501: Chapter 481 A Journey to the Church to Obtain the Method for Advancing to Epic Status

The Gangnuo Empire possesses God's Blessing and Epic-tier individuals; Lake's existing reconnaissance methods cannot evade the gaze of top-tier Professionals.

The capabilities of the intelligence department established by Soren were gradually improving, but it still lacked elite power. Its infiltration of external empires and kingdoms was in its infancy; asking him to investigate the Gangnuo Empire would only yield rumors circulating among the common folk of unknown veracity.

While acceptable for reference, expecting high authenticity or access to classified secrets was likely unrealistic.

Tools like drones were sufficient for tracking the movements of the Ganno legion, but forcing them to perform JD missions was too much of a stretch.

To obtain valuable information, Zhang Mu had to make the trip himself.

Zhang Mu mastered the Shadow Technique; except for the vicinity of God's Blessing or Epic-tier individuals, there was nowhere he couldn't go, making him the strongest intelligence operative. The rarity was the number of people—only himself—while the territory of the Gangnuo Empire was despairingly vast, and the number of cities it contained was even more terrifying.

If Zhang Mu searched them one by one, it would likely take several years to get a general sense of the situation; whether he could obtain the "secrets" he sought would depend purely on luck.

He didn't have enough leisure time to search every city, so he focused his gaze on the Imperial Palace in the capital, where the empire's top-secret intelligence was bound to be hidden.

Zhang Mu didn't know how many God's Blessing guards were inside, let alone their specific locations. If he were unfortunate enough to stumble near one, not only would he fail to get information, but he probably shouldn't dream of leaving in one piece.

Infiltrating the palace was fraught with difficulties, but they had to be overcome. Without determining if Ganno planned to attack Lake, Zhang Mu couldn't peacefully head to the Church Holy Mountain; he had to take the risk.

He set out overnight, not resting for a moment along the way, and successfully reached the Imperial Capital ten days later.

Not in a hurry to enter the city, Zhang Mu circled the capital once. After confirming that Ganno wasn't so extravagant as to use God's Blessing-tier guards for the city gates, he stepped through.

The location of the palace was easy to find.

Passing through the gates and standing on the paved stone streets, Zhang Mu's gaze bypassed the staggered houses and buildings to see a castle whose height far exceeded the surrounding structures, its pointed roofs piercing the clouds.

After standing there and gazing for a moment, he maintained the Shadow Technique and reached the palace. After peering around and finding no trace of a God's Blessing-tier presence, he walked toward the open palace gates.

The process was exceptionally smooth. Zhang Mu encountered no accidents or God's Blessing-tier individuals along the way, navigating unimpeded into the archives where important documents were stored. After rummaging through the neatly arranged wooden cabinets, he finally found what he wanted.

After reading the documents, Zhang Mu understood. The Gangnuo Empire had intended to wipe out Lake long ago, but it was mired in its own troubles and couldn't spare the energy for the time being.

The Gangnuo Empire was powerful and prosperous, capable of toppling kingdoms with a flick of a finger, but it was not invincible on the Saul Continent. Many empires were stronger than it, and no small number of neighboring empires held grudges against it.

In the past, they were constrained by Church prohibitions; neighboring empires couldn't attack Ganno. At most, their Professionals targeted each other when entering dungeons. After the prohibitions were abolished, old scores were settled, and Ganno instantly plunged into the flames of war.

To Ganno's east, two empires with deep-seated enmity quickly formed an alliance, gathering multiple First-Tier Legions and several God's Blessing-tier individuals to launch a subjugation campaign on a scale intended to destroy the nation.

Comparing it to either one individually, Ganno's strength was slightly superior, but the joint attack of the two nations was difficult to withstand. They suffered consecutive defeats, dozens of cities fell to the enemy, and nearly half of their territory was lost.

Ganno's most urgent concern now was how to expel the foreign enemies; that sesame-sized dispute with Lake was temporarily cast aside.

After leaving the palace, Zhang Mu rushed to the three-nation war zone to observe for a few days, concluding that the war would not end in the short term.

It was an empire, after all, with deep foundations. The High-tier Professionals belonging to the royal family were too numerous to count; Saint-ranks could even be used as a vanguard. If pushed to a desperate corner, they could even mobilize the independent High-tier Professionals among the populace.

If the two nations wanted to destroy Ganno, they couldn't do it without ten or more years.

With the major worry self-resolved, Zhang Mu was in a bright mood. After rushing back to Domit's Command Post, he told him there was no need to change the original plan—just steadily wear down the various kingdoms and strive to minimize losses.

Zhang Mu had considered stabbing Ganno in the back while it was trapped in its predicament, but after hesitating for a long time, he gave up.

No matter how weak Ganno was, it was still an empire. If he truly pushed them too hard and they temporarily reassigned a God's Blessing-tier individual, it would only take a few days to slaughter the Laike Legion.

This predicament could only be escaped once Geoffrey's magic guidance sniper rifle development made another breakthrough and the Special Operations Squad's strength increased to the point where they could face a God's Blessing-tier individual head-on.

Zhang Mu instructed Domit that after occupying all the cities of the various kingdoms, he should not easily get involved in Ganno's defensive war. Everything would be planned after his own return. Then, he set off for the Church Holy Mountain.

The journey was not turbulent. To avoid being hunted because his face had already been made public, Zhang Mu kept the Shadow Technique and Transformation Technique active throughout, following the map to arrive at the Church Holy Mountain.

The Holy Mountain truly lived up to its name as the Church's headquarters. A Holy City had been built around this towering peak, and the residents within were all loyal Believers of the Church.

Zhang Mu had originally worried that rashly going up the mountain would lead to an attack by Believers. All the elite members of the Church lived here in seclusion; Saint-ranks were only fit to live halfway up the mountain. Further up, not far from the mountaintop cathedral, at least twenty palaces of God's Blessing-tier Believers were scattered along the slopes.

Zhang Mu wasn't afraid of death in the physical sense, but he resisted meaningless death—that is, throwing his life away.

He sat cross-legged on a rock outside the Holy City for ten days, pondering how to sneak into the Holy Mountain to no avail. Then, he suddenly remembered Leah, who lived in the mountaintop cathedral.

From the way the current Church had submitted to Leah years ago, no one in the Church dared to defy her will.

Whether it was because of Leah's relationship with the gods or some other reason, Zhang Mu didn't care. As long as he met Leah, moving freely on the Holy Mountain would surely be effortless.

No sooner said than done.

Zhang Mu stood up, patted his buttocks, and followed the crowd into the city through the gates. He walked through the streets to the foot of the mountain and then climbed the stone stairs carved along the mountain to reach the summit.

The cathedral was closed to Believers on non-public days. When Zhang Mu walked onto the summit alone and stood in the plaza before the cathedral, he was surrounded by over a dozen God's Blessing-tier individuals almost in the blink of an eye.

It was confirmed that God's Blessing-tier individuals could ignore the Shadow Technique, and at the same time, Zhang Mu confirmed they couldn't completely see through it.

The dozen or so God's Blessing-tier individuals wearing Church white robes surrounded Zhang Mu, but their gazes were not focused on him. Instead, they drifted around where he stood, seemingly trying to sense the mysterious person's position.

Zhang Mu took the initiative to deactivate the Shadow Technique, revealing his form.

The heretic appeared before their eyes, yet the God's Blessing Believers did not immediately attack, nor did a flood of various high-tier light-attribute magic submerge him.

Their expressions were stunned for a moment, likely surprised that a heretic would not stay far away from the Church but instead run to the Holy Mountain, the Church's headquarters.

Afterward, the ten or so people put their heads together, discussing how to handle the heretic who had delivered himself to their door.

Zhang Mu was frankly confused as to why these Church God's Blessing-tier individuals, as the most devout Believers of the gods, would be so hesitant on the issue of how to dispose of a heretic, even needing a discussion to decide.

They hadn't reached a conclusion when, midway through, the Pope came jogging from somewhere. Panting, he drove away the God's Blessing-tier individuals and pulled Zhang Mu toward the cathedral.

The Pope was openly shielding a heretic, yet the God's Blessing-tier individuals weren't angry at all. Each of them seemed as if a heavy burden had been lifted, humming country tunes as they returned to their own palaces.

Inside the cathedral, it was quiet and deserted. Zhang Mu couldn't be bothered to reminisce with the Pope—their relationship wasn't one for reminiscing—so he curiously asked what the source of the God's Blessing-tier individuals' bizarre behavior was.

The Pope seemed to be wary of something. He scratched his head, opened his mouth as if to speak but stopped, and finally said: "Why don't you wait for Lady Leah to come out and ask her yourself?"

"Come out? Where did she go?"

"The Eternal Dungeon bestowed upon the Church by the gods."

"Is it dangerous?" Zhang Mu stood up, looking as if he would immediately rush to the dungeon to save her if the Pope nodded.

"There is some danger... Hey, hey, hey, don't be in such a hurry." The Pope grabbed the sleeve of Zhang Mu, who had raised his foot to charge toward the door, and said helplessly, "Even if you want to enter the dungeon, you at least need to know the location, right?"

"Where is the dungeon?" Zhang Mu slapped his hand away.

"Uh." The Pope choked for a moment and sighed. "Mr. Zhang Mu, can you calmly listen to me finish?"

"Fine, speak." Zhang Mu sat back down on the bench where Believers sat during prayer.

The Pope organized his words and said: "There is danger, but it's not life-threatening. Lady Leah's safety is absolutely guaranteed."

Zhang Mu believed the Pope had no need to lie to him on this point. His tensed muscles relaxed, and his upright upper body leaned back against the chair.

"That dungeon was given to you by the gods?"

"Bestowed. Not given, bestowed." He solemnly corrected Zhang Mu's wording.

Zhang Mu's mouth twitched: "Since when were you so reverent of the gods?"

"Back in Gur City, you—"

The Pope's expression changed abruptly, and he suddenly reached out to cover Zhang Mu's mouth, only to be slapped away in disgust. Seeing that Zhang Mu wasn't going to continue exposing him, he said cryptically: "This is the Holy Mountain, a treasure granted by the gods."

"Oh? What divine effect does it have?"

"On the Holy Mountain, Believers are infinitely close to the gods."

"Speak in plain English."

"The gods can hear the prayers of the Believers."

So that's how it is. No wonder he was scared like that. Zhang Mu asked cheerfully: "Then can he hear the voice of a heretic like me too?"

"Yes."

"Dumbass." Zhang Mu raised his right hand clenched into a fist, extending only his middle finger, and looked up at the hemispherical ceiling while cursing.

He waited silently for a while, but the expected thunderous judgment did not come. The cathedral remained quiet. He shrugged: "I reckon he can't hear me."

The Pope thought for a bit: "Actually, I was just guessing; I've never verified it."

"Why not verify it?"

"I don't dare."

Zhang Mu glanced at him: "Your courage is smaller than a chicken raised by a Farmer."

"Hahaha—" The Pope didn't look ashamed at all, laughing proudly, "Because my courage is small, I am still alive while many others have died."

"Fine, fine, I won't waste any more breath on you." Zhang Mu sat up straight. "I came here for two things."

"One, when will Leah be free?"

"Two, I want to know the method for advancing to Epic. If you have it, please tell me; if not, forget it. I hope you can be honest and not fool me. If the Church has truly lost the method of advancement, I'll go ask elsewhere as soon as possible."

"Lady Leah will probably be able to come out of the dungeon in about a month. As for advancing to Epic..."

The frivolous smile on the Pope's face slowly faded. He remained silent for a moment. "I do indeed possess it, however, I urge you to give up on becoming an Epic."