"Has Kazdel always been this terrible?"
Sitting in a brand-new heavy truck, Xia Yu looked at Mudrock beside her.
Although the latter was wearing her heavy armor, she had taken off her helmet.
After all, they were traveling, not in a state where they would be attacked at any moment; there was no need to keep herself so tense.
Of course, the main reason was that Doctor Bailu beside her had mentioned she didn't like talking to someone through a layer of a helmet.
Otherwise, according to Mudrock's habits, she would have worn the armor the entire way.
Fifteen heavy vehicles that clearly looked like trouble sped across the earth.
Three armored Hummers in a triangular formation led the way, with four light armored vehicles guarding each side of the heavy trucks and three bringing up the rear.
It was a very ordinary escort formation, but the Sarkaz were driving with great enthusiasm.
Mainly because they never had the chance to get their hands on such high-quality vehicles before!
While many old mercenaries who ventured out knew how to drive, it was their first time driving such high-end machinery.
The Swire Family's influence was beyond question; they had dispatched such a motorcade on a whim.
To be honest, if these sixty or so mercenaries weren't the limit of who could drive these vehicles while maintaining combat readiness, Swire would have loved to cram in dozens more cars.
Even Old Swire had hinted that a motorcade might not be safe enough, noting that their group owned a few landships.
Although they were commercial transport ships, it wasn't as if they couldn't undergo a 'little bit' of modification; after all, the land of Terra was fraught with danger.
But in the end, Xia Yu had refused.
Sailing a transport ship into Kazdel was still too ostentatious.
A motorcade was just right. Although the car windows were lower than a ship's portholes, they allowed one to see every bit of the surrounding scenery clearly.
They had been on the road for seven days. Had they not encountered a lightning storm Catastrophe that blocked their path, forcing the motorcade to detour toward Rim Billiton, they would likely be more than halfway through the journey by now.
The motorcade's speed was very fast. After all, they only needed to keep moving forward. Even the prepared supplies and heavy baggage had been stored by Xia Yu in the Gate of Babylon, making their travel speed lightning quick.
"Kazdel..." Mudrock chewed on the name, her face showing bitterness. "Has there ever been a time when Kazdel wasn't terrible?"
"Sigh, Doctor, just as I advised you before, the atmosphere inside Kazdel is becoming increasingly... hard to describe," she shook her head, her eyes complicated. "I understand Her Highness Theresa's ideals. Many Sarkaz understand what Her Highness wants to do; after all, we've been hearing it for a hundred years.
"However, hatred isn't something that can be let go just because someone says so."
Mudrock shook her head as she reached this point. "In the past, when Kazdel was in shambles and we had to flee into a Catastrophe just to escape a single Leithanien sub-fleet, everyone was very united.
"After all, when we were weak, the Sarkaz didn't have the spare energy to think about revenge. But as Her Highness allowed us to recuperate over these years, the strength of the Sarkaz recovered rapidly... and more and more people turned toward the other Highness."
"Oh, the famous damage-tanking king of Terra," Xia Yu thought of something, the corners of her mouth curling slightly.
Mudrock didn't dwell on the title 'damage-tanking king,' but continued to explain: "The Military Commission's movements are getting bigger and their methods more intense. All Sarkaz know... the good days are coming to an end.
"Too many people cannot let go of this blood feud, and the strength of those willing to let go cannot completely overwhelm them.
"The word 'revenge' seems to be etched into the very bones of the Sarkaz."
'You're not wrong about that. The collective souls of the Sarkaz are truly something...'
Xia Yu shook her head and looked at her. "Then what about you? Which faction do you belong to?"
"Me? No, Doctor Bailu, you think too highly of me," Mudrock looked down in embarrassment. "I'm just an ordinary Sarkaz. I don't have the status to make those choices.
"Those are topics only the big shots of the Royal Court are qualified to discuss. Ordinary Sarkaz like us can only choose to drift with the tide.
"Of course, if you're asking for my stance... I neither want to pursue that illusory revenge nor do I want to slaughter my own kin.
"That's why we people left Kazdel under the guise of a mission. The old Captain was a truly good man; he was even willing to take along fledgling deadweights like us and stay behind to cover our retreat...
"Such a good old Captain, along with a dozen experts in the squad, all died in Ursus."
"Mm, I basically understand the general trend," Xia Yu nodded. "Now, let's talk about something more specific.
"First off, do the Sarkaz farm?"
"Uh, farm?" Mudrock was stunned for a moment, then answered with confusion, "Of course we farm. In the tribe I came from, my farming skills were quite good. Not only did we farm, but we also herded. My friend was very good at herding beasts of burden."
At this point, a hint of pride appeared on her face, but it was quickly completely drowned by a sense of loss.
"But what's the use of farming well? All someone needs is a fire and a blade, and the seeds you painstakingly sowed no longer belong to you.
"Only those who are inherently weak or disabled are willing to rely on farming for a living, while others pick up weapons and choose the most dangerous path."
"Then, next question," Xia Yu nodded. "The Sarkaz... are there many people going hungry?"
"Many, very many!" Mudrock said without hesitation. "Her Highness Theresa is a good person. She has been promoting various planting techniques over the years, trying to get everyone to reclaim more fields.
"As long as more people can be fed, fewer people will go off to be mercenaries. Not every Sarkaz is willing to live a life of constant uncertainty."
At this point, a flash of pain crossed Mudrock's eyes. "But it's useless, Miss Bailu.
"As I said before, hatred is already etched into the bones of every Sarkaz. Compared to farming peacefully, more people are willing to pick up a blade and risk their lives."
Saying this, she looked at her own hands self-mockingly. "And I am one of them."
"By relying on farming, couldn't you support yourself?" Xia Yu turned to look at her.
"No, if it were just to feed myself, it would be more than enough," Mudrock's voice trembled slightly. "I'm not a lazy person. I know how to tend to crops and manage fields... I would live very well.
"But, Doctor Bailu, the Sarkaz are such a race. Compared to planting, my compatriots believe more in the blades in their hands and the power of violence.
"When the fields you worked so hard to reclaim are destroyed over and over by accidental or intentional battles, when you realize that in the vastness of Kazdel, you basically can't find a pure land where you can farm freely... would you feel despair, Doctor?"
"I would hang all those Sarkaz who desecrate my fields," Xia Yu smiled. "Let them feel the despair instead. I can't just take all the losses myself, can I?"
"True, after all, it's you," Mudrock shook her head. "And I am not as powerful as you.
"Left with nothing time and time again, eventually, I put on this suit of armor."
"So, land in Kazdel is very scarce?" Xia Yu temporarily ignored the 'unsophisticated customs' issue.
"Extremely scarce," Mudrock sighed. "This was never a fertile place to begin with. Kazdel, oh Kazdel, we've wandered all these years, and in the end, we could only settle here.
"This land is so barren. Casimir's Golden Plains support a nation that can fight Ursus in ten Ukka Wars; Yan's rich water networks and plains feed three hundred million people; Victoria has its valleys; Leithanien has fertile soil...
"But here, it is a wasteland.
"I don't know how many Sarkaz are going hungry right now," Mudrock said dazed, "but I'm certain the number is huge."
"So, a war is a necessity for the old fogies of the Sarkaz," Xia Yu nodded with understanding. "After two hundred years of recuperation, the Sarkaz already have a population of ten million.
"But this barren land cannot feed so many people. There are only two paths left for them: either expand outward or wait to die where they stand."
A classic conflict between man and land.
"Theresa has done a lot over the years, but it's still not enough for the current state of the Sarkaz."
"No one can deny Her Highness's great feats," Mudrock sighed. "However, amidst the tacit blockade from the outside world, we simply cannot obtain enough supplies, so agricultural development is extremely slow."
In Theresa's death, the influence of the collective souls was certainly a factor, but the pressure from reality was also a primary force.
No matter what Theresa did, she could not change one thing.
This barren land could no longer support ten million Sarkaz.
They had no advanced technology, no quality seeds, no fertile land, and they were even about to lose a stable environment.
The surrounding countries were intentionally or unintentionally restricting the development of the Sarkaz.
That was why so many people were willing to take a gamble with Theresis. This didn't just come from the hatred of the collective souls, but also from the heavy pressure of survival.
The Sarkaz were like this; from ancient times to the present, once the population exceeded a certain red line, a civil war would break out.
They used the most barbaric methods to solve the population problem.
What? You ask why they don't go fight outsiders instead of fighting among themselves?
Heh, they couldn't win.
If they could win, they wouldn't have been chased into this wasteland.
"Very well, next question," Xia Yu basically had an idea now. "If Theresa could provide enough food to feed all the Sarkaz, do you think she would succeed?"
"Probably... not," Mudrock was stunned for a moment, then lowered her head and said, "For most Sarkaz, once they are fed and watered... they always have to find something to do."
She spoke very euphemistically, but it was enough to clarify the issue.
It was fine; Xia Yu didn't plan on naively hoping that just letting people eat their fill would block the influence of the collective souls.
"What do you think Theresa needs most right now?"
Faced with this question, Mudrock opened her mouth, but in the end, nothing came out.
She didn't know how to answer that question.
After all, she had never interacted with Her Highness, so how would she know the answer?
"She naturally needs a 'brother' who can stand by her side at all times and lift a sword."
When did the two factions of Kazdel start being at each other's throats?
The signs were there ever since Theresis began to distance himself from Theresa.
This pair of twins... sigh.
Both were doing it for the Sarkaz.
But they had embarked on paths going in opposite directions.
Ultimately, Theresa's biggest problem was that she did not possess absolute military force.
Of course, few Demon Kings throughout history could achieve that.
You see, once Theresis took a clear stand against Theresa and the Military Commission—which held the power of violence—followed him, Theresa had already lost her greatest advantage.
She was the Demon King.
But Demon Kings hadn't exactly been immune to being killed.
That was what led to the tragic Kazdel Civil War later on.
In the final analysis, it was simply that the overall strength of the Sarkaz was greatly reduced back then, so Theresa acting as a benevolent Demon King for two hundred years was incredibly useful.
But now, the Sarkaz had recovered.
They no longer needed a gentle, benevolent king, but a king who could lead them to revenge.
"This is no longer needed.jpg"
Because of these combined factors, the number of Babel supporters later on couldn't even compare to those of the Military Commission, and they were basically being crushed. Had The Doctor not used cheats, the outcome would likely have been known very quickly.
Real-world problems were still easy to solve; after all, Xia Yu still had a lot of food on hand, and her companies in Lungmen would continuously send supplies.
It was just the collective souls of the Sarkaz... sigh, how to deal with that thing?
She couldn't even enter the inner sea of Originium; she didn't even know where the front door was.
So she had to get her hands on The Doctor even more.
At least he knew where his 'home' door was.
The closer they got to Kazdel, the worse the environment became.
Of course, she was referring to the general environment.
Under these circumstances, someone actually dared to target the motorcade? Xia Yu couldn't figure it out no matter what.
Along the way, the Sarkaz Mercenaries had already dealt with several groups of bandits.
With this equipment (specifically referring to the vehicles), they clearly looked like trouble; how did those people dare to provoke them?
Xia Yu didn't understand.
"Sigh, the sky is about to turn dark," Xia Yu had been chatting with Mudrock and lost track of time, only realizing it when she looked out the window at the evening sky.
"Alright, let's find a place to rest. Everyone has worked hard traveling all day."
Hard? No, the Sarkaz Mercenaries really wanted to say it wasn't hard at all. Driving such good cars instead of running on foot—what was hard about that? After all, they could take shifts driving.
Just like that, the motorcade quickly selected an excellent camping spot.
Coincidentally, however, there were already people here.
The Catus standing at the very front saw more than a dozen vehicles that clearly looked like trouble circling around to surround him and his companions. He couldn't help but tighten his grip on the weapon in his hand.
Then he looked at the one big and one small figure behind him.
He'd give it his all!