In Sumeru, pretend to be a scholar

"Walk together?"

“Well… I still need to wait for news from the Disciplinarian in Sumeru City, so I’ve prepared guards for Scholar Wangyan. They will escort you to Casazale Palace, and once the time comes, we’ll set off directly from there to Nordkalley,” Dolly said.

Wang Yan glanced at Dolly, his intuition telling him that Dolly wasn't telling the truth, but he also roughly knew what Dolly was up to.

Wang Yan nodded slightly and said, "Oh, so I need to pack my luggage first, right?"

"Hehe, I also have business in Nordkalley. Scholar Wang Yan only needs to bring some essentials. I can replenish other supplies for you directly in Nordkalley. Of course... you only need to pay a little bit of Mora."

When Mora was mentioned, Dolly's eyes lit up again.

“Come, come, you all follow Scholar Wang Yan and escort him to Casazale Palace, do you hear me?” Dolly waved again to a group of gilded troop members who came over.

The leader was actually a woman, tall and beautiful.

“This is Denara, a blade dancer. She and her team will be responsible for your safety,” Dolly explained. “Don’t underestimate them. Even in the most dangerous deserts, Denara’s team is the most professional.”

The gilded girl group member named Denara nodded to Wang Yan: "Hello, scholar, I hope you have a pleasant journey."

Wang Yan looked at her and the people behind her. Besides the impeller dancer, the members of the group following her were also from a gold-plated girl group.

There were axemen on the front lines, water spirits in the sand, and even a wind spirit hunter.

All that's missing is a matriarch to complete the gilded girl group.

Turning his gaze away, Wang Yan nodded to the blade dancers: "Hello, I also hope the journey is pleasant."

Dolly probably knew perfectly well that she was being targeted by such a glamorous girl group; she was well aware that someone might attack her.

However, Wang Yan didn't care. The fact that the other party was willing to pay someone to protect him already showed their attitude, so there was no need to delve into it.

After all, an ordinary force wouldn't be able to muster several gold-plated girl groups wielding evil spirit weapons.

"Hehe, then Denara, I'll leave the Scholar of King's Words to you. I have other things to attend to, so I'll be going now." Dolly quickly slipped away.

The gold-plated girl group with yellow-green hair looked at Wang Yan: "Scholar, we will follow your instructions for the next action. In addition, Master Bai has arranged for beasts to carry us outside Sumeru City, so we can set off at any time."

Wang Yan nodded: "Then come with me back to get the things first, and we'll set off after we get them."

"Yes, scholar."

...

Wang Yan didn't actually have much luggage.

Just like when I went to Liyue before, I brought a change of clothes, toiletries, mechanical tools, and some rune items.

Wang Yan originally intended to have "Seventy-Two Xuanming" help him retrieve it.

But Denara and her team were clearly used to missions with 'weak' scholars, and they simply took Wang Yan's luggage.

Then the group arrived outside Sumeru City and obtained the beast that Dolly had prepared, as well as the supplies needed for the journey.

After Wang Yan boarded the beast, the team officially set off.

Wang Yan also confirmed that these gilded girl group members really did regard him as a physically weak scholar.

However, Wang Yan was happy with this arrangement; having a beast to ride on was better than having none at all.

The forest gradually became denser along the way, and birds and beasts occasionally appeared, but apart from a few distant roars, they did not encounter any trouble.

Wang Yan sat in the saddle on the back of the beast, occasionally exchanging a few words with Denara, but most of the time he quietly observed the surrounding environment or deduced the structure of the mechanism in his mind.

The members of the gilded girl group remained vigilant, but their expressions were not tense, indicating that the road was relatively safe for them.

As the sun began to set, the group had already traveled dozens of miles beyond Sumeru City. Denara looked up at the sky and gestured for them to stop: "Let's camp here for today."

Wang Yan also got off the beast: "Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Haha, thank you, scholar, but no need. You're the designated target, you don't need to do any work," Denara said with a smile, and then began directing the gilded girl group to work.

Along the way, Wang Yan also got to know these girl group members. Denara's team had a total of eight people. She was the team leader, Wind Spirit Hunter was the vice-captain, and there were also three Sand Pure Water and three Frontline Axemen.

In other words, an eight-person team possesses five Evil Spirit weapons, which explains why Dolly would hire them.

After Wang Yan rested, the girl group members moved quickly.

Some people unloaded the luggage from the pack animals' backs, some cleared a flat area of ​​ground, and others took out folded tent frames and tarpaulins from their packs—their movements were so practiced that it seemed they had rehearsed them countless times.

No, it's not that they resembled each other, but that they actually did it countless times.

These gilded female warriors who emerged from the desert would be considered elites in the Adventurers' Guild. At least, the mistakes that novice adventurers might make would be mistakes that these warriors who deal with the wind and sand would never make.

In less than fifteen minutes, a simple yet sturdy camp appeared in the forest clearing: a campfire in the center, four tents around it, one for Wang Yan, one for Denara and the Wind Spirit Hunter, and the remaining two for the others.

The fire was quickly lit, and an iron pot was placed on it.

One of the sand-dwelling water spirits took out dried meat, beans, and spices from the supplies and began to cook soup; while another person baked bread.

The aroma gradually spread.

Seeing that everything was arranged, Denara walked back to Wang Yan's side: "Dinner will be ready soon, scholar, don't be in a hurry."

“Just call me by my name,” Wang Yan said. “Scholars might find it strange.”

Previously, people addressed him as either Mr. Wang Yan or Scholar Wang Yan. However, along the way, these girls kept calling him "scholar" without his name, which made him a little uncomfortable.

Denara smiled and picked up a branch to stir the fire: "We've protected quite a few scholars before. Their temperaments... well, they're all different. Later, the sisters learned to keep their distance from the scholars. Instead of calling them by their names, we just call them scholars."

"Weren't scholars in the past reluctant to speak?" Wang Yan asked curiously.

Denara shook her head: "I can't say that it's all bad. Actually, there are many scholars who sympathize with the desert people, especially those who are willing to go into the desert to conduct research... But there are indeed quite a few scholars who look at us as if we are another species."

After saying that, she smiled again: "However, things are much better now. The Grass God has lifted the blockade on the desert, and there is more interaction between the desert people and the rainforest people. Many stereotypes have disappeared. If it were before... my sisters and I would never have dared to come to Sumeru City to do missions."

"Are you from the same tribe?" Wang Yan asked again.

Generally speaking, gilded guilds are all from the same tribe, and they work hard outside to earn resources for their tribe to survive.

Denara shook her head: "No, my tribe has been destroyed by the sandstorm... Tanaara too, and the other sisters were either abandoned or their tribes no longer exist."

Tana was the Wind Spirit Hunter.

"In fact, many tribes in the desert are like this. The original tribe was destroyed, and the scattered people had to gather together to form a new tribe."

"But you?"

"We're all women, right? Haha, actually we've taken in other people too, but some have found their lost tribes, and some have found their new home. After a few years, only a few of us sisters are still doing missions together."

As she spoke, Tanaara's eyes brightened slightly: "Learn... Wang Yan, do you know? In Sumeru, children might see an elf called Lanaruo..."

Wang Yan nodded: "I know."

Tana smiled and said, "Then I'll tell you, we've all met Lanaro."

"what?"

“I told some scholars before that I had seen Lanalo, and they all laughed at me, saying that Lanalo could not possibly appear in the desert, but... I really have seen it, and my sisters have seen it too. So after our tribe disappeared, we gave ourselves a new name.”

Wang Yan suddenly realized why these gilded girl groups all had names like Nara; that explained it.

Nara is the name Lannaro uses for humans.

"So, you're looking for Lanalo?" Wang Yan asked.

Denara nodded: "Yes, we are looking for Lanaro, which is why we came out of the desert and entered the rainforest."

A group of adults...can they find Lanalo?

If it were an ordinary person, Wang Yan would confirm that it was absolutely impossible.

But it's different that these glamorous girl groups still remember Lanaro after they've grown up. It means that their childlike innocence is likely still there, and their memories haven't been forgotten.

A group of gilded girls from the desert, with childlike hearts and memories of Lanaro... you really do see everything if you live long enough.

As they were chatting, the girl group cooking at another fire nearby called out, "The food is ready!"

"You're here." (The text abruptly shifts to a seemingly unrelated phrase: "腥思娂詍怜，舶ㄍ跷浴.")

Soon, around the campfire, a pot of savory meat soup and baked flatbreads were being prepared.

Wang Yan also held a wooden bowl, a smile on her lips, listening to the gilded girl group around her talk about the things they had encountered before.

The firelight reflected on everyone's faces, creating a warm and relaxed atmosphere.

Chapter 155 Wang Yan: Is this your last resort?

Just then, Tana, the Wind Spirit Hunter sitting diagonally opposite Wang Yan, suddenly paused.

Her relaxed back straightened instantly, her ears twitched almost imperceptibly, and her always sharp eyes turned sharply toward the dark jungle on the right side of the camp.

Without any hesitation, she almost instinctively rolled over and got up, her left hand already grabbing the longbow beside her, her right hand drawing an arrow from the quiver, nocking the string, and drawing the bow in one smooth motion!

"Whoosh-!"

The sharp whistling of the arrow piercing the air as it left the bowstring shattered the tranquility of the night, disappearing into the dense darkness.

Immediately afterwards, a suppressed groan came from the woods, brief but remarkably clear in the sudden silence around the camp.

"Enemy attack!"

Almost at the same time the arrow struck, Denara's fierce shout rang out.

She stood up abruptly, her hand already gripping the pair of blades that gleamed with a cold light.

The members of the gilded girl group, who had been sitting and chatting, reacted quickly. In an instant, like startled cheetahs, they grabbed the weapons around them and quickly formed a tight defensive circle back to back, centered on Wang Yan and the campfire.

"Northeast, more than twenty-five people, there are Evil Spirits!" Tanara maintained her bow-drawing posture, her eyes fixed on the direction where the arrow disappeared, and reported the information rapidly.

Her arrow did not miss, but it is unknown whether it was fatal.

Denara's eyes were icy as she quickly gave the order: "Shanara, Ninara, Finara, the three of you protect the scholar. Henara, Tinara, Linara, the three of you cooperate with me. Tanara, provide support at any time."

"Roger that!" The girl group members quickly sprang into action, changing their formation.

Three axemen stood in front of Wang Yan, while three Sand-Purifying Waters and Denarra formed a small formation. Facing the shadowy jungle, Denarra, wielding a large bow, retreated slightly to create distance and fired several more arrows. Several muffled groans and sounds of people falling to the ground echoed from the forest.

However, the enemy clearly realized that Tana was not easy to deal with, and began to speed up their approach. More than twenty figures leaped out of the forest.

The leader... was none other than a thunderclap wielding a giant axe.

"A blade dancer, a wind spirit hunter... they are all children of the desert, why do you protect the scholars of the rainforest?"

Bai Riminglei looked grim, clearly not expecting that an attack would result in the loss of several skilled fighters before it even began.

"Oh? So, who are you working for now, a desert person?" Denara said in an equally cold voice. "You're the one who stole the Baiye's goods, aren't you? I don't remember the desert people having any grudge against the Baiye."

Clearly, Dolly and Denara had mentioned the attack they had received beforehand.

“Enmity? Ha, we work for money.” Bai Riminglei sneered. “For the sake of being fellow desert people, hand over the scholar, and I can let you leave.”

"The Nara Brigade never abandons its mission, you trash, you are not worthy to mention the glory of the desert."

Denara's eyes turned cold, and with a wave of her hand, the impeller began to spin.

The battle suddenly broke out under the cover of night.

Denara made the first move, the spinning blade in her hand creating a grass-green wind pressure that hurtled towards the leader, Bai Riming Lei.

The opposing side clearly did not expect the girl group to have such a strong fighting spirit. The giant axe hurriedly met the attack, and the clanging sound of metal colliding echoed through the forest, sparks flying everywhere.

"Damn it, get them!" Bai Riminglei shouted.

The surrounding criminal gangs raised their weapons and charged forward.

Denara didn't care at all; with the impeller spinning, she directly spurred the attack.

Three Sand-Purifying Waters followed closely behind Denara. They were agile and used short blades in combination with water-elemental-enhanced Evil Spirit weapons to weave and move among the enemy ranks.

The water flow transformed into a tough restraint and a sharp cut, constantly disrupting the criminal gang's formation and creating openings for Denara to attack.

Although the criminal gang had a numerical advantage, with more than twenty members, the difference in individual combat strength quickly became apparent.

Denara's blades danced like a storm, not only firmly restraining the strongest warrior, Bai Ri Ming Lei, but also forcing back several enemies who tried to approach.

The Sand Pure Waters, through their tacit cooperation and elemental advantages, separated the enemies who were trying to encircle them, preventing them from joining forces.

However, there are also some ruthless individuals within criminal gangs.