Chapter 63: The Radiant Church's Apprehension

Radiant Church, Holy Mountain.

A towering church stands amidst the clouds and mist, its golden dome reflecting the morning light, holy and solemn. Great stone pillars are carved with the legendary tales of the Supreme God of Light. In the plaza outside the church, hundreds of white-robed priests conduct morning prayers; their sacred songs echo melodiously among the mountains.

This is a holy land in the hearts of countless believers.

Yet at this moment, the atmosphere inside the council chamber deep within the church is oppressively gloomy.

Twelve Red Cardinals sit on either side of a long table, each with a grave expression. Their red robes stand out starkly under the candlelight. Seated at the head is Pope Haitings, his scepter trembling slightly, revealing his inner turmoil.

"Wusennuo is dead." The Pope's voice is calm, yet carries suppressed anger. "All nine Four-Winged Angels are fallen."

A deathly silence fills the council chamber.

The temperature in the chamber seems to have plummeted by ten degrees.

Delankelin, the Red Cardinal in charge of intelligence, beads of sweat form on his forehead. As the highest head of the Church's intelligence agency, the intelligence for Wusennuo's operation was reviewed and approved by him. Now that the operation has failed, he cannot escape blame.

Wusennuo, the Head of the Judgment Tribunal of the Radiant Church, a powerhouse at Sanctuary Peak. This man has commanded the Judgment Tribunal for three hundred years; the heretics who died by his hand are beyond counting. His signature technique, "Radiant Judgment," is so formidable that even peer-level Sanctuary Peak experts dare not meet it head-on. Each of the nine Four-Winged Angels is equivalent to a Sanctuary Intermediate expert; combined with the Angel Battle Formation, even a Sanctuary Peak expert could fight them.

Such power was utterly annihilated in Hunluan Zhi Ling.

"Delankelin, explain the details clearly." Kalun Meitesi, the first Red Cardinal on the left and the State Secretary of the Church, speaks calmly.

Delankelin takes a deep breath and opens the thick intelligence dossier before him: "According to reports from our spies in the Baruke Kingdom, on the day of the incident, Lord Wusennuo led nine Four-Winged Angels to ambush the five Bake brothers outside Sheli County City. The operation was initially successful, but they encountered Aikesi Yan and were killed by him; not a single survivor remained."

Everyone falls silent once more.

Aikesi Yan.

This name is not unfamiliar in the Church's intelligence files. Aikesi Yan, the legitimate son of the Aikes Clan, a graduate of the Ernst Institute, with Fire Element Super Grade affinity. The intelligence files detail his growth trajectory: awakened magic at six, broke through to Level 7 at twelve, and reached the standard of a Level 7 Magus at eighteen.

But none of this is enough to explain how he could kill Wusennuo, a Sanctuary Peak expert.

"Regarding Aikesi Yan's strength, the intelligence we possess may be severely outdated." Delankelin wipes the sweat from his forehead. "According to reports from our spies in Baruke Cheng, Aikesi Yan broke through to the Saint Domain two years ago. The specific time was roughly in the winter of the 10003rd year of the Yunluo Li, when he was twenty years old."

"Two years ago?" The Pope frowns deeply.

A Saint Magus at twenty.

In the history of the Yulan Continent, those who break through to the Saint Domain before thirty are as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns. Linlei Baluke is already a genius seen once in a millennium; as for this Aikesi Yan, he is already in the Saint Domain at twenty?

"

Murmurs ripple through the council chamber.

Kalun Meitesi raises his hand, signaling everyone to be quiet. He turns to the Pope and speaks slowly: "Your Holiness, while Lord Wusennuo's death is certainly a major loss to the Church, what matters most now is how to respond to this newly emerged threat."

The Pope nods: "Cardinal Meitesi, speak your mind."

"Aikesi Yan is twenty-two years old this year. Breaking through to the Saint Domain two years ago means he was already a Saint Magus at twenty." Kalun Meitesi's voice is unhurried. "More importantly, in just two years, he grew from a novice in the Saint Domain to the point where he could annihilate a Sanctuary Peak expert with a single strike. This growth rate is even more terrifying than Linlei Baluke's."

"What you mean is—"

"What I mean is, if left unchecked, this person will very likely become a grave threat to the Church in the future. But at the same time, we cannot act rashly." Kalun Meitesi's gaze sweeps over everyone present. "Lord Wusennuo has already proven this person's strength with his life. Before we have absolute certainty, the Church should not send any more experts to Hunluan Zhi Ling."

"Then, in your opinion, how should we respond?"

"If the open approach fails, we will use the covert one." A cold smile curls the corners of Kalun Meitesi's lips. "The Church has operated for thousands of years; what it has always been best at is never open combat."

The Pope ponders for a moment, then nods slowly: "Continue."

"First, strengthen the infiltration of faith into Hunluan Zhi Ling. The Baruke Kingdom has just been established, and the people's hearts are unstable. We can send missionaries to enter the kingdom under the guise of curing diseases and spreading knowledge, gradually winning over the people."

"Second, use commercial means. Although the Dawson Chamber of Commerce is powerful, the trade routes controlled by the Church span the entire Yulan Continent. We can impose an economic blockade on the Baruke Kingdom, raising the cost of their material procurement and draining them economically."

"Third, political isolation. The Baruke Kingdom currently has recognition only from the Yulan Empire. We can pressure other kingdoms to prevent them from establishing diplomatic relations with the Baruke Kingdom."

"Fourth, and most crucially," Kalun Meitesi lowers his voice, "investigate Aikesi Yan's weaknesses. Everyone has weaknesses; once we find his, we can eliminate him at the smallest cost."

After listening, the Pope remains silent for a long time.

"Cardinal Meitesi speaks with reason." Finally, the Pope speaks slowly. "Issue the order: suspend all military actions against Hunluan Zhi Ling for the time being."

"Your Holiness is wise." Several Cardinals sigh with relief simultaneously.

"However," the Pope shifts his tone, a flash of coldness passing through his eyes, "suspending military action does not mean giving up. Let Luo Ye continue to monitor the movements of the Baruke Kingdom, especially the whereabouts of Linlei and Aikesi. Additionally, Delankelin, you will personally be responsible for investigating intelligence on Aikesi Yan. I want to know every detail of him from birth to the present."

"As you command!" Delankelin replies hurriedly.

The Pope waves his hand, signaling everyone to withdraw.

The Red Cardinals file out one by one, and the council chamber falls silent once more.

The Pope stands alone by the window, gazing into the distance with deep eyes. Sunlight streams through the stained glass, casting mottled light and shadow on his white robe. The patterns formed by those shadows depict the Supreme God of Light holding high his scepter to judge heretics.

"Aikesi Yan—" he murmurs the name softly, plotting countermeasures in his mind.

A genius who broke through to the Saint Domain at twenty, and two years later could kill a Sanctuary Peak expert. This growth rate is even more terrifying than Linlei Baluke's. More importantly, this person has a deep relationship with Desili's daughter. Although Desili has stepped down, he has many former subordinates within the Church. If Aikesi Yan truly marries Monika, Desili will very likely defect to the Baruke Kingdom.

Meanwhile, in Baruke Cheng, at the Earl Mansion.

Unlike the gloomy clouds over the Radiant Church, Baruke Cheng is immersed in a festive atmosphere.

Lanterns and decorations hang everywhere in the city; red silk banners are hung before every household. People come and go on the streets, and the cries of vendors rise and fall. Children dart through the crowds playing, holding colorful pinwheels in their hands.

Two weddings are about to take place simultaneously.

Linlei Baluke and Diliya, Aikesi Yan and Monika.

This news had spread throughout the entire city three days ago. The residents of Baruke Cheng spontaneously organized to hold a grand celebration for the Count and his brother.

Inside the Earl Mansion, the activity is extraordinary.

Servants shuttle between various rooms, carrying items needed for the wedding. Fragrant aromas waft from the kitchen where chefs are preparing the banquet dishes. Huge tents have been erected in the garden, under which dozens of long tables are laid out with snow-white tablecloths.

Aikesi sits on a stone bench in the garden, idly playing with the Fire Spirit Bead in his hand.

Monika walks over with a cup of tea, places it beside his hand, and asks softly, "What are you thinking about?"

Aikesi comes to his senses, retracts the Fire Spirit Bead into his body, takes the tea cup, and sips: "Thinking about what the Radiant Church will do next."

Monika sits beside him, leaning on his shoulder. "Do you think they will retaliate?"

"Not for now." Aikesi shakes his head. "The deaths of Wusennuo and the nine Four-Winged Angels are enough to make them feel the pain for a while. Saint Domain experts are not cabbages; cultivating one takes hundreds of years. Although the Church has deep foundations, it cannot withstand such losses."

"Then will they just give up like that?" Monika is somewhat skeptical.

"Of course not." Aikesi gently strokes the tea cup. "The Church has operated on the Yulan Continent for thousands of years; what storms have they not seen? They will definitely think of other ways."

"What plan?"

"I don't know," Aikesi said honestly. "But no matter what plan they come up with, we'll just go on. Open attacks are easy to dodge, but hidden arrows are hard to guard against. As long as we are strong enough, we need fear no schemes or plots."

Monika looked up, gazing at his profile, and said seriously, "Aikesi, you are already in the Saint Domain, and moreover, a Saint Magus. Plus Big Brother Linlei, you two won't lose."

Aikesi looked down at her and smiled. "You have confidence in me."

"7"

"Of course," Monika said as if it were the most natural thing in the world. "You are the one I chose."

"9"

The two sat quietly like that, enjoying the rare peace.

At the garden entrance in the distance, Linlei and Diliya walked over side by side.

"Third Brother, you two are hiding here," Linlei said with a smile as he approached. "We haven't even gone over the wedding ceremony details yet."

"With you and Diliya here, I feel at ease," Aikesi said lazily.

"That won't do," Diliya said with a light laugh, covering her mouth. "This is your wedding; we can't leave everything to us."

Monika sat up from Aikesi's embrace, her cheeks slightly flushed. "Sister Diliya, don't tease us."

"Alright, alright, no teasing," Diliya said, smiling as she sat down beside Monika. "But seriously, you must take the wedding matters to heart. This is a major life event; it only happens once in a lifetime."

"Mm," Monika nodded obediently.

In the evening, the sun set.

Golden light bathed the two of them, stretching their shadows very long. In the distance, smoke rose from the Baruke Cheng as people, busy all day, began preparing dinner.

In the garden of the Earl Mansion, servants were clearing away tables and chairs. The wedding preparations were basically complete, waiting only for tomorrow's arrival.

Aikesi stood in the pavilion in the garden, gazing at the setting sun in the distance. Monika stood beside him, her arm linked with his.

"We get married tomorrow," Monika said softly.

"Mm," Aikesi replied.

"Nervous?"

"Not nervous," Aikesi thought for a moment, then corrected himself. "A little."

Monika smiled. "Me too."

Aikesi looked down at her, his gaze gentle. "Monika, thank you."

"Thank me for what?"

"Thank you for being willing to marry me."

Monika's eyes reddened slightly, and she buried her face in his chest. "Fool, I should be the one thanking you. Thank you for appearing in my life."