Titan King: Ascension of the Giant-Chapter 629: Free is also the most expensive

However, at this moment in the pitch-black sky, a brutal aerial battle was underway.

The Four-Winged Blood Bat was single-handedly taking on an entire Dark Bat Hawk flock.

High in the sky, dark shadows and roars were everywhere.

There were too many Dark Bat Hawks!

Delilah couldn't track the Four-Winged Blood Bat at all; she could only rely on their contractual link to sense it fighting desperately.

"We can't wait any longer! Have the spear throwers and archers attack!"

Delilah gave the order. Initially, her idea was for the Four-Winged Blood Bat to kill the leader of these Dark Bat Hawks, thereby deterring or even dispersing them.

Now, it seemed this idea was somewhat unrealistic.

Although the Four-Winged Blood Bat was very powerful, it was alone. Without backup, it could only face being mobbed.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The order given, the already impatient archers and spear throwers quickly found their targets and launched their attacks.

Among them, Saelen was the most eye-catching. She was the blood elf clan's master archer and also an Alpha-level being.

With every arrow Saelen shot, a Dark Bat Hawk fell from the sky.

As time went on, Delilah even assigned Saelen two assistants: one to hand her bolts, and one to carry them.

"Hehehe... everyone watch, I'll show you a trick too, broaden your horizons a bit."

Grum Ironfist the dwarven warrior pulled out two steel tubes from a hidden layer in his trousers, assembled them quickly and deftly, and fired a shot into the sky.

If Orion were here, he would surely be surprised to find that this thing was already an early form of a hand cannon.

Unfortunately, in this world where magic and supernatural powers coexisted, the might of firearms hadn't garnered much attention.

Even the dwarven clan currently only considered these hand cannons as novelties and hadn't tried to integrate powers from another system into them.

Following a loud bang, the steel tube smoked, sparks flew, and a Dark Bat Hawk also fell from the sky.

"See that? When it comes to beasts in the sky, dwarves aren't defenseless either."

Showing off his toy was one thing; demonstrating the strength of the dwarven clan was Grum Ironfist's true purpose.

"Grum Ironfist, that thing of yours is worse than a crossbow inscribed with a magical formation. When we use it, there's no guarantee of accuracy at all."

Many mercenaries in the mixed armies knew about these hand cannons; it could be said they were well aware of what good things the dwarven clan's blacksmith shops offered.

The mercenaries had tried these things too, but their accuracy was insufficient; for the time being, they weren't as convenient as crossbows.

"What the hell do you know? Soon, we dwarves will develop a brand new advanced version, even more powerful, allowing ordinary people to kill enemies with it."

Grum Ironfist put away his hand cannon; he wasn't carrying much ammunition and couldn't fire continuously.

Delilah glanced at Grum Ironfist the dwarven warrior, her gaze lingering on the hand cannon in his hand for a moment before looking away.

The Stoneheart Horde had also purchased a few of these and sent them to the Bureau of Weapons for research.

However, this thing seemed very difficult to research; no feedback had come from the personnel at the Bureau of Weapons.

"Have the soldiers patrol the surroundings. Tonight is destined to be an eventful one."

Without the aid of burning oils and fire stones, the great fire ignited by the Stoneheart Horde didn't last long in this Shadowcrag Forest.

The forest was full of damp giant trees exuding a dark aura; for ordinary flames to burn them wasn't impossible, but it required prolonged heating.

However, after a long time, the giant trees didn't catch fire, and the flames themselves died out first.

Without the aid of a large fire, what everyone had to face wasn't just the Dark Bat Hawks in the sky, but also various dark creatures from the ground.

"As you command!"

Gormathar, Brontes, Steropes, and others, after receiving the order, personally went down to inspect and patrol.

They wouldn't entrust security patrols that concerned their own safety to personnel from the mixed armies.

"According to the clues left by Drusilla, we are not far from that city of dark creatures."

Delilah looked up, her eyes fixed on the sky, but her mind was on the unknown city ahead. frёewebnoѵēl.com

To take one step while seeing three ahead was something a person in power must do.

...

The void passage. Orion, who had been resting with his eyes closed, slowly opened them.

Because Lolth, Queen of the Blind Spiders on the other side, had spoken again.

"Giant King Orion, I want to know, on what grounds do you guarantee the safety of me and my clan?"

Hearing Lolth ask such a question, Orion felt considerably relieved.

Because only if one had decided to surrender would they consider such forward-looking questions.

At the same time, Lolth's cautious and meticulous behavior also earned Orion's goodwill.

It had to be said, this spider broodmother was truly too cautious.

"Sign the contract, surrender voluntarily, and we will transfer a portion of your clan members away."

Orion pondered for a moment before slowly speaking.

Such an answer wasn't quite what Lolth wanted.

Her delicate eyebrows arched slightly as she gazed at Orion with her beautiful eyes; her originally firming gaze actually became more hesitant.

Orion, of course, noticed this subtle change.

"I know what you're thinking, and I understand your concerns."

"But you don't actually believe that signing a contract will immediately bring salvation to you and your clan, do you?"

Orion's demeanor once again became lofty, and he revealed a trace of disdain for Lolth's thoughts.

"Only by demonstrating your value to a mighty existence can we gain hope."

Here, Orion used "we" instead of "you," drawing his relationship with Lolth closer, subconsciously telling her: I am the same as you.

"Lolth, since you could advance to Legendary level and possess the status of a lord, you should understand that in no world does a free lunch exist."

Yes, there is no free lunch in the world.

If it's free now, it just means the time for you to pay the bill hasn't arrived yet.

And sometimes, what's free is also the most expensive.

Just like Orion; his joining the Champions Alliance wasn't free either.

Firstly, Arthas could get many good things from Orion in the early stages; this was the premise of their association.

Afterwards, when Orion entered the Champions Alliance, whether it was the two trips to the Godforsaken Land or entering the Valkorath Realm to clear out fungal creatures, Orion demonstrated his value.

Of course, when one contributes, receiving returns from the team is perfectly legitimate.

At the same time, Orion also bore significant risks.

For example, when the fungal creatures launched their all-out attack, he shared the burden of a broodmother counterpart for Arthas.

In the subsequent cleanup, he again confronted a broodmother evolution; these all involved taking great risks.

Especially the previous time, Orion had almost perished.

And in the days to come, Orion would still have to drag the Stoneheart Horde along, sharing various dangers with his allies.

Especially the Deputy Commander and the Commander; the dangers that beings of their status might bring were definitely at a disaster level.

So, could any of this be considered free?