A few more days passed with Vicente's group in Oldbarrow.
In that time, Casey had reached the level Vicente and Layla were at, becoming a High-level Mage!
Layla was a little ahead of Casey in terms of strength coupled with the density of her mana, but the difference between them was tiny. She had advanced a few weeks before him, so their strengths could be considered quite similar from the point of view of their cultivation.
But of course, in terms of combat skills, they were very different since Layla had a special movement skill, while Casey had a mental one.
Both of them could fight and be considered warriors. Still, while he was a long-range fighter, she was a short-range fighter who preferred close combat, unlike him, who kept his distance from his opponents.
As for Vicente, he was at the threshold between the 3rd and 4th stages, already very close to advancing. He wouldn't advance anytime soon, but from now on, 15 to 30 cultivation sessions should be enough for him to advance.
Just going into seclusion wouldn't guarantee his breakthrough for the time being. Since neither Torne nor he knew for sure when his breakthrough would come, they preferred to act in Oldbarrow right away.
Why not? Why not wait? Simply because there were advantages and disadvantages to waiting for the advance.
The advantage was obvious: more power for Vicente. But the downside was attracting more attention, reducing the chances of being underestimated, and losing opportunities to act sooner.
Specific plans may only work if they were immediately made because if they were delayed, they might not work due to some conditions that could not be met.
Vicente and his group would soon learn this was the case with their current situation!
Either they acted in the next few days, or it would be much more difficult for them to go ahead with their plans!
...
In a medium-sized restaurant in Oldbarrow, Vicente, Layla, and Casey sat on the same side of a table in a dark and secluded part of the establishment.
There weren't many people around, and candles illuminated the area, leaving most of the surroundings in the dark.
In front of them were two masked men, both wearing objects that covered their faces from their chins to their foreheads.
Vicente and his two companions also wore masks, though they had black cloaks over their bodies to hide their silhouettes.
"This is the information about The Fallen Angels you asked for." The man in front of Vicente said as he handed him a three-centimeter thick book. "There's a lot about this sect, so I've cataloged all the relevant information here."
The man in front of Casey said just after his companion had finished. "There's not much information about Dax, so I didn't catalog what I found out about him.
Anyway, Dax is one of the 36 elders of the Bone Mountains. That's obviously not his real name, but a nickname he's earned on his journey as a magician.
He joined the sect sometime between 300 and 350 years ago and has since risen through the ranks, passing through all the possible positions for a warrior-necromancer like himself.
The last time he was seen in public was four years ago when he was a peak Earth Sovereign. He may have advanced to become a Sky Sovereign, but I can't say for sure.
He doesn't have many family members. His parents had already died when he joined the sect, and he only had one brother back then; this person died 29 years ago. But he does have a wife and a son who live here in Oldbarrow.
His wife's name is Olga, and she is a High-level Mage. As for his son, his name is Gavin, and he's a Low-level Mage."
Vicente listened to this information with interest, seeing that he would have people to target.
The informant continued. "He doesn't have many other people with close blood ties to him, but he does have some friends.
There's a woman rumored to be his mistress, Eloise, another elder from the Bone Mountains. She is a newly promoted Earth Sovereign. And there are two men, old friends of Dax's. One is Chase, an Earth Sovereign the same age as Dax, and the other is Caleb, a Sky Sovereign close to the sect's leadership.
These three are quite capable of leaving their posts to help Dax in an emergency, just as he is.
Despite his reputation for being cruel and brutal to deal with, Dax definitely has some good relationships with those closest to him. He doesn't show it much in public, but the fidelity and loyalty these people have for him suggests the opposite of what a less thoughtful analysis would say."
"Is he in the city?" Vicente asked.
"No. I tried to probe the Bone Mountains for business with Elder Dax and discovered he had left the city a few weeks ago. But the reason for his movement didn't seem to be anything serious or complicated. He should be back soon. Elders like him don't stay away for long." This informant said.
"What about his friends and family?"
"His son, wife, and two friends are in the city. But Elder Eloise traveled with him..." The man said in an amused tone, sensing that the rumors about those two were true.
"I see..." Vicente paid the two and then left with the information about The Fallen Angels on his spatial ring while he thought about what he had just discovered.
'You must use this man's absence to move against these four people, master.' Torne said as Layla and Casey walked beside Vicente. 'Wherever he went, he'll be back in the city soon, even if we don't act. And he may hurry if something happens to these people.
So you should act against those people and then wait for him to return.'
Vicente felt that this was the case. Dax had a lot of powerful friends, so it would be difficult to take action against him with everyone he cared about in Oldbarrow. But with such a target and his mistress out of the city, it would be easier for him to act!
"We'll act tomorrow night," Vicente told Layla and Casey, determined to start his revenge!
Gulp!
"What are you going to do?" Layla asked worriedly.
"I'll tell you my plans when we return to the cultivation room. In any case, we must take advantage of his absence in the city to act." He looked at Casey and said. "I need you to take care of those two informants. Make them forget the work they did for us."
"Okay!"
With that, the group split up, with Vicente and Layla returning to the cultivation room while Casey went to do the job.
