Black Hearted Mage

Chapter 152 Complete the transaction 2

"Caesar, do you have a strong life potion and a strong vitality potion?" Duke Barton had a flattering smile on his face, and his mouth was so wide that it seemed to reach his ears.

Caesars glanced at the seemingly enthusiastic Duke of Barton and thought to himself: Why is this guy smiling so ingratiatingly? He must have no good intentions. So he replied expressionlessly, "No, that kind of thing is too precious. How can I get it?"

Duke Barton left a bad impression on Caesars. The grave of the venerable Duchess, Vivian Barton, was overgrown with weeds and trees, completely obscuring even the path leading to it. And all this was caused by this so-called Duke Barton, who had never assigned anyone to maintain it. The Duchess had protected the Roland Empire for over two thousand years, yet now she was in such a desolate state, denied the proper courtesy and respect. It was truly disheartening.

Although the Duke of Barton's real surname is not Barton, and he has no blood relationship with the Duchess, it is only because of the Dukedom of Barton that he has such an honorable title.

"Is there really nothing at all?" Duke Barton seemed unwilling to give up and continued to ask.

"Really not!" Caesars responded categorically, with an extremely firm attitude.

At this moment, the housekeeper came hurriedly, holding a storage ring in her hand, and walked to the Duchess's side.

"Aunt, give Mr. Caesars two thousand kilograms of black tea. I just traded five bottles of powerful antidote with him!"

The housekeeper nodded and took out ten wooden boxes. Caesars opened one of them, and the fresh aroma of black tea gushed out. He quickly closed the box and stored all the tea leaves in his space ring.

Top-quality black tea needs to be stored at low temperatures, the lower the better. He has a high-end ice array disk that can quickly lower the temperature of the tea leaves and the wooden box before placing them in the space ring. However, with outsiders present, he can't take out such a treasure as the ice array disk.

The aged Duke of Barton was very disappointed. He looked at Caesars, then stood up and slowly walked towards the stairs. His black and gold noble robe had many wrinkles from sitting for so long that it needed ironing to smooth them out.

Caesar also stood up at this time. The owner of the Duke's Castle had issued an order to expel him, so there was no point in staying here any longer.

"Alas, I didn't even get a sip of tea!"

"Mr. Caesars, we were rude. We were too busy examining Trudeau's body. Aunt, please bring out another hundred kilograms of tea as apology!"

The Duchess began to speak, her generosity forming a sharp contrast to that of the old Duke.

"Thank you very much, Duchess. I have to go to Solomon Castle for something. That old guy is easier to talk to than Duke Barton!"

Under the Duchess's astonished gaze, Caesars packed up a box and walked out of the castle. Two golden-eyed black snakes, one large and one small, followed closely behind him.

Solomon's Castle is not too far away, and it only takes about ten minutes to walk. The inner city is very quiet, with almost no shops here, and it is full of large mansions and garden castles near the street.

When they arrived at the gate of Solomon's Castle, several guards looked at the two golden-eyed black snakes with vigilance.

"Don't move, don't scare the black snake!" said Caesar.

"Master Magician, we were frightened. The pet you brought is too dangerous!" a guard said incoherently.

"They're not dangerous and very obedient. Just stand still!"

As Caesar spoke, he walked into the castle garden, followed by two golden-eyed black snakes, and several guards watched him motionlessly.

"No one has gone in to report yet!" a guard suddenly said.

"We have to rush in right away. What if the Golden-Eyed Black Demonic Snake thinks you're going to attack it and sprays us with a mouthful of venom as thick as soup? Besides, Commander Delon never reported this magician entering the castle. If the Duke asks about it, we'll put the blame on the Golden-Eyed Black Demonic Snake!"

Several guards from the Duke's Palace discussed with each other and watched Caesar walk to the castle gate.

In the luxurious living room of the Duke's Mansion, the guard commander Delon, the butler Roy, and Duke Solomon were sitting on the sofa and talking in low voices.

"You guys are going to the North too!"

Caesars quietly entered the living room and heard the conversation between the three people, then spoke with some curiosity.

"You scared me! Caesars, how come you're just like Carlos, walking without making any sound."

The old Duke Solomon was somewhat dissatisfied. They had just sent away the servants and maids before discussing the matter of going to the Northland Plateau.

"Your Excellency the Duke, many people are going to the Northern Plateau. This is no secret. Do you have to be so cautious?" Caesars expressed doubt.

"As for! A road leading underground was discovered on the south side of the Icecrown Mountains. The people of the North saw golden vipers inside, thicker than a human thigh!"

"Come in!"

Caesar blew a whistle and shouted towards the castle gate. Just as Duke Solomon and the others were surprised, a thick golden-eyed black demon snake slowly entered the living room, with the small snake now lying on its back.

"Is the golden viper as thick as it?" Caesars said, pointing at the big snake.

"Kaisas, you brought such a big golden-eyed black demon snake with you? The golden viper should be about the same thickness as it!"

Caesars knew why Duke Solomon had gone to the North. It was for the extremely vigorous Golden Viper. The Golden Viper was a rarer variant of the Viper, larger in size, and its flesh contained an extremely high vitality, comparable to a powerful life potion.

"Your Excellency, catching the golden viper won't be easy, will it? It's the leader of the snake pack. Considering the number of northern vipers that have appeared, getting close to it should be very difficult!"

"Boy, how do you know so much? The Golden Viper only appeared twice and never appeared again!" Duke Solomon was a little confused. What Caesar said was basically correct.

"Your Excellency the Duke, you'd better not go to the Northern Plateau. It will be dangerous no matter how many guards you bring with you!" said Caesars.

"Boy, Delon is quite powerful, so why would it be dangerous if he brought extra guards?"

Duke Solomon asked with some confusion, while the burly Delon didn't understand either, and the butler Roy was also waiting for an explanation for Caesars's departure.

"When vipers gather in large numbers, some toxins accumulate around them. The poison at this point is not lethal. Once someone approaches them, they will hiss in warning and spit out toxins from their mouths. This can't be considered spitting out venom; it's the venom in their mouths being carried out with their breathing. The toxins around a group of vipers will rapidly increase in concentration, and if they're in a cave, it might form a poisonous fog. No matter how powerful Commander Delong is, he can't dispel the poison, and if things get too intense, he'll just die!"

Delon, the commander of the guards of the Duke's Palace, was also shocked when he heard the news revealed by Caesar.

"Kaisas, if we don't go, we won't be able to get the Golden Viper!"

"It'll be hard to get it even if you go. The Magic Guild and the Northern Tower both need to go to the Northern Plateau. They might even start a fight over the Golden Viper!"

"No, they don't know about the path leading underground yet, and our people have only just found out about it!"

Duke Solomon looked at Caesar, and finally he reluctantly told the truth.

"Where's the map? The Golden Viper is hard to catch; it's the leader of the snake pack. I can go in and take a look underground, and I can record a complete video for you!"

"Kaisas, you're not going to hunt the Golden Viper?"

"I'm not strong enough to do it right now, and those great magicians can't even think of hunting it down!"

Caesars had read some records about the Golden Viper in the books of the Magic Tower. The appearance of the large Golden Scaled Viper among vipers required certain specific conditions. It required a warm environment and ample food imbued with magical energy, which was most likely the cause of its mutation and evolution.

"Without a map, if you can find the only hot spring east of the Icecrown Mountains, you'll spot our men. If you go there, I'll use telemetry to notify him in advance!"

Caesars nodded, looking at Duke Solomon meaningfully. This old man was quite resourceful, having dispatched his men to the highlands early on and even suppressed such important news.

"Your Excellency the Duke, I will leave in six days!"

Caesars pulled out a map of the Northland Plateau and asked Delon to point out the approximate location of the hot springs. The Icecrown Mountains stretched for tens of thousands of miles, and even the easternmost point alone was thousands of miles long, making it extremely difficult to find a hot spring.

"It's right here, below the seventh peak from east to west. The hot spring is easy to find, with steam rising straight out!"

Delon pointed at the animal skin map and pointed out the location of the hot spring.

"There is still thick snow there, and it will take half a month for it to completely melt. Will your people stay there for the winter?" Caesars asked.

"His horse died, and he couldn't return in time. He could only wait for the ice and snow on the plateau to melt, then go to the northern tribe and buy a wild bull to ride back!"

Kaisas nodded slightly. The people in the north did not raise horses. Because of their height and weight, they all chose to ride the northern bulls.

"My Lord Duke, the price of the Image Stone is quite high. It's freezing in the Icecrown Mountains. You'll need at least fifty barrels of Fire Maple Wine to keep warm!"

Caesars's words were so blunt that even Delon was taken aback by his offer. Butler Roy sat expressionlessly. Duke Solomon rolled his eyes and sighed helplessly.

"Roy, give him fifty barrels of Fire Maple Wine. It's really freezing in the Icecrown Mountains!"

The butler nodded slightly, immediately understanding that this was just Duke Solomon's excuse. The north side of the Icecrown Mountains was indeed freezing cold, while the south, nearing the spring bloom, felt a bit chilly, though not at all freezing.

"It is you, the Duke, who understands my hard work!" Caesar said with a smile.

"Kaisas, if you can get the golden ginseng, I'll be more considerate of you. Fire maple wine that's been cellared for decades is nothing, but fire maple wine that's been cellared for hundreds of years is truly mellow. If you can get me the golden ginseng, I can give you five barrels of century-old wine!"

Duke Solomon guided him step by step. He wanted status and wealth, and now he just wanted to live a few more years.

"Your Excellency, Golden Ginseng and Carrots. So many mercenaries have been to the Endless Forest, but how many of them came out with Golden Ginseng?"

The Elven Kingdom has stepped up patrols, and anyone approaching the Endless Forest will be eliminated. Forget about the golden ginseng; the number of mercenaries who can leave the Endless Forest alive is extremely small.

"In the past, only stealth could enter the Endless Forest. If they were discovered by the elves, they would be dead. Now, even stealth is useless if stealth is willing to go looking for golden ginseng. The elves will still find them!"

"Your Excellency the Duke, I actually know the specific reason for this matter. I can tell you with a barrel of century-old wine!"

Caesars continued to bargain with Duke Solomon, while Old Roy, without waiting for the Duke's instructions, immediately produced a very old wine barrel. The old butler had been with Solomon for many years and knew the Duke's thoughts. The two of them had reached a tacit understanding.

Seeing the wine barrel being taken away by Caesars, Duke Solomon said anxiously: "Boy, tell me now!"

"My Lord Duke, Commander Delong, and Butler Roy, there is a magical beast in the Endless Forest—the Shadow Leopard. One of its talents is stealth, and it can do so even in broad daylight!"

Kaisas continued, "The Shadow Leopard is a powerful, high-level magical beast. Its most formidable feature is its sense of smell. If it's downwind, it can detect scents from miles away. It will track the source and kill any intruders. More importantly, the Shadow Leopard is incredibly fast, far exceeding the speed of a warhorse. It usually rests in large trees, making it difficult to spot it!"

"Kaesas, there is one thing I don't quite understand. Why does the Shadow Leopard want to hunt the stalkers?" asked the guard leader in leather armor.

"Shadow leopards are the elves' mounts. They can understand elven language and usually hunt intruders in the forest. The shadow leopard's attack speed is indescribable. When you see one, it must be when the shadow leopard has completed the fatal blow. The shadow leopard is very smart. It will not attack the parts protected by leather armor. It will attack the weakest part of the defense, and its sharp claws will tear your throat or bite your cervical vertebrae!"

Delong said, "I am a great warrior, theoretically as powerful as a high-level monster!"

"Commander Delon, it's no use saying this to me. Go talk to Shadow Leopard!" Caesars looked at Delon, who was a powerful warrior.

The old butler on the side laughed out loud, his gray beard trembling with laughter. He said, "Delong, the Shadow Leopard won't fight you head-on. It will attack you like a great warrior-level stalker, and it is very likely to kill you with one blow!"