Our Family Has Fallen

Lance directly scraped off almost all the written records, planning to study them slowly later when there’s time, as long as he got his hands on them first.

He even grabbed the alchemical apparatus on the desk, including some unfinished potions, taking everything without leaving a trace.

This is my home, so it’s originally mine, what’s the problem with taking some?

To be honest, considering the power demonstrated by the Ascension Sect in recent battles, there’s basically no one who can stand against him.

To maintain secrecy, he could completely take down the old residence by himself, perhaps even more efficiently than he dealt with the bay before.

But why did he choose to infiltrate?

It’s to try and take over the assets left behind in the old residence without alerting the cultists.

Previously, they found mutation experiment data concerning the Flesh Devourer in an abandoned laboratory in the collapsed area.

As the core headquarters, the old residence surely holds numerous rare artifacts collected painstakingly by the ancestors.

Of course, there are also research documents from the wise ancestors, which may offer insights into how far they have progressed.

Lance was worried that a direct confrontation might alarm them and result in the destruction of such things, which is unacceptable.

Now, the harvest from this Alchemy Room proves the rationality of his actions.

Because knowledge is priceless...

"What’s in this box?"

"It’s likely some alchemical materials."

"Oh! This is an antique, right? Surprisingly placed just here."

On the other side, a few others examining the surroundings also found quite a few items. If Audrey, like a groundhog, specializes in various traps and mechanisms, then Amanda is well-versed in supernatural powers and mysticism, also skilled in item identification.

Able to identify the authenticity of provenance and roughly judge the value of items.

Upon hearing these words, Lance also focused his attention on other corners of the room. For those cultists, antiques have no significance; they only pursue Ascension.

It’s likely that after taking over the old residence, to use it as an alchemy room, those items were casually piled in the corners, even covered with a thick layer of dust.

There were no spiritual fluctuations, so they didn’t catch Lance’s attention, but obviously, the value of these antiques wasn’t tied to that.

Who cares about all this? Lance stuffed everything into the display room, and if it weren’t too troublesome, he’d have taken the long table too.

"Continue." After a simple glance to ensure nothing was left behind, he quickly urged them to move.

The team acted again, sweeping through one room after another, entering from the side, circling around, finally returning to the main hall.

If used to host a banquet, it can accommodate over a hundred people, highlighting the building’s enormity.

The sparse hall appears dilapidated; plaster walls are mottled, and the thick stone pillars with exquisite carvings, veiled by dust, seem to struggle to maintain their former glory.

On either side, there’s a winding staircase leading to the second floor; unfortunately, one side’s wooden components have decayed, and those cultists won’t repair it, so only one side is usable.

Like the staircases, the structure is symmetrical on both sides; now they need to enter from the other corridor to thoroughly clear the first floor.

"This side is cleared, let’s go from the other side." Lance continued directing, with Bless refreshing their status and his words carrying a tone of encouragement.

Upon hearing this, the fatigue from their continuous battles dissipated, their tense nerves relaxed, and the stress of stealth combat lessened significantly.

Soon, they moved once more, with combat making their cooperation even smoother. While advancing, Lance lightly placed a hand on Boudica’s shoulder, gently pulling while signaling backward.

Having followed for so long, Audrey certainly understood swiftly, leading the entire team to retreat to the corridor corner.

Actually, even if Lance hadn’t directed, everyone heard the approaching footsteps.

Until a certain moment, two teams met at the corner, except one side was long prepared, while the other hadn’t even reacted, plunging into panic.

Boudica had been waiting, swinging the axe blade onto the head of the cultist, immediately blood splattering.

Just when she intended to strike again, Audrey rushed up, seemingly transferring all her animosity towards Lance onto these unlucky foes, smashing right in upon encounter with the iron pickaxe in hand.

The pointed pickaxe head pierced through the black iron helmet’s defense, already wounded; even cultists found such injuries intolerable, falling to the ground, leaving only a convulsing body.

With a swift extraction, the skull-shaped mask was torn into scrap metal, leaving a hole on top, mixed bones and flesh spilling like strawberry cream from a squeezed profiterole.

However, this highlighted the coordination issue; this enemy was originally meant for Boudica to attack, with the other left to Audrey’s responsibility.

This resulted in Boudica’s intended follow-up attack being disrupted by the obstruction, forcing a switch to another target.

Such situations during battle pose significant danger, especially since the opponents aren’t merely black-robed followers but cult warriors skilled in combat.

Even a slight delay let the other cultist regain composure, lifting arms to defend against Boudica’s fierce hack.

The clash between axe blade and iron claw produced intense bang, and sparks flew.