Border Town

The next morning, Lin Qin and Aileen continued on their way. By noon, they reached a border checkpoint in the Yulan Empire. Compared to the desolate lands they had passed through, this place was far more orderly. The towering stone watchtowers, the soldiers in uniform armor—everything spoke of the Empire's order.

As they waited in line for inspection, they heard the people ahead of them talking.

"Did you hear? A village in the north was slaughtered a couple of days ago. Those scum from the Dark Church did it again!"

"Damn it, those rats in the gutter are getting bolder and bolder!"

"The Purple Flame Legion has already been sent to wipe them out. Let's hope they drive them back to their lair."

Lin Qin and Aileen exchanged a glance. Both saw the concern in the other's eyes. The Dark Church seemed to be expanding its reach.

When their turn came, the soldiers noticed Aileen's mage robe and Lin Qin's air of distinction, and treated them with greater courtesy. After briefly asking where they came from and where they were headed, the soldiers let them through.

Passing the checkpoint meant they had officially entered the Yulan Empire. The roads became wider and smoother, and more orderly villages and farmland lined the way.

By dusk, they arrived at a border town called Blue Water Town. It was far more prosperous than the mining town they had visited before, with shops lining the streets and people coming and going.

They found a clean-looking inn and checked in. Once they had settled, Aileen suggested visiting the town market to replenish their travel supplies and gather some news.

Blue Water Town's market was bustling. Aileen carefully picked out fresh fruit, vegetables, and dried meat, while Lin Qin browsed a nearby weapon shop. Nothing caught his eye.

"Have you heard? The Purple Flame Legion fought the Dark Church in the Withered Bone Hills!" a leather merchant said to someone beside him.

"How did it go?"

"Not sure. They don't seem to have gained much ground. The Dark Church had some tough fighters. I heard a Saint Realm Necromancer got involved!"

"A Saint Realm Necromancer?! Then that means..."

"Shh... Keep your voice down!"

Lin Qin listened to the gossip. The Purple Flame Legion was one of the Yulan Empire's elite forces. If even they were having trouble, the Dark Church must have brought a considerable force this time.

Just then, a commotion broke out nearby. Several people dressed in Temple of Light robes were handing something out in the market, their manner rather haughty.

"May the Sovereign of Light protect you! Lost lambs, accept the baptism of light!" one of the leading priests proclaimed loudly, pressing wooden plaques carved with Light God Runes into passersby's hands.

Many accepted them respectfully, though some looked annoyed and quietly kept their distance.

"The Radiant Church is active here, too," Aileen murmured to Lin Qin. After the destruction of Fenlai City, the Radiant Church had suffered a heavy blow. It seemed they were eager to expand their influence within the Empire.

Lin Qin nodded. Both Theocracies were active in the Empire. That could only spell trouble.

They finished shopping and were about to head back to the inn when they suddenly heard cries from up ahead. A raggedly dressed woman was kneeling on the ground, clutching an unconscious little boy and weeping. "My child! Someone, please save my child! He was fine just a moment ago, then suddenly collapsed!"

People gathered around, talking among themselves.

"Did he suddenly fall ill?"

"Doesn't look like it. His face is turning blue..."

"Could it be... a curse?"

Lin Qin's gaze sharpened. He sensed an extremely faint trace of dark energy clinging to the boy. It came from the same source as the energy in the mine and the Death Desert, but was far more concealed.

Aileen sensed it too and looked at Lin Qin. He gave a slight nod.

Aileen immediately stepped forward. "Let me take a look. I'm a Water Element mage."

The woman clung to her like a drowning person grasping at a lifeline. "Mage, please! Save my child!"

Aileen crouched down. A gentle blue glow rose from her hands as she carefully placed them on the boy's forehead. Pure Water Element healing energy flowed into him, driving away the trace of dark energy. At the same time, she murmured an incantation and quietly cast a detection spell.

A moment later, the boy's complexion gradually returned to normal, and his breathing steadied. He slowly opened his eyes, looking around in confusion.

"He's all right! He's all right! Thank you, Mage!" The woman wept with joy and thanked her over and over.

But Aileen's brow furrowed. She stood and murmured to Lin Qin, "It was dark corruption. Very faint, but pure. It seemed to have spread through the water."

Lin Qin's eyes turned cold. Dark corruption spread through a water source? This method was even more insidious than creating monsters, and far harder to guard against.

Just then, the people from the Temple of Light approached. The priest in the lead glanced at the boy, now awake, then at Aileen. A flicker of something passed through his eyes before he put on a warm smile. "You're truly kindhearted, Mage, and skilled in healing. May the light be with you." Then he changed tack. "Still, purging darkness ultimately requires the cleansing power of light. The dark energy lingering in this child may need holy water from the Temple of Light to be fully removed."

His words seemed well-intentioned, but carried a hint of belittling Aileen's magic while elevating the Temple of Light.

Aileen frowned slightly but said nothing.

Lin Qin stepped forward and looked at the priest calmly. "There's no need to trouble yourself. It's already been removed."

The priest sensed the unfathomable aura around Lin Qin and felt a jolt of alarm, but his smile did not waver. "In that case, good. May the light protect you both." He said no more and left with his companions.

Back in their inn room, Aileen looked worried. "Lin Qin, the Dark Church is even using methods like this now. What are they trying to do?"

"Spread fear, undermine order, gather souls... or perhaps something else," Lin Qin replied. "Their activity is growing more frequent. They must be plotting something bigger."

He looked at Aileen. "Your Water Element magic works well against this kind of dark corruption. Maybe we can follow this lead and investigate."

Aileen nodded firmly. "All right! What can I do?"

"Get some rest first. Tomorrow, we'll inspect the town's water source," Lin Qin said.

The next day, they went to the upper reaches of the small river that served as Blue Water Town's main water source. Lin Qin carefully scanned the water and its surroundings with his mental power.

"Find anything?" Aileen asked.

Lin Qin pointed to an inconspicuous patch of grass by the riverbank. "There. A very faint trace of dark magic remains. Someone cast a spell here and dropped something into the river."

He walked over and parted the grass, finding several broken black stones carved with twisted runes. Their aura came from the same source as the dark corruption in the boy.

"So someone really did poison the water," Aileen said angrily.

Lin Qin pocketed the fragments. "The method was subtle, and the dosage carefully controlled. It wouldn't kill anyone immediately, but it would slowly erode their vitality and souls without being noticed. The Dark Church must have a base here, or someone lying low."

They followed the river upstream for a while, but the trail ended there. Their target had been cautious.

"They're careful," Aileen said.

"It doesn't matter. Now that we've found this, they won't be acting in just one place," Lin Qin said. "We'll keep heading into the Empire and watch for similar cases."

They left Blue Water Town and traveled southeast along the imperial road. Along the way, Lin Qin taught Aileen how to sense and distinguish the faint traces of dark corruption more precisely, as well as how to use Water Element magic to cleanse it efficiently. Aileen studied diligently, and her control over magic improved at a visibly rapid pace.

Several days later, when they passed through a larger town, they found a situation similar to the one in Blue Water Town. A few residents had suffered from unexplained weakness and fainting. After examining them, Aileen confirmed that the water supply had been tampered with as well.

This time, Lin Qin didn't alert the enemy. He had Aileen secretly cleanse those affected while he hid near the town's water source and waited for the culprit to show up.

After keeping watch for two days, a furtive figure dressed in black appeared near the water source in the middle of the third night. He warily surveyed his surroundings, then pulled several black stones from his clothes and prepared to toss them into the water.

As he raised his hand, the ground around him suddenly softened. Two rocky hands burst out of the earth and seized him tight! The black stones fell from his hand to the ground.

The man in black struggled in terror, only to find himself unable to move.

Lin Qin stepped out of the shadows and picked up the black stones. They were indeed from the same source as the ones found in Blue Water Town.

"Are you with the Dark Church?" Lin Qin asked coldly.

The man clenched his jaw and said nothing.

Lin Qin couldn't be bothered with words. He went straight to searching the man's memories through soul magic. A moment later, the man's eyes went unfocused, and his body slumped.

From the scattered memories, Lin Qin learned that the man was indeed an outer member of the Dark Church, tasked with poisoning the water supplies of several towns. Their aim was to spread fear and gather large numbers of "weakened" souls as energy for an upcoming "large-scale ritual." This outer member knew nothing about where the ritual would take place or any other details.

"A large-scale ritual..." Lin Qin's eyes turned cold. The Dark Church was indeed plotting something big.

He disposed of the unconscious man, erased the traces, and returned to the inn.

"How did it go?" Aileen asked with concern.

"I got some answers. The Dark Church is planning a large-scale ritual and needs a great many weakened souls," Lin Qin said. "We have to find the location as soon as possible."

A chill ran through Aileen. Any ritual that required so many souls had to be utterly evil.

"What should we do?"

Lin Qin spread out the map, his gaze sharp. "Based on that man's memories and the information we've gathered, their activity is concentrated in the southwestern part of the Empire, near the Dark Forest. We're going there."