Linley left the mysterious mountain village and headed south to cultivate the Tempos of the Wind. Meanwhile, in the northern part of the Chaotic Territory, a battle that he and Sessler had already agreed upon was quietly unfolding according to plan.
As planned by Linley, Sessler, and the others, during the days when Linley returned to the southern mountains, Barker and the other five brothers led their army straight to the southern principality of Duchy of Sheli, which belonged to the Radiant Church.
The army of the Duchy of Sheli was far inferior in quality to Linley's side. The people of this side had made their living from the Dark Forest for generations, and their people were fierce and fearless in battle. With the five Barker brothers, these five killing gods, charging at the forefront, almost nothing could stop their advance.
Completely devastating.
The strongest warriors within the Duchy of Sheli were only three Eighth-level Warrior, not even a single level nine. This small country was utterly powerless against Linley's massive army. The five Barker brothers, like five war gods, led their ferocious soldiers in a rampage of destruction, conquering everything in their path. In just four days, a county seat and five smaller towns of the Duchy of Sheli had all changed hands, and Linley's territory had expanded considerably.
Hazer, Gates, and Ankh are currently resting in the county town, each with a smug look on their faces.
"They're completely powerless," Gates said casually. "Too weak, too weak. There's not even one person who can stop us."
That's not an exaggeration. Even if they encountered any significant obstacles, their individual fighting prowess would make it futile for anyone to stop them. Moreover, the Saint Realm magical beast Black-Striped Cloud Leopard Haeru, remained hidden in the shadows, ready to strike at any moment.
With everything going so smoothly, even the five Barker brothers thought that the Radiant Church was unwilling to confront them head-on and intended to swallow their anger for now.
But in that dimly lit study, someone had already decided to kill.
" Linley's side has just conquered the Duchy of Sheli, and it will certainly take some time to digest this," said Useno, the chief judge of the Inquisition, tapping his fingertips on the table in a calm voice. "They will also think that we don't want to fight them."
The blond middle-aged man looked up, his eyes gleaming with barely suppressed excitement. "Are they going to attack?"
"If we don't attack, all is well; but if we do attack, we must wipe out Linley's forces completely." A strange purple light flashed in Useno's eyes. " Linley poses too great a threat to our Radiant Church. If we let him grow unchecked like this, the consequences will be dire. Today, he dares to attack a duchy like ours, clearly indicating that he intends to fight our Radiant Church See to the bitter end."
The blond middle-aged man hesitated again, then said, "But if we use the power of the Saint Realm, wouldn't that displease the Dark Church and the O'Brien Empire?"
"Never mind those things," Useno said calmly. "Let's proceed according to the original plan. Tomorrow night, the nine Saint Realm Angels will depart immediately. As for Linley... and his rodent-like magical beast, I'll deal with them myself."
Useno was very confident. His strength was comparable to that of the Pope of Light, and even surpassed that of the Rock Sword Saint Hederson. He was absolutely certain he could kill Linley.
The night was as black as ink. Dark clouds pressed down, obscuring the moon, and the world was shrouded in darkness.
Suddenly—in the southern night sky, nine blinding white lights streaked Extreme Speed toward the Duchy of Sheli. Halfway there, five of them dispersed and rushed toward the five small towns, while the other four headed straight toward the prefectural capital.
Only when they got closer could they see clearly—the white light was actually angels surrounded by soft holy light, with two pairs of four wings spread out behind them.
According to the ranks of angels, Two-Winged Angel are at the Saint Realm Lower Level, Four-Winged Angel are at the Saint Realm Middle Level, and only Six-Winged Angel are at the Saint Realm Top Level. Above that, Eight-Winged Angel are at the level of Lowgod. In the world of the Yulan Continent, there is simply no physical body that can bear the descent of Twelve-Winged Angel.
To Useno, these angels were merely ready-made tools, with no potential for growth, and their deaths wouldn't be a big loss. This time, he didn't even send a single human Saint Realm, filling the gap entirely with angels.
In the first small town where the angel descended, holy light suddenly burst forth, shining like a setting sun in the deep night, illuminating the entire town in every detail. The town's residents were awakened and ran out of their homes, looking up to see the figure suspended in mid-air, filled with both shock and fear.
"An angel! It's an angel--"
The people who had lived under the long-term influence of the Radiant Church mostly believed in the Lord of Light. At this moment, many of them felt a kind of ecstatic joy at being saved by the Lord, and they knelt down and worshipped devoutly.
"Those who believe in the Lord will receive His protection; those who disobey the Lord will ultimately be destroyed." The voice of the Four-Winged Angel resounded throughout the city.
Within a quarter of an hour, more than half of the nearly four thousand soldiers in the city had knelt down. The soldiers from other places, such as Mote Prefectural City and Black Earth City, remained rooted to the spot, looking at each other blankly. Suddenly, someone drew a longsword and stabbed it at an officer—a believer in their own ranks who had converted to the Radiant Church.
In moments, the entire town was thrown into chaos. The unbelievers were subjected to an overwhelming attack; some died, and others fled. Without the Four-Winged Angel firing a single shot, the town was back in the hands of the Radiant Church.
The other four small towns witnessed almost the same scenario. When the angels arrived, the believers went mad, the heretics were killed, and the position of town lord fell back into the hands of those who practiced the Light Magic.
The situation in the county seat was far more dire.
A large number of troops from cities such as Mote and Black Earth were stationed here, and the people were resentful, so the fighting was particularly fierce. When the other five Four-Winged Angel arrived, the city was already ablaze with flames and filled with the deafening shouts of battle.
Three Four-Winged Angel were locked in a fierce battle with three Undying Warrior — Gates, Hazer, and Ankh. They were originally Ninth-level Warrior, and even in their Undying Warrior transformation, they had only just stepped onto the edge of the Saint Realm. They were only able to barely hold their own against the Saint Realm Middle Stage Four-Winged Angel of the Holy Domain for a few rounds thanks to their thick white armor and brute strength.
But the angel was too agile.
A Four-Winged Angel flashed to the side and kicked Gates ' white armor hard. The force of the kick, enough to shatter a boulder, only made Gates stagger slightly. But when Gates looked up, he saw more angels gathering in the sky and immediately shouted hoarsely, "Second brother, third brother, run! Another group is coming!"
There were already three of them, not to mention the six angels floating above them, plus a human Saint Realm expert who barely even glanced at them.
"Let's go! The Radiant Church is going all out this time." Ankh gritted his teeth.
The three of them kicked off simultaneously, cracking the earth. They fled north like three humanoid meteorites, like madmen. However, the Saint Realm Undying Warrior's flying speed was the slowest among the Four Ultimate Warriors, and the angels were the best at chasing.
With a flap of their wings, four Four-Winged Angel blocked their way, and five more caught up from behind, forming a nine-person encirclement.
"Fifth Brother, what do we do?" Hazer asked Gates through gritted teeth.
Gates grinned, a mad glint in his eyes. "Damn it, let's go for it. Killing one isn't a loss, killing two is a bonus." With a low growl, he charged headlong toward the nearest angel.
From afar, Useno uttered three words calmly. " Angel Battle Formation."
Three angels retreated Extreme Speed, leaving six who quickly formed a cage, trapping Gates and his two companions in the center—one above and below, four around them. A white wall formed from Holy Light Power trapped them. Gates crashed into it, only to be thrown back by the intense heat, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.
"This power... is almost at the Peak Saint Realm. Luckily, our armor can withstand it."
Useno flew closer slowly, looking down at them coldly. " Undying Warrior of the Saint Realm, descendants of the Armand clan?"
The three Gates didn't answer, they just glared at it fiercely.
"I'll give you a chance. Surrender to the Radiant Church, and I'll spare your lives."
"You think I'm afraid of you?" Gates retorted defiantly. "Don't you know that Lord Cesar has already declared that anyone who dares to touch us five brothers will be sent to your Holy Island!"
Useno's pupils contracted slightly. That King of Assassins Cesar, was no ordinary person. He had reached the Peak Saint Realm thousands of years ago, and even stepped into the Deity Realm a couple of years ago. If that ruthless man really came to protect these lives, the Radiant Church would rather stay away. He was just bluffing them earlier. If he really wanted to kill them, they would have to think twice.
"Disarm," Useno ordered.
The six angels removed the cage. As Gates and the other two were still wondering, Useno's figure suddenly transformed into a streak of black light—three consecutive loud thuds, three leg shadows solidly kicked the three men in the chest and abdomen. Their skills were utterly insignificant in front of the Peak Saint Realm. The three men were kicked until their armor cracked, they spat out blood, and slammed heavily into the deep pit in the ground. In an instant, they were unable to move, but they did not die.
"Tie them up." Useno tossed three chains mixed with Black Yù to the angel beside him. "You two stay here and watch over them. The rest of you, come with me to Mote Prefectural City."
Having said that, he turned and flew north without looking back, with seven Four-Winged Angel following closely behind.
Gates and his two companions were suddenly overthrown that night, without even a chance to send a message to their brothers. The Mote Prefectural City was caught completely off guard. Barker and Boone had just become Undying Warrior when Useno, who descended from the sky, kicked them through the courtyard wall and smashed them into a deep pit, leaving them severely injured and lying on the ground.
The only one who sensed something was wrong was the Saint Realm magical beast, Haeru, which had been hiding in the shadows.
He saw from afar that Barker and Boone were instantly beaten and paralyzed with injuries, and he immediately understood—he couldn't beat this person. If even Barker and Boone couldn't defeat him together, charging in alone would be suicide. Before he could even touch the ground with his toes, Haeru turned around and burrowed into the ground like a madman.
"Master, Master..." Haeru crawled desperately hundreds of meters underground, his voice hoarse as he cried out, " The Saint Realm experts of the Radiant Church have all come! All five brothers have been captured! Come back quickly!"
But he was too far from Linley —a full three thousand miles away—too far for Soul Transmission; he could only vaguely sense that his master was probably in the south. Haeru had no other choice but to desperately rush towards the mountains to the south.
Within the territory of the Duchy of Sheli, the flames gradually died down, the shouts of battle subsided, and the holy light of angels once again graced the city walls.
Meanwhile, deep in the mountains to the south, Linley was completely unaware of everything that was happening here.
At this moment, he was sitting cross-legged in front of the stone house in the mountain village, pondering the threshold of "speed" he had just touched in the Tempos of the Wind, completely unaware that the war in the north had completely changed overnight.