Chapter 56: Descendant of the Ancient Tomb Sect

Facing the deliberate provocation of the mercenaries, the heroive Jeanne remained unmoved.

It was entirely natural that these men had never heard of the Ancient Tomb Sect.

The training grounds of the Ancient Tomb Sect were located in a secluded valley deep within the heart of Egypt. The place was filled with the ancient tombs of Egyptian pharaohs, hence its name.

The valley was intensely gloomy, shrouded in ghostly mists, and it was even rumored that zombies roamed the area. For ordinary men, entering it meant light damage to their health at best, and the loss of their lives at worst. Over time, the locals came to believe that a pharaoh's curse lingered within the valley, and they dared not approach. Consequently, the Ancient Tomb Sect practically recruited only female disciples.

This martial arts sect possessed an extremely ancient history, one that predated the entire civilization of many European ethnic groups.

They had originally been the tomb guardians appointed by the pharaohs. Later, when the Persian King Cambyses invaded Egypt, the land gradually fell into the hands of outsiders. Even though there were several attempts to restore the nation, none ultimately succeeded. The Ancient Tomb Sect held deep resentment toward this, and to this day, every new initiate must first spit upon a mosaic of Cambyses at the entrance as a symbolic gesture.

Due to its long history, the heritage accumulated by the Ancient Tomb Sect was profoundly deep. Dating back to the era of the valley's monarchs, they had inherited the martial arts of the ancient pharaoh guard. Later, they absorbed various fighting styles such as Greek wrestling, Arabian swordsmanship, and Frankish spearmanship, making them a veritable melting pot of European martial arts.

However, as time passed, the faith of the tomb monarchs gradually faded with the years, and the Ancient Tomb Sect was inevitably affected, successively influenced by the Coptic Church, the Orthodox Church, and Islam. Fortunately, they possessed a more fundamental belief, which allowed them to sustain themselves.

Moreover, the Ancient Tomb Sect had ties to France dating back over a hundred years.

At that time, the French King Louis IX led the Crusaders to attack Egypt, but at a critical moment, the Egyptian Sultan passed away. The Sultan's favorite concubine and member of the Ancient Tomb Sect, Shajar al-Durr, temporarily took charge of state affairs, reorganizing the chaotic army to resist France. In the end, the French army was defeated and surrendered, and Louis IX was taken captive.

Louis IX was also a warrior with profound internal foundations. He perceived that Shajar al-Durr possessed extraordinary skills and must harbor some supreme secret art.

The Capetian monarchs traditionally passed down the method of "Heavenly Sound Entering the Body," and Louis IX had practiced it to an exceptional degree. It was said that simply by touching an afflicted person, he could channel his immense internal strength into their body and cure their illness. The French held him in high reverence because of this, calling him "Saint Louis," and he still retained numerous admirers to this day.

The two crossed paths and fought, only to become friends thereafter. When paying his ransom, Louis IX incidentally provided her with a considerable sum of money as tuition, selecting French women to travel to Egypt and receive training from the Ancient Tomb Sect.

Later, due to a power struggle, Shajar al-Durr was assassinated by certain generals in collusion with the Assassins. Yet one of her former generals, Baibars, subsequently won the support of the Ancient Tomb Sect, decisively defeated the Mongols who ran rampant across Western Asia, and eventually became the ruler of Egypt, thereby granting protection to the sect as well.

As for the French side, as time passed, the foresight of Louis IX gradually manifested. Whenever France faced critical moments of crisis, brave and combative women would emerge, attempting to save the country. Many perished midway, yet others continuously materialized from unknown places, hailed by the populace as "Holy Maidens."

After the direct line of the Capetian dynasty became extinct, the succeeding House of Valois failed to inherit all the esoteric information, and these women refused to recognize the authority of the Valois royal family, causing the ties between the two sides to be severed. Consequently, they formed their own organization, relying on funds obtained by members and occasional sponsorships from benevolent nobles and clerics, carrying on covert activities everywhere while continuously sending people for training.

Later on, France plunged into prolonged wars and internal strife, causing this matter to gradually fade into obscurity. It was entirely unsurprising that these ordinary mercenaries, hired for labor, remained ignorant of the various entanglements between the Ancient Tomb Sect and France.

Confronted with the mercenaries surging forward to capture her alive, the heroive Jeanne drew an ancient and bizarre-looking pole-blade with her right hand, grasped a dagger in her left, and strode forward to meet them. The mercenary captain wore a lecherous grin, but before he could react, his chainmail was breached by a single slash, and his throat was slit.

The mercenaries cried out in astonishment, intending to avenge their captain. Yet the footwork of the heroive Jeanne was formidable; she moved with the evasiveness of a loach in water, dodging and shifting so that she could never be struck. The techniques of the Ancient Tomb Sect were extremely tricky and vicious; some mercenaries suffered severed hands, others took blades to the face, and they fell one after another. Seeing this, the remaining men panicked immensely, turned, and fled into the woods, scattering in all directions.

At that moment, the glow of fire appeared at the edge of the village. As it turned out, the villagers living amidst these troubled times were extremely vigilant, and the moment the mercenaries approached the river, they had been spotted. Village Chief Darc hurriedly mustered the militia to prepare for defense. However, they had not expected the matter here to be resolved with such swiftness. By the time the militia arrived, the mercenaries had already fled in rout.

Heroine Jeanne reported her identity to the villagers once again, stating that she still needed to find the Prince of Wu's daughter to fulfill her entrusted mission. Village Chief Darc, harboring high vigilance, did not trust her; whereupon she produced a token, declaring that as long as it was shown to those Seres people, they would naturally understand.

Qi Tai and the others were still in the village at the time. Upon seeing the token, the several grown men who had journeyed through hardships all the way here burst into loud wails. Quite surprised, the village chief asked them what was the matter. Qi Tai replied that this was the official seal of the Prince of Wu's manor in Yingtian City, which they had failed to bring along during their hurried flight. For someone to send this here made the implications abundantly clear.

He immediately took Zhu Youzhen to see the messenger. Heroine Jeanne remarked that she actually did not know any further details, but she would help escort the child to a safe place.

Right now, the entirety of France was likely difficult to find refuge in. Fortunately, France was also a classic European country, and imperial court control over the localities had been severely undermined by the chaos of war, making it entirely feasible to escape.

They left behind a considerable amount of wealth to thank the villagers, then packed only light valuables and followed the route previously taken by Huang Zicheng, preparing to head toward Daidu as well to reunite with the Princess Consort, the Heir Apparent, and the others.

To avoid prying eyes, they disguised themselves once again. Qi Tai and the others possessed documents from the Purple Tent Khanate, based on which they forged some paperwork, claiming to be official merchants of the Purple Tent. As for the young princess, to express gratitude to Heroine Jeanne and the enthusiastic villagers, she was given a French name—Jeanne d'Arc—which would also facilitate dealing with inspections along the road.

Fortunately, once under protection, their journey experienced no further twists and turns. The party successfully reached their destination, the Purple Tent Khanate.