242: In one word, conquer all the rebels in the city!

The night in Deegenha City was as dark as ink.

Aside from the occasional clatter of patrolling knights' armor, there was silence.

Mo Yan, with Idora and Gun Gun, moved silently across the rooftops.

They avoided the gaze of all patrol teams on the ground.

Idora, enveloped by his spiritual power, only felt the wind whistling past her ears and the scenery beneath her feet rapidly receding.

Soon, they reached their destination.

The old district beneath the west city wall.

This place was starkly different from the clean and grand imperial city center.

The streets were narrow and muddy, and the air was filled with an lingering stench.

The houses were low and dilapidated, leaning precariously as if they could collapse at any moment.

"This is it," Mo Yan said, spreading his spiritual perception.

Underground, there was indeed another world.

A vast and complex network of underground waterways permeated the entire old district.

Several main channels were wide enough for two carriages to pass through.

And within these waterways, he could sense faint life Auras.

They were like startled rats, huddled in dark, damp corners.

"My Lord, where is the entrance?" Idora looked at the labyrinthine slum before her, feeling a bit lost.

"Follow me."

Mo Yan did not choose the obvious manhole entrances, but instead led them to the backyard of an abandoned house.

In the yard was a dried-up well.

He leaped down.

Idora followed closely.

The well was not deep, only about five or six meters.

The bottom of the well connected to a narrow passage.

The passage was pitch black, making it impossible to see one's hand in front of their face.

With a thought, a fluorescent pearl appeared in Mo Yan's hand, illuminating the surroundings.

The walls of the passage were slippery and sticky, covered in moss, and underfoot was thick mud.

Gun Gun jumped out of the basket, shook the fur on his body in disgust, and followed closely at Mo Yan's heels, afraid of stepping on anything dirty.

After walking for about a hundred meters.

They entered a wide underground passage.

This place was once a flood drainage project during the Empire period, but now it had become a refuge for the exiled.

By the light, one could see simple homes built with rags and rotten wooden boards along both sides of the waterway.

Some ragged, sallow-faced figures huddled in the corners, and upon seeing Mo Yan and the others, their eyes filled with vigilance and hostility.

"Stop! Who are you?"

Suddenly, a hoarse, low growl came from the darkness, carrying a heavy Evil Qi.

A dozen men, armed with clubs, rushed out of the shadows, surrounding Mo Yan and the two women.

The leader had a hideous scar on his face, stretching from his forehead all the way to his chin.

He exuded the ruthless Aura of a desperate man, but Mo Yan could see more despair in his one eye.

"Just passing through," Mo Yan replied.

"Passing through?" The scar-faced man sneered, pointing his club at them, "This godforsaken place isn't somewhere just anyone can pass through.

"Looking at your clothes, you don't look like rats from a gutter like us."

"Tell me, are you spies sent by the church?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the surrounding crowd stirred, gripping their weapons tighter, their eyes filled with killing intent as they looked at Mo Yan and the two women.

They had been deceived by the church too many times and betrayed too many times.

Idora tightly gripped her staff, she could feel that if they made any slight movement, these people would pounce on them without hesitation, tearing them to pieces.

Mo Yan, however, remained calm, stroking Gun Gun's head to soothe the little guy's emotions.

"Spies?" He chuckled softly, then countered, "Have you ever seen a spy bringing a bear with them?"

This sudden retort made their mouths twitch involuntarily.

The scar-faced man's expression grew even darker: "Stop playing games! I don't care who you are, but if you trespass here, you have to leave something behind!"

"Oh?" Mo Yan raised an eyebrow, "Then what do you want?"

"Leave all your valuables and that woman!" A hint of greed and ruthlessness flashed in the scar-faced man's single eye, "Then, you can scram."

Idora's expression instantly turned cold.

Mo Yan withdrew his gaze, understanding.

He had originally intended to resolve this in a gentler way, but now it seemed that the most effective way to communicate with these people, whose minds had been twisted by despair and violence, was always through strength.

Just as the scar-faced man was losing patience and about to give the order to act, Mo Yan's eyes turned cold, revealing his killing intent.

The scar-faced man's hair stood on end, making his raised arm freeze in mid-air.

He felt that if he dared to move, he would be killed!

However, a hand gently pressed on his arm.

It was Idora.

"My Lord, they are my people, let me handle this."

Mo Yan looked at her with some surprise, and the killing intent quietly receded.

He stepped back half a pace, yielding the position to her.

Idora stepped forward, facing the dozen fierce men alone.

No longer concealing her identity, she raised the Sun Scepter high in her hand.

"Presumptuous!"

A clear, cold rebuke echoed in the empty underground waterway.

It was an innate Aura, ignited from her Bloodline, causing everyone to pause.

In that instant, she no longer seemed like the fragile guide, but a queen ruling over the world.

The scar-faced man was stunned; he had never seen a woman possess such a terrifying Aura.

"Your ancestors were once the most loyal subjects of the Diens Empire. Now, their descendants are tearing at each other like wild dogs here, pointing their blades at their own compatriots!"

"Have you forgotten the glory of the Empire, forgotten the grace of the Imperial family, leaving only this pathetic savagery of surviving in a gutter?!"

"You...who exactly are you? Stop spouting nonsense here!" The scar-faced man roared, his voice betraying a false bravado, but his body unconsciously began to tremble.

Idora did not answer, but instead infused her Bloodline Power into the Sun Scepter in her hand.

The sun crystal at the top of the scepter instantly burst forth with dazzling golden light, a soft and not-blinding radiance.

A golden Imperial emblem.

The totem of the sun, slowly emerged above the scepter.

Everyone, upon seeing the golden emblem, was struck as if by lightning, frozen in place.

The fierceness on their faces rapidly receded.

"Imperial...Imperial emblem..." an older man murmured distractedly, his club clattering to the ground.

"Impossible...the Empire has fallen...the Imperial Bloodline...has long been severed..."

The scar-faced man stared intently at the emblem, then looked at Idora.

The suppressive force originating from her Bloodline made it difficult for him to breathe, his legs felt weak, and an urge to kneel and submit fiercely impacted his will.

Idora walked up to the scar-faced man, looking down at him.

"Look up, look at me," her voice was full of majesty.

The scar-faced man struggled to lift his head, and when his gaze met Idora's eyes, which burned with golden flames, his last psychological defense collapsed.

"Thud!"

His knees buckled, and he fell heavily to the ground, his proud head bowed deeply.

"Sinner...Bark...greets...greets..." He wanted to say Your Highness the Princess, but the title rolled in his throat for a long time and he couldn't utter it.

What could a princess of a fallen nation change?

However, when his gaze swept over the terrifyingly calm man behind Idora, who had been quiet the entire time, and the panda, a crazy idea sprouted in his heart.

Perhaps...there was still hope!

He suddenly raised his head, a fanatical light bursting from his single eye, and he roared with all his might:

"No! You are not a Princess!"

"You are our...Your Majesty the Empress!"

This cry of Your Majesty the Empress was like a giant rock thrown into a calm lake, stirring up thousands of huge waves.

"Your Majesty the Empress!"

"It's Your Majesty the Empress! The Empire has not abandoned us!"

"We are saved! We are saved!"

"Thud! Thud!"

The men around them, and the old and infirm women and children who had peeked out from the dark corners, all knelt down. They kowtowed towards Idora.

Thousands of years of suppressed despair and pain, at this moment, all turned into tears.

They were not waiting for a princess who needed to be saved, but a monarch who could lead them to revenge!

Idora was somewhat overwhelmed by the mountain-like roar of kneeling, but she clutched her scepter, forcing herself to stand tall and accept the homage of her people.

Mo Yan stood to the side, watching this scene with interest.

This one named Bark, is a talent.

[Tip: Idora von Deins has gained the allegiance of the Empire's remnants, her prestige has greatly increased, unlocking the new trait: Queen's Aura.]

[Queen's Aura: Possesses a natural rallying and suppressive force over all those who harbor imperial sentiments.]