Chapter 131 Destiny
Ding-ling-ling, the ancient silver bells rang in the morning light, and the wind filled the fields.
Small animals in the grass shook their fur and burrowed into the dirt. In the distance, the Huns laid out fur pelts for the Great Wizard, waiting for him to step over them barefoot.
With the exception of Obera, the royal family following the Great Wizard no longer had much desire for the Golden Throne: what else could they do? The Great Wizard's heart was set on Brida, the Right and Left Wise Kings had placed their bets, and even the Romans had gotten involved.
But the gold-molders are still very important, and they vaguely believe that [Heaven] will make reasonable decisions.
While outsiders might see the Huns' belief in Heaven as somewhat unfounded, and their inability to understand the significance of casting a golden man, they nonetheless valued divination. Even if they couldn't become the Golden King, they still sought to understand the fate bestowed upon each individual by Heaven.
If Obera, Attila, Bleda and Hulun had failed to successfully forge the golden man, even if they were beaten to pieces, they would never allow another spineless golden king to ascend the throne!
Brush - Fur extends from behind the hillside.
Attila and Brida stood in front, each holding the closest piece.
The warlock, wearing only half his mask today, first examined Attila, his gaze softening as he moved to Brida. He swung the bell past them, his feet firmly planted on the furs.
Snap, snap, snap. After he stepped on the third sheepskin, he stopped. Two priests came over and helped him put on his sandals made of straw leaves.
With cries of "Auspicious, auspicious," they walked down the grass to where they had camped yesterday. The aroma of mutton fat still lingered on the charcoal fire.
"Attila." The great wizard stretched out his hand, and Sonny lowered his head respectfully, letting him stroke his head.
"Great Wizard, everything is ready."
“…”
The Great Wizard raised his head: Are you ready? No craftsmen, no materials, no tools, no venue - if the blank grass can be considered a venue, then there is only a venue.
Seeing that the witch stopped talking, the others became anxious. One of the royals shouted, "Attila, what are you doing? Where are the craftsmen? Where is the gold? You're going to attack us with nothing?!"
Sonny smiled but said nothing. Instead, Brida stepped forward and, accepting the Great Warlock's blessing, whispered, "Great Warlock, I hope you can check on Magus City. Something strange has happened there."
This sentence was rarely fluent, and it was truly an unwelcome request. How could a Hunnic wizard enter the Roman city? This was not a question of danger.
But it was Brida who was asking. The Great Wizard’s eyes were deep, flowing like golden sand. “Child, reasons.”
"Um……"
While Brida was speechless, Sonny leaned forward calmly. “Someone is collecting golden blood. This person is involved in the deaths of the King of Persia, the Golden King, and they used the same method against Athens.”
These clues were very trivial, but the witch understood the implication: now, a bandit who collected golden blood came to Rome.
These words were not hidden from the other royals. They were dumbfounded, unsure how to react. Someone was actually collecting golden blood, but could golden blood be collected? Only a god could control this kind of bloodline aggregation!
[Magic props, someone uses magic props to collect golden blood]
This realization sent a chill down their spines: If the golden blood could truly be bottled and opened right before their eyes… bang, bang, bang! The Huns would no longer be able to choose a Golden King; they would only choose a King of Sudden Death!
Even without a strong imagination, they could imagine the excruciating pain of liquid gold pouring into their bodies. The royal family, who had previous experience with aggregation, began to shiver.
Yingzhu left the team and mounted her horse. "Great Witch, I won't fight for the throne anymore. Remember to give me a share of the private treasury after the Golden King takes the throne. I'm leaving first. Sorry."
After saying this, he ran out without looking back, and rode away in a hurry with his tribesmen.
Even Hulun, who was tied to the ground, was stunned: "Wow, you knew your life was in danger and you ran so fast?! You're even more arrogant than me!"
She ran, but the others didn't. They stared at each other, their eyes wide open, their minds still acknowledging the basics. A prince like Yingzhu, with little wealth and no clan, could die wherever he pleased, even hide in another country. But they couldn't run away, so they had better strike first.
Dare to target the Huns? You must be killed!
"Great Wizard, I agree that we should go and take a look first." Obera frowned. "We can't ignore such a lunatic."
The Great Wizard nodded slowly, his feet still. He glanced at the royals, each with a different expression, and rang the bell: "I will not enter an alien city-state—unless it is the will of the Golden King himself."
Hulun finally found his chance. With his hands and feet tied, he twisted desperately on the ground: "Great wizard, great wizard! Attila is a despicable villain! He doesn't intend to let us compete properly!"
Only then did everyone see him twisted like a maggot. Someone immediately laughed out loud and was poked in the waist by his brothers and sisters next to him.
"Hulun, why are you lying on the ground?" The great witch walked to a stone with a flat and cold look and sat on the fur that someone had hurriedly covered him with.
Hulun's eyes were red: "It's not me——"
"Of course you didn't mean it." Attila kicked him rudely and kicked him outside. "This guy tried to sneak attack me as soon as he came here, but I cleaned him up and prepared to cook him."
"Bullshit! Didn't your grandmother hide in the treetops and stare at me too?"
The argument between the two men failed to stir up any waves. No matter how angry Hulun was, the Xiongnu would not pity him: With this kind of ability, you still want to be the Golden King? Losing is losing, and Heaven will not bless the weak and cowardly.
"Hulun."
The Great Wizard raised a hand, and the chaos dissipated immediately. He slowly stood up, and every member of the royal family bowed their heads respectfully.
"If you don't want to make a golden man, go away."
Hearing this, Sunny untied Hulun's rope and said, "You are free~"
"I'm not leaving!" Hulun shamelessly lay on the ground: "Why are you leaving? You don't even have the tools, how can you make a golden man?"
Seeing Sunny's playful expression, Hulun pouted at the others and said, "Believe it or not, everyone brought tools, but you didn't?"
Sure enough, within moments, the royal family gave the signal, and the tribesmen unloaded some scattered tools and materials from the carriages. Although their preparations were far from complete, with Magus City nearby, they could always put together a set.
Gold-casting figures are usually made by melting copper. It is fine as long as it looks like gold. The outer layer of gold can be replaced by pigment or gold plating.
As for the casting process, it is even more eclectic, depending on the type of craftsmen the leader has: the statue can be slowly polished over the years, or it can be directly poured into a container and cast.
Since the Huns favored using golden men for divination, they often used a method of pouring a solution. Because the final step had to be performed by the leader himself, even if the preparatory steps were performed by craftsmen, this was also called a "hand-cast golden man."
"Great Witch."
A crisp sound came from not far away, and the Huns all looked sideways.
The person approaching now was not a Hun, but the Roman girl. The cloak draped over her shoulders was slightly torn, but when the sunlight brushed across the golden hem, the tiny cutouts glowed with a strange brilliance.
Just like the girl's golden-green eyes.
"Please follow me."
"Why?" The Great Wizard didn't seem ready to give in easily.
"Because." The girl smiled gently and bent her neck. "I want you to witness... a real hand-cast golden man."
Wow, a real hand-cast golden figure? What a boast!
The Huns were amused and confused: When did the Romans have this tradition? Does she understand it?
The Great Shaman's fingers touched the mask, and immediately a priest began to remove it. After the wooden board covering half of his face was untied, a face similar to those of the royals was revealed, only older.
The Huns all lowered their heads, only Melia blinked and looked at the Great Witch.
The golden sands flow, and so does the sunlight.
The tear gland in his left eye was touched, but unfortunately he could no longer cry. The Great Wizard looked away: "Lead the way, little girl."
He didn't say what he saw. If he were a few decades younger, he might not be able to help but tell his beloved girl that he saw stars in the human soul.
…
"Please follow me, just go through here." Melia walked in front and led the way enthusiastically.
The Huns were a little numb. She actually walked in front of the Great Witch... Forget it, Romans, Romans. At least she paid attention to the common etiquette and did not stand in front, but walked diagonally.
Ding-ling, ding-ling...
When the ancient silver bell saw the golden coins hanging on the treetops, it stopped for a moment and then rang as usual again.
After a few steps, the Huns looked back nervously: Something seemed to be wrong?
Hulun yelled, "Hey, where's our tent? There are people there, why can't I see them?!"
There was nothing behind them, only a ton of gold in front of them. Some were drawn to the gold, while many others felt wary. Could it be that the Romans were planning to ally with Attila and bury them in gold?
"Please be patient, I've used magic to block some of my perception."
Melia said seriously, "Everyone is about to witness a real hand-cast golden man."
Obera was noncommittal. "Where's the craftsman? I don't see any tools or craftsmen."
"Yes, that's why I said it - hand-cast~" Sunny came from behind, and everyone unconsciously made way for her.
Melia gently held her wrist, and Attila raised his right hand... click, click, click.
First there was the sound of fine friction between the stones, and then the earth shook at the same time.
Crack! Crack, crack, crack—gold nuggets rose from the ground, as if an invisible hand had easily picked them up and stacked them high.
"It's [God]!" someone exclaimed, falling to the ground in fear.
It was [Heaven]. Hulun was so frightened that he forgot that he was free and huddled together like a bound quail.
It was Heaven that was helping Attila. It could only be His might. What magical item could accomplish this?
Piece after piece of gold flew across the sky, forming the limbs and torso of a human being. Their speed was so fast that it was no wonder Attila had no concerns about the progress.
Boom! The last piece of gold fell into its rightful place.
The story wasn't over yet. Under the horrified gazes of the Hungarians, the gold nuggets twisted and deformed, completely surpassing the definition of magic. Under the invisible force, they merged into one, quickly condensing into a single golden statue.
There is no trace of artificial polishing on the surface, but it is extremely smooth and reflects sunlight fiercely.
Every failure teaches us a lesson. Melia didn't force realism, leaving the entire figure's face blurred and inviting. As for the body—do you know anything about Gundam?
"Sister, you can let go now." Sonny reminded softly and gently caught the weak wrist.
She supported Melia and smiled confidently at everyone: "The golden statue is complete - is there anyone who disagrees?"
“…”
Is it true that anyone can surpass such a hand-cast golden figure? It's simply incredible.
Everyone lowered their heads in agreement. Even Obera gritted his teeth and lowered his head, acknowledging his absolute strength.
Only the Great Wizard remained silent, as if still hesitating.
Sonny raised his voice and smiled. “Of course, there’s no need for Sister Brida and I to decide who’s the winner. She has a share of the gold. According to our ancestral teachings, I will be king, and she will share equal honor.”
Everyone was slightly surprised, but not overly shocked. The Golden Tent had been divided into north and south, east and west, and up and down, and had split and merged several times.
Attila did not propose a division of the Golden Account this time, but only compromised on the right of inheritance: she would inherit the throne and the title of Golden King, while Brida could not call herself the Golden King, but would enjoy similar rights.
For example, half of the wives and concubines, half of the army, half of the slaves, half of the slush fund...except for the throne, everything must be divided in half.
Such situations were rare, but not unusual for the Huns. Occasionally, there were cases where the two sides had a good relationship and compromised with each other.
After all, golden blood has the property of aggregation. There is no life or death, only mutual destruction.
The Great Wizard raised his eyes and nodded with satisfaction: "Great Golden King, you have made a wise decision."
As soon as he finished speaking, the other royals, no matter how unwilling they were, could only kneel on the ground and bow deeply to Attila, who was standing in the direction of the sun. "Great Golden King, I will follow your galloping horse until my death."
"We will trample through suffering and destroy all enemies—"
The author has something to say:
Thanks to nanaya_scarlet's Lei Lei~
Thanks to 9喵, Flying in the Clouds, and Dreaming Fantasy for their support~
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