Free Web NovelChapter 249: Chapter 248: To Aino City, the Divine Martial Combat
PANT.
In the wilderness, an Earth Dragon pulled a carriage with steady steps.
Muer gazed into the distance. The magnificent silhouette of a city faintly appeared on the horizon!
"Aino City!" Muer’s expression brightened.
After a journey of several days.
Su Ye and his party had finally crossed the wilderness and were approaching Aino City!
"Mr. Su, Aino City is twenty li ahead."
Muer reported, tapping lightly on the carriage door.
The ’li,’ of course, was simply a translated equivalent for the local unit of distance in the Far South Continent.
"Mm, I see... Pull over for now."
Su Ye’s calm voice immediately sounded in his ear. freēwēbnovel.com
"Yes, sir." Muer respectfully tightened the reins, slowing the Earth Dragon.
WHOOSH.
Dust billowed as the Earth Dragon gradually slowed.
Soon, the entire carriage had stopped beside a patch of forest.
CREAK.
The carriage door opened.
Su Ye stepped out with Marina and the cursed crewmen.
He looked up and gazed into the distance, infusing his eyes with Magical Power.
He could clearly see the majestic Obsidian walls of Aino City, dozens of meters high, some twenty li away.
They reflected a strange luster under the sun, appearing grim and imposing.
And near the city, in the vast fields, were slaves in tattered clothes with numb expressions, tilling the crops with crude farm tools.
There were even a few "scarecrows" stuck in the fields.
They were made by stuffing straw into flayed human skin. This skin mostly came from runaway slaves. After using them in blood sacrifices, the slave masters would skin them and stuff them with straw to terrify the other slaves!
Slash-and-burn agriculture, a bloody and cruel slave-based society, and towering, magnificent walls dozens of meters high... there was no contradiction between the two.
After all, this was a world of the extraordinary!
"Goddess of Fertility..."
Su Ye’s gaze sharpened as he muttered to himself.
Then, after a moment of thought, he turned and began to issue orders.
"The situation in Aino City is unclear... We’ll wait outside the city for a while."
Prudence was key.
After all, Aino City was the Goddess of Fertility’s main stronghold!
Even if this deity currently appeared extremely weak, perhaps even fallen...
Su Ye was unwilling to risk walking into danger blind. He needed a pawn to send across the river.
"Muer, enter Aino City and gather information."
Su Ye turned to Muer and ordered.
"Yes. I am at your service, Mr. Su."
Muer bowed his head deeply, showing no hint of dissatisfaction.
As a pawn, such an understanding was necessary.
"Good."
Su Ye smiled and took a silver ring from his Storage Ring.
It was inscribed with a miniature Array that could conceal one’s aura, track location, house a sliver of Divine Sense, and allow for communication.
Su Ye infused a trace of his Divine Sense into the ring and handed it to Muer.
"Hold onto this ring. It will allow you to contact me."
...
The gates of Aino City.
Muer, slightly disguised under a cloak, approached.
He wore a longsword at his waist and a feather, looking like a travel-worn, wandering Warrior.
The crimson feather atop his head, symbolizing a ’First Echelon’ Warrior, immediately drew a great deal of attention.
"Halt! Who are you?!"
A gate guard shouted.
"My name is Muer. I once served under Lord Monterey. After our army was routed in the Battle of Moonlight Lake, I was lucky to survive. I am now returning to Aino City... Here is my proof of identity."
Muer said, neither servile nor overbearing, as he handed over a beast tooth strung on a thin cord.
It was a form of identification, similar to a "dog tag."
Muer’s story and his beast-tooth credential were both genuine.
The only loophole was the change in his strength—from an unranked Warrior, as indicated by the tooth, to one of the ’First Echelon’.
But this was a minor detail.
After all, chaos is a ladder to promotion.
Given Muer’s experience, it was easy to imagine that he had luckily obtained some secret potion when the army was routed, thus becoming a ranked Warrior.
Such things were not uncommon in the history of the Far South Continent.
Even many Spiritual Objects found in the wild could grant a person a chance to become a ranked Warrior.
Therefore, Muer felt his story should be fine.
’At the very least, they should let me into the city, right?’
However, at that very moment, the captain of the city guard—a Warrior who also wore a feather—walked over.
He looked at Muer’s feather.
A flicker of glee appeared in his eyes!
The next moment, he took the beast-tooth credential without even looking at it and said directly, "The city is under martial law. This man’s identity is unknown. Seize him."
"What?!" Muer’s expression changed drastically.
He subconsciously drew his sword to defend himself.
"What? You’re going to resist arrest?"
The guard captain sneered.
The next instant...
SHING! SHING! SHING!
A dozen or so gate guards drew their swords, surrounding Muer, their blades glinting coldly!
"I..." A bead of sweat trickled down Muer’s forehead.
These Warriors were all around his former level of strength, and they were led by a ranked Warrior stronger than him. If he resisted... with his current strength, he had no chance of survival!
’Mr. Su, what should I do?’ Muer cried out in his mind.
’Don’t panic. First, figure out his true objective,’ Su Ye’s voice soothed him.
As the Array patterns on the silver ring stirred, a voice suddenly echoed in Muer’s mind!
"The Goddess of Fertility has blessed me!"
"To think I’d actually run into a ranked Warrior..." freēwēbnovel.com
"With this ranked Warrior as a sacrifice, our city guard won’t have to provide any offerings for the Divine Martial Combat for the entire next month."
"Phew... I can finally get a good night’s sleep without worrying about being forcibly sent to the fighting pits by those madmen from the temple..."
These were the thoughts of the guard captain.
A simple application of Divine Sense, reading his surface consciousness.
"Divine Martial Combat?" Su Ye raised an eyebrow.
’As the name suggests, it should be a duel between Warriors witnessed by a deity, a way to display martial prowess and win glory...’
’But...’
’A sacrifice?’
That word, combined with the Far South Continent’s tradition of blood sacrifice, instantly gave "Divine Martial Combat" a much bloodier meaning!
Muer had also made the connection.
His expression grew grim, and his breathing quickened.
"What, are you not going to surrender quietly?!"
the guard captain shouted.
The situation was tense, with swords drawn.
But at that moment, a young voice rang out.
"Stop!"
"Show some respect! He is a Warrior whom I invited!"
"Huh...? Who are...?"
The guard captain’s face darkened. He turned, about to retort with a curse.
Suddenly, he bit his tongue, swallowing the venomous words.
The reason was simple!
The speaker wore the stately gold and white robes of a Priest, his chest embroidered with a shock of golden wheat!
A Priest!
An Official Priest who had entered the ranks!
"This esteemed Warrior is my specially invited guest."
"He is by no means a suspicious person!"
"Please let him pass."
the young Priest with a calm demeanor said serenely.
...
...
...
My sincere apologies.
Something came up at home this afternoon.
It wasn’t serious, but it was a hassle and took up a lot of my time.
I apologize to everyone.
