Chapter 614: Chapter 206: Great Angel of Fate

Kathy sized up Li Xin and didn’t try to stop him; since he’d stepped onto this path, all he could do was face every challenge with caution.

"Be careful, don’t try to play the hero. Puppet Masters don’t fight head-on; they’re good at disguise and ambush, killing people without leaving a trace. Same nasty category as Mask Makers, maybe even more insidious than Mask Makers."

Li Xin had already seen Jiang Wu’s miserable state, so of course he knew how dangerous Puppet Masters were. They could even slip Tiss onto him without a sound, though for some reason that Tiss had been removed.

"I almost forgot—Sister Kathy, can you tell me about the former Chief?" Li Xin suddenly asked. Was his memory going bad lately? He kept missing key pieces of intel.

"Why’d you suddenly think of asking that?" Kathy asked curiously.

"Some clues seem to be related to him. I want to know more, so I don’t kick an iron plate without realizing it."

"The former Chief was a legend too—Cai Zongzhang, born a commoner, climbed step by step to become a Red-robed Archbishop. In Li Long there are two Great Angels on the Life Master path; he was one of them. The Life Master path is a Hidden Power that meshes relatively well with the Sixth Era. Of course, it’s also because of the special nature of this path that he could reach such a position." Kathy said, "A few years ago, the former Chief did a fate-casting and predicted a great calamity in the Dragon Capital, enough to wipe out the city. But the Church Court didn’t acknowledge it—rumor has it there was fierce debate back then."

Red-robed Archbishop—no matter how you looked at it, that was at least a Great Angel. A prediction from a Great Angel on the Life Master path, and its reliability was still in question?

Seeing the doubt on Li Xin’s face, she added, "Life Masters always like to speak half-true truths. But that’s not the reason the former Chief died. I don’t know the real root cause either, and I can’t touch it."

Destruction? Fake Embryo?

That didn’t seem to connect.

"Sister Kathy, you said there’s another person on the same level?"

"Yeah, the Grand Hall Master of the Hundred Martial Hall is also a Great Angel on the Life Master path, only he left the Dragon Capital a long time ago and is already at the end of his path." Kathy said.

"Like the old man of the Bai Family?"

"The power level of the Life Master path is much higher and much harsher than that of an Alchemist. But the end of all Hidden Powers is the same: they keep struggling and trying everything just to live like a human being." A hint of mockery flashed in Kathy’s eyes. "All that glory and pride has to be paid back with loneliness and lowliness."

"Yan Tianguang used a White Dragon Magic Potion to advance to Preparatory Angel—there’s a price?"

"Of course. All power is obtained through a transaction. The price Yan Tianguang paid still wasn’t enough to satisfy a decaying Angel." Disgust flickered in Kathy’s eyes.

Same kind of thing happened even more often inside the Church Court.

"Sister Kathy, what kind of organization do you think the Hundred Martial Hall is?"

"The Hundred Martial Hall..." Kathy looked out into the dark night outside the window. "Overall it’s not bad, but the rot in the upper ranks is pretty serious now too."

"I’m really curious—why would the Church Court allow the Hundred Martial Hall to exist, even let it grow strong? Just like why the Earth Temple would let the Celestial Principle School develop?" Li Xin asked. "Before, I thought maybe it was because the balance between Royal Authority and divine authority gave them room to live. But now that feels a bit far-fetched."

"It does serve as a lubricant, but that’s not the key," Kathy said. "The Sixth Era has already lasted a thousand years. The Church Court also senses the crisis. When a new path appears, it means we’re facing another era shift. At a time like this, simply strangling it is useless; finding and mastering the laws of the new era is more important."

"So the Celestial Principle School and the Hundred Martial Hall are both test stones?"

"You could put it that way, but the actual situation is far more complicated than that. New paths usually require a lot of sacrifice, even end up being wedding clothes for others. In the battle of Hedan, the Earth Mother Goddess Court won a great victory, the Heavenly Dao was almost cut off at the head. But the newborn path really does follow the Heavenly Dao—its vitality is stubborn. It actually forced its way through and survived. Why do you think they keep sending the backbone of the Celestial Principle School off to other countries?"

Li Xin had experienced it personally and even knew some inside information Kathy didn’t. He understood very well how terrifying those demigods were. It wasn’t just power—these old monsters with too much time on their hands could design some truly horrifying setups.

Li Xin thought of his "Inheritance Record"... Could that actually be the lifeblood of the Celestial Principle School?

Vladimir really did think highly of him—never mind whether he could even carry it.

"The newborn path has already shown advantages that the Universal Paths don’t have. Take the Celestial Principle School: their scholars are compatible with four Universal Paths at once. That’s something the Moon God’s Court is extremely envious of right now and eager to obtain, because if they can find a solution, it might solve the problems of promotion and attrition." Kathy continued.

"So the Church Court allows the Celestial Principle School to take root in the Dragon Capital because they want to copy the Earth Mother Goddess Court and run research? Does the Celestial Principle School know?"

Kathy chuckled. "It’s a tacit understanding on both sides. Of course, the loser doesn’t just face destruction—they’ll become nourishment for the victor’s path. At the moment, the Church Court holds an absolute advantage."

Li Xin didn’t disagree with that, but he was more optimistic about the new paths. With the perspective of a previous life, he knew the tide of history was irreversible. An era’s transition wouldn’t shift just because some Deity willed it. The trouble for an individual, though, was whether he could live to see the new era. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

"Right, how strong was that former Chief, and how accurate? If he was accurate, shouldn’t we be getting Aunt Fei and Xueyin out of here first?" Li Xin suddenly remembered. A Red-robed Archbishop’s prediction wasn’t exactly something you could shrug off.

"Why don’t you ask Lin Fei and Xueyin whether they’re willing to leave?" Kathy smiled. "Life Masters’ predictions do become more accurate as their power grows, but it depends on the target. Predictions like that, the kind that sound like alarmist talk, aren’t rare, but very few actually come to pass. There are huge variables in there—changes that a Life Master can’t leverage."

Li Xin thought of earthquake predictions in his previous life; it all felt like surviving by sheer stubborn luck.

"Did that former Chief say what kind of destruction it would be?" Li Xin asked.

"That prophecy was sealed. Only a few Red-robed Archbishops know the details. If you want, I can think of a way to look into it."

Li Xin waved his hand. "It’s not that big a deal. If it’s not too dangerous, sure, you can look into it a bit."

Only Red-robed Archbishops knew, and it was that sensitive. Li Xin didn’t want Kathy taking risks. Being around the old monsters of the Church Court didn’t sound like a good life.

"It’s not a big deal. I have my own ways." Kathy said.

Watching the eager glint in Kathy’s eyes, Li Xin didn’t know what to say. This was the real Sister Kathy—when it came to toughness and sheer guts, she outclassed him.