Master the Abyss, starting from an apprentice priest.

Chapter 166 Ah ~ The scent of wool (5k6)

Songyuan main city, Wind Chime Square.

Attorney General's Office, in the conference room.

"Grand Arbitrator" Randall looked at the priest in front of him with a complicated expression.

In Randall's mind, he still had a vague impression of the priest opposite him.

That was the priest who was sitting next to the "High Shepherd of Purification" Anthony when he went to Red Maple City to judge Rodif.

At that time, Randall still vaguely remembered that the priest was only a second-level destiny of [Glory].

But now, with Randall's soul perception, he is completely unable to see through the true spiritual level of the priest opposite him.

"...the Holy Judge of the Church of Sina City."

Randall then crossed his fingers and placed them on the bridge of his nose. He looked at Luo Xiu with deep eyes and asked tentatively:

"Welcome to Songyuan City, friend of the Holy Court. So, what is your purpose?"

"You should know this, Mr. Arbitrator."

Luo Xiu smiled and said, "Of course it's for that matter."

...That thing? Randall's expression froze.

"Regarding the compensation for the losses incurred by you, the Holy Judge, in Red Maple City, I will send an envoy in the near future to demonstrate our attitude and sincerity."

Randall said this expressionlessly, waiting for the priest's response.

In Randall's opinion, the priest who came to Sina City could only be here for this matter.

"...Oh, you are talking about this, Mr. Arbitrator."

A hint of surprise flashed across Luo Xiu's face, but it quickly disappeared, and he returned to his serious attitude.

"This is indeed an important matter, but I think... it is not more important than the upcoming 'war'." Luo Xiu said.

"...war." Randall's face became serious. He keenly caught the key words.

"Please tell me again carefully why you are here."

A sharp golden light suddenly flashed in Randall's eyes, and he stared at Luo Xiu.

He still couldn't see through the true intentions of the priest opposite him.

He only saw the priest raise his arm slightly and extend a finger upwards.

——Pop! A golden flickering flame burst out from Luo Xiu's fingertips, accompanied by a surge of strong spiritual energy.

The waves of spiritual energy that came through the air made Randall's pupils shrink slightly. He supported himself on the table with both hands and slowly stood up.

"...Are you a priest of the Triple Fate of Glory?"

Randall looked surprised and said in a puzzled tone, "But last time, you were still..."

"Just half a month ago, I was promoted."

Luo Xiu's calm gaze met Randall's scrutinizing eyes at the same time.

He released some of his spiritual power, which indeed deceived Randall's perception.

Luo Xiu, who already has a fourth-fold destiny, deceived the "Great Arbitrator" who only has a third-fold destiny on the spiritual level. It was as easy as an adult bullying a child.

"As you can imagine, my position in the Church of Sina City is 'Deacon'. And I am now speaking to you as 'Holy Inquisitor'."

“…” Randall fell silent.

After thinking for a moment, Randall extended his right hand to Luo Xiu.

"Then I understand."

Randall said solemnly, "Please allow me to reintroduce myself. I am Randall Schwitters, the 'Grand Arbitrator' in charge of this law office."

This is Landor's correct attitude towards extraordinary people of the same level, and it is also a signal of goodwill he sends to himself.

Luo Xiu understood this, and he also stretched out his right hand and shook hands with Randall.

"Luo Xiu Carlos." Luo Xiu nodded slightly and said to Randall, "Respected Supreme Arbitrator, I am here to end the war."

After Luo Xiu and Randall formally introduced themselves to each other again, they returned to their original seats.

"Since you are here as the 'Holy Inquisitor'... Luo Xiu."

Randall asked in an inquiring tone, "Then you should also be qualified to express your views on behalf of the Sina City Church?"

"Of course." Luo Xiu nodded and replied.

"That's great."

Randall nodded and said:

"I originally planned to send an envoy to Sina City to give your church two thousand Norlan gold coins as a subsidy, as well as sufficient medicine and material subsidies."

As Randall finished speaking, a blurry, translucent figure slowly emerged beside him.

That was the "spiritual body" of the great arbitrator, holding a light blue bracelet in its hand.

Randall took the bracelet from the spirit body, pushed it in front of Luo Xiu, and said:

"It seems that it is no longer necessary. I don't need to allocate manpower at this critical juncture... Luo Xiu, please accept our sincerity on behalf of the church."

“……” Luo Xiu pondered for a moment.

"I can indeed accept them on behalf of the Church."

"But... compared to what we experienced later, this was not enough."

Luo Xiu shook his head slightly and pushed the bracelet back.

The priest did not accept the "subsidy" proposed by Landauer and threw the question back to him.

This time, it was Randall's turn to have a headache.

He originally thought that Luo Xiu would be satisfied to accept the "subsidy" he offered, and in this way, the follow-up incident concerning Lord Rodif would finally come to an end.

But Luo Xiu seemed not satisfied with this.

"What do you mean by what happened afterwards?" Randall asked, narrowing his eyes.

"Mr. Arbitrator, you should still remember it."

Luo Xiu said slowly: "At that time, Lodifu colluded with the pagans of the 'Ancient Hermitage', and the 'Ancient Hermitage' was a subordinate secret cult organization of the Holy Tower State."

"Well...I know." Randall's face darkened.

"At that time, we killed a follower of the Ancient Hermitage, Starro, the Follower of the Spirit."

Luo Xiu continued to state, his tone becoming serious:
“But the matter does not end here.”

"Less than a month later, the ancestral bishop of the 'Original Sect' personally led the pagans to attack the church."

"..."

"—You said 'Original Sect'?!"

Randall's pupils suddenly shrank, and an expression of extreme disbelief appeared on his face.

"There is no need for me to hide this from you, Mr. Arbitrator."

Luo Xiu's tone became more serious:
"The invasion of the 'Original Sect' brought us huge casualties and losses."

"As you know, the 'Ancient Hermitage' is actually a branch of the 'Original Sect'..."

"..."

Randall's eyes became deeper and deeper, and his brows gradually furrowed.

"So, you suspect that the crime of treason committed by Rodif at that time was far more than just collusion with the 'Ancient Hermitage'..."

"Yes."

Luo Xiu nodded and said seriously, "If not, I can only suspect that it is from within the Supreme Being... But I believe that this kind of thing will not happen."

"...Yeah." Randall's face was gloomy, but he still nodded slightly.

——This is a warning, Landauer has already understood it.

"Holy Inquisitor" Luo Xiu was hinting to him that Rodif's matter was far from over.

However, the matter of Rodif was also started by Randall himself.

He had no position to argue anything and could only silently endure the accountability from the "church" representative.

"I understand. I will re-evaluate and submit the subsidy items to your Sina City Church."

Although the estimated figure may be several times higher than the original terms, Randall couldn't say much at this juncture.

"So... do you have anything else to say?" Randall asked somewhat indignantly.

"Oh, of course."

When Randall gave in, the seriousness on Luo Xiu's face suddenly disappeared and returned to his original friendly expression.

"In fact, we also got other intelligence, and this is also the main reason why I came here."

Luo Xiu stated slowly:
"We learned that at the same time as the 'Original Sect' took action, the 'Blood of Thorns', which was controlled by the Dark Principality, also took unusual actions in the territory of Songyuan."

"A large number of 'Blood Followers' and 'Destroyers' emerged in their various strongholds at the same time, but they were suppressed by our Holy See again."

"I heard about it. It happened." Randall nodded.

"But what you don't know is."

Luo Xiu paused for a moment and said, "The mastermind behind the 'Blood of Thorns' operation is actually an executioner of the Dark Principality, 'Shadow Military Advisor' Koros."

"'Shadow Strategist' Koros?" Landauer was stunned.

Landauer did feel familiar with the name, but he didn't know who it exactly referred to.

"...Or, let me put it another way."

Luo Xiu changed his tone again and said, "You may not be familiar with Koros, but you should have heard more about Black Fang."

"Black Fang!" Randall exclaimed, and the two words came out of his mouth.

"I do know them. Recently, there have been numerous assassination cases caused by Black Fang."

Randall held his forehead and gritted his teeth as he said, "Many officials in the mansion and some upper-class nobles with important social status died tragically under their black knives."

"It's best that you know them." Luo Xiu nodded.

"In fact, their claws have already reached out to Sina City."

"An educated person I knew was killed by the Sina City's 'Alchemy Institute' under the jurisdiction of the Sage's Tower." "...even his body was found near the outskirts of Songyuan City." Luo Xiu looked silent.

"..."

"I have heard about this matter as well."

Randall slowed down his tone and said, "When our patrol arrived, the Master of Knowledge was already a cold corpse."

"And I am here to investigate the 'Black Fang'."

Luo Xiu's tone sank as he said, "The people behind them are planning a war, and stopping Black Fang's next move is my main purpose for coming here."

"..."

Hearing this, Randall's eyes became even more profound.

"Is this the reason why you deliberately concealed your spiritual fluctuations when you came here?"

As if he suddenly understood something, Randall's face showed an expression of sudden enlightenment.

This way, many things can be explained.

"Holy Inquisitor" Luo Xiu hid his true spiritual level and came to the Attorney General's Office branch not to settle old scores with himself, but to solve the problems and troubles brought by "The Executioner" and "Black Fang".

As for the rift between them [Supreme] and the Church of Sina City caused by Rodif, it did not seem to be a big problem in the eyes of this "Holy Inquisitor".

Even the fact that this matter suddenly rose to the level of the "Original Sect" was because I asked an extra question...

"Grand Arbitrator" Randall felt that he understood everything.

"Okay, I understand." Randall nodded.

"So, you came here, hoping we could do something?"

"..."

"of course."

Luo Xiu smiled and replied: "I seek your help."

Having said that, Luo Xiu understood that as long as his request was within Randall's capabilities, he would be quite obedient in accepting it.

"My visit to Songyuan City this time is considered a special operation." Luo Xiu then said, "Therefore, on many occasions, I cannot reveal my true identity."

"So... Mr. Arbitrator."

Luo Xiu narrowed his eyes and made his first request, "I need to borrow your identity."

"Borrow my identity?" Randall was stunned, but he quickly understood what Luo Xiu meant.

"...Yes. Since you are the Inquisitor representing the church, I can lend you my identity token. You can use it to enter and exit some special occasions and make specific purchases."

Randall nodded in agreement, took out an exquisite crimson token from his arms and handed it to Luo Xiu.

"Thank you for your generosity."

Luo Xiu thanked him and took the token, then continued, "There is one more thing, which is my personal request. I hope that as the Supreme Protector, you can tell me how to counter the 'prophet' and 'divination' techniques."

"……Can."

Randall nodded again, pointed his finger at his forehead, and picked up a handful of dim gray light.

"This is an 'ancient inheritance' that I have mastered. It is called 'Prisoner of the Thinker'."

Landauer said, “It can build a spiritual barrier deep in your soul to prevent malicious prying eyes.”

After saying that, the gray ball of light flew up from Randall's palm and slowly flew in front of Luo Xiu.

Through detection on the panel, it was confirmed that this was indeed the memory essence of the ancient heritage "Prisoner of the Thinker", and it was not mixed with anything else.

Luo Xiu then reached out to take it and pressed it between his eyebrows.

"All right."

"Thank you again for your generosity." Luo Xiu nodded and said, "These are all I need for now."

When Randall heard Luo Xiu say this, he gradually relaxed.

Randall sincerely felt that this might be the most distressing experience he had ever had in dealing with the clergy of [Glory].

……

"Oh, by the way, one last thing."

Just when Randall breathed a sigh of relief, the priest's voice rang in his ears again.

This made Randall's heart tighten again.

"Anything else?" Randall asked with a somewhat unfriendly look on his face.

"It's actually nothing."

Luo Xiu smiled calmly and said slowly:
"It just occurred to me that, in addition to resolving the troubles caused by the Black Fangs, you seemed to have mentioned compensation for the previous Rodif incident?"

——The real purpose is revealed!
Randall's face froze. He didn't expect the boomerang to come so quickly and fly back to him in the blink of an eye.

"……Yes."

Randall asked in a low voice, "What's wrong?"

"I want to know about your reassessment of the amount of compensation to us..."

Luo Xiu asked briskly, "When can you give me a definite answer?"

——Sure enough, you came here for this!

Randall had a complicated expression. He was about to explode, but he felt guilty, so he had to endure it.

“…Two days.”

After thinking for a moment, Randall gritted his teeth and said, "Come back here to see me in two days, and I will give you a satisfactory answer."

"very good."

After hearing the answer he wanted, Luo Xiu stood up with a smile and extended his hand to Randall.

"Then, see you in two days. I'll be looking forward to the results of your evaluation."

"...Hmph." Randall snorted with a heavy nasal tone, stretched out his hand with difficulty, and shook hands tightly with Luo Xiu.

"Looking forward to our...next meeting."

Randall said with a grim look on his face.

……

When we left the Attorney General's Office branch and arrived at Songyuan City Wind Chime Square again, it was almost evening.

"Ah... the scent of wool..."

Luo Xiu's face was now filled with the joyful smile of a winner.

He came to see the "arbitrator" Randall, his original purpose was actually just to get an identity token, but he didn't expect that he would gain so much more.

Landauer does indeed master the secret art of countering "prophet" and "divination". As the [Supreme] beings, their soul training far exceeds that of ordinary people, and they do have a deep knowledge of soul protection.

——The ancient inheritance "Prisoner of the Thinker" can be regarded as a great gain of this trip, Luo Xiu thought.

This means that the group of fallen prophets raised by the "Executioner" will no longer be able to accurately grasp Luo Xiu's whereabouts, and the initiative will once again return to his hands.

On the other hand, Randall himself agreed to compensate for the Rodif incident, which was also the result of Luo Xiu's premeditated plan.

In fact, the gains are several times greater than expected!

Priest Leonard had discussed this compensation with Luo Xiuqian, and he had a clear psychological expectation about it.

——One thousand Nolan gold coins. This is Leonard’s assessment of the loss.

But Luo Xiu also dragged the incident of invasion from the original sect into it, which abruptly escalated the severity of the incident.

In this case, the amount of compensation required for the extraordinary crisis involving the original sect will be at least several times higher. And the part that exceeds Leonard's assessment can go directly into Luo Xiu's own small treasury.

——As “missionary funds”!
The "Sons of Glory" in the eyes of Leonard and Bishop Fabien do enjoy such privileges.

Two days later, after Randall has finished his evaluation, Luo Xiu will go to him to settle the matter. All the compensation he receives afterwards can be used as the principal for participating in the auction on the third day.

Luo Xiu was planning secretly, and he had already drawn up the outline of the plan.

……

While thinking, Luo Xiu unknowingly arrived at the door of the "Wolf Hunting Tavern".

"I'm back..." Luo Xiu murmured.

He then walked into the tavern, went upstairs and returned to his room under the scrutiny of a group of burly veterans.

The first thing Luo Xiu saw when he returned to the room was a white two-tailed cat, lazily lying on the windowsill and taking a nap.

"Intis." Luo Xiu called softly.

When the white cat heard the sound, it arched its back and jumped lightly to the ground.

"When night falls, Intis." Luo Xiu said softly, "I need you to be able to sense any disturbance outside at any time. Our enemies may come at any time in any way."

As early as three days ago, the hidden mission [The Stained Wail] had foreshadowed the eventual arrival of "Black Fang".

Calculating the time, they will confirm Luo Xiu's location within today or tomorrow and take the first exploratory action.

"Meow~" Index in the form of a white cat meowed softly, then jumped onto the windowsill again, seizing the last bit of rest time.

Luo Xiu no longer paid any attention to her. He sat on the edge of the bed and began his routine of using skills to drain experience.

……

Until late at night.

Luo Xiu lay on the bed and fell asleep, while Index stood quietly on the windowsill, observing everything outside the window with her dark green eyes.

Outside the window, a rustling sound could be heard from time to time from the grass and branches of the trees.

Suddenly, Index's pupils shrank slightly.

She saw two ghostly figures shrouded in black fog.

They held pitch-black daggers in their hands and exuded a sinister and deadly aura.

——Black Fang!
Just as Luo Xiu had expected, this group of deadly assassins finally smelled the scent and came to his door.

It's like a carbuncle attached to the bone.

……

(End of this chapter)