The bell of the Sand Courtyard Bell Tower rang for the third time, and the birds were frightened and fluttered their wings to fly towards the colorful clouds under the sunset. At this time, every street and alley in Shijian City was dyed brilliant gold. When the setting sun began
As it gradually sank into the quiet sea under the western horizon, our mage and his three team members also took action.
They passed through several fairly safe alleys. Of course, this safety came at a price, that is, they had to endure the musty smell, the accumulation of debris, and all kinds of disgusting things crawling in and out of the smelly ditches on the roadside.
Bugs...and even the occasional undead creature or two.
Because they were not familiar with the map, the mage and others wasted a lot of time in the intricate old alleys of Stone Sword City. It was not until it got dark that they found the road to the new city. By this time, tallow candles and oil lamps had been replaced on both sides of the main road in the city.
Players in twos and threes walked across the street talking and laughing from time to time, while Xiao Fen and others used the large shadows to quickly walk from one place to another.
The actual situation in the city reassured them. Although the War Horn issued a wanted order, teams with mages were only deployed at various hotels, taverns, main streets and city gates. The supervision in other places was not very strict.
The goblin used illusions to change everyone's appearance. Xiao Fen turned into a slender priest, Yun Na changed into a ranger costume, plus the paladin kitten and the halfling rogue Mr. Goblin,
A brand new team was formed.
"You have to believe me, as long as you don't meet a particularly powerful mage!" The goblin patted his chest and promised, "There will be no problems with my illusions!"
But caution is still necessary. Xiao Fen and everyone always pass by inconspicuous corners, not in a hurry, until the sky is completely dark and the Sand Court Clock Tower echoes in the city for the fourth time.
The alley where the Thieves Guild is located.
Then the leading 'pastor' stopped.
"The man with the war horn." Xiao Fen said softly.
"Yeah?" Maomao stuck her head out and looked in from around the corner. "Two people! Two gold coins! Leave it to the cat!" She patted her chest and said confidently.
"One! I'm not a businessman!" Xiao Fen raised his index finger.
Mao Mao curled her lips, pulled out her long sword and walked towards the corner. She held her chest and head high, her face became solemn, her lips were pressed tightly, and her eyes shone with resolute light, making her look like a hero among women.
.
The moment the 'Paladin' kitten turned the corner, the two players chatting in front of the thieves' guild stopped. The ranger among them showed a wary look, and the other warrior whistled at the kitten.
"Have you seen that damn thief?" Mao Mao held the sword across his chest and asked seriously.
The two players were stunned and looked at each other. The soldier who whistled smiled and said, "Miss, what are you talking about?"
"The thief I am chasing! He just hid in - did you see it?" Mao Mao's voice rose a little.
The soldier shrugged and said, "There are no thieves here."
"I didn't see it either." The ranger smiled kindly at the kitten.
The female 'Paladin' had a suspicious look in her big eyes. She stared at the two players and approached them step by step.
"Don't try to deceive the eyes of justice! I clearly saw him coming in!" Mao Mao tilted the sword in his hand and shouted righteously.
The warrior turned his head and smiled at the ranger: "Another paladin fanatic."
The ranger became alert, and his hand touched the hilt of the sword at his waist.
"We didn't lie!" the ranger added word by word, and at the same time, he tightened his hand and held the dagger.
Kitty noticed the Ranger's movements, but she didn't even move her eyes. She just stared straight into the Ranger's eyes, as if she really wanted to find any trace of lying in the other person's eyes.
The atmosphere solidified, and even the soldier felt a hint of strangeness in the air.
After a while, the female 'paladin' suddenly lowered her 'noble' head slightly, bent down and said: "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have doubted you for no reason... May the Holy Judgment, Tanret, bless you!"
With this apology, the atmosphere suddenly relaxed. The soldier smiled and bent down to return the salute. The ranger also relaxed, released the dagger in his hand, lowered his head and bowed gracefully.
But at this time, the female 'Paladin' raised her head suddenly, and the black shadow on her hand flashed - before the two players could react, the sap hit them hard on the back of the head, making two dull low sounds.
.
"Also, may Siskena, the goddess of the night, bless you with sweet dreams!" Looking at the two players lying on the ground, the 'Paladin' showed a faint smile and pulled out a large roll of rope from his backpack.
There was soft applause from the alley, and Xiao Fen walked in with the Ranger and the Thief. The three of them all had a faint smile on their faces. Of course, Xiao Fen smiled teasingly, and Yun Na smiled appreciatively.
The dwarf smiled disdainfully.
"Not bad, not bad! Our kitten is very rich!" The mage flicked a gold coin to the kitten's hand and whispered encouragement.
Mao Mao tied the two players up like rice dumplings with a few strokes, then threw them into an inconspicuous corner, clapped his hands and said: "The validity period of Mao Mao's rope skill is two hours, including their escape skills,
They'll be out of trouble in about an hour!"
Xiao Fen nodded and said with a smile: "That's enough."
Then he knocked on the secret door of the Thieves Guild. About ten minutes later, a low and hoarse question came from behind the secret door. The voice was very low and small, but just enough for everyone to hear clearly:
"What?" said the voice.
"Something! Business!" Xiao Fen responded in a normal tone.
The door opened with a clang from the inside, and a man wearing a thief's hood and black light leather armor stuck his head out. He looked around with a vigilant look in his eyes, and then asked in a hoarse voice: "Should we ask for help?"
Is there something you want to take action on?"
"Ask for help! Take us to see the person in charge!" Xiao Fen knew that the so-called selling of things refers to the underground auctions that have always existed in the city. If there was nothing urgent, he would be interested in taking a look.
The man looked at the four of them, and then his eyes fell on the paladin, with a look of disgust in his eyes: "She——"
His words were interrupted by Xiao Fen. The mage shook his head and said: "This is an illusion, she is a thief!"
The man was slightly startled and didn't say much. He just nodded and waved for them to follow. Then he closed the door from the inside and led them down a long corridor. The corridor was dark and the surroundings were empty.
There was no sound, only a series of tapping footsteps were left in my ears. It was as if my whole body had disappeared, leaving only my feet and ears.
The person leading the way seemed to be able to see in the dark. He walked smoothly without any bumps.
Xiao Fen smiled slightly. He noticed that the kitten behind him almost hit the wall three times when turning. The little girl's muttering when she complained reminded him of the pigeons under the clock tower.
I don’t know how long they walked, but the person leading the way suddenly moved. At this moment, a ray of light flashed. Xiao Fen immediately closed his eyes decisively, and Yun Na’s low cry and the kitten’s complaint immediately came out behind him, and the mage laughed.
He smiled. He had suffered the same fate when he first came here in the morning. The feeling of being temporarily blinded by bright light was not that pleasant.
This is a hall. There is a beautiful chandelier hanging on the top of the hall. The candlelight spreads through the crystal to every corner of the hall. The orange light faintly blends into the air, outlining a special atmosphere.
A reassuring atmosphere.
Xiao Fen subconsciously glanced back. Although the hall was brightly lit, the corridor behind him was still pitch black, as if there were two worlds just a stone's throw away, so he became even more convinced that there should be magic darkness there.
shrouded.
The guy who led the way took them to another person in exactly the same attire, bowed, stepped back, and quickly disappeared behind a door on the right side of the hall.
The mage stopped and looked at the guy taking over in front of him. He knew this guy - the guy who sold him the map this morning!
"Hahaha! Oh! Who do I see - an old customer!" Exaggerated laughter came from under the hood of the thief who took over, and he patted the mage's shoulder affectionately, "Li Li likes old customers! They know Li Li
Credibility!" he said loudly.
"How's it going? The laborious map is pretty good... I guarantee you'll be satisfied!" The guy laughed wildly and stretched his hand towards Xiao Fen's shoulder again.
Xiao Fen inadvertently turned his shoulder away from his laborious hand, and smiled reluctantly, "The map is indeed satisfactory, but what we want to discuss now is something else!"
The laborious hand was hanging in the air and couldn't find the point of focus. He shook it awkwardly and then took it back. He coughed dryly and glanced at the two women and one man behind Xiao Fen, his eyes flashing.
"Okay, fight the war horn! Want to escape from the city?" He spread his hands and shrugged. "It's a bit troublesome, but it's not completely impossible!"
The mage raised his head and stared at the thief from the shadows with sharp eyes, staring motionless.
"No doubt! You know... we always have some informants. If such a big thing happened during the day and we don't understand the situation, then the Thieves Guild will have to close down!" Li Li shook his hand angrily and raised his head.
Hand said: "If you want to leave the city, you have two ways to choose!"
"Yeah?" Mao Mao finally found an opportunity to join in. Although it was only a short byte, it also satisfied her curiosity.
"The first way is to find a way out through the old drainage system under the city!" Li Li raised his index finger and paused.
"The second way is to find a way out through the old drainage system under the city!" Li Li raised his middle finger again.
Everyone was silent.
"This seems to be a road!" The kitten patted its little head and asked doubtfully.
"Haha, uh... you can understand it that way." Li Li laughed dryly twice and muttered in a low voice: "It seems that I am really not suitable for telling jokes..."
He clapped his hands: "50 gold coins! I'll take you to that road!" Then the thief stretched out his hand and drew a few lines in the air. "Don't worry, the road is safe!"
Xiao Fen nodded, took out 25 GP and gave it to him, whispering: "Pay half in advance."
Li Li glanced at the mage with a disapproving expression, and finally nodded: "Okay! You still don't believe Li Li, Li Li is reliable - forget it! Let's talk about it when the time comes! Remember your other half of the reward!"
Yun Na smiled slightly and thought this NPC was quite interesting.
About half an hour later, Li Li led four people from another secret underground passage to a certain corroded iron door that was almost melted. He frowned and slapped his nose with his hand, muttering: "Really
Don’t want to come here…this smell, uh, oh my God!”
Then he turned back to Xiao Fen and said: "This underground drainage system has not been used for many years, but there is no danger in it. The only thing you need to pay attention to is those hateful kobolds, uh. Legend has it that there is a crazy mage in the North District.
, you should also try not to go there...even though it is just a legend!"
Xiao Fen handed him the unpaid gold coins and asked, "How to get there?"
Li Li shook his arm toward the dark space behind the metal door and said, "Follow the sewer to the west!" He shrugged, "I wish you good luck!"
The mage raised his head in the direction indicated by the thief and narrowed his eyes slightly...
…………
Li Lili watched Xiao Fen and his entourage enter the sewer. He stood there quietly, gently swinging his arms. After a while, about ten minutes passed, he turned back and said to the air behind him: "Okay.
You can come out now...beautiful lady."
The air shook, the transparent space distorted, and a person wearing dark leather armor appeared out of thin air. From the graceful figure, it could be seen that this was a girl.
"Thank you." the girl said softly.
"There's nothing to thank you for! You take the money and I'll do the work -" Feifei paused, then thought for a while and continued: "But you have to remember what you said!"
"I will remember it, please!" The girl nodded slightly and walked towards the dark underground drainage channel.
"Remember what you promised!" the thief repeated.
"At least you can't attack them before they arrive in Green Town! I don't want the reputation of the Thieves Guild to be ruined in my hands, and you won't be in trouble either!" Li Li showed a serious expression and spoke word by word.
said.
The girl paused slightly, then nodded.
…………
On the other side, in the dark underground drainage channel——
A strong rotten smell permeated the entire passage, and green viscous juice slowly flowed in the drainage pool. Dregs and garbage were everywhere. Fat fleshworms burrowed through the carcasses of some unknown animals, and they squirted from time to time.
The sound of sizzling...
As the goblin said - this is an extremely disgusting place. But this guy is holding a torch now, the flames are burning, the grease drips to the ground from time to time, and the not-so-bright light can only cover a range of less than 60 feet.
, and further away, there are dim and vague shadows.
The team stopped in front of a deep pool that crisscrossed from north to south. This deep pool has now been drained, and the kitten had to try to lower the device bridge, otherwise they would have to take a detour.
"Is this possible?" the mage asked in a low voice, trying his best to keep his voice from echoing in this damn place.
Kitty frowned: "Many of the gears are rusty, which is very troublesome... let Kitten take a look."
The mage nodded slightly, looked up to the north, and felt a trace of anxiety in his heart...
The kitten tapped twice on the rusty brown device, showing a rare solemn look. She leaned down and listened carefully, then hooked her little finger on the big brown iron block, and the device made a clicking sound.
Sound softly.
"Okay?" The goblin's noisy voice sounded from behind. "This place is really creepy! The great goblin will not like this kind of environment... Damn it!" he said.
"Stop making noise!" Xiao Fen turned around and glared at it.
The kitten turned her head to the other side, and the ponytail on the back of her head jumped. She showed a proud smile, and fiddled with it in another place, and the instrument made a soft sound again.
"Okay!" She raised her head and clapped her hands with a smile. "The trap has been lifted! Here is..."
"What is it?" the goblin asked curiously.
"Can this machine still work?" Xiao Fen asked softly. He looked at the other side of the deep pool. If it really didn't work, he could only try using any door.
"Try it! It seems to work!" As she spoke, the female thief pulled the lever on the brown iron block. As she did this, the ground made a muffled sound. At the same time, everyone noticed that,
In the darkness ahead, something seems to be slowly extending out...
"Hey..." The goblin tried to extend the torch in his hand, but the firelight still couldn't reach that location.
Xiao Fen squinted his eyes, and through the darkness around him, he clearly observed that...
…………
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