Book 17, Indigo Prefecture – Chapter 52, Two Drops of Sovereign’s Might
Phusro, Gislason, and everyone else were momentarily speechless.
“Grandpa!”
At this moment, Bebe immediately spoke out, his face filled with delight. “I know why they are puzzled. It is because everyone says…that according to legend, only a Highgod who has become a Paragon is able to perfectly control Sovereign’s Might.”
Beirut looked around at the people within the room.
“Legend…all of you know that is just a legend, right?” Beirut laughed calmly. “Paragon Highgods are able to do it, but does that necessarily mean that no other Highgods are able to do it? All of you are too rigid in your thinking!”
Legends were nothing more than legends, after all!
Reality wasn’t necessarily the same as legends.
“Beirut…admirable, admirable. No wonder your almighty Sovereign values you so much.” Phusro laughed. Generally speaking, Emissaries were mere subordinates to their Sovereign. The death of a Sovereign’s Emissary just meant that the Sovereign could go find another one.
But some Emissaries were exceedingly valued and held in high regard by their Sovereign.
For example, Highgod Paragons. Although Beirut wasn’t a Highgod Paragon, his Sovereign still held him in extremely high regard.
“Forget about me; your Sovereign values you greatly as well.” Beirut laughed.
Phusro, hearing this, couldn’t help but laugh as well. That fire-type Sovereign had personally competed against him, starting with material attacks and spiritual attacks and moving to other aspects. Only at the very end did the fire-type Sovereign reveal his identity. For a Sovereign to lower himself to spar with Phusro…naturally, he didn’t view or treat Phusro as an ordinary chess piece.
As Phusro and Beirut chatted, the four Patriarchs and Elders just stood there and listened, not daring to interject. After all, the two were both Sovereign’s Emissaries.
Beirut turned to glance at Linley, and then instructed Gislason and the others, “Enough. Everyone, no need to keep crowding the two of them in this room. Linley and his wife undoubtedly have quite a few private words they want to share with each other. You can go out for now.”
Only now did Gislason and the others come to their senses, and they hurriedly nodded.
“Lord Prefect, Linley’s wife has been treated and cured thanks to your arrival. Tonight, our Four Divine Beasts clan will host a celebratory banquet for her cure and your arrival. What do you say?” Gislason said.
“Alright then. Tonight, you can send someone over. For now, I want to chat with Bebe for a time.” Beirut laughed as he looked at Bebe, rubbing Bebe’s head.
Bebe just cocked his head sideways, immediately dodging.
“Lord Prefect!” Suddenly, a clear voice rang out. “There’s something I want to beg of you, Lord Prefect.”
“Little Sis.” Gislason couldn’t help but hurriedly send through divine sense, “Let’s hurry up and leave.” Clearly, upon seeing that Beirut had already asked them to leave, it would be imprudent for them to stay.
Beirut couldn’t help but frown, dissatisfied. He turned to look, and he saw that the speaker was the Grand Elder of the Azure Dragon clan. The Grand Elder clan said solemnly, “Lord Prefect, this time, quite a few others aside from Linley’s wife had also fainted, and their situation is the same as hers! I wonder, Lord Prefect, if you would be willing to help…”
“Hmph!” Beirut let out a cold snort. His thick black eyebrows suddenly turned stiff, and his gaze turned cold as he looked at her.
“Little Sis!” Gislason barked as well.
“Laughable!”
Beirut’s gaze drilled down towards the Grand Elder. “Saving a person uses up Sovereign’s Might! Uses up my own energy! It is easy for you to say…and what’s more, what do the lives of your people have to do with me? By your line of reasoning…whenever anyone in the entire Infernal Realm is wounded or in danger, I, Beirut, should appear and rescue them!”
Seeing Beirut angered, the clan leaders and Elders of the Four Divine Beasts clan were shocked.
Good heavens. The only reason why their Four Divine Beasts clan was able to survive here within the Skyrite Mountains was all because of Beirut. If Beirut simply stopped helping them, the entire Four Divine Beasts clan, under the combined attacks of their enemies, would be finished.
Faced with Beirut’s anger, the Grand Elder didn’t dare to say another word either.
“Lord Prefect, I apologize. My little sister is just worried about her clansmen.” Gislason said apologetically, and then immediately led everyone away.
“Beirut, when you lost your temper, you frightened that female Elder so much, she didn’t dare say another word. Jeeze, Beirut. You could’ve just said no. Why lose your temper?” Phusro laughed. Beirut’s face returned to its normal, pleasant smiling expression as well.
“Phusro, there’s no need to receive outsiders like them with a smile at all times. Otherwise, some people will go farther and farther out of bounds.” Beirut said with a calm laugh
Beirut wasn’t the soft-hearted type. In the battles in the Yulan continent, no matter how many people died, Beirut hadn’t cared at all. As he saw it, life and death were both part of the laws of nature.
Each person would eventually die.
Deities would theoretically have an unlimited lifespan, true. But in the entire Infernal Realm, countless Deities were dying in battle each day. If they didn’t have a connection to him, why would he care about them and why would he intervene?
“Grandpa, let’s go back.” Bebe urged.
Beirut began to laugh. “Right. We’re disturbing Linley and his wife.”
“Lord Beirut, thank you, truly.” Linley held Delia’s hand as he spoke words of gratitude towards Beirut. Beirut had saved Delia this time, yet there was nothing Linley could do to repay this.
“Haha….” Beirut began to laugh. “Alright. I won’t disturb you two, husband and wife, any further.”
Beirut immediately led Phusro and Bebe away, and in the entire room, only Linley and Delia remained.
Within the room.
Linley began to slowly explained what had happened in recent days to Delia. Delia just sat there listening. Although Linley was very calm when speaking, Delia could sense from Linley’s words how much terror and despair Linley had felt, as well as the excitement he had felt when hope had been birthed from despair.
“Delia, if Lord Beirut hadn’t saved you this time…I really cannot even begin to imagine what the future would be like, after you died.” Linley sighed emotionally. “Training? Training for what? Even if I become powerful, what’s the point? Without you, no matter how powerful I am, what’s the point?”
Delia’s death, to Linley, would have caused his future to fade to utter black.
He wouldn’t have any hopes!
He wouldn’t have any motivation!
Hearing his words, Delia’s eyes glistened with moistness. She immediately stretched her arms out, hugging Linley. She hurriedly said, “Linley, say no more. I’m already healed now. I’m fine!”
“Right. You are fine!”
Linley stroked Delia’s face and nodded. “Delia, I have never been so excited, so happy, so energetic before! When I saw you open your eyes, when I saw the colors in your eyes…I felt as though my entire body was filled with life!”
“For your sake, for our child’s sake, I will continue to strive hard to continuously improve myself, to become powerful!” Linley looked at Delia. “With you by my side, I fear nothing!”
The tears began to roll down Delia’s face as she listened, but her face was covered with a smile of contentment and bliss.
“Delia!” Linley stretched his hand out, and a drop of water-type Sovereign’s Might appeared. “This is water-type Sovereign’s Might. This time, if I had given you a drop of Sovereign’s Might early on, you wouldn’t have been in any danger. Fortunately, you are fine now, but I don’t want this sort of event to occur again. Take this drop of Sovereign’s Might!”
“Linley, no…” Delia, upon seeing the Sovereign’s Might, immediately refused.
“Take it!”
Linley said solemnly, “Delia, after this event, I now understand that there will be times when I cannot protect you. By holding a drop of Sovereign’s Might, at a critical point in time, you will be able to preserve your own life. This Sovereign’s Might is highly effective in both soul defense and material defense. Delia, don’t refuse!”
Delia looked at Linley. She knew him very well and understood his temper.
“Fine. I’ll take it.” Delia didn’t refuse any further.
Only now did a smile appear again on Linley’s face. He stretched his arm out, pulling Delia closer, and she nestled into his embrace. “After having lost something, one values it all the more. I’ve tasted loss once. I don’t want to taste it again!”
“You won’t, you won’t.” A smile was on Delia’s face.
“Right.”
Linley said in acknowledgement. For a moment, both fell silent.
And just like that, the two leaned against each other, sensing each other’s breathing, enjoying that warmth, that peace…
That very night. The Skyrite Mountains. The four clan leaders of the Four Divine Beasts clan, a large group of Elders, and even many Elders who had lost their most powerful bodies were gathered together for a banquet. After all, the guest of honor this time was the savior of their Four Divine Beasts clan, the Lord Prefect of Indigo Prefecture!
When they knew of the relationship between Beirut, Bebe, and Linley, all of them were shocked.
Exchanging toasts and celebrating joyously, everyone drank together happily.
“Elder Linley!” Gislason, seated on the throne at the front of the hall, said in a loud voice, “This time, you battled against eight Elders. Although you used up a drop of Sovereign’s Might, you also killed fully five of the enemy Seven Star Fiends.”
Linley couldn’t help but look towards him..
“I know that you specialize in the Laws of the Earth. This time, I had a meeting with the Patriarch of the Black Tortoise clan. Killing five enemy Elders is a major accomplishment. The clan thus bestows upon you two drops of Sovereign’s Might; one drop of water-type Sovereign’s Might, and one drop of earth-type Sovereign’s Might.” Gislason laughed as he spoke.
“Linley, by using this earth-type Sovereign’s Might with your Gravitational Space technique, the power will be much greater.” A deep, rumbling voice rang out. It was the Black Tortoise Patriarch
Linley hurriedly stood up, moving to the center of the hall.
At the same time, Sovereign’s Might floated out from the hands of Gislason as well as the Black Tortoise Patriarch. One was a blue drop of water, while the other was an earthen yellow liquid. Linley immediately accepted them, storing them into his Coiling Dragon ring.
“Thank you, Patriarchs.” Linley bowed.
“After having rendered merits, one must be rewarded. This is the rule of the clan.” Gislason laughed. “Alright. Take your seat again. Everyone, keep drinking.”
Phusro and Beirut, also seated in the front of the main hall, exchanged glances, then laughed.
Below them, however, the unassuming Elder Forhan felt unhappiness in his heart.
“Father.” Emanuel sent through divine sense.
This was a major celebratory event, and so many people had come. The clan still held in great esteem those warriors who had lost their most powerful divine clones in battle and who in terms of power were no longer worth of being called ‘Elders’. These people still had a fairly high status within the clan, and they were invited to attend this banquet as well. Emanuel was one of them.
“The Patriarch seems to be too biased.” Emanuel sent through divine sense. “According to the rules of the clan, if an Elder uses up a drop of Sovereign’s Might in battle, generally speaking, he’ll just receive another one in compensation. Even if the Elder rendered a significant amount of merit, at most he’ll just receive some words of praise. After all, the clan no longer has much Sovereign’s Might left.”
“Hmph.” Forhan replied through divine sense. “It’s all because of the Lord Prefect of Indigo Prefecture. Otherwise, how could they give Linley two drops of Soveriegn’s Might? I really don’t know how Linley has such bullshit luck. He actually even has a relationship with the Lord Prefect of Indigo Prefecture!”
Forhan was extremely unhappy.
Linley being in possession of the Azure Dragon ring was something which Forhan was already rather unhappy about. And now, it seemed as though Linley’s relationship with the Lord Prefect of Indigo Prefecture was incredibly strong as well. Naturally, Forhan was smoldering. But although he was angry, he didn’t dare show it on his face.
On his face, he was still smiling. He even raised his glass in a toast. “Elder Linley, truest congratulations. Come, cheers!”
Linley was seated on the left seat of honor, fairly close to Beirut, who was seated in the front of the hall. Beirut looked towards Linley, then said through divine sense, “Linley, I heard that on the way back, you suffered a joint attack from eight enemy Elders?”
“Right.” Linley was puzzled by this as well. He sent back through divine sense, “This is indeed fishy. First of all, I changed my appearance. Second of all, as soon as I exited the city, they attacked en masse. And third, the enemy sent out eight Elders! They wouldn’t do that without complete certainty.”
Beirut was momentarily silent, then sent back through divine sense, “Phusro discussed this with me as well. I’ve carefully analyzed the situation, and I suspect…that someone within the clan probably leaked out your information.”
Linley was stunned.
“Linley, tell me, is there anyone you suspect?” Beirut sent mentally.
Linley naturally had someone he suspected.
“Lord Beirut, I have no proof at all. And there’s no way to be absolutely sure if there is even a traitor involved at all! Empty suspicions are useless to voice.” Linley sent.
“Don’t worry about if it is ‘useless’ or not. Just tell me, is there someone you suspect! Tell me who the person you suspect is!” Beirut said.
Linley hesitated, then said, “There is a person. That time, when I mounted on my metallic lifeform and left, he saw me leave as well. Within the clan, the only people I have a conflict with is him and his son.”
“Who is it?” Beirut asked.
“Forhan!” Linley finally said the name.
“Which one is he? Is he within the hall?” Beirut asked.
“Yes.” Linley replied. “He’s the fifth one on the row in front of us.”
Beirut followed Linley’s gesture. Turning his head, he saw that Forhan was currently exchanging toasts with another Elder while saying, “The clan’s situation is growing tougher and tougher. Last time, when I encountered an enemy Elder, I was nearly finished.”
“Oh, the one with gold hair?” Beirut sent back through divine sense and asked.
Linley replied, “That’s the one!”