Chapter 103: Chapter 103: The Eldritch Council - 2
"My subordinates followed through and blocked every transportation point, but we couldn't find the artifact. However, the mysterious person gave us another piece of information—the location to where the artifact was headed."
"It's a place owned by a man named Dorian Sterling."
"Dorian Sterling?" Helena raised an eyebrow, seemingly familiar with the name Mia mentioned.
"You're familiar with him, my daughter?" Adriana asked, pouring herself a cup of tea and offering one to Sam, completely ignoring the guest and her daughter.
Helena's eyes twitched in annoyance, but she couldn't say anything. After all, she had already agreed to share Sam with Adriana and her sisters; she wouldn't go back on her words now.
"Yes, he's a very famous businessman in the mortal world. But his true identity is that he is a low-class dragon, a wyvern of the Blazing Wyvern Clan."
"Blazing Wyverns, huh? I believe they are one of the subordinate clans of the Flareheart Clan," Adriana said with a thoughtful expression.
"Yes," Helena nodded in confirmation, then turned to Mia. "How is he connected with the artifact stolen from our land?"
"I don't know. We couldn't get any other usable information about him, but we were able to locate the artifact," Mia said, slowly sipping the tea. From time to time, she would glance at Sam, her face turning red, and her eyes vibrating for unknown reasons.
"Our men ran after the people who were transporting the artifact, but they managed to escape our vision one night in the center of the city," Mia continued.
"So you lost the artifact?" Adriana asked.
"Unfortunately, yes," Mia nodded with a bitter smile.
"We lost the artifact in a location very close to where Dorian resides. We assume that the perpetrators delivered the artifact to him, but that's simply not the case."
"When we investigated Dorian Sterling, we painfully discovered he did not possess the artifact, which means..."
"...you completely lost it," Helena continued where Mia left off.
Mia Hasegawa nodded before letting out a sigh.
"I understand, but I'm curious. What kind of artifact are we talking about?" Adriana asked.
Mia hesitated for a few seconds, pondering whether she should reveal information about the artifact. "It's a treasure passed down to us by my ancestors. I'm sure you already know about it too. It's the Codex of the Supreme Immortals."
"The Codex of the Supreme Immortals?" Helena couldn't help but shift her glance to her only son, who didn't seem to have any expression in reaction to this revelation, as if he didn't care.
All this time, the artifact the Fox Tribe had been searching for over the past months was in the hands of our protagonist.
Adriana was also a little surprised, but unlike Helena, she knew better than to look at Sam, which could make Mia suspicious.
Yes, Adriana knew about Sam possessing the Codex. Sam, Helena, and Lorraine had decided to share this information with people they deemed trustworthy.
The list included Sam's wives, his aunts, and his grandmothers.
"No wonder no one was able to locate the Codex of the Immortals because the Fox Tribe concealed it inside their bags for a long time. If this news had gotten out, there would have been a war," Adriana clicked her tongue in amusement.
As the leader of one of the strongest forces in the five continents, Adriana knew just how significant the existence of the Codex was.
Even she would have coveted the Codex if she had known where it was.
She considered herself lucky that her grandson was acknowledged by the Codex as its master.
She gained a grandson who is probably the most talented cultivator in the entire world and who also possesses the most powerful artifact, suspected to be a universal treasure.
"I can't believe the Fox Tribe lost something as precious as the Codex just like that," Adriana chuckled.
"It's okay. Even if the Codex falls into someone's hands, they won't be able to make use of it," Mia said confidently.
"Why not?"
"Just like anyone, our ancestors tried to unlock its power, but no matter how or what they tried, they couldn't activate it. After countless experiments and research, we found that the Codex has certain restrictions on it."
"What kind of restrictions?" Helena asked. Although she understood that there was some connection between Sam and the Codex, she couldn't pinpoint what it was.
It was like the Codex existed only for Sam to make use of it.
"I don't know. It was too complex to even research properly. There was some kind of soul essence inside it. We believe only a person whose soul matches the same frequency as the one inside the Codex can activate it."
"And from our research, we found out that the soul essence was millions of millions of years old, probably as old as the Codex itself," Mia said, holding her chin in thought.
"That means the Codex was never masterless," Helena turned her gaze toward Sam with a complicated look.
"Why does Sam's soul frequency match the one inside the codex? How could a 17-year-old teenager share the same soul frequency as something apparently as old as the codex?" The Fox Tribe's theory, suggesting that the codex can only be activated by someone with the same soul frequency, left questions lingering in Helena's mind.
It seemed like Sam was being drawn into a grand plot beyond anyone's control, triggering Helena's motherly instinct. However, she could only keep her thoughts to herself.
"No one can claim ownership of it, not even us, the Fox Tribe. That's why we stopped searching for it," Mia explained, shaking her head.
A brief silence filled the guest hall as Mia and Sam exchanged perplexed glances, while Adriana and Helena observed the silent interaction without uttering a word.
"Anyway, Princess Mia, is that all you have to say? I don't believe you came all the way to my place just to meet my son," Helena inquired with a thoughtful expression.
"She came to meet me?" Sam expressed surprise.
"Yes, there is one more thing. When we investigated Dorian, we didn't find the whereabouts of the codex, but we did find a connection between him and The Eldritch Council," Mia revealed.
"We discovered serious evidence that Dorian Sterling is a member of The Eldritch Council. What led us to this conclusion is files corresponding to events believed to be the work of the Eldritch Council," Mia paused for a few seconds before continuing.
"We also made an interesting discovery. Do you remember the incidents of how wild beasts disappeared?"
Everyone nodded their heads in unison.
"We found several pieces of evidence in his mansion that experiments have been conducted using different wild beasts. It seems they tried to artificially mutate the beasts using demonic methods," Mia stated with uncertainty.
"While going through those files, we learned some names that we believe are members of the Eldritch Council. A couple of names were recognizable, which brings me to you because one of those people is from your clan," Mia said with a serious expression.
"Who is it?" Adriana's expression darkened.
"Harper Hailstorm."
"That bastard. Why am I not surprised? Of course, it's him. I can't believe I kept him in my clan. I should have disposed of him a long time ago," Adriana had an ugly expression.
As they continued speaking, a bright light suddenly flashed, and a figure shot out in lightning speed. The target was none other than Sam.
"MY DEAR BROTHER..."
A sweet and adorable voice echoed, prompting Helena and Adriana to sigh in helplessness.
As they continued speaking, a bright light suddenly flashed, and a figure shot out in lightning speed. The target was none other than Sam.
Sophia, like a little girl who had been separated for countless years, joyfully leaped into Sam's arms.
She paid no attention to the presence of the women, as in her eyes, only Sam existed. She couldn't be bothered to even greet the clan leader.
"I missed you so much. I don't want to ever go into closed-door cultivation again without you, my dearest brother," Sophia lovingly rubbed her face against Sam's chest.
Sam, equally delighted, embraced Sophia in his arms and planted a kiss on her forehead. "This brother missed you just as much... huh? Your cultivation has improved to the peak Spirit Severing Realm?"
"Heheh... yes, yes, praise me more," Sophia giggled sweetly, her eyes seeking approval.
Noticing her desire for praise, Sam patted her head adoringly, causing her to purr against his hand like a contented cat.
"Hehehe..." Sophia's happiness at that moment knew no bounds.
"Sophia, we are in the middle of a serious conversation; behave yourself," Helena tried to scold her daughter.
Sophia completely ignored her mother as she spoke to Sam, "Brother dearest, I want to go out. Will you accompany me?"
"Sure," Sam nodded, for which Sophia rewarded him with a kiss on both cheeks. She was about to kiss his lips, but Sam dodged her, making her pout.
Seeing that she was completely ignored, Helena felt irritation on so many levels. As the first princess of the Hailstorm Clan, she couldn't believe that she was being treated like air by her own daughter.
...
[A/N: If you enjoyed this chapter, please consider supporting it with a few Power Stones. And if you absolutely loved it, you can even contribute a Golden Ticket. Your support means a lot to me! Thank you very much! - Arigato! 🙏]