The Watcher's Rescue

This time, Su Ming didn't choose to go through the city gate, since the city walls of Shafeng'er Town weren't very high anyway. He picked up a girl and jumped over without much effort, while the unicorn easily carried one in each hand and vaulted over as well.

This was Su Ming's first time working with the unicorn in her girl form. Dressed up, she had a cool and aloof air about her, and her running and jumping gave off a heroic and refreshing feeling, completely different from her usual loli form.

But when Su Ming brought the second girl over, he found that the one standing on the ground was already a tiny little one.

"Hey, is the limited-edition skin expired?" Su Ming said, displeased.

"That form is too taxing," Qiluo said.

Su Ming didn't understand, "Polymorph has this characteristic? And with its small size and high density, wouldn't it be easier to get stuck in the snow?"

"I've been using this little girl transformation since I was a child, I'm completely used to it," Qiluo explained. "If I used a different form, the magic consumption would be several times higher."

"No, doesn't your growth go with age?"

"What's grown up is the unicorn's true form, not its transformed state," the unicorn replied matter-of-factly. "Su Ming, what form am I in, and how do I affect you?"

"Nothing."

The snow was deep, and everyone sank in with every step. The unicorn, however, took advantage of her small size and good stamina, and plowed a rut in the snow. As a result, everyone followed behind her, and their progress was much faster. They quickly covered a considerable distance.

Hearing a faint noise, Su Ming looked back and saw the Shafeng'er Town open in the distance, letting out a faint light. In the darkness, three large sleds pulled by snow beasts rushed out from inside.

From the blurry figures, one could vaguely recognize them as the guards who had appeared before, but there were seven or eight of them, and it seemed that Shen Jian was also protecting some important figure.

Is this some kind of suicide attempt?!

"Ailisha," Su Ming called through the earpiece.

"I see it! Wait for me for fifteen minutes!" Zijin grabbed her coat and flying broom, rushed out of the carriage, and plunged into the night sky.

****

After a while, the car approached and stopped. Eight people got off one after another. In the middle, surrounded by people, was an old nobleman dressed in rich clothes. He tripped and almost fell when he got off the car, as if he was carrying something quite heavy.

But the old man was in good health and quickly regained his balance. Without even glancing at Su Ming, he walked straight over, grabbed a girl, and used his Illumination to look at her face.

"Pfft! Pfft!" the old man lewdly exclaimed. "Nice face!" He reached out and touched the girl's chest again. "Great figure too. These human traffickers really know how to pick!"

The girl begged for mercy, but the old man grabbed her long hair and slapped her across the face. The guards came up and grabbed the remaining girls as well, and immediately a chorus of weeping and pleas filled the air.

"One for each person isn't enough, let's take turns," the old man grinned and chuckled.

"Haha, as long as you don't kill her too quickly, it's fine as long as you do it right," a guard joked. He found the girl he had captured too noisy, so he raised his hand and punched her in the stomach, and she immediately bent over and coughed.

"Bennyfinn Fairn Whittaker?" Su Ming said coldly.

One of the guards we'd just met stepped forward. "Outsider, mind your own business!"

Another guard said, "That's right, these girls have been conscripted as handmaids to Whitaker Territory."

The old nobleman glanced at Su Ming, confirming he didn't look like a nobleman, and sneered, "What, trying to interfere with the Whitaker Family's handling of private property? Considering you helped find these girls, I'll let it slide!"

The guards burst into laughter, but each of them kept their hands on the hilts of their weapons, wary of a possible sudden attack from Su Ming.

A girl knelt down and said, "Sir, I am already married and do not meet the conscription requirements! Please let me go home!"

One of the guards laughed loudly, "Haha, so you haven't exercised your right to the first night yet? Today is the perfect time to make up for it!"

The girl was struck dumb, and sat frozen on the snow.

The right to virginity? Su Ming narrowed his eyes. Even in this backward autonomous region, such a thing existed in name only.

He had no intention of sparing these people's lives.

"Su Ming, just bear with it a little longer." Zijin's voice came, mixed with the whistling of the wind.

"Don't worry," Su Ming said in a low voice. Impulsiveness is pointless; if you're going to act, you have to go all out!

However, once Zijin makes her move, the commotion cannot be concealed. News of the appearance of a necromancer in this region will inevitably spread, attracting the attention of various forces and the hunt of bounty hunters.

Su Ming didn't hesitate to save the girls; he just felt it wasn't worth it because of these scoundrels.

Even if their motives are entirely selfish—this journey to Dome Mountain is meant to rescue dozens of top scholars from the mainland and thwart the plans of a cult—they now face additional risks because of this scum.

Even chopping them up and selling their meat wouldn't be worth a penny!

What annoyed Su Ming even more was that if they could kill Bennyfinn of guards, what about the others? Even if they sent these girls home, they might still suffer the same fate again. Whether it was human traffickers or the territory administrators who were supposed to protect them, they all treated them as playthings to be taken at will.

This small town is just one of thousands of towns across this vast icy plain; the disgusting old man in front of me is merely one of countless nobles.

A sense of powerlessness overwhelmed Su Ming. But he quickly adjusted his mindset; at least, he needed to clean up the mess in front of him!

****

A sharp beam descended from the sky, piercing the snow with a clang and embedding itself in the ground.

"Zijin so fast? "Su Ming quickly looked up and saw a two-handed longsword with a golden glow.

A burst of light erupted from the longsword, unleashing power that tore through the snow and sent shockwaves spreading outwards. This power deftly avoided the girl and Su Ming, knocking the guards and Bennyfinn to the ground.

"Who is it!" Bennyfinn tumbled a few times, scrambled to his feet like a wolf, and roared as he hid among the guards. The runic shield on his robe was also activated and lit up.

"My name is Justice!" A clear, girlish voice rang out in the night sky, and a figure descended from the heavens, landing in front of Su Ming. She wore a light blue armor and a linen cloak, her long golden hair swaying freely in the wind.

"Damn, it's Yise!" Su Ming quickly reported to Zijin in as low a voice as possible.

Fortunately, Zijin was wearing in-ear headphones, so she could hear clearly even during high-speed flight. The scholar quickly lowered the flying broom, landing on the snowfield, and then swiftly put on the forbidden magic cloak.

Yise, Katharine's daughter, even briefly fought against Zijin during the Battle of Agate Sea. This young woman possesses considerable strength and holds a high position within the church. If she discovers this, it means a fierce chase with the Order of Light is about to begin!

Furthermore, in the Northern Lands, the Icefield Special Forces of the Cold Mountain Kingdom, the White Graupel Cavalry, will also come.

This is absolutely a disastrous start; even Zijin, who escaped before, has no intention of challenging it again.

Here, after landing, Yise extended her white hand and beckoned, and the sword stuck in the ground immediately flew back into her palm. With a casual wave, she blew away the snow within a radius of several meters, revealing the brown soil surface.

The girls, including a little green-haired girl who had blended in, hurriedly ran behind Yise.

Yise wore only a tight-fitting casual outfit, with light armor covering only her vital areas. Her cloak fluttered in the cold wind, revealing the girl's graceful figure, making her stand out awkwardly among the crowd of people in bulky winter clothes.

Su Ming couldn't help but shiver. Everyone was bundled up like dumplings in minus twenty-five degrees Celsius, so why was she still so stylish?

"Yise!" Bennyfinn exclaimed angrily, "What are you doing meddling in other people's business now!"

"How can the affairs of God's people be trivial matters!" Another voice rang out, and a young girl, also dressed in a light priestess robe, descended from the sky. When she landed on the snow, she was so light that she left no footprints.

"Very well, another troublesome one," Su Ming sighed inwardly.

"You!" Bennyfinn assessed the situation as well, realizing his side was outmatched. "You've violated the agreement between your church and us. Aren't you afraid of being exiled to an even more remote region?" he threatened.

"We haven't violated the agreement; we're simply upholding the law as members of the Northern Lands," the priestess said logically. "According to the ' Lord Autonomous Region Convention,' the recruitment of maids must be announced to the maid's village three days in advance, and a fee of one gold coin must be paid to the maid's parents. Scribe Bennyfinn, are you perhaps just forgetful?"

"-I'll take care of the paperwork!" Bennyfinn said through gritted teeth.

In the snow and moonlight, Yise planted his longsword in the ground, placed his hands on it, and faced the crowd with a sassy and mocking air. "Then we'll take him away first, and you can come back to collect him after you've completed the formalities."

Bennyfinn yelled at the group of girls, "Which village are you from?"

There was silence; no one answered him.

Bennyfinn was furious. He pointed at the married girl and said, "You, come here. First night rights don't require paperwork!"

"Oh dear, the right of first night must be exercised by the lord himself," the priestess said, covering her mouth with a laugh. "Were we out of touch? Have you already killed your brother and taken the throne?"

Bennyfinn's face turned extremely ugly. He glared at Yise and the priest for a while, and finally gave up unwillingly.

"You're all good, just you wait!" He yanked his collar hard, shaking off the snow he'd gotten from rolling around in, and turned to say, "Let's go."

Go to the city to find girls and have some fun!

Yise gripped the hilt of her sword and took a small step forward, but the priestess blocked her way.

"Our goal is to spread light throughout the entire ice plains, not just for these few scoundrels," she whispered, trying to persuade them.

Their eyes met, Yise finally gave up on making any further moves.

The guards, realizing the standoff had ended, all breathed a sigh of relief.

Yise, the most outstanding young Watcher of the Temple of Light, has been parachuting into the Northern Lands recently, putting a lot of pressure on them. Several foolish and arrogant individuals were swiftly and decisively dealt with by her.

They had no confidence in fighting such a being. Although Yise would not kill them due to the agreement between the Temple of Light and the nobles of the autonomous territory, it was absolutely inevitable that he would be severely injured.

Su Ming tightened the sling of his gun and turned to Qiluo, "Miss Sacred Beast, the escort was interrupted due to unforeseen circumstances, so I won't refund the two gold coins deposit."

Goodbye!"

After saying that, he walked towards Bennyfinn and his group of guards, "Wait, could you please take me back to the city? I have some good stuff I can sell you!"

One of the guards who recognized him turned around and asked, "What good stuff is it?"

"A fine weapon," Su Ming replied, pulling a warhammer from his backpack—the very one the warrior who had been killed earlier had possessed.

Su Ming tossed it to the guard, who caught it. It felt very solid in his hand; it was a good quality item!

"Alright, get on first, we need to take a closer look," the guard waved. Su Ming got into the sleigh and followed them back to Shafeng'er Town.

Zijin couldn't see the screen, but she could hear the sounds from the scene. Su Ming's movements made her frown, but after thinking for a moment, she said nothing.

Taking this opportunity to get away from the troublesome Yise and the priestess was the right choice. Compared to them, the guards and that scoundrel old man were safer.

What I fear most is that Su Ming's actions go beyond simply using this opportunity to leave!

****

The priestess turned to Qiluo, clasped her hands, and bowed slightly in a blessing gesture. "Greetings, Miss Holy Beast! I am the God of Light Jielusi Zera!"

The unicorn haughtily raised its head, snorted, and took a small step back. "Don't be so enthusiastic. It's no surprise that the Children of the Moon don't like the scent of the God of Light," Jielusi said. "At least allow me to heal you a little, as a token of our admiration for the benevolent spirit of the sacred beast!"

"The Children of the Moon don't like the divine arts of the God of Light either," Qiluo stubbornly refused. She had fractured her shoulder bone during the fight with the warrior and did need treatment, but—"All gods pity the suffering of the world, and the power to heal wounds is impartial," the priestess said gently.

Qiluo tilted her head and thought for a moment. Hmm, it would be too impolite to refuse again! She reverted to her unicorn form. "Alright!"

Jielusi gently explored her shoulders with both hands, searching for the broken bone. She quickly found the break and deftly reset the bone. Then, a blue and white light emanated from the priest's hands, nourishing the wound.

"What do you plan to do with these girls?" Qiluo asked.

"Take them to Dawn Territory," Yise replied, who was checking on the abducted girls. "They can be taken in there."

"Dawn Territory?" Qiluo asked in confusion, as there was no territory with that name on the map of the Ice Plains.

"It used to be called the Matiqiuxia Territory," Jielusi explained. "Their lord has 'converted' to the Light."

The Matiqiuxia Territory was quite large, and its lord Matiqiuxia, was a fallen count. About a hundred kilometers away, Qiluo recalled the distribution of power in the Ice Plains.

Clearly, that place has become a stronghold of the Temple of Light, but the people all bear the magical mark of their respective lords. "Won't taking away people from other lords without permission make you an enemy of the Northern Lands?" Qiluo asked.

"There was a system of vagrants in the Dominion Covenant a hundred years ago," Jielusi explained. "When a vassal set foot on another lord's land, the lord could, with the vassal's consent, forcibly buy him from the former lord for a fee of thirty silver coins."

Thirty silver coins from a hundred years ago are now worth less than the price of a commoner. However, this system is so ancient that no one would know about it unless the priestess mentioned it.

"Would a lord forced into a sale agree to this?" the unicorn asked doubtfully.

"Of course I'd agree," Jielusi replied. "The Church sent a thousand elite clergy to the Northern Lands to convey God's grace to these lost lords!"

Although the truth behind it was that the Divine Covenant Faction of the Temple of Light exiled the commoner elites, this was a family scandal. In front of outsiders, Jielusi still wanted to gild the church's image.

Such a large and powerful group of commoner elites and clergy are certainly not content to remain in obscurity!