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Chapter 275 Three Strange Places

Richard and Stephena followed the group of natives for about an hour through the dense forest, arriving at a slightly open clearing. What came into Richard's view was a camp surrounded by a circle of pointed wooden fences.

The camp covers an area of ​​several thousand square meters and contains dozens of large and small domed wooden cabins.

According to the indigenous people, their tribe is called the Run Wolf Tribe.

At this moment, a group of people were already waiting at the entrance of the camp, among whom the most eye-catching were an elderly man and a tall warrior.

The elder wore a brightly colored feather headdress, a necklace with various gold and gemstones around his neck, and held a bone staff as tall as a person, resembling the appearance of an Indian chief that Richard had seen in his previous life.

The Apache shaman mentioned earlier is the shaman priest of their Wolf Tribe.

Another tall warrior, over 2.2 meters tall, with five red lines on his face and strange runes all over his body, was staring intently at the orc Otombo, who was about the same height as him.

He seemed to regard the orcs, who were of similar height and size to him, as formidable rivals.

"(Indigenous language) Jiligulu," the young indigenous warrior leading the way said, bowing slightly to his shaman and chief.

"Welcome to the Wolf Tribe, esteemed wizard!" the aged elder said after giving Richard a long, deep look.

"You're too kind, Apache Shaman. We're new here too, please excuse our rudeness."

"I brought a small gift, and I hope you and His Majesty the Chief will like it." After saying that, Richard took out two golden horned frog eggs preserved in an ornate wooden box.

The golden horned frog eggs were a few leftovers from before, and now three have been placed in each box.

This stuff has absolutely no effect on Richard now; aside from its delicious taste, he can occasionally eat it like candy.

However, it is an excellent choice for gifting.

The golden, translucent fish roe is beautifully shaped, tastes delicious, and is beneficial to wizard apprentices or great knights.

As for why gifts are given?

Richard understood the principle that "to take, one must first give."

Since he wanted the indigenous tribes to mobilize their manpower to help find the Rodrigo ruins, he naturally had to be on good terms with them first; otherwise, how could he even bring it up?

Sure enough, after Richard handed two ornate boxes to the two leaders of the Wolf Tribe...

The Apache shaman was old and shrewd, so it wasn't too obvious yet, but the undisguised joy in the eyes of the tall warrior, Chief Wolf, immediately improved his impression of Richard and his group.

It might be due to the other party's customs.

The wooden box Richard handed to the two men was immediately opened by the indigenous soldiers standing nearby.

Inside were three round, golden frog eggs, each the size of a golden bean, with an excellent appearance, and a sweet aroma slowly wafted out.

"Gulp!" Chief Wolf seemed to be immediately attracted by the aroma and swallowed hard.

Then, ignoring the surprised looks from others, he carefully picked up a pill and put it in his mouth.

"Hmm"

An expression of enjoyment appeared on Chief Wolf's face.

But the next second, his expression turned extremely astonished! This immediately caused the surrounding Wolf Tribe warriors to nervously raise their weapons and aim them at Richard and his group.

"Put down your weapons!" Chief Wolf seemed to have realized what was happening and immediately shouted angrily.

The tall figure suddenly bowed to Richard and continued:

"I'm so sorry! This... this esteemed wizard, your gift is far too precious. It's astonishing that it can even slightly enhance one's mental strength."

"Eh!" The Apache Shaman couldn't resist either, picking up a golden horned frog egg and putting it in his mouth, showing the same expression of enjoyment.

However, he wasn't as shocked as the Wolf Clan Chief.

Indeed, the mental energy fluctuations that Apache Shaman just displayed were no weaker than those of Stephania. As a formal wizard, the Golden Horned Frog Eggs had little practical use, but they could be enjoyed as a rare delicacy occasionally.

"Distinguished guests, please rest for a while in our tribe." Apachesa's wrinkles seemed to have been smoothed out quite a bit from consuming the golden horned frog eggs.

"Thank you, Apache Shaman and Chief Wolf. Well then, I'll take my leave of you!" Richard bowed slightly to express his gratitude.

The group arrived at the domed wooden house in the very center of the Benlang tribe's camp.

In the center of the cabin was a roaring campfire, surrounded by several cushions made of unknown animal hides.

After everyone sat down, many young tribal women came in and began to roast a lot of processed animal meat around the campfire. The meat was covered with a pale yellow juice, and some of it had various spices placed inside the belly of skinned small animals.

As the grilling continued, the aroma of the meat began to fill the air.

"My lord wizard, what brings you to Baselus Island?" After presenting the gift, the Apache shaman spoke up without Richard needing to ask.

Richard thought for a moment and said, "We've come here to search for what our ancestral wizards left behind on the island."

Just as Richard began his narration, a young, wiry native rushed in, looking flustered, and addressed the Apache shaman and the Wolf Chieftain seated at the head of the table:

"(Indigenous language) Gili gulu"

Immediately, the two tribes' highest leaders changed color.

The Apache shaman said to Richard with great apology, "Honorable guest, I'm very sorry, but we have a rather tricky matter to deal with first."

"A few guests can first enjoy our Wolf Tribe's grilled caracal and elk ribs."

Richard glanced at the slightly flustered native soldier who had rushed in, and after a moment's thought, decided to find out what was going on.

If I can help the Wolf Tribe solve their problems, they will naturally do their best to help me find the Rodrigo Ruins.

Of course, he wouldn't step in to be a hero if the other party's problem was particularly difficult.

"Your Excellency Apache Shaman, may we go with you to take a look? Perhaps, if the problem isn't too difficult, we can be of some help," Richard said, standing up.

Apache Shaman thought for a moment and said, "Alright then, distinguished guest, time is short, let's talk as we walk."

The group walked out of the domed house and came to the center of the tribal camp square, where they saw a native warrior tightly bound to a thick wooden stake.

They saw many crisscrossing wounds on his body, which puzzled Richard and Stephanie, as there were many small, deep holes on his body that would have been caused by a blowgun.

Could it be that there were other tribes nearby, and a battle broke out?

However, what caught Richard's attention was the strange fluctuation emanating from the other party's body. He was familiar with it; it seemed to be the fluctuation of a spirit.

Could it be that...

Seemingly considering Richard's presence, the Apache shaman used the Common Tongue this time, asking the local warriors, "How long has Cassie been in this condition?"

"About an hour and a half ago, we were hunting by the River Lenne when a strange white shadow suddenly appeared. Then, in a flash, the white shadow attacked Cassie, who was at the very back."

"Apache Shaman, is Kashi possessed by an evil god?" The indigenous hunting squad leader next to him explained the situation with a tense expression.

"Master, I have a feeling that this Wolf Tribe warrior tied to the stake is possessed by an evil spirit. I think I can smell the evil spirit." Stephania whispered in Richard's ear after examining the unconscious warrior.

Richard nodded slightly and said, "I feel the same way. Perfect, let's see how the Wolf Tribe handles this."

After listening to the hunting squad leader's explanation, Apache frowned and muttered to himself, "Could it be that the restricted area has been expanded again this year?"

"Forbidden area?" Richard keenly caught the word.

However, the Apache shaman quickly gathered his scattered thoughts and began to cast a spell similar to detecting souls.

"Lammaka!"

A wisp of pale yellow mist suddenly drifted from the tip of his bone staff toward the indigenous warrior tied to the stake.

Instantly, the indigenous warrior moved without wind, and the next second he suddenly opened his eyes, staring intently at the Apache shaman with an extremely vicious look.

Behind them appeared a white phantom about two meters tall. Its face was not visible, but it gave the impression that the phantom was watching everyone around it.

"Salamacka!!"

Suddenly, the Apache shaman unleashed a beam of yellow light that struck the white phantom from in front of him.

Suddenly, the white phantom let out a wail and charged towards the Apache Shaman with its arms outstretched.

At this moment, the Wolf Chieftain, who had been guarding the Apache Shaman, suddenly roared, and the strange runes on his skin lit up. The Wolf Chieftain immediately stepped forward and blocked the white shadow's attack path.

He swung his spiked club and struck the oncoming white figure with a heavy blow!

The solid spiked club, which had been passing through the illusory white shadows, suddenly flashed with a yellow light, blasting the illusory white shadows more than ten meters away.

With a piercing scream, the white figure became slightly transparent at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Clearly, Chief Wolf's attack had injured White Shadow.

Richard, on the other hand, was quite interested in the light flashing from the tattoos on Chief Wolf's body. This made him involuntarily think of the sign on Prince William's body, as if the two were similar in some way.

Both rely on the magical arrays drawn on the body surface to trigger specific energy particle fluctuations, achieving an effect almost akin to innate magical arts.

Richard thought about it and immediately decided to lend a hand.

"Death Ray!"

A black beam of light shot from Richard's index fingertip toward the white figure!

"Pfft!"

The black beam of light pierced through the white figure's chest in an instant, immediately making the white figure appear almost transparent!

"Mental shock!"

The next second, a transparent mental wave struck the white figure. Instantly, the nearly transparent white figure could no longer withstand the continuous attacks from Apache Shaman, Wolf Chieftain, and Richard, and vanished into thin air.

Only a thin layer of black ash remained on the ground.

Seeing the two spells directly kill the evil spirit, the Apache Shaman and the Wolf Chieftain exchanged a glance, both surprised. They hadn't expected that this Richard Wizard was much stronger than they had imagined.

"Thank you for your help, esteemed guest. You have gained the friendship of the Wolf Tribe!" Apache Shaman bowed slightly to Richard.

"You're too kind, Your Excellency Apache Shaman. It was nothing at all!" Richard smiled slightly.

The young indigenous hunter, who had been exorcised from the evil spirit's possession, was slowly regaining his senses, but he needed some time to recover.

Now that the matter had been perfectly resolved, Richard and his group returned to the domed building.

Once everyone was seated again, the atmosphere became even more lively!

Richard inquired, "Your Excellency Apache Shaman, it seems your tribe's warriors were injured after encountering an evil spirit. Are evil spirits frequently found in this area?"

Apache shook his head, seemingly without any intention of hiding anything, and said directly, "Honorable guest, we have never seen such a strange white shadow around our tribal camp. You call it an evil spirit? That's a very apt description."

"We call them undead ghosts. These eerie things used to only appear within the forbidden area, but in recent decades, the probability of these white shadows appearing outside the forbidden area has been increasing. I don't know why!"

Undying vengeful spirits are almost indistinguishable from evil spirits in terms of description, differing only in the number of words. Richard's focus, however, was on the forbidden area that Apache mentioned again.

This forbidden area greatly interested Richard.

Places where evil spirits appear are usually the favorites of necromancers. It is very possible that the legendary wizard Rodrigo left his ruins in the forbidden area.

"Your Excellency Apache Shaman, could you please explain what this forbidden area is all about?"

"The forbidden area is the Silent Forest. Go west along the camp for about fifty miles, cross the Lunn River, and you'll find the Silent Forest!" As if recalling something terrifying, the Apache shaman's face showed horror when he spoke of the forbidden area.

"There are all sorts of bizarre creatures there: walking skeletons, tall, ugly, deformed monsters, and knights riding skeletal horses! Even the evil spirits we just vanquished are very common in the Silent Forest!"

what!

This made Richard's eyes light up!

Richard and Stephanie exchanged a glance and both saw the same answer in each other's eyes!

This is very likely their destination on Baselles Island—the site of the ruins of the legendary necromancer Rodrigo.

"Lord Apache, your tribe must be familiar with the entire island of Baselus. Besides the Silent Forest, are there any other strange or eerie areas on the island?"

Richard thought about it and decided it would be better to ask more comprehensive questions.

"There are two more places. One is a haunted gold mine, about thirty miles north of the camp. It's an abandoned gold mine. As you go down, you'll hear eerie roars, which become more and more obvious the further you go."

"Our tribe doesn't mine, so we don't know what's inside. This is what outsiders have told us."

"The other place is the Heavenly Eye, which is a deep pool area. No one knows how deep it is. Our tribe's warriors have seen huge creatures swimming in it."

what!

It seems like either is possible!

This made Richard ponder: which of the three locations was the most likely site of the Rodrigo ruins?

(End of this chapter)