The Dibola Flower

It’s often said that the Battle God Realm’s Three Continents offer diverse splendors: the Aethelgard Continent, with its boundless grasslands and magnificent vistas; Yakun, forever in spring with pleasant climes; and the Skylands, a realm of continuous peaks and narrow plains, exuding an ancient, heavy aura, as if steeped in millennia of history. Standing atop Mount Wanliu’s highest peak, Du Chen profoundly grasped the living wisdom embedded in this saying.

Du Chen wore neither the Supreme One’s Robe nor the Divine Emperor’s Crown, those two iconic symbols. Instead, he was clad in a simple gray robe, his hair dyed crimson, and his face adorned with a middle-aged mask provided by Flaying. He appeared as just one among countless wandering Battle Gods, come to pay homage at the birthplace of the Five Peaks of Myriad Streams, perhaps imagining himself part of that legendary battle that lasted for days and nights, leveling mountains. Meanwhile, Andy, transformed into a striped, tusked tiger, carried two similarly disguised mini-elf children on his back, attending Du Chen’s side.

Andy struggled to maintain a tiger’s imposing demeanor, yet couldn’t help but wag his tail and lick his nose, grumbling like a pug, “Master, we haven’t even entered the Purple Blood Federation yet. Why are we dressed like this? Wouldn’t it be better if you just announced the Divine Emperor’s arrival? Hehe, Marshal Alonso would surely entertain us with a grand feast!”

Before Du Chen could reply, little Beibei firmly slapped Andy’s forehead. “Glutton, the Greedy Wolf! Stand up! You’re a mighty tiger right now! Don’t you know? Stealing requires surprise! Papa made Rabbit impersonate the Divine Emperor in the army so he could secretly ‘Take Without Asking.’ That way, that big bad Bonis won’t be prepared!”

Du Chen chuckled. Little Beibei was only half-right. The disguise and makeup indeed served as an excellent feint, but there was another, unavoidable reason—with the full-scale war between humanity and Fiendkind, Du Chen’s current status meant his absence from the Allied Forces Command would likely spark considerable suspicion. Thus, he had Snoopy impersonate him, even specially finding a Snow Wolf to stand in for Andy. As for the two children, it was publicly declared that the various monarchs dared not risk the Divine Emperor and his heirs together, leaving the children to reside safely on Holy Mountain Durin.

Only Dud, Liana, Deboning, and Steve—the four outsiders not involved in the operation—knew that the Divine Emperor no longer commanded the army. Even Mas and the high-ranking officials of the Ferdinand Alliance were completely unaware.

Andy, chastised by little Beibei, dared not speak, instead stealthily eyeing the surroundings for any wild game to sate his hunger, while Du Chen observed Mount Wanliu’s terrain.

Funnily enough, Mount Wanliu’s appearance reminded Du Chen of his Senior Brother. Wasn’t that monkey once pinned beneath the Five-Finger Mountain? Now, Mount Wanliu resembled five fingers thrust upside down into a continuous mountain range. Standing on the tip of the highest “middle finger,” Du Chen gazed out, soon spotting a waterfall on the “thumb.” Du Chen’s heart stirred, and his entire Divine Sense focused on that waterfall.

One fragment of Dud’s memory recounted him being frozen in the ice beneath a waterfall, only to be burned by descending Fiery Thunder blasts, fusing his body with his armor and condemning him never to show his true face again.

“Did Dud ‘die in battle’ here?” Du Chen couldn’t be sure. After all, a millennium had passed, and Mount Wanliu’s topography had undergone significant changes. He turned and instructed, “Andy, use your nose to find any Aberrant Beasts nearby, then little Beibei can ask about Mount Wanliu’s geographical changes, especially the waterfall’s water source!”

Andy grinned. “Master, no need to look for Aberrant Beasts. There are people down there, one living and many dead!” It turned out the Snow Wolf hadn’t found any wild game, but instead discovered a cemetery behind Du Chen, at the base of the “index finger.” Judging by its layout, it was one of the countless Divine Emperor cenotaphs across the Three Continents. However, this cemetery had many accompanying burial markers, which explained Andy’s mention of many dead. As for the living person, it was an old Tomb Guardian, whose appearance…

Du Chen’s eyes lit up. *What a small world!* “Andy, take the children and search the entire mountain range for anything resembling a lifeline. I’ll go meet this old fellow!”

The old man guarding the tomb was none other than Old Warma, the Beastkin Holy Mountain’s Tomb Guardian, the gatekeeper of Thornwood Valley—eccentric and mysterious!

Old Warma still looked as if he were on the verge of collapsing into the grave. He was preparing several baskets beside the Divine Emperor’s tombstone, for what purpose Du Chen couldn’t tell. Seeing a middle-aged man approach, requesting to pay respects to the Divine Emperor, he greeted him with a beaming smile. After a few pleasantries, he chuckled, “Oh my, so you, Battle God Qike, are a Ninth-rank Battle God from the Aethelgard Continent… This old man apologizes for the oversight. Please, come in and sit. I’ll prepare your offerings and ceremonial staff right away!”

Du Chen, now named Qike, found it awkward to directly acknowledge Old Warma and ask why he was there. He waved his hand, smiling, “No rush, old man, you tend to your business. I have a few questions first. Given your advanced age, you must have been here a long time, yes? Do you know the history of that waterfall?” He pointed to the sole waterfall on Mount Wanliu in the distance. “I’m just curious to research how this waterfall might have affected Sea Emperor Thanes’s power during the great battle of the Five Peaks back then!”

Old Warma continued to arrange the baskets in his hand, lowering his head as he spoke. “Speaking of this waterfall… it truly has some history. The old-timers here tell a story, passed down through generations, that a Great Demon King died beneath this waterfall long ago, and so it’s called Demon-Sealing Falls!”

Du Chen’s heart sank. *Could that legendary Demon King be Orbach? Before his death, Orbach in his iron-clad armor certainly looked like a demon king…* Du Chen kept his expression neutral and asked with a smile, “When did this story take place? I presume it was after the Battle of the Five Peaks?”

“No, the legend happened twelve hundred years ago!” Old Warma suddenly looked up at Du Chen. “To be precise, it was 1294 years ago!”

Du Chen raised an eyebrow. “That timing… Tsk tsk, you remember it too accurately, old man, don’t you?”

Old Warma simply smiled, still engrossed in sorting his baskets. “What’s so strange about that? The legend was passed down by Skylands veterans. They said they witnessed the entire process of the Demon King’s sealing while following Marshal Margaret to mourn a fallen friend. And Margaret’s fallen friend was named Orbach… Hehe, once this old man knows when Orbach died in battle, won’t I be able to state the exact year!?”

*This old fellow is certainly hinting at something,* Du Chen thought. But the old man also confirmed that Orbach ‘died’ beneath that waterfall, meaning Du Chen had found a clue to Dud’s identity!

Just then, Old Warma added, “Battle God Qike, if you don’t mind this old man’s rambling, then I’ll tell you that story…”

Du Chen couldn’t have asked for more. “Please do, old man!”

Old Warma set down the baskets in his hands and chuckled, “The legend goes, when Orbach fell in battle on the great plains, Marshal Margaret, then in the Skylands, was heartbroken by her friend’s death. She led her people to the highest peak of the Skylands—Mount Wanliu—to mourn him from afar. But just then, a Great Demon King flew out from behind the Demon-Sealing Falls, striking fiercely, killing anyone in his path! Marshal Margaret, witnessing this, immediately used her supreme Secret Technique to freeze the Demon-Sealing Falls, then summoned Fiery Thunder to strike down that Great Demon King. That battle, on that day, was said to shake heaven and earth…”

*Old Warma, I commend you! *

Du Chen rapidly processed the information. Margaret’s mention of the Demon-Sealing Falls during the Battle God Isle incident, which triggered Dud’s headache and created an opportunity for Du Chen, made sense now. She must have known Dud was Orbach after he used the Beast Emperor’s Unyielding Wall, which is why she dared to do it. In other words, Margaret proved Dud was Orbach!

Orbach’s early life then became clear. First, after his ‘death in battle’ on the great plains, his ‘body’ was secretly transported into Mount Wanliu by the Scarlet Army. Following that, Orbach narrowly escaped, but Margaret, who had by then pledged allegiance to the Scarlet Army, was waiting outside the waterfall. She immediately blocked him and, with the help of a Raging Fire Scorcher Cannon, ‘burned him to death’ and sealed him.

As for why Orbach transformed into Dud after the Demon-Sealing Falls incident and was buried deep within Silvermoon Island, that was a question for Margaret and the Scarlet Army. As he thought this, another question arose in Du Chen’s mind: If Dud was Orbach, then who was Jamis? The old Gambler had no reason to deceive him about his identity! If Jamis wasn't Orbach, how could he know every intricate detail of Orbach’s life?

Du Chen pondered this as Old Warma vividly concluded the full account of that day’s battle. He glanced at the sky, then quickly picked up the baskets at hand. “Oh dear, I’ve truly rambled too much. It’s getting late; I must hurry with my work!”

Du Chen rubbed his nose, chuckling. “Old man, you do your business. But I still have a few questions about that Demon-Sealing legend. From what you just said, isn’t Mount Wanliu a hidden realm with a Great Demon King’s lair?”

Old Warma, without lifting his head from arranging the baskets, said, “Logically, it should be so. But it’s said that afterwards, Margaret, Divine Emperor Prince and Divine Empress Audrey, and Batuoke, who was temporarily stationed here… many powerful Eminences investigated Mount Wanliu. Some even dug it up, but they all found nothing!”

This sentence could be interpreted as, *You shouldn’t bother investigating that waterfall either; rest assured, you won’t find anything!* Du Chen smiled, thinking, *Old man, are you perhaps a bull? You dare to call Divine Emperor Prince and Divine Empress Audrey by their given names. Aren’t you afraid the Holy Church’s Inquisition will send you to the execution pyre?*

No one should utter the Supreme One’s given name without permission, a privilege Du Chen himself held. Nowadays, if humans dared to address Francis, they would add a ‘Holy’ prefix. Thus, he was particularly sensitive to the names Old Warma used.

Squinting, Du Chen scrutinized Old Warma and pressed on, “Mr. Warma, you claim no one has ever uncovered Mount Wanliu’s secrets. Yet, to my knowledge, a great Prophet named Wolf once studied Mount Wanliu and made considerable discoveries!” Mentioning Wolf served two purposes: it was a name long lost to history, which Du Chen used to test Old Warma, and it was also an attempt to extract more information.

Old Warma looked up at Du Chen with an awkward smile. “This old man has never heard of any Wolf, so I can’t comment on that…”

Du Chen smiled, his two gazes fixed on Old Warma, not uttering a word, making Old Warma feel somewhat uneasy. “Why are you looking at me? This old man truly hasn’t heard of Wolf… Oh? The Eminences from Skylands have arrived. Please wait here, this old man needs to receive them!”

Old Warma suddenly became rather snobbish. *Eminences have arrived, so this ‘wandering Battle God’ Du Chen is no longer his concern?* Du Chen found it amusing. *The greatest Eminence in the world is right before your eyes, old man. Heh, keep up the act. Sooner or later, I’ll expose your true colors!*

The arrivals were five women. The first, in her early twenties, had a delicate and dignified appearance, exuding an air of superiority, yet her hair was silver, typically seen only on the elderly. Her long gown was also silvery-white, making her look like a Snow Maiden from a land of ice and snow. The four women behind her were young and beautiful, dressed in white gowns, resembling maids, with nothing particularly remarkable about them.

They rode unicorns, unique to the Skylands, approaching Warma. The Snow Maiden cast a curious glance at Du Chen but did not dismount. She pointed her riding whip at Old Warma and asked, “Warma, are the items ready?”

Warma quickly held up the baskets in his hands. It was then that Du Chen noticed they contained two crystal bottles, already filled with purple petals steeped in spices. Old Warma’s earlier busyness had been in infusing the bottles with spices and carving decorative patterns. “Your Excellency, everything you requested is here. Please inspect them!”

The Snow Maiden snatched the basket, inspected it, nodded, and tossed a few Silver Coins to Warma. “Very good. The next batch of candied petals must be ready in a month. Do not delay, understand?”

Warma had shed his mysterious demeanor he displayed with Du Chen. He avariciously fondled the Silver Coins, nodding repeatedly. “Rest assured, this old man will certainly not delay the important affairs of Your Excellencies!”

The Snow Maiden nodded, her gaze falling back on Du Chen, her face bearing the arrogance of a court noble. “Sir, you didn’t enter Reno through proper channels, did you?”

Du Chen had flown directly from Golden Sands Cape, certainly not through border checkpoints with entry permits. *Did this official intend to inspect his ‘passport’?* Du Chen smiled, retrieved a token of a Holy Alliance intelligence officer from his robes, handed it to the Snow Maiden, and said mysteriously, “Top Secret Mission!”

The Snow Maiden’s expression immediately softened into a smile. She respectfully returned the token to Du Chen, chuckling, “Your Excellency, you overthink things. I had no intention of questioning you! However, Reno is now the frontline against the Fiendkind, and our Crown Prince’s wedding is imminent, so the Imperial Capital area is inevitably under stricter scrutiny…”

*What? The Crown Prince’s wedding?* Du Chen was startled. *Is Arthur getting married?* Yet, he had received reliable intelligence from the Alliance’s intelligence department stating that not long ago, Arthur, showing off, had challenged Bonis and ended up spitting blood, gravely injured. Although not life-threatening, it would require at least several months to recover. *In such a condition, does Arthur still have the mood to marry? Is he going to consummate his marriage in bandages?*

Du Chen asked, “I understand. You all are truly dedicated! However, you just mentioned the Crown Prince’s wedding. When is the wedding date? Oh, congratulations on your nation’s great joy; I’d also like to send a gift on time!”

The Snow Maiden beamed with pride. “Crown Prince Arthur is the Skylands’ greatest warrior; his wedding will be anything but simple! According to our Reno court etiquette, the wedding period began three days ago and will last for two months. However, the most important grand ceremony is on the 13th of next month!”

Du Chen calculated. There was still nearly a month, which meant he had enough time to steal the Tear Source first and then attend his friend’s wedding! Du Chen wanted to ask a few more questions, such as, “Who is the Crown Princess?” but the female official hastily glanced at her pocket watch, claiming, “I must report back within the time limit,” and then rushed off.

Watching the female official’s retreating figure, Du Chen couldn’t help but sigh. In the blink of an eye, both he and Arthur were in their early twenties. By the customs of the Battle God Realm, Arthur marrying now could even be considered ‘late marriage and late childbearing’!

As Du Chen pondered, Old Warma awkwardly approached him. “Oh dear, you’re also an Eminence. This old man, I… I was disrespectful just now!”

*You old scoundrel, still pretending with me!?* Du Chen deliberately raised an eyebrow and asked, “How do you know I’m an Eminence?”

Old Warma lowered his gaze, assessing Du Chen’s expression. “What you’re saying! Someone who can make an officer from the House of Hidden Beauties respectfully address them as ‘Your Excellency’—how could you not be an Eminence?”

“House of Hidden Beauties?” Du Chen looked at Old Warma in confusion.

Old Warma slapped his own mouth. “Heh, watch my old tongue! ‘House of Hidden Beauties’ is a vulgar nickname we common folk use privately. Its proper name is… Lionheart Divine Temple, Cloudhaven Skywatch Thunder Pavilion, Moon-Gazing Terrace!”

Du Chen was startled and pressed, “And what kind of place is that?”

Old Warma smiled mysteriously. “Have you ever heard a rumor about the Lionheart King? It says that after Martial Venerable Robert died, Lionheart Alonso also grew old…”

Du Chen hadn’t just heard of it; it was practically a household name! Moreover, Du Chen had vaguely heard whispers that the reason Alonso was looked down upon and called ‘old’ was entirely because of a woman… *House of Hidden Beauties, could that Snow Maiden just now be a subordinate of the woman behind the Lionheart King!?*

Recalling Arthur’s helplessness and resentment whenever he mentioned that woman, Du Chen pressed, “I know who you’re talking about, old man. Can you tell me more about that woman?”

Old Warma shook his head, chuckling. “That’s a matter within the Reno Royal Palace; how much could an old Tomb Guardian like me possibly know? If you insist on asking, I can only tell you two things. Firstly, that woman has no official title; she is not the Queen of Reno. However, it’s rumored that His Majesty Lionheart King Alonso will go to any lengths, no matter the cost, to please that woman, doing things one would never dare imagine!”

Du Chen nodded. History was replete with examples of ‘femme fatales’ ruining nations, and even the Lionheart King, a visionary leader, couldn’t escape it! “I understand what you mean. And the second thing?”

Old Warma plucked a small flower from the Divine Emperor’s tombstone. Du Chen couldn’t name it, but its appearance was identical to the flowers he had just seen the silver-haired maidens carrying. “The second thing is, no one has ever seen that woman’s face, but rumors from the Moon-Gazing Terrace say that she is icy cold and has only smiled once for Alonso in decades. And that time was when Alonso presented her with Dibola Flowers, a specialty of Mount Wanliu. Look, it’s this kind of flower…”

*Is this even worth noting?* Du Chen almost dismissed this second point, but Old Warma seemed to sense that Du Chen hadn’t taken this small detail to heart and prompted him, “It’s strange, Dibola Flowers only grow on Mount Wanliu. Even if you cultivate them with battle qi elsewhere, they won’t grow like this! Alas, ever since that woman smiled for Alonso because of the Dibola Flowers, Alonso has placed special importance on Mount Wanliu’s flora. Now, every month, Alonso specifically orders the Moon-Gazing Terrace, the officials serving that woman, to collect Dibola Flowers and make them into candied flower wine… Hehe, the officials are lazy and dumped the task on me. This old man, taking advantage of his Tomb Guardian status, finally gets a chance to earn a few Silver Coins!”

*Díbola Flowers, growing only on Mount Wanliu…* Du Chen still didn’t fully grasp Old Warma’s meaning, but he committed this detail to memory.

Old Warma continued to fondle the Silver Coins in his hand, looking utterly avaricious. “Your Excellency, this old man just remembered something else—the Moon-Gazing Terrace is right within the Reno Royal Palace. You are an Eminence; if you need to find the Lionheart King or any members of the Reno royal family, you should quickly catch up with those female officials. With help from the Moon-Gazing Terrace, your affairs within the Reno Royal Palace will be much simpler! The Moon-Gazing Terrace officials, backed by that woman’s influence, are the foremost… servants in the Renault Empire, whom even the Cabinet Prime Minister must show deference to!”

Du Chen recalled the Lionheart’s valiant demeanor during the Emerald Sea battle and suddenly felt a sour taste in his mouth. A nation’s Prime Minister having to curry favor with a few maidservants, and Alonso actually condoning such a disastrous act…

*Sigh, the Lionheart King has indeed grown old!*

However, Du Chen had originally planned to seek out Arthur to inquire about the Fiendkind situation. Following these women to the Reno Royal Palace would indeed save him a lot of trouble; at least he wouldn't have to wander aimlessly.

Thinking this, he smiled at Old Warma. “Old man, thank you for the reminder. I should also take my leave… Uh, could you give me some of these Dibola Flowers?”

“What are you saying? Please wait a moment; I’ll go pick you a handful right away. But they won’t be the special candied petals supplied to the Moon-Gazing Terrace, just ordinary ones…”

Watching Old Warma’s hunched, busy figure, Du Chen frowned, thinking, *You old scoundrel, one moment avaricious, the next mysterious—what exactly are you?* But this old fellow wasn't bothering anyone, dutifully serving as a Tomb Guardian, so Du Chen couldn't just capture him and torture him for information!

Receiving a handful of Dibola Flowers from Old Warma, Du Chen called back Andy and the two children, who, as Old Warma had suggested, had found absolutely nothing. The group hid within the Precious Lotus Scripture and followed the female officials along the mountain path. However, Du Chen didn’t want too many people to see him, so he simply turned invisible and attached himself to one of the officials’ sashes. He thought, *Once I return to the palace with the official, I’ll meet Arthur, and then my business will be settled! Why bother revealing myself as an intelligence officer and making extensive arrangements? I’m here to steal something; the fewer people I meet, the better!*

Besides, that woman’s affairs were, after all, a private matter for Alonso and Arthur; it wasn’t appropriate for him to get caught in the middle and socialize with the officials.

Traversing mountains and valleys, Du Chen entered the Imperial Capital Reno with the female officials by evening. Lionheart City, built on the Mountain Mid-section, was a city of winding streets and alleys. After admiring Reno’s ancient, rugged mountain-city architectural style, they finally arrived at the Lionheart King’s palace!

“It’s so beautiful, Papa! Can we make our home look like this?” little Beibei incessantly chattered in the Battle Soul, pointing at the golden palace beneath the Lionheart Mountain Cliff sculpture!

Du Chen was also stunned by the Lionheart Royal Palace’s grandeur. Not to mention anything else, the palace’s main gate alone was a twenty-meter-high golden lion’s mouth; entering the palace felt like stepping into the belly of a magnificent lion!

However, the female officials didn’t give Du Chen a chance to experience that. Instead of using the main gate, they turned to a small side door in the mountain wall to enter the palace. After passing through several corridors, just as Du Chen was about to leave them and head directly to Arthur, the officials arrived before a silver palace.

Several people emerged from the palace, blocking the officials. All the newcomers were in their twenties, yet already had full heads of silver hair. They waved away the other attendants, leaving only the silver-haired official Du Chen was clinging to. It seemed that the Moon-Gazing Terrace officials also had ranks, and these silver-haired young women were the woman’s true confidantes!

One of them, seeing no one else around, whispered angrily, “Why are you only just returning? We were almost killed because of you! Our mistress was desperate for the petals and has already ‘sucked dry’ two sisters!”

The silver-haired official’s expression immediately changed dramatically. Clutching her pocket watch, she anxiously said, “I clearly didn’t exceed the time limit!”

“Alas, you know our mistress’s temper… If she says you’re late, then you’re late. Quick, stop talking, hurry and deliver the Dibola Flowers to her!”

The official, cowering, dared not step inside. “I… I’m ‘late’? Will the mistress… ‘suck me dry’ too?”

The others looked at her with either pity or schadenfreude, but no one spoke. The silver-haired official gritted her teeth, lowered her head, and entered the palace!

Andy curiously asked in the Battle Soul, “Master, what does ‘sucked dry’ mean!?”

Little Beibei excitedly cried out, “Is there more? A vampire Demoness!” Just as he spoke, a heart-rending scream echoed from the depths of the silver, soundproofed palace… The third person had been sucked dry!