On the morning of the third day, just as the sky began to lighten, the call of an assembly Horn echoed through the tribe.
The day to travel to the "Giant Market" had arrived.
Wuba personally led the party, having selected the twenty strongest Giants from the tribe.
On their backs, they carried huge rattan baskets filled with the materials they had gathered recently—pelts and Scale Armor from Magical Beasts, Rare Ores the tribe had accumulated, and dried dicinal herbs.
These were the goods they would use for trade.
Ug scampered about excitedly. He carried a rattan basket over five ters tall, filled to the brim with glittering Mica Stone, yet he didn’t seem to feel its weight in the slightest.
"Brother Carlo, Big Brother Kado, are you ready? I’m telling you, the Giant City-State is so lively! And they have endless amounts of strong liquor!"
Raylo gazed into the distance. The silhouette of the vast mountain range, shrouded in cloud and mist, resembled a slumbering, ancient Giant Beast lying motionless.
Ancestor Valley, the Giant City-State.
Wuba walked at the head of the party. He glanced back at his kinsn, who were ready to depart, his gaze lingering for a mont on Raylo and Kado before he let out a deep, powerful roar.
"Move out!"
Raylo and Kado each shouldered a huge rattan basket as well.
The baskets were filled with dried herbs and Magical Beast pelts. They weighed over a thousand pounds, but in the hands of Raylo and Kado, they felt as light as a feather.
Over the past two days, Raylo, Kado, and Ug had hunted and sparred together, and they had all grown quite fond of one another.
The Giant Tribe had clearly begun to treat Raylo and Kado as one of their own.
Kado walked beside Ug, his towering fra impressive even among the other Giants. His steps were steady, and his face was beaming with genuine joy.
Raylo, however, trailed toward the rear flank of the party. His gaze calmly swept across the broad backs of the Giants ahead, but his mind was already on other matters.
[10: The Great Elder of the Hill Giant Race, a Catastrophe Level powerhouse nad "Gu," is 1492 years old and in a state of terminal decline, with less than ten years of life remaining. "Gu" has protected the Hill Giant Tribe for over a thousand years, and he is now anxious about finding a suitable heir.]
This was a new piece of intel the system had updated with early this morning.
Great Elder Gu.
Catastrophe Level.
Less than ten years to live.
The combination of these phrases almost made Raylo’s heart skip a beat.
His original purpose for this trip had been simple: to use the Giant City-State to make contact with the upper echelons of this race and find opportunities for Black Stone Territory.
But this piece of intel had instantly raised the stakes to an unimaginable level.
The supre leader of an ancient race that had endured for millennia—a Catastrophe Level powerhouse who had lived for over 1,400 years—was approaching the end of his life.
And he was desperate to find an heir.
’What did this an?’
’A power shift, one great enough to upend the entire Hill Giant Race and even influence the political landscape of the Northern Territory, was set to happen within the next ten years.’
Raylo’s gaze drifted unconsciously toward Kado, who had an arm slung around Ug’s shoulders, laughing like a child.
’A young, pure-blooded Hill Giant who has already stepped into the Domain Level and commands a powerful Domain.’
’In the eyes of a dying Great Elder desperate for an heir, would soone like Kado catch his attention and beco a candidate for the succession?’
Raylo’s breathing grew slightly ragged, but he quickly suppressed the surge of emotion.
’Things are far from simple. A city-state with a thousand-year history is bound to have intricate internal factions and relationships. It’s not sothing an outsider like , with no roots here, can easily influence.’
’But an opportunity has appeared, nonetheless.’
’And I still have enough ti to maneuver.’
The Hill Giants marched toward the massive, mist-shrouded mountain range, carrying three months’ worth of supplies stockpiled by their entire tribe.
The party’s pace wasn’t fast, but their steps were exceptionally steady.
The Giants seed to possess inexhaustible strength, as the heavy cargo on their backs might as well have been weightless.
They chatted in their gruff voices as they walked, their topics revolving around the fine wine in the city-state or the fighting tournants held at the Giant Market.
Raylo followed along with the group, silently calculating their ti and distance while covertly extending his Spiritual Power to perceive their surroundings.
The closer they drew to the mountain range, the richer the ambient Magic Elents in the air beca. They were so dense they were almost tangible particles, and their heavy presence could be felt with every breath.
’No wonder Ug called this the "birthplace of the Hill Giants,"’ he thought. ’The sheer density of the Magic Elents alone is enough to prove how special this valley is.’
「After marching for about four hours, the terrain ahead suddenly opened up.」
A continuous mountain range stretched across the horizon like a colossal barrier. In its very center was a massive gap several kiloters wide.
The mountain walls on either side of the gap were smooth and sheer, as if cleaved open by a god with a Giant Axe.
At the base of the gap, a camp built from massive stones guarded the only passage through.
Dozens of thick wooden stakes ford the crude beginnings of a palisade. Figures moved about within the camp, all of them burly Hill Giants.
A grim, forbidding atmosphere washed over them.
"Halt! Which tribe?"
The question bood like muffled thunder from a high platform in the camp.
A Giant, a head taller than even Wuba, stood holding a massive Iron Axe, scrutinizing them from his high vantage point.
He emanated an astonishing pressure, leading Raylo to an imdiate conclusion: this was a true Domain Level Powerhouse.
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