However, at this moment, the beast hidden in his heart seemed to stir restlessly.

...

Conrad saw Redi's expression and smiled imperceptibly. He turned around and casually threw the dagger back to the Dark Priest— that was the priest's ceremonial dagger, definitely not to be used for murder. As a member of the Shepherd Tree Men, he fully understood that the ceremony was sacred, part of the plan to welcome the re-emergence of the Dark Dragon.

The Dark Priest glanced at the red-haired girl and quickly followed suit. He bowed his head deferentially and praised in a somber voice, "You truly are a master of manipulating hearts."

In fact, only he knew that the young man with a demonic presence had not asked those mercenaries any questions from the beginning. All was an act for Redi; Conrad had recognized the opponent's weakness from the start.

"Human nature is weak, and the pursuit of benefit and avoidance of harm is inherent in animals. I never play with anyone, I merely provide more choices for them." The squad leader of the Paper Card Mercenary Group replied, "You know, compared to those who constantly preach honor and justice, I have one flaw— I never lie."

The Dark Priest laughed softly, "But humans are cunning and would never show their vulnerable side."

"That's why interrogation is an art." Conrad smiled, "I'm more interested in his identity, planting a hidden move in the Heavenly Destiny Country may come in handy someday. By the way, why did you agree to lend him that new pet?"

"The girl's own will hasn't disappeared yet, let her see how bad her past companions can be. Only by recognizing the dark side of human nature can she hasten to accept the information provided by Divine Blood." The Dark Priest replied.

"Good plan."

"What are your thoughts, squad leader?"

"Let's prepare and hurry to He Youji'er. They actually moved northeast, knowing well that the northeast is Lizardman territory, using reverse thinking, going the opposite way. If it weren't for manipulating hearts, even I almost got fooled by the Cunning Fox this time."

"Honestly," the Dark Priest shook his head, "I don't like dealing with that stinky lizard."

"I don't either."

Conrad answered as he took off his bloodstained gloves.

...

The starry sky last night seemed to foretell today's clear weather. The brutal slaughter in the forest might be unknown to anyone but the people involved, the only traces left are the faint black smoke on the horizon behind Brand and his companions. The scorching sun continued to bake the forest, the overlapping canopies absorbed enough sunlight to display a breathtaking green— the green of life.

Although it's just a nonexistent possibility, the mercenaries couldn't help but wonder if the trees absorbed the nutrients from the blood to become so lush after the fierce fight last night. They whispered privately, but their extremely low voices could not escape the keen perception of the young man.

"Feudal superstitions are truly terrifying."

Brand muttered, he repeatedly inspected the dark card in his hand. Clearly made of silver, yet it presented a bizarre ink-black color, with Medisha's warm smile on it, creating a stark contrast. It was his only black card, but where would he go to find a land card that could provide dark elements?

If he could summon that little girl quickly, he could tread freely for a considerable amount of time. But as it stands, it remains a clueless task.

He stared blankly at the card— suddenly stopping his action, once again confirming the hint of throbbing he felt last night was indeed card resonance. In Travel Mage rules, this indicates another card from the same set exists in the area, and the cards create bridging resonance— if he wasn't a Travel Mage yesterday, the reaction wouldn't be "card resonance," but more like the "magic resonance reaction" that occurred in the Golden Tree Canyon last time.

After searching through all his cards, he found that the resonant Destiny Card was surprisingly this one— representing 'Medisha,' the Unicorn Knight. The 'Eternal Song' set was created for him, even Brand didn't expect new rules to join this set within a short period.

It could be a newly emerged Destiny Card, or something resonating with 'Medisha's' attributes, whether equipment, biological, or boundary, indicating that it might be sealed into this set. Unfortunately, it couldn't be a land card, as Brand knew except for rare exceptions, land cards don't resonate with any cards.

Since last night, this resonance had occurred six times, each time closer. The last time, over an hour ago, almost right to their left. This discovery puzzled Brand; could it really be some creature? Or someone moving with the card?

He looked up at the sun; after a night of trekking, it was almost noon. Above Black Iron Power, or Constitution reaching level 3, one or two nights without sleep wouldn't affect them. However, Roman and Antitina seemed slightly strained, Brand noticed their condition when he looked around. Fortunately, the care of the Wild Elf sisters allowed them to barely keep up.

Time was limited. Due to delays at the Order Altar, they now had to use every minute and every second. (To be continued. To know the next part, please visit www.qidian.com, more chapters, support the author, support legit reading!)

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