Love and passion, cutting up the wasteland

"His Royal Highness the King of Sand was able to defeat those horned demons, which is really unexpected... I wonder what method was used?"

"Ahahaha this... is just luck."

"Hey, how can there be so much luck in the world? You don't know how many paladins have been embarrassed by this incident."

"Don't joke with me. Who doesn't know how much effort Mr. Seta has put in over the years? He actually led the paladins to push back those blue-skinned fog monsters. Otherwise, I don't know how many people would have wanted to If you feed the monster... then there will be no such thing as me, the king of bullshit sand."

"Your Highness is humble. Everyone knows Lord Seta's martial virtue..." The leader of the Holy Kingdom moved closer to the table, "But there is some inside story behind this matter..."

"Oh?" The bald King of Sand asked curiously, "I don't know about that..."

After the envoys of the Holy Kingdom entered the watchtower of the Sand Bandits, their leader and the rumored King of Sand had been in a state of business exchange.

In fact, they are also testing each other.

As the team leader said, the news that the Sand Bandits defeated the Shaq Expeditionary Force indeed caused an uproar in the Holy Kingdom, but the reason was not shock.

But angry.

The intelligence network of the Holy Empire is not just for free.

Naturally, they found out that there was an army of skeleton men appearing in that battle.

These are recorded in the scriptures. The incarnation of the devil, the embodiment of darkness... actually came back to the world that had been blessed by Auckland.

Isn't this a sign of depravity?

Strictly speaking, those machines.

Compared to the Shakers, they are even more of a formidable enemy to the people of the Holy Nation.

However, because the Holy Kingdom's efforts to eliminate darkness are too powerful, there are almost no traces of machinery in the country. Even slightly complex iron tools need to be reported, let alone living skeletons.

So much so that many residents have forgotten the fear of being dominated by darkness.

On the contrary, the Shaq Kingdom, which had long been an enemy of the Holy Kingdom, became a more specific target of hatred.

Machines, aliens, pagans, heretics, unbelievers.

They are the five archenemies of the Auckland Doctrine, ranging from most to least threatening.

The emergence of the Mechanical Skeleton Army has caused the purity faction in the Holy Kingdom to completely eradicate darkness to become more popular again, overwhelming the purification faction that advocates judging moral corruption... The impact of this incident is more far-reaching than the world thought.

This time the Holy Kingdom envoy came to contact the sand bandits, which was also part of the change.

Although the Sand Bandits ostensibly fight alongside the Skeleton Legion and appear to be enemies of the Holy Kingdom, the priests of the Holy Kingdom know that no one can control these skullless men—at least not humans.

In fact, after repelling Shaq's army.

The Skeleton Legion also attacked the sand bandit troops participating in the war indiscriminately, wiping them all out.

But compared to the elite Shaq warriors and the death of a few bandits, this loss is nothing.

From this perspective.

Sand bandits can even become comrades in the fight against darkness... at least on the surface.

"Since we are all brothers of Auckland," after some chatter, the leader of the Holy Kingdom turned to the topic, "then, our country's action to regain the hub... brothers, you shouldn't have any objections, right?"

This is the purpose of their trip.

The hub station located on the border has always been a concern for the Holy Kingdom.

Although this city has been destroyed by the Vendetta led by King Shagar, its geographical location is just like the name of the city. It was not only an important border town in the southern part of the Holy Kingdom, but also a transportation hub connecting the east and west.

Because of the destruction of the hub, the Holy Kingdom not only lost its border area, but also lost its roaming area... This can be said to be Auckland's biggest territorial loss since the establishment of the United City by the Eastern Continent Rebellion.

Listening to his words, the King of Sand remained silent.

"Don't worry, Your Highness, there is no other meaning in sending troops to recapture the hub this time. We can completely use the Green Wild River as the boundary." The team leader continued to persuade, "Originally, due to the overflow of dead bees to the west of the hub, the brothers of the sand bandits... went It’s a small gain, and it’s no loss to you at all.”

Ever since the high-ranking judge Seta expelled the Fog Men who invaded the Holy Kingdom.

They began to think of regaining their homeland.

As the team leader spoke, he observed the Sand King's expression and saw that his expression was uncertain.

Dead bees are overflowing in the western part of the border area. The sand bandits do not control this area in the first place. Using the Green Wild River as the boundary actually declares that the Holy Kingdom has given up control of the eastern border area and the roaming area. This is actually recognizing the independence of the sand bandits. status.

Thinking of this, the team leader couldn't help but sigh in his heart.

Compared with the heyday of the original Phoenix, the current Holy Kingdom has declined too much. They are in a stalemate with the United City. They also have to defend against the rebellion of fog people, cannibals, as well as heretics and unbelievers...To control the territory, There are only choices.

Even under the influence of the pure faction, the Holy Kingdom will expand again.

The preferred target is also a hub station, an important town from which to attack Shaq in the south and from which to advance eastward. From this, we might be able to open up a third front besides Buster and Iron Valley, and take advantage of the United City's unpreparedness to defeat these traitorous heretics in one fell swoop.

"Lord Judge," Sand King said slowly, "I heard that every judge controls a town. Could it be that you are..."

After hearing what the other party said, a smile appeared on the team leader's face and he nodded:

"It's me who's in charge of the hub."

Each judge's title will be preceded by the town under his jurisdiction, which means that the judge is responsible for judging darkness and spreading faith here.

But the number of judges is not just the number of towns ruled by the Holy Kingdom.

It also includes all the towns on the continent.

For example, Judge Scone, Judge Edge, Judge Black Scratch, Judge Shark... it shows that the glory of Auckland will eventually shine on the entire continent, and all sinners will eventually be judged.

Of course, these are more similar to virtual titles.

Far less important than those inquisitors who actually control the important towns of the Holy Kingdom.

For example, Judge Stark, Judge Iron Valley, Judge Bad Fang, Judge Oakland Fist... They are all local military and political leaders, not to mention the two high-ranking judges in advance.

Now, the leader in front of me.

There is actually hope that he will be transformed from a false judge to a local judge with real power.

No wonder he was so enthusiastic that he even led people to this barren mountain himself.

"However, I heard that the hub is now..." Sand King said vaguely, "But there are other owners."

Hearing this, the leader's heart was inexplicably clenched.

Of course he knew what was going on.

——Nang Ninja Group.

The biggest traitor in the Holy Kingdom did not hide in the hidden forests and cannibal plains like in the past, but instead stretched out his tentacles.

Blatantly, they took over their abandoned city.

It's all because of that incident...

"Don't bother King Sha." The team leader suppressed the anger in his heart and looked at the bald man in front of him with a formulaic smile. "We are sure to control the hub, after all..."

"That's where I'm most familiar."

The leader sneered in his heart, he knew that Sand King could not know anything about the Wave Ninja Group.

After the hub station was occupied by the Wave Ninja Group, a large amount of copper ore was mined out of luck, which was unexpected.

These resources cannot be digested by the Wave Ninjas themselves, so they have to trade them with foreign countries through the border areas.

Among them, the sand bandits harvest the most oil and water.

The team leader felt that this was the most critical reason for King Sand’s hesitation: once the hub was recaptured by the Holy Kingdom, these copper mines would not be as cheap as in the past, and they would rather be abandoned than sold - for the Holy Kingdom , enemies are everywhere outside the country's borders, and foreign trade is equivalent to investing in enemies in vain.

He decided to lay out his last bargaining chip.

"Your Highness the King of Sand," the future judge took a sip of the water in the cup, "I know that the brothers in the desert decided to set out to conquer the swamp. That area once fell into the arms of Auckland, but it was a pity that in the end Or have you fallen? In order to punish them, the Holy Kingdom will fully support you."

All support except sending troops.

After all, the Paladins still had Shaq's enemy in front of them, so they had no time to plunge into the disgusting swamp, and they might be attacked by the Scone army on the way.

But thinking about it, this is enough.

Isn't it easy to get the support of a big country, even if it's just to arm the sand bandits and wipe out the small gangs in the swamp?

"If I can judge the hub, it will be one step closer to you, and it will be more convenient to coordinate and transport supplies." The team leader continued to increase the pressure, "Not to mention that I know that the sand bandit army has invaded the swamp. With His Highness the Sand King's I think I have already succeeded in this matter - if we can use the swamp as a base, what does the oil and water leaking from the hub mean? "

This meeting is essentially a transaction.

The Sand King helps the Holy Kingdom regain the hub, and the Holy Kingdom helps the Sand King expand toward the swamp, and the two sides do not interfere with each other.

It's like the sand bandits traded the hub for swampland.

What was lost was not the territory that we actually controlled. While being generous to others, we also sorted out the conflicts and disputes between the two parties.

No matter how you think about this deal, no one will lose.

'Finally, I want to...' He secretly clenched his fists.

However, when the leader of the Holy Kingdom was enjoying himself, he didn't realize it.

The King of Sand, who was originally smiling, suddenly fell down when he heard about the "swampland", especially the march of the sand bandits.

Moreover, his face became more and more ugly.

From angry red to suffocated indigo, and finally to deathly pale.

There was only fear in his eyes.

"Your Majesty the Inquisitor."

"Huh?" The team leader noticed that the other party's voice had become colder.

"I'm telling you the truth," Sand King breathed out, "I will not attack the swamp again - not even one step."

Without a new direction for expansion, the first thing to protect is the existing interests.

The leader of the Holy Kingdom sounds nice, but instead of betting on their possible support in the future, it is better to do good business now with Boss Lei at the hub.

In case the time comes,

The Holy Kingdom regained the hub station, but then went back on its promise and wanted to regain all the border areas and the roaming areas further east.

They, the sand bandits, are the first to bear the brunt,

His lips were dead and his teeth were cold, and he didn't even have a place to run.

After all, I and these Aucklanders cannot urinate in a pot.

"So, regarding the hub station... you'd better hire someone else." King Sha didn't finish his words.

"Why!"

The team leader was so surprised by the sudden change in the opponent's attitude that he even lost his composure.

If he cannot complete the negotiation with the sand bandits, then his position as judge...

He quickly calmed down and asked:

"What's wrong with the swamp?"

He noticed the key point where the other party's tone changed - the swamp.

Is it... that the sand bandit army was defeated?

The team leader guessed in his mind.

However, victory and defeat are commonplace in military affairs, and one failure is nothing.

How does it look?

The King of Sand has lost all his energy?

He couldn't help but feel disappointed... and downgraded his evaluation of the other party.

The psychology is too fragile.

Unlike himself, even after experiencing so many twists and turns, he still rose from dormancy time and time again. No difficulty could completely defeat him. In the end, he still got the opportunity to become the judge... he must not let it go!

Thinking of this, the team leader said with relief: "If you have any difficulties, His Majesty the Sand King, feel free to raise them. I swear to my soul and Auckland that I will definitely help you."

He was as earnest and seductive as a priest, which was what he was best at in the past.

It was as if he was moved by his bewitching tone.

The Sand King was silent for a moment and then spoke:

"Lord Judge...you know..."

"'Lubei Tour'?"

"Snapped!"

A loud explosion sounded in the hall. It came so suddenly that it startled the priests and bandits who were accompanying them.

Even Sand King looked blankly at the leader of the Holy Kingdom whose expression suddenly changed in front of him.

The former high-level paladin crushed the cup in his hand.

Clear water mixed with blood dripped onto the table.

"Lu Beiyou... Lu Meng!" Lu Ding almost gritted his teeth and called out the name word by word, even when his palm was embedded by the shards of glass.

"Of course I know."

He knows too much.

A few years ago, it was this man...a humble scavenger in the extreme.

Subverted his hub!

At that time, Ludin lurked in the ruins incognito, reestablishing the order of the hub, and even became the de facto supreme controller, just waiting to dedicate the city to the priests who came to take over - with such achievements, he was You can become a judge!

As a result, they were all ruined by Lu Beiyou.

Several of the subordinates he trained were dead, and his teacher, Wu Xin, who was trained as his godson... all stayed in the ruins.

Even Ludin himself relied on the strength of the high-level paladin and the protection of the knight's armor to escape from the hub alone.

——This is no different than running away.

During this period, he narrowly escaped death.

Later, the Holy Kingdom also issued a wanted notice for that person... But who in the world hated Lu Beiyou the most, and Lu Ding was definitely one of them.

Especially in Ludin's view,

At that time, Lu Beiyou was just a martial artist. If he faced him head-on, he would die every time... but he was defeated by such a person, which made him extremely humiliated and unwilling.

"I didn't expect that I heard your name again," bloodshot eyes crawled into his eyes, and he couldn't help but mutter to himself, "You'd better not be dead yet!"

"Are you okay?" Sand King was startled by his appearance.

"It's okay." Ludin returned to his smile, but this time it was particularly cold, "Why do you want to talk about this person? Does His Highness King Sha have news about him?"