In the dark sky above Liguang, there was a strange object suspended in the sky. It was so high up that people would need to crane their necks just to look at it, and even then, it appeared like a tiny black dot. It might have looked odd in the daytime, but the moonless night only aided in its disguise. No one noticed it nor could they. A veil of magic surrounded the object, a perception-blocking barrier, which prevented anyone from taking notice. It was the perfect camouflage! If anyone could see through the barrier, then they would be shocked. The first thing that came to mind was a flying ship! This vessel did not have sails, masts, or rudders that a traditional sea-faring vessel would; however, the body resembled an over-sized boat that sat on a sea of clouds and stars. There was no better way to describe it. Five figures stood on the prow like gods overseeing the world, their gazes filled with contempt, disgust, and frustration. Who else could they be but the five elder birds of the Featherwind Sect?
Elder Ludin and Crus stood steadily albeit with a pained expression. As the ones responsible for the battle of the Maelstrom Gulf, they showed the human world exactly how powerful the Featherwind Sect could be. With only the two of them, they attacked the Alzar Kingdom's fleet of twenty thousand soldiers and inflicted over ten thousand casualties! Admittedly, there were various circumstances that enabled them to succeed, but this was the undeniable conclusion. One could say that their appearance directly shifted the focus of the Second Great Kingdom War to super powerful individuals wielding 'strategic-level magic'! The current negotiations between Alzar Kingdom and the Li Family partly resulted because of their caution against the Imperial Council. However, Elder Ludin and Crus both underestimated the scope of their backlashes and received heavy injuries to their foundations from the battle. They could no longer replicate the same feat as before.
The other three birds, Elder Argo, Terus, and Unvo were far better off. In particular, Elder Argo, the acting Sect Master of the Featherwind Sect, gave a stifling air of oppression that weighed down on everyone else. As the strongest amongst the five, he was a Grand Rank 2 Lord, a Perception Realm Master, with one foot in the Half-Rank 3 King level. People might consider a Perception Realm Master as only so-and-so, especially with other apex fighters like Sir Winstin, the Four Dragons of the Loon Family, or the Four Cardinals present, but that was a bold underestimation. The difference between someone who could use Martial Energy versus someone who could not was like the heavens and the earth. It was a massive, insurmountable, and unbridgeable gap! With Elder Argo's supreme mastery over Martial Energy and vast collection of martial techniques, he was the uncontestable strongest combatant in Liguang now!
The five were clearly unhappy with how things turned out, but they could not voice their complaints. Normally, the Xingyuu Empire would be beneath their notice like the dirt stuck on their claws. The Featherwind Sect of old was a genuine Rank 3 civilization with the power to boot. While they were ultimately defeated by the Luminous Central Origin in an earth-shattering battle, it instead showed how great the Featherwind Sect really was. The Luminous Central Origin had to deploy three of their 'upper' armies, ninety Half-Monarch Grade battleships, and thousands of professional Grand Rank 2 Lord soldiers. Not to mention, there were three Early Rank 3 Kings serving as their commanders fully equipped in Monarch Grade armaments. The Underworld Rose, one of the Luminous Central Origin's trump card artifacts, had made its appearance too. Despite the tremendous combat power involved, the Featherwind Sect persevered for several days until they lost. Compared to the battles of humanity, everything seemed woefully anticlimactic and pathetic. The fact that they had to lower themselves to this point showed how far they fell.
"Where is the heir apparent of the Alzar Kingdom?" Elder Argo asked.
Elder Terus said, "According to our information, she should be in the town center as one of the representatives in the negotiations. Oh? It looks like there's a commotion happening below. Did they notice our presence?"
Elder Argo glanced at the town center and sharpened his eyesight through Martial Energy. In an instant, the world magnified in terrifying detail. His visual acuity, attributed to being a falcon, was already the greatest amongst his peers. He could clearly identify and isolate the various buildings below, despite them appearing as thin as hairs from their vantage point. Then, when he decided to sharpen his senses using his Perception Realm, his visual acuity took a humongous step forward. He could resolve individual people and pick them out from a crowd. Finally, when he compounded his Martial Energy on top of that too… It was like a dragon taking flight, soaring into the realm of legends! His eyesight was so unbelievably powerful now that he could probably count the hairs on a person's head, even across this unfathomable distance! Nothing could hide from his supreme gaze!
As if on cue, every Perception Realm in Liguang felt Elder Argo's piercing gaze. The inexperienced Perception Realms felt queasy and searched around pointlessly for the source. Elder Argo was too far away so none of them had a hope in catching where he was. When it came to the more accomplished Perception Realms though, they had a vague idea over the general direction, but that was the difference between north or south. It was not enough to pinpoint where or who this gaze came from. Only the apex Perception Realm Masters, such as Sir Winstin or the Four Dragons of the Loon Family, could accurately zero in on the Featherwind Sect's flying ship. Unfortunately, Elder Ludin and Terus's perception-blocking barrier made it impossible to see past the veil. Since Elder Argo retracted his gaze a moment later, the feeling that someone was watching them vanished too. Most of the Perception Realms shrugged it off as nerves, but Sir Winstin and the Four Dragons of the Loon Family… Their eyes lingered for a long time.
"The heir apparent is here," Elder Argo relayed his findings after spotting Elizabeth. "She's the one with a Rank 3 King as a master, correct? What a headache."
"Is her master here too?" Elder Ludin wondered nervously.
"From the looks of it, it doesn't seem like a Rank 3 King is present, but I can't be too sure. How goes the investigation on your side, Elder Unvo?"
The magpie bird replied, "They didn't spot any particularly strong presence in Liguang."
As the Featherwind Sect's foremost expert in treasure hunting, his speciality was really information gathering using animals. He could communicate with any animal to act as his eyes and ears, to scout out the surrounding areas. Then, he could use a martial technique to synchronize their senses and process what the animal learned. This was how he discovered the conspiracy from Prime Minister Pon-Wai and Minister Keigon in the Imperial Gardens. Furthermore, an animal's instincts and senses were, in some ways, superior to an enlightened bird such as Elder Unvo. Since they could not find a Rank 3 King either, everyone visibly relaxed. The presence of a Rank 3 King could drastically change the situation for the worse. It was better to know ahead of time before they made any moves.
"Then we will continue as planned," Elder Argo concluded with a heavy tone.
"Understood," the four said.
Just then, a messenger pigeon landed on Elder Unvo's shoulders. Elder Unvo bemoaned humanity's crude method of communication and felt frustration. He had no hands or fingers to remove the scroll from the bird's leg, so how was he supposed to read it? The other elder birds felt speechless too. Was it meant as a slight against them? It was a little insulting. Elder Ludin shook his head and conjured a simple spell to untie the scroll. The scroll then lazily floated in front of him where he unfurled it to read its contents. It was extremely short and simple: prevent the people inside Liguang from regrouping with their main forces. They could imagine that the Phoenix, Qilin, and Kun division generals must be cursing up a storm after the Alzar Kingdom led with this bold move. It ruined their plans and forced them to dance to kingdom's tune!
"Elder Terus, if you may," Elder Argo gestured.
Elder Terus replied bitterly, "To affect the entire town with a large-scale perception manipulating spell would exceed my ability."
"Even with your Bloodline Ability?"
"I'm afraid so."
Elder Argo expected as much because Elder Terus was currently a Medium Condensed Drop Arcanist. In the first place, a Condensed Drop Arcanist's range of influence roughly corresponded to a few city blocks. That changed depending on the potency of the spell involved and a variety of other factors, but it was a good standard to use. Elder Ludin's feat of enveloping the entire Alzar fleet in his Seven Encloses Heaven barrier was successful due to two factors. One was that Elder Ludin was originally stronger than Elder Terus. The former was High Condensed Drop, the latter a Medium Condensed Drop. He had also used his Bloodline Ability to forcibly cross levels, an act which later backlashed. Secondly, a barrier was fundamentally different to a sensory manipulation spell. A barrier only had to cover the borders, while a sensory spell had to affect everything inside, the latter obviously being much more difficult to accomplish.