As Li Rui expected, it didn’t take long before many people started rushing up the mountain despite the obstacles. Perhaps because the situation happened suddenly and the Holy Judgment High Court was already engaged in battle at the front lines, no one could step forward to quell the chaos.

Eventually, even the patrolling guards along the mountain path had to gather at the entrance to maintain order.

Li Rui and Cheng Mingyue had long since hidden in the shadows. After seeing the scene, they immediately started moving along the pre-planned route to rush up the mountain.

They didn’t take the paved stone road but instead went through the woodland where there was no path. The Holy Mountain was vast, with many areas difficult for ordinary people to traverse by foot. There must be hidden Extraordinary scouts among the trees, but now most of the guards had been drawn to the mountain entrance, exposing vulnerabilities.

The two quietly explored forward, and their journey was smooth since ordinary people wouldn’t normally infiltrate such a place. Inside, those Grand Priests and Holy Judgment Knights were very powerful Extraordinaries; without sufficient strength, entering was a death wish.

After advancing a short distance, Cheng Mingyue, who was scouting ahead, gestured to Li Rui to come over.

A carcass was hidden in the bushes, dressed in High Court Guard clothing.

Clearly, this person was a scout stationed to guard against extremely rare occurrences on the mountain.

"Maybe it’s those two people."

"Possibly, but not necessarily. There are too many outsiders today; others will definitely try to sneak up the mountain to explore."

Li Rui said seriously, "I have a feeling there’s a conspiracy. The Holy Judgment High Court has been too lax."

Cheng Mingyue agreed. Even though the factions in chaotic areas are not very reliable compared to the three major countries, this organization, which effectively controls several small countries, is already quite strong and shouldn’t be so easily infiltrated.

When the two sneaked into the central area of the Holy Mountain’s High Court, they encountered almost no obstacles. Even any secret scouts that should have been dealt with long ago were also eliminated by others. It seemed many had indeed breached the place today.

"Don’t be careless."

Cheng Mingyue said, "According to the map, Pellus Cathedral is right ahead."

On the Holy Mountain, the main regional landmarks are the churches. Those qualified to ascend the mountain worship at these locations. But more importantly, each church’s annex buildings serve other functions. This one, closest to the mountain’s base, is named after the first Holy Blade, and behind it is a ’military camp’, where the foundational armaments of the Holy Judgment High Court are stationed.

The High Court Guards at the mountain’s base are typically stationed here, so the area is quite expansive, only plannable at this lower altitude; anything higher would not accommodate it. Of course, the other benefit of this lower position is rapid response in case of any emergency at the mountain’s base.

"We’re not going inside. There won’t be any particularly secret things here."

Li Rui looked at the guards at the church and found they were all Extraordinaries.

"That’s strange. Look at their attire," Cheng Mingyue said, "Even as Extraordinaries, they don’t all need to wear armor, right?"

Extraordinary equipment doesn’t necessarily need to be armor. Due to special forces from the Secret Realm, even a thin shirt might have strong defensive capabilities.

Though Secret Realm and real-world equipment can be mixed, such as people wearing a bulletproof vest outside, seeing them wearing steel armor outside was still rare.

About to leave, Li Rui also noticed this previously unnoticed blind spot: the guards were all in uniform bright silver armor with bucket helmets, hiding their faces completely.

"Hey? Yeah, what are they up to?"

He whispered after discovering this, "Maybe we should take a look."

All abnormal phenomena might conceal important intelligence, and the expansive annex behind Pellus Cathedral made infiltration easier.

"Maybe wait a bit until sunset, then you use fog control to cover," Cheng Mingyue suggested.

"I’m slightly unsure if those Grand Priests and such on the mountain can see through my means."

"Better than brazenly barging in during daylight." 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

While Li Rui was hesitating, he suddenly felt a warning in his heart, sensing unfamiliar presences behind him.

They immediately turned around and first saw a person wearing a mask and brown sunglasses. Shortly after, his companion appeared from behind.

"You again."

Cheng Mingyue eyed them warily, "Have you been following us?"

The calmer person replied in a similarly low voice, "Don’t misunderstand, just a coincidence. We can cooperate since we have the same purpose, don’t we? Fighting here would make the people on the Holy Mountain laugh their heads off."

Though his tone was teasing as if joking, it oddly carried seriousness, like a middle-aged Nan Jiumei.

Li Rui stayed silent, while Cheng Mingyue continued, "What do you want?"

The middle-aged Nan Jiumei said, "Of course, find a way inside. You’ve seen those guards, right? Who would normally wear armor? There’s something up. Why not sneak in, maybe we’ll find something."

"Sounds good, but how do we get in?"

"Force our way in."

The middle-aged Nan Jiumei said, "Ha, just kidding. We should wait for darkness, or you can act as decoys."

Cheng Mingyue rolled her eyes, "No need for a bad joke in every sentence."

The man went silent, and the four waited separately on both sides of the woodland.

They indeed shared a common goal, temporary peace was usual, but to each, the others were unknown strangers, surely wary.

Li Rui remained silent, secretly observing, trying to determine who the two were. The guy with the sunglasses gave him a strange feeling, despite only showing his eyes, something about the brows and eyes seemed familiar, as if seen somewhere before.

The sun gradually set, and the Holy Mountain remained quiet, with occasional noises from the base, suggesting the Holy Judgment High Court entirely blocked ordinary people from advancing.

As darkness fell, Cheng Mingyue softly attracted the others’ attention and asked, "So, what’s your plan now?"

The middle-aged Nan Jiumei said, "Just ten more minutes."

The scene fell silent again.

Cheng Mingyue exchanged glances with Li Rui, signaling to wait, then turned silent. But as she refocused on the church, her peripheral vision caught something, making her heart skip a beat.

The middle-aged Nan Jiumei and the person with sunglasses had vanished without a trace, leaving behind only a suspicious metal object swaying where they stood, seeming like... a grenade?

Boom!!

Flames shot into the sky, breaking the Pellus Cathedral’s surrounding silence.

Of course, Li Rui and Cheng Mingyue wouldn’t be hurt by this, but they knew soon, many High Court Guards would encircle the area.

"Damn it, they really were up to no good!" Cheng Mingyue cursed.

Li Rui snorted coldly, "I expected this. They used shadow teleportation and wanted us as decoys."

"Then why didn’t you stop them?"

Li Rui casually pointed towards the church, and Cheng Mingyue turned to see Pellus Cathedral, which housed many guards, enveloped in a neat, smooth sphere of dense fog, like exhaled secondhand smoke filling a light bulb.

The scene seemed to say: A Rain Summoner was here, come save us!

"Luckily, my act is equally crafty." Li Rui grinned, "What do you think the Grand Priests would focus on first?"