I Became the Progenitor Vampire

Originally, due to the death of the Half-Elf God, Liusi City had fallen into chaos, and after Lide suppressed the temple, it lost its high-level command.

This main city of the Half-Elves, unseen for hundreds of millions of years, now plunged completely into frenzied turmoil.

The Underground Races, enslaved by the Half-Elves, seized this opportunity to break out of their cages and began to kill and plunder; blood, severed limbs, flames, death, the screams of women, the wails of the elderly, the roars of the wounded warriors... Everything contributed to the city's descent into twilight and doom.

Dawn City did not play the role of a chaos creator in this chaotic situation; instead, it began suppressing the uprising and restoring order.

After its army entered Liusi City, it first took control of the Underground Races who were taking advantage of the chaos. Those who resisted or disobeyed orders were mercilessly killed.

Heads rolled in profusion, and blood soaked into the floor.

The strong and overbearing style instantly subdued the situation; those who thought of resisting lacked the means to confront the forces of Dawn City. Under the sharp warrior's swords and solid armors, the turmoil slowly returned to calm.

However, due to the large number of captives, it took a full ten Sunshine Hours for Dawn City's army to completely control Liusi City.

The more than two million Half-Elves within this city were all taken as captives and guarded in batches.

Eventually, because there were simply too many captives, half of them had to be escorted outside the city for surveillance.

When Dawn City's army took control of the city, the captured Half-Elves had completely lost the will to resist.

Especially since the Dawn army, with Lide's nod of approval, took the body of the Half-Elf God from the temple and had Magic Language Bats carry it around the streets several times, immediately making those Half-Elves who were still resentful wilt like frost-bitten eggplants.

With their god killed, what could they possibly muster to resist? And even if they did, what purpose would it serve?

After thoroughly crushing their psyche, these captives became very easy to manage.

By the time the epic battle that determined the fate of the Underworld's rule had its casualties and gains tallied, it was already the morning of the second day since the war began.

September 10th.

The Half-Elf temple.

Lide, sitting on the divine throne of the Half-Elf God, leisurely sipped wine unique to the Underworld from a Crystal Cup and listened to the reports from the high-level officials of Dawn City below.

"Your Excellency, regarding the total gains from Liusi City, we have worked through day and night to conduct our inventory and have roughly finalized a list of gains. Although there might be small discrepancies due to time constraints, the overall picture will not differ significantly," said Kapp, the Level 25 Legendary Beastman King, who was extremely excited at that moment.

The end of this war signified that the entirety of the Underworld had fallen under Dawn City's rule.

No other force could compete with Dawn City for dominion over this land anymore.

Dawn City now had a stable background for development, a fact that had exceptional significance at the point in time of the Old Days' arrival.

Lide glanced around the hall; the smiles on the faces of dozens of Dawn City's higher-ups were no less than Kapp's, and he felt quite satisfied internally.

"No worries, there's still time for more detailed data gathering. For now, just report the overall gains to me," he said.

"Yes, Your Excellency," Kapp immediately unfolded the paper in his hands and began to report earnestly.

"The main gains from this battle are as follows.

First, population.

After capturing Liusi City we took a total of 2.07 million Half-Elves as captives, and another 310,000 from other Underground Races. All these could become new Believers of the Twilight Sect, basking in Your divine light.

And during our advance from Twilight City to Liusi City, the total captives we caught amounted to 650,000.

Combining both, we have a total of 3.03 million captives."

3.03 million?

Lide couldn't help but feel elated hearing this number.

If these captives all became his Believers, coupled with the already existing older Believers, then the Twilight Sect would soon have more than 9 million followers.

This was an unimaginably vast treasure.

As his power level increased, the importance of the Power of Faith became more pronounced.

Believers capable of generating the Power of Faith were like gold mines that would never run dry, unless the followers died.

This would lay a solid foundation for his future development.

"Second, resources.

Twilight City stored a massive amount of ores, not only high-level ores such as Mithril fine gold, but also foundational ores like iron and copper mines.

Moreover, according to our interrogation, there are two large mithril mines and over a dozen giant iron mines in the Half-Elves' secret areas, which have not been exploited due to the difficulty of construction.

But with our Alchemy technology, we can completely develop these veins.

These resources will be of great aid to Dawn City, which is in dire need of ore resources."

Two mithril mines?

Lide's eyes sparkled upon hearing this.

How many risks had Dawn City taken to fight for the Dwarf Valley's mithril mines?

And now, suddenly, there were two.

Was this a stroke of luck?

Furthermore, the other veins were exactly what Dawn City currently needed.

With the large expansion of Dawn's army, came increased demand for equipment.

Iron mines, among the basic minerals, were in short supply in Dawn City; finding over a dozen giant veins was like rain in a drought.

The Underworld is indeed the Underworld - encountering so many veins out of the blue, and who knows how many more will be found after further exploration.

Lide was in high spirits.

"Third, food.

To our surprise, in the mountains beside Liusi City, the Half-Elves built more than twenty large warehouses.

These warehouses nearly penetrated the earth, storing an astronomical amount of food, most of which was the belly-filling Microglow Mushrooms. However, preliminary estimates are that they can provide for two million people over three years."

Kapp's words didn't stop, and his expression remained excited throughout; all these were treasures, with each one enough to intoxicate people.

"Fourth, the seized weapons and equipment..."

"Fifth, Gold Puck and gemstones..."

"Sixth..."

At last, Kapp listed over ten scattered spoils of war, each one enough to quicken one's pulse.

The Half-body Main City had gathered the vast majority of the Half-Elves, as well as their wealth, making this war a feast for Lide, leaving him with his belly and bowl full.

After the final tally, just the value of the various gemstones and Gold Pucks amounted to tens of millions of Gold Pucks.

The wealth the Half-Elves had accumulated over tens of thousands of years was now all his war spoils.

In the end, Lide couldn't help but marvel; indeed, murder and arson bring a golden belt.

Wealth from war was the easiest way to prosperity.

Of course, if one wasn't careful, it was also easy to lose even one's undershorts.

The warfare in the Underworld came to a complete end after the spoils had been cleared.

From the appearance of the One-eyed Giants in Giant Valley, killing the exploratory mining team's blacksmith, to Lide enslaving the One-eyed Giant, learning of the Underworld's existence, and now, the complete conquest of the Underworld, a full five years had passed.

In these five years, Dawn City had developed from an old castle into a massive force with a million soldiers and the presence of Legendary and Transcendent figures.

The initiator of all this was the man who had gone from slightly green to a true conqueror.

Right when Lide was reflecting on this milestone achievement, the system notification suddenly rang out.

"Ding, you have successfully defeated the original ruler of the Underworld—the Half-Elves—and killed their Divine being, taking over the Half-Elves' Main City, capturing 99% of the Half-Elves, completely denying them any chance to turn the tables.

You have become the new ruler of the Underworld, and you have acquired a new title—Underground Sovereign.

Underground Sovereign, you rule over a vast Underworld, with your Legend Level increasing by 30, the difficulty in persuading captured prisoners reduced by 70% in the Underworld, your Sect to be widely worshipped by the Unbelievers in the Underworld, making it easier to convert other deities' Believers during proselytizing.

Furthermore, within the Underworld, your deterring power over the life forms of the Underworld will increase by 1000%, you will gain a 300% All Attributes boost, and there's a great chance that High-level life forms of the Underworld will pledge allegiance to you."

Was this an unexpected gain?

Lide, upon seeing the system notification, appeared quite pleased.

Another powerful title.

Underground Sovereign—it sounded imposing, and the attributes were outstanding.

He read through it several times, most keen on the features that reduced the difficulty of persuading prisoners and the widespread worship of his Sect by Unbelievers.

In other words, from now on, the difficulty of the Twilight Sect's proselytizing in the Underworld would dramatically decrease.

This dovetailed perfectly with his focus on Sect development.

It could provide him with tremendous help.

From today onward, the Twilight Sect would be the only Sect in the entire Underworld.

And he would become the sole sovereign of this land.

"Kapp, immediately notify Harrison to dispatch the City Hall management staff down here to establish a new governance system.

Taking this land is not our ultimate goal. Developing its resources and making this land continually provide nourishment for Dawn City is the true purpose of our conquest of the Underworld."

Lide's gaze swiftly moved away from the attribute panel and looked towards Kapp with a deep and solemn tone.

"Moreover, order the Priests to tirelessly preach to these Underground Races day and night. Once these prisoners become Believers of the Twilight Sect,

We must mobilize troops as quickly as possible to conquer those scattered tribes in the barren lands.

I want you to spread the glory of the Twilight Church throughout the entire Underworld.

There can only be one voice on this land."

A single sentence determined fate.

How the Underworld would develop from now on—Lide had already made his decision.

His plan was simple.

First to assimilate the prisoners, then once they were subdued, to start attacking those small tribes. He wanted all the Underground Races to become Believers of the Twilight Sect and the land to become the complete backyard of Dawn City.

How much support could a stable rear provide for Dawn City? There was no need for elaboration.

"As you wish, Your Majesty!"

After a brief contemplation, Lide suddenly seemed to recall something and said with a furrow in his brow,

"Has it been so long, and have we found any trace of the Black Dragon?"

The Black Dragon of the Underworld, this mysterious entity he had been preoccupied with since the start of the assault on the Underworld, remained elusive even now that he was a Legend.

Seems like he had anticipated the beginning but not the end.

Upon hearing this, Kapp shook his head somewhat awkwardly.

"Your Majesty, we do not know where the Black Dragon is hidden. We have dispatched a large number of personnel into the Mire Swamps without finding any trace of it..."

The Mire Swamps were shrouded in a poisonous mist and vast in area. The difficulty of finding a terrifyingly powerful Black Dragon in such a dangerous place was imaginable.

Lide instinctively turned to look outside the window, where the sight of Withered Bones flying in the sky caught his eyes.

"Immediately send Withered Bones to the Mire Swamps. Perhaps this creature will bring me some surprises."

Previously, he had sent Withered Bones into the Mire Swamps, but at that time, Withered Bones was only Level 19 and too weak, hence too afraid to explore many dangerous areas.

Mire Swamps, though riddled with crises, posed fewer dangers to those at Transcendent Level, and becoming a Legend would mean one could practically strut around without concern.

With Withered Bones venturing there, perhaps there would be sizeable discoveries.

He had once boasted that he would make the Black Dragon a pet tied up in the square of Dawn City; now, it was time to fulfill that boast.

On September 12, Dawn City's City Hall sent a group of elite officials to the Underworld.

After discussions and inspections, these Elites devised a dual-main-city development strategy with Liusi City and Twilight City as the twin hubs.

Due to its convenient transportation, abundant surrounding mineral veins, and advantageous geographical environment, Liusi City was very suitable for development.

Whereas, due to its proximity to the Magic Crystal Vein and its capacity to quickly connect back to Dawn City through the Land of Bone-Burying, Twilight City was the core point for Dawn City and the Underworld to interconnect and could not be neglected.

With the arrival of officials trained through elite education, the originally chaotic situation was promptly improved, and the Ministry of Civil Affairs, Registry Office, Logistics Department, Propaganda Department, and so on were all restructured.

Everything began to fall into place.

On September 15, the war's prisoners—Half-Elves and other Underground Races—surrendered en masse due to the restrictions of Lide's title, Underground Sovereign.

The two Half-Elves who had fallen from Legendary to Level 20 Transcendent also knelt in submission under Lide's overwhelming power and upon hearing the news of the Half-body God's death.

And in order to rule the Half-Elves more conveniently, Lide directly assimilated the souls of the Half-Elf elite with the Power of Faith, thus stabilizing their current powers.

In the end, only two Transcendent Half-Elves remained, all the other Transcendents having fallen to Level 19.

But Lide didn't care much about this; the combat power of the Half-Elves was not strong, and he couldn't be bothered to elevate their Levels again.

Moreover, in the Underworld, aside from the unseen Black Dragon, Dawn City no longer had any enemies.

Just two Transcendent Half-Elves were enough to suppress the situation.

On September 20th, with the subjugation of the captives, the spread of the Twilight Sect's teachings accelerated significantly.

Those Half-Elves who had felt Lide's Divine Power became converts one after another, following the demise of their own deities.

By September 30th, all captives had been absorbed by the Twilight Sect in a mere 20 days, becoming loyal Believers.

And by this time, the number of Twilight Sect Believers on Lide's attribute panel had exceeded 9 million.

On October 5th, after a brief period of consolidation, the 3 million strong Twilight Sect, under Lide's command, began a carpet-sweeping campaign through the Underworld with Liusi City and Twilight City as its two main stages.

This time, Lide intended to thoroughly cleanse those hidden small tribes and eradicate any potential threats.

How mighty was the Twilight army? When the Half-Elves, who once ruled, were slain beneath their horses, how could those scattered tribes possibly stand against the great Twilight army?

Wherever the Twilight army went, everything turned to flat ground.

But this campaign was not without its troubles; it encountered several nuisances.

For instance, a Half-Beast tribe hidden among the hills unexpectedly had an army of over 300,000, with a leader who was Transcendent.

A Lizardman variant tribe—Flame Lizardmen—dwelling in caves numbered up to 500,000, with their chief being a single step away from reaching Legendary.

And after thorough searching, more than ten such tribes were discovered.

Some of these, like the Flame Lizardmen tribe, even caused Lide to personally take action to subjugate them.

Although this campaign faced some obstacles, since these tribes fought in isolation and could not unite, the ripples they caused were soon submerged by the Twilight army.

Vast swathes of land were thoroughly branded with the mark of the Twilight Sect.

By October 20th.

Over two-thirds of the land had been completely integrated into the Twilight Sect's territory, and all hidden tribes had been cleansed. A majority of the Underground Races had become followers of the Twilight Sect.

Those who refused to believe in the Twilight Sect were sent to work in the mines that were already operational.

During this process, Dawn City Hall's elite team of officials, after surveying maps, holding discussions, and numerous on-site inspections,

eventually decided to establish twelve new cities in the Underworld around the two main cities to better control the Underworld.

On November 2nd.

The military campaign in the Underworld was completed. Aside from the Mire Swamps and several other hazardous areas that the Twilight Sect's army had not ventured into, all other regions had been scoured by the military.

By the time the Twilight army withdrew to the royal court,

it was calculated that dozens of Underground Races had been captured, totaling over 3.2 million captives.

This was after excluding the population of the Cave Dwellers, for their numbers exceeded 2 million. If included, the total would reach a staggering 5 million.

As the population was too large to conveniently calculate, Lide forcibly ejected the Cave Dwellers to be counted separately.

Afterward, he instructed the Underworld's City Hall to establish a new household registration system to tally the population of each race one by one.

This census took an entire week, and the data was finalized on November 9.

The Twilight Sect currently ruled over 78 Underground Races, with a total population of 7.2 million, while the separately counted Cave Dwellers numbered 7 million, bringing the total to 14.2 million.

When Lide heard this figure, he was utterly astonished.

14 million people!!

Such an exaggerated, terrifying number!!

How many people did Dawn City have??

Moreover, except for a few stubborn fools who were still unwilling to convert, most of the population had adopted the faith of the Twilight Sect.

This directly pushed his number of Believers to an unprecedented peak—14 million followers.

Simply astonishing.

Every day, the amount of Power of Faith he received was astronomical, far exceeding what he had obtained in the previous month.

However, he then realized that having such a large population was normal as it came from conquering an Underworld roughly the size of the southern provinces on the surface.

In comparison to such a vast territory, the figure seemed somewhat small.

If it were the surface's southern provinces, it would be normal for the numbers to be three to five times greater, after all, he ruled all the races of the Underworld.

Among the 14 million population, the number of Cave Dwellers was without a doubt the most shocking to Lide.

No one had paid attention to these creatures with fearsome reproductive capabilities over the eons. The weak and filthy Cave Dwellers, who hid away in the depths of their caves, out of sight from the sun—no one knew or cared to count just how many of them there were.

It was he who recognized that Cave Dwellers were easy to convert, and he didn't care if accepting these lowly, dirty, and foul-smelling beings as his followers would lower his prestige. Otherwise, the Cave Dwellers might have remained hidden.

Setting aside the fact that the Cave Dwellers were too weak to become warriors, merely considering them as tools for producing Power of Faith was extremely beneficial—after all, they numbered 7 million. Incredible.

Once the census was complete, the cleanup phase of conquering the Underworld could also be considered finished.

What came next was to develop this land teeming with countless ore resources.

Lide had no intention of getting involved with this; he left it to the officials of the City Hall, whose rigorous training assured that their experience would be far more professional than his.

Although the cleanup phase had ended, and the entire Underworld was firmly in his grasp, the only thing that irritated Lide was the still missing Black Dragon.

Even Withered Bone went and found no trace—it was as if such a Black Dragon never existed in this world.

Lide had no choice but to call off Withered Bone's search, too lazy to continue looking for it. If it couldn't be found, then so be it—a Black Dragon, could it really turn the heavens upside down?

He would enslave another in the future and chain it up in Dawn City's square. After all, dragons weren't extinct, were they? If he really wanted to find one, would it be that hard?

Once his grip on the Underworld was completely secure, Lide didn't linger any longer, returning to Dawn City with Withered Bone and Kapp.

Conquering the Underworld was just the first step in a journey of a thousand miles; the threat of the Old Days was only just beginning.

——

——

——

Due to the influx of a large population, Dawn City, once a desolate ancient castle, was now extraordinarily prosperous.

The tavern was the favorite place for all residents of Dawn City to relax after a long day.

Because most of the rare wines in Dawn City's taverns were brewed using techniques passed down by the Kachar City Lord, and because there wasn't much in the way of leisure activities, in the eyes of many old residents, the tavern was an essential daily destination.

Although the huge city now had more than twenty taverns due to the population explosion,

the most attractive to residents was still Dawn City's first tavern—Bauhinia Tavern.

Because this tavern was operated by the logistics department of the City Hall, it possessed the largest selection of fine wines and the most lively environment.

At this moment, in the dimly lit but musically enchanting Bauhinia Tavern, everyone's eyes were on the central area, where a young maiden was gracefully dancing on what had been an ordinary round table for guests to drink at.

The girl was around eighteen or nineteen years old, in the prime of her youth, wearing a pristine white dress, exuding a temperament as elegant as a cat, yet with hints of mystery and pride.

With hands raised high, she moved her hips and waist to the upbeat music, her delicate face filled with joyful smiles.

Giggling, her laugh was as clear as a bell, echoing through the music and into the ears of those around her.

A pair of bare feet, as white as snow, danced lightly on the tabletop, the dark surface contrasting sharply with her pale feet, adding an enticing air to the cheerful dancer.

"Is this the new dancing girl? She's absolutely sensational. By the gods, I'd bet she's the most alluring girl I've ever seen. I'd give all my wealth to spend a night with her..."

"Fool, don't think of courting death. That young lady was brought back by the patrolling heroes a week ago..."

"What? Brought back by the patrol?"

"Yes, a week ago the patrol encountered an attack by a group of flying Demon Beasts. Several of them were grievously injured and near death. In the end, while fleeing, they encountered Miss Bast.

The brave and beautiful Miss Bast led some patrol members into a cave and devised a plan to lure those flying Demon Beasts into a confined space, where she personally killed them, saving the patrol members."

"Such a heroic tale, and you didn't know?"

"So that's why there have been so many heroes from the patrol visiting the tavern to watch Miss Bast dance recently. I thought it was Miss Bast's charm that drew them..."

"Now you know. Don't mess with Miss Bast, or the heroes from the patrol won't let you off easily..."

Over a dozen musicians played vibrant and rhythmic music, quickly heating up the atmosphere.

Many customers in the tavern, stimulated by the alcohol, began to dance along with the girl standing on the tabletop, who moved her waist with feline agility.

The tavern was instantly filled with joy and fervor, everyone basking in the bliss brought by the delightful young woman.

"Praise be to the Kachar City Lord. Miss Bast is the most beautiful woman I've ever seen... It's such a pleasure to see Miss Bast dance."

"Hahaha, I bet tonight is the most joyful time I've had all year..."

"Another round of Gold Ale! Let's drink till we drop tonight..."

"By the gods, this is just mesmerizing... I would kneel and kiss the back of Miss Bast's foot..."

Making eye contact with the reveling crowd around her, Bast, the dancing girl standing on the table, revealed a slightly sultry smile, seemingly too mature for her age.

Then with enchanting eyes, she provocatively licked her upper lip with her tongue and then, like a wild cat, licked her wrist, just as fine as jade. The people below, witnessing this scene, were plunged into an even more frenzied mood.

Numerous men, their hormones rising, simultaneously swallowed hard and then gulped down a large bottle of fine wine.

Feeling the increasingly fervent atmosphere around her, the young woman Bast at the center of everyone's focus let out a coquettish smile and prepared to make her next move when suddenly, from outside, an excited voice could be heard, causing the tavern to fall silent in an instant.

"Hahaha, great news!! Great news!!

Lord Kachar has conquered the Underworld!! The army is now returning from the Underworld!!

He has commanded that tomorrow, at Moonlight Square, medals of honor will be awarded to the troops, and all are welcome to attend the ceremony!!"

The crowd that had been reveling suddenly had its attention captured by these words, and the tavern that had been enveloped in an unusual atmosphere abruptly broke free from that environment of pleasure and joy, becoming frenzied in an instant.

"Hahaha, those damned brats of the Underworld, under the brilliance of our Lord, will surely be conquered!!"

"By the Goddess above, Dawn City shall become an immortal city!"

"For Dawn City!"

"Our Lord is invincible!! Dawn City is also invincible!! Long live!!"

"..."

Then the crowd began to swarm out, all pouring toward the streets outside, and the lively atmosphere that had just been created instantly vanished.

Dawn City had won another victory, a tremendously good piece of news. If one went early now, they might even catch a glimpse of Lord Kachar's holy countenance.

In just a scant three or four minutes, the tavern that had been bustling with extreme liveliness was now left with only about twenty staff members. The jovial atmosphere from before seemed as if it had never existed.

The girl who stood on the table, graceful and enchanting like a cat, was absolutely dumbfounded by this scene.

In those beautiful amber eyes filled a bit of peculiarity... these bastards, they just up and left so abruptly?

The atmosphere that had taken a week to build up... all ruined...

At the same time, the girl's heart was filled with boundless curiosity about Kachar City Lord, the legendary figure.

During her time in this strange city, she had heard no shortage of stories about Kachar City Lord.

And everyone, including those doing lowly jobs like washing dishes, feeding horses, or cleaning sewers, praised the Kachar City Lord without cease, with a worship that bordered on madness.

Regrettably, the legendary figure who had built this charismatic city had gone off to battle in the Underworld two months ago, and she had never had the chance to meet him.

Now, hearing the news of Lide's return, the girl who was like a cat, full of laziness, agility, elegance, and a touch of pride, seemed to think of something interesting, her eyes twinkling.

"Kachar City Lord... giggle, really quite interesting. I never thought I'd see such an intriguing mortal on the Main Plane...

I hope you won't disappoint me... giggle..."

With this thought, the girl flipped over, landing nimbly on the ground, then, twisting her slender waist, she walked straight out of the tavern. The surrounding staff greeted the girl with smiles, full of enthusiasm.

As the girl vanished from the tavern, at an unnoticed second-floor corner, a figure cloaked in a dark cape slowly descended the stairs.

What was more surprising was that the surrounding staff seemed completely oblivious to this mysterious person, as if he didn't exist.

The mysterious cloak-wearer's face, hidden in the shadows, revealed only a prominent nose and a pair of silver-gray eyes.

Looking at the now empty tavern, he lightly sniffed, as if catching a peculiar scent.

After a moment, his enigmatic eyes revealed a trace of chillness.

"Bast? No, Charis is your God Name, Cat and Joy Goddess...

Hehehe, it is interesting indeed that in this strange city, I've encountered this wild cat..."