Chapter 154: The Half-Elf Appears Once More

The next morning, before the sun had even risen, the silent mountain stronghold grew lively as Sun Licheng and his companions prepared to set off.

Riding atop a yak, Sun Licheng noticed that Clark, who was mounted on a yak right beside him, kept casting sideways glances at him with a strange expression.

"Clark, is there something on my face?"

Unable to contain his curiosity any longer, Sun Licheng finally asked.

"Well... Sun Licheng, now I truly understand why losing to you yesterday was no disgrace at all."

Clark blushed, giving a baffling reply before falling silent once more.

Naturally, Sun Licheng refused to let the matter drop. After repeated questioning, Clark finally spilled the truth.

It turned out that Carolyn, exhilarated from winning the battle and indulging in plenty of liquor, had been in exceptionally high spirits the previous evening, causing the customary nighttime spectacle to play out once again.

The members of the Blazing Flame Tribe were long accustomed to this, but the bandits lacked any such experience. Having listened to the grand performance for the entire night, countless men had suffered from insomnia.

Yet, not a single person complained.

In the Beastman Empire, the Lycan race possessed the greatest stamina in marital matters, yet even they could not rival the sheer commotion made by Sun Licheng and his wife. The crucial point was that Carolyn's performance the previous day had left an indelible impression on everyone. Seeing Sun Licheng looking so vibrant and full of energy early in the morning, they could not help but be utterly convinced and filled with awe.

"Damn it."

Upon hearing Clark's words, Sun Licheng let out a crude oath.

"Clark, you Buurt folks are big and strong. Usually, how long do you guys last?"

To everyone's surprise, upon hearing this, Carolyn showed not a shred of shyness and instead posed a remarkably unexpected question.

Hearing these words from the female tyrannosaurus of a boss lady, Clark's complexion shifted, and with a sorrowful expression, he urged his yak forward.

He had never expected that the moment he pulled away, he would hear Carolyn deliver a final knife-stab to his pride: "What's wrong, Sun Licheng? I was just trying to make a comparison, that's all."

*She is utterly ruthless,* Clark thought, holding back tears in his heart.

***

Stone Bridge Fortress, situated at the southwestern tip of the Goblin Kingdom, served as the southwestern gateway for the goblins. However, it had always remained peaceful, as it faced hundreds of kilometers of vast, boundless sand seas.

At noon, under the bright and cheerful sunlight, a goblin soldier stood atop the rammed-earth city wall, gazing listlessly at the town nestled below the mountain.

"Sigh, having to stand guard at a time like this. If I could just head down into town, I might even be able to grab a mug of ale. That noble lord from last time left in such a rush; just thinking about the lingering drops of wine left in his goblet makes my mouth water endlessly."

Leaning on his spear, the goblin muttered to himself in reminiscence.

Suddenly, a thin black line appeared in the distance.

"Something's happening!"

The goblin shouted inwardly, hastily running over to the battlements to peer intently. A moment later, he gained a clear view: it was a massive caravan consisting of nearly a thousand yaks. Even more astonishingly, the procession not only included numerous beastmen and ogres, but also a towering cyclops.

Such a large-scale caravan rarely visited Stone Bridge Fortress nowadays. Daring not to delay, the goblin scrambled down the ramparts to report the situation to the fortress lord.

"This is Stone Bridge Fortress," Chapman explained to Sun Licheng as he rode along on his yak.

Before them lay a town composed of countless sheds and tents, while in the distance, a rammed-earth fortress stood upon a rolling hill.

"Isn't this place a bit small?"

Sun Licheng asked with a hint of doubt.

"It's not very large indeed. Directly ahead of Stone Bridge Fortress lies the thousand-mile-wide Sand Sea. Being so remote, no one is willing to come here except merchants," Clark chimed in, swaying back and forth on the back of his ox.

"Will this place be able to absorb all our goods?"

Sun Licheng frowned slightly. He was carrying merchandise for nearly a thousand yaks; if they failed to trade it all away, it would be a terrible pity.

"Rest assured. Although the Sand Sea is desolate, it contains numerous oases. The Sand tribesmen possess quite a few fine treasures; trading away our goods will be no problem at all," Chapman replied, a confident smile blooming at the corners of his mouth upon hearing Sun Licheng's concerns.

Even before they officially entered the town of Stone Bridge Fortress, various merchants who had caught wind of their arrival had already lined both sides of the road.

Sun Licheng listened as Chapman conversed with them, looking at these merchants with lively interest.

Among the merchants were goblins, beastmen, and even ogres. Moreover, quite a few individuals wore large turbans that wrapped tightly around their heads to conceal their faces—presumably members of the Sand tribes.

Though these merchants desperately wanted to rush forward and hail Sun Licheng and his party, the sight of fierce-looking armed guards stationed throughout the caravan—especially the towering cyclops—frightened them into staying put, shouting their offers from the roadside instead.

Even so, after advancing a short distance, Sun Licheng and his group could go no further as the road became completely blocked.

After conferring with Chapman, the caravan turned around, located a large patch of open ground near the edge of the town, and pitched their encampment.

"With such a massive commotion we've made, Sun Licheng, you should prepare yourself. I expect the fortress lord will send someone over shortly," Chapman whispered to Sun Licheng.

Sure enough, about half an hour later, a troop of wildboar cavalry appeared.

"Which of you is the leader of this caravan?"

A tall goblin officer strode up to the edge of the caravan and shouted loudly.

"I am!"

Sun Licheng called out, stepping forward with composed ease.

"You?" The officer looked visibly startled upon seeing an elf, but he quickly recovered his composure and said in a booming voice, "My lord the fortress lord invites the caravan leader to Stone Bridge Fortress. Please come this way."

***

Half an hour later, Sun Licheng, Carolyn, Chapman, and Clark appeared inside the grand hall of the mountain fortress.

"Welcome, honored guests, to our remote corner of the world."

Before the person even appeared, their voice arrived. A booming, rugged voice echoed from the upper tier of the fortress. Soon, a hobgoblin clad in a bronze breastplate descended the stairs, flanked by several goblins.

"Greetings, Lord Fortress Lord. We are a caravan from the Blazing Flame Tribe in the northern reaches of the kingdom, here to establish a trade route to Stone Bridge Fortress."

Sun Licheng and the others hurriedly bowed in greeting.

After taking his seat, the hobgoblin asked with evident curiosity, "I have never heard of elves residing within our kingdom. And what is this about a Blazing Flame Tribe?"

Sun Licheng began his explanation, recounting how he had become a Chosen One, how he received the divine oracle from the God of Food and Delights, and how they had journeyed all the way to Stone Bridge Fortress.

"Ah, so you are a revered Chosen One! Forgive my lack of courtesy. I am Baron Gran, the lord of Stone Bridge Fortress."

Upon learning that they had arrived following a divine oracle, the hobgoblin's attitude immediately improved significantly.

After chatting with the fortress lord for a while and presenting their gifts, Sun Licheng and his companions took their leave.

Walking through the town outside Stone Bridge Fortress, Sun Licheng took in the exotic local customs, a bright smile gracing his face. Since this was Carolyn's first time traveling far from home, she had instantly transformed into a bundle of endless curiosity.

"As expected of a vital trade route; even in such a primitive place, it is remarkably prosperous."

Seeing the bustling crowds shoulder-to-shoulder on the main street and hearing the omnipresent cries of hawkers, Sun Licheng could not help but sigh in admiration.

"Sun Licheng, what kind of place is that?"

Carolyn asked, pointing toward a wooden sign adorned with the painted image of a goblet.

"That's a tavern," Chapman said with a smile.

"Splendid! I've never seen what the inside of a tavern looks like. Let's go take a look," Carolyn cheered, before skipping merrily toward the entrance and darting inside.

With a wry smile, Sun Licheng had no choice but to follow her in.

The moment they stepped into the tavern, a melodious wave of stringed music washed over them. Though Sun Licheng could not understand the lyrics the singer was performing, the melody was undeniably enchanting.

As he turned his head to look, his eyes instantly narrowed into thin slits.

The singer was not a goblin at all—it was a half-elf!