Continuing the Journey

With the purchase target confirmed, a deep voice reached Zhang Yuan's ears: "Target, Quarry!"

A Stone Golem, constructed entirely from cobblestones, tumbled down from above like a massive boulder. It rolled once on the chessboard-like ground before standing up and waving at Zhang Yuan.

This piece has a mind of its own? Zhang Yuan, filled with surprise, walked closer and found that the Stone Golem was less than his shoulder height, about 1.5 meters tall. I might as well call it Huang Xiang, he thought cheekily.

He waved his hand in front of its small eyes, but the creature showed no expression (though a stony face wouldn't show one anyway). It glanced at him once and then ignored him.

Wanting to test the chess piece's intelligence, Zhang Yuan issued several commands: move forward, step back, jump, and so on. Little executed each one.

"Use Throw!" he shouted. There was no response. He stared at Little curiously for a while, and suddenly an attribute bar appeared above Little's head, showing full health and ready skills, but an empty mana bar.

Right, newly summoned pieces have no magic points. Giving up, Zhang Yuan began to try more complex commands.

Spin around? No problem. Wave your hand? Also no problem. Sing a song? Sorry. Dance? Can't do that!

After all, it was just a chess piece, not a true hero or unit from Dota or Azeroth. He sighed and stopped his testing, then fumbled with the twenty-sided dice. "Leave! Exit! Exit game! I want out!???"

Still no reaction. I can't be trapped here, can I? Thinking of the keywords, Zhang Yuan tried again, "DLTCEP, exit!"

Another trip down the drain. Zhang Yuan awoke from the dizzying spin to see the old man Banterley Mirror Image. The reality and warmth from his body and blood told him he had returned to the real world.

The old Mage asked with some urgency, "Was the ritual successful? Did you learn both spells? My Dream Transmission and Jelana's ritual cannot possibly go wrong."

Already feeling dizzy, Zhang Yuan was made even more lightheaded by the barrage of questions. He gaped with his mouth wide open, speechless.

Jelana, who had followed, tugged on her husband's sleeve. "Charnem just woke up from the ritual. How can he answer so many questions at once? Be a little patient."

After sitting alone for a while, Zhang Yuan finally came to his senses. He thanked the Mirror Images solemnly, then, feeling a little embarrassed but firm, he promised, "I will definitely pay the 500 gold for the ritual. You just need to give me some time."

Having just activated his golden finger, the person was now feeling smug. Although it wasn't a world-shattering change, it was still a golden finger, wasn't it? Was a pinky not a finger?

The old Mage drew on his pipe noncommittally, slowly exhaling a smoke ring. "Alright, I'll be waiting."

Knowing that the other party wasn't overly concerned about the debt, Zhang Yuan didn't say much more, merely committing the debt to memory.

"Charnem, hurry and pack your bags. The ritual has been going on for over two hours. Your team hasn't gone far, go quickly," Jelana kindly reminded him.

He bowed to the couple, picked up his luggage, and turned to chase after the Flaming Fist squad that had already departed.

The Mirror Image couple, still in the hall, began cleaning up the ritual site while discussing in hushed tones. Their voices were so faint that only words like "Bhaal," "Amn," and "Candlekeep" could be vaguely heard.

The person who had long since left naturally didn't know what happened next. Zhang Yuan, having rushed back and smoothly rejoined the team, was still catching his breath as he walked alongside Skar, his expression unchanged.

Having been informed that the ritual was successful, Skar congratulated Zhang Yuan, then solemnly reminded him, "Past the Friendly Arm is the intersection of the Coast Road and the Lion's Way. Caravans and travelers heading to Candlekeep, Baldur's Gate, or Beregost must pass through here."

"And the dense traffic attracts just as many bandits. Being attacked by robbers and monsters in this area is commonplace. It's rumored that the most dangerous monster seen here is an Ogre Mage!"

Afterward, Skar also reminded the entire team to heighten their vigilance. Zhang Yuan, regretting that he couldn't cast summoning spells today, preemptively cast Mage Armor on himself.

As the team pressed on, although they encountered a few scattered bandits and goblins, they were fortunate enough to avoid dangerous creatures like wolf packs and ogres.

Very shrewdly, Zhang Yuan secured the right to finish off almost all the monsters. This was because he had made a request to the captain and his companions beforehand.

Using the excuse that he was a rookie who needed more combat experience and to build courage, he gave up all rights to the spoils of war. In exchange, he gained the opportunity for finishing blows and clean-up.

Getting things for free feels great for a while, and it keeps feeling great. The person acquired 31 Energy points with little effort. Smugly, he purchased another Little and a Drow Archer from the system's chessboard, leaving 12 Energy points.

Unfortunately, these gift packages weren't endless. The rest of the journey was uneventful, and the Flaming Fist squad smoothly arrived at Sword Coast's military stronghold—Beregost.

Heading towards the city center, the buildings on either side of the road were no more than three stories high. Looking out, apart from a few tall structures, the rest were ordinary residences. While not dilapidated or short, they were far inferior to the inner city of Baldur's Gate.

Upon reaching the town center, the view suddenly opened up. In a small plaza before them stood a tall stone monument, surrounded by a bustling crowd.

The vendors' hoarse cries, the heralds' loud announcements, the soldiers' rough arguments, mixed with the distant singing and the blacksmiths' hammering and striking, played out a noisy yet vibrant song of life.

Without stopping in the plaza, the entire team proceeded directly to their designated lodging—The Merry Performers Inn.

Zhang Yuan, who knew something about this inn, was not surprised. Unlike the luxurious The Feldt Inn, The Merry Performers was known for its good value and spacious grounds. It had always been the lodging for Flaming Fist soldiers and Temple Knights. In terms of safety and economy, it was indeed the best choice.

After settling into the inn, Zhang Yuan began to ponder the potential benefits he could gain in Beregost. After much thought, he still couldn't make up his mind. After all, most of the plot events would happen five years later, and likely nothing had even appeared yet. For example, Talon's blacksmith shop hadn't even opened.

The only thing that seemed possible was an early-game artifact in the game: the Cloak of Elvenkind.

As a permanent magic item, it greatly increased the wearer's charisma and also provided three Charm Person spells per day.

This additional function made the person's mouth water. The benefit of having three extra control spells daily was self-evident, not to mention he had long been dissatisfied with his mere 11 Charisma.

"These stats are not enough to represent my true charm," Zhang Yuan muttered, secretly hatching a plan.

As the saying goes, plan before you act. Zhang Yuan, with no information about his target, dared not rush in rashly. Not to mention the risk of falling into a ditch due to the opponent's Charm Person spell, and what about the Flaming Fist's reputation if he openly robbed someone? Even if the team was currently flying the flag of the Seven Suns Merchant Alliance, Captain Skar would absolutely not allow such a thing to happen within his team.

With so many concerns, the person felt as if he were trying to bite a hedgehog—restrained and unable to act.

No matter what, he would wait until he got some information about the target first.