Chapter 551

The young man supporting the other side of Hu An. Aurora suddenly lifted his head, staring at Lu Mi'an, who sat beside the driver with one leg dangling and the other bent upward, his body slightly leaning forward, his eyes burning with unmasked fury.

The driver startled, frantically trying to put distance between himself and Lu Mi'an, but with horses ahead and Lu Lu Jianuo to his left, he had no room to evade.

Lu Lu Jianuo swallowed hard, resenting his employer's overly aggressive style.

Is he imitating Gelmansparrow?

But the employer had seemed anything but insane before—he appeared sharp and calculating!

The elderly man with streaked black hair, Hu An. Aurora, seemed unaware of the pistol pressed against his temple; he turned his head slightly, avoiding the revolver, and continued walking forward.

Lu Mi'an, without blinking, pulled the trigger at once.

Bang!

A bright yellow bullet shot from the revolver, aimed straight for the side of Hu An. Aurora's head.

A palm appeared out of nowhere, blocking the path—the bullet instantly lost speed, slowing from a blur to a crawl, spinning as it landed in the palm, gripped as if swallowed by thick mud.

The broad, copper-toned palm belonged to the young man supporting Hu An. Aurora; he glared at Lu Mi'an, sneering, then roared:

"Are you mad?"

Before he finished speaking, his eyes reflected dozens of crimson-white fireballs, crashing down in a blanket of flame from less than a meter away.

Simultaneously, Lu Mi'an felt himself ripped from this world—beneath him, no longer the carriage; before him, no longer the earth; only endless, boundless darkness floated in void.

The crimson-white fireballs, guided by invisible force, plummeted sharply downward, veering off their original trajectory.

Boom!

They piled together and exploded against the roadside dozens of meters away, carving out a deep, massive crater.

The horses, terrified, reared up their front hooves, neighing in fear; the driver instinctively yanked the reins, struggling to control them.

Lu Mi'an's "illusion" vanished with the explosion; his vision cleared again, revealing Hu An. Aurora and the young man.

Hu An. Aurora, his face deeply wrinkled, his hair and beard bristling, raised his black cane and spoke in a calm, even tone:

"Have you had enough?"

Lu Mi'an smiled and raised his right-hand revolver again, aiming once more at the head of the Fishing Guild's chairman.

At that moment, a voice came from the rear carriage: "Let them pass."

It was in Intis.

Lu Mi'an lowered his arm, smiling as he replied in Intis:

"My employer permits you to proceed."

He acted as if he had understood none of the earlier Highland speech from Hu An. Aurora and the young man.

Hu An. Aurora studied him for several seconds, then looked away, leaning on his cane as he stepped aside to the carriage's side; the young man, still glaring at Lu Mi'an, had nothing to curse—since the man clearly didn't understand.

Hu An. Aurora gazed through the carriage window and asked calmly:

"Martha, I heard you're ill?"

"Yes," the old lady replied weakly through the glass.

Hu An. Aurora nodded:

"Has the Viceroy granted you permission to seek treatment? Shall I plead on your behalf?"

"It's already been granted," Rouvio. Paco answered for his mother.

"Good," Hu An. Aurora nodded slightly, then asked no more.

He turned his body, leaned on his cane, and slowly walked toward the building housing the "Sea Viceroy's" residence.

The young man supporting him shot Lu Mi'an one last resentful glance, then refocused entirely on the old man.

Lu Mi'an adjusted his posture as if nothing had happened, and said to Lu Lu Jianuo:

"The carriage can proceed."

Lu Lu Jianuo snapped back to awareness, as if just returning from a daze, and hurriedly ordered the equally startled driver to calm the horses and leave Miluo Village quickly.

They traveled without incident and arrived safely at Saint Lana Street No. 21.

Lu Mi'an retrieved Ludwig, whose mouth still glistened with grease, from Qiaojia, and smiled at Rouvio. Paco:

Lumian retrieved Ludwig, whose lips still glistened with oil, from Georgina, and smiled at Ruveo Paco:

"Or else…"

He smiled, leaving the rest unsaid.

"Don't worry," Rouvio replied in Intis.

After watching Louis Berry and his godson, the translator, depart, Qiaojia exhaled and turned to her husband:

"I've never seen a child who eats so much—he must be abnormal!"

"Otherwise, Louis Berry wouldn't have left him with us so confidently," Rouvio said, unsurprised.

"Otherwise, Louis Berry wouldn't have been so willing to leave him with us," Ruveo said without surprise.

Aquinas Street, Solo Inn.

After closing the door, Lu Lu Jianuo could no longer contain himself and asked Lu Mi'an:

"You—you were too aggressive! That was the chairman of the Sangtagang Fishing Guild, a major figure, and that was Miluo Village!"

He believed his employer must have a hidden motive.

Lu Mi'an glanced at his guide and smiled:

"What else? If not now, in public, when we're unlikely to reach a life-or-death confrontation, how else to test them, gauge their strength? Wait until midnight, when no one cares about the authority of the Church of the Earth Mother or the Feneport government? That would be far more dangerous."

If Hu An. Aurora's side truly possessed divine-level power, he'd need to summon help immediately!

"Of course…" Lu Lu Jianuo suddenly understood.

Indeed, the employer's madness was all an act—every aggressive move had a hidden purpose!

But why had he come to Sangtagang? Was he planning something during the Prayer of the Sea? Why keep targeting Fishing Guild members?

That would be extremely dangerous!

Should I quit now, forfeit the final payment?

Lu Mi'an watched his silent translator, smiled, and walked to the armchair in the parlor, settling down comfortably.

What he told Lu Lu Jianuo was only one purpose—the surface one.

The most important purpose was to send a message through those aggressive acts:

He was here to investigate the Prayer of the Sea; he feared neither the Fishing Guild nor the people of Miluo Village; he had the strength and the nerve.

Whether storming the "Sea Viceroy's" residence or pointing a gun at Hu An. Aurora's head and firing without hesitation, all were meant to convey this.

He believed there must be people in Sangtagang who resented the Fishing Guild's dominance, who disliked the Prayer of the Sea—after all, its beneficiaries were primarily fishermen, merchants, and related trades, not the entire city.

For instance, though the Church of the Earth Mother and the Sangtagang government had previously been unable to act due to certain constraints, allowing the Fishing Guild autonomy and excluding outsiders, if someone showed fierce, reckless, consequence-defying determination to investigate, might they not be tempted? Might they not tacitly permit—or even secretly support—such a person to stir things up for their own gain?

Similarly, the beneficiary group wasn't monolithic: some held power, others were sidelined; some stood high, others seethed with envy. They might not wish the Prayer of the Sea to vanish entirely, but they'd likely relish seeing the current leaders fall, creating vacancies for themselves.

Thus, by raising the banner of investigating the Prayer of the Sea, of decisive strength and boldness, Lu Mi'an need not wander the streets, ask questions, or trace clues—he could sit at home and receive intelligence, overt or covert, comparing it all to discern truth from falsehood.

For an outsider with limited time, this was the fastest, most effective way to uncover the full process of the Prayer of the Sea and the truth behind last year's accident.

For the hidden core members of the "Fool's Day" who might have laid traps, it was also a plausible strategy to draw their attention to the adventurer Louis Berry and provoke suspicion.

Then, combining the gathered intelligence with discovered traces, Lu Mi'an could use their own traps to lure them out.

Of course, the biggest flaw in this plan was its danger—he would place himself squarely in everyone's spotlight. But isn't hunting inherently risky? Besides, Lu Mi'an had many allies.

In a flash of thought, Lu Mi'an realized that since becoming the "Conspirator," he grasped the situation and the tensions between factions with far greater clarity. Now, borrowing the term Aurora favored, he understood conspiracy more deeply:

In a flash of thought, Lumian realized that since becoming the "Conspirator," he now grasped the situation and the contradictions among various groups more clearly; at this moment, using the term Aurora favored, he gained deeper insight into conspiracy:

This would become one of his key roles going forward.

At just past two in the afternoon, Lu Mi'an saw his messenger, the "Penitent" Bayinfei emerge from the void, handing him a letter.

He frowned slightly and asked:

"Whose?"

Hadn't all necessary communications already been made?

"It's from the tall witch," Bayinfei replied.

Did Franca have more news? Lu Mi'an took the letter and unfolded it.

"The man they encountered on the fourth level of the underground crypt with Yu Jianna appears to be from the same world as the 'Celestial Master'—the world she came from before?" Lu Mi'an's pupils widened slightly.

And unlike the members of the Curly Baboon Research Society, who had crossed over as souls, this man had brought his body with him!

Surprised, Lu Mi'an immediately grasped a critical question:

"Why would someone like that go to the fourth level of the underground crypt?"

"Is it because that's where the 'Spring of the Samaritan Woman' is sealed—the overflow of the River Styx between two worlds?"

"Have similar people come to our world before? If so, why didn't they leave traces like Emperor Rosell or other transmigrants?"

"Franca and Yu Jianna's expedition to the fourth level seems full of too many coincidences… they discovered a new 'Mirror World Fragment' and encountered that man…"

After replying to Franca with all his questions, Lu Mi'an was about to ask Lu Lu Jianuo to translate today's newspaper when footsteps echoed down the hallway.

He raised an eyebrow, pulled over a chair, and sat facing the door.

Knock, knock, knock. Seconds later, the door to their suite was knocked on.

"Who is it?" Lu Lu Jianuo asked.

A mature, soft voice came from outside:

"I'm Noaelia of the Order of Abundance."

Hearing the name, Lu Mi'an leaned back slightly, smiling.

He felt his "Conspirator" potion had digested a little more.

He felt his Conspirator potion had digested a little more.

PS: Extra chapter for topping the 2023 annual chart! First chapter of 2024, begging for monthly votes! Wishing everyone a prosperous new year, better health, and more money!

(End of chapter)