In the capital of the Kolmo Kingdom, Hisslaj led his First Legion in a vast, imposing procession toward the city.
Riding atop the Red Dragon, Hisslaj had it slow down and descend.
The citizens within the capital were cheering for him and his First Legion, because they had marched out and defeated the remnants of the Thornflower Kingdom—the new emperor, Hughes Hopps.
King Colmo stood atop the city walls, watching Hisslaj and his First Legion return from their expedition. His face, too, was brimming with a joyful smile.
When they reached the gates of the capital, Hisslaj climbed down from the Red Dragon's back, dropped to one knee, and saluted His Majesty the King atop the walls.
"First Legion Commander Hisslaj has not failed His Majesty the King's expectations. I have sent His Imperial Majesty of the Thornflower Kingdom back into the embrace of the gods."
Although it was somewhat inappropriate for Hisslaj to still call him His Imperial Majesty on such an occasion, making it seem as though they were the villains, his words fully conformed to the etiquette of the Central Continent. Thus, King Colmo was not angered. Instead, he had Hisslaj rise from the city wall and praised him at length.
At that moment, the herald beside His Majesty the King took out the decree the king had drafted long ago and read it aloud.
"Hisslaj has rendered meritorious service in exterminating the emperor of the Thornflower Kingdom. By royal decree, he is granted the title of Marquis Qimu, with Qimu Province as his fief."
Everyone was stunned upon hearing the appointment. There was nothing particularly surprising about Hisslaj being made a marquis, but granting him an entire province as his fief was far beyond the rank of marquis. An ordinary marquis could possess, at most, one commandery, and that was treatment reserved for those exceptionally powerful marquises who had rendered enormous service to the kingdom. A province was treatment reserved only for top-ranking dukes.
Hisslaj sensed that something was amiss and wanted to refuse, but King Colmo spoke before he could.
"My beloved minister, there is no need to decline. This is your moment of celebration. Come, accept the cheers of the people for you, their hero!"
While they celebrated Hisslaj's ennoblement with delight for killing Chen Cheng's parents in this lifetime, Chen Cheng's side was filled with murderous intent, swords drawn and bows bent.
If Chen Cheng had been able to speak properly, he would have long since told Sam to take more detours and run in circles.
Because over the past three months, Chen Cheng had realized that this fellow had been charging madly in one direction the entire time. Such purposeful flight meant that, unless their enemies were fools, they would certainly have laid an ambush ahead of them.
And now, it had all come true.
After Sam fed Chen Cheng, the two of them were surrounded by several hundred ambushers clad in black and wearing masks.
Samlet wrapped Chen Cheng in the hide of a level-fourteen ferocious beast and tied him in front of his chest. This not only made his coming battle more convenient, but also protected Chen Cheng with the powerful beast hide.
Then Samlet drew the Secret Gold Divine Sword at his waist, a sword symbolizing the supreme authority of His Imperial Majesty of the Empire.
The surrounding ambushers drew their bows and nocked their arrows. Then, hundreds of arrows carrying powerful Battle Aura and destructive Magic Runes shot toward Samlet with sharp whooshes.
The rough-looking man showed no fear whatsoever. He swung the greatsword in his hand with all his strength, and soon it became a barrier of flashing steel. The rune-enhanced arrows were all knocked flying the instant they struck the shield formed by his sword.
The arrows that were knocked away exploded one after another, blasting the ground into a landscape of pits and craters.
Samlet paid no attention to any of it. Taking the opportunity, he stomped down hard. The force of the recoil blasted a crater several meters wide beneath his feet, while he himself shot forward like an arrow loosed from the bow, swinging his greatsword as he charged into the ambushers.
The ambushers were also well-trained. Seeing Samlet charge, they immediately brought the shields on their backs before them. Then they activated the Magic-Pattern Formations on their shields together, linking them into an unbreakable wall.
Yet before Samlet, such a wall was still like paper pasted together. As a Legendary warrior wielding the divine artifact of the Thornflower Kingdom, he was truly a god-slayer before gods and a Buddha-slayer before Buddhas.
With only two swings of his sword, he shattered the barrier and directly killed or wounded more than a hundred ambushers.
Yet these ambushers were indeed well-trained. Though more than a hundred had been slain in a single breath, they did not collapse and flee. Instead, they continued forming ranks and tightening the encirclement.
Then came another dense rain of powerful arrows engraved with Magic Runes.
When Samlet tried to repeat his earlier tactic, the sword he swung this time was blocked.
Or rather, a Legendary warrior who had suddenly appeared had targeted Chen Cheng in his arms, forcing him to change his move and block.
With a clang, the force generated by their clash swept outward like a violent gale. The surrounding trees bent away like weeds, and Samlet retreated with Chen Cheng in his arms, staring at the newcomer.
"Holmes. I never thought you would come."
Then Samlet looked around and shouted into the surrounding forest.
"Mekas, you should come out as well."
"My, my. I never expected Lord Samlet, the first personal guard beside His Imperial Majesty, to know this little woman. It truly makes me so excited...
Since that is the case, then have a taste of my... Forbidden Spell: Skyfire Meteor."
In an instant, the entire space around Sam became oppressive. An intricate, magnificent, and perfect Magic Array circuit appeared before them, and then meteors began raining down upon Samlet from the sky overhead.
Still young, Chen Cheng was so shocked by this sight that his jaw nearly dropped. This was completely unreasonable! This was practically pinning Newton and all the great sages of physics to the ground and rubbing them raw! Great sages of physics above, forgive me!
However, Samlet did not panic at the sight of the rapidly descending meteors. His gaze blazed as he watched them fall. Then a surge of force burst from his body, savage and raging Battle Aura coursing across him. The Secret Gold Divine Sword in his hand connected with his Battle Aura, and the intricate, exquisite Magic Runes on it lit up. Then he kicked off the ground and charged straight at the meteor.
Chen Cheng wanted to scream for him not to, but he had no say in the matter.
In an instant, there was a boom. The entire meteor was cleaved apart by Samlet. The blinding white light from the explosion dazzled everyone's eyes, and only Holmes, the Legendary warrior, could see Samlet fleeing at high speed with Chen Cheng.
Without another word, Holmes led the ambushers in pursuit, shouting all the while.
"Samlet, hand over the prince, the divine sword, and the Codex! You have nowhere left to run!"
Yet Samlet, who was fleeing ahead, did not say a single word. He only kept running forward.
Holmes hardened his heart at the sight. He had not wanted to fight Samlet to the death in the first place, but since Samlet refused to listen, he could only join forces with Mekas. Together, the two Legendary powerhouses would kill one of the few Legendary warriors on the entire continent.
However, after the pursuers had run a hundred li, the wreckage of a meteor in the forest where they had fought shattered open. Samlet, his entire body charred black, emerged from within while tightly holding Chen Cheng.
Samlet looked at Chen Cheng, who was still dazed yet uninjured, then changed directions and left with the stunned child.
Just as he was preparing to leave, the female Cloud Leopard sprang out from somewhere once again.
Samlet came before the female Cloud Leopard and sighed.
"These past three months, I have had you to thank. But I believe you have also seen how formidable those pursuing us are. After this, you should leave."
The female Cloud Leopard fell silent for a while, then let out a mournful whimper and lowered herself to the ground.
Samlet understood the meaning of that gesture. He took down the leather pouch and collected one final serving of the Cloud Leopard's beast milk.
Then Samlet drew the treasured sword at his waist and sliced his fingertip. A drop of golden blood flowed from the wound, rapidly condensing into an amber-like droplet of golden-red blood.
The wound on his finger healed immediately after that drop of blood flowed out.
He placed the drop of blood into the Cloud Leopard's mouth.
"Your level is still too low, and you have already given birth to the next generation of your bloodline, so you cannot use this drop of blood.
But with this drop of blood, your child will have another layer of protection in the future."
The Cloud Leopard held the blood amber in her mouth, glanced at the two of them, then used her innate skill and swiftly vanished from their sight.
At the time, Chen Cheng did not understand why Samlet had given the Cloud Leopard a drop of blood. Only after he grew older did he learn that, in order to find him a stable source of food, Samlet had made a deal with that female Cloud Leopard. The price of the deal had been one drop of his blood.
Only many years later, after Chen Cheng truly understood what the powerful figures of this world were, did he realize just how precious that drop of Samlet's blood had been, and why the female Cloud Leopard had come looking for them despite risking her life.
But none of that needed to be mentioned now. All Samlet wanted now was to take Chen Cheng and escape Holmes and the others' pursuit.
Less than half an hour after he left, Holmes led his men back in pursuit. After chasing for a hundred li, the fleeing figure had been intercepted by Mekas, only to suddenly disperse on its own. Holmes and Mekas immediately realized that Samlet had deceived them.
When they returned and could not find Samlet, Holmes said to Mekas beside him.
"Mekas, use your tracking magic. He has the little one with him, so he cannot have gone far."
"Do not place all your hopes on me. He is a Legendary warrior."
Mekas's tone was somewhat irritated, but she still swayed her seductive, enchanting body toward the meteor fragments where Samlet had hidden.
Then the crystal wand in her hand emitted a flash of light, which transformed into hundreds of rays shooting in different directions.
Seeing this, Mekas and Holmes knew that they had lost Samlet's trail.
The two exchanged glances, neither of them looking pleased. They both knew that after failing this mission, they would surely be reprimanded and punished by the captain of the guard and His Majesty the King upon their return.
Thinking of the captain of the guard's terrifying methods, even as two people standing at the pinnacle of power in this world, they could not help but feel a chill run through their hearts.
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