Chapter 368: Piling on the Pressure

Chapter 368: Piling on the Pressure

The Wind Phoenix Queen's sharp, almost glowing eyes paused in thought for a moment before shaking her head. "Great Goddess of the Abyss, although according to the ancient covenant, I cannot refuse your request, I also have an agreement with the Dragon Empire. I cannot personally intervene to help you deal with this human."

"Therefore, I accept your Divine Power Crystal with great reluctance."

Although the Wind Phoenix Queen was a powerful Epic-level peak powerhouse, her strength was not the key factor for the Dragon Empire, which had more than a dozen Dragon Knights.

The crucial factor was her speed.

Nicknamed 'Thunderstrider', Cresta's speed was unparalleled.

The name 'Thunderstrider' was renowned among all Epic-level powerhouses, which was why the Wind Phoenixes were able to nest in the Beverley Pass region.

The Empire wasn't one to be trifled with, and it was only after several unsuccessful attempts to eradicate the Wind Phoenixes that an agreement was reached.

"Cresta, this Divine Power Crystal is my gift to you. You can send your subordinates to deal with this human. I hope you won't take it lightly." Goddess Helmar, the Goddess of the Abyss, gazed deeply into the Wind Phoenix Queen's eyes and said.

"By the way, this human can transform into a Dragon General and is skilled in close combat."

As soon as she finished speaking, Helmar, who had transformed into a black-cloaked maiden, suddenly turned into a wisp of black smoke and disappeared before the Wind Phoenix Queen's eyes.

"Skilled in close combat, huh? That happens to be what my clan specializes in dealing with." Cresta said, taking the floating Divine Power Crystal in mid-air and muttering to herself.

She understood why Goddess Helmar had sought her out.

But there was another question: what exactly had the human youth named Rain done to make a deity so fixated on him? Cresta pondered for a while, but couldn't come up with an answer.

"Merik, come over here!" She called out.

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Merik replied.

---

Meanwhile, in the Snyder family mansion in Mann City.

After some pleasantries, Luther led everyone to a more secluded small conference room.

"Admiral Hawe, Lord Rain, this room is fortified with multiple protective magic arrays to prevent eavesdropping and spying. It can effectively block certain forms of remote observation."

Rain nodded. He had heard of such protective magic arrays.

Of course, if they were facing the true form of a deity or an exceptionally powerful incarnation, these protective magic arrays would be as flimsy as paper. But if it was merely a deity's projection or a Saint's descent, they would be highly effective.

As everyone took their seats, the two department heads behind Admiral Hawe, a man and a woman, quickly took out their notebooks and pens and began taking notes with utmost seriousness.

Seeing Rain's slightly surprised gaze, the efficient woman smiled and said, "Lord Rain, the matter you mentioned is of great importance. According to the Swordmaster's regulations, any matter involving deities must be reported to the Swordmaster Headquarters immediately."

"I see," Rain said, nodding in understanding.

"Lord Rain, to accurately report the situation you encountered, if Ferdinand and Leana ask any questions that may seem offensive, please don't take offense," Admiral Hawe said with a smile.

"Of course not, I understand. It's all part of the job," Rain replied with a smile.

So, Rain began to slowly narrate the events, while the Title Knight Luther listened attentively alongside the others.

After all, this involved the intelligence of a reviving True God, and no amount of caution could be considered excessive.

Ten minutes later, Leana, the efficient young woman, asked with a puzzled expression, "I'm sorry, Lord Rain, you mentioned that you rejected the other party's recruitment, and they became very angry. But as far as we know, even a projection of a True God is usually highly intelligent."

"Usually, it's difficult to be provoked by a few words."

"So, how did you anger them? Was it something you said or did?"

Regarding Leana's question, everyone, including Admiral Hawe, nodded slightly in agreement.

They also found it puzzling.

After all, the Goddess of the Abyss was known for her wisdom, and it was unreasonable for her to be so easily agitated, affecting her ability to wield her power.

"Umm," Rain hesitated.

It wasn't that he couldn't remember, but now that he thought about it, the words he had spoken seemed a bit... well, blunt.

At least, that's how it would seem to outsiders.

However, after some thought, Rain decided to tell the truth.

After all, if what he said could help the Empire discover a weakness of this deity, that would be excellent.

"Actually, it wasn't much. The deity said to submit or die, and I said I wouldn't choose either. Er... I also said, 'You hit me hard, so I have to hit back!'"

"Then, the deity seemed very angry," Rain shrugged.

"Huh?!" Everyone present was stunned.

This included Ferdinand and Leana, who were taking notes, their pens stopping as they looked up with wide eyes, their mouths agape in astonishment at Rain.

After a few seconds, Admiral Howe was the first to recover, laughing heartily.

"Haha! Well done!"

"Lord Rain, you truly live up to being an Imperial Electrum Rank Swordsman!"

"Huh? Admiral Howe, you must be mistaken. I'm still a Diamond Star Rank Swordsman. The Electrum Rank Swordsmen are only at headquarters." Now it was Rain's turn to be puzzled.

"Haha, that's right, I almost forgot. Lord Rain, you might not have received this news yet." Admiral Howe smiled and gestured to the middle-aged man beside him.

"Lord Rain, one of these is the promotion order from the Minster Branch today, and the other is an attachment from the Swordsman Headquarters." The middle-aged man named Ferdinand respectfully took out two documents from his briefcase and handed them to Rain.

Rain raised an eyebrow and took the documents, immediately flipping through them.

First was the promotion letter: "You are promoted to the Electrum Rank Swordsman, and you must report within a month..."

The second was a document issued by Admiral Edward: "...and prepare to return to Minster as soon as possible."

After quickly reading both documents, Rain nodded.

Now he understood why both Admiral Howe and the two Swordsman department heads were being so respectful towards him.

It turned out that his position had been transferred to the Imperial Swordsman Headquarters, and among all the Swordsmen, he held the highest administrative rank of Electrum.

No wonder!

"Are you going to the Imperial City?"

"Yes, I do need to go."

"My Steel Heart Advanced Meditation's second layer is still with the school." Rain thought to himself.

Originally, he had planned to make a trip to the Imperial City of Tamriel, and now it seemed quite fitting.

After reading the two documents, Rain continued to describe the battle.

After a few minutes, the capable middle-aged woman, Leana, asked again:

"Lord Rain, according to your description, the deity's final attack used most of its projection's energy for offense, which was powerful but obviously reckless."

"It's hard to imagine why the deity would do that."

"Did you say or do something?"

Because the deity's behavior was very inconsistent with the ancient records about the Darksea Goddess Hela.

In the ancient records, Hela's various stories were described as rational, proud, and wise.

But in Rain's description, it was completely different.

"This..." This time, Rain was truly a bit embarrassed to speak.

Seeing Rain's expression, the crowd became even more curious.

Could it be that Lord Rain had done something extraordinary?

"Cough, Lord Rain, if it involves your privacy and you're not comfortable sharing, then there's no need to say it." Admiral Howe coughed, giving Rain an out.

Although he was curious, Rain's current identity as an Imperial Electrum Rank Swordsman deserved the respect of even the department head.

"It's not that, it's just that what I said at the time was a bit arrogant. By the way, since you two are taking notes, remember to add a note that I said those words to provoke the deity."

"Of course, Lord Rain." Leana and Ferdinand nodded eagerly.

"Umm, when the deity tried to recruit me again, asking me to submit, I said, 'Perhaps if you submit to me, I might consider it!'"

When Rain spoke the latter part, his face reddened slightly.

He himself felt a bit embarrassed to say it out loud.

But Rain had underestimated the power of his words! As soon as he finished speaking, the room fell into a pin-drop silence! This time, even the well-traveled Admiral Howe wore an expression as if he had seen a flying cow, stunned by Rain's words.

Was this arrogance?

This was a rebellious statement!

In Luther's heart, he roared: 'Damn! Lord Rain, this is too...'

"Cough, remember to note that I said it to provoke the other party." Ren looked at everyone's expressions and realized how shocking his words were, so he took the initiative to remind them.

"Oh, of course, Lord Ren." The two people responsible for recording nodded quickly and scribbled frantically on their notebooks, somewhat flustered.

"Um, Lord Ren, one last question, how do you evaluate the overall strength of that projection?" Ferdinand asked his final question.

"This... It's hard to say. Based on the upper limit of the energy the other party could control, it should be below the Epic level. However, whether in terms of magic or extraordinary combat skills, the other party has already surpassed the limits that a Crystallization Wizard or a titled knight can reach."

Ren recalled the battle and answered seriously.

"Please forgive my boldness, Lord Ren, how did you manage to defeat the other party?" Ferdinand asked, puzzled.

After all, although Ren was strong, he was not an Epic-level powerhouse.

If what Ren said was true, that the other party was so powerful, it would mean that apart from Epic-level powerhouses like the Imperial Guardian, no one could defeat the other party, including Ren.

"Perhaps it's because of my special constitution. Being thick-skinned and having good stamina, I made the projection consume a lot of energy." Ren said, slightly stunned.

He naturally had to gloss over the fact that it involved the system and the points for restoring stamina.

"Hmm, I can vouch for this. Lord Ren's constitution is special, as evidenced in the battle with the Primordial Dragon Kraxis." Luther added from the side.

"In that case, there are no further questions. Thank you very much for your honest report, Lord Ren. We will report this situation immediately." Ferdinand bowed slightly and said.

"Right, Lord Ren, here is your emblem and letter of appointment." At this moment, Luther remembered something, took out a transparent circular emblem and a letter from his chest, and handed them to Ren.

"The Iceclaw Bear Mercenary Corps is still in Mann City. Would you like to meet them?" Luther added.

"No, please just inform Lord Vandar for me, Luther. I plan to return to Minster immediately." Ren shook his head and said.

His emblem was still a Diamond Swordmaster emblem, and the Golden Rank emblem could only be exchanged at the Swordmaster Headquarters.

"Lord Ren, you plan to return to Minster Province immediately?" Hearing Ren's plan, Admiral Hawe and Luther exchanged a glance and immediately understood why Ren was doing this.

"Very well, Lord Ren. Do you need any supplies?" Admiral Hawe asked proactively.

"If the Maen branch has any rare metals, I plan to stock up a bit." Ren thought for a moment and said.

"Of course, it's a small matter. Leana, record what Lord Ren needs to exchange and help process it quickly." Admiral Hawe agreed immediately.

"Yes, my lord."

One hour later.

After replenishing nearly a hundred kilograms of various rare metals, such as Tempered Gold and Enchanted Serenium, Ren not only fully replenished the rare metals he had consumed in the battle but also had more than before.

It wasn't that Ren was greedy, but the size of weapons and armor in his Dragon General Form and the casting of metal-based magic required a larger metal reserve.

Fortunately, the Blood Feathered Hornbeast was known for its incredible strength, and speed was not its strong point. Being a bit slower didn't matter as long as it could fly.

After bidding farewell to Luther and the others, Ren and Anna mounted the hornbeast and flew south again.

In the sky over Beverly Pass.

Hundreds of Wind Phoenixes were circling, with a particularly large golden-winged Wind Phoenix at the center of the group. This was Merik, the Mutated Windhawk Overlord nicknamed 'Gutripper.'

Originally, Merik had received a task from his queen and planned to follow the guidance of the Divine Power Crystal to actively seek out the target, Ren.

But just as he was about to set out, Merik was surprised to find that the target was rapidly heading towards Beverly Pass.

This meant that he didn't need to take the initiative; the target was already on its way into the trap.

However, Merik did not take the queen's task lightly, so he gathered thousands of Wind Phoenixes under his command.

Even if the other party was strong, as long as they were not an Epic-level powerhouse, Merik had absolute confidence.

After all, with thousands of clan members, each launching a Wind Blade, they could overwhelm Ren with sheer numbers!

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end