Chapter 430
King City
The Black Bear group carried the goods and tied them to the bears . They carried the bundles while eyeing Shao Xuan quickly, whispering among themselves .
“Who is this kid?”
“I don’t know . He doesn’t look like much but that was powerful . Hmmph . ”
“Maoda said the kid will follow us to King City . We can ask him later . ”
On the other side, Maoda gave an awkward look . Even the person with the thickest skin could not help but feel embarrassed . He had been bragging too much . Now to think of it, the Flaming Horn people were experienced hunters . They were a tribe living deep in the forest, encountering countless beasts within . These bears might just be nothing to them . Plus, these bears were trained to be pack animals and not fighters . That was why although they were sometimes ill-tempered, their ferocity was not comparable to forest beasts .
Seven bears crouched while the people tied the goods . Some yawned lazily, pawing their ears . They did not look fierce at all .
“Alright, we’re done . We can go,” someone said to Maoda .
Maoda nodded . “Have the scouts returned?”
“No… Oh, they’re here . ”
Shao Xuan looked in a direction . There were two silhouettes sprinting over, stopping only when they reached Maoda .
“We have cleaned the path of obstacles,” said a man with a booming voice .
“Da, we can go now . They’re waiting in front,” said the other .
“Alright . ” Maoda waved and yelled, “Let’s go!”
Roar---
The bear in front shook its fur and roared with all its might . This was the leader of the pack . Just now, when it came down the mountain, although it sensed that Shao Xuan and Guang Yi were strangers, it also sensed that they were dangerous . It had not attacked like the others because it was of a more sombre temperament . Maoda made this bear the leader, sometimes it was useful in controlling the other bears .
Shao Xuan and Guang Yi quickly followed .
Other than the goods on the bears, there were two large wagons with wheels made of a giant beast’s bone . It was very hard, they had gotten it from a tribe . The wagon wasn’t completely made out of wood, there were details that required metal . Underneath the wood was a layer of sturdy beast armour . This wagon would not break down easily .
The party of two hundred walked on the mountain path .
It was not a paved road, just a used path that became a path .
Due to frequent human activity, a lot of wood was often chopped down too . The forest here was not big, the trees were not the giant kind that took thirty people to hug around its circumference .
There was evidence of branches being cut off and new branches growing . These bears were still five meters tall although they had four limbs on the ground . With the bundles on their back, they were even taller . That was why the branches would become obstacles .
Shao Xuan learned from the team that a few days before they set off, there would be a team that left first to clean the path of branches, rocks, even hiding robbers and traps so their party could travel more efficiently .
Shao Xuan occasionally smelled blood . It was not animal, it belonged to humans . With so much experience in hunting, he could differentiate between animal and human blood .
The few younger bears were provoked by the smell of blood, either frustrated or excited . They cried a few times and the line broke . It was only when the alpha bear growled that they calmed down .
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After half a day’s journey, they met a party of a hundred people . These were the ones who had set out to clean the path first, the brother was Maoda’s younger brother, Maojin . They looked alike . When Maoda arrived, he was sitting on a rock, wiping blood off his weapons .
Maoda’s gaze swept across the crowd, guessing that Maojin and the rest must have met with an obstacle but he did not ask . After they met, they all rested for a while before the party of almost four hundred set off once again .
This group was considered large, plus there were seven obvious bears . People who were not confident in their skills would never try to rob this group . That was why they did not meet many in the beginning . There were only a few who were brainless and greedy--- those were just here to die .
When they rested at night, Maojin chewed on his meat and asked Shao Xuan, “What will you all do in King City?”
“We’re visiting someone,” said Shao Xuan .
“Who are you looking for, do you need our help? You shouldn’t keep it to yourself if you need help . We will definitely help you, and we don’t want much in return either . What do you think?” Maojin wiped the grease on his mouth . “I just want one of your glowing rocks . See, you haven’t been to King City and don’t know much about the place . We visit often and we’re very familiar . It’ll save you a lot of trouble . ”
Maojin was a rough person but it was the same throughout the group . They were smart too, not the kind with brawn but not brains . To persuade Shao Xuan, he had to pull out the pros and cons for extra persuasiveness .
Guang Yi could not recognise Maojin, thinking he was Maoda . However, this did not affect the conversation because he agreed . Since they were not familiar with King City, and the Black Bears seemed to be trustworthy, it might not be a bad idea to ask them for help . However, the person who would make the decision was Shao Xuan so Guang Yi did not interrupt . No matter how many looks Maojin gave, Guang Yi was silent .
Shao Xuan thought for a moment . “Since you know King City so well, I want to ask you about a person first . ”
When he realised Shao Xuan was interested, Maojin quickly said, “Tell me . ”
Maoda sat down too when he heard this .
“Do you know this person, Ji Ju?” asked Shao Xuan .
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When they heard ‘Ji’, both their expressions fell solemn . “The royal surname, ‘Ji’?”
“Yes . ”
The brothers looked at each other hesitantly . Anything related to the royal surname could mean trouble . However, it could also be a huge opportunity!
Maoda rubbed his palms and thought about it . “If you’re talking about Ji ‘Golden Grain’ Ju, we have heard of him . But we haven’t met him physically before . ”
“Golden Grain? Ji Ju?” Shao Xuan was surprised to hear that the old man had a nickname .
Maoda nodded . “I heard the fields under Ji Ju’s care are often golden and produce grains favoured by both the aristocrats and tribesmen . His grains were better than other people, hence he was named ‘Golden Grain’ . He had been called this since he was young . Ji Ju is a very powerful person in King City . However, I haven’t heard any recent news about him . ”
Maojin added, “Now that you mentioned it, I think so too . I used to receive news about Ji Ju every year but since last year, every time we went to King City, we never heard anything about him . ”
“I heard, Ji Ju seemed to have found something good . ” Maoda touched his chin, eyes bright .
When he finished, Maoda looked at Shao Xuan . “What about this- we’ll help you seek for more information when we arrive at King City . ”
“Thank you,” said Shao Xuan .
They walked for nine days .
“We’re arriving soon, that’s King City territory,” said Maoda, pointing ahead .
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While the city walls and buildings could not be seen, they could see different-coloured crop fields and short houses .
“These lands belong to the aristocrats . The slaves live in the shorter houses,” explained Maoda as he instructed the party to walk on the main road . Here, if they did not take the main road, they could be viewed as hostiles and killed here . That was because everywhere else was private land owned by slave masters .
There was not a blade of grass on the soil road about twenty meters wide . Perhaps due to the high traffic, the soil on the ground was packed very tightly . Even the wagon wheels left light marks .
Many people travelled on the path in big and small parties . There were groups of guards in armour on both sides of the road . They were all holding metal weapons with a solemn face, their eyes piercing like daggers as they glared at every person on the path . They looked like they would not hesitate to stab a person to death with their spear if something was wrong .
Some people grew very anxious as they walked, almost tripping themselves over .
The Black Bear team stood out here, people in front quickly moved to let them pass . The guards recognised them by their bears, one of the guards even chatted happily with Maoda . Maoda had handed over two animal hides and the guard was so happy his eyes were two lines . The furs sold by the Black Bears were always of good quality .
The head of the guards even helped them clear a path, making the smaller merchants in front make way .
This was already the norm for everyone, no one thought it was not appropriate . Even the frustrated ones swallowed their words . Even Guang Yi, who was here for the first time, did not think there was anything wrong . The universe had its rules .
The party travelled ahead . Shao Xuan thought he’d arrive at King City soon but they had to walk for half a day before seeing the City walls .
Anba City would never allow these bears to enter but King City did . This was power . They were not afraid of these giant bears causing trouble and had absolute certainty that they were in control .
The city walls were made of giant rocks, every rock was about five meters long and three meters wide, more than one meter thick . Shao Xuan could tell they were middle-grade rocks and in some places, for example near the city gates, they used high-grade rocks .
It was a luxury to use such good rocks as a mere city wall .
The sky darkened as Maoda brought the party to the Black Bear’s base in King City . Some people went to unload the goods and brought the seven bears to the animal pens . Maoda brought Shao Xuan and Guang Yi to Black Bear the leader . If they were looking for Ji Ju, it was best they were brought by ‘Black Bear’ .
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