Zhentil Keep was originally a small trading camp located on the north side of the Moon Sea, and it was destroyed many times by various natural and man-made disasters. But it is undeniable that Zhentil Castle has developed to this day and has become the most powerful city in the entire Moon Sea region.
Of course, this was a story half a year ago. At that time, Zhentil Castle had 50,000 citizens and 120,000 slaves. It had a large population and a strong military.
Today's Zhentil Castle has become extremely weak. Her citizens and slaves have almost shed the last drop of blood in Teswe. At least the main army of 20,000 citizens and 70,000 slave regiments are buried there. In the flesh and blood hell.
Although many people know that most of those victims actually became prisoners of the damned Valemen, they still treat them as dead.
Not only did Zhentil Castle become weak due to threats from external enemies, but the balance of power inside Zhentil Castle was broken due to the disastrous defeat of various forces in Tesway, and the battle between them became fierce and fierce. cruel.
It is precisely because of this situation of internal and external difficulties that the order in the city of Zhentil Castle has become chaotic, and various vicious incidents have occurred one after another, just like a fermenting hell furnace.
It was at this time that the great Cyric returned to his hometown. After many calculations and adventures in the Glory City, he finally grabbed the richest piece of cake among the saints and human elites.
Once a humble mortal, Cyric, became a lonely thief and killer running around the streets of Zhentil Castle. He was rewarded by the god Io and was promoted to the great god Cyric.
Wealth and honor do not return home, just like walking in brocade at night. As a person with all five poisons of the great Cyric, it is even more difficult to refuse this wonderful moment of returning to her hometown to show off. She returned to Zhentil Keep and found the Thieves Guild that once controlled him, the place where Cyric's dark past was once hidden.
It¡¯s a pity that the underground lair of the Thieves Guild, where a large number of thieves once gathered, is now empty with not a few people to be found. This makes God Cyric feel like he has been ogling a blind man and feeling lost.
The new god grabbed an old and thin guy and asked viciously: "Where are the people here? Where are those damn rats and cockroaches (referring to thieves)?"
The old man is no stranger to Cyric, he even taught him in the past, and of course he also hurt him.
The old man was a little scared and said flatteringly: "Oh! Dear Cyric, you dare to come back at this time. This is not a good choice. I heard that you went to Waterdeep City with a group of very capable guys. You went on an adventure and you shouldn¡¯t have come back.¡±
Cyric said angrily: "Stop talking nonsense! Answer my question!"
The old man said with a sad face: "Dead! The little brats were forced to go to the battlefield by the big shots, and they are all dead! Even if they are not dead, they have become slaves of the old man in the south, waiting to do hard labor for a lifetime!"
The power of God made it easy for Cyric to tell that the old man was not lying, but this made her very angry. She didn't come here just to take revenge on her former friends, she also wanted to gather a group of useful servants.
Io said: From today on, your power will depend on the number and loyalty of your followers.
As a new god, Cyric grasped the essence of this rule right away. Unfortunately, the first step of the plan was unexpected, and Cyric, who had just become a god, would naturally not like this kind of surprise.
She grabbed the old thief's bones with the power of death, and while torturing him cruelly, she whispered viciously: "Decadent old thing! What is standing in front of you now is a supreme god. You should lie down humbly. On the ground, recite my name with the most sincere awe! Praise Cyric, King of the Dead!"
After saying that, Cyric peeled off the old man's flesh and blood as he wailed in fear, leaving only a set of bloody human bones. But the old man is still alive, but as an immortal skeleton demon.
Cyric killed many unfortunate guys she could find underground and turned them into immortal monsters. Since the first plan failed, she was ready to implement the second plan, which was to go to Bane's temple.
Bane¡¯s temple is not on the ground of Zhentil Keep, but floating in the sky.
A hundred years ago, spies from Zhentil Castle discovered a floating rock above Tesen Valley. Manshon, one of the lords of Zhentil Castle, occupied the floating rock and formed an alliance with the beholder who controlled the floating rock. .
Later, Lord Manshon transformed this floating rock into Bane's temple, and claimed that only in the floating temple can the closest connection with the gods in the sky be truly established, and then he almost controlled the power of Zhentil Castle. All Bane followers within range.
Cyric didn¡¯t know this before, but now that she has become a god, she can easily discover it.?The truth of the matter. For example, the voice that establishes direct dialogue with the believers does not come from Bane, but from a beholder lord named Sandriv.
The Floating Castle is the safest and most important core location of Zhentil Keep, and is also the headquarters of the Zhentarim Order. When Cyric entered the floating fortress, there was a fierce quarrel going on here.
Five lords are arguing over the future of Zhentil Castle. There should have been at least seventeen lords here half a year ago, and each lord rules a part of Zhentil Castle.
Just in the past six months, at least four lords died on the battlefield of Tesway, and three lords died in assassinations. Although everyone claimed that the assassins came from Shadow Valley or Dagger Valley, people knew very well those assassins. The poor guy actually died in the internal struggle of Zhentil Castle, and the remaining five lords were away from home and found it difficult to return, or they were unwilling to come back to die.
It was during this quarrel that Cyric came to the lords. As a servant of Bane, the Lord of the Black Altar, the priest, first discovered the identity of this trespasser, a great god.
Of course, this stems from Cyric's almost unabashed display of his true nature.
Cyric was about to announce his arrival to the masters of Zhentil Castle when suddenly there was a chaotic noise from outside the Temple Council, and then a panic-stricken Priest Bane broke into the venue and screamed at the top of his lungs: "Enemy attack! Enemy attack! An enemy mounted a Pegasus and launched a surprise attack on us from the air! There are more terrifying troops approaching the walls of Zhentil Castle!"
It was another sudden accident. Cyric was the most angry. She directly used her divine power to ignite the messenger, turning him into a burning torch. Then the newly appointed God of Death teleported outside. She wanted to ruthlessly Severely punish those blasphemers who bothered her plan regardless of life or death.
But before the city lords who were discussing the matter could rush out of the meeting hall, a figure shot through the wall of the hall like a cannonball and hit everyone in front of them.
Several frightened lords of Zhentil Castle took a closer look, but who was it if it wasn't Cyric who just rushed out? !
All I can say is that the faster you go, the faster you come back! But I don¡¯t know who can make this incarnation of a god so embarrassed. Is there a god out there?
This is the thought in the mind of the priest lord who knows the true nature of Cyric.
At this time, a tall figure walked into the hall with heavy steps. She was so majestic, like a wild god of war who had just stepped out of a wild epic. A huge ax was held in the opponent's hand, with a jagged axe. The blade exuded a frightening cold light.
Cyric got up from the ground in embarrassment. The power of divine power allowed her to recover quickly even if she suffered an extremely heavy blow.
Her eyes were not on the giant man striding in with an axe, but on the other figure beside him viciously. The man was slender, wearing a silver armor, and holding a Yan Fei sword upside down in his left hand. , but holding a golden short staff in his right hand, he floated into the hall with a calm and elegant gait.
But who is it if it¡¯s not William?
Cyric glared at William and screamed angrily: "Who do you think you are! A humble mortal! I am a god! I am the great Lord of Death Cyric! You idiot! You should kneel before me like an ant. In front of you!"
William suddenly flashed in front of Cyric like a ghost. The short golden staff in his hand "lightly" poked the new god's abdomen. It seemed that he didn't use much force.
But Cyric seemed to have been severely injured, and fell to the ground with his hands on his abdomen, letting out a hoarse scream.
The power from the golden staff shattered her sternum and internal organs. Cyric clearly felt that her incarnation carrier was collapsing. Even if she continued to bless her with divine power, she was somewhat unable to do so.
The key is that William has not stopped attacking Cyric. Although the short staff that once belonged to the god (now belongs to little Mishael) cannot directly kill Cyric's essence, it has been destroying Cyric in the main material plane. The foundation of dependence - Cyric's former mortal body.
This is undoubtedly an extremely fatal injury to Cyric.
God God Io stipulates that the foundation of gods lies in believers. As a newly promoted god, Cyric has almost no foundation of her own, and she has not yet attracted her own followers. If Cyric is really driven out of the main material plane by William, it will be difficult for her to find another chance to come to the main material plane, unless she can re-conquer a few believers who are willing to believe in her.
As a nearly omniscient god, Cyric knew very well that if she was expelled from Faer?n, her fate would definitely be very miserable, even more miserable than those old gods that were almost forgotten.
So whatever??William's continuous attacks, the anger in Cyric's heart gradually turned into fear and panic. She finally became a god, and for this she did not hesitate to abandon the last bit of humanity and stabbed her best comrade and closest friend in the back. Friends, the best love.
The mentality that once belonged to the little guy returned to Cyric's mind. He didn't want everything he finally got to be in vain here. Cyric used the methods of a mortal thief to try to distance himself from William. Although this was not very effective, it at least gave her some room to talk.
"That's enough! Mortal King!" Cyric shouted loudly and gasped: "You should not go against the great gods! This will not do you or your country any good!"
William glanced at the lords of Uthgar and Zhentil Castle nearby. They were not fighting, but were watching the battle between mortals and gods with complicated expressions or uneasiness.
William sneered and said to Cyric: "Going against the gods? No! I have killed several gods and defeated them many times. In my eyes, gods are not great! They are not worthy of respect!"
Cyric's mind seemed to have suffered a heavy blow. She now finally understood the profound meaning in the eyes of those old gods when they heard that Cyric was going back to Zhentil Castle to develop followers.
Especially those old guys who, in order to expand their faith, did not hesitate to condescend to the Valley of Shadows to flatter a mortal king. At that time, Cyric laughed at them for having no cards.
Now Cyric turned her head and discovered that the clown was actually herself.
Cyric barely controlled the expression on his face and tried to look kind and said: "Mortal King, you see there is no hatred between us. Let us return to peace and find a solution that is beneficial to both you and me. Way to calm down this sudden dispute."
"A sudden dispute? No, I think you don't understand the true meaning of this war, Mr. God." William had a frightening smile on his face, and his eyes swept over the Zhentils again. Lord of the Castle, and said in an almost icy tone: "This is an inevitable revenge!
When I awakened myself in the Burning Valley (the place where William was elementalized in the Mokou Mountains) and caused a flood in the Tessa River, the people around the Tessa River were displaced.
This is my sin, and I can't shirk it.
But at this tragic moment, the people of Zhentilburg did something very excessive. They plundered the victims and enslaved the innocent, which made my already heavy sins even worse, making it difficult for me to transcend the world.
Those who prevent people from becoming enlightened are like killing their parents!
People from Zhentilburg! This is the punishment you deserve for your evil deeds!
And I am your retribution! "
William said half-truths and half-false reasons, stared at Cyric with a fierce look on his face, and continued to say in a deep voice:
"I know you! Cyric, a hero from the bottom of Zhentil Castle, a new god who has just ascended to the throne of God. I understand and appreciate your desire to protect your hometown.
But that doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯ll be merciful to you.
I want to punish Zhentil Keep, and you want to defend your hometown. You and I are on opposite sides, and the contradiction is irreconcilable. I will use the most intense method to create the most brilliant ending for you! "
"Suffer death! God Cyric!" William shouted violently for the last time, but he rushed towards the god Cyric fiercely.
Cyric felt quite like a dog in his heart. He went to defend Zhentil Castle. If it weren't for the purpose of recruiting people to develop believers, I would have personally destroyed this hell on earth full of dirty memories and despair!
Cyric does not want to lose this most precious incarnation. After all, he represents her past and anchors the humanity that is being swallowed by divinity.
So Cyric made an unexpected decision. She fell to the ground and shouted to William: "I surrender! Mortal King, please let me retain the authority to walk in this world."
The five lords of Zhentil Castle were shocked by the surrender of Cyric, the incarnation of the god. They thought they could use the power of this new god to reverse the situation, but unfortunately it turned out to be the opposite.
What made the lords even more resentful was that the most powerful one among them, Archmage Manson, the chief lord of Zhentil Castle, had actually run away at some point, leaving only a false clone behind. around them.