Cracks of the morning sun shone on the horizon, heralding a new day for the Karon Forest. Diurnal animals awoke from their slumber and began their daily activities, the most notable of which being the melodious chirping of the birds in the sky.

It was in such a refreshing environment that an army of over a hundred people traversed quietly through the forest. They were dressed sloppily, most of them not even having any footwear. The one leading the army was a dark grey-haired middle-aged man and a grey-haired elder, Rodney and Wood.

The two of them were currently standing on top of a tree with weapons in their hands, looking for a better position to camp at so that they could better command the villagers traveling discreetly by the sides of the road.

Indeed! Today was the day that the two village chiefs of the Strength Sect were going to explore the world of banditry together with their people. Admittedly, it was quite embarrassing for them to be doing such a thing, but there was nothing that could be done since it was a request coming from the Master of the Forest.

Moving time back to a day ago

This was the first time Rodney and Wood had received a request from the Master of the Forest, and it was quite unexpected since they couldnt imagine anything this treant, who had survived through the ancient era, would need from them.

Just what in the world would prompt this esteemed being to seek our help? Has it met with some grave crisis?

Rodney and Woods faces immediately turned solemn, but what Ancient Treant Kayde said afterward made their expressions turn a little bizarre.

I heard a piece of news from my faraway companions. A convoy is bringing a lot of my beloved Cadi wine over. Ah, that delectable texture and wondrous taste! I havent had it for almost a hundred years now

That night, Rodney and Wood stared at one another in bewilderment as they listened to the towering treant moan about its love for Cadi wine for over an hour. For a moment there, they felt that Ancient Treant Kayde sounded like a frustrated alcohol addict who was forbidden from touching any alcohol by his children.

Anyway, the request it had was to plunder the alcohol carried by the passing convoy.

The two Origin Level 3 transcendents were speechless upon hearing the request, but at the same time, they found themselves heaving a sigh of relief too.

Honestly speaking, they were grateful to the Master of the Forest for accepting them, but they werent in a good position to be taking on hard requests. If it was something which Ancient Treant Kayde couldnt resolve with the werewolves under his command, it was likely that the Strength Sect would have to pay a heavy price in order to fulfill the request too.

If that was the case, both Rodney and Wood would have no choice but to turn down the request even at the expense of appearing ungrateful. However, such was not the case now.

Is banditry shameful?

Of course it is, especially shameful for Origin Level 3 transcendents who had enough pride to not resort to such lowly means. That said, it was far safer than any request they would have otherwise received.

Bandit ambushes usually occurred in less secure roads and in the wilderness, but one common aspect was that both the attacker and the attacked tended to be weak. In fact, most of them wouldnt even have Origin Attributes.

After all, which Origin Level 5 transcendent would possibly lower themselves to becoming a merchants guard or a bandit when they could have become a squad leader in an army instead?

Of course, there were outlawed outlawed transcendents who had no choice but to resort to banditry in order to make a living, but even so, the strongest amongst them was only at Origin Level 4, regardless of how large the bandit band was. There was not a single high-level transcendent bandit at all.

There was a good reason for that, actually. Simply put, if a high-level transcendent were to join an organization, the nature of the organization would change right away. The country would label the organization as rebels and dispatch soldiers to bring it down right away. They wouldnt risk having such an unstable factor around as it could pose a threat to their national security.

And since even the strongest of bandits was only at Origin Level 4, it was only normal for even the strongest convoy guard to only be at Origin Level 4 too. No one in their right mind would pay a kings ransom to hire a high-level transcendent when they werent needed.

This poses no risk to us at all.

Both Rodney and Wood were confident that they could easily bring down a convoy of merchants with ease. After careful consideration, the two of them finally thumped their chest confidently and accepted the request.

Count it on us.

Yes, well snatch whatever wine you want! This entire forest belongs to you anyway, so its only right for those merchants to pay tariffs!

The two Origin Level 3 transcendents replied affirmatively to the request. This was a small matter in their eyes anyway, and they were glad that they could repay their debt to the Master of the Forest with this.

With lightened hearts, the two of them quickly returned to the village to make plans. The trees were incapable of conveying the scale of the merchant convoy, so Rodney and the others had no idea what kind of force they were up against. Just to be safe, they chose to bring more people along.

The ambush they prepared was, frankly put, sloppy. Due to the lack of arrows, they didnt bother trying to conquer any high grounds beforehand. In the first place, their plan was simply to swiftly overwhelm the merchant convoy and force them to surrender. If possible, they wouldnt want to hurt anyone since their goal was just the alcohol.

When the other warriors of the Strength Sect learned that they were just dealing with a mere merchant convoy, all of the tension they felt evaporated away. They simply hung a couple of tree vines around their necks and treated it as camouflage. It was only under the glaring noon sun that they bothered to add a layer of wild grass above them.

It was under such circumstances that the convoy of thirty people finally approached the road they were camping at. But to their bewilderment, the convoy suddenly came to a halt right in front of their ambush.

Whats going on? Have we been found out?

Rodney and Wood traded gazes. They did know that the members of the Strength Sect were being sloppy and unprofessional here, but it should have been enough to fool the average merchant convoy as Wood had specially cast an Illusion Spell. One would have to be at Origin Level 3 at minimum to see through his spell from a distance away.

Does that convoy have Origin Level 3 transcendents?

How could that be? It must be a coincidence.

Looking at the slightly old carriages and the average-looking guards protecting it, Rodney couldnt imagine such a merchant convoy to have the financial capacity to hire a high-level transcendent. Wood also nodded in agreement with his judgment as well.

Then, right before their eyes, two youths suddenly alighted from the carriage at the very center of the convoy. It was a black-haired boy and a silver-haired girl, both dressed in the typical wear donned by a merchants children.

Yet, Rodney felt his heart skipping a beat upon seeing their faces, especially Alicias.

Why does it feel like something is amiss

As an adventurer who had traveled to many different places, Rodney was a veteran who was very well-versed with the ways of the world, and the situation before him definitely had something amiss.

One, good-looking children tended to come from distinguished backgrounds. The gene enhancement resulting from an increased Degree of Assimilation was not just for say.

Two, it was an ironclad law that youths who traveled without an elders supervision were extraordinary individuals. After all, which merchant association would entrust a normal youth with the responsibility of leading a convoy?

Arent they merchants heading back to Rosa? What are their identities? Could it be possible that

While Rodney was trying to deduce the truth, Wood was staring intently at the black-haired boys figure.

Why does he give me such an intense feeling of familiarity?

It was an inexplicable feeling of intimacy, and it left him deeply perplexed. For someone who had never ventured out for decades now, there was no way Wood could have been acquainted with that black-haired boy, but he simply couldnt shake off the feeling that he had seen the other party somewhere.

While the two of them were trying to figure out their doubts, the convoy had started moving once more. However, it had slowed down its pace significantly in order to accommodate the two slower youths, who seemed to have alighted for a whiff of fresh air.

Since their movements were slower, the speed at which they were walking into the ambush slowed down as well. This left the warriors camping by the sides of the road feeling deeply exasperated.

However, Rodney and Wood only felt more and more perplexed.

That formation! Isnt that one typically used only by professional mercenaries? On top of that, the disposition of those two youths This isnt right. They have to be children of high nobles!

This doesnt make sense. Im sure Ive never seen someone with that face before, but his silhouette somehow looks incredibly familiar to me. I havent met any strangers recently Wait a moment!

This is bad! Hold your arms!

Stop!!! Thats our Holy

The two village chiefs came to a realization simultaneously, albeit being from different angles. They stood up and bellowed as loud as they could, but it was already too late.

From the moment half of the convoy entered the mountain, the previously empty spaces by the sides of the road suddenly distorted, and over a hundred warriors of the Strength Sect immediately charged out from the illusion.

This would be their first and last movement in the entire operation.

The next moment, a powerful burst of crimson mana rushed into the sky, and a humongous skeleton manifested in the world like a demonic god.