Chapter 1 The Hines Conspiracy

The news that Marquis Hines, an important imperial minister, had been communicating with the enemy caused a storm within the United Empire.

No one expected the traitor to be in the command headquarters.

Coupled with the previous ambush on the Allied Fleet and various defeats on the front lines, everyone realized that the "surrender faction" was not just pessimistic about the war situation and obstructing the new policies, but also taking actual actions to collaborate with the enemy.

The interrogation of the Tianmu Sect archbishop, whom Aberke had captured alive, also yielded results on the same day, thanks to the military intelligence. The evidence was irrefutable.

The next day, major newspapers such as the *Lingdun Daily* and the *Lu Ying Times* reported the whole story in detail. There was indeed a group of "surrender faction" secretly colluding with the enemy within the United Empire.

Empress Yekaterina did not disappoint. With an iron fist, she purged all personnel related to Marquis Hines and promoted a group of hawkish ministers to fill the vacant positions, quickly quelling the negative impact of the internal traitor incident on the empire.

Although Marquis Hines had committed suicide in fear of punishment, and many clues ended there, the impact was far more than that.

Empress Yekaterina also took the opportunity to gather the power scattered in the hands of some old nobles. For a time, the power in the monarch's hands reached an unprecedented level, even surpassing that of the Bonaparte royal family, and there were no more obstacles to the implementation of various directives and policies.

Only afterwards did some people realize that the list of various "surrender factions" was too detailed, and almost all the old nobles who had previously obstructed the new policies were wiped out.

Some even guessed that this was the Empress's attempt to consolidate power again.

However, no one said anything, and even received consistent support from the hawkish members of Congress.

In this special period of plane crisis, a highly centralized and ambitious leader was needed in order to concentrate all forces to resist foreign enemies.

And Yekaterina was precisely that qualified Great Empress.

This was obvious to all.

......

Several days later, Claymington in the Stormga Territory, southern Lu Ying, at Earl Russell's forest manor.

This was an ancient manor in the mountains and forests, with beautiful scenery, and it had existed for more than seven hundred years.

It was in this ancient manor that a group of old-school nobles were secretly discussing an ambush plan that was enough to change the fate of the United Empire.

"Will that Mr. Mirror of Dawn really come?"

"The news has been released, and people from the Dawn Organization have also come to contact us. As long as the [Dark Sacred Lamp] is in our hands, Mr. Mirror will definitely fall into the trap."

"That's right. That Mr. Mirror is a vampire, and her origin was burned by holy light. It will take at least a few years to heal herself. But now, at most two or three years from the Tian Shen Plane, a large number of ninth-tier mages will descend through the plane channel. The United Empire is doomed to defeat. So, in order to buy time, she will definitely come, even if she suspects that there might be a problem with this deal. She can't afford to wait. Besides, that kind of ninth-tier being probably thinks that no one in Lu Ying can do anything to her."

"The Empire can only have one ninth-tier. As long as Master Merlin is still the Empire's first enshrined, our status will still be there. Otherwise, that ambitious Miss Lance is afraid that she will strip away all the rights that should belong to our nobles. If we really lose the war, everyone will have to be buried with her."

"That's right. We have to take the initiative and let the people from the Tian Shen Plane capture Lu Ying as soon as possible. Otherwise, if their casualties are too great, they will inevitably slaughter cities and destroy countries in anger. Then we will have nothing..."

"..."

The Marquis Hines incident had brought too much negative impact to the old nobles. Although they managed to cut their losses in time, the loss to their old faction alliance was still immeasurable.

This also disrupted their previous painstaking layout, and the various rights they had worked so hard to obtain were all returned at once.

Various positions were dismissed, territories were taken back, and real power was squeezed...

They had originally planned to gradually nibble away at some benefits during the war.

But now it seemed that the longer the time dragged on, the more stable the Empress's position would become, and the less would be left for them, the old nobles.

They had no choice but to make a desperate gamble.

"The Dawn is too much of a threat to us. If we don't get rid of them, problems will fall on our heads sooner or later."

"Yes. I even suspect that this Dawn is a secret plot of Her Majesty the Empress. Otherwise, how could it be such a coincidence that a Dawn Group suddenly appeared and broke the stalemate of the Allied Fleet? Now those on the Tian Shen Plane are also doubting our abilities, and our say in the subsequent negotiations will become smaller and smaller."

"Don't worry, they will still continue to win us over for at least the next few years. Those guys on the Tian Shen Plane are not monolithic either. They probably guessed that 'Mr. Mirror' has a treasure, so these vanguard magic corps want to eat this piece of fat as much as possible, and they are willing to risk coming over to intercept and kill her. Otherwise, after the main corps descends on a large scale, there will be more people to share the benefits. Their wooing us is also because of this."

"Have the people arrived?"

"They have already been secretly sent over. This time, many top experts have come, absolutely foolproof!"

"When the time comes, after killing that Mr. Mirror, we can even consider beheading that one..."

"..."

While these people were discussing, a group of mysterious cloaked figures was heading towards the manor at a leisurely pace on a mountain road dozens of miles away from the manor.

Although it was a group of people, there was an obvious distinction between the superior and the inferior in the way they walked.

Leading the way were three white-bearded mages.

An invisible magical field surrounded their bodies, and the dew on the grass blades would not stick to their robes wherever they passed.

These were actually three ninth-tier Archmages.

And the group behind them were all eighth-tier mages with powerful magic.

This was an elite magic corps strong enough to kill any ninth-tier.

......

On the other side, a steam train was heading south from Lingdun to Lu Ying.

"Woo..."

"Woo..."

The steam train entered the tunnel and whistled, dragging a long white steam tail.

When the carriage passed through the dark tunnel, the view suddenly opened up.

The weather was clear today, and the visibility was high.

Through the train window, you could see the scenery on both sides of the railway.

Fields, mountains, mechanical towns, and hardworking people.

After Lu Ying and Mafa merged into the United Empire, advanced mechanical technology also bloomed everywhere. A large influx of population also led to the construction of a large number of new towns along the railway, and everywhere was a busy and prosperous construction scene.

Life was getting better day by day, and people were busy and energetic.

The sun was shining brightly, illuminating a luxurious carriage.

On a small table by the window, there was a miniature gargoyle statue, and Suren was explaining the mysteries of the runes of the puppeteer lineage.

Opposite him, Aberke was holding a notebook, and five mechanical arms were carefully recording something.

"The key to high-level puppets lies in the understanding of runes. Above laws, there is the power of rules. This is the ultimate mystery of runes, and it is also the direction you need to cultivate hard in the future. But if you want to be involved in the field of high-level alchemy, you must be able to understand the advanced runic language. There are some basic books in the library. After you go down, first read them carefully and lay a solid foundation. Okay, that's all for today..."

"Yes, Teacher. Then I'll go back to the Little Void Realm first. Mr. Black's draconic rune course is about to begin."

"Okay."

"..."

After today's class, Aberke returned to the Little Void Realm again.

Suren also put away the puppet used for teaching.

He was very satisfied with his disciple's performance.

Aberke was hardworking, focused, persistent, and had the [Seven Aperture Exquisite Heart] talent, which gave him a very strong learning ability.

Suren was now lecturing on the top-level alchemy knowledge domain above the seventh-tier, which was very obscure and difficult to understand for ordinary people. But Aberke's learning progress was still very fast. Every day, he was like a sponge, absorbing all kinds of knowledge greedily.

Moreover, it wasn't just Suren who was teaching.

There was also Mr. Black and a group of top experts from the Dawn Group in the Little Void Realm, as well as the library with the most complete collection of books in the entire alchemy plane.

Anyone with these resources would avoid too many detours.

Suren felt that with a little guidance, his disciple would definitely achieve great things in the future.

.......

Lu Ying's climate was pleasant in all seasons. Now it was the season of blooming spring, and there was a scene of greenery and blooming flowers on both sides of the railway.

A small crack was opened in the window, and the carriage was always filled with a faint fragrance of grass and flowers.

On the other side of the reclining chair, Mr. Mirror was leisurely reading an ancient book about vampires. No one knew what she saw, sometimes her beautiful eyebrows were slightly frowned, and sometimes she smiled lightly, elegantly and attentively.

They had been on the train for two days, and it would take another day to reach the Stromga Territory in the south.

Suren did not disturb his senior sister. After teaching Aberke, he became busy with his own affairs again.

They were also used to this way of getting along.

They might not say a word for a long time, quietly busy with their own things.

At this time, a message suddenly came from Suren's communicator. He glanced at Mr. Mirror and said, "Senior Sister, I just received news that Sabina has sent people to confirm that Earl Russell really has a sealed object that can heal holy light injuries. It is said that it was salvaged from the 'Hormont Ruins' in the South Sea two hundred years ago, called the [Dark Sacred Lamp]."

Mr. Mirror listened, her eyes did not move away from the book, and she responded lazily, "Heh, those old nobles still have a lot of good things in their hands."

"Yes."

Suren also smiled and said, "But the seller has been unwilling to let go, no matter how high the price is. They are probably waiting for Senior Sister to come to negotiate the price in person."

As he spoke, a flash of sternness flashed in his eyes, and he added, "It seems that those on the Tian Shen Plane are plotting an ambush this time."

"Mm."

Mr. Mirror listened and then put down the ancient book in her hand.

She glanced at Suren and said, "Miss Yekaterina also contacted me before. There is no movement in the Empire's high-level combat power. This time, it should be experts from the Tian Shen Plane who have sneaked over. If we can get rid of those people this time, we should be able to completely eliminate this hidden danger. For a long time in the future, we don't have to worry about them coming to behead us."

"Mm."

Suren nodded, not surprised.

Fighting in Lu Ying, their side had too many intelligence advantages.

But the enemy still dared to take action, there must be other smuggling routes, this was a good opportunity to solve them together.

This ambush was not only related to Dawn and Mr. Mirror, but also the final game between the United Empire and those "surrender faction."

Marquis Hines had just died, and those involved this time must be the last big figures of the surrender faction. Once Suren Soulsearched them, it would be time for a thorough reckoning!

Thinking about it, Suren asked again, "I estimate that the enemy dares to take action, at least there must be more than three ninth-tier Archmages to be sure... How is Senior Sister's condition?"

Hearing this, Mr. Mirror smiled slightly, "No problem."

This understated sentence revealed a domineering aura.

Suren also raised his eyebrows when he heard this, and didn't ask any more questions.

He was also looking forward to how strong his senior sister would be after fusing the [Mirror Kaleidoscope] and the Progenitor bloodline.

......

After a brief chat, the two went back to their own things.

Mr. Mirror was still looking at the Vampire Codex in her hand.

At this time, Suren took out a black, golden scroll. His eyes were shining brightly, and he had already unlocked the [Omniscient Eye].

This was the trophy he had obtained before killing "Curator" Heidmann Elspos in Lingdun—[The Proverb of the Great Man (Fragment)].

The text on this scroll was the divine language of the higher language family.

He couldn't understand it before, but now Suren could understand some of it after drinking from the Fountain of Wisdom.

What was certain was that this was a "Divine Sealed Object" of extremely high grade.

And the divine-level secret technique, [Death God's Fire], which he had obtained from killing the necromancer from the Tian Shen Plane in the Dragon Country sea area, was comprehended from the content of this gold.

Suren had previously thought that the text on it contained some kind of higher death law, but after reading Isaac's basic alchemy manuscript again, he realized that the gold scroll might record some kind of "rule."

A very profound power of rules about death.

Perhaps even higher.

It was just that the limit he could touch with his current cognition was the lower limit of the rules.

Now that he could understand some of the content of the gold scroll, Suren had more of his own understanding of the [Death God's Fire] secret technique.

In addition, after going to Old Lingdun and obtaining the complete "Study Notes on Living Corpses" at No. 88 Ginkgo Street, he had been pondering a special idea in his mind these days.

That was one of the ultimate subjects of alchemy—the resurrection of the dead!

After looking at the content on the gold scroll for a while, Suren's thoughts became clearer and clearer.

Thinking about it, he decided to put the ideas that had been lingering in his mind these days into practice.

He would do it right away.

At this time, Suren took out a white mouse from the biological laboratory.

With a slight hook of his finger, a transparent thread immediately decapitated the white mouse, and blood splattered everywhere. Almost instantly, a small wisp of "gray mist" floated on the corpse.

However, Suren did not let it die, and the Warlock Seal instantly solidified: "Rewind!"

A miraculous scene immediately unfolded.

The white mouse's wound was like a reversal of time, and it was instantly restored to its original state, even the splashed blood was taken back.

Suren condensed the術式again, and a mass of corpse wax wrapped the white mouse's corpse. He raised his hand and pointed, and the soul, which had not had time to float away, was immediately sealed back into the mouse's body.

A magical scene unfolded before his eyes.

The white mouse immediately jumped around again, just like before.

Seeing this, Suren frowned slightly, seeming still not satisfied, and muttered, "Can I only do this much..."

However, this scene made Mr. Mirror's beautiful eyes in the distance sharpen. She put down the ancient book in her hand and curiously asked, "Suren, have you mastered the mystery of 'resurrection'?"

"Resurrection of the dead" was one of the ultimate subjects in the field of alchemy.

She remembered that her father had once asserted that this was a power that only gods could master.

But now, Suren was resurrecting a mouse right in front of her?

Although Mr. Mirror also saw some problems with this small experiment, just making a dead mouse jump around was extraordinary.

"No. It's not a true resurrection technique."

Suren shook his head, pondered for a moment, and then said, "Um... I think it's more appropriate to call it the 'Corpse Soul Transference Technique'. The mouse is actually dead, I'm just using alchemy to let it continue to live. To be precise, it should be a special form of undead creature."

Mr. Mirror pondered for a moment, vaguely seeing some clues, but more of it was doubt.

She raised her eyebrows and said, "Oh?"

There was nothing to hide from his senior sister, Suren explained, "To resurrect this mouse just now, I used the three high-level laws of time, death, and life, as well as the techniques of corpse-making and waxwork techniques. Local time reversal, allowing the mouse to restore muscle activity, and then forcibly sealing the soul with soul secret techniques, and then using corpse waxwork technology to allow it to retain its complete abilities before death..."

As he spoke, he then spread his hands and said, "Although the 'resurrection' result is the same, the path is completely different from a true resurrection technique. At least without the corpse wax seal, this mouse will immediately die with its soul leaving its body."

Mr. Mirror obviously understood this explanation.

She didn't think that this technique was not perfect enough, but instead smiled slightly and said meaningfully, "Being able to do this is already very good."

As she said, she looked at Suren and then recognized, "At least I've never heard of anyone who can do this step. Not even my father and mother."

The resurrection of the dead was the power of a god. Suren had now achieved this step, which meant that he had now glimpsed some of the secrets of the god level.

This was a very good start.

Moreover, even if this [Corpse Soul Transference] was a half-finished resurrection technique.

It was also very significant to humans.

If they could really live with complete memories and abilities, death didn't seem so scary anymore.

Moreover, he was only eighth-tier.

Hearing his senior sister praise him, Suren shrugged indifferently.

Although he also knew that his technique had a promising future, he also felt that there were many places for improvement.

He then pointed to the [Proverb of the Great Man] and said, "The death rules recorded on this gold scroll are too profound, and many things are not something I can understand with my current realm. I probably won't be able to truly understand some of the mysteries until after I reach the ninth-tier."

Mr. Mirror listened and nodded encouragingly, "Mm."

......

One day later, the train arrived at the station.

Suren and Mr. Mirror finally arrived at Claymington in the Stromga Territory.

This was a bustling southern city.