the level of the plane, the more violent the backlash, and the more potent the Curse.

Planes were divided into six tiers: demiplane, sub-plane, Small Material Plane, Medium Material Plane, Large Material Plane, and Super-Large Material Plane.

A demiplane was a newly formed dimension—simply put, a chunk of land in the void.

A sub-plane was the transitional phase before a dimension matured into a material plane. At this stage, the plane possessed a thin atmosphere, and its laws had just begun to incubate a Heart of the World. A Heart of the World at this stage was considered low-quality.

A material plane featured fully developed laws capable of sustaining biological life. The classifications of Small, Medium, Large, and Super-Large were simply dictated by the plane's total surface area.

Nordhill itself was a Super-Large Material Plane.