Once upon a time there was a greedy snake

Then, he pulled out several handfuls of green grass from behind his back.

The leaves of those grasses were quite thick, and they looked like they could even be used as food. The Ignivas people had already imagined the texture and taste of these grass leaves, which would probably be quite healthy and slightly refreshing.

However, instead of handing over the grass directly, the minotaurs took out a small earthenware jar. They put the grass into the portable jar, crushed it with a wooden stick, and then added some strange plant juice, some unknown powder, and a bag of something that looked like dirty water.

Then, the leader of the minotaurs began to stir continuously.

The plant juices that had already been crushed were quite unpleasant, and after adding these ingredients and stirring, foam began to rise in the earthenware pot. With the help of these ingredients, the originally clear and transparent plant juices became increasingly turbid, and some floating residues could even be vaguely seen inside.

It was at this moment that the leading minotaur handed the strange jar full of foam to the Ignivas.

"..."

Looking at the large jar in front of them, filled with something indescribable, the Ignivas began to hesitate.

"Wouldn't drinking this stuff... kill you?"

Recalling the cleanliness of their usual food and drink, and then looking at this glass of foamy, unidentified liquid, the Ignivas present all turned pale.

Can't drink.

You absolutely must not drink it.

At this moment, the Ignivas felt an unprecedented fear. They even began to regret why they had dug the tunnel—if they had known that the other side of the snow mountain was such a thing, they would have preferred not to have come in the first place.

However, just as they hesitated, the minotaurs frowned.

The strange, bubbling liquid was pushed over again; clearly, these minotaurs wanted the Ignivas to drink it.

"This……"

After glancing at his tribesmen behind him and then at the several minotaurs with furrowed brows, the leader of the Ignivas hesitated for a moment, then took a deep breath and accepted the pottery jar.

"We extended the invitation according to ancient customs... We can't lose face!"

With that thought in mind, the leader of the Ignivas closed his eyes and drank the entire jar of unknown liquid in one gulp.

It was a taste that defied description, a sticky, slippery texture that spread through the mouth, a mixture of sweet and fishy flavors and an unknown spiciness, even with a strange stench—in that brief moment, the Ignivas man felt as if he had lived his entire life, and at the end of that time, he even saw his ancestors surrounding the One God, waving to him.

"I……"

The leader of the Ignivas was momentarily dazed, as if his ancestors before him had suddenly begun to grow horns.

It wasn't just that horns grew out; even their faces turned into the shape of bulls—it was at this moment that the leader, Ignivas, realized that the one beckoning him was the same minotaur who had handed him the jar earlier.

The minotaur seemed very happy and even took out more grass leaves, clearly intending to give him another can.

"No! I really can't take it anymore!"

The Ignivas waved his hands repeatedly, saying that if he were given another can, he would probably die on the spot.

But it was this refusal that made the Tauren frown again.

Behind him, the Ignis had already sensed something was wrong. Almost immediately, they clapped their hands together—but the fireballs they unleashed were shattered on the spot by the deafening roar. The nearby bull's bellow even made them dizzy and numb all over.

Compared to the food itself, violence is perhaps a clearer language. At least after several people from each side fell, they realized that the other side didn't seem so easy to mess with.

Seeing the minotaurs drag their companions' corpses away, the Ignivas also dragged their companions' corpses back. The corpses all had wounds torn from the bull horns, clearly indicating that the Ignivas had not gained any advantage in close combat in this narrow tunnel.

"Go back, go back quickly..."

The leader of the Ignivas weakly gave instructions to his people; clearly, the unknown liquid had taken a toll on him.

"Report everything here to Akakage... We must avenge our people!"

The Ignivas evacuated immediately and reported back as quickly as possible everything that had happened in the Great Snow Mountain Tunnel.

But there is another team whose speed is almost the same as theirs.

That was an envoy from the Minotaur tribe that emerged from the snow mountain tunnel.

Chapter 80 Tauren

The concept of an envoy delegation was still quite new to the Ignivas.

After all, apart from the Ice People, the Ignivas had never seen any other races. And the way the Ignivas dealt with the Ice People was always to use fireballs directly. They had never heard of minotaurs sending someone to warn them before the battle.

"Are these minotaurs here to die?"

This was the Ignivas' first reaction. They initially mistook these minotaurs for warriors who had come to scout ahead, since these minotaurs were all quite sturdy and clearly very skilled at fighting.

Just as the Ignivas were preparing to burn this small group of minotaurs to ashes...

These minotaurs, however, brought over several boxes made of wooden planks.

The moment the box was opened, all the Ignivas were captivated, for the colorful, clear stones shimmered brilliantly in the sunlight.

"A stone... can actually emit this kind of light?"

Looking at those dazzling stones, the Ignivas present all breathed heavily.

This was the first time the Ignivas had come into contact with gemstones.

Moreover, these minotaurs brought more than just gems.

The ornaments, radiating a clear yellow luster, were simple in design, but their golden color alone was extremely eye-catching. Although the Ignivas people didn't quite understand what these easily crushed objects were for, it didn't stop them from really wanting to take them back.

This was also the first time the Ignivas had come into contact with gold.

The appearance of gems and gold attracted the full attention of the Ignivas, and these minotaurs were naturally treated to good food and drink—firstly, because these minotaurs had given gifts, and in any case, they deserved the hospitality they were entitled to.

Secondly, these minotaurs need to be alive so they can find out where these gems and gold came from.

In order to obtain this information, they must at least establish the most basic communication with these minotaurs.

To the surprise of the Ignivas, these minotaurs were exceptionally intelligent. After only three days and nights, they were already able to greet each other in Ignis. After seven days and nights, they were even able to communicate with the Ignivas in Ignis, though not fluently, but with clear meaning.

After learning Ignis, the minotaurs made their first request.

“Our, Hennu’s, envoy.”

“Your king, our king, requests an audience.”

Hennu is probably what these minotaurs call themselves, and as for the king, it should refer to the leader of the Ignivas—the Ignivas reported the news immediately upon realizing that these minotaurs wanted to meet Red Shadow.

Meanwhile, the Thirty-Sixth Generation Akakage, far away in Ignis Castle, also received two reports from afar.

One document came from the Minotaur delegation, these strange races with minotaur heads expressing their desire to communicate; the other came from the tunnel excavation site, recording the moment the tunnel was completed and the conflict that occurred between the Ignis and the Minotaur—or rather, the Hennu.

"It can actually shatter a mage's fireball?"

Upon seeing the battle report, the Thirty-Sixth Generation Akakage's pupils suddenly contracted.

It's important to understand that even those Ice Plains people who claim to be bathed in divine blood are relying on their physical bodies to withstand the bombardment of fireballs. While those thick-skinned Ice Plains people can indeed withstand the power of fireballs to some extent and avoid being blown to death on the spot, they are far from being able to shatter fireballs with a single roar from these Minotaur.

These minotaurs are likely just as powerful as the Ignivas.

The Thirty-Sixth Generation Akakage keenly realized this.

Deploying war directly would not be a wise move.

Of course, the main reason is that these minotaurs have come to us willingly. Now that we have a way to find out their strengths and weaknesses, there is no need to confront them head-on without knowing anything about them.

"Let them come over first."

With that in mind, the 36th Akakage prepared to meet these minotaurs first.

Led by the warriors, these minotaurs were transported to Ignis, the ancestral home of the Igniswas. Although it had been ravaged by the Ice People at the end of the Old King's era, the ancient city had been renovated thanks to the efforts of several generations of Crimson Shadows.

After the mountain-moving movement began, people were more willing to move to this ancient city because it was closer to the snowy mountain. This was partly to make it easier for them to dig tunnels further west, and partly because the sacred mountain was on the way, making it easier for them to get closer to the great serpent god.

Of course, nowadays, he should be called Taiyi God.

In order to provide spiritual inspiration to people during the tunnel excavation process, the Thirty-Sixth Akakage once vigorously promoted the belief in Taiichi God. At the same time, in order to alleviate the work pressure of those excavators, the Thirty-Sixth Akakage also established several festivals to worship Taiichi God.

The minotaur envoys entered the city just as the harvest festival was taking place.

This was no coincidence; it was deliberately done by the Ignivas who were leading the way. After all, they had all realized how out of control they had been when they saw those gems and gold—their drooling expressions were as if they had never seen anything good before, almost no different from those of the Ice Plains people.

So rushing into the city during the harvest festival is a way for them to get back at the minotaurs and show them the prosperity of the Ignivas.

The giant wooden serpent, carved from solid wood, raised its head, and a large number of pills were fed into its mouth—this was a traditional feature of the harvest festival. The enormous wooden serpent, manipulated by the seeker of the Dao, became as if it were alive, and it was always awe-inspiring no matter how many times one watched it.

Naturally, this scene startled the minotaurs, while the Ignivas who were leading the way felt a surge of pride.

"This is our great serpent god, the One God."

Seeing that the minotaurs were still somewhat confused, one of the Ignivas in the group began to explain.

"He brought us Ignis a bountiful harvest, and we worship Him every year..."

"Does the snake bring abundance?"

The minotaurs were stunned for a moment, then shook their heads.

"How could a snake bring abundance? It is the god of the bull, Dehennu, who is in charge of the harvest."

“Dehennu created all things, and the sun and moon can revolve because of Him. With His will, all things can grow and crops can be harvested.”

"As for your serpent god..."

"It was probably created by Dehennu as well."

Upon hearing this, the previously lively crowd immediately fell silent.

Chapter 81 Blowing

According to the Minotaur, or the Hennu, it was the sacred bull god Dehennu who created all things in the world.

In the beginning, before heaven and earth were separated, the universe was in chaos, without time or space, but it was in this chaos that a great consciousness was born.

That great consciousness conceived the idea of ​​creating heaven and earth, and thus an incomparably enormous pillar appeared, from which gushed forth cow's milk, the very essence of primordial life.

Within this essence, the sacred bull god Dehennu, the primordial god, was born.

The great Dehennu used these essences of life to create heaven and earth, and to create all things in the world. Thus, all things came to have life and their own spirit.

But spirituality alone is not enough. To move from stillness to motion, one needs energy to move. So the great Dehennu generously poured out his milk, giving all things the possibility to grow strong.

The milk that clung to the cow's horns evolved into the Hennu people, who were born on the head of the sacred cow god, the head of all spirits, and the leader of all living beings.

They will act as the incarnations of Dehennu in the world, replacing the great Dehennu and ruling over all things in this world.

"hiss……"

After hearing the account given by the minotaurs from his subordinates, the 36th Akakage gasped in shock.

So these minotaurs actually have such a powerful backer?

Thinking of the great Serpent God on his side, the Thirty-Sixth Akakage felt even more pain in his teeth.

Compared to such a noble being, the Great Serpent God doesn't seem so great after all, that so-called Sacred Bull God created the entire world.

As for the origin of that great serpent god...

Does anyone know what this thing is?

The ancestors never mentioned it, nor did the great serpent god himself. They don't even know the name of that great serpent god to this day. The various names they use to refer to the serpent god are all self-given. Even so, the great serpent god has not recognized any of their names. He does not allow them to call him a god, and he doesn't even want to use the title of the ancestor of the Dao.

As for the current title of Taiyi God...

It is almost foreseeable that once the Serpent God truly awakens from his slumber, this title will likely be revoked.

Compared to the sacred bull god that the minotaurs spoke of, which sounded extremely terrifying, the Ignivas knew almost nothing about their great serpent god—though, in a sense, they knew their serpent god very well.

After all, what's associated with that great serpent god has always been related to food.

On one hand, there's the creation of the entire world, and on the other hand, there's only the consumption. The Thirty-Sixth Generation Akakage could almost imagine how distressed the Ignis people at the harvest festival must have felt after hearing the words of these minotaurs.

It was like being slapped in the face; they could only watch as the minotaurs flaunted their so-called sacred bull god, while they were too embarrassed to even mention the great serpent god they themselves worshipped.

"The person who came here is not good..."

The Thirty-Sixth Generation Akakage had already keenly sensed something.

Although these minotaurs didn't launch a large-scale attack, what they brought might be even more dangerous than stone axes and spears.

Just like now, he has already lost his composure twice in a row without even seeing the faces of those minotaurs.

The first time, it was because of the gold and jewels brought by the minotaurs. These treasures, which he had never seen before, did attract his attention. But when he calmed down, he realized the ignorance he had shown.

The second time was when these minotaurs were proclaiming the so-called sacred bull god. The fact that the great serpent god was inferior to the unfamiliar sacred bull god severely damaged his confidence.

"Could it be that, just as these minotaurs say, the Great Serpent God was also created by the Holy Bull God?"