Chapter 448

Outside Quemubao, on the dirt road through the forest leading to Wheatfield Village, hoofbeats sounded like thunder, and two fast horses were galloping like lightning.

Following behind Leiding, who carried a large shield, Master Gangte, who was riding, kept an eye on the surroundings, always feeling that a pair of eyes was watching this side, yet not knowing where that gaze came from.

How strange!

Just as he was pondering in his heart, the road ahead suddenly opened up, and the rapid hoofbeats also crossed the forest sea at the same time, breaking into a vast plain.

That was an endless wheat field.

The emerald branches and leaves carried heavy, tender yellow, swaying with undulating waves under the blowing of the south wind; looking at it, it was like a vast ocean.

It was already June.

At most, in another two months, the farmers here would be busy, and it would be a happy busyness.

After all, such an amazing harvest was rare even in the best years of the Kingdom of Luo De.

Master Gangte was too surprised to speak.

Although he couldn't use magic, he knew a thing or two about the principles of magic.

Even with magic that accelerated plant growth, it was difficult to make wheat fields grow like this, and the greater probability was that sparse wheat fields would turn into lush grasslands, which would instead cause the harvest to decline.

Simply put, extraordinary power could respond to people's wishes, but it was not always satisfactory.

Especially complex wishes, which often deviated from people's original intentions and imagination...

Only gods could perfectly fulfill people's wishes.

Therefore, generally, for phenomena that even "extraordinary power" couldn't explain, people would crown them with the name of "miracle"!

It is worth mentioning that although there were undulating wheat waves around Wheatfield Village, it was clearly denser here.

Even theoretically, the land of Wheatfield Village, which was close to the Running River, was much more fertile than the surroundings of Quemubao.

It seemed that the intensity of the miracle was also related to the distance from the "Saintess."

Master Gangte's curiosity about that legendary "Saintess Saintess Kalian" became increasingly strong...

Just when Master Gangte was so surprised that he couldn't speak, a hearty voice suddenly blew from the front with the noisy wind.

"Quemubao is ahead! We are lucky to have arrived before evening!"

That was Leiding's voice.

This knight carrying the "Shield of the Holy Grail" currently had a proud smile on his face.

Master Gangte suddenly remembered that a long time ago, when passing through Graystone Town, he had also seen this sunny and confident smile on the faces of many locals.

Before the people of the Green Forest Army went there...

The two galloped along the dirt road for a while and finally saw the human smoke hidden behind the wheat field.

The towering windmill turned its blades slowly, and the houses lined up like pebbles by the river, simple and pleasing to the eye, making people reluctant to move their eyes away.

Perhaps because he had already seen it in Wheatfield Village, there was not much surprise on Master Gangte's face, replaced by heartfelt relief.

How nice...

If he had to use one sentence to describe his current feelings, this would probably be the most appropriate one.

Noticing the yearning on Master Gangte's face, the corners of Leiding's mouth curled into a trace of pride that couldn't be hidden.

In the entire Dusk Province, the people of the Quemubao territory were probably the first to have enough to eat.

This was certainly due to the great power of the gods, but as Saintess Saintess Kalian said, what truly allowed them to overcome the famine was their yearning for a better life and the united hearts of the people...

At least that was what the Saintess's oracle said.

Leiding had long discovered that he actually didn't care that much about whether Saint Saint Xisi had a son or not.

The two galloping horses passed through the village in front of the castle and came all the way to the moat.

Leiding dismounted first and handed the exhausted warhorse to the guards on the side.

And it was at this moment that the commotion in the castle suddenly caught his attention.

"What happened?"

Master Gangte, with a furrowed brow, handed the reins to the soldier beside him and stepped forward first.

He smelled the scent of Chaos.

And the disgusting smell of rats, as well as a faint trace of blood...

The soldier swallowed, hurriedly glanced at Leiding beside him, and seeing the latter nod with a solemn expression, he answered in a hurried tone.

"It, it's ratmen... a group of ratman assassins sneaked into our castle, trying to assassinate Saintess Saintess Kalian!"

Leiding felt his heart stop suddenly, hurriedly grabbed the soldier's shoulder, and roared loudly.

"Ratman assassins?! How is this possible? How did they mix in here! And what are you guys doing, actually letting them sneak into the castle!"

That panicked face had completely lost its previous ease, as if the sky had fallen.

Apparently, even the shoulders of a Holy Grail Knight had things they couldn't bear...

Facing the spit flying in his face, the soldier also had a face full of shame and couldn't wait to find a crack in the floor to crawl into.

"I... my subordinate handled it poorly, please punish me, sir!"

Master Gangte walked to Leiding's side, placed his thick palm on the latter's shoulder, and said in a low voice.

"Don't make things difficult for him; even dwarves who deal with ratmen all year round find it difficult to completely catch these pervasive little things... Where is Saintess Saintess Kalian? Is she okay?"

The soldier nodded hurriedly, speaking at a fast pace.

"She is fine, she wasn't hurt!"

When he said this, a faint trace of worship appeared on the soldier's ashamed face.

Before Leiding could ask, he shone with light in his eyes like a devout believer and said.

"Those ratman assassins picked the wrong opponent! They took advantage of the time when Saintess Saintess Kalian was communicating with the Son of God and quietly sneaked to the tower corridor to do it, but the armor in the corridor seemed to come alive and rushed up, hacking them into meat sauce with knives! Lord Son of God is above, he really has been watching us, watching our Saintess Saintess Kalian!"

An expression of surprise appeared on Master Gangte's face, while Leiding on the side breathed a sigh of relief.

Saint Saint Xisi is above...

o￠〇

Whoever saved Saintess Saintess Kalian, it was good that she was fine.

Although he couldn't imagine the danger of that battle, just looking at the commotion in the castle and the corpses carried to the atrium, he knew it was definitely not an ordinary battle.

Thinking that Saintess Saintess Kalian was just an ordinary person who hadn't awakened extraordinary power, he couldn't help but break into a cold sweat for her.

At this moment, the sentry on duty suddenly noticed the great swordsman standing beside Knight Commander Leiding, and then, as if remembering something, spoke to him.

"This gentleman, may I ask if you are... Master Gangte Steingraber?"

Although it was a very complex surname, because it was an oracle ordered by Saintess Saintess Kalian, he still tried hard to remember it.

Master Gangte cast his gaze toward the soldier holding a halberd in one hand and nodded.

"It's me, is something the matter?"

The soldier immediately stood straight and said.

"Saintess Saintess Kalian ordered that a swordsman carrying a great sword would arrive here with Knight Commander Leiding by evening. If that gentleman's name is Master Gangte Steingraber, please take him to see her... if time is convenient."

The surprise on Master Gangte's face turned into astonishment.

He glanced at Leiding beside him, then looked at the soldier and nodded.

"... It's not inconvenient, take me there."

Rather, he was here precisely for this.

The soldier handed the halberd to his comrade on the side and immediately said.

"Please follow me!"

Following the footsteps of the Salvation Army soldier, Master Gangte passed through the castle atrium filled with ratman corpses and came to the corridor between the main tower and the secondary tower of the castle.

The bloodstains on the ground had not yet dried.

The Saintess in a plain white long dress was standing beside the blood-stained armor, hands clasped in front of her chest, praying silently.

Master Gangte did not disturb her, just stood quietly at the door waiting, and sized up this girl with a quiet and beautiful face.

Her age was two years older than his foster son Yurien, and her temperament was much more mature.

That simple holiness reminded him of an old friend, back in Graystone Town, Yurien's hometown.

That girl's fate was much more miserable than hers.

Just as Master Gangte was sighing at the strangeness of fate and the trickery of fortune, this girl named Saintess Kalian let go of the hands clasped in front of her chest and raised her lowered brows.

A soft smile appeared on her face, just like the one on the statue of the Virgin in the church, making people unable to help but let go of the hostility in their hearts and protect the peace and tranquility in the air together.

"You're here."

Master Gangte nodded, first observed the surroundings, and then said with interest.

"You knew I would come?"

Saintess Kalian nodded gently and said in a gentle tone.

"The oracle has already told me that you would set off early this morning and arrive at my castle with my knight at sunset... He ordered me to wait for you here."

When she said this, she paused for a moment and continued in a peaceful voice.

"Please allow me to introduce myself first; my name is Saintess Kalian, from the northern border of the Kingdom of Luo De, and I am a nun serving the gods... Because I was saved by the gods during my journey, I decided to follow His guidance and arrived here under His guidance."

Master Gangte had heard these stories more than once in the past month.

In comparison, he was more interested in the "oracle" she mentioned at the beginning.

"Did He say what I came here to do?"

Looking at that interested face, Saintess Kalian smiled and nodded gently.

"He said you came here to persuade me to send troops, hoping that we would bring order to the compatriots suffering in misery."

The interested smile gradually faded, Master Gangte's pupils contracted for a moment, and his firm face gradually revealed an expression of disbelief, as if he had witnessed a miracle with his own eyes.

All the confusion was answered at this moment.

He finally knew where that gaze, which he didn't know where it came from along the way, came from!

It didn't come from anyone...

But from Saint Saint Xisi himself!

"What else did He say?"

Master Gangte stepped forward, asking urgently, as if he had grabbed a straw floating on the river.

He couldn't wait to rush up, pull that high-and-mighty god to the ground, and let Him open His eyes to see those suffering people!

Unfortunately, although gods exist, they are not what mortals or extraordinary beings imagine.

He was never a specific "person."

But "everyone" on this land.

For example, now, His name is of course Saint Saint Xisi, but if all those who believe in Him die, He can also be changed to the terrifying name of Urgos, and take all the insatiable souls to play a death game where no one survives...

Looking at those rock-solid eyes, Saintess Kalian repeated the oracle left by Mr. Prince Kelin—or rather, Lord Yan Wang—in a gentle voice.

"He said we must unite as one and extinguish this raging fire that is devouring everyone."

Master Gangte said in a low voice.

"This is the oracle of that Son of God?"

"It is also my determination."

Pausing for a moment, she looked at Master Gangte with sincere eyes and said in a serious tone.

"Please lend me your sword, for the sake of the people suffering on this land."

There was no need to hesitate at all—

He was here precisely for this!

Perhaps today's meeting was also the guidance of fate...

Facing this ordinary and noble soul, Master Gangte knelt on one knee in silence and made the fourth oath in a voice more serious than ever before.

"I am willing to use the sword in my hand to clear all the thorns for you!"

Exactly the same...

Saintess Kalian, who had heard this sentence in the oracle, had a quiet and relieved smile on her face.

Her "God," perhaps he really is a god, after all...

The distant Great Graveyard.

An azure butterfly passed through the thick rock wall silently and landed in the empty Royal Court.

It seemed to have flown for a long time before arriving here, and its thin, cicada-like wings did not attract the attention of any monsters.

Alakto, crawling under the throne, yawned, and the sound of snoring drifted from under his fat body.

Just then, that familiar aura suddenly made him shiver, and the fur all over his body stood up.

A, a dragon?!

Crawling on the ground, he sprang up as if electrocuted, and a pair of compound eyes looked closely, only to find that what entered his eyes was not a dragon, but a stinky lizard that had stolen his favor!

Tafu?!

Wait—

That means!

Looking up, seeing that handsome and compelling face on the throne, Alakto was so excited he wanted to cry, and the eight legs that had just stood up collapsed to the ground again.

"Demon King! You, you finally came home! Alakto really, really, really missed you!"

Praise Lord Demon God Lord Bayeli!

Thank you for bringing the Demon King back to his loyal Great Graveyard; the moon of the Shadow-Weaving clan has finally risen, haha!

Listening to that sickening voice, Tafu couldn't help but shiver and burrowed behind Luo Yan's calf.

"Why didn't you say earlier that you had such a convenient way to travel? Why did we waste effort taking a carriage!"

And that damn airship!

Hearing Tafu's grumbling, Luo Yan, who had just sat firmly on the granite throne, laughed and said leisurely.

"Taking a carriage wasn't for traveling."

"Then what was it for?"

"To leave my footprints."

"...?"

Unlike Tafu, who had a basket full of nonsense, Sarah had no nonsense at all and stood respectfully on the side, fulfilling her duty as the Demon King's guard.

By the way.

Luo Yan had only discovered before that the "Butterfly of Myriad Phenomena" couldn't only take him away alone.

As long as someone was physically connected to him, such as holding his hand, they could fly to distant places with him.

Of course, the consumption of magic power would also rise accordingly. Just as his dear student Ilana had studied, extraordinary power also followed certain laws of conservation.

Watching the large spider crawling back and forth under the throne, wishing to pounce up and rub against his trouser legs, Luo Yan remembered that he hadn't seen this dear mount for more than a year, so he smiled and said.

"Alakto, kept you waiting."

"Woo woo woo! Demon King!" Thinking of those difficult days when he couldn't borrow the tiger's might, the loyal Alakto burst into tears for a moment.

Luo Yan laughed, comforted the big guy with a few words, and promised to take him on the next long trip.

Of course—

Provided it was to hell.

The noise in the Audience Hall pierced the snot bubble hanging on Youxi's nose; this little demon hanging upside down on the brass candlestick woke up with a start and then let out a surprised shout.

"Oh oh oh, the Demon King is back!"

Leaving a long tail of sound, she was like an arrow off a bow, drilling into the cave outside the Audience Hall.

Watching that impolite guy, Sarah frowned slightly.

But thinking that the other party was a little demon with a brain the size of a fist, and the Demon King didn't care about the freedom and looseness of these little guys, her frowned brows relaxed again.

Not long after, that lightning-fast sound rang out again.

And what drifted behind it was a voice even more sickeningly sweet than Alakto's.

"Demon King—!"

Luo Yan didn't need to look to guess it was Queen Cici.

She was the only loyal minister in the entire Great Graveyard, unlike those fickle two-faced guys who jumped into his car halfway.

When all the demons were imagining his unfathomable background, only dear Queen Queen Cici, after seeing his hole cards, still acted out the play and helped him sit firmly on Alakto's back, and after the battle ended, she brought him into the woods to recover magic power without anyone knowing.

He still remembered that it was shortly after he arrived at the labyrinth.

With only the strength of a Steel-tier, he unfortunately encountered the "Mad Speaker" bewitched by the "Mist of Deception" Norwell, and at that time Queen Cici only had the strength of a Silver-tier.

Of course, now he was already a Diamond, so he no longer needed emergency help from the Land of Nightmares.

And the cute Queen Cici, by virtue of her loyalty, surpassed the previous Queen of the "Land of Nightmares" and became the first Platinum-tier little demon in this labyrinth!

Generally speaking, little demons in the countryside couldn't reach such a high level, nor did they need such a high level.

Queen Cici, spreading her wings, flew over in circles, like an elf in a mushroom cluster, landed gracefully on Luo Yan's right leg with an elegant emergency brake, and closed her knees like a lady.

Perhaps it was because the little demons in the Land of Nightmares were living a prosperous life.

This "child king" of the Land of Nightmares finally had enough funds to buy beautiful new dresses, and this time she finally changed into a piece of clothing he hadn't seen before.

"Demon King, do you know how much this concubine missed you?" Drawing circles lightly with her index finger, Queen Cici turned to look at that handsome face, her wine-red eyes full of resentment.

Luo Yan smiled and said.

"Haha, it's indeed been a long time! Speaking of which, thank you for the previous matter! Thanks to the food you sent, the corrosion of the Great Graveyard has already penetrated into the Dusk Forest!"

"Being able to help you is this concubine's honor."

Getting praised, Queen Cici's face showed joy that couldn't be hidden, her closed legs swayed back and forth, and her bright red lips couldn't help but lift slightly.

Although she didn't know where the Dusk Forest was and wasn't interested in things outside the Great Graveyard, being able to help the Demon King was enough to make her feel happy.

Luo Yan nodded with a smile and continued.

"I have seen your contributions, and I will give you the rewards you deserve. By the way, have you been doing well while I was away?"

"We are all doing well; adventurers have been coming less recently, people outside seem to be busy with other things, and my clansmen have also found more interesting pranks than stealing pumpkins."

"Oh? What is it?"

"It's brewing wine."

Looking at the Demon King who seemed a bit puzzled, Queen Cici covered her mouth and laughed softly, "Whenever they think of the humans in the Holy City drinking their foot-washing water all day and still enjoying it, they jump non-stop when stepping on grapes... Hehe, they are really a bunch of energetic idiots, but they are happy playing, which saves me a lot of trouble."

Luo Yan also laughed when he heard this, although the laugh was slightly awkward.

He didn't remember if he had drunk it, so he would just pretend he hadn't drunk this one.

Seeing the smile on the Demon King's face, Queen Cici also curved her lips, although the smile soon turned into a resentful expression.

"In short, thanks to your wise governance, we are all doing quite well. It's just that when you are not at home, it occasionally makes this concubine feel a bit... lonely?"

"Oh right, I heard that the marriage contract in the Demon Capital doesn't exist? So, so you actually haven't decided who your Demon Queen is... Ah, please don't misunderstand, this concubine is just out of concern for Your Majesty, no intention of overstepping, just curious."

The little demon's left brain and right brain seemed to be fighting forever.

It was difficult for normal people to keep up with their jumping train of thought, and at this moment even the Demon King was struggling.

Perhaps hearing the awkwardness in the Demon King's laughter, the loyal cat stepped forward and relieved the Demon King with a respectful and unyielding voice.

"... Queen Queen Cici, please get off the Demon King's lap; that is not the position for a vassal."

Right, right, hurry and drive this disgusting bat away!

Alakto nodded excitedly, rarely standing on the same front as this stinky cat.

Undoubtedly, the Demon King's lap belongs to the pet!

Finally noticing Sarah standing on the side, Queen Cici moved her gaze away from the Demon King's face, and a trace of surprise suddenly flashed in her eyes.

"You broke through to Gold?"

"I suppose so... still a bit away from Platinum." Sarah said in a flat tone, as if talking about a trivial matter, but added an extra half-sentence at the end.

"Oh? Growing quite fast... Not bad, not bad, it seems the respected Demon King will soon have another Demon General under his knee."

Queen Cici's beautiful eyes narrowed lazily, but dangerous aura flickered in her wine-red pupils.

This silly cat...

Doesn't seem to be underestimated either.

She had actually never treated Sarah as a competitor, because it was obvious that the Demon King only treated this furry guy as a pet, not worth mentioning.

And in terms of nobility, elegance, and propriety, although she couldn't compare to the demons of the Demon Capital, she wouldn't be compared to a stray cat of unknown origin.

Coincidentally, Sarah hadn't treated her as a competitor either, and said calmly.

"I am just a guard sharing the Demon King's worries, I hope the Queen of the Land of Nightmares won't overthink it."

Just as sparks flew between the two gazes in the air, a slightly mocking voice drifted from not far away.

"Is it possible that you have nothing else to do besides causing trouble for our respected Majesty?"

Appearing behind the stone pillar was Thanos.

Half of that cold face was disgust for the little demon, and half was fear of the Demon King.

If Queen Cici was the number one loyal minister of the Great Graveyard, then this guy was the number one two-faced guy.

The respected Demon King still held his handle to this day.

And it wasn't just a simple handle.

Compared to the last time they met, the Demon King's strength seemed to have become stronger again.

If Thanos's speculation was correct, the Demon King who defeated Elder Zakro in one move at the time must have at least Master-tier strength, and maybe even a demigod!

What is above a demigod?!

Thanos simply dared not imagine how awesome the respected Demon King was...

Besides the Shadow Demon General, the clones of "Blood Blade Demon General" Glak, "Thorn Demon General" Blanshia, and "Cold Iron Demon General" Valgull also arrived at this Audience Hall one after another.

Including the leader of the Gray Wind tribe, Tyrell Moonblade, as well as the Immovable Old Man of the Rock Earth Soul, and Zhuangzhuang the Moleman of the Iron Tooth tribe, etc.

The originally spacious hall became crowded for a time.

Seeing the "two-person world" broken, Queen Cici indeed felt embarrassed to linger on His Majesty's lap, flashed back to below the steps, and stood respectfully with her hands down like the other Demon Generals.

Blanshia slanted a jealous look at her, secretly cursing the shameless little bat in her heart, but didn't write the jealous expression on her face, instead casting a look of worship toward the throne.

"Your Majesty, long time no see... Your strength has improved again! Please allow me, on behalf of the demons and demon-men of Despair City, to extend my highest congratulations and respect to you—"

"I accept your intentions, Ms. Blanshia; as for the polite words, let's put them aside for now, I have more important things."

Luo Yan nodded majestically, returned to the role of the Demon King, and restrained his joking expression.

Everyone's expression tightened.

Including Queen Cici, who was joking with him earlier, all put on serious expressions, waiting for his orders.

Intuition told them that His Majesty didn't just come back to see his vassals this time, but had important tasks to entrust to them.

Not just tasks—

But opportunities!

Unlike the previous Demon King Regi Dragon, this Demon King in front of them never treated his little brothers badly.

And precisely because they knew this, expectant light flickered in those awe-inspiring eyes.

Not failing their expectations, Luo Yan announced in a majestic voice.

"The threat from Chaos is approaching the land beneath our feet."

"What will be involved is not just the Campbell Principality, and not even just the Kingdom of Ryan and the Empire behind them, but also us and the hell behind us."

"This is not alarmist talk."

"In the past year, I have traveled through most of the Empire's territory and witnessed with my own eyes that this giant beast is dying bit by bit, and our hell is not peaceful either."

"In order to prevent being involved in the aftermath of chaos, and for the eternal prosperity of our home, we cannot just be limited to the labyrinth beneath our feet, but must also do some precautionary things for our future."

"And I came back this time precisely to do this."

Looking at his subordinates looking up at him, Luo Yan announced in a clear and affirmative voice.

"I will bestow upon you the seeds to embrace stronger power and stimulate the potential in your souls."

"Of course—"

"Whether this seed can eventually sprout, and to what extent it will grow after sprouting, that depends on your own loyalty and determination!"