Chapter 852: Blood Debt, Blood Repayment

Lei En never imagined that the Camera he invented would one day be used by the evil god's followers to spread terror and intimidate the Empire's people.

Blood‑stained photographs have an impact on the public that is countless times greater than mere rumors!

This is also a blatant provocation by the Loxhi followers against the Empire.

"Unforgivable!" Xicel lowly scolded.

The Justice Church loathes disruption of order above all; it could have downplayed the Consul's death, waited for the Supreme Council's decision, then announced it to the public, trying to minimize the sacrifice ceremony's impact on the Empire's situation, lest weak‑willed people be swayed by the evil god.

Now it cannot be concealed.

Only blood debt, blood repayment can offset the sacrifice ceremony's negative consequences.

The legendary Wizards were also incensed.

Xicel immediately ordered: "Send all members of the Order of the Sword out, notify the Public Security Department at once, have Nuosiruier's entire Security Officers cooperate with us, confiscate photographs household by household, and forbid any dissemination. Anyone who spreads the photos or resists shall be slain on the spot!"

"Yes, Lord Arbiter."

The legendary Holy Sword Knight loudly accepted the order and turned to run out.

Heisketo also ordered the Rick Imperial Guard, sending people onto the streets to confiscate photographs.

Lei En shook his head silently.

The spread of photographs is uncontrollable; the more they are banned, the more people become curious and cannot resist peeking. Loxhi followers have negatives in hand and can develop countless photos; now that the confiscation is over, more photos will continue to circulate at any time.

Not only Nuosiruier, every city of the Empire will see photographs.

Only vengeance can erase the panic caused by the photographs.

"Everyone, I must report this to the Crown," Xicel said, entering a room in the manor to send the message.

The Supreme Council was still deliberating; besides the Holy Soul Wizards, two Patriarchs from the Justice Church and the Earth Church also participated.

The legendary Wizards returned to the manor hall, silently waiting together.

No one spoke.

Lei En's soul eye swept over the crowd; each person's expression was heavy, at least on the surface, but their inner emotions differed.

The young Alamanshe and Andelo were simply angry;

Kailanna was very composed;

Sidney's mind was calm, with almost no emotional fluctuation;

Duo Fu was first angry, then bored, feeling the matter had little to do with them and unwilling to get deeply involved;

Otiluke's mind was the most active, seemingly contemplating many matters.

This legendary Wizard was keen on politics, having started preparing years ago for the election of the next Consul; like himself, he had no immediate intention to replace Ge Nius. Moreover, Ge Nius had originally been the candidate put forward by TimKainanMaster, and was one of his own.

However, Otiluke also entered this round's election to build his own momentum.

Previously he never expected to win; he only wanted to become a familiar face before the Empire's senators, to make early contacts with the imperial capital's upper echelons, paving the way for the election ten years later.

Ge Nius suddenly died, and the situation shifted abruptly.

What was originally just a supporting run now seems to have a chance, and the hope is huge!

Besides Ge Nius, there are two other candidates; Otiluke is one, and the other is a nominee put forward by the Naisepai, also mainly participating.

That nominee hails from GrandSage KangJieladeGreatSage's Ai En Floating City, also a legendary Wizard; his strength is unremarkable, but he enjoys considerable reputation in the Alchemical Association, having earned the title "Alchemical Sage" many years ago, and runs for office merely to pad his résumé.

The registration deadline for the Consul election was the end of June, and four months have already passed.

That means, if the Supreme Council does not amend the rules, the next Consul will be chosen between Otiluke and that Alchemical Sage.

Otiluke feels secure!

That Alchemical Sage poses little threat to him; with the full backing of his mentor, the Consul's seat is his by right.

Becoming Consul ten years early, and almost by luck, fills him with great exhilaration.

Others in the hall also realized this, repeatedly casting glances at Otiluke.

He strives to stay calm, knowing he must not become complacent while Ge Nius's death is still fresh and revenge unclaimed.

Lei En sees Otiluke's thoughts crystal clearly.

He himself is determined to claim the Consul's throne.

Ge Nius's death disrupted his plans, pulling everything forward by ten years; many things were unprepared, rushed, yet not entirely without confidence. If handled properly, it might turn disaster into advantage, saving ten years.

Revenge against the Loxhi followers on behalf of the Consul is imperative.

Whoever avenges Ge Nius's blood will wield massive political capital, win the people's hearts, and smooth the path for the election of the new Consul.

However, Lei En always feels that behind Ge Nius's death lies a conspiracy!

Over a month ago, he already sensed faint clues.

Ge Nius was hesitant about his invitation; although he eventually attended the unveiling ceremony of the God of Magic statue, he seemed distracted during the event, only returning to normal when he finally took the stage to speak, then left hurriedly after it ended.

If it were merely an assassination by Loxhi followers, Ge Nius could not have been alert.

There must be other factors!

Lei En immediately thought of one person: Duke Hong Shi Kellston.

Back then in Longshande, he discovered Kellston colluding with Loxhi followers; two years ago, during a Floating City transaction, he was ambushed by the Shadow King, making Kellston highly likely to be a mastermind as well.

That Shadow King is a manifestation of the Trickery Master, thus able to risk his life for a suicide attack.

All this proves Kellston can command Loxhi followers; at the very least, he can get a Trickery Master to cooperate.

In the past two years, Thundercast Celestial Soldiers have been lurking in Urgel City, orchestrating many deeds.

They assassinated important officials under Kellston, spread scandalous rumors, sabotaged the tax system of the Northern Great Prairie, infiltrated ParrasFloatingCity's interior, occasionally causing trouble, using various means to delay ParrasFloatingCity's restoration, leaving the Floating City in chaos and everyone on edge.

However, Thundercast Celestial Soldiers dare not expose themselves before Kellston, relying on behind‑the‑scenes maneuvers that only cause some trouble.

Kellston constantly guarded the Floating City's control room, never leaving his post, giving no chance at all.

Three months ago, the Floating City finally completed its restoration and took off again.

Now Kellston has finally made a move.

If Kai'ersitong colluded with the Luo Xi believers to kill Consul Ge Niewu Si, then what is his motive?

Replacing the Consul with another person, regardless of which faction they belong to, will not change the Mo Du faction's control of half the votes in the Supreme Council.

Consul Ge Niewu Si is a member of the Balance faction.

Now the Balance and Naiser factions have joined forces against the Mo Du faction; if Kai'ersitong does this, TimKainanMaster would certainly not allow it. If Tim*Kenan learns that the mastermind is Kai'ersitong, or that it was carried out through the hands of the Luo Xi believers, his fierce temper would never tolerate it.

A sudden fallout on the spot is possible.

The fragile alliance of the two factions is bound to collapse, making it even more impossible to oppose the Mo Du faction.

Unless Kai'ersitong is confident that Tim*Kenan will not detect that he is the mastermind, or rather, he does not know that his connection with the Luo Xi believers has already been exposed.

Thus he dares to brazenly collude secretly with the Luo Xi believers, repeatedly using them as a knife to kill.

The more Lei En thinks about it, the more plausible it seems.

Kai'ersitong still does not know that he recognized him at the Silver Star Academy in Longshande, nor that he possesses the Soul Eye that can see that the Shadow King is a manifestation of the Trickster Master.

This is an information gap that can be well exploited!

Lei En's peripheral vision swept over Mengtalin.

This Kai'ersitong, the most outstanding student, the No. 2 figure in ParrasFloatingCity, is not as calm inside as he appears on the surface.

However, Mengtalin's emotion is mainly surprise, clearly unaware of Consul Ge Niewu Si's death.

Is he completely unaware of Kai'ersitong's actions?

Or perhaps Consul Ge Niewu Si's death has nothing to do with Kai'ersitong?

The Luo Xi believers may collude with Kai'ersitong, but they are not necessarily bound to obey his orders completely. Killing the Empire's Consul and offering the soul to Luo Xi is a blow too great to the Empire and the God of Magic's followers; the Luo Xi believers would never miss such an opportunity, even if Kai'ersitong cannot stop it.

Lei En pondered for a long time but could not reach a conclusion.

Until evening.

A low voice rang in the manor hall: "I am Tim*Kenan. All Empire Senators in Nuosiruier, arrive at the Empire Council Hall within a quarter hour."

The Supreme Council has reached a decision.

The legendary Wizards exchanged glances, opened a portal, and Hai Si Ke Tuo and Xicero stepped through.

The Empire Council Hall is within the Temple of Truth, which lies inside Fubei Deng Castle; it faces He Palace, situated on opposite sides of the plaza in front of Rike Palace.

The entire space of Fubei Deng Castle has been sealed off.

The portal's landing point was before the Imperial Palace Gate; Lei En arrived and saw portals opening nearby, with Empire Senators emerging one by one. Each wore a heavy, solemn expression; they nodded to each other without speaking.

Obviously, the news of the Consul's death has already spread throughout Nuosiruier.

Lei En passed through the Rike Guard's gate, stepped onto the plaza before the Imperial Palace, walked along the wide central walkway for a stretch, then turned right.

A towering hundred‑meter‑high statue of the Magic Goddess stood before him.

For the past thousand years it was the tallest goddess statue in the world, until a little over a month ago it was replaced by the Magic Goddess statue on Truth Island.

At the statue's base lies the "Temple of Truth".

The Empire Senators silently prayed as they passed the statue, then climbed the steps into the Temple of Truth, entered the most spacious hall of the temple, which is the Empire Council Hall.

The Empire Council Hall was solemn and majestic.

Over three hundred seats were arranged in a fan shape; directly ahead was the podium, with the front‑row seats lowest, rising row by row like a slope, allowing all seated Senators to see the stage.

Empire Senators have no fixed seats, though they shift as their rank rises.

In recent years Lei En has attended several meetings, his seat moving progressively forward; he walked to the front row, sat down, and looked at the Holy Soul Wizards on the stage.

All twelve Holy Soul Wizards have arrived.

However, only Duke GreyEagle Tim*Kenan is present in person; the other Holy Soul Wizards are magical projections.

Tim*Kenan's attire never changes: he wears a heavy black magical robe, his tall, robust frame filling it out, his head shaved, a short beard on his chin, eyes calm, and his rugged face shows no hint of expression.

He stands on the stage like a statue, watching the Empire Senators enter.

An invisible storm presses on the Senators' hearts, like the calm before a storm, making them feel suffocated.

Soon, the quarter hour elapsed.

The hall was nearly half full; this session of Empire Senators numbers 323, mostly scattered across the Empire, with only a few dozen normally stationed in Nuosiruier.

Now, however, almost half the Senators are present; many received the news and arrived that afternoon.

Bang!

Duke GreyEagle raised his hand, and the hall's great doors slammed shut; the Rike Guard stood outside, preventing tardy Empire Senators from entering.

"Senators."

Tim*Kenan said without any preamble, getting straight to the point: "Last night, Consul Ge Niewu Si was assassinated by a false‑god follower and offered as a sacrifice to the deceiver Luo Xi."

His voice showed no inflection, as if stating a trivial matter.

Yet this news was like a heavy bomb; the Empire Senators, upon receiving it, mostly remained skeptical, but now hearing Duke GreyEagle confirm it personally, the Senators nearly exploded, instantly a wave of fury rose—some were shocked into silence, others shouted accusations.

"Quiet!"

Tim*Kenan's command silenced all the clamor, and he continued: "The Consul is the Empire's face; the Supreme Council grants the authority to govern the Empire, representing the Supreme Council's Willpower. The Luo Xi followers assassinating the Consul, and doing so with such cruelty, is an open declaration of war against the Empire, the Supreme Council, and the God of Magic!"

"We will never tolerate false‑god followers trampling the Empire's prestige beneath their feet, threatening our people."

"We have no choice but to fight."

"Blood debt must be repaid with blood; only the enemy's blood can cleanse the disgrace, avenge the Consul, and quell the Empire's people's fury!"

The Empire Senators listened attentively to Duke GreyEagle's words.

"Here, I, on behalf of the Supreme Council, announce three matters," Tim*Kenan said with a solemn face, loudly: "First, the Empire's administration must not be paralyzed; until a new Consul assumes office, I will act as Regent, temporarily exercising the Consul's authority."

"Second, the Supreme Council has decided to reopen nominations for the Consul's election; all Empire Senators are eligible, with the deadline being the last day of this month."

Lei En, hearing this, turned his head slightly and glanced at Otiluk not far away.

As expected, his face showed astonishment and disappointment.

"Third, the Empire will launch a retaliatory operation against Luo Xi's church, blood for blood, tooth for tooth. I will lead this campaign personally, deploying the Fu Kong Cheng and the Empire's legions, and Empire Senators may also join; you may bring your own troops and set out together."

Tim*Kenan's words fell.

The Empire's senators erupted in a clamor, each looking thoughtful.

The first matter was unsurprising: without a Consul, the Empire would still operate as usual, with a Holy Soul Wizard taking charge, as expected.

The next two matters must be linked together for interpretation.

The Supreme Council's meaning was crystal clear: whoever earns merit in the revenge operation qualifies to become the next Consul.

Immediately, many ambitious senators felt stirred.

Lord Duke.

An Empire senator raised his hand, received approval, then stood and asked, "May I ask, whom shall we take revenge upon? Where is our enemy?"

Tim*Kenan replied calmly, "The primary assassin of the Consul is Luoke Li'ang; at this moment, he is hidden in Banbei City of the Gupu Ta Kingdom."

The composed Lei En, upon hearing "Banbei City," was suddenly startled.

He couldn't help but look toward the Silver Star Duke on the stage.

Sigh, it's over two hours late; tomorrow will be updated as usual!

(End of chapter)