Chapter 1065: Shepherd
As night fell, the two sheep that had separated from the herd trotted tirelessly even farther northwest.
There would be two sentries manning the outposts, with one guard on duty during the day while the other took over at night. As such, there was no time gap in the patrolling schedule.
However, who would take notice of two sheep in the wilderness?
The two sheep traveled through the night, and it wasn’t until early the next morning that they finally made their way past the farthest outpost of the Northwest’s territory and arrived at the back of a hill.
A man in a gray cotton robe was waiting there. He stood there quietly and waited. His expression was shrouded under his hood. It seemed as though he were meditating with his eyes closed.
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The two sheep looked at him in antic.i.p.ation. Then, the gray-robed person opened his eyes. He took out a white stone from his loose sleeve and held it in his hand.
He recited a strange incantation, and the two sheep suddenly started morphing into the p.r.o.ne forms of two humanoids. They had black hair and yellow skin, making them look no different from the Central Plains people.
“Speak, what have you discovered?” Gray Robe’s voice was deep and husky, and it sounded somewhat rhythmic too.
The two young men said, “I think we encountered someone important from Fortress 178. Although we don’t know who he is, he has a personal attendant at his side. Moreover, that servant is extremely strong.”
“What makes you say that?” Gray Robe said calmly, “Explain in detail.”
As he spoke, Gray Robe held the stone firmly in his hand. It seemed like it had an extraordinary significance to him.
The two men in front of him said, “That servant could carry a large boulder on his back and move around with his master sitting on top.”
“A large boulder?”
“About half the height of a person.” The two servants looked at the stone in the sorcerer’s hand in fear, seemingly in awe of it.
The sorcerer wondered, “Why was he carrying a boulder on his back?”
“We’re not sure. We didn’t dare approach too close. That servant seemed like he was really sharp. We nearly got discovered when we took another glance at him,” one of the servants explained. “We guess he might have been made to carry the boulder by his master as punishment.”
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“That’s possible.” The sorcerer nodded. “But they can’t be that important since they aren’t followed by any other subordinates, so they won’t be worth my effort. Y’all can go back now. Remember not to expose yourselves.”
However, one of the servants hurriedly said, “My lord, we’ve already been here for two years. It’s really not easy to spot a person of interest coming out of that fortress. Please don’t miss this opportunity. We can guarantee you’ll find what you’re seeking!”
As a matter of fact, these two servants were really miserable. Never mind that they had been sent here undercover, a.s.suming the form of sheep for two years, they even got sheared multiple times for their wool while they were blending in among the herdsmen’s livestock.
If they were only humiliated and had their wool sheared, that would have been fine. What made it even harder was that there was the risk of getting slaughtered.
What were sheep raised for? To be eaten, of course.
Now that the sorcerer wanted them to go back undercover, how could they possibly take it?
It seemed like the sorcerer had noticed what they were thinking. He smiled ambiguously at them and said, “When the two of you wanted to become my apprentices, I would’ve rejected you both if you hadn’t been so persistent. An apprentice should behave like one. It’s too late to regret things now.”
One of the servants hurriedly said, “We have no intention of backing out. My lord, think about it. Even if you turn us into sheep again, we can’t get anywhere near the Alliance of Strongholds. You also said the thing you’re looking for is in a place several hundred kilometers southeast of Fortress 178. Even if we get turned back into sheep, we can’t get there. You might as well capture that important figure and question him instead. Who knows, he might just know something about it.”
The other servant said, “And even if they don’t know where that thing you’re looking for is, that servant is blessed with great strength. If you take him in as a gladiator, you’ll definitely stand out at the extravaganza next year.”
The sorcerer closed his eyes and pondered. Looking for that thing was as good as searching for a needle in a haystack. Actually, he had not harbored much hope of finding it.
However, the sorcerer was very tempted by the mention of the gladiator possibility.
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A servant blessed with great strength? Being a sorcerer who was physically weak, he could really do with an a.s.sistant like him.
After a long silence, the sorcerer said, “You two may go back now and help me find them. After the issue here is dealt with, I’ll allow the two of you to enter my Sorcerer’s Tower to start your apprentices.h.i.+p.”
With that, the two young men in front of him were turned back into sheep. And the violet sigil on the white stone pulsed.
The two sheep looked at each other and ran back towards Fortress 178, bearing down on the morning sun.
…
Meanwhile, Ren Xiaosu and Zhang Jinglin had already woken up. Rather than sleeping in, they personally began to make breakfast for the two sentries at Outpost No. 7.
Zhang Jinglin put on an ap.r.o.n and a pair of protective sleeves with a sense of familiarity while Ren Xiaosu started cutting the vegetables. However, there were not many varieties of vegetables at the outpost other than radish and cabbage.
The two sentries stood outside the kitchen and said uneasily, “Commander Zhang, Future Commander, why don’t you let us make breakfast instead? How can we let the two of you cook for us?”
There was a telephone at the outpost, so they had already received the notification yesterday afternoon that the fortress commander and future commander were coming.
But they did not expect the future commander and fortress commander to actually make breakfast for them as soon as they woke up. This left them a little fl.u.s.tered.
Zhang Jinglin comforted them with a smile, “What are you two so nervous about? You two have been stationed here all this time, so it’s no big deal for the two of us who’ve remained comfortable behind the fortress walls to cook you a meal. It’s been hard on you guys. You’ve only been getting radishes and cabbages to eat in this harsh environment, so I feel like we can do something better for you.”
The two sentries hurriedly replied, “No, no, it’s good enough to have fresh vegetables delivered to us regularly. Why don’t you let us cook instead?”
“Why? Are you worried that our cooking sucks?” Zhang Jinglin joked. “Don’t worry, our culinary skills are very good.”
Ren Xiaosu skillfully washed, plucked, and prepared the vegetables. Then he revealed a pork hock in front of the sentries and Zhang Jinglin as though he were performing magic.
Zhang Jinglin had heard before that Ren Xiaosu possessed a mysterious power like this, but this was the first time he had seen it for himself.
“Don’t look at me like that.” Ren Xiaosu said calmly, “Ever since I knew I was coming to tour the outposts, I prepared some pork in advance for the sentries. I even brought along two pairs of thick socks for everyone as a gift.”
Zhang Jinglin said with a smile, “Oh right, Yunsu is your business, and you’re probably one of the richest people in the Northwest right now. But since you have so much money, why are you only giving out two pairs of socks? Isn’t that a little stingy?”
Ren Xiaosu rolled his eyes. “You’re the Northwest’s commander. Surely you’re not eyeing my small bit of money, right?”
While having breakfast, the two sentries’ eyes reddened as they drank their porridge.
When they saw Ren Xiaosu and Zhang Jinglin turning to look at them, they quickly wiped away their tears. “Commander Zhang, we’re fine. We’re just very touched that the two of you came to visit us.”
These sentries had been through the harshest training and had been stationed in the harshest environment for several years.. But actually, they were also just normal people, so they would also feel vulnerable and homesick sometimes.