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Since Spirit Hall was aware of the Sun Moon Continent's existence, it was highly probable that the Sun Moon Divine Cult on this side also knew of the Douluo Continent. It was even possible that the maritime routes between the two were interconnected. After all, who was to say that two sects serving different deities couldn't be in a cooperative relationship? What if the gods backing them belonged to the same divine faction?
Thinking of this, Su Wen suddenly froze, a peculiar expression crossing his face. Could this be the critical factor behind the Sun Moon Divine Cult's eventual defeat? As things stood, the Sun Moon Imperial Family didn't seem particularly likely to emerge victorious in the coming conflict. From a purely military standpoint, the Imperial Family certainly held the advantage; they possessed a formal army, years of accumulated resources, and a national treasury brimming with soul tools. However, in terms of top-tier combat power, the current Imperial Family was no match for the Divine Cult—especially once the Cult's two Holy Sons attained godhood.
The only way for the Sun Moon Divine Cult to fail would be if the two Holy Sons failed their divine succession or if an external force intervened. Su Wen stopped himself from spiraling further into conspiracy theories. Ever since he had killed Tang San—or more accurately, since the moment he had crossed into this world—the plot he knew only served as a reference. Now that Tang San was dead, overanalyzing such things was meaningless.
"Whether our Ninghai City branch can win this depends entirely on you, Lord Su Wen," Manager Qian said, looking at Su Wen with a glimmer of hope in his eyes.
It was Su Wen's sudden appearance that had given this branch the confidence to continue the fight. Although the headquarters had been hesitant about sending reinforcements and had even prepared a contingency plan to abandon Ninghai City, it was, in the end, a mid-sized city. Located in a coastal region, it was a strategic point where one could advance to attack, stay to defend, or retreat by sea if defeated. With the intervention of a powerful outsider like Su Wen, the Divine Cult would naturally welcome the help rather than stick to their previous plan of abandonment.
Consequently, the instructions Lin Tian had received a few days ago were no longer to prepare for a withdrawal, but to initiate a war to seize total control of Ninghai City.
Su Wen gathered what he could about the headquarters' intentions from Manager Qian before inquiring about Lin Tian's current whereabouts.
"The Branch Master has gone outside the city with the three Soul Kings of the pavilion," Qian replied.
"Outside the city?" Su Wen frowned, find the timing highly unusual. "At a time like this?"
An inexplicable sense of unease washed over him. He activated his Spirit Eye, sensing the surroundings with focused intensity. Through this refined perception, he detected a faint, ominous aura suggesting that an accident might befall Lin Tian. By now, his Spirit Eye had evolved far beyond its initial stages. It no longer just provided him with personal warnings; if he actively channeled it, he could perform a sort of "divination" for others.
Though it was only a vague sensing of a person's fortune or misfortune, it was still an incredibly heaven-defying ability. Nowadays, the Spirit Eye primarily served a supportive role. Aside from amplifying his mental energy and helping him manipulate it—which directly boosted his combat strength—its other functions were utility-based, yet immensely practical.
"What exactly is Brother Lin doing outside the city?" Su Wen asked, his gaze sharpening on Manager Qian.
"This..." Manager Qian's pudgy face wrinkled in hesitation. This was a secret operation of the Sun Moon Pavilion.
However, Su Wen was now a member of the Pavilion—one of their own. Even if the plan was classified, Su Wen's status was high enough that he likely deserved to know. Furthermore, Manager Qian had been feeling a nagging sense of anxiety about the mission himself, which was why he had looked so troubled from the start.
"The Branch Master went to the Transverse Canyon west of Ninghai City to set up an array. He wants to ensure that Zhao Hai and the forces of the City Lord's Mansion can be completely annihilated in one fell swoop."
Su Wen nodded. Simply put, Lin Tian was preparing the battlefield in advance to cut off Zhao Hai's retreat. But if he was merely setting up a trap, why would there be a premonition of danger?
"Who are the three Soul Kings he took with him?"
"All three are Vice-Branch Masters who hold significant authority within the pavilion."
"Vice-Branch Masters?" Su Wen repeated, nodding slowly. If they held such high positions, it was unlikely they were spies.
Manager Qian suddenly remembered something and quickly added, "Lord Su, are you suspecting that one of them might be an agent of the Imperial Family? If so, Vice-Branch Master Li fits your suspicion best. He joined the Sun Moon Pavilion two years ago and was recruited directly due to his Soul King cultivation."
As Su Wen listened, he didn't immediately see how this Vice-Branch Master Li fit his suspicions.
"You might not be aware, Lord Su, but our promotion system is usually based on longevity and cumulative merit. Positions are earned step-by-step. Branch Masters and Vice-Branch Masters are typically talented Soul Tool Engineers from headquarters who have shown exceptional performance before being dispatched to various cities."
"Vice-Branch Master Li, however, joined midway through his career. Much like..." Qian stole a glance at Su Wen before continuing, "much like yourself, he was a reclusive Soul Master. When he joined, he had already broken through to the Soul King level, but his soul tool proficiency was only at the primary level; he hadn't yet reached the intermediate rank."
"With the support of the Pavilion, he quickly displayed a talent for soul tools. By leveraging massive contributions and the network he built within the pavilion over a year, he successfully rose to the position of Vice-Branch Master six months ago."
"Under the original regulations, even with connections and merit, such a rapid promotion would have been impossible. But because the relationship between the Divine Cult and the Imperial Family was already strained at the time..." Manager Qian trailed off.
It was clear that Li had capitalized on the political tension to climb the ranks. If anyone was likely to be a spy, it was him, primarily because he hadn't undergone the Cult's long-term internal grooming—or rather, its "brainwashing."
"Of course, this is only based on the assumption that there is a spy among the three," Qian added as a final reminder. "Vice-Branch Master Li hasn't displayed any suspicious behavior. In fact, he has been a major driving force behind the development of the Ninghai branch."
Su Wen nodded, indicating he wouldn't blindly accuse a meritorious official. "How many experts are currently left in the pavilion? Gather them immediately. You have ten minutes. After that, we depart for the Transverse Canyon."
Hearing the command, Manager Qian felt it was somewhat against protocol, yet he felt strangely relieved. He had been plagued by a heart-pounding restlessness that he couldn't explain. Since he lacked special sensory abilities, having such an intense feeling of dread for no apparent reason only made him more certain that something was wrong.
Manager Qian moved with surprising speed. Ten minutes was a short window, making it impossible to gather every single expert. He focused on mobilizing the strongest Soul Masters available who could be pulled away without compromising the pavilion's basic security and operations.
Among them, the strongest was naturally Wang Lin. As someone who could go toe-to-toe with a Soul King while only being a Soul Ancestor, he was a living legend within the Ninghai City branch. On the Sun Moon Continent, Soul Masters capable of such feats did exist, as there wasn't always a fundamental qualitative change between the two ranks—most Soul Kings here lacked ten-thousand-year soul rings, meaning the power gap wasn't an insurmountable chasm.
Ten minutes later, the group was assembled.
"Move out!" Su Wen ordered, looking at the thirteen Soul Ancestors and Manager Qian standing before him.
As he spoke, he summoned his Heavenly Book martial soul. The pages fluttered and expanded, their ethereal glow enveloping the fourteen people as they prepared to rush toward the canyon.
(End of Chapter)