Even when looking at Fort West from afar, the white stone fortress sitting between the mountain gates was very spectacular, and when one really stepped into it, the magnificence and grandeur of the fortress could be magnified several times.
Hao Ren was not an inexperienced person. In Holletta, Tannagost, Helcrown, and Aerym, he had seen all kinds of magnificent buildings, so he had his own set of aesthetic standards for magnificent buildings. But no matter how you looked at it, Fort West was an amazing spectacle. The walls were towering, and the white boulders were shining under the Light of Order as if the whole fortress was cast with light. Huge magic runes spread all the way from the top of the Spire of Flames in the center of the fortress to the top of the walls, forming a translucent energy barrier inlaid with countless blue text. Everything seemed to reflect one fact:
This was a barrier, condensing the confidence and courage of mortals. It stood here in glory, guarding the frontier of the world of Order.
The knights led by Princess Veronica received a grand welcome. But in addition to the welcome, more fortress defenders had not figured out the origin of this group of reinforcements from the wilderness. Veronica and the Royal Knights led by her had been routed in the Twilight Forest more than half a month ago. Everyone thought that the brave princess had died with her soldiers at the border of Chaos. No one thought that she had led the defeated soldiers to carry out an epic feat of crossing the realm of Chaos. So few people could associate today's reinforcements with the princess.
And more importantly, the presence of Hao Ren: when a small group of only 20 or 30 people broke into the monsters, the first thing the fortress defenders noticed was the powerful artillery bombardment and bomb explosions. Hao Ren's fighting style had completely distorted the style of the whole team. Who knew what this team of rampaging and exploding was for?
But when the small group of knights entered the city, the news of Princess Veronica's survival quickly spread throughout the fortress.
Then they were invited by the commander of the fortress, General Marcus of the West of the kingdom.
The ordinary knights were arranged to be entertained in the hall on the first floor of the fortress, while Hao Ren, Princess Veronica, and Sir Morian were taken to a special room on the second floor of the fortress. This was a reception room with almost no decoration. There was only an oval table and a circle of wooden chairs in the huge stone room. On one side of the wall of the room hung a map of the Western Region Mountains and the Shadowy Forest. On the other side of the wall hung a variety of swords and protective gear. Other than that, there was nothing else in the room.
A strong old general was already waiting in the room. At first glance, Hao Ren could not help but be a little stunned: this old general could almost be called a giant. He was probably about 2.5 meters tall, even a little taller than Y 'zaks in his human form. Although his hair was all white, he still looked majestic. His face was rigid, and his muscles were sharp even under the battle robe. His whole body was full of strength as if he was chopped by a knife or an axe.
His white hair, eyebrows, and weather-beaten face showed the age of the old general. But his straight body and muscles made Hao Ren a little uncertain about his real age. Was he really an old man?
"Your Royal Highness," the old general strode forward when he saw Veronica. He then knelt on one knee and saluted. "It's the only good news that you're alive. The goddess has blessed Taros!"
"General Marcus," Veronica hurriedly reached out to help the old general in front of her. The scene was a little funny. The old general was not much lower than Veronica even when he was kneeling on the ground. When the princess reached out to help the old general, it was as if she was holding Marcus' arm to lift him up. "You are the general of the west. You don't have to salute me …"
The old general stood up and asked the princess and the rest to take a seat. "Your Royal Highness, how did you survive the Shadowy Forest? I heard that your troops had been swallowed by the Chaos, and that was more than 20 days ago … "
"We crossed the entire Shadowy Forest and most of the wilderness," Veronica said frankly. "Finally, we arrived at the Sacred Mountain of Cassouin. Thanks to the blessing of the goddess of creation, the guardian of the Sacred Mountain of Cassouin saved our lives."
As she spoke, she looked at Hao Ren and nodded solemnly.
General Marcus had already noticed the strangely dressed stranger beside the princess, and earlier, he had seen the stranger's battle scene on the wall of Fort West. The instantaneous magic full of flames and explosions had left a deep impression on him. He also saw that the guy who made the explosions also had good fighting skills. He used a long spear that emitted blue light to fight with more than a dozen monsters at the same time. His fighting style could only be described as tough. This was not a style that could be reflected through ordinary training or courage.
This was the kind of temperament that could only be condensed by facing unimaginable challenges.
This kind of temperament was called reckless on Earth.
If he had seen the battle between Hao Ren and the Demon God Vivian MK-II, he would have understood how Hao Ren got his fighting style.
In most cases, the enemies that Hao Ren faced could not be defeated by caution and tactical skills. As Raven 12345 once said, an inspector's life depended on 30% luck, 70% hard work, and the remaining 90% was basically recklessness …
"Hello," Hao Ren saw that Marcus did not say anything, so he took the initiative to greet him. "General of the West, I often hear Veronica mention you. My name is Hao Ren. This name is a bit special. It should be easy for you to remember. "
He currently had the title of Ancient Guardian, and he felt that this title would be very helpful for him in the human kingdom. So he decided to try to make his words and actions in this direction.
Marcus looked at Hao Ren with a puzzled expression. "So you are …"
"I am the Cassouin Sacred Mountain Guardian that Veronica mentioned," Hao Ren nodded. "According to what you said, I seem to be a person of the previous generation … Well, that is how Veronica explained it to me."
Marcus' eyes narrowed slightly.
Obviously, he had some doubts about the "ancient guardian" who popped up out of nowhere. Unlike the young and somewhat reckless princess, this veteran was not only strong but also cautious and skeptical, which was befitting of his age.
In the old general's worldview, many things were deeply ingrained. He had long passed the age of believing in legends and prophecies. In Collow, such things were as common as the sea. If every story in bards and adventure novels could come true, the world would have been destroyed thousands of times. Of course, it would also have been saved thousands of times.
An ancient guardian who had been in the depths of the realm of Chaos for thousands of years, and an ancient sacred mountain that only existed in legends. This sounded like an amazing story, and the old general's suspicion was very reasonable. Although the wilderness was now a no-man's land ruled by the forces of Chaos, the wilderness had not been deserted for the past ten centuries.
Had no one discovered the Cassouin Sacred Mountain in the era when the wilderness had not been swallowed by Chaos?
Marcus also knew that there were some areas in the wilderness that were always shrouded by Chaos (in Collow, they were called "tearing points"). Assuming that the Cassouin Sacred Mountain was located in one of the tearing points, then what was wrong with the people of the previous generation to build a temple in such an evil place? It was impossible for it to provide any protection to the surrounding territories!
The origin of this "ancient guardian" was very questionable.
But the old general did not ask much. He just silently watched Hao Ren for a while, and then took the initiative to look away. "Your Royal Highness, you have passed through the hinterland of Chaos. Do you have any news?"
"Of course," Veronica nodded. "We have found some changes in the depths of Chaos. Festered monsters … and the furnace device left in the realm of Chaos has traces of being modified by unknown energy. There is also some other information. But before that, I'd like to know what happened to the monsters that attacked the city. If I remember correctly, it has been less than a month since their last attack. This does not conform to the general pattern of the forces of Chaos. "
Marcus nodded. "Indeed, the attack of the monsters of Chaos is very sudden, and in fact, there has been more than one wave. The battle you saw today has happened seven times in the past 20 days."
Veronica's eyes suddenly became extremely shocked.
The old general waved his hand. "Your Royal Highness, there is too much to say. I have ordered people to prepare a meal. Why don't we eat here and talk?"
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