Chapter 173

Sinuoli chanted while selecting the option in the Grimnir Ritual that increases reinforcement rates. In the game, this effect could rapidly restore the numbers of troops battered in the previous battle, but in reality, this effect manifested as stirring the fighting spirit within the hearts of his kin.

When performing the ritual, Sinuoli chose the entire Kalake-Zifulin as the area of effect, which cost him five hundred points; if he were willing and had enough Revival Points, he could even expand the area of effect to the entire Mountain Kingdom.

As his Revival Points decreased, Sinuoli exited the system in his mind and turned his attention back to the real world.

Sinuoli saw the Divine Statue of Grimnir begin to glow with a red light; as the radiance gradually spread, every clansman present seemed to bristle with rage, their chests filled with the fury of the God of War.

"What is this?"

"I feel filled with strength!"

"My Battle Axe is already famished!"

Realizing something was wrong, the clansmen began to communicate with one another; following Sinuoli's chanting, the voices of the clansmen gradually evolved from whispers into chaotic shouting and arguing.

Some Dwarfs seemed to understand something, while others tried to deny it, but none of them could be certain.

Sinuoli finished the ritual at this moment, turned around to face the clansmen below the platform, and spoke at the opportune time.

"Just now, I reported our upcoming military action to the Ancestor Gods. The honored God Grimnir responded to my prayer; He told me that we shall surely achieve victory in this battle! The sincere oath will be fulfilled, and the Grudge against the Vampire will be settled!"

Sinuoli's voice seemed to resound with weight in the temple of Weifengbao; every Dwarf present let out their loudest volume, whether in cheers or war cries.

The young Little Beards only saw the most superficial things: that the God of War had manifested, and the Dwarf army would be bathed in divine grace and achieve victory in the coming war.

But for the Longbeard elders whose wisdom grew alongside their beards, they felt something more from it.

In a very short time—a year is nothing to a long-lived race like the Dwarfs—two Ancestor Gods had awakened after thousands of years, and they were the most important of the three main gods, which seemed to imply something more, such as the gods collectively returning to the side of their children.

Amidst wave after wave of cheers, Sinuoli completed the entire ritual, and his reputation and Revival Points saw another surge. A warrior favored by both the Mother Goddess and the God of War—heh, even Slayer King Agelimu would have to be careful if he were here!

Everything that followed went unexpectedly smoothly. When Lord Luoleike officially announced that Sinuoli would lead a team to support the Knights of Bretonnia, the volunteer recruitment sign-up point was directly overwhelmed.

One male Dwarf after another gave up the New Year's Eve festivities; they held their wine mugs and roasted meat, staying up all night to queue at the registration point in advance. The New Year's banquet in Weifengbao thus became almost an open-air affair.

The tavern owners had no objections to this, or rather, a significant proportion of them no longer had the time to have objections. Many cooks, bartenders, and even the owners themselves dug out their ancestral armor and weapons, wanting to join the expeditionary force.

Beyond the male clansmen, the females were not to be outdone; Sinuoli's most hardcore supporters were the female clansmen. The Mother Goddess Valaya was the only female among the Ancestor Gods and the patron goddess of all female Dwarfs.

Upon learning that Sinuoli was going to lead troops on an expedition, the physicians and Valaya Priests of Weifengbao requested to join the army one after another; Sinuoli agreed to the requests of some of them.

Many of Valaya's Priests had mastered the Hearth and Home Rune; this was the most basic and simplest of runes, which females with a bit of talent could also utilize. They could also play a role in dealing with the corruption of Vampires.

Lord Luoleike also proposed supporting Sinuoli with that idle Doom Anvil; since he had already sounded out some of the elders beforehand, this matter was accomplished smoothly.

Those elders who had not initially expressed support no longer made things difficult after seeing the God of War bestow divine grace. Only Master Faleike had the heart to obstruct, but after opening his mouth for a long time, he found he could not even find a single tenable reason.

To touch the bad luck of Sinuoli, a favorite before the throne of the Ancestor Gods, and to delay his progress in reviving the Qunshan for the sake of a vague "cultivating another Rune Master in several years," no normal clansman would do such a thing.

Sinuoli specifically spent some time explaining to the provider of the beer; although that barrel of beer could certainly not make the Mother Goddess respond, Sinuoli still did not want to increase his Slayer recruitment pool in this way.

Compared to becoming a "successful" Slayer, that tavern owner's contribution to the Dwarfs was greater by continuing to run his own shop.

After completing the entire sacrificial process, Sinuoli was intoxicated by the revelry; on the first day of the New Year, he was awakened by the clansmen delivering goods.

Lord Luoleike acted quickly; he unearthed the dust-covered Doom Anvil overnight and sent it to Sinuoli's room along with its base. To be honest, he had to act quickly, as the Dwarfs were to set out on their expedition tonight.

The reason the Dwarf army chose to set out at night was to be able to enter the territory of the Humans beyond the Grey Mountains during the day. The Vampires of the Warhammer World were not much different from those in Sinuoli's previous life; they were also creatures that rested by day and came out by night.

According to Lord Luoleike, they would also fear sunlight; of course, the specific manifestation was not that they would turn into fly ash the moment the sun shone on them, but that their physical strength and combat effectiveness would be somewhat weakened under sunlight.

Sinuoli rubbed his eyes, looking at the Doom Anvil before him with sleepy eyes; he was very satisfied with the state of this treasure, as it had clearly been well-maintained and glowed with a pleasing luster.

The Doom Anvil was not the "palanquin" itself from the game; the palanquin was the base, which was somewhat similar in form to Thorgrim's Throne of Power—both were a chassis with a high-backed chair placed on top, with an extension in front of the chair.

It was just that the extension of the Throne of Power was used to place the Great Book of Grudges. And here, what was placed in front was the Doom Anvil.

The Doom Anvil was about the size of a desk; Sinuoli stretched out his arms and found it similar in length. Such a treasure was extremely hard in texture and engraved with runes containing unique power, the most critical of which was the Sorcery Rune, which granted the Doom Anvil the ability to gather the Winds of Magic.

In this transaction, Sister-in-law Pamila saved Sinuoli one hundred Oath Gold; the price of four hundred could definitely be considered a "friendship price."