Master the Abyss, starting from an apprentice priest.

Chapter 639 Austin Manor

Lagrand had already informed Austin Manor, and he was indeed quite capable—the high-ranking ministers of the Empire certainly paid considerable attention to these kinds of formalities.

As Luo Xiu was thinking this, the waiter from Austin Manor bowed respectfully to him once again and led the way to his reserved accommodation.

Luo Xiu nodded slightly and followed behind the manor servant.

Entering through the wrought iron gate, one finds a central avenue wide enough for eight horse-drawn carriages to travel side by side. The road surface is paved with carefully selected, smooth, gem-like pebbles that shimmer like large pearls in the sunlight.

The waiter led the way for Luo Xiu, explaining the various buildings and landscapes within the Austin Manor. Luo Xiu listened attentively, occasionally nodding in response, his gaze sweeping over the elegantly decorated gardens and luxurious buildings.

According to the manor's waiter, Austin Manor covers nearly a thousand hectares.

Its property belongs to the "Red Crown Prince" of the Empire, Duke Austinville Nolan. It is now managed by the Duke of Austinville's son. It is no exaggeration to say that this royal estate alone can bring the Duke of Austinville more revenue in a month than the taxes of a small town for nearly a year.

Luo Xiu walked around and looked around. He had arrived at the artificial lake that had been dug in the manor. He saw seven interconnected palace-style courtyards on the opposite bank. The villas in the courtyard had light-colored exterior walls decorated with exquisite reliefs. Every corner of the eaves was adorned with gilded statues, exuding an atmosphere of extreme luxury.

It possessed the aesthetic beauty of Rococo architecture, popular among Western aristocratic families in his previous life, but to Luo Xiu it was too ostentatious—while on the opposite bank, in that courtyard, nobles were holding a grand and solemn wedding, and at this moment, the presiding priest of the Holy Court Church was reciting blessings for the noble children who were getting married.

"How are you feeling, esteemed guest?"

While Luo Xiu was still admiring the scenery of the manor, the waiter respectfully asked him a question.

“The Duke of Austin has excellent taste,” Rosius replied with a smile.

He didn't show much envy—Lagrand should have already informed the manor of his identity, so Rosh's attitude towards the waiter was calm and indifferent, as if he had seen many such grand occasions before.

The waiter's attitude towards Luo Xiu grew increasingly respectful as Luo Xiu's demeanor became calmer, and he introduced Luo Xiu with even greater enthusiasm:

"The garden you are passing through here was designed by the best landscape architect in the entire empire, specially commissioned by Duke Austin... The Duke has gathered rare and exotic plants from the entire continent of Fanor, and even includes the Pearl Tear Mandala transplanted from the Pure Land of Kassapa..."

"You can see many rare and exotic animals that are not seen outside. They were collected by Duke Austin from all over the world, such as the snow reindeer that can only be found in remote highlands—look, it's right ahead."

Following the direction the manor waiter pointed, Luo Xiu indeed saw a snow-white reindeer nimbly leap out of the bushes beside him. It looked in the direction of Luo Xiu and the waiter, let out a howl, and then nimbly jumped into another clump of bushes.

"Those are indeed very intelligent creatures," Luo Xiu thought, and couldn't help but wonder how the snow reindeer, which originally lived on the high plateau and snow-capped mountains, could live in the relatively warm environment of Austin Manor.

The manor waiter then led him deeper into the manor until a vast expanse of open grassland came into Luo Xiu's view.

"This is the Duke's private racetrack. Austin Manor holds a large horse race here every three months, where the Empire's finest knights can enjoy riding to their heart's content."

The waiter said respectfully, “And many distinguished gentlemen also enjoy coming to the manor during the horse racing season to place a bet on their favorite riders and horses. It is a pleasant pastime for the gentlemen, and His Excellency the Duke of Austin is also very fond of it.”

—"Horse racing," the waiter said it very subtly, but Luo Xiu knew what it really meant, and it was a major source of income for Austin Manor.

Along the way, the waiter respectfully and meticulously introduced various things to Luo Xiu, and Luo Xiu's eyes were indeed opened—observing simply as a tourist with a tourist's mindset. He secretly thought that he could get one for himself in Red Maple City in the future.

……

Until the manor waiter led Luo Xiu to his residence.

A quiet and elegant courtyard, the entire courtyard was reserved for Luo Xiu—and it was about a 30-minute walk from the main gate of the manor to here, which was quite convenient for Luo Xiu.

"This is it, esteemed guest."

At the entrance to the courtyard, the waiter bowed to Luo Xiu once again, and then respectfully said:
"Lakeside Villa - Lord Lagrange has informed us that a quiet residence has been chosen for you. It was specially designed by the renowned landscape architect Delando, and many lords have expressed their preference for it."

"Then, dear guest, please let us know if you have any needs. The servants in the garden are always at your service, and if you need to travel, a carriage has been prepared for you."

"..."

After the manor waiter finished speaking, he bowed deeply to Luo Xiu, who then stepped into the quiet courtyard under the waiter's guidance.

He first passed through the waterfall-like gauze curtains, and then saw three servants wearing black short vests standing in the courtyard—the same servants the manor servant had mentioned earlier, who were there specifically to serve him.

They bowed deeply to Luo Xiu, their faces bearing professional smiles that clearly indicated they had received considerable training—Luo Xiu walked into the courtyard and headed towards the deepest room within it.

It must be said that Lagrand did indeed reserve a good place for himself at Austin Manor.

He even remembered that he had previously mentioned "preferring a quiet environment" and had Austin Manor reserved it for him. Actually, he had just mentioned it casually to Lagrand, but if there was a suitable living environment, Luo Xiu wouldn't dislike it.

"I can do many things here away from being noticed," Luo Xiu thought to himself.

He walked towards the room, opened the door, and entered, greeted by a faint scent of aromatherapy.

Actually, there was another special reason why he chose Austin Estate—

Luo Xiu was no stranger to the name of the owner of Austin Manor—the "Red Crown Prince" of the Empire, Duke Austinville Nolan. In fact, he was quite familiar with it.

It wasn't that the duke had any particularly impressive achievements that impressed Luo Xiu; the Duke of Austinville in his previous life didn't actually have much of a storyline. The key was his son—

The eldest son of Duke Austin, Hayek Nolan, is the "Order Killer" that Luo Xiu successfully opened in the Blood Cave!
Austin Estate was the property managed by Hayek, and Luo Xiu's personal visit here was also a test, a test of how Hayek would react!
I don’t know if Hayek will continue to keep an eye on me, but at least for now, Hayek probably hasn’t received any news about my last-minute decision to move into Austin Manor.

And if Hayek makes any move, he can take this opportunity to deal with Hayek's threat.

Following Hayek's line of inquiry further up, if possible, we could also deal with the greatest Order Killer lurking within the Empire—another "Red Crown Prince," Duke Harcasville Nolan!

This was the plan that Luo Xiu had prepared after moving into Austin Estate.

……

Close and lock the room door.
Sitting on the soft velvet bed, Luo Xiu gently raised his right hand, and a pale golden light gradually condensed in his palm, creating an invisible yet isolating barrier for the room.

That could block any outside prying or perception from the inside, and prevent any spiritual energy within the barrier from escaping—Luo Xiu then summoned the "Eye of Lunar Eclipse" Mist Night, letting the mist shadows it created shroud the room, and then creating another "Luo Xiu"—a "real phantom" that was no different from himself.

Until all of this is done.

Luo Xiu took out the black-patterned puppet mask from his storage bracelet and put it on his face. A dark red light began to flicker on the back of his right hand, and his figure began to become illusory and blurry.

He is about to head to the "Sacred Abyss"!
Before taking any further action, he must first return to the Sacred Abyss. This will be Luo Xiu's first return to the Sacred Abyss since the end of the decisive battle of the "Judgment War".

Above the Sacred Abyss, he still had some things to do—and before taking the next step, he had Quesanx conduct an experiment there, which was now nearly complete. ...

Above the "Sacred Abyss," in the grand hall of the Royal Court of Isol.

When the golden throne, after a long absence, finally welcomed its master again—in Luo Xiu's eyes, he finally saw the magnificent and warm colors of the "Holy Abyss" once more.

Standing in the main hall were "Faceless" Indis, "Shadow Strategist" Kross, "Alien Demon" Bakad, "Nightmare Witch" Samantha, and a dozen or so other Apostles of the Holy Abyss who had undergone "transformation" and were above the fifth level of destiny.

The apostles received advance instructions from their "Lord," and thus gathered here simultaneously from their respective locations in the real world, awaiting their "Lord"—the "Lord of the Holy Abyss"—to reveal their new mission.

Luo Xiu's gaze swept over them.

He saw the fervor on the faces of his apostles, a fervor he had not seen in a long time. So he spoke to them in a low voice:

"The war of 'trial' that took place on the continent of Fanor, between the Empire and the Duchy, has ended."

"And our purpose—'Sacred Abyss'—is the true calamity I foresee, which is also the true opportunity. The terror called 'Abyss' is about to descend."

"That is a catastrophe that will sweep across the continent of Fanor and the entire world of Apocalypse. And the 'scars' I sent you to before—the calamity beasts bred there—are the vanguard of the calamity that will first surge onto the ground."

"..."

In the period before Luo Xiu arrived at the "Sacred Abyss", the Sacred Abyss Apostles were assigned to go to various known and unknown "scars" to collect information about the Abyss Beasts and Demons in advance.

Unless facing a "Primordial Demon" like Fafnir Ramziaz, the "Devourer Dragon," only "True Ancestor Demons" will emerge from the cracks in the ground. Three or more Apostles of the Holy Abyss with "Fivefold Fates" are sufficient to defeat and capture a "True Ancestor Demon."

— It means "capture" rather than "kill".

That was the task Luo Xiu gave them—before the "Abyss Upside Down" truly arrived, he needed the "Holy Abyss" to have a certain reserve of "True Ancestor Demons" in advance.

In a sense, it is also a special type of strategic resource.

Now, six "True Ancestor Demons" have been mastered above the "Holy Abyss"—the flawed demons among them will become nourishment for "Mourning the Dead Lord" Sather to enhance his power, while demons with special powers can remain to become the power that Luo Xiu cultivates to "expand" the abyss.

—It is "pioneering"!
Luo Xiu knew that the so-called "Seven Abysses" were actually like seven vast lands—where demons and abyssal races were born. Starting from the layer closest to the "land" of the Apocalypse World, the deeper one went into the abyss, the stronger the demons and abyssal races became.

However, it is undeniable that the "Sevenfold Abyss" can be explored, developed, and even "colonized." It contains a considerable amount of resources, and in the late 3.0 version of the previous life, there was a long period of stalemate and tug-of-war between the first three abysses and the Apocalypse World.

If, through special means, a portal to the Sevenfold Abyss can be opened above the "Holy Abyss" before the actual arrival of version 3.0, it will undoubtedly give us a huge first-mover advantage before the "Abyss Hangs Upside Down" descends.

Luo Xiu was indeed planning these things.

And his "Apostles of the Holy Abyss"—at this moment, they are reverently and devoutly recording the new revelation given to them by their "Lord".

"That's all I wanted to say."

Luo Xiu's gaze swept across the faces of the apostles again, and finally he said to them:

"Go, and continue to bring back those demons with 'true names' for me."

“I will give you the reward you deserve, which is the reward for what you have done for me.”

The spiritual connection was established with the [Fountain of Spirituality]. Luo Xiu raised his arm and gently waved his hand, and the pure spirituality surged into the bodies of the apostles, transforming into their new power.

They absorbed this power with great eagerness, their expressions becoming even more devout. Only after receiving the spirituality bestowed upon them by Luo Xiu did they respectfully perform the rites of service to Luo Xiu one by one before departing from the "Sacred Abyss".

Intis remained.

She remained standing in the Great Hall of the Sacred Abyss, and only after the other apostles had departed did Luo Xiu rise from the golden throne, look at Indis, and say:

"How is 'that matter' going?"

"..."

"It went perfectly, Your Majesty."

Indis bowed to Luo Xiu and answered in a light, melodious voice:

"Your instructions to transform Pampas Dorland, the apostle of 'Lionheart,' into [Authority] have reached the final stage."

"Today marks the completion of the ceremony."

"..."

"Very good." Luo Xiu nodded slightly.

— Transforming the Pampas of "Lionheart" from "Supreme" to "Authority" was an attempt that Rosh had Quesanx undertake!

Since Quesanx inherited the "true divinity" of "authority" from Helmond, the "child of the dragon god," and ascended to become a "demon god," he has possessed the ability to transform "supreme" transcendents and saints into "authority."

Luo Xiu had not yet allowed Quesanx to make the corresponding attempt. It wasn't until after the final battle, when He returned to the Sacred Abyss to recuperate, that Luo Xiu summoned Pampas to the Sacred Abyss and had Quesanx attempt to transform him.

If successful, Luo Xiu would likely also know the upper limit of Quesanx's transformation, thus better considering how to deal with those "Order Killers" and, in special circumstances, how to deal with the "Supreme" beings that Emperor Augustusville might arrange to deal with him!

"I'll go check on Quesanx."

While thinking about these things, Luo Xiu said to Indis.

"...I will obey your instructions."

Indis nodded, reached out and stroked the bracelet, then produced a string of brightly colored, rainbow-like, circular "keys".

“I will open for you the ‘road’ to Quesanx and ‘Lionheart’ Pampas, to where they are now.”

"Indis said respectfully."

……

(End of this chapter)