"May the flames of the holy fire illuminate your path forward."
"May the flames of the Holy Fire illuminate your path forward, brother——"
The caravan arrived under the south gate of Questark, where the people traveling with each other parted and cherished each other.
A hand with dark skin and staggered wrinkles stretched out from under the robe and slowly handed it to Fang Plover - he raised his head in astonishment and looked at the deeply wrinkled face of the caravan leader. The latter was smiling slightly: "Thank you for your help on the way, young man... This is your courtesy, but actually I am not very familiar with it..."
Fang Yu was startled for a moment, then couldn't help but smile and shook hands with the other party. "It's just a little effort."
The old man retracted his hand, turned around and looked at the towering dusty sand dunes in the distance, with a somewhat emotional look on his face:
"It is said to be a simple effort, but for those of us who make a living in this desert, the meaning is completely different. In fact, since there are more and more candidates on this road, the road has become easier and easier to walk. , although they can no longer make huge profits like in the past, but young people can at least go home alive and reunite with their wives and children."
"Because of this connection, the desert has become closer. In my memory, before the previous king of sand, this place was still a plate of loose sand——"
He bent down, grabbed a handful of sand, and watched the gravel slip from his fingers. "Look, it's like this sand..."
The old man clapped his hands again and stood up: "But today, it has gradually become like a real kingdom, a place where people can live peacefully. Many people are opposed to the current changes, but I believe they are just temporarily deceived. It’s just that the rapidly changing life makes people feel confused and resentful, but one day, people will cherish everything that is hard-won.”
"The agreement signed with you, and your coming to this world have brought the best changes to all of this - and today's King of Sand and his father are the real ones on this sea of sand. Masters, for it was they who brought this about in two generations.”
"It's the Stargate Declaration."
"Stargate Declaration." The old man repeated in a low voice.
"But I heard that some princes and nobles do not support them."
"But some people support it, isn't that enough?"
The old man turned around and said with a smile: "Holy Chosen One, isn't it? It's such a good name. So thank you, young man."
"Hey, I am getting old, and I feel a little emotional for a while -"
Fang Yu was slightly stunned, but then he smiled.
It was a smile from the heart. Yes, the opening of the Star Gate brought about profound changes. It not only changed Aitaria, but also changed the earth and everyone's lifestyle.
Perhaps those outstanding people who made the decision back then could have foreseen this moment today: the signing of the two Suva Statements, and the utilitarian electors in people's eyes would also bring about all the changes today - but As some people say, does it just 'destroy' the traditional ecology of Aitaria?
But there are also such good changes, right - even more.
Tradition does not necessarily mean correct -
Istania's strict hierarchy, slave trade, rampant sand thieves, and dangers lurking in the desert are also traditions. And this kind of tradition has become outdated today. People always yearn for a better life, not the same dross - and in this matter, perhaps only the people who live here have the most say. .
After hearing the words of the caravan leader, Fang Yu gradually understood the true meaning behind the path he insisted on——
Although he had never thought about giving up in the past, he never thought about it carefully. He only felt that what the forerunners were pursuing were relatively lofty ideals.
And what is that ideal?
Today, at this moment, he slightly understood:
The changes brought about by explorers are courage, and they are also people's longing and motivation for a richer life. The persistence of moving forward may be a memory rooted in people's genes. It was engraved in the depths of their blood as early as the moment they walked out of the forest hundreds of thousands of years ago.
"But there are so many sand pirates."
Fang Yu remembered that when he went to Bein, he also encountered a group of sand thieves - although the two were almost just a group of sand thieves. He only showed his combat equipment, and the other party was already half timid - but indeed It was too much, and it was slightly inconsistent with the impression of this peaceful and peaceful land in his opinion.
The old man replied: "There have indeed been more sand pirates recently."
Fang Yu turned around and looked at the other party in surprise.
"Is there a reason?"
The caravan leader looked to the north and remained silent. And Fang Yu looked at the other party's expression, and suddenly it became clear.
It was the cause of the turmoil in the south of Kaolin——
Perhaps on the surface, there is no relationship between the two.
But on this continent, Kaolin-Ithulian is like a huge central empire, and its influence is enough to radiate to the surrounding areas-Guta, Istania, Avenquin elves and even giants. The descendants of the giant spirits on Spirit Island. When the central empire declined, perhaps the signs of aging had not yet appeared in the kingdom itself, but the surrounding areas had already shown some signs.
Fang Yu was in the middle of it, but he didn't understand it. Only when the old man reminded him did he realize it.
He turned back and looked at this city with some history, and a vague thought arose in his mind - the evil star is coming, and the appearance of holy objects is a sign of troubled times in the future?
"Take care of each other, young man, and may the flame of the holy fire shine on your path forward." The old man took one last look at the setting sun in the distance, which seemed to be the last afterglow on the sea of sand: "I am old, this may be This is the last time I walk this road, and this may also be the last time I see such a scene. I only hope that one day after I die, Istania can be peaceful for a long time like this——"
'After my death, Istania can live in peace for a long time -'
Fang Yu suddenly remembered that he seemed to have heard such words somewhere.
The same solemn face of the Sand King Babartan once again appeared in his memory, only for a moment, and then disappeared.
…
After he said goodbye to the old man, he entered the city alone.
As he passed through the city gate, he took off his turban and wind-proof scarf. Fang Plover raised his head and looked around - the ship officer lady had said that they would come to take care of him. But before he could find anyone, he heard a voice coming from the side of the street:
"Ed!"
Fang Plover looked up, only to find that it was Aleph, who was wearing a gray plaid robe and waving to him.
"I heard from Lavalli that you are coming back today." The other party came over and patted his shoulder hard: "I was too busy the past few days and couldn't leave the palace. I want Afifah to send you a message. Yes, but it’s a pity that she said she wasn’t free.”
Fang Yu thought that the other party only had ghosts when he was free. Princess Afifa must not want to see him, but Luo Yu should have returned to Questac. He didn't know if the little princess had ever gone to see him. . When he thought of the tit-for-tat confrontation between the other party and Tian Lan, he couldn't help but shake his head in his heart.
I hope these two people don't run into each other again.
He looked at His Highness the Prince and was a little surprised: "I thought you wouldn't be able to come out these days. I originally planned to let Miss Lavalli say goodbye to you on my behalf."
"Goodbye?"
"We are leaving this place," Fang Plover replied: "We are building a ship in Tansnir. The ship will be built soon, and then we will leave this place."
Aleph was slightly startled: "Ed, don't you really think about staying here for a while?"
"The Seven Seas Brigade has other matters," Fang Plover replied: "Next we will probably go to the Baozhang Coast to do some things." He looked at the prince and said, "Aleph, don't worry, there are If we have the chance, we will come back. After all, Istania is the starting point of the Seven Seas Traveler, and it is like a second home for the sailors on Kukai."
"We will remember this place, it certainly has a different meaning to us -"
Aleph added: "Is it because we are friends?"
Fang Yu couldn't help but smile: "You will become the king of Istania in the future. Of course I will not forget to have such a developed friend like you."
After finishing speaking, he nodded again: "Yes, we are friends."
Aleph laughed: "I knew it."
Fang Yu also smiled and asked: "But you haven't told me yet why the King of Sand let you out. Is he very satisfied with your 'homework'?"
"That's not the case," Aleph shook his head: "Under normal circumstances, of course I can't get out. But my father is going to the Garden of Fantasy, and Kaolin-Ithulian has sent an envoy, so he has no intention of doing so for the time being. Leave me alone, I'll have a chance to go out and wander around. But that's just for today. Once today is over, I have to go back to the palace."
At the end of the sentence, His Highness the Prince's tone was full of regret.
"Courin-Ithurion sent an envoy?"
Fang Plover looked around. No wonder he saw a lot of northern costumes on the street before - it seems that there are a lot of Kaolin people. How many envoys did Kaolin-Ithulian send? Although it was very common for Kaolin and Istania to exchange envoys, at this moment, Fang Plover couldn't help but think more.
Babartan was going to the Garden of Fantasy, which also surprised him. He then remembered that he had heard about the Garden of Fantasy from the eldest princess before. It was the royal garden of the Penelope royal family, located in an unknown place in the desert. A place of knowing. The King of Sand suddenly wants to go to this place now. Is it because of his 'plan'?
Suddenly, he remembered another thing. What Mai Yixier told him about the sand pirates seemed familiar to him at the time, but at this moment he remembered that Her Royal Highness the Princess had also mentioned the sand pirates to him not long ago——
It was the King of Sand Thieves, who had stolen a batch of Abyssal Documents from the Garden of Illusion. At that time, Her Royal Highness the Princess also mentioned that there was an insider in the royal family, but I don’t know if the other party has found out who this insider is after such a long time.
As for the 'intelligence dealer' who contacted him, Maiyishier said that he was also in contact with the Sand Bandits. Is there any connection between them?
Such thoughts flashed through his mind.
Because at this time Aleph had interrupted his train of thought:
"By the way, Ed, your friends are here too."
"friend?"
"Yes, they are right over there -"
As Aleph said, he winked at him and said in a funny tone: "Ed, I never thought you had such a beautiful ship officer hidden away. No wonder you came to Ques in such a hurry." Tucker. LaVallee has already told me about you. Don’t worry, your crew members have all returned, and Count Nurman has also received them—"
Fang Yu was slightly startled when he heard this. He was not too surprised that His Highness the Prince would know about Luo Hao and his party. After all, he asked Ravalli to help find someone. It is unlikely that the earl's daughter and her father would not rely on the power of the royal family. After all, Afifah's identity may also have something to do with the King of Sand, Babartan.
As time goes by, it is normal for His Highness the Prince to know all this, not to mention that he is now gradually taking over the affairs inside and outside the palace.
But it seems that he has already met other people.
Fang Plover raised his head and looked forward, and sure enough he saw the noble lady and others not far away.
And Sylvide had obviously seen him a long time ago - there was a slight smile in her eyes.
"Master Captain."
"I'm back."
Sylvester moved slightly out of the way, and Fang Luo saw Luo Yu, Luo Hao, Jita and Xiang standing over there.
Even several people from Rufu's Shield were here, not only Wu Xiaopang, ZXC and others who left on the 'Daoud' that day, but also other members of Rufu's Shield who were stranded in Tansnir and Bein. , almost all of them appeared in this place at this moment.
This was exactly the agreement he made with Count Nurman. He brought Afifa back, and the other party also handed over the people of Rufu's Shield. It seems that the other party has fulfilled its promise. Not only did they release these people, they should also send someone to escort them to Questac. However, Fang Yu was a little bit dumbfounded. Governor Bein's move was actually a bit unnecessary.
He probably thought that the members of Rufu's Shield were also his people.
In addition to these people, Miss Afifah is also among these people.
When Fang Plover saw the other party, he was actually slightly startled. He thought that Count Nurman and the Mystic would take each other away, but suddenly he realized that Afifa might not know her relationship in this incident, nor her role in the Mystic, the Mystic, and the Mystic. How important it is to the earl.
She probably thought she was just an ordinary person.
And for some unknown reason, the Governor of Bein, the mystics, and even the King of Sand, Babartan, seemed to have no intention of letting her know this.
Fang Yu suddenly remembered what the King of Sand Babartan said to him not long ago - the other party seemed to ask him to help take care of him?
It turns out that the other party really didn't just mention it casually.
"Mr. Ed," Afifah's face turned slightly red now: "Thank you."
…
Achilles was slowly passing under the corridor, looking at the servants in the palace passing by him. Most of those people know his identity, and they also know that he passes here every day to meet with Her Royal Highness the Princess who is under house arrest - or to leave the palace from here.
Day after day, there was nothing unusual - it was just that sometimes I would leave earlier and sometimes I would leave later. The King of Sand only placed His Royal Highness under house arrest in the palace, but did not restrict her from communicating with the outside world or accessing information from the outside world. Therefore, Achilles was able to enter the palace calmly without much hindrance.
It’s just that today is a little different——
It's not him who is different.
But what is obviously visible in the palace is that there are more people who do not belong here - those who come in and out are Yankees - Cowlings.
Achilles silently looked at the Kaulin envoys who were incompatible with the locals, and thought to himself. The appearance of these people was unplanned, but the northern kingdom often sent envoys to Istania, which was not uncommon.
Even this time, there were indeed more envoys.
But what does this have to do with him?
Achilles shook his head slightly as he recalled the news he had received.
While he was thinking about it, a group of Kaolin envoys were coming from the front. There were also some familiar faces in the long line - they were the courtiers of the King of Sand. He has met these people, but they may not know him. These upstarts who are in high demand probably look down on a little-known palace alchemist like him.
Maybe he is the confidant of Her Royal Highness the Princess, but so what? Maybe one day Princess Rupert will become the next King of Sand, and then he will be famous all over the world. But now the candidate for the next King of Sand has almost been selected, and it has been declared that it has no chance of meeting that great princess. .
As the eldest son of the king, Aleph also has some reputation among the courtiers and the people, and he is well deserved.
But all this did not even cause any fluctuations in Achilles's heart, and this was not what he was pursuing. He only raised his head slightly and looked at the long team in front of him - except for these Kaolin people, this team would appear in this place every day of the week.
Because this is the end of the court meeting.
And every day, he would pass through this corridor at this time and go to the outer gate of Kashan Palace——
He soon saw those faces appearing in the crowd.
First came Secher, the old patriarch of the Oath Keepers clan. His eyes did not linger too much on the court alchemist, and he might not have even noticed him. Then Count Nurman, like the former, walked through the corridor with a straight face - he didn't know what happened, and the Governor of Bein looked a little unhappy.
And in the end, it was the King of Sand who had just accepted his fate, the left minister of the Kingdom of Sand.
Seinemann raised his eyelids slightly and looked at him, his cloudy gaze only staying on the court warlock for a moment.
At that moment, Achilles' eyes were also falling on the other party. Their eyes met for a moment, and they nodded slightly, but without stopping, they walked forward and passed each other.
After the team passed by, Achilles stopped and looked back. The procession of courtiers had disappeared at the other end of the corridor, and all the way to the end, the left minister of the kingdom never looked back.
He lowered his head and pondered for a moment before continuing to move forward thoughtfully.
…
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Set a small goal first, such as remembering in 1 second: Shukeju
