Andrew smiled, knowing that the other party had already learned of the situation at his residence. When Golden Tiger caused the commotion, he had anticipated what would happen today and secretly moved everyone else, along with Flame Wolf and Golden Peng, to Divine Grace Academy. In the imperial capital, the only place safer than Divine Grace Academy was the imperial palace.
Naturally, this move could not escape Meyer's notice, which was why he had said Lance's family had close ties to Divine Grace Academy. Their trust in Divine Grace Academy in a crisis was itself proof of that relationship, was it not?
"Old Bart, aren't you coming out yet?" Meyer said softly toward the distance.
"Hahaha, I never expected you to come out. I thought you would spend your entire life in that magic tower of yours." A lion-like man came flying through the darkness, laughing loudly.
Still smiling, Meyer turned toward another direction. "Baird, Augustine, show yourselves too."
Two people suddenly appeared in the direction he faced. Their appearance was so abrupt that it seemed they had been there all along. Even with Andrew's keen eyesight, he could not see how they had appeared.
There really is a chasm between Saint-level and the ninth level! Andrew could not help marveling inwardly. In fact, he was mistaken. These two were darkness-attribute warriors, and concealing their auras at night could not have been easier.
Baird wore a short tunic and looked very casual. His expression was easygoing too. "Headmaster Meyer, your strength has increased again. Even Augustine's and my concealment techniques could not escape your eyes."
Augustine's expression was cold, and he said nothing.
Meyer smiled modestly. "If you hadn't intended to show yourselves, I wouldn't have noticed you either. Are only three old friends visiting tonight?"
Bart's voice boomed like thunder. "Meyer, what do you mean by that?"
Meyer shook his head. "The owner of the advancing magical beast has close ties to our Divine Grace Academy. I hope you won't make things difficult for him."
Baird glanced at Andrew and raised an eyebrow. "Headmaster Meyer, is the little fellow down below the one you mentioned? Such powerful battle-qi. Hmm, his soul... am I seeing things? His soul power is actually no weaker than mine! I only intended to take a casual stroll. I never expected to discover something so interesting."
"What?" Baird's words made Bart shout. "Baird, you're a darkness Saint Warrior. Your soul power is no weaker than an ordinary Saint-level mage's. And you're saying that his soul power, a mere Eighth-level Warrior's, is no weaker than yours? Doesn't that mean his soul is as strong as a Saint-level Magus's? What kind of joke is that?"
Baird found it somewhat unbelievable himself. With a movement, he appeared beside Andrew.
At the sight of him, Andrew's whole body jolted, his hair nearly standing on end. The man's gaze was far too piercing, making him feel like a mouse under a cat's stare. Forcing himself to endure it, Andrew remained motionless and let Baird examine him. Any movement he made now could be taken as a provocation toward Baird.
"That's right. I wasn't mistaken. His soul's strength has reached Saint-level!" After checking several times, Baird spoke with a solemn expression.
At that, the atmosphere changed.
Everyone believed Baird. Darkness cultivators studied souls deeply, and Baird's talent in this field was widely acknowledged.
They were all Saint-level experts, and all wanted to advance further. Yet how difficult was it for a Saint-level expert to break through? Now, before them stood an Eighth-level Warrior whose soul power rivaled a Saint-level expert's. How could they not be curious...
If I could uncover this secret, perhaps my soul's strength could increase greatly too...
Everyone, Meyer included, could not help having that thought.
At Saint-level, the importance of the soul became fully apparent.
Advancing from Saint-level to Deity-level required comprehending laws. The stronger the soul, the clearer one's perception of the laws, and the faster one could comprehend them. At this point, elemental affinity was no longer quite so important. Of course, higher elemental affinity also made one's perception of the laws clearer. But a powerful soul could make up for that.
At this thought, everyone's gaze changed.
Meyer was the first to recover, and the greed in his eyes vanished. A moment earlier, he had very much wanted to unravel this secret, to seize Andrew and study him. But he quickly came to his senses.
"You three, a powerful soul does not necessarily hold any secret. It could simply be innate. This young friend is not yet thirteen this year, and he is already a late-stage eighth-level warrior. His talent for cultivation speaks for itself. I think it probably has something to do with his innately powerful soul."
"Possibly," Augustine said coldly. His words carried another meaning: apart from being innate, there could also be other reasons.
Baird stared greedily at Andrew, as though examining a rare treasure. Hearing their conversation, Andrew knew he had fallen into some kind of danger. He thought it over carefully. Of the four Saint-level experts who had appeared, only Meyer was protecting him. The others all had designs on him. If they came to blows, he feared...
"Seniors!" Andrew felt he needed to explain. "Ever since I began cultivating, I've been able to sense both battle-qi and magical elements very clearly. My powerful soul really is due to my innate talent. I wasn't born into nobility. What secret could I possibly have?"
Unfortunately, no one listened to his explanation at all. In the eyes of Saint-level experts, he was merely an ant. Who would listen to an ant's explanation?
Baird, Augustine, and Bart exchanged glances and reached an agreement.
"Headmaster Meyer," Baird said with a smile, "I intend to invite this young friend to my Dark Castle as a guest. I trust you won't stand in my way?" He had paid no attention to Andrew's words and simply made his demand.
The gentle smile vanished from Meyer's face as well. He saw Augustine and Bart take positions to his left and right, loosely surrounding him. In terms of strength, he was the strongest of the four, only one step away from peak Saint-level. Of the other three, only Baird was at Saint-level late-stage, while Augustine and Bart were both at Saint Realm mid-stage. Even so, he had no confidence that he could protect Andrew here.
"Baird!" Meyer's tone turned cold as well. "This is the imperial capital, where the High Priest resides. You dare abduct someone by force?"
Baird smiled. "If he were Saint-level, I naturally wouldn't dare. But he is merely an Eighth-level Warrior. Would the High Priest really punish me over him? Headmaster Meyer, I advise you to stay out of this. You're a mage, and you don't have your magical pet with you today. You would be at quite a disadvantage in a fight."
"You dare fight in the imperial capital?" Meyer asked.
Baird grew serious as well. "It isn't a question of whether I want to, but whether you do. I must take him away, and Augustine and Bart feel the same. We've been trapped at Saint-level for thousands of years, and he is our hope of breaking through. Even if you intervene, we won't give up!"
Bart and Augustine nodded solemnly, showing their determination.
Meyer's mood worsened. He knew there was nothing he could do now.
Andrew was horrified. Three Saint-level experts regarded him as their hope of breaking through. This was by no means a good thing! Sensing the dark aura emanating from Baird, he grew even more alarmed. He had already witnessed how bizarre a darkness cultivator's methods could be. If Baird really took him away, he might very well become something neither human nor ghost!
No!
Andrew roared inwardly. Under the pressure of Baird's aura, he could no longer worry about the secret of his spatial ring and took out the Godslaying Saber.
Even against a Saint-level expert, I'm not afraid!
Amid the crisis, Andrew regained his calm. He knew that compromise and retreat were meaningless now. If he wanted to live, he had to fight for it himself! Though hope was extremely slim, he still chose to fight...
"Heh, a spatial ring. This little fellow has quite a few secrets. This saber looks a little familiar..." At this point, Baird's gaze abruptly changed, and Andrew, standing right before him, saw it clearly. Before, Baird had regarded him as an ant, but when he looked at the Godslaying Saber, there was a hint of fear...
"Augustine, come take a look!" Baird suddenly shouted.
Augustine landed beside him like the wind, his icy gaze settling on the Godslaying Saber.
"It's his weapon. It's the War God Gojir's weapon!" Augustine declared.
Bart landed as well.
"Gojir's weapon? I remember his master Dempsey took it away. How did it end up in this kid's hands? Could he have some connection to Dempsey?"
A vicious gleam flashed in Baird's eyes. "Why bother talking about that? Even if Dempsey comes today, he won't stop us!" He thrust out his hand, swiftly grabbing at Andrew. Black battle-qi spread from his hand like a huge net, about to envelop Andrew.
"Is that so?" Just as Andrew struggled to swing his saber, a familiar voice sounded behind him. The voice was calm and languid, with nothing unusual about it, yet it sent tremors through the space in front of Andrew. Baird's huge black net dissolved into nothing under those tremors.
Before everyone's horrified eyes, a drunkard seemed to cross through space and stroll lazily out. He carried a wine bottle, taking a sip every few steps, no different from a drunkard on a street corner. Each of his footsteps rang out crisp and clear, echoing through the night.
"Senior, it's you!"
Andrew spoke joyfully. This was none other than the drunkard who had given him the saber back then. At the time, he had felt that the man was at least Saint-level. Now, his aura alone was actually forcing Baird and the other two to retreat. Such a realm had already surpassed Andrew's imagination.