Chapter 343 - Showdown

Chapter 343: Chapter 98: ShowdownSince the fierce battle at the Tianyuan Colosseum, Lu Hong’s days had been exceptionally pleasant. Anna devoted herself entirely, taking care of Lu Hong with meticulous attention.

Lu Hong felt keenly aware that his Great War Master professional level was low, and for the past few days, he trained tirelessly day and night. Anna had gone all out to buy Battle Qi Spirit Stones from the market to aid his training.

Three days had passed since the intense fight. Qing Ling had visited once, looking worn out, clearly having expended much energy in the suppression efforts in the lower levels.

As for Jin Fu, he hadn’t shown up at all. According to Qing Ling, he was too busy to do anything but squat at the Duke’s doorstep all day. It must have been tough on him.

Life continued on uneventfully, but unexpectedly on the fourth evening, Lu Hong couldn’t remember exactly what had caused it, but Anna ultimately still pointed to his identity.

"Are you really the Baron of Yitian from the Sacred Empire?" Anna stared into Lu Hong’s eyes, her words seeming to consume all her strength.

"Is it that important?" Lu Hong sighed without answering directly.

"Yes," Anna, with a bitter smile at the corner of her mouth, said, "Do you know? These past few days, I’ve been going crazy."

"What happened? Is someone pressuring you?" Lu Hong frowned. That shouldn’t be the case. Nong Hua had made all the arrangements, there should be someone secretly protecting Anna, keeping her from the harassment of the four great Dukes.

Anna nodded: "The principal is pressuring me. The four great Dukes have sent people to pressure me, too, making me watch you and find out your true purpose for coming to the Alliance."

Hearing what Anna said, Lu Hong immediately thought there seemed to be some trouble within the Holy Court, leading to the arrangements made by Nong Hua being set aside, or worse, ignored.

Since Anna had asked, Lu Hong no longer intended to keep hiding. After confirming that there was no one eavesdropping, Lu Hong nodded: "Yes, I am indeed the Baron of Yitian from the Sacred Empire."

Hearing Lu Hong’s acknowledgment, Anna could no longer hold back her tears: "If you’re a spy from the enemy country, why... why did you get involved with me?"

"No, I truly love you. I’ve said it before, I would never abandon you!" Lu Hong pulled Anna into his embrace, but this time, she pushed him away.

"Tell me!" Anna demanded, "What is your ulterior motive for coming to our Alliance!"

Lu Hong quietly observed Anna; he didn’t blame her for choosing her country, the land that had birthed and raised her.

"Do you believe me if I say I came here by accident?" Lu Hong gave a wry smile. "It’s absolutely true."

Anna did not speak, just silently watched him.

Then Lu Hong started to spill everything, recounting his story in Umbra and all the experiences before he came to the Seven Floating Worlds.

When Anna heard Lu Hong’s purpose for participating in the Eagle Alliance’s campaign, her dim eyes suddenly brightened: "Really?"

"Truly, I can swear by the Heavenly God."

"No need for oaths," said Anna, her cheeks slightly red. "I believe you, that’s enough."

"Feeling relieved now?" Lu Hong smiled faintly at Anna’s shy expression.

It was then that Anna set forth her final condition: "Can you... take off your mask?"

Lu Hong chuckled: "Did you try to take it off while I was resting?"

"Hmph!" Anna snorted proudly. "You just like to tease me!"

As the mask was removed, the face that she had seen countless times in magical images now appeared before her in reality.

Anna touched the face with slightly panicked hands, unable to suppress her excitement: "Am I... not dreaming?" This time, Anna truly confirmed Lu Hong’s identity as the legendary imperial Baron of Yitian!

"Of course, you’re not dreaming." Lu Hong took Anna into his arms again. "I am the Baron of Yitian, your man."

Those last words ignited the fire within Anna’s heart completely, and she threw herself into Lu Hong’s arms, panting: "Love me..."

Ah! 404! 404! 404!

Let’s look back at Jin Fu, who, after squatting outside the door for four days without any success, stormed into Jenaxi’s office in a rage.

"Jenaxi!" Jin Fu bellowed furiously.

Jenaxi glanced at Jin Fu indifferently, "The task I assigned to you has yet to be completed, why have you returned?"

"Jenaxi!" Jin Fu gritted his teeth, "You told me that within four days, a Duke would take the initiative to meet with me. Now the four days have passed, so I want to ask, where are they? Why is there not a single Duke willing to see me? The Ligthing Realm could be breached by the four great Dukes at any moment, delaying this matter will make you a sinner of the alliance!"

"Are you criticizing me?" Jenaxi sneered coldly, "Go back to your post, your current mission is to contact the four great Dukes and have them stop unsealing the Lighting Realm. Should anything unexpected occur, you will be the one guilty of the most heinous crimes!"

"Jenaxi." Jin Fu looked deep into his eyes, "I hope you will prioritize the greater good of the Holy Court."

Those words only served to infuriate Jenaxi further. Initially, he just wanted to make things difficult for Jin Fu, but now he felt an intense aversion towards him.

"Does an Archbishop need your guidance in performing his duties?"

"Heh." Jin Fu also tore off the pretense, "Don’t think I don’t know anything. You oppress me, I endure it; you plot to usurp the position of Archbishop, I endure it too; but if you act against the greater interest of our Holy Court and sacrifice our benefits, I can’t tolerate that! Don’t blame me for pulling you down from your seat!"

Jenaxi’s gaze narrowed slightly, "Do you think you are worthy?!"

Before Jin Fu could reply, a man had unexpectedly appeared behind him.

"Your Excellency the Archbishop, are you going to charge him with the crime of revolt?"

Hearing the other party’s words, Jin Fu felt a sense of unprecedented crisis, and he said angrily through gritted teeth, "Gamma!"

Jenaxi gestured dismissively, "You may leave for now; I will call for you later."

"As soon as possible, there are some matters that require your judgment." Gamma nodded and strode away.

Speaking of Gamma, he was no simple figure; he was the leader of the Judgement Knights, the Sun Knight.

Once, the Holy Court boasted thirteen Sun Knights, but in this generation, only Gamma was deemed worthy of bearing the title of Sun Knight. He was also the most powerful knight who could mobilize all members under the command of the Judgement Knights.

Gamma’s sudden appearance was likely a warning to Jin Fu and also declared the alliance between Jenaxi and him. With the upper and middle echelons of the Holy Court joining forces, Jin Fu didn’t even dare to contemplate the extent of their unchallengeable power!

"Jin Fu." Jenaxi pulled him back from his shock, then threw a stack of documents onto his chest.

Jin Fu looked down and saw it was all research regarding the four great Dukes’ Ice Seal Magic on the Lighting Realm.

"This..."

"Did you think I was unconcerned about this matter? The four great Dukes sent me this investigation report this morning, and I have also verbally agreed with the four great Dukes through Magic Vision." Jenaxi’s gaze turned frosty, "In the future, think carefully before you speak, lest you ruin your own prospects."

This was a blatant threat, and Jin Fu broke out in a cold sweat. His ally, Lei Shan, had been lost unexpectedly, and now cut off from external support, he felt like he was walking on thin ice. His face went through several changes, and finally, he said in a low voice, "I understand, Your Excellency the Archbishop."

"Good, you are dismissed. The task of contacting the four Archbishops will no longer be your responsibility. From now on, you are only to oversee every event of the Eagle Alliance’s contests, ensuring no one overlooks the dignity of our Holy Court."

This statement effectively removed Jin Fu from the core of power after the recent reshuffle. With the restructuring of the lower groups, the distribution of power within the Holy Court changed significantly from before, but Jin Fu couldn’t gain anything good from it. Heaven only knows if he would be kicked out of the Archbishop’s rank by Jenaxi in the future, but that, of course, was a story for another time.

Jin Fu left with a dejected face. By contrast, Lu Hong was on cloud nine, and Anna, not knowing how long her frenzy lasted, eventually collapsed exhausted, lying on top of him, "So you were not under Konstantin’s orders to disrupt my alliance, making me worry for nothing."

"I must be crazy." Lu Hong laughed, "Coming alone to the Eagle Alliance to stage a terrorist attack. There are as many Third Transition strong ones here as hairs on a bull; I reckon I’d have been squashed like a fly before I could even stir up trouble!"

His words seemed to awaken something in Anna, who suddenly looked up at Lu Hong, "Then, once you become the champion and make a wish, do you have any way to escape?"

Seeing Anna’s nervousness, Lu Hong irritably slapped her bottom, "Would your man not think of an escape route? Otherwise, why would I have anything to do with the Holy Court? Isn’t it because I’m considering my retreat after offending the four great Dukes?"

Speaking, Lu Hong cautioned again, "Remember, you must not speak of this matter to anyone. If the four great Dukes become wary, I might be secretly arrested before I win the championship. Right now, the Dukes’ wild speculations and reluctance to act against me are exactly what I want to see."