“In the name of the Lord!” The Holy Emperor said quietly, but his voice penetrated everyone and shook everyone’s souls.
Everyone present at the plaza could sense the majestic presence now emanating from the Holy Emperor. Linley, too, didn’t have any chance to resist this pressure, and he bowed obediently. The strength of this awesome presence emanating from the Holy Emperor was even more terrifying than the presence which emanated from those two Saint-level combatants who did battle in the sky over the town of Wushan, and more terrifying than that Black Dragon as well.
This sort of presence did not need to compel others to do anything. Its very nature caused people’s souls to feel worship and veneration towards it.
It was a deity’s presence!
In the entire plaza, aside from the Holy Emperor, everyone else, including all of the hundred thousand onlookers, the Cardinals, and the kings, all bowed reverently to hear the Holy Emperor speak.
“May you be blessed with the love, the kindness, and the benevolence of the Lord.”
The Holy Emperor’s voice didn’t seem to be too loud, but it shook the heavens and the earth, causing everyone’s souls to tremble.
Countless patterned rays of holy light suddenly emanated from the top of the Radiant Temple, bathing every single person in its radiance. Everyone in the plaza felt their hearts suddenly grow calm, and their bodies feel more comfortable than they ever had before. Everyone was extremely solemn and respectful.
“May the Lord bless you with peace and love.”
At the same time, a glorious aura began to emanate from the Holy Emperor himself. “Children of the Lord, let us admit our sins. Let us genuinely reflect and repent for our mistakes in thought, action, and speech. May the Lord take pity on us and pardon us our sins, and grant us eternal life.”
Instantly.
The entire world seemed to be filled with the sound of a holy song, which all the adherents of the Radiant Church immediately began to chant along with. The sound of the adherents’ singing, combined with the holy song emanating from the heavens, filled everyone’s hearts with reverence and solemnity.
The mass was an extremely complicated one. It started with repentance, proceeded to God’s pity, went on to songs of praise, was followed by prayers, then words of thanks, before finally ending with a choir.
The vast majority of the people on the plaza were followers of the Radiant Church, and bathed by the radiant glow from the Radiant Temple, almost everyone was silent. Even those people who didn’t really believe in the Radiant Church were sincerely moved by the sight. When the choir songs came to an end, everyone finally woke up. By now, it was mid-day.
With the mass concluded, everyone present began to leave.
Hand in hand, Alice and Linley were walking together. “Big brother Linley, how do you feel? Don’t you feel very comfortable?”
But Linley shook his head. “I was influenced by the atmosphere, to the point where I couldn’t even think clearly. Perhaps those who are not mentally strong and need something external to rely upon would really like that feeling, but personally speaking, I do not. I dislike being influenced by outside factors.”
He had to admit, during the mass itself, Linley had been affected, and he had lost himself within that comfortable, embracing aura.
But Linley had, after all, fought his way through and survived the deadly Mountain Range of Magical Beasts. After the mass ended, he immediately woke up. Thinking back to what had just happened, he was terrified. The seductive power of the Radiant Church was really too frightening.
“Influenced? No. The Lord is like our father and mother. We are all the Lord’s children, and we are all blessed with the Lord’s benevolence and love. Big brother Linley, how could you think such a thing?” Alice was somewhat unhappy.
Alice had grown up in Fenlai City since she was little. As the Holy Capital, each year during the Yulan Festival, Fenlai City would put on this sort of large-scale mass. The vast majority of the citizens in Fenlai City were followers of the Radiant Church. Alice, as well, had been a believer in the Radiant Church since she had been a child. This sort of spiritual belief was not something that would be easily changed.
“Alice, you can’t think of it like that. The power and abilities you currently have, aren’t they all a product of your own hard work and training? How can they have been bequeathed to you by the Lord? If the Lord is benevolent to you, why would he give you a father and mother like the ones you currently have?” Linley knew very well what Alice’s family situation was like.
Alice couldn’t help but fall silent. She stared at Linley.
“Big brother Linley, I’m going home now. There’s no need for you to walk me back.” Turning, Alice immediately headed in the direction of her home. Watching Alice depart, Linley felt unhappy and stifled. Turning his head, he looked back at the Radiant Temple, which rose into the clouds. “This Radiant Church really does cause lots of harm.”
It was quite normal for young lovers to quarrel. By the next time Alice and Linley met, they were madly in love with each other again. Both of them wisely decided to refrain from discussions of religion. While they had originally met twice a month, at the depths of their ardor, they even upped it to meeting four times a month. Their relationship grew so close that they even began sleeping together, although they never did break that final barrier.
Per Alice: “My first time has to be on my wedding night.” That second year, during the first half of year 9998 of the Yulan calendar, was a high point in the relationship between Linley and Alice.
But of course, any long-term relationship would have some small problems.
Year 9998 of the Yulan calendar, September 29th.
“Eh… there’s something Alice is hiding from me and doesn’t want to tell me.” Linley was walking with his three bros on the streets of Fenlai City. Thinking back to the unhappy parting him and Alice had had last time, Linley felt very helpless.
Alice and Linley had grown up in very different circumstances, and also had many different thoughts on things. Most importantly of all… Alice was a very independent, strong-minded girl. She definitely wasn’t the sort that would easily compromise with others. What made Linley the most helpless of all was that Alice was a closed gourd who hid her thoughts.
“Third bro, you and Alice are quarreling again?” Yale teased from the side.
George and Reynolds began to chuckle as well. Reynolds patted Linley on the shoulders and said, “Linley, I feel like you care a bit too much about this Alice. Careful that you don’t let your heart be hurt too badly if you break up. Look at me; I’ve had over ten different girlfriends by now. How relaxed and easy my life is!”
Linley glanced at Reynolds, speechless.
“Fourth bro, watch your words. Third bro is intending on making Alice his wife.” Yale chortled. Afterwards, he patted Linley on the shoulders as well. “But Third Bro, I have to say, as a man, there’re plenty of women out there waiting for you. No need to restrict yourself so much.”
Linley smiled but didn’t speak.
Within Fenlai City, Linley bid farewell to his three bros and headed towards the Dry Road and Alice’s residence.
“Uncle Hudd.” Linley warmly called out to the guard who stood in front of Alice’s house. Over this period of time, Linley and Alice had grown extremely close, and so he had also gotten acquainted with the guard.
Hudd laughed as he saw Linley. “Oh, it’s Linley. Are you here to see Miss Alice? Alas, Miss Alice isn’t back yet. She should have been back already. I’m not sure what’s going on.”
“Not back yet?” Linley was stunned.
But then, Linley smiled at Hudd. “Then I’ll just wait for a while over here. I bet she’ll be back soon.” Linley then headed straight for the bar located next to Alice’s residence, made an order of his preferred jade wine, and then began to drink while quietly waiting.
The sky grew dark, but Linley continued to sit there and slowly drink. Alice still did not show u
p, and the people in the bar grew fewer and fewer in number. By his side, Bebe was very much enjoying all the alcohol, as normally, Linley didn’t let him drink too much. This was the first time that he was able to drink to his heart’s content.
“Sir, we are about to close,” the waiter said respectfully to Linley.
“Close?” Linley was startled.
“Oh. What’s the bill?” Linley stood up, but he was feeling very woozy.
Linley had already finished six bottles of jade wine. Fortunately, Linley had a strong constitution and was able to hold his liquor. An ordinary person probably would’ve collapsed long ago. Next to him, Bebe had drank an even more ridiculous amount, polishing off a full dozen bottles.
After paying his tab, Linley left the bar. By now, it was late at night. The Dry Road was almost deserted and devoid of people.
“This was the first time that Alice missed our appointment.” Linley let out a long sigh.
Taking one final look back at the two-story house shrouded in darkness, Linley headed directly for the Jadewater Paradise.
At the Jadewater Paradise.
“Third Bro’s probably having fun with his girl right about now.” Yale, George, and Reynolds were all chatting, laughing, and enjoying their wine.
“Hey, Boss Yale… do you think Linley’s still a virgin?” Reynolds chuckled.
Yale wrinkled his nose. Quite confidently, he said, “That goes without saying. Just by looking at him, you can tell that he’s a 100% virgin. Bah… Fourth Bro, let’s go get some rest.” As he spoke, Yale pulled his beauty by the hand and moved to leave the room, quickly followed by Reynolds.
“Crack.”
The door to their room suddenly opened.
Yale and Reynolds stared in surprise. Shocked, Yale said, “Third Bro, why’d you come back?”
“No reason. Come on, Boss Yale, Fourth Bro, Second Bro, keep me company and have some drinks with me.” Linley’s voice was a bit low and quiet.
Reynolds, George, and Yale all looked at each other. Yale was the first one to laugh and say, “Wonderful. It’s rare to see Third Bro in such a frank and straightforward mood. Tonight, we bros are gonna keep you company and drink with you.” Yale, Reynolds, and George all sat down and began to drink with Linley.
The next day, Linley once more went to Alice’s house, but once again, Alice did not show up.
Within the Ernst Institute.
“Is Alice really mad at me this time?” Linley was walking on the roads within the Ernst Institute, and his mood was not very good.
While walking, Linley noticed a particular shop located in the middle of the Institute, and saw various notices and advertisements outside of the shop. Linley’s gaze suddenly fixed upon an advertisement for a crystal ball. In his mind, he suddenly remembered some words Alice had once said to him. “Big brother Linley, we’re living in different places. Every time I see other couples on campus, I’ll think about you and miss you, but it’s so hard for us to meet each other. Alas… how wonderful it would be if the two of us could always be together.”
Linley’s heart suddenly moved.
Heading directly to the shop counter, he spoke with the storekeeper. “How much do the memory crystal balls here cost?”
“800 gold coins.” The storekeeper’s eyes lit up. Memory crystal balls were extremely luxurious items. “We have some extremely high quality memory crystals here. These memory crystals were specially manufactured for us by water-style magi of the eighth rank, right here in the Institute.”
Linley had a thorough understanding of the fundaments behind the construction of a memory crystal ball.
The water-style’s “Floating Scryer Technique” would be embedded into the crystal ball through the usage of alchemical methods. When the memory crystal ball was activated through a small amount of mageforce, the spell would automatically activate and record a long scene. After the recording was completed, the next time mageforce was used to activate the memory crystal ball, the crystal ball would automatically play back the previously recorded scene.
After negotiating over the price, Linley managed to procure two memory crystal balls at the price of 1200 gold coins.
“I’ll use one memory crystal ball to record what I do at the Institute, while I’ll give the other to Alice and let her do the same. That way, even if I’m not able to see her, I’ll be able to watch her through the memory crystal ball.” Seeing the two crystal balls in his hands, Linley couldn’t help but let a smile blossom.
Stonesculpting in the dormitory, training in the mountains, attending classes at the Institute… Linley recorded everything down, until the memory crystal itself was totally filled up and could not record any more. And then, excited, in the middle of October, Linley took the two memory crystals with him to Fenlai City, only to find… that Alice had still not shown up.
October 29th.
The four bros once more headed together towards Fenlai City. Within the city, Linley separated from his three bros.
Reynolds, Yale, and George watched as Linley departed, the expressions on their faces solemn.
“In the past seven years that I’ve known Third Bro, he’s always been an outstanding genius, both in the field of magic as well as in the field of stoneshaping. But clearly, Third Bro highly values the relationship between him and this Alice. If this results in heartbreak, I’m afraid that Third Bro will be deeply hurt.” Yale frowned as he spoke.
Reynolds nodded as well. “I have the same feeling. That Alice girl hasn’t shown up for three of their meetings now. I’m afraid there must be some trouble.”
“Honestly, breaking up isn’t necessarily a bad thing,” Yale laughed. “As a man, if you don’t experience the pain of a breakup, how will you mature? I’ve always felt that Third Bro dotes on that Alice too much. If it was me? Shit. If a girl acts up towards me, I’d drop her in a heartbeat.”
George laughed. “Boss Yale, honestly, I rather appreciate how Third Bro behaves. Your point of view is really a bit too…” George shook his head.
“I myself am inclined towards how Boss Yale thinks.” Reynolds smirked.
“Enough chitchat, let’s go to the Jadewater Paradise.”
Yale, Reynolds, and George headed directly to the Jadewater Paradise, but halfway to their destination, Reynolds suddenly, secretively nudged Yale and George. “Boss Yale, George, wait a second. Take a look over there. See who that is?”
Yale and George both turned to look in the direction towards which Reynolds was gesturing. Immediately, the expressions on the faces of both Yale and George changed.
50
A Meeting
The Fragrant Pavilion Road was filled with people, but Yale, George, and Reynolds could clearly and distinctly recognize a certain female, not too far away from them. Since Linley and Alice had been together for a long time now, Yale, George, and Reynolds had all been formally introduced to Alice. Naturally, they recognized her.
“It’s Alice,” George said in a low voice.
Right at this moment, Alice was walking hand-in-hand with another young man, a hint of a smile on her face. If Linley were here, he would definitely have been able to recognize that this young man was Kalan.
“Bastard.” A murderous look was on Yale’s face.
Reynolds was furious as well. “These past two months, Linley has been going to her home time and time again, waiting bitterly for her. He’s been recording all of his activities down in a memory crystal as well, like an idiot. And he even told us that in the future, he was going to marry this Alice. Fuck this!”
“In what way is our Third Bro not worthy of her?” George was starting to get upset as well.
Yale let out a sneer. “It’s not convenient for us to interfere. We’ll go to the Jadewater Paradise, and we’ll talk to Third Bro about it when he comes back. The most important thing for us to do now is to help Third Bro mentally prepare for this. If he doesn’t prepare? I’m afraid that he won’t be able to take this blow.”
Geor
ge and Reynolds all nodded as well.
Within their private room at the Jadewater Paradise, Yale, George, and Reynolds all sat, frowns on their faces. They didn’t ask for any courtesans to accompany them, and the only thing in their cups was juice. They were afraid that they might get drunk, and would not behave appropriately when dealing with Linley.
“I know Third Bro all too well,” George said worriedly. “He normally doesn’t say much, and he’s very hard-working as well. There are so many girls at our school who are pursuing him. He’s never accepted a single one of them. But a guy like him, once he falls for someone, he will fall much harder than you, Boss, or you, Fourth Bro.”
Yale and Reynolds both nodded.
To Yale and Reynolds, losing a girl just meant getting a new one. It was no big deal at all. But in this past year, every day, when they were joking with Linley, they could tell from Linley’s reactions that he had really developed genuine feelings for Alice.
“This is pissing me off.” Yale drank all the juice in his cup at one go.
Reynolds snorted. “Boss Yale, don’t be too pissed. It’s just a girl. Third Bro will be in a lot of pain this time, but after he’s over it, everything will be fine.”
Yale nodded as well.
Yale, Reynolds, and George were all members of large clans, and thus they had been influenced accordingly since their youth. For Reynolds and George, it wasn’t too bad, as their clans had strict rules. But Yale had been buried in women since he had been a kid.
Time passed, one second at a time, one minute at a time. Yale and the others all sat there quietly.
One in the morning. With a creak, the door swung open. Linley walked in, reeking of wine. “Hey. All of you guys are still here?”
Yale laughed loudly. “We were waiting for you.”
“Third Bro, you weren’t waiting for that Alice this entire time, were you?” George said in an intentionally casual manner.
Coiling Dragon_Book 1 of the Coiling Dragon Saga Page 44