Chapter 2861: The Worst-Case Scenario, the Sword Family

Laruian could understand Xia Duo's hesitation to trust Yilisaier; after all, the relationship between Netheril and Cormanthor had never been good in the past, and even if it had eased now, it was impossible to become harmonious and mutually trusting overnight.

But aside from contacting Yilisier Mianwang directly, he really could not think of any other way to resolve this matter. After all, he was only an Elder of a small country, and if not for the special circumstances this time, he would not have dared to target a Diviner, no matter how bold he was.

"We can't just storm in and control the other party, can we?"

"Indeed, we cannot!"

Of course, Xia Duo did not have such a crazy idea. Even if there were solid evidence that the Diviner Pafen was a member of the Darkness Society, he could not simply go over and control the person, let alone when it was currently just a guess.

Although he was quite certain that the other party was a member of the Darkness Society, he had not yet obtained conclusive evidence. If he were to act forcefully, given the other party's status as a Diviner, they could easily label him a world-destroying Demon Descendant and then have the various countries of the Northland unite to exterminate the demon.

Once such a situation arose, he would be in big trouble. Even if it could be resolved in the end, Pafen could brush it off with a simple "misunderstanding," and more importantly, the Darkness Society would be alerted.

Therefore, no matter what, it was impossible for Xia Duo to use violence directly. The biggest problem he faced now was—

He must find evidence that the other party was a member of the Darkness Society before they realized they were exposed, or find someone of sufficient weight to make Pafen accept an inspection.

The former was very difficult, and Laruian could not be counted on, but Xia Duo himself had no bad ideas either; having Laruian help brainstorm was better than sitting alone and thinking in vain.

Therefore, Xia Duo did not consider those Elf Elders at all; in his heart, he had already viewed those high-level Mages at the end of their lifespans as potential tools for the Darkness Society.

Not all Elves yearned for the afterlife in the Elf World; more were concerned with the inheritance of their families in the present world. In the end, going crazy to eliminate all enemies, or dying together with the enemy, was nothing new in past Elf history.

But that did not mean he would never use violence; it meant he would not use it unless necessary. In fact, he could be considered to be using violence at all times—could the order of Yongle be accepted based on ideals alone?

It was just like the worst-case scenario he had prepared for; the enemy would not talk to him about rules or order, so naturally, he did not need to talk about them either.

The so-called Sword Family referred to the families established by the three Elves who passed the Sword Trial when Cormanthor was founded, and Yilisier Mianwang was one of them.

The influence of those Elders came more from the threat of their final strike; in fact, it was just that they dared to risk their lives. Anyway, once they acted, they would leave the present world, so they might as well go crazy.

Even if most people could accept it, what about the minority? Therefore, judging them in the name of the law and punishing them with violence was part of order itself, and Xia Duo did not reject that.

And because the other two swords besides the "Sword of Ruling" did not affect the life of the trial-taker even if they failed, it made it possible for the swords to be passed down within a single family.

Only violence outside of those rules and order needed to be restrained, and it was not entirely denied, because there were always places in this world that rules and order could not reach for the time being.

It was nothing more than falling into the trap of the Darkness Society. If that were truly the case, then he should not be blamed for flipping the table. With the current state of Yongle City, he could completely launch a lightning war and round up all the Diviners in the Northland.

In fact, Yilisier Mianwang did exactly that, and the benefit of doing so was naturally the sworn protection of the Sword Family.

His relationship with the countries of the Northland would certainly drop to freezing point afterward, but as long as the Darkness Society could be dug out, the relationship could always be repaired later. Not to mention that Xia Duo held the Feres Fortress, the control hub of the Dragon Madness Mythallar, which was also a bargaining chip for negotiations with the Northland countries.

Inside the Secret Ritual Chamber.

Of course, that was just the worst-case scenario. Xia Duo did not hope to reach that step. Solving problems with violence would inevitably leave behind hidden dangers. Leaving behind cases for future generations to imitate was secondary; the main thing was that it went against his consistent principles. Frequently using such means would inevitably lead to path dependency. When violence became the mainstream, rules and order would cease to exist.

"Elder Laruian, do you know any members of the Sword Family in Cormanthor?" Xia Duo asked again.

Even if it was finally found that Ruier had no problems, Xia Duo would only have offended a Diviner like Ruier, which would not lead to hostility from Cormanthor. The lucky thought was—

There must be something that could attract them more than their current power.

That kind of influence was not suitable for solving this problem. In fact, Xia Duo was even more worried about those Elf Elders being tempted by the Demon Descendants; after all, a final strike was not as reassuring as extending one's life and acting at will.

Therefore, as long as he could find someone of sufficient weight—an Elf—to let Ruier accept an inspection, he could always find some clues. Of course, the best situation was for Ruier to resist stubbornly and then be taken down directly.

Ruier understood the greater cause and knew that the Demon Descendants were the true enemy; bad people should be held at gunpoint.

But no matter what the consequences were, Xia Duo was prepared to bear the worst, and he was even prepared for the possibility that "the Ruier seen in the Prophecy Ritual came from the past."

And the latter was the way to break the deadlock that Xia Duo cared about more. As a Diviner, Ruier would certainly know to eliminate relevant evidence in advance, but the biggest evidence was Ruier himself; that could not be eliminated so easily!

Otherwise, it was really hard to explain why someone who had lived a good life for a lifetime would suddenly defect to the Demon Descendants. That was not science, and it was certainly not Magic.

The Demon Descendants were already notorious in the Northland; how many Elves were willing to actively join the underground faction? Let alone those high-level Mages who already stood in a ruling position.

……

Even if there were, Xia Duo dared not believe it. The Elf Elders Laruian spoke of were actually those high-level Mages who had reached the end of their lifespans but were still resisting death.

Xia Duo and Laruian discussed for a long time, and in the end, they only obtained the contact information of a few influential Elf Elders, but none of those Elf Elders were from Cormanthor.

In fact, if this Diviner Ruier had publicly declared that he was a member of the Darkness Society, Xia Duo would have already attacked. It was precisely because the other party possessed a legal status within the order Xia Duo was currently in that made Xia Duo full of scruples and unable to apply violence directly.

Xia Duo did not deny that some Elves were attracted by the so-called new world philosophy of the Demon Descendants, but mere philosophy was probably difficult to attract high-level Mages. Only longevity, certain urgently needed Knowledge, or even key descendants of family inheritance—only such temptations or threats could possibly make a high-level Mage switch sides.

After all, if it weren't for the interference of Yilisier Mianwang, the Sword Trial should have been conducted openly throughout the entire Elf World, and who would eventually obtain the Sword would be hard to say!