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Chapter 119 - Hidden Clans

The Red Nightmare was surrounded by five people in shiny metal armors while he was laying on the ground fully tied up with metal handcuffs. They didn't look like they were friends as Red Nightmare's injuries were even worse than how Queen Luna left him. 

"Do you know them?" Liu Ye questioned, still hopeful he could claim his experience. "They don't look like they are bandits. They should belong to some kind of army or mercenary group. Maybe Fire Empire soldiers?"

Liu Ye naturally eliminated them being players as it was impossible anyone possessed such fancy armor this early in the game. Liu Ye was lucky to receive his own and others were much further behind him. 

"No, the Fire Empire has different uniforms." Queen Luna shook her head while her eyes brightened at the five soldiers. "This is the first time I see them so they must belong to one of the Hidden Clans. To think we would be so lucky to meet them during this mission." 

"Hidden Clans?" Liu Ye repeated in surprise. He thought there were only four Empires and the Emerald City so this information was crucial for his development. 

"Yeah, some powers didn't want to involve themselves in the war with the four Empires and instead decided to stay neutral. They went into hiding and reached an agreement with each Empire to claim small pieces of land for themselves," Queen Luna explained excitedly. "They often possess unique techniques and bending styles which they don't want to share with the world. Since I already mastered four Elements, I can only focus on the special bending styles."

"So they are like Healing, right?" Liu Ye pointed out as he recalled the dark areas in his Elemental Tree. 

Just like Healing, all other Elements had multiple Bending Styles he could master. From what he knew, there were two ways one could achieve it. One was simple and required natural talent to which Zhenzhen was a great example. She only tried it once and was able to unlock a new style with no effort. 

The other way was finding a Hidden Quest and learning it through another Master. Liu Ye didn't know how hard the process was but guessed it would be as slow as Passive Mastery which didn't fill him with optimism. 

"It's exactly like Healing," Queen Luna nodded as she tapped on her neck, "Can you see the metal on the baldy's neck? I'm guessing those soldiers are Metalbenders which is an advanced style that came from Earthbending. Some styles require two Elements to master but Metalbending requires only one just like Healing. We are so lucky that we met them." 

Queen Luna's words were confirmed a second later when one of the soldiers waved his hand and Red Nightmare was pulled up by the metal handcuffs. They didn't even touch him and he levitated like a puppet. Queen Luna grew even more excited at her confirmation but Liu Ye's expression sank. 

He got a good look at the handcuffs and realized they could actually be in trouble. 

"Let's go. We should talk to them and become friends," Queen Luna suggested without hesitation but Liu Ye stopped her before she could jump down. "What? We need to come down before they leave. I want to learn Metalbending from them." 

"I don't think we need to worry about that. They won't leave until they get what they came for," 

"What do you mean?" 

Liu Ye didn't reply right away and instead withdrew one of the metal fragments that he found earlier. Now that he had more information it was much easier to solve the puzzle.

"Why do you think they are interrogating him?" Liu Ye asked while letting Queen Luna inspect the fragment. "I found this fragment in the cart that was stolen from the merchants. You can see it's similar to the metal those Metalbenders use so I'm guessing it was being transported for them. Once they learned that the caravan was robbed, they chased the thieves to recover their goods." 

"This…" Queen Luna muttered in confusion. "I don't recognize this metal but just based on its sharpness and toughness, I'm sure it's valuable. Earth Empire has one of the best craftsmen and we have a lot of mines with precious metals. The Metalbenders must be trading privately and use the caravans to transport their goods in secret." 

"Why aren't they trading directly with the Earth Empire? It would be safer this way," Liu Ye asked for this small fragment that he was missing and it turned out to be exactly as he thought. 

"That's because they know it wouldn't be in their best interest," Queen Luna replied simply. "There is a reason why they went into hiding. My uncle is a ruthless businessman and he would milk them dry if he knew they needed those precious metals. Not only would he demand a higher price but I'm sure they would need to share their secrets and technology with us too." 

Queen Luna looked back at the scene and kept the Metal Fragment in her jacket. "I still want to meet them. Maybe we can buy their trust by returning their goods." 

This time Liu Ye was unable to stop her as she stood up on top of the rock formation. The five soldiers immediately felt their presence and turned their heads in her direction but she only waved at them. Liu Ye hoped he could keep the metals for future use but he couldn't get all the benefits without any sacrifices.

"Hold onto me, we will fly over," Queen Luna ordered and launched them in the air with Air bursting out of her feet. Liu Ye couldn't wait until he could fly on his own as the feeling was truly amazing.

They were still in the air when Liu Ye finally saw the NPC's names. 

[Steel Soldier - Lvl. 100]

Just their level alone was enough to realize Liu Ye wasn't supposed to deal with them this early in the game. They weren't even named NPC yet they almost rivaled Queen Luna in level. 

Red Nightmare froze when he saw them land and cried out in panic, "It's them! They killed all my members and stole your goods!" 

The Steel Soldiers frowned at his words and sharp metal pieces separated from their armors. The flying knives rotated around them and threatened to shoot at any moment. 

"Yes, yes! Kill them!" Red Nightmare shouted again as he dropped to the ground unattended. "They are strong and won't hesitate to kill you! Do it before they can attack!" 

He was trying to save himself but thankfully the Steel Soldiers were not as dumb as he thought. 

"Shut up bitch.." The Steel Soldier kicked Red Nightmare's side to silence him and aimed his palm at Queen Luna. "State your name and affiliation!"