Chapter 652: Mysterious and Perplexing

"Augulevi Immortality Technique!"

While Lu Si Peier was briefing Ge Nie Wu Si, Lei En had already discerned De Sa De's cause of death: he had been imbued with the Immortality Technique but it was dispelled, causing him to die instantly.

The Immortality Technique is a Ten-ring Spell; it cannot be permanent, but it can last a hundred years. As long as the spell is active, the subject does not age naturally, locking the soul and body state, effectively extending life by a hundred years. Augulevi Master survived two thousand years by relying on it.

However, the biggest flaw of the Immortality Technique is that it can be dispelled.

Once the spell fails, the subject dies on the spot.

Lei En had interacted with De Sa De several times and knew he was very old; the Soul Eye estimated him at over 980 years, near the lifespan limit of legendary superhumans.

But he did not find the Immortality Technique on De Sa De.

In hindsight, it was his oversight: the Immortality Technique maintained De Sa De's soul state, showing no signs of decay or death, so he did not examine closely.

De Sa De must have suffered a soul trauma, or other factors, reducing his lifespan.

Thus, he could only survive by relying on the Immortality Technique.

Only one person in the world knows the Immortality Technique: its creator, Augulevi Master. De Sa De's Immortality Technique was bestowed by Augulevi Master, so De Sa De has been secretly serving Augulevi Master, even though he knows Augulevi Master has fallen, he dares not speak out.

Lei En's heart trembled.

A terrifying thought rose in his mind: was De Sa De killed by Augulevi Master?

He had always suspected Augulevi Master was not dead, merely lacking evidence; De Sa De's death seemed to confirm this speculation.

With Augulevi Master's terrifying power, the Justice Church's prison is as if nonexistent to him; he can come at will, leave at will, the Holy Sword Knight of the Sword of Order cannot even intervene, let alone be discovered.

A single Time Stop would solve it.

De Sa De's death process also matches the Holy Sword Knight's description: for a target affected by Time Stop, the senses experience a mental daze, knowing nothing, then it ends.

Augulevi Master feigned death to escape, distancing himself from the Empire. Hearing that De Sa De was captured and interrogated by the Justice Church, he traveled far to infiltrate Nuosiruier and kill to silence!

That speculation seems quite reasonable.

"No!"

Lei En suddenly came to his senses; there is a contradiction here.

If Augulevi Master is still alive, then the motive to kill and silence is to keep his existence hidden; with his magical prowess, there are countless ways to kill De Sa De without needing to dispel his Immortality Technique.

For example, Death Finger, Collapse Technique, Annihilation Sphere, advanced Disintegrate, Otherworld Vortex, or simply teleport De Sa De elsewhere before acting—none pose any difficulty and would leave no corpse.

Leaving De Sa De's corpse would be a definite blunder.

It's like the old saying, "There's no silver here, three hundred taels," deliberately making people suspect De Sa De's death is linked to Augulevi Master.

Lei En can be certain De Sa De was not killed by Augulevi Master.

Then who could it be?

This person knows the existence of the Immortality Technique and its flaw, and also knows De Sa De was imbued with it; thus the suspect must be Augulevi Master or someone close to De Sa De, at least having long‑term close contact, thereby knowing some of Augulevi Master's fallen secrets.

Furthermore, this person must possess the strength to infiltrate the prison and act.

Most importantly, killing De Sa De could enrage the Justice Church, causing them to suspect Duke Hong Shi, creating enmity between both sides—a win‑win.

Opposing Duke Hong Shi to cover Augulevi Master's silencing; the magic is superb yet cannot achieve a completely trace‑free result.

These conditions greatly narrow the suspect pool.

A familiar face flashed rapidly in Lei En's mind, his thoughts wavering and showing on his face, which Lu Si Peier noticed.

"Chairman Lei En, what have you discovered?" Lu Si Peier asked.

He stared at Lei En, his tone flat, seeming like a casual question, but Lei En felt great pressure; this Chief Arbitrator was already convinced he knew some inside info and was determined to extract it from him.

Lei En's thoughts shifted rapidly.

Only the Holy Soul Wizards of the Supreme Council know the secret of the Immortality Technique.

According to the teacher, Augulevi Master invented the Immortality Technique over five hundred years ago and never told anyone, until the Holy Soul Wizards noticed his lifespan had exceeded the limit and was abnormal, so they couldn't help but subtly inquire a few times.

The Holy Soul Wizards bore no malice; a few of them also had long lifespans and were genuinely concerned about their own longevity, so they earnestly asked.

Then Augulevi Master finally revealed the Immortality Technique.

He did not elaborate; the flaw that the Immortality Technique causes death when dispelled was actually deduced by other Holy Soul Wizards.

Now, those who know the Immortality Technique's secret should not exceed twenty.

Lu Si Peier and Ge Nie Wu Si clearly are unaware; otherwise, with their experience, they could spot De Sa De's cause of death at a glance.

"We cannot tell them for now; this concerns the mystery of Augulevi Master's disappearance."

Lei En quickly made a decision in his mind.

He shook his head and, half truthfully, said, "Chief Arbitrator, I am merely surprised by De Sa De's death state, as if struck by Death Finger and the Withering Technique; both are necromancy spells, hard to conceal, perhaps we could use Light‑shadow Retrospection to see something useful."

Lu Si Peier stared at Lei En for two or three seconds, a hint of displeasure in his eyes.

Holy Sword Knights cultivate the power of spiritual will, their perception is extremely sharp, especially to a target's emotional fluctuations; their mind is like a clear realm, instantly discerning good from evil, almost never erring.

As a Thirty-level Holy Sword Knight, Lu Si Peier's mastery in this area is unrivaled in the Church.

The sudden shift in Lei En's thoughts just now was clearly caught by him, indicating hidden motives; clearly Lei En was not truthful.

But Lei En's words were not without some merit.

Death Finger combined with the Withering Technique can indeed produce such a corpse condition.

If it were someone else, Lu Si Peier would not hold back, using Law‑command incantations to intimidate the interrogation, but with Lei En he must be cautious; this young man's strength is even beyond his comprehension, rumored to possess legendary Elemental Truth Will, rendering ordinary spiritual interrogation ineffective, and his backing is also remarkably powerful, so he cannot be easily offended.

"Alright, then let's first retrospect." Lu Si Peier nodded slowly.

Lei En's face was calm, "I propose we invite Elder Ke Luo Nuo Man Se to come over."

Lu Si Peier did not object.

Ge Nie Wu Si's reaction lagged half a beat; at this moment he also sensed a covert clash between Lei En and the Chief Arbitrator, and began to doubt.

A few minutes later, Ke Luo Nuo Man Se arrived.

The chief elder who had just taken charge of Fu Kong Cheng entered the cell, and at a glance saw De Sa De's corpse on the ground, his expression instantly becoming vivid.

Shock, hesitation, and bewilderment.

"Is this De Sa De?" Ke Luo Nuo Man Se asked in alarm.

After receiving a confirming reply, he was even more astonished, stepped forward and examined it closely a few times, shaking his head in disbelief, "How could he look like this? He doesn't seem like someone who just died. If the two gentlemen hadn't told me, I wouldn't dare believe this is De Sa De. Have you found any clues?"

"That is exactly why we asked you to come," Lu Si Pe Er said, "Use Light-Shadow Rewind to see what happened then."

"Fine." Ke Luo Nuo Man Se cast the spell without hesitation.

Light-Shadow Rewind is an Eight-Ring Spell, and only Legendary High-rank Wizards can master it.

Ke Luo Nuo Man Se raised his hand and cast swiftly; a few seconds later, an illusion appeared in the cell, as if time were flowing backward, showing past events in reverse. In the illusion, Ke Luo Nuo Man Se walked out of the cell backward, and after a few minutes, Lei En and the other two left backward as well, then large segments played in reverse, revealing the figures of Holy Sword Knights.

They discovered De Sa De's corpse and hurried to report.

The illusion continued to rewind until it reached the moment of De Sa De's death.

Everyone watched closely as the illusion suddenly froze, as if the image were locked, lagged for a few seconds, then resumed; De Sa De's corpse on the ground vanished, replaced by a living De Sa De, standing with a despondent expression and a vacant stare.

"What is happening?" Lu Si Pe Er asked.

Ke Luo Nuo Man Se said in a low voice, "Arcane interference. The other side was very cautious, using Arcane interference to block Light-Shadow Rewind, covering up what happened in those seconds."

He controlled the illusion to repeatedly rewind those seconds, and the result was always the same.

Either it was a blur, and nothing could be seen.

Or the image froze, skipping those seconds entirely; in short, De Sa De's death process was invisible.

This made Lu Si Pe Er and Ge Niewu Si's faces turn sour. Even though they had been mentally prepared that the murderer would certainly guard against Light-Shadow Rewind, they tried it with a sliver of hope, only to be disappointed.

Ge Niewu Si asked, "Elder Ke Luo Nuo Man Se, is there any other way to investigate?"

"Perhaps, but I cannot." Ke Luo Nuo Man Se stopped the Light-Shadow Rewind, thought seriously for a few seconds, and smiled wryly, "Given this person's magical strength, any method I can think of the other side can also think of, and they have made thorough preparations, so it won't be uncovered so easily."

"Holy Soul Wizard?" Ge Niewu Si whispered, his expression cautious.

Ke Luo Nuo Man Se's complexion shifted slightly, "Uncertain."

Lu Si Pe Er snorted coldly; like Ge Niewu Si, he also had a suspicion—this method resembled that of a Holy Soul Wizard. The Empire has only twelve Holy Soul Wizards, and aside from the Duke Hong Shi, no one else could be found with motive to murder and silence.

Though the action seemed foolish, like taking off one's pants to fart.

Yet after eliminating all impossible factors, no matter how incredible the remainder seemed, that is the truth!

Lu Si Pe Er suddenly looked at Lei En and asked, "Chairman Lei En, do you have anything else to say?"

"No."

Lei En shook his head in response, his face full of confusion.

Since Ke Luo Nuo Man Se entered, he had been observing the other side with his Soul Eye.

Unexpectedly, every word and deed of Ke Luo Nuo Man Se—whether the displayed shock and bewilderment, the unhesitant casting of Light-Shadow Rewind, or the cautious speculation about the murderer—matched his inner self, with no hint of pretense.

This shows that Ke Luo Nuo Man Se truly knows nothing, neither the Long-life Technique nor the identity of the murderer.

Unless the Soul Eye is faulty.

Lei En thought this impossible; the Soul Eye had never shown any deviation, it could read even the emotional shifts of a Saint Rank transcendent, let alone the Legendary High-rank Ke Luo Nuo Man Se.

Previously, Lei En had speculated that Ke Luo Nuo Man Se killed De Sa De.

He had already mastered two Nine-ring Techniques, one of which is Star Realm Projection, allowing remote possession of a creature to cast spells in battle, achieving the goal of killing De Sa De; he was one of Augulevi Master's most outstanding students, giving him access to the secrets of the Long-life Technique and even participation in Augulevi Master's plans; moreover, he and Duke Hong Shi harbored a grudge over the contest for Naisè Fu Kong Cheng, giving him motive to frame someone.

Lei En originally had over seventy percent confidence that Ke Luo Nuo Man Se was responsible, so he invited him over for on-site observation.

However, the Soul Eye's observation overturned that speculation.

De Sa De was not killed by Ke Luo Nuo Man Se; then who was it?

Other Naisè Elders?

Or perhaps it truly was Duke Hong Shi acting foolishly?

Lei En found himself completely clueless, as if layers of fog shrouded his eyes, unable to see the truth behind, not a single clue.

After a moment of silence in the cell, Lu Si Pe Er said lightly, "Then that's that."

"Your Majesty, shall we not continue the investigation?" Ge Niewu Si still had doubts.

"Of course we won't just let it go." Lu Si Pe Er glanced at the three, "The Justice Church will certainly continue the inquiry, but covertly. Tomorrow I will publicly announce De Sa De's death and cancel his trial, but that does not mean he can escape culpability; all his honors in life will be stripped and nailed to the pillar of historical disgrace."

Ge Niewu Si nodded, wisely saying nothing further.

De Sa De is already dead, so those charges are meaningless; the Justice Church has lost face this time, and its plan to assert authority has completely collapsed.

Lu Si Pe Er's words were merely my consolation.

Even if we suspect the hand of Duke Hong Shi, without evidence the Justice Church is powerless. Even with evidence, they would likely have to endure it; accusing a Holy Soul Wizard would trigger an empire-wide earthquake, shatter the Empire's order, cause countless deaths, which contradicts Tiriel's doctrine.

Lu Si Pe Er finished speaking and left.

Xi Sai Er, acting for the Grand Arbitrator, escorted the three out of the Justice Court.

Outside the Justice Court, after Xi Sai Er returned, Ge Niewu Si and Lei En exchanged glances, both smiling; this time the Justice Church and Duke Hong Shi have become enemies.

This is the outcome they were glad to see.

Ke Luo Nuo Man Se also realized, a corner of his mouth lifted, and he whispered, "Well, he died nicely!"

Lei En almost laughed at the Naisè Elder.

With De Sa De's death, many parties benefited; only the Justice Church and Duke Hong Shi are losers, and I, Ge Niewu Si, and Ke Luo Nuo Man Se all must thank that mysterious murderer.

After saying goodbye to the two, Lei En teleported back to Marlinge Manor and went to bed with Viola, who was waiting for him.

(End of Chapter)