Final Lord

Chapter 294 The Merchant's Fighting Style

In the dimly lit minotaur shed, the stench of blood and herbs mingled into a suffocating, viscous stench that clung to every inch of air.

The remnants of the minotaurs huddled in the dim light of the fluorescent moss, their heavy breathing rising and falling like wounded beasts licking their wounds.

Keynes knelt on one knee, the mud on his golden nose ring long since dried. Fragments of the cracked ruby ​​fell with his bowed head, making a soft, tinkling sound on the stone surface, like the lingering echo of shattered fate.

He clutched an arrow pulled from a wound of his tribesman in his palm. The dark red arrowhead still gleamed with an eerie metallic luster, and dried cow blood and molten armor fragments remained on its edges, as if it were some kind of curse from the abyss.

"That human merchant's medicine...it really saved their lives. Chief, we're so lucky. If it weren't for that human merchant, our people would have suffered even greater losses." The adjutant's hoarse voice came from behind Keynes, as if it were drifting from a great distance.

Keynes did not answer; his thoughts were already captivated by the arrow.

His rough fingertips traced the fine armor-piercing patterns on the arrowhead, each groove like a mark of shame etched into his heart.

Yesterday's memories flooded back, and the image of Medusa's arrow rain tearing through the thick fog resurfaced in Keynes's mind.

The copper blades pierced through heavy armor like venomous snakes; the molten metal and flesh boiled amidst screams of agony, turning even the bravest warriors into rolling balls of flesh on the ground...

His once invincible minotaur warriors were as fragile as paper before these copper arrows.

“This is definitely not an ordinary arrow.” Keynes suddenly gripped the arrow shaft tightly, his rough voice filled with suppressed shock and anger.

“Even our earth dwarves can’t forge such a monstrous thing! There must be another tribe helping Medusa. It’s very likely another earth dwarf tribe; only they could create such terrifying artifacts.”

He looked up abruptly, and the stalactites at the top of the cave were reflected in his bloodshot pupils, like countless hanging swords that could fall at any moment and bury his people completely.

A chill never before felt crept up Keynes’s spine. If Medusa were to attack again with more arrows like these, the Tauren would no longer be hunters, but spoils to be nailed to stone pillars and left to dry.

Their horns will become Medusa's adornments, their flesh will become Medusa's feast, and their bones will be ground into powder and scattered on the victor's path.

What the Tauren did to Medusa will come back to haunt them.

Extinction of the race!

“We must find a way to stop these arrows,” Keynes uttered through clenched teeth, the cracks on his horns gleaming ominously red beneath the fluorescent moss.

The adjutant's heavy hooves uneasily crushed a pebble, his breath condensing into white mist in the damp air.

“But Chieftain,” his voice seemed to squeeze from a crack in the rock, “our dwarf slaves all fled during the riot. You know, we tauren aren’t good at forging.”

Keynes suddenly turned around, his three-meter-tall frame casting a distorted shadow on the rock face. His bloodshot bull-like eyes were fixed on his adjutant, and shards of ruby ​​remaining on his gold nose ring fell with each heavy breath.

“Of course I know!” His roar made the stalactites on the cave ceiling tremble slightly. “So we need to seek help!”

"Whose help are we seeking? The dwarves?" The lieutenant's nostrils flared, his rough fingers unconsciously tightening the leather strap of his battleaxe. "Before those dwarves disappeared into the depths of the ley lines, we wiped out the Forge Clan, the Blackrock Clan, and the Bronzebeard Alliance. They have no reason to help us."

The adjutant's Adam's apple bobbed, and bitter saliva seeped from between his fangs. "Even if they were willing to set aside past grievances and help us, even the most seasoned trackers can't find their dungeon now."

Keynes suddenly grinned, revealing a sinister yet shrewd smile. The skull pendant on his golden nose ring swayed gently with the movement, reflecting the flickering firelight in the distant stone hall.

“Fortunately,” his voice suddenly lowered, tinged with a dangerous anticipation, “that extravagant human merchant is still on our territory.” The lieutenant’s single eye suddenly lit up, his stubby horn involuntarily turning towards the stone hall. “That’s it! There’s him! The human merchant who can casually buy up the entire slave market and produce miraculous antidotes!”

“It was him.” Keynes plunged the arrow into the rock wall with tremendous force. The shaft shattered into dust under the force, but the dark red arrowhead remained deeply embedded in the stone, like a venomous fang embedded in flesh.

"These devotees of the god of commerce, who travel all over the country, must have access to countless rare and precious goods."

His fingertips traced the last ruby ​​fragment on his nose ring, a calculating glint in his eyes. "If I can offer him a price that tempts him, I might even be able to get armor that can withstand these kinds of arrows."

……

Inside the brightly lit stone hall, expensive magic lamps cast a bright light, illuminating Keynes's heavy figure.

His rough knuckles gripped a dark red arrow tightly, as if he were crushing it.

“The king is not convinced.” Keynes’s voice was low and hoarse, as if squeezed from the depths of his throat. “Your potion is very effective. I still need your help.”

Wang Bufu was leaning against a low table carved from obsidian, his fingertips gently stroking a gold coin. Upon hearing this, he slightly raised his eyes, his amber pupils gleaming with shrewdness in the dim light.

"Oh?" He raised the corners of his lips slightly, a half-smile on his face. "For the Chief of Cairns to personally come to my door, it must be something important. Please tell me, and I will do my best to help."

Without a word, Keynes slammed the arrow onto the table with a loud "thud," the shaft trembling slightly under the force.

“These are Medusa’s arrows, you’ve heard of them.” He gritted his teeth, the skull pendant on his golden nose ring jingling with rage. “They can easily pierce our armor, melt flesh, and even the bravest warriors cannot withstand them.”

Wang Bufu's gaze fell on the arrow, his slender fingers gently fiddling with the arrowhead, his fingertips caressing the fine armor-piercing patterns on the arrow shaft, a thoughtful glint in his eyes.

“Interesting,” he murmured, then looked up, his smile gentle yet carrying the calculating nature of a merchant. “So, Chieftain wants me to help you find armor that can withstand these kinds of arrows?”

“That’s right,” Keynes said in a deep voice. “You’ve traveled all over the country and seen a lot; you must have connections.”

Wang Bufu chuckled softly, slowly closing the bag of gold coins in his hand, the crisp sound of metal clashing echoing in the stone hall.

“Of course.” He spoke lightly, as if discussing a trivial deal. “However, Chief, you should know the rules of our Commercial Church.”

Equivalent exchange.

The previous medicine was compensation for my mistake; we've settled our score.

"If you want armor that can withstand arrows, it won't be cheap."

Keynes frowned, his nostrils flared slightly, and his sulfurous breath hit Wang Bufu's face: "How much?"

Wang Bufu held up two fingers, his smile unchanged: "Two hundred thousand gold coins."

"Hmph, you scared me, a mere two hundred thousand gold coins..." Before Keynes could finish speaking, Wang Bufu interrupted, "A set!"

"Two hundred thousand gold coins and a set of armor."

(End of this chapter)