The bard fantasized again.

Chapter 209 To Exchange or Not to Exchange (4k)

"Hoo, ha!"

"Hoo, ha!"

"Hoo, ha!"

The tribe's war cries were like thunder in the rainy night, undisguised and shaking the forest, echoing threateningly throughout the village.

Provoked by the roar, a large number of beastmen gathered at the entrance of the village, some hanging from the treetops, others crawling in the jungle, their scarlet eyes all fixed on the huge silhouette in the shadows.

"what is that?"

Several children with animal ears but human faces were lying on the roof.

They grew up in the forest and never went hunting with their elders, so they never saw the majestic giant tortoise in the sky.

"Woo-"

A somber bugle call followed, echoing in their ears, while another boy whispered:
"That big guy seems to have stopped."

"Who's approaching?"

Everyone seems very nervous.

Why is that person's skin green?

Amid the children's chatter, people gradually came into view the approaching figures.

Tang Qi walked at the front, found a safe spot where everyone could see each other's faces clearly, and sized up the various beastmen ahead of him, coughing lightly twice:
"If anything seems amiss, remember to activate Swift Insight and take a quick look around."

"I will ensure your safety."

Chenxi's promise reassured Tang Qi, and he then said loudly:
"Who's in charge of you?"

"Get out! You're not welcome here!"

The giant tortoise in the sky was so conspicuous that every beastman participating in the hunt could tell that it was there to cause trouble.

"Don't get so worked up, friend. I've come with good intentions."

Tang Qi clapped his hands and looked behind him. Shyvana, along with several orcs, took the opportunity to bring the captured prisoners to him.

After Tang Qi's treatment, Eric, whose serious injuries had eased, was shoved to the front of the group while cursing:

"Damn poet, you have no integrity!"

"Don't say that. All I promised you from beginning to end was 'I won't let you lead the way.'" Tang Qi spread his hands innocently.

"Who the hell knew you had other beastmen around you!?"

"You just didn't ask."

Tang Qi gestured for the beastmen to restrain these beastmen so as not to lose their bargaining chips. This allowed them to force several prisoners to kneel at the entrance of the village so that everyone could see their true colors.

"Seloven!"

A black, half-human raven swooped down from the treetop in an instant, transforming into a woman with black hair and black eyes upon landing.

Lucy watched as her husband, pinned down by the orcs and kneeling on the ground struggling, couldn't help but draw her short sword from her waist and glare at Tang Qi:

"Let him go!"

"can."

Tang Qi gestured to Sivana and shoved Eric into the crowd as a gesture of goodwill.

He wanted to achieve his goal in a more peaceful way.

I'm talking about that man!

Lucy pointed to the thin man with medium-length black hair kneeling on the ground.

"That's also possible, you can exchange it for food."

Tang Qi made his request.
"Rye, rice, meat, anything is fine. Trading food for life is a good deal."

"How much do you want?" Lucy asked in a cold voice.

Tang Qi pointed to several prisoners:
"Eric is a gift to you. The remaining seven prisoners can each be exchanged for the rations of fifty people for a month. We'll bundle them together and give you a discount, making it three hundred people—and in return, we'll give you a message."

food.

News of the witch doctor.

This is exactly what Tang Qi needs.

"Go to hell, they're not worth that much!" someone couldn't help but spit.

"The value of life lies in the weight they carry in your hearts."

Tang Qi remained calm and unhurried.

This is also why he chose to send Eric back for free—

Along the way, I almost found out everything about this guy.

The survivor of Rekzik village, with no ties, had been living in the village for almost ten years and was still a bachelor.

Although I don't want to belittle this friend, if no one cares about his life, he is indeed not worthy of being used as a bargaining chip. It would be better to give him away as a favor, as long as the deal can be made.

As for others, such as those with families like Selvin, they are even more valuable as bargaining chips.

“No, we can’t—” Selvin seemed to want to refuse the deal on their behalf.

Tang Qi didn't give him a chance to finish speaking and quickly had someone cover his mouth.

A half-human, boar-like creature grunted, "Damn it, why waste words with them? Just snatch it!"

"Roar!!!"

The suppressed roars of the orcs suddenly erupted.

But no one charged forward with their battle axes at the slightest provocation, unlike before.

Instead, after the roar, they remained silent, standing quietly to the side of the giant tortoise, serving as a deterrent.

Shyvana looked around at her tribesmen with some surprise—

She suddenly realized that because of Tang Qi's presence, a cohesive force, as tight as a hemp rope, seemed to have transformed the chaotic and disorderly tribesmen into a unified force.

These barbaric fellows actually obeyed Tang Qi's orders, willing to endure his violent plundering desires rather than submit to his demands and wait for Tang Qi's negotiations...

“I’m clearly the chief,” she muttered, pouting.

"You'd better think this through."

Tang Qi pointed threateningly behind him.

"See that turtle? It can flatten your village without any problem."

"Fuck you! We almost scattered you all!"

"But the fact is you retreated."

Who knows what Kane is thinking?

"Because you can't afford the losses."

Tang Qi, seeing their concerns, calmly said,
"Your powerful self-healing ability can indeed give you an advantage in conflicts. But if someone dies as a result, it will be a real loss for you—"

You are not warriors, but people who still have hope for life and want to live well.

Even if you don't think about yourself, you should at least think about the children on those rooftops, right?

Since a village can be formed, no matter how much internal discord there is, or how different kinds of beastmen each occupy their own territory.

They all still have the will to live, and therefore have a sense of identity with the village.

Tang Qi was certain that none of them wanted to fight to the death.

"A silver-tongued fellow."

The crowd gradually became noisy.

Not everyone agrees with him.

But even a small number of voices agreeing with them are enough to make them feel uneasy.

Tang Qi looked at Lucy again:

"If you can't make a decision, then let someone who can—Kane, is it? Where's that brown bear?"

"Kane, where did Kane go!?"

Lucy turned around anxiously, heading towards Kane's place.

"He is injured and cannot appear in public for the time being. I will take full charge of all matters."

A burly orc stepped out of the crowd.

"Fid, save my husband!"

Lucy quickly grabbed the other person's arm and pleaded,

"Kane said he would save him!"

Tang Qi sized up Fede, and with just one glance, he could tell that she was different from the beastman beside him—

As mentioned before, there is a difference in aura between professionals and ordinary people.

Seeing her neatly wielded axe and shield, and her light, efficient leather armor, it was easy to tell that she was a well-trained warrior. Perhaps a mercenary, or a retired soldier?

In short, they are fundamentally different from those who are mostly of commoner origin but have gained regenerative powers due to the curse of bestiality.

"Can you represent this village?" Tang Qi asked.

“I am Kane’s wife.”

Federer nodded.
“When he’s not around, I’m the one in charge.”

"You two are such a perfect match."

Tang Qi said sincerely.

As fellow orcs, the difference between her and Shyvana is probably that she has a stronger orc bloodline.

Although she still resembles a human in appearance, she is much taller and more muscular than Shyvana, resembling a man who has worked hard to build muscle.

If anyone could withstand the charge of a wild bear, it would probably be someone with this physique.

Fede paid no attention to Tang Qi's praise; instead, he was more curious about Tang Qi.
"The Sky Turtle, I've seen the orc tribes ride on it."

So you're the chief of this tribe? A human?

“I am the chieftain,” Shyvana replied through gritted teeth.

"you?"

Fied scoffed.
“If you hadn’t told me, I would have thought you were his mistress. You don’t look like a chieftain at all—you’re not even as good as that knight.”

In fact, when Fed looked around, he only felt the pressure of a strong person from Dawn.

She wouldn't want to go toe-to-toe with this knight.

Absolutely not.

"Go to hell, you earthworm."

Shyvana, who already felt marginalized by the tribe, was easily enraged. Forgetting about the hostages she held, she couldn't help but pick up her giant axe and roar.
Want to try? I'll slice your head off and stuff it into your—

"Can you speak more politely?"

Tang Qi quickly interrupted.

Ambi was still following behind.

He didn't want to find himself using vulgar language every time he chatted with Catherine after sending the girl home.

"Sister, do you even know how many beach girls Brother Tang Qi has messed with outside?"

He'll definitely be drained dry by an enraged Catherine...

"Look, he tells you to shut up and you shut up, is that what you call a chief? Can a human's size satisfy you?"

"If you're trying to divide us by provoking her, I advise you to save your energy."

Tang Qi sneered.
Nobody cares about your pointless sarcasm—

"Fuck you!"

Shyvana suddenly swung her giant axe and charged at Fide.

The whistling wind interrupted Tang Qi's cold laugh and shifted to Fede's face.

As a half-orc, she knew all too well these brainless fellow humans.

Moreover, he was a half-orc who seemed to live in an orc tribe.

A few sarcastic words were enough to prick her sensitive nerves and entice her to come to him willingly.

He would use the force of her chopping motion to twist her arm, grab the back of her neck, and kick her in the back of the knee.

The opponent's knees would buckle as a result, and they would be pinned to the ground in an instant.

Ultimately, he became his own hostage.

Then, she can use this half-orc as a bargaining chip in the exchange with that human, easily resolving the other party's difficulties.

Greed and cunning have always been synonymous with adventurers.

She was grateful that she had had this experience.

"Dawn!"

Tang Qi saw through her thoughts, but had to admit the importance of Shyvana, so he ordered Chenxi to stop this fool.

"I turn the surging blood into solidified sunset."

It turned restless muscles and bones into slumbering cliffs.

Twilight's benevolent father, please remove the iron shackles that bind you—

[Human Freeze-in-the-Air Technique]!

A series of echoing whispers, like those of a mother nestled in her parents' arms, mingling with the sound of the wind, drifted over.

Just as Shyvana swung her sword, before she could even reach Fide, a dark purple light suddenly enveloped Shyvana's entire body.

This left her frozen in place, as if petrified.

"Roar!!!"

A conflict nearly broke out. Tang Qi could hear Hou Ke seemingly charging towards him from behind, and quickly gave the order:
"Stop Houk and let me handle this."

He could sense the orcs' discontent—

For them, razing the village to the ground and looting all the food and women was what they should do.

However, their identity as 'prophet' and their new 'doctrine' led them to choose to obey Tang Qi's orders.

Once things were settled in the rear, Tang Qi looked towards the source of the prayer.

A priest dressed in silver-gray plate armor, wearing a steel helmet and a shawl emblazoned with holy symbols slowly walked out from the crowd.

He was also fully armed, but it was hard to say he was aggressive.

"Priest?"

Tang Qi knew very well that true priests were rarely healers who wore spotless white robes, hid behind the crowd to spread doctrines and provide healing.

At least in the wild, most of the priests you can see are like the ones in front of you, ready to swing their warhammers at any time.

"When they realize they can't persuade others with reason, they can choose to persuade them with force."

In the adventurer community, this saying often circulates.

Considering that the holy emblem on his body was the same as the one seen on the scabbard unearthed in Dragon Gold City, Tang Qi deduced that the other party should come from the Holy City.

This is good news.

At least it can guarantee that the other party believes in the benevolent father of Twilight, [Valenne].

Kind people never mind using communication to solve problems.

Tang Qi then spoke:

"Before you choose to help this group of beastmen, I think you need to know that they were the ones who started the trouble for us."

We were attacked, then fought back, and captured their prisoners, which we used as an exchange for our losses—that was fair.

The pastor asked:

Why are there orcs in the southern section of the Great Wall?

"This is a long story, and it's not the point right now. I can assure you that under my leadership, they haven't hurt anyone yet."

After all, he had only just begun to 'lead' the tribe today.

The pastor did not express a clear stance, only saying:
"So, you have suffered losses and are now here to demand compensation."

"That's right, fair and just."

"At least that's how it sounds."

The pastor then looked at Fied.
"Then I think you should provide compensation."

"Go to hell, who do you think you are? The referee presiding over this deal?"

Fede was somewhat annoyed.

If it weren't for that damned priest suddenly intervening, she would have already subdued that chief!
Tang Qi also realized that this pastor seemed to have no vested interests with the beastmen.

He raised an eyebrow and agreed:
"I think that a transaction needs a fair and impartial referee."

There have been enough farces already, I'll just ask one last question—

I will exchange my prisoners for your food and a message.

To change or not to change?

"Get lost, we don't have that much food for you at all!"

Fide could only stomp his feet and curse.

"Do you think we have a lot of food? After two months, we won't have that much to go!"

(End of this chapter)