Book 17, Indigo Prefecture â Chapter 49, Three Months
After Kestrel finished speaking, the entire hall immediately fell silent.
Linley was frantically pondering. âAlthough the teacher of this Kestrel is in Indigo Prefecture, the distance is too far. I donât have enough time right now. If we make a round trip, there definitely wonât be enough time! Can it be that Iâll have to send Delia over there?â
If they sent Delia over, the amount of time it would take would definitely be much shorter.
But if they did that, then there wouldnât be enough time to find anyone else who might also be able to save her.
âKestrel!â Linley stared at him. âTell me. If I send Delia to your teacherâs place, how likely is it that your teacher will be able to save Delia?â
Kestrel frowned. Hesitating momentarily, he stared at Linley then said with certainty, âIf my teacher intervenes, although I canât say he will definitely be successful, he has at least a 90% chance of success!â
â90%?â Linley turned, looking at the unconscious Delia.
Linley then turned his head to look at Patriarch Gislason. âPatriarch, I have no other options. Iâll have to send Delia to Mr. Alfonsus.â
Gislason was frowning, and he slowly shook his head. âLinley, donât be impatient. Thereâs another way.â
âAnother way?â Linley was stunned.
âElder Brother.â That cold, arrogant-looking Patriarch of the White Tiger clan spoke out. âHow about this. Iâll personally pay a visit and bring that Alfonsus over. A round trip for a Seven Star Fiend would normally take half a year, but if I goâŠthe total time of the trip, including bringing Alfonsus back, will be just three months.â
Linley couldnât help but feel a surge of joy.
In the Four Divine Beasts clan, the White Tiger clan was that of a wind-type divine beast. In terms of speed, the White Tiger Patriarch was definitely the fastest expert of the Four Divine Beasts clan, and was far faster than most Seven Star Fiends.
âNo need.â Gislason shook his head.
âPatriarch?â Linley said frantically.
Gislason laughed calmly. âLinley, donât worry. I just used my divine sense to give the order to an intelligence agent of our Four Divine Beasts clan to inform the Lord Prefect of Indigo Prefecture regarding your situationâŠand soon, weâll have an answer.â
Linley was astonished. In fact, everyone in the hall was astonished.
The Lord Prefect of Indigo Prefecture was getting involved?
âLinley.â Phusro walked over, slapping Linley on the shoulders and laughing, âDonât worry. The forces of the Lord Prefect of Indigo Prefecture are spread throughout the entire Indigo Prefecture. If he were to reach out to Alfonsus, it would be done very quickly! And perhaps the Lord Prefect even knows some other experts who can save Delia.â
Linleyâs eyes couldnât help but to light up.
The Lord Prefect, as the lord of Indigo Prefecture, had a level of influence in Indigo Prefecture that vastly surpassed the Four Divine Beasts clan. It must be understood that even the eight great clans dared not invade the Skyrite Mountains, all because of the Lord Prefect.
One could imagine how powerful the Lord Prefect of Indigo Prefecture was.
âWill the Lord Prefect be willing to help me?â Linley was rather nervous as well. After all, he was neither friend nor family to this person.
âDonât be impatient. Wait a while. Our intelligence agents will soon send an answer.â Gislason laughed, and Linley nodded. All he could do was swallow his impatience, burying it in his heart as he quietly waited.
Moments laterâŠ
âWe have a response.â Gislasonâs smile became brilliant. Clearly, the intelligence agent had communicated with him through divine sense.
Everyone in the main hall immediately looked towards Gislason.
âHaha, good news, Linley! The Lord Prefect has spoken.â Gislason laughed as he looked towards Linley, extremely happy. âAlfonsus is one of his friends, and in two or three days, his subordinates will reach and notify Alfonsus, who should be able to arrive here within three months.â
Linley felt relieved.
âNot just that!â Gislason laughed. âThe Lord Prefect himself will come over as well. He says he will personally help treat Delia.â
âElder Brother, the Lord Prefect is capable of treating the soul?â The Grand Elder asked, rather astonished. âI thought the Lord Prefect isnât very specialized with regards to treating the soul.â The Grand elder and the others clearly remembered the scene, that year, of the Lord Prefect of Indigo Prefecture intervening and stopping the eight great clans.
That could be described as utterly terrifying!
Precisely because of that event, even figures as exalted as Gislason would respectfully address him as âLord Prefectâ. After all, if it werenât for the Lord Prefect, their Four Divine Beasts clan would most likely have been annihilated.
âHaha, Iâm rather surprised as well. However, since the Lord Prefect has already spoken, he definitely wonât fail to live up to his word!â Gislason laughed as he looked towards Linley. âLinley, now both Alfonsus and the Lord Prefect will come, one after the other. Donât worry.â
âI truly didnât expect that the Lord Prefect would be so incredible with respect to treating the soul as well!â The Matriarch of the Vermillion Bird clan sighed in amazement as well.
Linley felt a surge of excitement in his heart.
âThank you, thank you all.â Linley looked at everyone and spoke solemnly. âSince it will be a long time before Mr. Alfonsus comes, Iâll go back for now.â
âAlright.â Gislason nodded and laughed. âLinley, go back and get some rest. Donât worry too much. With the Lord Prefect of Indigo Prefecture himself intervening, given his ability and influence, he can easily invite quite a few people to come. Delia will definitely be successfully saved.â
Linley forced out a smile and nodded.
And then, he let the earth-type divine power swell from his body, which naturally formed a soft, cloud-like floating âbedâ which Linley placed Wade upon. And then, he took Delia into his arms, nodding towards the Elders, and flew out of the main hall.
âAlright. Everyone can go back now.â Gislason said clearly.
The Four Divine Beast clanâs Elders all bade farewell, and then flew away in small groups. Moments later, the only ones remaining in the main hall were Gislason and Phusro. The two looked at each other.
Gislason immediately set up his âGodrealmâ, separating the sound within from the outside world, then said urgently, âPhusro, last time we were discussingâŠâ
âââââ-
Linley returned to that gorge within the Skyrite Mountains. He spent every day either by Deliaâs side or taking care of Wade. But of course, Linley would occasionally let some of the other members of the Yulan branch take care of Wade.
A thin fog billowed about. Baruch was currently standing in an empty spot of land, staring towards Linleyâs distant abode.
âFather.â Ryan walked over. âAre you worried about Delia and Linley?â
Baruch let out a sigh. âRight. Linley has already been back for half a month, but during this past half month, heâs never dined with us. Heâs always remained within the room, hiding inside. In his eyes, the only person he can see right now, aside from Delia, is probably his son.â
âLinleyâs sunken in too deeply.â Ryan frowned.
âLoveâŠis very complicated. Itâs something which is hard to explain.â Baruch shook his head.
Right at this moment, a figure descended from the skies at high speed. âClan leader Baruch, how is my Boss doing?â The newcomer was Bebe. Bebeâs group had arrived after Linley.
âBebe?â A hint of a smile appeared on Baruchâs face. âItâs good that youâve returned. Go speak with Linley. Even if you arenât able to persuade him to come out, if you can chat with him, perhaps Linleyâs mood will improvement.â
âRight.â Bebe nodded, then immediately ran over towards Linleyâs residence.
Gislasonâs residence. The main hall.
âPatriarch, nearly a hundred of our clansmen are unconscious. What should we do?â Tewila said frantically. âSo many of our clansmen are sobbing!â Tewilaâs return had resulted in the return of a large group of unconscious clansmen as well.
Gislason, frustrated, frowned as well.
âEnough of this subject.â Gislason ground out. âI know their situation well. They are just like Linleyâs wife. We arenât even able to save Linleyâs wife; how are we going to save anyone else?â
Tewilaâs face was full of worry as well.
âLet the clansmen make their preparations.â Gislason said. âFortunately, most of our clansmen have divine clones. But Linleyâs wife became a Deity through fusing with a divine spark. She doesnât even have a clone. If she dies, sheâll truly be finished!â
Tewila nodded, letting out a sigh.
He had personally watched as Delia was hit by the technique and saw how Linley had reacted. âMost likely, in Linleyâs mind right now, his wifeâs life is more important than even his own. His wife is unfortunate as well, to have become a Deity through fusing with a divine spark!â
âTewila.â Gislason instructed. âThese unconscious clansmenâŠyou go make the arrangements. Most likelyâŠsome of them fused with divine sparks as well.â
âYes, Patriarch. Iâll make all the arrangements.â Tewila said.
âFine. You can go now.â Gislason said.
After Tewila left, Gislasonâs face became filled with exhaustion. To him, the matter of Delia and the other clansmen being unconscious was still a minor matter. What truly had him frustrated was the news which Phusro had brought him.
âCan it beâŠthat there really is no hope?â Gislason raised his head, closing his eyes. A glimmer of tears flashed from between his eyelashes, like a gleaming, brilliant little jewel.
Gislason took a deep breath. The exhaustion disappeared from his face, and that resolute self-confidence once more appeared.
âNowâŠâ
Gislasonâs eyes were hard and firm. âAll we can do is entrust our hopes to the Redbud Sovereign who stands behind Linley, as well as the Bloodridge Sovereign who stands behind the Lord Prefect. Unfortunately, the Lord Prefect isnât willing to go all out for our clanâs sake. OtherwiseâŠâ
In the blink of an eye, three months passed.
âWhy isnât he here yet?â Linley stood outside his room, his head raised towards the skies. Ever since the three month mark approached, he had been watching the skies every single day, hoping that Alfonsus would descend into the gorge.
However, there had been no news of Alfonsus.
Bebe walked out from behind, looking at Linleyâs back. Bebe felt miserable for Linley as well. He spoke. âBoss, donât worry. He said three months, but that was just an estimate. It wonât be exactly three months, but it shouldnât be too far off either. Most likely, Alfonsus will be here tomorrow.â
Linley turned to look at Bebe and nodded slightly. âRight. Heâll definitely arrive tomorrow.â
âLinley! Linley!â A frantic cry rang out from the air.
Linley seemed to have been struck by lightning, and he immediately turned to look towards the skies, only to see a figure descending at high speed while saying excitedly, âLinley, Mr. Alfonsus has arrived. Heâs arrived!!!â
âArrived?â After having waited so long, Linleyâs heart seemed to have suddenly been set ablaze. All the hairs on his body stiffened, as though he had been hit by electricity.
The newcomer was Elder Garvey.
âThe Patriarch told me to notify you. Hurry and make your preparations. He is currently accompanying Mr. Alfonsus, and they will arrive soon.â Elder Garveyâs face was filled with delight. âLinley, your wife will be saved.â
A look of joy was on Linleyâs face as well.
âRight. Delia will be saved.â Linley turned and rushed into his room.
Delia was quietly lying on a bed in the room, as though she were asleep. By Deliaâs side, there was a smaller bed, where Wade was quietly slumbering as well. Fortunately, by the time they had left Meer City, Wade was already able to eat liquid foods.
âDelia, Alfonsus is here. Youâll definitely recover.â Linley said softly.
âBoss, theyâre here!â Bebeâs voice rang out from outside.
Linley hurriedly ran out, looking towards the skies. He saw that within the mist, more than ten blurry figures were flying over at high speed, and they soon landed on the ground. It was Gislason, the Vermillion Bird Matriarch, Kestrel, and a group of Elders.
There were two non-Elders; one was Phusro, while the other was a silver-haired old man with a ruddy complexion and with skin as tender as an infantâs.
âHe must be Alfonsus.â Linleyâs eyes lit up.
âLinley, this person is Mr. Alfonsus.â Gislason laughed, and the silver-haired, baby-faced old man laughed as well, nodding towards Linley. âYou are Linley, right? And your wife?â
Only now did Linley come to his senses, and he hurriedly said, âMr. Alfonsus, please follow me.â He immediately led them in.
The group entered the room.
âMr. Alfonsus.â Linley pointed towards his wife. âPlease help save my wife!â
âI will try.â Alfonsus smiled. He walked to the bed, standing there for a moment as he used his divine sense to investigate. His expression gradually grew solemn. This caused Linleyâs heart to clench. And then, Alfonsus reached out with his right hand, pressing it against the top of Deliaâs head.
A blurry green light flowed out from Alfonsusâ hand, encapsulating Deliaâs head.
Immediately, the entire room fell completely silent, with no one daring to make a sound. Linley held his breath as well as he watched this scene. âSince Alfonsus is acting, he definitely must have confidence in his ability to succeed.â