Under the scorching sun, the desert arrow train was speeding forward. After the ambush, the desert arrow did not stop for half a day to deal with the aftermath. It immediately set off again without delay, heading towards Adis. Finally, after another day and a half of travel, it finally reached its destination.
Sitting in her compartment on the train, Miss Dorothy looked at the scenery outside the window. She saw that the desert, which was originally full of yellow sand, began to show some tenacious plants. Then came one low, simple stone house after another. These old, low, and dilapidated houses with almost no exterior decoration gradually connected into a continuous area. In front of them, she could see thin-faced locals standing and looking at the slowing train with curious eyes.
As the train continued to move towards the city center, Miss Dorothy could see that the surrounding buildings were becoming taller and taller. The further forward they went, the more the low, dilapidated small houses gradually disappeared, replaced by various tall, clean, and exquisitely decorated buildings. Beside the houses were various meticulously pruned plants, which, together with the surrounding beautiful buildings, formed a garden-like beautiful scenery. There were even canals carrying clear water flowing between the trees and houses, and some difficult-to-reach places even had elevated aqueducts spanning across. Various exquisite statues were decorated everywhere. The water resources, which were extremely precious in other parts of Adus, were transported here by these canals to irrigate the large amount of greenery, creating the beautiful scenery of this oasis city.
Continuing forward, Miss Dorothy could slowly see traces of damage appearing in the beautiful oasis city around her, either a missing corner, rubble everywhere, or just a large shell crater. Various ruins were interspersed among the buildings. She could see some people still rummaging through the ruins. These were all symbols of the city having been baptized by the flames of war. Looking at the scenes before her, Miss Dorothy thought to herself.
'Is this Adis? The capital of Adus, the pearl on the Xing River mentioned in the travel guide. The Baruk Dynasty once built it to be very prosperous, not much inferior to some large cities on the Main Continent, and it also became one of the destinations for Main Continent people to travel to North Wu. Now it seems that it is indeed the case. Except for the large slums in the outer city, the inner city looks even better than Adria... If you remove the traces of war, you can imagine the city's former prosperous appearance...
'But... internationally, Adus is an absolutely poor country with over twenty million impoverished people. What is the price to pay for building such a royal capital?'
The further forward they went, the denser the ruins Miss Dorothy could see, and the more traces of damage caused by war. Finally, the train gradually drove into a damaged station. Miss Dorothy could see the clear bullet holes on the platform pillars outside the window.
"We've finally arrived. Let's get ready to get off, Miss Dorothy..."
Across from Miss Dorothy, Naifnis said directly as she looked at the scene outside the window, a hint of impatience showing in her expression. It was clear that she had been bored in the stuffy compartment for the past few days. After glancing at Naifnis across from her, Miss Dorothy also responded.
"It's not time for us to get off yet. Remember, our identity is just accompanying merchants. We have to wait until the main characters get off. We can't mix this up..."
Miss Dorothy said this to Naifnis, and as she was speaking, the desert arrow train finally came to a gradual stop. At this time, Miss Dorothy linked to Sister Vanya's senses through the information channel and began to understand her situation.
Before the train came to a stop, Sister Vanya was already standing in front of the door, ready to get off. Through Sister Vanya's eyes, Miss Dorothy saw the train door slowly open. Then, several Church guards standing beside her walked out first. After that, Sister Vanya herself took a deep breath, encouraged herself, and stepped out of the door. As her foot stepped onto the carpet outside the door, what she saw were two rows of honor guards standing on either side of the carpet, their uniforms and attire not neat.
"Salute!" Following a command in the local North Wu language, the honor guards beside Sister Vanya all drew their swords and stood them in front of them. The sunlight reflected from the blades made Sister Vanya's heart tremble. Although the honor guards' clothes were all different and they did not have unified uniforms, there was a hint of sharp killing intent in each person's eyes, showing that they were truly elite soldiers who had fought on the battlefield, not just a purely ceremonial team.
At the end of the honor guard formation, in the distance of the gleaming blades, Sister Vanya, who was walking on the carpet, saw two figures: a middle-aged military man and an elderly cleric.
The military man, dressed in a military officer's uniform, had slightly dark skin and slightly curly black hair. He was strong and tall, with a face as if carved, with clear angles, full of heroism, and a determined look in his eyes. After seeing Sister Vanya walking towards him, he smiled and walked forward, extending his hand. Seeing this, Sister Vanya also immediately extended her hand to shake his.
While shaking hands with Sister Vanya, the military officer said something in the local North Wu language, and then the translator accompanying Sister Vanya immediately translated it.
"Welcome to Adis, Sister Vanya. I am Mr. Shadi, the current leader of the Adus Revolutionary Army. On behalf of all the people of Adus who yearn for peace and freedom, I thank Captain for your visit."
Through Sister Vanya's senses, Miss Dorothy in the compartment also saw this military officer named Mr. Shadi. Then, the information that the Church had prepared for Sister Vanya immediately appeared in her mind.
Mr. Shadi... a person from Adus, born into an Adus noble family. When he was young, he had excellent character and academics, and was humble. His father was a local official of the Baruk Dynasty and was dismissed from office because he sympathized with the farmers and failed to complete the tax tasks. In his youth, while traveling with his family, he was attacked by desert bandits. Their property was looted, his parents were killed, and he himself was captured as a slave by the desert bandits. Because he was difficult to manage, he was sold to a treasure hunting society as a 'mat' after changing hands several times.
There are indications that the ambush case was likely carried out by a great noble from the Baruk Dynasty who had a grudge against Mr. Shadi's father. The major bandit groups roaming the North Wu desert have the custom of accepting various Employment to do dirty work for others. When there are no Delegation, they are bandits; when there are Delegation, they are mercenaries; when the Delegation object is a national government, they can even transform into a regular army.
When the treasure hunting societies in North Wu go into tombs, when they encounter potentially dangerous areas, they have the practice of driving ordinary people ahead to explore the way, letting others trigger traps and curses for them, and exploring the danger level of the road for them. These coerced scapegoats are called mats, and the use of mats is quite common among the major treasure hunting societies in North Wu.
According to the Church's intelligence, Mr. Shadi was sold as such a mat when he was a child. The records for a period after that are not very detailed. When he reappeared, it was more than ten years later. At that time, he had become an excellent treasure hunter under another large treasure hunting society called the Millennium Society, and had become a Chalk Extraordinary.
Later, the Millennium Society declined after a conflict with other treasure hunting societies, resulting in the death of its leader. After that, Mr. Shadi gave up the struggle for leadership, took some confidants and left the Millennium Society, returned to his homeland Adus, and began revolutionary activities, attempting to overthrow the Baruk Dynasty. In just a few years, Mr. Shadi repeatedly planned uprisings. Although the momentum was huge and the Baruk Dynasty's army was defeated several times, they were suppressed by the Baruk Dynasty's powerful Extraordinary heritage and a large number of hired bandit groups.
The uprising failed, and Mr. Shadi himself was personally pursued by the Baruk Dynasty's Scarlet Extraordinary, but he always managed to escape successfully, and sometimes even managed to design traps to make the pursuing Baruk Dynasty Extraordinary suffer some losses. This is quite incredible for a Chalk Extraordinary.
There are rumors that Mr. Shadi is said to have obtained a secret weapon during his ten-year treasure hunting career. This weapon allows Mr. Shadi to fight against Scarlet Extraordinary as a Chalk Extraordinary, and not only retreat unscathed, but even cause some damage. This is the key to his ability to repeatedly escape the Baruk Dynasty's pursuit, but what this secret weapon is is not known.
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'Because of the difference in Extraordinary power, Mr. Shadi's uprisings failed several times, but he did not give up and was still secretly plotting to overthrow the Baruk Dynasty. And this last time, he finally succeeded. According to the Church's investigation intelligence, the reason for his success this time was mainly because he received help from a powerful ally.'
Sitting in her compartment, Miss Dorothy quickly reviewed the information about Mr. Shadi, the leader of the Adus Revolutionary Army, in her mind. Then, she shifted her attention back to Sister Vanya's senses. At this time, she had released Mr. Shadi's hand and responded politely in Prite language.
"Thank you, Mr. Shadi, for taking the time out of your busy schedule to receive me here. I will do my best to promote peace. May the Lord bless Adus."
After the translator beside Sister Vanya translated her words, Mr. Shadi smiled and nodded after hearing them. Then, beside him, the old man wearing a cleric's robe and a crown made of intricately folded headscarves, holding a scripture, walked up. He silently examined Sister Vanya in front of him, and then slowly spoke. The translator beside Sister Vanya immediately translated after hearing him.
"Welcome, servant of the Lord from across the sea. May we have some consensus under the Lord..."
The old man said this, and after he finished speaking, Mr. Shadi immediately spoke to introduce him.
"Ah... This is Mr. Mukhtar. He is an important member of our Revolutionary Army and an important Mentor who guides us according to the Lord's guidance..."
Mr. Shadi introduced him to Sister Vanya in this way, and looking at the old man in the white cleric's robe before her, Sister Vanya paused slightly. For a moment, her thoughts returned to the past.
Last year, Sister Vanya, who was still an ordinary scripture reader in the Tivian Diocese, followed the Church's holy relic recovery team to Igwin County in Prit to recover the newly discovered Extraordinary remains of Bishop Deekt. There, she was attacked by a group of otherworld, and the attire worn by the leader of that group of otherworld was very similar to that of the old man before her, except that what the old man before her was wearing seemed to be much more advanced.
Recalling the experience of her former companions fighting bloody battles with the otherworld until death, Sister Vanya couldn't help but swallow a mouthful of saliva. Then she solemnly said to the old man before her.
"Mr. Mukhtar... Since we believe in the same Lord, I believe we can definitely find common ground."
Sister Vanya said this to Mr. Mukhtar. Hearing Sister Vanya's words, Mr. Mukhtar also smiled and nodded. In the compartment, Miss Dorothy looked at the old man in front of Sister Vanya, and the relevant information provided by the Church echoed in her mind again.
Rumor has it that after Mr. Shadi's uprisings all ended in failure, he received help from an unexpected ally, and this ally was the Savior Descends Faction, an otherworld faith active in North Africa, the Shining Light Church.
The Savior Descends Faction provided strong Extraordinary support to Mr. Shadi's Revolutionary Army. The Savior Descends Faction, which has a deep Extraordinary heritage, sent many Extraordinary members to join the Revolutionary Army, allowing Mr. Shadi's Revolutionary Army to finally have the capital to fight the Baruk Dynasty on the Extraordinary level.
It is rumored that among the Extraordinary dispatched to the Revolutionary Army, there is even a Scarlet existence. After receiving such strong support from the Savior Descends Faction, the Revolutionary Army finally defeated the Baruk Dynasty in all aspects in the final uprising. Regardless of the level, the Baruk Dynasty suffered a crushing defeat. Its Scarlet Extraordinary were killed, and its army was routed for thousands of miles. Finally, the Revolutionary Army, which advanced unimpeded, captured Adis, the capital that symbolized the ruling power of the Baruk Dynasty. The rule of the Baruk Dynasty was ended, and a large number of people from the noble class fled abroad, hoping to use external forces to counterattack the Revolutionary Army.
The Revolutionary Army achieved victory with the help of the Savior Descends Faction, but the consequences were also obvious. The Savior Descends Faction deeply influenced the Revolutionary Army, which was originally not related to religious concepts. People from the Savior Descends Faction were placed in various positions within the Revolutionary Army, and the ideology of the Savior Descends Faction also began to spread widely within the Revolutionary Army.
There are indications that under the influence of the Savior Descends Faction, the Revolutionary Army is very likely to declare the new state of Adus a theocracy and legitimize the Savior Descends Faction within the country, replacing the original position of the Three Saints Faction, just as they have done in some other countries in Adus. This is unacceptable to the Holy Proximity Mountain Church.
It can be said... as long as the Adus Revolutionary Army declares that the Savior Descends Faction is no longer illegal in the new state of Adus, Holy Mountain will immediately take military action. Fortunately, the Adus Revolutionary Army has not made any statements regarding faith issues so far. However, Holy Mountain's patience is limited, and they cannot tolerate such an evasive attitude continuing indefinitely.
The Savior Descends Faction in North Africa is the product of the fusion of the True Shining Lord Church and the Shining Light Church. It is the result of the widespread emphasis on the extreme nature of the Savior faith in North Wu. Therefore, their address for the Savior is the Lord, a term with the characteristics of the True Shining Lord Church. Therefore, when Miss Dorothy heard Mr. Mukhtar say the word Lord, she knew that he was a member of the Savior Descends Faction, and it was even very likely that he was the Scarlet Extraordinary.
'Revolutionary Army leader... the highest representative of the Savior Descends Faction within the Revolutionary Army... In this reception ceremony, the status of these two seems equal...
'The divination result said... there is a huge divergence within the Revolutionary Army. Could it be... these two? They seem polite on the surface, but what conflicts do they have privately? It's really curious...'
Sitting in her compartment, Miss Dorothy thought to herself. Just a reception ceremony, and she had already seen the undercurrents surging within the Adis Revolutionary Army.
The brief welcome ceremony on the station platform soon ended. Under the leadership of Mr. Shadi, Sister Vanya and her entourage walked out of the station together to take the prepared special car.
During this process, the old man Mr. Mukhtar stayed in place a beat slower, watching Sister Vanya who was walking away with Mr. Shadi, a strange light showing in his eyes.
"So you dared to come... blasphemous Sister..."