Chapter 49: Goodbye, the Man in Black

“Head, are you serious? You really don’t know? Ugh, fine. Let my great Lei Ao tell you guys, hehe!
Since we left Tielan Town until yesterday, the entire town has undergone tremendous changes. First, under the pressure of moisture and the demons, Tielan Town was forced to retreat to its second line of defense. I’m not sure how they managed it, but it worked.
Four days ago, reinforcements from the church arrived in Tielan Town. With their addition, the town’s strength soared significantly. Three days ago, even larger forces arrived, signaling that the time for a counterattack had come. Two days ago, Tielan Town launched a massive counterattack, led by several god-tier warriors and the reinforcements sent by the church. After a day of fighting, they drove back the beast armies, demons, vampires, and werewolves beyond the first city wall, recapturing the first line of defense and achieving the most satisfying victory so far in this war!” At these words, not only Curly Hair but everyone else present was deeply moved. They had worked so hard in Tielan Town, risking their lives and sacrificing everything, only to barely hold on. Who would have thought that just as victory seemed within reach, things would turn out like this? They not only couldn’t participate in the final counterattack but were also forced to flee. One can imagine how huge the disappointment must have been.
“What about now?” At some point, Skora and Kerode also arrived, and almost everyone present gathered here, waiting for Curly Hair to continue.
“It’s strange though. With the arrival of the church’s army and subsequent reinforcements, even after being driven out of the first line of defense, the demons didn’t rush to attack. Instead, they regrouped on the spot. The beast armies also stopped moving as if following orders. I don’t know what they’re doing! Anyway, Tielan Town is safe now, that’s what matters.”

“Well, there’s another piece of news that the captain will surely be interested in. There’s now more than just you as a dragon slayer. A young man has appeared among the church’s reinforcements—extremely powerful. At just thirty years old, he’s already reached the Saint level. A few days ago, with the help of other members, he hunted down a wind dragon and became the second person to slay one. He’s quite famous now; I think everyone in Iron Bar Town knows him. Rumors are spreading everywhere. What an arrogant brat—he didn’t even know anything when our boss was slaying dragons. Now he’s starting to act tough.”
“Dude, ignore her. Next time we go back, we’ll show him who’s really in charge!” Curly seemed even more upset than Luo about this.
Unexpectedly, it wasn’t just Curly who was resentful; several others felt the same way. This left Luo somewhat helpless, though he also felt a warmth in his heart.
“Alright, kid, let’s talk about this when we get back. First, I have a question for you: Did you hear anything about us while you were out today? Or has this matter become more widespread?” Skora interrupted Curly’s complaints and brought the conversation back on track.
This question addressed what everyone was most concerned about, including Luo. Everyone’s gaze and attention turned to Curly.
“Well, you’ve asked the right person. I spent the whole day outside mainly because of this. Otherwise, do you think I went out to slack off?”
“This matter has indeed become widespread. The entire continent now knows about the Death Scythe Squad, which caused quite a stir recently. They know the leader of the Death Scythe Squad, a guy named Brado—a dragon slayer who was the first in a hundred years to kill a dragon. It turns out he’s a demon, and most of the squad’s core members have betrayed humanity along with him! Now, a bounty hunt has been launched across the continent, with even bigger rewards this time. It’s said the captain’s head is worth a million gold coins in the dark mercenary world, making it an S-rank, ultra-hard mission. As for us, each of our heads is worth no less than ten thousand gold coins! This time, we really messed up big time.”

At the mention of this, Curly Hair’s face immediately turned grim as he spoke helplessly, his sighs making one feel deeply troubled. No one had expected things to develop to this point; the thought of becoming targets for pursuit across the entire continent filled everyone with distress. “Forget it for now. Get ready; this afternoon we’ll take you to see the lord. None of this matters really. As long as you stay with us, not even the king himself can do anything to you. This is the safest place!” At some point, Hori also arrived among them, seemingly having heard everything. Seeing their distraught expressions and silence, Hori patted the shoulders of those around him and said, “Enough. Let’s stop talking about this. Iron Bar Town no longer concerns us, so we don’t need to worry about its fate anymore. Curly Hair, there’s no need to keep us updated on such matters. As for the continental pursuit order? Hmph! I, Rod, was able to escape alone with only the strength of a Golden Warrior back then, and I can do it again now. Besides, I have you all supporting me. If I can’t even handle this, then I think there’s no point in continuing to resist!” Finally, after a long while, Rod took a deep breath and began to speak, interrupting the discussions to clarify some matters first. Then he turned and left the crowd. The Church of Light, the continent, and the demons—all made this situation seem increasingly complicated! But Rod didn’t have time to overthink things now; there were many more tasks waiting for him. He wasn’t alone anymore; he had a group of brothers who would fight alongside him through thick and thin. He couldn’t act against everyone’s interests due to his own reasons or desires. Since those people had chosen to follow him, Rod felt it was his duty to take care of them and ensure they could live well. Watching Rod leave, the crowd fell silent for a moment. They really couldn’t understand Rod’s feelings at that moment—such emotions were beyond their capacity to bear.

In the afternoon, led by Hori, the group wandered around within Tianshui City. Following behind Hori, they disguised themselves as a merchant caravan, a setup that naturally wouldn’t draw attention in a town centered around trade. Once again, they witnessed the strength and prosperity of Tianshui City—tall buildings, numerous shops, and merchants from various countries. It truly was an international metropolis, with all the qualities to become the second-largest city in the Lance Empire!

It was unclear what Hori’s intentions were. After leading them around the entire city, he finally brought them to the front of a large mansion. It bore some resemblance to the big house in Tielan Town—similarly grand and secluded in layout.

Upon entering the mansion, Hori didn’t immediately take everyone to find the mysterious masked man. Instead, he reassured everyone before sending Rod to search for the man in black alone. Though he didn’t understand why Hori did this, Rod didn’t object and simply followed. At least he knew the man in black wouldn’t harm him; if he had wanted to, Rod would have died countless times by now.

Under Hori’s guidance, Rod was quickly taken to a simple wooden cabin located in the northwest corner of the mansion, nestled against a mountain by water, looking extremely elegant. When they arrived, the room was empty. After leading Rod in, Hori left.

Alone in the empty room, Rod looked around the rustic study. The entire room was built from ancient camphor wood, emitting a faint aromatic scent. The furnishings were simple: a vintage desk, a few books, a chair, and a painting on the wall. It was hard to tell what the painting depicted—it was abstract, even causing Rod to feel dizzy. After frowning at it for a while with no clue, he gave up trying to understand it, too weary to continue. The dizzying sensation was almost unbearable.

“What, can’t you figure it out?” Just as Rod decided to stop looking, a voice came from behind him, startling him. He quickly turned to see that the masked man had somehow appeared behind him without him noticing at all. This made Rod break into a cold sweat—he didn’t know how many times he had “died” in that instant.

“I can’t tell, hehe, I’m not that observant!” Rod said helplessly after a self-deprecating laugh.
“Well, actually you’re quite good. I know everything that’s happened in Iron Bar Town these past days. Impressive—far beyond my expectations. You’ve done very well!” The man in black also smiled faintly and praised Rod.
Looking closely at this man in black, he was still dressed in black and wore a silver mask, showing no signs of change. The only difference was that every time Rod saw him, he felt his strength growing more and more terrifying and powerful. Sometimes, Rod even felt uneasy, unable to discern any limits to his power. Often, he wondered if such a person might already be at the divine level—or even stronger. But then why wasn’t his name on the list of divine-level warriors? And if he were indeed a divine-level fighter, then this organization must be terrifying. What kind of organization was it? Although this man in black had a high status, it was clear there were others above him, and not just one. How powerful could those people above be? Every time Rod thought about this, he felt confused about whether cooperating with this organization was right or wrong.