The gloomy sky, the icy drizzle, and the lonely castle on the edge of the swamp all make up the best elements of a horror movie scene.

This is the edge of the lizard swamp, and if you stand on the outer wall of the castle, you can see the green cliffs looking down on the whole swamp. If you ignore the gloomy skies and the cold drizzle, this swamp is still a very nice place.

Misty mist and drizzle envelop the swamp, large puddles of water cover the silt beneath the swamp, there is a lack of tall temperate trees, low bushes and shrubs like red pine forests are scattered between the swamp puddles, and large expanses of reeds and irises sway at the edge of the puddles, providing the best food and shelter for the elk, capybaras, antelopes, wild boars, swans, pelicans, cormorants and other wildlife that inhabit them.

In fact, contrary to popular belief, the Lizard Swamp is an extremely fertile land. The abundant flora and water supply the wildlife that inhabits the area. And the silt accumulated in the swamp makes the land incredibly fertile for the owners of the farmland.

So, long ago, humans were scattered throughout the swamps, draining puddles, clearing land, turning silted swamps into farmland, and waters covered with reeds and iris into grazing grounds for poultry. Here, human colonists scattered around the swamp on farms, villages, and communes, and used fortresses and ports as communication nodes for the outside world.

In the depths of the swamp, the dominant lizardmen are not only fighting for space with the frogmen, but they are also engaged in a protracted civil war themselves over their clans' desire for territory, hatcheries, and prey.

Generally speaking, because the area of human activity is mainly in the area of silted up puddles at the edge of the swamp, there is not much conflict with the lizardmen who live in the depths of the swamp. It's just the hardships of life, and the predatory instinct of intelligent creatures, that make lizardfolk often raid human territory in order to obtain the fruits of human hard work.

"It's not easy to live here!"

Smelling the heavy muddy air wafting from the direction of the swamp, and looking at the gloomy swamp under the continuous rain, Shi Ji couldn't help but sigh lowly.

Krom's Grip is a castle located at the forefront of the fight against the lizardmen, and behind it, there are patches of farmland and villages reclaimed from the former lizard swamps, and it is precisely because the Krom's Grip has always stood here, blocking the way of most of the swamp lizardmen's invasion, ensuring the peace and tranquility of those farmlands and villages in the rear.

The land on the edge of the swamp is incredibly fertile and produces several times the yield of other regions, but the dangers of living here are also several times greater than those of other regions. In addition to the swamp monsters such as lizardmen and frogmen that may invade from time to time, the biggest danger here is actually secret mosquitoes and other bugs that can bring various diseases.

"A happy life doesn't come for nothing!"

Dugu Feng said lightly: "The Gate of Bode, Deep Water City, and even the Silver Moon City further north are all really built through generations of sacrifice and reclamation. There's nothing wrong with you yearning for the life of an adventurer. Adventurers are the sword of human pioneering, and with their dreams in mind, they bid farewell to their parents, far from their homeland, and plunge into the endless adventures of the continent. ”

"Whether it's cleaning up goblins, guarding territory, exploring ruins, killing monsters, accepting hires, fighting alien tribes, in short, whether intentional or not, what adventurers do is objectively promoting the expansion of human living space, and it is objectively promoting the process of human reclamation."

"They are humble, but they are also great."

Shi Ji's eyes flashed, her heart was touched, and she was about to say something, but Dugu Feng waved her hand and stopped her words: "It's shallow on paper, don't say anything first, experience this adventure well, pay attention to what you see, hear, and feel, imprint them all into your memory, and then say your feelings." ”

"Yes!"

After listening to Dugufeng's words, Shi Ji nodded vigorously and said seriously: "I know, I will do what my sister says." ”

With that, Shi Ji let go of her sister who was close to her, resolutely left the shelter of the mage's robe, and bravely faced the cold wind and mosquitoes from the swamp.

"Two lords, the Baroness, please ......"

Just as Dugufeng was teaching Shi Ji, a servant hurriedly ran up and conveyed the baroness's invitation.

"Let's go! Your long-awaited mission is here! ”

Dugu Feng smiled lightly, took Shi Ji's hand, and walked down together.

……

In the hall of the castle, the Baroness, the Knight of Istva, as well as Captain Frank, Sergeant Durrynn, and others, who had just been treated by the priests, were there.

"Sergeant Durian, you take some people, drag the carcasses of those lizards to the edge of the swamp, cut off the heads of those lizards, and stick them in their spears, I want those disgusting lizards to remember the price of violating my territory......"

When Dugu Feng and Shi Ji walked in, Baroness Winnie was ordering his soldiers like this.

"The presence of the Black Dragon is no small threat, although I think the danger to the Grip of Krom is minimal. But we still have to support its defense and stay for a few more days. In the meantime, though, I'd like you to help. ”

When the Silver Dragon Lady, Veria Roland, and the Moon Elf Milano arrived, the Knight of Istva said directly to the group, "I would like to ask you to go deep into the swamp and find the lair of this black dragon. I guess it's hiding somewhere in the swamp. ”

"You may encounter hostile lizardmen on your journey, but I hope that you will do whatever it takes to avoid facing the dragon, and your mission this time is not to slay the dragon, but to find out the black dragon's lair as stealthily as possible, and if necessary, Dagger Beach will organize a crusade against it. But not now......"

The mission issued by the knights of Evaat was quite reasonable, and they were not asked to slay the dragon, but only asked them to scout the black dragon's lair. This is not a very difficult task for an adventurous team with an average level of around seven or eight levels, as well as these two spellcasters.

In this regard, Dugufeng and the others naturally agreed without any doubt. For their team, not to mention a mere reconnaissance mission, even if it is a real dragon slay, there is no problem at all.

"By the way, what is the 'tribute' that the dragon is asking for? Although this black dragon is vicious, cruel, and even infamously unreasonable, since he has no record of attacking human castles before, there must be a certain reason for this attack! ”

Entering a state of adventure, the most experienced Veria Loren immediately asked for information: "In order to be able to complete the mission, I think we have to know enough information. ”

"It's an altar!"

Baroness Winnie replied directly, "The sacrifice that the black dragon asked for was an 'altar'. It was something my ancestors left behind. If it hadn't been for the dragon's request this time, I'd almost forgotten it existed. ”

"Can you elaborate on the shape of this altar? What's so special about it? Veria Rolland continued to ask.

"It was an altar made of blue coral, which looked like a crashing wave from the side. It has been locked in the basement of the castle for many years. I don't know how the dragon learned about it, but it seemed worth the value of my soldier's life. ”

Baroness Winnie said coldly, it seemed that she didn't care much about the loss of the altar, but was angry at the loss of the soldier's life.

"Wait a minute, the stained glass altar is decorated with cloud-like patterns and lightning?"

As if he suddenly remembered something, the knight of Evaat hurriedly said: "Not long ago, the orcs and half-orcs plundered a noble manor in the north of Dagger Beach, and one of the destroyed items was a stained glass altar hidden in the family basement. I can't help but imagine that two things are connected. ”

"No, that altar doesn't have clouds and lightning other than wave decorations!" Baroness Winnie's voice was as cold as ever: "However, I agree with your judgment. These two things are linked. The altar was supposed to be buried with one of my ancestors, but I took it out fifteen years ago when I was renovating the castle and the family cemetery. ”

"A wave-decorated altar? Sounds like a relic of the Reverend Amberley, the goddess of the sea? ”

Lady Silver Dragon said, guessing the origin of the altar. Because the emblem of Amberly, the goddess of the sea, is a pair of waves that hit.

"Perhaps, but it doesn't matter. What matters is what the dragon wants it to do. ”

Baroness Winnie said coldly, obviously not very interested in the origin of the altar, but said to the adventurers: "You can rest in the castle for the night before setting out, the swamp is obviously not a good place to march. You'd better be well prepared before you go. If you don't return within a week, I'll send a team of soldiers to look for you......"

Now that Dugu Feng and the others have taken over the task, Baroness Winnie and Knight Istva will do their best to help them. The Baroness ordered food and water, as well as other necessary equipment, to be prepared, and the Knight of Isteva provided each of them with a bottle of healing.

……

"Hi young warriors, hello!"

Just after Dugufeng and the others took over the task and walked out of the hall, a young female warrior in her twenties wearing armor walked over and took the initiative to greet everyone.

She was known to all as one of the soldiers who followed the Isterva knights from Dagger Bank, and she was clearly a warrior who had been through a lot of battles - in addition to the scars on her armor, the missing ear on her head was the best proof of that.

"Huh!"

Looking at this uninvited female warrior, Dugufeng smiled playfully, but did not speak. And almost like Dugu Feng, Vilia Roland, and Ms. Yinlong also showed inexplicable smiles in their eyes.