Chapter 1287: War Merit Exchange and Strange Heat Flow

Chapter 1287: Chapter 632: War Merit Exchange and Strange Heat Flow

Having actually lived for long stretches in the two adventure towns of River Valley Town and Suo Yu Bay, Xia Nan could clearly feel how different Blood Castle was.

If earlier, back in the Outer Camp area, he had still felt inexplicably familiar, as if he’d returned to those bustling days he’d spent long-term at the White Sparrow and the Three-legged Sea Dog.

As he gradually moved inward from the Lower City District, there were still plenty of adventurers on the streets, yet that sense of chaos granted by their professional Attributes was noticeably weaker, their movements seemingly constrained by some invisible order.

Which was only natural.

After all, once you strip away the occupational Attributes of adventurers and take them back to basics, they’re still High intelligent beings one by one, with normal intelligence and thought.

Perhaps in daily life their mindset might gradually warp because of the Extraordinary Power they wield, lording it over ordinary commoners and throwing their weight around.

But they’re still not creatures like goblins—born evil and chaotic, with wretchedly low Intelligence.

If some far stronger, irresistible force really warns them, “Don’t cause trouble, or you’re going to prison!”, they can still behave themselves and abide by the town’s rules and regulations.

On this point, Xia Nan, a “good citizen” who never liked making trouble in the first place, naturally had no objections.

He handed a chunk of fresh meat he’d casually bought at a butcher’s stall just now to Winter Wolf Fenney padding at his side, and rubbed her icy, fluffy head.

His gaze swept over a squad of guards marching past along the street, and his brows knitted slightly.

This was already the third patrol unit he’d seen in a short span of time since parting ways with Barbarian Fugang earlier.

The frequency… was it not a bit too high?

And his keen Perception Ability let Xia Nan faintly pick up a subtle strain of anxiety and tension from these passing soldiers.

He thought for a moment, then spoke up to Ranger Tal leading the way ahead of him:

“Has anything happened around Blood Castle lately?”

At those words, the stocky, bald ranger’s voice, which had been busily introducing the buildings lining the street, faltered; a hesitant look appeared on his face, as if he were weighing whether he should speak.

After a moment, he swallowed, having made up his mind.

“Lord Xia Nan, I have indeed heard a few adventurers talk about what’s been going on in town recently, but it’s all rumors and not necessarily accurate.”

“I was worried about misleading you before, so I didn’t bring it up.”

“But since you’ve asked now… well, just treat it as a bit of gossip and don’t take it seriously.”

“If possible…”

Here, Tal’s expression turned a little embarrassed.

“If anyone asks later, please don’t tell them I was the one who said it.”

Once he’d finished, he saw Xia Nan give a slight nod, agreeing to his humble request.

So he stepped forward two paces, furtively glanced to both sides with a guilty look, confirming that no one was paying attention to them.

He deliberately lowered his voice, speaking mysteriously:

“I heard others say that the Black Cliff Baron… that is, the garrison officer of Blood Castle, Mr. Adonis, hasn’t shown his face for a long time now.”

“Oh?” Xia Nan’s brows arched slightly.

He’d already heard the name Adonis, the Black Cliff Baron, back when he was gathering information in Salt Rock Port.

He knew that this baron was the current garrison officer of Blood Castle, and that his reputation in the northeastern part of Anlun Province was fairly good.

The sort of man who possessed quite solid ability himself and, under the blessing of a noble title, could fully unfurl his ambitions—a practical, results-oriented type, who had made considerable War Merit on the frontier these past years.

If he bore with Blood Castle for a few more years, then leveraged his family connections to reach out to the Imperial City, he’d likely be promoted and transferred.

Yet now it turned out that…

“How did the news get out, and is there anything more concrete?”

Xia Nan pressed him further.

“Some adventurers pried the news out of the guards up in the castle.” Tal’s gaze lifted slightly, looking toward the Upper City District ahead at those particularly eye-catching, tall spires thrusting out from between layered flat rooftops.

“Baron Adonis goes to church for worship every morning. Ever since he took up the post of Blood Castle’s garrison officer, even if he occasionally skipped it due to some special circumstance, at most it would only be for one or two days, and those ‘special circumstances’ might not even happen once in half a year.”

“But now…”

“It’s said that no one has seen this lord baron for half a month already.”

Having gone this far, there was no point holding back like he had at the start. Tal dumped out all the information he’d dug up, true or not, in one go.

“Some think Mr. Adonis has fallen seriously ill and can’t get out of bed; others believe the Black Cliff Baron was gravely wounded and is on the verge of death from a battle with some dangerous Demon—after all, the baron often personally led guards out of the fortress to take on missions before.”

“But whatever the case, now that the news is being locked down this tight, with not even a word on what the baron has run into or what state he’s in, it clearly isn’t some minor matter.”

When the other finished speaking, Xia Nan did not answer; a pensive look surfaced on his face.

No wonder these patrolling guards were so anxious and restless. Given Baron Adonis’s standing in Blood Castle, vanishing so suddenly and without reason would indeed stir up unrest among the rank-and-file soldiers.

Especially with Demon attacks in the vicinity becoming more and more frequent lately, and more and more garrison troops dying under Demons’ claws and fangs—it had already reached the point where adventurers needed to be conscripted.

Under these circumstances, for the top man of a Border Fortress to suddenly be in trouble, a shift in the soldiers’ mood was only to be expected.