"Seobada! Is this the safe secret he said!? Seobada, you shouldn't have believed him just now, this unreliable undead." Nigris was so angry that he cursed in Ange's soul.
Ange tilted his head and scanned the surroundings. There were about twenty paladins, and the leading paladin was about level eight, which was about the same level as the Marder team he met earlier.
However, the condition of these Paladins in front of me is far from as good as that of Mader's team. The armor on their bodies is old and tattered, and there are some rusts. The skin folds on the collar joints and other places are peeling and broken, and the weapons on their hands are not very good either. There are many chips on the edge.
Ferick took his time, condensed his form, knelt down suddenly, and took out five magic crystals from his body: "I believe in light, and I pay taxes!"
Nigris was confused. Why did this scene look familiar?
The leading paladin came over, picked up the magic crystal and weighed it: "It turns out that you are a believer in the light, so I am one of my own, but the tax has increased, so pay more."
Ferick took out another magic crystal and said, "It's a small business with a steady flow of water. It's too expensive. I'll take another route next time."
The Paladin quickly explained: "Didn't you bring someone with you? It's not necessary. It will be easier for you next time. After all, you have a pious heart."
Where can I see that an undead soul filled with deathly energy has a pious heart?
The paladin turned to Ange again: "What about you? Do you believe in the light? If you believe, pay the tax."
Nigris sighed: "Pay it, pay it, save yourself the trouble, it's the same as Felic."
So Ange took out five magic crystals, and now he was in trouble.
"Hey? Rich man? Raise your hands, I suspect you are smuggling contraband and possessing weapons of mass destruction. Open your space magic weapon and let us check it." The leader of the Paladin drank.
Ferick couldn't help but complained in a low voice: "Why did you give so much? Why didn't I give it to you for you? Why did you show off the space magic weapon by saying that you didn't have it? This is terrible, don't you bleed a lot , these vampires will not let us go."
Nigris was so angry in Ange's soul: "Zobada, I'm so angry. I originally promised to get along well with you, but it was you who forced us to reveal our identities. Ange, show your horsemanship badge. "
Ange took out Leonard's Rider Badge.
"Ah! Knight of God! Oh, Diao Zhi... Holy Spirit, I'm sorry, sir, we don't know your identity!" With a crash, the paladins around him knelt on the ground.
The leading paladin knelt on his knees, held eleven magic crystals in his fearful hands, presented them to Ange, and said repeatedly: "I'm sorry, sir, we didn't mean it. We don't know your identity. Please forgive me." .”
Nigris yelled directly at Ange: "Can you just blackmail ordinary people if you don't know? Can you just collect taxes if you don't know? Which department do you belong to? I'll complain to your leader!"
"My lord, don't you know which department we belong to?" the leading paladin asked.
Nigris was stunned. How could he know which department they belonged to?
"You know why I need to ask you? Hurry up!" Nigris said impatiently.
"Sir, I'm sorry." The leading paladin threw the magic crystal in his hand in the direction of Ange, jumped back, and shouted: "Brothers, run quickly, don't get caught..."
The surrounding paladins screamed and fled in all directions. The leading paladin didn't even finish his words before they ran away until their shadows disappeared.
The leading paladin couldn't finish what he said, because as soon as he finished saying "Don't get caught," Ange pinched his neck and lifted him up like a chicken.
Holy power exploded from the paladin's body, but before he could do anything, Ange used the holy light and patted him, killing the holy power directly.
The Paladin's eyes widened in horror. This is deprivation! The legendary deprivation can only have such a deprivation effect on the other party when the opponent's power has a crushing advantage.
Realizing that the 'Knight of God' in front of him was not something he could compete with, the leading paladin's face turned pale and his body became limp. After Ange put him down, he knelt down obediently and pressed his face to
On the ground.
Nigris was also a little surprised, and asked in Ange's mind: "Are you so powerful now? Can you subdue a seventh-level or eighth-level paladin with just one hand?"
Ange tilted his head, a little puzzled. Is it difficult?
Forget it, Nigris has given up on studying Ange's strength. This skeleton can increase his strength by growing vegetables. He can also increase his strength by picking up a druid's manual. He also collected so many soul fragments of elven druids before.
, who knows what new abilities he has mastered.
Anyway, since he can transform into Locke, Ange's strength cannot be measured by Nigris.
Turning his attention to the Paladin, Nigris asked seriously: "Name."
"Sir, my name is Brando."
"age."
"forty three"
"gender."
"Well, sir, this can't be seen at a glance."
"If you are asked to answer, just answer. Don't talk back. Slap."
The last word "slap" made Brando a little confused. He didn't know if he was asking him to slap himself or what happened, but Ange had already slapped him on the head, making his head buzz.
"Gender." Negris repeated the question. This kind of question is obvious at a glance, but it makes you answer very much. It is part of obedience training. Use this kind of training to break your resistance, form a conditioned reflex, and let you
I don’t have the burden to answer other questions.
If he wasn't lazy, Nigris could ask him how old he was and how many times he wet the bed.
"Men, men." Brando responded hurriedly.
"Why do you want to rob someone on the road?"
"Sir, we are not robbing, we are just collecting taxes. You can't characterize us like this." Brando raised his head and said with a sad face.
"Quia, fan."
Ange slapped him on the head again, making him buzz and his eyes almost made stars pop out.
"Why do you want to rob someone on the road?"
"...Poor, but we are really not robbing. The troops stationed in the local area collect tithe tax on the spot. This is the right given to us by the Holy Light. It is really not robbery." Brando refused to admit it.
Although the essence of what they did was no different from robbery, and it might be better than robbery, they must not admit it. Once he admitted it, not only he would be ruined, but other people would also be ruined, and his family might be hurt.
How could it be such a coincidence? Now he wanted to wonder if he was being fished for law enforcement. How could a knight of God disguise himself as an ordinary person and cross the mountains under the leadership of the undead?
"Poor?" Nigris really didn't expect this answer from the other party, but looking at Brando's old equipment, it seemed like a very simple reason.
"Don't you have any funds from above? Don't you have equipment for maintenance?" Nigris asked.
When he mentioned this issue, Brando's eyes couldn't help but turn red: "We haven't been paid for several months, and our equipment has not been maintained for several years. Recently, we have even been short of cloth and rations, and we are almost unable to survive.
"
"No way? Not even paid? Are your bosses greedy?" Nigris was surprised.
Brando glanced at Ange, trying to tell from the expression on Ange's face whether he was really surprised or whether he was setting up a trap. Then there was no expression on Ange's face.
Brando hesitated for a moment, gritted his teeth and shook his head: "No, I heard that it was because the eastern diocese of the main plane was divided, resulting in a shortage of supplies, so the salary could not be paid."
Seeing Brando gritting his teeth and shaking his head, Nigris suddenly felt sympathy for these paladins. He was obviously still worried that Ange was setting up a trap and did not dare to tell the truth. The low-level knights of the Church of Light were already so cautious.
Yet?
Nigris thought it would be a good idea to have a good chat with him and said a few words in Ange's mind.
Ange nodded and stepped on the ground with his foot.
Swish swish, three mud pillars rose up from the ground, two short and one tall, the taller one being the thickest. After the bulge, it was quickly shaped, and the top extended into a tabletop, and then dried. In the blink of an eye, two chairs and a table were formed.
He signaled Ange to take out some fresh beetroots. Some varieties of beetroots can be eaten as fruits when they are fresh, and they have a very good taste.
"Sit and eat."
Brando was surprised and shocked. Naturally, he was shocked by Ange's hand. Although there were fluctuations in the elements, it was too fast and the induction was not very real. On the contrary, there was a description in the church that fit this scene very well - God's
will.
God said, let there be light, so there was light... God felt that the room was too empty, so there were tables and chairs...
This is a super advanced magic. Who is this knight of God?
He sat down nervously and took a beetroot in his hand, but he didn't dare to eat it and kneaded it nervously.
After a heart-to-heart conversation, Nigris finally understood the situation of Brando and these Paladins.
According to Brando, the people in the Sunken Land are divided into garrison troops and reinforcements. What are reinforcements? They are the main plane troops that come to the Sunken Land every four months to help fight.
These armies are well-equipped, well-trained, well-paid, and have strong combat effectiveness.
Originally, a thousand years ago, all teams were "reinforcements" like this, but as the battle entered a stalemate stage, especially after the Sunken Land Parish was established, some personnel were stationed.
These garrison personnel came and went, but some stayed there forever, brought relatives and friends, and even married wives and had children. After a few decades, their descendants became the aborigines of this plane.
The Sunken Land had difficult conditions to begin with, lacking supplies and barren land, and the garrison had to bear the heaviest casualties. The elites suffered heavy losses. Over time, the garrison's combat effectiveness declined severely.
The main force fighting the undead became reinforcements from the main plane, while the original garrison degenerated into a second-line garrison, guarding the long central mountain range and human settlements.
The few garrison elites are all concentrated in the city of the holy wall to guard the defense line before the arrival of eternal night.
Naturally, the treatment of the second-line garrison was not very good. In addition, the church was hopelessly corrupt from top to bottom. It was very common for them to be apportioned and deducted. Due to helplessness, everyone had to rely on their own efforts.
However, in the sunken land, is there any way to be self-reliant? There are only a few undead merchants running around. It’s hard to catch one, but I don’t dare to exploit it too much, for fear that the other party will go elsewhere in the future and the trade route will be cut off.
Now Brando's village is short of clothing and food. Not only are their food and wages seriously insufficient and in arrears, but their family members and villagers are also starving.
The productivity of the Sunken Land is not enough to supply such a large population, mainly because it is the front line and there is a continuous blood transfusion from the main plane behind.
But a few months ago, the Eastern Diocese of the Main Plane became independent and called itself the Holy Diocese. This was a good excuse given by God. Although the supplies sent by the Holy See have not decreased, the local moths have invariably found excuses to increase the amount.
The intensity is reduced.
However, after so many years, Brando has actually become accustomed to it. He tries his best to plant some in the village, organizes his own people to collect some taxes on the road, and goes up to have a quarrel every once in a while. As much as he can make a fuss, he can still survive.
.
Nigris was so shocked by Brando's description that he didn't know what to say. When he was in the main plane, he knew about the corruption of the church from Anthony, Shamara and Peleg, but he didn't expect to sink.
The situation there is even more serious.
This is the front line. If you do this, aren't you afraid that the defense line will be breached?
"Sir, are you really not a master of the local garrison?" Brando was a little scared and asked this question repeatedly, fearing that Ange was trying to trick him.
"I told you no, even my identity as the Knight of God is false. I am an ascetic monk from the main plane. This time I came to investigate the corruption problem in the Sunken Land under the orders of the Pope. In order to get the real situation,
I put on a bit of a disguise."
As he spoke, Negris asked Ange to sacrifice the Holy Light and add the name 'Anthony' in front of the Pope. Anthony sent them here. He went back to Anthony to ask for a certificate of appointment. The Pope of the Holy Church is also the Pope.
Pope, right?
Pure holy light is the best proof of identity. Brando did not doubt Ange's identity, but was worried that he was fishing for law enforcement.
"Let's go, take me to your village." Nigris said, and at the same time he turned back to look for Ferick, only to see Ferick hiding in a stone gap in the distance, peering out.
Forget it, ignore this undead merchant, letting him follow will only get in the way.
Brando helplessly led the way. After walking for a while, Ange suddenly turned his head and looked deep into the dense forest.
Deep in the jungle, I saw a paladin with worn-out armor looking anxiously in this direction. When he saw Ange seeing him, he was startled, and with a swish, he retracted his head behind the branch.
Brando also saw it, and shouted with a bitter smile: "Come out, sir, forgive us."
Twenty-odd paladins slowly came out of their hiding place. After counting, there was not a single one missing. Obviously, Brando was very prestigious in the minds of these people, and no one wanted to escape without him.
One of the youngest knight attendants limped over with a cane and timidly called Brando: "Dad."
"Your son? What happened to his foot?" Nigris asked.
"When I was a kid, I fell down while riding a horse and broke my ankle. The holy magic can only heal it, but it can't put the broken bones back together." Brando said heartbrokenly, rubbing his son's head guiltily.
Nigris asked in confusion: "Isn't there a sacred essence? Why not use it? Even if the ankle is shattered, it is most likely to be cut off to regenerate it."
Brando and his paladins looked at each other in confusion: "Sir, is it the legendary sacred essence that can regenerate severed limbs?"
Nigris was surprised: "In the legend? Have you never seen the sacred essence?"
At this point, Nigris suddenly had a change of heart and asked Ange to take out a bottle and said: "I happen to have a bottle of one thousand magic crystals here."
The expression on Brando's face changed from surprise to disappointment in an instant.
"But, as long as you cooperate with me and investigate the corruption situation, I will give you this bottle of essence and cure your son's leg by the way. How about it?"