READ NOVEL ONLINE Chapter 48: Chapter 48: Undead reception
In front of the Holy Legion cavalry, the undead of Taranthan, with captured noble household guards in tow, came over and handed the prisoners to Yang Qiu.
Yang Qiu allocated the prestige to players according to the captives they handed in, then spontaneously issued a temporary quest, [Guard The Prisoners], which still made players take care of their captives and their horses.
While the players' attitudes during the submission of the quest were rather casual and relaxed, in the absence of a common language, it could still be interpreted that the Taranthan undead knew to obey and follow the orders of Black Mage Yang.
Although the Holy Legion cavalry was unwilling to come into contact with these dirty undead and kept their distance, they didn't harbor strong hostility toward the players, at least not while the players were considered "law-abiding."
It was fortunate that the two sides couldn't communicate through language; otherwise, the worldview of these troops would have been shattered once more.
"Hey, hey, did you guys notice? Among these NPCs, those that can be 'Identified' show their classes as Holy Warriors or Holy Knights. They don't seem to be in the same league as Black Mage Yang, do they? What sort of ridiculous plot is this?"
"Hmm, the leader of these NPCs seems to be close to Yang. They were sitting together when we arrived. Maybe they're old buddies or something."
"I feel like this game's factions aren't like those of WOW where they fight each other to the death. It's more like the factions of JX3, where the NPCs from the Evil Valley and the Grand Alliance can still have love affairs or engage in other activities."
"The modeling of this pretty boy in black is so damn gorgeous. He easily overshadows Old Yang."
Yang Qiu calmly ignored the players' remarks, which were more mentally contaminating than the elder gods' whispers. After arranging for the players to be responsible for the captives, he invited the player-referred "pretty boy in black," Lowell, to accompany him, and the two headed back to the valley where the "civilian NPCs" were stationed.
As soon as they started moving, the difference between the Holy Legion cavalry and the army of Taranthan undead became even more apparent…
The holy soldiers followed Black-robed Inspector Lowell in perfect, disciplined formation.
As for the players, only the few teams who received the [Guard Prisoners] followed after Yang Qiu. The other teams continued camping at their spots, engrossed in the auctioning of their loot and not sparing an extra glance at Yang Qiu.
Yang Qiu: "…"
Yang Qiu unperturbedly issued several more time-sensitive quests, and only then did the players hurriedly jump to their feet and anxiously chased after the main group.
The holy soldiers, on their horses at the front, frequently glanced back at the seemingly "orderly" but, on a closer look, rather disorganized undead.
The primary duties of these holy soldiers wasn't to serve as mercenaries at the first sign of military funding. Regardless of the country or religious institution, the professional careers of soldiers of faith primarily revolved around three categories:
Fighting against Void Demons that emerged from unstable spatial rifts, hunting and eliminating cultists (distinct from pagans; cultists were those involved in bloody sacrifices), and eradicating all non-material native beings that posed a threat to humanity (including but not limited to roaming monsters and undead creatures lurking in certain areas).
In other words, these soldiers had quite an understanding of the undead.
And it was precisely of this understanding that they found this group of peculiar skeletons particularly perplexing…
"Lowell, I feel something isn't right… The sounds they emit seem to be a language, more tonally complex than the common tongue judging by the intricate pronunciation. I find it hard to believe that undead beings could possess such intelligence," Andres, who had silently observed for a while, leaned close to Lowell and whispered.
Lowell gave a slight nod, his eyes fixed on Yang Qiu leading the way as he whispered in reply, "Undead beings from the Dimensional Realm do not possess complex language abilities, nor are they as agile as these ones. Yang hasn't been truthful about the origin of these undead beings."
"Do you think these undead beings are not from the Dimensional Realm?" Andres cautiously asked.
"If Yang could find such intelligent and spirited undead servants in some Dimensional Realm, then there's no reason why other black mages couldn't find them as well," Lowell stated calmly. "But the fact is, the undead servants I've encountered with other black mages can only perform menial tasks like guarding and cleaning."
Andre fell silent, beads of sweat forming on his forehead.
Jorge Andres, who was teasingly addressed by Yang Qiu as a "youngster," was by no means an inexperienced youth. He had served as a Holy Knight of the faith for decades and an officer of the Holy Legion for over ten years. As long as he wasn't in the presence of Yang Qiu and Lowell, elders who had lived for over 200 to 300 years, he would be respected as an elder wherever he went.
In the Dimensional Realm, there were indeed creatures that possessed great spirituality with intelligence equal to or even surpassing that of humans.
For example… demons.
This perplexed and deeply worried Andres. Demons were the common enemy of followers of righteous gods and the believers of pagan deities.
No matter how fierce the battles and killing between these two sides were, if a demon appeared nearby, both sides would join forces without hesitation and pay any price to eliminate the demon.
The reason behind this… was the confluence the demonic nature shared with divinity. The demonic nature of the demon race was even more feared by religious individuals than the reemergence of the elder gods' wills.
If the mental contamination resulting in a loss of control due to elder gods was like a sharp sword looming above the head of all skilled professional powerhouses, then the demon race was the ultimate enemy of all religious individuals who drew their power from faith.
After a moment's hesitation, Andres couldn't help but ask, "Lowell, do you reckon—"
"No." Lowell shook his head. "Black Mage Yang is a… rational madman. He must understand the price of collaborating with demons."
Andres finally let out a sigh of relief.
Upon deeper thought, it was impossible for demons to let go of readily available souls, unlike the Taranthan undead, who had indeed spared the lives of the household guards.
"This guy… is truly unfathomable," Andres sighed as he glanced at the back of the black mage.
Lowell remained indifferent to his subordinate's sentiment. If this black mage were someone easy to figure out, those lunatics of the Radiant Sun Church wouldn't have spent several decades being toyed with.
Once they entered the valley where the civilians were hiding, the soldiers of the Holy Legion couldn't help but be stunned by the pile of supplies laid out on the grass. These supplies, wrapped in fabric similar to canvas, formed a small mountain of a heap. Some of the packages had already been opened, indicating that some of these items had been used.
Around 300 civilians, mainly elderly, weak, and sick individuals, huddled around the supplies as if they were using their fragile bodies to protect these precious items.
This left the soldiers bewildered. Did these bizarre undead really understand the need to provide supplies for the civilians they were rescuing?!
Yang Qiu, who entered the valley ahead of everyone else, paid no mind to the soldiers of faith. Using the guise of "quest steps," he directed the players to corral the captives into a corner and even their feet with ropes. Then, he utilized his authority to assign quests to command the scattered players.
In the eyes of the onlookers—both the civilians and soldiers—it seemed that, without a word from Black Mage Yang, the enigmatic undead had started to get busy willingly.
Undead that received the [Collect Firewood] quest gathered in groups, picking up twigs and chopping branches.
Those that received the [Find Water Source] quest formed teams, carrying iron buckets from the supplies and fetching water from a spring deep in the valley.
Many more that received quests like [Cooking for Camore Refugees] and [Receiving Guests] cheerfully unpacked the supplies, retrieved ingredients, and started cooking over makeshift fires dug in the ground…
"Oh, damn, it's instant noodles after all! Is this game planning to save on modeling by giving NPCs the same food?" A player opened a package marked with numerical symbols and started ranting while taking out a sealed packet of instant noodles. "And the seasoning is in a big packet! Are they meant to be sold in bulk?"
"Why the heck are the developers being so obsessed with details in this messed-up aspect? Do they have too much free time!"
"Whoa, there's even Lao Gan Ma chili sauce! I can tell even without the label! I have the exact same bottle at home!"
"Aren't these the starch-filled ham sausage that the old ladies in the neighborhood buy to feed stray dogs? This package was so heavy, it turns out it's filled with all of this!"
"Are we seriously using lighters to start a fire in a magical world? It's just so out of place!"
"If the development team has the skills, they should also add cigarettes. I'd specifically request one…"
"Anyone who knows how to cook? Step up and be the chef."
"Are you kidding me? Who needs skills to cook instant noodles?"
"Hahahaha! I'm an expert at cooking instant noodles, step aside and let me handle it!"
With stiff expressions, the whole troop of soldiers from the Holy Legion watched the undead as they collected firewood, fetched water, and started a fire.
A younger soldier muttered in a daze, "O Goddess of Prosperity, am I dreaming? Do the undead really know how to cook?"
Another soldier voiced the concerns of his fellows in a shaky voice, "Captain Andres, Inspector Lowell, can we really eat the food made by the undead? Is it really safe?"
Andres turned back and gave his subordinates a reassuring look, then patted the pouch hanging from his waist.
The soldiers felt slightly relieved. They had brought three days' worth of rations with them, packed in their own pouches. They could easily eat their own provisions and simply find an excuse to decline the food offered by the undead.
For the players, cooking a meal for 500 people was nothing. The technical difficulty of this task was lower than their usual manual labor quests back in Exile Town.
Starting a fire, though, was the real challenge. Modern people were accustomed to one-click operations with gas stoves and electric cookers, so using a small lighter to ignite the firewood was indeed difficult for the players.
Fortunately, among the players, there was Ji Tang, the "veteran" who could do everything except give birth. He noticed that the players were struggling and only producing bouts of black smoke, so he took the initiative to help. This prevented the "NPCs" from going hungry.
After about half an hour, a makeshift stove made of stones heated up the water in a large pot. The players in charge of cooking rough-handedly threw in dried vegetables, ham sausages, Lao Gan Ma chili sauce, and the unseparated seasonings directly from the manufacturer. They also added the instant noodles using their washed bone hands.
The aroma of instant noodles quickly filled the entire valley…