Chapter 706 – Slave Yallop
While riding on the Darkwing Dragon, Nie Yan examined the three items in his bag.
The first item was a brocade map. It gave an illustration of the topography of the Abernathy Great Grasslands, with the forests, rivers, lakes, plains, and so on. Everything within the golden border drawn over the map was his territory.
After touring around the Abernathy Great Grasslands, Nie Yan confirmed the location of the border lines.
The second item was the Lord’s Deed. This was proof of Nie Yan’s rulership over the Abernathy Great Grasslands.
These two items were bound to him. With them, he was the true ruler of this land.
Nie Yan took the third item out for inspection. It was a conical shaped crystal which resembled a sharp dagger. When he took it out, it emitted a dazzling viridian radiance as a powerful, indescribable aura overflowed into the surroundings.
“What is that?” Bladelight asked.
This crystal shard had attracted everyone’s attention.
“A fragment of Jebiah the Great’s scepter…” Nie Yan muttered in a daze.
“Jebiah, the ruler of the Viridian Empire Jebiah? Why is a fragment of his scepter in your hands?”
“Right. Logically speaking, this sort of thing should be with the person himself. It’s not like he died. You don’t just break your scepter either. Strange.”
Hearing the discussion, Nie Yan raised an eyebrow. Just what did this fragment of Jebiah the Great’s scepter represent? Right now he had no way of knowing. He stored away the crystal shard in his bag.
Nie Yan discovered the settlement of a large tribe. Several thousand white tents stretched out across the grassland, with many people walking to and fro. Shepherds were herding livestock on the outskirts.
“Let’s go down to take a look,” Nie Yan said. This was the largest tribal settlement they had encountered so far in the Abernathy Great Grasslands.
They slowly descended into the center of the settlement. The six large flying mounts immediately took up most of the space in the square.
Bow and arrow wielding guards in simple leather armour immediately rushed over and surrounded Nie Yan’s group.
A tall, middle-aged man with bulging muscles walked over. He held a large longbow in one hand and a dagger in the other.
“This is the territory of the Kavannas. I am Chief Sampur. Strangers, identify yourselves, or else we will treat you as enemies!” Sampur exclaimed.
The atmosphere in the square immediately became tense.
Some players in the area gestured and pointed at the commotion. A few recognized Nie Yan and were waiting to see how the situation would unfold.
Even though the Abernathy Great Grasslands was located on the edge of both empires, many players had still made the journey and settled down here. They had established a friendly relationship with the native tribesmen by completing quests, hunting monsters, and selling their spoils of battle. Because the only way to live here was by receiving the approval of the local tribe.
“Chief Sampur, I came from Calore in the Viridian Empire. This is the deed conferred to me by the Viridian Empire and Satreen Empire.” Nie Yan took out his Lord’s Deed.
Sampur suspiciously took the Lord’s Deed. After reading over it, he returned it to Nie Yan, then placed his hand over his chest and bowed. “M’Lord, welcome to Kavannas.”
The surrounding guards lowered their bows and also bowed to Nie Yan.
With Nie Yan appearing here, the players in the surroundings understood that everything was about to change. The Abernathy Great Grasslands had gone from an unregulated border zone to a player-controlled territory. Some players had already decided to leave. Others planned to stay and see how Nie Yan would develop this place.
Nie Yan and Bladelight glanced at each other. Sure enough, the Lord’s Deed was useful.
However, the Lord’s Deed was nothing more than a deterrent. Every tribe here had their own set of rules and customs. They wouldn’t bow to Nie Yan just because he flaunted a piece of paper. He had three months to mobilize an army, otherwise even if Angel Corps didn’t take action, the tribes here would come for his head.
“Lord, please come with me. You’re our honoured guest. Kavannas welcomes you with our best wine and most beautiful women,” Sampur said. With a wave of his hand, the guards parted ways and opened up a path.
Nie Yan glanced at Sampur. He didn’t know why, but he felt a hint of unfriendliness, even hostility from Sampur’s bearing. Perhaps it was to be expected. His arrival here meant he would be fighting the numerous tribes in the Abernathy Great Grasslands for control of the land. Receiving any support was going to be incredibly difficult. It appeared being the ruler of a land wasn’t as easy as he initially thought.
Once the two words beautiful women were mentioned, Lustboy’s eyes lit up. “Those beautiful women that big lug of a chief mentioned, could it be those stunning NPC beauties?” One had to admit, the NPC beauties generated by Conviction’s system were all kingdom topplers. However, most players would never dare to have any thoughts on these NPC beauties. If they were caught by the guards, they were doomed.
“You poor boy. Haven’t you seen the women walking around this tribe? They’re all built like oxen. I wouldn’t hold your breath.” Smoke Stub ruthlessly poured a bucket of ice cold water over Lustboy’s head.
Bladelight turned to Nie Yan and whispered, “Why do I get the feeling this Sampur doesn’t like us very much?”
“I feel the same. Let’s keep observing,” Nie Yan replied. There was nothing Sampur could do to them. After all, he was the lord of this land.
“Mhmm.”
The party followed behind Sampur. They passed between the tents, heading towards the enormous golden tent off in the distance.
The residents here weren’t particularly well off. One could tell from the clothes they wore. When they saw Sampur, they all parted to the side and kowtowed on the ground, trembling in fear.
Seeing this scene, Nie Yan sank into deep thought.
After walking for several minutes, a group of people came over in their direction. 10 fully armed guards pulled at a youth bound in ropes. The prisoner looked strong, with bulging muscles brimming with strength. He was half naked, wearing only a pair of shabby pants. His skin was scorched a deep bronze by the sun. The only imperfection on his body were the countless whip scars, both new and old ones overlapping with each other.
“Yallop, in a bit, you’ll realize how wonderful death is. We’ll carve your flesh piece by piece and feed it to the vultures in the sky,” a guard chuckled heinously.
“I’ve committed no wrong!” Yallop tried to break free of his constraints to no avail.
“You’ve committed no wrong. You’ve committed no wrong. Ha! Your biggest mistake is having too beautiful of a wife. That is a wrong in itself!”
The guards let out mocking laughs.
Seeing Sampur coming over, the 10 guards immediately stood at attention. “Chief Sampur, Yallop has committed the crime of theft. We’re on our way to the execution grounds.”
Sampur’s eyes were as sharp as a hawk’s. He stared deeply at Yallop. “You’re the most powerful warrior of our tribe. Even I’m not willing to put you to death. However, everyone must be punished for their crimes. In half an hour, we’ll be carrying out your execution.”
Nie Yan and Yallop met eyes. Yallop’s gaze contained and indescribable hatred and unyielding arrogance.
Yallop had three large scars going across his cheek. On the side of his face was an extremely clear branding, which read slave.
People were executed every day in the Viridian Empire. This wasn’t the first time Nie Yan encountered such a situation.
After passing by Yallop, Nie Yan felt a powerful pressure bearing down on him. This person was definitely strong.
“Chief Sampur, I’d like to ask what kind of crime did this Yallop commit?” Nie Yan asked.
“He committed the crime of theft. He stole items from several households,” Sampur replied. His eyes flashed with a gloomy and cruel light.
“Theft doesn’t warrant the death penalty, does it?” Nie Yan asked.
“You’re correct. However, he’s a slave. In Kavannas, any crime committed by a slave is punishable by death. Since he was previously a warrior and defeated the Keliran, I’ll grant him a sky burial,” Sampur said indifferently.
Smoke Stub, Bladelight, and the others’ hearts trembled. This Sampur was absolutely ruthless! Even when speaking about a person’s life and death, he was so cold and indifferent, almost as if he were doing the other a favour.
“As the lord of the Abernathy Great Grasslands, am I allowed to pardon a person of the death penalty?” Nie Yan asked. From the moment Yallop appeared, he felt a type of fate connecting them. He felt an immense urge to rescue Yallop.
This was his first act as the lord of the Abernathy Great Grasslands!
“You are.” Sampur nodded. His eyes flickered with an unreadable light.
Sure enough, the title of Duke had some real power behind it.
“I want to pardon Yallop. As the lord of the Abernathy Great Grasslands, I forgive him of his crimes,” Nie Yan said. He understood that from this moment forward, he had burned all bridges with Sampur and the Kavannas. Interacting with NPCs was truly an exhausting thing.
Soon, Yallop was brought back by the guards.
