Three days after, the old man passed away. By then,Leoric and his group had crossed the Dark Road, evading the searches of the Thalantyr, and were making their way northwest towards the city of Eskal.

  Since the tribe had been informed beforehand and preparations made, the old man's death didn't cause much commotion. After burying him according to the customs of the Bedai Barbarians, they continued their journey.

  Leoric temporarily became the chief of the Bedai Barbarian tribe, as was the rule since he now possessed the sheepskin map—the token of the chief. However, it was only temporary.Leoric and the old man had agreed beforehand that once they reached Eskal, they would go their separate ways. Whether the Bedai Barbarians would find a new chief with the help of a shaman or merge with another tribe, it would no longer concernLeoric.

  Since it was only a temporary alliance,Leoric didn't bother to delve deep into the affairs of the Bedai Barbarians. His daily task was to use the map to find nearby oases, while others took care of the rest, requiring no concern from him, the temporary chief.

  Before his death, the old man did one more good deed—he taughtLeoric the Common Tongue.

  The Common Tongue was indeed simple and easy to learn, no wonder it was prevalent across the continent.Leoric had mastered it in just three days, at least enough for daily conversations. Learning a language always followed this pattern: once you grasped the basic grammar, pronunciation rules, and vocabulary, you could gradually improve on your own.

  As for the three clerics and the female knight, they didn't seem overly concerned with the affairs of the Bedai Barbarians—or rather, they didn't show much concern. When walking, they kept a respectful distance and followed behind; when camping, they sought out a secluded spot; even when the old chief died andLeoric temporarily took his place, they didn't show the slightest surprise, nor did they inquire.

  However, afterLeoric became the temporary chief, he had slightly more interactions with the female knight—since it was her responsibility to scout the path each day. Every noon,Leoric would use the map to find a nearby oasis, and then the female knight would search in that direction to pinpoint the exact location and return to inform everyone.

  Even so, they had little opportunity to converse. The female knight was somewhat cold, or indifferent to everything, rarely speaking—not just toLeoric, but even to her three cleric companions.

  They were indeed on a mission to deliver something—a spherical object roughly the size of a small round shield, tightly wrapped in black cloth and carried by the red-haired cleric Ranselder, who never let it out of his sight, even when eating or sleeping. The old man toldLeoric that this cleric was the leader of the four, named Tannath. The other Ranselder cleric was Tannath's deputy, Grant, and the Tier cleric was named Ferradon. From their attire, it was evident that these three held high ranks in their respective churches.

  As for the female knight,Leoric never learned her name. The other three clerics addressed her as "The Chosen One," which was obviously a title symbolizing her esteemed status, but definitely not her name.

  "The Chosen One?"Leoric pondered over the name. Literally, it meant that the female knight was personally selected by a deity as their mortal representative—if so, it explained why she possessed such formidable power despite her young age.

  However, what abilities could a girl who looked barely twenty possess to be so highly valued by a deity?

  The journey was peaceful, with no more encounters with giant undead monsters like bone worms. There were only desert feral cats and the like, which the Bedai Barbarians dispatched with a hail of arrows. Far from the Dark Road, the pursuers of the Thalantyr had also vanished. The sheepskin map was indeed very useful, always accurately indicating nearby oases. Basically, they could camp on grassland and replenish their water supply every two or three days.

  After about half a month, according to the map, they were very close to Eskal, perhaps just two days' journey away. At that point, they would go their separate ways.Leoric would head to the Portal of Boarding to deliver the letter to the old wizard named Lavoc, while the fate of the Bedai Barbarians rested in their own hands. As for the three clerics and the female knight, no one knew where they were headed. They were tight-lipped and wouldn't reveal anything no matter how subtlyLeoric inquired.

  AlthoughLeoric was intrigued by the female knight, she was an ice maiden—and a formidable one at that. He hadn't even had a chance to strike up a conversation, surrounded as she was by three overly righteous male clerics. After much thought,Leoric decided to give up and not pursue anything. Getting to the Portal of Boarding early, finishing this task, and returning to Spiritshade City to see his superior was the priority. Beautiful women were everywhere; he didn't need this one.

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  One evening, the female knight rode back and said she had found an oasis ahead. Everyone was used to it and set up camp as usual to rest.

  Leoric was alone in his tent and woke up in the middle of the night feeling uneasy. These past half a month of traveling through the desert was the harshest journey he had ever experienced. The blazing sun and blowing sands were bearable with time, but the daily trek and sweat-soaked clothes made him crave a bath.

  "Forget it, we'll be out of the desert in a few days."

  He turned over to sleep again but couldn't. He had left too hastily and didn't even bring a book for entertainment. This world had advanced magic but lacked technology. There were no computers, TVs, MP3s, or the internet. The lack of entertainment was truly depressing.

  In his boredom, he suddenly remembered that this oasis had a small lake to the north. Since everyone would fetch water from the lake,Leoric didn't dare to bathe. But it was already midnight, everything was prepared, and they would leave early the next morning. Taking a bath now shouldn't be a big deal, right?

  With this thought, he quickly pulled out a new set of clothes from his pack. Prince Brennus had some humanity; although he sentLeoric to this vast desert without hesitation, he remembered to prepare spare clothes for the journey, including several wizard robes.

  Leoric picked out a set and left the tent, heading towards the lake under the moonlight. It was midnight, and everyone was asleep in their tents after a long day's journey. They would prepare to leave again early the next morning. These days were truly arduous.

  But it was almost over. If everything went smoothly, they would reach Eskal the day after tomorrow. According to the old man, Eskal was once inhabited by the Netherese refugees and the Bedai Barbarians but was later driven out by a group of Man-Leorics. Nowadays, because the Man-Leorics and the Bedai Barbarians had declared a truce and vacated Eskal, the Bedai Barbarian tribes along the Dark Road were moving north.

  Speaking of which,Leoric had doubts. During his time at the wizard school, there was a course on "Monster Studies" that covered various strange monsters, including the Man-Leorics. IfLeoric remembered correctly, Man-Leorics were cunning, evil, and untrustworthy creatures that resembled a handsome human upper torso fused with a strongLeoric's lower body—but it was said that the aristocracy of Man-Leorics were half-human, half-serpent. Common Man-Leorics were strong warriors, cunning but not intelligent; the aristocracy often had high intelligence, spoke many languages, and some even had magical talents, among which were skilled wizards or sorcerers. However, unlike the wizards trained formally in Spiritshade City, the wizards and sorcerers among the Man-Leorics were mostly proficient in only a limited number of magics, mainly excelling in mind control and illusion creation, knowing little about other magics.

  It wasn't strange that the Man-Leorics chased and hunted the Bedai Barbarians, just as humans would drive away and hunt goblins. But did you believe humans could reconcile with goblins?

  Leoric didn't quite believe it and had once asked the old man about it. The old man was silent for a long time before answering, "Actually, we're not very convinced too, but the tribes in the north sent messengers with the news, so it should be true. Besides, we have nowhere else to go."

  "Why? The Sandtalon Guild has only sealed off the area along the Black Road. The desert is so vast; going north isn't the only option."

  The old man shook his head and explained, and only then didLeoric understand. Apparently, the Great Desert is roughly divided into five regions. The central area along the Black Road is firmly controlled by the Sandtalon Guild; the northeast belongs to the War Lizards, and the Bedai Tribes dare not set foot there; the southwest is the "Sword Desert," also known as the "Void Land," where not a single oasis exists, a true desolate death trap.

  "Our only choice is to head northwest, back to our ancestral home," said the old man.

  "Wait, you forgot one. What about this southeastern part, this place called the Thirsty Sandbar?"

  "This area now belongs to Spiritshade City," the old man said slowly, looking atLeoric. Clearly, he had already guessedLeoric's identity in a vague way.

  Having said as much,Leoric had nothing more to say. Ultimately, the affairs of the Bedai Tribes had nothing to do with him as an outsider. It was just a temporary alliance to get out of this great desert together, and once they reached Escow, they would go their separate ways.

  Shaking his head to clear his mind of these chaotic thoughts,Leoric quickly walked towards the lake. The desert nights were cold, and the lake water would probably be icy, but he was in such discomfort that his urgent desire to bathe overcame everything.

  Just as he was about to reach the lake, he suddenly heard a faint rustling water sound. It was deep night, and everything around was silent.Leoric had practiced internal martial arts for many years, and although his achievements were mediocre, his hearing was sharper than that of ordinary people. The sound of water, though light, clearly reached his ears.

  "Who's drawing water by the lake at this hour? No, this sound… is someone bathing?"

  The thought flashed through his mind, and the fragmentary sound of water became clearer, confirmingLeoric's judgment. He didn't expect anyone to share his idea of taking a bath in the middle of the night; it seemed like a kind of fate. Wait a minute? He suddenly realized, could it be that female knight? Was he that lucky?

  Right, girls are naturally fond of cleanliness. It's common for men to go without a bath for ten days or half a month, but for girls, not bathing for three days is a catastrophe. Everyone had been walking through the desert for more than half a month now. Even someone like him couldn't bear it and had to sneak out to bathe in the middle of the night. That female knight wore full armor all day long; she must have felt even more stuffy and uncomfortable than he did.

  Leoric held his breath and tiptoed closer. He saw a small hill by the lake, so he crouched down, crawled to the back of the hill, and peered out. To his disappointment,

  He guessed the beginning but not the end—it was indeed the female knight, but she wasn't here to bathe.

  She was merely washing her huge silver sword by the lake.