17: Chapter 17

However, everyone knew that this guy was the Thunder Emperor, one of the Four Great Emperors, and the wielder of the second-ranked Sacred Gear, Zenith Tempest. If he really started a fight, even the gods would be terrified.

"Speak, what do you want with me this time? Let me give you a heads-up first—last time you wreaked havoc on Heaven, Michael personally adjusted the defense mechanisms. Many of the heavenly spatial coordinates I had in my hands were rendered useless."

The Thunder Emperor looked heartbroken. "The loss is huge this time, you have to compensate me. Otherwise, don't even think about getting a single coordinate from me in the future."

Just a moment ago he was so dignified, and now he was full of street-smart chatter. "Loss? I don't think so."

Luo Yu glanced at him meaningfully.

This kid was getting bolder; he actually dared to extort him. Was he tired of living?

The Thunder Emperor's heart skipped a beat.

This guy... he couldn't have figured anything out, could he?

That's impossible.

Over these years, he had been hanging out with those three guys, doing everything he should and shouldn't have done; there was no reason for any slip-ups. He had been very tight-lipped, not letting a single word slip out.

This guy was likely trying to bluff him.

"Stop playing dumb with me; your little tricks can't fool me. Let's get straight to the point—I want the spatial coordinates for the Underworld."

The Thunder Emperor felt an inexplicable sense of relief in his heart, then rolled his eyes. "I say, Red Dragon Emperor, you didn't just call me out because you were bored and looking for someone to kill time with, did you?"

"Using spatial coordinates to go to Heaven is fine, after all, Heaven's defense system covers it. But you want coordinates for the Underworld too? That place isn't somewhere just anyone can go; even if you have enough strength, it depends on luck. Besides, people run to the Underworld from the Three Realms every day; those Four Great Satans don't have the free time to manage every single person."

"I am well aware of that. If it were that simple, I wouldn't need to come find a professional like you. If I just tore through space to the Underworld, the location would be completely random. I need a coordinate locked onto the Ancient Battlefield."

The Thunder Emperor immediately understood Luo Yu's plan: "You want to borrow the light elements in the Ancient Battlefield to cultivate?"

Luo Yu's background couldn't be hidden from those old acquaintances of his. Dragon Reincarnation was no longer a secret.

Based on the form he displayed in Heaven, many people had already guessed that the Red Dragon Emperor's incarnation in this life was, in all likelihood, the Holy Light Dragon.

He could no longer go to the Mirror Lake of Light in Heaven, so the Ancient Battlefield was indeed a good place to go. Of course, one had to weigh the dangers inside as well.

The Thunder Emperor hesitated for a few seconds, looking troubled: "This... is not easy to handle. Even if I wanted to intercept the space of the Ancient Battlefield to make a coordinate, it's not an easy job."

"That place is the boundary point between the Fourth Layer of Heaven and the Underworld, and legions of demons and angels are stationed on the outskirts all year round. Even the slightest disturbance will draw the attention of both sides."

Luo Yu stood up, looked the Thunder Emperor up and down, and didn't give him a chance to continue making excuses: "For you, things that others can't do are actually the simplest."

"Just as you said, the Ancient Battlefield is wedged right between the Fourth Layer of Heaven and the Underworld. Back then, to protect Heaven, the Creator God was afraid that The Great War would spread there, so he struck first, attacking directly from the Fourth Layer of Heaven into the Underworld, making it the site of the decisive battle, and charging in with the heavenly army..."

"After The Great War, whether they were Fallen Angels, angels, or demons, everyone had to keep a copy of the Ancient Battlefield's coordinates. After all, that is the place where the Creator God and the First Generation Four Great Demon Kings fell; it holds extraordinary significance for everyone."

"The copy of the coordinates in Heaven's hands—you shouldn't have trouble getting that, right?"

Luo Yu leaned into the Thunder Emperor's ear and finished the last sentence in a low voice.

The Thunder Emperor's expression sank bit by bit with every word Luo Yu spoke. "I say, Red Dragon Emperor, you also know that is Heaven, right?"

The Thunder Emperor spread his hands, his tone carrying a bit of helplessness. "We are both lone wolves, both lucky ones chosen by a Sacred Gear. Although I can make spatial coordinates and know many people, I don't have the ability to get the Ancient Battlefield's coordinates from Heaven. You are thinking too highly of me."

He put on an expression of 'I can't do anything about it either.'

Luo Yu stared at him for two seconds. "Thunder Emperor, you should be clear that I am going to the Ancient Battlefield just to cultivate, not to target the angelic army."

He paused and added another sentence. "You might not have the ready-made coordinates on hand, but you can get them from Gabriel, Uriel, or even Michael."

When he said the last three words, he enunciated them one by one. "Du-li-o."

The Thunder Emperor's expression instantly turned cold. "Red Dragon Emperor, are you saying that I am an undercover agent sent by Heaven?"

"Whether you are an undercover agent or not, you know best in your heart. That biggest trump card Heaven has hidden away—Dulio Gesualdo."

"Red Dragon Emperor, if you slander me again, don't blame me for being impolite."

The Thunder Emperor's expression became even uglier, as if he had been wronged.

Luo Yu glanced at him, his tone indifferent. "Alright, your acting is too terrible. It was truly Heaven's biggest mistake to send you as an undercover agent. You haven't reaped any benefits, but instead, you get used as a tool by the Khaos Brigade every day."

He paused, then said. "It doesn't matter if you don't admit it. Tell me, will Ophis believe your words, or mine?"

The Thunder Emperor fell silent.

Luo Yu stopped talking too.

The room was terrifyingly quiet, with only the electric arcs occasionally crackling on the Thunder Emperor's body, indicating that his heart was not calm at all.

After a long while.

The Thunder Emperor sighed. "Isn't it just the spatial coordinates for the Ancient Battlefield? I'll give them to you. You're old enough, yet you still run off to tattle; aren't you afraid of losing face as the Red Dragon Emperor?"

After saying this, he raised his hand and tossed out a spatial coordinate.

Luo Yu took it and looked at it.

The projection magic unfolded between the two was of the highest level. If both parties agreed and paid a certain price, they could even teleport people directly.

"There shouldn't be any tricks in this coordinate like the last time with the heavenly coordinate, right? You lot in Heaven look like good people on the surface, but when you really want to scheme against someone, you're more ruthless than humans."

The Thunder Emperor rolled his eyes listening to this.

This guy was getting the benefits and still acting smug; he was practically grinding Heaven's face into the ground and stomping on it with his shoe soles.

If he weren't sure he could win, the Thunder Emperor would have teleported over to fight him long ago.

But then again—how on earth did the Red Dragon Emperor know that he was an undercover agent sent by Heaven to the Khaos Brigade?

The church knew nothing about his undercover mission in the Khaos Brigade, and only the Four Seraphim in Heaven were aware of it. There was absolutely no possibility of a leak.

It was truly strange.

The Thunder Emperor snorted coldly. "Even if I did tamper with it, you could change it back yourself. Last time with the heavenly spatial coordinates, didn't you forcibly turn it into a random landing point on the Seventh Layer? If I said I didn't change it, would you believe me?"

Luo Yu smiled, didn't reply, and put the coordinate into his pocket.

The Thunder Emperor was absolutely right.

"I have no hostility toward Heaven. To be more precise, whether it's the god and demon races of the Three Realms or the various pantheons, I have no grudges against anyone."

The Thunder Emperor rolled his eyes.

Hearing these words come out of the Red Dragon Emperor's mouth was simply shameless.

This guy ran wild in the Three Realms every day, causing trouble everywhere. A while ago, he wreaked havoc in Heaven and almost burned Raphael to ashes with the Crimson Emperor Flame.

Now, he was putting on an innocent face, saying he had no hostility?

The three Seraphim tried to hunt him down, which he could indeed argue was self-defense.

But this time, he was the mastermind behind the hunt for the God of the Underworld. He couldn't deny that.

Luo Yu saw through what the Thunder Emperor was thinking and simply stated it clearly. "The God of the Underworld was blocking too many people's paths. That Dragon Eater Samael in his hand poses too great a threat to Dragon Reincarnation and has long been a thorn in the eye of the major pantheons. I'm just the one leading the charge; doesn't you standing here mean that Heaven tacitly approves?"

The Thunder Emperor didn't make a sound.

Luo Yu continued. "There are quite a few Dragon Reincarnations in Heaven as well. Hades has helped outsiders sneak into Heaven to steal treasures more than once; you all should know that."

The Thunder Emperor knew that every word the Red Dragon Emperor said was a fact.

He couldn't be bothered to refute it, left one sentence, and the projection dissipated. "During this time, behave yourself."

The night was deep and dark, the moon hung high in the sky, and silver-white light blanketed the earth.

On that small hill to the west, a solitary church stood alone.

Since the last priest died suddenly, no one had taken care of the church.

At night, the entire church and the hill merged into a pitch-black expanse, like a demon's lair.

What was even more eerie was that at dusk, people always saw black shadows streaking across the sky and diving into the church. This instead piqued the curiosity of many bold students.

Once it was deep into the night, some would go to the church in groups to explore.

Nothing had happened before.

But recently, for some unknown reason, news kept spreading about young people going to the church and disappearing.

The entire church was slowly stained with an eerie atmosphere.

Recently, Kuoh Town had been in a state of panic.

Everyone was saying that a demon was hiding in the church, specifically coming out to catch people and swallow them alive.

The rumors became more and more bizarre, and everyone in town avoided that church. No one dared to get close at night, and even when passing by during the day, they would go out of their way to take a detour. That area, which used to be quite lively, was now as deserted as a ghost town.

...

"Shinra, how about... we go back?"

At the foot of the church hill, a street lamp had long been broken and couldn't light up.

The moonlight spilled down, barely enough to make out the figures of two young girls.

The girl walking in front had bright red hair, and her palm-sized face was embedded with a pair of brown eyes, exuding a fearless spirit. She had a long sword hanging at her waist, the blade longer than she was tall, looking as if she had stolen it from an adult.

The girl behind had long hair tied into twin tails, looking delicate and weak, with a pretty face; right now, her eyes were full of panic, and her fingers were twisting her braids, refusing to let go.

"Reya, set your heart at ease." Tsubaki Shinra patted the sword at her waist. "Even if there really is some demon, there's nothing to be afraid of. My family used to be a famous exorcist lineage; this sword is a demon-slaying blade passed down from my ancestors, and it has stained the blood of many demons."

Whether it was Tsubaki Shinra's words that had an effect, or the so-called family heirloom sword that gave her confidence, Reya Kusaka looked up at the church right in front of her.

That place was pitch black, as if wrapped in a mass of thick ink, with not a single ray of light shining through.

She still felt creeped out.

But thinking of the rumors about demons eating people that had been spreading like wildfire in town recently—she was naturally afraid of these monsters and ghosts—her legs shook like a sieve in the night wind.

If Tsubaki Shinra weren't with her, she would never dare to come to a place like this, even if it killed her.

"But, Shinra..."

"Don't worry, Reya, it'll be fine. Today, the two of us will personally debunk this rumor about demons eating people."

Reya Kusaka wanted to say a few more words, but just as the words reached her lips, Tsubaki Shinra grabbed her hand and pulled her up the hill.

She couldn't argue with her best friend, so she could only desperately try to psych herself up in her heart. Although she was afraid of these things, in the end, she didn't really believe from the bottom of her heart that there were any real monsters or ghosts in the world.