Chapter 483: Chapter 415, 3 Dwarfs_2
Unlike the desolation of the Chilly Wind Mountain Range, which was due to the many rocks and hills, this was a different type of desolation, as if the land had been devastated.
There were no trees or greenery here, only scattered pieces of armor and weapons buried by the dark red soil.
One could only imagine how many lives were lost in the war here.
“Have someone take a look to see if there’s anything strange here…” Fang Hao said.
Black Sword immediately assigned a skeleton, who stepped boldly into the red soil.
The red land was a bit soft. Once stepped upon, it depressed like mud.
The skeleton soldier marched forward for a hundred meters and then made a circle without any abnormal situation occurring.
By following the order, the muscular undead dug out the buried metal weapons from the ground.
The weapons and armors were severely corroded, but still, no monsters emerged.
Seeing this, Black Sword ordered the skeleton to return.
However, halfway returning, Demitrija whispered, “Behind the mound on the west, there are some figures hiding.”
Demitrija’s voice was low, but Fang Hao and Black Sword heard her clearly.
Looking towards the west, they quickly spotted two figures swiftly hiding behind a mound. The distance was too great and the individuals moved too quickly; they couldn’t see what kind of creatures they were.
But they could confirm there were indeed people over there.
Could it be that there are still living creatures surviving in the Desolate Battlefield?
“Black Sword, send people to bring them here, preferably alive,” said Fang Hao in a low voice.
“As you wish.”
Black Sword turned around to give instructions.
Whoosh, whoosh!!
Several breaking sounds rang out as dozens of Skeleton Mantis shot out, and with a few jumps, they arrived at the distant mound.
A longsword swept out, and pleas for mercy immediately followed.
Then, three short human-shaped creatures were escorted over by the Skeleton Mantismen.
Standing before Fang Hao and the others, they bowed their heads.
[Dwarf Miner (Level 2)]
[Dwarf Blacksmith (Level 3)]
Dwarves?
The three people in front of Fang Hao only reached a little over one meter in height and none exceeded one and a half meters.
Although they were short, their bodies were thick and their rough, ragged linen clothes revealed arms and legs covered in strong muscles.
Just standing there, their muscles tense, they looked like three personal trainers.
All three dwarves were male with rough features and exaggerated beards.
Fang Hao had seen dwarves in the Trade Alliance’s station before. Their distinctive beards were their most significant feature.
“Gentlemen, we’re just passing through and don’t mean any harm!” said one red-bearded dwarf tentatively.
Although they stood obediently, their shifty eyes revealed that they were seeking a chance to escape.
“Why are you here?” asked Fang Hao.
The dwarves looked puzzled to see a human amongst the undead army.
Still, they explained, “We’re just passing through. Your army arrived here just as we were passing, and we hid to avoid any misunderstandings.”
The undead and living creatures generally were in conflict. Each party instinctively avoided the other’s army when they saw it—the explanation was plausible.
However, Fang Hao was not concerned with these details. He wondered why they would be in the Desolate Battlefield.
“What brings you to the Desolate Battlefield?” Fang Hao continued to ask.
The red-bearded dwarf glanced at the Skeleton Mantismen surrounding him and said, “We wanted to take some equipment from here.”
Many weapons and armors could be seen buried under the dark red soil of the Desolate Battlefield.
In other words, they were scavengers.
Fang Hao didn’t immediately continue his questioning but instead had Jia Yue summoned.
“Are there dwarves around here?” asked Fang Hao.
Jia Yue shook her head, “The area around the Desolate Battlefield is very deprived of resources. Except for a few human villages, there are no dwarves or other races.”
Before becoming a subdomain of Fang Hao, Jia Yue had relied on exploring ancient tombs to develop her territory. As such, she knew this was a desolate area.
The nearby rulers would go to war for minor resources. They were on the brink of war.
But I’ve never heard of dwarfs settling here.
Fang Hao’s gaze fell back on the three dwarfs, speaking flatly, “If you guys are not willing to tell the truth, you can only die here.”
Hearing the indifferent tone made the backs of the three dwarfs chill in an instant.
The vast undead army had already terrified them. If the opponent wanted to kill them, the chief would not be able to take revenge.
“No, my lord, we indeed came here to pick up some iron pieces for re-smelting, then make them into equipment to sell to the nearby human cities.” The red-bearded dwarf was already breaking into a sweat on his forehead, assuring Fang Hao that he wasn’t lying.
Fang Hao felt they were not getting to the point.
So he asked directly, “How many of you are there? Are you from outside or have you always lived nearby!”
Upon hearing Fang Hao’s question, the three dwarfs stiffened immediately.
After looking at each other, they all shut up and stopped talking.
Fang Hao found it a bit amusing; what was the use of being stubborn at this crucial moment?
“Kill them!” Fang Hao issued the order.
The Skeleton Mantis standing beside him immediately drew its sword, preparing to strike.
The dwarves immediately opened their mouths, “We have over a thousand people, we migrated here a month ago.”
Contrary to the popular belief that dwarves are hot-tempered and difficult to communicate with, Fang Hao found the method of communication very straightforward.
“This area is quite desolate; why would you move here?”
“This is because…because two months ago, there was some conflict between the Dwarf Clans, we lost, many people died, and eventually moved here.” The red-bearded dwarf gritted his teeth, but still disclosed the information.
Fang Hao’s brow furrowed, suddenly recalling a period of time in the past.
His shop had received a large number of dwarf orders, including gunpowder, firearms, and even equipment used by dwarves, all within the scope of the orders.
He had suspected that there might be a war brewing among the dwarves.
But it hadn’t occurred to him that it might be infighting within the clans.
The talks of the three were consistent with his orders, so they were probably not lying.
Moreover, there would be no purpose in lying about this matter.
“What’s your leader’s name?” Fang Hao continued to ask.
This time, the dwarf hesitated and didn’t respond immediately. Instead, he said, “My Lord Undead, I can assure you that we have no ill intentions or plots against you or your army. Please, in the light of our honesty, do not continue to make things difficult for us.”
“I’m inclined to believe that the three of you merely encountered us. I want to talk to your leader,” Fang Hao straightforwardly declared.
He was becoming more interested in the dwarves, who were known to be born craftsmen and masters of firearms.
He wondered if there would be unexpected gains this time.
“My Lord, there’s no need for that. I can notify the leader to leave here immediately so as not to disturb your operations.” The red-bearded dwarf continued.
He definitely didn’t want to lead this enormous undead army to their encampment.
Otherwise, wouldn’t all of them be wiped out by these undead!
Just because the dwarves were unwilling to talk, didn’t mean that Fang Hao had no other means.
Before long, a gnoll came running over, panting and reporting, “My Lord, in the southwest direction, we discovered a dwarf encampment, where dwarfs can be seen coming in and out. The population is close to a thousand.”
Gnolls are not considered elite troops within the orc tribe.
However, they possess some tracking skills, and their quadrapedal running is swift.
In Fang Hao’s army, they were often used as scouts and messengers.
Another type of operator, focused on reconnaissance and intelligence gathering, was the Blackfoot Cat Tribe, which hadn’t yet joined the ranks.
“Good job.” Fang Hao praised.
The gnoll left, and the three dwarfs looked dumbfounded.
If they had known that the opponent could figure it out, they would have said so earlier.
They risked being killed and said nothing, but the adversary figured out the location in the blink of an eye.
Now that they’ve answered all the questions, they wouldn’t be killed now, would they?
When Fang Hao looked back, he saw that the faces of the three dwarfs were getting worse, and the sweat on their foreheads was increasing.
He thought, there wouldn’t be any sudden illness, would there?
“Are you three okay?” Fang Hao pointedly asked.
Their robust legs were slightly shaking.
Fang Hao continued to ask, “There’s no danger to living creatures inside, right? I see you guys going in.”
“If we tell you, will you let us go?” The red-bearded dwarf asked, looking up.
“Yes.”
“Really?” The three dwarfs were taken aback.
“Do you think I need to lie to you?” Fang Hao questioned back.
“Alright then, I’ll tell you, there’s a poison inside….”