NOVPUBChapter 191: Chapter 190 The Eve of the Storm 𝑛𝘰𝑣𝘱𝑢𝑏.𝘤𝑜𝘮
Chapter 191 -190 The Eve of the Storm
“I thought he wanted to draw you into the Heretical Cult as well, but it turns out he chose to let you go,” Chaoyang returned the sword to his deputy, “Did you have any connection with the Earl before this?”
“No… I hadn’t even met him before I was transferred to Magnificent Castle. I’m not of noble birth, so it’s impossible for me to have had any dealings with an Earl,” Shandela said weakly as she set down the two pieces of paper, her heart already reaching a judgement even without saying it aloud.
The sword that was given three years ago had a deliberately current signing date. This indicated that Li Qiang Ola had at least been brewing a significant event since that time, and had planned it for three years later. Only documents with closely matching dates could ensure their validity, for otherwise, if you dismiss someone and they continue to stay in Magnificent Castle, diligently commanding the City of Defense forces for three years, the document wouldn’t be believed by anyone.
But it was precisely the preset future date on this document that greatly magnified the suspicions on Earl Li Qiang, even to the point of certainty.
“So, do you plan to flee back to the Old Continent?” Chaoyang bluntly asked, “If you just walk away, the City of Defense will completely fall apart.”
He anticipated that Shandela would need a good while to recover, for the shock of one’s immediate superior turning out to be a devotee of the Heretical Cult was not something ordinary.
However, Shandela remained silent for only half a minute before her eyes regained their clarity, “If I am truly free, then the first thing I want to do is to find him and ask for an explanation. Why, instead of being a good lord, he became a Heretical Cult member who slaughters his own people! I may not be a competent defense officer, but I will not hand over the powers of a Commander to anyone else before thwarting the Heretical Cult’s conspiracy!”
“Since that’s the case, we can discuss our next move,” Chaoyang nodded.
“Mr. Zhao… you really are an incredible person,” Shandela looked up at him and couldn’t help but whisper.
“Is that so?”
“You don’t seem afraid at all of the consequences of accusing a lord, no…” she thought for a moment and then shook her head, “Not just in this case, it seems like you’ve never been afraid of anything, whether dealing with the company or the City of Defense forces. It feels like as long as you believe something is right, you’ll push forward regardless of everything else. If put nicely, it’s bravery, if not, then it’s… recklessness. I’m curious, what supports your convictions? Don’t say it’s the Paradise Master, we all know that divinities far away can’t save you when death comes.”
Chaoyang could tell that ‘recklessness’ was a restrained term for her.
In the eyes of the locals, his actions could not merely be described as repeatedly dancing on the edge of death but as though he were ballet dancing in the realm of death itself.
But what could he do? If he used his doppelgänger more diligently, he would find it hard not to dance.
Ge Wei on the side was holding back her struggle. She suddenly realized why the Paradise Master was so keen on personally taking action instead of observing from afar in The Divine Country.
Because it’s exhilarating.
“Perhaps I’ve been through trials more pressing than death itself, so I’ve come to see things more broadly,” Chaoyang brought out his usual persona again, “Anyway, Earl Li Qiang Ola is not necessarily truly dead; otherwise, the document he left you wouldn’t make sense—a person who knows they will be killed in a catastrophe three years later surely would take some precautions? So, I’m more inclined to believe he wants to hide and carry out an even greater conspiracy.”
“Isn’t attacking Magnificent Castle enough?” Woody’s face was as grave as water, “Since the City of Defense was swallowed by the mist, it has been a long time since we’ve seen such a vicious incident of direct conflict between Heretical Cult members and the city garrison. In less than a week, the whole Old Continent will know what’s happening here.”
“This was also a doubt I had before. Assuming Paradise doesn’t make a move, can seven or eight potted abominations take over Magnificent Castle?” Chaoyang looked at Ge Wei, “The answer should be no, right?”
“Many people would die, but the city wouldn’t fall to the hands of the Heretical Cult. After all, killing and occupying are two different things.” The latter responded without hesitation, “If the entire Black Steel Security were to stand with the cultists, we would indeed encounter significant trouble. But with Aibuvich’s death, Heigang Company would fall apart too. If I were the cult commander, I would definitely change my plan. Once exposed, their greatest advantage would vanish.”
“I think so too,” he agreed profoundly, “The Causal Sect must not be doing this just to show off; we need to find out the enemy’s true intentions. First off, all the nobles that boarded the ship must be detained, perhaps we could get something out of them. Second, we capture the Evil God’s Divine Envoy, who is likely the Earl we suspect, Li Qiang Ola. Last point, the City of Defense army should quickly seize the high ground in public opinion and announce the fact of Magnificent Castle’s upper echelons’ ties with the Heretical Cult. I know this decision will be tough, but if we don’t let the people know who the enemy and who the friend is soon, our subsequent actions will hardly garner the support of the locals.”
To his surprise, Shandela agreed without hesitation, “The operational fund of the City of Defense army indeed comes from company taxes, but that doesn’t mean the army is a vassal of the nobles. If they’re proven to be involved in cult activities, it’s all the same if we just kill them and eat their flesh.”
Chaoyang nodded in satisfaction.
The City of Defense army finally looked a bit more like an army again.
“But how do we intercept the Joyful Goddess?” Woody brought up a new concern, “Our patrol boat has yet to send any messages. If we lost them from the start, there’s no way we could find a passenger ship in the vast sea. And the enemies only need to find a deserted beach, use landing boats to transfer people, and they can let the people on the ship quietly escape.”
“We know where the Divine Envoy is,” Ailuodi suddenly spoke up.
“What?” Shandela perked up, “Didn’t the people from Paradise fail in their ambush and all retreated?”
“Yes, there are no more of our people on the ship, but that doesn’t mean we have no means to track them.”
“Are you serious?” She looked towards Chaoyang.
And he gave her an affirmative look.
Of course, he also heard this news from Ailuodi — at the time when the Angel was held at close quarters by the enemy, she spat into their forehead. And when the Divine Envoy reformed from a shattered state back to human form, Ailuodi unexpectedly discovered that the spittle was not expelled. This allowed her to sense the location of that breath, much like tracking chewing gum.
Theoretically, this scent wouldn’t last too long because the cerebrospinal fluid is renewed daily, which means she could pinpoint the location for at most one day.
“So where is this ship now?” Shandela pressed.
“In the sea south of Magnificent Castle, and still moving steadily eastward,” Ailuodi said after closing her eyes to sense for a moment.
She immediately looked at the map — the southeast was the real wilderness, where not even farmers would settle in an area frequently plagued by Pirates. From a certain perspective, the cultists had completely left the jurisdiction of Magnificent Castle, seemingly fleeing from their crimes; but a glance to the northeast reveals that Gaotian Mining Company’s mines are not far from the coast, and there lies a railway leading to multiple regions.
