《Path of Blood.》Chapter 15 - Path to cultivation (iii)
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Zilan eyed his restraints before giving Tort a meaningful smile.
“Oh! Jeza, quickly untie brother Zilan.” smiled Tort.
“What else do you know about the Saintly Knights? Do you know where I can find them?” Once he was freed, Zilan barraged Tort with questions.
The old hare slightly frowned as he listened to the questions,
“I’m sorry if I misled you but my rank does not allow me to know of such information. I am only a scout leader whose main job is the gathering of resources and information, even this time’s mission is not a sanctioned one. It is only a gamble that if pays off will help me rise in rank.”
Tort’s answer might seem like the honest and sincere words of an Elder but in truth there were hidden meanings in his words.
“If you want to know more, then first you must grant me my wish. Only after I benefit will you benefit!” was essentially what Tort was trying to say.
Zilan was not foolish, he understood Tort’s meaning very well. He knew that if he wanted to gain something he must give something in return, no one would give out something valuable without benefiting, that would then be categorised as charity and Zilan would no longer accept it. He had secretly spent years and lots of money trying to find out anything about the Saintly Knights and who they worked for but to no avail thus he would absolutely not believe anyone who just gave away such secret information without asking for anything in return. That person was probably an enemy trying to lead him into a trap.
From Tort’s words Zilan could now confirm that the information the old hare had was at least true and not a trick. He had especially emphasized the fact that his main job was the gathering of resources as well as information and in what world was there a scout who did not have any intelligence on their enemy.
This was like a cat knowing a dog was it’s enemy but not knowing what a dog looked like.
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“If I don’t know the answer to your question then no one does.” was Tort’s meaning.
Zilan sighed the more he thought about it. He then slowly walked towards the scarred shadow wolf and retrieved the book of Path.
To others his movements might seem like he was picking up just another disposable item but what they didn’t know was that Zilan’s heart was anxious and filled with fear the longer the book was away from him.
As the saying goes, “If you treat something like trash how would others treat it like a treasure?”
“I hope that while I am making the items Senior has requested, that you will find some information for me.” said Zilan as he cupped his hands and bowed.
“I will absolutely give my best effort for Brother Zilan.” smiled Tort. “So then how long will you need to prepare the explosives?” His gaze shifted as he spoke those last words, it was evident to anyone paying attention that Tort truly coveted those explosives.
“I need to recover my strength first which should take a week at most but after that, the time needed to make the explosives will depend on how many Senior wants!”
Tort furrowed his brow as he dove into deep thought,
“Ah! To destroy a city gate, how many explosives do you think I would need?” This question from Tort was a rather clever one, explosives came in many different forms and had varying degrees of effectiveness therefore he asked the creator in a roundabout way, “How strong are your explosives?”
“To destroy a city gate...hmm..eight of them should be sufficient.”
In truth this estimation from Zilan was for the lowest quality and easiest to make type of explosive he could think of. The other explosives recorded in the Book of Path would require high grade and extremely rare materials that could not be found just because you wanted to find them. Not to mention that those explosives could easily destroy ten city gates and only one of them would be needed.
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Tort stood in shock, from what he knew even the Master alchemists in Brivata would not be able to say that only eight explosives would be sufficient to destroy a city gate.
“Only eight drums of explosive jelly?” questioned Tort.
Zilan almost fell over when he heard the word, “drums.”
“No,no,no....What I will be constructing is not explosive jelly but a cylindrical fist sized stone called Tembu Pain! Eight of them will be enough to fit your requirements.”
Zilan’s words were like thunder roaring in the minds of the three people listening.
“A stone?”
“Fist sized?”
“What is this Tembu Pain and why have I never heard of it?”
Zilan could see from Tort’s expression that he did not believe what he was saying to be true.
“Seeing is believing! I will come find you with eight stones of Tembu Pain in two weeks time, is that acceptable?”
“In the end, I want something from you and you want something from me. If I don’t give you what you want then I also will not get what I want!”
“Well said, this old one will have to trouble Brother Zilan.” said Tort as he coughed embarrassedly.
From Zilan’s eyes anyone could see that he came from a mysterious background, add on the fact that Tort had just read his entire life story as well as some records of his past experiments and it was easy to tell that there were things Zilan knew that others did not.
“In that case why not trust him? He has already trusted me with his secret.” Or so Tort thought.
The reality was that, who could Tort tell that would believe him, let alone humans even his own kind would not believe him if he suddenly said, “I encountered a boy with starry eyes that could see through everything!”
If he told humans, the worst that could happen was that those people that hunted him as a child would come here to look for him but many things had changed and it would not be easy to locate him.
Besides if they did come looking for him, wouldn’t that be perfect? He was about to break out of the shell of being a cripple, and it would only be a matter time before he went out to seek them out for his revenge.
Why not invite them in and toy around a little until he grew powerful enough to destroy them?
Everything had been carefully accounted for by Zilan before he made his decision.
Now all that was left was for him to hurry back to the inn and finish his preparations because without restoring his ability to cultivate he would absolutely not be able to fulfil his promises.
“Em, Brother Zilan I’ll let Jeza go with you to make sure you get out of here safely and if you have any spare time could you educate her a bit. This girl is so young and has too little life experiences, anything you can teach her about humans will definitely save her life in the future.”
Zilan’s brow twitched as he listened.
“Basically you’re sending her to watch over me! What a troublesome person.”
Nevertheless, he could only comply with Tort’s proposal. Every minute that passed was like a thousand years of agony for Zilan.
He had the tools and all he wanted to do was get started on the process of gaining power. Imagine being a step away from the greatest treasure you could dream of and yet you were being held back from it. The prize was so close and yet so far at the same time.
“Wait, how can Jeza accompany me? Her appearance will only attract unwanted eyes.” wondered Zilan.
“Hehe...naturally we have our methods!” The smug expression on his face, showed that Tort was about to reveal something good.
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Mortis Operandi 2 - Hostile Takeover
Author note: First, thank you for reading. Now that book 2 is done and after a month of it sitting here I've moved it to Amazon. https://www.royalroad.com/amazon/B07X12GZMZ the first book Mortis Operandi - New Hire can be located on Amazon ----> https://www.royalroad.com/amazon/B07T46B4NM Currently it is on Kindle Unlimited as well. Enjoy. Adventurers enter dungeons every day. Battling evil monsters, defying dangerous terrain, triumphing over devious traps... ... but none of them ever ask why? That arrow trap, who reloads it? The pitfall trap, who cleans out the bodies and sharpens the spikes? What if the grates get clogged, where will the blood and gore drain? When you are trying to study ancient lore or plan on conquering a kingdom, you don't want to worry about all that. You just want peace. Mortis Operandi is a different kind of company. One that celebrates diversity. One that celebrates value in individuals. With flexible pay and plenty of advancement opportunities, it is a company that knows its workers are it's most valuable asset. As they design, build, and install traps, rooms, obstacles, and repair they are a one stop shop. The sudden exit of Mortis Operandi's CEO, the company was facing ruin. The goblin Eft was choosen as the new CEO and boss. The previous CEO made promises and contracts that Eft now has to fulfill, and it is causing a lot of trouble. Restoring the ancestral home of Ogre's seems easy enough, what if a thriving town now resides there? Along with facing corporate invasion, Eft must take on the tasks he wouldn't wish upon his worst foe, Customer Service. *Note the above statements are forward looking statements. In no way do they promote or suggest that Mortis Operandi will project greater sales or revenue. Understand that investing in a company does involve some risks, and possibly much rewards.
8 126Howard's Growth
In the not too distant future, the concrete of a new world has been laid to replace the dying Earth of old. In this world, one must provide value or perish in ignominy. Howard Manfield, like most pawns, fashions himself a king of his realm. Presiding over the corporatized dominion of genetic engineering, Howard was yet haunted by memories unknown to him. Awaking in a cold sweat to the dank smell of his own breath, his mind turning to the darkness from which it had emerged. In truth that was what he remembered most, it was more the substance of absence more than any meaningful presence on a color spectrum. It would not be until the first and last of his fated 'finding quests' that Howard Manfield would learn his place among his memories.
8 147Phenomena the Basic Witch and the Evil Book of Love
What if you could write yourself into a better person? What changes would you make to yourself and would it be worth it? Young sorceress Phenomena Willow had never experienced a true tragedy in her life until now. Having to live with her caretaker, Deidre Love, while she was away from her school—the floating castle of Nightdream Academy, Mena finds her life a lot duller than it used to be. On her thirteenth birthday, she sneaks out against Deidre’s wishes to a magical book festival and learns her favorite author, Melina Penwell has released the latest in a series of romance books: Love Across Dimensions. Mena purchases a copy from a mysterious robed figure before the festival and Deidre’s ranch are both attacked by legions of fiends from Anguish the Blood Siren. Mena is rescued, but Deidre’s fate is unknown, causing grief and self-loathing for the young witch. To distract herself, Mena learns that her Love Across Dimensions book is a magical interactive experience where the reader controls the destiny of the characters within. Not only that, but Fabias the handsome warlock on the cover speaks to Mena, telling her that if she doesn’t like something about herself, or the world around her, she can write within the book to change it. Mena realizes her life isn’t perfect, but it soon can be. All it takes is the touch of a quill. But will her desires to change herself erase the parts that made her who she is? Read on to find out in this slightly darker, but still amusing installment of Phenomena the Basic Witch.
8 132First Waves
The tides of power are rising again as new individuals begin to emerge ready to sweep up the world into a tsunami of chaos. The world has grown dull, forgetting of the times long before when singular beings were powerful enough to remodel landscapes if they were to clash. What will happen when new powers begin to emerge and start to shake the world once again?
8 153Sidequest
A group of 4 young adventurer's of the Three-Winged Guild travel around helping people, fighting monsters, and clearing dungeons even if they aren't very good at it. Also on Wattpad, Scribblehub and my wordpress! Cover by @shadnoise on Twitter
8 205Litterature
Yes, I intended to spell it like that. I guess the meaning is poetry, thrown into your face.Some original, some not. I really don't know anymore.Just read. :) Hope you enjoy.
8 185