Hearing William's words, Stirling froze for a moment.

  Stirling glanced at his monk's robe, finally coming to his senses.

  But the next moment, William drew the sword out of his back and charged at Stirling.

  "Fuck! Wait!" Stirling had to dodge to the side and shouted.

  "Wait for your mother's rescue?" William burst into laughter at Stirling's awkward evasion.

  William moved like the wind, reaching Stirling even as he spoke. With a sweep of his standard longsword, he aimed to cut Stirling in half!

  Stirling hastily swung his blade to block the blow. A sharp grinding sound of metal clashing erupted from the darkness.

  "Swish!" A flash of fire lit up. Stirling retreated, using his blade to force open the gap between him and William.

  "I'm not from the Blood God Temple. I stole this!"

  Stirling roared, blade in hand.

  "You bastard, you're a cunning, treacherous wretch from the Blood God Temple. You say you're not?! Wait until I capture you!"

  William, not convinced by Stirling, jumped up with his blade and struck him toward the head.

  Seeing this, Stirling flew and rolled on the ground. A sudden flash of inspiration struck him, and he shouted again: "There's no face on my chest!"

  Sure enough, when Stirling shouted, William paused his attack. He turned to Stirling and looked at his chest with curiosity, asking: "No kidding??"

  Stirling didn't hesitate, lifting his monk's robe from his chest.

  At the beginning, Stirling planned to kill William to cut the trouble. But considering William claimed to be a night watch of Fairfield City, he must be helpful if Stirling wanted to enter the city.

  William gazed at Stirling's bare chest in the moonlight. His movements paused, and he continued to ask: "There isn't a face indeed on your chest. But as a commoner, how could you have stolen the robe from the Blood God Temple?"

  "The monk of the Blood God Temple seems badly injured. I practice the battle techniques passed down from my family. Although not advanced, with all my strength, I can deal with that half-disabled monk." Stirling spoke without blushing or faltering; his statement flowed without a second thought.

  "Huh, only you? Could someone else have gone?" William's eyes darted around, and then he looked Stirling up and down and blurted:

  "You're heading north, heading for Fairfield City?"

  This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author's work.

  "Yes, but how far is it from here?" Stirling took the opportunity to ask.

  "Continue along the official road for three days, and you will reach Fairfield City," William said, pulling a sign from his waist and tossing it to Stirling. "Once you arrive in Fairfield City, you can use this to enter the city."

  Stirling, yet didn't instinctively catch it. Instead, he dodged to the side.

  "Pah!" The wooden sign fell to the ground with a crisp sound and then lay there still, with no traps as it seemed.

  "You're quite careful; not bad." William, not angry, nodded and continued: "No discord, no concord. May I know your name, man?"

  "Luis Chilavert." Stirling answered with a fake name, glancing at the wooden sign on the ground in front of him.

  "Luis Chilavert, right? You look nothing like a samurai, nor do you worship deities. How could you have taken my blow?" William raised a confusing question.

  Stirling frowned slightly and then replied: "I'm naturally strong. Many people have asked me about this."

  "Hmm, you're really strong." William's expression remained unchanged upon hearing this, except for a few laughs. As for whether he believed it, only he knew.

  "You must have passed through Rock Village since you met the demonic monks from the Blood God Temple. How is it going? Can you tell me about the situation there?" William asked again.

  Although Stirling had said he hadn't been there, it was their first meeting, and they were both wary of each other. This made sense. Now, they should be honest with each other to exchange valuable information.

  As expected, Stirling paused for a moment before speaking: "Rock Village seems to be sealed off by something. I do not dare to go in."

  "Damn it! It's the Blood Sect's method! These rats love sealing off villages for blood sacrifices!" William cursed and then turned to Stirling.

  "Luis, do not wear this monk robe when you go out. The bloody smell is pungent. If you run into someone from our night watch, he will intercept and question you. But if you run into someone from the Yearning Palace... Haha..." With that, William turned and left the house, his laughter echoing in the room.

  Stirling listened to William's footsteps and noticed he had gone into the next room. Apparently, the night watchman also alerted him.

  Stirling then turned his gaze to the wooden sign on the ground. In the moonlight from the roof below, he saw a strange symbol on it and the name "William" in the center.

  Stirling fiddled with the sign with his long blade, finding nothing unusual. He then pulled a rag from his bag and covered it. He rolled it on the ground several times until it was completely covered and then relaxed a bit.

  Stirling shifted to another corner and took out the Flowing Sand Map to examine it. After days of research, Stirling discovered that the red crosses on the map indicated a harmful threat.

  For example, Monk Green and Monk White from the Blood God Temple. Although they hadn't met him at first, the entire Rock Village was likely their target. So, the Flowing Sand Map showed the temple's location with a red cross. As for Willam, judging by the fight, his strength was likely inferior to Green's. Otherwise, Stirling wouldn't have been able to dodge the first strike, no sweat.

  Why, with such limited strength, would William have considered taking a lone risk on Rock Village? Only God knows.

  William's and are like what Green said before. It reflected in Stirling's mind, piqued Stirling's interest, and his imagination unfolded.

  ...

  Early the next morning, Stirling picked up his blade and stood up, ready to keep going on his journey.

  Upon exiting the house, Stirling was surprised to see William standing before him.

  "Luis, could you please give me that blood robe? After all, it's high risk for you to wear it."

  William asked as he looked at Stirling, who had changed into ordinary peasant clothes.

  "It's buried in the house. If you want it, dig it up yourself."

  Stirling glanced at William, then clasped his fists and walked towards him.

  As they passed, William looked at Stirling with a hint of smugness flashing in his eyes.