Chapter 93: Lord of Borok

This time, to cope with potential long-range strikes, Snorri gave up riding a Rock Sheep; he walked among the Anvil Guard so that even if a sudden rain of arrows occurred, he could be protected in time.

It was already the end of October, and the temperature on the mountain was far lower than at the foot; Snorri looked at the vast expanse of white snow and nodded to himself. Although such a natural environment would increase the difficulty of travel, it would also make it difficult for an air force to be effective.

Snorri tightened the cloak on his back amidst the wind and snow; he was not wearing plate armor, as wearing armor in cold weather would only exacerbate the chill.

Looking at the resolute faces of the Anvil Guard around him, Snorri nodded inwardly, though he still wanted to upgrade their means of transportation in the future.

Snuori led the caravan and spent an entire day crossing the mountain pass, entering the Earth Vein Network once again.

It was now two days' journey to Karak-Norn, and Snorri decided to maintain a high state of alert for these two days.

The Grey Mountains were adjacent to Athel Loren, and this stretch of road was also where the roots of the Oak of Ages were most lush; if the Wood Elves wanted to, they could raid Snorri's caravan at any time.

That night, Snorri arranged dozens of sentries, and the Human adventurers were also mobilized; every member of the caravan remained highly vigilant, and even when resting, they did not remove their armor or let go of their axes.

When they set off again the next day, the Ranger who had gone to scout returned after only two hours, and he brought back a Ranger from Huangwu Bao.

"On behalf of the Lord of Karak-Norn, Boruoke-Tiechu and Queen Selma, I greet you! Respected Chosen of the Goddess!" The Ranger cupped his hands and spoke.

"Karak-Hern sent word earlier; we learned of Lord Alike's plan for vengeance and roughly estimated your caravan's itinerary. To avoid those Greenskins causing you trouble, King Borok has brought his troops to meet you; they are still two or three hours away."

Upon hearing the Ranger's words, Snorri and his party were overjoyed; with the support of the local Dwarfs, they would no longer have to be anxious for the rest of the journey.

"Then should we wait here or continue toward Karak-Norn?" Snorri asked the Ranger.

"Let's keep moving; I haven't had much trouble on my way here!"

Snorri followed the advice and urged the caravan forward; he hadn't walked for an hour before he heard the sound of iron boots striking the ground ahead.

"Respected Chosen of the Goddess! Welcome to the Grey Mountains; my people and I have long admired your great name!" From afar, Snorri heard a resonant voice.

Snorri also responded loudly: "Is the one approaching the Lord of Huangwu Bao, Borok? I offer my most heartfelt wishes on behalf of my father!" As they spoke, the two parties quickly closed the distance.

Lord Borok was not as stout as the average Dwarf; instead, he appeared somewhat lean and dark. This lord jumped off his Fuzhuzhe Zhandou Pingtai as nimbly as a Rock Sheep in the mountains.

"Once you arrive, the grace of the Ancestor Goddess will also be brought to Huangwu Bao!" Lord Borok said enthusiastically.

Snorri did not have enough understanding of this lord, but he still enthusiastically recounted what he had seen and heard along the way.

By lunchtime, the two parties sat down to rest together.

"It is still a full day's journey from my place; please do not blame me for making a fuss. I swear by the names of the ancestors that it is definitely not because I do not trust you and the Warhammer in your hands!"

Many honor-conscious Dwarfs were unwilling to be helped by others while carrying out their own tasks, as this would be considered a sign of disrespect. It was precisely because he feared Snorri would misunderstand that Lord Borok spoke up to explain.

"To tell you the truth, the territory of Huangwu Bao has not been peaceful lately!" Lord Borok said while drinking a bowl of hot soup.

"Mushrooms native to the Grey Mountains; they are excellent for warming the body!" After recommending them, he continued to the main topic.

"Not counting the trouble with the pointy-ears these past two days, Goblins have started appearing in the Earth Vein Network again!"

"Grungni above!" Snorri exclaimed.

"How is this happening? Didn't the Waaagh! of that fool Gulu just pass? How are there Greenskins again so soon?"

"Only their two savage gods know that! May they twist each other's heads off in their infighting," Lord Borok cursed.

Upon hearing this, Snorri's heart, which had just settled, became anxious again. Greenskins, like Wood Elves, could utilize underground passages and could ambush his caravan while it was underground. Moreover, compared to Wood Elves, the hatred between Dwarfs and Greenskins was undoubtedly even greater.

After a short rest, the party moved forward again. Borok and Snorri led the way at the front of the column, and they arranged Strength Runes and Protection Runes evenly on both sides of the caravan to guard against any sudden ambushes.

Fortunately, the Greenskins did not have any designs on such a massive caravan of over a thousand people. After wiping out several scattered groups of Goblins, Snorri wiped the sweat from his forehead and looked at the pile of pink flesh-balls on the ground that had been smashed into pulp.

"Respected Lord, are there always this many Cave Squigs in the territory of Karak-Norn?"

Cave Squigs lived at the bottom of mountain ranges. They were incredible creatures with spherical bodies that were half-fungus and half-flesh, alert eyes, blood-filled maws, and teeth as dense as daggers.

Besides the wild ones, Goblins would also domesticate them; their skin was very useful, and their meat was delicious. Some Squigs were captured and bred as guards or pets for the Warbosses to play with.

When necessary, Squigs would be driven onto the battlefield to wreak havoc; they would become even more frenzied when stimulated by injury or even noise, eager to scatter and bite everything in their path, including their own kind.

"The Qunshan above!" Lord Borok panted twice; dealing with these fearless, frenzied monsters required caution even from experienced warriors.

"There shouldn't have been this many originally. According to our experience, compared to their filthy relatives living on the surface, those sneaky Night Goblin bastards are better at domesticating these things!" Lord Borok said.

"It's possible a new Greenskin Warboss has emerged in the tunnels nearby; judging by the situation, it might be a Night Goblin!" He analyzed based on his experience.

"Then, is there anything I can help with?" Snorri asked; if possible, he wouldn't mind using a victory to gain both skill points and revival points.

"Just set your mind at ease. The Grey Mountains are much longer than the Black Mountains you just passed; delivering the supplies safely to the hands of our compatriots behind is your job. As for these Greenskins? In the thousands of years we have been here, Huangwu Bao has wiped out enough to fill the entire Athel Loren!" Lord Borok said proudly.

Thanks to Daolai, Renxing Zizou Tuzulang, Yunqing Tiansheng, and the book friends for the monthly tickets.