The Truth

The convoy entered the dense forest.

An silently recited an incantation and swept both hands forward-dozens of Wind Blades flew soundlessly from his hands, slashing toward the five guards at the rear of the convoy. The blades of an eighth-rank wind element spell were swift and razor-sharp. Before the guards could react, their throats were cut, and they tumbled from their horses.

Almost simultaneously, Linley pressed both hands against the ground. Earth-yellow light flashed, and dozens of Earth Spike Guns erupted from the road ahead of the convoy, impaling the five guards in front along with their horses. Screams echoed through the night, but the dense forest soon swallowed them.

Paterson's carriage came to an abrupt halt.

"Assassins!" the steward shrieked. The moment he cried out, however, a black shadow flashed past him, leaving a bloody hole in his throat. Bebe crouched on the carriage roof, his small eyes coldly surveying the remaining servants.

Paterson rushed out of the carriage, a red battle qi barrier rising around his body. He drew the longsword at his waist and scanned his surroundings, quickly pinpointing the direction where An and Linley were hiding.

"Who's there? Show yourselves!"

An stepped out from behind the bushes, with Linley following him.

Under the moonlight, the two young men looked calm, as though they had just finished some trivial task.

"Linley? An?" Paterson's eyes widened. "You-you've gone mad! I'm His Majesty the king's younger brother! How dare you attack me?"

An did not answer. He activated his Dragonblood Battle Qi, and golden scales emerged from beneath his skin, swiftly covering his entire body. Wings unfurled, dragon horns grew, and spikes bristled along his back. Under the moonlight, he resembled a god of war cast in gold, radiating suffocating pressure.

Paterson's face instantly turned deathly pale.

"You... you..." His voice trembled.

An did not answer. He took a step forward, fixing his golden, slit-pupiled eyes on Paterson, his voice icy. "Paterson, twelve years ago, you sent men to abduct a woman from a hotel in Fenlai City. That woman was my mother."

Paterson's body jolted. He opened his mouth, trying to say something, but An gave him no chance.

An became a golden blur and appeared before Paterson in an instant. His dragon claw shot out, seized Paterson by the throat, and lifted him off the ground. The battle qi barrier of a seventh-rank warrior was like paper beneath An's dragon claw, shattering instantly.

"Don't kill me!" Paterson cried hoarsely. "I can give you money! Lots of money! One million gold coins! No, five million!"

An ignored him. Carrying Paterson, he walked deeper into the forest. Linley followed, and after finishing off the remaining servants, Bebe joined them.

There was a clearing deep in the forest. An threw Paterson to the ground. Linley took several iron spikes from his pack and used wind element magic to drive them through Paterson's limbs, pinning him to the earth. Paterson screamed in agony, but An cast a Wind Shield, confining the sound within a ten-meter radius.

An crouched down, his golden, slit-pupiled eyes staring coldly at Paterson. "I ask, you answer. Give me one wrong answer, and I'll break one of your fingers."

Paterson trembled all over, his eyes filled with terror.

"Where is my mother now?" An asked.

Paterson's lips quivered. "I don't know."

"Who ordered you to abduct her?"

Paterson gritted his teeth and did not answer.

An extended his dragon claw, seized the little finger of Paterson's left hand, and bent it gently. Crack. The sound of breaking bone was sharp and piercing.

"Aah!" Paterson screamed, tears and snot streaming down his face.

"I'll talk! I'll talk! It was my elder brother, King Clayde!" Paterson broke down. "Clayde told me to abduct her! He saw your mother at the Radiant Temple and ordered me to send men to take her. I didn't dare disobey him! He's the king!"

An and Linley exchanged a glance.

Clayde. It really was Clayde.

"Where was my mother taken?" An asked.

"To... to the Royal Palace." Paterson's voice grew weaker and weaker.

An stood and took two steps back.

Linley stepped forward, fury filling his golden, slit-pupiled eyes. He drew his war blade, Slaughter, its edge gleaming coldly in the moonlight.

"Linley, wait a moment," An said suddenly.

Linley looked at An.

An walked up to Paterson and looked down at him. "Do you have anything else to say?"

Paterson shook his head desperately. "No, nothing! I've told you everything! Please, spare my life! I won't tell anyone! I swear!"

An straightened, turned his back on Paterson, and nodded to Linley.

Linley raised his blade and brought it down.

Slaughter fell, its edge unstained by even a single drop of blood.

Paterson's head rolled onto the ground, his eyes still open, filled with terror and unwillingness to die.

An turned around, took a small porcelain bottle from inside his clothes, and poured a few drops of Corpse-Dissolving Powder onto Paterson's body. With a few hisses, the corpse dissolved into a puddle of yellow liquid that seeped into the soil. Linley treated Paterson's head the same way, erasing every trace.

The two returned to the carriage and disposed of all the guards', steward's, and servants' bodies. An used wind element magic to scatter the blood on the ground, then earth element magic to fill the holes left by the Earth Spike Guns. Linley drove the carriage deep into the forest, hacked it apart with Wind Blades, and scattered the pieces.

By the time everything was dealt with, the first pale light of dawn had appeared on the horizon.

An and Linley spread their wings and flew back to Fenlai City. When they landed in the manor's rear garden, the sky was already faintly light. Bebe leaped out of Linley's arms and ran to the garden pond to wash his paws.

An stood in the pavilion, gazing at the distant spires of the Radiant Temple, and remained silent for a long time.

"An." Linley walked over and stood beside him. "What do we do next? Clayde is a peak ninth-rank warrior. With our current strength..."

An turned to look at Linley.

"Linley, Clayde is the king of the Fenlai Kingdom and a peak ninth-rank warrior. He's in the Royal Palace, surrounded by powerful fighters. If we try to kill him now, we'll only be throwing our lives away."

Linley clenched his fists, then loosened them, his knuckles white.

"Then how long do we have to wait?"

"Until I reach the Ninth-Level Warrior rank in my normal form," An said. "After my dragon transformation, I'm currently a peak Ninth-Level Warrior, on par with Clayde. If I reach the Ninth-Level Warrior rank in my normal form, my dragon transformation will give me Saint-level combat strength. Then killing Clayde will be as easy as killing a chicken."

Linley drew a deep breath. "A Ninth-Level Warrior in your normal form... You're at the eighth rank now, one rank away. How long will it take?"

An thought for a moment. "Three years. Five at most."

Linley was silent for a while, then nodded. "All right. I'll wait. Three years, five years-I'll wait."

An patted Linley's shoulder. "Linley, over these three years, we need to establish ourselves in Fenlai City. Clayde isn't a fool. With Paterson missing, he'll certainly investigate. We have to act as though we know nothing. Befriend nobles as usual, attend banquets as usual. We can't let anyone suspect us."

"I know," Linley said. "I can put on an act."

An looked toward the distant spires of the Radiant Temple, his gaze fathomless.

"There's one more thing," An said. "Linley, do you know who the Pope of Light is?"

Linley shook his head.

"The Pope of Light, Heidens, is a Saint-level Peak expert." An's voice was very low. "He lives in the Radiant Temple in western Fenlai City. The Fenlai Kingdom is a vassal state of the Radiant Church. If we kill Clayde, the Church will certainly intervene. If Heidens takes action, we won't stand a chance."

Linley's expression grew grave. "Then what do we do?"

"That's why we can't use brute force," An said. "Clayde must die, but no one can know we killed him. Otherwise, we'll have to wait until we have the strength to stand against a Saint-level Peak."

An turned toward Linley, his golden, slit-pupiled eyes gleaming coldly in the moonlight. "Linley, from now on, besides training, there's one more thing we must do-build up our power. Make allies, amass wealth, and grow stronger. When that day comes, we'll make Clayde die a horrific death."