Shog was depressed for a long time. He did not go to a doctor because there was only one doctor in Duc, and that was the priest himself. Shog was qualified to learn magic. As a priest of the shrine, practicing magic was one of his daily duties. But not every priest was an excellent mage. It depended on the individual's aptitude and cultivation.
It took Shog several years to awaken his power. In the end, he had to go through a ceremony presided over by the supreme mage Goliath in the Shrine of Syah. But so far, he had barely reached the standard of a second-level mage. He could only use a few low-level magic, including prayer magic, the most important of which was healing magic.
The healing skill of the divine prayer was the most important cultivation content for a priest of a village shrine. It was not only a guarantee that he would be respected by the residents, but also a symbol of a miracle.
It had been almost a month since he vomited blood and fainted in public. Lord Shog had given him many healing spells. When he recovered, there was nothing wrong with his body. But he still felt depressed, as if something was stuck in his heart. There was something that he had to get rid of. Finally, the time came. After breakfast, he called for Maqi, a servant in the shrine.
Shog was the only priest and clerk in the town, but it was impossible for him to be the only one in the temple. A lot of work was done by servants and assistants. Lord Shog lived like a prince, and the work he usually handled was just registration. Maqi was his most capable assistant, helping him with the daily affairs of the shrine and managing the other servants. He had already achieved the third-level body arts.
Lord Shog was very kind today. He smiled and greeted Maqi, "Come here and sit down."
Maqi was flattered, "My lord, is it impolite for me to sit with you?"
Lord Shog pretended to be displeased, "What are you talking about? You are my most capable assistant, my most trusted companion. What's wrong with sitting at the same table? Sit down, or I will be angry! "
Maqi sat down at the table. Shog pushed a plate of snacks to him. It was a kind of fresh wild fruit that the servants picked in the forest east of the town. It was sweet and sour. Maqi took one and ate it carefully. Shog smiled and asked, "Your body arts have reached the third-level, right? He's only one step away from becoming an intermediate warrior. "
Maqi hurriedly replied, "I was originally just an ordinary miner in the town. It was you who told me that there was something similar to physical cultivation in the mining techniques, and you also read me books about physical cultivation. That's how I was able to achieve what I have now. Don't worry, Sir. I didn't tell anyone about it as per your instructions. "
Shog smiled happily. "What's there to worry about? You're the one I trust the most. If you can become an intermediate warrior, I can go to the lords of the city and make an exception for you. If you're lucky, I can find an opportunity to make you a noble, or at least let you become a warrior of the shrine and a deputy with a divine title. "
Maqi quickly stood up and took a step back. "Thank you, Master Shog. I don't know how to repay you."
Shog waved his hand. "Sit down, let's talk. Maqi, have you found out what I asked you to investigate a few days ago? "
Maqi sat down again and answered seriously, "As per your instructions, I've been keeping an eye on Amon for the past ten days. He often goes to Crazy 'Ole's house, and he also goes to the Charcoal Forest alone at night, passing through a very hidden path among the rocks."
Shog frowned. "He's really brave. A kid going to the Charcoal Forest at night? What's he doing there? "
Maqi shook his head. "I don't know." After saying this, he seemed to feel that this answer was not appropriate. He thought about it and said, "Is he looking for ore cores again? He picked up so many ore cores in the Charcoal Forest last time. Does he want to try his luck again?"
Looking for ores in the middle of the night? Shog was puzzled. He lowered his voice and asked, "What about the other thing I asked you to do?"
Maqi also lowered his voice. "I went to Amon's house three times when he went out at night. The drunkard didn't notice at all. There are very few things in his house, but they are also very simple. I don't even need to look through them. I found a few dozen silver coins and two gold coins. According to your instructions, don't touch anything until you find the parangons. The parangons should be with Amon all the time. I remember they were wrapped in a sheepskin. "
Shog moved closer to Maqi. "Maqi, I want you to do one thing tonight. … "
Maqi's face turned pale and stiff. He did not speak for a while. Shog stood up and walked behind him. He patted his shoulder and said, "The twenty parangons are all yours. As for the blue parangon, please put it in the Hall of Mourin. Don't let anyone find it. It's for the goddess. I won't be there, and you didn't give it to me. Got it? "
Before Maqi could answer, Shog put his hand on Maqi's shoulder and said, "If you can become an advanced warrior, I'll apply for the position of a temple warrior for you. Then you won't have to pay taxes and you'll still get your salary. As for the money, if it's a gift to the lord of the city, you may have the chance to become the third noble in the town. You can choose how you want to live your life. But don't forget that I'm treating you as my most trusted assistant. "
Maqi gritted his teeth. His face twitched a few times. Finally, he nodded, "I understand, my lord. I'll do as you say."
Shog went to the corner and poured two glasses of wine. He sat down again and handed one to Maqi. Then he shook his head seriously, "You're wrong. You must remember that this is not my order. If someone finds out, they can only say that you were following Amon and trying to find the place where he picked up the ores. I didn't know about it. "
… …
In the middle of the night in the Charcoal Forest, Amon was practicing his water element summoning by the spring. He did not practice the magic taught by Crazy 'Ole. After all, it was in the nature of children to play, and Amon regarded water magic as a game. The water in the environment was controlled and condensed into tiny crystals, like a layer of mist. The crystals floated on the surface of the water and changed into various shapes. It was very interesting!
Sometimes they were tiny water droplets, sometimes they were tiny ice crystals, and sometimes they dissipated in the air.
Amon was having fun when he suddenly felt something was wrong. The muscles on his back tightened as if he was being watched. He stopped, took out the Aquaticore with his left hand, and held a stick with his right hand. Crossing the gloomy Charcoal Forest in the middle of the night, Amon did not come empty-handed. He brought a very special stick with him. It was the most valuable thing in his house except for the parangons.
Amon's father was a drunkard, especially after the death of his mother. But he was also the best blacksmith in Duc when he was young. That stick was a souvenir left behind by his drunkard father many years ago. It looked like a branch that was not very straight, and its surface was mottled. The yellow was rust, and the black was ash. It was almost impossible to tell that it was a high-quality iron embryo.
The miners of Duc were forbidden to forge the processed iron into armor and weapons, and no one taught them how to do so. What they produced were only iron embryos and iron embryos. The best iron sand was not mined in the mines, but panned from the feces of an Ironback that lived in the mountains rich in iron. It was very rare.
When Amon's father was young, in order to test his skills, he secretly collected the best iron sand and smelted it into this embryo. Later, he never traded this "stick" for wine, but kept it in the fireplace as a stick to fiddle with the coals. Every time Amon passed through the Charcoal Forest at night, he used this stick as a walking stick for self-defense.
The gloomy Charcoal Forest was not as dangerous as it looked. If one did not get lost, it was actually a very quiet place. But occasionally, there would be hares and wild dogs, and they would run away when they heard the sound of people. But in the most hungry times, wild dogs could also attack people or sheep, so it was always good to be careful.
Holding the stick in his hand, Amon quietly looked around. The moonlight was quiet and silent. He didn't find anything. The surroundings were full of black rocks and bushes, the most suitable environment for hiding. Even if there was something hiding, it would be difficult to see it. For some reason, Amon always felt uneasy. He suddenly closed his eyes and clenched the Aquaticore in his left hand.
The Aquaticore emitted a faint blue light, but Amon did not shine it out. Unconsciously, a faint mist rose from the spring and floated in the surrounding forest. With the help of the Aquaticore, Amon used the simplest water element magic he knew to the fullest. Sure enough, he found something wrong!
Within the range of the magic, the mist in the air was quietly summoned by him. Even with his eyes closed, Amon could still feel the shape of the rocks and bushes floating in the mist. About ten steps behind him, there was a man! The man was hiding behind a strange rock, with half of his head peeking out through the bushes. He was holding something in his hand. The shape was very familiar. It was the most common miner's sledgehammer in Duc.
Elemental magic was usually not used for detection because its sensing range was much smaller than that of detection magic, and its casting speed was slow. If the opponent was a shrewd mage, he might be able to detect it in an instant. Detection magic was an advanced magic, and the most typical one was the Eye of Puppetry, which could detect the situation in a very large range.
Amon didn't know what detection magic was. He hadn't even heard of the Eye of Puppetry. But by doing so, he inadvertently used the simplest water element magic to achieve the effect of detection magic, and it was also in line with the most basic principle of detection magic. Maqi, who had been following Amon in the dark, did not know that he had been exposed.
But Amon did not move. He was still sitting there quietly. The night was getting darker and darker, and the chill in the air was getting heavier and heavier. Maqi finally could not stand it anymore. He almost thought that Amon had fallen asleep, so he quietly walked out of the bushes with the sledgehammer in his hand.
First-level warriors had extraordinary explosive strength. Second-level warriors usually needed agility in addition to strength. Third-level warriors needed to master the coordination of strength, speed, and endurance. As a third-level warrior in Rod-dick's personal guards, he could pierce through several cows with a single throw of his spear. Although Maqi had never been trained in this way, he moved like a nimble leopard cat with the heavy sledgehammer. He barely made a sound.
There was a small open space next to the spring. Maqi walked out of the bushes and came to a place where Amon could see him. He was only about twenty steps away. Suddenly, a fierce look appeared in his eyes. He sped up and swung the hammer in his right hand. For a third-level warrior, this distance could be covered in the blink of an eye. There was no time for Amon to react, and Amon seemed to have no reaction at all.
However, Maqi had only taken two steps when something unexpected happened. His foot slipped, and his body swayed. He tried his best to steady himself, but his other foot slipped again when it touched the ground. Because of the inertia, he could no longer stand straight and fell to the ground. The hammer slipped out of his hand and fell into the spring. When he realized what had happened and tried to get up, he suddenly received a heavy blow on his shoulder. The pain almost made him faint.
Maqi struggled to raise his head and saw that Amon was already standing in front of him. Amon was pointing a branch at his face, and his other foot was stepping on his shoulder. This kid was so strong that he could not even turn over. The ground was so cold that he could not help but shiver. Amon asked in surprise, "Maqi, why are you here? Why did you follow me here in the middle of the night? "
It was Maqi's bad luck today. Under normal circumstances, a third-level warrior would not be afraid of a first-level mage in melee combat if he was prepared and vigilant. However, Maqi did not expect that Amon could use magic. Although it was just a simple first-level water magic, the effect of its control and application was so incredible!
After discovering Maqi, Amon secretly condensed a layer of slippery ice on the way and used a thin mist to cover the reflection of light. If Maqi had walked slowly, he would have been fine, but if he rushed forward, he would definitely have slipped. This was the power of magic. It did not need to be very powerful, but it was a different kind of power. Amon also used the Aquaticore.
Maqi was very angry. He stretched out his hand, trying to grab Amon's ankle. He shouted, "Let me go, Amon! If you can come here, why can't I? Child, how can you be so rude? "
"Of course you can come to the Charcoal Forest. But why are you following me in the middle of the night?" Amon did not let go of Maqi. He gently poked the back of Maqi's hand with the "branch" in his hand. Maqi gritted his teeth in pain. Fortunately, his bones were not broken. Only then did he realize that the stick in Amon's hand was not a branch. It was harder and heavier than pig iron.
Maqi panicked. He suddenly realized that in this place, Amon could kill him with the stick without anyone noticing. His original idea was to kill Amon quietly in a secluded place. He did not expect the situation to be reversed. He hurriedly explained, "Amon, I followed you just to see where you found the ores. I also want to try my luck! "
Amon narrowed his eyes, "You think I'm looking for ores in the middle of the night?"
Maqi replied, "Aren't you? Otherwise, why would you come to the Charcoal Forest every day? "
Of course, Amon could not tell Maqi that he was practicing magic. Suddenly, he realized that when he used magic to make Maqi fall, this person must have noticed it. This was a secret that could not be revealed. He raised the iron stick in his hand but did not put it down. He asked coldly, "Tiantian? Have you followed me many times? Why did you rush towards me with a sledgehammer? "
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