The middle-aged man who appears to be sitting in the General Bureau office reviewing documents has a past of crawling out from a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood.

Thirty years ago, when the Nightmare World first descended, he was still young. He fought his way in and out of the initial Nightmare Tide, crawling out from a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood to support Great Xia's first city-level territory.

Now he is nearly fifty, with slightly graying temples, but his gaze remains sharp. Every decision he makes affects the fate of every territory in Great Xia.

"Director Zhou hasn't had it easy," Lin Feng said.

Liu Zhenshan nodded, saying nothing more.

The two walked up a flight of stone steps in silence.

"By the way," Liu Zhenshan suddenly spoke, his tone much more relaxed.

"Regarding that purple leather armor, you don't need to exchange for it with Zhenyue City.

Didn't the Orc War Lord drop one? Just mention it to the people from Russia later.

They've always liked this style of two-handed greatsword—rugged, heavy, and powerful-looking. They'll definitely be willing to trade for your blood-fury war blade."

Lin Feng nodded. He didn't look back at the greatsword on his back, but he could feel the weight of the blade swaying slightly behind him.

As they spoke, the stone walls of the Inner City's Council Hall were revealed through the gaps in the trees.

The doors to the Council Hall were wide open, and the lights inside were already on.

Lin Feng walked ahead and pushed open the ajar door.

The hall was empty. The teacups on the long table hadn't been set yet, and the teapot lid sat askew.

He walked to a seat by the window on the left and leaned his Wildfire Spear against the chair. Then, he unstrapped the blood-fury war blade from his back and leaned it next to the spear.

The two purple weapons leaned side by side—one spear, one greatsword. The ancient seal script runes on the spear's shaft and the blood-red gemstone on °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° the greatsword complemented each other under the light.

Liu Zhenshan sat opposite him, laying his golden greatsword across the table and leaning back into his chair to rest with his eyes closed.

Lin Feng picked up the empty teacup in front of him, looked at it, and set it back down.

He gazed at the entrance of the Council Hall, waiting for the people from Tieba Kingdom and the reinforcements from Russia to arrive.

Outside the window, the last glow of the sunset over the snow-capped mountains vanished behind the ridge, and the sky turned completely dark.

From the direction of the distant city walls, the songs of celebration continued, drifting over faintly and mixing with the wind, the lyrics indistinguishable.

The thirty-five-meter snow wall piled up by the avalanche still stood on the plain outside the West Gate, burying the corpses and remains of the Orc Army beneath it.

Tomorrow, the snow wall would slowly melt and grow shorter.

Lin Feng withdrew his gaze, silently calculating the time in his head.

Tomorrow morning, he would return to Zhenyue City to get the staff, then head back to Blue Star to check the location of the Nightmare Corrupt Dragon Beast.

The Great Wall was still missing a significant amount of Mithril, and he wondered if those Marmot Monsters had been tamed by the Beast Tamers yet.

He leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes for a moment.

Liu Zhenshan sat opposite him, his breathing steady; it was unclear if he was truly asleep or just resting.

The Council Hall was so quiet that the faint sound of the magic lamp's wick burning could be heard.

About fifteen minutes later, Ali Khan emerged from the inner hall, the sapphire on his white turban sparkling under the lights.

Just as he took his seat at the head of the table, footsteps were heard at the door.

It wasn't just one person; the sound of boots on the stone floor was uneven, and people were whispering.

The translation function built into the Nightmare World automatically converted those unfamiliar syllables into meanings that Lin Feng could understand.

"...That young Great Xia lord killed the Sword Saint alone. I saw it with my own eyes."

"The one who uses a spear? The one with a purple greatsword on his back?"

"Yes, that's him. The Sword Saint launched a sneak attack from behind, and without even turning his head, he pierced the Sword Saint's throat with a backhanded spear thrust."

"Are you bragging? I clearly saw him kill it head-on."

"You're all wrong. He first split into clones, then went invisible to circle behind, used a flame skill to reposition, and stabbed it to death with three strikes. I saw it clearly."

The corner of Lin Feng's mouth twitched slightly.

The discussion outside was getting more and more ridiculous, so he decided to stop listening.

The door was pushed open, and six tall figures filed in.

They wore heavy white battle armor, the plates stained with black blood.

Some had already dried into dark red crusts, while some were still wet, reflecting a greasy sheen under the lights.

Leading them was a large bald man with a square face, thick eyebrows, large eyes, a high bridge on his nose, and a short beard on his chin.

Behind him followed five men of varying heights and builds, but each exuded the fierce aura of a battle-hardened veteran who had crawled out from a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood.

Ali Khan stood up from the head of the table, walked to the middle of the long table, and cupped his fists toward the six: "Welcome, brothers of Russia. Thank you for coming such a long way."

The bald man cupped his fists in return. "Lord Ali, you're too kind. The Orcs are the enemies of all mankind. We arrived late, but fortunately, we made it for the final battle."

Ali Khan gestured toward Liu Zhenshan. "This is the vice city lord of Great Xia's Zhenyue City, Liu Zhenshan."

Liu Zhenshan rose and cupped his fists. The bald man shook his hand vigorously. "I've heard much about you."

Ali Khan then pointed to Lin Feng. "This is the lord of Great Xia's Fenghuo County, Lin Feng."

Six gazes fell upon Lin Feng simultaneously.

The bald man's eyes lit up as he sized him up.

Then he turned to his companions behind him and said, "It's him, the kid who killed the Sword Saint alone."

A powerhouse with a large beard poked his head out from behind. "So young? He looks like a student."

Another voice chimed in, "Who cares if he looks like a student? He certainly didn't act like one when he killed the Sword Saint."

The bald man smiled at Lin Feng. "Lord Lin, we saw it from the air just now. You solo-killed that Orc Sword Saint; truly remarkable."

He gave a thumbs up. "The world's youngest Third Rank lord, you truly live up to your reputation."

The five people behind him also nodded, whispering in the Mao Xiong language. The translated content was all phrases like 'impressive,' 'admirable,' and 'much stronger than we were back then.'

Russia worships the strong, regardless of age or nationality. As long as you are strong enough, they will respect you.

At this moment, the look in these six people's eyes toward Lin Feng held not only gratitude but also a pure, heartfelt recognition.

Lin Feng cupped his fists in return and said modestly, "You all overpraise me."

The bald man laughed heartily and waved his hand. "We people of Russia don't like to hear modest words. Strong is strong."

Lin Feng smiled and didn't pursue that topic further.

He turned around, picked up the blood-fury war blade from beside the chair, and held it horizontally in front of him with both hands.

The purple greatsword gleamed with a dull blood-colored luster under the lights, the ruby on the crossguard flickering slightly.

"Lord Ivan," Lin Feng looked at the bald man.

Ali Khan had briefly introduced the names earlier, and he had remembered.

"I would like to use this sword to exchange for the purple leather armor dropped by the Orc War Lord. I wonder if that would be convenient?"

Ivan's eyes lit up.

He stared at the blood-fury war blade for two seconds, his Adam's apple bobbing, and looked back at the five people behind him.

The five men nodded simultaneously, their movements as synchronized as if they had rehearsed.

"Convenient! It's very convenient!"

Ivan's voice rose several notches.