To put it simply, this small stone is just a special mini reconnaissance puppet, but its perception ability has been specially enhanced by her, and of course it can also serve as a medium for launching the "Stand-In Flash".
Her idea was simple, which was to make Thomas her "spy" in the St. Hydra's team going into the mountains.
At first, she planned to choose someone at random, and then secretly implant a mini reconnaissance puppet in "invisible" state into him while no one was paying attention.
But now that I've met Thomas, an acquaintance, I might as well ask him for help.
"Um... that merchant group might have some powerful extraordinary people in it..."
Thomas held the "pebbles" in both hands and spoke cautiously, with a look of embarrassment on his face.
Qi Ji knew that he was worried that this spiritual item would be sensed by the strong men in the merchant group, thus exposing him, so he immediately gave him a reassurance:
"Don't worry, I've treated this thing specially. As long as you don't show it to others, nothing unusual will be discovered."
"well……"
How could Thomas dare to refuse? He didn't continue to discuss compensation and remuneration, but agreed directly.
Qi Ji nodded without saying anything else. He disappeared in this cramped and simple room in a flash.
Chapter 439: Not an ordinary team
Early the next morning.
Thomas, feeling nervous, came to the place where St. Xudela would recruit people yesterday, wearing the half-leather armor that had been with him for many years, the scimitar he had just bought in the Steel City a week ago, and a leather sewing backpack.
This is a small square located at the intersection of several roads. There are already several people waiting in the center of the square. Two of them are wearing high-end uniforms and are obviously the reception personnel of the Order of St. Hydra.
There are also a few who were among the ten people who successfully applied for the strong workers yesterday.
However, compared with Thomas, who was "well-equipped", their attire was much simpler. They basically wore a simple long-sleeved linen shirt, long pants, and a cloth bag containing some personal items, which looked a little shabby.
After all, these people were just the lower-class working people who could be described as "penniless". They were either farmers who came from surrounding villages to make a living, or coolies who worked as laborers in small trading houses.
They are simply no match for the extraordinary people in terms of financial resources and capital - even though Thomas is a nearly bankrupt, desperate adventurer, the wealth he has accumulated is not comparable to that of these lower-class civilians.
This small square is often used by mercenaries, caravans, and private armed forces from other places to hold various recruitment and employment activities.
Therefore, people don’t have any special impression of these people gathered here, and the pedestrians coming and going behave very naturally and normally.
Thomas looked around and everything seemed normal, but he always felt that someone was looking at him from a corner whose direction he couldn't tell, watching his every move.
He swallowed, walked towards the growing crowd, and spoke to the two members of the Order of St. Hydra in a tone as natural as possible:
"When shall we set off?"
The merchant group employee raised his head and glanced at him, then looked at the number of people present and said nonchalantly:
"We'll set off as soon as everyone is gathered."
They didn't have to wait too long. Less than ten minutes later, the rest of the recruited workers arrived one after another.
The St. Hydra's servant counted and confirmed the number of people, then led the ten people to the east of the town, leaving the town and coming to the plains in the eastern suburbs.
The town is about five kilometers away from the End Mountains, and between the two is a fertile and flat grassland.
Logically, it should have been used for farming by farmers long ago, but in fact it remained abandoned, overgrown with weeds and shrubs.
If the farmers of the Templar Kingdom saw this scene, they would definitely feel extremely regretful and confused: It would be a shame not to use such good land to grow something!
But this lush plain was not completely abandoned. Looking around, you can see a few "strongholds" built on it, with people rushing around in various makeshift tents and carriage shelters.
Those were private armed forces such as mercenaries, caravans, merchant groups, hunting teams, etc. from other places who were planning to go into the mountains. They built a temporary base on this plain to create environmental conditions for the final round of team formation before the official departure.
The team of St. Hydra was also among them.
The two men led ten temporary workers and walked straight to the largest and most populous stronghold. When they got closer, Thomas realized that this group of people was really powerful!
There were more than ten pack horses used to pull supplies, and there were four or five large transport carriages with wooden frames and cloth canopies.
Dozens of people moved back and forth in the "territory" drawn by the circle without touching the ground, moving various materials, equipment, tools and resources, which were then assembled and installed by sturdy craftsmen into sturdy large tents or simple wooden houses.
Not only are there a large number of people, but each one is well-trained, with clear division of labor and orderly movements.
Some were driving piles, some were unloading cargo, some were carrying goods, and some were commanding. Their discipline was so strict that they did not seem like a merchant corps at all. They were more like an experienced and skilled national army.
This is definitely the most efficient and organized private army Thomas has ever seen!"
"Those...are all extraordinary people?"
Speaking of the army, Thomas suddenly noticed that on the outskirts of the "stronghold", there were a dozen special members armed to the teeth.
They were wearing full sets of metal plate armor, with brand new swords on one waist and silver revolvers on the other.
They carried a three-meter-long lance on their backs, and beside each of them was a dark warm-blooded horse that arrogantly swung its iron hooves and tail.
That was not a pack horse with uneven coat color and a sunken back, but a war horse with strong legs and a powerful body!
This is a fully armored cavalry!
At first glance, Thomas even suspected that he had returned to the aristocratic territory of the Templar State, because the dress was too professional and sophisticated, and there was no difference between him and a fiefdom knight.
These people have a calm and concentrated temperament, deep and resolute eyes, and are silently wiping and maintaining their equipment.
The reason why Thomas could tell at a glance that they were all extraordinary people was not because his inspiration detected spiritual fluctuations, but because if they were all mortals, they would certainly not wear plate armor before entering the mountains.
After all, it is a metal lump weighing dozens or hundreds of pounds. Not only is it extremely heavy, the armored suit and cushioning pad inside are also very thick.
It is midsummer now and the temperature is already hot. In addition, the environment in the End Mountains is humid and stuffy, so it is not comfortable to wear a set of clothes.
If it were an ordinary person, he would probably not be able to last more than a few miles before suffering from heat stroke and falling into a coma due to excessive water loss from sweating and overheating of the body.
These guys, armed to the teeth, dared to keep wearing that priceless equipment. They must have extraordinary physiques and be able to effectively control their body temperature and sweating. They must have at least the strength of the peak of tempering skills, and maybe even righteous thoughts.
When he turned his gaze to the other end of the stronghold, his heart skipped a beat.
There were also a dozen men and women equipped with warm-blooded war horses, but the clothes they wore were neither armor nor cloth. Instead, they were dark-colored robes that were soft, thick, and wide and slender in shape.
Most of them were holding sticks of different shapes, sizes and materials in their hands, and some were fiddling with and inspecting some strange bottles and jars.
There is no doubt that this is a group of mages. Thomas, who is ignorant, certainly cannot tell their realm. But even if they are all "apprentices", as long as they are well prepared and cooperate closely, more than a dozen mages can form an extremely terrifying fighting force!
At this moment, Thomas completely realized that this seemingly ordinary merchant team... was definitely not simple!
“No wonder that girl is so concerned… This group of people is absolutely not an ordinary merchant group, and their purpose of going into the mountains is definitely not to hunt or collect herbs as they claim!”
How could a normal merchant group possibly afford to support a guard team of dozens of extraordinary people? How could it possibly have such strict and thorough discipline?
While he was thinking, the group had already walked into the interior of the stronghold.
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Chapter 440 Entering the Mountain
"Just follow the instructions of these people and work hard. You will get paid after the end."
The two team leaders left after giving their instructions. Thomas and the other nine people stood there in a daze for more than half a minute, and then several people wearing the uniform of the Order of St. Hydra came over to give them instructions.
Thomas, who had received the order, appeared to be helping the caravan carry supplies obediently, but his eyes could not help but wander around. When his gaze swept across the extraordinary guards stationed on the periphery, he felt an uncontrollable fear in his heart.
"I always feel like a sheep walking into a tiger's mouth..."
He couldn't imagine what would happen if he was exposed and this group of people found out that he was a spy sent by the black-haired girl who "had a grudge" with them.
At times like this, only the heavy and hard texture of the black and red pebble in his arms, which was sewn firmly between the layers of his clothes, could keep his heart barely calm.
"I hope that person can help me when I'm in danger..."
However, as soon as this thought came to his mind, he smiled bitterly and shook his head.
Obviously, this was just wishful thinking. How could she come to support him in person just for the life and death of a small pawn like her?
After being ordered around by the caravan members to work in the base for nearly an hour, when the originally hazy sky became completely bright, those members of the caravan who were preparing to go into the mountains were already ready to go.
"Alright, alright, come over here and gather together. We're about to set off! Don't dawdle, come quickly!"
Hearing the shouting, Thomas didn't even have time to wipe the sweat from his forehead, and hurried to the gathering place.
The gathering point was in an open space about a hundred meters east of the stronghold. There were at least forty or fifty people heading in the same direction as him. The entire stronghold was suddenly short of nearly two-thirds of its personnel, and the atmosphere suddenly became colder and more empty.
The composition of the people gathered in the open space was complex but orderly, and they quickly formed a formation that resembled an arrow.
Among them, guarding the periphery and serving as the "blade and tip" of the "arrowhead" were more than twenty fully armored cavalrymen and mages; in the middle of the team were pack horses carrying necessary supplies and pulled by grooms.
Sandwiched between the two are more than a dozen skilled craftsmen, pharmacists, guides and other technical personnel with superb skills and keen vision.
The division of labor is clear and everything is well organized.
As for Thomas and others, they were divided into different parts and assigned to work as assistants and carry heavy objects.
The ten strong workers recruited from the small town at the foot of the mountain were not all the temporary personnel hired by the Order of St. Hydra.
Thomas observed carefully and found that in addition to the ten of him, there were a dozen guys whose clothes seemed slightly out of place in the team. Their accents did not sound like locals from the small town at the foot of the mountain. They were most likely recruited from other areas of the Star Confederation.
The tasks that these temporarily recruited personnel are responsible for are all mechanical tasks that require no technical skills and are purely physical.
Thomas guessed that Saint Hydra would not want his own people to do such hard, tiring, low-status and low-skill work.
That's why we chose to temporarily hire someone from outside.
"Team formation complete!"
In less than ten minutes, the team of forty or fifty people entering the mountain took their positions. Someone ran to the front of the team and reported loudly to a middle-aged man riding a warm-blood horse.
The middle-aged man on the horse had a rough and weathered face, but he didn't look old at all. Instead, he had a deep and steady temperament. He was probably the leader of this team.
He held the reins with both hands, turned his head and carefully examined the impressive team behind him. After a moment of silence, he shouted in a loud voice:
"set off!"
At his command, this private armed force, nearly half of whose members were equipped with horses and extremely luxuriously equipped... marched in an orderly manner and slowly advanced towards the Mountains of End that stood like a natural moat not far away.
……
…………
……
When Thomas officially set out with the team of the Order of Saint Hydra, Qi Ji had already stepped into the territory of the Mountains of the End.
"Twenty-two extraordinary people, ten of them are true magicians, ten are true mindfulness masters, and the remaining two are magicians and psychics... This is the apparent configuration."
While strolling slowly through the rugged and wild mountains and forests, she reviewed the situation of the team entering the mountain through the "pebble" and couldn't help smiling with interest.
The "pebble" used for reconnaissance was specially customized by her, so the personnel structure of the extraordinary people in the team was completely visible to her.
Thomas saw that the two guard teams were all extraordinary people, but he could never have imagined that they were all extraordinary people of at least the second level, and there were even high-level extraordinary people of the third level to support them!
If this news were told to him, this timid and cowardly guy would probably faint from fright on the spot.
But this is not the most important thing.
In fact, those twenty-two people were just the "obvious" defense force of this team, and the real heavyweights never showed up in public.
Instead, he hid himself in the crowd very cleverly, disguising himself as the most inconspicuous little character.
"...Heh, we're still old friends."
With a playful curl of his lips, Qi Ji turned his attention back to the undulating mountains and forests.
Looking up, through the intertwined branches and leaves of the trees, a huge dark gray wall stood in front of me, almost filling up one-third of the sky.
At this distance, the unclimbable "Mount End" is like a barrier separating heaven and earth, giving those looking up from below a suffocating feeling of oppression. The incomprehensible height and steepness are daunting.
Not to mention anything else, the terrain alone, which can be described as "above there is a high peak with six dragons circling the sun, and below there is a winding river with waves crashing against the current", is enough to block most attempts to cross.
Yesterday, Qi Ji told Thomas that he chose him as a spy because he was afraid of being recognized by the people of St. Hydra Society - this statement was of course a lie to him.
Not to mention that as long as she enters the "invisible" state, no one will notice her even if she runs naked in the team.
Just relying on her unparalleled magical ability and stacking several layers of filters that interfere with her cognition is enough to make her go unnoticed.
The real reason why she didn't follow the team into the mountains was that she wanted to walk ahead to explore the way and see the "Mountains of End" alone, which was mysterious and unpredictable in all records of the human world...
What the hell is this?
"Legend has it that an ancient dragon that is close to the mythical realm lurks in the deepest part of the mountain range...
"In addition, there are rumors that someone has discovered the remains of a civilization that was created at least before the Fifth Epoch in an area near the mountain wall. Some people speculate that there may be surviving ancient people living in this wild land...
