Kingdom’s Bloodline

The prince took another bite of the food, and suddenly felt very uncomfortable.

Dean was still staring at him, seemingly interested in how he was eating.

What's wrong? Thales swallowed a mouthful of food, and suddenly wanted to ask this question.

But he didn't.

Fortunately, Louisa spoke suddenly, diverting Dean's attention and relieving Thales of his discomfort.

"I feel like we've offended him, Dean."

"You know, Tomdin," Louisa sighed, with a sad face on her face. "Damn it, can you believe that we offended him when we tried to save his life?"

"It's okay, this is the last time we'll work for him," Dean sighed. "After this trip, we won't take any more business from Tomdin."

"the last time?"

Kuaisheng closed his eyes and let out a sigh of relief: "God bless you! I'm so fed up with that guy! All I know is that I know so-and-so..."

"One last time—oh, it's even worse, I can imagine how he's choreographing us behind our backs," Louisa said sarcastically.

"I told you, we shouldn't have come." McGee looked at Dean silently.

"It's my fault, brother," Dean smiled apologetically at the skeleton man, "We shouldn't have gone north."

The bald mercenary's eyes were burning.

"Don't worry about Tomdin, I think it's time for us to leave Saber Dunes...although we didn't plan to stay for long."

These words made all the mercenaries stop their movements and looked at Dean in unison.

Thales couldn't help becoming curious: this bald mercenary seemed to have the courage to attract the attention of others as soon as he opened his mouth.

"Leave Saber...you mean, leave our current base camp?" Old Hammer repeated in surprise.

The mercenaries looked at each other, seemingly surprised by this suggestion.

Luisa asked cautiously, "Leave? Now? What do you think?"

Dean shook his head.

"First of all, the Liberty Alliance wanted to start a war, and then the Starmen blocked the border at Saber Dune, and then something like this happened here..."

"I don't believe these things have nothing to do with each other."

The bald-headed mercenary took a sip of water and looked at several camps in the distance with a worried expression: "Whether it's Saber Dunes or the Western Front, this land is no longer suitable for mercenaries."

Quick Rope raised his hand in bewilderment.

"Wait, why can't I understand? The Liberty Alliance, the border blockade... What do these things have to do with whether they are suitable for mercenaries?"

"Shut up," Old Hammer gave him a serious look, "Listen to Dean and learn from it."

Kuaisheng blinked, looking confused.

Thales also looked at Dean with interest.

"For several years, Qiyuan City has never sent a cleaning team to go deep into the desert to maintain the trade roads. According to Raymond, who specializes in business in the west, even the range of patrolling cavalry is becoming more and more stingy," Dean stared at his feet. in the sand, silently said:

"And now, the Liberty Alliance dares to openly challenge them and the Northlanders. This shows a lot of things."

The northerner Kanze snorted coldly, seeming very dissatisfied.

Dean sighed.

"It's not just Qiyuan City, but the Welandland has also shrunk its defenses. Korak, who runs on that front line, told me that it's been a long time since I saw Exeter's forest rangers from the West Needle Forest to the Ender Loess area. I will meet the star people sent by the Watch City to enclose the land..."

Kuaisheng scratched his head and tilted his head: "So—what do you mean?"

Everyone unanimously gave him a slap in the face, blaming him for interrupting.

But Dean smiled indifferently:

"Obviously, regardless of Qiyuan City or Welland Territory-the influence and presence of the northerners in the desert are weakening. These things clearly show that the dragon intends to take back its claws, and the Kingdom of Exeter is decline."

Thales couldn't help but feel his heart move when he heard this.

so……

"Why?" Kuaisheng looked shocked: "Why can't I see it?"

"Politics, right?" This time, it was the unexpected old hammer who took over the conversation, and he shook his head in disgust:

"Six years ago, Exeter re-elected the king."

Thales' heart sank.

The day six years ago flashed before his eyes.

that head.

that crown.

That... girl.

Dean sighed slightly.

"Yes, I guess that's why and where the border troops of Qiyuan City and Welland Territory disappeared—maybe the new king who killed his brother and seized the throne and became famous is a much higher threat to the princes than the desert border, So much so that they have no time to take care of their affairs in the sand."

Kanze snorted: "Kinslayer."

Dean nodded, frowning and continued talking.

"The forces in the desert, no matter whether it is a large tribe of orcs or a tribe of bone men, they will definitely notice the retreat of the northerners and the changes at the northern end of the desert. Without the threat of an established army, they have been nesting in the depths They will try to go north, fill the gap left by Exeter, and strive for the resources and space to survive."

The bald mercenary drew lines in the sand, and Thales could barely see that it was a map:

"At the same time, the decline of the dragon kingdom will free up the people of the stars. The western front may or may not expand, but judging from their blockade this time, the former is more likely."

Kuaisheng was stunned for a while, and the others were similar, most of them were confused, but Luisa still looked at Dean seriously.

Seeing this, Thales suddenly understood where Dean's status in this team came from.

I saw Dean frowned, and said cautiously: "Whether it is the big tribe going north or the stars expanding westward, it is not something a small mercenary team like us can afford. The business will be less and less, and the journey will be more and more difficult There will be more and more accidents, at least for five years, we can’t stay here—the northern and eastern parts of the desert.”

The old hammer snorted helplessly: "Well, in the final analysis, we are still not strong enough. If we are an elite group of hundreds like 'Blood Whistle'..."

But Dean interrupted him unquestionably: "No, then we will become cannon fodder for tribal conflicts or kingdom wars, and die faster."

Old Hammer smiled awkwardly.

"Then where are we going?"

Kuaisheng's eyes widened: "Go back to the south, where we came from, Mihai Sanguo?"

Dean shook his head in disapproval.

"Whether it is the Principality of Sera, the Principality of Norton, or the Principality of Quill, they are also facing the same problems as those at the northern end of the desert. For the same reason, the decline and infighting of Exeter followed by the revival of the Kingdom of Stars, even if It's their hardest-hit Blades."

"Without the threat and restraint of the northern giant dragon, the Kingdom of Stars will definitely try to restore their influence and hegemony privileges in the neighboring countries in the southwest. , bounty hunters, free knights and mercenaries in the free world, smuggling paradise, tax-free paradise, sword fighting arena, death country... Guess who will be the first to suffer."

Thales breathed slowly, digesting the knowledge in front of him step by step-the information these mercenaries got was not the "little slicker looking at the world" in the study.

The fast rope was almost dizzy: "It's so complicated, so where are we going?"

"To put it simply," Dean said with a serious expression, silently lost in thought: "We have to find a place where the power and influence are divided and fear each other. , without having to face the disaster of large-scale war.”

Luisa nodded: "So? Where is Dante's great sword pointing?"

Dean smiled slightly, and pointed to the map on the sand: "It's still the same thing - the Kingdom of Exeter is temporarily in decline, and the Golden Corridor and the Commas Alliance will also be affected. Comas has always had internal conflicts. Kester fell into internal strife, and Vine City, which had an in-law relationship with Dragon Clouds City and seized the right to speak in the alliance for more than ten years, was the hardest hit. In turn, the pressure on the four northern cities in the north would drop sharply and usher in a rising period. "

"The four northern cities headed by Shanliu City, the coastal community that only looks forward to Vallier, and even the southeastern states represented by Sanglast, who have been stable for a long time, will usher in a period of time with Vine City, which has lost its strong support. During the small period of fighting, we don't know what the internal fighting in Commas will be like, but the internal fighting among merchants is the least of them. People like us. There should be many more opportunities in the small countries around Kangmasi."

Speaking of Shanliu City, Thales thought of the impressive Marquis in Longxiao City who abided by the "spirit of the contract".

Dean continued: "The Vine City has declined, so Commas lost the motivation and strength to get involved in the west and the Tarundi co-government land. The Kingdom of Allenbia will not let this opportunity pass. Mars took the Tarundi before infiltrating, but that could be either a peaceful political evolution or a bloody war of conquest, and our future is uncertain when we go there."

"As for the Golden Corridor... I won't talk about the Liberty Alliance and Baishan. I don't know about the Feast Leader and Yemang Mountain. I can't say that Laval is sandwiched between Commas and Allenbia. But one from The mercenaries from the City of Steel told me that the Grand Duke Cid of the Principality of Anrenzo is not in good health. It is conceivable that his children will start a tug-of-war over the inheritance rights. The turmoil reshuffles the cards, but Commas is busy with internal fighting, and the stars are going to reunite the Three Kingdoms of the Lost Sea. Allenbia, I guess checkpoints, Likin, and even small-scale robbers and rebellions will appear, and merchants will not like it Yes, but that's the mercenary opportunity."

Dean raised his head, but found helplessly that most people were looking at him with puzzled faces, and even Louisa frowned.

But Thales' clear gaze made the bald head startled slightly.

Dean coughed, returned to the present, and pointed to the ground: "So, let's choose one, Comus or Dragon's Kiss."

The air was quiet.

"Although I don't understand what you're talking about, but I feel so powerful," Kuaisheng said with admiration on his face, speaking rude slang, whether it's from the sea or the desert: "Are all mercenaries hanging like this now?"

Thales also looked at Dean seriously.

Not to mention anything else, but just relying on this knowledge...

No wonder, Dante's great sword, no wonder they can go deep into the desert with confidence.

No wonder they were able to gather this group of warriors with all kinds of strange things and their own strengths.

Louisa chuckled.

"I don't know about the others," the female captain looked at the bald mercenary with indescribable eyes: "But Dean, yes."

"That's how he hangs."

Dean coughed again, seemingly embarrassed.

"We are mercenaries, fast rope. To survive, we do not rely on strength or luck." network reputation."

Thales listened silently.

The life of a mercenary.

I see.

At this moment, McGee suddenly moved.

He quickly stretched out his hand, and copied a large handful of sand from the sand!

Thales and all the mercenaries were taken aback.

Grains of sand fell from the bone man's fingers.

"Fuck!" This was the first time McKee spat out dirty words. He looked at the things in his hands, gritted his teeth, and had a hideous face.

When the sand fell, Thales could see clearly that what McGee was holding was a small lizard, struggling endlessly.

Well, lizards.

etc.

Thales discovered that he knew this species... Well, I can't say "recognized", it should be that he "ate" this species of lizard a few days ago.

Under the firelight, the lizard was blood red, covered with white stripes, and had sharp soft spines between its skin, waving its limbs and tail in pain on McGee's hand.

"Beautiful, McGee!" Old Hammer laughed happily: "It's not like a cat catching a mouse..."

But his voice stopped abruptly.

"No."

At that moment, after seeing the lizard clearly, Luisa's face showed unbelievable horror: "My God, this is..."

Thales looked at the old hammer suspiciously, and then at the other mercenaries, and found that most of them had solemn faces—except for the new fast rope.

"Don't panic," Dean's voice quieted everyone who was nervous: "At least we're all here."

The prince returned his gaze to the poor red lizard.

Thales was full of doubts.

Isn't this a lizard?

Although the color is a bit rare, but... is there any problem?

It can't be poisonous——Thales touched his stomach silently: Wait, there shouldn't be any poison, and it can last for several days before attacking, right?

yes?

"Wait," Kuai Sheng's expression froze, pointing at the lizard, "I seem to have heard about this in Tampa... red skin and white stripes... that's, that's..."

He was pale.

"yes."

McGee said coldly: "Blood Lizard."

"Ominous omen."

As soon as this remark came out, the faces of everyone became more and more ugly.

Blood Lizard?

Thales's heart moved: he seemed to have heard the name of this animal somewhere.

Where is it?

But he couldn't remember it for a while, so he asked directly.

"Ominous? Why?" This was Thales who was confused.

Old Hammer sighed and shrugged, looking at the hazy moonlight in the sky.

"This lizard is a specialty of the desert..."

"Once the food is not enough, they will call each other at night and gradually gather in one place..."

He didn't go on talking, but looked sad.

Thales tentatively asked: "Unity hunting?"

"No." McGee shook his head, his eyes were ruthless.

He slowly, using his desert accent, the difficult lingua franca that Thales had gradually gotten used to after listening to it for several days, said:

"They'll start ... hunting each other, preying on their own kind."

Thales was taken aback.

Only the bone man said coldly: "The last surviving blood spur lizard can rely on the corpse of its companion to fill its stomach and survive this juncture when food is hard to find."

Thales' eyes widened, and he looked carefully at the struggling blood thorn lizard.

This is……

Luisa sighed: "Devour your own kind, live off of it."

"Among all things in the world, what kind of creature can do such a terrible thing?"

Thales was stunned.

"Unfortunately," Dean sighed, "I know one."

"And they are living under the same skin as you and me."

"That's why the Bloodthorn Lizard is one of the most ominous creatures in the desert. The Desert God created it to warn us of our actions in the desert. There is no disaster for the Desert God. If a mortal looks for himself and cannibalizes his own kind, he will be condemned by God," McGee frowned and said firmly:

"It means the most frightening and gloomy thing in the desert, worse than the crow that represents bad luck—the person who sees it may have bad luck, and the person who eats it will have a rough life."

Thales stared blankly at the lizard.

whoever eats it...

no?

This is superstition, right?

etc……

It must be superstition, right? Unreliable metaphysics or something...

definitely is……

Kara!

In the next second, McGee mercilessly exerted force on his hand, ending the life of this ominous animal.

Thales, who was immersed in panic, was taken aback again.

The bone man dug a sand pit with cold eyes, and put the blood thorn lizard's body in it.

"There is no calamity in the desert god, all disasters in the world, there is no forgiveness in the desert god, but the desert is pardoned." He muttered something and buried the sand.

Quick Rope sighed, and patted Thales, who seemed a little sluggish: "Don't pay attention to him, the skeleton man is always weird."

The atmosphere of the team seemed to darken instantly.

"Don't be nervous, everyone," Luisa coughed, attracting everyone's attention: "It's dead, we just met, even if there are some small twists and turns, it's okay, and it's just a legend, besides, no one is stupid Gotta eat it..."

Hearing this, Thales touched his stomach with a stiff expression.

"Go to shift, I will go too," Dean said calmly, "Believe me, cheer up..."

at this moment.

"Wait!" McKee said suddenly, his tone serious.

Thales was taken aback again.

Dean frowned: "Why..."

"This blood thorn lizard..." McGee gritted his teeth, looking at the half-buried blood thorn lizard: "It didn't come for no reason."

"McGee, that's just a legend..." Old Hammer sighed.

McKee raised his head sharply!

"No, the one who buried the hole in the sand escaped from fright!"

The desolate bone man's face was unprecedentedly dignified: "And this means..."

In the next second, McGee fell to the ground violently!

He buried his side ears in the sand and remained motionless.

"Everyone be quiet," Dean raised his hand and whispered tacitly: "Let him listen."

In an instant, everyone in the camp became quiet, and even the fast rope covered their mouths in horror, leaving only the noise of other camps coming from a distance, like a hazy background sound.

What's wrong?

Thales stared at them blankly, but even he, who had never been a mercenary, understood their actions in just a short while.

After only a few seconds, McGee jumped up!

The barren man suddenly stretched out his hands towards his own two knives, his tone was urgent and his face was ferocious:

"Someone is approaching, in all directions, with heavy steps..."

Before he could finish speaking, Dean's expression changed, he grabbed the fighting ax in his hand, and shouted to the sky:

"alert!"

His roar was loud, especially in the desert night sky!

The night of the entire caravan was silent.

In the next second, the caravan's camp became chaotic, noisy, bustling, and there were all kinds of sounds.

But on this side, before Thales could react, Dante's great swords jumped up from the ground in unison, and even the fast rope did not lose the wind.

They each rushed to their own weapons: Kanze aggressively pulled out his two-handed sword, McGee drew out his double knives, Old Hammer unwrapped the hammer from the sackcloth, Hubert raised his straight mallet and large shield, and Quick Rope pulled out a The scimitar with gauntlets and Luisa threw down the quiver and drew out the long sword around her waist. With their backs to the campfire, they spread out in a tacit and unified formation.

Thales just stood up, hurriedly pulled the crossbow of time, and began to load the arrow.

What are you doing?

"The enemy?" Dean asked calmly, holding an ax in his hand, looking at the sand dunes behind him and the terrain in the distance.

"I don't know," McGee shook his head, his tone was rapid, and his panting had not yet eased: "I can't see the sand and dust clearly at night, and the sound transmission in the sand is very bad, so they took advantage of...they are about to encircle, our sentry..."

"Confirm the mount first," Luisa gritted her teeth and pulled out the sword at her waist, her expression contorted, and shouted, "Send a signal to Breeze and the others..."

But she couldn't finish her sentence.

Thales felt a chill in his heart.

In the darkness, a sharp sound came suddenly!

laugh!

The northerner Kanze seemed to have been hit by a heavy hammer and fell back!

"Ahhh!" he roared angrily, thrusting his big sword into the sand, stabilizing his figure, trembling slightly.

The sharp-eyed Thales saw a long arrow with sharp tail feathers appear on the shoulder of the northerner.

"Enemy attack!" Dean roared angrily, parrying a cold arrow with his axe.

boom!

clang!

In a few seconds, the mercenaries either dodged or blocked, and with the sound of sand friction and metal collision, they resisted the first wave of cold arrow raids!

But countless screams and howls came from the camps of the caravans.

"No!"

"Ah, it hurts!"

"This is--"

Thales listened to the familiar voice in surprise and anger, feeling as if he had returned to the battlefield he hated the most.

In the next second, the old hammer swung away the sledgehammer calmly, with great force, and collided head-on with a weapon coming from the darkness!

"Boom!"

Amidst the loud noise that tormented the eardrum, Thales was surprised to see that the strong old Hammer actually swayed, stepped back three steps, knelt on one knee, and gasped in pain!

Enemies, countless enemies, they suddenly appeared from the endless darkness as if they had been promised.

Hubert's large shield caught up in time to block the enemy's next blow.

"Come on!" Hubert howled angrily, planning to call out to his companions: "Let's do this first—"

But he soon discovered that his intention would not come true: almost at the same time, all the mercenaries encountered the enemy!

"day!"

McGee gritted his teeth and shouted, he drew out his two knives, and released a weapon with a thick blade and long blade, which looked like a sword.

But before he could fight back, he rolled on the ground again in embarrassment, avoiding a big stick that hit the ground in the flying sand all over the sky: "They are professionals!"

Luisa calmly cooperated with Dean's axe, swung the long sword, and dealt with the three enemies with difficulty with her flexible figure: "Don't panic! Team up with two, form!"

Trying to keep calm, Thales gritted his teeth by the campfire and finished winding, raised his crossbow and looked around.

How could this be, how could this be?

The bonfire was shaken by the sudden battle, flickering, and the figure of the enemy could not be seen clearly, but they were indistinct, covering the small camp, and rushing towards Dante's great swords.

"Hastily—"

Kuaisheng screamed, his scimitar was repulsed vigorously by the enemy, and the poor Xin Ding fell to the ground. Fortunately, Kanze boldly pulled out a long arrow to fill his position, and swung a big sword back to attack enemy.

Thales instantly entered the senses of hell.

God.

He was sweating all over, looking at everything in front of him.

"ah!"

"kill!"

"Ding--"

"boom!"

"Crowry!"

The screams were endless, the smell of blood was everywhere, and the furious battle cries and clashes of weapons resounded through this dark night with dim moonlight.

There was even a frightening animal growl, accompanied by a miserable howl not far away, followed by a terrifying chewing sound—like teeth tearing apart flesh and blood.

Oh shit.

Oh shit!

With the help of the sin of Hell River, the tense prince got rid of the misleading light of the fire and the deception of the night. He clearly saw: on the sand, forty or fifty thick, tall figures seemed to emerge from the sand dunes at the same time. From the flat ground, from the back slope, from different directions and angles, towards all the caravan camps, everyone attacked!

Among them are even non-human species that land on all fours and flick their long tails.

Invasion like fire.

Ants gather and attack.

The killing was merciless.

"call--"

The wind is coming from behind!

Hold!

Thales gritted his teeth, and he avoided an ax blow with an unprecedented speed!

The wind of the ax sliced ​​across his hair, cutting off his forehead by an inch.

Damn.

Damn it!

This is... a fatal fight!

In the sound of the wind, Thales clenched his arm crossbow angrily.

The enemy's rude curse came, and I couldn't really hear it.

The power of ending surged into the prince's thigh, Thales stepped on his feet to distance himself, and quickly turned to face the enemy.

He aimed the crossbow of time at the chest of this tall opponent, and pulled the trigger fiercely: "Boom!"

"clang!"

Under the loud noise, the enemy shook in pain, the offensive came to a halt, and the ax dropped powerlessly.

Thales was trembling all over, but it wasn't fear and panic—that kind of thing had already been lost in countless dangers, and the unfair battle with Nicolai made him feel the cruelty of fighting desperately And direct—it is the instinct when the crime of Hell River fills the whole body, it is the desire to fight.

The prince took a deep breath, decisively threw away the arm crossbow, and stepped on his feet.

In the cold wind, countless gravel rubbed against the soles of his shoes, and he moved back.

The JC dagger that was as familiar as his arm was instantly grasped in his palm.

After the battle with the Meteorite, his finishing power has improved a lot, and his response to battle has also improved significantly, and the crime of Hell River ignites his blood all the time.

He knew that this was a desert.

No one will save themselves.

Only fight.

kill him.

kill him!

With an unimaginable speed before, Thales instantly jumped in front of the enemy who was bending over and enduring the pain. With strength in his legs, he climbed up with strength, and stabbed forward with strength in his right arm!

"laugh!"

The dagger pierces fiercely into the enemy's neck!

"Ah!" Thales roared, turning the dagger desperately, feeling the wetness, stickiness and hotness left by the blood from his arm.

His worst feeling.

The most hated feeling.

Let him recall the day that changed his destiny.

That day, he was also like this...

"Naaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!" The enemy's voice was powerful, cursing in pain in a language that Thales could not understand.

The next moment, Thales felt a strong attack on his chest, causing a sharp pain!

"boom!"

Under the huge force, the prince was slammed down on the sand, and there was severe pain and chest tightness at the same time.

Oops.

This thought floated up with Thales' painful breathing.

The huge enemy howled miserably, and the blood gushed out violently from his neck, but as if he didn't feel it, he suddenly pulled out the giant single-sided ax on the ground—a ferocious and broad ax that was almost as long as Thales The blade also takes up half of the handle.

Thales, who was still falling heavily and trembling with difficulty, could only look helplessly at the giant red and black axe.

Oops.

Oops!

He was thinking in pain, breathing with difficulty, but it was difficult to move his still body.

"Sell, Searle, Searle!"

The tall and strong enemy roared desperately at Thales on the ground, as if wanting to use up all his strength in this life.

Above Thales, he swung his arms above his head, held up a huge ax like an executioner, and shook his head like crazy, red blood sprinkled all over the sand:

"Sail Ricky!"

etc.

Purcell? Sale Ricky?

This sentence……

Thales felt chills in his head: Where did I hear this sentence?

In the next second, the enemy's ferocious ax blade mercilessly chopped down.

"Shua!"

At that moment, his face was facing Thales.

The moment he saw the enemy clearly, the prince was stunned.

this face...

This is, what kind of face is this?

The other party's big face twisted and trembled in severe pain—it was dark gray in color, with a broad forehead, high hairline, and small eyes.

The gnarled cheek flesh is connected into one piece, shrinking violently under the rough gray skin.

The opponent's nose was almost two thin slits, only a big black bloody mouth opened in the air, showing terrifying fangs in the roar.

Grim, ugly, chaotic.

This is the description Thales can think of.

"call--"

Amidst the opponent's yelling, the terrifying ax blade cut through the air, dropped to the ground, and slashed towards Thales' chest.

In the darkness, the sounds of fighting in my ears seemed to be much blurred.

Finally, Thales gritted his teeth, looking hopelessly at the falling giant axe.

No.

thought the prince desperately.

"He" is not him.

He is not human.

It's "it".

it!

"Fucking balls!"

Under the night sky, Old Hammer's mournful and angry roar exploded on the flat ground, with a mournful tone and a resolute attitude, as if all the hatred and pain in the world were gathered here: "It's a gray bastard!"

"Son of a bitch - orcs!"