Chapter 317 316 The Lost Treasure of the Bone-Gripping King
Chapter 317 316. The Lost Treasure of the Bone-Gripping King
Murphy's appearance in Smuggler's Grove quickly aroused the "weird enthusiasm" among new and old players. The appearance of the mainline NPCs here shows that they have indeed triggered an incredible hidden plot.
On the other hand, the way Murphy appeared on the stage also made veteran players shine.
He did not fly over this time, but appeared in front of everyone riding a very strange skeleton horse decorated like a monster made of bones and steel.
Its appearance is very similar to a skeleton cavalry vehicle, but just from its appearance and appearance, you can tell that this thing is definitely a "high-end product"!
"Mr. Murphy's new mount is so handsome! Is this the dog planner trying to make a fool of himself again? So through some damn channel in the future, can we get this kind of skeleton war horse from Scarlet Castle?"
Brother Shovel, who was itching to watch, whispered something to Niu Niu beside him. The latter did not answer immediately, but looked at the "man and horse" posture of Lord Murphy in front of him.
I have to say that the gloomy vampire and the ominous thing like the skeleton war horse are really a perfect match. What stands out is the "evil playboy style".
"Probably some kind of high-level reward?"
Ah Yu, who likes brainstorming, couldn't help but think:
"Look, we saw skeleton cavalry in Smuggler's Grove and were almost overturned by them. Does this mean that the hidden plot that was triggered has something to do with skeletons?
There is precedent for this!
Just like the various equipment sold by the Blood Rat Gang in the sewers are all related to ghouls, I guess we can get this special vehicle as a reward after completing this plot?"
"Ah, why a ground vehicle?"
Mo Youqiong also liked the gorgeous style of the skeleton war horse. He couldn't help but complain:
"Why not just make Invincible with wings? How cool is the skeleton horse that can fly! Then I can soar into the sky with my stinky baby."
"Hmm, good idea!"
Murphy, who was beside him, was moved.
He immediately decided to write down the idea of Little Rich Brother in his little notebook, and then asked the corpse witch to try to add wings to the skeleton war horse.
This thing belongs to the undead structure.
Its body is dead, and it currently only relies on the spiritual energy of death to support its structural body to continue to move. Therefore, theoretically speaking, its appearance is not restricted to a certain fixed form. Therefore, adding wings may sound outrageous, but it is absolutely feasible!
However, before Murphy could share the "hidden plot" of Smuggler's Grove he had conceived with his little players, he received a psychic communication from Tris.
"You said that Corpse Witch is Adele's elder?"
The lord immediately twitched his eyes when he heard the news.
But when he thought about it carefully, the Corpse Witch said that the time when he died in the Filthy Swamp more than twenty years ago coincided with the time when Adele escaped into Transia, which made him unable to help but make more associations.
He immediately realized that he could use Adele's relationship to get more information from the corpse witch, so Murphy no longer stayed there, and encouraged his little players to draw cakes for them.
The command scepter and skeleton horse at hand were handed over to Hogg for his disposal, and he spread his wings and flew back to the Scarlet Castle at dusk.
Bloodclaw Chief Hogg is also confused now.
It once thought that asking Lord Murphy's warriors to come forward could solve the problem it was currently facing, but it did not expect that less than half a day after these guys entered the Smuggler's Wood, the big trouble of the Blood Claw clan had been completely solved.
In the Jackal Outpost, Hogg held the very cold command staff in his hand and used it awkwardly to control the elite skeleton army.
After using it for a few minutes, it regretfully placed the scepter close to its chest.
This thing is powerful!
It can control the elite skeleton army for its own use, but unfortunately, there are only more than two hundred undead creatures bound to this scepter.
This means that other skeleton soldiers wandering in the forest are still a big threat to the Blood Claw Clan, but the most troublesome elite skeleton army is under his command, which undoubtedly increases the strength of the Blood Claw Clan several times in an instant.
, which also means that it has finally become the "King of the Glades" in the true sense.
With the clan barbarians, elite kobolds, and skeleton army it currently has under its command, it can even call itself the second largest force in the Dark Barony after the "Unbreakable Wall" Crimean Fortress!
"Master Hogg, what should I do with this weird-looking bone horse?"
The little Nash who was following Hogg looked at the skeleton war horse that was parked quietly not far away, waiting for orders. He said with some regret:
"This thing is quite powerful. It looks like a powerful thing that only a warlord should own. Unfortunately, it is too big and we jackals are not used to riding it."
"Then keep it in the clan treasury."
Hogg narrowed his eyes and said very cunningly and decisively:
“Let’s use it as a gift to the strongest one among the warriors who is the friendliest to us! Since there is only one, then naturally it can only be given to the most mighty champion!
Nash, go and deliver the order.
Tell this good news to the warriors hired by us. In this bounty hunt, whoever kills the most skeleton soldiers will get the final gift from the Blood Claw tribe.
Ah, I probably understand how to use their power.
In addition, since the security of the forest has been entrusted to the warriors, our patrolling barbarians no longer need to be wary.
You go find the most powerful hunters and barbarians in the clan to form a team. I will take them into the filthy swamp after the clan has settled down. We have to explore a way for Lord Murphy.
That’s the work we have to do!”
——
"Are you sure that guy is your Uncle Bella who escorted you out of the swamp and died because of it?"
After Murphy returned to the Scarlet Corridor, he summoned Adele in his office. Sister E's expression was quite subtle at this moment.
Facing Murphy's question, she hesitated and replied:
"It indeed is!
I will never forget Uncle Bella's face and his voice, but it's not quite the same. Death seems to have taken away something that belonged to him, making it strange in my eyes.
I talked to it.
I can only tell you, my lord, that I can no longer trust it as completely as before.
As it said, now it is just a cursed dead, a controlled corpse witch. It does not even have free control over its own existence, and naturally it cannot express its emotions without reservation.
But there is still news you need to know."
Adele paused and said:
"Not only was Uncle Bella resurrected by the Gnoll Warlock, but my Aunt Bernice was also resurrected as a Knight of the Underworld and was also controlled by the Gnoll Warlock.
Uncle Bella realized the power we possess after hearing about our battle experience in Transia, so he asked me to rescue his wife.
It tells me he could trade some 'dangerous' information for this help."
"So, your Uncle Bella did have some reservations about me in the previous conversation. He is such a cunning guy."
Murphy snorted and asked:
"Can you describe to me the Uncle Bella you remember?"
"Um."
Adele replied immediately:
"Uncle Bella is a half-elf, and like my father, he was once a gladiator of the Medjeva family.
He used to be better at psychic powers. When my mother planned to escape, Uncle Bella was also one of the staunchest supporters.
His yearning for freedom is as unquenchable as a flame. After we entered the secluded valley and lived there, Uncle Bella has been serving as the defense commander of the valley.
He and Aunt Bernice are partners.
They were a deadly pair in the arena, and their years of fighting gave them a close connection. They also had a daughter born in the same year as me.
I remember her name was ‘Lisa’ and she was my best childhood playmate.
But as you said, Uncle Bella is also a cunning person, and the first half of his life has determined that his way of thinking must be from the perspective that is most beneficial to himself."
"Can you give me some advice?"
Murphy nodded and asked again:
"If I need to make some mutual aid agreement with your Uncle Bella, where do I start?"
"free!"
Adele replied firmly:
"I believe that the person who was able to escape from the arena with my mother at all costs cannot possibly have no complaints about his unexpected resurrection and being manipulated by jackals in his second life.
Even if it has come back from the dead, it is absolutely impossible for it to serve the jackals willingly!
In fact, I think Uncle Bella may have been secretly planning another escape in the name of 'freedom'.
I think we can definitely cooperate with him in this regard. Those gnoll warlocks of the Bonegnawing Clan who are busy in the filthy swamp are the common enemies of both of us!"
"Well, that makes sense. Just bring it in."
Murphy crossed his fingers and said something to Adele. Sister E opened the door and walked out. A few minutes later, she returned to the office with Bella, the Corpse Witch.
This guy's hands and feet were shackled with brass shackles, which did not affect his movement.
However, through these suppression objects made by Tris herself, the corpse witch's spiritual energy can be suppressed to an extremely weak level and its threat can be reduced to a minimum.
Seeing Murphy again, Corpse Witch Bella couldn't help but cursed fiercely:
"I should have activated Hellfire before and burned you bastard to death on the edge of the swamp, you piece of shit! How dare you turn 'Hand of Freedom' Mona and 'Shadow Hydra' Truman's only daughter into
vampire!
I curse you! Murphy!
I curse you to end up in the underworld and never be able to escape!"
"Curse, ha, if such a weak curse can really make a vampire fall into the underworld, then our race would have been exterminated eight hundred years ago."
Murphy knocked on the table rudely and said:
"So please calm down, Mr. Bella.
If you listened to Adele's story, you should know that it was me who saved her and brought her back to the human world under midnight from the tragedy of becoming a blood ghoul.
I don’t ask for your thanks, but at least I shouldn’t use such harsh words!
Okay, let’s get down to business.
Tell me all about what happened to you before, about those gnoll warlocks who manipulated you, and what on earth are they doing in the swamp?"
"Ah! If there is a choice."
Bella sighed like a living person.
The corpse witch pulled his hood back up to cover his mummy-like body, and he said hoarsely:
"They are looking for something, something extremely important to the gnoll race. To be precise, it is a lost treasure.
It comes from the Bone-gnawing King who mysteriously disappeared at the end of the Fourth Black Disaster 110 years ago.
According to legend, the Bone-gnawing King fled into the Foul Swamp after his defeat.
It took its bravest bodyguards and tried to return to the mossy valley of the Dark Mountains through the swamp in order to make a comeback. However, the Bone-gnawing King entered the swamp and never came out again.
The Gnoll King who almost overturned the continent must have died somewhere in the swamp.
But the problem is that there is a legend that has been circulating in the Bone-gnawing clan.
It is said that there is something in the hands of the Bone-Gnawer King that can give Gnolls unique powers, allowing a lucky individual to become the king of all Gnolls!
It was with treasures like that that the King of Bone Grinders gathered a legion as large as the Fourth Black Disaster. You also know that with the character of the jackals, it is impossible for them to form a dark tide of that scale under natural conditions.
Therefore, I personally think this legend is somewhat credible."
"Have they been found?"
Murphy was not surprised when he heard about the Bone-Gripping King's lost treasure.
It is quite normal that such an influential figure can still cause some unnecessary situations even after he has been dead for more than a hundred years.
As for the treasure
Maybe, but Murphy doesn't really care.
After all, it is a racial treasure of the jackals, and others cannot use it if they hold it in their hands.
But you can't use it yourself and you can't let the enemy get it. The so-called victory doesn't just mean getting something for yourself. Letting others return empty-handed is also a very useful strategy.
Faced with Murphy's question, Corpse Witch Bella let out a weird laugh, and said in a long voice:
"I said, it has been more than three years since I was resurrected, and it has been three years since my consciousness was pulled back from the chaotic underworld to the material world, which means they have been active in the swamp for a long time.
Although the Foul Swamp is huge, it is not that big in front of a sleepless army of the dead. Those gnoll warlocks have searched almost every part of the swamp, but they have found nothing.
They can't find it!
They are not destined people!
Just when I got the order to leave the swamp and go to Smuggler's Grove to establish an observation outpost, those plague warlocks were already planning to concentrate their efforts into the forbidden area of the swamp.
They doubt that the treasure they want to find is hidden in that dangerous place.
If you ask me, I think it is a desperate way to seek death."
"Forbidden area?"
Murphy narrowed his eyes and asked:
"What's there?"
"A legendary beast or beasts."
Bella shook her head and said:
"Bernice and I died in the hands of those things. Adele should still remember what happened at that time."
"Ninkinanka, the 'giant snake' in the Elvish language."
Mrs. Adele explained in a cautious tone:
"The legendary creature hiding in the filthy swamp was like a mixture of a giant snake and a lizard. I only remember the huge creature glowing and disappearing in the swamp, and then setting off a terrifying earthquake-like attack.
That is not a life that mortals can fight against. Master Murphy, please do not have any interest in those things that only exist in legends.
The fact that the jackals dare to provoke the giant beast shows that they are crazy enough and desperate enough."
"But this is an opportunity!"
Bella, the Corpse Witch, then said:
"The gnoll warlocks plan to challenge the swamp monsters to find the lost treasure of the Bonegnawing King, and they will definitely put all their strength into it.
This means they will relax their surveillance of the rest of the swamp.
All it takes is an elite team!
I can take you to infiltrate the camp set up by the gnolls in the swamp, and we can steal back our phylactery.
I promise you, Lord Murphy, as long as you can get back the phylactery, as long as you can give us freedom after death, the 45 corpse witches and Hades knights, including Bernice and I, will be loyal to you!"
"Master, I am willing to complete this matter for you!"
Adele also made a serious request:
"I also hope that Uncle Bella and Aunt Bernice can escape from this humble servitude. This is what I owe them."
"No, kid, you don't owe us anything."
The corpse witch shook his head and said:
"The favor Mona has given us is something we will never be able to repay in our lifetime. Bernice and I have never had any regrets about dying to protect you, and you don't have to feel any remorse for this."
"However, I don't have that many elites at the moment."
Murphy stood up and shook his head and said:
"At least the vampires cannot be used. There are only so many people left in the Blood Vulture clan. However, Adele, there seems to be no progress in your faction and your selection of warriors.
I know that your personality is not very willing to devote your energy to this kind of thing, but now you have enough reasons to improve the strength of your subordinates.
I've given Hogg the order.
It needs to find a way for me to safely pass through the filthy swamp, and the Blood Rat Gang is also a force you can mobilize. As you said, since you are willing to share the heavy responsibility for me, then you can start taking action from now on."
He said to his descendants:
"You will preside over this matter, you will plan it, you will recruit you to execute it, I will not participate in it and I will not point fingers. I will stay in Scarlet Castle and look forward to a good result."
"Um."
Adele nodded, and then Murphy looked at Bella, the Corpse Witch, and said:
"On the other hand, since we are now 'family', Sir Bella, there are some things I can ask more calmly about Dusk.
