Chapter 18

Xia Xifeng left without hesitation, even climbing out the window to avoid running into Leo and wasting time.

Once Xia Xifeng sent a private message confirming he had successfully left and was racing to Green Sand City at full speed, escorted by a Halfling Warrior, Qin Lang finally went to find the still-arguing Leo and Perila.

The moment he saw Qin Lang, Leo yelled, “Lang! You be the judge!”

Qin Lang walked over, drew a short dagger, and, under Leo’s bewildered gaze, struck him on the forehead with the pommel.

Leo flopped over.

“Apply Silence,” Qin Lang ordered.

Perila blinked. Though unsure what was happening, he trustingly followed Qin Lang’s instruction and cast Silence on Leo.

Applying a debuff also counted as an attack; Leo was about to awaken instantly.

The moment he stirred, Qin Lang shoved the slender-necked bottle containing the Drowsiness Potion into Leo’s mouth.

Leo, just regaining consciousness, reflexively sucked in.

He stared in confusion at Qin Lang, who was administering the “water,” and glug, swallowed the potion.

Perila asked curiously, “What is that?”

Qin Lang said, “Drowsiness Potion. Xia Xifeng went to inform Mr. Suer. Let Leo sleep a bit, so he doesn’t cause delays.”

Perila: “…”

Leo: “…”

Leo: “You… you guys, was that really necessary?”

After saying this, Leo, who held absolutely no guard against Qin Lang, foolishly fell unconscious.

Perila was speechless for a long moment.

Qin Lang carried Leo and placed him on the sofa. “Xia Xifeng’s idea. Don’t blame me.”

Perila covered his mouth, nearly laughing out loud. “Isn’t this a bit too much?”

Qin Lang stressed again, “Blame Xia Xifeng.”

Perila lowered the hand from his mouth, leaning back in his chair and murmuring, “I know Leo is very kindhearted…”

Qin Lang asked, “Do you think Xia Xifeng’s caution means he isn’t kindhearted?”

Perila immediately shook his head. “No, that’s not what I meant.”

Qin Lang said, “So Leo’s divergence from us on this matter isn’t about kindness; it’s simply because he’s foolish.”

Perila: “…Is that how it is?”

Qin Lang glanced at his private messages.

Xia Xifeng had typed out a long string of words for him to relay to Perila.

Qin Lang recited: “If it were just about kindness, Leo’s primary concern should be Lana’s situation. Lana was nearly killed, and we don’t know who the killer is. Maybe the Dwarf Merchant Caravan contains his friends, but what does his friend being a good person have to do with Lana? Though young, Lana is old enough to travel. Once she calms down, she can certainly explain what happened clearly. We can help her then. Until that moment, our only task is to protect her well and not reveal her information to anyone.”

Perila asked, “The little girl is named Lana? She’s already able to speak? And, Qin Lang, are you relaying Feng’s words? Hearing such a long speech from you suddenly is kind of terrifying.”

Leo sat up straight on the sofa, crossing his legs and staring at Qin Lang, nodding vigorously.

Only his power was suppressed; his constitution hadn’t changed—still near Legendary Physique. A small sip of low-level Drowsiness Potion might only knock him out for a few seconds at best.

But the Silence spell Perila had cast on him was still in effect, so he could only protest with his eyes, mouth shut tight.

Qin Lang: “I don’t want to relay this either. Do you still want to listen?”

Perila couldn’t help but laugh. “Go on, continue.”

Leo wanted to speak, but Perila ignored his gestures, refusing to remove the Silence.

Leo could only droop his head, eyes looking moist, just like a dejected big dog.

Qin Lang sighed, and continued “reading aloud” while staring at the System Panel in front of him. “Besides Lana’s situation, Leo also hasn’t considered Green Sand City. As he rightly pointed out, a dwarven little girl carrying a powerful protective magical accessory could only come from the Dwarf Merchant Caravan. That caravan was attacked right beside Green Sand City. This incident is very likely targeting Green Sand City…”

Leo gesticulated wildly and vigorously.

Qin Lang glanced at Leo and continued, “Leo probably wants to say, the City Lord is very powerful. That’s his most foolish point. He doesn’t use his brain because he’s confident that he and Perila, you two alone, are strong enough to protect Lana even if small problems arise. Even if you two encounter a powerful enemy, the City Lord hasn’t left Green Sand City. Who would dare act rashly before the City Lord?”

Leo placed his hands on his crossed knees and nodded vigorously.

Qin Lang went on: “But he didn’t consider one thing. If the enemy truly came prepared, intending to disrupt Green Sand City, wouldn’t the enemy know that the City Lord hasn’t left Green Sand City?”

Leo froze.

Perila’s expression turned panicked. “No… no way, right? The City Lord is so powerful, how could…”

Qin Lang said, “Has Green Sand City, since its founding, never had enemies and never been schemed against before?”

Perila fell silent.

Of course not.

On the contrary, Green Sand City was rooted in The Wastelands, which had given rise to the Free Alliance—an entity refusing to submit to either the Elven Empire or the Human Empire. It had always been a thorn in many people’s sides.

Qin Lang summarized: “The City Lord is powerful. Directly targeting him is not easy. Therefore, as his juniors, you should be even more cautious. Thinking a bit more won’t hurt.”

Perila raised his hands in surrender. “I think quite a lot. He’s the brainless one. Lang, are you thirsty? I’ll get you some water.”

To warn them, Qin Lang had spoken more today than perhaps he had in several days combined. Perila was somewhat touched.

Leo shifted from sitting cross-legged to hugging his legs, curled up in a ball. His expression resembled a dejected large dog even more.

Clearly, he wasn’t truly stupid and was already reflecting.

Perila removed the Silence from Leo, but Leo still didn’t speak.

Qin Lang said, “Xia Xifeng left a large pot of Creamy Potato Soup. I haven’t eaten my fill yet. Do you two want another bowl?”

Perila immediately replied, “Yes!”

Leo said pitifully, “…Yes.”

Alright, problem solved.

Next time, let Xia Xifeng handle mediating people. He really isn’t cut out for it.

As Xia Xifeng galloped, the wind whipping against him, his unbound hair turned into a bird’s nest. Bouncing wildly, he had to type at the same time, nearly getting motion sickness.

If his character panel didn’t inherently grant riding skills, he might have already been thrown off.

Thankfully, once he reached the City Gate, he could swap his Mount for the comfortable Magitech Vehicle.

The halfling temporarily acting as Xia Xifeng’s guard pointed at the city gate. “Isn’t that the Dwarf Merchant Caravan?”

Xia Xifeng glanced toward the gate. “We’ll use a different gate.”

The Halfling Guard assumed Xia Xifeng simply disliked crowds and asked no further.

The two took a detour and arrived at a side gate.

Coincidentally, Damon was handling business at the side gate again, able to escort Xia Xifeng another time.

Xia Xifeng joked, “How come I keep running into you? Are you very idle?”

Damon didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “Every time I meet you, I’m working, okay? What about you? Shouldn’t you be busy building your Knight’s Domain? What brings you to the city? If you need supplies, just tell me, and I’ll have them delivered.”

Xia Xifeng said, “I have an urgent matter to report to Mr. Suer. Is he at the castle?”

Damon’s expression instantly turned grave. “Very important? What is it… No, don’t tell me. Report it directly to the City Lord. Yesterday morning, Mr. Suer suddenly announced he needed secluded meditation. Whenever Mr. Suer goes into secluded meditation, he won’t emerge for at least a month. You can’t see him now.”

Xia Xifeng asked, “Yesterday morning?”

Damon nodded. “Yes.”

Xia Xifeng let out a long sigh. “It’s over. Now I’m even more certain. It’s definitely a big conspiracy.”

Damon asked nervously, “What big conspiracy? My uncle is still in the city!”

Xia Xifeng replied, “Whoever wants to hatch a big conspiracy surely knows the City Lord is in the city.”

Damon’s expression grew even grimmer. “That’s true. I’ll speed up.”

The Halfling Guard also grew tense. “Something big is happening? Is it dangerous? Could someone attack Green Sand City? The last time Green Sand City faced an attack that wasn’t from Devil Beasts was ten years ago. Should I warn everyone?”

Xia Xifeng said, “Don’t worry. They’ll surely come covertly, not launch an immediate assault. With Perila and Leo here, even a sneak attack won’t be easy.”

The Halfling Guard patted his chest. “True, with Perila and Leo here. Even if Leo is a bit stupid, there’s still Perila.”

Xia Xifeng instantly shared this remark with Qin Lang.

See, I’m not the only one calling Leo stupid. Leo being stupid is an open “secret” throughout Sunflower Valley!

Qin Lang, having just drunk his fill of soup, relayed Xia Xifeng’s words to Leo, then relayed Leo’s reaction back to Xia Xifeng.

Xia Xifeng nearly laughed out loud, his mood lightening considerably.

A conspiracy already foreseen was no longer a true “conspiracy”; it would definitely be resolved.

Seeing Xia Xifeng suddenly seeking him out, Amuruo immediately led him into a secret chamber inscribed with numerous Divine Barriers.

After activating his Domain as a double layer of precaution, he finally spoke. “Speak, Little Prophet. Is there big trouble?”

Xia Xifeng said, surprised, “How does the City Lord know?”

Amuruo replied, “Just call me Mr. Amuruo, no need for excessive formalities. If there was no major matter, you wouldn’t rush to find Suer, especially while he’s meditating.”

He pinched the bridge of his nose. “If you’ve foreseen danger precisely when Suer is meditating, this trouble is indeed a big one.”

Suer had truly been “captured” by Fate.

Thank goodness they found a new Prophet in time.

Xia Xifeng had many questions, but now wasn’t the time to ask them.

He recounted to Amuruo the incident of accidentally rescuing the dwarf girl.

“Although Lana’s account was very confused, Qin Lang and I happened to have encountered similar shadows before.” Xia Xifeng and Qin Lang had discussed this and decided to partially reveal some “prophecies” to Amuruo.

Corrupted Monsters had already appeared; the Doomsday was approaching. There was no room for hesitation.

Xia Xifeng asked, “Mr. Amuruo, do you know of the Outer Gods?”

Amuruo paused for a moment, then pressed his hand to his forehead and let out a long sigh. “I don’t. But just hearing that name, I know it’s a big problem. What? Is a Divine War about to begin again? Is the Doomsday about to descend? Is the world about to end again?”

Xia Xifeng: “…You guessed all that?”

Amuruo’s mouth twitched. “Isn’t prophecy precisely for predicting this? Common predictions hardly need a Prophet.”

Xia Xifeng: “Oh, right.”

As expected of a senior Guardian Knight! What rich experience!