From Secret Clan to the Divine Dynasty

Fein City.

Within the Lion clan's manor.

A few days ago, several members of the Night Watchers came to the manor as guests, claiming to inquire about certain matters in Fein City. Their real purpose was to investigate the specific situation regarding Colonel Abel Leone, but after several days, they returned empty-handed.

The investigating members of the Night Watchers nodded to each other; a deputy captain smiled at the manor's butler and said steadily,

"We truly apologize for the disturbance these past few days. We have learned much about the murder case in Fein City and we appreciate the cooperation of His Excellency Abel. Now we shall take our leave."

The butler immediately nodded and said with a smile, "The Lion clan will cooperate with all of the Church's actions. We have always been loyal and devout believers in the divine."

The Night Watchers left the manor calmly, exchanged glances for a moment, then boarded their carriage. However, they didn't leave immediately; instead, they stopped on another street.

From the manor's study, sounds akin to wailing and roaring could constantly be heard.

"Ah, ah, er, ahhh!"

Colonel Abel Leone's mental state was in very poor condition.

Wearing his pajamas, he smashed his hands against the walls, creating cracks. His eyes were bloodshot, and he was breathing heavily as if in dire need of more air due to the constant tightness in his chest.

He felt as though he was drowning, always on the verge of being "submerged" by an invisible force.

Who will save me?

Colonel Abel finally realized that he no longer had a chance.

Although he had held on for a long time, he still had not been saved.

The Night Watchers who were openly investigating had pretended to leave, but in reality, someone was still closely observing every move Colonel Abel made from the shadows.

The woman hiding in the darkness was the Night Watcher's 3rd Squad Leader, and just like Lewis, she was an Extraordinary Exponent of mid-level Transmutation.

The 3rd Squad Leader was exceptionally skilled at hiding, so confident in her ability that even high-level Transmutation Extraordinary Exponents would fail to detect her – and indeed, they had not.

Concealed within a floor mirror, her form obscured, she steadfastly watched every action of Colonel Abel, not once relenting in her surveillance over the past several days.

In fact, during this time of covert observation, the Night Watcher's 3rd Squad Leader felt increasingly certain there was something wrong with Colonel Abel.

"His condition is certainly problematic, but the specifics are quite strange. We in Fein City might struggle to solve it. It seems we'll need to request a true Monarch powerful expert from another parish..."

Just then, Abel's expression suddenly changed. The man who was on the verge of collapse now wore a smile filled with arrogant composure.

The 3rd Squad Leader froze for a moment, then realized something was terribly wrong!

In the next instant, he bit his finger without care for the pain, letting his bright red blood flow out, before starting to write neatly on his own face!

"Yes."

After writing a single blood-red word, Abel used his blood to write a complete sentence.

"Your thinking is correct. You absolutely need to request a Monarch Level strong expert to be able to fully resolve the issue."

The 3rd Squad Leader paused, her amazement turning to shock as she quickly realized she had been discovered by the hidden mastermind!

Just as she thought of fleeing, she suddenly saw a pale hand reach out as if plucking a fish from water, and incredibly pulled her entire body out from the mirror.

"Who are you!"

The 3rd Squad Leader, filled with terror, tried to struggle but found herself utterly immobilized; the disparity in strength was not even of the same dimension.

Abel continued to write in blood on his sleepwear.

When he realized he was running out of blood, he actually bit off his own index finger, allowing the blood to continue to pour.

"You've spiritualized your body, hiding in the shadows. For a Monarch who can transform life force into spiritual power, such hiding abilities are utterly pointless."

The 3rd Squad Leader's cold sweat flowed freely, her body trembling with fear, and then she saw a man slowly emerge from the shadow of Abel in front of her.

It was a young man wearing a white tailcoat, a top hat, and gold-rimmed glasses, looking like an elegant,young nobleman but exuding an air of terrifying presence.

Who is this man?

The young man looked at Colonel Abel beside him, who continued to write new words in blood.

"You may call me 'Mr. Brandy.'

The 3rd Squad Leader feigned calm as she asked,

"Mr. Brandy... what exactly do you want to do? Who is making you to do this?"

The young man remained silent and let the pale-faced Abel continue to write in blood.

"Nothing much. You don't need to know these matters. In fact, soon enough all of this will be irrelevant to you."

A great fear overwhelmed the 3rd Squad Leader, and the next moment, the young man's hand pressed firmly against her head.

"No!"

Ice-cold silvery liquid rushed into her eyes, nostrils, and ears, and even when she tried desperately to close her mouth, she couldn't stop the invasion!

As the cold liquid penetrated her body, it felt as though countless voices were roaring within the depths of her soul, causing her entire body to involuntarily tremble and shudder. After screaming loudly again and again, her spirit gradually diminished.

She didn't know how much time passed; the voices showed no signs of stopping.

She attempted to escape over and over, yet she could never break free, her entire being in unbearable agony until her soul was completely consumed by the silvery liquid.

When the 3rd Squad Leader reopened her eyes, Abel's finger had already been healed, and Mr. Brandy was standing beside him.

A piece of paper materialized next to him, upon which squirming black letters appeared.

"You've transitioned much easier than Abel in these three days,"

"He's a battle-hardened soldier and much stronger than you, enduring for so long before becoming my puppet..."

"It mainly comes down to power, I suppose. Although it's only a difference of one level, the resistance to my abilities is significantly greater. It seems like controlling this number and level of Extraordinary Exponents is the limit for me."

The 3rd Squad Leader stood in place, her eyes bloodshot, seemingly void of thought, just like Abel Leone who stood nearby.

After a while, several members of the Words of Tranquility emerged from Abel Leone's shadow.

They had long been aware of the Night Watcher's investigations but had not taken any action on their own due to the uncertainty of resolving it, instead waiting for Mr. Brandy's return.

Their paper pieces flew out too, communicating through text without making a sound.

The man leading them, with long white hair and a black eye patch, bowed deeply.

"The Tempest Church and Salvation Church do indeed pose a troublesome presence here, and the Fischer family is a minor hindrance. However, our target has changed; we no longer need to control the East Coast Province."

"We just need to wait for the completion of that ritual, and then everything will end, and everyone will find ultimate peace."

The Words of Tranquility have high standards for their Priests; one must be at the Monarch Level to serve.

"Mr. Brandy" is one of the Priests of Tranquility, and the important Forbidden rare artifact he possesses is still in the hands of a few ordinary members.

With that object in hand, Mr. Brandy could have a good chance of victory even against opponents who are also of the Monarch Level.

However, using a Forbidden rare artifact with a three-digit number comes with a huge price.

The last crawling text on their papers was identical.

"Praise the Songster."

"Praise the Songster."

——

At the Fischer family, Lilian held an unassuming box and said calmly,

"Colin, as usual, this money is to be given to the Lions, so make a trip to the Lion clan soon."

Even now, because there hasn't been an outright "falling out," the Fischer family still pays a large portion of its profits to the Leone family annually.

Those profits have always been more than what the Fischer family retains for itself.

So, when she heard that Viscount Bast had been killed by his father, Lilian felt a touch of excitement deep within.

Because she knew all too well that the powerful Lion unquestionably was a massive stumbling block to the continued development of the Fischer family.

"Hmm, I understand," Colin nodded slowly.

Lilian fell silent for a moment, then suddenly said,

"Speaking of which, Colonel Abel's mental state has been deteriorating over the years. I don't know what exactly is happening, but he certainly has a bone to pick with us."

Lilian paused briefly and continued, "Colin, at least for the current stage, we can't have any conflict with the Lion clan, do you understand?"

Colin was slightly stunned; the Great Priest's phrase "the current stage" was quite profound.

While the future remained unclear, he was very aware of one thing: the current Fischer family couldn't afford to offend the Lions.

"I understand,"

He nodded lightly, signaling that he would definitely complete the order.

In fact, just the previous night, Colin had successfully ascended to the 3rd Rank of the Path of Contract, known as "Snacks Merchant."

Power of Consecution "Snacks Merchant."

Its image in the Spirit Realm was that of a chubby, affable old man emanating warm orange light as he made snacks.

The promotion ritual involved selling to a hundred different people on the same day; doubtless, the difficulty was not high.

Karl had issued a Divine Command to inform Lilian of all the rituals for the first five steps of the God Pantheon stairway, hence Colin's rapid advancement.

Colin's physical attributes increased by 20, Spiritual Power increased by 50, and he gained two different Extraordinary traits: "Mysterious Olfactory Ability" and "Delicious Snacks."

The first was Mysterious Olfactory Ability, which entailed not just the typical sense of smell, but the special ability to detect many traces and intelligence clues in the mystical field.

For instance, Spirit Aura or residues of Extraordinary power, even the most concealed scents were now detectable by Colin.

Even a single drop of dried blood could reveal the owner's location miles away.

The other ability was "Delicious Snacks."

As a "Snacks Merchant," he naturally could create delicious snacks, with Extraordinary Exponents able to use Spiritual Power to produce various types of Delicious Snacks.

Biscuit-type snacks could restore life force, chocolate-type snacks could restore mental power, and bread-type snacks could replenish Spiritual Power, and so forth...

Additionally, these snacks could be maintained for several days, allowing anyone to carry them.

They wouldn't immediately disappear or lose their efficacy; only after days would the Extraordinary power within the "Delicious Snacks" slowly diminish, eventually expiring.

Their sustained effect was also very long-lasting, maintaining at least for several hours until fully digested. Furthermore, different varieties of "Delicious Snacks" could take effect simultaneously within one person's body.

Although almost devoid of direct combat ability, in a support role, "Delicious Snacks" is indeed a very potent Power of Consecution, and the effects of the "Delicious Snacks" would grow stronger as the Extraordinary Exponent became more powerful.

Extraordinary Exponents of the highest echelons of the Path of Contract could even create baked confections that might bring the dead back to life.

Of course, such mind-boggling feats had nothing to do with the present Colin.

He needed to organize a caravan to travel to the Leone family in Fein City to deliver a large sum of money.