Book 10, Baruch – Chapter 13, Linley’s Return
Osenno transformed into a black blur as he chased after Haeru at high speed.
“He’s too fast! This isn’t good!” Haeru frantically flew towards the southeast at high speed, and as he did, his spiritual energy detected Osenno chasing towards him. In terms of speed, Haeru’s speed was a good bit lower than Osenno’s.
Haeru had a very good understanding of his own level of power.
In truth, Haeru was only an early-stage Saint-level magical beast. Because magical beasts were naturally more powerful than humans, he was able compete against peak-stage human Saints. For example, the Worldbear was a creature who would be able to defeat most peak-stage Saints as soon as it entered the Saint-level. This was a question of inherent gifts!
Bebe was the same as well.
Bebe had only just reached the Saint level not too long ago, but Bebe belonged to an extremely rare, exalted lineage. Despite only being an early-stage Saint, he was so powerful that even the Monolithic Sword Saint, Haydson, was inferior to him. In terms of inherent giftedness, even the Worldbear was a level lower than him.
“You want to flee?” Osenno quickly saw that the Blackcloud Panther was scurrying away through the air at high speed.
Osenno’s entire body was currently surrounded with dim black flames, making him look like a fiend from hell. Osenno quickly charged towards the Blackcloud Panther, preparing to attack. Haeru, terrified, instantly shrank in size, quickly transforming into a fist-size.
“Swish!”
The now mouse-sized Blackcloud Panther dove directly down into the ground.
“Bam!” A terrifying surge of black flame blasted towards the ground, instantly vaporizing the rocks and the dirt, revealing an incredibly deep tunnel in the ground. Osenno landed near it, peering down into the immeasurably deep tunnel.
“Hmph. You really can run.” Osenno sneered coldly.
Saint-level magical beasts could change their size freely, and after shrinking in size, they could move incredibly fast. Human Saints, by contrast, didn’t have this ability. Although Osenno was extremely powerful, he was far inferior to a Saint-level beast when it came to tunneling through the ground.
Hundreds of meters below the ground.
Haeru frantically continued to dig, creating a natural flow of sharp wind in front of him as he quickly pierced through the dirt.
“Master, Master!”
Haeru was extremely panicked. “Master only said he was going to the south. The distance is too far. We can’t even communicate spiritually.” Magical beasts and their masters had a maximum distance by which they could communicate spiritually. The more powerful the spiritual energy, the greater the distance they could communicate at.
Currently, Linley and Haeru could communicate at a distance of a thousand kilometers.
However...right now, Linley was in the southern part of the Anarchic Lands, fully three thousand kilometers away from Haeru. There was no way Haeru could communicate with Linley. All he could do was vaguely sense the direction Linley was in. Travelling beneath the ground, Haeru ran frantically in Linley’s direction.
Osenno returned to the prefectural city of Moat. In the air above it, he stared at those Four-Winged Angels and instructed, “Take those two Undying Warriors and imprison them in the prefectural city of Sherry along with the other three. I’ll go pay a visit to Blackdirt City.”
With a flip of his hand, Osenno retrieved two more adamantine-alloyed manacles and tossed them to the angels.
“Yes, Lord.” Those Angels said respectfully.
Osenno stared towards the north. According to his calculations, Linley should be in the Blackdirt City region right now. “That panther-type beast of his should have gone to inform him. I wonder if Linley will fight or flee!”
And then, Osenno transformed into a black blur and began to fly towards the north.
In the southern part of the Anarchic Lands, within a small forest in the mysterious village, there was a stone room with a stone table inside. Linley and Reynolds had been drinking here all night. It was roughly 3 AM or 4 AM by now. At daybreak, Linley was going to leave.
“In another two or three hours, Bebe and I will both leave. Fourth Bro, when you are free, you can go back to the imperial capital for a while. Your parents most likely have been missing you very much.” Linley instructed Reynolds, and then winked at Monica who was seated next to him. Laughing, he said, “Alright, Fourth Bro, you should go get some rest. You haven’t slept all night.”
Monica and Reynolds were sitting side by side.
“Third Bro, thank you so much for everything.” Reynolds said gratefully.
Whether it was allowing him and Monica to be together, or allowing him to have the special permission of leaving the village once every year, it was all due to Linley. Reynolds understood...given his own abilities, Desri and the others wouldn’t have cared about him at all.
Linley’s lips quirked up in a smile, and he laughingly berated him, “Fourth Bro, why do you stand on courtesy with me?”
“Uh?”
Linley’s face suddenly changed. Haeru was now within a thousand kilometers of him, and Haeru’s voice instantly rang out in Linley’s mind. “Master, things have gone badly. The Saints of the Radiant Church have attacked, and Barker and his brothers have already been captured.”
This news came as a huge shock to Linley.
“Reynolds.” Linley’s face suddenly became grim. “I’m sorry. I have something to take care of. I need to leave immediately.”
“What happened?” Reynolds and Monica were both surprised.
Linley shook his head. “Some private matters. Right. Fourth Bro, you don’t need to worry about it.” Linley squeeze out a smile, then clubbed Reynolds on the chest. “Alright, I’m off.” With a flicker, Linley disappeared, transforming into a blur. Arriving at Desri’s residence, he said in a clear voice, “Mr. Desri!”
In the area around the mountain residence, there were a number of stone rooms. Hayward was currently with Foreman inside one of them.
“Linley, what’s wrong?” Hayward, who had just been in the middle of training, stopped and walked out of the stone room. For Linley to have rushed here at such high speed meant that something must have happened.
A few moments later...
Desri and the others walked out from the residence.
Linley looked at Desri, Hayward, and the others, then immediately said apologetically, “Mr. Desri, everyone...something came up, and I need to leave.” Linley had an apologetic look on his face.
“Did something happen? Do you need my assistance?” Desri asked.
“No need.” Linley shook his head.
Linley knew that Desri and his group had been training in seclusion for a long time now. No doubt, they had no interest in fighting over power or authority. Desri asking him if he needed help was nothing more than him just being courteous. If he truly asked for Desri to go help him deal with the Radiant Church, that might actually make Desri feel resentful towards him.
More importantly...
Over this recent period of time, Linley had come to understand that in the past, Desri had been a member of the Radiant Church. Naturally, he had already left the Radiant Church by now. It wasn’t just Desri; even Higginson had previously been a member of the Radiant Church.
“Everyone, farewell.”
After bowing, Linley instantly utilized the Windshadow spell and flew into the sky. Bebe, who had been sleeping nearby in the grass, instantly transformed into a black shadow as well and flew into the air. A man and his magical beast flew away, just like that. Desri and the others watched them fly out of the mysterious village, out of the mountain, and then continue north at high speed.
It was still late at night.
“Boss, what happened? What’s the rush?” Bebe asked while flying alongside Linley.
“The Radiant Church is playing for keeps.” Linley’s eyes narrowed, emitting a razor-sharp light.
Bebe instantly grew excited. “Oh? The Radiant Church really dares to go head on against us? Wonderful! I’ve been bored to death lately. Now, I can have some good fun.” Bebe’s eyes had a hint of bloodlust in them. “It’s been a long time since I’ve had a nice good slaughterfest.”
Linley’s eyes contained a killing intent as well. “I’ve waited for this day for a long time!”
Linley felt utter hatred from the depths of his heart towards the Radiant Church. Whether it was his father, his mother, or Grandpa Doehring...all of his loved ones had departed for reasons related to the Radiant Church. This superficially honorable but secretly vicious organization was one which Linley had desired to destroy long ago.
Linley and Bebe flew at very high speed.
Soon, they saw a black blur erupt from the ground below and join them, flying next to Linley.
“Master.” Haeru said respectfully.
Bebe immediately called out, “Haeru, what’s the situation? Quick, speak up.”
While flying, Haeru said, “Barker and Boone were staying in the prefectural city of Moat, but today, seven Four-Winged Angels of the Radiant Church and a human Saint came attacking out of nowhere.”
“Seven Four-Winged Angels?” Bebe’s eyes lit up. “Whoah-ho! Awesome!”
“The Four-Winged Angels weren’t so bad, but that human Saint was absolutely terrifying. In the blink of an eye, he kicked the already-transformed Barker and Boone and injured them so badly they couldn’t move. I didn’t dare to fight against him at all. My only choice was to flee. When I fled into the ground, he emitted a wave of black fire that blasted a hole several hundred meters deep. I nearly lost my life. That human Saint is too powerful. I feel he is far more powerful than that Haydson.” Haeru, when discussing Osenno, still felt a hint of fear even now.
Linley pondered this in his mind.
“According to what the War God said, the ‘Holy Emperor’ of the Radiant Church should be a level lower than the likes of Fain and Desri, but stronger than Haydson. The person who came today...it sounds like he is on par with the Holy Emperor.”
Black flame, and power on par with the Holy Emperor...
“Could it be the person who is on par with the Holy Emperor in both power and status...that ruthless, diabolical...Praetor Osenno of the Ecclesiastical Tribunal?” Linley secretly wondered.
Linley didn’t believe that the Holy Emperor himself would attack, but it was very possible that Osenno would.
“Bebe, this opponent should be more powerful than Haydson. You need to be careful as well.” Linley reminded. “This time...we can’t be overconfident in the slightest. When we reach the Sherry Duchy, I’ll cast the Windshadow spell on both of you.”
As a spell of the ninth rank, despite only being a supportive spell, the Windshadow spell still consumed a great deal of mageforce. Fortunately, Linley possessed the Coiling Dragon ring, and by casting spells through the Coiling Dragon ring, he only needed to expend a sixth of the normal spiritual energy and mageforce.
“Windshadow?” Bebe rolled his eyes. “Could it be that he’s faster than me?”
“We can’t be too cocky.” Linley shook his head.
Bebe nodded. Linley said towards Haeru, “Haeru, let me and Bebe handle that human Saint. As for you...go deal with those Four-Winged Angels. When we first arrive, we’ll help you kill a few Four-Winged Angels as well.”
“Yes, Master.” Haeru replied.
Immediately, the man and his two magical beast flew north at high speed. At around five in the morning, as the sky was just barely beginning to lighten, Linley, Bebe, and Haeru arrived within the borders of the Sherry Duchy. Upon reaching the Sherry Duchy, Linley immediately Dragonformed while also casting the Windshadow spell on Bebe and Haeru.
“Boss, I feel as though your current level of speed has increased quite a bit.” Bebe could sense the extra speed provided by the Windshadow spell, but at the same time, he stared in puzzlement at Linley.
“I had some insights while training on the Elemental Laws of the Wind. Naturally, my speed went up a level as well.” Linley laughed as he spoke. Linley had made breakthroughs in both the ‘Fast’ and the ‘Slow’ aspects of the wind, allowing him to be even more graceful and even faster.
Given that he was a Dragonblood Warrior to begin with, and had the Windshadow spell supporting him, Linley’s speed was now a full level higher than when he had dueled with Haydson.
“How rowdy.” Linley saw one of the small cities of the Sherry Duchy from afar. The families of that town were all extremely active, with lamps lit everywhere. Not too long ago, on this night, two Angels had descended! Naturally, these small cities were filled with so much excitement that nobody could fall asleep. All of them were even firmer in their faith towards the Radiant Church now.
Linley saw quite clearly that the flags on the small cities had all changed, returning to the previous flag of the Sherry Duchy.
“As soon as the Angels arrived, the lost territory was all reclaimed.”
Linley couldn’t be bothered with the small cities. He flew straight towards the prefectural city of the Sherry Duchy. Soon, the man and his two magical beasts arrived in the air above the prefectural city of Sherry. By now, it was day, and the fresh morning air filled the lands.
The Dragonformed Linley, Bebe, and Haeru stood in the breezy air above the prefectural city of Sherry.
“Only six Angels and Barker and his brothers. No other Saints present.” Linley’s spiritual energy quickly scanned the entire area below.
“Just six?” Bebe seemed rather dissatisfied.
By now, those six Four-Winged Angels had sensed Linley’s spiritual energy. They flew up into the sky at the same time, surrounded by that dazzling holy aura. It was as though six suns had suddenly risen into the skies. At the same time, lightning danced within Linley’s eyes, and he barked coldly, “Kill all six of the Angels!”
“Yes, Boss (Master).” Bebe and Haeru replied simultaneously as they transformed into two flashes of black light, charging towards those six Four-Winged Angels.