Archer's Adventure Manual

Chapter 174 The Transmigrator; The Robber

Was Napoleon the Great actually a time traveler? Or could it just be a coincidence?

No, impossible. Even if a move like "Ten Thousand Swords Return to One" existed in the world, it would never have such a name, right?

What's more, it's Chinese, which he's very familiar with.

For a moment, Loran was in a daze. He silently turned the dream into a jar, intending to try out the "Ten Thousand Swords Return to One" technique within the dream.

Back in the dream, Loran left Plassen and found a secluded forest to unleash the Ten Thousand Swords Return to One technique.

However, it failed.

How could that be? Things in dreams should be learned and used immediately, so there shouldn't be any failure in releasing them.

Loran quickly figured out the reason: the Return of Ten Thousand Swords was just the effect of the skill, which did not mean that he could generate many iron swords.

In other words, Napoleon the Great specially commissioned the creation of many iron swords in order to perform this spell.

It is indeed possible; it would be quite reasonable for someone of his stature to engage in such seemingly extravagant behavior.

Since there were prerequisites, Loran was too lazy to bother with it. Even if he wanted to achieve it in reality, he would need a lot of iron swords.

Noah, with his physique, probably couldn't withstand more than a few iron swords. Where was he going to get so many iron swords?

Putting that aside, even if he had that many iron swords... well, in reality he might not be able to master this skill.

In conclusion, the information this skill provides is far more important than the skill itself.

Napoleon the Great was very likely a time traveler... and he bears a striking resemblance to Lorraine at this time.

Loran couldn't help but feel a little curious. Was it possible for him to return to reality? But he quickly dismissed the thought; it was simply too far off.

He is currently facing a crisis that has not yet been resolved, so how can he talk about returning to that familiar blue planet?

Loran returned to Plasson's magic academy, and under the cover of night, he once again went to the secret base beneath the tomb of the bishop of the Dream God Cult.

Although he now possesses considerable knowledge about dreams and enjoys a significant amount of exclusive rights within the Dream City, Loran feels it is still far from enough.

Since he has made such good progress in the realm of dreams, he should make full use of this advantage. With his current power in Dream City, it is simply not enough.

At most, he could make some private deals with rebels like Karin who didn't have power. To truly contend with the bishops who had a certain foundation, he would need much more ability.

Loran continued to peruse books related to dreams, researching more specific details, such as how to maintain such a massive dream city.

Upon closer reading, Loran frowned. One of the books mentioned a concept called the clustering effect.

Dream energy flows to areas where dreams are more concentrated. In other words, what sustains the Dream City is not anything else, but the energy gathered within it.

The Dream City contains very active dream energy, and this energy, when gathered in the Dream City, will attract more dream energy.

The bishops then use the abundant resources attracted to maintain the Dream City, and then use those resources to induce more dream energy.

However, the bishops are somewhat inclined to slack off. They feel that the current scale is already quite good, so they have no plans to expand further and just want to maintain their existing territory.

If it's driven by strong utilitarian motives, then the Dream God Cult might have a much stronger presence in reality, perhaps even comparable to the destructive power of the Sequence Church in its heyday.

Loran pondered for a moment and concluded that if they wanted to fundamentally solve the Dream Cult, they should start with its followers. If they lost the many people who provided dream energy to the Dream Factory, Dream City would naturally collapse.

Of course, the collapse of Dream City is not a good thing for Loran. If Dream City existed in Loran's current state, Loran could obtain more resources.

Loran doesn't have that strong of a saintly heart; he's struggling to redeem himself, let alone anything else.

This is just a means to counter the bishops. If the bishops become aware of Loran's existence, this means can be used to protect themselves if necessary.

After much contemplation, Loran finally focused his thoughts on alchemy.

If the energy of dreams can affect various objects in reality, then it can also affect the materials and objects in dreams.

Just like using magic to fight magic, if we could create an object that could threaten Dream City, Loran's safety within Dream City would be greatly increased.

Loran fiddled with things in his dream for a long time, until dawn was breaking.

Brian's dog paws woke Lorraine from her sleep, and Barton, sitting opposite her, had already put on his backpack and was ready to go.

"Garen, let's go."

Loran nodded. "Okay, let's go."

The two left the small village.

"Renting a carriage will speed things up," Loran suggested.

"Brother Galen, I'm ashamed to say, but I did rent a carriage. However, a pack of wolves suddenly appeared on the way. I fought them off and won, but the wolves killed my horse."

"That beer I ordered has almost emptied my pockets..." Barton sighed.

Loran said without any hesitation, "It's alright, I'll just rent it."

"This..." Barton hesitated, feeling somewhat at a loss, unsure how to accept Loran's kindness.

"No need for that. I'm going to Rockfall Town myself. We have the same goal, so it's just on the way. It's nothing."

"Thank you very much then." Barton felt relieved.

"However, I'll need to borrow your adventurer's pass."

"no problem."

And so, using Barton's adventure credentials, Loran and his companion rented an eight-wheeled carriage, though the price was practically that of a sale.

After all, many adventurers head to Rockfall Town, and many of them either don't return or don't intend to pass through here.

Stable owners typically charge very high deposits.

However, Lorraine didn't care about that and generously rented a carriage. If it could really help Barton, he was very willing to lend a helping hand.

With the carriage, the two traveled much faster, though the mountain road was rugged and the journey was bumpy.

We passed by a tranquil mountain village with standardized terraced fields where water-based grain crops were grown, and farmers were working diligently in the fields.

The scene was exceptionally vibrant under the sunlight.

Barton was deeply moved by this scene. "My parents were farmers, this was their job, but most of their crops had to be handed over to the lord..."

"It sounds rather ridiculous that crops are created by our own hands, yet the lord is credited the most."

"My parents didn't want me to live like this for the rest of my life, so they emptied their savings to send me to Plassen, hoping I would become a respectable knight..."

"But in reality, knights are no different from peasants. They are all subject to the orders of their lords. They just look bright and cheerful. Besides, I haven't even been able to be a knight who looks bright and cheerful."

Loran remained silent. This was a drawback of the times; the existence of magic and combat skills ensured that the rule of those in power would be very stable and would not be shaken by people's thoughts.

If given the opportunity, Loran would like to become a lord, expand into a new territory, and establish a relatively just order.

But that's all for the future.

Not long after passing the villa, the horses pulling the carriage were suddenly startled, and a group of people jumped out from in front of them, all of them wearing black masks.

"Hand over your money!" the masked man in the lead shouted coldly.

Brian, sitting in the carriage, barked incessantly, seemingly very dissatisfied with the behavior of the people in front of him.

"You filthy dog, if you call me again I'll tear your mouth apart! Have you two lost your tongues? We're retired adventurers, you know what's good for you, you don't want to fight us, do you?"

Loran, however, asked with interest, "Aren't you afraid that our lord will hold you accountable?"

"Heh, stop talking nonsense. You can rent carriages at this time of year, so you must not be residents of this manor. Why should the local lord care about your life or death?" the leader of the men in black said arrogantly.

One of the henchmen chimed in, "Boss, this guy's obviously stalling for time. Let's go for it and rob him!"

The leader of the men in black agreed with this statement and called on his underlings to swarm forward.

Seeing that things were going badly, Barton drew his iron sword and round shield. "Garen brothers, I'll take care of them!"

After saying that, Patton jumped out of the car and went to meet the guys.

These guys are indeed seasoned veterans; they possess a number of skills, including Iron Slash, Shield Bash, and assassin-style ambushes.

They seem to be retired adventurers, but their adventure level is definitely not that high. They are the kind of players who lack talent and want to find some shady ways to do things after retiring.

Barton seemed to be struggling against them, after all, one man can't fight four men. Just when Barton was starting to have trouble holding on, Brian made his move.

"Woof woof woof! You bunch of guys, you really don't respect me, your dog!" Brian charged into the crowd and rampaged through it.

Even without using the cursed power of the Eye of Flesh, Brian's impact was still quite considerable, especially when combined with his unique little technique, biting.

The bite force was considerable, causing the group of less-than-professional adventurers to howl in pain.

The black-clad henchman was ruthless and taciturn. He snatched the iron sword and aimed it at Brian, unleashing a powerful skill like the Steel Slash. However, the sharp blade struck Brian as if it were a soft caress, causing no harm whatsoever.

Brian was able to bite back and grab his wrist, making the black-clad henchman bare his teeth.

"Boom!" Just then, a fierce bolt of lightning suddenly struck, landing right in the center of the fight.

The men who were fighting stopped what they were doing when they saw this scene and looked at each other in confusion. What was going on?

Loran slowly stepped out of the car, the raging lightning still lingering in his palm.

"The Mage's Hand?!" The leader of the men in black was quite knowledgeable; when he saw Loran's hand radiating a magical aura, he realized that things were not simple.

The young man before me, who doesn't look very old, is actually a mage? But if he's a mage, why is he riding in such a dilapidated carriage, and... why is there only a half-baked warrior beside him?

He couldn't quite understand any of this, but he knew they had to leave.

"He's a sorcerer! Let's go!" The leader of the men in black and his henchmen slipped away without looking back.

Of course, Loran wouldn't let them leave so easily. He retaliated with a straight electric current, then used a splitting magic to fork the current, evenly shocking everyone's buttocks.

Then, a large, charred hole appeared in the pants of each of the men in black, and the electric current traveled up their bodies, making their hair stand on end.

The intensity was controlled just right, ensuring that the electric shock wouldn't damage the brain.

Their fear intensified, and they ran even faster, disappearing from Loran's sight in the blink of an eye.

Barton, panting, watched this scene unfold. It all happened so fast he was momentarily stunned. "Garen brothers..."

you."

Suddenly he remembered that Garen had said he was a Black Iron-rank adventurer, and the possibility that a Black Iron-rank adventurer was a mage wasn't too low...

He felt relieved and a glimmer of hope returned to his heart. If he could help Garen, reaching Rockfall Town might not be a pipe dream.

"Get in the car, we still have a long way to go." Loran smiled slightly.

"good!"

Several days passed, and Loran and Barton only spent the night in simple accommodations in the wild, spending most of their time on the road.

Therefore, they were very close to Rockfall Town, but the atmosphere here was a bit strange.

The first impression it gives is...gloomy and desolate.

Although the flowers and plants are still as vibrant as usual, the feeling they evoke is quite different.

With her fluent language skills, Loran could also hear some changes in the surrounding creatures. For example, the birds weren't discussing what insects they had eaten that day or sharing the joys of flying.

The discussion turned to the fact that some of our companions had been kidnapped by strange people today, and we need to be extra careful.

Even when Loran passed by, they were very wary. Upon hearing the sounds of Loran and Barton moving around, they scattered and flew away to other places.

Barton could also sense the strange atmosphere, and he said with some concern, "I haven't seen any other adventurers along the way... Didn't they say that many adventurers from Plasson went to support Rockfall Town? ...Oh right, and the private soldiers of Plasson's capital, where are they?"

Loran shook his head. "I don't know. Perhaps we haven't really gone deep into Rockfall Town yet, only to the outskirts. Maybe the adventurers have already started helping Rockfall Town with its reconstruction and repair work."

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"Is that so? That would be great." Barton nodded.

But after taking only a few steps, Loran and Barton stopped at the same time. They looked down at the dry soil beneath their feet, where a pile of withered bones lay quietly.

"This is..." Loran stepped forward and squinted, the flesh and blood had all disappeared.

This reminded him of his past in Rockfall Town, of the strange red substance on the bodies of those "healed" people, which would devour their flesh and blood, leaving them completely clean.

Patton's eyes were moved. He bent down to examine the skeletons and picked up a black iron plaque, his hand trembling slightly.

"Iron-rank adventurer".