"I really want to test my strength against an enemy of this caliber…"
A fierce battle intent flickered in Leilin's eyes, but he quickly suppressed it.
Though he greatly anticipated the Bright Moon realm, he was no fool. The power of the fifth tier far exceeded his current level. Until he himself advanced to the rank of fifth-tier Warlock, he had no intention of fighting any Bright Moon Wizard—regardless of who it was.
"Everyone! We've received the latest orders—the Leader has issued an extermination command! The special task force will lead the operation while local garrisons provide support. We must uproot every single Three Serpents Cult stronghold scattered across the Atlanta Federation!"
Leilin clasped his hands behind his back, surveyed the assembled squad members, and bellowed.
"Long live Atlanta!" the team members shouted in unison, their faces flushed with excitement.
Unlike those ordinary military forces, most of them had joined the organization halfway through their careers and hadn't undergone much indoctrination. They harbored no unrealistic fantasies—but this time it was clear the Federation meant business, and the command had come directly from the Leader himself. That meant abundant opportunities to earn merit!
And once merit was earned—the higher-ups' cultivation techniques, vast resources, even titles and glory at the end of it all—all seemed within arm's reach. How could they not be thrilled?
"Excellent!" Leilin understood their true thoughts perfectly well. But he himself was no better—arguably worse, in fact. He certainly wasn't going to burst their bubble at a time like this.
"There are fifteen Three Serpents Cult strongholds in the eastern district. Now let me assign the missions…"
In truth, Leilin hadn't even clearly explained how to select targets. In his view, only he and three other Earth-rank Fire Feather clan members in the squad had any real usefulness. The rest would mostly serve as peripheral errand-runners or noise-makers on the sidelines.
After all, the Three Serpents Cult branches they were tasked with eliminating were merely sub-bases without any top-tier combatants. Sky-rank power was the highest they had to worry about.
……
In the midst of a vast desert, the searing heat warped the air into visible distortions. Waves of heat rolled across the landscape, blurring the scenery nearby.
"The Three Serpents Cult's sub-base is right here! General Gilfa, your mission is to completely seal off this area and not let a single suspicious person escape. Any problems?"
Inside a crudely erected tent, Leilin pointed at a large map spread across the table and addressed a white-haired Fire Feather clan member standing beside him.
This Fire Feather clansman was clearly advanced in age—even the red feathers on his body had become patchy and worn. Yet a fierce, battle-hardened aura radiated from him ceaselessly. What particularly caught Leilin's attention was that this old man was also a Sky-rank powerhouse.
"No problems!" General Gilfa nodded calmly. "I'll order the army to encircle the area. Not even a single bug will escape the desert!"
This general named Gilfa was, naturally, the person in charge of this region—the one Ms. had contacted on Leilin's behalf.
Though he held military authority, the Leader's command and Leilin's own display of formidable strength had earned the general's full cooperation.
"I hope you can destroy this den in one strike. Many of the disappearances under my jurisdiction are connected to it," the general remarked casually.
"Understood! Move out!" Leilin nodded, stepped out of the tent, and suddenly swept his hand forward.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
His entire body transformed into a cyclone of energy, and together with several other equally powerful pillars of light, they surged deep into the desert.
"This Three Serpents Cult base is truly well-hidden. If it weren't for the Federation's entire intelligence network, I probably would have had a very hard time finding this place…"
Light flickered continuously in Leilin's eyes.
The Atlanta Federation was simply too vast. Even if he used the bloodline and soul-fire crystals to search city by city—even combing through the wilderness—it would take him several decades at minimum, and there would still be no guarantee he'd actually find traces of the Three Serpents Cult.
The cult had long been wanted by the entire Federation and always operated with extreme caution. Leilin had no confidence in stumbling upon them by chance.
But now, with the map in hand, the Three Serpents Cult's sub-base was completely exposed to his view, with absolutely no difficulty in locating it.
"Still… was the Three Serpents Cult really founded by three Grand Dukes?"
Before Leilin's eyes, a massive fiery-red lake had already come into faint view, with flickering flames rising from its center. According to intelligence, the Three Serpents Cult's sub-base was located beneath this lava lake.
His spiritual power swept effortlessly through the lava and sand, scanning the area below, and a complex expression surfaced on Leilin's face.
"This is…"
Through his spiritual power, Leilin could clearly see the extensive experiments being conducted inside the Three Serpents Cult's sub-base laboratories, as well as modified Fire Feather clansmen and other subjects.
"Bloodline modification experiments?" This was something Leilin—born a Warlock—was intimately familiar with. If anything, he could be considered a grandmaster in the field.