As Jie Ming had predicted.
After once again experiencing the terror of the sky being torn apart, the deadlock at the negotiation table was broken with bewildering speed.
A joint proclamation from His Majesty the King and the High Priest of the Temple declared that the will of the gods had descended.
The conflict between humans and beastmen was temporarily set aside, and a hasty yet meticulous alliance was swiftly forged under the witness of the deities.
Though the Elven Kingdom maintained partial neutrality, its delegation signed a “non-aggression treaty” and pledged to provide resource aid if necessary.
A general offensive against the “foreign demons” was put on the agenda.
The entire city of Elosia, in the moment the alliance was formed, erupted like a ignited powder keg, plunging instantly into a frenzy of fervor.
Conscription notices plastered every street and alley, the sound of horns rose and fell, their deep, resonant waves shaking the heavens.
Blacksmith forges roared through the night, flames soaring skyward, dyeing the night red as countless swords and armors were forged day and night.
Jie Ming stood on the balcony of his mansion’s highest point, overlooking this city ignited by the passion of war.
He could clearly feel an unprecedented, majestic force rising from every corner of the capital—a colossal aura of mortal dust woven from fear, anger, fanaticism, piety, and hatred!
During this time, the reserves of mortal dust aura within his internal space had grown at an exaggerated rate, unprecedented in its activity but also unprecedented in its complexity.
“The time has come,” Jie Ming said, looking up at the sky.
Under the cover of night, Jie Ming moved silently through every shadowy corner of the capital.
Following the rune traces he had scouted during the day, he precisely located the nodes of the three large-scale arrays he had discovered.
The first array was located beneath an abandoned temple on the eastern side of the capital.
The air was thick with the scent of decay, and cobwebs hung densely.
Jie Ming donned specialized gloves, his fingertips glowing faintly as he lightly touched the runes carved into the stone walls.
Closing his eyes, he extended his mental energy into them, employing the long-unused Analysis Technique to sense the flow of energy within the runes.
Like a surgeon, he used the rune as a starting point, meticulously probing the array’s flaws.
Soon, relying on his knowledge, he identified several subtle structural defects and inefficiencies in the energy circuits.
From his spatial expansion pouch, Jie Ming retrieved several special rune pens and refined magical beast cores, making precise adjustments and improvements to the runes without disrupting their original structure.
With the rune pen, he traced several hidden extension lines along the edges of the existing runes, the lines blending into the array’s energy circuits like veins.
After resolving the issues with this array, he moved to the second array’s location.
It was situated beneath an ancient well in the northern part of the capital, connected to the city’s intricate underground water veins.
The air here was damper, carrying the pungent smell of earth.
Jie Ming repeated the process, making similar adjustments and optimizations to this array.
He even incorporated his understanding of spiritual veins from the cultivation system, enabling the array to better utilize the underground water veins as a medium for energy conduction.
While he was engrossed in adjusting the runes, his Five Aggregates Rainbow Mirror suddenly issued a warning.
Through the keen perception of his Scouting Eye, Jie Ming detected a faint, almost imperceptible “anomalous” presence.
However, the other party quickly sensed Jie Ming’s presence as well. It seemed to be conducting some covert activity in the area, showing no intention of meeting him, and silently withdrew.
Jie Ming’s heart stirred, but he didn’t pause his work. “Other wizards… perhaps?”
The final array was located deep within an abandoned noble mansion in the southern part of the capital.
Upon arriving at the mansion, Jie Ming couldn’t help but feel admiration. The creator of this array had considerable skill, choosing a location that was remarkably suitable.
In terms of the cultivation system, this mansion was connected to a “deathly aura” site in the capital, making it an ideal place for array deployment.
However, this also made the area exceptionally eerie, with the air thick with the scent of decay.
This array was of high quality, requiring no adjustments. After a thorough inspection, Jie Ming quietly withdrew.
As the eastern horizon began to glow with the faintest hint of dawn, Jie Ming silently returned to his mansion.
Without resting, he went straight to his secret chamber, exhausted yet exhilarated as he gazed at the underground rune network map on the table, which he had repeatedly sketched and refined.
The three large-scale arrays on the map now appeared even clearer in his eyes.
After multiple checks to confirm there were no issues, Jie Ming waved his hand, and the map spontaneously ignited. “The preparations are complete. Now, it’s just a matter of finding the right time to activate them.”
As for when to activate them, Jie Ming’s answer was: the sooner, the better.
The day passed quickly, and night fell like thick ink, enveloping Elosia in deep silence.
The clamor of the streets had long subsided, with only the occasional flicker of magical streetlamps casting mottled shadows on the damp cobblestones.
Yet, deep beneath the city, another scene was quietly unfolding.
Jie Ming’s figure moved like a phantom, silently navigating the capital’s labyrinthine sewers.
Icy sewage lapped at his ankles, and the air was thick with the stench of rot and dampness.
Occasionally, a few plump rats, startled by Jie Ming, would scurry past his feet in panic.
But he paid them no mind, his Scouting Eye operating at full capacity, meticulously scanning every inch of the surrounding space.
He had decided: tonight, he would activate the arrays.
Once activated, there would be no turning back.
With action imminent, he no longer concealed his presence. His powerful mental energy radiated outward in all directions, sweeping through every corner of the sewers, probing for any potential enemies.
But the typically silent sewers seemed unusually lively tonight.
His advancing figure suddenly halted.
His fully activated Scouting Eye detected several abnormal energy fluctuations.
Each of these energies carried distinct traces of wizardly resonance!
“Well, no more hiding, huh? Looks like we’re all thinking the same thing,” Jie Ming said with a smirk.
Mindful of the wizards’ unspoken agreement, Jie Ming didn’t approach recklessly. Instead, he chose a concealed corner and waited quietly.
Soon, four indistinct figures converged silently toward his location from different directions.
Each moved with agile precision, navigating the complex sewer terrain with ease, clearly having operated here for some time.