A Guide to Becoming a God Starting from a Monastery

Isn't this the precursor to the future Russia? Initially, Kiev was the seat of the Rus' orthodox people. However, due to factors like the Mongol invasion, the Grand Duke of Moscow eventually unified all of Rus'. Kiev became Ukraine.

Damn, it's just too hard to predict the historical direction of parallel dimensions.

Also, why Kyiv?

That's a faraway place, separated from Bohemia by Poland.

Besides, if Thomas is not mistaken, they are Eastern Orthodox.

Although Catholicism and Orthodoxy are considered the two sons of Christianity, there is still a layer of separation between them.

Furthermore, the two sons did not get along well, at one point excommunicating each other and harboring hatred for each other. At least in Thomas's past life, the two sects, while not at war, were certainly on the verge of a permanent standoff.

Not to mention the Fourth or Fifth Crusades, which were aimed at Byzantium and were a fratricidal war.

"Kievan Rus?" Thomas

"Kiev is a great place, much more prosperous than ours. It's also much larger, and has far more abundant resources," Giuliano explained. "Besides, that's where knights have a place. Here," he said, gesturing towards the towering church in the distance, "there's no need for knights at all."

Bohemia was considered the heartland of Christianity, with virtually no chance for knights to rise to prominence. Even when wars broke out, they were usually fought among Christians.

The church is neutral in this kind of war, so naturally it has no chance.

Even someone as strong as Giuliano could only live a life of idleness and wait for death in a monastery.

If the knight wants to stand out, he must go to those places of conflict.

"The most important thing is, there's conflict there, but it's not a truly major conflict," Giuliano said. "If you were to go there, someone like you would most likely end up as cannon fodder."

"Kiev should be the territory of the Orthodox Church, right?" Thomas said. "So, this is the Orthodox Knights?"

Is it appropriate for a Catholic monk like me to join an Orthodox knightly order? It felt like they were deliberately trying to send him far away.

"No, although it's considered a religious order, it's also recognized by Rome. Because over there... you know, the Rus' side is still quite desolate, with some remnants of the old times lingering. Facing such an enemy, both Catholics and Orthodox Christians can unite. At least we share the same God! Let's put it this way, staying there for a while can both sharpen yourself through actual combat and fight for the glory of the Lord. Whether you want to stay long-term or use it as a stepping stone, it's a good choice."

Thomas's heart skipped a beat as he remembered the name Kiev.

That secret technique came from that place.

Thomas only had the first volume. Because each volume was the basis for the next, while the first volume was widely circulated, the others probably gathered dust in the monastery library.

If you want to get other volumes, the best way is to go there yourself.

"I see," Thomas said. "Can I leave when my time here is up?"

He was "borrowed" here for a year, but in fact, the loan period was not long.

But it seemed that if he continued to stay, the others in the church would be welcome to do so.

Although Thomas thinks he is very idle, in the eyes of others, he is already the most diligent one.

"Hmm...what a coincidence. Coach Rostislav has some personal matters to attend to in a few days, so he'll have to go back to Kiev. You two can go together. Of course, he'll be back as soon as he's done. As for the time here..." Giuliano smiled. "Just tell Yang. We don't need you here."

Thomas was now certain that Giuliano was hiding something from him. What was he trying to do?

However, the distance between Kiev and Bohemia was enormous, and no matter what Giuliano wanted to do here, it would not affect Kiev far away.

"Okay, I'll go." Thomas agreed seriously.

Go see the world and find a way to acquire the complete set of secret techniques. If I can learn more, that would be perfect.

"By the way, if you're going on a long journey," Giuliano said, "you might need a horse."

In this era, there were no internal combustion engines, and the only ways to travel on land were by horse or carriage or on foot.

In Thomas's case, a horse is needed.

Thomas actually wanted to get a good horse, but unfortunately, horses were more difficult to get than armor.

Because armor can be worn under clothes, it can be worn only at critical moments, and it can be painted so that the material cannot be seen...so if you have a good set of armor, it will not attract anyone's attention.

But if you have a good horse, it's different.

In this era, there may not be many people who understand armor, but there are people all over the world who understand horses.

If a "poor" monk like Thomas rode out for a stroll on a famous horse, it would definitely attract unnecessary attention.

Not to mention Thomas, even his superior, Yang, didn't have a horse.

At least he doesn't ride a horse when he goes out.

Whether the horse will be boarded somewhere else is another matter.

Thomas's final conclusion was to buy a very ordinary prairie horse the next day.

Or it can be called Mongolian horse.

They are short and have thick necks, and have very poor speed and physical strength, but they can tolerate rough feed, rarely get sick, are easy to raise, and are relatively cheap.

……

At dawn, a long convoy was traveling along the winding road.

Although it was a highway, it was still a very bad dirt road by the standards of Thomas's previous life. Dust flew everywhere as people and cars passed by.

This was a fairly large caravan, with twenty or thirty large carts.

The number of people is not just twenty or thirty, but nearly a hundred.

The wagons in the middle and back sections were filled with travelers who had paid to be escorted by the caravan's bodyguards.

In one of the cars, there were seven or eight elderly, weak, women and children.

This vehicle was no ordinary transport vehicle, but one designed specifically for carrying people. Although not as luxurious as a noble carriage, it was also quite ingeniously designed.

There was a horse following each of the front and back of the carriage.

A young knight sat on the horse behind, wearing a tunic and an iron helmet.

Although this knight wasn't particularly sturdy, he looked quite solid. His face was sharp and angular, and although he looked young, he had a calm demeanor.

This is Thomas.

Chapter 91 Time has passed 1

It had been several days since we left Kadan City. The road was not easy to travel on, and the team was not moving very fast.

Thomas began to realize the backwardness of logistics in this world.

He didn't have this feeling when he set out from the monastery to Cardan City. After all, he was hitchhiking and the distance was too short.

For a one or two-day journey, you don't need much. A bag of dry food and a water bag are enough. You don't even need any other small items.

But when you become a group of dozens or hundreds of people, embarking on a long journey, there are many things to consider.

As it is now, the team's speed slows down as it gets bigger.

Looking along the caravan, in front and behind, in all the teams, although there were many horses, there were only a few people riding them.

Even when riding a prairie horse, he is still very conspicuous.

It’s no use if you’re fast, because you’re slowing down the entire team.

So Thomas also walked part of the way and rode part of the way.

Of course, horses are always useful because they can carry a lot of items.

Having a camel and not having a camel are two different things.

In short, for business travelers in this era, such large and mixed groups are the norm.

Actually, Thomas hoped to travel light. After all, he had horses and carts, and his speed was unmatched by anyone else.

Of course, there are advantages to blending into such a large group, which is that it can save you a lot of trouble, such as robbers.

After all, for people of this era, "robber" has never been a strange word.

Anyway, Rostislav made the choice to sneak into the caravan, and Thomas had no objection to it.

There were eleven people on Thomas's side, all children, women and the elderly.

And there are differences in style—you don't even need to know them in detail, just look at their clothing and you'll see. These people seem to belong to different classes. Among the women, the difference in clothing is obvious.

These people seemed to have been forced together.

But I don’t know where it came from.

But it was difficult to ask Rostislav. After all, I knew before setting off that this was Rostislav's private matter.

If someone doesn't want to talk about their private affairs, then they don't want to tell you. And it's not polite to ask for such information.

Speaking of which, the whole thing felt a bit off. Suddenly, a letter of recommendation was given to him to go to Kiev to join a knightly order. It seemed as if they wanted him to leave.

However, even with that being said, it was hard to get to the bottom of it. After all, Thomas had never concealed his desire to join the Knights Templar.

After all, this is a legitimate way out within the church system, open and aboveboard, and impeccable. Who doesn't have a dream?

A letter of recommendation was definitely well-intentioned and just met Thomas's needs.

It was noon, and the sun was scorching, making people sweat profusely.

The team found a shady open space in the forest by the roadside and rested for a while.

Thomas and his team got a good spot, finding a shady spot under a big tree.

Someone came along, shouting, reminding everyone to go to a nearby stream to replenish drinking water.

"Go get some water, hurry up. After this point, it'll take a whole day to get to a suitable water source."

"I'll go get some water." Rostislav took the water bag and walked towards the stream.

Everyone else continued to stay in the shade of the trees.

Thomas found a rare good place - in the grass under a tree. He lay down on it, feeling soft and comfortable.

Under the scorching sun, with nothing to do, I couldn't help feeling sleepy.

He closed his eyes and enjoyed this rare comfort.

But suddenly I felt something was not right.

wrong!

In the distance of the woods, in the opposite direction of the water, flocks of birds were startled and flew away.

Thomas stood up and looked at the flock of birds flying in the distance.

To be honest, the flock of birds was not large and disappeared very quickly.

What's going on? Is there some kind of wild animal? Like a boar or something?

But wild animals like wild boars wouldn't dare approach a crowd. In fact, all large beasts, through their long evolutionary history, had learned about the power of the terrifying ape. With so many people here, no matter what kind of beast, even lions and tigers, wouldn't dare approach.

Besides, this place is right next to the main road, so there shouldn't be any robbers.

There is no shortage of bandits in this world, but there shouldn't be any here, because it's not far from Cardan City.

If there were bandits, Cardan City would have sent troops to encircle and suppress them long ago.

Unless it was the first time that the newly arrived robber took action.

Thomas looked at the soft grass nest, then looked at the sun in the sky. He wanted to lie down again, it was too hot.

But in the end, he still went over there.

If you guess wrong, it's just a trip back and forth.

But if you guess right, then... a disaster has been avoided.

The caravan now had no defenses, and even if the bandits were defeated, they would still suffer heavy losses.

Deep in the woods, on a hillside, a dozen figures wearing various old leather armors were walking quickly forward.

"Boss, is everything okay over there?"

"We've already contacted the caravan," the leader said. "The guards there will cooperate with us and give us instructions. Don't waste time on unnecessary matters. Once we've captured them, we'll leave. Do you understand?"

"Understood." Everyone agreed.

Although their clothing and appearance are no different from what ordinary people think of as robbers, in fact, there is a sense of discipline in the behavior of this group of people that is rare among bandits.

Although they cannot be called an iron army that obeys orders, they naturally cooperate with each other.

Just in the process of action, the team is naturally divided into forwards, defenders, left and right wings, rather than a mob.

Everyone held various weapons, mostly melee weapons, except for one man who held a bow and arrow.