1032 Hoginas Gun Part 2 (2/2)
Saleen knew the white-robed sorcerer was referring to the line of over 100 great statues around them. Those things were not for show. If Saleen had truly wanted to fly into the valley riding the false dragon spirit, he would have been attacked by more than 100 grade-9 puppets.
”No. The level of these puppets is undetermined, but definitely no lower than grade-9. They become more powerful as they were practically part of the mountains. Their only weakness is that they are incapable of going too far. If I were to become enemies of these statues, the best and only way would be to take the fight elsewhere. I wouldn't be able to win even when unleashing all elemental creatures in my collection. The Grukos sure are rich, being able to install so much powerful equipment at their doorstep and all.”
Saleen let the winged skeleton have the false dragon spirit levitate in the air. He stood up and walked to its head. He then said to the white-robed mage, ”I'm Saleen, Saleen Metatrin. I'm here to see your leader.”
”Do you think our head...”
The white-robed mage opened his eyes wide before finishing his sentence, and then said to Saleen, ”Haha, it's you. And there I was, wondering what kind of idiot had just showed up. We have received Lex's letter, but the head of our family was not around. He will be back in perhaps three or five days, so you...”
Saleen knew that called for verification, but there was little point proving his identity. He simply took out the Six-Winged Flying Snake Mark and waved it at the white-robed sorcerer. The sorcerer gulped in response and nodded. ”Come with me then, I'll arrange for a place where you can stay.”
Saleen smiled. ”No need to kick up a fuss. Just get me a cleared area where I won't be troubling anyone.”
Saleen did not want to stay inside anyone else' magic tower, as that would have been tantamount to letting the master of the place do whatever they wished with him. While it was unimaginable for the Grukos to do him harm, Saleen's habit dictated that he was only able to sleep well in his own tower.
The white-robed sorcerer did not mind. While Saleen was a king, he was too a grade-9 sorcerer. It was a given that the temperament of sorcerers differed from common people.
The sorcerer conjured a magical fire, informing the ones in the valley. The sorcerer then took Saleen down to the ground, walking into the valley through the path at the right side of the river.
The false dragon too, had no choice but to walk on the ground. It was fortunate that the newly converted spirit had thick, sturdy limbs. When its wings were put away, it was far larger than walking dragons were.
The white-robed sorcerer took Saleen into the valley and there was hardly anyone doing patrols around. The Golden Plains were located within the valley. The path they walked was a long one, which was probably a little more than 20 miles. The canal within the valley was probably carved out in later days. Saleen was able to see clearly, back in the air, that there was a damn at the end of the valley. If the magic floodgates were opened, the entire valley would be flooded.
Common armies would have never been able to make it through the valley. Not even his demon army would have been capable of doing so. The dam apparently was not meant to be used as a weapon. There were huge swaths of flatland beyond the valley. It was not all just mountains beyond the Golden Plains, and farming was possible. Saleen was able to see villages around when he was still up in the sky.
If a clan wanted their lineage to survive, it would not have been possible for them to simply lock themselves up in such a small environment and cut themselves off from the rest of the world. The Golden Plains would have been able to sustain millions, and the Grukos needed to foster capable people among the local population. The 1,000 year old royal family was one Saleen would be able to compare to. Despite having spent a lot recruiting troops, he was only able to recruit Caucasus people and the temple guards to serve as the core of his forces. The number of other troops, numbered to only 100,000.
The 100,000 strong army consisted of all of Saleen's ten main forces. Saleen's remaining forces outside of those ten were, in Lex's eyes, far from adequate for anything important. Those would have served well as peacekeeping forces domestically, but they would become a burden to his main forces if they were to be deployed into battlefields. Auxiliary troops in the main forces would have proved stronger than the rest of Saleen's armies.
”May I know where your leader went to?” Saleen's tone was polite. He would not have behaved in such a way even when talking to the Qin emperor. The leader was an elder of the Grukos, which meant the head of the clan was of higher status than he was.
Lex told him before that the head of the clan was definitely the strongest in the family. It was a rule set by the Grukos family. Emperors need only to be capable of managing the nation. It was for that very reason that Ojarvis ascended to the throne despite being a sickly person.
The white-robed sorcerer had no intentions of hiding anything, answering Saleen's question frankly. ”Our leader went to Alchemy City.”
”Alchemy City?”
”Indeed. The northern side of Qin is in a mess, and that Safilos proved incapable to keep things under control. Alchemy City took the chance to buy off some northern nobles, and our leader felt very pissed off about the matter and decided to go teach the one responsible a lesson.”
Saleen was practically covered in sweat hearing that. He had been to Alchemy City himself. There was no doubt that any mage from Alchemy City would be at a disadvantage coming there. The head of the Grukos clan went to Alchemy City on his own, and he was sure that he was going to come out on top?
Alchemy City and Holy Rock City shared one common trait—both cities were equipped with large scale magic amplifiers. Even if the head of the clan was a grade-10 professional, the odds would still be stacked against him.