Once upon a time there was a greedy snake.

Chapter 123 People who waste food are in trouble.

The aroma of roasted mutton wafted on the wind, instantly whetting the appetites of the priests.

"Perhaps we can eat our fill first before fighting that giant snake."

Several priests couldn't help but have this thought, but it was just a fleeting thought—they all had combat experience, so they knew better than anyone that sometimes eating too much wasn't necessarily a good thing.

While a full stomach can provide ample energy, the digestive process can also affect reaction speed. If you want to stay sharp, hunger is actually relatively necessary.

Even if this slightly reduces their physical strength, it is not a problem for them as servants of the gods.

Just like now, as they walked out of the inn dressed in pure white priestly robes and wearing shiny bronze discs symbolizing the sun god on their chests, the locals living in the town finally realized that this group of merchants who came from the upper reaches of the river were actually priests who worshipped the eagle god.

Those who worship the Eagle God in the upper reaches of the river and those who worship the Snake God in the lower reaches of the river have always been enemies.

The younger generation's faith in the snake god was not so strong; they were simply frozen in place by the malevolent aura, but the older generation of locals went straight back into their houses and brought out spears and battle axes.

They were called the older generation, but they were only in their thirties or forties. They worked in the fields all day and had all developed great strength. Now, when they picked up weapons, they were truly murderous and ready to kill on the spot.

However, faced with these hundreds of strong laborers who had picked up their weapons, the priests simply shook their heads and smiled.

Immediately afterwards, one of the priests raised the amulet in his hand.

It was an amulet supported by four ostrich feathers, inlaid on a copper plate. As the priest chanted, the copper plate actually started to spin on its own without any wind.

At that moment, several hundred strong laborers suddenly collapsed, their faces turning blue and purple, indicating that they had somehow suffocated.

Then another priest stepped forward, carrying a seemingly comical goose-headed warhammer made of bronze.

But when the warhammer struck the ground, no one could laugh anymore. With just one blow, the earth trembled violently, and the strong laborers were thrown about, unable to even stand up.

There is no doubt that this is a miracle.

It is a miracle that is beyond human power to overcome.

But the most terrifying thing wasn't that; it was the scarabs that had already crawled onto their bodies—heaven knows exactly when those golden beetles appeared; all they knew was that by the time they discovered them, the scarabs had already bitten their throats.

Before them, the chief priest was toying with a golden scarab beetle inlaid with red crystal.

Clearly, that golden scarab beetle is the central control unit that governs all the beetles.

"Alright, everyone, step back."

The chief priest waved his hand, signaling the able-bodied men to leave on their own.

This wasn't because of any benevolent intentions, but because these able-bodied men were still useful to them.

After all, the more people, the better.

Humans are power, humans are strength. When the power of many people is gathered in one person, that person's power can become extraordinary, even capable of taking on a hundred opponents.

As for how to do such a thing, that's beyond the capabilities of ordinary people. That's why even if these ordinary people gather together, they're like sand in the wind, easily blown away by a single breath.

Only priests who serve the gods can receive its secrets and use this unparalleled power under the gods' radiance.

This is also why they don't kill the ordinary people. After defeating the giant serpent, they will build a temple here, and these locals will become their vassals, part of them, or even part of their power.

To put it bluntly, these ordinary people are already considered their possessions, so why would they risk their lives to destroy their property?
"However, we cannot be careless." The priest who was in the lead, holding the golden scarab amulet, instructed his other companions.

"Although based on my observations over this period of time, the old man guarding the temple is not very capable, that giant serpent is still a servant of the gods just like us... Although it seems that the giant serpent is only pursuing the weakest path of physical enhancement, it would still be very troublesome if it were hit by that brute force."

Upon hearing this, the other priests nodded in agreement.

Clearly, they all understood the principle that even a lion needs to exert its full strength to hunt a rabbit.

Even if the enemy looks weak, they will never hold back, for their own safety.

only……

"Why does it smell so good?"

The priests frowned once again.

Yes, it smells amazing, absolutely amazing. The closer they got to the Snake God Temple, the stronger the aroma became—they could even tell from the smell that it was grilling lamb chops, and the seasoning definitely contained salt and pepper.

"But……"

Because they could smell the source of the fragrance, their brains couldn't keep up.

They've eaten grilled lamb chops before. Perhaps for ordinary people, eating such delicate meat is quite a luxury, but for them, as servants of the gods, it's no big deal if they want to eat it every meal.

But it was precisely because they had tasted so many that they were able to sense that something was wrong.

It's just a grilled lamb chop, is it really that delicious?
"unless……"

The priests exchanged glances.

At this moment, they all sensed something.

As they approached the serpent god temple, everything before them was exactly as they had imagined—the earthen grill was placed right next to the giant serpent, and on the grill, lambs skewered on long sticks were being turned over by the nimble serpent's tail.

"what?"

Just after they saw the oven, the giant snake also discovered them.

"Hey friend, do you want some mutton?"

The priests frowned slightly as they listened to the awkward, even slightly stumbling, local dialect of But.

However, this doesn't seem to be a bad thing for them. The giant snake does seem to be constantly developing its physical strength, which even makes it sound less intelligent when it speaks.

They even wanted them to eat mutton...

This is clearly a trap. Why would they eat something like this?

"boom--"

As the goose-headed warhammer crashed to the ground, the earthen oven instantly collapsed into a pile of fragments.

(End of this chapter)