Chapter 430: Fel Contamination
Taking a deep breath, Old One-Eye personally blew the first rat whistle he had made. The Skaven, already in a state of collective frenzy, surged towards the tall city walls without hesitation. They used their sharp claws to grip the brick crevices, their flexible bodies clinging tightly to the wall, and climbed upwards with astonishing agility and speed. It was as if a thick curtain was being pulled up from the bottom of the wall.
Unfortunately, although Skaven are considered furry, they are not cute in the slightest. The Drow guards and Gray Dwarf heavy infantry standing on the wall would not show mercy because of that.
The Drow guards, clad in black armor, raised their well-crafted repeating crossbows and swiftly and nimbly shot poisoned bolts accurately at the Skaven’s foreheads. The Gray Dwarf heavy infantry, like iron cans, also quickly swung their battle axes, splitting open the skulls of every Skaven that poked its head over the wall, splattering blood and brains before their eyes.
But it was useless. Without heavy firepower coverage and having lost the defensive advantage, facing a tide of tens of thousands of frenzied Skaven, the so-called city defense was a joke.
Of course, the Upper District would not only have this little ability, and even if they were watching the show, the Drow Matriarchs would not allow these filthy Skaven to run rampant in the Upper District. Therefore, they were prepared to activate the Upper District’s sterilization barrier. However, would Old One-Eye be unprepared?
With a sneer from Old One-Eye, violent explosions erupted in the Upper and Middle Districts. Ominous green flames and dust rose into the sky, shrouding a large area of Mithril City and plunging countless residents into panic.
Although the explosions in the Upper District were not numerous and not even in the core area, they cleverly caused regional blockades at various nodes. At least until the Fel energy within the blast radius dissipated, any unlucky soul who dared to pass through the explosion zone would be contaminated by Fel energy. As for whether they would become part of the Fel or have Fel seeds planted within them, it would depend on whether they could endure it.
Most fatally, these Fel bombs also contaminated nearby pipelines. A large amount of green fluorescent water flowed into the Middle and Lower Districts, and even some areas of the Upper District were contaminated.
“Fel energy is really useful,” Old One-Eye muttered. Unfortunately, it had never made up its mind to fully embrace the Fel, and the betrayal of the Fel Skaven at this moment made it completely abandon the idea of joining the Fel. However, this did not mean that it would not utilize Fel energy.
All the Fel energy obtained from the Fel Skaven before had been turned into Fel bombs by Old One-Eye. These bombs were buried in key nodes through secret tunnels. Once detonated, they were enough to contaminate half of Mithril City, which was enough to shake the very foundation of Mithril City.
Originally just a trump card for mutual destruction, Old One-Eye had not intended to use it. But now it didn’t matter anymore. Let those high and mighty guys taste the anger it had accumulated over decades.
The green fluorescent dust from the Fel bombs contaminated a large area, much of it mixing into crucial waterways. It was conceivable how large the contaminated area would be in the future, and this made the Drow Matriarchs who were watching the show unable to sit still any longer. Their faces were extremely grim.
The Drow Matriarchs were not unfamiliar with Fel energy, but compared to other forces, they had not taken it seriously. Their minds were occupied with seeking stimulation to fill their emptiness, so who would care how big the threat of Fel energy was?
But when the Drow Matriarchs present realized the consequences of Fel energy spreading in Mithril City, they suddenly became alert.
To become a Drow Matriarch and hold that position firmly was not just about being able to give birth. In fact, every Drow Matriarch was proficient in assassination, poison, conspiracy, politics, lies, and betrayal. They were the best among thousands of Drow, and never stupid.
It was just that prolonged rule and indulgence had made them lax, both internally and externally, both physically and mentally. They were too addicted to playing with power and pleasure, which had led to not only a slow response to external threats, but also a fatal mistake: carelessness. This was the reason for the current passive situation.
But it didn’t matter. As the seven Matriarchs who controlled the Mithril City Council, they knew too well the foundation of Mithril City. Although Fel energy was troublesome, it was not invincible.
“This carnival feast ends here.” The tallest and most voluptuous Drow Matriarch in the hall stood up, her towering figure looking down at the surrounding guests. She spoke coldly, as if she wasn’t the one who had just enjoyed eight Minotaur slaves alone.
The other six Drow Matriarchs got up and left one after another. As soon as these seven left, the remaining guests, regardless of whether they were clothed or not, ran away as fast as their legs could carry them. After all, everything that happened in Mithril City was projected for all to see. They had a clear view of the situation. The sooner they left, the more losses they could recover. So who would care about clothes at this point? Even if they were just doing push-ups or being sown, they would run out, dripping and shaking.
At this time, the Drow General who had been waiting outside the Mithril Hall had already been beheaded, accused of incompetence in battle and delaying military intelligence.
Everyone knew he was wronged, but so what? It wasn’t their heads that were being chopped off. As long as the Drow Matriarchs could vent their anger and not take it out on them, it didn’t matter if a few more died.
Entering the Mithril Hall and sitting on the high-backed chairs that represented power, the seven Drow Matriarchs each took a mithril key from their necks and inserted them into the high platform table in front of them. Immediately, the entire scene of Mithril City appeared before their eyes, including the first and second layers of the Rat Nest. Only the third layer, shrouded in Fel energy, remained invisible.
“Damn Skaven, they actually dared to hollow out Mithril City!” An enraged Drow Matriarch slammed her hand on the table and then realized that the sudden vibration had caused a toy she had forgotten in a corner to fall to the floor. However, she calmly kicked it into a corner and continued to slam the table to express her anger. It was just that no one cared.
Each Drow Matriarch would exhibit a particular characteristic, such as being easily angered, gluttonous, greedy, insidious, and so on. But everyone knew that this was not the true personality of the Drow Matriarchs, but a disguise, a trap specially prepared for their enemies.
However, the overly realistic disguise would always cause some unlucky people to fall into the hands of these Drow Matriarchs. Over time, the seven Drow Matriarchs had become accustomed to this routine and would exhibit it at any time, enriching their own character settings.
But everyone present was a thousand-year-old fox, playing each other, so no one paid attention to her. Instead, they began to vote on whether to mobilize the hidden strength of Mithril City to deal with this Skaven tide.
The enraged Drow Matriarch maintained her previous expression, but quickly voted in favor. Then she took the opportunity to pick up the toy that had fallen on the floor with her toes and secretly hid it in her hand. However, she found that she couldn’t hide it because the toy was a bit big. She had to put it back where it was and wait patiently for the meeting to end.
