Book 19, Metamorphosis – Chapter 8, The Storm Gathers
“Oh?” The Redcliff Lord suddenly turned, his sharp gaze shooting towards Linley.
“He...” Steward Ganmoly stared in surprise at Linley as well. Just now, the Redcliff Lord had revealed his extraordinary power. But this mysterious ‘Ley’ actually still had the courage to challenge him. Was this stupidity, or was this courage? Ganmoly took another, closer look at Linley.
“But of course, I can give up my challenge as well.” Linley suddenly changed the direction of the conversation.
“Oh?” The Redcliff Lord looked at Linley.
“Boss...” Bebe said, rather frantic.
Linley said calmly, “Redcliff Lord, the reasons I am challenging you are twofold. First of all, I wish to reach the peak of perfection in training, and becoming a Lord of Tartarus can be considered a way of verifying my current abilities. The second reason, however, is so that I will be qualified to enter the Planar Battlefield! If you, Redcliff Lord, are willing to allow us two brothers to enter the Planar Battlefield, while at the same time follow us two in accordance with our wishes in roaming about the battlefield, then I can choose to forgo my challenge.”
Linley’s original desire was to enter the Planar Battlefield.
If this Redcliff Lord was willing to bring himself and Bebe within and also obey his orders, wouldn’t that be much less troublesome?
“Planar Battlefield?” The Redcliff Lord swept the two of them with his cold gaze. “The two of you would dare go to the Planar Battlefield, for the sake of the Sovereign’s Might? This courage alone makes you worthy of my admiration.” Linley, hearing this, understood that the treasures one could acquire in exchange for accumulating military merits weren’t just limited to Sovereign artifacts. Sovereign’s Might was also possible.
“They are looking for death.” The nearby Ganmoly said in a low voice.
“Whether we are or aren’t, isn’t something for you to worry about.” Bebe snorted.
“There is no way I can agree to your request.” The Redcliff Lord said calmly.
“Then I will continue my challenge.” Linley said very straightforwardly.
The Redcliff Lord’s violet pupils were locked onto Linley. In a low voice, he said, “Punk, you are looking for death!”
“Hey, you haven’t even fought yet. Nothing is certain.” Bebe raised his head proudly as he spoke, and Linley laughed calmly as well. “Redcliff Lord, you have the honored status of a Lord of Tartarus. I have trained for many years, and in my dreams, I too desire to one day become one of the Lords of Tartarus. I trust, your Lordship, you won’t be afraid of my challenge.”
“Boss, as I see it, he is afraid.” Bebe immediately said.
The Redcliff Lord glanced at Bebe, but wasn’t angered in the slightest. He instructed calmly, “Ganmoly, send them away.”
“Yes, Lord.” Ganmoly bowed, and then said to Linley and Bebe, “The two of you, please follow me.”
Linley and Bebe were both stunned, while at the same time, Linley noticed that the Redcliff Lord had actually turned and left. Linley immediately felt frantic. “What does this Redcliff Lord intend to do? Is he trying to avoid doing battle?” Today, when the Redcliff Lord had invited Linley over, Linley had a strange feeling about it.
“Your Lordship, you can’t possibly be afraid, can you?!” Linley’s voice rang out, but the Redcliff Lord’s figure had already disappeared from Linley’s field of vision.
Just as Linley and Bebe were feeling puzzled and somewhat frantic, a cold, calm voice rang out. “One month from now, in the desolate wilderness east of the city. Since you seek death, I will give you what you desire.”
Hearing this voice, smiles immediately appeared on Linley and Bebe’s faces.
“Mr. Ley, you really...ugh.” Steward Ganmoly shook his head and sighed. “I admire your spirit and energy, but you have no hope in challenging his Lordship. Although your Gravitational Space is impressive, his Lordship is extremely skilled in the Laws of the Earth. You won’t be able to affect him. As I see it, he completely counters your strengths.”
Linley, hearing this, just laughed calmly.
Generally speaking, when two experts who trained in the same Laws fought, generally speaking, the person with a higher level of understanding would be able to counter the weaker one. However, there was one exception; if one side had an innate divine ability.
Linley’s ‘Blackstone Space’ was, in reality, the innate divine ability of Reisgem. The Redcliff Lord didn’t understand it at all.
“Let’s go, the two of you.”
Ganmoly led the way while continuing to speak. “It was so rare for his Lordship to be in such a good mood as he was in today. He saw that you were talented. The reason he summoned you today, in truth, was that he wanted to accept you as his subordinate! When the time came, you would become the left and right arms of the Redcliff Lord. In the Redcliff Region, you would be subordinate to only the Redcliff Lord himself. But you...alas, why must you do this!”
Linley and Bebe exchanged glances. They couldn’t help but laugh.
“Boss, his Lordship wanted to recruit you as a subordinate.” Bebe laughed.
Linley now began to understand the purpose behind the invitation. But clearly, his reaction had caused the Redcliff Lord to be extremely angry. He hadn’t even said anything about inviting Linley to be his subordinate; he just immediately left.
“I truly am sorry for having disappointed his Lordship.” Linley said, his lips pursed in a smirk.
Ganmoly, seeing Linley’s reaction, just shook his head.
As he saw it, Linley was the type of warrior that loved to do battle and pursued perfection. Ever since Linley stated that he wanted to enter the Planar Battlefield, Ganmoly had taken him to be that sort of madman. Without enough courage, without enough of a spirit for adventure, no one would dare enter the Planar Battlefield.
On the way back, Linley and Bebe chatted casually on the streets. Having recently become famous within the Redcliff Region, Linley noticed that as soon as he appeared, many people would stare at him. Linley had to change his appearance and also make his robe an earthen yellow one, allowing him to be relatively unmolested.
“Fortunately, we got things done rather quickly this time.” Linley laughed.
“Right. Based on what our intelligence reports said, generally speaking, a challenge might be extended for a few years, or even a few centuries or longer.” Bebe nodded as he spoke. This was just a month; it wasn’t that long.
But suddenly...
“Everyone!” A voice suddenly rang out from behind. “Wonderful news, excellent news!!! Just now, word came from his Lordship’s estate. His Lordship and Lord Ley will, one month from now, engage in a formal duel in the eastern wilderness. This is the first time his Lordship has publicly battled in ten million years!”
Linley and Bebe both looked over.
In the center of the street, there was a golden-robed man speaking loudly. Instantly, virtually everyone flooded forth, surrounding him.
“What? In just one month? The eastern wilderness outside the city? Are you sure?”
“In one month, his Lordship will battle Lord Ley?”
Countless voices rang out.
In Tartarus, every single Lord of Tartarus was a supreme figure. Every single public challenge between a Lord of Tartarus and a challenger would attract a frenzied crowd to gather, and virtually 90% of the entire population in a particular region would hurry over to watch the battle.
“Hey, if you don’t believe it, you can go to his Lordship’s estate. This news is carved onto a stone tablet placed outside, next to the estate.” The golden-robed man said hurriedly.
“It’s true! I saw it as well.”
“Let’s all go to his Lordship’s residence to look.”
The vast majority of the people who had been strolling on the streets now surged towards the Redcliff Lord’s estate. As Deities who had virtually unlimited lifespans, the emergence of a victor of a hundred battles was already enough to excite them, but ten million years might pass without a single challenger to a Tartarus Lord’s position.
This was a major event for the entire region!
Within the restaurant.
The disguised Linley and Bebe were seated in a corner, drinking wine.
“Mad. They’ve all gone mad.” Bebe muttered.
Linley glanced sideways at the other people in the restaurant. The other people in the restaurant were, without exception, discussing the upcoming battle between Linley and the Redcliff Lord. Quite a few were so excited that their faces were red, and others were discussing the previous accomplishments in battle of the Redcliff Lord.
“Boss, this speaks to your charisma and magnetism.” Bebe snickered.
“They care about this battle, not because of me, but because of the Redcliff Lord.” Linley laughed. The two chatted in their corner with their Godrealms set up to block out the sound.
“The Redcliff Lord has a high, exalted status. His open, public battles naturally will arouse everyone’s excitement. For example, back in the Yulan continent, the battles between Saints would cause the ordinary people to become frenzied.” Linley said with a calm laugh while continuing to listen to these Deities discuss the upcoming battle with the Redcliff Lord.
He couldn’t think back to that year when he dueled Olivier or Haydson. That, too, had attracted the attention of countless experts.
“Right. If Grandpa was to publicly announce a duel with someone, I would excitedly go watch as well.” Bebe chortled.
“There aren’t many who would dare challenge Beirut.” Linley said with a sigh.
If he himself could have Beirut’s level of power, he wouldn’t have needed to spend so much time to painstakingly select an opponent who he just happened to counter perfectly. For someone like Beirut...he could just casually choose any opponent and then easily achieve victory.
Time flowed on like water, passing by quickly.
In the blink of an eye, a month passed. The streets and restaurants of the entire Redcliff City were almost completely empty. Unless they had something extremely important to attend to today, virtually every denizen of the Redcliff Region hastened to the eastern wilderness outside the city, awaiting the earth-shaking battle that was about to occur.
The eastern wilderness.
This area lived up to its name; it was completely barren and desolate. There wasn’t even any grass. There was nothing on the ground aside from earth and stones. Normally, very few people would come here. Today, however, an ocean of people was present.
“Look. That’s the challenger, Lord Ley.”
“Forget about the Redcliff Lord for now; if one day, I was as powerful as Lord Ley, I would die a happy man.” A man and a woman chatted with each other, and a the youth dressed in a blue robe said, his eyes flashing with desire, “I, too, wish to one day be watched by countless Deities and duel one of the Lords of Tartarus! If I can achieve that, even if I die, I would have no regrets.”
“Stop dreaming.” The woman next to him said dismissively.
There was an ocean of people present in the eastern wilderness, standing on the ground. In midair, there was only one person; Linley! None of these spectating Deities had flown into the air. They all watched from below on the ground, as a way of showing respect to Linley and the Redcliff Lord.
“There are quite a few people here.” Linley swept the ground below with his gaze. “There are people in an area with a circumference of nearly a hundred kilometers! There has to at least a hundred million people present, or perhaps even more.”
“Boss.” Bebe’s voice suddenly rang out in Linley’s mind. “Today, those who have come to watch are not just the people of the Redcliff Region. Even the people of the surrounding regions who were able to make it in time have come. Boss...with so many people watching, you have to win beautifully.”
Linley couldn’t help but laugh.
Suddenly, Linley’s gaze swept to the east.
A blurred yellow shadow flew over at high speed, so fast that even Linley couldn’t help but feel his heart clench.
“So fast! This flying speed is at least several times greater than mine...and this isn’t his absolute limit.”
The previously chattering spectators seemed to, in harmony, lower their voices. In just three seconds, the hundred-million plus Deities in the desolate wilderness turned completely silent. The only sound that could be heard was the constant howling of the wind. Everyone raised their heads to look towards the only two people in midair...
Linley and the Redcliff Lord!
“Swoosh!” The blurred yellow form suddenly came to a halt, revealing the Redcliff Lord’s body.
His figure was physically small, but inspired dread in all who beheld him. He stood there in midair, dressed in a form-fitting short-sleeved shirt and long trousers. His strange violet pupils stared coldly at Linley. With a snicker, he said, “You came quite early. Even if you want to die, you don’t need to be in such a rush.”
“It’s too early to say who will be the one to die.” Linley said with a calm laugh.
Just like that, with a hundred million Deities watching them, Linley and the Redcliff Lord casually chatted with each other.
“Hmph.”
The Redcliff Lord snorted coldly, his voice suddenly turning fierce and ringing out, “No need to waste any time. The battle starts now. I’ll give you one chance. Make your move!” The Redcliff Lord clearly intentionally spoke these words very loudly. His voice travelled to a distance of many kilometers, and all of the Deities below within the area heard his words very clearly, especially given how acute their hearing was.
“The battle is beginning!”
All of the Deities instantly held their breaths, staring at these two figures. Everyone was wondering...
Would this earth-shaking battle be like the other ones, with the challenger dying and the Redcliff Lord winning? Or...would a new Redcliff Lord appear!