From Secret Clan to the Divine Dynasty

At last, the village chief finally made a decision; a total of four villagers would set out together, and the leader would, of course, be the composed hunter Ebner.

Everyone trusted Ebner deeply, after all, he was the most skilled archer in the village. It was said that he had a small amount of orc blood, which gave him much greater strength than the average person.

There were simply no such things as carts in the village, so the group shouldered their food and set off on foot from the village.

On the way out of the village, Hunter Ebner's expression became grave, and he said with all seriousness to everyone:

"Glenborough has been quite chaotic recently, everyone must be careful and vigilant, constantly on the lookout for bandits."

There was no doubt that the drought would lead to food shortages, and food shortages would in turn lead to survival difficulties, causing many ordinary farmers to have no choice but to leave their homes, eventually becoming bandits and robbers wandering from place to place.

They had now become a major scourge in Glenborough Province, and even though the local Extraordinary nobility and churches conducted periodic clean-ups, they could never be completely eradicated.

After all, as long as the root cause of the food shortage wasn't resolved, bandits would continue to emerge, or rather, every farmer on the verge of starving to death in their hometown could become a potential bandit.

The group of four quickly began to cross mountains and passed through areas without paths, a very difficult process during which their food supply dwindled.

A villager sighed and said:

"If only we had a railroad here too... I heard that in East Coast Province, there's something called a railroad that allows people to sit on something called a train, a large cart that moves very fast!"

Ebner shook his head and said calmly, "The railroads and trains the outsiders talk about, I think those are nothing more than stories, how could such incredible things exist? They must all be exaggerated."

The other two villagers, excluding Karno, looked at each other, feeling that it could indeed likely be the case.

If you think about it carefully, how could there possibly be trains that travel between two cities in a short time?

What kind of powerful horses would it take to pull it!

Karno smiled and stayed silent from beginning to end.

The resupply of food quickly became less and less, and they looked as though they were going to starve.

Fortunately, they had the experienced hunter Ebner, who used his bow and arrows to kill several wild rabbits, successfully enriching the food supplies for the four of them.

However, while camped and eating roasted rabbit, he would frown and say, "It's just our good luck... Many hunters who have starved to death didn't lack skills, but rather there wasn't enough game..."

Karno had always been reticent during the journey; now his face was covered with stubble, not even close to the handsome charm he had three or four years ago, yet his demeanor and appearance remained quite outstanding among the others.

Every night when they made camp, Hunter Ebner often stared at him.

"What is it?"

Holding a stick for roasting meat, Karno turned to Ebner with a smile on his face.

The light of the campfire pierced the darkness, casting his gaze deep and mysterious, and also making the expressions on his face more vivid.

Ebner shook his head and said firmly, "Nothing, it's just that I've found you a bit strange this past year."

He waved his hand and continued to say:

"You don't really look like a farmer, though."

Under the faint firelight, where shadows intermingled, the contours of Karno's face were outlined.

"If you say I don't seem like a farmer, what else could I be then? Ebner, what exactly do you think I look like?"

Ebner furrowed his brows, feeling increasingly that the young man named Karno was odd.

He did not respond immediately.

Karno, beside the campfire, continued speaking calmly.

"Ebner, do you believe 'identity' is shaped by culture and social background? For example, is the identity of each person determined by their group, society, and cultural environment... Put simply, if someone is born a noble, must they necessarily only be a noble?"

Ebner seemed puzzled and asked back, "Isn't that the case?"

Karno smiled, his eyes holding a detachment from the mundane.

"Perhaps we could see it differently—each person's identity is established through their actions and choices, not by external factors."Nôv(el)B\\jnn

"How a person is born does not decide who they are. Instead, it's the various decisions they make throughout their life that ultimately determine who they become."

He looked into Ebner's eyes and went on:

"So between these two diametrically opposed views, which one do you think is more correct?"

Ebner stayed silent for a long time, then slowly shook his head and said:

"I don't know, but now I suddenly realize who you remind me of—you're like the old witch living near another village, who often speaks of fate to strangers, also speaking in riddles that are hard to understand, just like you."

Karno laughed out loud and nodded, "Alright, alright, hahaha, I actually thought you might say I resembled a philosopher."

Ebner was silent for a while and then asked back, "What's a philosopher?"

"A bunch of people who've eaten too much."

Ebner firmly shook his head and said with conviction, "Then you're definitely not one, given the privations you've endured; even the woman who followed you left because of that."

Karno fell silent for a long time and then spoke calmly:

"Actually, she didn't leave me entirely for that reason, Sunbelle," he said. "She said I'm not someone who belongs to anyone and that in the end, I won't be able to give love to another."

"Perhaps she was right,"

"I am very selfish."

Another reason was that Sunbelle was unable to conceive... Whether it was fate's mystery or some other reason, years went by without Sunbelle getting pregnant.

Had she been able to bear children, there still would've been hope, but after several years with no child and not even a sign of pregnancy, it was certain that Karno would not return to the family.

So, Sunbelle gave up on staying by Karno's side.

She chose to ask for a resignation compensation from the Fischer family and returned to her hometown to start a new life.

Karno calmly wrote a letter to the Fischer family, requesting someone to take Sunbelle away, while he continued to stay in the remote village.

In the years away from the family, he actually lived quite happily, quite freely, and didn't think of going back there at all.

Of course, Karno also made a promise that if the Fischer family encountered a situation that absolutely required his return, he would rush back to his family no matter what.

After all, the extraordinary powers he possessed and his life for the past twenty-some years were wholly given by the Fischer family and the great Lord of the Lost, and Karno was very clear on one thing—he had the responsibility and duty to repay the family and Him.

After several days and nights of hurried travel, the few villagers finally arrived at a nearby town and immediately went to the Salvation Church located there.

"This is the place..."

They appeared somewhat nervous, but they eventually made it inside the church and met with the deputy of the Salvation Church priest, immediately stating that they were farmers from a nearby village and had come for help due to the drought.

"Please, great Lord of Salvation, save our village!"

After a moment of contemplation, the deputy hesitantly replied, "The Great Priest will meet you at an appropriate time."

The villagers waited with tired and anxious hearts. Finally, in the afternoon of the following day, the Salvation Church's priest met with them.

It was a middle-aged, obese priest who squinted and asked:

"So what is it you want, water or food?"

Ebner and the others immediately replied:

"We need both, we need everything! Sir! Whether it's the water source to solve the drought problem or the food to resolve this month's sustenance, our village is in great need!"

The obese priest laughed heartily and with contempt he said:

"Hahahahaha, you wish for too much, truly insatiable. The great Lord of Salvation does not like greedy people. Go back!"

Ebner and the others looked at each other, bewildered. They had come so far, how could they just return like this?

The obese priest had already stood up, preparing to leave.

Drawing in a deep breath with a raspy voice, Ebner pleaded earnestly:

"Sir! Please save us! There are hundreds in the village waiting to eat, many children too! If we return like this, many won't survive the year!"

"Hmph, you are not worthy of salvation!" the obese priest left without looking back.

Karno knew very well what was happening. The obese priest before him was merely a high-level Beginning Extraordinary Exponent; he simply didn't have the ability to solve the drought.

Let alone a high-level Beginning, even those of high-level Transmutation could not do it.

The villagers begged desperately, but to no avail. Their food supply from the village was about to run out, and they were completely at a loss. Whether to return or not, the end would be tragic either way.

Suddenly, Ebner had an idea.

"Let's go, I'll take you to meet someone..."

"The village chief told me there's a powerful, secluded Extraordinary Exponent somewhere. He will surely find a way to help us... to revive our village from death and solve all problems."

His voice was hoarse as he spoke, yet the other two villagers beside Karno were ecstatic, though they found it a bit odd, it was the only option left.

"Let's go, Karno."

Before leaving, Ebner looked toward Karno who had been silent all this time.

"Don't worry, I will solve all the problems."

The group left the town, and after several days, they arrived in an uninhabited forest, stopping beside a hidden cave.

It was as if a secret of nature itself—the trees wrapped in vines nearly entirely concealed it from view as the morning light filtered through the leafy canopy, casting dappled shadows around the cave.

"Ebner, where is the secluded Extraordinary Exponent you mentioned?"

After one of the villagers asked, Ebner took a deep breath and kneeled down.

On his knees, eyes reddening, he called out with all his might:

"Please save my village, save my wife and daughters! I have brought the offerings! Great one of the Stars Embrace Order, please meet with me!"

Karno looked calmly towards the cave, sensing a chilling cold to the bone.