Lin Feng strode into the depths of the Council Hall, heading toward his room on the second floor.

Behind him, Shadow Snake stood in the shadows, watching him leave.

In those cold eyes, anger still burned, but there was also a sense of waiting.

Waiting for the Lord to return.

Waiting for the day of revenge.

Blue Star, Rongcheng.

Lords Home Villa No. 7.

Lin Feng sat up from his bed and rubbed his temples. The anger from the Nightmare World still weighed on his chest, but he knew now was not the time to be ruled by emotions.

He picked up his communicator, found Lin Xiaoyu's number, and dialed it.

The call connected almost instantly.

“Lord Lin? You're back on Blue Star?” Lin Xiaoyu's crisp voice came through, tinged with a hint of surprise.

“Mm.” Lin Feng got straight to the point. “Xiaoyu, help me look something up.”

“Go ahead!”

“Sakura Country, Baigui County, Umekawa Kojiro.” Lin Feng enunciated each word.

“His detailed information, the number of class-holders under his command, his troop numbers—the more detailed, the better.”

The other end of the line was quiet for two seconds, followed by the sound of rapid keyboard clicking.

“Wait a moment, I'm entering the internal database... Found it!” Lin Xiaoyu's voice rang out again.

“There's quite a bit of data, I'll send it over to you. It's an encrypted file; the password is still the last six digits of your ID.”

“Thanks.”

Hanging up the phone, Lin Feng clicked on the file he received.

【Baigui County · Umekawa Kojiro · Intelligence Dossier】

【Security Clearance: Grade B High】

He focused and looked down.

【Lord Information】 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

Name: Umekawa Kojiro

Age: 42

Level: 20 (Originally Level 25, recently dropped due to the crusade against the Nightmare Corrupt Dragon Beast)

First Awakening Class: Rare Class · Shadow Ninja

—Core Skill: Multiple Shadow Clone Technique (Can create up to three clones with 30% of the original's combat power)

Lord Template: Rare Lord Template

—Nightmare Body: Base HP +600

—Mental Resistance: 35% resistance to all negative status effects

Second Awakening Class: Common Class · Unknown (Class change complete, provides base attribute bonuses)

Equipment: One piece of Purple Leg Armor, the rest are Blue equipment

【Subordinate Combat Power】

Total Class-Holders: 23

—Ninja Class: 20 (All Level 19)

—Healer Class: [N O V E L I G H T] 1 (Level 19)

—Warrior Class: 2 (Level 19)

Army: 1,500 Lv9 County Soldiers (Standard equipment, well-trained)

Lin Feng scanned line by line, his eyes growing calmer and deeper.

Rare Lord Template, Multiple Shadow Clones, 1,500 County Soldiers, 23 class-holders...

He leaned back in his chair and began to silently compare.

He also had the bonuses from the Rare Lord Template. With the addition of the Second Awakening Class bonuses, Umekawa Kojiro's base attributes should be roughly the same as his own at Level 19.

But he had the Hero Template, HP +1000, 【Desperate Beacon】 for life-saving comebacks, and 【Mental Fortress】 for immunity to low-level crowd control.

In terms of equipment, the Wildfire Spear was a Soul-bound Blue item, the crimson blood headband added resistance, the rock-solid chestplate added defense, and the windchaser boots added speed.

Once the Eye of Probability refreshed tomorrow and that gold necklace was in hand...

Umekawa Kojiro wouldn't stand a single chance against him.

As for those 23 class-holders and 1,500 County Soldiers...

A cold sneer curled at the corner of Lin Feng's mouth.

On his side, he had 500 Lv13 Great Qin Garrison Soldiers, plus the hidden bonuses of the Great Qin Army Soul. Shadow Snake was a Level 19 Rare Class, and Zhao Hu and Wang Wu weren't bad either.

If it really came to a fight, was there even a question of who would win?

He picked up the communicator and dialed Lin Xiaoyu's number again.

“Lord Lin? Do you need to check something else?”

“Help me pass a message to Director Chen,” Lin Feng said slowly. “Tell him I'm not acting on impulse; I'm absolutely certain of success. Tell him to just watch silently.”

Lin Xiaoyu was silent for two seconds, her voice becoming solemn. “Lord Lin, what... does that mean?”

“Nothing,” Lin Feng said indifferently. “Just tell him to rest easy. The matters of Beacon Fire Town will be settled by Beacon Fire Town itself.”

Hanging up the phone, Lin Feng stood up and walked to the window.

Outside, the sun was shining brightly. People were walking dogs in the neighborhood, and old men were playing chess—a scene of peace.

But his heart had already flown back to that world full of slaughter.

The debt for the two Beacon Guards being heavily injured and the destruction of the mining area must be repaid with blood.

Go through official channels? Investigation, evidence collection, diplomatic negotiations, haggling... by the time compensation arrived, it would be far too late. He didn't want to wait a single moment.

He only wanted to see Baigui County completely destroyed.

He turned around and sat cross-legged on the bed.

His consciousness connected with his Lord's Authority.

In the next second, his form began to grow blurred and transparent.

...

Nightmare World, Beacon Fire Town.

On the second floor of the Council Hall, Lin Feng opened his eyes.

Outside the window, it was still that dark-red hued afternoon. But the air seemed permeated with an oppressive feeling, like a mountain storm about to break.

In the middle of the second floor, a crystal about the size of a human head hovered in mid-air.

Lin Feng slowly approached and reached out his hand, touching the crystal.

【Initiate Territory War?】

【Target: Sakura Country · Baigui County】

【War Rules: The war will begin in 15 days and continue until one side's territory core is completely destroyed. The winner gains all the loser's resources, territory, and subjects.】

【Note: During the war, both Lords are unable to increase their levels, and the number of class-holders under their command cannot be increased.】

A flash of cold killing intent crossed Lin Feng's eyes.

“Initiate.”

...

At the same time.

Baigui County Council Hall.

Umekawa Kojiro was sitting in the main seat, unhurriedly sipping tea.

Yamamoto Ichiki had already returned to Osaka Castle, and the Blue Marrow Stone had been successfully planted. Now, it was just a matter of seeing how that Lord Lin would respond.

Suddenly, a golden light emerged from the void in front of him.

Umekawa Kojiro's eyes narrowed. He set down his teacup and reached out to touch it.

【Territory War Initiation Notification】

【Initiator: Great Xia · Beacon Fire Town】

【Target: Sakura Country · Baigui County】

He froze for a second, then the corners of his mouth slowly curled up. His smile grew wider and wider, finally turning into a wild, unbridled laugh.

“He took the bait!”

Without the slightest hesitation, he reached out and clicked—【Accept】

The golden light instantly spread, enveloping the entire Council Hall and the entirety of Baigui County.

At the same moment, Beacon Fire Town was likewise enveloped in golden light.

The rules of the Nightmare World descended.

Two invisible shackles simultaneously fell upon Lin Feng and Umekawa Kojiro.

【During the war, the Lord cannot increase their level.】

【During the war, the number of subordinate class-holders cannot be increased.】

Lin Feng felt the shackle, but his gaze didn't flicker in the slightest.

Outside the window, the golden light gradually dissipated.

But the killing intent permeating the air only grew thicker. (PS: Some readers said monsters would disappear; let me clarify here: corpses also have drop rates. For example, the rabbit back then had a 100% drop rate for rabbit meat; edible things have high drop rates, while inedible things have low ones.)