Arcane Journey

Chapter 127 Dragon Vein Warlock
Led by Balleris, they came to the depths of the tavern, followed a steep and winding wooden staircase, and entered a dark and noisy underground arena.

The air was filled with the sweet aroma of blue smoke, but it couldn't mask the stench of sweat, sour wine, and blood.

The underground space of the Skullbreaker Tavern is more than three times larger than the upper one. On the surrounding walls, there are also various closed single rooms and secret rooms for conversation.

When the three of Brian entered the hall, some vicious-looking adventurers stared at them with bored, hostile, or curious eyes, while the rest gathered on the edge of the central pit to watch the duel.

The moon elf Tong Yun just followed behind him like no one else was around, which attracted a lot of attention, but no one dared to speak to him from the beginning to the end.

Brian put his gaze into the large dirt pit that was watching, and he saw a wolf man with a ferocious face like a coyote and a dirty dark red mane being escorted and thrown into the pit.

As the crowd cheered and screamed, the Gnoll's opponent, a tall, spear-wielding human slave, was unchained.

The two immediately fought together.

The spear stabbing of the human slave took the lead in restraining the wolf man with the advantage of the length of the weapon, but when the fangs and claws of the wolf man entered the circle of the spear, only one-sided slaughter remained.

The duel ended faster than expected. The gnoll cut out the human heart, raised it bloody over his head, took a bite, and ate it voraciously.

Immediately, blood and madness intertwined with blood splatters and wild cheers from punters, echoing in the dark and noisy arena.

"It's not surprising that most people have a desire for blood. The arena can just satisfy them, making Mokou Town more stable and stable." Balleris glanced at the arena and spoke in a low voice. Say:
"For those criminals who are condemned to death, the duel trial in the arena can also give them the last chance to prove their innocence and start a new life. But the current arena has long become a tool for slave owners and businessmen to squeeze profits."

Brian nodded slightly, agreeing with his words.

Since Mokou Town is the most prosperous town and settlement on the edge of the desert, it is a resting place for countless adventurers and various business groups.

So, the arena has been a part of this town since it was founded.

In essence, athletics is similar to a noble ceremony, not simply the art of killing and deadly, but a display of courage, skill and strength.

But now, it's more like a cruel underground arena.

Just when they were about to walk towards the secret room around the arena, the words of a slave trader in a sea blue silk robe and holding a short leather whip caught everyone's attention.

"Everyone!" The fat slave trader stood in the center of the pit and shouted:
"Skullbreaker Arena has a good show tonight, a big bear vs three little boys, one boy covered in honey, another covered in blood, and one covered in rotten fish, now you can bet on the bear Which one should I eat first?"

Wild and excited screams, like howling ghosts and howling wolves, wave after wave of madness responded to a brown bear locked in an iron cage.

Brian heard the joints of Balleris beside him clenched in his fists. The old sword master's face was calm, but his movements showed his inner anger.

"Let's go, don't delay the business." He glanced at the brown bear locked in the iron cage, and a smile floated on the corner of his mouth, beckoning Balleris to lead the way.

When the three of them were about to leave, there was a sudden clanging sound of the iron cage being automatically opened in the pit.

Immediately afterwards, the hungry brown bear roared and threw the unsuspecting slave trader down in an instant.

The powerful bear's paw slapped firmly on the slave owner's forehead, like a watermelon smashed by a stone, and the red and white water flowed all over the place.

The brown bear's pupils were bloodshot, and its muscles flowed back and forth like waves. It roared and ran wildly in the pit, chasing all living creatures in sight.

"This boss is too dedicated!"

"It seems that honey and fish are not more attractive than bosses."

"That's it, the three children, whoever you beat will lose, the boss has made a lot of money!"

Stimulated by the blood and killing, there was joyful booing from the crowd, and the whole arena suddenly became more excited.

The guards guarding the side, like ants on a hot pot, screamed and fled in all directions under the pursuit of the brown bear.

Brian frowned, and before the three children were put into the pit, he used magic to quietly unlock the chains of the iron cage.

But the power emanating from this brown bear was obviously blessed with the "Rage Technique", otherwise, it wouldn't have chased those few guards around.

Just when he was puzzled, he suddenly noticed the smirk on the corner of the moon elf's mouth.

Her gray eyes flickered, and a protective barrier appeared around the brown bear in the pit, blocking the guards' slashing and stabbing attacks in time.

Seeing that the moon elf girl threw magic so skillfully and quickly without attracting anyone's attention, Brian's doubts were instantly confirmed.

He finally judged that the other party was not the real moon elf shadow dancer Tong Yu at all.

Thinking of this, he could probably confirm her true identity.

After a small episode.

Led by Balleris, they came to the secret room of the head of the Dragon Skeleton Mercenary Group.

Brian stepped into the dimly-carpeted room first, followed by the Moon Elf. Balleris closed the door after entering, and blocked the door with a cold expression.

He saw that the occupant of the room was a man who seemed to never age.

He was pale and lazy, with long fair hair, his hands in his lap, and his face was thin and hard.

That's the hallmark of elves, at least in part.

The corners of his eyes were raised higher than those of humans, but they were hidden in the shadow cast by his broad forehead like humans, exuding a faint golden glow.

Dragon vein warlock Salo, the leader of the dragon bone mercenary group, Brian recognized his identity at a glance.

Then, his eyes moved to another person.

This is a male human ranger, with a black longbow hanging behind him, and two scimitars hanging from his waist. He is as thin as a sharp knife, but he always seems to have a warm smile on his face.

Ranger Puranda, the deputy head of the Dragon Skeleton Mercenary Group.

In the brief silence, there was the sound of broken bones and groans from someone knocked down by a brown bear outside the door.

"The two of you agreed, why did you have one more person here?" The human ranger broke the silence, his eyes fell on the graceful figure of the moon elf, and he couldn't move away.

"Can't you tell? She's not a person." Brian glanced at the girl beside him, and emphasized with a smile, "She's just a bitch."

Huan was taken aback by Brian's abrupt words, she suppressed the urge to kick his ass, under the watchful eyes of the two mercenaries, met the ranger's unscrupulous gaze, and said playfully, "Why, If you don't believe me, do you want me to take off my clothes and show you? Or are you scared? "

"Really?" Ranger Puranda's eyes lit up, and he was about to continue speaking, but was interrupted by the leader beside him.

"That's not necessary, but anyway, you took advantage of the loophole, which left a bad first impression on me." Salo, the mercenary captain, looked up at Brian, took a deep breath, did not need Said in a hasty tone:
"Of course, three vs. two is not a big advantage for me, but it is always beneficial. In this world, especially us desperate mercenaries, we must seize every bit of grace bestowed by the gods. This is what I spend This lesson was learned at a lot of cost. Sit down, Mr. Bryan, explain why you are here, and I promise, I won’t do it until I hear you.”

"Since that's the case, we won't be courteous in these virtual ceremonies." Brian sat on the chair, looked at the mercenary captain, and said bluntly: "I think you should know that when people meet for the first time, they will Can't help but look at the other party's identity and worth, and then choose whether to kneel for the other party or let the other party kneel for him."

"You really dare to say such a thing, I really admire your courage." Salo, the mercenary captain, chuckled, raised his wine glass, and took a sip of the wine, "Don't you know? Wild boars are domesticated into domestic pigs. The domestication of bison into domestic cattle is only effective for hunters, and it is not good for wild boars and bison, but harmful, because the purpose of this kind of domestication is only to eliminate their resistance and make it easier for hunters to slaughter."

"I don't think your metaphor is appropriate at all." Brian retorted with a smile:
"I admit that you are mercenaries, and you are the strongest mercenary group that has appeared in Mokou Town so far, but in my opinion, it looks scary but you can only guard the house. You have speed, strength, and enough Ferocious and martial arts, but bloody adventures are of no benefit to protecting the territory. The employer only needs to use the commission to announce the appearance of the enemy. After winning the battle, he can bandage the wound and use magic to relieve the pain. At this time, the danger has passed, and you can eat and drink as much as you want Whoring and betting until the next fight begins.

But for the knights of the kingdom, the battle is never over, the threat is ever present and present at all times, day or night.There is no commission to declare enemies out, as they protect friends, brothers, children, and even wives.In order to fight for an hour for the territory, the knights of the kingdom will spend [-] hours watching and waiting.Who wants to live a life of desperation when there are better options. "

Mercenaries are also called mercenaries. Professional mercenaries are different from adventurers who essentially appear to explore the unknown. They are a group of guys who take money to do things.

Unlike the occasional druid, priest, or paladin, who are mostly high-minded adventurers who value balance and justice.

Moreover, most of the mercenary members are deserters on the battlefield, wanted criminals, and thieves, and they even have no bottom line in doing things.

This is what Brian remembered, the current situation of mercenaries in the material world.

However, there are also a few mercenary groups with strong principles.

Their purpose is almost the same, first to make their reputation known, and finally to find ways to join the institutional forces worthy of their own recognition.

The female lord of Araby City started her career with the help of mercenaries.

Brian naturally knew the importance of these mercenaries when he established his territory.

At the same time, he also understood what these desperate mercenaries really needed.

After listening to his words, the mercenary leader did not answer directly, but took advantage of the drinking time to quickly exchange glances with the ranger at the side, then put down his glass, and said with a smile:
"What this friend said is quite reasonable. If there is a choice, no one would want to have a big tree that can enjoy the shade. This is the reason why we traveled thousands of miles to Mokou Town.

But you know, no matter where one war ends and another begins, there are always some people in some places attacking others, and perhaps some lord's head has fallen into the In the hands of another lord, free people and slave owners will also be unwilling to be lonely and examine the neck of the president of the chamber of commerce, sharpening their knives, and even the supreme king of the Enook desert may stand on the floating city, waiting for the sky full of yellow sand Sweeping and taking advantage of the opportunity, so, in my opinion, you don't seem to be able to give us the sense of security we deserve. "

"Sense of security?" Brian asked pretending to be ignorant, "What do you mean?"

"Because of professionalism, it's not convenient for me to disclose." The mercenary captain replied, "But you should be able to guess it."

"I see." Brian nodded in a sudden realization, then snorted coldly pretending to be disdainful, and said to him in a slightly mocking tone:
"If you think that a huge kingdom is inferior to the power you serve, then just pretend I didn't say it, and I don't want to waste time here talking nonsense with you."

After speaking, he inadvertently showed them his purple dragon seal ring and a magical aura that floated past.

This is the fact. Compared with the evil Zhentarim Society, most people are more willing to believe in the Kingdom of Cormyr and join their system.

Once again, Brian secretly thanked the girl who gave him the ring. Without this purple dragon seal ring, which symbolizes power and status, it would be impossible for him to reach this step so smoothly.

Salo, the head of the mercenary group, saw the dazzling purple light flashing past, a touch of shock appeared in his calm eyes, and immediately realized that the true identity of the mysterious man in front of him was actually from the Kingdom of Cormyr.

He and his companion looked at each other secretly, and suddenly began to hesitate in his heart.

"I know that your Excellency is a dragon vein warlock who has been baptized with the blood of an ancient red dragon." Before the other party could speak, Brian said first:
"But I see that your eye sockets are sunken, your steps are sloppy, your lips are dry, your hands are trembling, and you are speaking weakly. It is obvious that the sequelae of your blood disorder have reached the advanced stage. If you can't deal with it in time, let alone the advanced legendary field, I'm afraid even Xiao I can't save my life."

Dragon vein warlock is an advanced profession.

There are two main ways to start this powerful career.

The first is to awaken the dragon bloodline on its own, and while retaining the spellcasting ability of the warlock, it will continue to obtain the attribute bonus of the dragon bloodline.

This advanced method is extremely demanding, and most of it is produced in various dragon descendants such as half-dragons or kobolds with awakened blood.

The second way is to slay the dragon.

After slaying the dragon, you can pass a special advanced ceremony: dragon blood baptism, and transfer the dragon's ability to yourself.

After this ceremony, you can inherit the power and magical ability of the dragon family, and gradually discover the mysteries of the dragon bloodline.

But this method has a very obvious flaw, the dragon's blood baptism means that one's own blood is mixed with the blood of a real dragon.

While you inherit all the powerful abilities of the true dragon blood, your pure blood has also been polluted by dragon blood, which will affect the consciousness of those who have been baptized by dragon blood.

In fact, if you take it seriously, Curse of the Lycanthrope is a bit like a watered-down version of Dragon's Blood.

The biggest difference between the two is that dragon blood baptism is not contagious.

Therefore, dragon vein warlocks are usually advanced from barbarians or warriors.

Because this kind of professional usually only needs to go down recklessly when fighting, and then recklessly falls on the way of charging.

If the caster has accepted the baptism of dragon blood, they will be affected by the blood of the dragon, and it is difficult to keep a clear mind to study magic.

The situation is even worse for Salo, the dragon warlock.

The dragon blood he received came from the blood of the ancient red dragon. The powerful blood of the real dragon followed him to use the power of his own dragon veins from beginning to end, quietly affecting his will, and gradually turned him into an evil red dragon. direction guidance.

This influence will gradually intensify as his strength increases, until he loses his true sanity.

Therefore, many dragon vein warlocks will eventually die on this road of being unable to control their own power.

Their death rate is more than ten times higher than that of the lycanthropy cursed to death.

However, all those who successfully survived have become very powerful, belonging to the existence of cheating level.

If there are no sequelae, a dragon blood baptism can cultivate a powerful dragon vein warlock.

Then, the dragons in this world may have been killed by some powerful existence long ago, or they were directly raised to serve as a renewable blood bank to continuously produce dragon vein warlocks.

This is a question of risk and benefit.

"You can just say that he is too indulgent and his body is too weak, so why be so obscene." The moon elf winked at the mercenary leader, and said jokingly: "From this look, you can see that he has more energy than energy. .”

Salo, who was very calm from the beginning to the end, instantly felt embarrassed on his slightly pale face.

Obviously, Brian's guess was not wrong, and what Tong Yun said was also correct.

With the influence of the true dragon blood, he gradually inherited the powerful desire of the dragon clan, but he did not acquire the physique equivalent to the desire.

If things go on like this, the consequences of not being able to vent their desires can be imagined.

"Here I have a method worth trying to suppress your sequelae, so that you have more time to hit the legendary field."

The reason why a legend is called a legend is not that its name is a legend, but that it is powerful enough to be called a legend.

No matter what profession they are in, when they reach the legendary realm, they will obtain an effect similar to the simultaneous sublimation of body and soul.

Such sequelae will naturally be resolved.

Brian stated his purpose, and reminded: "Otherwise, you can only use the power of the dragon vein about three times at most, and you will completely lose your will."

If they want to protect themselves from the influence of blood disorder, for their players, it is nothing more than their personal will attribute is too low, so that every time they use the power of dragon veins, the will save will fail.

Therefore, the way to solve blood disorder is to improve a person's will attribute.

Ever since he acquired the desert wind martial arts inherited from the Nine Swords Temple, a bold idea came into his mind.

The occupations inherited from the Eastern Empire, including monks and sword masters, all have a set of qi training methods exclusive to this occupation.

Because except for the casters, most of their abilities are driven by the energy of 'qi', which can also be said to be the internal force or true energy in martial arts novels.

The same is true for the sword skills of the Nine Swords school, just like a complete set of sword skills, it is a truth that they need the assistance of inner strength and mental skills.

Therefore, he wanted to use the desert wind school's swordsmanship, which is based on the ability of the fire element, to suppress the sequelae caused by the blood of the red dragon, which is also of the fire attribute.

When the two complement each other, it may really be possible to produce unexpected effects.

If this method is really feasible, he will be able to train a group of Dragon Vein Warlocks who practice the swordsmanship of the Desert Wind School.

This is what he started to think about after he got the desert wind sect sword.

Now, seeing the leader of the dragon vein warlock in front of him, he is simply an experimental subject that meets his own standards.

After all, the strength of the opponent is already at the peak of the fourth-order model, and if the dose is too large, it will not be easily broken.

Of course, it is absolutely impossible for him to say these words to him.

"Do you really have a solution?" Being hit, the mercenary leader Salo couldn't keep his composure, and he didn't care about the embarrassment. He looked at Brian in front of him, as if he had grasped the last straw, and asked quickly .

"I don't guarantee that this method will be successful." Brian nodded slightly and said to him, "But it may be worth trying."

This is not to say that one only needs to practice the sword skills of the Desert Wind School.

In the process of practicing this sword technique, they must also take the fire attribute magic potion that can keep them peaceful and peaceful.

This potion, Bryan, has asked the mushroom man king in the lightless forest and the gray dwarf alchemist in the vortex to use the characteristics of underground fungi to help him research and prepare it.

"Do you really believe that I will agree?"

Realizing the sudden loss of composure, the mercenary captain took a deep breath, calmed himself down, and said calmly, "I have to admire Your Excellency's courage. You said it so clearly, even at the expense of revealing your identity, so you won't be afraid of my immediate repentance." , arrest you and force you to submit?"

"If you dare to do it, I'll kill you on the spot, poke open your stomach, and see what kind of heart is inside!"

Balleris, who was behind Brian, took a step forward, took off the cloak on his body, revealed a slightly desolate face, looked at the mercenary captain with sharp eyes, and said coldly: "Saro, you are too easy I'm disappointed, have you even forgotten your bottom line?"

Hearing such a familiar and trance voice, Salo, the head of the mercenary group, looked startled and looked up subconsciously.

What he saw standing in front of Brian was an old man with gray and white long hair loose, with deep crow's feet around his sharp eyes, but the years did not bend his straight back nor wear down his awe-inspiring aura.

"Brother Balleris! It's really you!"

Salo immediately recognized his identity, and shouted with a slightly trembling voice.

He looked at him in disbelief, he never thought that his trip to Mokou Town would yield such a great harvest and surprise.

Seeing this, Brian smiled slightly, tugged on the sleeve of the moon elf, and walked out.

This was his reliance, and the real reason why he spent so much time trying to subdue Ballerith.

And the reason why he didn't let him reveal his identity immediately was just to test the character of the other party and see if it was worth cultivating himself.

(End of this chapter)