After killing Clement, the leader of the Naga raiders, Ahan was like a tiger in a flock of sheep. Almost every time he swung his heavy sword, he would take the life of an elite Naga warrior. He could be called a battlefield harvester.
The corners of Bai Xiaowen's eyes twitched. Judging from Ahan's display of strength, he was practically comparable to a Rare Boss.
Just as Bai Xiaowen had deduced, the main mission's difficulty had been reduced by 50%, making it very easy for the Awakened. As long as they found the mastermind behind the scenes, they didn't even need to take the initiative to participate in the battle. A powerful NPC like Ahan could handle it alone.
What Bai Xiaowen felt was a bit of a pity was that the Naga leader, Clement, and the other Naga warriors hadn't dropped any treasure chests. They had only given Bai Xiaowen some Soul Points as a token. As the saying went, 'no sweat, no gain'. Without the corresponding battle contribution points, the Awakened wouldn't be able to benefit from the monsters' drops.
The only thing Bai Xiaowen felt gratified was that since he had killed every monster with his spear, the Black Soul Stone could absorb the souls of the dead Nagas. This increased the growth rate of the Black Soul Stone by another level.
Including the several days of continuous hunting in the treasure space of the Dead Soul Lake, Bai Xiaowen's Black Soul Stone had now accumulated 510 Soul Essences.
The Naga raiders had all been wiped out. Ahan, carrying his heavy sword, walked up to the mayor, Hiram.
Hiram's face was pale.
After a moment of silence, Ahan gave the order to the militia. "Tie him up."
"Aliosha!"
The sound of horse hooves could be heard in the distance. A woman galloped over on horseback.
Bai Xiaowen narrowed his eyes and sighed softly. "What will come, will come."
The woman was none other than Alexei's wife and Hiram's daughter, Ginny David.
Ginny dismounted and walked up to Ahan.
"Aliosha, I beg of you. Can you let my father go?" Jenny called out Ahan's nickname, her beautiful face completely drained of blood. "You have to believe that it wasn't Father's intention to do such a thing. You know what kind of person he is. He's kind by nature!"
Under his thick eyebrows, Ahon stared at Jenny. "You already knew about this, didn't you?"
Jin Ni felt a little uneasy under Ahan's gaze and slowly lowered her head.
Ahon smiled gloomily. "It turns out that I've been kept in the dark all this time. Mayor Hiram, can you tell me now why you kidnapped your own residents and gave them to these long-tailed monsters? "
Mayor Hiram stammered, "I don't know why … One day, I was fishing by the sea, and the waves washed up with a small wooden carving. I was deeply fascinated by it at first glance … Later, there was a strange voice in my heart that kept whispering in my ear, tempting me to do something irrational … Later, the Naga appeared and used some of the mistakes I had made to threaten me … I really didn't mean it!"
Ahon shook his head and said, "That can't be your reason."
Mayor Hiram heaved a sigh. "Alexei, it's my fault for being weak. It has nothing to do with Jenny. After she found out, she tried to dissuade me many times … But at that time, I only wanted to protect my wealth and status, so I could only go down this path to the end. "
"Then you can only accept the people's judgment." Ahon was expressionless.
Ginny stood in front of Ahon and said tearfully, "Aliosha, I've never begged you since I married you … This is the first time I'm begging you. Give my father another chance, okay?"
Mayor Hiram also said, "Alexei, as long as you can protect my reputation, after today's events, I'm willing to step down from my position as mayor and choose you as the next mayor. You and Jenny's child will be the heir to my title. I've always treated you as my son, and Jenny is my favorite daughter … "
Ahon remained silent, but Bai Xiaowen could clearly see his big hands trembling slightly. "Protect your reputation? I don't have that ability. "
Seeing Ahon's silence, Mayor Hiram added fuel to the fire. "Ahon, the situation hasn't reached the point of no return yet. The serpent-men who came to our rescue are already dead, and these kidnapped residents have been secretly imprisoned and have never seen my face … As long as we pin the crime on these serpent-men, it'll be fine! Your militia patrols are extremely obedient to you. As long as you give the order to keep their mouths shut, they will never reveal the truth. "
Suddenly, Bai Xiaowen received a notification from the laws of the spiritual world.
"Progress of the main mission: The Truth in the Fog has changed. The criminal of the missing persons case, Hiram David, is trying to reach an agreement with the sheriff, Alexei Ahon, to deceive the public.
"If the truth of the missing persons case cannot be made public, the main mission will be declared a failure.
"Please prevent the two parties from reaching an agreement."
Li Shuyi's expression changed slightly. Apparently, she had also received the same notification. She looked at Bai Xiaowen.
Bai Xiaowen waved her hand slightly, indicating for Li Shuyi to calm down. In fact, Bai Xiaowen had already prepared for this situation.
"Mayor Hiram, I'm afraid it's impossible for you to deceive the people," Bai Xiaowen stood up and said.
Hiram glared at Bai Xiaowen. "Who are you? What right do you have to speak like that? "
Ahon said in a deep voice, "Kail and Blum are my right-hand men. Without their participation, I still don't know the truth of the case. They are qualified to speak on this matter. "
Hiram's eyes were full of astonishment, resentment, and fear. He looked up and down at Bai Xiaowen and Li Shuyi, and his tone suddenly softened. "You two are Ahon's friends, so you should know that if this matter is exposed, it will cause a heavy blow to Ahon's family and his reputation. The residents may no longer trust Ahon, and his position as sheriff will be deprived … For Ahon's sake, please conceal the truth of this matter."
As the mayor of Hodge Town, Hiram's IQ wasn't low. At this time, he couldn't threaten Bai Xiaowen and Li Shuyi verbally. That would only backfire. Using Ahon as an example would make Bai Xiaowen and Li Shuyi much more likely to shut their mouths.
However, Bai Xiaowen wouldn't back down. He shook his head and said, "Unfortunately, there's no turning back now."
"What do you mean?" Hiram's expression changed.
"Someone's coming! A lot of people … "A militia ran over in the distance and said, panting.
Noisy footsteps and voices could be heard. From the intersection in the west, a long line of torches could be seen. Hundreds of residents of Hodge Town were rushing over.
"Where's the murderer?"
"Punish the kidnapper severely!"
"My son … I beg the Lord of Light to keep him safe!"
Hiram's face turned pale again. This time, there was no color at all.
Ahon looked at Bai Xiaowen.
Bai Xiaowen said calmly, "I've notified the families of the missing people. Of course, during the process of notifying them, some residents with excessive curiosity also came over. The number of people is a bit more than I expected. I believe that the residents have the right to know the truth — at least the families of the victims have this right. "
After a pause, Bai Xiaowen continued.
"If Mr. Mayor can make all these angry families of the victims keep their mouths shut, then I can only admit that you have a strong influence and outstanding acting skills. I won't interfere in this matter anymore."
Mayor Hiram's face was pale. It was easy to make a small group of people keep their mouths shut, but how could it be so easy to make hundreds of people, especially the families of the victims, keep their mouths shut?
Mayor Hiram suddenly thought of something. He suddenly stepped forward and grabbed Ahon's arm. "There's no time. This is your last chance. Announce to these residents that these Nagas kidnapped the residents! I … I'm here to help you solve the case! "
Bai Xiaowen shook his head slightly. There was no time. There were still two groups of patrolling militia present. In order to conceal the truth, besides relying on Ahon's prestige to give orders, Mayor Hiram also had to bribe the militia with gold coins, then unify their statements and fabricate a lie that everyone could accept.
In addition, Bai Xiaowen wouldn't sit back and watch Mayor Hiram muddle through. It was necessary to stand up and expose him. Their identities were originally residents of Hodge Town, not outsiders, so the credibility of their words was still very high. This was also the benefit of their identities.
Ahon's big hand, which was like an iron clamp, gripped Mayor Hiram's wrist and slowly but firmly moved his hand away. He said word by word, "I won't do that. The people have the right to know the truth. You can tell the whole story of how you were bewitched and ask for the people's forgiveness! Then, you can give up your aristocratic status to offset your death sentence! "
This was the benefit of the evil feudal system. Aristocratic crimes and civilian crimes were completely different. Minor crimes could be redeemed with money, and even major crimes like serial kidnapping could be atoned for by stripping one of their aristocratic status. But for an aristocrat, this was no different from killing him.
Mayor Hiram slumped to the ground and murmured, "No, you can't do this … The David family can't fall in my hands, Jenny, Jenny!"
Jenny's face was full of tears as she hugged Mayor Hiram. "Father, this is your best choice. In order to no longer have to suffer the torment of your conscience, it's acceptable to give up your aristocratic status."
Next, the victims' families arrived at the docks. Ahon dispatched his militia to tell the residents the whole story of the missing persons case. Some were angry, and some were shocked, but most people expressed relief that their kidnapped family members weren't in mortal danger, which was a good thing.
Ahon didn't take credit for himself, and gave all the credit for solving the case to Bai Xiaowen and his sister.
Bai Xiaowen watched this scene in silence, and suddenly said to Li Shuyi, "Let's go. I'm not used to being watched and thanked by so many people in the spiritual realm. "
When the residents followed Ahon's instructions and prepared to thank the siblings for their bravery, they couldn't find them. Ahon couldn't find them either, and the expression on his face was very complicated. He now really regarded Bai Xiaowen and his sister as upright people who didn't seek fame or fortune and only sought justice, and he was ashamed of his previous hesitation.
"Main mission: The Truth in the Fog has been completed. Do you want to submit it?"
"Submit."
"You have completed the main mission in three days. You have obtained a special item: Abyss Party Invitation. "
"In the next seven days, 15 hours, 23 minutes, and 05 seconds, you can freely explore and leave the spiritual realm at any time. The psionic energy points, equipment, and items you have obtained in the Blacktide Plane will not disappear."
"Abyss Party … Invitation?"
The first thing that came to Bai Xiaowen's mind was the poison milk game from the Christian era, and the voice of a certain blonde girl.
"Participant of the trial, I hope you can drive away evil with a tenacious will like this cross!"
In another time and space, Bai Xiaowen's poison milk game was getting thinner and thinner, and the reason why he left in the end was that … he no longer had the money to protect Allard. Well, that was probably it. The past was unbearable to look back on.
After letting his thoughts wander for 0.1 seconds, Bai Xiaowen checked the description of the Abyss Party Invitation.
[Abyss Party Invitation: An invitation letter containing mysterious power. It can only be used in the Blacktide Plane. Using this item will trigger a new main mission. The new main mission will give you a period of time to stay, and the period of time given by your first main mission will not conflict with each other.]
[Warning: The mysterious power on this invitation letter is rapidly dissipating. Please choose whether to use it as soon as possible.]
[Warning: The difficulty of the triggered mission may not match your Awakened level.]
On a slightly old parchment, there was a line of words written in ancient Latin:
"Those who stare at the abyss, the abyss is also staring at you."
At the end of the parchment, a line of sparks ignited, and then spread at a speed visible to the naked eye. Judging from the speed of the sparks spreading, the invitation letter would be completely burned within a minute. This was probably the first warning: "The mysterious power of the invitation letter is rapidly dissipating."
The two looked at each other.
Li Shuyi reacted quickly and said decisively, "You make the decision. Don't feel burdened."
Bai Xiaowen smiled and nodded. "I choose … to use it!"
Bai Xiaowen had already checked with the rules of the Spiritual Realm. The second main mission and the period of time given by the first main mission were independent of each other and did not conflict with each other. That was to say, after Bai Xiaowen accepted the second main mission, the period of time given by the second main mission would not affect the remaining seven days of free exploration time of the first main mission.
If Bai Xiaowen accepted the second main mission and was given 10 days to complete it, and completed it eight days in advance, then the additional two days of free exploration time would be combined with the free exploration time of the first main mission, and he would finally have more than nine days of free exploration time.
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