Chapter 821: Act 2 – The Gun Beyond the Mundane II
“Something is strange about that spear…”
Someone shouted. The space beside the spear in Xi’s hand shattered like glass, revealing the true form of the Celestial Spear, its shaft a vibrant emerald green. Two intertwining bolts of lightning traced a bright arc along the length of the blade, propelling Yoren’s corpse away and leaving a string of murky blood droplets in its wake. It was as if the air itself had gone silent, frozen in time, and the Crusian nobles instinctively closed their mouths—each person had seen the spear strike through the line of established rules differently, yet everyone clearly witnessed the long spear pierce the lines of fate. Though Yoren’s sword had indeed defended against Xi’s attack, the spear had struck Yoren’s chest from another realm, as if the two had merely brushed past each other.
This scene had been sung repeatedly in the “Cobalt Ballad.”
It stemmed from the creation myth of the Crusians—
The Gun Beyond the Mundane.
“This is the master’s spear technique,” Avina said with pride. “Its purpose is to break the established order and bring a brand new future to this world.” But when she saw Xi open her eyes, stunned as she looked at her own hand, seemingly recalling that moment without understanding, loneliness seeped into her heart. “What a pity; for you, you still cannot comprehend its greatness. It is unique, never before existing in the annals of history.”
“I still don’t quite understand…” Xi frowned, struggling to grasp what had transpired in that moment, feeling as if the Celestial Spear had torn through some established rule, hitting a target that should have been impossible to strike. In fact, even that feeling felt hazy to her, as if she had fired the spear and slain the enemy, yet it seemed like sheer luck.
“The principle is simple,” Avina said, noticing the mountain girl’s confused expression and realizing she was playing a tune to a deaf audience. Sighing, she decided to be more concise: “In general, whether an attack hits depends on the judgment of both attackers, but the key factors boil down to strength and balance. This is a set rule, like two people playing a game, where everything is within the game’s rules. But the Celestial Spear breaks these rules. The mundane world’s rules do not apply to it; its attacks follow a self-contained set of laws, which take precedence over ordinary ‘game rules.’ Therefore, when mortals attempt to evade under standard rules, they can never escape the Celestial Spear’s attack.”
The Crusian nobles were beginning to recover from their shock, prompting Avina to speed up her speech. Xi noticed this, laboriously retracting her long spear and reassuming a defensive stance, though she still asked, “Then… what is that law?”
Avina’s voice was resolute.
“Effect precedes cause.”
Babaan finally reacted, but he would have preferred never to understand, for it felt like being doused in a bucket of ice water, chilling him to the bones. The Erluins had unearthed the Celestial Spear from beneath Ampere Seale and handed it over to the Buds. Such events were hard to conceal, and Princess Grifian had never masked it. In fact, in an attempt to divert blame, she had actively disseminated the information on Brendel’s advice. It was hard not to notice the name of the Earl of Toniger throughout the process; after all, Brendel had been the brightest star during the battle at Ampere Seale, and moments later, the holy spear, the Celestial Spear, was excavated from this city. To say it had nothing to do with him would only invite suspicion.
The Gun Beyond the Mundane, a name frequently mentioned in the “Cobalt Ballad.” Myths stated it could penetrate worlds, even ignoring the rules. The scene unfolding before him confirmed this; coupled with Xi’s identity and everything that had transpired between the Erluins and the Buds, if Babaan still did not comprehend, then, like other Crusians, he had been played for a fool by the Buds and Brendel, truly rendering him a simpleton.
But once he thought of this, another thought struck him: now that this monumental secret had been laid bare before him, could they leave this place alive?
He couldn’t help but exchange glances with others, seeing the mutual fear and greed reflected in their eyes. “Up until this point, they’re still thinking about taking the Celestial Spear for themselves!” Babaan realized with a glance that his colleagues had deduced the origin of the spear in Xi’s hand, even if one or two had not yet grasped it; they could read between the lines of everyone else’s expressions. However, the greed within men startled him. Once this thought arose, it ignited his reason like a wildfire—after all, this was the most brilliant jewel in the annals of history, a true artifact from the previous epoch, a spear that pierced the heavens and heralded a new era, the weapon of the Celestial Knight. If he could seize it, could he not become that world ruler himself?
Nonetheless, Babaan still retained a shred of reason, understanding that artifacts weren’t something that everyone could handle. He would never be able to monopolize this ancient holy item; the reputation of the Celestial Spear was too great. The Wind Sprites, the Crusians, the Erluins—who among them did not covet it? Even the Buds, those People of Silver, might be tempted, and though the dragons’ intentions were unknown, based on their greedy natures, they wouldn’t easily let go either. None of these powers were someone he could provoke. But he realized he still had a choice: to present the Celestial Spear to His Majesty the Emperor.
Once this idea took root, it became uncontrollable; he increasingly felt it was the best choice. Unable to resist, he leaned closer to the others and said, “Everyone, you must have seen what it is. The conspiracy of Veronika and the Earl of Toniger has now been revealed before us. Whether we succeed or fail rests on this singular move.”
Upon hearing Babaan’s words, others were momentarily stunned, exchanging surprised glances. However, these were all prominent figures among the nobles. They quickly came to realize, even feeling somewhat delighted. Initially, they had taken Xi hostage to frame Veronika as a last resort, but now, through Babaan’s words, they felt as if they had inadvertently stumbled into an opportunity. The Celestial Spear lay before them; to claim that Veronika was unaware would be unbelievable. Even if there was a chance, as the highest ranking officer of their group, it was not she but they who discovered this secret, which in itself was negligence. Moreover, with such a significant gift at hand, His Majesty surely wouldn’t be too harsh on them.
The most probable outcome was that they would not only escape censure but would also be rewarded greatly. By then, as the ones who brought the Celestial Spear back to the Empire, even if the Cecil family sought revenge, it would not be so easy. If everything went smoothly, the Cecil family might even vent their anger on Veronika, who was already an enemy of the Aishreco family. Contemplating this, all the Crusian nobles felt their breath grow heavier. They looked at Xi with gazes that had shifted from fear to fervor, like gamblers with eyes wild with desperation.
“Lord Babaan is right. A secret this immense, she will never let us go easily. It’s a matter of life and death, we must fight here!”
“Stop talking nonsense; we all understand this logic. Let’s all go for it!” A rough-voiced Crusian noble replied, his voice betraying his nervousness.
Xi took a few steps back. “It seems they’ve discovered the Celestial Spear,” she frowned and whispered to Avina.
“What of it? Just kill them. Dead men keep secrets,” Avina answered dismissively. Clearly, she had considered this when she executed that spear technique. She knew that for Xi now, the exposure of the Celestial Spear was not a good thing; after all, the mountain girl was too vulnerable.
Xi nodded in response to Avina’s words without saying anything further.
Killing without restraint might be a hesitation for Freya, but for her, it was not unacceptable. After all, she was a mercenary, and the experiences and trials she had gone through these days had made her grow even more mature, fostering no illusions about her enemies. She now even regretted having saved Babaan from beneath the ice; otherwise, these matters might not have escalated to this point. She thought perhaps she shouldn’t have been so merciful to outsiders, bestowing kindness could only be reserved for the Lord.
She lifted the long spear, still unsure if she could triumph over her opponents, but once Avina demonstrated that single thrust, the enemies before her seemed no more than ashes.
On the other side of the battlefield, the nobles had also turned into wild-eyed hyenas, driven by greed and once again drawing their swords. Human hearts can be mad; even knowing that they were headed for their doom, they could not resist taking a gamble under the influence of greed. As long as the stakes were high enough—so high it drove people mad—under that influence, individuals truly became deranged, each side stepping into battle with confidence in their certain victory.
It was a brutal battle.
From the moment Xi held the true Celestial Spear, her aura had shifted. In fact, she was no longer fighting, or rather, it was Avina who was fighting—this was the Gun Beyond the Mundane. In the eyes of the ordinary, the concept of battle did not apply to what was transpiring. To be precise, it was an onslaught without resistance. The Celestial Spear stood proud above any rule; defense was as good as nonexistent to it, for it needed to hit, and so it did.
The process of the spear’s thrust now served merely as a supplement to the final result, for the spear pierced through the human body, compelling the world to unwillingly accompany the process to maintain consistency, preventing it from seeming too abrupt. Xi, wielding the long spear, a step back and a thrust forward. At that instant, the Crusian nobles seemed to willingly offer themselves to her spear’s blade, faces marked by despair and disbelief, charging straight ahead, only to be pierced through.
Xi remained impassive, shaking off the corpse from her spear. Turning, she executed a horizontal slash; another Crusian noble raised his sword to block, but unfortunately, the enchanted long sword shattered under the Celestial Spear as if it were mere tofu, then the blade sliced into his shoulder, blood splattering, all seeming perfectly natural.
In no time, the battle’s situation had been decided.
Babaan and the last remaining Crusian noble retreated with ashen faces—only at this moment did they comprehend why the Celestial Spear held such a prominent position in the Crusian creation epic. It was indeed a gift bestowed upon this world by the heavens; it should not exist here but had come forth due to a special mission, deemed necessary to lead mortals into bringing a new chapter to this world.
This was the Holy Spear Beyond the Mundane.
…
The cabin swayed as Babaan took a sip of water, yet felt a parched throat. He had omitted some processes in his description, but the entire account was still thrilling. The cabin’s light was dim; since it was not a first-class cabin, the space was damp and cramped, resembling a ‘cage’ where sailors resided. Several hammocks were suspended within the barrel-shaped cabin, where three people sat: Babaan, Boimo, and another noble dressed in a fine coat. Their attire did not appear to fit such a lowly cabin, yet now they showed no discomfort.
In fact, they could not afford to feel any.
Viscount Bernie sat opposite Babaan. He was a secret envoy from the Empress among the diplomatic delegation, originally bearing a special mission, but at this moment, he had to return on the ship ahead of time without having set foot on Erluin’s land. Yet he held no complaints, feeling fortunate that he had not announced his presence to the Erluins beforehand; otherwise, it might have aroused suspicion. But if he wasn’t here, he would still be uneasy about the ‘thing’ on the ship.
After all, it was too important.
Having listened to Babaan’s account, he instinctively mirrored the same action—lifting his cup for a sip. The cup contained diluted rum; though this concoction tasted terrible, at this moment it felt like a spring in their throats. Even after finishing a sip, they still found their throats somewhat dry.
He sat silently for a moment before finally asking, “Then what happened? Why did she not kill you, and how did she end up in her current state?”
Babaan’s face went pale, sweat beading on his brow; opposite him, Boimo looked no better. Both seemed to have fallen gravely ill. The former, still shaken, finally managed to reply:
“Because of the explosion…”
“The explosion?”
Viscount Bernie had not experienced that battle and, compared to the two, was recovering more quickly. He soon regained his composure, furrowing his brow as he glanced at the two of them. He wanted to reprimand them but reconsidered; after all, that kind of battle filled him with dread just hearing about it, let alone having to endure it. Over thirty golden-tier noble soldiers lay dead everywhere in an instant, and this had occurred during a battle of equal standing. He did not know that Babaan was lying, placing all the blame on Xi and Brendel. He contemplated, softly asking, “Elaborate, for the Empress will undoubtedly want clarity on this incident.”
Babaan looked gratefully at the viscount. Viscount Bernie, from the Palut family, served closely by the Empress’s side. His demeanor had left Babaan feeling somewhat flattered, yet it also solidified his conviction: indeed, Her Majesty had long coveted the Celestial Spear. He quietly felt that he had placed the right bet; taking a deep breath, he slowly began to explain: “She had indeed intended to kill us, but something unexpected interrupted her.”
“Was it the explosion?”
Viscount Bernie inquired, brow furrowing as he pondered what kind of explosion could disrupt the Celestial Spear. Suddenly, a look of bewilderment crossed his face. The seated Babaan and Boimo watched as the viscount excitedly stood from his hammock, his face flushed as he dashed around the cramped cabin several times before seemingly catching his breath. He turned back, slapping Babaan on the shoulder enthusiastically, saying loudly:
“It was the explosion! So that explosion in the Frozen Frost Forest was connected to the Celestial Spear! That explains everything! Babaan, you must tell me what exactly happened then.”
Viscount Bernie said this with excitement, only to realize that his tone might have sounded a bit too intense. Although these two had no status at present, they might gain favor from the Empress in the future. He quickly changed his words, “You both must understand the purpose of my journey; Her Majesty is quite concerned about this explosion.”
Babaan nodded but awkwardly replied.
“That explosion… to be honest, I cannot clearly say how it occurred…”
“Wait, was it related to the Celestial Spear?” Bernie interrupted impatiently.
Babaan hesitated, looking at the viscount in confusion, not understanding why he was fixated on this question, but he still shook his head honestly: “I don’t know, it might not be, but I can’t be sure. One thing is certain, the explosion originated behind us. At the time, I felt a strong light and a thunderous noise. The explosion happened so suddenly that I had no idea what was happening; it felt as if the earth shook, and suddenly everything plunged into a blinding white. If you don’t believe me, you can ask Boimo; what he experienced was similar to mine.”
Boimo’s face was pale, quickly nodding in agreement, still filled with dread.
Viscount Bernie turned to glance at him, pondering before asking, “And then?”
“And then? I vaguely heard a strange woman’s voice say, ‘Damn it, this is… be careful, I’ll protect you!’ but I can’t guarantee I actually heard that voice; the sound was so loud I might have imagined it,” Babaan replied.
“No, My Lord Viscount, in fact, I heard it too,” Boimo interjected hastily.
Viscount Bernie nodded, furrowing his brows: “So, at that time, you were both near the center of the explosion, yet you survived, right?”
Babaan displayed a troubled expression.
He hesitated a moment before finally nodding:
“Yes, My Lord Viscount.”
