Chapter 12 Nightmare Butcher Yang
The Sorensen Mountains span the southern tip of the Napalm continent and stretch for thousands of miles, bordering the territories of many countries including the Kingdom of the Rhine and the Principality of Shiga. There are also very few areas in the Mountains that are not disturbed by miasma or fog due to the terrain or other special reasons.
In the area bordering the southern tip of the Rhine Kingdom, there is a canyon that cuts vertically through the mountains and avoids the miasma and fog.
This canyon is about two kilometers long in total. It is shrouded in heavy fog all year round and has a surging river at the bottom. The widest part is dozens of meters wide and the narrowest part is more than ten meters wide. Dozens of wooden and stone houses embedded in the cliffs are carved and built on the canyon walls on both sides. The houses are connected by suspension bridges built with iron chains and wooden boards. Among them, the most spectacular is the huge iron-framed round house located at the top, spanning the widest part of the canyon, and with hundreds of horizontally arranged iron cables in the middle.
This stronghold belonged to the bandit gang "Holy Crow" that once terrified the merchants south of the continent of Nabaron.
"The fine wine of the Rhine Kingdom, the wheat flour of the Principality of Shiga, the spices of the Far South... As long as we guard the main road to Sorensen, we can get all the precious goods you can imagine and can't imagine, in an endless supply."
In a round house built on iron chains, a man with deep eyes and a carefully trimmed beard grabbed a box of ginger from the Far South and took a deep sniff.
"Of course, for a... lich like you, these things may not be attractive."
The leader of the Holy Crows, Hal "Razor" Maxwell, smiled evilly at the guest sitting on the dark brown sofa: "Let me think about what black magicians like... Um, magic powder, spellcasting materials, alchemical materials, right? Every spellcaster likes these things, and I think you should be no exception."
The guest of "Razor", the mysterious visitor who the leader of the Holy Crow had to receive personally, raised his head slightly.
The guest who was still wearing a heavy black cloak in the room... turned out to be a skeleton.
Obviously, this distinguished guest was different from the unintelligent undead creatures. Its bones were white and round, like fine jade. Its eye sockets were not pitch black, but flashed with a captivating faint red light.
When it opened its mouth, even those who saw it with their own eyes could hardly believe that such a low, soft, intoxicating and beautiful voice actually came from the mouth of a skeleton: "'Razor' Hal... If all you want to say is this kind of boring nonsense, then we should say goodbye."
Hal Maxwell's face immediately looked a little embarrassed.
But the leader of the Holy Crows did not lose his temper. Instead, he spoke more earnestly: "Sir, if you are not interested in these, then how about the friendship of a royal heir who is at the top of the line of succession to the Rhine royal family?"
The guest seemed to have lost interest in continuing to talk nonsense. He reached out and pulled down the hood of his cloak, and his figure became illusory...
Hal's face changed drastically, and he took two steps forward to stop the guest: "Wait, sir, please listen to me——"
The figure of the guest sitting on the sofa disappeared like a bubble, and Hal didn't even have time to catch the corner of its cloak.
"Damn it!" Hal was stunned and kicked the sofa in annoyance.
"Captain, there is a black magician visiting!" Outside the house, the younger brother's stuttering voice was heard.
"Fuck the black magicians, all these damn magicians die!" Hal roared angrily.
"Oh?" The black magician Yang Qiu, wearing a black cloak and holding a dragon bone staff, pushed open the door of the round house expressionlessly. "What? The black magician even dug up the ancestral graves of the thieves' group?"
Hal: “???”
"Nice to meet you." Yang Qiu walked into the house with a smile on his face, "Razor Hal, right? Black magician Yang, I salute you."
"Yang...?" Hal was confused at first, then he thought of something and his expression changed slightly, "You... 'Nightmare Butcher' Yang?!"
"I have never acknowledged that nickname." Yang Qiu's face darkened. "Just call me Yang."
Bat Brother, who was following Yang Qiu, had just kicked the thieves' gang members who had chased him in out of the house and closed the door. Hearing this, he looked at Yang Qiu in surprise.
Yang Qiu had to explain to the new member Bat Brother: "That was just a bad name given to me by the crazy people in the court to slander me. I have never done anything that could be called a butcher."
Bat brother nodded doubtfully.
"Let's talk business, Hal." Yang Qiu comforted his friend, and when he turned to look at the leader of the Holy Crows who had called out his bad name, his expression was a little unfriendly. "I heard that you, the Holy Crows, lost a fight with others, lost territory, and many people died. You are looking for a reliable partner, right?"
Hal's face froze...
"Your base is quite good. You don't have to worry about the disturbing miasma when you go in and out of Sorenson from here. Even if you lose the territory outside, as long as you can control this canyon, you won't end up without food for the whole group. But... " Yang Qiu raised his eyebrows, "Even an outsider like me can see how important this canyon and this base are, let alone the enemies of your Holy Crow?"
Hal's expression changed several times, and he gritted his teeth and said, "If Mr. Yang is interested, we can offer this canyon to you with both hands—"
"Not interested." Yang Qiu replied immediately, "This canyon is indeed a good place to collect tolls, but it is not the only safe route to Sorenson. In addition, the geographical environment here is so bad that it is not suitable for larger caravans to pass through. Even six-legged lizards can't pass through. Even if we pluck the feathers of the passing geese, how much can we gain?"
Hal: “…”
"As far as I know, there is another safe route in the southern part of the Rhine Kingdom. If we can find a way to blow up this canyon, all caravans and individuals trying to enter the Sorensen Mountains from the Rhine Kingdom will have to choose another route, and then we can open some businesses along the way, such as supply stations or something, wouldn't that be better than taking care of both ends?" Yang Qiu spread his hands.
Hal couldn't stand it any longer and gritted his teeth and said, "Mr. Yang, are you just going to laugh at us?"
"Of course not." Yang Qiu said, "I just heard that the Holy Crow, a once-prominent band of thieves, has decided to fight to the bitter end, and I don't think it's necessary to waste the few dozen people left."
"…I'm sorry, I don't understand what you mean."
"My meaning is very simple, Hal. After all, those of you who always think about getting something for nothing... and always hope to earn a large sum of gold coins by fighting and killing, what you pursue is nothing more than fine wine and food, and enjoyment beyond the imagination of ordinary people, isn't it?"
Ignoring Hal's instantly ugly expression, Yang Qiu spread his hands calmly: "Skip the fighting and the so-called large sums of gold coins, and show you a simpler and easier way to get wine, food and enjoy life. I can also ensure that you don't have to face the high risks of a career as a thief, and can get a stable and peaceful life. I come with such good intentions, and I am your friend."
Amid Hal's doubtful look, Yang Qiu calmly took out a bottle of rum-flavored wine bought from the supermarket for 13.8 yuan, half a pound of braised duck sold in the supermarket's prepared food section, a plate of braised pork with preserved vegetables, and a large steamed bun for 1.20 yuan each.
The total cost of the sumptuous meal was less than forty dollars... Five hours later, eighteen people from the former Holy Crow Thieves Gang, including the leader, followed Yang Qiu and Bat Brother out of Sorenson with their luggage.
On the way along the border of the Rhine Kingdom towards the Tarantan Wasteland, Bat Brother frowned and observed for a long time these thieves who were making a lot of noise while rushing on the road, and cast a disapproving look at Yang Qiu.
"If it's just 'Razor' Hal, maybe he can be of use." Batman, who used to be a decent man, expressed his dissatisfaction with those barbaric thieves in such a tactful way.
"I understand what you mean. This mob can't really do anything big, but at least it's better than nothing." Yang Qiu, who asked Bat Brother to ride the undead horse with him, explained, "We have to receive a total of 300 safe and harmless foreign guests at the same time. Although they don't need food, drink, or shelter, it would be too busy for just you, me, and Hal."
The bat brother was silent for a long time before he said quietly, "No need for food or shelter... Your so-called guests are actually the dead, right?"
"Hmm... they are very different from ordinary undead." Yang Qiu said carefully, "In short, you have to believe that apart from their slightly unusual behavior, they are indeed very safe and harmless."
Bat brother frowned, wondering how credible the "safe and harmless" words of the black magician nicknamed "Nightmare Butcher" were...
After a long journey of two days and one night, nineteen natives of this world... intelligent NPCs, followed Yang Qiu to the Exile Town in the middle of the Tarantan Wasteland.
At this time, three full days of Earth time had passed since the game was shut down.
The original announcement said that the server launch would be delayed by two days... But it doesn't matter, there is no game that doesn't get delayed.
Yang Qiu decided to postpone the event for another day. He called the 19 intelligent NPCs who were disappointed after seeing the true appearance of Exile Town to gather in the town square: "From now on, we have two days (alien time) to prepare. First, I will give all of you the same spiritual imprint and let you all enter the imprint matrix I constructed--"
Hal was startled and quickly stepped forward: "Wait, Yang, my brothers are not contaminated..."
"I understand that you who have been active in Sorensen for a long time are very experienced and know how to avoid risks. But please rest assured, the one who presides over the matrix is me, a black magician who never prays to God, so you don't have to worry that your spirits will be added with inexplicable marks and unknowingly targeted by some unknown existence." Yang Qiu raised his hand and pressed it down.
Hal glanced at Batman and seemed to be about to say something.
Of course he believed that the black magician would not force people to believe in , but... mental pollution was contagious. Bat brother, with a pale face and often weird eyes, was the kind of person who was obviously on the verge of mental collapse. It was really uneasy to be in a mentally connected matrix with such a person who could lose control at any time.
To put it bluntly, if it weren't for the support of Yang, a high-level black magician, Hal would never have been so close to Bat Brother.
"Don't worry, Hal. We are not the only ones in this matrix. There are also 300 intelligent creatures whose resistance to mental pollution is higher than you can imagine. With so many reliable anchor points, you can stay rational as long as you don't go completely crazy." Yang Qiu said with a smile, "And... it's best not to refuse. If you are not in the same matrix and accidentally light up your health bar... if our guests find out and can attack you, you will really be chopped down."
Hal, Bat Brother, and the former thieves: “???”
Mr. Yang, didn't you say that our guests are very safe and harmless?!
