CHAPTER 680: CONTINUING THE JOURNEY

The next day, Aldrian had already prepared himself to continue his journey. After the infiltration attempt by the bandits last night, he suddenly had an idea of how to stop all the fools who wanted to test his limits by entering the continent.

He could use the Red Mist Bandits as proof and a warning to anyone who still remained stubborn. He asked Emperor Rozwald for help to spread the information through the information center, slightly exaggerating the event from last night.

The information that would be spread was: anyone who tried to enter the continent without the mysterious man’s permission would end up like the Red Mist Bandits. They would be struck by powerful heavenly lightning.

The imperial family supported this by announcing that they had captured the sole survivor of the Red Mist Bandits, who had tried to enter the Barisan Continent last night. They displayed the leader of the bandits before the crowd in his pitiful state.

This shocked many, as that large and powerful bandit group had been reduced to a single survivor.

That was why, since morning, many had been talking about it. The information spreading was that the Red Mist Bandits, after being struck by heavenly lightning, were reduced to a single survivor along with their broken interstellar vessel. The Imperial family found the wreckage and the bandit leader, then brought them back to the empire.

This caused a stir, as it was yet another piece of absurd news. Heavenly lightning? Why would heavenly lightning appear out of nowhere? As far as common knowledge went, heavenly lightning only appeared during heavenly tribulation, nothing else.

So why would it strike just because someone tried to enter the continent without the mysterious man’s permission? Could that man control heavenly lightning? Was he truly capable of summoning something like that? This was what sparked heated discussions, was it really possible that he could command heavenly lightning? And if so, how could any man control such a thing?

Then what about the earlier information? That kind of detail wouldn’t have been known unless someone had provided it from within that place. Many believed someone had infiltrated the continent and survived.

So how did they survive? Or was it someone from the continent itself who revealed the information?

Many questions and debates arose throughout the day, but one thing remained certain, the Red Mist Bandits got what they deserved, and it happened in a place no one had expected.

Because of this news, the powers of the Arantes Star came to the imperial family, requesting that the bandit leader be brought back to Arantes—the star where the Red Mist Bandits originated to receive punishment there.

This was something that also truly pleased Emperor Rozwald. He could build a good relationship with the powers of the Arantes Star and even bargain with them. He was genuinely thankful to Aldrian for making this happen. However, when he heard that Aldrian wanted to continue his journey, he felt a sense of regret as he couldn’t visit him until his business was done.

He could only wait for Aldrian to finish his matters before they could meet again.

Aldrian had already said goodbye to those he needed to, and he continued his journey. With the information he had received from Emperor Rozwald, he had a clearer idea of what might lie ahead between his current path and the Place of Gathering Faith, which made his journey easier.

As for the Barisan Continent problem, with the spread of the new warning, he guessed it would make anyone hesitate to enter. However, if even after the warning there were still those who refused to bury their intent, then he would no longer hold back, he would kill with a single move.

They would have no one to blame but themselves for ignoring his warning.

It would not be like with the Red Mist Bandits, when he had appeared to get rid of them. He would now instantly obliterate anyone who entered the domain of his Barisan Continent by sending down heavenly lightning.

No more listening. No more watching. Only striking.

Aldrian finally continued his journey, teleporting into space once again and moving forward, following the direction of the faith energy flow.

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As Aldrian continued his journey, elsewhere, in another place, on another star, the Akares Star where the Valroy family resided, a handsome blond-haired man sat inside a luxurious room with a glass of wine in his hand. He seemed to be enjoying the view outside the window, which overlooked the lush greenery of the garden.

His face was calm, but his mind was occupied with the current situation. He, Ronwell Avilandis, the crown prince of the Martal Empire, had to be in this place merely to maintain the public image of both his imperial family and the Valroy family.

To be honest, he did not like it at all. He knew that his engagement to the young miss of the Valroy family would eventually cause problems. In truth, he disliked the engagement in the name of alliance, because he believed that by marrying into the Valroy family, his imperial family would become bound to them in a way he did not like.

If his family had their own interests that went against the Valroy family, they could no longer act as freely as they had in the past, which was something he deeply disliked.

However, he understood his father’s reasoning, and he also understood the threat posed by the devils from the Fallen Star Cluster. That was the only reason he tried to accept the engagement with a bit more sincerity.

But ever since the appearance of that mysterious man in the Barisan Continent, both he and his father shared the same opinion. They felt that the alliance was no longer necessary, as they now had a wild card powerful enough to deter the devils from attacking Ancient Blue Gate World.

However, because the engagement had been known publicly for years, they couldn’t simply cancel it without a reason. Doing so would damage the imperial family’s reputation, making them appear as a party that could cancel agreements at will.

To break off the engagement, they needed a strong reason, one that the public could understand and accept. The need for such justification irritated him deeply. He wanted nothing more than to cancel the engagement and end the whole drama.

The current drama was just one example of why he disliked forming engagements with powers from outside stars.

His fiancée had done something beyond her authority by using one of the imperial family’s organizations. She had acted against his family’s interests and potentially jeopardized their future plans.

Still, that could not be used as grounds to cancel the engagement. It wasn’t something that could be explained to the public. Doing so would mean revealing secrets, for example, that the information center was, in fact, one of the imperial family’s organizations.

Although they knew the fault lay with his fiancée, he still couldn’t use it as justification, which infuriated him even more. On top of that, he had to be here to maintain the image of both families, further adding to his displeasure.

He truly hoped all of this would end soon.

While he was still thinking about the matter, a knock came at the door. Moments later, a man in noble attire entered the room and bowed.

"Excuse me, Your Highness. My apologies for disturbing your time, but there is news from the imperial palace," he said.

Ronwell turned his head and looked at the newcomer, smiling, a smile that could captivate any woman who saw it.

"What is it, Victor?" he asked.

"His Majesty has ordered us to return. He said we no longer need to worry about the Valroy family or our image. We can leave the young miss of the Valroy family," the man named Victor replied.

Ronwell was stunned, but a second later, he smiled.

This was the order he had been waiting for, though it was still unexpected. It made him truly curious, what had given his father the confidence to make such a bold move? Had something happened in the Ancient Blue Gate World?

"Did Father say anything else?" Ronwell asked.

"No, but His Majesty said that anything Your Highness wishes to ask will be answered once we return to the empire," Victor replied, prompting Ronwell to pause for a moment before nodding.

"Alright. We’ll return now. Prepare to leave," he said, standing up and setting the wine glass on the table. His mood was truly lifted, he could finally get out of this place.

He could finally end this drama with the Valroy family.

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While Ronwell received his piece of news, in another location, someone else was receiving his own.

Randolf Valroy, the young master of the Valroy family, was in the middle of cultivation inside his private cultivation room when he sensed his butler approaching. The butler waited patiently for him to finish, and only after Randolf opened his eyes and stopped his cultivation did the man bow respectfully.

"My apologies for the disturbance, Young Master, but we’ve received news from the Ancient Blue Gate World."