The VIP car drove along the road. Neo sat in the back, pouring himself a glass of red wine. It was a very precious vintage, confiscated when he led a team to crack down on black-market smuggling a while ago. When disposing of the contraband, he had asked Muri to buy it back using vouchers at a substantial discount.
In truth, in the past, why would he ever have gone through such procedures? What ought to be pocketed would simply be pocketed. But things were different now... Back then, it was embezzling public property; now, it was embezzling Karen's property.
In the past, Neo had led Karen in skimming off the top, passing down all sorts of tricks for lining one's pockets. Now, Karen had taken that wealth of experience Neo taught him and, after becoming Regional Chief, implemented numerous concrete reforms to plug many loopholes.
For instance, regarding the perks for regional hospitality hotels and official business trips, tight restrictions had been placed on reimbursements for items like cigarettes and liquor. Things like swiping daily allowances of smokes and alcohol to stockpile and resell—as they used to do—were completely impossible now. It truly was a case of the dragon slayer eventually becoming the dragon.
"Are there more people wanting in?" Neo asked, savoring the red wine.
Ventura, sitting in the passenger seat, answered, "Yes. Bart, Blanche, Mars, Ashley, and Richard."
"Richard?"
Neo could understand the others wanting to join. After all, they were Karen's former core team. Although some had stepped back to second-line roles now that Karen had his cadre of believers, priority naturally went to them whenever a good opportunity to pad résumés and burnish credentials arose.
But Richard was going too?
Ventura said, "Because Richard's parents want in as well."
*Smack!*
Neo slapped his own forehead. "I hate this."
Muri and Ventura exchanged glances, both wearing bitter smiles.
On the surface, the commander of the militia regiment was Muri. He was Karen's confidant, currently held Karen's former post as Minister of the Law Enforcement Department, and his grandfather was the captain of the High Priest's guard.
In reality, however, the true commander of the militia regiment was Neo.
Muri was entirely deferential on this point. He recognized Neo's abilities and felt no grievance over being stripped of actual authority.
And now, the benefits were showing.
After Karen attended the Whip of Order's "annual meeting," the Yorktown Region Militia Regiment would be among the first wave to deploy, drawing the attention of almost the entire Church in an instant.
Along with that came an overwhelming flood of personal favors and requests; far too many people wanted to squeeze into this expedition.
Not only people from their own region, but individuals from other regions and special departments were looking for a "backdoor enlistment." Everyone wanted to catch this early train.
Right now, if they loosened their grip even slightly, the quota of one thousand men would double immediately, or even more.
However, the training regimen had been implemented long ago. It wasn't a matter of more people being better; sometimes having too many would trigger a cascade of negative side effects.
Some candidates Muri and Ventura could turn away themselves, but others they simply couldn't refuse.
Moreover, once those people joined, if an accident occurred and they died in the desert, wouldn't the blame fall on them?
Muri and Ventura had gone to discuss this with Alfred. Alfred hadn't even looked up from reviewing documents, merely asking:
"Does your militia regiment have no commander?"
This time, Muri and Ventura brought Neo along to report the situation to Karen. After all, Neo was the only one who, knowing Karen was resting, would kick open the bedroom door.
And Neo had no desire to cram so many connected freeloaders into his regiment. He was going to pillage and plunder, not to serve as a kindergarten principal!
As they neared the manor, Neo drained the red wine in his glass. "Stop."
Muri brought the car to a halt. Neo stepped out and departed; he was going to make another attempt at infiltrating the manor while bypassing its defensive formations.
Ventura said, "I truly admire the commander's perseverance."
Muri nodded. "It's something we should learn from."
Ventura asked, "Do you think he'll succeed?"
"Part of me wants him to succeed, and part of me wants him to fail." Muri restarted the engine. "In any case, Mr. Alfred is quite supportive of letting the commander test the strength of the manor's defensive formations."
***
*Whoosh!*
Having painstakingly infiltrated halfway, Neo was still locked onto by the defensive formation. A massive gust of wind swept him into the air. He offered no resistance, allowing the wind to drop him onto the grass.
This gust was a "gentle warning" designed to repel accidental trespassers.
If one resisted when the wind appeared, lightning would follow.
"Ptui!"
Neo sat on the ground, plucked a blade of grass, chewed on it, and spat it out.
Just as he was about to declare this attempt another failure and head for the main gate, a shadow appeared behind him.
Feigning ignorance, Neo continued walking. One step, two steps, three steps...
In a flash, Neo spun around, just as the shadow lashed out with a kick.
*Bang!*
A muffled impact sounded, but the anticipated scene of being sent flying didn't happen. Neo pressed his arms downward, clamping onto the leg, while sinking his feet into the turf to root himself in place.
The next instant, the force in that leg erupted violently, its power surging far beyond Neo's expectations. Like a great tree ripped up by its roots, Neo was hurled straight into the air.
Madame Tangli materialized at Neo's side once more. Releasing a binding spell, she reached for his neck, intending to snatch him up like a chick.
For the sake of her son, daughter-in-law, and grandson, the grandmother had specially come to see her maternal grandson today. On the perimeter of the manor, she had spotted a suspicious figure attempting to sneak in—and his infiltration skills were remarkably advanced, definitely no amateur fooling around.
The manor's defensive formation had been laid down by her husband for their grandson; how could Madame Tangli tolerate such impudence from a petty thief?
Neo had disguised his face, so Madame Tangli couldn't recognize him at all.
As for Madame Tangli herself, she habitually wore a hooded black robe covering her entire body whenever traveling far, so Neo didn't recognize her either.
Facing the hand reaching toward him, Neo's body snapped taut. A mist of blood erupted around him, instantly shattering the restriction placed upon him. At the same time, long black claws sprouted from his ten fingers, swiping directly at the person's hand.
"Hiss..."
Madame Tangli truly hadn't expected his reaction to be so quick and effective. Bloody gouges were raked across the back of her hand, and bloodthirsty aberrant demon pathogens sought to invade her body rapidly.
Drawing blood made Madame Tangli furious. Her speed and power skyrocketed again. With an unyielding, brutally overwhelming force, she punched apart the mist of blood surrounding Neo.
"Fuck!"
Neo cursed. He knew he'd run into a ruthless powerhouse this time. He had always been confident in his reckless, brute-force charging abilities, but the person before him gave him the feeling of an immovable wall.
After the blood mist was blown apart, Neo's body spasmed, his internal blood thrown into turmoil. Yet Madame Tangli's hand lunged forward relentlessly, seizing his neck.
*Boom!*
The two slammed onto the ground, blasting a large crater into the earth.
But that was far from enough. Clutching Neo by the neck, Madame Tangli dragged him rapidly across the ground like a mop, carving a trench into the earth.
Just as Madame Tangli was about to hold back, afraid of killing the petty thief, she suddenly found the neck in her grip suspiciously soft. Subconsciously applying a bit more force—
*Squish.* It burst in her hand, splattering into a pool of bloody water.
"A clone?"
The splattered bloody water formed a dense cluster of crimson bubbles, which condensed into a blood-red barrier that completely enclosed Madame Tangli.
Directly ahead, Neo materialized. His left hand clenched into a fist, maintaining the barrier's seal, while his right hand spread open, summoning a blood-red trident that he hurled violently at the cloaked figure.
Madame Tangli struck the trident with her palm, shattering it instantly, but a gash opened on her palm, spilling blood.
Chanting an incantation rapidly, Neo caused the blood on Madame Tangli's palm to boil, about to turn against her and invade her body.
Madame Tangli clenched both fists and pushed outward to both sides.
*Crack!*
The barrier shattered.
Next, Madame Tangli appeared right before Neo and punched forward.
*Thud!*
Neo's chest was punched clean through. But at that exact moment, Neo's flesh and blood grew at rapid speed, miraculously encasing Madame Tangli's arm within his body, forming a kind of flesh-and-blood bind.
"In the name of bloodthirst, I summon true retributive judgment, to cherish my subjects, to pardon my clan, to protect my bloodline..."
Red. Everywhere the eye could see was red.
The blood in Madame Tangli's body began to flow backward. Her field of vision was filled with crimson halos. She couldn't breathe, couldn't think, tumbling into a state of chaos.
Neo raised his head, his eyes completely hollow.
Simultaneously, a gigantic figure in a black evening suit appeared overhead. Arms crossed against its chest, it descended slowly, ultimately enveloping Madame Tangli.
"Crimson light and shadow grant thee eternal slumber; so long as my blood is not dry, thou shalt not awaken."
Seal, activate!
Madame Tangli closed her eyes and bowed her head, devoid of all signs of life.
However, Neo didn't relax in the slightest, let alone gloat over his victory. Against an opponent like this, he would never consider himself victorious until her corpse was severed into pieces.
Beneath his feet, a burst of holy Light flame flared up. Guided by Neo, it formed a fire serpent that lunged straight toward Madame Tangli.
Yet just as the blaze was about to envelop the cloaked figure, Neo suddenly realized he could no longer detect his opponent's presence.
His vision began to blur. The person seemed to still be standing there, yet appeared indistinct—even though her arm was still embedded in his chest.
In a daze, Neo looked down and discovered that, without him noticing, a phantom blade had appeared beneath his throat, coiled like a slumbering serpent that had lain in wait all along.
A profound tearing sensation ripped from deep within his soul; the sharpness of that blade seemed capable of slicing his soul to ribbons in an instant.
This was no longer a minor matter of physical damage that could be regenerated; this was a fatal strike.
Neo instantly released all bindings and plunged downward, burrowing straight into the earth—a total rout for him in this exchange.
*Bang!*
A moment later, he burst out from the ground at another spot, drenched in cold sweat.
That sensation earlier felt familiar. Where had he seen this assassination style before? But the ones he had seen were never this silky smooth, let alone this eerie.
Back at the original spot, Madame Tangli stood calmly. A thin, cocoon-like membrane shattered away, dispelling all seals and negative effects.
She looked down at the wound on her palm, sensing her own fluctuating emotions. She was angry.
Neo sensed her anger. At this moment, her aura was like a vortex in the deep sea, madly swallowing everything around it to create a terrifying vacuum.
When people grew old, with aching joints and stiff bones, they usually reserved their strength for cooking and grocery shopping, no longer fighting readily. Occasionally, when their hands itched, giving their grandson a few smacks took hardly any effort—after all, the grandson wouldn't fight back.
But when it came to getting truly serious, one had to awaken their real power.
Neo's troublesome bag of tricks had genuinely enraged Madame Tangli. Grandmother was about to get serious.
A black blade coalesced before her.
Madame Tangli slowly looked up. Neo subconsciously licked his lips, his throat running dry.
Even before her gaze truly fell upon him, Neo knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that he was no match for this person.
The aura this person was currently exuding reminded Neo of a Regional Guardian. Every region had guardians, but they did not answer to regional jurisdiction; they were appointed directly by the Holy See and the Temple... primarily the Temple.
Madame Tangli's gaze finally settled on Neo once more.
She smiled. Neo hadn't chosen to flee; being locked onto at such close range practically sealed his fate.
Madame Tangli vanished from the spot. The instant she disappeared, suffocating pressure bore down on Neo from all sides, threatening to crush him into paste.
Yet Neo didn't panic, nor was he at a loss. Not only did he not run, he raised both hands in surrender and shouted:
"Greetings, Grandmother!"
***
"Grandfather, you know that going on an expedition carries immense risks. In our tactical plan, the casualty rate is projected at up to fifty percent. That means if a militia regiment goes out, half might be killed or wounded."
"I know, I know."
"If it were just Richard, or just Uncle, I could agree. But you want to arrange for everyone, including Aunt and Uncle-in-law, to go together. It puts immense pressure on me."
"I know, I know."
Old Master Delon sat there rubbing his hands in unease.
Although the person sitting across from him was his biological grandson, his grandson's rank was higher than his own now.
He used to think his own promotion speed was fast enough. Especially when he first donned the red bishop's robes, he had been smug for quite a while. Yet how long had it been since then? In front of outsiders, he, a bishop, had to salute his own grandson respectfully.
"Grandfather, stay for dinner later."
"All right, all right."
Karen felt a little puzzled. Grandfather was being far too agreeable today. Perhaps, as Grandfather claimed, he had been forced by Grandmother to come plead their case, and had never wanted the whole family to go on the expedition in the first place.
In truth, Delon thought to himself: it didn't matter whether he could persuade Karen or not. He was merely an opening figurehead. He didn't believe for a second that his wife wouldn't come today.
Once his wife arrived, Karen would have to expend his energy wrangling with her anyway, so he might as well spare his grandson some grief for now.
Karen stood up, walked to the study window, and looked down at the lawn below.
On a small slope in the distance, a woman was riding a horse at a leisurely pace, with a golden retriever sitting on the saddle.
The deployment date was the day after tomorrow. Today, Karen was hosting a banquet at Allen Manor to gather with his subordinates who were about to march out.
Starting the day after tomorrow, his team would be officially divided into two branches:
One branch led by Alfred, assisted by Leon and Vic, would support his work in the region—driving reforms, organizing and securing the core areas, and firmly grasping the Yorktown Region to make it truly his base of power;
The other branch led by Neo, taking a large group of subordinates ill-suited for purely clerical work, would head to the desert to earn merits and secure a continuous supply of point coupons.
The region would provide the expeditionary militia regiment with stable logistical support and personnel rotations, while the militia regiment pumped blood back into the region.
He had taken the first bite of the crab. If he could manage it well and brilliantly, the boost to paving his future path would be extraordinary.
The desert civil war was merely the beginning. As signs of the Gods' return became increasingly apparent, winds of change would only accelerate, offering an opportunity for exceptional local power figures to rise rapidly.
Yes, though he had only just become Regional Chief, Karen was already preparing for the next stage. Opportunities were always reserved for the prepared—just like handing in the exam paper early.
Just then, two figures entered Karen's field of view.
"Huh? Why are they walking together?"
***
Madame Tangli walked in front, with Neo trailing behind.
Grandmother was currently in a foul mood. When Neo shouted "Grandmother," she had no choice but to pull her punch. It was like swinging a ferocious punch only to hit cotton, which nearly gave her internal injuries from pure frustration.
Neo didn't offer much explanation either, just following her inside, whistling a tune every now and then—the most popular country ballad at the moment.
What a pity. He was about to lead the regiment on the expedition. Had he known, he should have sat in on Philomena's sparring sessions. Experts of this caliber were hard to come by, and they rarely fought; when they did, they usually took your life.
Where else could one find someone like this, who stopped the moment you yelled "Grandmother"?
A whole crowd of people held meetings inside Neo's head all day, cramming him with theoretical knowledge to the point where he felt a bit lacking in practice. But the comforting part was that once he reached the desert, he wouldn't lack opportunities for practice—in fact, he could have even more fun.
One could say that although Neo's body was still in Wien, his heart had already drifted off to the desert.
Purr rode a reddish-brown horse, the reins held in Kevin's paws. To save energy, she rested her chin on Kevin's head.
While controlling the reins, Kevin had to intentionally puff up his back to provide Purr with a comfortable resting spot.
After returning from the successful operation and resting for a few days, Purr prayed to Karen and transformed into a human right before Kevin's eyes.
Kevin was exhausted, because for however long Purr stayed in human form, he had to put on an elaborate act of "intense jealousy."
In reality, how could he be jealous? Watching the little cat who loved to ride on his back finally return to her former form as a girl, he was genuinely relieved and happy.
It was just that as an experienced lapdog, Kevin knew very well how to behave to make the girl before him happy.
As for Purr, after turning into a human, she didn't actually walk the dog.
She was used to riding on his back everywhere; now, actually holding a leash to walk him was something she couldn't bring herself to do. Even when Kevin took the initiative to hold the leash in his mouth and offer it to Purr's hand, Purr just waved it away.
In the end, it turned into the girl and dog riding a horse together.
On the nearby grass lay a picnic blanket. Little Kanna sat upon it, pouting with a pen in hand, working on problem sets.
Language lessons were merely the basics; Purr had scheduled many other courses for her. A few months ago, Little Kanna could only speak in "Meow" and "Woof," but now, she was already reading *An Overview of Basic Formations*.
There was no helping it. Karen was a genius, Purr was a genius, and as for Kevin, as a deity who had once walked out of an island fishing village, "genius" wasn't even enough to describe him.
In such a "family environment," it was hard for a child not to be pushed to extremes in her studies.
Whenever the little bone dragon was pushed to the brink of throwing a tantrum by the oppressive academic atmosphere, a single simple sentence from Purr was enough to make her lower her proud head back toward her textbooks:
"Kanna White Inmeles, you wouldn't want to fall behind that stupid dragon Augie, would you?"
***
"Stupid dog, how about you come to the desert with me? I'll mostly still appear as a cat, and without a mount it'll be inconvenient. What kind of Evil God Knight is a knight without a mount?"
"Woof!"
"Don't worry, Karen will agree. I'll just tell him that you know of some ruins in the desert, and we can go excavate them for him and bring back massive wealth. What do you think?
Sending that fun-seeker to war is practically an excuse for grave-robbing anyway. Our Karen is super poor right now."
"Woof!"
"Oh? You really know of some ruins in the desert? That's wonderful! You navigate, I'll direct, and the fun-seeker can do the heavy lifting. We'll strip the Desert Church down to the bone together!
Don't worry, don't you know our Karen by now? If you treat him well, he'll definitely reciprocate in kind. Once you've brought him enough wealth to support his reforms and secure the Yorktown Region, he'll definitely unseal another layer for you on his own when we get back."
"Woof?"
"What, why not unseal a layer before we leave?"
"Woof."
"Stupid dog, keep dreaming."
Just then, Purr saw Madame Tangli and Neo walking over from ahead.
Purr took the initiative to greet them:
"Hello there, fun-seeker."
Neo was taken aback for a moment, then realized who this girl was. After all, only that cat by Karen's side liked to give people nicknames like that. Neo immediately asked:
"Now that you look like this, do you still sleep in the same bed with Karen at night?"
Purr rolled her eyes at Neo, turned toward Madame Tangli, and said:
"Hello there, Little Tangli."
Madame Tangli frowned, glaring furiously at Purr. She failed to recognize who this girl was right away, and with a lingering ball of anger trapped in her chest, she gave a cold snort:
"Impudent."
Perhaps because her momentum had built up earlier, that furious glare inadvertently stirred up a gust of eerie wind that swept toward Purr. At Madame Tangli's realm of power, the surrounding environment did indeed shift along with her emotions.
However, before Madame Tangli could react and step in to disperse the eerie wind herself, Purr gave a casual flick of her hand. Fire runes radiated outward with the pony beneath her at the center, easily neutralizing the wind.
In a real fight, her current self would be no match for Madame Tangli, but in low-intensity skirmishes, her repertoire and finesse far exceeded Madame Tangli's.
Purr yawned and teased:
"Are you trying to pull seniority on me?"
Madame Tangli looked at Purr, then looked at the golden retriever, recalling the black cat that was always paired with this golden retriever whenever she visited Karen's home. She immediately caught on:
"You're that cat from Karen's house?"
Purr smiled:
"I just remember back in the day, when Diss returned from one of his travels, he told me that he'd met a hot-tempered girl out there who loved brandishing a blade."
Chapter 756