Once upon a time there was a greedy snake

So the priests randomly picked one person from the group of ordinary people they had previously subdued and put him in charge to continue the operation of the spice trade. In the process, the priests gradually learned where the spices were produced and where the spice merchants were gathered.

"And these salt wells... Atrebis and Kent?"

The priest chief marked the two towns on the papyrus map and then handed it over to the able-bodied men.

Immediately afterwards, temples dedicated to the serpent god were erected in both villages.

Although it is only the size of a shrine, it is still a temple, and it still represents the name of God and has the same divine majesty. No matter how small the temple is, disrespecting the temple is still disrespecting the God.

Disrespect for God will naturally result in the confiscation of property and the extermination of the entire clan.

Thus, just like the spice trade in the Buto region, those salt wells, as well as several other spice-producing areas, also fell into the control of these priests.

In just one month, these priests had almost completely taken control of the Buto region.

Throughout this process, none of them even left the gate of the Snake God Temple.

"The main reason is that there's no resistance here..."

Thinking of this, the priest chief couldn't help but feel a sense of relief. After all, not every place allowed them to show off their skills so much. If they were in the territory of the sun god in the north, other priests would probably have come to challenge them to a duel before they even started dealing with the spice merchants.

At present, at least in the Buto region, the only ones who can fight against them are old Buto and that ancient snake. Old Buto is busy with something, and the ancient snake is busy with something. Neither of them pays any attention to them, yet they can do their work without any hindrance.

"This kind of life seems pretty good... no, wait."

The moment a feeling of comfort arose in his mind, the priest leader quickly pressed it down.

You can't think like that, you absolutely can't think like that. Even though they've been deeply entrenched in darkness, the radiance of the Sun God still lingers in their hearts. In a sense, the reason they deliberately made such a commotion was to attract the Sun God's attention, so that the holy land of Sun City would send out more forces to besiege this ancient serpent.

On the other hand, the bigger the commotion they make, the more capable they are.

"Very good, you guys did a really good job."

Just as they expected, when the one-month deadline came to an end, the enormous ancient serpent indeed rewarded them.

"But there's one more thing I want to ask you."

"Was the shop where I used to buy pepper also demolished by your people?"

Chapter 129 Sacrificing the Head (Part 4)

When asked about the spice merchant, the priests immediately broke out in a cold sweat.

However, as seasoned priests, they were prepared for any situation in advance. Just like now, when faced with the ancient serpent's questioning, these priests decisively took out several idols that they had found in the spice merchant's house.

"He actually dared to worship the god of the north in your territory! If he doesn't die, who will?"

The priest-chief spoke with an air of righteous indignation, as if the spice merchant had committed a grave sin.

Du Yi had heard some news about the gods in the north during this month—unlike the snake god worship popular in the south, the gods worshipped in the north were the eagle god, also known as the sun god, and the gods subordinate to the eagle god.

And these priests in front of me...

I think they used to worship the sun god too?

"We have found something more worthy of our pursuit."

The priests' faces were filled with loyalty.

"So naturally, we won't allow that evil spice merchant to continue his disguise."

Du Yi didn't have much contact with spice merchants, so he didn't know whether they were disguised or not. But if we're talking about evil... Du Yi remembered that when he asked Old Buto to buy pepper and vinegar for him, the spice merchant not only didn't give them a discount for bulk purchases, but even raised the price by a full 20%.

From this perspective, this spice merchant was indeed quite evil.

However, what Du Yi was really concerned about were the priests in front of him.

Capable, loyal, and most importantly, extremely loyal—Du Yi himself couldn't understand where these priests got their loyalty from.

He hadn't done anything wrong, and these priests had been inexplicably picking on him not long ago, but judging from their current demeanor, it seemed that even if he wanted these priests to die, they would do so without hesitation.

"How is this going?"

Du Yi was quite puzzled. Could it be that he really had some strange personal charm?

He had considered the possibility that these priests harbored ill intentions, but even if they did, he didn't have anything on him that these priests would covet. If these priests wanted to harm him, that made even less sense. Even if he lay on the ground and let these priests do as they pleased, they might not be able to break through the snake scales on his body.

"So...it should be a good thing?"

Du Yi never allowed himself to get caught up in digging into things that were unclear. As long as this matter could have a positive effect, it was naturally a good thing for him.

It was at this point that Du Yi began to take these priests seriously.

There were four priests in total. The one who used the golden scarab amulet was the leader, and the other three used a goose-headed warhammer, an ostrich feather, and a twin lion-headed pendant, respectively. Of course, for safety reasons, they had all been disarmed, but Du Yi still preferred to use their weapons as a way to remember these people.

After all, the names of these priests were rather difficult to remember; their respective weapon styles were much easier to recognize.

"Perhaps I should make a more careful note of their names...after all, they are indeed very capable."

Gaining the loyalty of these four priests was a pleasant surprise for Du Yi. Even if you include the Ignivas people he had previously controlled, these four priests were definitely the four most capable people under his command.

Du Yi never hesitates to praise capable people.

First, Du Yi lifted the confinement order on the four priests. Since they had been so loyal, they could go wherever they wanted. After that, Du Yi, who hadn't decided what reward to give them, simply told the four priests to choose for themselves.

"I'll say anything I can do."

Du Yi showed unusual generosity.

However, this generosity was not seen in the eyes of the four priests at all.

"A test! This is definitely a test!"

The backs of the four priests were completely soaked with cold sweat.

Although they had prepared contingency plans for all sorts of situations, and could come up with various excuses whether they got away with it or not, the fact that everything was resolved so easily, and even the curfew was lifted, far exceeded their expectations.

And now, this reward, which has virtually no upper limit, fills them with immense terror.

Yes, they were indeed working hard and their results far exceeded expectations, but a mere amount of spices is hardly worthy of such generous praise.

Therefore, the problem becomes obvious.

This is a test, a test to see if they are truly loyal.

"How to do?"

One priest was about to express his loyalty, but he was immediately silenced by the look in the priest leader's eyes.

"It is precisely at times like these that one should not express loyalty."

The priest leader shook his head slightly.

In their previous actions, they had already proven their loyalty. If they were to prove it again, their intentions would be too obvious. After all, in the eyes of that ancient serpent, they had only just chosen a new faith and hadn't even seen any benefits yet. What were they trying to do by being so loyal?

Excessive concealment is not necessarily a good thing; it may even have the opposite effect.

"Think about it, what kind of people are the easiest to control?"

The chief priest secretly gestured to the other three.

Upon seeing this guidance, the other three priests immediately understood the key point.

Yes, right now they want to gain the trust of the giant serpent, so they naturally need to act more like they can be controlled—as for what kind of people are easiest to control, they, as priests, know all too well.

That is, there are greedy people.

The reason people worship gods is ultimately because they have desires for them, such as praying for good luck, unexpected wealth, protection, or good health. As for those who have no desires, they have no reason to enter the temple, since they can do everything themselves.

"So... don't appear too loyal, and don't appear too clever. Be like those believers and show your foolish side."

Thinking this, the four priests spoke in succession.

"I want to be healthy forever, is that possible?"

The priest who used the twin lion head pendant was the first to utter his prayer.

"I want money, lots and lots of money, anything valuable is fine too."

The priest, who used ostrich feathers, said this.

"I want power, unparalleled power."

The priest wielding the goose-headed warhammer appropriately expressed his desire.

“I want power and status, I want to be the highest... I’ve wanted to sit in the position of the chief high priest for a long time.”

The priest who used the golden scarab beetle performed the role with remarkable skill.

"This……"

Faced with the requests of the four priests, Du Yi began to scratch his head with his tail.

"Alright."

Although the four priests' demands were a bit excessive, Du Yi had already made his promise and would certainly not go back on it.

Chapter 130 Du Yi's First Team

Du Yi spent the entire afternoon working to fulfill the wishes of the four priests.

So, that very night, the four priests got what they wanted.

For the priest who wanted to be healthy, Du Yi put him in charge of agriculture and passed on his health regimen to him, instructing him to go to bed early and get up early, and to eat healthily. After giving him these things, Du Yi felt that it was not enough, so he took out another thing, which was a drop of his blood.

Going to bed early and waking up early, and eating healthily, can only prolong life. But if one gets a serious illness or is poisoned, one will still die. Du Yi can't guarantee against serious illnesses, but at least with this drop of blood, this priest who desires health can be immune to all poisons.

As for the priest who wanted money, Du Yi put him in charge of managing the business. Du Yi didn't have much to teach him in this area. He just advised the priest to trade honestly and not to cheat on weights and measures. Unfortunately, the priest didn't even know what a jin (斤) or liang (两) was, so Du Yi had to make a scale on the spot.

The materials used to make the scale were carefully selected firewood by Du Yi, as well as snake scales that he had shed. Du Yi personally adjusted the scale, making it quite accurate.

As for the priest who wanted power, Du Yi put him in charge of local defense and taught him some of the Ignivas people's physical training methods that he had seen before. After that, thinking that the other two people had taken something, the priest should also take one, so Du Yi broke off half of the scale that was sticking up on his tail.

Du Yi often used the raised scale on the tail as a kitchen knife. Whether it was used to cut saber-toothed tigers or mammoths, the scale that Du Yi had deliberately sharpened was always easy to use.

As for the priest who ultimately sought power…

"You continue to manage those three."

As Du Yi spoke, he deftly used his long tail to lift a bone crown.

It was made by Du Yi using his own teeth that he had previously replaced. It embodied all of Du Yi's skills in carving. You have to know that with his huge body, carving such a tiny crown was no different from carving a flower on a mosquito's head.

Although it was made in just two hours, it was still a piece that Du Yi was quite satisfied with.

"Take it and do a good job."

The four priests accepted their respective rewards, and it was only then that they wisely began to continue to pledge their loyalty.

Du Yi was naturally quite happy. He finally had a set of temporary staff that looked very capable, and judging from their performance, they were even more capable than the Ignivas people back then. However, considering that these four priests were also newcomers and far less trustworthy than the Ignivas people back then, Du Yi also arranged a backup plan.

That was Bhutto, who originally controlled the temple of the serpent god.

Over the past month, with the four priests working tirelessly, the old man, who hadn't accomplished much, had practically disappeared from the public eye—but this was a good thing for Du Yi, who even wanted to make the old man even less noticeable.

"You're in charge of keeping an eye on them. If they do anything reckless, come straight to me."

To enable the old man to protect himself, Du Yi gave him a portion of his own snake shed skin. This shed skin carried his scent, which could scare away most venomous snakes and ferocious beasts. As for the snake skin itself, it also had good defensive capabilities; at least bronze weapons would not be able to penetrate it.

After obtaining the snake's shed skin, Bhutto made it into a cloak and wore it. When the hood with black patterns was pulled down, no one could see Bhutto's face.

Thus, a temporary team was formed.

Once the team was formed, it was natural to have a goal. Otherwise, if no one knew what to do, they would act recklessly like the Ignivas people back then. So, after a moment of contemplation, Du Yi announced the team's first goal.

"First, you need to find the mammoth..."

"……mammoth?"

The four priests, plus old Bhutto hidden in the shadows, were all stunned.

They knew about elephants, these ferocious beasts. Although they didn't eat meat, their massive size and brute force meant that a single blow could be fatal.

But in their minds, elephants are mostly hairless.

Elephants covered in long hair... Don't these animals ever get so hot that they die?

"There definitely will be. Just keep looking."

Du Yi had unexpected confidence in those Ignivas from back then, after all, considering their technological prowess, those mammoths certainly wouldn't have died.

However, after seeing the puzzled expressions on his men's faces, Du Yi explained a few more things, including that mammoths were creatures from a long time ago, the Ignivas people he had assigned to tame the mammoths, and that the mammoths had disappeared after he woke up.

"That was originally mine. I just want to get back what I lost. Do you understand?"