Chapter 53 | Overtime Necromancy: My Legion Never Sleeps

Boss took a roll of parchment from the butler, opened it to scan through briefly, and handed it to Chen Xu after confirming there were no errors.

Chen Xu took the parchment and began reading, though he felt a bit puzzled.

"Based on the investment method you described, what I am giving and what I am receiving are completely disproportionate."

"You are businessmen, so would you really make such a losing deal?"

【Wanbao Pavilion Angel Investment Contract】

【1. Wanbao Pavilion will provide supplies to Party B for free in stages.】

【2. Wanbao Pavilion promises to use all promotional resources to help Party B build their reputation.】

【3. Party B needs to reach the corresponding rank within a limited time. If Party B fails to do so, the contract is canceled.】

【4. After Party B ascends to the supreme throne of the Land of the Undead, Wanbao Pavilion will have exclusive selling rights for all rare treasures within the Land of the Undead. (To view the list of rare treasures, please click to expand... Expand)】

【5. For Party B's other needs, Wanbao Pavilion will judge whether to provide additional investment after a shareholder review.】

【6. If Party B cancels the contract without authorization halfway through, they must repay Wanbao Pavilion a hundred times the value of the investment already received.】

【7. If Wanbao Pavilion cancels the contract without authorization halfway through, they must compensate Party B with items worth three times the invested amount.】

"Mr. Chen Xu, perhaps it seems to you that on the surface, what the Wanbao Pavilion gets from you does not compare to what you are giving."

"That is because you have not personally dealt with those dead beings."

"We are merchants, and doing business is our path."

"For those skeletons and undead creatures with abnormal minds, we have to spend an extremely high price just to maintain a trade route."

Boss spoke while picking up the cigar on the table and taking two more heavy puffs.

"Special worlds like the Land of the Undead do not welcome the living."

"However, we cannot recruit undead creatures as employees to trade on our behalf."

"Therefore, for every transaction, we have to consume many strange objects just to sustain a trader's activities within the Land of the Undead."

Chen Xu had finished reading the contract and was currently looking at the list of rare treasures.

Hearing Boss's complaints, he could not help but feel curious.

Were undead creatures not great? They were the absolute model employees.

"Why can you not recruit undead creatures?"

"They do not need rest, or rather, they only need very little rest time. Are they not naturally good employees?"

"Hahaha, Mr. Chen Xu, that is because you are the Lord of the Undead."

"Although you have not yet ascended the throne to become the unique one, the status of the Lord of the Undead can still make those skeletons submit."

"But we are different. An employment relationship based on interest as a contract has no effect on undead creatures."

"The other lords of the undead in the Land of the Undead can forcibly convert them into their subordinates and swallow the transaction funds in the process."

Boss took a few more puffs before continuing.

"The rare treasures produced in those special worlds are hot commodities throughout the myriad worlds."

"Special worlds?"

"Yes. The development of a world is generally balanced."

"However, some worlds have gone to extremes, abandoning most world attributes to specialize in a few. These types of worlds are called special worlds in the myriad worlds."

"The Land of the Undead, Hell, Heaven, the Sea of Spirit, the Elemental Spirit Realm, and the Blank Zone are all special worlds."

"Among them, the Land of the Undead is quite unique, as the Lord of the Undead holds the authority of that world."

"Scholars in the myriad worlds speculate that it was an attempt by the former World Will of the Land of the Undead to break free from constraints. But for some reason, it failed."

"Perhaps it was not a complete failure. The authority was indeed separated."

"It is estimated that after someone became the first Lord of the Undead, they were eliminated by other great existences who coveted that authority."

"In any case, the position of the Lord of the Undead becomes vacant every once in a while."

"Once in a while? How long is that?" Chen Xu asked curiously.

"Anywhere from tens of thousands to tens of millions of years. It is hard to say, as such existences do not die naturally."

"Anyway, the position of the Lord of the Undead is currently vacant."

"Those who are qualified, like you, can attempt to ascend that supreme throne and unify all the authority of the Lord of the Undead."

By this time, Chen Xu had finished reading the list of rare treasures.

He read the parchment contract itself over and over again, repeatedly confirming there was no hidden small print or other clauses before intending to sign it.

After all, he could get so many resources for free, and the price he had to pay was only the selling rights to a few rare treasures in the unknown future.

Chen Xu felt it was a deal where he was guaranteed to make a profit without losing.

He picked up the pen handed over by the butler and signed his name on the parchment.

Seeing that Chen Xu agreed to the contract and had signed it, Boss immediately stood up from his seat and carefully held the parchment with both hands.

An air bubble dropped from above, perfectly encasing the parchment within it.

The butler standing to the side took the air bubble and hung it on a plant near the center.

"The things hanging here are all the transactions I am most proud of in my life."

"I believe that this transaction with Mr. Chen Xu will definitely be the most successful one I have made in these hundreds of years."

"Since the contract has been signed, please choose a name, Mr. Chen Xu."

"The Wanbao Pavilion will provide the funds to help you establish a company in the City of Miracles."

"Later, we will be responsible for the daily operations of the company. You only need to send your undead subordinates here."

"We will have specialized personnel to help you with mission acceptance and promotion."

"A company? Why open a company?" Chen Xu asked, confused.

"In the struggle for the position of the Lord of the Undead, renown is also an indicator, right?" Boss replied as if it were common sense.

"The previous lords of the undead either went to invade other worlds or signed contracts with mage kingdoms to let their undead creatures help the mages."

"The ultimate goal was to increase their renown. Did you not have this knowledge when you obtained the qualification for the Lord of the Undead?"

"But my panel tells me that I only need to expand my space."

"Panel? Expanding space?"

For the next half hour, Chen Xu explained Blue Star's transcendent system, the situation of his Undead Kingdom, and his upgrade requirements to Boss.

"So that is how it is. No wonder those mage kingdoms that signed contracts with undead creatures seemed to perish at an abnormal speed in the end."

Having supplemented his knowledge, Boss had a look of realization.

"But judging from your subordinates' advancement missions, renown still seems to be one of the conditions."

"Why not let the Wanbao Pavilion fund the establishment of a company for you anyway?"

"Having a territory in the City of Miracles can serve as a point for a teleportation array even if you do not use it."

"Very well then, I will trouble you, Boss."

"You are too kind. As a return for the secret knowledge about the Lord of the Undead, I will also share a piece of knowledge with you regarding your world."

"Oh, please tell me." Chen Xu also became interested.

"Space fragment invasions, or dungeons as you call them, generally have two possibilities."

"One is the awakening of the World Will, which begins to pull fragment worlds from the Cosmic Sea into its body to feed, digest, and grow. This is a way for a world to evolve."

"The other is a bit of bad news. It means there is a Hell Archduke nearby devouring multiple worlds."

"The number of shattered space fragments becomes so large that it exceeds the defense limit of the world barrier, thus entering the world's interior."

"From your description, your world seems more like the latter."

"A Hell Archduke?" Chen Xu thought of the disaster of the Akhan Dynasty.

"Yes. Below the Hell Demon Kings are the Hell Archdukes. They are responsible for invading worlds everywhere to strengthen Hell."

Seeing Chen Xu's somewhat pale face, Boss spoke to comfort him.

"You do not need to worry excessively. The invasion speed of a Hell Archduke is very slow, taking about a hundred years or so to finish digesting a world."

As soon as he finished speaking, Chen Xu's face turned even paler.

The Blue Star dungeon era had just reached over a hundred years.

"Could it be that the space invasions have been happening for exactly a hundred years?" Boss asked cautiously, seeing Chen Xu's increasingly grim expression.

Chen Xu nodded.

"Perhaps the Hell Archduke's feeding direction will go elsewhere?"

"If all else fails, the Wanbao Pavilion also owns several ordinary worlds. We can set aside a piece of land for your clansmen to take refuge."

...

After completing a few simple procedures, the Skeleton Labor Company was established.

Chen Xu left Xuan Zhong here along with a thousand skeleton soldiers, a thousand skeleton archers, a thousand skeleton mages, and fifty necrotic priests.

Boss was very puzzled as to why Chen Xu would choose such an ordinary name.

In his vision, the company was for Chen Xu to take on mercenary work and become a myriad worlds mercenary.

Chen Xu's reply was: "Everyone knows skeletons can kill people. But not many people know skeletons can work. This is called contrast. You would not understand even if I told you."

Then he asked Boss to try and accept some lifestyle-oriented missions, such as reclaiming wasteland, hunting in the wild, being mage apprentices, and so on.

Next, he returned to Blue Star through the teleportation array that had just been set up in the company.

Ever since he learned that Blue Star might encounter the same disaster as the former Akhan Dynasty, Chen Xu only wanted to report to the Daxia side immediately and see if there were any powerful figures who could handle it.