Chapter 108: Black God Church! Antidote? Poison Crafting? |
“Leo… are you alright?” Leo’s earlier reaction had startled Shia. “I mean, if it’s inconvenient, we can do it next time. It’s okay.”
Leo came back to his senses and restrained the frightening expression he had unconsciously revealed.
He had specifically invited Shia over today to ask about some things.
“No, no, I’m fine.” Leo smiled and picked up another horseshoe. “I just tested it earlier—the horseshoe seemed to have some quality issues. I’ll replace it for you. You run around so much every day, safety comes first.”
Leo’s mind worked quickly.
On the other side, Shia’s cheeks turned slightly red. “O-okay… sorry for troubling you.”
She increasingly felt that the Leo in front of her seemed to care about her in a special way.
She knew he was running a business, yet when she tried to pay him, he wouldn’t accept it.
And he was being so meticulous about everything.
In this foreign land, having a man who cared about her this much felt… quite nice.
“Oh, right. You mentioned that heretics appeared in your hometown, the Tulip Territory. They’re called the Black God Church, right?” Leo suddenly began chatting casually.
“Yes, the Black God Church. Those damned heretics.” Shia frowned angrily. “Those beasts are like a pack of wild dogs. They target lords whose strength has declined. But they don’t act directly—they collect money under the name of an offering fee, squeezing every bit of value out of a territory… and then…”
“And then what!” Leo stopped what he was doing.
“Have you heard about the villages near the Centaur Plateau?”
It was clear that Shia knew quite a lot about the Black God Church and the Wilderness Knight Order.
Leo recalled the rumors—several villages near the Centaur Plateau had been massacred by the Wilderness Knight Order.
His expression turned grave.
“Do none of the kingdom or the many great lords have a way to wipe them out?”
Shia shook her head, her face showing helplessness. “These Wilderness Knight Order groups hide in the wilderness year-round, constantly on the move. Eliminating them would require enormous effort. Right now, the kingdom and the four northern nations are still engaged in ongoing skirmishes.
Also, to put it bluntly, keeping these bandits around doesn’t harm them—in fact, it benefits them.”
“Hmm? How so?” Leo pressed further.
“You should know that the common people at the bottom of the kingdom don’t live well. With these lawless wilderness knights around, they place more hope in the kingdom and the great lords.
Also, these wilderness knights target commoners and small lords. They want wealth and resources. Compared to rebels who aim to overthrow the royal court, they don’t threaten the power structure.” Shia explained clearly and logically.
Leo nodded.
He had originally thought Shia was simply well-traveled, but he hadn’t expected her to have such insight into national affairs. Clearly, her years in Blackstone City had not been wasted.
Having someone to discuss these matters with, Shia became more animated. “Do you know why the Black God Church is so mysterious?”
“Why?”
“Because they only accept members at the Quasi-Knight level or above. They follow a pure elite route. Ordinary commoners aren’t accepted at all, so their numbers are small. Do you know why?”
“So they won’t easily attract the kingdom’s attention.” Leo made a guess.
“You’re right. In my hometown, the Tulip Territory, those Black God Church followers were hidden among the upper ranks of the military. Sometimes their identities were only discovered after death—and some were never discovered at all.”
“What’s wrong with Black God Church followers?” Leo asked.
“They lose their senses, lose their emotions, and eventually become numb, unfeeling walking corpses. But through this method, they can rapidly increase their strength.”
“How do you know so much about the Black God Church?” Leo looked curiously at the seemingly obedient girl before him.
“Drinking.” Shia made a gesture of drinking.
Leo froze for a moment, then understood. He knew Shia sometimes went to taverns to sit and relax, but he hadn’t expected it was for gathering intelligence.
“The merchants and bards who travel everywhere know a lot of things. Over the years, I’ve gathered some information.” Shia’s expression dimmed slightly. “Being alone in a foreign land, this is about all I can do.”
With her talent and strength, she would most likely remain a Quasi-Knight for life.
So gathering intelligence for her homeland was one of the few things she could do.
Shia looked at Leo. “Why are you suddenly interested in this?”
“I just think these people deserve to die.” A cold glint flickered in Leo’s eyes.
“You’re right!” Shia nodded heavily, but in the next moment her expression turned dejected again.
The Wilderness Knight Order was a massive organization—what could Quasi-Knights like them do?
“Your horse is ready.” Leo had finished replacing the horseshoe.
“You should still take this money.” Shia took out two silver coins and pushed them into Leo’s hands.
Leo refused twice, but in the end, he accepted. “Looking forward to chatting with you next time.”
Shia froze for a moment, then smiled shyly. “Oh… okay.”
She was already certain that he was trying to flirt with her.
In her view, Leo’s methods were still too clumsy—his attempts to start conversations were too forced, and his final words were too obvious.
Yet, she found his awkwardness somewhat endearing.
As a well-born and sweet-looking Quasi-Knight, she naturally had many admirers.
But only Leo gave her a grounded, reliable feeling.
Thinking about it, her cheeks flushed again.
……
Leo returned to the dungeon, where he encountered Lady Manta, whom he hadn’t seen for quite some time.
It seemed that after this period, Lady Manta’s complexion had improved significantly—she didn’t look like someone in her thirties at all.
Her face was rosy, her spirit vibrant, and she exuded the charm of a mature woman.
As expected, good fortune brightened the spirit.
After successfully producing a Tier 3 potion, Leo felt as though she had undergone a complete transformation.
Even the fine lines at the corners of her eyes seemed to have disappeared.
“Madam, have you been using some kind of beauty potion recently?” Leo began, as usual, with flattery.
“Oh? No.” Lady Manta smiled upon hearing this.
She had just been inspecting the equipment in the Potion Laboratory.
“I thought you had used some Tier 3 beauty potion. Your complexion looks like that of a teenage girl.” Leo added another timely compliment.
“Hahaha!” Lady Manta laughed heartily. “What’s this? Your mouth seems coated in honey—what is it you want to say?”
“It’s nothing. It’s just that last time when I worked on Alchemy with you, I gained a lot. I was wondering when I might have another chance to learn from you.”
“Oh, that.” Lady Manta set down the measuring cup. “I didn’t expect you to be so eager to learn. But no rush—the Alchemist Association will arrive in Blackstone City soon. After the certification is done, it won’t be too late to begin. Just in time as well—the catalysts are almost gone.”
Leo paused. It seemed Lady Manta’s supply of catalysts wasn’t abundant either.
At this moment, it wasn’t appropriate for him to bring it up further.
“If you have any questions about Alchemy, feel free to ask me.” Lady Manta was clearly in a good mood.
“I do have a question I’d like to ask.” Leo spoke up. “It seems 《General Knowledge of Alchemy》 doesn’t cover much about toxic potions…”
Lady Manta’s expression changed instantly. “Poison? Why are you asking about that?”
Leo remained calm—he had already prepared his response. “I heard that Lord Anthony is severely poisoned, so I wanted to understand this area, in case I encounter poisoning situations and need to prepare corresponding antidotes.”
“I see.” Lady Manta’s expression softened. “Anthony was poisoned by the venom of the Underground Lord, which is a very potent natural toxin.
Knowledge of artificial poison-making is strictly controlled within the Alchemist Association. However, the formulas for some common antidotes are publicly available.”
Lady Manta walked to a corner of the Potion Laboratory.
She opened the bottom drawer and took out a small locked box.
Then she used a key she carried to unlock it.
Inside were more than a dozen sealed test tubes.
“Look at these—these are artificially prepared toxins, used as samples to formulate antidotes.
Only state-authorized poison masters know the formulas for these toxins—even I don’t know them. But I can tell you the formulas for the antidotes.”
Leo took the test tubes and began examining them one by one.
Formula Analysis!