Chapter 573: True Disillusion

Lei En's heart skipped a beat.

Duke Hong Shi continued: "Augulevi Master thinks he is well hidden, but he does not know I saw him. At first I didn't even dare to believe it, nor to announce the leak, and I kept investigating in secret."

"It wasn't until a few years later that I confirmed he had truly fallen."

"So I began preparing for this day, placing some dark minions in Naiser and also contacting several Naiser Elders; there was only one goal: to find his Soul Box."

Duke Hong Shi's eyes showed a hint of pride: "Just last month, I found it."

He raised the iron box in his hand to show everyone.

"His Soul Box is hidden in an underground maze more than four hundred li north of Nuosiruier's outskirts, rigged with numerous rune formations and magical wards; I never dared to act rashly. Until just now, seizing the chance while he was battling you all here, I went to Nuosiruier and retrieved it!"

The Holy Soul Wizards looked at each other speechlessly; that was too coincidental!

Could this be the arrangement of the goddess of fate?

Anxiwodasi's expression was displeased, and he said in a deep voice, "Since you discovered it sixty years ago, why wait until now to tell us?"

Augulevi Master had completely fallen, colluding with the Catastrophe Legion and Death Knot Seals, secretly advancing an invasion plan against Weizelan, which could not have started earlier than thirty years ago.

If Duke Hong Shi had been investigating in secret, it certainly could not escape his eyes.

Had he given a warning, Weizelan would not have suffered such great loss.

"Since Master Anxiwodasi discovered it three years ago, why wait until now to speak?" Duke Hong Shi retorted.

Anxiwodasi's face froze, unable to refute.

Duke Hong Shi smiled, "Master Anxiwodasi, I actually already warned you, just by a safer method." He turned to Prophet Medif, "Your Excellency, do you still recall the reason you made the prophecy for Weizelan a few years ago?"

Prophet Medif's expression changed slightly.

His prophetic art foresaw a crash danger for Weizelan; he only told Anxiwodasi, and only Lei En and Ao Xi Li Ya among Weizelan knew, never revealing it publicly.

How did Duke Hong Shi know that prophecy?

Prophet Medif recalled, "That night, while I was relaxing and fell asleep, I dreamed that Weizelan was being invaded, though I could not see the enemy. Upon waking, I employed my prophetic art."

He looked enlightened, "That dream wasn't a coincidence?"

"It was a 'Dream‑Forging Art' I had refined, released by spirit energy; please forgive me, Your Excellency," Duke Hong Shi apologized sincerely.

Prophet Medif shook his head, silent.

That dream occurred while he was in his own tower, which was hidden in a minor plane far from the Prime Material Plane; Duke Hong Shi, across that vast distance, crossed planes and silently entered his dream without triggering the tower's wards, and he himself did not notice anything amiss, thinking it was merely a random magical inspiration…

Duke Hong Shi's move displayed unfathomable power.

Anxiwodasi's expression shifted.

If Duke Hong Shi's words are true, Weizelan indeed owes him a favor; this subtle reminder reduced Weizelan's loss.

Most crucially, Lei En also joined Weizelan because of this, turning around its decline!

Anxiwodasi glanced at Lei En.

He knew Lei En possessed a certain ability to discern lies; seeing Lei En give a barely perceptible nod, he confirmed with his gaze that Duke Hong Shi was not lying, and thus did not press further.

The Holy Soul Wizards each raised a few questions.

Duke Hong Shi answered fluently, even claiming he had found that Augulevi Master's Lich‑transformation ceremony occurred around New Era Calendar year 2221, roughly 310 years ago, with an error margin of no more than three years.

Their statements cross‑verified with no logical flaw; Tim*Kenan and KangJieladeGreatSage each examined the iron box, brought it near the Sage Stone, and found a soul link, confirming this was the Lich's Soul Box.

The Holy Soul Wizards no longer doubted.

Duke Hong Shi's deed this time earned great merit for the Supreme Council, instantly making the Holy Soul Wizards look at him with new respect, and they voiced a few praises.

Lei En observed silently, saying nothing.

His All‑Seeing Eye continuously watched Duke Hong Shi; though he could not pierce the opponent's true strength, as if separated by a veil of mist, he could still discern the soul's color shifts emerging from the mist, thereby judging emotional fluctuations and whether lies were told.

Duke Hong Shi's demeanor was steady, and most of the time he spoke the truth.

Only one aspect was abnormal.

At the beginning, when he said he had discovered Augulevi Master's fall sixty years ago, his emotions fluctuated more, and his soul color flickered slightly, though not intensely.

This ambiguous change might simply stem from publicly announcing such a crucial matter, inevitably causing some excitement.

Therefore Lei En could not be certain whether he was lying.

Even if it were false, it is highly possible he concealed the true timing; Duke Hong Shi may not have discovered it sixty years ago—perhaps earlier or later—but this does not affect his exposure of Augulevi Master's fall, a sentence or two of concealment does not change the big picture.

After all, Duke Hong Shi truly produced the Soul Box.

This Soul Box is the strongest evidence, leaving no doubt.

Lei En, using the All‑Seeing Eye many times, saw the interior of the iron box and confirmed it was indeed a tremendously powerful Soul Box, crafted by Augulevi Master's hand.

So he decided to stay silent.

He is not a member of the Supreme Council; here his voice carries little weight and he has no speaking rights. Raising questions rashly would hardly gain the Holy Soul Wizards' support and would expose his lie‑detecting ability, bringing only harm.

Most importantly, this would offend Duke Hong Shi.

Though Duke Hong Shi is an adversary of his in some respect, that is only behind the scenes; publicly he has no quarrel with him, so he should not act rashly.

Duke Hong Shi likely discovered his possession of the Willpower of Truth during his battle with the Naiser Elders at the opening ceremony, and probably has not yet uncovered the airship‑sabotage incident. Now he may view him as a future competitor rather than an equal foe; as long as he does not provoke him, no problem will arise.

"How should we handle it?"

Storm Queen pointed at the Sage Stone in KangJieladeGreatSage's hand; her "it" naturally referred to the Lich's soul.

The Holy Soul Wizards all fell silent.

Emotionally, no one wishes to see the illustrious Augulevi Master meet such an end, but reason tells everyone that the soul in the Ruby Prison is no longer Augulevi Master; it is an evil entity that hates all living beings and must not be kept.

The true Augulevi Master is already dead.

Since the day, over three hundred years ago, when he performed the ceremony, killed himself, and transformed his corpse into a Lich, the outcome of today was predestined.

Everyone's gaze focused on GrandSage KangJieladeGreatSage, waiting for him to speak.

KangJieladeGreatSage was lost in thought for a long time.

In fact, he had been communicating with the soul in the ruby, but the response left him profoundly disappointed. No one urged him; after a few minutes he finally said slowly, "Regardless of how glorious his achievements were in life, they have nothing to do with this evil soul; destroy it."

"Yes, GrandSage."

The Holy Soul Wizards let out a sigh of relief and responded in unison.

If the GrandSage values friendship and cannot bear to kill the Lich, choosing to keep it, endless trouble will follow. Should that be the case, they can only vote in the council to forcibly kill the Lich, leaving the GrandSage disgraced.

KangJieladeGreatSage's eyes flickered; with a slight effort, he crushed the Ruby Prison, harder than refined gold.

Boom!

The Sage's Stone shattered, releasing the Lich's soul imprisoned within.

A wisp of pale evil flame flew out, coalescing in midair into the Lich's gaunt visage, two blue flames flickering in its eye sockets, and it let out a series of smug, sharp laughs: "Hahaha! When I revive, you will all die; not a single one of you will survive…"

The Lich's voice abruptly stopped as it saw its Soul Box.

"No!!!"

Amid terrified cries, the Lich's soul was instantly transferred into the Soul Box; the runes on its surface flickered, death's power surged violently, scattering a burst of multicolored dust that began to outline the Lich's body.

The Lich requires time to reconstitute its body and revive, typically three to ten days.

The stronger the Lich, the longer its revival.

During this period, destroying the Soul Box will cause the Lich to die completely.

This Soul Box, crafted by Augulevi Master, is ingeniously designed—its material unknown—and equipped with seven layers of magical protection up to the Ten-ring Spell level, combined with internal rune arrays to form a Ten-ring spell barrier, truly indestructible.

Several Holy Soul Wizards tried their hands on it and found that, for the moment, they could not destroy the Soul Box.

Tim*Kenan Master's Rupture Technique was reflected back.

The Black Robe Duke's Disintegrate was ineffective, and even high-level magic dispelling failed.

Anxiwodasi hurled a dozen fireballs that overlapped in explosion, only loosening the Soul Box slightly, still far from destroying it.

Ouroin Master summoned all his strength for a single slash, leaving a shallow scar on the Soul Box; at least dozens of swords would be needed to cut it completely.

The other Holy Soul Wizards' methods were of no use.

Even the Empire's greatest alchemist, KangJieladeGreatSage, found it troublesome; he had never seen such material.

"Everyone, let me handle it."

Duke Hong Shi stepped forward, remotely drawing the Soul Box into his hand, hovering over his palm, his eyes fixed on it as he began to concentrate his spell.

After a dozen seconds, his eyes suddenly flashed, and invisible spiritual energy erupted sharply.

That instant's spiritual energy ripple caused the present Holy Soul Wizards to sense extreme danger, their constant protective spells issuing an alarm.

Immediately, the Soul Box disintegrated.

In a breath, it turned to dust and scattered, the soul within vanishing completely, leaving no ash, as if it had never existed in this world, erased directly from reality.

Storm Queen stared at Duke Hong Shi, uncertain, and asked, "Ten-ring Spell 'True Illusion Annihilation'?"

One chapter still owed; tomorrow should be two more updates. It's the end of the month, please give a monthly ticket, otherwise it's wasted.

Also, just discovered this book has reached 2,000,000 words—congratulations! The current outline is 50% complete, so at least another 2,000,000 words can still be written…

Thanks for everyone's tips; tomorrow I'll collect the list and thank you again.

(End of chapter)