Chapter 517: Ranald the Night-Walker

"Please give the order; I have already contacted enough fleets. Block the docks and dig three feet deep; he cannot escape Sartosa."

Under Sinuoli's command, the men of Duoluomao and Luosi took control of the cave complex where the Black Blade Assassin Group headquarters was located—at first, no one wanted to stay here, as the secret passages and traps operated for hundreds of years would silently devour all living things.

"An assassin at the peak of a mortal or near-mortal level who can cast Divine Art is not someone you can stop. With me here, don't be anxious." Sinuoli chuckled twice; he knew this was the newly recruited navigator eager to perform a meritorious deed.

"You are right; to search this place thoroughly, one must fill it with human lives."

Weaving through the winding alleys and gradually approaching the main hall of the Black Blade Assembly, the Dwarfs who had long made a living underground all frowned; the things built by Humans were a bit more refined than those of the Greenskins and rats.

"Hoo—hoo!"

In the center of the hall stood a statue with its hands tucked into its robe sleeves and a hood covering its drooping face. For assassins, thieves, gamblers, and the like, exposing one's face and "working hands" were things to be strictly avoided.

Sinuoli did not linger on it; he waved both hands, and a golden treasury gate formed behind him, but this time it did not spew out weapons, but rather a sky full of gold dust. He opened his mouth and blew, and a breeze rose from thin air, wrapping them up and drifting into every corner of the cave.

"This is, this is?"

"The great power of a god, my friend. To those who are loyal to Him, He is naturally extremely generous."

The Divine Art that Sinuoli could cast continued to evolve as his divine power grew; Duoluomao had not seen him take action personally very often, but he still had to pretend to be experienced in front of the newcomers.

"Aha, found it! Besides the one in front of us, there is another decoy formation; it is indeed hidden quite deep!" A golden mist swallowed and spat around Sinuoli, and soon only a single root remained, floating in mid-air to guide the path.

With such a world-renowned Demigod leading the charge, the traps and mechanisms along the way naturally could not stir up any waves—even if one or two of them were enough to stop certain Demigods whose Authorities were not a match.

"I know now, Duoluomao, we have seen this! The false god's Divine Art includes bone-shrinking, or perhaps diving into shadows, to help His core believers enter rock crevices!"

The end of the guidance stopped at an imperceptible crack in a rock wall; one could guess that a fragile structure had inevitably been set up—forcible destruction would lead to a collapse, completely burying what was hidden inside.

"Who is going to do it? Forget it, if you do it, it's not as good as me doing it; moving from the left hand to the right hand just adds unnecessary wear and tear."

Sinuoli muttered; as a leader, acting as a vanguard for a group of subordinates made him feel a trace of annoyance. But for the sake of efficiency, he still unleashed the Speech Spirit power of his Contract Authority to expand the crack until it was wide enough for one person to pass through.

"What does this mean? Shouldn't the index finger and middle finger be crossed?"

"Exalted God, I have checked the records—a single finger pointing to the sky means Ranald himself is here. The one on the Assassin also has this, distinct from other assassins."

The homogeneous yet heterogeneous divine power diffusing from the large hand-shaped stone sculpture told Sinuoli that he had come to the right place. A satisfied smile appeared, and the Authority within his body was also stimulated, stirring up a devouring desire.

"How many days has the Spring Thunder Operation been going on? Transport my daily necessities from the ship, and also the fine wine and the barbecue grill!"

Not knowing how much patience Ranald had, Sinuoli prepared for a protracted war. Soon, cooking smoke rose; the Dwarf warriors who had been sailing at sea for a long time needed a rest.

Except for the necessary sentries, the Humans also joined the ranks of drinking and dining—they had been on edge for many days, and having finally waited for their backbone, they could naturally catch their breath.

Sinuoli knew that many people wanted to ask him what he was waiting for here, but this was a secret belonging to the transcendent. The Divine Kingdom and the Mortal World were not completely isolated—unless one wanted to step into the Twilight in loneliness, gods needed channels to receive faith and bestow divine grace.

To reduce loss, the more commonly used channels should be as stable as possible, and this core, most stable one before him would provide him with the opportunity to break into Ranald's Divine Kingdom.

"Please review the evening news."

The Spring Thunder Operation entered its final stage three days later. The battle reports showed that in the first few days, the core believers could still cast Divine Art to fight back or flee, but now they no longer had the power to resist.

Facing the sudden crushing force from all sides, their only choice was to pray for divine grace. The massive demand from the entire Old World would directly drop Ranald's divine power reserves below the warning line, and the destruction of the believer network made it impossible for him to collect faith to replenish in time.

"King of the Qunshan, my fellow traveler, may I trouble you to take a step aside and speak?"

Just as the Dwarf King was thinking, a black shadow floated out from the shadows under the moonlight. He spoke with honeyed words, spitting out witty remarks refined from the mouths of countless swindlers in the Old World.

"Must you play these little tricks with me? Take a puppet or a shadow instead."

Relying on the sensing of homogeneous Authority through the Ascension Staircase, Sinuoli easily called out Ranald's ploy. Discovering that the channel he had painstakingly constructed was exposed, this newly born god could no longer hide.

"You are just like them, obsessed with so-called sincerity." The black shadow faded in a whisper, seeming to hesitate for a moment, and a physical body appeared in the position just occupied.

"Spare me this time, and I am willing to offer the Authority of that bit of wealth with both hands, and from now on, we will mind our own business. You know, it is merely a derivative of my other Authorities."

"That won't work; you also know clearly that those are not things you can just split up if you want to."

"I will lock my Divine Kingdom; if you do not ascend, I will never dare to come out!"

"Is that useful?"

"A personage like you naturally has matching goals. Although I have no intention of prying, I dare to guess that you lack capable generals; I can swear to be at your beck and call."

Ranald knew that the Dwarf before him had unleashed thunderous means and would certainly not let it go easily. He simply promised even his freedom. Sinuoli's eyes flashed repeatedly; the god-turned-swindler almost made his heart waver.

"Hehe, if it were before, I might have really believed you, but now, blame that bear in the north!"

Suppressing his greed, the Dwarf King knew that outside the Qunshan, there was plenty of deceit, and this was the Grandmaster of all swindlers; as for his words, one could only believe a few points if they were heard in reverse.

"Report."

"Want to leave? Did I agree?"

Realizing the negotiation had collapsed, he flashed and was about to escape into the shadows. Sinuoli had long been prepared; the opposing Oath Authority transformed into a Speech Spirit and landed on him, breaking the spell like pouring oil on a raging fire.

"So fragile? Could it be fake again? Not necessarily; it is also possible he simply abandoned this pawn to save divine power."

Sinuoli did not encounter resistance of the same level; the Assassin only supported himself for a few breaths with his own strength before collapsing to the ground. Leaning over to pull off the cloak, the revealed face actually gave the Dwarf a start.

"A half-Elf, and a Dark Elf breed at that. The pirate kingdom of Sartosa, I wonder how many more stories are buried in the sea."