"What about dividing the water? Let the spellcasters unite and divide the water of the entire Bianhuang River to form a channel across the river bed."
"No, this method is more dangerous. By then, most of the water downstream will have flowed away, but the water upstream will accumulate more and more. Even if the magic used can resist it, how can you ensure that the enemy will not Use counter magic? Once it is broken, the flood will immediately sweep away the troops crossing the river, not to mention that the river bed must be muddy and there is no way to pass quickly. "
"Any magic effect that can be restrained or dispelled has safety risks, and they are not within the scope of our consideration this time."
"Where do miracles come from without the use of magic?"
"Can you use the prayer technique to pray directly on this river for a real bridge across the river?"
"Even if it is a prayer spell, it is not omnipotent. It will determine whether the spell is successful based on the size of the project. If the Bianhuang River is just a small ditch more than ten meters wide, then there is 100% no problem, but as a A bridge spanning more than half a kilometer across a river is probably far beyond the ability of the prayer technique. Even if it succeeds in the end, it may not be what we expected. A single-plank bridge can still be regarded as a bridge."
"Indeed, creation is always more difficult than destruction. A wish spell can easily destroy the fog barrier of a city, but there is no way to build a bridge across the river."
"Even if it is cast, it is not safe. This means that the enemy's wish spell can be countered. The fortress chairman Manmeng of the Dark Castle was already a quasi-legendary mage many years ago. Now he does not know how to possess it. What kind of strength is that?"
"Going round and round, the problem is back to the original point. Any method that can be restrained by magic will not work. But the problem is, not only magic will not work, but ordinary methods will not work either. The opponent only needs to concentrate firepower and bombard them with magic. It will destroy the bridges we have worked so hard to build."
"Isn't there a way around it? Just cut across the river and cut directly into the rocky ground without fighting them."
"There is no way. The Distant Sea Swamp and the Stormhorn Mountains are merged together. Some of the remaining veins even go deep into the swamp. They are indistinguishable from each other. We must either cross the swamp or open a mountain road in the Stormhorn Mountains, no matter where it is. Each one is an impossible task."
"That's right, our method of rapid road construction is only suitable for plain wilderness. Whether it is swamps or mountains, our method is not suitable. The previous wasteland trails are proof. Our vanguard army only built a small area on the original basis. We tried our best to widen the area that was inaccessible to some floor-type chariots. We were almost overwhelmed. We wanted to get through the nearly 100 kilometers of mountains. It is estimated that it will take us several years. No matter how abundant our supplies are, it will not be possible. It took so long.”
"How about defeating them in advance? Lead them to this side of the river. As long as their main force is destroyed, we can cross the river calmly."
"This is even more whimsical. Which of the forces we face this time has low IQ? Those believers of the God of Conspiracy? Or those legendary hags? The only one who is not famous for treachery is the Lizard Queen, even if she defeated one of them One, and where are the other two?”
"If I had known better, we wouldn't have crossed the Border River and gone straight north along the Sunset Mountains. We would have made our own way to the high road, so we wouldn't have had such a headache."
"If we do that, we will have a headache, but it is not just a deserted river, but the entire road section. The size of Thun Marsh is not static, but shrinks with the rain, and it will also be affected. The rainy season of Cormanso has affected it, and now it is the largest area. Many places have been submerged. These places look like a piece of grass from a distance, but when you walk over, you will find that it is a quagmire. In addition, monsters frequently attack, and there are also Before we get even halfway through, we will have to significantly reduce our numbers, instead of being like now without losing even one person.”
"I know. I participated in the original military meeting. I just complained casually. You don't need to take it seriously."
"I'm not being serious with you. I'm worried about the situation between Thun Swamp and Distant Sea Swamp. Is this the same situation?"
"You are overthinking this. The reason why this area has not been submerged by the swamps and becomes part of them is because it belongs to the remnants of the Stormhorn Mountains that are hidden underground. The terrain is relatively high, and the other side is covered by the Gray Observer Mountains. Supported by the remaining veins, the Bianhuang River was forcibly squeezed out, so it is relatively fast and the terrain is low, making it difficult to cross."
"This puts me at ease, but there is still nothing we can do about crossing the river."
The high-ranking officials of the Conqueror's Army were quite imaginative, building bridges over ice, dividing water to cross rivers, etc. It was not only the power of countless people united together, but also the full use of magic.
If, like before, they are just fighting against the sky and the natural environment, no matter which method is used, it is feasible, it just costs a little more time and energy.
But when surrounded by enemies, there was nothing we could do.
Strategy is only an auxiliary means, not omnipotent. At least it cannot create a bridge out of thin air for the conqueror's army.
Just when everyone was at a loss what to do, a staff officer came in to deliver a message to break the deadlock, "Lord, there are dozens of knights outside asking to see them. They call themselves the Knights of the Shadow Sword and are followers of the Wind Slave."
Windslave is another name for Sandakol, the god of travel and exploration. He is also known as the god of roads in Faerûn. Since Vol'jin, the god of year-round wealth, disappeared and no longer responded to the prayers of his believers, many goddesses of wealth have Many believers and businessmen turned to the old man's name and prayed to him for protection and assistance on the road.
After Gavin heard the name, he jumped up from his seat and laughed loudly: "We only consider things from a mortal perspective, how come we have forgotten the gods? Let's go, let's go, let's go Let’s see what kind of assistance and surprises these believers of the Helping Hand have brought to us? Ms. Catherine, let’s go together. The path of the Wind Slave is complementary to that of Ms. Strategy. Only a smooth road can It is more convenient to mobilize troops on a large scale, which is an excellent opportunity to expand your relationship with His Highness."
"Okay." Catherine responded cheerfully.
Helping Hand is another nickname for Shanda Keer, because his followers rarely stay in one place, but when traveling on the road, they will provide selfless help to business travelers on the business road, allowing them to go further. , smoother, and over time, it naturally earned him this reputation.
In fact, when they were in the Plains of Giants, Gavin had already felt the God of Roads paying attention to them. Although they did not migrate in the name of the God of Travel and Exploration, their migration and opening up a new path alone , Thousands of kilometers of trade routes are the best honor to this god.
If Shanda Keer didn't pay attention to this, he would be derelict in his duty. He would have fallen long ago, and he would not always be able to sit firmly on the throne of this god.
He is also an evergreen tree among the gods of Faerûn, one of the oldest gods. As the god of travel and exploration, he has never changed. This is related to his taciturn and lonely character. He is not only well-known among mortals, but , even many gods maintain a good relationship with him. After all, there is rarely a conflict of interest. Shar, the goddess of the night, and Benshaba, the goddess of misfortune, are the only two gods with whom he has an enmity.
The former is due to the conflict of clergy. The Wind Slave does not like to hide secrets and prefers to make them public. He will actively guide the public to explore those unknown secrets. This is his clerical responsibility.
The duty of the goddess of the night is to keep secrets, but Shar has no intention of slapping Sandakol to death, because whenever a secret is kept, there will inevitably be those who explore and expose it. This is inevitable. In the end, it depends on Whose method is better?
It is impossible for Shar to hold this kind of relative priesthood in her hands at the same time, so instead of killing Shanda Keer and letting the exploration priesthood fall into the hands of a more powerful god, it is better to keep it with him. As long as she ensures that she is stronger than him, As long as you can suppress him.
The latter is because Ben Shaba once used the name of the God of the Road to stir up discord among various tribes in a desert area called the Wild Bull. To this day, the people there still curse him and call him the Wind Slave. As "dangerous lurkers in the sand", the two sides started a fierce struggle. Although Shanda Keer tried his best to protect those business travelers from misfortune, Benshaba still often succeeded, causing those business travelers to fall into various misfortunes—— Natural disasters, man-made disasters, car accidents, monster attacks, etc. are all caused by the god of misfortune.
Sandakol once had moderate divine power, but it declined after the fall of Myth Drannor, the city of song, and fell to weak divine power for a time. It was not until last year that the merchant god Wojin had a problem and a large number of believers turned to him. Starting to develop again, he has been missing a key medium point to once again show his divine power to the world and announce his return - humans act as gods, which is one of the core operating laws of the multiverse.
If people don't do it, God can't act rashly, otherwise it will have a counterproductive effect and may cause his divine power to fall.
Of course, this situation is limited to the material plane. If it is in the upper plane, especially in the Kingdom of God, the gods will not have so many restrictions, but it is meaningless. In the Kingdom of God, everything requires faith. , consume divine power, and the material plane is their main source of faith.
These laws have only one purpose, which is to prevent the gods from acting recklessly and pushing the entire material plane to destruction, leading to the collapse of the multiverse.
In other words, the material plane is the core underlying building of the multiverse. Without it, what is left is just a castle in the air, which will not last long.
"I am Gavin Nott, the commander-in-chief of this army. I welcome the followers of His Highness the Slaver of the Wind. Your arrival is our greatest honor." Gavin expressed respect to him upon meeting him.
This Knights of the Shadow Sword is actually composed of halflings who are less than Gavin's waist. They are all dressed as adventurers, and most of their figures are wrapped under dark cloaks.
This is not surprising. The entire race of halflings has varying degrees of wanderlust. Just like the Anbao Boat Village, their entire village uses boats as their home. The roads are not limited to land, waterways are also considered a kind. Many halflings are influenced by Shanda Attracted by Cole's teachings, it was natural for him to become his believer's pastor.
"Kim, the leader of the Knights of the Shadow Sword, I have met the general, and according to the oracle of our god, we are here to lend a helping hand to the general to help you tide over the difficulties." The halfling priest Kim who led the leader It was a rare person who was cheerful and directly reported the biggest purpose of the trip.
"It's said inside, it's said inside." Gavin naturally had to guard against barriers, and what happened next was likely to involve their military secrets.
"By the way, we met a unique friend on the way here. He claimed to be a friend of the General. He brought you information about the swamps in the distant sea and asked you to distinguish the true from the false." Kim pointed not far away. Chudao.
A tall figure appeared out of nowhere, but this person was covered in long, spotted hair, with a stout body and a slightly stooped body. He had yellow eyes and a round nose, a protruding face, and a mouth full of sharp fangs. He was clearly a jackal. .
The most unique thing is that the greed and ferocity of ordinary jackals cannot be seen in the eyes of this jackal. Instead, there is only endless peace and tranquility, just like an enlightened monk.
"Flynn." Gavin revealed the other party's identity, his face showed genuine joy, and he said repeatedly, "He is indeed my friend, come in together, come in together."
Flynn has found the Gnoll Monk all over Faerûn several times, but he is probably the only one.
It was the unique Flynn Gnoll who took the initiative to cooperate with them on the Black Death of the Gnoll Chapter.
The last time he contacted him, he revealed that he was staring at the Yeenoghu fang in the distant sea swamp, saying that those jackals had resurrected in the distant sea swamp and asked him for help.
He once sent the Erd reconnaissance team to look for him and try to establish contact with him, but his method of hiding his traces was so clever that not only the enemy could not find him, but even the friendly forces could not find him.
After entering the goblin wilderness and having a conflict with the forces of the Far Sea Swamp, Gavin also thought about looking for him to see if he could get information about the Far Sea Swamp from him.
Among the three major forces that the conqueror army faced, they had a basic idea of the two major forces, the Lizard Queen's Court of Thun Swamp and the Dark Fortress, including the type and number of troops they had, and a general guess.
Only this force in the distant sea swamp is still in a state of fog.
This place is more completely isolated than the Thun Swamp. In addition to the swamp, it is also shrouded in hundreds of meters of fog all year round. If you go deep into it, you can't see anything ten meters away. It is also seriously misleading and is very misleading to outsiders. It is easy to get lost in the fog, and coupled with the many dangers in the swamp, it is naturally more deadly here.
This kind of fog was created last year. Before that, there was not much difference between the Distant Sea Swamp and the Thun Swamp. This change is probably related to the descent of the gods.
The conqueror's army's current information about the forces in the Far Sea Marsh is limited to the fact that a legendary hag assembly controls the power here. The rest is unknown, such as whether they will send troops, the composition of the troops, how many troops they have, etc.
Flynn, who has been watching here for half a year, can be considered a local snake, and must have a lot of information. He didn't expect that the idle guy who was thrown out casually would end up on the conqueror's army.
After everyone sat down, Gavin couldn't wait to ask the believers of the God of Road: "I wonder what kind of assistance Lord Kim has brought us?"
Compared to the information about the distant sea swamps, the information from the God of Travel and Exploration was more important, because 80% of it was related to the difficulties they faced.
"His Royal Highness the Wind Slave is willing to raise a bridge across the river for the General to help the entire army cross the river." Captain Kim replied straightforwardly.
"A helping hand is indeed a helping hand. It will always lend a helping hand when people need it most. With the help of His Highness the Wind Slave, our predicament will be easily solved."
"It's really great. We didn't think of asking His Highness the Wind Slave for help before. It's really inappropriate."
"After getting through this, we will definitely build a huge temple for His Highness the Wind Slave to tell the world that he is helpful and worthy of people's trust."
The top brass of the entire conqueror's army became extremely excited. They had been worried about this matter before.
As for the time to build the bridge, no one asked at all. Just kidding, this was a god who personally took action. Even if he only has weak divine power left, he is still a true god, and the bridge must be built instantly.
"What does Your Highness need us to do?" Catherine was one of the few people who didn't show any excitement. As the electorate of Ms. Strategy, she knew more about God's slander.
Even for a god, creating such a bridge across a river out of thin air, especially one that allows the entire army of conquerors to pass quickly, is really not a small project. It requires a huge amount of divine power, and even requires the use of divinity.
This is not the crux of the problem. The key is that Shanda Keer's actions are against the rules. As mentioned before, humans act as gods, and this restriction has become more serious since the Year of Turmoil.
They did nothing. The God of Travel and Exploration parachuted a bridge across the river to them. This was definitely a big trap. Either Sandakol was trapping himself, or he was preparing to trap the army of conquerors.
Kim nodded kindly towards Catherine and said with a smile: "His Royal Highness also said that he is only responsible for responding. Whether this cross-river bridge can be raised and to what extent it can be raised depends on you."
The words of the halfling priest were somewhat mysterious, and many people did not fully understand them.
Catherine, the first choice of Ms. Strategy, was the first to react, and asked with sparkling eyes: "You mean, let our entire army of conquerors launch the prayers of His Highness the Slave Wind on the edge of the Bianhuang River. Ritual, using our own contribution of the power of faith to shape a bridge across the river? Build a bridge of faith?”
If that were the case, it would make perfect sense.
This is a typical way for people to pray to gods. When they were fighting against the root of the gods outside the city of Darauma, Zalanda used this method to mobilize the entire army and people of Darauma to pray and transform the incarnation of Ms. Strategy into Recruit them and fight to protect them.
Of course, the gods may or may not respond to this call. Unless the benefits are huge, it is usually the latter.
If both sides of the war pray to Tempus at the same time, the God of War can't send his own incarnation to both sides and let him beat himself, right?
Although he can indeed do it, it is meaningless and causes losses to himself.
If the two do not help each other, even these prayers conflict with each other.
It's not enough if you don't pray. Who knows if the God of War will incarnate on the side that prays.
The gods are not stupid. They will of course choose to watch as much as possible without making any effort and still reaping the majority of the benefits.
(End of chapter)
