Chapter 333 Location Discovery

Klaus traced a line on the map with his finger.

"Based on the previous passive signal from the crystal, it's definitely in the inner city. We'll determine the exact location once we get there."

"The enemy has at least four Tier 4 members, possibly six. 'Jie' is the most severely injured, and its strength has decreased significantly in a short period of time. '9' has cracked ribs and is also affected by crystal erosion, so it cannot fight at full strength. J is basically unaffected. The one that appeared in the pipe network layer is very likely close to Tier 5."

Klaus paused for a moment, then glanced at everyone present.

"Our side. The assault team consists of myself, Rick, Margaret, and two others." He slightly tilted his head towards the two hooded figures. "Charge forward and suppress the main force."

"Archbishop Adrian is in charge of blessing and suppression." He looked at the archbishop, who had changed into civilian clothes. "The Gray Pact's methods are rather bizarre, and the Church's blessing can effectively weaken them." Adrian nodded slightly and remained silent.

"The Earl's men are cooperating." The servant's expression remained unchanged, but his right hand unconsciously touched the hilt of the sword at his waist.

"Bor, Glock, perimeter alert."

"Lu Yuan and I."

"seed."

The atmosphere in the conference room shifted subtly. Adrian raised his gaze, and the count's attendant removed his hand from the hilt of his sword.

"The Grey Covenant has two seeds. After this is resolved, one will be taken by the Night's Watch. The other will be shared by the Church and the Earl's Mansion."

Klaus's tone left no room for compromise.

Adrian looked at Klaus for a few seconds, then nodded.

The count's attendant nodded as well.

"The operation will take place tonight."

Klaus's voice calmed down.

"They don't know how many people we've gathered. This is our biggest bargaining chip; every day we delay is one less day we have left."

He paused after saying that.

"There's one more thing."

The meeting room fell silent.

"The guardians will also intervene."

The atmosphere in the meeting room relaxed the moment those words were spoken.

Rick opened his half-closed eyes, and Margaret lowered her hand from the list. Adrian's expression remained unchanged, but he leaned back slightly.

The count's attendant's shoulders visibly relaxed considerably.

Klaus waited two seconds, then added another sentence.

"But he can only make one move. A fifth-tier attack would cause too much noise and alert the entire Bronze City. After that one strike, he can only serve as a backup for us."

No one objected that the Guardians could take action once, which meant that the operation had changed from killing and weakening the Gray Pact to annihilating them.

"Meeting adjourned. Get ready to assemble at your respective department entrances in 15 minutes."

The sound of chairs being moved rang out, and everyone got up and left.

Adrian walked first, followed closely by the count's squire, whose right hand was always resting near the hilt of his sword as he walked.

The two hooded figures were the last to leave, silently emerging from the shadows in the corner and disappearing.

Rex straightened up from the wall and patted Lu Yuan on the shoulder as he passed by.

"Why are you following Klaus? It would be best if you didn't go on this mission."

"Do you still remember those wooden figures?"

Lu Yuan looked around to make sure everyone had left the meeting room before continuing to speak.

"I suspect that thing is related to the people on the wall. I have a feeling... that thing is very important. I need a sample. When you go there, you'd better help me get one. Since the Gray Contract Society made a deal with the people on the wall, I suspect they may have other means to leave with the wooden figure."

Rick narrowed his eyes, as if he had also thought of something.

"Did you tell Klaus?"

"without."

Lu Yuan looked at Lei Ke.

"Just let Klaus do the killing; don't you have a wide range of options?"

"When you're covering it up, remember to keep an eye out for me."

"Um."

Rick nodded.

At the department entrance, everyone was present. The marching lights were dimmed to their lowest setting, and the weapons were in position.

Klaus walked at the front, holding the tracking crystal in his hand.

Lu Yuan followed half a step to his right rear.

Behind them were Rick, Margaret, and the two hooded figures.

Adrian and the count's attendants took another route, keeping their distance and following closely until they were located before circling around to the blockade position.

Bohr and Glock dispersed to the perimeter.

The caravan drove its carriages through the outer city streets, heading towards the inner city.

The night was dark, and the gas lamps were spaced further apart in this area, resulting in sparse lighting.

Klaus occasionally glanced down at the crystal in his hand. It wasn't activated, but something seemed to be guiding its direction; every now and then, he would subtly adjust his route.

The group turned into a narrow alley and went around the outer wall of the Bo Xue Pagoda.

Klaus stopped in his tracks because he was very close.

Klaus raised his hand, making a waiting gesture.

Klaus held the crystal in his palm. He glanced at Lu Yuan, then at Rex behind him.

Klaus then gripped the crystal tightly.

Green light emanated from inside the crystal, a slender beam pointing precisely at the stone building with its doors and windows sealed off, less than a hundred meters away.

A beam of light pierced the night, leaving a bright spot on the building's exterior. The tracking crystal pulsated violently in Klaus's palm, its green glow spilling out from between his fingers and illuminating half of his profile.

Location locked, surround!

A few minutes ago. Inside the abandoned workshop.

The workshop's doors and windows were completely sealed from the inside, with two layers of wooden planks nailed together and the gaps stuffed with scraps of cloth.

Several inscriptions are carved on the inside of the door frame and window sill, the color of which was deliberately adjusted to a grayish-brown similar to that of the stone, so they are not noticeable unless you look closely.

The brushstrokes are rough, completely different from the rigorous and neat inscriptions in the Night's Watch system. It's more like a strange, unorthodox inscription, but it works.

There were a few small items in the corner near the entrance.

A glass bottle, about the thickness of a thumb, hung inside the door frame. It was half-filled with a murky liquid that would boil whenever an extraordinary expert approached the surface.

A thin thread was tied to the bottom of another window sill, connecting to a small, gray sheet about the size of a fingernail, to capture fluctuations in the outside air. It wasn't perfect, but it was sufficient for these conditions.

The workshop was no different from an ordinary alchemy workshop, except that most of the equipment had been removed or damaged.

This is near the Tower of Learning. Since the last ghoul attack, coupled with the start of the fishing program, this place has been abandoned.

The Gray Pact naturally took over this place, making it one of the perfect temporary strongholds.

The space here is not large; the original operating area has been cleared out to create an open space, about five or six meters square.

The stone slabs on the ground had been pried open and then put back together, with mud seeping into the gaps.

In the corner, there were several pieces of cloth spread on the ground, with some leftover dry food scraps, two water bottles, and a folded dark coat scattered around.

The air was filled with the smell of rust and a faint, sweet aroma.

The sweetness originated in the center of the open space.

Five kneeling wooden structures were neatly arranged in the center of the cleared area.

Its surface is covered with fine bark texture, and it bows its head in a devout kneeling posture, exactly the same as the one in the underground hall of the warehouse last time.

But this time it was much smaller in scale, and the root-woven circular altar and the gray-green dome network were gone.

Intricate patterns were drawn directly on the ground using a dark liquid, extending outwards from the base of the wooden structure and connecting to form an irregular pattern.

The texture is faintly glowing, with a very weak luster; if you don't look closely, you might mistake it for the reflection of water stains on the ground.

The surface of the wooden structure is changing, the bark texture is slowly writhing, like living wood breathing.

The kneeling body occasionally trembled very slightly, clearly indicating that this inexplicable ritual was still continuing.

At the center of the five structures, a seed floats about a hand's width above the ground.

It was a seed that had not yet hatched.

It looked like a grayish-brown stone with a rough surface, showing no signs of life, completely different from the "Hope" in the Night Watchman's hand, which had evolved a pale golden amber shell and warm orange buds.

At the center of the ceremony, dark veins at the base of the seed extend upwards from the ground, supporting it.

J sat on a brass workbench against the wall, his legs propped up on the edge, holding a bowl in his hand containing a cooled, unidentified liquid. He stirred it with a spoon, seemingly quite satisfied, before scooping up a spoonful and putting it in his mouth.

However, his gaze swept over the ritual area, his expression indifferent, and the black liquid on his body was faintly visible flowing slowly and continuously under his sleeves.

He was clearly still on guard while eating.

Jie leaned against the cloth against the corner of the wall, his eyes closed, his breathing shallow and unsteady. Half of his face bore the marks of a green light burn; the charred and crystalline wound stretched from his cheekbone to his earlobe, a remnant of the time Klaus grabbed his head in the narrow street.

She never wore a new mask after it broke. Occasionally, she would cough, and when she coughed, her breathing would fluctuate, aggravating her internal injuries.

9. Squatting beside the ceremony area, he slowly moved his right fingers along the dark patterns on the ground, stopping at certain intersections to fine-tune the direction of the patterns.

The wound on his ribs was wrapped with strips of cloth. When he made a big movement, his brow furrowed. His chitinous skin had a grayish-white sheen under the faint texture and luster, and it was thinner than before.

The injury is obviously healing very, very slowly.

On the other side of the workshop, near the sealed window, Q was squatting down, inspecting a warning device, carefully checking the tension of the thin wires and the feedback sensitivity of the sheet one by one.

J scooped up the last spoonful of porridge, making a slight scraping sound at the bottom of the bowl.

"How much longer?"

He didn't look up, and his tone was casual.

Q didn't even turn his head. "The pattern calibration is almost complete. The seed hasn't reacted yet, which is unacceptable!"

J held the bowl, his gaze fixed on the suspended grayish-brown seed.

He looked at it for a few seconds, put the bowl down, and seemed lost in thought.

The workshop was quiet for a while, with only the faint sound of 9's fingers sliding across the textured floor and the occasional cough from Jie.

J turned his gaze away from the seed and glanced in the direction of the ring.

Jie's aura was getting weaker and weaker. When Klaus grabbed his face in the narrow street, although the crystallization erosion was forcibly peeled off, the internal injuries left behind were far more serious than they appeared on the surface.

In addition, the recovery speed was unsettling because a lot of mental energy had been used up in the main hall of the Earl's mansion to maintain the blinking.