A fantastical journey across the heavens, beginning with the Witcher.

Sal was always very efficient, and that very day he found a pretext to hold back the team that was about to leave the city to "suppress bandits".

Of course, this also required the deliberate cooperation of the anti-bandit army.

If given a choice, who would willingly abandon the comfortable life in the city and go to suffer in the desolate wilderness of Tuomaling?

Not to mention the risk of encountering bandits, and they had no intention of actually fighting them.

Whether there were bandits or not was not important in the bandit suppression campaign. What mattered was that the nobles donated money, and the common people followed suit. Afterwards, the nobles' money was returned in full, while the common people's money was split 30/70. Given that Niubao had a higher political status, they reluctantly took 70%.

As for what to do with those bandits... what else can we do? We can just give them some money and send them away. If we can solve the problem once and for all, what reason will they have to keep coming back to make money?

The next morning, Li De got up early, kissed the red-haired beauty beside him who had been entangled in a passionate night and was completely satisfied, and quietly left the bed.

He changed out of his close-fitting, light and comfortable clothes and put on his armor again.

The heavy, substantial weight on my shoulders gave me a great sense of security.

Upon arriving at Master Scrooge's workshop, as soon as you enter, you see the old dwarf holding a longsword, nodding repeatedly with an undisguised smug look on his face.

Upon seeing the witcher, the old dwarf laughed heartily: "Perfect timing! Come and see your new companion!"

Li De reached out and took the steel sword. The blade was slightly heavy, but the center of gravity was very well balanced.

In the morning light streaming through the window, one could vaguely see three Svarrog runestone markings embedded at the base of the sword blade.

"I've never seen the material of your frying pan and rice paddle before. It's probably some kind of magical creation. It's incredibly hard, yet also quite resilient. It took a whole day to heat it in the furnace until it was red-hot. If it weren't for my ancestral skills, I wouldn't have been able to touch it at all."

"There's also magical metal, which is quite interesting. It's slightly less hard than commonly used gray steel, but its toughness is excellent. Most importantly, its magical conductivity is astonishing!"

Once the subject of his work was brought up, Scrooge opened up completely.

With dark circles under his eyes from countless sleepless nights, his eyes gleamed as he stared at the steel sword in Li De's hand.

"I used the first material to forge the sword blank, carved the rune groove, and then embedded the magic metal into it as a base. I also buried several rings of magic runes along the blade's pattern."

"As for the results... never mind, try it yourself."

Before he could finish speaking, the old dwarf deliberately kept everyone in suspense, pointing to a wooden frame standing to the side, on which sat a set of old plate armor.

"Let's try hacking at the junk we found in the warehouse with our swords."

Li De couldn't get a word in edgewise about the intricacies of weapon forging, but when it came to chopping things, he was an expert.

With the new sword in hand, I was already itching to use it, and now the old dwarf had even thoughtfully provided a target, so it was the perfect opportunity to test whether the old dwarf was exaggerating.

He charged forward quickly, and using the momentum, suddenly raised his sword.

The Svarrog runestone glowed with a bright yellow light, instantly covering the entire sword. With a swift slash, it drew a fan-shaped streak of light in the air.

"Whoosh—"

The blade cleaved through the thickest part of the plate armor, the shoulder armor, cutting straight through the entire upper armor.

Sparks flew as the plate armor, along with the wooden frame below, was cleaved diagonally in two.

Li De, still not satisfied, flipped his wrist and slashed the sword, the bright yellow blade swiftly severing the forearm armor.

In the blink of an eye, two more swords struck, shattering the target into pieces, the broken armor fragments clattering and falling to the ground.

The old dwarf clapped his hands repeatedly, it was unclear whether he was praising the sharpness of the sword he had forged or the skill of the witcher.

Li De knew in his heart that he was mostly praising the former, because he himself was also amazed.

"What a fine sword!"

His eyes burned as he gazed at his "new love" in his hands, his intensity no less than when he was with Elena the night before.

"Hahaha! I told you! With three high-grade Svarrog runestones inlaid, you'll be able to cut through plate armor as easily as cutting through wood!"

"Amazing! Master craftsmanship like this is undoubtedly the best I've ever seen among master artisans!"

Everyone carries the sedan chair, and Li De had only ever met two master craftsmen, but that didn't stop him from praising the old dwarf to the point of ecstasy.

After only a few words of praise, Scrooge's mustache was practically sticking up to the sky.

Fortunately, he still remembered the important matter and proudly took out a pair of arm guards.

While Li De was putting on his new arm guards, the old dwarf introduced, "The lining is made of the finest forked-tail dragon hide, covered with a layer of gray steel mesh chain, and the front is inlaid with a diamond-shaped arm shield. The material is the same as the sword blank."

"I also embedded a set of protective runes to increase elemental resistance, and it also uses a magic-conducting metal base. In the future, if a warlock throws a spell at you, just raise your arm guards to block it, and you'll definitely give him a surprise."

After changing his gear, Li De stretched his wrists. His defensive capabilities had increased significantly without affecting his agility, and combined with the Quen sign, his safety in battle was greatly enhanced.

Although witchers inevitably get injured, the fewer injuries the better. Who would want to create new scars if something can be resolved without injury?

Having confirmed that the weapons and arm guards far exceeded his expectations, Li De readily paid the remaining balance and happily headed to Sal's residence with his new equipment.

The city guard captain, who had gotten up early, was sitting at the dining table, eating breakfast with a heavy heart.

The butler hesitated, wanting to advise the young master to stop playing with the spoon, lest the silver plate be dented if he kept hitting it.

"Knock knock knock—"

A knock came at the door.

Distracted, Sal suddenly stood up, the movement so forceful that he overturned a chair. Ignoring the handrail, he rushed to the door and took over the work that should have been done by the butler.

Upon opening the door, they found it was Li De.

"You've finally arrived!"

Sal pulled him into the house, and as he closed the door, he glanced warily at the street to make sure there was no one suspicious.

"Why are you so nervous?"

Li De was both amused and exasperated, as he was clearly the one who was carrying out the plan.

"We can't afford to be calm. What we've planned violates at least half of the Redanian Code. If it's exposed, not only will we have no place to stand in the Cowburg, but we won't even have a foothold in the entire northern kingdoms!"

"Really? I don't believe it."

Seeing Sal's anxious expression, Li De couldn't help but make a teasing remark.

He then reassured her, "Don't worry. If we're talking about breaking the law, our 'mayor' is far more guilty, yet no one has arrested him. Even if we're exposed, we can just pin the blame on me. Anyway, the reputation of the Witcher isn't going to suffer any further damage. At worst, I'll just go to Nilfgaard and make a living there."

To Sal, this words of comfort sounded more like a mockery of his cowardice and lack of loyalty.

He immediately retorted in a deep voice, "What kind of talk is that! I have never been one to break my promises. This was something we planned together, and if anything goes wrong, I'll take the blame."

"Shout louder, and don't worry about the plan being exposed. The citizens in the square can hear what you're saying."

Li De rubbed his ears, feigning helplessness.

"Don't bring up other things. After all, that's a whole squad of fully armed soldiers, and we can't let a single one escape. Are you really confident?"

Thrall was worried, not because he doubted the Witcher's combat strength. Even a Blood Demon had died under the Witcher's sword, let alone a group of poorly trained thugs.

But that's the problem. Those scoundrels have no integrity or discipline. If they really encounter a strong enemy, they'll run away faster than anyone else.

If they fail to catch them and let a few escape, and the news leaks out, given that mayor's ruthless nature—"he'll squeeze every last drop of oil out of every toad he catches"—the two masterminds will definitely be in deep trouble. At that point, they really won't be able to stay in the North anymore.

"Dude, a Witcher is a hunter of 'people' by nature. Instead of worrying about that, you should think about how to persuade the mayor to issue the bounty afterward."

Li De wasn't too worried. Not to mention that the newly acquired sword could cut through armor like paper, even without the sword, he could slaughter that rabble like stray dogs with just a skinning knife.

"It's good that you're confident. I've drawn their troop deployment route on a map. That playboy stayed at a brothel yesterday; he probably won't get up until noon."

Li De took the map, glanced at it against his memory, and couldn't help but chuckle and shake his head: "This young master really isn't willing to endure the slightest hardship. He chose only flat, main roads, not a single side path."

"Are you planning to follow them out of the city?"

"No, following behind would be too conspicuous and arouse suspicion. I'll set off now. If any guards question me, I'll say I've taken on your mission to clear out the water ghost's den. Don't give yourself away."

Sal thought about the excuse carefully, and it made perfect sense.

Bullburg is surrounded by the Pontal River, which naturally breeds many water ghosts. The city guards often use this method to train new recruits and cultivate teamwork.

He nodded vigorously immediately: "Okay, I've got it."