In the conference hall, Chairman Fa'er sat at the head, with the maid Lillian standing behind him like a shadow.

Besides the two of them, three others were seated on either side — Solalin, captain of the Wing of Judgment, Illusionist Edin, and a man with two straight swords at his waist.

Among them, Edin was invited by Fa'er through a special commission.

While reviewing files, Fa'er noticed this Master of Illusion who had successfully completed reconnaissance missions on five levels; his abilities were quite useful.

Upon seeing the generous reward, Edin immediately accepted the commission.

The other man with two straight swords at his waist was a friend Fa'er had asked for help.

As for the Church, they had dispatched four complete teams of the Wing of Judgment to assist in dealing with the issues of the Underground City, and since Solalin was the first to report the anomaly, it was logical that she was included.

Although there were only five Gold Level and thirty-six Silver Level Church Warriors, the combat formations of the Wing of Judgment were so well-coordinated that their practical value exceeded that of one or two Diamond Level strongmen.

Though the Church rarely intervenes directly in the affairs of the Underground City, Fa'er knew their level of concern was on par with that of the Adventurer's Guild. For instance, the ongoing commission for acquiring werewolf teeth and blood was backed by the Church.

Fa'er was quite curious: What exactly does the Church intend to do with collecting these wolf fangs?

As he knew, the most valuable item that could be made from wolf fangs was the "Wolf Transformation Potion."

This potion could significantly enhance the user's physical attributes and sense of smell in a short time, with the cost of rapid hair growth and bloodlust.

To some extent, this potion fit the Church's needs, as their warriors typically had stronger willpower than ordinary soldiers or adventurers, better able to suppress the potion's side effects.

However, as a temporary enhancement method, having an adequate reserve should suffice; excessive hoarding was meaningless.

For the werewolf teeth, the Church certainly had other uses unknown to Fa'er.

"Chairman Fa'er, did you call us here because you already have a plan?" Solalin spoke first.

In response to Solalin's inquiry, Fa'er shook his head, "Not that I've settled on a plan, but I intend to discuss and devise one with you all. What we are facing this time cannot be considered as ordinary demons; it might possess intelligence comparable to humans."

"Intelligence?" Solalin furrowed her brow; she only knew that the entity might be a collective will, but wasn't aware of the intelligence aspect.

And Edin, clad in sophisticated noble attire, had a look of understanding on his face.

Fa'er said nothing more, directly using a sword to cut open the body of the lighting Puki lying on the table, revealing its structure inside.

"This is..." Looking at the irregular, colored mycelium-like pattern inside the Puki, Solalin felt it looked familiar but couldn't pin down what it was.

It was Edin who clarified: "An array... the most basic lighting technique array, the intelligence of this target is indeed not low."

After pausing for a moment, Edin asked, "Pardon my bluntness, but is there really no mage behind this manipulation?"

Although Edin had suspected these Puki of a certain intelligence during the last mission, it was still hard for him to imagine them studying arrays.

If all this was orchestrated by a mage behind the scenes, it would be reasonable; the party might have employed some means to control these Puki.

While the ability to control demons is rare, it's not unheard of; however, being able to manage such a massive number of demons is unheard of.

"We can't rule out this possibility, so we need to figure out what the target really is.

Is it a demon with a collective will, or is someone orchestrating this behind the scenes?

If it's a person, where are they hiding?

If it's a demon, does the collective will have a central body, or is the will dispersed among all the Puki?

What are your thoughts on reconnaissance?"

Although Fa'er addressed the three participants, his gaze was directed towards Edin.

Edin didn't rush to suggest a method but first asked, "Would the cost of the items consumed in the mission be reimbursed? Is there a limit on the amount?"

"No need to worry about expenses," Fa'er responded casually.

As expected of the young master from the Isaac Family, Edin mused to himself while presenting his plan, "Then I suggest using miniature illusion reconnaissance units. Besides being expensive, this method has no other drawbacks, and the fifth level is undoubtedly where reconnaissance is most needed..."

As Edin described his plan, Fa'er and Solalin nodded in agreement occasionally, while the man who sat silent and motionless was naturally ignored by everyone else.

Just as the preliminary plan was about to be set and the meeting to end smoothly—it was at that moment the Puki stood up!

As the discussion moved to Edin reporting the necessary materials, with Lillian in charge of recording, nobody noticed that the wound on the lighting Puki lying on the long table had somehow healed.

After two flickers, the orange-yellow light illuminated the meeting room unexpectedly, catching everyone off guard.

The Puki's body arched, using the top of its cap as leverage, and stood up on its short legs.

According to Lin Jun's setup, it should find a way to return to the chubby Puki to recharge now.

But as it took its first step, its squishy body silently split into four pieces, scattered on the cold tabletop.

The culprit merely gripped the sword hilt at his waist, as if he never drew it at all.

So fast!

This lightning-fast strike was so swift that even Solalin, at Gold Level, couldn't track its trajectory, and Edin failed to react entirely!

In the entire meeting room, only Lillian had seen the process of the man drawing his sword clearly.

"Fa'er, so you invited me here just to slice up Puki, huh?"

"...You've listened for this long," Fa'er said with a hint of helplessness in his voice, "and that's all you understood?"

The man gave an awkward smile, embarrassed to admit that he had been tuning out the whole time.

Solalin suddenly asked, "Chairman Fa'er, you haven't introduced this gentleman to us yet..."

Having witnessed that strike, Solalin and Edin could no longer regard him as ordinary.

"He's my friend Shi Wu, but perhaps 'disciple of the Sword Saint' is a title you might find more familiar."

Disciple of the Sword Saint!

Sword Saint Elvyn Slyne — the name itself was a living legend to Solalin and Edin.

He loved to teach, often offering guidance to those with talent in swordsmanship; to Solalin's knowledge, even a deputy leader in the Wing of Judgment had been mentored.

However, there were only three people who could truly be called his disciples.

And this Shi Wu standing before them was indeed one of them, no wonder his swordsmanship was of such caliber!

Though Fa'er did not provide further introductions, Solalin and Edin had their confidence in this mission boosted, especially Edin.

He had initially been worried that with fewer participants, he, as a Diamond Level Illusionist—though not skilled in direct combat—might be needed to fill combat roles.

Now he realized his concerns were unfounded, he only needed to focus on providing support.

-----------------

The strategy group was full of confidence, but their target, Lin Jun, was lost in thought.

A signal from a lighting Puki had suddenly appeared in the Adventurer's Guild, and he remembered the Puki that had been taken away earlier, so he shifted his attention to see what was happening.

He then witnessed the horrifying scene of the lighting Puki being dismembered on the spot, and on a long table no less, it was terribly brutal.

But...what exactly was this little chairman up to?

A bunch of people surrounding a Puki clearly with no good intentions, much less with Edin among them—a "familiar" face that left a deep impression on him—just no time to pull up their stats in such a short period.

To be safe, Lin Jun decided to be more cautious in the coming days.

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