A seed of doubt had already been planted. If anything else suspicious occured, Horny Black Bull would likely be driven out of Angel Corps.
「What kind of person is Horny Black Bull?」Nie Yan asked Swift Maple in a whisper.
「I can't really comment. He has a fiery temper. A lot of people get offended by it, but he's also loyal to his own. He's got some pretty good friends in the guild. If we tried to frame anyone else, it might have been difficult. But we should have no problem pinning the blame on him,」Swift Maple said.
Nie Yan got the gist of Horny Black Bull's personality. He was an open and honest fellow. The way he spoke to others was also pretty frank. A lot of people couldn't appreciate this. More often than not, they got offended by his words.
「It's a pity he belongs to Angel Corps.」Nie Yan chuckled. Given Horny Black Bull's temperament, he would find many like-minded people in Asskickers United.
「When he gets driven out of Angel Corps, we can always bring him over to our side.」
「Not a bad idea,」Nie Yan replied. Since Horny Black Bull could stand among the top elites of Angel Corps, that meant he had some skill.
Nie Yan no longer paid attention to Horny Black Bull. He started preparing to head to Kelun Town.
When Nie Yan had arrived in Orc King City, he had received a notification from the Song of the Bramble Bird quest.
If you wish to learn more about Paternoster, head to Kelun Town. The old orc Blacksmith Kuru knows something.
Nie Yan planned to go there next to look for clues on the Song of the Bramble Bird quest. Even though he had no idea what the Assassin's Heart exactly was, he figured it was similar to the Holy Spirit Heart; something that would be of use to him in the future. So, it was worth trying to obtain it.
Although Nie Yan firmly sat on the throne of number one player, with no one capable of rivalling him, this might not always be the case. More and more players were growing stronger and obtaining better equipment. No mountain stood forever. If he wanted to maintain his legend, he would have to continuously improve.
Nie Yan's current objectives were to complete the Tyrant Abak Set, acquire the eighth character property, remove the last seal on Zennarde's Sword, and complete this Assassin's Heart quest. With this, he could ensure his unrivalled status for the short term.
When Nie Yan was heading for Kelun Town, Angel Corps had already started taking countermeasures as a whole to guard against him. Instead of fear and awe, many players felt such a large action made them look weak. They couldn't even deal with a single Thief! However, thinking about it, one couldn't judge Nirvana Flame with common sense. He was an existence that defied the heavens!
Kelun Town, this was a fairly run-down settlement in the mountain range south of Orc King City. It was so remote it wasn't even clearly marked out on the map.
This place was hidden by a year-round fog. If it wasn't for a transfer point connecting Orc King City to this town, ordinary players would've never found it.
Dingy houses lined both sides of the main street. Most were empty and abandoned, the residents having left for Orc King City. Only the old and lame remained.
Nie Yan looked around town. He followed the quest marker on his map and arrived in front of a smithy.
An old NPC sat over a forge, beating some iron. Nie Yan inspected him with Transcendent Insight. It was Blacksmith Kuru.
When the old NPC noticed Nie Yan, his eyes flashed with a hint of fear and anxiety. He put his hammer down and nervously walked over.
"G-great Prophet, welcome. May I ask what brings you to my humble smithy?" Kuru bowed.
"Hello, Blacksmith Kuru. I'm here on an important matter. Please, tell me all you know about Paternoster's Warhammer."
"T-this... I'm sorry, but I don't know anything. I can't help you," Kuru said after hesitating for a moment, his eyes averting Nie Yan's gaze.
Nie Yan immediately became suspicious. Just because he wasn't acting like a tyrant, it appeared he was mistaken for a pushover. Given his position as a Great Prophet, he could easily decide Kuru's life or death.
"I'm sure you're aware of the Satreen Empire's laws. You do know what the consequences are for concealing something from me, right?" Nie Yan's eyes flashed with a cold light.
Kurus trembled intensely.
"If I find out you're lying to me, not just you but also your entire family will be taken away to the dungeons in Orc King City. From then on, you'll spend the rest of your days in a prison cell, never to see the light of day again," Nie Yan said coldly.
Kuru suddenly felt all the strength escaping his legs. He almost instantly dropped to his knees.
"S-sir Great Prophet, please forgive my ignorance. I actually do know something about Paternoster's Warhammer. Up in the mountain range lives a tribe of dark elves. Whenever night falls, they come down to find me and take away the weapons I've crafted, leaving just enough gold for me to make more. I have no choice but to listen to their commands! They're too powerful. I-I'm sorry. Please forgive my sins. I know dark elves are enemies of the Satreen Empire. If I'm found out by the guards of the empire, I'll be captured for treason and executed..." Kuru sobbed.
"You were forced. As long as you honestly explain everything, I can forgive you of your crimes and ensure the safety of you and your family," Nie Yan said. With his current status, he could easily protect Kuru.
"Ooooh thank you for your mercy, Great Prophet. They once took me to their tribe. There, I caught a glimpse of Paternoster's Warhammer. This divine weapon is located in an altar at the center of the settlement. It's heavily guarded. Many teams have attempted to snatch away the warhammer before, only to meet with complete annihilation. I'm afraid it will be dangerous for you to go on your own. Please wait until the brave adventurers arrive. They often come here in about an hour from now to scout out the tribe."
Nie Yan nodded. He wasn't too worried about the dangers. However, he still needed to make ample preparations.
Nie Yan started crafting bandages while searching up information about the dark elf tribe online. He wanted to know how Paternoster's Warhammer was related to the Song of the Bramble Bird. This quest really was hard to unravel.
Thankfully, there was plenty of information about this dark elf tribe online, unearthed by the many players before him. These dark elves were descendants of the night devils. They were particularly vicious and bloodthirsty among dark elves and were quite powerful. Their tribe was located in the depths of the Orc King Mountain Range. They occupied a large territory, with over a dozen small settlements surrounding a particular big one, where the altar with Paternoster's Warhammer was located.
The dark elves there ranged from Level 150-180. Most were ordinary monsters, with some Elite-class ones. As for the altar in the center of the tribe, no player had reached there yet. Because Orc King City had issued out a quest to retrieve Paternoster's Warhammer and the white elves issued out a quest to exterminate the dark elves, every day at 9 o'clock, players would arrive in Kelun Town in droves and set out for the dark elf tribe. Some groups consisted of several hundred up to 1,000 players. Others consisted of only 10-20.
There were less dark elves roaming around during the day. So, it was easier to head deeper into the tribe.
It was only 10 minutes to 9:00. Nie Yan thought for a moment. There was no harm in travelling with a group. At worst, he would just go off on his own.
Wearing a cloak was inconvenient. Nie Yan took out a Disguise Elixir that Quiet Nannan had especially made for him.
As Nie Yan drank the elixir, his appearance morphed and changed. He transformed into a run-of-the-mill player, one that could easily blend into a crowd; the kind where even if you've met them once already, you would still forget their face.
Elixirs were much more potent than potions. This Disguise Elixir's duration was an entire day. Like this, Nie Yan could travel anywhere he wanted in the Satreen Empire. Even if he took off the cloak, he could easily blend in with the masses.
Nie Yan put away Zennarde's Sword which had become synonymous with his name and equipped an ordinary dagger.
10 minutes later, Kelun Town was still completely deserted. Nie Yan couldn't help but wonder if he'd gotten something wrong. At this moment, the transfer point lit up and droves of players flooded into town.
The Satreen Empire and white elves issued out their quests at 8:50. By the time the players accepted the quests and arrived here, it would already be be 9:00. Everyone started forming teams and prepared to set out.
Before long, the town square was completely packed with players.
"20-man team, looking for a Level 110+ Priest! Heals must recover 3,800+ health! We're leaving immediately!"
"500-man expedition team recruiting 20-man teams. We're leaving in 10 minutes. PM me if you're interested in joining!"
Nie Yan swept his eyes over the square. All these players were Level 100+. Most were from the Satreen Empire while a few players came from the Viridian Empire. There was a combination of half-filled teams, small groups, and solo players all coming together to form big teams. Once the team leader was happy, they'd set out.
A sense of nostalgia welled up in Nie Yan's heart. In the previous timeline, he would often look for teams like this, be it for levelling or running dungeons. Sometimes he would act as a mercenary to earn some coin. But in this life, he rarely joined teams. He would only occasionally run dungeons with Bladelight and the others.
Nie Yan spent most of his time either levelling or questing. Solo levelling was fairly easy for a Thief. It wasn't necessarily worse than grinding with a team. But today, there would be no harm in teaming up with people. They could guide him to and through the dark elf tribe.