Chapter 378: Flipping Diary

After Lei En left, a team passed the site where the airship had crashed.

In fact they had seen the airship anomaly in the sky from far away, but because the distance was great they could not see clearly; by the time they arrived, the airship had burned down to only a few fragments.

Nevertheless someone discovered a clue.

The airship's gasbag was made of thin fire‑resistant fabric; even after burning for more than half an hour, a small amount remained, just enough to discern a corner of a symbol on the charred cloth.

"This is…"

The symbol is so famous on the steppe that almost no one is unaware of it.

The whole team turned pale with horror; the leading half‑orc shouted decisively, "Quick, leave—this is none of our business."

Then he led everyone, fleeing away from the airship wreckage.

Later, as more people passed by one after another, their first reaction was that they might scavenge the wreckage, but upon recognizing the PasraFloatingCity emblem they were half‑dead terrified, and no one dared to linger.

The news spread quickly among the nearby tribes.

The next day after the incident.

On the slope of Thorn Ridge, a towering portal suddenly opened, and a Wizard clad in a robe stepped out.

The Wizard was of average build, his exact age indiscernible—he seemed young, yet on closer look resembled a centenarian sage, his gaze deep as if holding astonishing wisdom, while also evoking an inexplicable dread that made one reluctant to stare.

Some discerning onlookers bowed their heads immediately.

When the other side reopened the portal and left, the crowd finally exhaled, whispering in shock, "Lord Mengtalin has actually arrived."

"Who is he?" someone asked curiously.

"Lord Mengtalin is the Duke Hong Shi's most outstanding pupil; it is said that many years ago he was a level‑19 psionicist, with great prospects for Holy Soul Ascension, and his standing in ParrasFloatingCity is only beneath the Duke Hong Shi," the man in front explained.

"So he's a Legendary High‑rank Wizard! No wonder he's so terrifying…"

"Whoever has such nerve? To hijack ParrasFloatingCity's airship, truly sickening."

"That's uncertain," someone replied dismissively. "Those who dare do such a thing must have planned for a long time and be confident they can evade the floating city's pursuit before acting."

"Indeed." another agreed, then asked curiously, "Tell me, how much tax revenue was on that airship?"

"At least a million gold coins, I'd say!"

Talking about such a fortune made everyone's eyes burn with envy, while they speculated about the robber's identity.

A moment later, another portal opened above Thorn Ridge; Mengtalin returned. He descended, interrogated and investigated throughout Thorn Ridge, and no one dared conceal what they knew. He soon traced the largest tavern in Thorn Ridge and zeroed in on the legendary beast‑person who had been there yesterday.

Many had seen that beast‑person with their own eyes, and learned that he was the perpetrator; shocked, they recalled that only a beast of such might could have the power to hijack an airship.

Mengtalin announced the news on the spot.

ParrasFloatingCity offered a bounty of one million Gold Shields for the head of Buluokesijia, and anyone who can provide the exact whereabouts of this beast‑person will also receive a ten‑thousand Gold Shield reward!

Within a day, Buluokesijia's name spread across the entire steppe.

Countless mercenaries, centaurs on the steppe, and even the beast‑person tribes heard the news, all hunting for a bald beast‑person who bears massive tusks on his shoulders and wields a single‑edged great axe from the Dragon Throat clan.

While the bounty was being shouted about, Lei En had already left the steppe.

The Wind Rider crossed the Stano Mountains in a single day, entered the beast‑person tribal lands, immediately shed his transformation, disguised himself as a human ranger, altering his appearance to be completely different from his true form, looking utterly ordinary.

The beast‑person tribal lands lie within the North Wind Cold Zone.

The North Wind Cold Zone is the northernmost region of the Old Continent, covering an area two or three times that of the Empire; to the east are the beast‑person tribes, to the west the Sareleph Empire, bordering the elves' homeland of Demid Continent. Yet the eastern side of the Cold Zone is even colder, barely habitable; in most places eight to nine months of the year are bitter winter, with only three to four months of relatively warm summer.

The beast‑people are not cursed; their constitutions are far tougher than humans', allowing them to endure the extreme cold, which is why they can establish their own tribes in the eastern part of the North Wind Cold Zone.

Lei En identified the direction and ordered the Wind Rider to fly toward the deep mudswamp.

At the Wind Rider's speed, it would take roughly a day and a half to arrive.

He rode atop a flying dragon, beginning to sort his loot. Luokan Nan's silver bracelet was taken up by an iron chest brimming with gold coins, leaving few personal items—only a few spellbooks and some not‑so‑precious enchanted gear.

In contrast, Feilis's fortune was even more substantial.

In her spatial ring, Lei En found many valuable items: over a dozen pieces of enchanted gear, a large cache of precious potions, scrolls, and alchemical materials, cash exceeding three hundred thousand Gold Shields, plus her personal belongings—expensive clothing, jewelry, cosmetics, and so on—leaving him dazzled.

This made him think it odd that Feilis's wealth surpassed Luokan Nan's.

It should be noted that Luokan Nan is a legendary Wizard, a psionicist cultivated by the Duke Hong Shi, with a pure lineage; his standing in ParrasFloatingCity is certainly higher, his seniority equal to Feilis's mentor Wensiluo, making this hard to explain.

It's not that Luokan Nan is poor; rather Feilis is exceedingly rich, far beyond the wealth level of a high‑rank Wizard.

Lei En recalled the Soul‑Rending technique scroll that Feilis used.

The scroll clearly originated from the Duke Hong Shi's hand; such a precious item, even Luokan Nan, as a student of the Duke, did not possess, yet Feilis holds it—truly intriguing.

"Hmm…"

Lei En stroked his chin, realizing Feilis's connection to the Duke Hong Shi might be complicated.

He searched the spatial ring and found a book.

The book was thin; opening it, he saw pages filled with elegant script, not the Empire's Aurian characters but a variant of High Elf language.

Few humans know High Elf, and Lei En happens to be one of them.

When he was at Longshande's Silver Star Grand Library, he had already mastered High Elf, yet upon close inspection he found the book's syntax incoherent, unreadable—as if deliberately scrambled to prevent others from understanding.

Lei En studied it for a moment and soon cracked it.

The text simply shifted each letter of every word forward by a fixed amount—a basic cipher that, with a little time, reveals the original.

After deciphering and reading a few pages, he scratched his head.

"This is Feilis's diary…"

"Who in their right mind writes a diary?" Lei En thought scornfully, "And in encrypted High Elf no less—absurd."

Anyway, with nothing better to do, he endured and kept reading.

The diary was already several years old; judging by the dates, Feilis began writing shortly after arriving at ParrasFloatingCity. She didn't write daily—once every ten days or half a month—recording important recent events, spanning nearly twenty years.

The early entries were quite ordinary, revealing the daily life of a prodigiously gifted female Wizard who had become a disciple of a legendary Wizard.

Because of her beautiful appearance and illustrious background, she was highly sought after in ParrasFloatingCity.

This pleased Feilis; she often commented on suitors in her diary, silently comparing and skillfully exploiting them. Yet she never accepted any proposal, only the benefits, never giving a clear response nor refusing, leaving each suitor with a sliver of hope.

Feilis has maintained a double‑digit number of suitors for years, and she is smug about it, writing it all in her diary.

Some of the ambiguous tactics she used made Lei En exclaim that she was a true insider.

"So she's a female sea‑king, keeping a huge fishpond!"

However, the diary changed in its middle part.

An unprecedented suitor appeared.

Precisely speaking, the other party was not a suitor and showed no courting moves; just a few occasional words made Feilis fall for him, and she went to great lengths to seek him out, becoming his secret lover and remaining so for many years.

It is clear she both admires and fears this lover, often detailing their interactions, deliberately pleasing him in bed with all sorts of tricks, and serving him attentively.

The diary never directly names that man, using only a symbol as a substitute.

The symbol is a red crystal.

"WTF!"

Lei En could guess the person's identity even with his knee, "Feilis is actually the lover of Duke Hong Shi!"

He suddenly understood, and many things were explained.

No wonder Luo Kannan showed a panicked expression when he saw Feilis being killed by him; clearly he knew Feilis's connection to Duke Hong Shi.

This is probably a semi‑public secret in ParrasFloatingCity.

Feilis's wealthy fortune largely comes from gifts from Duke Hong Shi, including the Seven‑Ring Soul‑Cracking Technique scroll.

In ParrasFloatingCity, everyone yields to her out of respect for Duke Hong Shi, which bred an arrogant, contemptuous personality; when she meets Viola, all her advantages are eclipsed, inevitably sparking jealousy and a desire to kill her.

Lei En flipped to the few pages about Viola in the diary.

Sure enough, every word drips with hatred.

That time during an autumn outing at Dong Ting Hu, an assassination occurred—it was truly sent by Feilis.

After the trade fair ended, Ga Luo Wei Na took the initiative to approach, revealing that the mountain giant's demon soul was fake, apologizing and compensating all losses, and also informing Feilis that Viola would travel tomorrow; the two arranged men overnight to act, but failed.

Even after leaving Longshande, Feilis never forgot her hatred of Viola, repeatedly seeking chances to covertly harm Viola, and even complained to Duke Hong Shi about her in bed.

Unexpectedly, Duke Hong Shi sternly rebuked her.

He also warned Feilis that she must not entangle anyone connected to Holy Soul Wizards for the next ten years, or he would handle her personally.

After that failed complaint, Feilis never saw Duke Hong Shi again.

Not only her, but aside from Meng Talin, no one has seen the Duke; ParrasFloatingCity was handed over to Meng Palin for management, and it has been a year and a half without the Duke appearing publicly.

Feilis, unwilling to accept, secretly queried Teacher Wen Siluo several times, and combined the faint clues from the last conversation with Duke Hong Shi, arriving at a vague answer: the Duke seems to be conducting a major magical research project.

(End of chapter)