Inside the great hall, Molde still knelt prostrate on the ground.
But having witnessed the Wind System Chief God suddenly depart, his heart surged with wild joy. "From the way that person spoke with the Chief God, it was obvious he was a Chief God as well! Fine, the Blood Peak Chief God may not have believed my words, but at least that Chief God has gone... This Lin Lei, hmph, even if he hands over all nine Spirit Pearls, he cannot escape death!"
Molde recalled what he had written on that piece of paper and felt quite smug. If he had described things straightforwardly, perhaps after Lin Lei handed over the nine Spirit Pearls, the Chief God might have let Lin Lei go. But... Molde had played a few little tricks with this information.
Though the plan was far from perfect in the short term, Molde believed... it was enough to ensure Lin Lei's death.
"Lin Lei, oh Lin Lei... a Great Perfection, yet you shall die just like this." Molde thought to himself darkly.
"Molde!" A cold shout suddenly rang out.
"Chief God." Molde immediately pressed his forehead to the ground.
The Blood Peak Chief God gazed down at Molde with an icy stare. "I ask you — is what is written on this paper true or false? Are you certain?" The Blood Peak Chief God was inwardly astonished that Molde had managed to deliver such a piece of paper. The Wind System Chief God was right — a task issued by a Sovereign, how long ago had that been?
Very few people knew about it. Even if Molde had fabricated this, how could he have known about such a thing?
"Chief God, your subordinate does not know whether it is true or false," Molde said respectfully. "Your subordinate merely obtained this piece of paper. The information was too shocking, and I knew... the Chief God would likely be interested. So I immediately sent it to you, Chief God."
Molde would never dare confirm whether it was true or false — not even on pain of death.
To claim certainty would mean he, Molde, had seen the true original!
"Hmph, get lost," the Blood Peak Chief God commanded.
"Yes." Molde hastily and respectfully withdrew from the great hall.
But in the hall, the Blood Peak Chief God, standing at the top of the great hall, furrowed his brows. "This Molde — he doesn't send the news early, nor does he come late. Just when Tresia happens to be here, he arrives. Now Tresia knows about this information. That's trouble." Then, as if thinking of something, the Blood Peak Chief God's divine sense suddenly surged outward.
In an instant, the Blood Peak Chief God's divine sense covered the entire Blood Peak Continent.
After a moment, the Blood Peak Chief God withdrew his divine sense, shook his head with a smile, and then flickered away, vanishing from the great hall.
Molde traveled through the vast white mist, departing at maximum speed.
"Hmph, I retrieved the Chief God artifact, immediately set this plan in motion, and then promptly reported the news to the Chief God. Even at the speed Lin Lei and his group departed, they probably haven't had time to return to Azure Manor yet." Molde was highly efficient in his work — he feared that given too much time, things might change.
So he had come alone, racing here at top speed to inform the Chief God.
As for the Chief God, pursuing Lin Lei — that speed would naturally be terrifyingly fast.
The mountain ranges rose and fell, stretching on endlessly.
A metal life form soared through the sky.
"We've already entered Azure Manor's territory. Before long, we'll reach the Heavens' Sacrifice Mountain Range." Lin Lei stood at the front of the metal life form's interior, gazing out through the transparent metal at the scenery beyond, and spoke with a faint smile.
"Azure Manor." Dana and Oliver also stood nearby, gazing into the distance.
Suddenly —
"Whoosh~~~" A terrifying whirlwind materialized out of thin air in the surrounding sky and earth. The whirlwind enveloped Lin Lei's metal life form directly, and in an instant the world became a blur.
"What's happening?" Bei Bei exclaimed in alarm.
"This is bad." Lin Lei's expression changed drastically. This sudden attack had caught even him completely off guard. This newcomer was terrifyingly powerful. Lin Lei held nothing back. With a thought, the power of the Earth Chief God surged forth, forming a protective barrier that enveloped all five of them.
The metal life form trembled throughout, then disintegrated into fine powder.
Lin Lei and the other four were still somewhat dazed, and by then, the whirlwind had already dissipated.
"Hmm?" Lin Lei looked ahead. In the air before them, a person floated suspended. The newcomer had long silver hair, a hawkish nose, and narrow eyes whose gaze occasionally leaked out like knives — one look at his face sent chills to the bottom of one's heart. The silver-haired man regarded Lin Lei and the other four with an air of indifference.
"Boss, who is he?" Bei Bei transmitted through divine sense.
Oliver, Dana, and their son 'Daya' looked even more shaken.
"Who else could he be? Apart from a Chief God, who else could appear around me without my noticing in the slightest?" Lin Lei transmitted. Then Lin Lei smiled and bowed to the person before him. "Lin Lei of Azure Manor greets the Chief God!" Having met the Death Sovereign and the Netherworld Fruit Tree, Lin Lei understood one thing!
A Chief God might appear in an energy form, might appear in their true body, or might also appear in a human form.
In short, the standard for identifying a Chief God was not their appearance, but their power. Even a little girl standing before you could be a Chief God. One must never judge another's strength by their outward appearance.
A faint smile appeared on the silver-haired man's face. "Oh? Containing the power of will? As expected of one who has reached the Great Perfection level — to identify my identity so quickly." This Wind System Chief God had sensed the presence of willpower within the barrier of Earth Chief God's power that Lin Lei had deployed.
Most importantly...
Lin Lei used the Chief God's power without wasting a single shred of it. Judging Lin Lei's strength was therefore simple.
"May I ask what business the Chief God has in stopping us?" Lin Lei asked with a smile, bowing slightly. "Please enlighten me, Chief God!"
"Have them withdraw." The Wind System Chief God glanced at Bei Bei and the others with cold indifference.
The matter of the Sovereign's tokens, in a Chief God's view, was something the fewer gods knew about, the better. In a Chief God's eyes, gods had no right to know about such a task. Lin Lei was a Great Perfection Highgod — the Chief God could speak with him in a measured tone. But the other four beside him? The Wind System Chief God did not want them to hear.