Chapter 710: Mother's Parting Laughter

In a dark cave on the outskirts of Mosuobulai City, Yizite was teleported in, and upon seeing Reslin standing before him, finally let out a sigh of relief.

Reslin didn't waste any words, and continued to cast a spell to teleport him.

Each time he teleported to a location, he immediately employed Arcane interference to erase any trace, lest enemies track him. The Mirror Image lurking in Mosuobulai City had already seen that on the massive stone hill north of the city, many Zor mage priests flew out of the Spider Temple and the Mage Academy.

They were all startled by explosions triggered by the Flame Burst Technique; a few seconds after Yizite had just teleported away, another Grand Mage arrived on the scene.

The Mirror Image dared not get too close, only glancing from a distance.

"Grand Mage Geluofu!"

He is another Grand Mage of Mosuobulai City, whose age and status surpass those of Matriarch Maluos; he has served as dean of the Mage Academy for over four hundred years. Though he belongs to no Zor family, his authority is second only to the matriarch of the top-ranked Ban Rui family.

The Soul Eye judged that Grand Mage Geluofu's level exceeds th Level, and his power surpasses Matriarch Maluos by more than a notch.

Such formidable strength places him in the upper middle tier even within the Supreme Council.

Reslin dared not be careless at all; he hurriedly ordered the Mirror Image to shift its gaze and hide motionless in a dark corner, lest it be discovered.

After numerous teleportations, Reslin and Yizite had already put distance between themselves and Mosuobulai.

The Dark Realm's environment is extremely complex; being deep underground makes it hard to pinpoint teleportation destinations, so Reslin cannot perform long-range teleportation as on the surface—otherwise, a misstep could land him inside solid rock and be instantly crushed by billions of tons.

However, if one is familiar with the general geography, short-range teleportation remains fairly reliable.

"First, we stop here; after the turmoil in the city subsides, we'll return," Reslin estimated that they were a few hundred li from Mosuobulai, which was safe enough, and thus halted the teleportation.

"Fine."

Yizite nodded and dispelled his Demon transformation.

Reslin had intended to ask a few questions about Yizite's relationship with Matriarch Maluos, but seeing his low spirits and downcast expression, he kept silent.

The two stood on the bank of an underground dark river, surrounded only by the gentle sound of flowing water.

Shortly thereafter, the Mirror Image's duration expired.

Before the Mirror Image vanished, the one nearest the brothel ruins observed two Grand Mages exchange a few words; Zor members of the Storuoze family began treating the wounded and clearing corpses from the battlefield.

The two Grand Mages had already disappeared without a trace.

Reslin's gaze cautiously scanned the void, confirming the Grand Mage was not in pursuit; via a voice transmitter he contacted Asina and others, learning that Taibeilun had received an urgent notice, led the gray lizard cavalry in a citywide sweep, capturing many, yet no members of the Moonlight Church were taken.

This eased everyone's worries.

If this secret gathering had resulted in the Dark Girl's followers in Mosuobulai being wiped out in one sweep, the loss would have been catastrophic. Yizite's well‑meaning gesture instead turned into a grave mistake, one he would never be able to forgive himself for in his lifetime.

The two hid outside for several hours, and the turmoil in Mosuobulai City had already subsided.

"We should go back."

Reslin carefully performed the teleportation spell, first approaching Mosuobulai's outskirts, walking through tunnels to verify that the two Grand Mages had not set traps and that no one was watching from the shadows.

Even so, he did not teleport directly into the city; after both he and Yizite concealed themselves and slipped into the city, it took them a little over an hour to return to Taibeilun's home.

Taibeilun had just finished the citywide sweep and was heading home to rest.

Reslin and Yizite materialized in the room, seeing everyone present: Asina and two others, and Taibeilun's wife, Mu Jingling Tarui.

Seeing the two return safely, they finally relaxed.

"How's the situation?" Reslin asked.

"It should be fine this time," Taibeilun said, a hint of lingering fear on his darkened face and gratitude toward Reslin and Yizite. "Lord Reslin, today we were fortunate to have you here; you promptly uncovered that Kandisi was a wax‑melt demon in disguise, evacuated the brothers and sisters, and Yizite held back Matriarch Maluos—otherwise..."

The thought of that outcome terrified him.

Yizite slowly shook his head, "I called this gathering; even if it meant death, I had to ensure your safety."

"You need not blame yourself; the brothers and sisters have all received your covert aid," Taibeilun said sincerely. "Without you, most of us wouldn't have lived to see today."

"I should have returned earlier," Yizite sighed.

Had he been able to return to Mosuobulai a few years sooner, the Dark Girl's followers wouldn't have been cut by half, leaving just over 150.

"Alas..."

Taibeilun, also deeply saddened, said in a low voice, "I've always acted with extreme caution; before today, each gathering of brothers and sisters involved only a handful. Looking back, over the years they each exposed themselves—seemingly for various reasons, but all occurred shortly after contact with Kandisi."

"Kandisi was replaced by a wax‑melt demon long ago?" Yizite gritted his teeth.

"It must be," Taibeilun replied, extremely annoyed. "It's been at least ten years; I never suspected her. Tonight, during our full assembly, she finally couldn't resist acting, and this must be Matriarch Luomasi's plot behind it."

Upon mentioning Matriarch Maluos, he glanced at Yizite.

Yizite fell silent for a few seconds, his complexion growing increasingly grim, and said in a low voice, "She sacrificed the brothers' and sisters' lives to the Spider Queen, striking the Dark Girl's church to please that evil god."

The room fell silent.

Although the Dark Girl is the daughter of Spider Queen Ros, the hatred between mother and daughter deities is extremely fierce. Ros's loathing for the Dark Girl ranks only behind that of the elf sovereign Asurilon, who expelled her from Aoroan years ago—who is also the Dark Girl's father.

As a result, the Dark Girl was implicated, and the father‑daughter relationship became estranged, like strangers.

The Dark Girl also has an elder brother, the masked god Weirui En, who once took part in the conspiracy against their father; consequently, he and his mother were expelled, and among the evil beings of the Dark Realm he cultivated followers to sustain his divine power.

Weirui En is a subordinate deity of Spider Queen Ros, yet he has repeatedly rebelled against his mother's control, seeking to break free from her influence, but has never succeeded.

Weirui En and the Dark Girl are also adversaries; for ten thousand years, rumors have persisted that he covets his sister's beauty with illicit intent.

The dynamics among these four deities constitute the most famous family drama in the Ai Lun E Si world.

Divine conflicts, mortal suffering.

The Dark Girl's followers are the best offerings to the Spider Queen for the evil Zor, so the upper echelons of every Zor city spare no effort in capturing fugitives to please the deity.

This also creates a difficult situation for the Moonlight Church's believers.

Taibeilun broke the silence, saying, "The Storuoze family suffered massive losses this time—over fifty elite warriors and seven mages were slain on the spot, and roughly forty to fifty were wounded. Matriarch Maluos was incensed, quarreling fiercely with Lord Daknalun, vowing to kill you all herself, harvest your souls, and offer them to the Spider Queen."

When mentioning the casualties, Taibeilun glanced at Reslin.

Later, in his capacity as deputy commander of the gray lizard cavalry, he visited the site and learned that Reslin had indeed slain so many Zor, which startled him.

The Storuoze family rose because of Matriarch Maluos, becoming the most dazzling clan in Mosuobulai City for centuries, climbing to third place.

In recent years, among the aristocracy, a rumor circulates that the Storuoze family will challenge the top-ranked Ban Rui family.

The Ban Rui family is the oldest clan in Mosuobulai, with a profoundly deep foundation.

For thousands of years, other noble families have come and gone in batches, but the Banrui family has always stood firm. Matriarch Banrimu is especially favored by Spider Queen Ros and serves as the chief priestess of the Spider Temple.

No one originally believed the Storuoze family could replace the Banrui family's position, and after today's losses and failures, it has become even more impossible.

Moreover, the Storuoze family may not even be able to hold onto its third‑place ranking.

It would be surprising if Matriarch Maluos were not angry.

Taibailun mentioned that Lord Daknalun is the Martial Arts Chief of the Mosuobulai Combat Tower, a Saint Rank Zhor warrior.

He also holds the role of Yizite's father.

The teammates have heard Yizite mention it two or three times; he was trained by Daknalun in his childhood for over a decade, and only later learned that the trainer was his biological father.

Dark elves are a matriarchal society with no father role; Matriarch Maluos was attracted to Daknalun's talent and mated with him, bearing several children, so neither father nor son paid much mind to it, and Yizite continued receiving instruction.

Later, for unknown reasons, the father and son fell into disagreement, growing farther apart, and even after Yizite fled Mosuobulai, the rift did not ease.

Yizite, after hearing Taibailun's words, felt a great satisfaction and sneered, "Sooner or later, I will personally destroy this sinful family; today is only the beginning."

Reslin and the others all stared at each other in bewilderment.

Father resigns, son laughs; mother and son fall out; the dark maiden's family is like this, and Yizite's family is the same—could this be a dark elf family tradition?

Taibailun clearly knew the inside story, so he did not bring it up again.

He then asked, "What should we do next? Should we continue the plan to notify brothers and sisters of the evacuation in six months?"

"Of course we should continue," Yizite replied, "but we need to lie low for a while, at least two or three months before contacting again."

"But our means of communication have already been seized by the enemy," Taibailun said with a troubled expression.

Yizite asked directly, "How many people's true identities do you know?"

"Um…" Taibailun hesitated, "Some brothers and sisters who trust me have secretly revealed their true identities; roughly four or five."

"First find an opportunity to inform these few, using a single line of contact," Yizite thought aloud. "We'll figure out the rest later; perhaps they also know some clan members' identities, so they can inform each other. After tonight's incident, everyone is trustworthy, and since we're evacuating, publicly revealing identities has no real consequence."

"What if someone can't be notified?" Taibailun still felt uneasy.

Yizite was also somewhat at a loss.

Reslin suddenly said, "I know each of their addresses; I'll give them to you in a moment. You have six months to find them, it shouldn't be hard."

The two Zhor cast bewildered glances.

"My Mirror Image recorded them when it sent them away," Reslin smiled.

Taibailun's heart roiled with turbulent waves, yet he secretly felt relieved that Reslin was on his side; otherwise it would have been disastrous.

He remained expressionless, nodded, and said, "Then there's no problem."

If the addresses are known yet the people can't be found, I wouldn't need to serve as the deputy commander of the Gray Lizard Cavalry Regiment; the Zhor beneath me would have already eliminated me and taken my position.

The group discussed a few more details before dispersing to rest.

Taibailun rested for half a day and then hurried out.

The battle that took place in the commercial district lingered for several days; several Zhor noble families covertly fanned the flames, seizing the chance to attack the Storuoze family. The intense upper‑level fighting caused additional casualties, and the residents of Mosuobulai City lived in constant fear until the Storuoze family's ranking fell by two places to fifth, after which the aftershocks gradually subsided.

Reslin and the four others hid in Taibailun's house for ten days; after confirming that no members of the Moonlight Church had been uncovered and that everyone was safe, they finally left Mosuobulai City.

They headed westward.

The middle layer of the dark region spans a vast area of countless caves, far more dangerous than the upper layer, and the number of battles experienced has greatly increased.

It was the fourth day after emerging from Mosuobulai.

The party had already advanced far, with more than half the distance to the entrance leading to the lower layer covered.

Reslin sat atop a summoned phantom horse, traversing a deep, intricate cavern; he seemed to do nothing, yet he was continuously attuning to the sounds of all things.

In this dark world, hearing is a more useful ability than sight.

"Hm?"

Reslin's ears twitched; a faint, gentle song drifted through the air, as if someone were chanting in a breathy voice.

The singing was extremely faint, its source coming from a cave ahead.

He listened intently yet could not discern the lyrics, but sensed a rare tranquil serenity, not indicative of malice or an ambush.

Reslin felt a slight stir in his heart and warned, "Someone is singing up ahead."

The teammates were startled, listened while walking but heard nothing, continued through the cavern for a long time, and finally also heard the song.

After a moment, they passed through a winding tunnel several li long and emerged from the cavern.

A massive cavern opened before them, housing a towering underground forest with luxuriant foliage. The five of them at once saw an anomaly: in the forest's center lay a clearing with a blazing campfire, its bright flames illuminating the surroundings, and a several‑metre‑tall boulder stood within the clearing.

Above the clearing, a slab of pure moonlight shone down, falling upon the boulder.

Under the moonlight, a naked female Zhor wielding a silver sword danced gracefully atop the boulder; her silver hair cascaded to her ankles like a waterfall, soaring in the air with her free, elegant movements, sweat gliding over her black‑jade skin and sparkling with enchanting moonlight, dreamlike and ethereal.

Seeing this scene, Reslin and the others were all stunned.

(End of Chapter)