The Northern Territory rarely saw the moon.
Thick clouds covered the sky, making the night darker than anywhere else.
After riding several miles out of the city, Zhe Zilin pulled on the reins and determined the direction they needed to go.
The half-orcs had come from the Eastern Plains.
Logically, they should be chased eastward, but heading south would allow them to leave the Northern Territory the fastest.
If he were the one being hunted, he would definitely want to escape the other party’s control as quickly as possible.
Zhe Zilin confirmed the southern direction and activated the skill [True God’s Eye].
When he thought of the five half-orcs in his mind, the scene immediately appeared before his eyes. One-Eye’s solemn face came into view.
Behind him, Scar was being carried by Gan, Wen, and Cui as they struggled forward through the snow.
One-Eye kept turning his head nervously. In the distance behind them, the figures of Northern Territory soldiers could vaguely be seen.
A trace of surprise flashed through Osha’s eyes. After observing for a few more seconds, she finally confirmed her guess.
“Ed, you also possess the True God’s Eye!?”
Zhe Zilin turned his head. He had not expected that simply using the skill once would allow Osha to accurately name it.
Had she also used the True God’s Eye when she saw Leon in the kitchen?
He asked in return, “You have it too?”
“Of course. This is my unique magic.” Osha grew increasingly puzzled.
“Why do you have it as well?”
Those chosen by the gods had always been unique. Each god’s magic was also unique. Osha had never seen anyone else cast the same magic as her.
Zhe Zilin pondered for a few breaths. He suddenly realized that after completing Ailia’s wish, he had obtained a reward related to wizards.
After completing Osha’s wish, he had also obtained her magic.
He glanced at the tattered magic book in his system inventory. Ailia probably had an identical one as well.
The Wizard’s Potential was definitely also a trait that belonged to Ailia.
He was completely replicating the special traits of both Ailia and Osha.
Zhe Zilin gave a light cough to hide his embarrassment at being recognized by the original owner. He casually came up with an excuse.
“I once fell off a cliff. By chance, I found a magic history book at the bottom of the cliff. It contained the magic of [True God’s Eye].”
Osha lowered her eyes in thought.
No matter how hard she tried to recall, she had no memory of any magic history book. She had never even heard of it in rumors.
“Then where is the magic history book? I would like to take a look.”
Zhe Zilin straightened his back and did not dare to look at Osha’s face, afraid that his expression would give him away.
“The magic history book is carved into a stone wall. I could not bring it with me.”
Osha did not speak. She lowered her head and pondered for a long time.
Seeing this, Zhe Zilin quickly changed the topic.
“Just now I saw that the half-orcs were about to be caught. We cannot delay any longer. Let us depart immediately.”
He gave a shout and spurred his horse forward, galloping rapidly through the forest toward the south.
Osha stopped dwelling on the magic history book and caught up to Zhe Zilin. She asked, “Are you going to compete with the fake Leon for the half-orcs?”
Zhe Zilin nodded.
“The fake Leon and the half-orcs were originally colluding with the Ice Demon. But now the half-orcs are fleeing while the fake Leon is hunting them down. They must have had a disagreement over something.”
Zhe Zilin was not lying.
He was simply avoiding the important points and only telling Osha the parts that were true.
Of course, Osha was not a naive girl either.
“What does this have to do with you?”
Zhe Zilin leaned forward, gripping the reins tightly. The cold wind was biting.
He raised his voice.
“Did you forget the promise you made to me?”
Snow began to fall from the sky.
He suddenly sped up and rode ahead of Osha, blocking the biting wind and snow for her.
Osha slightly raised her head and muttered softly, “Do not ask too many questions. Do not do too much.”
Zhe Zilin’s exposed skin turned bright red from the freezing weather.
He squinted his eyes as he looked into the pitch-black forest. Fortunately, there was a path that was not too narrow.
Otherwise, forcing their way through the trees while carrying heavy snow would have easily caused them to fall.
From nightfall until deep into the night, a thin layer of snow had accumulated on Zhe Zilin’s clothes.
Even the jolting of the horse could not shake off the stubborn snow.
After riding for an unknown amount of time, the sound of horse hooves reached Zhe Zilin’s ears.
When he slightly raised his head and looked ahead, a troop of roughly a hundred soldiers in armor appeared not far away.
Before Zhe Zilin could get a clear look, Osha recognized the person leading them with her superior abilities.
“It is the fake Leon. He seems to be waiting for us.”
If the fake Leon had only brought a dozen or so royal guards, Zhe Zilin would have charged forward without hesitation to fight.
But in order to chase the half-orcs, the other party had actually brought nearly a hundred Northern Territory soldiers.
Moreover, judging by the other party’s appearance, it did not seem like they were chasing the half-orcs. They were waiting for Zhe Zilin.
“His target might never have been the half-orcs. It was me all along.”
Zhe Zilin slowly reduced his speed and thought about how to get past these hundred-plus people.
In an instant, Osha did not slow down. She rode past him.
“I am a princess of the kingdom. He would not dare and cannot do anything to me. I will hold them back. You take a detour and go after the half-orcs.”
By the time Zhe Zilin came back to his senses, Osha had already ridden dozens of meters ahead. He immediately spurred his horse and galloped toward the side.
“Be careful!”
Osha turned her head and smiled in response. “You too!”
Zhe Zilin pressed his body almost flat against the horse’s back.
His eyes remained fixed straight ahead.
To bypass the fake Leon and his army, he needed to cut through the dense forest.
He had to concentrate fully on controlling the reins.
As he rode parallel to the army led by the fake Leon, he turned his head and saw Osha talking with Leon.
Perhaps it was instinct, but he could feel that both Osha and Leon were looking at him.
In the next moment, he lowered his head again and continued rushing southward.
While riding, Zhe Zilin felt increasingly that something was strange.
In the scene he had seen, Scar was injured and being carried.
The half-orcs’ traveling speed could not have been fast. Yet Leon had not caught up to them during the day.
This did not make sense.
His original plan had been to ambush and kill everyone on the road while Leon was escorting the half-orcs back to the city.
But now, things had exceeded his expectations.
The half-orcs were like bait. Leon was luring him into a trap. But what exactly did the other party want to do?
Suppressing the unease in his heart, Zhe Zilin moved through the forest like a bolt of lightning, galloping even faster.
When he tried to use [True God’s Eye] again, the scene only lasted two or three seconds before disappearing.
Before he could feel confused, the System automatically notified him that he had insufficient mana.
His current mana was only enough to use [True God’s Eye] once per day.
However, those two or three seconds were enough for him to see clearly.
One-Eye and the others were already surrounded and fighting desperately.
Scar was dragging his injured shoulder and could only hold his sword with one hand. One-Eye and Gan, Wen, and Cui stood in front of him to protect him.
Thirty soldiers on horseback were in no hurry to attack.
Leon had ordered them to keep the half-orcs alive, so they were wearing down the half-orcs’ will.
The soldiers circled around the half-orcs, deliberately making their horses’ hooves create noisy sounds.
Surrounded by enemies on all sides, the half-orcs gritted their teeth and turned in circles.
Although the bleeding from Scar’s shoulder had stopped, his face was already deathly pale. He weakly opened his mouth.
“One-Eye, they are trying to break our fighting spirit. It seems they do not want to kill us.”
“Could it be people sent by that guy Leibang?”
One-Eye snorted coldly. “These are Northern Territory soldiers. How could Leibang possibly command them?”
“He pinned the deaths of the gate guards and Leon on us, so the Northern Territory is coming to hunt us down. Leibang? Hmph. Right now he is probably holding a woman and drinking in front of a fireplace.”
The soldiers lost their patience. One of the older soldiers said, “Kill the injured one first. He will not make it back to North City alive anyway. Leave four alive.”
With that, the soldiers raised their longswords and began their attack.
Their wheel-like offensive made it difficult for the half-orcs to defend.
One-Eye and Gan, Wen, and Cui were covered in bloody wounds while protecting Scar.
Although these soldiers had not struck to kill, swords had no eyes.
In the end, the half-orcs were at the end of their strength.
Scar looked at his panting companions in front of him and gave a bitter smile. He forcefully pushed them away.
One-Eye staggered and shouted in alarm, “Scar!”
A longsword suddenly thrust toward Scar’s throat.
With a thud, the blade pierced through blood vessels.
Blood splattered three feet high.
Scar’s eyes, which had been about to close, suddenly widened.
An uncontrollable laugh spread across his face.
“Leibang!”