Defection

As Bai Xiaowen bowed, he also subtly sent an Insight to Sammet, indicating that 70 Psionic Points had been deducted.

[Sammet (Level 7 Boss Tier)]

[Race: Human Species / Human Race]

[Occupation: High Priest of Karnak Temple]

[Attributes: Strength 31, Agility 24, Constitution 40, Spirit 70]

[Skill 1: Strength Prayer: After a 10-second preparation time, applies Strength Prayer to all friendly units within a 1000-meter radius, increasing their attack power by 25% for 30 minutes. This skill has a cooldown of one calendar day.]

[Skill 2: Weakening Curse: Curses enemies within the target area, reducing their attack speed by 20% and movement speed by 50% for 30 minutes. This skill has a cooldown of one calendar day.]

[Skill 3: Army of the Dead: Summons a squad of Elite Tier mummies to fight for you. The mummies possess Corpse Poison and sticky abilities.]

[Skill 4:???]

[Skill 5: Ptah's Radiance LV3: Increases Life Value by 500; reduces the duration of abnormal status and control effects by 50%.]

"This is a summoner who leans towards team support..." Bai Xiaowen was quite surprised by Sammet's profession, which was actually a high priest of a temple. Although he didn't know what "Karnak Temple" meant, the fact that such a young man as Sammet was a high priest was just as intriguing as his identity as a legion commander.

"Lord Sammet, this junior officer Dio is disobeying my orders." Zehu, the commander of the Fourth Phalanx, stepped forward, preemptively accusing the other party.

Sammet looked at Bai Xiaowen: "You're the one who said you wanted to see me? You have something to say to me?"

Zehu opened his mouth somewhat uneasily, but didn't dare to speak.

"It's like this..." Bai Xiaowan first recounted the discovery of the Hittites scouts, then described the outcome, "I killed two and captured two more alive. From them, I learned some astonishing information... so I must report this to the Legion Commander personally."

"What shocking news?" Sammet asked, frowning.

"This kind of confidential information is probably not suitable to be discussed here." Bai Xiaowen was still very mindful of maintaining secrecy.

Sammet nodded. "That makes some sense." He looked up and said, "All soldiers, retreat two hundred paces."

The crowd retreated like a tide, leaving behind a circular area with a radius of two hundred paces.

Bai Xiaowen glanced at the group of burly guards surrounding Sammet.

"They are my most loyal guards and the kingdom's shield; there will be no security issues. You can speak now," Sammet said.

Bai Xiaowen nodded slightly and asked a question first, "Lord Sammet, is the Pharaoh currently near Kadesh City?"

Sammet scrutinized Bai Xiaowen for a while before nodding. "Indeed, two fleeing Bedouins nomads brought intelligence about the Hittites force. Currently, the main Hittites army is hundreds of miles away in Halpa, and the defenses of Kadesh City are weak. The Pharaoh, leading the Amun's Divine Legion, crossed the Orontes River first and is stationed Kadesh City, planning to capture Kadesh City first and gain the upper hand in the war."

"Yeah?"

Bai Xiaowen squinted and said, "But the Hittites scouts' testimonies say that the main force of the Hittites army has secretly moved to the east bank of the Orontes River, preparing to Ambush the Pharaoh!"

Sammet frowned, clearly assessing the veracity of the information. He quickly looked up.

"The information you provided is very important. I've taken these two Hittites scouts with me; I will interrogate them thoroughly," Sammet said.

Bai Xiaowen was somewhat surprised. "Lord Sammet, the current situation is that the Pharaoh is facing a crisis and could be surrounded by the main force of the Hittites at any time... I think we shouldn't waste any more time. We should send someone across the river to the Kadesh region as soon as possible to report this news to the Pharaoh. The Ptah's Divine Legion should also immediately march towards Kadesh to prepare for battle."

Sammet's eyes sharpened. "Remember your identity, Dio, the chariot commander. I am the decision-maker for this legion, and I will not deliver unverified intelligence to the Pharaoh! Once the entire army is in formation, march north according to the Pharaoh's predetermined orders, with Ugarit as our target!"

Sammet flicked his cloak, five colorful feathers flashing like a proud rooster, and turned to leave. He also took the two Hittites prisoners with him.

Bai Xiaowen and Li Shuyi stood on the chariot, the creaking sound of the wooden wheels grinding against the ground constantly reaching their ears.

"You've really accomplished something, so why didn't you get any notification or reputation boost?" Li Shuyi said in the Team Channel.

Bai Xiaowen frowned, deep in thought as he pondered the problem. His Super Brain raced through a series of hypotheses, which he then combined with existing information to deduce and eliminate the less likely ones Yi-Yi.

"Sammet is problematic," Bai Xiaowen suddenly said.

Li Shuyi was startled. "No way? He's one of the four legion commanders, and also a high priest. How can he hold such a high position at such a young age..."

"It's not strange that an emperor wants to ascend to heaven; don't underestimate human Greed," Bai Xiaowen said. "I originally wanted to get a messenger mission from Sammet to smoothly enter Ramses's sights... but Sammet didn't even send out a messenger and insisted on marching according to the original plan... This is very unlike the behavior of a legion commander loyal to the Pharaoh."

"Then what should we do?" Li Shuyi asked.

Bai Xiaowen thought for a moment and said, "Since Sammet won't give us a mission, we'll just do it ourselves. The intelligence is fragments of memory that I read using Confusion Talisman and Telepathy, and I even lost two Hittites prisoners for it... so its authenticity is completely reliable. Of the two surviving Hittites have been taken away, one is still under the control of the Confusion Talisman."

"As long as we can meet Pharaoh Ramses and warn him, successfully getting him out of danger, the main quest should be almost complete. And the Affection Level we gain from the Pharaoh can be used for the subsequent investigation of the Silent Tongue organization."

"Okay." Li Shuyi's reply was brief and forceful.

Bai Xiaowen pulled on the reins, and the trotting warhorse pulling the chariot let out a long neigh. Then the warhorse turned to the left and broke away from the troops.

Following behind, the former driver, Mairu, who had been demoted to infantry, saw this and couldn't help but scream, "Dio! What are you doing?"

Bai Xiaowen didn't answer the guy at all. With his Divine Might connection, he spurred his warhorse into the dense forest on the left.

Mairu shouted, "Guards! Enforcement team! Commander! Dio is defecting!" In reality, he didn't think Bai Xiaowen was going to defect; he was just saying it on purpose.

"Congratulations, you were absolutely right." Bai Xiaowen smiled and raised the Desert Eagle to Mairu.

A single shot to the forehead!

Vital Strike! Critical Hit! Penetration Effect! Killing Thirst triggers!

Mairu fell backward, looking up at the sky.

This shot successfully Intimidation the other Egypt soldiers, and no one dared to step forward to stop it.

Bai Xiaowen and Li Shuyi, driving the chariot, suddenly turned back and circled around Mairu's body. Then, Bai Xiaowen pulled the reins again, and the chariot rushed westward once more, disappearing from everyone's sight.

In the central formation of the Ptah's Divine Legion, a magnificent, four- or five-meter-wide, flat-topped carriage moved smoothly along the undulating road.

The flatbed carriage was pulled by four tall, powerful horses, and on it sat a rather imposing throne, where the legion commander, Sammet, the high priest of the Karnak Temple, sat lazily.

Two maids dressed in thin gauze knelt beside the armrests of the throne, and a gauze-like curtain surrounded the throne. A pack of fierce guards, driving chariots, surrounded Sammet.

A tall, thin man in a white robe, riding a horse, quickly approached the throne, and the guards around him neatly made way for him.

"Master, I'm back," the man in white robes said respectfully.

"Naheh, have those two damned nomads been dealt with?" Sammet asked.

"In accordance with the master's will, they have been sent to see Osiris."

"Hmph, that's good. Those damned Hittites, those foolish Muwatallis, actually sent people to spy on me!" Sammet snorted.

"Master, the Hittites are, after all, enemies of us, so it's normal for them to be suspicious," said the white-robed man, Naheh.

"It's one thing to be monitored. The real problem is what kind of scum he sent? They were all wiped out by a soldier who was originally a hunter, and two were even captured alive... Luckily, I personally intervened when I inspected the troops, otherwise it would have been a real problem."

"The plan is still progressing smoothly, Master."

Sammet grunted, lay back on his throne, and squinted his eyes.

Suddenly, Zehu, the commander of the Fourth Formation, rushed over and shouted across Sammet's personal guard, "Lord Sammet! There's an emergency! I need to see Lord Sammet!"

"Let him come over," Sammet said, frowning.

The royal guard's chariots parted to make way, Zehu rode swiftly to the throne.

"What's wrong?" Sammet asked lazily.

"My lord, that chariot commander named Dio... and his second-in-command have defected!" Zehu said hastily. "They took a chariot and killed an infantryman who tried to stop them... By the time I received the news, it was too late."

Sammet suddenly stood up, and the gold-carved wine glass crashed to the ground.

"What exactly is this audacious hunter up to?"

Naheh whispered, "Master, he might not have defected... he might have gone to Kadesh City!"

Sammet pondered, "How dare he...?"

"Logically, it wouldn't be possible, but for a soldier who dares to capture an enemy cavalryman alone and beat up his comrade, the possibility is quite high. He may have figured something out and wants to gamble on a way out; if he succeeds, he could very well rise to prominence."

"We can't let him get away like this!" Sammet said emphatically. "Naheh, I'm ordering you to lead a phalanx to capture Dio. How confident are you of your success?"

Naheh quickly said, "Master, there's no need to mobilize a large army to capture two fugitives. It's like trying to kill ants with a fist; a single finger would be far more accurate and lethal. I suggest... we should send ' Zhalun ' and his men."

Sammet nodded. "You're right. Immediately inform Zhalun that he must intercept that damned Dio and bring me his head!"

After giving this order, Sammet thought for a moment and then ordered again, "Order the entire army to change course, turn right and go east... to the Sabtuna Ferry! I'm going to the Kadesh battlefield!"

Naheh exclaimed in surprise, "Master, this doesn't match our plan!"

"I understand," Sammet said with a gloomy face. "It was that damned Dio who ruined my plans. I had to be there in person; I couldn't leave my fate to those foolish Hittites."

After Bai Xiaowen and Li Shuyi broke away from the Ptah Legion, they took a long detour and then headed east.

"The Hittites scout I was controlling is dead." Bai Xiaowen suddenly shuddered.

"Killed?"

"It should be. This further confirms my thoughts that Sammet is suspicious. In wartime, for two enemy scouts, living is more valuable than dying," Bai Xiaowen said.

"Hmm... If he's dead, he's dead. Don't worry about that. Let's see what's in the treasure chest," Li Shuyi said.

"Hehe, I didn't expect killing a Standard Template would drop a treasure chest." Bai Xiaowen said with a chuckle, holding up an ordinary treasure chest. He had reined in his horse and circled around Mairu earlier not to perform any strange curse ritual, nor to show off or desecrate a corpse, but simply because he noticed Mairu had dropped a treasure chest and wanted to pick it up.

Unlike the three powerful figures who severed the Flame Demon Arm, Bai Xiaowen wasn't so nonchalant as to simply discard the few drops of Flame Demon Marrow... Even a mosquito's leg is still meat, after all.

The treasure chest is invisible to beings in the Spirit Realm, which is why the infantry couldn't understand the meaning behind Bai Xiaowen turning back.

Open the treasure chest; the rating is E-Tier – you only have one chance to draw, and there's a 2/3 chance you won't get anything.

Bai Xiaowen gained 70 points of spiritual energy... better than nothing. He casually selected a Loot Card.

The card was flipped over, and Bai Xiaowen smiled as she noticed it wasn't blank.

Then, Bai Xiaowen received a notification: "You have acquired equipment: Leather Boots."

This is a Blue Gear that is bound to the player and has mediocre stats; neither of them can use it. However, since it's bound to the player, it can at least be sold for some money.

"Opening Gate!" Li Shuyi said with a smile. Drawing Blue Gear from a regular treasure chest, especially Bind-on-Equip Blue Gear, is a low-probability event, so this was a stroke of good luck.

Bai Xiaowen, on the contrary, sighed, "It's over, what a waste of good karma... According to the law of conservation of karma, this stroke of good luck has exhausted my fortune, I don't know how long it will take to recover..."

Li Shuyi rolled her eyes at Bai Xiaowen.

In any case, it's a good thing that the goods were shipped.

"How do I get to Kadesh City?" Li Shuyi asked.

"Analyzing a world map, Ancient Egypt was located in North Africa. This time, the Pharaoh's conquest was of the Syria region, so the general direction was northeast, which is correct. The Ptah's Divine Legion's northward march and attack on Ugarit is proof of this..."