Extraordinary Rise: Starting Contract with the Silver Dragon Countess

Chapter 363 The Lord of the Battle Temple!

Cohen hadn't expected that this order would cause such a huge storm in Effie.

At this moment, he was in his office meeting with his old friend, Raymond, the legendary-rank transcendent being and head of the Florence Arena.

Raymond gazed at the young king before him, a complex mix of emotions rising within him.

I still vividly remember the first time I met him.

Even now, Raymond is still shocked by the other party's true identity. Who would have thought that the Shadow Lord who shocked the continent at the Florence Extraordinary Arena was actually King Effiin himself?

Raymond couldn't help but sigh inwardly, for a king to have gone to such lengths was unprecedented in the entire history of the Demon Tide Continent.

Raymond did not put on airs as a legendary transcendent when facing Cohen.

The other party's current status is extraordinary; the group of women behind him are not to be trifled with.

Cohen tapped his fingers lightly on the table, pulling Raymond back from his reverie:
"Mr. Raymond, thank you for your strong support of our selection process for participants in this Noble Martial Arts Festival!"

Upon hearing Cohen's voice, Raymond collected his thoughts and waved his hand, saying:
"It's nothing, Your Majesty, please don't take it to heart."

In the future, you don't need to do anything special about these things; just let me know.

Cohen smiled and continued:

“Perfect timing, I have another small favor to ask Mr. Raymond.”

Raymond paused for a moment, thinking to himself, "You certainly know how to take advantage of this."

Cohen said:

"I need a list of ninth-tier extraordinary individuals under the age of forty who have participated in duels in the Extraordinary Arena and have a win rate of over 50%."

"Can Mr. Raymond provide that?"

Raymond's expression froze for a moment, and after a brief pause, he slowly said:
"Yes, but I also have a small matter I'd like to trouble Your Majesty with."

Cohen said with a smile:

"Is it still about participating in the Divine Guard Training Camp selection?"

Raymond smiled and replied:
"Correct."

Cohen asked:

"When? I remember saying before that I would let you know when the time is confirmed."

Raymond coughed lightly and said:

"In fact, the most recent selection for the Divine Guard Training Camp just ended a year ago."

I was originally going to inform His Majesty at that time, but then I learned that His Majesty was in Ceylon…

Well, a year ago, Cohen was in Ceylon, battling wits with Gaius.

Cohen said regretfully:

"I guess I'll be past the legal age next time."

I remember the selection criteria for the training camp was under twenty years old.

Raymond nodded and said:
"Yes, but this matter is not inflexible."

His Majesty once performed a 'divine summoning' and had direct contact with the God of War.

With such a resume, one can skip the selection process and directly enter the Divine Guard Training Camp.

As long as you pass the assessment, you can still become a Divine Guard.

In fact, this was also the opinion of the temple, and even a personal instruction from the temple master!

Upon hearing Raymond mention the Temple Master, Cohen's gaze towards him deepened considerably.

The temple master Raymond was referring to was Landon Robert, the temple master of the Temple of Battle.

Both the Temple of Battle and the Arena of Extraordinary Power are forces supported by Ares Beacon, the God of Battle and War, on the human continent.

The former is equivalent to the papacy of the gods, and Langdon Robert's status is equivalent to that of the pope of the papacy.

The personal instruction from the Temple Master of the Battle God Temple makes the implications much more intriguing.

Given that the other party so desperately wants him to become a divine guard, could it be that Ares, the god of war, is behind this?

Three years ago, at the Northwest Region Exchange Conference, Daphne Hanbing, one of the main gods and the goddess of ice and snow, took the initiative to help her sister, the queen, out of a predicament.

With such a huge commotion, it's impossible that the gods wouldn't have heard anything about it.

Moreover, when he summoned the gods back then, Ares, the god of war, had already seen Daphne's traces in him.

Could it be that he hopes to achieve some purpose by contacting the goddess Daphne?

Cohen suppressed the turmoil in his mind, his expression remaining unchanged.

He chuckled softly and said to Raymond, whose eyes were filled with anticipation:

"no problem.

Mr. Raymond has helped us at Effie so much; I should keep my promise.

Raymond breathed a sigh of relief and said with a smile:

"I eagerly await the moment when Your Majesty becomes a Divine Guard."

Cohen said with a smile:

"Mr. Raymond really has a lot of confidence in me."

When exactly does the training camp start?

Raymond handed Cohen a badge and said:

"A year later, the specific location has not yet been determined."

This badge is both a symbol of the training camp members and a communication magic device, through which His Majesty can receive specific information about the training camp.

Of course, I will also keep His Majesty informed of the training camp's progress in a timely manner.

After their conversation ended, Raymond did not linger and offered to leave.

Cohen fiddled with the badge in his hand and sensed a communication array within it.

He pondered for a moment, then threw the badge directly into the demiplane sealed on the cover of the "Book of Time and Space".

Generally speaking, communication arrays are equipped with positioning functions in order to accurately transmit messages.

Not to mention this representative item from the Divine Guard Training Camp, its status is probably even stronger.

To avoid revealing his whereabouts, Cohen simply threw it into the demiplane.

Battle Temple!

Cohen closed his eyes, carefully recalling the information and strategies about the Temple of Battle and Ares, the God of War, from his previous life's game...

……

After returning to his residence, Raymond cautiously looked around before entering a secret room, in the center of which was a giant communication array.

With a slight wave of his arm and a few incantations, dark red ripples appeared in the secret room.

After some time, a tall and imposing figure appeared on the magic array.

The Temple Master of the Battle Temple, Langdon Robert, wore a scarlet robe with molten gold patterns, and his short, silver-white hair stood up like steel needles.

Seated atop the bronze throne, the shadowy image of war flickered deep within his pupils.

Upon seeing the illusory figure, Raymond immediately knelt on one knee and reported in a low voice:
"Your Highness, King Cohen Corleone of Efein has accepted the Divine Guard Badge and agreed to participate in the Divine Guard Training Camp a year from now."

Langdon Roberts' voice had a metallic, husky quality:

"Did he notice anything unusual?"

Raymond shook his head and replied:

"It's not obvious on the surface, so there shouldn't be anything."

Joining the Divine Guard Training Camp was something we had discussed beforehand; he was simply fulfilling a promise.

Langdon's face was expressionless. After a moment of silence, he said:
"Let's leave it at that for now. Isn't he also going to participate in the Noble Martial Arts Festival?"

"Let's talk about it after I've met him."

The Noble Martial Arts Festival is primarily about combat.

As the master of the Temple of Battle, Langdon Roberts was naturally invited to be the referee.

Raymond kept his head down, hesitated for a moment, and then asked:
"My Lord, I have heard that he is also the prophetic son of the Prophecy Church."

"If someone with this kind of background joins our Divine Guard training camp and actually becomes a Divine Guard in the future, wouldn't that be a bit inappropriate?"

Raymond's previous excuse to Cohen, that he was worried about interfering with Cohen's important business in the Kingdom of Ceylon, was simply a pretext for not informing him about the selection for the Divine Guard Training Camp.

Since Cohen's true identity was exposed at the exchange meeting in Northwest Florence three years ago, coupled with his subsequent actions, it has been confirmed that he is the "Child of Prophecy".

Raymond then stopped considering Cohen as a candidate for the Divine Guard Training Camp.

Although the Church of Prophecy and the Temple of Battle do not have any fundamental conflict, they are not on the same side.

The prophetic church is a standard, absolutely neutral camp.

The Temple of Battle, on the other hand, is a chaotic neutral faction.

Therefore, it is impossible for Cohen, as the son of prophecy, to become a guardian of the Temple of Battle.

But not long ago, Langdon Roberts approached Raymond and asked him to do everything he could to get Cohen into the Godguard training camp.

That's why we're in this situation today.

Raymond's question wasn't just his own; it was a question shared by all the high-ranking members of the Battle Temple who knew about it.

Langdon did not explain to Raymond, nor could he explain.

Because all of this was instructed by Ares, the god of war, Ares specifically requested Langdon to keep it a secret when he issued the oracle.

To prevent his subordinates from having wild ideas and interfering with the God of War's oracle, Langdon made up a reason:
"Entering the training camp does not guarantee that you will eventually become a Divine Guardian."

Before the Church of Prophecy officially recognizes the other party's status as the Child of Prophecy, King Efein, with his outstanding combat talent, is qualified to enter our training camp.

Moreover, isn't this also a good whetstone for the other training camp members?

Raymond nodded thoughtfully, no longer dwelling on the matter.

Seeing that Langdon had no further instructions, he withdrew on his own.

After ending his communication with Raymond, Langdon leaned back on the throne, his fingers lightly tapping the armrest.

After a moment of contemplation, magic surged in his hands, and a hollowed-out golden sphere of light appeared before him.

The sphere of light was made up of countless fine lines, with crimson light spots flashing at each intersection.

Langdon's gaze swept over the blood-red dots, and soon he let out a soft exclamation:
"Not in here... What a cautious person!"

The orb of light in Langdon's hand can detect anyone who possesses the Divine Guard Badge.

However, no trace of Cohen was found on it.

Raymond couldn't possibly have lied to him, so there's only one explanation: the other party blocked the badge the moment they received it!
The Guardian Badge was crafted by Langdon himself and can be used to conceal the badge...

Langdon quickly thought of the queen beside Cohen, who possessed a powerful talent for magic arrays.

He gently shook his head, waved his hand to scatter the light sphere, and murmured softly:
"Looks like we'll have to wait until the Noble Martial Arts Festival to see your skill level again!"

……

Sancho Copperfield, thirty-five years old, is a peak ninth-tier mage.

Although Sancho is a mage, he does not belong to any of the eight major schools of mage. Instead, he is someone who has recovered after experiencing an identity crisis.

The mage who chose to put down his staff and pick up his longsword.

This variant of the mage class has a nice name—Sword Singer!
Sword Singers inherit an arcane tradition that combines swordsmanship with dance.

This tradition was originally created by the elves, and later non-elf practitioners also began to adopt it, adhering to elven traditions while expanding upon them.

This eventually led to another branch of the mage class: the Swordsman.

Sword chanters employ a variety of elegant martial arts techniques, using sword dance to channel magic into deadly strikes or deflect attacks for defense.

Not only is its attack power stronger than that of ordinary mages, but it also possesses close-combat skills that ordinary mages do not have, making its combat power exceptionally formidable.

Sancho comes from the Copperfield family, a landed earldom in the eastern part of Effie.

It was with the support of this powerful noble family that he was able to find a sword chanter's inheritance, enabling him to cultivate smoothly all the way to the peak of the ninth rank.

Sancho's grandfather rose to the position of Undersecretary of Industry in the East.

Because the Eastern Territory is where the Corleone family rose to power, most of the noble circles in the Eastern Territory have some degree of kinship with the Corleone royal family.

Sancho Panza's family, the Copperfields, was no exception, and their relationship was even closer than that of other noble families.

The younger sister of the current patriarch of the Copperfield family is the wife of the youngest son of a prince of the Corleone royal family.

Normally, being related to the royal family of a country, especially a prince, is a good thing, and the Copperfield family has often boasted about this relationship in the Eastern Territory.

But everything changed dramatically at the Northwest Regional Exchange Conference three years ago.

The prince, who was related to the Earl of Copperfield by marriage, was named Horst Corleone.

He is the fourth elder of the Corleone family, and also one of the culprits who proposed to remove Queen Adel of Effie from the Corleone family at the exchange meeting in the northwest region of Florence!

Horst Corleone was executed on the spot by His Majesty Corleone.

Once the news spread, all the nobles associated with Horst Corleone were implicated.

Although His Majesty the King dealt only with Horst Corleone, he gave no specific instructions to the others.

However, the bureaucrats below clearly did not want to miss this opportunity to suppress their political enemies and kick them when they were down.

Several noble families in the East who were already at odds with the Copperfield family joined forces to pressure the Grand Duke of the East to punish the Copperfield family, who were close to the traitorous Horst Corleone.

The Grand Duke of the East was also unsure of His Majesty and the Queen's attitude towards Horst Corleone's in-laws.

Moreover, it's not appropriate to ask about this kind of thing openly.

After thinking it over, I decided to give the Copperfield family, who had offended quite a few people in the past, a silent warning.

Until the selection tournament for the Gold Division of the Noble Martial Arts Festival begins.

The nobles of various regions had already learned of the need to select suitable participants for the Gold Group from among the sons of various noble families through various means.

Everyone knew the significance of this matter, and many nobles began preparations well in advance.

As a renowned genius throughout the Eastern Territory, the ninth-tier swordsman Sancho Copperfield was no exception.

But just as he confidently signed up, ready to win glory for the country and vent his anger over the recent years of suppression his family had suffered, he was about to...

But then, devastating news struck.

Sancho was disqualified from registering!

His name was not on the list sent to Florence by the Grand Duke of the East!

The reason given by the other party was very simple.

This competition is a matter of honor and disgrace for the entire Effie, so participants must have a clean personal background and be politically reliable.

Those related to usurpers, like the Copperfield family, are obviously ineligible to register for the competition.

The Grand Duke of the East initially didn't want to give up on such a promising talent. After all, he had heard about Sancho's true fighting prowess, and it would be a source of pride for him if the East could produce a representative like him.

But in the end, they still hesitated because of Sancho’s background.

After all, Horst Corleone was executed by His Majesty himself. If Sancho were to be chosen in the future and this matter were to be brought up again, how would others view him as the Grand Duke of the East?
What will His Majesty the King think?
Sancho, who was originally full of confidence, completely lost his confidence after this blow, but things just happened to be so coincidental.

Just when he was in despair, the arrival of a mysterious person gave him a huge surprise.

The Copperfield family residence.

The high-ranking members of the count's family carefully accompanied a middle-aged man.

Even Count Copperfield served him with utmost devotion, his face beaming with smiles.

It wasn't that they were being obsequious; it was mainly because the person in front of them was too terrifying.

He came from the Military Intelligence Bureau, a force that struck fear into the hearts of the entire Effie region, including the Northwest Continent.

Phaekin Olanska, head of the Eastern Border Military Intelligence Station.

He was the second most powerful and influential figure in the entire Eastern Territory, second only to the Grand Duke of the Eastern Territory.

Such a person, arriving suddenly without any prior notice, terrified the entire Copperfield family.

If it weren't for the fact that Fei Jin was alone, without those fearsome members of the Military Intelligence Bureau's action team in their Black Hawk uniforms following behind him.

Earl Copperfield might even have to arrange for his family members to escape through secret passages to preserve his bloodline.

When Station Master Phagin arrived, he did not clearly state his purpose, but only specifically asked to see Sancho.

Count Copperfield dared not delay and immediately sent someone to summon Sancho.

Sancho Copperfield was the illegitimate son of his eldest son and a mistress.

If Sancho hadn't later awakened his extraordinary talent, the Count would never have had any intention of acknowledging the illegitimate child's status.

The main hall of the mansion.

Fekin's gaze swept over Sancho, and the emotions of the Copperfield family members rose and fell with Fekin's gaze.

After watching for a while, Fei Jin finally spoke and asked:
"How long has it been since you broke through to the ninth rank?"

As a peak Gold-tier transcendent being, Sancho managed to maintain his composure and replied in a deep voice:

"More than three years."

Fei Jin nodded thoughtfully, then asked:

"You're a variant of the mage class, the Swordsman, is that right?"

Sancho replied:

"Yes, my lord."

Fei Jin pointed to himself and asked:

"Do you think you can win if you fight me?"

As the stationmaster of the Eastern Territory, Fei Jin is also a veteran ninth-tier transcendent.

Sancho hesitated for a moment.

Fei Jin said calmly:

"Don't hold back, just tell the truth."

I can also tell you something: this isn't what I wanted to ask; it was a very important person in Florence who asked me to ask it.

A big shot in Florence.

Sancho's breathing quickened slightly. After a brief moment of thought, he said in a low voice:

"The adult couldn't last five minutes in my hands."

Upon hearing this, the entire hall fell into a deathly silence.

Sancho is a swordsman, and those who can take on this profession must have a firm belief, be able to overcome an identity crisis, and forge a new path.

Without a doubt, Sancho Panza was that kind of person.

However, these people also share a common characteristic: they are rigid, stubborn, and inflexible.

In addition, the trauma of being born out of wedlock from a young age led to Sancho's withdrawn personality.

Aside from his extraordinary cultivation, he hardly cares about the people and things outside.

Phaekin was also taken aback by Sancho's answer. After a few seconds of stunned silence, a strange smile appeared on his lips.

He waved to stop Count Copperfield from getting up to apologize, stared at Sancho, and said:
"His Majesty dislikes people who boast, but if you truly have the ability, the Copperfield family could rise to a new level under your leadership."

I'll give you one hour.

Come with me to Florence in an hour.

Participating in... the selection trials for the Gold Division of the Noble Martial Arts Festival.

As soon as Phaekin finished speaking, a mixture of surprise and delight appeared on the faces of everyone in the Copperfield family present.

Sancho's reaction was even stronger; he abruptly stood up, his eyes glowing red, and his voice hoarse:

"Can...can I really participate in the selection competition?"

Fei Jin smiled calmly:
"Hurry up and get ready. The Eastern Territory is still quite a distance from Florence. Don't miss the competition!"

……

"He said you couldn't last 5 minutes with him?"

After listening to Phagin's account, Cohen was slightly surprised and asked the same question again.

Fei Jin replied with a wry smile:

"That's exactly what he answered at the time, and I was quite surprised."

Cohen raised an eyebrow; he was aware of Fei Jin's fighting prowess.

Even if he's not the most powerful, he's at least in the upper-middle range among ninth-tier superhumans.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have been appointed as the stationmaster of the Eastern Territory in the first place.

It's quite interesting that Sancho Panza has the confidence to say such a thing.

The main reason Cohen paid so much attention to this person was Sancho's profession as a "Sword Singer".

While this mutated profession may not be as powerful as some mysterious professions, its combat strength is still significantly greater than that of common extraordinary professions.

Given his reputation in the Eastern Territory, Cohen treated him as a top contender.

Cohen asked:

"Has he arrived in Florence yet?"

Phaekin replied:
"Yes, you came with me."

Cohen said:

"Okay, when you get back, tell him to show his full abilities the day after tomorrow."

"If he can make it into the top three in this selection competition, all the previous issues concerning his family will be wiped clean."

After Phagin left, Cohen picked up Sancho's file again and looked at it.

The Sword Singer class is still worth developing, and Cohen also knows a little about the Sword Singer's lineage.

The origin of the Sword Singer is the Elf race. With his current relationship with the Elf Queen, obtaining a powerful Sword Singer inheritance should not be a problem for him in a short period of time.

His high regard for Sancho was partly due to this plan.

As time went by, ninth-tier extraordinary geniuses from all over the country gathered in Florence.

Finally, with the collective anticipation of all the citizens of Effie, the selection tournament for the All Nations Nobles Martial Arts Festival officially kicked off at the Extraordinary Arena in Florence!
(End of this chapter)