Black sail

Chapter 702 LXXXII. The King of the East Sea's Ambition

As the Eternal Church entered, the music from the organizer's ceremonial band abruptly stopped.

The long funeral procession, without drums or music, moved slowly through Salert's mind, its tyrannical anxiety like a tombstone.

In Lister's expectations.

The Lostella media outlet released the article precisely on time, and it made its debut at the Continental Martial Arts Tournament in less than an hour.

The message was clear: we resolved the issue of this remnant of the previous dynasty for Aran, and our merits and demerits canceled each other out. Let's wipe the slate clean and not pursue the matter any further.

However, this move was too shocking, and it was impossible to know how the royal court would interpret it, so an explanation by opening the coffin was needed.

And this top-notch commentator is none other than Salert.

The magical beasts that entered were all of the kind that were adorned with jewels and treasures, each worth a fortune. They were escorted to Gordes by Kiand and a group of paladins.

The entire venue, filled with more than ten thousand people, countless nobles, dignitaries, and wealthy businessmen, all focused their attention on Gerdrey.

The high priest of the Eternal Church sat with his dragon-faced helmet, crafted from meteorite gold, gleaming brightly, one hand propping up his head, exuding arrogance.

A thoughtful look flashed in Cicero's single eye.

“Lockhart, the stuff they smuggled through the border a few days ago is down there. Keep a close eye on whatever happens later.”

Cicero spoke to Lockhart, the captain of the Royal Guard and a former champion of the martial arts tournament.

The sect has become increasingly arrogant and domineering in recent years, and the pope's madness is incurable; who knows what shocking thing might happen later.

"Yes."

Lockhart looked imposing and valiant in his silver-white armor.

"And Gerdley, you should go and give him a talking-to later too."

Although there is no concrete evidence yet, this seemingly clean-background person has been found to be from the Duchy of Bema, and Cicero must take precautions.

"Yes."

Lockhart's gaze sharpened, and he stood at the edge of the special seating area with Black Sword Netherflame and another member. He could protect Phoenix if anything unusual happened, or enter the field immediately to quell any dangerous situation.

"His Holiness the Pope also acknowledges the champion's bravery and has arranged a residence for you within the diocese. As for these gifts, they are merely tokens of his appreciation."

Flowers and gold leaf continued to fall from the sky above the arena, and at Kiand's signal, his paladins opened the gift boxes carried on the backs of the monsters one by one in order.

No one could have imagined what would happen, and they simply thought it was a demonstration of sectarian wealth.

The dozen or so gift boxes were opened one by one.

All of them are rare and expensive items, including gemstones, jade artifacts, rare treasures, silks, and brocades. Each one is the most outstanding treasure in its respective field, and their value is beyond the reach of gold dragons, starting at 100,000 gold dragons.

All the rare treasures swirled with a mesmerizing light, making the already dreamlike venue even more enchanting. Gazing at these treasures was like gazing at fragments of the past, the lingering warmth of an extremely brutal battle, and the frozen moment when countless drops of blood and sweat evaporated.

Among the sixteen finalists present, Luis, Ivanovic, and others stared wide-eyed, regretting that they weren't champions. With these things, they could give up their official positions and live off their wealth for the rest of their lives.

Even though the audience was full of powerful people, the amount of money they prepared was still beyond their comprehension. It was just in line with the scale of the Continental Martial Arts Tournament, and everything was so extravagant.

But Gerdrey remained unmoved, his expression extremely gloomy. On the road to hell, there was nowhere to spend these things.

Their aversion to the Eternalist sect was no less than that towards the Aramean royal court.

Multiple cardinal churches had long been established in the Duchy of Bema. Due to the power struggle between Rodrigo XI and the puppet king, the lords had chosen sides, and the country had long since become a bandit state.

In order to live a peaceful life, countless people have joined the Eternal Church and become defenders of the faith. Even students consider it an honor to enter a church school.

It subtly erodes the souls of the Bema people, drawing talent and fresh blood back to Aran.

The cradle has become a new tombstone, clouding the eyes of countless young people.

Gedley remained unmoved.

"Besides these gifts, there is another big gift."

Chiand paused for a moment, because it was the Pope's order to take attendance.

Call that person out by name and give him a hard time.

She walked to the silverback beast carrying the huge gift box and said solemnly, "This great gift is something that the emperor dealt with many years ago during the decisive battle in the old Aran royal city. It is rare in the world and is presented to this year's martial arts champion as a symbol of honor."

The entire audience erupted in uproar and whispers.

It's that time of year again for the Eternal Church's traditional slapping act, a sight that happens every year and is nothing new.

But this time it's completely different; it's gone too far.

Because the title of emperor had gradually become a derogatory term, the Arameans should be called king in public.

In other words... at the Pope's behest, Chiander publicly called out the Emperor's name under countless eyes, specifically targeting you.

Glenn and Galen could also sense that the atmosphere had changed. The crowd, which had been celebrating, was now staring at the scene with a serious attitude, as if they were concerned about current political events.

"Old Aran?"

Although Ge Lian had a private tutor and was literate, her academic level was purely at the Hong Kong level.

"It's a dragon, isn't it?"

Garen was an Aran, and he immediately realized that he had never seen a dragon in his life.

"Things that Father Emperor dealt with back then?"

Phoenix was getting restless, but at Cicero's prompting, he remained steadfast on his throne.

Tonight was meant to be a promotional event for Phoenix, so why are you making such a fuss over this? How can you inherit the imperial authority?

Fearing trouble, Cicero signaled to Lockhart again.

Lockhart also placed his strong, powerful hand on his sword, in case anything unexpected happened.

The largest gift box had been unloaded by the paladins and placed in front of Gedley on the ground covered with flowers and gold leaf, making a rustling sound.

It's not surprising that Bai Xing and Xiao Long have both seen genuine flying dragons, but no one else has.

Kaden's eyes flashed thoughtfully as he stared at the huge gift box. Was it the dragon named Fafnir that died, or the dragon named Galsek?
Even if Black Sail wins the battle at Mullon, it won't be without a price.

It immediately reminded me of those two dragon maidens.

Kiande personally unpacked the enormous gift box, which was over a meter wide and three meters long, untied the gilded ribbon, and tore off the precious silk covering it.

What is revealed is an exquisitely carved wooden box, also made from a piece of wood with a broken section.

No one would think of it as a coffin.

"People think that the emperor's feat of capturing the dragon was unparalleled, but it's nothing special."

With the title of Pope at his disposal, Chiande naturally dared to make outrageous remarks.

Sallet took a deep breath.

As countless eyes eagerly awaited the sight of the legendary dragon.

Kiande tore off the wax seal, and then... lifted the lid of the coffin and pushed it aside.

The disguise spell cast by the professor at Pedan National Academy can only be maintained in a closed environment. If exposed to the outside, the magic will dissipate, and the true form will soon be revealed.

The box did indeed contain the remains of a dragon, a divine creature made entirely of magical materials, with horns on its head and scales on its body.

But less than ten seconds later...

Strange magical smoke began to emanate from inside the box, the stability of some kind of spell structure was disrupted, and the magical power turned into soaring steam and dissipated into the sky.

What was clearly visible was a corpse!
As Kiand said, it was something the Emperor had dealt with in the final battle in the old city of Aran many years ago, but it was not a dragon.

Instead, it was Zote, the deputy head of the Old Aran Witch Hunt Secret Service, who was trampled underfoot by Lister and his group in the newspaper just now!

Those who were far away couldn't see what it was, but they could feel the frenzied commotion in the front row, as well as the royal family, the military government officials, and dignitaries from various countries, most of whom stood up.

An extremely gloomy and manic atmosphere permeated the entire venue.

"How can this be?"

Even Kiand was startled and took two steps back. All the paladins around realized something was wrong and quickly sealed the coffin again.

The surrounding top 16 contestants were stunned. Many of them didn't recognize Zote, but they had seen her in the previous explosive news.

Phoenix, the second prince, was completely stunned and stood frozen in place, his gaze fixed on Cicero.

It seems we can no longer pretend to be deaf and dumb.

Cicero finally understood why the news was released at the exact moment, but... he was still in shock from seeing the man with his own eyes and couldn't recover for a long time.

Lister.

Everything has turned upside down.

And at the church's special seats.

"Quickly...quickly bring that adjutant up here!"

The high priest slammed his hand on the armrest of his throne, giving orders to the Sword of Time in the Tribunal beside him.

(End of this chapter)