Chapter 606 - Twelve Protectors (Patreon)

"Bellion, do you know this young man?" Protector Fiona asked.

"Yes, Master. He is my friend, Leyvi Leyan. Without him, I might have died in the Mystic Realm. Among my peers, he's the person I respect the most." Bellion replied respectfully.

Master?

Leyvi was surprised. He hadn't expected Bellion to become a disciple of a Protector.

"Also, Master, you have probably already heard something about him. Have you ever heard the rumors about the greatest Spiritual Cultivation talent? That's him." Bellion elaborated.

Hearing this, the four children immediately looked at their father with admiration, their eyes sparkling.

Father is that amazing? The greatest talent?

Leyvi felt somewhat embarrassed under his children's admiring gazes.

He knew that his Spiritual Cultivation talent was far greater than most people's, but that didn't mean he was truly the greatest. What if someone with an even greater talent appeared in the future?

Wouldn't that be embarrassing?

More importantly, he didn't like the expectations that came with such a title. If his children grew up believing that their father was the greatest talent in the entire continent, wouldn't their expectations be shattered if someone eventually surpassed him?

A title like that only placed unnecessary burdens of expectation on someone.

"I see. So he's the person mentioned in the rumors. That makes sense. It would take an extraordinary person to be the one this old man Gandolf said would be helpful." Fiona nodded, her expression softening.

She then looked at Bellion.

"And if even someone of your talent can respect someone your age like this, then this young man must indeed be quite impressive."

She said that not only because of the words from Gandolf and her disciple just now, but also because she could sense an incredible presence coming from Leyvi himself.

Even the spiritual sense and soul power she sent out to probe him further were completely blocked, preventing her from obtaining any more detailed information about his body.

She was naturally aware of the sense-blocker skill that Spiritual Cultivators could use. She had even tested it personally in the past. While the sense blocker might stop spiritual sense, it was normally ineffective against soul power.

Yet the young man before her was able to block both using the same skill. His version of the sense blocker was clearly far superior to others.

Being able to prevent himself from being probed by a top-level cultivator like her was already a significant feat.

That said, she still possessed a far more formidable method of investigation that utilized formation skills. Of course, using it now would be excessive and inappropriate.

Leyvi was naturally aware of the probe.

He was not as sensitive to others’ spiritual sense as pure Spiritual Cultivators, who often described the feeling as being touched all over their bodies.

However, after focusing on spiritual cultivation for a full decade, he could at least notice when someone else’s spiritual sense made contact with his sense blocker.

Back when he first wanted to report his findings, he had allowed Gandolf’s spiritual sense and soul power to probe him in order to establish trust, blocking only the mysterious core from being discovered.

Now, however, he no longer had any reason to permit such scrutiny.

Even if they were the highest-level experts on the continent, he was not going to simply let them examine him on a whim. Who knew what kinds of methods they might possess that could peer into his secrets?

“Yes, Master. I can trust the Leyan Family with my life,” Bellion emphasized once more.

He knew his Master could be rather difficult toward people she disliked, which was why he immediately placed the Leyan Family in a positive light. That way she would treat them more favorably. That was simply how his Master was.

He wanted to chat and catch up with Leyvi, but he knew this was not the right moment. Perhaps later.

“Hoho. Why don’t we head inside? People who see us lingering up here might think we’re plotting something,” Gandolf suggested.

“Hmph. What are you saying, old man? I’m not the one looking suspicious. It’s you and this rabbit guy.” Fiona’s gaze lingered on Lapin a moment longer than necessary.

She still could not figure out where this rabbit, who seemed so buddy-buddy with Gandolf, had come from. She had never met a properly dressed and such an easygoing King Level Demonic Beast before. What a strange sight. Even now, her curiosity about him refused to settle.

“Kekeke. Do I look suspicious? Should I hide my ears? I rather like keeping them out,” Lapin replied, his long ears straightening slightly.

“Hohoho. Don’t mind what this old lady says. She just likes to complain all the time,” Gandolf said lightly.

Fiona glared at him for the remark, but he pretended not to notice.

The two groups then made their way into Ultima City and headed straight for the headquarters without delay.

After arriving, the two groups split for a bit to do something. 

Fiona had brought Bellion along because she wanted to show him the grand formation that she and her late husband had designed together, and to let him study it in person.

Without her husband, she alone could no longer replicate the grand formation. At the same time, she did not want the work they had created together to become something that could never be used again.

Fortunately, a formation talent that exceeded even her own and her late husband’s had emerged in this generation.

His ability with formations was something truly unheard of. He could visualize and assemble complex arrays that were far beyond his current cultivation realm, and he almost never made mistakes while doing so. On top of that, he learned and mastered any formation he studied faster than anyone else she had ever seen.

Formation Masters of his age usually knew only twenty to thirty formations on average. He, however, had already mastered thousands of them, a number that was simply unheard of.

Yet the most impressive aspect of his talent was that he could already design and implement entirely new formations on his own. That was something which normally required formation experts an unbelievable amount of experience before they could even attempt it.

The formation Bellion had created to contain the desertification around the portal area was a perfect example. It had proven incredibly useful. Even Newton had come to her personally to express his thanks. Apparently, it had helped a great deal with his ongoing portal project.

A talent like Bellion was exactly the kind of person she had been searching for to inherit the masterpiece she and her husband had left behind.

She believed he would eventually reach the level of Formation Emperor, something neither she nor her late husband had ever managed to achieve.

Originally, she had planned to show Bellion the grand formation only after he had grown a little more as a formation master. The emergency summons, however, had changed her mind.

Before anything unexpected could happen, it was better to let him study it first. Even if he could not assemble it yet, it would be enough if he managed to memorize it completely.

Meanwhile, Gandolf first brought Lapin to a special surveillance room so he could be properly monitored.

If an unknown powerhouse like him entered the authorized personnel only zone without clearance, all sorts of defensive formations would activate at once.

Even though Gandolf knew Lapin posed no real threat, he still had to follow the proper procedures.

Lapin understood this perfectly and did not mind at all.

After that, Gandolf and Fiona’s groups converged again and made their way toward the Protector’s Conference Hall, the usual meeting place for Protectors and Envoys.

“How long has it been since you were last here, old Gandolf? You’re never around,” Fiona asked.

“Hohoho. I’m not sure. It really has been a while,” Gandolf replied.

Then his expression turned serious once the door to the conference hall came into view.

He had tried not to think too much about the possible extinction event over the past few days, but now it was time to face the problem and deal with it properly.

Fiona noticed the change in his face and could not help feeling a little nervous herself. It seemed they really would be dealing with something serious.

The atmosphere grew quiet as they approached the hall.

Leyvi noticed dozens of Envoys waiting outside. They were clearly the subordinates of the other Protectors who had already arrived. Many of them glanced at Leyvi’s group and wondered why children were present.

Among them he even spotted a familiar face. It was Envoy Lemure, the one who had escorted them to the facility that held the portal to the Mystic Realm years ago. He was a subordinate of Protector Alexandra.

Envoy Lemure also saw Leyvi, but he did not appear to recognize him. That was only natural. There had been seven thousand two hundred participants back then. He probably only remembered a handful of people.

Fiona signaled for the Envoys following her to wait outside with the others, then stepped inside.

At the doorway, Gandolf told Anda to wait outside with the children. He then wrapped Leyvi in his Qi and entered the hall together with him.

Inside the conference hall, Leyvi immediately saw a large round table at the center with ten people already seated around it.

Including Fiona and Gandolf who had just entered, all twelve Protectors were now present.

Their eyes locked onto the unfamiliar figure walking behind Gandolf.

Feeling the heavy atmosphere in the hall and the weight of so many gazes on him, Leyvi could not help but let out a quiet sigh. The presence of the continent’s top cultivators was truly something else.