Chapter 628: Determining Naiser

This is the member list of the Naiser Supervision Group.

Gneus had prepared in advance, immediately produced a document and handed it over, saying, "I have already sent messengers to notify each member that the Supervision Group will be formally established at He Palace the day after tomorrow; there will be a simple plaque ceremony then, and everyone will be present. The Naiser Elders Council has also prepared the ledger; we have fifteen days to review, and if there are no issues we will report the results to the Supreme Council."

Lei En nodded and carefully perused the list.

As expected, those Holy Soul Wizards who have no students, high towers, or floating cities relinquished this right and did not send their own representatives, so including himself, the list contains only seven people.

Adding the Consul as group leader, the Supervision Group has eight members in total.

Gneus carefully gathered the information of the other six members.

Lei En saw a few acquaintances.

Ten Thousand Spirits Wizard Andro, who is the Duke of Silver Star's most prized student—perhaps unrivaled—was a Level 15 Ten Thousand Spirits Wizard during the raid on Mazos years ago, and his summoning of a massive fish‑person legion left a deep impression.

Shortly after returning from Mazos, Andro ascended to Level 16, becoming a Legendary High-rank Wizard.

Sabbath Dean dispatched Sidney*Rikman, a teacher at BrewotzAcademy, a Level 19 Dark Mage whose strength is second only to the Dean, and also Brewotz's second Legendary Wizard with a chance to ascend to Holy Soul.

Lei En conjured in his mind a cold‑faced visage draped in long hair.

He had met Sidney several times during the Wizard exchange tournament.

Sidney's impression is that he is taciturn, never smiling, always clad in a loose black robe that seems to conceal many unsavory things. He appears as a black wizard, exuding a chilling aura that makes the academy's students very fearful; privately they nicknamed him "Viper."

The other teachers at the academy dare not interact much with Sidney, but Sabbath Dean trusts him greatly, appointing him as Vice‑Dean and granting him exceptional privileges.

The Soul Eye has observed Sidney.

Despite his notorious reputation, this Dark Mage possesses a sincere heart, caring deeply for his students; his poor expression leads to misunderstandings, cold outward but warm inside, and he is certainly a good person worth befriending.

Sidney's achievements in alchemy are outstanding, earning him the Sage title from the Empire Alchemical Association.

This is one rank above Alchemy Master; the Empire has fewer than twenty Alchemical Sages, and only those who have made sufficiently great contributions to alchemy qualify.

Storm Queen sent one of her students, named Alamanse. Lei En has heard of this Level 19 Arcane Mage; it is said Alamanse's magical talent is astonishing, even comparable to Duke Hong Shi. Before Lei En's appearance, Alamanse was the strongest among this generation's young Wizards.

Alamanse is just over forty this year and is already challenging Holy Soul Wizards.

Such a once‑in‑a‑lifetime prodigy, Storm Queen naturally cherishes her, providing all cultivation resources, granting any request, never allowing Alamanse to venture out, protecting her delicately—even down to the bedroom.

Lei En wondered why Storm Queen would be willing to part with her beloved student and lover.

Andro, Sidney, and Alamanse.

There is no need to worry about these three's stance; they are all staunch allies of his.

Their teachers or deans belong to the Mo Du faction; the teachers have certainly instructed them never to act recklessly and to follow his wishes.

Thus he now holds four votes within the Supervision Group.

Consul Gneus is also his man; even if he cannot show it too overtly, a slightly biased stance allows him to control the Supervision Group.

Lei En glanced at the list again.

The people sent by Duke Hong Shi are familiar; his student, Legendary Psychokineticist Winslow, first crossed paths at the Silver Star Academy and ascended to Legendary High-rank last year. KangJieladeGreatSage also dispatched another Alchemical Sage, Kailanna, an eighteen‑level female Elementalist.

Their stances are, of course, aligned—standing on the opposite side—but it no longer matters.

The Supervision Group are all my people; what do you have to fight me with?

Lei En sneered.

He looked at the last person on the list and asked, "Consul, are you familiar with Master 'Otiluk'?"

Otiluk is Tim*Kenan's representative; like the other members of the "Eight Leaves" organization that governs Flaniss Floating City, he is also a renowned Legendary Wizard who invented many "Force Field" and "Orb" series spells, naming them after himself.

Otiluk is a Level 19 Arcane Mage who has been challenging Holy Soul Wizards for years without success.

However, Lei En was not asking about Otiluk's power or reputation, but his stance. Wizards who follow the Balance doctrine are a bunch of fence‑sitters who like to hop back and forth; even if Otiluk's vote does not affect the overall situation, they still need to keep him in check.

Gneus was promoted by Tim*Kenan, so he is relatively familiar with the situation in Flaniss Floating City.

He deliberated for a few seconds and said, "Otiluk differs from the other Eight Leaves; he is very keen on politics. The Duke also trusts Otiluk greatly, entrusting him with Flaniss's daily administrative authority, and he has performed it well."

Keen on politics, that's not good news.

People like that usually have their own ideas and habitually use their power to gain personal benefit.

Lei En furrowed his brow and asked, "Will he align his stance with us?"

"I can't be certain," Gneus shook his head, "According to the Duke's Balance Theory, all things depend on balance; to maintain it one can change one's behavior at any time, which essentially means having no stance. The Duke will not force Otiluk to make any commitments, allowing him to adapt as needed."

Lei En couldn't help but curse, "A bunch of shit‑stirring sticks."

A few of the cabinet ministers nearby wore strange expressions, with a hint of disdain.

They have dealt with people from Flaniss; in the Empire's Parliament there are a group of deputies who are vassals of Tim*Kenan, each adhering to the Balance Theory. These individuals often cause trouble in many matters, siding with this side today, the opposite tomorrow, sometimes changing stance several times a day, which is both headache‑inducing and nauseating.

'Shit‑stirring sticks' is a very apt metaphor.

Gneus also suppressed a smile; Lei En could openly berate Flaniss Wizards, but they lack the courage and can only indulge in it in their hearts.

Moreover, he wants to secure the Consul throne, which cannot be done without Flaniss's support.

"Speaker Lei En," Gneus laughed, "Otiluk's stance is actually irrelevant; the Supervision Group has five of us, so he has no room to cause trouble." He paused, then added, "From what I know, Otiluk is quite ambitious and may also have designs on the Consul seat; Lei En, you should watch out."

Before Lei En could respond, someone expressed surprise.

Interior Minister Ambur*Herd spoke up, "He is a Legendary Peak Wizard with a chance to ascend to Holy Soul; why is he stirring this mess?"

In his view, the Consul position is inferior to that of a Holy Soul Wizard.

In fact, most people in the Empire share this view: a Consul serves a ten‑year term, at most four terms, whereas Supreme Council Holy Soul Wizards hold lifetime appointments, wielding supreme authority, enjoying a transcendent status, and need not handle mundane affairs—far better than being a Consul.

Chief of Staff Duberstane also rarely nodded, agreeing with Ambur's point.

But the others were unconvinced.

"Baron Herd is still too young," Finance Minister Aishelei chuckled lightly, "If a Holy Soul Wizard wishes to breakthrough they can succeed; the Empire no longer has only twelve Holy Soul Wizards. Master Otiluk indeed has a chance to ascend to Holy Soul, but given his age, it is actually impossible now."

Human souls begin to decay after reaching a certain age, and legendary super‑humans are the same, only postponing this stage to around four hundred years.

Beyond four hundred years, the difficulty of soul metamorphosis increases and becomes more dangerous.

It's not that there's no chance at all; it's just that after four hundred, as age increases, the likelihood of success diminishes.

Sabbath Dean, who has just ascended to Holy Soul Wizard, is only a little over three hundred years old.

An elderly legendary wizard may not have lost power; after many years of studying magic his strength even grows, but the probability of Holy Soul Ascension drops off a cliff.

Everyone knows that Ou Ti Lu Ke is already over eight hundred years old; even with some longevity methods, he will die within at most two hundred years.

This is inside information known only to transcendent beings above the legendary level.

An Bu Er's talent is mediocre; he is only a Mid-stage wizard, and Chief of Staff Du Bostan is no better, only reaching High-stage ranger in his fifties. Neither has a chance to ascend to legend; Holy Soul is far beyond them, and they have no personal sense of the difficulty of breaking through Saint Rank, even no real concept.

The others present are all legendary strongmen; it needs no explanation.

Ai Xi Lei only said An Bu Er was young, which was already very tactful; in fact she meant his power was low and he didn't understand things only legendary strongmen know.

An Bu Er's face turned a bit embarrassed: "Thank you, madam, for clearing that up."

Du Bostan silently felt relieved he hadn't spoken up; otherwise the embarrassment would have been his, and he also took perverse pleasure in An Bu Er's plight.

Lei En's gaze swept over the two without a flicker, turning the topic back: "Master Ou Ti Lu Ke is vying for the Consul's seat; does he want to leave his mark on Empire history?"

"Probably," Ge Niu Si smiled, "He has no hope of achieving higher feats in magic, so he is preparing to turn to politics."

Lei En's expression turned solemn as he nodded.

Ou Ti Lu Ke, using his role as a member of the oversight group, appeared in Nuosiruier, paving the way for his future campaign, which happens to clash with his own plan.

With his reputation and connections, he is definitely the strongest competitor for me.

Ge Niu Si, as the incumbent Consul, was originally a great advantage for him, but Tim*Kenan Master will surely fully back Ou Ti Lu Ke, pressuring Ge Niu Si. Given Ge Niu Si's nature, he will inevitably stay neutral or play both sides.

This effectively erases the incumbent Consul's support, greatly increasing the difficulty.

"Tricky!"

Lei En let out a sigh.

Fortunately Ge Niu Si still has five years left in this term, plus another ten‑year term, so he has fifteen years to prepare; no rush.

Ge Niu Si and the others guessed Lei En's thoughts and remained silent.

The terrace fell into a hush.

"Lei En," Ge Niu Si broke the silence, asking, "Regarding the Naiser oversight group's account audit, what are your thoughts now?"

The Supreme Council's resolution places the oversight work under the Consul's lead, but he now hopes Anxiwodasi will back his re‑election, so everything hinges on Lei En's direction.

"Since it's an audit, of course we must check whether they fabricated false accounts," Lei En replied as a matter of course.

The others looked at each other.

Hearing Lei En, they actually intended to investigate the Naiser Floating City's fake accounts.

If this had been a month ago, everyone would have thought Lei En was insane; now that Augulevi Master has disappeared, Naiser has fallen to this level—truly unimaginable.

As for whether Naiser has falsified accounts, no need to ask; there certainly are.

Naiser has over two thousand Wizards; the Floating City's resident population exceeds two hundred thousand, each flow of capital runs into the millions, even tens of millions of Gold Shield, and who knows how many profit within; pinpointing a few issues is downright easy.

Ge Niu Si thought for a moment, "If we uncover false accounts, then what?"

"Using that as a pretext to launch a dispute, reject their accounts, impose a timed remediation, and trace the Gold Shield flow. If problems persist, directly strip the Naiser Elders of their governance over the Floating City," Lei En said, having long planned it without hesitation.

Except for Ge Niu Si, everyone else inhaled a sharp gasp.

This is making enemies of all the Wizards of the entire Naiser Floating City!

The over two thousand Naiser Wizards are all students of the various Naiser Elders, the students' students, even the students' students' students, passed down generation after generation.

Stripping the Elders' rights, the Naiser Wizards would never consent.

"Lei En, is this too radical?" Ge Niu Si, who has long been in Nuosiruier, knows well how arrogant the Naiser Wizards are.

The Naiser Wizards are in fact the ruling class of the Imperial Capital, and Lei En's move will provoke strong opposition.

"What are you afraid of?"

Lei En's face was calm, "Do the Naiser Wizards still dare to violently resist? Without Holy Soul Wizards stationed, they are as fragile as pastry to be kneaded. Moreover we have the Supreme Council's backing; even if their numbers double, they won't stir up much trouble."

Ge Niu Si gave a wry smile.

Several cabinet ministers were also startled by Lei En's audacity; they wanted to say, "Your strength is formidable, you claim to be the top under Holy Soul, you even killed a Naiser Elder, of course you're not afraid, but we are!"

Lei En guessed their thoughts and soothed, "Of course, I'm not intentionally at odds with the Naiser Wizards. The audit isn't the goal, merely a means. My real aim is to make the Naiser Elders understand that allying with the Hong Shi Duke leads nowhere."

Speaking of the Hong Shi Duke, he sneered.

Then he continued, "I'm not trying to control Naiser; as long as they keep distance from the Hong Shi Duke and remain independent, that's enough."

Ge Niu Si frowned, pondering, "Given the ties between the Naiser Elders and the Hong Shi Duke, forcing them to sever the relationship will likely be very hard."

Several of his close aides thought the same.

Lei En, however, was confident, "The Naiser Elders aren't a monolith; we'll win over some, suppress some, divide some. After a few rounds, someone will surely cooperate with us. As for discerning the Naiser Elders' stance, leave that to me."

The crowd's eyes all brightened slightly.

Lei En's words captured the essence of political struggle; instantly none dared to underestimate him because of his age, silently noting it.

Ai Xi Lei's eyes flickered with admiration, saying, "Count, you come well prepared."

A twenty‑five‑year‑old, not even a tenth of her own age, dares to strike at the Naiser Floating City that has suppressed the Empire for a thousand years; a few words decide the fate of over two thousand Wizards. Such gallantry she had never seen, leaving her both amazed and deeply fascinated, her heart unable to resist the stirring.

The Soul Eye saw Ai Xi Lei's intention gradually turning green.

Lei En pretended not to notice, nodded, and said, "That's natural."

Ge Niu Si finally relaxed; Lei En isn't the type to act rashly on raw power, so he rose and said, "I understand; I'll cooperate with you when the time comes."

After the discussion, Lei En took his leave.

Ge Niu Si and several close aides escorted Lei En downstairs, watching him board a carriage that, under Extreme Warrior guard, set out of He Palace.

Only when the carriage vanished did Ge Niu Si turn back and sigh, "You've seen it now, right? This is a true hero."

The five all nodded together, each with different thoughts.

(End of Chapter)