Mount and Blade System: Start from Pioneer Lords.

Chapter 501 Fallen Spring Forest
Following Levi's instructions and the hand-drawn map of the Persian Gulf Empire on a parchment he was given, and in conjunction with Kemish's advice, Layton led his team cautiously along the sparsely populated wasteland toward Fallingspring Forest.

Having traveled through the northern provinces for so long, they had figured out some patterns.

The more villages and human settlements there are, the more demons there are.

These demons are also mortal beings; they bleed and die when their heads are cut off, and naturally they need to eat to maintain their daily bodily functions.

Unfortunately, these guys act like bandits, with no regard for logistics. When they get hungry, they just grab the lower-ranking demons around them and eat them.

Therefore, they mostly appear near towns and villages, places rarely visited by humans. Even demons don't bother to come here, and if there are demons, they are just a few weak demons who have broken away from the main force.

The people of High Cliff Fortress weren't afraid of trouble, they just didn't want to cause any. Their mission was to bring back the future Medusa of High Cliff Fortress, and there was no need to waste time with these demons.

Their forces were not large, consisting of a Blood Boiling Beast Legion of 300 plus the Dragon Vein Berserkers, a 100-man Griffin Knight Order, and 500 Pier Bearman Warriors, all of whom were battle-hardened elites.

As a guide, Kemish used his familiarity with the terrain of the Persian Gulf region to try to lead the team away from areas where demons gathered in large numbers, but sporadic encounters were still unavoidable.

Several wandering imps and lesser demons discovered their presence and charged forward with howls, only to be overwhelmed by the even wilder roars of the orcs and berserkers.

Each swing of the barbarians' battle axes was accompanied by a piercing shriek that tore through the air, shattering the demon's hideous body.

Layton commanded the griffin riders to carry out precise chain explosions in the air. The magic crystal arrows exclusively manufactured by High Cliff Fortress exploded at various points in the demon army, instantly cutting them into scattered squads. Then, they were torn in half by the bewildered Pier bearmen who pounced on them. He wasted no effort and did not delay for even a moment.

The fighting was swift, brutal, and efficient.

The warriors of High Cliff Fortress were like hard flint, brushing against the black tide of demons, sparking brief but intense flashes, before quickly disengaging and continuing their advance, leaving only a trail of demonic remains.

They also quietly entered the interior of Luoquan Forest without anyone noticing.

This is an ancient and pristine forest, filled with towering ancient trees that are over 40 or 50 meters tall. The trees are intertwined with vines, and thick moss covers the ground. Small animals chase and play by the stream, and birds sing sweetly in the dense canopy. Everything is so beautiful, free, and peaceful.

Clearly, this place has not been harmed by demons, otherwise it would not be in this state now.

According to Kermish, this forest is vast and boundless, inhabited by countless powerful magical beasts, and it is said that the ancient tree people and mountain dwarves also live deep within it.

These tree-men are around twelve blades tall, possess immense strength, and can manipulate trees, making them extremely formidable.

The mountain dwarfs, like their kin, are short and stocky, but they are stronger and more robust. They value peace and nature and are not particularly interested in power or money, so they have always lived in seclusion deep in various remote forests.

The Persian Gulf Empire originally intended to develop this region, since it would enhance its national strength if these powerful races could become vassals, not to mention the various rare ores and magical materials found there.

Unfortunately, this matter has been forgotten ever since a Persian Gulf king, who gathered hundreds of thousands of men to try and subdue the ancient race in the Fallen Spring Forest, failed several hundred years ago.

Because the result of this war was that out of hundreds of thousands of people, only 70,000 to 80,000 returned, and all of them were wounded.

The first to give them a taste of their power were not the powerful races, but the poisonous insects and snakes lurking in the shadows of the forest, followed by the vast forest where no one could find a path.

I heard that these 100,000 people wandered around in the forest for months without seeing a single living person, and then fled in a sorry state.

Although the warriors of Gaoyabao were all battle-hardened elites with few rivals, they were ultimately somewhat outmatched when facing small creatures like poisonous insects and snakes.

Even Helena, the little swan, had a small, blood-red bump on her snow-white forehead, which made this usually mild-mannered gentleman a little angrier. He used the mithril rapier that the lord had given him to keep stabbing at the small insects around him. His superb swordsmanship soon left a pile of insect corpses around his little boots.

However, this approach was completely ineffective and instead provoked the insects' anger, causing them to swarm around him.

"The gods have given swans the power of mercy, but I wish all these insects would go to hell," the little swan cried out in a pitiful wail.

“Helena, you should be with your aunt in Gonda with your sister Ashlu, instead of suffering with us.” Mil smiled wryly as he pulled a leech clinging to his sock from his shoe. A flash of lightning energy appeared on his finger, and the leech was instantly vaporized.

In fact, if he were to be completely enveloped in battle aura, these insects would be instantly pulverized and melted by the battle aura as soon as they got close.

However, he couldn't keep his body enveloped in battle aura indefinitely, as this was extremely energy-consuming and impossible for him to do. Whenever his battle aura was nearly depleted and he began to slowly recover, it was precisely then that the insects would have their moment of revelry.

Thinking this, Mir looked at his senior sister Peya with envy. Peya's body was made of magical metal, so she didn't need to eat or drink, let alone deal with these little bugs.

"I hadn't worried about these insects much before, but upon reflection, it's probably because of Princess Sersney's presence that the insects around here have disappeared." Layton slapped the small spider off his face expressionlessly, finally losing interest in reading.

Dragons are born with a dragon's might, and when they release it actively, it can scare even some timid magical beasts to death, let alone insects, which probably wouldn't even dare to approach.

"If only there were a mage who could use intimidation spells!" the crowd lamented.

Although everyone was quite strong, Mir's battle qi cultivation had even reached a high level.

However, when it comes to temperament, intimidation-type spells or combat techniques, none of them really know them. After all, it's like comparing apples and oranges; they're all top-notch fighters when it comes to killing people, but they really don't know these kinds of skills.

"and many more……"

Suddenly, as if they had thought of something, everyone turned their gaze to a group of orcs who were idly scratching their buttocks.

These guys have been bathed in dragon blood and become dragon-blooded beastmen. They not only have dragon scales and dragon wings, but also dragon might!

Everyone's eyes lit up.

The Dragon Vein Barbarians didn't know why, but they felt a chill down their spines.

then……

"Put me down quickly, Boss Zate, I'm afraid of heights!"

The dragon-vein orc was bound to a thick log, carried on the shoulders of the strongest Pier bear-man, its arms waving incessantly, resembling a humanoid banner. Its dragon scales shimmered with a dark luster in the dappled sunlight, and an invisible dragon's might emanated from it. Zart rolled his eyes. Who was this new dragon-vein orc, showing off its dragon wings in front of him all day? Fear of heights my foot!
"Shut up."

A jar of honey was tossed into the air by Zart and caught by the dragon-vein orc.

The other person immediately opened the lid with a silly grin, picked up some honey with their finger and put it in their mouth, revealing a contented expression.

It can eat honey without walking, which is a blessing for lazy people like it.

The buzzing around the group and the rustling sound on the ground disappeared.

The venomous insects and ants that had been trying to feast on the soldiers seemed to have hit an invisible wall, becoming hesitant and eventually turning away in frustration.

"It really works!" Helena exclaimed in delight. He could finally put down the mithril rapier that he treasured and no longer have to stab at the air like a comical fencer.

He carefully stroked the conspicuous red envelope on his forehead and let out a long sigh of relief.

Mir also felt a sense of relief, no longer needing to constantly distract himself with his weak fighting spirit to kill the little creatures trying to squeeze into the gaps in his armor.

Besides these small insects, the group also encountered various magical beasts along the way.

Wyverns, wild griffins, winged lion-camel... almost every day they encountered a new species, which broadened everyone's horizons.

They also figured out a thing or two: these powerful magical beasts each had their own designated territories, and if they intruded, they would immediately be attacked.

Conversely, areas with streams or water sources are public areas that allow many monsters to coexist.

After a few days of travel, the barbarians had a new necklace of teeth around their necks; those presumptuous monsters had paid the price for their recklessness.

The price was excruciating. Flesh and blood ended up in the bellies of the barbarians, teeth became ornaments, and even the fur was roughly groomed to be made into fashionable animal skin skirts.

Of the group, only Zart was sullen.

Just now, it encountered a rare ivory-white boar, a giant magical beast with huge, snow-white teeth and thick, pillar-like limbs that could easily carry a small mountain on its back. It was simply the perfect mount in its mind. When it excitedly rolled up its sleeves and charged at it, the ivory-white boar actually defecated on the spot and then ran away with a flick of its rear end.

"Coward! Lame! Goblin pig!" Zart cursed, staring at the steaming dung on the ground.

Its curses were particularly loud in the quiet, ancient forest, startling several brightly colored, unidentified birds.

“Save your energy, Brother Zart.” Mir rubbed his ears. “That guy looks clumsy, but when he runs in this dense forest, even a griffin can’t catch him. Otherwise, his ivory wouldn’t be worth more than his weight in gold on the market.”

"I'm just so angry!" Zha Manzi kicked the white excrement on the ground in a huff, and the stench spread. The crowd that had gathered around began to run away desperately. All sorts of slang and curses mingled together, enough to make an elf die of shame and indignation.

But Zart was a brash and indifferent person. He picked his nose, looking completely unconcerned, and said resentfully, "Next time I see it, I'll definitely break off its ivory and make it into a wine glass!"

Soon it was time to set up camp for nightfall, at a location just below a small waterfall with a drop of only four meters.

Kemish mentally calculated the journey, comparing the sheepskin map with the distinctive giant hornbeam trees around him, and said, "At this speed, after passing through that misty area ahead, we should be able to see the entrance to the Snake Valley where the Medusas live."

In fact, he had never been to Falling Spring Forest, and even the map in his hand was drawn by a traveling merchant decades ago, so he didn't know how accurate it was.

He simply calculated everyone's speed and figured out where they were.

Although these Medusas had connections with the Persian Gulf Empire, they were not in a superior-subordinate relationship but rather a cooperative one. Therefore, they did not provide detailed maps of the Fallen Spring Forest.

"We haven't encountered any demons along the way, so the Medusa clan should be alright," Mil said optimistically.

“I’m afraid that Ifra has already betrayed Lord Levi. Her submission and those excuses were just for survival, which is why she’s been quiet since returning to the tribe.” There was a barely perceptible worry in Layton’s eyes.

This goblin didn't know that the lord had a system that could see whether someone was truly subservient.

Therefore, in its view, people's hearts are complex, and the other party was originally on the side of the Persian Gulf Empire, so how could they surrender and turn against it so easily?

Furthermore, the other side promised to bring their tribe to surrender to High Cliff Fortress, but there has been no sign of it at all.

"I don't think so. Didn't those Medusa priests stay at High Cliff Fortress? They wouldn't abandon their people and run back to their tribe. If that were the case, it would be too despicable." Peiya sat on a rock, idly adding firewood she had gathered to the campfire as she spoke.

"I'm just speculating, don't overthink it," Layton said, gesturing for everyone to relax.

As a staff member, he simply habitually considers the worst-case scenario and then plans in advance how to deal with such situations.

"By the way, have you seen Zart?" Layton looked around, but surprisingly, he couldn't find Zart.

“I saw Zha Shuai heading towards the waterfall up ahead. I asked him what he was doing, and he said he was going to take a dump,” Worebel said, gnawing on an unidentified animal leg.

"Anyway, Brother Zart is very strong, so nothing will happen to him." Mir smiled.

No one asked any further questions.

The forest was not silent at night; the chirping of insects and the sound of flowing water mingled together. However, under the faint but persistent influence of the dragon vein beastmen's dragon might, at least those annoying little creatures were not bothering them.

"Mir is really good, he actually brought me so many snow bananas." Zart sat on a fallen log, with a stone slab over a campfire in front of him, on which slices of snow bananas were being fried in lard.

This is a new snack that Mir brought to everyone from the Persian Gulf Empire; it is said to have been grown by the frost giants.

At that time, everyone only received a few pieces, and Mir gave the rest to it.

(End of this chapter)