The Shining Star Above The Heaven-Chapter 432: Clinging Scarf

The next day, the situation in Rosalind City had significantly improved since the siege by the second prince’s troops was destroyed. Economic activities were rolling again, and the teleportation station was active once more, as the city could now significantly reduce its energy stone consumption due to the deactivation of the city’s barrier following the safe conditions after the battle two days ago.

With the teleportation station operational again, the people of the city could reconnect with the outside world.

Baron Rosalind had also sent a King Stage expert to Ardima Town yesterday to manage the area after hearing about the situation from Old Man York. As a result, the town had finally reactivated its teleportation formation.

There were still several cities and towns within the Rosalind Barony under the occupation of the second prince’s faction, but they could now be easily taken care of by the Rosalind troops. After all, the main force that had attacked the barony had already been destroyed by Aldrian.

Amid all these positive developments, the people had begun discussing matters beyond the hardships of war. The hottest topic was the circulating rumor about a mysterious swordsman who had appeared in the southern region of the empire and destroy the second prince’s troops there.

Of course, many people had seen two mysterious figures arrive in Ardima and Rosalind, but they couldn’t confirm whether one of them was the rumored swordsman. After all, the people in Caritas hadn’t seen their lord use the teleportation station, and even for cultivators who could fly, it would take at least a month to reach Ardima or Rosalind.

However, the battle outside Rosalind City further strengthened the rumor that the mysterious swordsman was indeed in the southern region and even inside Rosalind City. Some even claimed to have seen Baron Rosalind escorting the figures toward his mansion.

This caused a sensation—how could this enigmatic person have already reached the southern region and engaged in battle with yet another large army from the second prince’s faction?

Another story, no less intriguing than that of the mysterious swordsman and widely discussed across many parts of the continent, was the sound of the guqin that had resounded the night before last. It was said that the music could be heard in multiple regions across the continent.

This sent shudders through many people’s hearts, as it could only mean that a cultivator highly skilled in the sound element and the guqin had the power to affect vast regions.

The beautiful sound of the guqin could be heard across different empires—something even an Emperor Stage sound element cultivator couldn’t achieve. This led many to wonder about the identity of the guqin player. For sound element cultivators in particular, the desire to meet this figure grew stronger. A person capable of such a feat had to be a powerful cultivator with profound attainment in the sound element.

Rumors of another mysterious figure, akin to the enigmatic swordsman, began to spread. Many had already come to believe that this was a sign of changing times. With mysterious figures appearing one after another, there was a growing sense that a major event could soon shake the entire continent.

The only thing that came to their minds was the rumored prophecy of the Heavenly Direction Church. Unfortunately, the church itself had not widely spread the prophecy, and what had reached the masses was merely a rumor. Without confirmation of its authenticity, people remained uncertain about its credibility.

However, when questions about the prophecy arose, neither the church nor the noble families across the continent provided a satisfying answer. This led to a division in public opinion. Some believed that the prophecy’s time was truly approaching, while others dismissed it as nothing more than a baseless rumor, fabricated by devils to sow chaos across the continent.

In the end, whatever the truth may be, most people across the continent were already aware of the prophecy. The numerous strange phenomena and incidents involving devils in recent years had only caused the number of believers in the prophecy to grow.

However, the appearance of powerful cultivators like the mysterious swordsman gave people a sense of security amidst these uncertain times.

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Inside one of the luxurious bedrooms in the Rosalind family’s mansion, Aldrian sat cross-legged on a cultivation mat, meditating. After taking a break and refreshing his mind with a stroll through the city yesterday, he felt revitalized.

This morning, he spent his time meditating. Afterward, he planned to head elsewhere—to join another battle in the southern region. His goal was to disrupt the second prince’s plans for the southern part of the empire. He had already decided to visit Grand Duke Arim, who was said to be in an unfavorable position in his main city within his grand duchy.

His job in the Rosalind barony could be considered complete, as he had already cleared the way for Baron Rosalind’s troops to move freely again to the towns and cities that still under the second prince’s faction.

He believed that those managing these areas on behalf of the second prince wouldn’t be much stronger than the Grand Duke Stage. Baron Rosalind could simply send King Stage cultivators to handle them.

After an hour of meditation, he decided it was enough and stood up. Glancing at his arm, he saw that the scarf was still clinging to it. He sighed—this scarf was truly persistent. No matter how many times he tried to push it off, it refused to budge.

"I know you understand me. Can you release my arm now? I have to go somewhere, and it’ll be too conspicuous if I walk around with you clinging to me like this," he said to the scarf.

But the scarf remained motionless.

After thinking for a moment, he came to a decision. "Well, there’s no choice then."

He focused his gaze toward the scarf, and in an instant, his aura shifted as he released a hint of his killing intent. He kept it as restrained as possible, knowing that if he unleashed it too excessively, it could even disturb heaven and earth.

The scarf, which had stubbornly refused to move before, suddenly trembled. Slowly, it unraveled itself from Aldrian’s arm and flew toward the back of the large wardrobe, hiding itself away.

Aldrian remained still, but with a mere will, the scarf teleported right in front of him.

The scarf, which had been trembling as it hid behind the wardrobe, was stunned to find itself suddenly facing Aldrian once again. He could sense the fear and feeling of being wronged emanating from it after he had released his killing intent. Aldrian felt bad about it, but it had to be done, otherwise, the scarf would never leave him.

If he had simply teleported the scarf away, he was certain it would have found its way back and continued clinging to him. As a sealed artifact of divine grade, he believed that even if he sent it to the farthest edge of the continent, it would still return to him.

"Alright, I don’t intend to harm you. I’m sorry if I scared you, but I had to do it. You need to understand my circumstances—carrying you around on my arm isn’t convenient. If you want to stay with me, then you’ll have to remain inside a storage ring like the others."

Of course, Aldrian was referring to his other divine-grade artifacts, such as Eternal Spirit and the Spirit of Great Path.

The scarf did not seem to calm down even after Aldrian’s words and remained frightened. Slowly, it attempted to retreat again, but Aldrian simply caught it with one hand and infused it with his golden energy to soothe it.

The trembling scarf suddenly stilled in his grasp, ceasing all movement. It seemed to enjoy his golden energy as if it were nourishment.

After a few minutes, Aldrian finally spoke again.

"Alright, are you good now? I’ll store you inside the storage ring. Don’t worry, I’ll bring you out occasionally."

After receiving a response from the scarf in the form of intent, he nodded and infused it with his golden energy one last time before placing it inside his storage ring.

Aldrian sighed, finding the situation somewhat ridiculous.

"Here I am, comforting an artifact just so it doesn’t cling to me too much."

If he weren’t so preoccupied with outside activities, he wouldn’t have minded letting the scarf stay wrapped around him. He understood that the Heavenly Scarf of the Divine Phoenix felt lonely after being separated from the Phoenix Ancestor for so long, so he didn’t want to be too harsh with it.

After storing the scarf, Aldrian cleaned himself up before leaving the room and heading toward Baron Rosalind’s study. It was time for him to depart, so he wanted to express his gratitude.

On his way, he noticed Elena outside the mansion, practicing with her sword. She wore a tight-fitting outfit that accentuated her curves, and her glistening skin, combined with her beautiful face and ponytail, only enhanced her charm.

Sensing his gaze, Elena paused her sword movements and looked in his direction. Aldrian smiled at her, but to his confusion, she suddenly lowered her head and turned away making sure he couldn’t see her front.

He wanted to speak to her and say goodbye, but before he could, he felt a sudden tugging sensation in his mind. He immediately knew what it was.

A moment later, Sylphia’s voice transmission echoed.

"Dear, we have a problem," she said, panic lacing her tone.