Chapter 492: Guesses and Inferences, the Final Disposition of the Surrendered Soldiers

Jier walked out of the room, and subsequently, the Old Priest arranged for several sturdy villagers to stand guard outside the door, watching over this surrendered Soldier. This room had only one small window located high up; it was impossible for him to escape. The three of them, meanwhile, went behind the Church, facing the Pond, or rather, this small lake.

There was wind here, and the wind blowing was different from other places; it was no longer the hot wind that made one feel irritable and drowsy, but a cool breeze carrying ample, refreshing moisture.

The cool breeze blew gently, carrying away the restlessness and annoyance on Jier, making one feel very refreshed.

Also because of the existence of this small lake, the villagers of Lanse-Qingting Cunzi not only did not worry about the problem of it not having rained for these days, but they also did not need to fret about things getting hotter day by day.

It was already night, and the two moons in the sky were already hanging in the firmament, bringing a touch of moonlight's gentleness to the night. Many villagers came to the side of the small lake, and taking advantage of the still-bright moonlight, they sang and danced to celebrate the annihilation of the Defeated Soldiers who had surrounded the village.

From a distance, Jier could even hear those young people happily discussing how they would go out tomorrow to organize and tend to the fields. Having been blockaded by the soldiers these days, the villagers had to sneak out to tend to their own fields, and many delicate crops that originally required human care had already been greatly affected.

As for some middle-aged villagers, they held the main power of the village, so they were discussing more serious matters.

For example, the disposal of the corpses of the dead Defeated Soldiers, and the preparation of firewood needed to burn the corpses. The villagers who had gone out earlier to collect the corpses and enemy supplies had even brought back the corpse of a villager, and the funeral also needed to be prepared as soon as possible.

"Although I have understood many things, the questions I am confused about are actually even more." Jier sat on the edge of the stone platform extending into the small lake, using the sole of his Boot to stir the water surface below.

"For example?" Priest Bata'er was not in high spirits, but he still took up Jier's words.

"For instance, is that Knight Hate dead or not? What role did he play in this series of events? And if he is dead, then who will inherit this role of his?"

Jier turned and said to the two Priests.

Priest Bata'er said directly: "Obviously, regarding his affairs, if someone let him survive on the battlefield and gave him a task he could not refuse, his affairs must have a great relationship with that Mine."

Jier nodded: "That's right, the Mine was opened not far to the south of Changmai Cunzi, yet you and everyone in the village were unaware. Clearly, those people who opened the mine and dug the hole before were doing it secretly, without letting more people know about this matter. Because transporting those supplies, as well as the personnel who opened the mine in the early stages, to that location was clearly not easy."

The Old Priest interjected: "It is not a matter of being not easy, but very difficult. If they wanted to mine reasonably, they should have hired the villagers of Changmai Cunzi nearby. Compared to the profits of a mine, the cost of hiring villagers is simply nothing. But they did not."

Jier said loudly: "Not only did they not, but they were also afraid that the people in the south of Sasi County would know! So, what kind of people would open a mine and need to avoid the original nearby people and the local Noble?"

Several people looked at each other; needless to say, everyone knew.

It was the southern neighboring country that was currently at war with the Nobles of the Southern Province.

Jier continued: "So, saying it this way, that Knight Hate was able to survive on the battlefield, was it because someone in the neighboring country's army protected him? And gave him a detailed map, and introduced him to the Beast who could lead people across the mountains."

"The other party was secretly mining in an uninhabited area before, and did not notify and hire the nearby villagers of Changmai Cunzi, just because the Southern Province had not yet gone to war with that neighboring country at that time. The other party found a way to find the long-haired lynx Beast who were familiar with the terrain, and arranged for a group of people to secretly go there to mine."

"Later the war broke out, that was last year's war." Priest Bata'er said.

Jier waved his hand: "The war broke out last year, but the war did not just start from last year. The preparation of funds, the initial negotiations between the two sides, the preparation of supplies, the assembly of soldiers, the conscription of the people responsible for transporting supplies, the forging of weapons and equipment, the training of the army, the assembly, and the departure, all require a large amount of time."

The Old Priest nodded: "So, at the latest by the year before last, that secret mine south of Changmai Cunzi had already been abandoned by people."

"But clearly some people in the neighboring country did not want to give up this thing." Jier emphasized.

"But why did they attack Changmai Cunzi? Mining secretly like before, no one would know! If I knew about this, I would only treat it as if I hadn't seen it!" Priest Bata'er said angrily.

"Hmph." Jier snorted.

And the Old Priest also sighed: "The other party was secretly mining before because they didn't want us locals to know, because they were afraid of attracting the master of this land, Sasi Baron and the Knight under his command."

Jier took over the conversation and said: "But the result of last year's war made the other party clearly no longer afraid of the military power of the Southern Province. Not only did the Southern Province not beat them on the front line, but because the Southern Province still has to gather and conscript more Nobles and their armies this year, the local forces everywhere have declined too much."

"They don't need to be secretive anymore. In the occupied land taken on the front line, they can mine on a large scale and use those Mineral Ore to forge armaments or exchange for more war funds. And in some secret mines they opened secretly before, they can use some means more wantonly to forcibly mine."

"For example, sending captured Knight and arranging for him and the Soldier under his command to go to some more remote and dangerous places to mine."

Speaking of this, Jier was still full of doubts: "The early supplies and personnel could be transported across the mountains by the long-haired lynx Beast leading a small number of people, but what about the mined Mineral Ore? They can't be transported out, unless they directly transport them out from Sasi County nearby to smelt and sell them. Otherwise, they painstakingly transport manpower and tools across the mountains, and then even more painstakingly and slowly transport the mined Mineral Ore across the mountains?"

"Is there such a stupid thing?" Jier looked confused.

No matter how you look at it, such back-and-forth laborious transportation is a very high-consumption job. Unless those Mineral Ore are particularly valuable, it's simply not worth it.

The more they dig, the more they will only lose money.

The Old Priest gave a negative answer to one of Jier's previous guesses: "It is impossible for a secret convoy to pass through the entire south of Sasi County without us knowing. You must know, there are lakes and ponds under the hills everywhere here, and in those lakes and ponds, there live very troublesome Siege Fish. The only safe passage was found by me after repeated experiments, haha. That is the road you came by this time."

Priest Bata'er also spoke at this time: "And if you want to pass through the southern region of Sasi County to reach the northern region, you have to pass through Shitui Cunzi, which cannot be bypassed no matter what. And I haven't heard in the village in the past year or two that a large convoy carrying Mineral Ore has passed through there."

"Ha, so that is to say, we can only think that the other party would rather lose money, and must take risks and losses to forcibly transport Mineral Ore across the entire mountain range to get the Mineral Ore produced in those mines?"

When the topic reached this point, there was actually nothing more to say, but compared to being completely in the dark before, they had basically figured out the general situation of the event.

The Old Priest said to Priest Bata'er at this time: "Then, little Luosa, who of us will report this information and analysis up tonight?"

"You are here, please report it to my God." Priest Bata'er said modestly immediately.

But the Old Priest waved his hand: "I am already old, and there is no need to accumulate these anymore. You are still young, and the whole thing has to do with you, so you go and report to my God."

After finishing, the Old Priest turned and walked to the side of the lake, talking to those villagers who came out to celebrate or cool off.

Jier blinked, not understanding why they had to report the information to the Agricultural God, and why the two of them would defer to each other to report this matter?

Seeing Jier's confusion, Priest Bata'er explained it, and Jier understood.

It turned out that the Priest of various Church are not only responsible for developing Faith, but actually also responsible for reporting important information to the gods, allowing the gods to synthesize various information at a higher level and arrange personnel and affairs more widely.

At the same time, if the reported information is important and plays a major role, then the Priest of the Church who reported the information can also receive the favor and attention of the gods.

Take the matter of Changmai Cunzi this time, although the Defeated Soldiers have not yet been taken down and the believers and villagers who were abducted to mine have not been rescued, telling the gods about this important news might allow the gods to know more about the preparations and situation of the neighboring country in the south based on this news.

Even if things like mining and smelting have nothing to do with the Agricultural God, after the gods know this information, trading it or notifying other existences or organizations can also exchange for goodwill and thank-you supplies.

Many times, some insignificant information can also play a huge role.

Jier and the others did not know yet how much the news that Priest Bata'er reported to the Agricultural God tonight would affect the progress of this war.

Before dawn the next day, although the sky was still dark, a faint light had already appeared on the distant horizon, and some clouds in the sky also emitted orange-red light.

In front of the beautiful blue wooden Church, Jier's convoy was already prepared. Everyone carefully ate the food in their own bowls, then took out the Water bottle they carried and filled it with the clear lake water of Lanse-Qingting Cunzi, and they were ready to set off.

It was already summer, and the sun was unbearable at noon, making it difficult to travel. Forcibly walking under the scorching sun would not allow them to travel much further, so Jier would let the convoy find a Shulin at noon and rest there for a longer period of time, while in the morning and evening, he would let the convoy travel as much as possible to reduce the rest time during this period.

If there were no delays, by this evening, with the speed of a carriage being several times that of an ordinary person walking, they would be able to cover the distance that would take two or three days of walking in the time it takes for a carriage to travel in one day.

And it only took Jier and the others a few short days to get here from Huitou Forest.

Jier also drank the Wheat Porridge in his bowl in one breath and looked at the two Priests who were talking. Old Priest Ruiduokasi also got up early, saying he wanted to see Jier and the others off, but Jier felt that this Old Priest just wanted to taste the Divine Grain condensed by the powerful Divine Art of the Agricultural God Church.

He was not guessing randomly. At this time, Old Priest Ruiduokasi was drinking the Wheat Porridge with a rich wheat fragrance in small sips, and while drinking, he told Priest Bata'er about how he, when he was young, was also deeply affected by this powerful Divine Art that was like a God's Miracle, and how he led the migrants to open up new settlements with light luggage.

Priest Bata'er did not expect that the Old Priest had also received the power of this powerful Divine Art before, so he whispered to the Old Priest to discuss some important details of this Divine Art, such as how long the Divine Grain Seed replicated through Divine Art could actually be preserved? And whether it could really completely replace real food to supply human survival.

The Old Priest answered all of them for Priest Bata'er.

Jier listened to a couple of sentences, not expecting that this slightly glowing replicated Divine Grain Seed actually had a longer shelf life than real food.

Food produced by Divine Art can easily be preserved for four to five years, whereas ordinary food, without complete storage technology, will have its texture greatly altered after being stored for several years, even if it remains edible.

On the other side, in the open space of the Cunzi directly facing the Church, some Villagers who had been asked by the Old Priest the previous night had already arrived early.

They were skillfully using shovels to dig a small but deep pit in the hardened ground.

Subsequently, several young men shouted in rhythm, "Heave-ho, heave-ho," as they carried over a slender piece of timber from the Cunzi warehouse that could serve as a house beam.

A Carpenter from the Cunzi brought a pulley and some Rope, quickly fixing the pulley to the thinner end of the timber and winding the Rope around it.

Several young men also brought over a wooden cage meant for fierce dogs and climbed inside themselves to test it, confirming that human strength could not destroy the cage. Jier smiled when he saw this and said to the Old Priest, "Should we 'invite' that fellow into the place he belongs? I want to see the promise I made to him fulfilled before the caravan departs."

The Old Priest shook his head: "Although I don't quite approve of this, since you two and the other Villagers are quite satisfied with this method of handling it, I won't say too much. A few of you, come here, bring that surrendered Soldier who was locked in the Church, and strip him naked before locking him in this wooden cage."

As soon as the Old Priest finished speaking, over a dozen young men rushed toward the Church, and soon, the surrendered Soldier, who had been tied up all night without food or drink, was brought out.

He was still dazed, and before he could figure out what was happening in his drowsiness, the Rope binding his entire body was untied. But before he could be happy, his clothes were stripped off as well.

He struggled hard, but even this Soldier, who had become strong from eating Monster meat, was still no match for the dozen or so young men around him, and he was forcibly stuffed into the sturdy wooden cage.

Crack! The wooden cage was closed, and unusually, it was bound tight with a metal chain and secured with a Metal Lock.

"Hey, hey, hey! What are you doing? What are you doing? Knight Jier, I surrendered, you can't do this!"

He shouted and yelled, drawing the attention and pointing of many Villagers nearby.

Jier walked over carrying a Wooden Bowl of Wheat Porridge made from Divine Grain Seed and handed it to the other man: "Look, food and drink, and they didn't hurt you, right?"

"###! Let me out! I'd rather you kill me! Kill me!" the surrendered Soldier shouted. But Jier shook his head: "We won't kill you; the Villagers will even provide you with food and water every day, it's just that from now on you can only stay in this cage, and this cage will be hung on that long timber in front. Wow, from up high, you will clearly see the full view of this beautiful Church, and this Blue Dragonfly Cunzi, which is once again full of vitality."

Jier's expression turned cold: "Take a good look at what this Cunzi looked like before you harassed it! I have done what I promised you; you have food and drink, you haven't been killed, and you have a safe space to stay. Compared to your companions whose corpses are to be burned today, aren't you quite lucky to have this outcome?"

"##￥￥! #￥##! ￥#..."

The surrendered Soldier was full of curses, but despite his cursing, he held the Wooden Bowl Jier handed him firmly in his hands, and after cursing a few times, he gulped down the still-hot Wheat Porridge.

He carefully chewed the plump grains in the Wheat Porridge, swallowed them, and soon the entire bowl of Wheat Porridge was carefully consumed.

Jier smiled as he watched the timber being erected in the open space, the soil at the base reinforced to keep the timber firmly fixed there. Then, the Rope was tied to the top of the wooden cage, and several young men began to pull the other end of the Rope; with the help of the pulley at the top, the wooden cage carrying the surrendered Soldier was lifted up bit by bit.

It rose higher and higher until it could go no further.

The Rope was secured, and the wooden cage hung steadily at a high altitude, where everyone around could see the surrendered Soldier inside, stripped of his clothing.

And that Soldier could also see everything around him.

He cursed, while the Villagers on the ground cheered happily.

Jier waved at the surrendered Soldier and shouted: "If you're thirsty, tell the Villagers; they should bring you some water around noon."

"####￥%##..."

The surrendered Soldier remained very agitated, his mouth full of foul language, but because he was high up, no one except Jier could hear clearly what he was saying.

"Then, Priest Ruiduokasi, we are setting off now." Jier waved to the Old Priest and mounted his Tianxuecao.

And Bata'er Jiaoshi also mounted the prairie horse that had belonged to Xueya Site, preparing to depart.

"Remember to send someone to watch this fellow; don't let him run away!"

Jier instructed.

The Old Priest nodded, looked at the caravan, and blessed everyone: "I wish you a smooth journey."

"If all goes well, we will return with the Villagers in a few days. Please make preparations in advance to receive the rescued Villagers!"

Bata'er Jiaoshi also responded.

Subsequently, the caravan set off, exited the south gate of Lanse-Qingting, and moved quickly along a relatively clear dirt road toward Changmai.

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