The Netherblue Prefecture, the northern district of "Netherblue City" — the foremost among the ten cities of the prefecture.
This was the residence of Prefect "Belute." Since it was within the city walls, there was no great need for an army of guards. Yet even so, the total number of maidservants, servants, and soldiers in the estate numbered in the tens of thousands. At this moment, Lin Lei and Bei Bei were inside this very residence, keeping watch over news circulating through Hell regarding the "Red Rhombus Crystal."
In the courtyard where the two of them were staying, Lin Lei sat in a stone chair, flipping through intelligence dossiers.
"Boss, did you get any news about the Red Rhombus Crystal?" Bei Bei walked in through the courtyard gate, teasing him with a grin.
Lin Lei tossed the dossier onto the table and shook his head with a wry smile. "What news? Everything in these dossiers is hearsay — not a single lead comes close to the reliability of that one from Brody. It's just that the troops guarding the transfer array on the Muaya Continent fall directly under a Sovereign's command, and they rotate personnel constantly. The Muaya army has countless soldiers — tracking where Brody was actually sent is simply too difficult."
To this day, Lin Lei still believed...
The "Red Rhombus Crystal" that Brody had obtained was almost certainly genuine! And the divine clone he left behind was nothing more than a diversion to draw others' attention. Where had Brody's true body gone? Lin Lei desperately wanted to know.
"It really is a headache." Bei Bei flopped down into a seat, grabbed a plump, reddish fruit from the table, and took a big bite, juice dripping from the corner of his mouth. "The Muaya army keeps rotating its soldiers at the transfer array — this month one squad escorts newcomers to Hell, next month it's a completely different squad. To investigate something from decades ago involving who knows how many squads and personnel... it's a nightmare! And if you, Boss, go poking around openly, you'll definitely catch the attention of the Muaya Sovereign!"
Lin Lei gave a slight nod.
The last time they had gone after Brody, the justification had been perfectly sound — he could simply say, "I'm interested in such a rare treasure and wanted to take a look." After all, even an ordinary prefect or seven-star demon would be tempted upon seeing that intelligence and those vision projections. In truth, many of the people searching for the Red Rhombus Crystal didn't even believe it was a divine artifact. They were chasing it because of the unusual abilities it had displayed.
Now, that matter had temporarily concluded. But if Lin Lei were to openly investigate the Muaya army's internals — dig that deep — how could no one grow suspicious? After all, for a Grand Perfection existence, the Red Rhombus Crystal held little practical use. An occasional inquiry here and there was one thing, but persistent, relentless searching would raise serious doubts.
Bei Bei pouted and snorted, "That Brody really is greedy."
"He's a High God who refined a divine spark — and the crystal is a treasure that lets him effortlessly defeat six-star demons. He knows which way the scales tip," Lin Lei said with a faint smile. "Besides, my guess is he used the transfer array, spent some money, made several transfers along the way. Who knows where he ended up?"
Bei Bei nodded in agreement.
"So we just can't get our hands on it?" Bei Bei said unwillingly.
"One day, we will," Lin Lei replied, his tone light but resolute.
Lin Lei had already sent his other three divine clones to lead his family and friends back to the Yulan Continent. His purpose here was to obtain the Red Rhombus Crystal at any cost. To Lin Lei, that crystal represented the only hope of resurrecting Grandpa Derinkoort! He would never give up!
Seeing the look on Lin Lei's face, Bei Bei nodded as well. "Once Brody has the Red Rhombus Crystal, he's definitely not going to stay in the shadows forever. Sooner or later, there'll be news of him again."
Lin Lei smiled and nodded in agreement.
"Hoooo hoooo~~~" The cool winds of Hell rustled through the White Scale Trees in the courtyard. Their leaves, already tinged yellow, drifted down with the breeze, forming a sparse layer on the ground.
"Hm?"
Both Lin Lei and Bei Bei's expressions turned solemn in an instant. They instinctively looked up — and when Lin Lei saw what was above, he couldn't help but squint. "That light is blinding." High in the sky, a figure hung suspended like a white-hot sun, its radiance so overwhelming that it forced one to shield their eyes.
A vast, majestic aura emanated from within the dazzling "sun."
Straining his eyes, Lin Lei finally made out the figure: long golden hair, golden eyebrows — the brows drooping down past his earlobes — a clean-shaven, pale face. A loose white robe embroidered with golden patterns draped over a tall, imposing frame. Those eyes were like two miniature suns, piercing and impossible to gaze upon directly.
"A Sovereign?" Lin Lei concluded instantly. "Light energy... a Light Sovereign. What is a Light Sovereign doing here?" His mind raced.
"Greetings, Sovereign." Lin Lei bowed.
"Greetings, Sovereign." Bei Bei immediately bowed as well.
The Sovereign of Light gazed down at Lin Lei and Bei Bei below with an icy, detached expression — the look of an emperor surveying his subjects. After a long silence, the Sovereign of Light finally spoke: "You are Lin Lei?"
"I am." Lin Lei maintained a respectful exterior, but inside, his thoughts churned wildly.
Why has a Sovereign come here? Is it about the divine artifact? Or about Chegewin? Confronting the myriad possibilities, Lin Lei's mind raced through countermeasures in an instant. Though he came up with quite a few strategies, he remained tense and uneasy. After all, if a Sovereign truly wished him dead, it would take no more than a flick of the hand.
The Sovereign of Light had arrived, but he had also deployed his domain, sealing off the space around Lin Lei and Bei Bei from the outside world. Whatever happened within this zone would be invisible to anyone beyond it.
"This is... a Sovereign?"
The owner of the estate, "Belute," turned his gaze toward the sky above Lin Lei and Bei Bei, and his expression changed. "Why has a Light Sovereign come here?" After a moment's hesitation, Belute gritted his teeth and shot toward Lin Lei and Bei Bei's location. He feared the Sovereign of Light, but Lin Lei and Bei Bei were people he cared deeply about. He could not simply stand by!
At that moment, Lin Lei and the Sovereign of Light, suspended in the air, were in conversation.
"That is correct! Because of this matter, numerous Sovereigns throughout Hell took notice. However, it is obvious that the intelligence was fabricated. I do not possess the Nine Spirit Pearls, nor do I have a Supreme God Token," Lin Lei said calmly, looking up at the Sovereign of Light.
The Sovereign of Light's gaze blazed with intensity, making Lin Lei's eyes sting as he tried to meet it.
"Lin Lei, I will give you one chance. Hand over the Nine Spirit Pearls. Or die," the Sovereign of Light said flatly.
Lin Lei's heart jolted. Why is this Light Sovereign so certain I have the Nine Spirit Pearls? No — the only ones who know about this are Bei Bei, Olivier, and Moerde. Moerde is long dead. Olivier and the others have returned to the Yulan Continent. There shouldn't be any leak...
"Sovereign, I truly do not understand," Lin Lei said, tilting his head upward and affecting a tone of indignation. "Last time, that Wind Sovereign interrogated me with the same accusation, and the outcome was clear — the intelligence was false. I'm not even sure whether the Supreme God mission itself is real. Why, then, does the Sovereign insist that I possess the Nine Spirit Pearls?"