Chapter 164: Jing Yuan: Master Diviner, a General Must Remain Composed...
"Huh?! Kafka got away—damn it, she even looked back and gave us a salute! The nerve of that woman!"
"How are we supposed to explain this to the Grand Diviner?" March 7th looked down at the churning sea of clouds below, stomping her foot in frustration.
"Right now, I don't think the Grand Diviner's mind is on the Stellaron Hunters anymore," Stelle said with a deadpan look. "We probably don't need to explain anything at all."
"Exactly, exactly," Caelus nodded vigorously in agreement. "Besides, Kafka isn't really a bad person anyway."
Before his words could even fade...
In the distant sky, the towering, silent shadow that loomed over the city suddenly blossomed from its base with a warm and majestic jade-colored radiance.
The Ambrosial Arbor had awakened.
"Is that the withered wood fragment Qingque showed us? Why did it suddenly start growing?" March 7th couldn't help but ask, her voice filled with disbelief.
"Splendid... absolutely splendid. How fortunate is this humble one; among the long-lived species, few can witness such a miracle in their entire lifetime."
A soft, smiling voice drifted over from the side.
Everyone turned their heads to see a figure in an elegant dress, her fox-like ears twitching gently as she gracefully approached.
It was none other than Tingyun.
"Greetings to everyone from the Astral Express. I am Tingyun. It is a pleasure to meet you all." She offered a slight bow, a gentle and impeccable smile gracing her features.
At this moment, "Tingyun"—or rather, Phantylia—was not yet aware of the chaos that had unfolded within the Matrix of Prescience. She had no idea that five Aeons were currently guests on the Luofu, one of whom was the very same wounded Aeon of Destruction, Nanook, who had granted her power.
Her plan had not changed.
Seeing the revived Ambrosial Arbor, the longing in Phantylia's heart grew more intense. As a Suiyang, she urgently required a vessel of sufficient power. The remains of the Ambrosial Arbor, saturated with the power of Abundance, was the perfect host she had chosen for herself.
If she could merge the boundless vitality of Abundance with the authority of Destruction, her strength would surely ascend to an entirely new plane.
"You must be Miss Tingyun? It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Leon."
Leon smiled as he looked at her, a flicker of hard-to-detect anticipation flashing in his eyes. He hadn't forgotten that impressive, neck-snapping head tilt from the game's story. When he first saw it, he had been quite startled.
"A pleasure," Tingyun responded with a polite smile, her manners flawless.
Stelle and Caelus rubbed their chins, looking up at the colossal shadow that was constantly stretching its branches toward the heavens. "The Ambrosial Arbor suddenly grew so big," Caelus muttered. "Did someone water it with some kind of super fertilizer?"
"What kind of fertilizer could possibly bring the Ambrosial Arbor back to life!" March 7th couldn't help but retort.
"A Stellaron... a Stellaron should be able to do it," Caelus said with a serious expression.
"That's right. Such an abnormal surge of energy is indeed consistent with the characteristics of a Stellaron," Welt added, his voice deep with thought. "It seems the person behind the scenes has finally made their move."
"Does Mr. Yang mean... the Stellaron caused the Ambrosial Arbor to grow?" March 7th asked.
"Yes. The Stellaron that the Cloud Knights have been searching for is likely the source of this entire phenomenon."
On the other side of the Xianzhou Luofu, Fu Xuan had hurried back to the main hall of the Divination Commission, immediately establishing a connection to Jing Yuan via communication.
This matter was far too urgent to delay.
"What matter has Master Diviner so hurried?" Jing Yuan's holographic projection materialized. Seeing Fu Xuan's unusually tense expression, he still managed a calm, easy smile.
An excellent general should always appear as steady as a mountain, no matter the circumstances. It seemed Master Diviner's cultivation of composure still needed some tempering.
Jing Yuan sighed inwardly, yet felt a sense of relief. The new generation of the Luofu was growing, and he only needed to guide them for a little longer. Fu Xuan still had plenty of time to polish her temperament.
"General, something terrible has happened..."
"Master Diviner, when encountering such matters, one should calm the mind and focus. Avoid panic at all costs," Jing Yuan said in a gentle, guiding tone.
"Steady... right? Calm... right?" Fu Xuan closed her eyes and took a deep, centering breath.
"Very good. Now, what was the result of Kafka's interrogation?" Jing Yuan nodded with satisfaction as he watched her adjust her breathing.
"Fine... General, I will speak."
Looking at the calm and collected appearance of Jing Yuan's projection, as if he had everything under control, Fu Xuan felt a conflicted knot tighten in her stomach.
'I certainly hope you can maintain that calm posture after you hear this, General,' she thought.
"General, I believe you should go to the Shackling Prison immediately."
"Oh? And why must I go to the Shackling Prison personally?" Jing Yuan asked, a hint of dismissal in his tone.
"Because 'Akavya, the Lord of Joy' Aha... is currently being held there."
"Hmm, I thought it was something serious... wait, who did you say, Master Diviner?!"
The teacup in Jing Yuan's hand tilted precariously, hot tea sloshing over the rim. "What do you mean, 'Akavya, the Lord of Joy'... is in our Luofu's Shackling Prison?!"
He had originally assumed that Fu Xuan's urgent report was about clues provided by the Stellaron Hunters—perhaps regarding the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus colluding with some unknown Emanator. While he sensed the turbulent undercurrents of this crisis, he believed he had already grasped some of the key threads. The Dragon Lady colluding with the Sanctus Medicus, and behind them, the potential shadow of an Emanator.
But now, Fu Xuan was telling him... that Akavya, the Lord of Joy, had been captured by his own Cloud Knights and tossed into the Shackling Prison?
"Precisely. Unless Kafka possesses the ability to deceive even the Matrix of Prescience, this matter is absolutely true."
Seeing Jing Yuan's rare loss of composure, the corners of Fu Xuan's mouth lifted in an almost imperceptible smirk. In that moment, she suddenly understood the feeling behind Qingque's favorite phrase: "If the sky falls, the tall ones will hold it up."
"This... when did this happen?!" Jing Yuan quickly steadied his mind, his voice sharp with urgency.
"According to the Trailblazers from the Astral Express, you once ordered several of them to infiltrate the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus as moles." Fu Xuan's tone was even, but every word was delivered with crystal clarity.
"They carried out the mission quite smoothly. Not only did they successfully infiltrate the organization, but they also captured 'Akavya, the Lord of Joy,'who had mixed in with the Disciples and even become a minor leader known as'Fun-Haver'... and they locked him in the Shackling Prison."
Jing Yuan was speechless.
'Seriously, man...'
He did recall sending people to infiltrate the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus. He had even heard they had captured a "minor leader" and brought him back. At the time, he had been preoccupied with the matters of Jingliu and Luocha, so he had delegated the task of interrogating this leader to Hanya and Herta.
But he never, in his wildest dreams, expected... that the "minor leader" was the Aeon of Elation himself.
No wonder... no wonder all those bizarre rumors had been spreading across the Xianzhou so quickly, leaving no trace of their origin.
Beads of sweat began to form on Jing Yuan's temples, but the long years of training as a general allowed him to force himself calm.
"Master Diviner, there is no need for excessive panic."
He said in a deep voice, "Although Akavya, the Lord of Joy, likes to seek amusement, he is not a god who takes pleasure in destroying entire civilizations. We only need to pretend we know nothing and observe. Once the Lord of Joy feels there is 'no fun to be had' here, he will leave on his own accord."
His mind raced, already drafting a response strategy. The top priority was to strictly instruct the guards of the Shackling Prison to never, under any circumstances, use torture on that "special prisoner."
Only then did Jing Yuan truly understand the source of Fu Xuan's panic from moments ago. Even for him, his heart had just skipped a beat.
"This... is only one of the problems, General."
Fu Xuan spoke again.
Jing Yuan froze. 'Huh? This is only one of them?'
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