A Sword Cultivator Has Arrived in the Lord’s City

Chapter 13: Dusk Forest

Without Mage Orr, the risks of going into the Dusk Forest became much greater.

In truth, Gerson City did not have many mages to begin with.

Mage Orr had only been persuaded to come because the Gerson City Lord had paid a great price and revealed the secret of the treasure map.

And now, before they had even entered the Dusk Forest, the old bastard had died.

Even so, their mission still had to be completed.

Even if they could not enter the Underground Palace, as long as they could confirm the authenticity of the treasure map, they would still be able to return to Gerson City and report back.

That was exactly what Knight Kline was thinking. He knew very well that he was only at the first tier, and without Mage Orr, the dangers of the Dusk Forest were simply not something a group like theirs could handle.

After he laid out his plan, the three warriors all nodded in agreement.

None of them had been so blinded by the lure of treasure that they lost their heads. Staying alive was what mattered most.

“Then after we return, we can bring that Demi-human back to Gerson City as well.”

Although they suspected Jiang Lin, the gap in strength was right there before them, so they did not take him seriously at all.

And Knight Kline believed that his earlier performance had been excellent. When he went to question them at the tavern, he had not shown any hostility, so that Demi-human should not have noticed his true intentions.

After they settled the matter, the four of them did not remain in town any longer.

Once they had sorted out their equipment, they set off for the Dusk Forest under the fervent gaze of the townsfolk.

Of course, officially, they were going there to eliminate the Magical Beasts for the people of the town.

“Commoners are still commoners in the end. Stir them up a little, and they can be led around by the nose. They really are ignorant beyond belief.”

Even after leaving town, Knight Kline could still hear the cheers of the townsfolk behind him.

“Do not put it that way, Sir Kline. Were we not commoners ourselves once?”

Sotor smiled as he carried his greatsword over one shoulder and swaggered forward.

“I was not. My uncle is a Baron, with legitimate hereditary merit to his name. And I have already looked into it. I am eligible to inherit his title.”

There was obvious excitement in Knight Kline’s expression. Although he was a knight, he did not have enough merit to be granted a noble title himself. That was one of the reasons he had come here in the first place: to inherit his uncle’s title.

Of course, even if things could be arranged, it would still cost a considerable amount of money.

Fortunately, he had amassed a fair amount of savings over the years, and together with what his aunt had, it should be enough.

As he thought of this, he was already beginning to look forward to his future life.

The sense of superiority in his expression also gradually stopped being concealed.

The three beside him all smiled without saying anything, but Sotor clearly had no intention of indulging him.

Letting out a soft laugh, he said with some disdain, “Your little investigation reminds me of the noises that came from your aunt’s room yesterday. Now that I think about it, Sir Kline, you did not seem to be in your own room last night either.”

“I simply could not sleep, that is all. Sotor, I hope you will show some respect. She is the wife of a Baron, and more importantly, she is my aunt!”

Knight Kline gritted his teeth, anger flashing in his eyes. His face had already turned red.

“Yes, yes. Forgive a rude brute like me. You know how it is. I was born a commoner.”

Sotor merely glanced at him and did not provoke him any further. Those words had only been meant to tear open the man’s hypocritical mask, nothing more.

As they spoke, they gradually approached the edge of the Dusk Forest.

Their expressions all turned serious as they drew their weapons and slowly stepped into the vast forest.

Even the Gerson City Lord did not know much about the Dusk Forest.

But after obtaining the treasure map by chance, he had immediately sent servants to the Black Market to purchase a map of the Dusk Forest.

Now, that map, of who knew what age, had been taken out by Knight Kline and was being carefully compared.

“Well?” Sotor asked as he watched the surroundings warily.

Knight Kline held the map in one hand and half of the treasure map in the other, comparing them carefully.

A moment later, irritation appeared on his face, and he hurled the map viciously to the ground.

“This damned map is probably older than the Gerson City Lord himself. It does not match at all.”

Of course, it was also possible that they had simply been cheated.

That was hardly unusual. Even the authenticity of this treasure map itself had yet to be verified.

Across the Atre Continent, there were many ancient ruins, as well as treasures hidden in Underground Palaces passed down through rumor.

Most of them were merely legends, stories that had circulated through the Central Nations for ages.

Some of them were real, but most had been made up by some idle bard with too much time on his hands.

All for the sake of swindling a cup of ale or a meal out of a tavern.

Knight Kline compared them for a while longer before he finally found a reference point. That only made him more certain that the map bought from the Black Market had been a scam.

The map of the Dusk Forest was not even as accurate as the treasure map.

“According to the treasure map, we should head south. We will probably have to enter the middle region of the Dusk Forest. There may be Third-Tier Magical Beasts there, so everyone stay alert.”

As Knight Kline spoke, he checked the direction, then started forward.

Sotor and the other two immediately followed, maintaining their vigilance as they watched for movement around them.

During the daytime, Magical Beasts in the Dusk Forest rarely came out to move about.

But they could not be sure they would not be unlucky enough to stumble into the territory of some beast.

They knew a little about the strength of the Magical Beasts in the Dusk Forest, though not much.

They only knew that the beasts in the outer region were generally around the first or second tier.

Third-Tier Magical Beasts rarely appeared there.

With three First-Tier Warriors and one First-Tier Knight, even if they could not win, they were confident they could still retreat unscathed.

A few minutes after their figures disappeared, Jiang Lin slowly stepped out from behind a tree, the Cangwu Sword already in his hand.

The forest was much darker than the outside world, perhaps because of the weather beyond it.

The wild trees here had stood for who knew how many years. Every single one of them was nearly thick enough that it would take two people to wrap their arms around the trunk.

Amid the staggered shadows of the dim trees, Jiang Lin looked toward the figures of the group in the distance, then quickly followed after them.

This was not the right time to make a move. He knew even less about the Dusk Forest than those people did.

It was the perfect chance to let them scout the way for him. Ideally, he would only make his move after they had found the location of the Underground Palace.

That would save him a great deal of trouble.

There was another reason as well. He wanted to see exactly how strong these people were.

Although his power had already recovered to the Foundation Establishment Realm, being cautious was never a mistake.

Ever since coming to this world, the only truly impulsive thing he had done was probably the battle with Mage Orr last night.

And he had paid a certain price for it.

After they walked a little farther, fierce sounds of battle soon came from ahead.

They were accompanied by flashes of light and faint mana fluctuations.

Jiang Lin’s thoughts stirred, and he quickened his pace.

Before long, he saw the scene clearly through the trees ahead. The four men were locked in battle with a Magical Beast about the size of a tiger.

Although the beast was not especially large, its entire body was pitch-black and seemed to be covered in scales. A dim blue glow shone from its savage eyes.

At that moment, the Knight’s Sword in Knight Kline’s hand was radiating a hazy magical power, but in Jiang Lin’s perception, it was very weak.

It felt as though it were merely adding a bit of enchantment to his blade.

The three warriors, on the other hand, were different. Though they used different weapons, each of them could unleash fluctuations similar to blood qi.

Their methods of attack were also unlike the knight’s. Their fighting style was completely berserk, especially that warrior wielding the greatsword.

His attacks were particularly wild.

“Looks like some sort of Blood-Burning attack method. It should be able to raise their strength for a short time, or perhaps add certain special effects.”

Watching the battle in the distance, Jiang Lin narrowed his eyes and stroked his chin as he analyzed it.

At the same time, he was also releasing his divine sense and spreading it around himself to keep watch.

This was the Dusk Forest, after all. He was not so stingy with his Spiritual Power that he would let himself fall into danger.

Very soon, the battle seemed to be nearing its end.

After the knight forcefully blocked one swipe of the beast’s claws, the remaining three warriors rushed forward, driving their weapons into the Magical Beast’s body.

“That hide is pretty tough...”

Jiang Lin muttered quietly.

But at that very moment, within the range of his divine sense, three more Magical Beasts suddenly appeared. Their aura fluctuations rushed straight toward the four men in battle.

Judging by their reactions, they still had no idea.

Jiang Lin frowned.

“Could it be I will not even need to make a move?”

As that thought crossed his mind, all four Magical Beasts had already charged in!