Chapter 45: Combination
Patriarch Augustus frowned, standing on the balcony. He turned his head to gaze into the distance at the Divine Punishment Sea and fell silent.
“Patriarch.” Montero called out repeatedly, but Patriarch Augustus did not respond. Montero knew... the patriarch must be deep in thought. He stopped urging him, though inwardly he grew anxious: “Given the patriarch’s temperament, he might very well ignore this matter. If so, who will go kill those two—the Soul Devouring Rat and the other?”
“No. They must be killed, both of them.” Montero kept thinking.
Although Montero was an important figure in the Augustus clan, he had no significant connection to any Sovereign-level experts.
Fighting on the planar battlefield made revenge difficult. After all, those who could kill other commanders on the planar battlefield were undoubtedly powerful. To have absolute certainty in killing them, only a Sovereign-level expert would suffice.
There were only so many Sovereign-level Upper Gods in total, scattered across various planes. Some Sovereign-level Upper Gods even hid in material planes, while others lived in seclusion in remote places. Persuading a Sovereign-level expert to act was an extremely difficult task.
Not everyone, like the elven powerhouse ‘Ocarowell’, could make a Sovereign-level expert owe them a favor.
Even Montero, let alone Patriarch Augustus—the patriarch of the foremost clan—could not guarantee persuading a Sovereign-level expert.
“Describe the strength of Resijing’s team members in detail.” Patriarch Augustus gazed at the Divine Punishment Sea and said indifferently.
Montero was overjoyed and quickly replied, “Their team consists of four people: Resijing, a powerhouse close to Uman in strength, a young man from the Azure Dragon clan, and the Soul Devouring Rat! Among them, Resijing is the strongest. Of course, the Soul Devouring Rat is also terrifying, with an incredibly powerful innate divine ability.”
“Oh...” Patriarch Augustus suddenly turned, his sharp eyes locking onto him. “That powerhouse close to Uman—nothing special about him?”
“Uman can handle him,” Montero said with certainty.
If Uman fought Lei Hong, indeed, Uman possessed an attack-type Sovereign artifact that perfectly countered Lei Hong... Even if the battle were difficult, Uman could still kill Lei Hong.
“To kill the young man from the Azure Dragon clan and the Soul Devouring Rat, it won’t be easy.” Patriarch Augustus shook his head slightly. In truth, he hesitated about whether to launch an attack. After all, Green Robe, Xiasiwei, and the others were not part of his Augustus clan. Even if they died, it wouldn’t affect his family.
Losing one Sovereign’s emissary—the Sovereign could simply appoint another.
Montero grew anxious and quickly said, “Patriarch, if it were just killing me, that would be one thing. But this time, they killed four of our people. And you know Resijing—he loves chaos and has long had conflicts with our clan. With this victory, he will surely spread the news everywhere to boast. If our clan shows no reaction, then—”
Patriarch Augustus’s brows knitted together, and the crimson mole seemed to emit a red glow.
He immediately ordered, “Montero, go summon Uman. At the same time, send someone to summon Chegwen as well.”
Although Uman’s strongest divine clone was on the planar battlefield, he still had a clone staying within the clan. As for ‘Chegwen’, he also lived in the Divine Punishment Sea and was a Sovereign’s emissary under the Radiant Sovereign, with close ties to the Augustus clan.
“Yes.” Montero was overjoyed.
“There’s hope.” Montero was thrilled. Although he didn’t know how the patriarch would arrange things, since he knew the strength of Resijing’s side, Montero believed the patriarch would send a team with absolute certainty.
If they didn’t strike, fine. But if they did, victory was guaranteed.
On the planar battlefield, on a stretch of wilderness.
“Whoosh, whoosh—” The cold wind howled, whipping up sand and stones. In the wind, two figures could be faintly seen walking side by side. As they drew closer, one was seen in a golden robe with short silver hair and a resolute face—it was ‘Uman’, who had narrowly escaped in the previous battle.
Beside Uman was a tall, thin figure in a green robe, with a closed vertical eye clearly visible on his forehead. This was Chegwen.
“The patriarch really favors Montero, to seek revenge for this matter,” Uman sneered. “And he asked you to come with me.”
Chegwen smiled faintly, looking somewhat eerie: “Uman, the patriarch is the Sovereign’s most favored son. Since he personally asked me, how could I refuse? But Uman... those four, including Resijing, managed to push you to that extent—they must be quite strong.”
“I told you, only the Soul Devouring Rat is troublesome,” Uman said self-deprecatingly.
That battle, if spread, would tarnish Uman’s reputation.
“But this time, we have absolute certainty,” Uman said with a smile.
“Not necessarily, unless that one agrees,” Chegwen shook his head. “He might not agree to this.”
“If that one doesn’t agree, just the two of us might struggle,” Uman said, looking ahead.
As they talked, they arrived before a military camp. The guards immediately eyed them warily. Those who dared walk alone on the planar battlefield were usually extraordinary experts. Uman directly announced, “Go report to your commander that Uman has come to visit.”
“Please wait a moment, sirs.” One soldier bowed slightly and immediately went to report.
After a short while—
“Sirs, the commander invites you in,” the soldier returned.
Uman and Chegwen smiled and walked side by side. Soon, they arrived at the entrance of an ancient courtyard. At the door stood a handsome young man with golden hair. Seeing them, he smiled: “Uman, ah, and Chegwen too! Both of you visiting me—what a rare treat. Please, come in!”
Uman stepped forward and said in a low voice, “Lamson, is Mr. Magnus here?”
“He is,” the golden-haired youth paused. “You’re here to see him?”
“Yes,” Uman nodded slightly.
At that moment, a calm voice came from inside: “Uman, Chegwen, since you’re here to see me, come on in. It’s been a while since we last met.”
Without hesitation, Uman and Chegwen entered the courtyard with the golden-haired youth.
In the courtyard, by a stone table, a man was leaning back in a dark wooden chair, casually flipping through a book about a finger thick. He had smooth, waist-length silver hair, loosely draped, giving him an untamed look. His skin was translucent, his face clean-shaven, with no beard.
Only his two silver eyebrows hung down to his earlobes.
“Mr. Magnus.” Uman and Chegwen both bowed slightly.
Magnus placed the book on the table, glanced at them with a faint smile, and said, “Sit.”
Uman and Chegwen sat down separately, exchanging a glance. Both felt a certain pressure. The man before them, ‘Magnus’, was a peak expert of the Celestial Realm. Rumors suggested Magnus was a suspected Sovereign-level Upper God, but Uman and Chegwen knew the truth.
Magnus had indeed reached the Sovereign level.
As a Sovereign-level expert in the laws of Fate, Magnus’s mastery of the soul was considered the pinnacle among Upper Gods.
“You two seem to have something difficult to say,” Magnus said with a faint smile.
Chegwen took a deep breath and said, “Mr. Magnus, let me describe the situation. Not long ago, a team led by Resijing on the planar battlefield nearly wiped out the team led by Montero. Four died, leaving only Uman, who barely escaped.”
“That impressive?” Magnus was somewhat surprised and looked at Uman.
Uman said shamefacedly, “One of their team members was a Soul Devouring Rat.”
Magnus understood. The golden-haired youth beside him laughed, “I heard there was a Soul Devouring Rat. So it’s in Resijing’s team. Montero’s team lost four, with only Uman escaping? Did Montero himself die?”
“Yes,” Uman nodded.
“Patriarch ‘Hanjin’ sent you, didn’t he?” Magnus said with a faint smile.
Uman smiled helplessly: “Mr. Magnus, you’ve guessed it. We’ll be straightforward. Yes, the patriarch asked us to invite you. After all, the Magnus family doesn’t have many people on the planar battlefield who can be called upon, and even fewer who can handle Resijing and his group.”
“Is Hanjin out of his mind? Going after Resijing?” Magnus frowned.
Few people would dare say Hanjin had a problem, but Magnus was one of them. Moreover, Magnus and Hanjin had a deeper relationship. Back when they were both weak, they had once roamed the Radiant Divine Realm together. To persuade a Sovereign-level expert, relying on a Sovereign’s background was useless—only favors and friendships mattered.
“No, no,” Uman said cheerfully. “Rest assured, the patriarch isn’t targeting Resijing this time. His intention is to deal with the other three.”
“The Soul Devouring Rat can’t be killed,” Magnus shook his head.
“Hmm, Mr. Magnus, are you worried about Beirut?” Uman asked.
The golden-haired youth ‘Lamson’ laughed: “Mr. Magnus naturally doesn’t care. But don’t you know? Mr. Baier personally tried to kill that Soul Devouring Rat and failed. Mr. Baier even stayed at my place for a few months and discussed this matter.”
“Baier?” Uman and Chegwen exchanged glances.
“That Soul Devouring Rat’s physical defense is too strong, and he has a soul-defense Sovereign artifact. Unless he’s banished into the spatial turbulence, it’s impossible to kill him,” Magnus shook his head. “Even in the spatial turbulence, given his defenses, he’d probably survive, at most getting lost. If Beirut asks a Sovereign to search the spatial turbulence, they might find him.”
Uman and Chegwen finally understood how troublesome the Soul Devouring Rat was.
“If you act, you can only kill the young man from the Azure Dragon clan and the other one,” Magnus said with a faint smile.
“Mr. Magnus, if you step in, there will be no problem at all,” Uman quickly said. Chegwen also looked at Magnus expectantly.
Magnus chuckled: “What did Hanjin tell you?” He looked at Uman.
“He said that if Mr. Magnus helps once, he will give you a piece of Strange Cloud Stone,” Uman said, somewhat puzzled. He didn’t understand the patriarch’s reasoning. Strange Cloud Stone, though rare in the Radiant Divine Realm, wasn’t particularly valuable—less than an Upper God artifact.
A single Strange Cloud Stone to persuade Magnus to act? How could it be so cheap?
Of course, Uman didn’t understand, but the patriarch had told him to say just that.
“That Hanjin, always so cunning,” Magnus said, standing up with a smile. “Then I’ll go with you.”
Uman and Chegwen were surprised. They hadn’t expected that this offer would actually persuade Magnus.
“But I’ll only be responsible for holding back Resijing. You two will kill the others. As for the Soul Devouring Rat... just ignore him,” Magnus said with a faint smile. This time, the Augustus clan patriarch had invited ‘Chegwen’, also a super expert, unafraid of the ‘Soul Devouring’ ability.
With these three acting, dealing with Resijing’s group would be easy. In fact, Magnus alone would be enough.
“Lamson, I’ll take my leave then,” Magnus said with a smile.
“I await your victorious return,” the golden-haired youth said with a smile.
Immediately, Magnus led Uman and Chegwen out of the camp. Watching their retreating figures, the golden-haired youth shook his head and sighed: “I didn’t expect the Augustus patriarch to persuade Mr. Magnus. It seems this battle holds no suspense at all.”