Chapter 128: I'm Not Your King!
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The second wave of attack did not last any longer than the first wave. Their best warriors were none other than those few Legendary Levels who lacked equipments and training. Of course they did not pose a threat to Baiyi or the other three Divine Warriors at all. By the time the second wave was also fully annihilated, the streams of people bustling about pushing and yelling on top of the slope had lessened. The Sprinting Wolf and the Blue Hawk Clans had paid a very hefty price just to prove their dignities.
The battlefield at Baiyi's side still pretty much looked PG-13. Although the ground was fully scorched, at least all of the post-war bodies had been completely cleaned up by him but it was a whole different story at the Divine Warrior's side. With the blood and bodies, and amputated body parts, too, that were littering the whole alley, the whole scene looked so gory and blood-soaked that it was no doubt NC-17.
The only surviving clan was the Ashva Clan. When Baiyi was busy dealing with second wave, the Khan had ordered all of his men to return and because Attie's group did not dare to give chase to them, their clan was still pretty much intact.
Although there were still a large number of troops in the other two clans back in their residence, the loss of their elite forces would definitely result in them falling into a civil strife. It would no doubt greatly deteriorate their strength and the Ashva Clan would gain the most out of the situation. Despite the fact that it was not really a dignified win, the Ashva Khan could not help but be secretly pleased by how the situation turned out, knowing that the throne was at his fingertips. Lightheartedly, he shouted out loud, "ENOUGH! Let us stop fighting!"
Hearing the declaration of peace from the rebels, Attie's guards turned towards her for the next order, "Your Highness?"
To their surprise, instead of answering, Attie looked at Baiyi for answers. Even though the battle originally was their own civil matter, after the uninvited involvement of him and the other monsters, she could no longer ignore their opinions.
Baiyi chuckled before he exclaimed loudly, "Y'know, this morning, when we're making our way here, we came across a strange black-cloaked guy on the road. We had a little conflict and I defeated him. Although, in the end he wiggled his way out of my grip, I managed to snatch this weird sword hilt over..."
He continued to babble about some nonsense that did not seem to be related to the battle at all, but the rest of the people obediently stopped in their tracks and listened attentively to his words. Even Za'Za the Divine Warrior who was putting his spears back in his pouch could not help but whispered, "Why did Bro Hope suddenly tell the story about the embarrassing duel just now?"
In truth, it was not some nonsense story that he fabricated out of nowhere. Earlier in the morning, when he led the three Divine Warriors over to the valley, they did came across a mysterious black cloaked guy. The two of them even communicated in the common language.
"Why is your face so yellow?"
"Duh, because I put on some anti-cold wax!"
Just like that, with no reason, those two people suddenly engaged in battle and Baiyi even ordered the Divine Warriors not to intervene. The two of them seemed to be equally on par with each other and the fighting scene was very brilliant and exciting, eliciting "ooooohh" and "aaaaahhh" from Zar'Zar and Char'Char who were fascinated by the duel.
In the end, Baiyi drew out a colorful bottle from thin air and shouted at the black man, "Do you dare to answer me if I call you?"
But, of course, the black cloaked man did not dare to make any sound. Hastily, he fled and Baiyi took the opportunity to slash his cloak. When Baiyi picked up the slashed cloak, he found a sword hilt inside before the four of them continued on their journey and came to the valley.
It should have been a strange story that had no relations with the barbarians at all but suddenly, Baiyi added, "I don't understand this sword at all so I brought it along with me to show you guys..." Without waiting for their reactions, he took out the sword from his pouch and lifted it up to the sky with his right hand. At once, a red light blade emerged out from the hilt.
"T-The War God's Sword!" A shout reverberated from the top slope.
"Why is the War God's Sword in your hand?" Another person shouted.
"I knew it! That damn Attie lost the War God's Sword! And now it fell into a foreigner's hand! This bitch!! Skinning her alive would not even be enough to quell the God of War's rage!
The Steppe Barbarians suddenly plunged into chaos all at once. Shouts and vulgar words filled the valley right away. The commotion were so chaotic that Baiyi felt like they were in a morning market. On the contrary, Attie's subordinates were much calmer than the rest. Before they departed from the compound to search for her, they had already mentally prepared themselves for worst outcome. Still, seeing how the War God's Sword had fallen into a stranger's hand, their gaze automatically landed on Attie as they wondered what had really happened.
Just like them, Attie had a look of confusion on her face as well as she stared firmly at Baiyi. There was not a doubt in her heart that the sword he was holding was the real one, as the mark that had fallen asleep in her body previously had now awakened as it throbbed faintly in response to the sword in front of her. It had proven that the sword that Baiyi was holding was indeed the real one. Still, she did not quite believe Baiyi's word, what were the odds for him to randomly defeat a guy whom he met on road and consequently, managed to get his hands on the War God's Sword? What a pathetic lie!
She quickly examined Baiyi's stature but he looked very different from the assassin yesterday. The followers that she sent over to Baiyi's tent yesterday had also reported that he had not left the tent the whole night. For that reason, she did not link the two people as one, but instead, she had a suspicion that the two of them could be partners. One led the Divine Warriors to distract their attention and another one stole the sword and her hostage. Not only that, she would have to follow him back soon to become his personal servant... What a perfect plan! To the point that they even managed to convince the Alpine Barbarians to join forces with them...
An icy chill ran up Attie's spine. At first, she thought that they were here to save her clan but now his true intention had finally been revealed. He actually wanted to snatch the entire grassland for himself? Could he be the devil prophesied by the prophet that would bring calamity to the grassland?
What made her more frustrated was the fact that the War God's Sword actually responded to him and unleashed its light blade! It must have meant that the God of War had recognized him as a King. Why would the God of War, who had been sheltering the Steppe Barbarians all along, acknowledge a foreigner that was not born in their tribe at all? Had he decided to abandon his devout followers?
Attie was not the only person who had such thoughts. Even the Khan of the Ashva Clan thought the same, too. In a loud voice, he shouted at his people, "Stay calm, people! The God of War will never choose a foreigner to inherit his power! His sword must be a fake!"
Just as his voice died down, Baiyi who was at the far distance riding on his goat suddenly appeared in front of him in a flash. With just a wave of the sword, the crimson red blade swiftly shaved off his hair, leaving a smooth shiny green-skinned scalp on his head.
Had the sword gone down a few inches lower, half of his head would have been chopped off cleanly.
The Ashva Khan gulped in fear, cold sweat started to form on his forehead. Just as he was about to open his mouth to say something, Baiyi cut him off mercilessly, "This may not be enough to dispel your doubt so what do you think about this?"
Having said that, he vanished into thin air right in front of the Khan's eyes and appeared in mid-air without warning. The red blade blazed with great intensity as it aimed towards the Ashva Clan, preparing to unleash an attack on them.
The Ashva Khan finally gave in. With all of his energy stripped off from his body, he dropped on the ground kneeling and greeted humbly, "Your highness, please forgive me for my harsh words. Please spare the lives of Ashva Clan. We are your most devoted followers in this grassland!"
The person who obtained the War God's Sword would naturally rise up to the throne. The tradition did not only apply to the Steppe Barbarians but to other people as well. In truth, the entity that made them submit themselves to the King's ruling was not because of the tradition itself, but it actually lay with the ominous strength of the War God's Sword. Now that the sword had fallen into the hand of a monster who could slaughter thousands of cavalries with his bare hands, it would certainly be easier for him to silent all of the voices of discord in the tribe.
For that reason, the Ashva Clan decided to pledge their allegiance to him. Not only the Khan but all of his followers under his command were kneeling down as well, begging for forgiveness from the new King. In the far distance, the other remaining people of the two clans followed suit, too.
Looking at the people who were kneeling on the ground as he floated in mid-air, Baiyi let out a sigh of relief, thanking God that the Charlatan's tricks were successful. It was fortunate for him that the barbarians had never come across such illusions before.
That was right, in truth, Baiyi was not able to control the War God's Sword at all. The scene that had unfolded just now was created by his magic along with the illusions forged by the Charlatan. Since he had battled with Attie before, he knew very well the power that the sword could unleash. So, with an Ice-type magic, he forged a fake blade and used an illusion to cast a layer of red light on the blade. Then, using his Teleportation skill, he mimicked the Spatial Transfer Technique of the War God's Sword to make himself appear in mid-air and even used some special tricks to mimic the weird energy wave of the sword. With all of that, he managed to hold his spectators in awe and due to the high speed of his magic, nobody was able to notice any flaw, including Artie the original master of the sword. She had completely believed that he was the new master of the sword--- the new King of the grassland.
By the time Baiyi used another Teleportation spell to send himself back onto the goat's back, Attie was already kneeling down on the ground with her whole clan. Staring at that sword with a complicated look, she bit out, "Thank you for your kindness, Your Highness, for saving my people. We from the Chandra Clan will forever be your most loyal servant."
"I don't need so many servants," Baiyi shook his head as he put the War God's Sword back into his pouch. As a matter of fact, he was actually slightly afraid of being found out by Attie just now. After all, fake would always be fake and the flaw would eventually show itself after a long period of time. Just like when he was shaving off the Ashva Khan's hair just now, he wanted to cut off his head at first but he managed to stop himself in time and changed his plan as he was scared that the incision caused by his attack would not be as smooth and neat as the real War God's Sword.
"My words before are still stands. All of the people in your clan will leave the King's compound and move to the western grassland. And you, will be my servant," Baiyi continued.
A sad but decisive look flashed across her face as she nodded her head. She was very clear what being a servant meant. The word 'servant' was just a tactful way of saying it.
Although now her clan was saved, her fate did not appear to be much better than it was before. Perhaps the Southerner would be much gentler? Then again, it did not sound like a good thing as it meant that she would be used as a toy for a very long time, not much worse than being ravished to death brutally. Right now, images of all kind of situations was slowly filling her mind as she thought about the miserable treatment that she would receive in the future. Shakily, she whispered, "Yes, Your Highness."
"They can call me Your Highness, but YOU, must call me Master!" Baiyi announced without an ounce of care towards her feelings.