Chapter 629: The Shackles of Faith

Meanwhile, within the Elders' Council Chamber at the heart of White Rivulet City.

Elder Sevice clearly had no reason to refuse; indeed, the primary reason the elves saw no sense in importing cultivation realms from other realms was their conviction that the ancient craftsmanship of the elven race was superior to that of humankind.

The elves possessed their own independent right of decision, and with several elites from the elven clans supporting such an approach, they truly held fast to their own reserve and pride.

"Since Lord Luther is so confident in the creations of the 'Duran Workshop,' I suppose we truly have no reason to refuse," Elder Sevice said, rising from her seat. "But is Your Lordship truly certain that any clansman—including the elven guard and the common populace—will suffice?"

"Naturally," Luther replied, his slightly plump face breaking into a smile. "We have long been prepared. We have confidence in this, or rather, we have confidence in Lord Saint Duran."

Sevice seemed to betray a hint of surprise; though she knew the "Duran Workshop" originated from the hands of that renowned Saint-tier powerhouse, he had long ceased to involve himself in affairs for many years.

"To think that personage would take action himself." Elder Sevice spoke with a touch of solemnity, though she was clearly also confident in the strength of the elves and the craftsmanship of their race. "I can grant Lord Luther three days. If Your Lordship can prove that the cultivation realm you have brought is truly as excellent as you claim, I suppose I have no reason to refuse bringing such an excellent thing to them."

"My thanks!" Luther rose and smiled. "You are a wise person."

Elder Sevice turned to a male elf behind her and spoke, "Please escort Lord Luther to the Casters' Square."

...

The Casters' Square was a place frequently traversed by the mages among these elves, and only in this vicinity could one catch sight of cultivation realms.

In the center of the vast square stood a sculpture of a female elf, holding a staff high in her hand and wearing a crown of flowers upon her head. The base of their sculpture was a giant flowerbed, and around the flowerbed, one could even see a few elven bards strumming harps.

Of course, those seen most frequently were still the elven rangers, swords slung at their hips and longbows on their backs, or the elven mages grasping their staves; they were the true regulars here.

"Is it necessary to prepare a cultivation chamber?" Elder Sevice inquired.

"No, we have no need for that," Luther laughed. "Lord Saint Duran has endowed it with new characteristics. I believe right here upon the square will do perfectly."

On the eastern side of the square was a long, elevated platform, which several temple knights quickly set in order. Concealed within a white curtain was a fixed, circular magic array disc, upon which intricate and beautiful pale-gold array lines were inscribed. Luther, a look of triumph upon his face, said, "Would you care to try it? This is far more convenient than traditional cultivation realms. Please believe me, this is bound to be an epoch-making creation."

Luther seemed to place great emphasis on appearances in all aspects at any given time; even for a routine trial, he insisted on covering the elevated platform with a bright red carpet and unfurling a backdrop bearing the emblem of the temple, making it appear exceedingly proper.

Seeing that the elves remained in a state of hesitation, Luther waved his hand toward a temple knight. "Please give it a trial."

At the same time, he drew forth a crystal stone from his storage space and placed it upon the stone pedestal table specifically meant for holding it, situated on the red-carpeted platform.

The light reflected from the crystal stone quickly transformed into a thick mist above. Within the thick mist, a clear image gradually became visible.

It was as clear as though the original space had been wiped away, allowing one to see another world through it.

This was evidently an extremely advanced spell projection.

At this moment, within the image, the knight could be seen already changed into a suit of ordinary leather armor. In the misty illusion before his eyes, there were a total of eight teleportation arrays.

Luther introduced, "Each teleportation array can become an independent realm. This is a composite realm modified based on the assassination attempt upon Lord 'Saint Duran' and the series of conspiracies entangled within it. Inside, we will encounter several assassinations, alongside several small-scale legion clashes of a certain magnitude. Of course, there is also sparring for leisure time, the hunting of magical beasts in the forest, and other such contents. We have even incorporated practices and optimized casting methods for highly useful spells against assassination, such as Radiant Detection, Resonance of Energy, and Dispelling of Darkness."

Speaking to this point, Luther had, as expected, successfully witnessed a look of astonishment upon Elder Sevice's face.

"Radiant Detection and Resonance of Energy, if I remember correctly, should be spells closely guarded by the temple and never disclosed to outsiders?" Elder Sevice remarked.

"Of course," Luther said loudly. "But Lord Saint Duran is magnanimous. In order to utterly dismantle those despicable sneak-attackers, he decided to make these spells public."

Luther then added, "However, this realm is not merely about spells."

"It determines the level of the realm according to the strength of the entrant." At this moment, the knight was seen to arrive in a highly peculiar secret chamber, seemingly by way of the teleportation array.

Within the secret chamber, a magnificent human city-state could be seen.

The evening sunset shone upon the city, drawing out long shadows.

Upon the wide main avenue in the heart of the city, the knight was currently among the crowd, escorting a temple procession forward.

"..." Beholding an image of such exquisite refinement, the look of astonishment upon Elder Sevice's face grew increasingly pronounced.

"Please look, this knight of ours is a Sixth-Tier Advanced Knight, so whom he sees is not Lord Saint Duran, but a Grand Priest."

"Otherwise..." He chuckled, "Lord Duran's battles are not something ordinary people can meddle in."

He then continued, "Here, we can choose to arrange the layout for the entire escort team. Of course, in truth, our layout is already extremely reasonable, and several other layout options are likewise provided. You may also choose the camp of the assassins to test whether our escort team is qualified."

Luther spoke volubly, "I believe that whether for mercenaries or for the elven guards, learning how to escort a team and conduct battle is highly necessary content. Likewise, the combat methods forged in actual combat will, I imagine, be far better than those unorthodox paths like ordinary sparring or solitary skill training."

As he spoke, watching the astonishment upon Elder Sevice's face grow grander and grander, the triumph on Luther's face was already beyond expression. "I believe this is what can truly be called a 'cultivation realm.'"

"It does indeed look decent." Elder Sevice forcibly suppressed the shock in her heart. She had not expected that the cultivation realm of the "Duran Workshop" had already reached such a state. "But testing whether a realm is excellent does not depend on how convenient it is; the most crucial point is combat. Some realms appear excellent, but are far too idealized when it comes to battle... Furthermore, assassination is inherently mercurial. You can never predict what kind of enemy will come to assassinate."

"Then would you care to give it a try?" Luther's face was filled with the smile of one who holds victory in his grasp. After his assassination, the Duran Workshop had strengthened the anti-assassination aspects of this realm once more. "In this regard, our understanding absolutely surpasses anyone else's. If the assassin's side is chosen, I dare say that no assassin in this world could breach this cultivation realm of ours."

Meanwhile, within the grand hall of Saint Hynes.

Upon the black chessboard, with the descent of a white chess piece, that entire area radiated a faint white glow.

Saint Hynes spoke half-audibly, "Only when they are convinced will they accept the faith. When that door opens, only then will there be a path to spread the faith. When they believe, faith will slowly settle upon their necks like a shackle."

"If a few fanatical believers could emerge among these foreign races..." Even Saint Duran revealed a slight hint of excitement.