Chapter 3: The Identity of a Law Destroyer Finally Brought Positive Feedback in Negotiations.
Thinking of this, Su Xiao immediately recalled Green Gillian, as incidents of her being caught in the crossfire were not uncommon. This time, however, it was finally due to the Law Destruction faction that there was positive negotiation feedback.
Over ten minutes later, in the lower level of the Great Library, inside the old monster's study, he fumbled along the bookshelf for a moment before taking down a tome.
"This 'Prophet's Enlightenment'... I obtained it from... where did I get this?"
The old monster pondered for a moment but couldn't recall, so he simply stopped thinking about this trivial matter. After all, from the First Era to now, if he remembered every single trivial detail, no matter how strong his spiritual body was, he would go mad from the chaos of memories.
"Who are you giving this ancient tome to?"
"The City Lord of Dawnlight City."
"Oh, that little brat. It's been a few years since he founded Dawnlight City. I wonder how it's developed."
"Shalein."
"Hmm? That name sounds a bit familiar. Let me think... Oh~, has Dawnlight City been established for that long? It seems there have been several generations of city lords."
"What price must I pay for this ancient tome?"
"A very high price, one you cannot afford yet. When you are qualified, I will come to collect it. I think that time is not far off. Then, we shall witness it together."
The old monster placed the 'Prophet's Enlightenment' on the wooden table beside Su Xiao. After sitting down at the table, he let out a low sigh and said, "This old thing can no longer taste the flavor of food. Only wine brewed from natural elements allows me, this half-dead old monster, to savor some taste."
At the end, the old monster even sighed.
"..."
Su Xiao took out the Elemental Brew. The old monster across the wooden table naturally took down two wine glasses from the cabinet. It seemed his senility was intermittent; at this moment, the old monster was relatively clear-headed.
Dressed in a loose robe with his chest open, revealing his gaunt frame, the old monster raised his glass and drank with a somewhat unrestrained motion. Since this was the lowest layer of wine from the Star Giant Tree · Great Wine Barrel, the flavor was richer but also had a spicy kick. As the old monster exhaled the wine's breath, even his cloudy pupils became clearer.
"Your next opponent is the Nun, right."
"..."
"It seems so. Give up; this is a trap."
"A trap?"
"You should have noticed that only Twilight City can bask in sunlight for extended periods. The farther you go from here, the dimmer the sunlight becomes. At the southernmost Holy Heart City or the northernmost Nightmare Land, the sky is perpetually dark."
Having said this, the old monster picked up a clay cup the size of a small wine glass and downed the wine within in one gulp. This finally gave him a bit of feeling of being alive. He continued, "The Spirit Academy's Spirit Crown City and the Divine Church's Holy Heart City are both in that dim southern region. They dare not directly declare war on Twilight City to compete for this land that bathes in sunlight every day. But continuing like this is unwilling to accept, so..."
"The Path to Kingship."
"Correct. The 32 'Sun Source Stones' once owned by the Sun God Clan are now scattered across various lands, held by many powerful beings. The King's Trial under the guise of reclaiming the 'Sun Source Stones' is the best excuse. It prevents Twilight City from refusing and allows them to bide their time."
The old monster revealed the secrets hidden within the 'Path to Kingship.' Simply put, this was a probe by the Spirit Academy and Holy Heart City against Twilight City. Each of the three factions would send a team to reclaim the 'Sun Source Stones' one by one. If Twilight City showed any sign of weakness during this process, the Spirit Academy and Holy Heart City would swarm in.
If Twilight City was like an aging lion, then the Spirit Academy and Holy Heart City were like crocodiles and hyenas. Neither side could fathom how much strength the old lion still had, and neither wanted to be cannon fodder for the other.
This was why Su Xiao's team, Shenfu's team, and the Big Brain team—these three groups of outsiders—could represent Twilight City, the Spirit Academy, and the Divine Church in this Path to Kingship. Not only because the previous teams from each side had been wiped out by the Beast God, Giant Tree King, and Bloodthirsty Beast, but also because the true goal of the three factions was not actually to complete the Path to Kingship.
What the three factions didn't expect was that these three teams, which they had agreed to reluctantly, would turn out to be fiercer than the last. By now, all three teams had each defeated three powerful enemies and were about to challenge the fourth.
Especially for the Divine Church, after figuring out the origins of Shenfu, the Platinum Apostle, and the Archbishop of the Abyss, they immediately backed out. They wanted no further part in this matter. The randomly selected three teams were truly hair-raising.
Among them were a humanoid Ancient God, a Fate System that silently devoured destiny, the highest echelon of the Dark God Cult—the Archbishop of the Abyss, the Law-Destroying Shadow who detonated two Sun Holy Swords in Arcane Eternal Star, the Black Demon who had just crawled out of the Abyss's shallow layer, and the Star Realm Devourer who had recently reincarnated.
After the high-ranking members of the Divine Church discovered these details at great cost, several of them were stunned. The next day, they announced that the subsequent Path to Kingship had nothing to do with them. They completely handed over their participation rights to Shenfu's three-man team.
When the Spirit Academy discovered this situation, they also began investigating. Unfortunately, they lacked powerful diviners, so they purchased the relevant intelligence from the Divine Church at a high price.
After realizing the nightmare lineup of the three teams, the Spirit Academy's attitude was simple and clear: Goodbye.
When Twilight City saw this situation, they considered stopping the Path to Kingship trial. Whether it was the old nobles or the newly risen powerful figures, they themselves didn't want Twilight City to participate in this trial. If it weren't for the high cost of directly falling out with the Divine Church and Spirit Academy, they would have already torn up the agreement.
Faced with this situation, Su Xiao naturally wouldn't agree. He had already dealt with the fourth powerful enemy. Did Twilight City think they could just end it? Moreover, his main mission was this King's Trial, so he certainly wouldn't give up halfway. This was why, tonight, the old nobles and the newly risen powerful figures were willing to temporarily join forces to deal with Su Xiao.
However, the trap dug by the old nobles and the newly risen powerful figures was not here. It was about Su Xiao's fourth opponent, the Nun.
"Where was I just now?"
The old monster's eyes became cloudy again. Seeing this, Su Xiao stood up to take his leave. After he left, the old monster stared at the flickering candle flame, somewhat lost in thought.
"Yes, this is no longer the era of us three. Our sun is about to set."
As the old monster finished speaking, the flickering candle flame went out, and he gradually sank into the darkness.
Su Xiao walked out of the main entrance of the Great Library. The early morning sun cast its light on the top of the city wall.
"Hey, don't pretend you didn't see me."
A voice came from Delona, who was dressed in a black dress. She sat on top of the Lord's Train, swinging her legs.
"My brother said to summon this to take you out of Twilight City. He also said it's dangerous here now."
Delona spoke while eating a snack that looked like a steamed bun, her words somewhat slurred. This was Delona's personality. Ever since leaving the Dark Moon Nightmare and sharing a body with Ayesha, the happier Delona was, the more depressed Ayesha became.
Previously, their relationship was neither hostile nor friendly, but they disliked each other. So Delona, who had long-term control of the body, often came up with bad ideas. For example, she would go to a restaurant, deliberately ask the waiter for some chili peppers, force herself to chew them despite the spiciness, and then, when Ayesha's consciousness wasn't paying attention, suddenly hand over control of the body to her.
Ayesha, who was enjoying the tranquility of the darkness, would suddenly find herself in a noisy restaurant with a mouth full of chili peppers. The situation was predictable.
What made Ayesha even more gloomy was that Delona never tired of this. In the end, Ayesha simply sealed herself within the consciousness space. This made Delona extremely uncomfortable. At first, sharing a body with Ayesha made her feel somewhat repulsed, but when the other party completely ignored her and nearly gave up control of the body, Delona soon began to miss Ayesha.
Currently, Delona was in a state of wanting to see Ayesha but being unable to, which made her irritable.
"Bai Ye, how can I see Ayesha? She's ignoring me~!"
Delona lay back on the train roof.
"I wouldn't ignore you either. If anyone else dared to torment Ayesha like that, she would have already cursed them to death. She is the incarnation of the Dark Cradle."
Baha, perched on Su Xiao's shoulder, spoke. Hearing this, Delona, who was lying on the train roof, suddenly sat up. She deliberately made one eye big and one eye small as she looked at Baha, various mischievous ideas brewing in her mind.
Baha's expression twitched. Having traveled through so many worlds, he had only been stumped by two people. The first was the ultimate green tea, Crystal Ji, and the second was the black-dressed Delona. It was hard to imagine how much the nightmare creatures of the Dark Moon Nightmare had suffered at the hands of this little miss over the years.
"Ayesha, Ayesha! I was wrong, don't ignore me! By blood, I am your biological sister. Is this how you treat your own sister?"
As she said this, tears welled up in Delona's eyes. However, Ayesha, in the darkness of the consciousness space, ignored her. But the slight upturn of her lips indicated that she didn't actually dislike Delona. Yet, the next second, when she sensed the handful of chili peppers in Delona's fair little hand tucked in her pocket, Ayesha's eyes darkened with anger.
"Tch~, big sister has gotten smarter. Bai Ye, aren't we leaving yet?"
Delona spoke. She could act shamelessly with others, but she dared not be disrespectful to Su Xiao. Su Xiao had absorbed a lot of demon spirit energy. Where did the demon spirit energy come from? The answer was from the Blade Demon Spirit, which converted the 'Immortal and Indestructible · Abyss Spawn Origin.' The Dark Cradle was one of the most powerful types of Abyss Spawn.
"..."
Su Xiao didn't speak. He naturally didn't need to leave Twilight City. In fact, he still needed to go to the only entrance to the 'Central District' within the 'Inner District'—the Silent Ancient Hall.
At this moment, in the Rear District, Silver Coconut Manor.
This was one of the largest manors in the Inner District. As the residence of the leader of the newly risen powerful figures, its luxury went without saying. However, the atmosphere within Silver Coconut Manor today was exceptionally tense. At least half of the forces that had besieged Su Xiao last night were now stationed within the manor.
In the dining room on the third floor of the mansion, breakfast was not lavish but exquisite. Unfortunately, Black Bersa had no appetite. Last night's siege had essentially torn up the facade. She was certain that the Law Destroyer's retaliation would come soon. In Black Bersa's view, for a Law Destroyer who had gone to challenge the Beast God, the High Tower Knight, and the False King, assassination was the fastest and easiest means of revenge.
She waited all night, but the anticipated assassination didn't come. Instead, the old noble Augustus went to the Central District to offer the [Blazing Sun Greatsword]. As a reward, this old fox was about to return to the Inner District with the Monarch's Holy Emblem. This meant that in the subsequent confrontations with the old noble faction, Black Bersa and her newly risen powerful figures would be suppressed, with almost no room to fight back.
Thinking of this, Black Bersa's mood was terrible. At the dining table, she lightly rubbed her forehead, contemplating countermeasures. Just then, her trusted subordinate crashed through the door into the dining room, panting heavily as if about to say something.
"Don't panic. We've already considered the worst outcome."
Black Bersa's face, which was beginning to show wrinkles, had a hint of desolation. In the end, she had lost to that old fox. As for the Law Destroyer who had arrived in Twilight City not long ago, he was just an outsider. Even if he had strength, his influence was limited, and he couldn't come up with any major plans in a short time.
"Milord, good news! That old fox Augustus was killed by an assassin! The Monarch's Holy Emblem is also lost. I've confirmed the news—it's absolutely true!"
The trusted subordinate's face was filled with an uncontrollable smile. Hearing this, Black Bersa's eyes showed suspicion. Her first thought was that the old thing was faking his death. But on second thought, that seemed unlikely.
The joy in her heart didn't surge forth. Instead, a thought emerged: Augustus, that old fox, was dead, and the Monarch's Holy Emblem he had obtained was lost. What would the old nobles do? This was like falling from heaven directly into hell. The old nobles would go mad with hysteria.
"Kukulin Bai Ye, you..."
Black Bersa's expression turned extremely grim. After pondering for a moment, she dropped her napkin, stood up, and said to her trusted subordinate beside her, "Arrange for me to leave the city immediately. Go to... Dawnlight City."
"As you command, Milord. Before noon, I guarantee you..."
"Immediately! Within half an hour, I want to leave Twilight City."
"Yes, yes."
The trusted subordinate quickly bowed repeatedly. Black Bersa sighed and walked out of the dining room.
Pfft~!
A bloodstained blade tip pierced through Black Bersa's chest. She stumbled forward half a step, looked down at the blood slowly sliding down the cold, gleaming blade tip, and for the first time, disbelief appeared in her eyes. Even when she heard of Augustus's death earlier, she hadn't been so stunned.
"Lord Augustus instructed me to bid you farewell on his behalf. Farewell forever."
The trusted subordinate withdrew the short blade that had pierced her heart. This caused Black Bersa to fall to the ground with a thud. In the spreading pool of blood, she stared at her trusted subordinate, dying in disbelief. This man, who had followed her for decades, was actually one of Augustus's men.
At the same time, in the Inner District, south of the city, inside an underground laboratory.
In a metal pool engraved with runes, a man in his early thirties rose from a slightly viscous, translucent liquid. One by one, the biological conduits connected to him detached. This man's body was breathing with its lungs for the first time, so it was inevitably unfamiliar, and his breathing had a slight rasp. But soon, he felt how refreshing this young, strong body was.
The appearance of this body was none other than Augustus's eldest son. Had Augustus possessed his own son? Of course not. Many years ago, Augustus's eldest son had been ambushed and killed by enemies. Augustus had concealed this incident and also hatched a plan. He needed a completely new identity, one that could simultaneously lead both the old nobles and the newly risen powerful figures.
Therefore, although Augustus had guessed some of Su Xiao's schemes, he chose not to use a substitute and went in person. Now, it seemed he would become the biggest winner of this assassination. He now had a thirty-year-old body and energy, centuries of cunning, and knowledge of over ninety percent of the weaknesses and secrets of the old nobles and newly risen powerful figures.
"Kukulin Bai Ye, thank you for giving me this heavenly opportunity. As a reward, you should still die. If you don't die, I won't be at ease."
Augustus spoke as if to himself. He took another deep breath. The wonderful feeling of his new body brought an involuntary smile to his face. He draped a robe over himself and had just stepped out of the metal pool when he saw a figure leaning against a glass pillar a few meters away. This person wore a gray-white feathered garment and a bone mask with bright red lines drawn on it.
"Whatever Bai Ye offered, I'll pay a hundred times."
Augustus spoke through gritted teeth. But in the next instant, his entire body was frozen, unable to move a muscle.
Tap, tap, tap...
Xiao walked step by step until he was in front of Augustus. A thin, razor-like short blade cleanly slit Augustus's throat. The blade didn't stain with blood. Xiao walked step by step out of the underground laboratory. When the exit door of the underground laboratory fell back into place, a massive amount of blood sprayed from Augustus's neck, and he then collapsed to the ground.
To his death, Augustus didn't understand how the other party had tracked him down. For this reincarnation, he had even abandoned his original soul body. By pre-extracting his original soul energy and condensing it into a soul seed, he reshaped his soul body within the new vessel. This had exhausted the centuries of wealth he had accumulated as the leader of the old nobles, and even then, it was barely achieved with significant flaws.
...
Inner District, the innermost area.
The chaos that had occurred here earlier left the surrounding area in disarray. The old noble Augustus had been assassinated on this main street.
Logically, this area should have been tightly sealed off. However, with both Augustus and Black Bersa meeting their ends simultaneously, the high-ranking figures of the Inner District had begun to confront each other, the atmosphere tense to the extreme. Yet, both the old nobles and the newly risen powerful figures remained restrained. They also surprisingly discovered that, although both sides had lost their leader-level figures, a delicate balance had been re-established.
The buildings on both sides of the street grew increasingly dilapidated. When Su Xiao reached the deepest part of the Inner District, a high wall blocked his path. This wall was several hundred meters high. If one tried to fly over it, they would surely be burned to ashes by the blazing sun.
An ancient but magnificent hall served as the only entrance through this high wall. This was the Silent Ancient Hall.
A pair of metal giant doors blocked the way. Strangely, there were no guards at the entrance.
Su Xiao pushed open each of the metal giant doors. With a creaking sound, the scene inside the Silent Ancient Hall came into view. The hall was very quiet, but if one listened carefully, there seemed to be a murmuring whisper in the air. The hall was filled with pitch-black chains. The closer these chains got to the center, the thinner they became. At the center was a figure wrapped in black chains, suspended a few meters in the air.
As soon as Su Xiao stepped into the Silent Ancient Hall, all the chains in the hall turned red-hot and began to melt into molten iron, scattering on the ground. The figure bound by the chains landed steadily. She opened her eyes and looked calmly at the Law Destroyer who had come.
The Nun had awakened.