Chapter 763: Chapter 352: Temple Ruins (Part 3)

Descending the steps continuously, a light soon appeared below.

A moss-covered stone wall appeared ahead, with a pointed arch in the middle. Two Holy Temple Knights in armor stood beside it.

"Priest Laura."

The Holy Temple Knights bowed respectfully—Laura’s status was evidently high.

Laura merely nodded and led Man Xiu inside.

Inside was a vast underground space, towering stone pillars supported the dome, the floor paved with stone bricks, and walls carved with intricate religious murals.

Man Xiu observed everything around, realizing this must be an ancient temple ruin.

"Priest Laura, you’re just in time."

A steward in a gray robe approached, saying, "There’s a meeting in the inner hall discussing how to retaliate against Duke Luo De."

"Very well."

Laura instructed the steward, "These three are my steward followers and this is Man Xiu, a devoted follower of our Lord. You should settle them well."

"Yes."

The steward nodded respectfully, "Four of you, please come with me."

After speaking, the steward headed to the side chapel. Man Xiu glanced at Laura and followed the steward away.

Laura, meanwhile, proceeded straight ahead, passing through three pointed arches and entering the temple’s inner hall.

The temple gathered a dozen people, all draped in black and gray robes.

The difference was each wore distinct emblems on their chests.

"Priest Laura, you’re just in time."

A middle-aged man clad in gray robes with a dawn solar emblem on his chest stood up,

"We are planning to assassinate the nobles around Duke Luo De."

"Directly assassinating Luo De himself is almost impossible."

The middle-aged man said, "So we’ll target his subordinates first."

"Commander Durant, Gang Le stationed at the border, Lusen of the Dawn Society, Linda, among others."

"Killing these individuals may not harm Luo De directly, but it will severely damage his power."

"Well, this idea is excellent."

Laura slightly nodded, "Not just the military personnel but also the army blacksmiths, quartermasters, and scribes."

"Eliminate these people too, and Duke Luo De’s army will be utterly paralyzed."

After Laura spoke, eyes lit up among the group,

"Great idea!"

"These people are useless, killing them is easier than squashing a bug!"

"We can assign a few people to sneak into the city and complete the task!"

...

Members from various churches voiced in agreement, very approving of Laura’s suggestion.

"However, we only have one chance."

Laura spoke again, solemnly saying, "Luo De isn’t foolish; he’ll react fiercely once he realizes."

"We must leave here after the assassination, so we must plan our escape routes in advance."

Everyone nodded in unison.

Duke Luo De had risen swiftly, and such a person certainly wasn’t simple; no one could afford to be careless.

"Let us start planning then."

"Ideally, find someone familiar with Riyue City to ensure our plan proceeds smoothly."

"Not just Riyue City, but also Giant Stone City, Flower City, and others—we must retaliate simultaneously."

"No, we must consolidate our strength!"

...

The inner hall quickly descended into a clamor as individuals from various churches spoke one after another.

Laura shook her head, a bit of impatience flashing in her eyes.

She leaned over, whispering to the middle-aged companion beside her, "You continue the discussions here; I’ll seek instructions from our Lord’s envoy."

"If the envoy does not agree, this retaliation will merely be a shadow in the water."

"You’re right, Priest Laura, go ahead." the middle-aged priest replied.

Laura nodded and left the inner hall.

She quickly exited, inquiring about Man Xiu’s location from the waiting steward, then headed straight for the steward’s quarters.

Man Xiu had just laid down and jumped up as soon as Laura entered.

"Priest Laura..." 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

Before Man Xiu could finish speaking, Laura interrupted him with a gesture.

"Come with me; there’s something important I need you for."

With that, Laura turned and left the quarters.

Man Xiu hurriedly followed in Laura’s footsteps.

Laura led Man Xiu through the temple ruins, eventually entering a downward-spiraling staircase.

Once it reached the bottom, a sealed pointed arch door appeared before them.

Laura bowed her head, whispered a couple of words, and the door swung open.

An expansive hall suddenly revealed itself.

Different from the upper parts, this hall was cylindrical, surrounded by seven enormous stone tablets.

Each tablet was over three meters tall, with intricate runes densely etched on its surface.

On the ground between the stone tablets, various rune lines intertwined, forming complex geometric patterns.

At the center of the pattern was a circular stone slab, roughly two meters in diameter, its surface extraordinarily smooth and level.

Standing in the doorway, Man Xiu gazed at the spectacle before him, an unspeakable pressure emanating from the stone tablets.

"What is this place?" Man Xiu asked cautiously.

"An Ancient Era teleportation array."

Laura entered the hall, explaining, "In ancient times, wizards used such arrays to teleport between different cities, crossing thousands of miles in an instant."

"That’s incredible!"

Man Xiu’s eyes widened, "We wouldn’t even need merchants like us!"

"But now this array is unusable."

Laura shook her head helplessly, "We don’t have the demon crystals required to power it."

"What a pity."

Man Xiu sighed and then asked, "Why did you bring me here then?"

"We’ve modified this array."

Laura interrupted Man Xiu, saying, "Though we can’t use it for teleportation, it allows us to communicate with our Lord’s envoy, to follow our Lord’s guidance."

She beckoned Man Xiu, "Come, stand on the central platform."

"Alright."

Man Xiu nodded.

Though slightly afraid, he obediently stepped into the circle of tablets, carefully avoiding the ground lines, standing on the circular platform.

Laura also stepped in, gripping Man Xiu’s wrist.

She then drew a dagger from her sleeve, without warning slicing across Man Xiu’s wrist!

The sharp blade cut through skin and vein, blood gushing instantly!

"Ah!"

Man Xiu cried out, instinctively trying to pull back his hand!

But Laura’s grip was astonishingly strong, fingers holding Man Xiu’s wrist like an iron vice.

"Priest Laura, what are you doing?!"

Man Xiu looked at Laura in panic.

"Let go of me!"

Man Xiu struggled fiercely, suddenly feeling his body lose control, firmly trapped on the platform!

Meanwhile, blood flowed down Man Xiu’s wrist, dripping onto the platform beneath.

"Buzz!"

The rune lines on the ground lit up, the entire array quickly illuminated!

Red light circulated within the array, akin to blood coursing through veins!

Runes on the stone tablets began to gleam red, a deep humming echoed in the air!

Laura retreated several steps, standing among the tablets.

"Don’t be nervous."

Laura spoke calmly,

"The array requires a medium, and your soul, devoted to our Lord, is very fitting."

"I saved you, and now you’re going to kill me!"

Man Xiu struggled desperately, yet felt the air around unusually thick, keeping him immobilized, unable to move!

"This is your honor, Man Xiu, you should feel fortunate, others aren’t qualified for this."

Laura said calmly, "When you ascend to our Lord’s Divine Kingdom, you will thank me."

With that, Laura began quietly chanting spells.

Blood gushed from Man Xiu’s wrist, faster and more abundantly than from a normal wound.

At the same time, Man Xiu felt an overwhelming sense of weakness gradually seizing his body, making him drowsy.

"Boom!"

At this moment, a tremendous sound suddenly echoed above Laura’s head!

Laura jolted in shock, halted her chanting, instinctively looking upwards.

Instantly after, shouting and roaring sounds erupted successively.