Chapter 179 - Promotion to Baron

Chapter 179: Chapter 170: Promotion to Baron"Boss!" As Lu Hong awoke, Lock Fan excitedly lunged at him, but Lu Hong, whose mind was still in disarray, instinctively summoned the Blood Holy Sword. The cold gleam of the blade was aimed straight at Lock Fan’s heart.

"Watch out!" The Knight quickly pulled Lock Fan back and said in a serious tone, "He hasn’t fully come to his senses, don’t get close to him!"

"Oh, oh." Lock Fan nodded, feeling a lingering sense of fear as he touched his pounding heart. Then he asked worriedly, "How long until Boss recovers?"

"How would I know? Anyway, as long as you don’t get near him, he won’t attack you." The Knight stared at Lu Hong, unable to help but marvel at how this was the same kid who had fooled him before. At that time, he couldn’t even beat him, so how could he have killed three major worshippers by himself?

Although puzzled, the Knight wasn’t in a hurry. Well, once this guy came to his senses, he would just need to ask to know if it wasn’t his adversary. And if it was, he could even avenge the humiliation of being toyed with back then, couldn’t he?

With no threat left, Lu Hong mechanically withdrew the Holy Sword, staring ahead blankly as his brain gradually thawed.

Three hours passed, and Lu Hong’s eyes finally brightened, then he roared in anger, "Piao Miao! I will kill you... you... huh? Lock Fan?!"

"Boss? You’ve recovered?" This time, the Knight didn’t stop him as Lock Fan, close to tears, hugged Lu Hong excitedly, "I thought you were dead!"

"Woof woof!" The dog awkwardly barked twice from the side.

"You came too, Dog? Didn’t you run away?" Lu Hong noticed the dog as well and, upon asking Nono earlier, learned that it sneaked off. He didn’t mind since his bond with the dog was coincidental, and there wasn’t much connection between them.

"He couldn’t survive out there, made too many canine enemies, and had to come back to be your pet." Lock Fan rolled his eyes at the dog, then changed his tone, "But thanks to him, otherwise we’d have never found you."

"By the way, Boss, what happened? Was it the Third Palace Master of Ice Snow Shrine who sealed you here?" Idle talk aside, business was urgent.

In the face of Lock Fan’s questioning, Lu Hong shook his head, "No, it was Piao Miao. She ambushed me."

"Piao Miao? An expert from your empire?" Clearly, the Knight didn’t recognize the incognito Piao Miao within the Gold family.

"You could say that." Lu Hong didn’t elaborate. Piao Miao’s identity was complicated, and he couldn’t be sure if her actions were under Caesar’s orders.

"By the way, Lock Fan, do you still have contact with Xiaoxiao?" Lu Hong couldn’t trust Caesar completely, but Lai Li was quite credible, having shared life-and-death experiences.

"Yes, but not much. Why suddenly bring up Xiaoxiao?" Lock Fan was puzzled, "Aren’t we discussing who harmed you now?"

"Go arrange for her to come here." Lu Hong thought it over and decided not to leave Yanhua for now. With his bloodline nullified and strength plummeting, if Piao Miao discovered he was still alive, she’d surely come to silence him. Serving as the executor of the Black Pupil Order, her spies were everywhere. It’s possible she’d receive news before he even left Yanhua and hunt him down. Her strength was formidable, and currently, there was no means to counter her.

"Okay, I’ll send word to Xiaoxiao later." Lock Fan agreed without further inquiry and then said, "Everyone’s on the lookout for you. I’ll call them over."

"Go."

Once Lock Fan left, the Knight asked, "Was it you who killed the three worshippers?"

"Not exactly, but two indeed died by my hand."

"Hill and Cliff?"

"Huo Lie and Hill."

"Uh..." The Knight’s vengeance was instantly quenched. Damn, with Huo Lie dead at his hand, forget about revenge. Don’t bring yourself trouble over trivial grudges.

Yet soon, the Knight wondered again, "You don’t seem like someone capable of killing Huo Lie!"

"Just a cheap trick." Lu Hong didn’t say much, then asked, "Do you have food? I’m very hungry."

"Come with me. Let’s rest at my place for now, our empire’s hero, Baron Yitian." The Knight turned to lead the way. Given his current status, even as a mere soldier, the Knight had to maintain respect for Lu Hong.

Later, everyone gathered at the Knight’s small wooden house. After a bout of exchange, they all contentedly ate and drank, and before long, everyone was lying drunk on the floor, asleep.

Lu Hong picked his way through the collapsed people, out of the hut, and looked at the wasteland of East Look Mountain in the distance, his mind in turmoil.

With his lionheart bloodline cruelly stripped by Piao Miao, Lu Hong’s power deteriorated significantly. Compared to peers, his advantages were now minimal. Wielding the Blood Holy Sword felt formidable, unlike the previous smoothness. The sword no longer suited him.

As for the crucial lionheart bloodline, it wasn’t completely severed. Since it wasn’t an acquired implant, its root remained, only exhausted. If a day came when nourishment could be provided, its restoration wasn’t impossible, though such a means likely resided solely with the lionheart imperial family. Obtaining such an activation method was akin to reaching for the skies.

"What? Being rescued and reunited with companions is not a happy occasion?" The Knight, unbeknownst to Lu Hong, also awoke from drunkenness and stood beside him, asking, "Was Master Huo Lie strong?"

"Very strong, especially his secret skill, capable of incinerating everything."

"How did you defeat him then?" Indeed, the Knight couldn’t let go of Lu Hong’s slaying of the worshippers.

Lu Hong candidly replied, "It was fate; at the last moment, Cliff ambushed Master Huo Lie, giving me the chance."

"Ah, so there was internal strife." The Knight was a bit disappointed and didn’t mention the intense battle’s details again, instead asking, "I see you seem worried."

"Yes, someone wants to kill me, but now I can’t clearly distinguish who is the enemy."

The Knight laughed, "At least those sleeping inside are friends."

Lu Hong looked back at the small wooden house, listening to the snoring sounds within, and smiled slightly, "Yes, at least everyone inside is my friend."

"That’s enough." The Knight opened up, saying, "I was your age and at this level when I left my family with three friends to embark on an adventure. It started smoothly, but later in a mysterious realm, we were cornered by a level-nine demon beast. That beast was too fast; we couldn’t escape. At that moment, whom I considered my best friend attacked me, saying only my sacrifice could buy them time."

"I was desperate then, deluding myself with friendship only to be abandoned when danger struck." The Knight’s recollection brought a tinge of sadness, "Luckily, a passing Judgment Knight saved me. Later, I became his disciple, trained earnestly, and when I reached the Third Transition, I returned to my family and executed the despicable traitor."

"I didn’t expect you had such a betrayal experience." Lu Hong regarded him, "I’m luckier than you; at least it wasn’t friends who betrayed me."

"You are quite fortunate then." The Knight smiled, "Being betrayed by friends... hurts."

Comforted by the Knight, Lu Hong collected his thoughts and changed the subject, "By the way, what did you mean before when you called me Baron Yitian?"

"Oh, that’s the title conferred by the imperial emperor. Shortly after you killed the three worshippers, the Gold family surrendered, and Queen Fina announced your deeds, which were widely acknowledged throughout the empire. Though your ability was questioned for being too young, the fact of the worshippers’ death was irrefutable. Emperor Konstantin posthumously bestowed upon you the title of Baron Yitian to commend your contributions to the Yanhua campaign." The Knight envied, "You should know, your baron title is much nobler than others. You’ve gained autonomous control over an entire plane, the first since the founding of the Sacred Empire."

"Yitian is a plane?" Lu Hong was stunned, thinking Yitian was a city. Typically, a baron in the empire’s ennoblement would receive territory equivalent to two cities at most, while the realm bestowed to Lu Hong by Konstantin was an entire plane, akin to the status of an earl.

In truth, Konstantin hadn’t expected Lu Hong to still be alive. Had he known, he would’ve only granted a single city at most—possibly no advancement at all, with rewards shifting to less significant honors.

Ahchoo! Konstantin, seated on the golden throne, suddenly sneezed while reviewing the official documents before him, among which was the appointment of Yitian’s overseer. Though Yitian was granted to Lu Hong, he was presumed dead, hence the empire had overseen it.

"Granting Yitian to my nephew shouldn’t be an issue, right?" Unlikely for a Second Transition Knight like Konstantin to catch a cold so easily.

"Well, given the person is dead, the plane remains mine." Reflecting on it, it was merely a nominal title after all. With a sardonic smile, Konstantin mused, "It’s nearly a year; could the dead come back to life?"

Konstantin’s interest in Yitian lay heavily in its geographical position. Far from the empire’s core, it was one of three gateway planes at the Sacred Empire’s border with the Eagle Alliance. Granting it to the deceased Lu Hong was to discreetly control it under his sway. Many in the frontier army eyed this far-removed piece of fertile land. Though military exchanges with the Eagle Alliance weren’t permitted, trade under commercial licenses was thriving. Yitian was a golden egg, unlike the other two planes awarded to meritorious servants eons ago. Thus, Konstantin always wanted to privately gobble up this piece but never found the means until now, using Lu Hong’s name to firmly grip it in secret. How else could a baronial title qualify for such substantial grants?

It wasn’t just to ennoble a hero but also to motivate the young generation while resolving a political affair—a perfect two-birds-one-stone. Konstantin raised the wine cup from his desk, sipped, and mused that an emperor, too, occasionally deserved a little indulgence, "Someone! Take me to Xuanchun Hall at once. I need to discuss life with my beloved... 404, 404, 404...