Hao Ren was curious as to why a marshal like Ophra would personally come here, but he could not find a chance to ask her about it. After informing them of the situation, the marshal casually asked about the situation of the mercenary group and the process of finding the Orb of the Holy Synod. This was not the first time someone had asked about these things, so of course, everyone answered smoothly. Finally, Becky took the initiative to ask about Big Beardy and the rest. "When are the four masters coming back?"
In fact, Becky was not concerned about the four ascetics at all. She just wanted to make her presence known in front of Marshal Ophra.
Ophra shook her head. "The four masters naturally have to rest in the priests' house. They also have to pray and meditate for a long time according to the scripture. You probably won't see them again before the next departure."
Hao Ren had been thinking about other things. He was not interested in the so-called rewards. At this time, he looked up and asked, "Then... do we have to go to the royal city to receive the rewards?"
Ophra raised her eyebrows in surprise. Her eyes lingered on Hao Ren's face for a long time. "What do you mean?"
"We want to stay here and help." Hao Ren spread out his hands. "I've seen the situation here. Those rock monsters are a big threat, and I'm good at dealing with them. I think it's more valuable to stay here and help you fight than to go back to the royal city to receive the rewards."
Of course, Hao Ren could not admit that the real reason he wanted to stay was to study the secrets of Dragonspine Ridge and the Blood Lake. Wealth and fame in The Plane of Dreams meant nothing to him. Only by understanding the legend of the destruction of the world 10,000 years ago could he get that level of pay...
But Ophra certainly did not know what was on Hao Ren's mind. She was just surprised that this seemingly ordinary "mercenary" could say such a thing. She stared at Hao Ren for a while, as if trying to find traces of hypocrisy on his face. Then she stood up, her armor clanking. "We'll talk about these things later. One or two more people who can fight won't change the situation much. The real solution to this mess is still the knowledge of Bishop Gelton. Of course, after you come back from the royal city, you can still apply to stay here to fight. We are short of people here for a long time. "
After saying this, Ophra took her leave without any hesitation. After the marshal left, Becky let out a sigh of relief. She rushed up to Hao Ren and said, "Hey, hey! What were you thinking just now! What if Lady Ophra really agrees to cancel our reward because of your loyalty to the country!? "
Hao Ren squinted at Becky and said, "Don't I have something important to do? Your rewards are useless to me."
Becky almost jumped up. "But for me... Oh, it doesn't seem to work for me..."
Hao Ren said, "Alright, let's put these things aside for now. Our time is limited, and we probably won't have a chance to come back after this trip to the Royal City. The next time we come here might be another month later. God knows how many more accidents will happen in this place. Tonight, I plan to go into the mountains. You guys can also help me go to other places … "
After Hao Ren left the mercenary group's resting place, Ophra did not go to the church. Instead, she rode her warhorse and went straight through half the town to the royal knights' encampment. In front of the Knights' camp, an old man who looked no different from an ordinary groom was waiting. Ophra dismounted and handed the reins to the old groom. "I've met them all, including the four masters and the mercenaries who appeared out of nowhere."
The old groom silently followed beside Ophra and asked casually as if he was talking about the weather, "What's the situation? Is it true? "
The two did not lower their voices at all. However, as long as one was more than two meters away from them, no one could hear the content of the conversation. A strange mental interference pervaded around Ophra, causing all those who tried to eavesdrop on the conversation to only hear a buzzing noise echoing in their minds.
"I didn't see the Orb, but it should be with one of the masters. They abided by the doctrine. Even in front of the bishop, they would not easily take out the Orb for me to verify its authenticity. But the Orb should be real." Ophra looked back with a faint smile. "Because the four masters are real. I can distinguish their breaths."
"That means the return of the Orb is certain." The old groom followed Ophra into the depths of the encampment unhurriedly. "It seems that this is not arranged by anyone. What's the matter with those mercenaries? "
"They claim to be traveling mages from the northern Hognar Empire. They travel around to increase their knowledge. Getting involved in the Orb incident and rescuing the four masters is basically a coincidence. The whole story is watertight. Only my instinct makes me feel that they are hiding something." Ophra's footsteps paused slightly. "Elson, what's the situation of your investigation?"
"They appeared suddenly. They first appeared in Lamberg Town in the southern part of the grassland. Before that, no one knew about this group of people, and they couldn't find their origins even after checking all the border transit records. They disappeared into thin air for more than a month before. Our informants almost broke their legs searching for them, but they couldn't find any clues. In addition, I found some mercenaries who had been in contact with that group of people. Those mercenaries mentioned that their fighting style was very strange. They were not mages at all, not even any known combat profession. It was more like instinct and talent. Maybe they are some kind of secret warrior that we don't know about. "
Ophra lowered her eyelids. "... Elusive... Even you can't find any clues after they suddenly disappeared? Has your wolf's nose degenerated, or can they really jump out of the sky? "
"You're the same as before, your jokes never have a funny point." The old "groom"'s expression did not change. "Is there a problem with those mercenaries?"
"There's nothing wrong with them. At least my hunting instinct can determine that they have no malice, no evil thoughts, and even no greed. The last point is the most surprising to me. Their leader calmly tried to refuse the reward, and there was no falsehood in his emotions. I even felt that the man's thoughts at that time were as pure as a saint. He didn't even pay attention to fame and fortune at that time, but... "Ophra suddenly paused and looked up." The biggest problem is that their origin is unknown. "
"Then continue to investigate." The old groom nodded. "Although I don't think a group of mercenaries is worth paying attention to... but your intuition has always been very accurate."
"Intuition..." Ophra said to herself and looked up at the sky. "I hope my intuition can help me solve the trouble here. I have a bad feeling. This holy land is shrouded in a dark cloud, and some uncoordinated fellows are hiding around us. The only one who can control the situation is Bishop Gelton, but he is a pious old priest who can't adapt to the situation. "
Undercurrents were surging under this ancient and mysterious holy land. Most of the people in the undercurrent were ignorant of it. They were just running for their lives under the harassment of the monsters and becoming more and more numb in the battle. As night fell, Dragonspine Ridge ended a restless day and ushered in an equally restless night.
Under the cover of the night and the power of the shadows, Hao Ren and the others left Leyton Town at the foot of the mountain and came to a high ground not far from the town.
"Although I want to stay here and investigate things clearly, but after thinking about it, I think it's necessary to go to the Royal City." Hao Ren saw that everyone was present and sat cross-legged on the ground. "It is said that the Royal City has a large library that stores all kinds of files accumulated since the founding of Holletta for thousands of years. The cathedral and the palace also have secret files passed down from the previous civilization. These are all necessary to investigate. We will spend a lot of energy in this world, and it is necessary to integrate into the upper class here. This is a good opportunity. Tonight, we will investigate the movement of the rock monsters, mainly to find out how much Dragonspine Ridge has changed since we left here two months ago. And the Blood Lake — Vivian and Lily, you two are fast. Go to the Blood Lake again. I'm still very concerned about that tunnel. Last time, we only went in one direction. This time, you two go and see where the other direction of the tunnel leads to. "
Lily seemed a little excited. Apparently, this "secret operation in the middle of the night" made her feel very powerful. Hearing Hao Ren's instructions, she immediately nodded, jumped on a big rock and howled. "Awooo — Woof!"
The wolf's howl echoed in the forest. Vivian was quick to react, but she could not stop it...
"It's okay," Hao Ren shook his head. "It's normal to have wolves in the mountains."
Vivian glared at him. "But it's not normal to have a woof after a howl!"
Hao Ren waved his hand and looked at Y'zaks. "You go with Becky. You're strong, and Becky is experienced. The two of you go to the main peak in the north. It is said that it is one of the peaks where the rock monsters are proliferating. See if there are any changes in the proliferation of the monsters, especially when they split up and did not attack the town. See what they are actually doing. I always thought that the rock monsters, these brainless creatures, would not make such a smart move like attacking, but they did plan a sneak attack to break through the defense line half a month ago. "
"Finally, I will go to the 'bridge' in the south with Wuyue." Hao Ren tossed the MDT in his hand. "A mountain will not transform out of thin air. There must be some secret there. The locals don't have energy detectors, hehe, I do."
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