Mu Ban’s clear narration arisen naturally, him regarding Zhen Jin as a hero arranged by the gods had left a deep impression on him.
Zhen Jin remained silent, but his heart was greatly moved by Mu Ban.
“If this was all arranged by the gods, why didn’t they ever respond to my prayers?”
“As a templar knight, shouldn’t Emperor Sheng Ming be watching me attentively?”
“Don’t tell me……not responding to my prayers was a part of Emperor Sheng Ming’s plan?”
“Maybe……everything that has happened to me was Emperor Sheng Ming intentionally testing me?”
“Is the magic core in my heart also a part of this test?”
“Wait a moment, you said that it has only been a few days since you all have been teleported here?” Cang Xu questioned. He was also around.
“Yes. To be more precise, it has been five days.” Mu Ban replied.
Cang Xu and Zhen Jin glanced at each other.
They did not doubt Mu Ban’s words, after all it was easy to tell if he were lying at this point. There were still many people around.
Of course, it did not rule out that everyone conspired to sing from the same hymn sheet.
But it was unlikely, more crucially, lying right now was not beneficial in the slightest.
“Ah!” Cang Xu sighed, “I did not expect so many things to happen after I left the camp.”
Zhen Jin’s complexion was serene: “This is very normal. We know from experience, the pressure on people as they helplessly watch food be consumed or the pressure of death usually drive people insane, cause them to sink into hysteria, and make them disobey their norms.”
Lan Zao was moved, his eyes hung down, veins popped from his hand as he clenched his sword, and his breathing became chaotic.
“A true leader should not be engulfed by selfish desire nor should they consume the lives and blood of their subordinates like a parasite. The first mate had a proper end.”
“If it were me, I would have personally led an exploration team into the rainforest after the first team mysteriously disappeared and would look for more food and water for everyone. This is how a leader should act.” Zhen Jin stated.
Lan Zao stood behind Zhen Jin, after looking at the young knight’s back, his eyes brightened, and his breathing became steady.
In front of everyone, Cang Xu loudly proclaimed: “My Lord, I do not doubt your determination. You are brave and virtuous; you are the reason why we have reunited and are able to obey your orders. This island is the devil, it is full of tribulations and perils. Mu Ban is right, you are a hero dispatched by the gods to save us!”
“With you Lord Zhen Jin, I am only worried about a single thing.”
“Xi Suo, the old boat craftsman, and the others went out to cut wood and have not returned yet.”
“Eh?” Zhen Jin frowned and looked at Mu Ban, “Before they left, when did they say they would be back by?”
Mu Ban looked at the sky: “Based on what they said, they should have been back fifteen minutes ago.”
“Did they also suffer a beast group attack?” Mu Ban grew worried.
“Be, be at ease, you fool, fool, foolish man.” Fei She said.
Hei Juan shook his head and heavily said: “Although they had that idiot with giant blood with an iron level life level, he only relies on brute force and has no cultivation martial skills. The thing that smashed into the wooden house was a silver level rhinoceros, what can he do? Even if there wasn’t a silver level magic beast, getting surrounded by a bat monkey group would endanger the idiot’s life.
Life level did not determine the outcome of a battle.
“Lord Zhen Jin, there is another thing on my mind.” Cang Xu continued, “How did the bat monkey group get a silver level rhinoceros to attack the wooden house?”
“Five days ago, they were teleported into the forest and began to renovate this camp. Inside those five days, suffered a beast group attack.”
Zhen Jin’s brows wrinkled deeply: “What do you mean Cang Xu, if this camp was invading on the beast group’s territory, then they should have attacked again within one or two days. Delaying the attack until the fifth day is very strange.”
“Not only that.” Cang Xu continued, “Why would a silver level rhinoceros attack this place with the bat monkeys? These are two different species of magic beast. After the silver level rhinoceros crashed into the wooden house, it left the camp. Such an action is unnatural.”
“Although there isn’t enough proof, I have a strange feeling that something artificial is controlling them.
“Artificial control?” Upon hearing this, the others could not help but look at each other with dismay.
“What a disaster, don’t tell me we are facing a taming master?” Fei She asked.
Cang Xu heavily said: “It is not necessarily a taming master. The vast majority of magic beasts have a limited mental capacity. As long as one is familiar with their habits and properties, they can exploit them. For example, we put high level magic beast feces around our camp to chase away inferior ones. Another example is fishing bait, isn’t this also a manipulation of wildlife?”
Hearing this, Zi Di’s complexion changed slightly, and her heart became chilly.
She looked at Zhen Jin and called: “My Lord, that armor……”
Zhen Jin had already taken out the armor as she spoke.
“Who wears armor of this material?” Zhen Jin urgently inquired, realizing what might have happened.
Mu Ban shook his head: “As you can your Lordship, that is high quality steel, we cannot use such high-level goods. The vast majority of our warriors wear leather armor. Even if we had some, it would be chainmail and not steel plate.”
“Ah, ah, ah! Yes, yes it’s his!” Fei She suddenly shouted with panic.
“Who is he?” Zhen Jin questioned with narrowed eyes.
“He, he, he, is, is, is……” Fei She nervously stuttered.
It’s Zong Ge’s!” Hei Juan said nervously, “Of everyone on the ship, only Zong Ge had such high quality armor. I have seen it many times and when he defeated the idiot, he had worn such steel armor!”
“Impossible.” Mu Ban overruled, “How can Zong Ge be nearby? We have already thrown him off.”
“No, all of you were teleported.” Zi Di eyes flickered, “Didn’t you just say that when Zong Ge was pursuing you guys, all of you were teleported? It is also very possible that Zong Ge’s companions were also teleported.”
Zhen Jin caressed the armor with a grave expression.
All of the clues indicated that Zong Ge and his force was also teleported.
The traces Zhen Jin had seen had been left behind by Zong Ge and his companions. The goal of them sweeping the battlefield should be to guard against Xi Suo, Mu Ban, and their comrades.
“It must be Zong Ge’s! Hei Juan suddenly shouted without hesitation, “The bat monkey group and the silver level rhinoceros were also lured into attacking this camp by Zong Ge.”
Cang Xu stared at him: “What are you basing this on?”
“Humph! Don’t forget, he is a half beastman. He definitely related to beasts; thus, he definitely has a method that can influence beasts.” Hei Juan said.
Zhen Jin shook his head: “Being a beastman and having a half beastman’s bloodline can indeed allow one to get close to beasts, however this is not proof that Zong Ge is the one plotting to murder the people in this camo.”
“Your Lordship.” Hei Juan clenched his chest and bowed to Zhen Jin, “You deserve to be called a templar knight who upholds the spirit of justice and fairness. However, my suspicions about Zong Ge are not unfounded.”
“He has received strict battle training!” Hei Juan continued.
Everyone looked at each other with dismay.
Hei Juan proceeded: “Each mercenary and perhaps each sailor receives battle training. This battle training I speak of is not ordinary training, rather they are military exercises.”
“I am certain that he definitely served in the army at one point. Only by passing such stringent military exercises and serving in the army can he have the aura of a soldier on him, this I am most clear about.”
“Zong Ge has an iron level cultivation along with ferocious skill. I saw with my own eyes him efficiently defeating the oaf with three punches and two kicks. He displayed his full strength then!”
“The most crucial point is on this island, we cannot use battle qi and magic, in order to fight, we can only rely on martial skills and the speed and strength of our bodies.”
“Zong Ge has the lion-man bloodline on him, his strength, speed, endurance, and other attributes are far greater than us of pure human blood. Thanks to his high quality armor, he can even resist the oaf’s sweeping tree.”
“Everyone, there is no harm in thinking this way. With this kind of strength, why would he not remain in the army? In what army, as long as it was possible, would ever let such an elite go? As long as he felt at ease serving in the army, his future prospects would have been very radiant! Unless of course, he made a significant mistake that made the army realize he was an evil believer and expelled him.”
Hei Juan’s analysis had some basis and Mu Ban, Fei She, and the others could not help but slightly nod upon hearing it.
In fact, the people that took the risk to sail the Hog’s Kiss to the Wilderness Continent could not be regarded as ordinary.
Most of them could not mix with those in the Sheng Ming Continent or were unsatisfied with their lives. In spite of the danger to their lives, they wanted to use the war as a chance to gain profit.
Take Bai Ya, he wanted to become a knight.
Take Cang Xu, he was a fugitive.
Even Zhen Jin, he shouldered the mission of revitalizing the Bai Zhen Clan.
Zhen Jin stroked the sword hilt and sunk into contemplation.
From the accounts of Mu Ban and Hei Juan, as well Fei She’s panicked expression, he regarded Zong Ge as someone difficult to deal with.
Zong Ge was a beastman-human half-breed, his half beastman status was not well regarded in human society. To say it more accurately, he had suffered discrimination.
However, on this island, Zong Ge’s half beastman status magnified his battle strength.
“If I did not have my transformations, I fear I would be unable to defeat Zong Ge.”
“Transforming is a stratagem that ensures success. However, others cannot see my transformations, if I use the magic core, then it will guarantee that Zong Ge will die!”
Zhen Jin sensed a pressure.
He could not use battle qi, his prayers to the gods remained unanswered and without a divine spell, he could only rely on the power of his body.
He had never known what his cultivation level was, although his vitality surpassed that of ordinary people, he did not know if his strength, speed, and other attributes did too.
If it were not for the heart core, some luck, and Zhen Jin’s tenacious willpower, Zhen Jin would have died already.
“So, my opponent this time is not a magic beast, but a person?”
Notes
Hei Juan still didn’t offer any factual evidence on why he thinks Zong Ge used the magic beasts to attack the camp. If anything, the evidence suggests that Zong Ge was injured in a fight against a magic beast group since he lost some of his armor. But it seems that fanning the flames of racial...I mean speciest tensions is a sure fire way to get some frightened humans on your side despite the lack of evidence. Oh no, the scary half lion man is going to eat your hearts. Sigh, its critical race theory all over again. I wonder how they treat half elves and half dragons in the empire. Poor Zong Ge, I wonder if those on board suspected him of betrayal as soon as he set foot on the Wilderness Continent.