"Ancient Soul Binding Mage?"

Quest has seen an introduction to this profession in the Transmission of Knowledge and in the Dragon's Lair collection:

"The Soul Binding Mage is a spellcaster who uses the transformation of the ancient bloodline to obtain an artificial supernatural bloodline......

They sought better control over the mixed magical forces that flowed through the depths of their souls, and the true meaning of the evolution and creation of life by creating synths......

It is somewhat similar to the Warlock's ability to trace the inheritance of the bloodline through high charisma, and it is not at all the same as the Mage's ability to cast spells through research and learning......

However, Soulbinder Mages are artificially transplanted rather than self-inherited like Warlocks, unable to construct a definite spell structure, and their power is mixed and destructive, which spellcasters are accustomed to naming as 'Hexetic'......

Under the control of the will, the soulbinding mage can directly use the magic power from himself or the tragic victim to complete stealth operations, control the weak-willed soul, or directly destroy the enemy with demonic flames, but need to fight against the twisted will derived from the power at all times......

Perhaps the development of the bloodline transformation of the soulbinding mages in ancient times was just a less successful experiment, and the sorcerers' enthusiasm for creating all kinds of synthetic beasts can also be understood as a desire to repair the distorted chaos in the depths of their bodies and souls by studying the evolution and creation of life......"

Inherited from ancient times, the legacy of the caster before the two eras of the battle of all races and the rise of the human race, the value is immeasurable. In fact, after reading Cottman's experimental logs, Quest was intrigued by these ancient secrets that might reveal why he was able to travel to the world of the ashes.

"The laboratory of the Ancient Soul Binding Mage is indeed quite valuable. To put it mildly, it is worth much more than the son of the chieftain of your tribe, whom I have captured. But the quest you've done has not been successful, and you may even have suffered heavy losses. ”

Opportunities and challenges coexist, and wealth is always proportional to danger.

"Indeed, with the strength of the Salem tribe, it is simply wishful thinking to completely complete the exploration of this ruin," even the strange voice of Braci the Tongue Puller could not hide the bitterness in his tone, and he stated in a tone that bordered on frustration: "The Elven tribe has not had a legendary-level spellcaster for too long, and even if they have found a relatively simple way to sound words, there are not enough high-level spellcasters. To explore these ruins, there are no high-level spellcasters at your disposal, and the samurai are no match for the eerie traps and terrifying synths. ”

"In fact, our previous expedition was almost completely wiped out after only a short advance, and was only blocked by a few low-level synths. ”

Knowing that it was impossible to conceal the dangers of the Soulbinder Mage's lab, Brach simply admitted the failure of the Horde's exploration. He understands that negotiation is like gambling, and that more chips need to be put on the table before the opponent will be willing to follow suit.

He pulled out another scroll and gestured to the accompanying samurai, one of whom took out a wooden box from his backpack.

"We didn't have nothing to gain, this is one that Hajir Khan and I desperately brought out of the Soulbinding Mage's laboratory," Braci opened the scroll and introduced, "We defeated the first wave of synths and found the workshop that produced these synths, and it was here that we got the biggest takeaway from our trip." ”

Bracchi, the Tongue Puller, suddenly raised his voice, and exclaimed as if he were singing:

"The beast born for war is beginning to show its edge,

Sipping the hot oil from the ground is not too hot.

Shield-like armor is not afraid of iron and swords and spears,

Fangs and fangs gouge out the hearts of their enemies.

When the charging war horse encounters it, it retreats and hesitates,

The valiant samurai also trembled when they encountered it.

Obey the orders of the Khan to ward off the enemy,

The stump and blood write the glory of Salem!"

With the abrupt end of the aria, the elven messenger suddenly opened the wooden box handed by his subordinates.

An organ of an unknown creature was lying in the box, but it was clear that it was not an ordinary creature with this organ, the red-hot burning fuel replaced the blood vessels that should be flowing blood, and even the inside of the wooden box containing it had some traces of carbonization, and at the same time, a pungent smell broke into the nostrils of everyone present as the box was opened.

"Based on the harvest obtained from deciphering that time, a research note from an ancient soulbinder mage and a production nest from the Synth Workshop, I have worked with all the high-ranking chanters of the tribe to research a new type of war synth belonging to the Salem tribe, the Blazing Shadowmon. This is the highest secret of the tribe, and apart from the chief and me, only a few elders and a few captains know about it. ”

Bradch glanced at the three brothers Epicurus and the Ogre who were still standing aside, as if he didn't want to reveal more, but Quest didn't say anything, he could only continue: "This war beast has no gender, there is no way to produce naturally, and it can only rely on the nest of production to breed its larvae. They don't need to drink water, their combat effectiveness is amazing, they only need to be fed the black oil dug up in the ground regularly to survive and develop well, and their vitality is amazing, even if they are dissected, they will not die easily. This wooden box contained the organs of this blazing beast to digest black oil. ”

Taking the water bag from another samurai attendant, it contained black oil instead of water, and Brach poured a little over the organ. The black oil quickly seeped into the inside of the organ, and soon the already dull organ began to pump rhythmically, and some of the vascular-like tissues connected to the organ flowed out of the burning liquid at an alarming temperature, and there were many more debris carbonized by the high temperature inside the wooden box.

"Barbecue that cooks itself ......" the ogre gourmet, looking at the Blazing Beast's digestive organs, muttered quietly.

Seeing the Blazing Beasts digest and use the heat energy of the black oil, the first thing that came to Quest's mind was the Red Dragons, who also belonged to the five-colored dragons, and they also had the ability to devour magma. However, although dragons can live by eating any substance rich in energy directly, they will never give up their preference for flesh and blood, and they have relied on great perseverance and rational constraints to gnaw copper ore before.

"It doesn't have the perverted digestion ability of a dragon, but it's enough to be called a monster with a biological internal combustion engine," Quis thought to himself, "Compared to the current synthetic beasts that can only be stitched together, the Ancient Soul Binding Mages do have their own unique techniques. Maybe it's really a remnant of that ancient civilization. ”

Seeing that Quest, who had turned into a human boy, had a somewhat moved look, Bradch added a fire and said: "Powerful Dragon's Lair Emissary, the value of this map has been proven, although Salem has no way to gain more from here at the moment, but the Dragon's Lair with the legendary dragon as the foundation is capable of exploring this ruin, and the synthesizer organization in this wooden box can be used as evidence that you can provide feasible advice to the great legendary dragon." ”

"I have to agree that this map is worth as much as the son of a chieftain named Harkonnam. I agree to exercise the agreement of first refusal, and you can take this elf with you. ”

"Thank you for your kindness and generosity, then there is an exchange of more than a hundred samurai in the future, can you ......?"

Quest waved his hand to stop Brach's words: "As a contract I made before, I have traded all these people into slavery with this merchant, and I have been paid accordingly, if you want to discuss the return of other Salem warriors, you can discuss it directly with him." ”

He took the map and the digestive tissue of the synth from the elf and placed them in his backpack. Quess beckoned his ogre friend out of the tent that made him feel cramped and stuffy. It's already very close to the dragon's nest, so I have to go back and explain that I haven't returned from going out for a few days.

As for these gains, the Dragon's Lair did not stipulate that the proceeds of the hunting patrol should be handed over, and he did not urgently need to explore the Soul Binding Mage's relics immediately, so there was no need to tell the old dragon about them.

"My ogre friends, I'm going back to the Dragon's Lair to fulfill my work obligations. It's about two days away from the Dragon's Lair, and the place where you follow the caravan to the trade place is probably one of the old dragon's dependents, called the "Keyfoot" kobold settlement," Quis reached out and patted the wrists of several ogres, which is also the highest position that this shapeshifter can touch, "I look forward to us meeting again and exploring this world together as a team." ”

The experience of running a group still influences Queth's thinking. Although there is no data to reflect it, the young blue dragon has been able to find out that several ogres have a good opinion of him after a few days of getting along. "Maybe if you're still in the game now, the charm value is so high that you can click on the interface to recruit companions, hehe. ”

While the young dragon happily reminisced about the past, in the large tent in the middle of the caravan station, the slightly self-contained Epicurus also negotiated with the elven messenger known as the tongue puller.

"Blazing Sun! Elven Emissary of Salem, you must understand that it was your unprovoked attacks that caused my losses, and the compensation that the captives brought me as slaves was not even enough to offset half of my original losses!"

"According to the custom of the desert, this is not an unprovoked attack, but you have entered the hunting area we have divided, and Salem has the right to demand the commercial tax due to his own tribe!"

"It's a pity that your tax collectors have neither the art of numbers nor any etiquette, and they have attacked my caravan without even declaring war!"

......

"Salem will compensate you for a thousand silver Kate gems, as well as an oath made by me and you in the name of the Tribal Ancestors, that for the next three years your caravan will have a free stall in Salem and any bazaar in the Vassals, and that you will not pay taxes on furs, weapons, and even slaves from the Elven Tribes, and will receive a 20% discount on the total price. ”

"Weapons, including the Blazing Shadow beast you mentioned in your previous discussion?" Epicurus asked tentatively.

"You're delusional!" accompanied by the angry roar of the tongue puller, and the elven warriors who accompanied him drew their scimitars.

"Okay, okay, I just wanted to ask. Seeing his escort warriors and elves fighting like they were facing a great enemy, Epicurus expressed his curiosity only for a moment.

"And what about your reply?" Bradch motioned for the elven warriors to put away their swords.

"Deal, but the agreement must be drafted immediately, signed and sealed. I need to have a letter of acceptance of your Khan as a negotiator for this time. ”

"As you wish, may your caravan reap the delightful fortune of friendly Salem and its friends. Blatch smiled and blessed the merchant, but thought to himself: "May the thieves in the bazaar tear and empty your money bag, and not a word remains!"

"Thank you for your best wishes, and may your kind words bring you lasting health and happiness. Epicurus replied, but what he really thought at this time was, "May the swords and spears be on your heads, rude, stupid chunks of elven crumbs!"