Deya City, City Lord’s Reception Hall.
The delegation from Wangsheng City had been waiting here for quite some time.
Vice City Lord Yilan Zheng of Wangsheng City stood by the window, gazing at the scenery of Deya City.
Both were border cities, yet the gap between Deya City and Wangsheng City was not just a little.
As the stronghold of the Desecrators, few actually knew that Wangsheng City’s overall strength was nearly second only to Sun City in the east; only its top-tier combat power was clearly lagging behind Sun City.
Due to the deliberate suppression by the Goddess of Life, Wangsheng City’s peak fighting forces were basically all stuck at the Nine-Rank.
If a king-ranked Desecrator ever appeared in the city, the gods would launch a merciless purge without hesitation.
When that time comes, Wangsheng City would surely be crushed by the Wave of Collateral Damage from those above the Nine-Rank.
For the city’s safety, the king-ranked Desecrators generally never return to Wangsheng City lightly.
“Tch, how backward.” Roland shook his head as he looked at the scenery of Deya City, commenting with disappointment.
Who would have thought that a city with hundreds of years of history and a decent geographical position would be so poorly developed.
After so many years, the Adventurers here were still mostly around First and Second Tier, and those in power had never considered long-term development, only knowing how to amass wealth during their term.
If it wasn’t for the waning disaster of the Mist, which attracted rookie Adventurers, Deya City would probably have turned into a ghost town long ago.
Wangsheng City, however, was different. Under the leadership of ambitious high-tier Desecrators, many who were exiled for defying the gods had begun settling above the Wangsheng Waterfall four centuries ago, gradually turning a small fishing village into the Holy Land in the hearts of all Desecrators.
Over four centuries, they conquered nearly ninety percent of the Deya Underground Labyrinth, opened up trade routes toward the northwest Land of Exile, discovered many rare mineral deposits, and even established the Wangsheng River shipping route, allowing trade fleets to bypass the territories ruled by the five Human True Gods and sail directly north to the nations of other sentient races.
With the Human True Gods gradually relaxing their persecution, the name of Wangsheng City began to spread far and wide.
So Roland truly looked down on Deya City.
Clearly blessed with the best geographical spot on the entire Dea Plateau, accessible in all directions, with hardly any flaws except the lack of a river, it was practically a godsend.
Yet, the local nobles here never knew how to cherish it, failing to display any value for the kingdom in its early days and thus were abandoned, shifting the kingdom’s focus forever to the east.
Actually, the kingdom had considered developing the Dea Plateau.
After all, it would be a waste not to, given how flat the land is.
Being near the Land of Exile and Wangsheng City wasn’t really a problem—what’s a few Desecrators or demons popping up now and then?
Just station a few Ninth-tier and above God-guides, and that would settle things.
But there was one issue the kingdom couldn’t solve: the calamity of the Mist.
That thing was like a ticking time bomb. Even though, compared to other disasters, it was now very weak, who knew when it might suddenly erupt and shroud the entire Dea Plateau?
In the past, the kingdom’s first queen, Sylvia, once asked a Great Prophet about the Mist.
After attempting a prophecy, the Great Prophet saw a moment in the future when the Mist swallowed an entire city, then looked terrified and warned Sylvia to stay away from the Mist or face Destruction of Doom.
Destruction of Doom? Sylvia panicked too and later tried to beseech the Goddess of Life directly to eliminate the Mist, but was refused.
Because the Goddess of Life discovered that this disaster, the Mist, could not be shaken in the slightest—no matter how she attacked it, it would never dissipate…
Thus, the Dea Plateau now served as a buffer between the Land of Exile to the west, the Northern Empire to the north, and the Desecrators.
For centuries, nothing major had happened—until now, with the appearance of the Ninth Saintess.
“The Saintess is here!”
In the corridor outside the reception hall, someone shouted, prompting everyone inside—including Roland—to immediately sit upright, forcing themselves to act calm.
Their arrogance from moments ago vanished, even replaced by a hint of fear…
After all, Deya City was the territory of the Goddess of Life—the stronghold of a hostile force!
Roland’s party had come here with the resolve to die.
The main goal of the “Desecrators” was to overthrow the rule of the gods; they were irreconcilable enemies.
Who knew if they would even make it back to Wangsheng City alive after this negotiation?
Roland was faring better, only breaking into a slight cold sweat, but his companions were different—some furiously wiping their foreheads with handkerchiefs, some jittering their legs, and some whose teeth wouldn’t stop chattering.
Initially, they had just wanted to show some sincerity by requesting a face-to-face meeting in their letter, but who knew the other side would actually agree? It was simply unbelievable!
Seriously, with security in Deya City this shoddy, you really agreed to let us meet in person? Not to mention the Ninth Saintess is still weak—aren’t you worried we’d attempt another assassination?!
Could it be that Deya City was actually well-prepared…
After much careful consideration, Wangsheng City finally sent this squad led by Roland, a true suicide mission, to meet the legendary Saintess.
This was the first time Wangsheng City had ever formally engaged a Saintess—today’s meeting could well go down in history.
As for why Deya City agreed to the meeting, the truth was that Tia had carelessly agreed in her reply a few days ago, without giving it much thought.
At that time, Tia was merely sighing— even the Wangsheng City, at odds with the Goddess of Life, wanted to win over Truth; she didn’t really think it through.
Actually, Tia had, for a split second, imagined Truth being assassinated by Wangsheng City’s envoy, but immediately slapped herself, making that idea vanish from her mind.
Assassination? Ha! How laughable, to even doubt the Hidden One!
Tia would sooner believe anything about the Goddess of Life than believe that Truth could be assassinated under the Hidden One’s protection…
“Vice City Lord, do you think the Saintess is really as kind as the rumors say, as cute as the Scouts claim?” a companion next to Roland asked, panting quietly.
Under Wangsheng City’s endless negative propaganda about the gods, many people there believed the Saintess was nothing but a façade—outwardly loving, but actually up to all sorts of unspeakable things in secret.
“How should I know? But I’d guess the Ninth Saintess has nothing to do with the word ‘kindness.’ Just look at how her psychological tactics have thrown our city into chaos! And who knows, maybe the one who comes down won’t even be the Saintess, but a high-tier God-guide here to take our lives.”
Roland put on an air of nonchalance, making his companions even more nervous.
With their average strength all above Fifth Tier, they could sweep through Deya City easily, but the Saintess’ hidden guards were a real problem!
Tap, tap, tap…
Just then, light footsteps sounded from the corridor, drawing closer to Roland and the others.
With each guard saluting in turn and sunlight streaming in, a figure cast a shadow—tinged with a slight oppressive air—at the reception hall entrance.
“Gulp.” Roland swallowed nervously, but before his imagination could run wild, the Ninth Saintess appeared before them.
Silver hair and red eyes, clad in an exquisite Holy Maiden robe, not even half the height of the door, with a playful touch to her features…
A… child?! Roland and his group froze, all staring wide-eyed at Truth at the entrance.
The fear they’d felt evaporated instantly—after all, this little one in front of them was impossible to be afraid of.
So, this was… the Saintess?
So the Scouts’ intel wasn’t false or glossed over—the Saintess really was the very picture of “cuteness,” not some cold, calculating schemer…
Damn, just the appearance alone is incredibly deceptive? The Saintess really is a tricky opponent!
At the same time, Truth at the door gave Roland’s group a quick glance, then naturally strode to the seat at the very center and sat down, crossing her legs:
“What did you call me here for? Eh… no, that’s not right.”
This is a diplomatic occasion, after all.
Even if it’s diplomacy with a bunch of newbies, I should at least act a bit more formal… So Truth immediately straightened her posture, nodded slightly to everyone, and smiled:
“Greetings, everyone. I am the Ninth Saintess, Truth. Welcome to Deya City as our guests!”