The question of how many tribes and city-states there are in the desert, and the hidden elven settlements and dwarven settlements have been bothering me for a long time. Some scholars believe that there are at least 40 million intelligent beings in Atas today, more than half of whom are humans.

The Atas are a strong and powerful people, persevering and persistent. Thousands of years of tyrant oppression and the ravages of the environment have only made them stronger. If the earthlings were made of mud and water, then the Atas were made of fire and sand. At that time, I thought about what a powerful force it would be to unite these 40 million souls.

-- Muhadi's Apocryphal Hadith

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The power of psionic energy boiled in Muhadi's mind, intensifying his senses. He felt his brain burning, as if he had been poured into boiling water, and his stomach churned.

With the blessing of psionic energy, the world around him became brighter, the sky became a burning curtain, and the light of the torches in the distance was so bright that he could barely look directly. He could feel the clothes he was wearing, which ordinary people would ignore such an ordinary feeling, but the psychic warlock could clearly feel where his robe was clinging to his body, and where it was torn. It was as clear as if he felt the texture of the leather saddle he was sitting on.

The movement of the air became so noticeable, as was the noise of insects in the sand. The human brain can't process so much information, but psychic magicians can. The human brain is also unable to withstand this state of fighting, because the pain will intensify to the point of unbearable, but the psychic warlock does not feel pain, so it is not bothered.

Now he was more aware of the distant situation, the smell of blood mixed together, but he could tell the race, gender, and even age of the victim. In addition to the sound of the wind, the sound of sand, the sound of scavenging birds, and the sound of people in the distance, there are still survivors there, or enemies still alive.

Raina moved her body, and Muhadi just now hugged her motionlessly when she was distracted, making the girl a little uncomfortable. "What's wrong?"

"There were a lot of dead people in front of us, probably four or five hundred. "There are also those who are still alive, but it is not clear whether they are enemies or not." ”

"What then?

"It's not like the character of a muscular daddy," Muhati said, shaking his head. "Besides, we don't have enough supplies, and if we miss here, it will be dangerous if we encounter another big sandstorm. ”

"That could mean fighting. ”

"Fight, the samurai should greet it as if the sun rises every day, nothing out of the ordinary, nothing to escape. ”

Raina stared at Muhadi for a long time, as if to see him through. "People say that the desert changes the essence of a person, and I do. ”

"Maybe it just woke me up to my essence. Muhati shrugged, "Anyway, in the end, it's the muscle daddy who makes the decision." ”

In front of the mercenaries, the muscular daddy had a straight face, and his two thick eyebrows were almost entangled. What he thought in his heart at this time, Muhadi could read it without psionic energy, he didn't want to go far, and he was afraid of encountering a strong enemy.

But in the end, the courage in the gladiator's blood prevailed, "Let's go the way we came!" he yelled. "The corpses of dead men are treasures! We can find money, equipment, meat, and all sorts of other things! Don't be so bitter boy...... "He said to a mercenary with a sad face. “...... Maybe we can still have a few corpses that haven't cooled yet, just enough to give you this necrophilia. ”

The young man who was teased by him blushed, and the other mercenaries laughed, and the muscular daddy continued. "If we meet the enemy, so much the better. They had just fought a big game, and they must have been exhausted. It's better to meet them at this time than when we're hungry. ”

Muhadi admits that Muscle Daddy has a gift, a gift for courage. Although he does not know psionic powers, the vulgar samurai rally around him. Unlike himself, the spirit allowed Muhadi to force a person to obey him unconditionally, respect him, and even worship him, but there was hardly anyone who volunteered to love a psychic mancer.

There are no mages or psionics in the mercenary group, so Muscle Daddy relies on Muhati for his eyeliner and respects his opinion. The strong man of the Moorish leaned over on his horse, "What do you think?"

"Brave!"

"You mean reckless?" said the tall Moor, displeased, "Daddy doesn't want the little ones to continue eating sand. ”

"I mean brave," Muhathir repeated. "Brave and wise. If it were me, I would do the same. ”

"Oh, what can you feel? with your psionic energy. The Murs asked, "Is there an enemy that cannot be dealt with?" ”

"There is only blood and fire, the living and the dead. Muhathir said. "And believe me, if there really is an enemy I can't deal with, then he doesn't want me to show up, I definitely can't show up. ”

Muscle Daddy glanced at Raina, who was still in Muhadi's arms, albeit a little squirming. "Maybe let go of my girl, you can feel more accurate?"

The girl struggled to escape, and Muhadi watched her get on her horse. "Well, I also felt the ground shake. The vibration produced by the person walking. ”

"How many?" said Muscle Daddy was concerned about the question.

"I'm wondering," Muhadi replied honestly, "it seems like there are only a few dozen, but all at once there seem to be hundreds, and I wonder what is going on." ”

"Dozens to hundreds?" displeased the Muscle Daddy, "the difference between being hunted by us at will and being hunted by them at will." It seems that the kid with thin arms can't be relied on in the end. ”

Muhati certainly didn't mind the offense, and the muscular daddy wasn't genuinely complaining. He was a great gladiator, and he was scared away before he even saw each other, which seemed to him to be dishonorable, but in fact to Muhathir was the same. "Attack!" he finally decided.

The mercenaries formed a loose formation and approached the town. The closer you get, the stronger the smell of blood becomes, forcing everyone to be extra careful.

Less than half of the town was gone, a figure emerged from the dust. He was ragged and staggered, but his face was full of joyful smiles.

The mercenaries caught the man, but he just frantically shouted "Winner, I'm the winner!" They were not afraid to fight the Templars armed with steel swords and armor, but they were afraid of the forces of nature. Seeing this strange man, some mercenaries muttered, is there an evil spirit or a natural monster in the town in front of them?

Muhadi walked over consciously, mounted on his horse, and read his mind with his psychic energy.

The madman sat limply on the ground, foaming at the corners of his mouth. He could feel an irresistible force tearing at his heart, like a big hand stirring in his head. He obviously felt that he shouldn't talk to strangers more, but that kind of power violated his thinking logic, forcibly shaped his emotions, and made him fill up with the ** of confiding.

Muhati himself was taken aback by the effect, he had not been so good at mind-reading before. A person who is determined may even read the fake news that the other party can create, but since reading that history of the mind, my understanding of the use of power and the human heart seems to have reached a new level. It seems that it is necessary to carefully record your changes in the future, and maybe it is a good idea to write a journal.

It didn't take much effort for Muhati to dig up what he wanted to know. "The town was ransacked by the thri-kreen. He said to the mercenaries.

The Mantis people are not common in Atas, they are creatures born in the green age, their ancestors lived in huge nests in tropical forests, and the environment of Athas today is a bit too harsh for them. In addition, in the Battle of Purification, the Mantis people were almost killed to the brink of extinction, with less than one in a thousand survivors. But these surviving mantis people are extremely hostile to the Witch King, and like to hunt the Witch King's minions everywhere.

Needless to say, their attitude towards humans is not very friendly.

Mantis people generally operate in a tribal form, and as an insect, the tribal members of the mantis people tend to hatch from the eggs of the same female mantis. They were very tall compared to humans, about seven feet tall and twelve feet long, and weighed more than five hundred pounds. Their six limbs also have the strength of a distant human, and they usually stand on all fours, but sometimes they stand on two legs. No wonder Muhadi couldn't hear the number at first.

Muhadi had never dealt with the creature before, but he had heard rumors about them. Praying mantis people have a very short lifespan, generally not exceeding the age of thirty. But they have population memories and no childhood stages. The larvae can metamorphose into adults in less than a year after hatching from the eggs, and they are as experienced as the old mantis people who have been fighting for more than ten years. Such an enemy is arguably the toughest enemy a mercenary can encounter. There are also rumors that the mantis people hunt around and eat everything, including the human elven dwarves and even the mantis people themselves. The female mantis people say that they will eat males when food is scarce, and if it weren't for the fact that the army of the witch kings is always hunting them, they can be said to be one of the greatest threats in the desert.

"This person. Muhadi continued to read the madman's mind. "He lived in the town, and then the town was attacked by the mantis. The Mantis kills all the samurai and then captures the survivors and forces them to play the game. ”

"What game?" asked Raina, who also squeezed over and stood among the mercenaries. Some of the mercenaries seemed to enjoy squeezing with her, and kept rubbing past.

Muhadi slightly affected the emotions of the people around him, made the girl feel better, and then said. "In the lottery game, the leader of the mantis people decided to show mercy and let the survivors draw lots. Those who win the jackpot can be let go, and those who win the second prize will have their legs broken, but they can save their lives. The rest is made into jerky. ”

"So...... That's what the winner means? he's the jackpot?", said a mercenary.

"So it seems. Muhadi nodded.

Some of the older mercenaries wondered, "How could there be mantises? They never dared to show up in this area, let alone openly attack the town!"

The mercenaries looked at each other, but no one could give the answer - the Witch Kings were vigilant in order to guard against the threat of Tyr, and called back a large number of troops to defend their city. This greatly reduced the number of human armies patrolling the desert, and naturally all kinds of alien races that were enemies of humans appeared.

Humans are the undisputed ruling race on Earth, and in modern times Attas is no different. But this absolute position was won by the primordial warlock Rajat and his fighters. In the ancient past, the praying mantis on Atas were numerous and went around killing people. In addition, there are ogres, spirit-absorbing monsters, goblins, gnomes, and other intelligent races that threaten the survival of mankind. The battle of purification nearly wiped out these creatures, and it was only then that the human race, which was not very powerful in all aspects, ascended to the throne of ruler. But now, the aliens seem to have reappeared, and I don't know what that means.

"Mantis people are nothing to be afraid of!" Muscle Daddy breathed a sigh of relief. "I've killed a dozen mantis people in the gladiatorial arena, and they crackle when they die. ”

“...... The secret to killing insects is something I learned when Yurick was a gladiator champion. "As soon as the muscle daddy relaxes, he starts bragging. "That's to scare them more. Bugs don't have eggs, and when they are scared, they become incontinent. For example, if you shout my name, most mantis people will be scared and unable to move. ”

Unlike mantis people and ant-people, individual mantis people are self-aware, so they will have all kinds of feelings. But to say that they are cowardly would be nonsense. Psychomancers have studied insect psychology, but have not yet come to a definite conclusion, and can only affirm that the concept of judging things by these large insects is very different from that of humanoids.

"Is there any money in the town?" Muscle Daddy asked again about the mercenaries' concerns.

"Of course there is," Mr. Muhadi said. "There aren't a few people left, but I can see that the praying mantis people have plundered a lot of their possessions. There are countless hides, handicrafts of all kinds, linen and other fabrics, metal weapons, spices, and sparkling jewelry. ”

"That's it!" the Moors began to mobilize their mercenaries. A mercenary who has no money is better than a dead mercenary, and the value of life is to walk between the blades and feel yourself in the fight again and again, rather than hiding in a safe place and waiting for death. This is very useful, if you are really so afraid of death, you will not come to be a mercenary at all.

Just when the mercenaries' morale was high, and they wanted to rush into the town in one go, kill all the mantis, and divide the treasure. The two praying mantis men walked into the mercenary position unhurriedly, and the two people who came were all green exoskeletons, about seven feet five inches tall, much taller than the muscular father. The face of the mantis man has two large compound eyes and a mouthpart, and the skeletal face has no expression, just the constant and unconscious chewing of the mouthparts. Unlike the humanoids, they wear no armor or clothing, and hold spears and darts in their four hands. The greener of them held a wooden pole in his hand, and hung a cured meat on one side and a scimitar on the other.

This is what peace negotiation means, food and scimitar, which means choosing battle or peace.

Everyone, including Muhati himself, did not expect that the Mantis people would take the initiative to negotiate. If it weren't for Muhadi's psionic ability that made him sense the approach of the mantis, the others wouldn't even notice that someone was coming. For a while, the mercenaries' loud voices of invitation to battle subsided, and no one knew what these two aliens were going to do.

"Möngke Khan wants to make peace with you!" said one of the larger and greener mantismens, standing far away, out of range of his bow and arrows. "The great tribe of Toksa, in the presence of the Father and Mother Earth, should make peace with the soft-skinned villain. We don't want to fight! This tribe (the mantis people do not understand the social organization of the settled civilization and regard the town as a tribe) has come to this end because they have taken the initiative to attack us!"

It was the first time Muhadi had heard the tribes of Atas refer to their leaders as khans, which gave him a strange feeling. Humans and elven halflings are usually called sheiks, and he's interested in the insect creatures. However, the praying mantis man's nervous system and thinking mode are very different from those of humans, and his spiritual energy cannot dig out the other party's thoughts for the time being, and there is no recognizable emotion in those huge compound eyes.

The muscular daddy vulgarly refused, "I only know one kind of negotiation, and that is the negotiation of steel against steel!

The two praying mantis men glanced at each other, made a silent decision, and fled quickly after dropping their food. The muscular daddy laughed, "These green-skinned crumbs are the most treacherous, I can't fool my father." They like to pretend to negotiate, and then kill the other party's collar by surprise and take advantage of the chaos to attack. Do you think daddy will do this?"

"Guys!" the Moorish man waved his hand proudly, "come with me to kill the insects!"

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