Necromancer, summoning 055? What the heck?

Chapter 373 Visitors from the Sky
There's an old saying in the Sky Empire: the offspring of trolls and dwarves can't prepare clothes for next year.

Dwarves, well, everyone knows what they look like—a bunch of straightforward, short, stocky guys. But trolls, most people on the Starry Continent now don't even know what kind of creature they are anymore.

It was a large creature with an average height of over three meters, a slender build, arms that reached down to the knees, long, outward-facing fangs, and a mohawk-like head of hair resembling a rooster's comb.

Generally speaking, trolls are considered a type of orc. These creatures are natural jungle warriors, especially skilled in stealth and throwing. It is said that the orcs' spear-throwing technique was originally learned from the troll race.

However, in the era when humans swept across the continent, trolls, like many of their orcish brethren, were mercilessly swept into the dustbin of history. It is only rumored that in the far north, in the frigid regions, a branch known as the Frost Trolls still exists.

The proverb above means that the children born to trolls and dwarves are in a state of unpredictable growth; you never know whether they will grow half a centimeter or soar to half a meter in the next year.

Forget about next year's clothes, I might even have to make clothes for next month right now!

This statement implies that the future is unpredictable and the prospects are incalculable.

For Chen Ye, the special envoy of the Sky Empire, the sixth son of the Grand Secretary Chen, a direct descendant of the Chen family, and praised as the leading figure of the younger generation, he was currently in a state of deep anxiety.

He paced anxiously across the territory of the Vast Ocean Territory, yearning day and night for the lord's return.

If you don't come back...

I don't even know what to call this lord anymore!
The Sky Empire, as the first unified and powerful human empire, has always considered itself the leader and disseminator of human civilization. Their legions once swept across most of the starry world like a flood, and wherever their swords pointed, city-states bowed down and various races submitted.

However, even the most glorious sunrise is destined to meet its twilight, and the empire's expansion, after reaching its peak, collapsed at a heartbreaking speed. The empire's own historians generally believed that it was the empire's own corruption that led to the loss of its vast and beautiful land.

In that era of utter decadence, the imperial high command indulged in a life of debauchery and extravagance, relentlessly creating all sorts of novelties, resulting in the catastrophic "Elemental Tragedy," an event that nearly destroyed the imperial summoner lineage.

The empire began to exploit its people relentlessly, with taxes in each territory increasing year by year. Public resentment was boiling over, and not only were the people suffering, but the professionals in those territories were also generally despised by the empire and contemptuously called "the brutes of the East."

The oppression eventually came to an end, and soon, war broke out in the empire's occupied territories.

After the great battle with the "Alliance of the Moon", the Empire lost all its footholds in the Eastern Continent, leaving only a few remnants of its army, who retreated in disarray to the west of the Dragonspine Mountains.

From then on, that towering, snow-capped mountain range became an insurmountable geographical and psychological boundary for the empire.

Since then, the imperial family has had an unwritten rule that all the tombstones of the emperors must face east, towards that fertile land that they have always longed for.

The East became both the empire's obsession and its shadow.

Over the years, the Sky Empire has deployed numerous spies and secret agents across the Eastern Continent, constantly monitoring the every move of various countries.

This has further intensified the vigilance and hostility of various countries towards the image of the heavens. A conspiracy theory that is prevalent among the people of various countries is that behind all the problems and troubles of the Eastern Continent, there is the shadow of the evil forces of the Western Continent.

The conflict between the Qiyue Dynasty and the Wuyue Divine Court was instigated by the Sky Empire; the war between the Green Pine Kingdom and the Emerald Duchy was also provoked by the Sky Empire.
The orcs' attack on the humans was allegedly orchestrated by the Sky Empire; even the elves' previous attack on the Stream Moon Federation was rumored to be part of a conspiracy by the Sky Empire...

In short, if your chickens stop laying eggs and you can't find a suitable reason, then you should blame the heavens!

Under these circumstances, those who were still able to enter the Eastern Continent were all the elite of the empire's elite.

Chen Ye is just like that. Born into the family of the prime minister of the empire, he is a direct descendant. He was exceptionally intelligent and talented from a young age. He not only advanced to the first level of cultivation early on, but also devoted himself to studying the history of many countries and learned various languages.

It is widely believed within the empire that if this person continues to hone his skills and accumulate merits, he will inevitably secure a position as a high-ranking official in the empire in the future.

The reason for arranging for Chen Ye to contact the Lord of the Vast Ocean was that, through the tireless efforts of the Chen family of the Sky Dome, it had been basically confirmed that this young lord named Chen Mo, who rose like a meteor on the East Coast, was very likely to have some kind of blood connection with the Chen family of the Sky Dome.

His Majesty the Emperor ordered a “further investigation,” and after some back and forth, clues were indeed uncovered.

According to the latest tracing results, this person is very likely a descendant of the Chen family of Tianqiong, and not just any ordinary bloodline, but a legitimate direct descendant of the main lineage.

After tracing back dozens of generations of family records, the Chen family found a direct descendant who had been ordered to travel to the Western Continent about four hundred years ago. According to the records, this person disappeared during a turmoil that affected three territories.

After so many years, the person has disappeared again, so the rest of the story is easy to write and deduce.

The imperial historians and the elders of the Chen family locked themselves in a room filled with ancient books, meticulously examining the scattered records of that event that had survived from that time. Finally, they "discovered" some clues in the margins of an ancient adventurer's notebook that was almost allegorical.

This young man from the Chen family was most likely seriously injured and on the verge of death when he was rescued at the risk of his life by a local girl from the Eastern Continent with whom he had long harbored feelings.

However, the imperial laws at the time strictly prohibited noble sons from marrying "country savages" from the Eastern Continent.

On one side lay the future of the empire and the glory of his family; on the other, a life-saving grace and passionate love. In the end, this promising young talent of the empire chose the latter.

He gave up everything in the heavens, changed his name, and went to a distant land with his lover, disappearing into the winds and rains of the mainland.

That's enough. With this premise of hiding one's identity, everything can be "reasonably" explained. Regardless of whether Chen Mo knows anything about his ancestors, Tianqiong can justify his actions.

If you don't know, it's because your ancestors didn't say it. In fact, he was a nobleman of the heavens!
If you know the story but have a different version, then it means your ancestors had to fabricate a story to hide their identities, even deceiving their descendants.

As for why Tianqiong is so certain about the bloodline connection, it is mainly based on two points.

First, appearance!
Based on a blurry magical image left from hundreds of years ago, a master made a rubbing to recreate the scene. The appearance of that young man surnamed Chen in his youth is at least three-tenths similar to that of the current Lord Chen Mo.

Three points is indeed a bit low, but it doesn't matter. We still have the portrait of the girl who saved the Chen family back then.

When you compare them side by side, wow, apart from the gender, they are practically identical!
Clearly, children resemble their mothers! That's how it's been passed down.

Second, tracing the source.

The Empire had records from decades ago that the chief astrologer of the Heavenly Vault observed the night sky and saw a bright star rising in the east, facing the main star of the Chen family in the distance. There seemed to be a faint line of stars connecting them. Finally, the star set directly at the edge of the desert and the shore of the sea.

Chen Ye also brought with him a handwritten note from an astrologer back then, which was several thousand words long and contained phrases like "Where the spine of the dragon slumbers, the night sky is torn apart, and a lone star rises!"

What is meant by "initially hidden on the edge of the Black Forest, then leaping between the clouds and mist, and finally suspended at the junction of the desert sands and the raging waves, its trajectory secretly aligning with the veins of the 'ancestral corridor'"?

What is this about "a star that was lost more than 420 years ago, now rekindling the flame of the heavens with the body of the Eastern Continent. When the star paths intersect, the waters of the vast sea reflect the twin cities"?

In short, before the event occurred, no one could understand these cryptic astrological terms, but now, when compared side by side, they are incredibly accurate prophecies!

Once blood ties are established, the next step is to establish a relationship.

Because they didn't know how many generations of this Chen family member had passed down over the past four hundred years, the Chen family even specially invited a senior astrologer to "calculate" Chen Mo's generation.

The old astrologer looked at the star chart, calculated for a long time, and concluded that, based on the "stellar intensity" and "echo cycle" of the bloodline, Lord Chen Mo is about the thirty-second generation of the Chen family.

Grand Secretary Chen is seventy years old and is the thirtieth generation of the Chen family. By calculation, Chen Mo is of the same generation as Grand Secretary Chen's grandchildren, so their ages match.

As the sixth son of the eldest son of the Grand Secretary, Chen Ye could presume to address Chen Mo as his virtuous brother.

Well, with an older brother who is a future high-ranking official of the empire and a grandfather who is the prime minister of the empire, this lord must be very happy.

So Chen Ye brought all the necessary "proof" materials and generous gifts, and led a capable team from the Bitao Kingdom through Baiyin, then Xiyue, across the desert, and finally arrived at Hanhai Territory after a long and arduous journey.

Then, under the guise of a local nobleman from the Bitao Kingdom, he requested an audience with the Lord of the Vast Sea.

However, he couldn't see it.

At this time, Chen Mo was preparing to launch an attack on Bailu Plain. His whereabouts were kept completely secret. Chen Ye visited the council hall several times, only to be told each time, "The lord is away and his return date is uncertain!"

This wait lasted for several months.

During this agonizing wait, Chen Ye also had the opportunity to access a great deal of information that the Empire's intelligence had not yet grasped through on-site observations in the Han Hai Territory.

Tianqiong's initial interest in this lord stemmed from the fact that he seemed to have played a key role in the fall of the Xiyue Federation, maintaining good relations with both the elves and the new ruling class of the Xiyue Thirteen Tribes, making him someone Tianqiong wanted to cultivate. However, Chen Ye only realized after arriving in the Vast Ocean that it was far more than just a "good relationship."

The Sky Dome understands the Elves. As an old rival that has been entangled for countless generations, and as a force that has always coveted the continent, the Sky Dome even knows every "old monster" within the Elves.

Lilan Qingge, the Silver Moon Elder of the Elven race, and Angus, the chief warrior of the male elves, both do odd jobs in the Vast Sea Territory. They are truly the kind of errand boys who have no say and just do whatever they are told.

Fighting, patrolling, planting trees, weeding, and even occasionally seeing Elder Silvermoon Lilan carrying things while drenched in sweat, it was almost unimaginable for an elf who was always extremely concerned about her personal image and had severe mysophobia.

The internal strife within the Silvermoon Council was naturally kept secret. To protect the dignity of the Redemption Army, Chen Mo never revealed the true situation of the elves. Therefore, it appeared that the elven race was trying their best to please the Lord of the Vast Sea, even at the cost of sending their best warriors to serve as slaves.

This is not the end of it. The respect that the Thirteen Tribes of Xiyue have for the Hanhai Territory far exceeds Tianqiong's initial assessment.

In the concept of the heavens, the Summer Moon Alliance is a loose union. The elves, the Thirteen Tribes of Stream Moon, and the Vast Ocean Territory should be considered to be on a near-parallel basis, with the Vast Ocean Territory being at most one-fifteenth of the alliance.

Chen Mo was able to become chairman because he was willing to spend money and was far away, so his influence over Xiyue was relatively limited. The thirteen tribes of Xiyue were scheming against each other, so it was not good to choose anyone to take the position, and it was impossible to give it to the elves. That's why they put an unrelated outsider to be the nominal leader.

The fact that Han Hai has no troops stationed in Xi Yue, nor sends any officials there, and that Chen Mo does not reside in the Xi Yue royal city, nor does he collect taxes from the region, all confirm the judgments of Tian Qiong and other countries.

However, in the vast ocean, Chen Ye saw a place called the Vast Ocean Army Engineering Academy. Among the thirteen tribes of Xiyue, at least eight tribes had chosen at least one of their top three heirs and sent them here to study, some to study political administration and others to study military command.

Isn't this a proton?

This made Chen Ye uneasy, and he began to feel that the Empire's judgment was somewhat flawed.

He immediately sent the information back to the Sky Dome's intelligence station.

The Sky Dome took this very seriously and immediately activated the intelligence personnel within the Stream Moon tribe to verify the information. The verification results showed that the protons sent to the Vast Ocean were not 60%, but 100%! Some outstanding members of the Stream Moon tribe were studying at another academy with a higher level of secrecy.

The reason is actually quite simple: Xi Yue Thirteen had personally witnessed the massacre in Luoyu Canyon.

For a wealthy, capable, and powerful man like him, trying to please him and build a closer relationship is definitely not a bad thing.

However, Tianqiong was unaware of these circumstances. Therefore, based on the aforementioned facts, the Empire sent Chen Ye a solemnly worded secret letter.

The core message of the letter is: the information you provided is accurate. Given that Lord Chen Mo's actual influence far exceeds expectations, his status should be given higher respect, and the original plan of "treating each other as equals" is no longer appropriate.

When you meet him, you should call him "brother" and act like a subordinate.

People are not limited by age; those who achieve success come first!

Chen Ye held the letter in his hand, remaining silent in the wind for a long time.

However, he had barely adjusted his mindset when a shocking piece of news swept across the entire continent like a storm: the Lord of the Vast Ocean issued a proclamation and brazenly invaded the White Deer Plain, igniting a war among the orc tribes.

Chen Ye suddenly realized why the lord hadn't returned yet; it turned out that the vast power of the Han Hai had already reached into the northern plains!

After another round of emergency communication with the Sky Empire, as the situation gradually became clearer, the Sky Empire made a clear judgment: this lord had a precedent of defeating Green Pine and had made certain arrangements in the north in advance, holding strong cities and blocking the initial offensive of the orcs.

As long as he can hold out in the White Deer Plain for a period of time, regardless of the final outcome, he will gain great prestige in the human world.

Didn't you see that after the news came, many young men from noble families in the Heavenly Kingdom volunteered to bring their own weapons and rations to the north to serve that heroic lord?
With no other option, the family sent Chen Ye another secret letter. This time, the tone was even more serious, but the contents almost made Chen Ye vomit blood.

After repeated verification by the chief astrologer and incorporating the latest "astrological feedback," the previous calculation of Lord Chen Mo's seniority was found to be "slightly inaccurate."

According to the "Starlight Bloodline Resonance Lineage", Lord Chen Mo should be the 31st generation of the Chen family, and the same generation as the son of Grand Secretary Chen, that is, the generation of Chen Ye's father.

In other words, if Chen Ye were to see Chen Mo again at this moment, he should call him uncle.

The once high-spirited Sixth Prince of the Sky has fallen into deep self-doubt.

He began to wonder if there was a single truth in his family.

After a long period of mental preparation, Chen Ye finally accepted the reality. Then, another piece of news that was enough to shake the entire continent arrived.

The orcish autumn hunt army retaliated against the White Deer Plains and fought a decisive battle with the Lord of the Vast Sea. They suffered a complete defeat, and even the orcish commander-in-chief, Warlord Grum, became a victim of the Vast Sea Lord's sword!
When the news arrived, Chen Ye was drinking the bitter tea that was a specialty of Han Hai Territory. For the first time, the Sixth Young Master lost his composure and accidentally smashed the ceramic cup to pieces.

The scalding hot tea was splashed on him, but he was completely unaware.

Chen Ye had only one clear and strong thought in his mind—he couldn't wait any longer!

He needed to go to White Deer Plain immediately to find that lord.

If he continues to wait like this, until the family "calibrates" the star map again... he's afraid that if he really sees Lord Hanhai, he'll have to kneel down and call him "Grandpa"!

We didn't head north before because the orc-controlled area was under intense fighting and unsafe.

Now that the humans have won, the journey should be much safer.

But it doesn't matter. Even if it's unsafe, even if it's risky, he has to go!

Fortunately, Chen Ye's judgment was accurate. Due to the collapse of the orc army, the entire northern orc tribes entered a state of self-defense, and they were able to pass through unimpeded.

Unfortunately, he had no idea where the lord was, and his reckless inquiries about the whereabouts of the Lord of Hanhai would undoubtedly make him seem like a treacherous person to the Hanhai army.

Left with no other choice, he made a risky decision: to reveal his identity.

A letter bearing the emblem of the Heavenly Dome was sent directly to the nearest Han Hai military camp. Subsequently, the Sixth Prince surrendered all his weapons and was captured without resistance.

After many twists and turns, Chen Ye finally met the Lord of the Vast Ocean, whom he had been longing for and dreaming about.

Chen Mo looked younger and more sharp-edged than in the portrait of Tianqiong.

He was dressed in a dark blue casual suit without any decorations, except for a small red torch pinned to his chest.

Her short black hair was neatly combed, and her face did indeed resemble the girl in the portrait found in China by a large margin.

Chen Mo was also sizing him up; the first Sky Noble to appear in the Vast Ocean Territory.

He looked to be around thirty years old. Although he appeared slightly haggard, he was still tall and slender, with exceptionally clear and sharp eyes.

Before the meeting, he had specially changed into a dark blue brocade robe commonly seen on the nobles of the Celestial Realm, with intricate patterns embroidered in gold and silver on the collar and cuffs—a variation of the family crest. A simple, antique-style short sword sheath was tied at his waist.

Only the scabbard remained; the sword had been confiscated during the search.

Even after a long journey and months of anxious waiting, he still maintained the demeanor characteristic of a scion of a noble family, with his back straight, chin slightly raised, exuding the air of a refined gentleman, though his expression was somewhat unpredictable.

"From the heavens?"

Chen Mo smiled and greeted him. Then, he saw the expression on the young nobleman's face change rapidly several times, from nervousness to hesitation, from hesitation to determination, and finally he seemed to resign himself to his fate and go all out.

Chen Ye took two steps forward, gritted his teeth, flicked his sleeves, and knelt down with a thud, performing a solemn kowtow to his elders.

"Nephew Chen Ye greets Uncle and Aunt!"

Sitting next to Chen Mo, Liu Shuang couldn't help but spit out a mouthful of tea.

(End of this chapter)