A sneeze destroys a magical civilization

Since the desert cannot retain heat without vegetation cover, the temperature begins to drop rapidly after nightfall.

In about a few hours, the temperature dropped from over 40 degrees Celsius during the day to below zero.

The water that had been sprinkled on the sand was frozen into pieces of solid ice before it could dry up.

fortunately!

The caravan had enough camels to form a circle to withstand the biting wind.

And leaning on the thick fur of the camel can also play a role in keeping warm to a certain extent and reduce the loss of body heat.

Covered with several layers of cheap thick linen or patched felt, the exhausted slaves quickly fell asleep after a long day's work.

Those mercenaries responsible for protecting the caravan were very experienced and divided themselves into several groups to patrol and watch in turns to ensure that they could respond immediately after encountering any attack.

Of course, none of this has anything to do with Zuo Si.

He was currently lying on the wooden bed he had set up in the tent, enjoying the warmth emanating from the charcoal stove he had previously used to make a fire for cooking, while concentrating on reading the spell book in his hand.

Although it was getting very late, there was still no sleepiness at all.

On the contrary, Alena, Orc Rhett and the little werewolves quickly got into their sleeping bags and snored slightly after eating and drinking.

"Master, aren't you going to rest yet?" the soldier asked strangely.

He remembered that Zuo Si rarely went to bed late unless he had something to do.

Because as an arcane spellcaster, you must maintain at least eight hours of adequate sleep every day so that your spell slots can be restored normally the next day.

Zuo Si smiled and replied: "I'm waiting for those guests who have been following the caravan since they entered the desert. If nothing else, they should launch an attack soon."

"Guest?! Are you saying there are sand pirates nearby?" The soldier's expression immediately became serious.

"That's right! Although I don't know exactly what method they used. It might be some kind of prophecy magic, or it might be spies inserted in, but these people did accurately locate us from several kilometers away. And tracking. Now I am very curious as to who is commanding and controlling this group of desert cavalry that come and go like the wind."

After that, Zuo Si directly summoned the shadow assassin-Yelnia.

As soon as the latter came out of the shadows, he immediately knelt down and reported: "Master, after my investigation, I can basically confirm that there are about seventy of them. They are all wearing simple and strong leather armor, with Wearing a black burqa.

The weapons are mainly scimitars, spears and crossbows.

They looked like they should be rigorously trained warriors, closer to elite soldiers in the army than to general disorganized bandits.

In addition, I also found a guy who seemed to be a mage or a warlock.

He holds a gadget that glows with green light.

The light emitted by this thing will become brighter when it is closer to the direction of the caravan, and will become dimmer if it is farther away. "

"Tracking magic? Is it [item positioning] or [ally tracking]..."

Zuo Si touched his chin and muttered to himself two second-level "prophecy" spells that he had mastered.

As the name suggests.

The function of the former is to allow the caster to sense the general direction of an item.

As long as the other party knows the approximate list of items carried by the caravan, or the names of some relatively expensive secondary magic items, they can immediately track the caravan 24 hours a day.

As for the latter, it is even more powerful.

Once a spy is successfully deployed, not only can he sense the approximate location, but he can also know exactly where the caravan is heading and how far away it is.

Thinking of this, Zuo Si subconsciously glanced at the sleeping half-orc Rhett lying on the tent floor.

There is no doubt that if it is [ally tracking], this slave warrior who was sent as a gift by the Long Ding Chamber of Commerce must be the most suspicious.

After all, [Detecting Thoughts] only "listens" to superficial thoughts and cannot read the secrets hidden deep in the heart.

If Rhett had received special training or had been subjected to a mind control spell such as [Suggestion], then it was entirely possible for him to evade previous thought detection.

"Do you want to strike first?" the soldier asked cautiously in a low voice.

Zuo Si shook his head meaningfully: "No rush. What we really have to deal with is not just these desert bandits, but also the masters hidden behind them. This may be a long-term game, rather than one or two battles. It’s a small problem that can be solved.”

"Then do you want to notify the mercenaries patrolling and keeping watch outside?" the soldier continued to ask.

"It's not necessary. If these sand bandits dare to attack tonight, then I guarantee that they will all die before getting close to the caravan and become part of the shadow army. You are right, Yelnia."

Zuo Si raised his head and stared into the hateful eyes of the Shadow Assassin.

"Of course! Master! I will kill them all, leaving no one behind."

Yelnia responded in the affirmative with an extremely cold tone.

"Very good! It seems that I should be able to sleep well tonight. Remember, don't forget to wake me up before doing anything."

After saying this, Zuo Si closed his spell book, closed his eyes and began to rest.

…

At the same time, behind the huge sand dune a few kilometers away from the caravan camp, a gang of more than 70 sand pirates were having a heated discussion on whether to take action immediately.

"They only have a dozen mercenaries, and the rest are slaves and civilians without weapons. I guarantee that all those who resist can be killed with just one charge. By then, whether it is goods, camels, or slaves, , everything will become ours." A man with a full beard shouted loudly.

"Idiot! According to the information sent from Port Calim, the caravan has a powerful mage. Have you ever thought about how many casualties a fireball would cause if it exploded among us?" Another person said unceremoniously. questioned.

"Damn it! What do you think we should do? Are we just going to wait like this?" the man with a beard asked angrily.

Seeing that the two were about to quarrel, the leader immediately waved his hand impatiently: "Shut up! The spell caster should be dealt with by the spell caster. Kemora, are you sure you can handle the mage accompanying the caravan?"

"Of course! That's exactly why I'm here.

And I think it’s best to wait until around two to three o’clock in the middle of the night before taking action.

This will not only minimize the vigilance of the night watch mercenaries, but also interrupt the enemy mage's rest. "

A man with large burn marks on his face gave advice in a slightly gloomy voice.

"Okay! Then we decided to do this.

Now everyone rests where they are, and five hours later we launch the attack.

As long as we do this, we can be free and happy for a while.

Maybe you can use this income to continue recruiting troops, go to the Tessel Kingdom in the north to seize a piece of territory, and transform yourself into a noble lord. "

The leader's tone was full of imagination and expectations for a better future.

He didn't even realize that when he said these words, there was a man next to him who was completely covered in a cloak and hood, with a naked and undisguised mockery flashing in his eyes.

Obviously, in the eyes of the "big men" in Calim Port, the so-called desert bandit is actually a knife used to eliminate enemies.

If this "knife" has a mind of its own, or intends to get rid of its owner's control, then death is not far away.

In Calimport's thousands of years of history, no desert bandit gang has ever survived to die a natural death.

Generally speaking, in a few years at most, these guys will undergo a major overhaul from beginning to end.

This is done to prevent them from mastering too many secrets and eventually becoming out of control and becoming a huge threat and hidden danger.

What's more, these guys in front of me are just the "materials" necessary to "open the door".

As the person in charge who was sent by the "Lord of Talisman" to supervise the entire plan, the corners of this man's face that could not be seen clearly rose slightly, revealing a cold and cruel smile.