Xia Lin's gaze swept across the hollow below.
The light of [Item Appraisal] kept flashing in his eyes, and data flowed like a waterfall.
Xia Lin was lying on top of a towering broken pipe, carefully observing the bottom.
A group of people wearing crimson robes were gathering on one side of the open space. The leader was a tall, bald man. His robes were embroidered with a pair of unfolded black wings, and a twisted bird's head Holy Symbol hung on his chest.
Xia Lin's gaze stayed on that Holy Symbol for a second, and the information flow of [Item Appraisal] was instantly fed back.
[Pazuzu's fanaticism Holy Symbol]
[Possessor: Emissary (Priest variant) Lv.8)
[God: Pazuzu (King of the Sky)]
[Attributes: Strength 14, Agility 12, Constitution 15, Intelligence 13, Perception 20, Charisma 16]
[Note: These madmen worship storms and plagues. They believe they can please the Abyssal Lord by sacrificing flying creatures and causing chaos.]
"As expected, they are followers of Pazuzu----" Xia Lin thought to himself, "These Cultist are really like cockroaches, burrowing wherever there is darkness."
[Cult Fanatic Ly.3]×8
They are all professionals around level 3, mixed with Warrior, rogues and a small amount of warlocks.
Then, his eyes fell on the masked man standing in the shadows.
The man wore an elegant black dress and a smooth mask as pale as bone, with no facial features and only two dark eye holes.
He stood there quietly, neither speaking nor communicating with the people around him, as if he was an outsider.
Then, his eyes fell on the masked man standing in the shadows.
[???]
[Occupation: Unknown (detection blocked)]
[Level:10]
[Equipment: Blocking Mask (Effect: Immune to True Seeing, detection camp, Detect Thoughts and other detection spells)]
[Status: alert, observation, ready to evacuate at any time]
[Note: This guy is very cautious. The protection of the mask is very good, but at least it can be confirmed that he is a level 10 professional.]
(A level 10 mysterious man, a level 8 cult leader, plus 8 level 3 followers----)
Xia Lin quickly calculated the comparison of combat power in his mind.
He turned and looked at Sky.
Inquisition's Commander has fully entered the state.
This empire Inquisitor has completely entered "hunting mode" at this time.
She took off her funny sunglasses, her silver eyes glowing coldly in the darkness.
Hand Crossbow has long been wound up, and the leather armor on her body glows with a faint holy light, which is the aura of [Protection from Alignment]. She has cast a protective spell on herself.
"He is a believer of Pazuzu." Sky took out a bottle of Holy Water from his waist and applied it on the launch port of Hand Crossbow, "It must be purified."
Although she was angry, she was not impulsive. She was waiting for Xia Lin's instructions.
This restraint surprised Xia Lin.
(It seems that this girl is indeed professional enough when it comes to her job.)
Xia Lin glanced at the surrounding environment.
The location where they are hiding now is an abandoned drainage pipe break, about three meters above the ground, with an excellent view.
The hollow below was originally supposed to be a huge reservoir, but now it has been completely transformed into a temporary camp.
In the center of the hollow is a relatively flat open space, where Mad Rat and Cultist are standing and talking.
Dozens of iron cages are densely placed around the open space.
Cages contain various magical creatures.
There were mutated giant rats, deformed bats, and even a few small hellhounds with red eyes. They paced back and forth uneasily in the cage, making low roars.
There were piles of feed residues used for ripening next to the cage, and the food mixed with alchemical potions exuded a pungent chemical smell. The ground was full of excrement and rotting internal organs, and flies were hovering in swarms.
Further away, there are at least five or six dark passages scattered around the hollow, leading to nowhere.
(The terrain was not in our favor.)
Xia Lin frowned.
Although their current position is condescending, there is no bunker further forward. Moreover, those passages may become escape routes or reinforcement passages for the enemy at any time.
"Ruiwen." Xia Lin lowered his voice, "Is there any way you can hear what they are saying?"
No response.
Xia Lin looked around and couldn't find the woman in gray robe.
"Ruiwen?" He called again.
"Cultist----hate----"
The sound of low air pressure suddenly came from the left front of Xia Lin.
He turned his head suddenly and found that Ruiwen was huddled behind a raised rock, with only half of his face and those swirling eyes exposed.
She almost completely blended into the shadows, and it would have been impossible to spot her if she hadn't taken the initiative to speak out.
"Can you help eavesdrop?" Xia Lin pointed downward, "This distance is too far, and there is no bunker in front. If you get closer, you will be discovered."
Ruiwen was silent for a few seconds, then nodded slowly.
She took out a small bone whistle from the sleeve of her robe, put it to her mouth and blew lightly.
No sound came out, but Xia Lin noticed that the shadow at her feet suddenly moved.
A gray mouse crawled out of the darkness.
That mouse is different from ordinary mice. Its eyes are pure black without any luster, like two glass beads.
[Undead Rat Familiar(Magic Pet)]
[Level:1]
[Ability: Stealth +10, shared by Senses, death will not affect the caster]
Ruiwen stretched out his pale finger and gently tapped the mouse's head.
The mouse immediately crawled silently down the wall of the pipe and got into the cobwebs and waste piles at the edge of the cavity.
"Close----eyes----"Ruiwen said softly.
Xia Lin and Sky closed their eyes at the same time.
The next second, a cold feeling flooded into my mind.
Xia Lin "saw" another perspective.
It was a scene looking up from the ground. Huge boots, swaying torches, and twisted shadows.
The screen swayed close to the center of the open space, and then stopped under an iron cage.
The sound became clearer.
"Just this amount of money?" The cult leader's voice was obviously dissatisfied, "We agreed on 1500 Gold Coins. You only have 800?"
"The market is down."
Mad Rat's voice is still slow and slow.
"And the quality of your batch of goods is not good either. The last batch of hellhounds were half dead within three days of being shipped back."
"That's because you didn't care for it properly!"
"Improper care? What the hell are you feeding them?"
"Shut up! What do you know? This is the grace given by our Lord! What makes them evolve is "evolution is nothing. It means ripening. The faster they are accelerated, the faster they die."
He paused and his tone became cold. "So, 800 Gold Coins. Do you want love?"
The atmosphere instantly became tense.
Through the mouse's perspective, Xia Lin saw Cultist and the gangsters' hands on their weapons.
At this moment, Ruiwen suddenly spoke.
Her voice was still light, but with a hint of disdain. "These Cultist ways of cultivating magical creatures are too rough--"
She paused: "Nothing compared to----doctor----"
At this moment, Mad Rat below suddenly spoke.
"Since there is not enough money----"
He turned around and looked at Gap-Tooth who had been hiding behind him.
"Then use people to pay off the debt."
Gap-Tooth's face turned pale instantly.
"Boss?" His voice trembled, "Are you kidding me?"
Mad Rat said nothing.
He just walked slowly towards Gap-Tooth, and the stick wrapped with wire made a harsh friction sound on the ground.
"Boss! Boss! I was wrong! I was really wrong!" Gap-Tooth backed away desperately, but the younger brother behind him immediately held down his shoulders, "I will never dare to do it again! Please!"
Mad Rat stopped in front of him.
Looking down at the subordinate who was lying limply on the ground.
"Do you know why you failed?"
Mad Rat's voice is very soft, almost like chatting.
"Because----because I was caught cheating?" Gap-Tooth cried sadly.
"No."
Mad Rat squatted down, reached out and patted Gap-Tooth's cheek. "It's because you don't have the guts."
"What----"
"You didn't have the guts when you were cheating, and you didn't dare to shut up that woman's mouth right away." Mad Rat's voice became colder and colder, "You didn't have the guts when you were caught, and you didn't dare to take it down yourself. Instead, you wanted to drag me down."
He stood up and drew a dagger from his waist.
It was a very ordinary dagger, and the blade was even slightly curled. It had obviously been used for a long time.
"You also did two things wrong." Mad Rat slowly wiped the blade of the knife, "First, you shouldn't cheat in my place.
He suddenly leaned over, and the dagger pierced Gap-Tooth's abdomen like lightning.
"You shouldn't think that I'm going to wipe your ass for you."
"Ahhhhh!!!"
Gap-Tooth let out a shrill scream.
Mad Rat The dagger turned hard and then made an upward stroke.
Blood spurted out like a fountain.
Gap-Tooth's eyes were wide open and his mouth was wide open. He wanted to say something, but he could only make a "gurgling" sound.
Mad Rat expressionlessly put his hand into the wound, and with a sickening tearing sound, he took out a ball of dark red stuff.
That's Gap-Tooth's guts.
Complete, still trembling slightly.
Gap-Tooth fell to the ground clutching his abdomen, blood flowing at an alarming speed, almost covering half of the open space.
The strong smell of blood filled the air instantly.
The Magical Beast in the surrounding cages immediately went crazy. They hit the cages and made deafening roars.
Mad Rat looked down at the bladder in his hand, then raised his head to look at the cult leader.
His expression became a little playful.
"Oh, sorry."
He casually threw the guts at the cult leader.
The bloody organ drew an arc in the air and hit the opponent's feet with a clatter.
"It turns out that you are brave, but you are just too young."
Mad Rat wiped the blood on his hand with his sleeve. "Are the complete body parts of a professional enough for you funny fools?"
There was obvious mockery and threat in his tone.
This act of killing chickens and warning monkeys is not only dealing with traitors, but also letting Intimidation and Cultist know that they are not someone to be trifled with.
The cult leader was stunned for a moment and instinctively took two steps back.
Those Cultist turned pale and moved away from the gallbladder that was still twitching slightly on the ground.
Even the masked man who had been standing in the shadow took a few steps back.
However, Xia Lin noticed that the masked man's retreat seemed more like disgust than fear.
on the pipeline.
Sky's body was shaking violently.
Her fingers clenched tightly on the stone wall, and her nails even dug into the cracks of the rock. Her breathing became rapid and disordered.
"Xia Lin----" Her voice was extremely low, but every word was trembling, "What are we waiting for----hurry up----"
Xia Lin Press her shoulders immediately.
"Don't move." Xia Lin's voice was calm and a little cold, "Mad Rat has brought a dozen of his men, and there are eight Cultist and an unfathomable masked man over there. If we rush down now, we will be attacked from two sides."
"But"
"They only have a trading relationship, not an alliance." Xia Lin stared down, "Look, Cultist was also frightened. After Mad Rat leaves, we will take action again. Dealing with one group of people at a time is the best solution."
Sky bit her lip.
She wanted to retort, wanted to say something, but in the end she swallowed it back.
She turned to look at Ruiwen beside her, wanting to seek support or refutation.
But Ruiwen just squatted quietly in the shadow and silently handed over a clean piece of cloth.
"They are----stupid----"Ruiwen said softly, "There is no need to----be angry----"
Sky was stunned for a moment.
She lowered her head and looked at her palms. Her fingers were scratched by the stone wall due to her exertion, and blood was flowing down between her fingers.
Sky took the cloth strip and slowly bandaged the wound.
"----Thank you." She said softly.
Below, Mad Rat has regained the initiative.
"Now," he picked up Wire Rod, "Let's get down to business."
The next transaction went quickly.
The cult leader was obviously stunned by the scene Intimidation just now, and no longer had the confidence to bargain.
In the end, Mad Rat only paid 500 Gold Coins, plus a small bag of Spellcasting Components, in exchange for five Mutated Hellhound, two Enhanced Giant Rat, and one Wyvern Hatchling.
"It's a pleasure to cooperate." Mad Rat said coldly.
He waved his hand, and the boys immediately stepped forward, tied the Magical Beast with Iron Chains, and then dragged them toward the passage.
Mad Rat took one last look at Gap-Tooth, who had stopped twitching on the ground. Without any expression, he turned around and left with his men.
The cult leader stared in the direction of the passage, his face terrifyingly gloomy.
"Damn! Vulgar barbarian!" he cursed, "I will kill this arrogant fool sooner or later! If it were not for the great cause of my lord, why would I trade with such a scum!"
He turned around and looked at his men. "What are you still doing? Clean it up! It will be useless once the blood dries!"
Cultist immediately took action. Some took out containers to collect the blood on the ground, while others began to carry Gap-Tooth's body.
on the pipeline.
Xia Lin opened his eyes and released the sharing of Senses.
"Mad Rat is gone." He said softly, "Get ready for action."
The three of them started casting spells at the same time.
Rays of magical light lit up on the three of them.
Ruiwen also silently raised Staff, tapping the tip of the staff lightly on the ground.
"----Accelerate----"
[Haste]
The buff is applied.
"What follows is my plan. Listen carefully."
Just as Cultist was cleaning up the corpse, Sky suddenly jumped down from a height of three meters.
She flipped her body in the air and landed firmly on the edge of the clearing.
Hand Crossbow instantly raised it and aimed it at the cult leader.
"Imperial Tribunal!"
Her voice echoed in the hollow, cold and majestic. "I'll capture you without mercy!"
She carried the Canvas Bag with the mouse tightly on her back, and took the funny Dwarf Mask with her again.
Cultists were instantly blown away.
"Inquisition?!"
"How come?"
The cult leader turned around suddenly and looked at the masked man who had been standing in the shadows. His face was full of shock and anger. "This is different from what was promised!"
The masked man didn't answer.
The moment he saw the Evilbane Eye Badge on Sky's chest, he took out a small black ball from his arms without hesitation and smashed it on the ground.
"Bang!"
The dense Black Smoke exploded instantly, covering most of the open space.
The figure of the masked man disappeared in the smoke.
The cult leader was stunned.
He stared in the direction of the smoke with wide eyes, the expression on his face changed from shock to disbelief, and finally burst into betrayal and anger. "You liar!!!"
His roar echoed in the hollow.
But the only response to him was the sound of footsteps getting further and further away.