Chapter 13: Assistance

Between gloomy sky and dreary, gray earth, a closed eyes bald old man stroked his long white beard while sitting on a throne of light attribute energy.

Archbishop Silternja spread his Sublime Soul Sense across the eastern coastline of the Eastern Continent. As a fifth level Martial Mortal he could cover a radius of four hundred kilometers to every direction, and when narrowing the shape of his Sublime Soul Sense to an oval and thinner, its length could go as far as one thousand kilometers.

‘Your grace’, an anxious voice rang in his mind, its tone coupled with the identity of the person behind it aroused a presentiment of disaster.

‘Report, Bishop Kristin’. Archbishop Silternja opened his eyes and tried to keep a straight face, speculating whether the matter related to Stelero Mars or worse, the young lass, Sister Iaura?

‘Your grace, the Galactic Communicator was stolen’. Bishop Kristin, who guarded Sister Iaura alongside Ninient, cut to the chase.

On his luminous thrones, Archbishop Silternja’s hands grabbed the armrest as his body experienced a spasm. In a blink of an eye he recounted the beginning and end of the commotion inside the Grand Abode. An enemy surprised them in their own nest! It came out naturally for him and Cardinal Northstar, the strongest powerhouses of the church in Ercas Mir, to first and foremost consider the security of the sixth and above storeys, so much that they were easily hoodwinked by Zax’s scheme.

The tension in his hands lessened as he composed himself and the fretful glint in his pupils was dispelled.

‘Send out two thirds of the forces, priests and sisters of the third level and higher, come immediately to the Down Ocean’s coastline. Send word to the other four powers; inform them of the theft alone. This issue might disrupt His Holiness’s plans; however, if we have to smear our face with feces to prevent it, we would do that, too!’

After ordering, Archbishop Silternja took a standing stance and his light attribute throne vanished. ‘Overwhelming numbers, with this you are certain to get caught!’

...

Exiting the cavity, Zax raised his head with a smile on his face. ‘Even in this poisonous water my body still feels great’. The sensation of rejuvenation invigorated him mood. Glancing at the far reaches of the Down Ocean, his field of sight was limited by the turbid, mercury seawater. ‘I should explore the mystery of this ocean’. He was interested in what else could the previous owner of the Black Cores had left, what was so alluring that three Immortal powerhouses longed to find. ‘Another day. I must bring senior Gid the communicator and right now, probably even after I’ll break through to the second stage; I would still not be sufficiently strong to brave the dangers of this ocean’.

In the Down Ocean even fifth level Martial Mortals and Overlords Deformed Being had to be cautious, much less Zax who was weaker than both.

‘It’s time to leave’. He contemplated hard on how to escape. ‘The Archbishop must have been informed that I stole the Galactic Communicator. I doubt that he is not aware of the repercussions. If Senior Gid could come up with the idea to sabotage the connection of the five powers with their Immortal powerhouses, then they also should have known that it is possible’.

Minutes passed as Zax deliberated over all the aspects of his current situation. Getting back to the Eastern Continent was inevitable, but “How” was the problem.

Skimming the environment of the Down Ocean without making particular findings, a sudden realization struck Zax like a bolt of lightning in the dark.

“Hahahaha, that’s right! I should do that and even if the five powers come at me in full capacity they won’t be able to catch me!” He was so gratified with himself and even more so, impatient to see the response of Archbishop Silternja that he burst laughing outloud.

...

“Your grace!”

“Archbishop!”

“Silternja!”

Forty three figures arrived to the eastern coastline of the continent. Among them were four of the church’s fourth level Martial Mortals, as well as twenty seven of its third level Martial Mortals, Cardinal Northstar and eleven experts of which five were in Golden Desert Fort’s uniforms, two were in Blessed Army’s uniforms, two Blue Sea’s aquatic beasts and two Violet Scaled Troops beasts.

Eight of the experts not of the church were the other four powers’ envoys for the Elite Tryouts. The remaining three Golden Desert Fort’s experts were stationed in Onzengvas. All eleven were third level Martial Mortals and they all were ordered to aid Luminous Church.

As for additional support? Archbishop Silternja could not leave the Grand Abode vulnerable by summoning everyone and the nearest of the other four powers was Golden Desert Fort. Even if General Beking will come in person it will probably be too late.

“Archbishop, the eleven of us were ordered to help catch the culprit who desecrated your Grand Abode”. A muscular woman with dark brown complexion and light brown spots on her skin, one of the five from the Golden Desert Fort, spoke in a civil tone. “Please tell us everything there is to know about the culprit as well as what we can do for you”.

‘How is His Young Eminence?’ Before replying to the muscular woman, Archbishop Silternja interacted with Cardinal Northstar via Sublime Soul Sense.

‘This is twice that he nearly lost his life on this planet. After this matter is concluded, I won’t postpone anymore our return to the Holy Palace, regardless of anyone’s opinion. So go ahead and do as you will with the tryouts, Silternja. If you manage to recruit good seeding you are free to ask for someone else to come and take them’.

“Do you all know the Ground Pool formation?” Receiving Cardinal Northstar’s aggrieved and bitter answer, Archbishop Silternja accepted his temper in understanding and proceeded to ask the eleven. The member of the church that arrived knew the formation, which is why he did not direct the question to them, too.

The six of the other four powers gave a positive response through a grunt or a nod.

“Good. The third level Martial Mortals are to split into teams of two. We will erect the formation along the coastline. Cardinal Northstar and I will each take an edge, the Bishops will guard the rear and the rest of you will be positioned between us. Remember to activate the formation by my signal and if you encounter the perpetrator, although he should be severely wounded, be cautious against him!”

“Archbishop, how strong is that person? Is he a beast or a human?” A green furred python of the pair from Violet Scaled Troops asked in a hissing tongue.

“He is a human, a bodily cultivator, the one, in fact, who caused the earlier commotion during the Event in Demirva Ridge. His understanding of the dark attribute is better than mine in the light attribute. However, he spent all his energy in the poisonous water of the Down Ocean and his cultivated physique is about as strong as a Peak second level Martial Mortal”.

“The one who killed Rijok...” The muscular woman said in a low voice.

“The person Lieutenant General Debuk Jin pursued”. A man from the Blessed army mentioned in a slightly louder voice.

“Together with Feather Ulvil”. A white woman with white feathers for hair, a beast in human form from Violet Scaled Troops, shared a glance with the green furred python.