Pillar of Yita

The latter was dressed in the attire of an Apprentice Alchemist, with a badge of the Throne of Shadow pinned to his chest. He swiftly hid in the darkness and looked outside, just in time to see the enormous form of the Orphen Twin Stars gradually transform into a ghostly blue void, becoming information and being absorbed into the Black Crystal.

He watched as Fang Hong and the other two left, his eyes flashing with an incredulous look, which quickly turned to a hint of ecstatic joy. The young man took out the Communication Crystal, hesitated for a moment, and did not switch to the Ragnarok channel—instead, he chose a private channel and urgently said:

”Quick, notify Lord Praetor, I’ve found those people!”

A puzzled voice came from the other end of the channel: ”Who are you?”

”It’s me,” the young man hurriedly replied, ”I previously clashed with the rebels in the Ash Woods who kidnapped Delice, and I reported this to you. Don’t you remember? I found those people, they’re still in Dulun!”

The voice paused, then suddenly became serious: ”Are you telling the truth?”

”Of course, I saw it with my own eyes,” the young man took a breath and hurriedly said.

”Wait a moment.”

A series of messages were being conveyed across the battlefield.

In a corner of the square, the Praetor, who was at a ceasefire, was looking sullenly at the Duke not far away. Although the knights and trusted aides around the two were still tense and confrontational, everyone knew that this battle wasn’t going to happen.

All that remained was the skirmish between the gray-clad individuals and the City Defense Force, along with the Southern Region Alliance.

Bishop Ouli looked helplessly at the two and shook his head with a sigh. Ouli’s duties were in light, justice, and order. From a certain perspective, the Holy Sanctuary was actually inclined towards the Royal Household.

But he was a kind-hearted person.

At this moment, a lieutenant came running from a distance and whispered a few words into the Praetor’s ear.

Under everyone’s watchful eyes, the Praetor stood up suddenly and asked, ”Is it true?” The lieutenant replied softly, ”Absolutely true, that Invoker is unlikely to lie, my lord.”

Only then did the Praetor nod. He gave everyone a stern look and left with a flick of his sleeves.

Meanwhile, on the battlefield.

In the midst of the surrounding dust and smoke, Odin had already lost track of his opponent.

However, he calmly surveyed his surroundings, knowing that the other party wouldn’t have gone far—he couldn’t help but recall a confrontation they had over a year ago in the Super Competitive League, which was far more intense than this one.

The King of Warriors slowly expanded his Dragon Knight’s Perception Field, gradually moving his hand towards the hilt of his sword, only to suddenly stop—he withdrew his hand and took out the Communication Crystal from his pocket.

The Communication Crystal flickered with a dark red light.

As he paused, the King of Dark Night also keenly sensed it, and a voice came from behind the dust in one direction: ”What’s wrong?”

Odin shook his head: ”There’s a minor issue back at headquarters.”

Ye Hua gave a light smile: ”Could it be that the alliance’s top brass were ambushed and assassinated?”

”You’re still here, who else could do that?” Odin didn’t directly answer, merely saying as much.

And when he picked up the Communication Crystal, the King of Warriors had already fully retracted his Perception Field, yet Ye Hua showed no intention of pursuing.

Their exchange didn’t seem like that of opponents, but rather like old friends. Nevertheless, in Eteliria and the Second World, it wasn’t uncommon for top-tier Invokers to know each other.

Understanding that the other party had a confidentiality agreement, Ye Hua didn’t probe further and simply said, ”So?”

”That’ll be it for now,” Odin replied, ”Anyway, you’re not in the mood to fight me.”

”Neither are you.”

”Whatever.” Odin didn’t care much about verbal disputes.

And Ye Hua had the intention to retreat, to check if the new friend he had made had managed to escape the dangers with the Duke’s young son, so he nodded: ”Alright, let’s leave this battle for the Super Competitive League—”

With the dust clearing, Ye Hua’s figure emerged from behind.

But Odin gave him a glance and shook his head: ”I’m afraid the Super Competitive League will not let you participate.”

The latter shrugged indifferently.

Neither of them was the type to dally; after reaching an agreement, they each left. Odin turned back to find Feyos waiting on the side. Miss Maid had been anxiously waiting, but seeing him return unharmed, she finally breathed a slight sigh of relief.

”Mr. Odin, did you see Master Enan?” she couldn’t help but ask.

Odin shook his head and simply replied, ”He might have escaped by now.”

Feyos then patted her chest, looking relieved.

...

Fang Hong was hurriedly leading Hilveld and Enan through the Southern City District of Dulun.

Among the three, although Enan was a local, he barely left the Duke’s Mansion. Even on rare occasions when he went out, it was to a countryside villa, always accompanied by a carriage, essentially never leaving home. As for Hilveld’s memories of this city, they dated back more than ten years, even more unreliable.

Therefore, among the three, only Fang Hong could discern some routes through the Clockwork Fairy. But under the vast night sky, with low-hanging winter clouds and swirling snowflakes, the view in the Clockwork Fairy’s vision was only a dark expanse of the city—occasionally dotted with one or two lights.

When the festival first began, Dulun might have been ablaze with lights, but now, with chaos erupting, who would dare to light lamps at such a time? The few points of light in the darkness were likely from the barracks of the City Defense Force or the stations of the Patrol Cavalry in those areas.

Not only could they not guide them, but they could also just lead them straight into a trap.