Chapter 105: Doubt

When Sips mentioned Dog Meat, Sun Licheng grew somewhat unsettled, but he forced himself to stay calm and tried his best to speak with a smile on his face: "That mechanical dog was found in the Goblin Empire's Air Force Base."

"Could you let me have a look at that mechanical dog?"

Sips asked with a smile.

Sun Licheng shook his head firmly and said, "I'm afraid I must decline. Dog Meat is my companion, and I won't lend him to anyone." When he said the word "anyone," Sun Licheng deliberately emphasized his tone.

"Very well. Since you're unwilling, I won't press the matter. Please don't misunderstand—I harbor absolutely no ill intentions."

Seeing that Sun Licheng's expression had already turned cold, Sips tactfully ended the topic and once again expressed his apologies to Sun Licheng.

Sun Licheng, seeing that Sips was no longer pressing the issue, responded with polite magnanimity of his own.

Soon, they moved on to other subjects. During the conversation, Sips asked whether he might be permitted to preach within the Moon Alliance, and Sun Licheng replied that such a matter could only come to pass with the approval of the Star Moon Tribe. If Sips were to raise the request before the Moon Alliance, the Planting Flower Tribe would certainly support it.

Sips, for his part, stated that should he ever receive word of mysterious events occurring in any location, he would definitely notify the Planting Flower Tribe.

In short, the later part of the conversation was highly constructive but utterly lacking in practical feasibility, and both men were quite satisfied.

In the evening, Sun Licheng personally went into the kitchen and prepared a sumptuous dinner for Martin and his companions. Sips, tasting Sun Licheng's cooking for the first time, found his appetite greatly whetted and spent the entire meal singing praises of Sun Licheng's culinary skill, declaring that he had never in his life tasted such delicious food.

The next day, after Martin and the others finished their trading, they brought Sips out of the Planting Flower Tribe's valley and returned to the Star Moon Tribe.

Watching Martin and his party recede into the distance, Sun Licheng let out a long sigh of relief.

"Convey my orders—place the entire encampment on heightened alert!"

Turning around, Sun Licheng issued the command to little Medusa Vina, who nodded and went off to make the arrangements.

Two days later, in the chieftain's hut of the Star Moon Tribe, the boiling tea over the fire filled the entire room with a fragrant aroma. Adolf was hosting Sips, who had returned with Martin.

Adolf poured Sips a cup of tea. It was the tea leaves Martin had just traded back from the Planting Flower Tribe, and the brewed tea was fragrant and sweet.

"Lord Sips, I wonder how your visit to the Planting Flower Tribe went?"

Adolf asked Sips with a smile.

Sips took a sip of tea and answered with a smile: "Quite well. I had a very congenial conversation with Chief Sun Licheng."

"That's truly wonderful. Since your mission is already complete, there's no need to rush off. Why not stay a few more days in our Star Moon Tribe to rest and recuperate? What do you think?"

Adolf said, his eyes narrowing into slits from smiling.

But Sips waved his hand in refusal, explaining that he still had other matters to attend to and was pressed for time.

That same evening, Sips departed under the guidance of a local guide.

Adolf, standing at the tribal gate to see him off, now let his smile fall and spoke quietly to Martin beside him: "Keep a close watch on the Planting Flower Tribe and this divine envoy."

"But they haven't shown anything out of the ordinary. Why do we still need to do this?"

Martin was somewhat puzzled.

Adolf explained to him: "Coming all that way from such a distance, it couldn't be for something trivial. Remember—the more normal they appear, the more abnormal they really are. Do you understand?"

Martin suddenly grasped the point and nodded heavily.

Sips emerged from Full Moon Canyon and turned his head to wave farewell to the group behind him. But when he turned his face back around, his expression became grave. Once he was out of the goblins' sight, he urged his riding boar onward, charging at full speed toward a valley.

That night, under a sky of bright moonlight and brilliant stars, in a hidden valley, Sips stood in fitted combat dress before a simple stone shrine, softly chanting incantations.

As the melodious recitation continued, a white light appeared around the shrine, shimmering and growing ever brighter until, before long, a crystalline halo manifested in the air.

Then, a face of stunning beauty capable of driving anyone to madness appeared within the halo—it was the Archangel of the God of Conspiracy, Jill.

Seeing Jill appear, Sips hurriedly bowed and reported to her the full account of his meeting with Sun Licheng.

"I am certain that something is wrong with Sun Licheng."

At the end of his report, Sips said to Jill with conviction.

Jill nodded and agreed: "Sips, you've done very well. Your thinking is correct—Sun Licheng must harbor secrets we don't yet know. Return now and investigate, but be extremely careful not to alert the enemy. The Ocean Pantheon is still watching His Majesty closely, so I cannot provide you with much assistance, but I trust that you will surely accomplish His Majesty's commission."

"Please set Your Grace's mind at ease—I will complete the task."

Sips pressed his hand to his chest and bowed in assent.

Jill nodded with satisfaction, then vanished from the halo, and the light upon the shrine went dark.

Sips waited for a moment before straightening up and walking over to the boar. He patted the beast's body, and the boar grunted twice before trotting off into the woods on its own.

Seeing the boar gone, the half-elf adjusted his equipment and swiftly sprinted back toward Full Moon Canyon, his speed easily surpassing that of a fine steed.

Twenty minutes later, Sips arrived before a cliff he had scouted in advance. He looked up, then leaped, his hands catching onto the small protrusions of the rock face, and like a gecko, he scurried up the sheer wall with astonishing speed.

What was remarkable was that throughout his climb, Sips made not the slightest sound, moving like a specter.

Soon, the sheer cliff of several dozen meters stood conquered beneath his feet.

Having scaled the cliff, Sips's breathing remained steady. He took his bearings by the moonlight, then set off at a run toward the northwest.

A patrol squad of the Full Moon Tribe was marching along a mountain path, holding torches aloft. Their leader wore a composite rattan armor produced by the Planting Flower Tribe, its bronze plates glinting in the torchlight.

Suddenly, a figure like a ghost darted past the rear of the formation and vanished into the woods.

The patrol squad leader was a battle-hardened warrior. He keenly sensed something amiss and raised his hand to halt the squad.

The goblin soldiers quickly fanned out, leveling their bronze spears as they cautiously searched the surroundings, but after scouring the area, they found nothing.

"Could it have been my imagination?"

The goblin squad leader reached under his helmet, scratched his head, and muttered in confusion.

By this time, Sips had already slipped through the goblins' defensive line, racing under the moonlight toward the Planting Flower Tribe.

"Sun Licheng, I'm coming."

As he ran, Sips shouted in his heart.