Chapter 131: The Deal (4)

Su Lun stood at the front of the line and saw dozens of tall Centaurs charging from afar. At first, Su Lun thought they were coming for the deal, but soon realized they showed no sign of slowing down.

Although there were only a few dozen Centaur Warriors, their Charge had the momentum of a thousand troops, like thunder.

“Boss, something’s wrong,” Johnson said with a changed expression, stepping closer.

“It seems these Centaurs have some other ideas,” Su Lun sneered.

“Hey, they actually want to fight?” Johnson spat disdainfully, then said eagerly, “Boss, should we just take them down?”

“They’re not all coming; they probably want to test our strength. If we’re strong, they’ll act like nothing happened. If we’re weak, these Centaurs will rush in,” Su Lun said lightly, then waved his hand. The Spirit of War behind him immediately stepped forward.

Fifteen Spearmen lined up in a row, sharp spears pointing upward, and another fifteen Archers stood in a line, all arrows placed half a meter in front of them. They drew their bows and notched arrows one by one.

“One hundred and twenty paces.”

“Prepare for a triple shot!”

“Shoot!”

“Twang!”

At Su Lun’s command, the fifteen Archers released their bowstrings, and fifteen arrows flew out instantly. Without stopping, their hands moved like phantoms, shooting three arrows each. Three consecutive volleys crossed the hundred and twenty paces and stuck into the ground.

Carter led fifty Centaurs charging quickly toward the human Caravan. Soon, two groups of Soldiers emerged from the human Caravan. Seeing them form a thin line, Carter sneered inwardly—how could such a weak formation stop the Centaurs’ Charge?

But as he looked up, he saw rows of arrows flying toward them. Carter’s face changed; he leaned back, his four hooves skidding to a halt. Just as he stopped, three neat rows of arrows stuck into the ground in front of him, the closest less than half a meter away. Seeing the arrows buried halfway into the ground, Carter broke into a cold sweat.

Such accuracy and strength were no worse than their own tribe’s Archers, and their discipline was even better. Judging by the situation, if they continued the Charge, they would suffer heavy losses. After a moment’s hesitation, Carter decided to stop the test.

Clearly, these humans, though few in number, were not to be underestimated. Carter reduced his speed, then moved forward around the arrows.

Soon, Carter reached the human Caravan. After what had just happened, he no longer dared to look down on these humans. Up close, he saw a group of Barbarian Warriors armed to the teeth.

Seeing these Barbarians, Carter was even more shocked. Though the Barbarian Warriors seemed careless, the aura of their leader was something he had only felt from the great chieftain—no, it seemed even stronger than the great chieftain’s.

But how was that possible? How could such a powerful Barbarian Warrior serve under that ordinary, albeit handsome, human Lord?

“Are you the one in charge of the deal for the Centaur Tribes?” Su Lun asked while Carter was still thinking.

“I am Carter, here to inspect the goods. Hunter is in charge of the deal. We can proceed as long as the goods meet the requirements,” Carter said, eyeing the gleaming Iron Armor with eagerness.

“Inspecting the goods? Of course. But you can’t just check ours. Johnson, take a team and see if their goods are up to standard,” Su Lun said, glancing at the Centaur, then turning to Johnson.

“Understood, Boss!” Johnson grinned at Carter, then called over a dozen Barbarians and headed toward the Centaurs not far away.

The rest of the deal went smoothly. After Su Lun briefly showed his strength and made the Centaurs understand his power, they proceeded honestly. They traded three hundred fine horses, one hundred Longbows, three hundred pounds of gold, and two hundred Orc slaves.

These Orcs looked ugly, with grayish-white skin and rough hair. They were hunchbacked, with low foreheads and faces that resembled pigs, with long, tusk-like lower canine teeth. The Orcs were about six feet tall, their clothes were ragged, and their skin bore many crisscrossed whip marks.

As for the beast-eared girls Su Lun wanted, they actually had no relation to the Orc race. He had learned from Heatherway that those cat-eared girls were actually Beastfolk. It was said that the Beastfolk originated from some dark human experiments during the Arcane Empire Era of the previous age.

After the Arcanum Empire fell, these Beastfolk gained their freedom. Initially, their bloodlines were unstable, often experiencing reversion or collapse, but after many generations, they formed the Beastfolk races of today.

Beastfolk had strong talents in certain areas but also clear weaknesses in others. In fact, the Beastfolk were just a failed product of the Arcanists of the Arcanum Empire. However, after thousands of years of reproduction, their bloodlines had stabilized.

The Wizards of this world had actually acquired some knowledge from the Arcanum Empire. It was said that the legendary, brilliant Arcanum Empire was not native to this world but a group of outsiders—conquerors from another world. The earliest human Heroes of this world were likely servants of those conquerors.

That was why, toward the end of the previous age, the human Heroes possessed such great power. Of course, the Nobles scoffed at this theory and suppressed it, burning all related texts and books. Only the long-standing Wizards preserved some fragmented records.

The Nobles claimed that those human Heroes received divine revelations or blessings from ancient Elves, which allowed them to become Heroes and lead humanity from darkness to civilization under the guidance of the Pantheon of Gods.

In Su Lun’s view, the Wizards’ version was more credible. Of course, if the Nobles admitted it, they would be fools—it would be like throwing their Noble halo into a cesspit and stepping on it. As a Noble and a beneficiary, even Su Lun would make the same choice as those Nobles.

Su Lun looked at the Orcs. Their eyes were full of hatred toward the Centaurs and humans, but he didn’t care. Northguard Keep had enough strength to control them.