Rise of The Demon General

Chapter 628: Chapter 628. The Supreme Councilor’s Grand Plan

”A trip...?” Zee Min asked, making sure she didn’t hear it wrong.

”Yes,” Amon answered without further elaboration. He gestured for the jail guard to remove Zee Min’s chains.

Zee Min watched Amon as the guard freed her. She was free to move now. She was a Peak Spirit Stage cultivator. On paper, she was stronger than Amon. However, she had clashed with Amon briefly during the battle at Surly Gate Town. The power Amon exhibited didn’t lose to hers. That was even when her strength was enhanced by her mechanical armor. In other words, if she tried to force her way now, Amon could overpower her.

Zee Min understood that Amon was also aware of this point. That’s why he didn’t show any concern about her attempting anything.

”Come with me,” Amon told Zee Min.

Zee Min didn’t see that she had a choice in the matter. Additionally, going out for a walk was a welcome activity after being confined to the tiny cell for all these months.

Amon took her out of the jail complex, into the sunlight and fresh air. Zee Min hadn’t realized such simple things could bring joy.

Amon flew and gestured for her to follow.

They cruised at a low altitude. Amon didn’t fly too high. Zee Min understood his reason. The higher they went, the easier it was for her to escape. She could see soldiers stationed on the roofs of the highest buildings around the city. These soldiers had rifles. If she attempted anything, she was sure she would become the target of those soldiers.

”Where are you taking me?” Zee Min asked. They were not heading out of the city. Their direction was toward the city center.

”We will arrive soon,” Amon answered.

Not long after, they landed on a large tower. The tower was a simple rectangular block that reached for the sky. It was the tallest building in the city. No windows adorned its four walls. The only access was a door on its ground floor.

”If you look up this tower from the map, you will find it exactly at the center of the city,” Amon told Zee Min. ”Do you know who commissioned this tower to be built?”

”No,” Zee Min answered. He was not from Steam Water City. She had only visited this city a few times in the past to visit Shi Zhang, and the late mayor never mentioned this tower.

”It was the supreme councilor himself,” Amon answered his own question. ”He had his worker puppets from the capital construct this building without any aid from the local population. That included its interior. The puppets are on pause inside because they ran out of the materials required to continue their work. Ever since I laid siege on this city, the shipment had halted.”

”Why are you telling me all this?” Zee Min asked.

”Let’s talk while we walk. What I want to show you is at the top of this building,” Amon said as he entered the door.

Zee Min followed. Inside, she saw several worker puppets just standing there in the corner. There was a circular staircase that seemed to extend all the way to the top. Amon didn’t use the staircase. He flew up using the hollow space at the center of the tower. Zee Min flew following him.

While climbing the altitude, Amon said, ”I’ve read your file. You are a distant relative of Zee Whang, the supreme councilor. Sadly, he never sees you as one.”

”He never sees anyone as a relative, not even his direct family,” Zee Min remarked. There was disgust in her tone.

”I guess the information in your file is correct. You are not a fan of him,” Amon said.

”Don’t be misguided. Even if I don’t like him, it doesn’t mean I will sell my nation to an invader. If this is a ploy to make me help you in some ways, you can forget about it.”

Amon smiled. ”We will see.”

”In your file, there is also an unconfirmed account of you meeting with groups suspected of planning a resistance against this nation’s current government. Is that true?”

”I have no comment regarding that matter,” Zee Min answered.

They arrived at the ceiling. This time, Amon used the staircase, because there was another room above the ceiling. The access to this room was through a door at the end of the staircase.

The door was not locked. He continued climbing the stairs until he arrived in an enclosed room.

”This...” Zee Min muttered after seeing the contents of the room.

A towering mechanical structure was at the center of the room. It was half-constructed, but she could identify what it was.

Even though Zee Min’s face showed that she knew what was before them, Amon still said the name, ”This is a mental regulator. It is not yet completed, but we can see that its size should at least be three times that of the one I possess. With this size and this height, the signal it transmits can encompass this entire city.”

Zee Min frowned at his words. ”What are you implying?” She asked.

”Ain’t it obvious? Surely, you can tell what Zee Whang’s design is for this city after seeing this?” Amon asked in return.

Zee Min didn’t reply, but her frown grew deeper.

”He can’t be... No way he plans to enslave an entire city,” Zee Min said, more to convince herself than Amon.

”That will still be a while,” Amon said. ”We found a cache of receiver modules inside the tower, but they are not enough for this city’s population, which is a pity. I could have worked wonders if there were enough receiver modules to control everyone in this city.”

Zee Min gave Amon a disgusted look.

”Nevertheless, that is indeed Zee Whang’s intention,” Amon continued. ”It is not that hard to comprehend if you consider his well-known dislike for other humans.”

Zee Min was silent.

Amon let her ponder for a moment before he said. ”Come. If you are still not convinced, I will bring you somewhere else.”

”Where?” Zee Min asked.

”Somewhere outside this city. I did promise you a trip, didn’t I?” Amon replied.

They exited the tower. The Great Sun Hawk appeared beside Amon.

Zee Min had also clashed with this elemental bird before, so she knew it was Amon’s tamed beast. She was, however, interested in how Amon made it appear out of thin air. ”How did it materialize like that?” Zee Min asked.

”You don’t need to worry about that,” Amon answered. He climbed onto the bird. He gestured to Zee Min. ”Come. Sit in front of me.”

Zee Min studied the bird. Its whole body appeared to be in flame, but Amon didn’t seem bothered by the fire. She decided to follow Amon’s instructions. She was amazed to find she didn’t feel any heat even after sitting on the bird.

The bird shot into the sky after its two passengers were on board. She flew at high speed across the sky, leaving a fiery streak.

Zee Min glanced back. Amon didn’t bring his army. Now that she was out of the city, this should be a golden chance for her to flee. Yet, she could feel Amon’s stare on her back. She was sure Amon would not hesitate to hit her back if she tried anything. So, she sat obediently.

They flew for six days, stopping only a few times for the Great Sun Hawk to rest. During the rest, Amon stayed close to Zee Min. She decided to wait for Amon to sleep, but was bewildered when it never happened. It was she who ended up sleeping because of her fatigue. When she woke up, Amon still had his eyes on her.

After those six days, they finally reached their destination.

”Sunken Rock Town? What are we doing here?” Zee Min asked.

”After learning about the mental regulator inside Steam Water City, I sent my scouts to the small settlements I had burned down before occupying Steam Water City. In some of those burned-down settlements, especially larger ones, they found what might have been an incomplete mental regulator, but not all settlements have them. So, I sent them further to other settlements around Khode.”

”What are you saying? The supreme councilor wants to enslave the whole nation?” Zee Min asked with disbelief.

”That seems to be his grand plan,” Amon replied. ”It appears the things he needs to complete this plan are time and materials. I understand the mental regulators require rare materials. For the scale that he intended, he will need a whole lot of them.”

”That is insane!” Zee Min exclaimed.

”Look closer at that town and tell me what you see.” Amon pointed at the Sunken Rock Town.

The Great Sun Hawk hovered a distance away from the town. Its brightly lit feather would be like a beacon even during daylight. Amon dismounted from it and gestured for Zee Min to do the same. The two left the bird and flew toward the town.

Thoughts of fleeing were not in Zee Min’s mind right now. After what Amon said, she had to see for herself.

Sunken Rock Town had a protective dome barrier like most other Khode’s towns, so they couldn’t enter, but they could look at the inside from the air. What Zee Min saw, aside from worker puppets, were townspeople moving about the town with their heads covered in module receivers.