Jiang Lin walked into the villa.
In the parlor, Elune was sitting on the sofa by the fireplace, holding a book in her hands.
Hearing footsteps, she looked up, a gleam flashing in her pale purple eyes:
“You're back?”
“Yeah.” Jiang Lin sat down opposite her. “Master has some matters to attend to and needs to go on a long journey. He'll be back in a few months.”
Elune nodded, closing the book and resting it on her lap:
“So, what are your plans next?”
Jiang Lin thought for a moment, leaning back against the sofa cushions:
“Cultivate normally for a while, I suppose. I just broke through to the 5th-Rank early stage, so I still need to consolidate my foundation.
“Then I'll settle the farmers in the new territory, and head to the Royal Capital to handle the paperwork for the two newly added territories.”
He spoke casually, as if listing a mundane to-do list.
Elune listened quietly, waiting for him to finish before asking softly, “What about that teleportation array you discovered earlier?”
Jiang Lin paused slightly.
He had almost forgotten about it.
The ancient teleportation array sealed behind the wall in the villa's secret room—he had said before leaving that he would deal with it after completing the Spark Mission.
Now that the mission was complete and he was back, the teleportation array still lay quietly in the secret room, completely neglected.
“If you hadn't mentioned it, I would've completely forgotten.” Jiang Lin stood up. “Come on, let's go take a look.”
The two walked out of the parlor and along the hallway until they stood in front of that wall.
Jiang Lin reached out, pressed down on the stone brick with the slightly larger gap, and pushed hard.
A muffled click echoed from inside the wall, and it slowly receded inward, revealing a pitch-black opening.
He took a Moonlight stone from his spatial ring, its pale blue glow illuminating the descending steps.
The dust on the stone steps was even thicker than before he left, and a faint musty smell hung in the air.
He walked down the steps, entering the basement of about twenty square meters.
The teleportation array was still there.
A circular stone platform about two meters in diameter, its surface covered in dense, intricate patterns.
The five crystal slots were empty, except for two shattered crystals still embedded in them, completely devoid of light.
The rune lines were broken in several places, and the crack along the edge of the stone platform was still clearly visible.
Jiang Lin squatted down and pressed his hand against the edge of the stone platform, letting his Space Perception seep inside.
The direction of the lines, the positions of the nodes, and the core structure were exactly as he had recorded before he left.
After a careful examination, he confirmed that the damage to the teleportation array hadn't worsened. He stood up and patted the dust off his hands:
“It can be repaired.”
“How long will it take?”
Elune stood behind him.
“About a week,” Jiang Lin said, walking around the stone platform. “I have spare crystals on hand; the magic crystals I brought back from Caeous will work. The broken parts of the rune lines need to be carved again, and the crack can be filled with stone filler. It's not too difficult.”
“And after it's repaired?” Elune asked. “Do you know where it leads?”
Jiang Lin shook his head:
“No. The coordinate anchor is still there, but I have to repair the core first before I can read the location it points to.”
He paused, his golden eyes looking exceptionally calm in the pale blue light of the Moonlight stone:
“However, based on the architectural style of this teleportation array, it shouldn't be interplanetary.
“It has a small scale, low node density, and a relatively simple energy circuit. It seems more like a short-distance teleportation array.”
“Short-distance?” Elune thought for a moment. “About how far can it teleport?”
“A few hundred to over a thousand miles,” Jiang Lin estimated. “If it's on this planet, it should be within the East Continent.”
He squatted down and began clearing the layer of dust on the surface of the teleportation array.
Over the next few days, Jiang Lin spent most of his time on this teleportation array.
On the first day, he embedded five new crystals into the slots, using Space Perception to calibrate the angle and depth of each crystal one by one, ensuring their energy pulsations were synchronized.
The process went smoother than he had expected; those crystals were high-quality magic crystals brought back from Caeous, which had excellent compatibility with the array.
On the second day, he dealt with the crack along the edge of the stone platform.
The stone filler was something he had bought in the Royal Capital, specifically used for repairing stone magic constructs like this.
He filled the crack with the liquid adhesive, guiding it with magic essence to seep into every tiny crevice, waiting for it to solidify before sanding it smooth.
On the third day, he began repairing the broken rune lines.
This was a delicate task; every segment of the lines had to be carved again with a carving tool, leaving no room for error.
Jiang Lin sat in front of the stone platform, his carving tool gliding steadily across the stone surface, sending fine stone chips fluttering down onto his sleeves, knees, and the floor around his feet.
Elune had brought him water and dry rations once, but seeing him so focused that he couldn't even look up, she quietly left.
By evening, when the final broken segment of the lines was restored, the rune lines of the entire teleportation array were finally fully connected.
A pale silver glow flowed along the lines for a full cycle before slowly fading, sinking back into the stone surface.
Jiang Lin set down his carving tool, stretched his stiff fingers, and sank his consciousness into the core of the teleportation array.
The repaired rune lines lit up one by one in his perception. Energy flowed from the crystals to the nodes, from the nodes to the circuits, cycling through the complete path.
And within this cycle, he captured the location of the coordinate anchor.
He frowned slightly.
“What is it?” Elune had come down again at some point, standing behind him with a cup of hot tea in her hand.
Jiang Lin withdrew his perception and stood up:
“The location this teleportation array points to... isn't too far.”
“How far?”
“Probably on this planet, southwest of the East Continent, in the region separated by the Ash Mountains and the demon territory. There seem to be a few small nations in between.”
Elune handed him the teacup:
“What kind of place is that?”
Jiang Lin took the teacup and took a sip, the warm liquid traveling down his throat, dispelling the chill in the basement:
“If I remember correctly, that area should be the core region of the secret cults' sphere of influence.”
Elune fell silent for a moment, her pale purple eyes looking at him:
“Secret cults?”
“Yeah.” Jiang Lin set down his teacup. “The human kingdoms here on the East Continent primarily worship the Seven Righteous Gods of the Temple. However, there are still some evil gods who can use their power to deceive people into becoming their believers. The churches established by these evil gods are what we call secret cults.”
Pausing, Jiang Lin continued to explain to the girl from the West Continent:
“The largest of these, the Four Great Secret Cults, even have the ability to control and rule nations. They govern some of these countries, forcing all their citizens to believe in the cult, and select the best among them through a method similar to raising venomous insects.
“And these kingdoms either rely on geographical advantages, barrier arrays, or direct blessings from the evil gods to prevent our Temple kingdoms from attacking, making it impossible to completely eradicate them.”
He turned back around, re-examining the repaired rune lines on the stone platform:
“The owner of this teleportation array must have had some connection to a secret cult.”
Elune didn't press further, only saying softly:
“So, do you still plan to keep repairing it?”
“Yes,” Jiang Lin answered without hesitation. “I want to see exactly where it leads first. Even if it leads to a secret cult's territory, I have enough ways to protect myself.”
Besides, maybe I can even root out some secret cult remnants and exchange them for rewards from the God of Holy Light.
The next morning, Jiang Lin didn't go straight to the secret room, but headed to the Royal Capital first.
He planned to look up some information.
About the origin of this villa, the previous owner of this territory, who exactly built the teleportation array hidden behind the wall, and where it led.
The white walls of the Royal Capital Temple gleamed softly in the morning light.
When Jiang Lin walked into the hall, the deacon on duty recognized him and actively stepped forward to greet him:
“Lord Jiang Lin, how can I help you?”
“I'd like to consult some territory archives,” Jiang Lin said. “The historical records regarding that territory on the edge of the Silver Pine Forest.”
The deacon nodded and led him through the corridor to the archive room on the west side of the Temple.
The archive room wasn't large, but it was densely packed with bookshelves stretching from the floor to the ceiling.
The air was filled with the distinct musty scent of paper and leather, and several magic lamps emitted a soft, pale yellow glow from the gaps between the bookshelves.
The deacon pointed to a row of bookshelves against the wall:
“The territory archives for the East Continent are all here, arranged chronologically. The territory you are looking for should be around... this spot.”
Jiang Lin walked in the direction he pointed, pulled out several heavy files, and began flipping through them.
An hour later, he closed the last file, his brow furrowing slightly.
Nothing.
The archives for that territory did exist, but the records were extremely brief.
There were only the names and tenures of the past lords, with no detailed information.
The name of the most recent lord was smudged with ink, completely illegible.
The ink smudges looked like they had been there for years, but the method of smudging was very sophisticated—treated with some special chemical that fused the ink with the paper, making it impossible to restore.
Someone didn't want future generations to know who that lord was.
Jiang Lin put the file back in its place and turned to walk out of the archive room.
In the hallway, a figure was walking over from the stairwell.
He wore a deep purple robe, with a Temple of Holy Light badge pinned to his chest, the lower edge of the badge adorned with three gold stars.
His hair was graying, his face lean, and his jaw sported a neatly trimmed short beard.
He looked to be in his early sixties, but his light brown eyes remained sharp.
Jiang Lin recognized him.
The Temple Master of the Royal Capital Temple, Eamon Gray.
At the National Competition awards ceremony, he had stood behind the Director of the Education Bureau. Though he hadn't spoken a word throughout, his deep purple robe and the three gold stars on his chest were conspicuous enough.
Eamon also saw Jiang Lin.
His gaze lingered on Jiang Lin's face for a moment, then he squinted slightly, as if searching his memory for this face.
“Jiang Lin?”
“Temple Master,” Jiang Lin bowed slightly. “Long time no see.”
Eamon nodded and stopped in his tracks:
“I heard you didn't return to the academy after winning the National Competition. Vice Principal Keith has complained about it quite a few times. What brings you to the Temple today?”
“I came to look up some information,” Jiang Lin said, hiding nothing. “Specifically, the historical records of my territory.”
Eamon's brow twitched slightly:
“That territory of yours... the one next to the Silver Pine Forest?”
“Yes.”
Eamon fell silent for a moment, then gestured to him:
“Follow me.”
He turned, but instead of walking toward the archive room, he continued down the corridor, passing through an archway and making two more turns before stopping in front of an inconspicuous wooden door.
The wooden door was old, its paint peeling, with a palm-sized holy light rune embedded in the doorframe.
Eamon raised his hand and pressed his palm against the rune. A layer of pale gold light spread from the surface of the rune, covering the entire door.
The wooden door slid open silently.
Behind the door was a short corridor, at the end of which lay a room much smaller than the archive room outside.
There were only three rows of bookshelves, but every single file was exquisitely bound, with gilded numbers on the spines.
“The records here are not open to the public,” Eamon said, entering the room and sitting down behind the desk near the window. “But with your Mid-Rank Apostle authority, you can read them.”
Jiang Lin was taken aback:
“You know my apostle rank?”
Eamon picked up the teacup on the desk and took a sip, his tone flat:
“I am the Temple Master of the Royal Capital Temple. When your apostle badge upgraded, I could sense the change in the fluctuations of the holy light brand.”
Jiang Lin didn't ask further.
He walked to the bookshelves, his gaze sweeping over the gilded numbers, and pulled out a file labeled "Territories Surrounding the Silver Pine Forest".
Jiang Lin opened the cover of the file, and the scent of aged paper washed over him.
The first page recorded the reclamation history of this territory, written in neat handwriting. The ink had already yellowed, indicating it had been written many years ago.
He began flipping through page by page.
The records on the first few dozen pages were quite normal.
Most of the past lords were low-ranking nobles enfeoffed by the kingdom.
Some lived there for over a decade, while others stayed for only a few years before being reassigned or passing away due to various reasons.
The population of the territory gradually grew from the initial hundred or so households to over three hundred.
Farmland expanded from scattered patches into continuous arable fields, and there were even a few small workshops and a simple mill.
It wasn't until he flipped to the middle of the file that the name of the previous lord appeared for the first time.
“Leon Hart, a retired officer of the Kingdom's Third Knight Order, was enfeoffed as a Viscount for his military achievements, and assumed office in the Silver Pine Forest territory in the year 472 of the Kingdom Calendar.”
Jiang Lin's finger paused on that line of text.
The year 472—that was already over thirty years ago.
The subsequent records confirmed that Leon Hart's initial governance was reasonably successful.
Inserted in the file were several inspection records from those years, with phrases like "the territory is in good order," "the farmers' harvest has increased compared to previous years," and "the lord has repeatedly funded road and bridge construction."
There was also an official approval document from the Royal Capital Education Bureau of that time, commending Viscount Hart for establishing a simple school in his territory, allowing the children of farmers to learn to read.
But after turning past the two-thirds mark, the style of the records began to change.
The intervals between inspections grew longer and longer, from once a year to once every two years, and later to once every three years.
The last inspection record was dated the year 486, and that inspector's handwriting was noticeably messier than before, his wording far more concise:
“The population of the territory has decreased by about twenty percent compared to the last inspection. Some farmlands have been abandoned. The lord himself did not appear; the butler received us instead.”
......
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