Chapter 447: Disaster is Coming
After the bone dragon flew out of the mountainous area, Yang Qiu and others gave up this overly ostentatious way of traveling and switched to land mounts.
The undead lizard with shiny black bones and a flat head, carrying Yang Qiu and four other spellcasters, stepped steadily and seemingly slowly into the hot land in the northern part of Tachia Territory.
Due to the distorting effect of the subspace barrier, the locals could not see the undead lizard crawling at high speed in the vast countryside, but the four spellcasters still heard a lot of screams and saw many local villagers fleeing in terror along the way.
At this time, the fire mage Lamantha, the illusionist Sadier & Weber were all turning their heads to look at the village not far away, and the corners of their mouths twitched in sync.
That village... it was really lively - a large number of villagers were howling and running away, and a large number of undead were also running around among the crowd.
Sometimes the two sides run in the same direction, and sometimes they run in the same direction.
The villagers who were running away like headless flies were overtaken by the undead who were "chasing him". They were stunned for a moment, then they turned around and ran screaming in another direction...
If one didn't have eyes, just by listening to the noise, anyone would think that the undead were slaughtering the village... But the three court mages all had eyes, and their eyes were quite good. The feeling they had when they saw this scene was particularly difficult to describe in words...
Lamantha saw with her own eyes that a villager who was fleeing in panic almost bumped into the undead, and was impatiently pushed away by the undead with melon seeds. A bit of disgust seemed to be visible on the expressionless skull face .
The undead lizards left the village behind, and the three court mages all felt vaguely relieved - they finally didn't have to be in that state where they felt both the undead and the villagers were causing trouble, and they felt completely torn.
"Although our undead friends are friendly and kind, their behavior is inevitably a bit rude."
Sitting cross-legged on the flat skull of the undead lizard, Yang Qiu said calmly, "Of course, I think you can all understand this. After all, the undead are responsible for completely eradicating the stubborn disease of Tachia. In order to avoid causing more trouble, it is necessary to cut the Gordian knot and sever the connection between the cultists and the lower-class civilians."
The three court mages were silent for a moment and nodded silently.
For many years, the Taqia Territory has tried its best to cover up the chaos in the territory. The royal family and the upper echelons of the Gold Coin Church have only a vague understanding of the cult situation in the Taqia Territory, not to mention the court mages who basically don't care much about "trivial affairs".
It was for this reason that when Yang presented the situation he had investigated in Lars City to these court mages, the shock was astonishing enough - the feudal nobles had collectively fallen, the night watchmen had been murdered; even the remaining bloodlines of the church's high-ranking officials were involved, reduced to pawns to whitewash the situation and scapegoats to be used in case of trouble!
"No wonder the Gold Coin Pope is willing to break off relations with the royal family and hold Lord Tachia accountable..." Illusionist Weber sighed heavily.
The southern mountainous area, which is relatively closed due to geographical reasons, has a poor economy and a small population, has such serious problems. Then... will the great plains in the north, which are the main grain-producing area in the Rhine Kingdom, have fewer problems?
The rural towns and cities in the northern plains are far behind those in the southern mountainous areas in terms of scale, population, and economic conditions. Will those cult members who can squeeze fat out of the bones of the mountain people let go of these fat lambs?
The diocese of Tachia has become so corrupt that it is obvious that the church is disappointed with the Tachia nobles.
At this time, Sadir, who usually doesn't talk much, suddenly spoke up: "Does the royal family really know nothing about the situation in Taqiya Territory?"
Weber was stunned.
Fire Mage Lamantha looked at her usually taciturn companion in astonishment.
Sadir, who was sitting sideways on the tailbone of the undead lizard, did not continue speaking. He turned his head to look at the newly born wheat seedlings on the ground.
Weber could feel his heartbeat quickening, but this spellcaster who had served the Rhine royal family for decades and was almost equal to Chief Nidam was not willing to accept this reality. He said in a hoarse voice: "Sadir, do you know something?"
"No, I don't know more than others." Sadir said calmly without looking back, "It's just that I suddenly remembered one thing... If I remember correctly, your Majesty, there should have been no scandals for several years."
"Of course, it may also be that Your Majesty is old." After adding this final explanation, the illusionist who never liked to talk much shut his mouth tightly.
Weber and Lamantha were not comforted by Sadier's additional explanation, and both of their faces turned very ugly.
The gossip about the King of the Rhine once supported many tabloid newspapers in the royal capital.
When he was still the crown prince, his majesty was known for his promiscuity and there were even rumors that his previous queen died of depression because of this.
You should know that the eldest prince, the second princess and the third prince have dared to make disrespectful remarks about the second wife, Princess Harriet, in public on many occasions for many years. The reason is that in the year when little Prince Andrew was born, His Majesty was involved in a scandal of almost marrying a concubine!
Among the many countries in the continent of Naples, no king has ever done such a thing that would embarrass his queen (princess)!
Human nature will not change easily, and the more knowledgeable spellcasters understand this truth better.
The king, now in his early sixties, is far from being too old to be able to enjoy himself.
The veins on the illusionist Weber's forehead gradually bulged, and his hands on his knees slowly clenched into fists.
Fire Mage Lamantha's face was gloomy and the temperature around her was rising uncontrollably.
Yang Qiu, who had watched a good show, seemed to speak in a friendly manner to save the old king's reputation: "You don't have to rush to conclusions. Given his Majesty's age and status, it is normal for him to realize the importance of self-cultivation and resolve to live a healthier life."
How could the three court mages not understand his true meaning? Weber and Sadir refused to respond to his words.
It was the fire mage Lamantha who spoke up and shook her head, saying, "Whether the royal family knew about this or not, they are responsible for this situation."
Sadir and Weber have been served by the Rhine royal family for many years and are willing to hold their noses and consider the long-term interests of the Rhine royal family... Even if they realize that there may be something wrong with His Majesty the King, they will not say bad words, nor will they easily change their position.
Ramanta is different. The reason she serves the Rhine royal family is that she is originally a Rhine people - she was born in the royal capital and experienced the National Defense War two hundred years ago. She has deeper feelings and ties to this country than other court wizards.
As the saying goes, the deeper the love, the more severe the criticism. Ramanta could not tolerate the flaws in the Rhine royal family, especially the king himself.
Yang Qiu liked this kind of spellcaster who cared about his motherland very much. He smiled and agreed, but did not comment much.
It would be impossible to gain their approval by telling these court mages who have served the royal family for many years that the common people of Taqia pay taxes and tributaries to sign a contract with the country, but their basic rights to survival and personal and property safety are not protected, which is the greatest dereliction of duty of the royal family.
Who knows, it might even make them wary and make them re-examine the "brutal" behavior of Yang Qiu and the Undead regime against the Rhine nobles.
Human beings are creatures that are easily influenced and assimilated by the environment.
The sales clerks and salesgirls at luxury goods counters are used to serving wealthy people with lavish spending, so their own consumption concepts will gradually change and they will have the illusion that they have integrated into the group of wealthy people. They may even look down on ordinary people who consume affordable goods. Young people working in the fashion industry find it difficult not to be confused by the glamorous fashion world. They earn a few thousand yuan a month but think they are qualified to despise and laugh at "little stars" and "local bosses" who cannot afford high-end fashion clothes from big brands.
This characteristic is common to all groups of people, and even spellcasters are no exception - having lived in the capital, the center of the vortex of power for a long time, being neighbors with princes and nobles, and meeting only the so-called upper class people everywhere, it is difficult for them to sit on the side of the masses.
No matter how high the moral standards of the group of spellcasters are, they are still human beings after all, and it is difficult for them not to be limited by their own cognition.
But...it doesn't matter.
Yang Qiu never cared whether his partners’ moral standards were high enough, whether their vision was broad enough, or even how much sincerity they showed was not important.
It is enough to have the necessity for cooperation, the space for cooperation, and the premise that cooperation is mutually beneficial.
A few hours later, the Undead Lizards gradually approached the first small town in the north of Tachia: Rob Town.
Seeing the outline of the town from afar, Yang Qiu couldn't help but want to laugh.
On both sides of the road, which is about a thousand meters long in front of the town, groups of strong men are wandering in the wheat fields; they seem to be working in the fields, but the hoes in their hands are so clean that they can reflect light.
A little further away, where the view was blocked by trees and hills, faint human figures could be seen swaying.
"The degree of organization of the cult in the north is indeed much higher than that in the southern mountainous areas." Yang Qiu said with admiration and satisfaction on his face.
Even Sadir, who didn't want to talk, couldn't help but turn around and stare at Yang Qiu.
The cult is so rampant that it even dares to set up defenses outside the town. What are you so happy about? !
Relying on the concealment of the subspace barrier, the four spellcasters entered the town openly without alerting hundreds of "spies".
As soon as she entered the town, the fire mage Lamantha realized something was wrong.
"Why do I feel... a smell of turbid sewage?" Lamantha jumped off the lizard's back and frowned.
"Hmm?" Weber and Sadier were both stunned for a moment. "Really?"
"Fire mages have a higher sensitivity to water elements, so they can sense something is wrong." Yang Qiu took back the undead lizard and said calmly, "If Chief Needham came, perhaps his perception would be clearer - after all, this is the lair of the worshipers of 'Lady of Joy'."
"'Ms. Joy'?!" Lamantha exclaimed.
"How did you know?" Weber asked, then realized he had said something stupid and quickly tried to make amends, "Did your undead find evidence? "
Yang Qiu smiled but said nothing.
During the time they were on the road, the undead had already raided the country nests of more than a dozen followers of the "Lady of Joy", and had obtained a lot of account books, sacrificial utensils, and puppet statues of the Lady of Joy...
"It's getting late. Let's find a place to rest for the night and set off tomorrow." After looking at the sky, Yang Qiu took the lead and walked towards the town hall.
Three court mages: "..."
You said you were looking for a place to rest, but you actually headed for the town hall - can you come up with a more sincere excuse?
But as soon as Yang entered the town, he pointed out that this was the lair of worshipers of the "Lady of Pleasure" and hinted that he had evidence - the three court mages could not find any excuse to stop his action.
"Forget it. This is the fact we have to face." Weber shook his head with a wry smile and followed Yang calmly.
Sadir and Lamantha followed with blank expressions.
The four spellcasters arrived at the town hall and, not surprisingly... saw an empty town hall building.
The undead had been rushing into this hot land in the north since noon, and it was now approaching dusk. The town of Rob was the first to be hit, so it was normal for the mayor and the governor's affairs officer to flee as soon as they heard the news.
Yang Qiu casually tidied up the lobby on the first floor of the town hall, sat down and issued task instructions to the online players.
Soon, within a radius of dozens of kilometers around Luobu Town, many player teams that had already gained something turned around, carrying prisoners and props, and rushed to the town in a mighty manner...
Just when Yang Qiu issued the task instructions and reminded players that they could go to the "nearby" Rob Town to complete a wave of tasks in exchange for rewards... In a residential house in the east of Rob Town, three sect leaders who had been anxiously discussing for an entire afternoon but had not come up with a proper solution and instead continued to receive bad news, had just finished their spy mission.
After sending off the hook-nosed old man and the skinny woman, the calmness on the wealthy man's face disappeared in an instant. He turned around and yelled at his subordinates: "Pack your things quickly! Leave before dawn and go to Creek City!"
The hook-nosed old man and the skinny woman who left separately reacted similarly to the wealthy man:
"Let's go back to our territory, Rob Town is finished!"
"Hurry, hurry, we don't have to be buried with them!"
