Chapter 29: Investigation
One of the seven provinces of the O'Brien Empire, the 'Northwest Province', was vast and expansive, with a population of tens of millions. The provincial capital, 'Basil', was also the most prosperous city in the Northwest Province. Within the city of Basil alone, over a million people resided.
Within the city of Basil, there were also many ancient noble families.
Count Perry, though not the most dazzling noble in Basil, held considerable influence among those ancient families. Moreover, being an amiable old man who never vied for power, he had good relations with nearly all the nobles.
"Count, you're back," the guards at the entrance of the count's mansion said with a smile, bowing respectfully.
Count Perry was now over two hundred years old, his hair already silver-white, but his mustache was still the same as when he was young. Count Perry nodded slightly to his guard and said amiably with a smile, "Oh, got a haircut. It looks good. Did you get it done at Old Locke's?"
Hearing the praise, the guard's face lit up as if a flower had bloomed on it. "Indeed, Mr. Locke's craftsmanship is really excellent."
Count Perry smiled and then entered his mansion.
"Count Perry is truly a good man," the guard sighed inwardly.
Count Perry was indeed a good man; this was almost a consensus among everyone in the city of Basil. Count Perry disliked killing and abhorred foul language. His demeanor fully embodied the virtues a noble gentleman should possess.
Upon entering the rear hall, Count Perry's face darkened.
"What the hell is going on? How can so many things happen one after another?" Count Perry was very troubled. A few days ago, he received news that Archbishop Lampson, along with the other ascetics and senior deacons, had gone missing in the town of Cheer. Then he received news that the squad escorting the two girls had been completely wiped out, and the two girls had also disappeared.
Count Perry, having served as the head of the Light Church's operations in the Northwest Province of the O'Brien Empire for a long time, hadn't encountered such a thorny problem in quite a while.
"I hope nothing has happened to Lord Lampson and the others," Perry prayed inwardly.
The two girls being rescued was no big deal. But Lampson and the other five were all ninth-level experts, and they were escorting a ninth-level Necromantic Archmage. This matter was the most important thing he had encountered since becoming the provincial head.
"Count," a man with a hooked nose, tall and thin with curly hair, entered and bowed respectfully. "We have investigated the matter concerning those lords."
Perry immediately looked at him. "Speak quickly."
"According to information provided by our brethren in other cities, those lords have not reappeared. Furthermore, we mobilized our people in the town of Cheer to investigate, and they saw no evidence of those lords leaving the town of Cheer," the hooked-nose, curly-haired man replied respectfully.
Perry's eyes widened.
"What?" Perry's heart, which had been hanging by a thread for days, trembled. "Lord Lampson and the others couldn't have just stayed in the town of Cheer. And judging by the traces at their residence in Cheer, it's very likely that Lord Lampson and the others were attacked. It's entirely possible that Lord Lampson and the others leaped over the city walls and left Cheer in the dead of night."
"But even so, Lord Lampson and the others should have appeared in other cities by now."
Perry was truly worried now.
He had a very bad feeling.
"Could it be that Lord Lampson and the others encountered a powerful enemy and were killed?" Perry dared not believe it. After all, Lampson and his five companions were truly powerful. To kill these six, the opponent would need several ninth-level experts, or a Saint-level powerhouse.
Perry suddenly looked at the hooked-nose, curly-haired man and ordered coldly, "Go quickly to Old Polly's place and have him bring his three Azure Wind Eagles to my study."
"Yes, Count," the hooked-nose man also knew the gravity of the situation.
Perry immediately strode towards his study. That very day, Perry wrote three identical letters concerning Lampson and the others, and had them sent to the Light Church's current headquarters, the 'Holy Island', via the three Azure Wind Eagles.
Ever since the Holy City of Fenlai was destroyed, the Light Church had established a new headquarters on an island not far from the Yulan Continent, publicly declaring it the 'Holy Island'.
******
In the secluded valley outside the town of Cheer.
Four wooden cabins now stood there: one for Linley and Bebe, one for Sesslar, one for Rebecca and Nina, and one for Haeru.
Early morning, the valley was very quiet.
Two beautiful white-clad girls, like figures from a dream, were chatting and laughing with each other while washing clothes. These clothes belonged to them, Linley, and Sesslar. In the valley, they did all the chores like washing and cooking.
"Sister, do you think Grandpa Sesslar gets tired, staying in that cabin all day cultivating?" Rebecca whispered to Nina.
Sesslar's wooden cabin was completely shrouded in black necromantic aura. The dense, black aura made Rebecca and Nina afraid to even approach.
Nina frowned, her fair nose wrinkling adorably, and said thoughtfully, "Maybe that's how strong people have to train diligently. But still, I think watching Brother Lei train is more comfortable." She then looked towards the center of the distant jade-green lake, and Rebecca looked as well.
In the center of the jade-green lake, Linley stood on the water without sinking.
"Gurgle, gurgle~~"
The water surface under Linley's feet was depressed by a few centimeters. Because dou qi would surge from the soles of his feet from time to time, the entire lake surface was rippling.
Linley held the Black Heavy Sword in his right hand, occasionally swinging it in a slash, sometimes thrusting it straight... Each movement caused the surrounding air to tremble, making the air feel like a quagmire. When the Black Heavy Sword slashed, it felt as if it could tear space itself.
"This 'Profound Truths of the Earth', when I use it, it works sometimes and doesn't work at other times."
Linley's brows were tightly furrowed.
When he killed Lampson, although Linley only struck Lampson with one sword slash, there was not a single scratch on Lampson's body surface, yet his insides had been turned into mush.
In Linley's view, the third layer of the Heavy Sword training was 'Momentum'. And the fourth layer was this 'Profound Truths of the Earth'.
Through this heavy weapon like the Black Heavy Sword, Linley could manifest part of his understanding of the Laws of the Earth. This kind of attack essentially converted the force of the strike into vibrations that were transmitted into the enemy's body in an instant.
Vibration transmission, pushed to its limit, could completely ignore defense.
One must know that the pulsations of the earth have existed since the formation of heaven and earth. The mysteries within were too profound. The most basic principle of this 'Profound Truths of the Earth' was:
Attack power was completely transformed into vibrations similar to the earth's pulsations. When these vibrations struck an enemy, they would cause resonance within the enemy's body. This resonance was very powerful, after all, it was transformed from Linley's attack power.
The internal organs of the body were not as tough as the body's surface defense.
This kind of resonance could easily turn an enemy's insides into mush.
"But transforming attack power into resonance is too difficult." Linley understood that ordinary dou qi and physical force were completely different types of attacks from 'vibration waves'.
By relying on his partial understanding of the Laws of the Earth, Linley could convert his ordinary attacks into this kind of 'vibration wave' attack.
According to Linley's theory, the more times the converted 'vibration wave' vibrated, the higher the conversion efficiency.
"Sometimes I can unleash over a dozen vibrations in an instant, but other times I can't even convert a single one." Linley had a headache.
Linley understood that reaching this level with the heavy sword meant he had crossed the threshold of the 'Laws of the Earth'.
But Linley hadn't fully mastered it yet.
"Don't be greedy for quick results. For now, don't aim for a high number of vibrations, just aim to succeed in the conversion every time." Linley held the Black Heavy Sword in one hand, his expression serious.
Suddenly—
The Black Heavy Sword, as if tearing through space, slashed directly onto the lake surface.
Strangely, the lake surface didn't depress at all, but the entire jade-green lake emitted a strange 'gurgling' sound. Then, as if stirred by a giant, the entire lake surface surged violently, raising waves a full meter high.
"It worked this time again."
Linley wasn't too happy. Regarding this fourth layer, the 'Profound Truths of the Earth', he only succeeded occasionally and hadn't fully grasped its pattern.
"Brother Lei, time to eat." Nina stood on the lakeshore not far away, calling out with a smile.
"Grandpa Sesslar, time to eat. Stop cultivating," Rebecca also shouted outside Sesslar's wooden cabin.
Linley flipped his hand, and the Black Heavy Sword flew up, landing directly in the scabbard on his back. With Linley's perfect control over 'Momentum', the weight of the Black Heavy Sword was no obstacle to him at all.
On the grass, a rectangular dining table was set up.
Linley, Sesslar, and the two sisters, Rebecca and Nina, were all gathered around it.
"Linley, what were you cultivating? I saw that strange training method of yours. I've never seen a warrior train like that before," Sesslar asked curiously.
Sesslar's knowledge was extensive, but he knew very little about warrior training.
In fact, for a ninth-level peak expert to enter the Saint realm, they needed to cultivate their comprehension. And for a Saint-level expert to enter the Demigod realm, they also needed to comprehend the laws of heaven and earth, ultimately obtaining a divine spark.
"This is cultivation of comprehension, much like a mage's understanding of the elements," Linley said casually.
Sesslar understood immediately.
Because he was a ninth-level Necromantic Archmage, he sometimes used his soul to resonate with the boundless death aura of the Necropolis of the Gods, trying to comprehend the vague and ethereal Laws of Death.
"Sesslar, we killed Lampson and the others. Will the Light Church just swallow this?" Linley was still worried about this matter.
Sesslar laughed very confidently. "Don't worry. Let me tell you, the O'Brien Empire is very far from the Light Church. Even if the news is sent via flying magical beasts, it will take ten days to half a month. And by the time they send experts here, it will probably be a while longer."
"If a Saint-level expert flies here, their speed is very fast," Linley said seriously.
Having killed so many people from the Light Church, it was very possible they would send a Saint-level expert.
"Haha, don't worry. They wouldn't dare send a Saint-level expert. Don't you wonder why they didn't send a Saint-level expert to capture me, but instead sent ninth-level experts?" Sesslar laughed triumphantly.
Linley was also puzzled by this.
A Saint-level expert would have captured Sesslar with ease.
"Linley, you have to understand that the O'Brien Empire has the War God. The War God has long decreed that he will not allow Saint-level experts from other countries to run rampant in the O'Brien Empire. If they come to travel, it's fine, but if they make a move and are discovered, the consequences are severe."
Sesslar sneered, "The Light Church wouldn't dare to defy the War God even if they had ten times the courage."
The dignity of the War God was not to be violated.
"Not necessarily."
Linley shook his head. "Didn't you say it yourself? It's only a problem if they are discovered. But what if they aren't? There are no experts in the town of Cheer. The War God is far away in the Imperial Capital. If a Saint-level expert appeared in Cheer, he might not necessarily find out."
Sesslar was stunned.
"The Light Church wouldn't be that crazy, would they?" Sesslar was now uncertain.
"Hard to say. After all, we killed six ninth-level experts in one go this time. Plus the ones you killed when they tried to capture you. The Light Church won't swallow this easily," Linley said seriously.
Sesslar thought for a while, then laughed. "It's fine. There are no Saint-level experts in the town of Cheer, but there is a Saint-level expert, 'McKenzie', in the provincial capital, Basil. If the Light Church sends a Saint-level expert to fight us, they will definitely be discovered by McKenzie. McKenzie would absolutely not tolerate the Light Church's people causing trouble in his territory. Once two Saint-level experts fight, the War God will definitely find out."
"Right," Linley also laughed.
If they could provoke a conflict between the Light Church and the O'Brien Empire, it would definitely cause the Light Church a lot of trouble.
"Linley, when I was being escorted by Lampson and the others into the Northwest Province, the Light Church's secret head in the Northwest Province came to receive Lampson and the others. I remember the old man's name was 'Perry'. From their conversation, that old man Perry should be from the city of Basil."
Sesslar gave a cold, sinister smile. "Since we're going to Basil anyway, let's take care of this Perry along the way. Maybe we can even uncover some of the Light Church's secrets."
"The head of the Northwest Province?" Linley's eyes lit up. "Alright, we'll set off tomorrow."
(Chapter one. It's the first day of the burst, so there will be three chapters today~~~)