In the middle of July, after Igula’s efforts in gathering intelligence, Ash and his party finally received so good news: There indeed existed other thods within the Senluo Wasteland to remove the "Blood Seed."
Even the Fire Cat, Blue Bird, and Gray Fox Era had produced products similar to the "All-purpose dicine." It might not be dicine per say, but instead sothing like injectors, built-in chips, or even tattoos – all aid at imdiately dispelling all negative statuses and restoring the body to its full condition in ergencies.
For example, the "Sun Reversal Technique Spirit" could achieve this; if Ash and his group had possessed a Sun Reversal Technique Spirit at the ti, they could have imdiately removed the Blood Seed from their bodies. Since there was a "Sun Reversal," naturally there were also "Moon Reversal" and "Year Reversal," which could still be effective for the trio, even after so many days had passed.
This was the simplest thod, but also the most unlikely one – aside from the "Sun Reversal," which might be used for dical purposes without any side effects, the "Moon Reversal" and "Year Reversal," luxury items for extending life’s span and of the highest grade, were not only very difficult to acquire but also would never circulate on the market.
If Ash could return to the Kingdom of Gospel, he might coax Liss, and perhaps she would bestow a few Reverse Ti Technique Spirits. But if he were able to return to the Gospel, as the Empress, Liss could simply request a Legendary Mage to help with the treatnt – all Holy Sanctuary Legendary Mages would heed Yisu’s commands.
Just think about it, the transport that accurately delivered Ash to the Kingdom of Senluo was a miracle perford personally by an Angel or a Divine Lord; it’s enough to prove the difficulty of inter-kingdom transportation... Compared to that, seeking Divine Era inheritances seed a bit more realistic.
In fact, Ash and his companions had already inquired about this with the rcury Wooden Horse, but it had been evasive and claid to be unclear about the situation of the Gray Fox inheritance, leaving them without recourse.
As for Tamasi... Could you expect a warrior servant to have a wealth of intelligence resources? It wasn’t that he lacked intelligence, just that it was on the level of the ’ten great mysteries of the Wasteland.’
During the days of chasing the Silver Lamp, passing through many towns governed by different sects, Igula leveraged his identity as a "Transcend Sect Certified rchant Traveler" to not only enter the cities smoothly but also to collect a lot of information about Senluo.
The most important piece of news was about the base of the Twin Sect, known as "Nightfall," where the "Reconstruction Elixir" supposedly originated; it could completely disassemble and reassemble a person’s body, removing all cursed impurities, returning the body to a perfect state, and even nourishing the spirit as well.
Strength and perfection are different concepts; strength is an accumulation of experiences, while perfection is a gift of birth. It’s said that every race has a perfect body during gestation in the womb to nurture a healthy spirit, but once they leave the mother’s body, imperfections begin to appear.
Many Mages believe that so-called death is when the body accrues too many imperfections, rendering it unable to hold the perfect spirit.
There was a tale of a Legendary Mage who nearly lost his soul due to a death in the Void Realm, yet he temporarily obtained a perfect body through the Reconstruction Elixir, managing to revive his dying spirit.
Such a powerful dicine would naturally have no trouble treating a re Blood Seed.
However, there was another piece of news that was neither good nor bad: According to the guidance of the rcury Wooden Horse, it seed that Silver Lamp had also gone to Nightfall.
Many days had passed since they left Black Robe Town. On the road, they had a brief skirmish with Silver Lamp: It wasn’t them ambushing Silver Lamp, nor was it Silver Lamp laying in wait for them, but simply enemies seeing red upon a chance eting on the streets, deciding there was no better day for battle than the present, and broke into a fight on the spot.
However, the outco was far different from the overwhelming victory at the Transcend Building – this ti Silver Lamp chose to host the tribulation fire, and even though it wasn’t a perfect hosting, Ash no longer could suppress her.
Ash and his party realized that unless Silver Lamp exhausted her Great Skill first, or they had support from other powers, it would be very difficult for them alone to capture this wild woman of Senluo.
Although the Transcend Sect had spread the news about Silver Lamp, with all the sects of the Qinri Alliance elevating their Great Skill’s security, it was unlikely for her to gain any more Great Skills. But with six Great Skills, equivalent to six tubes of blood, and six forms, she qualified as an end-ga boss level in gas.
Even though Silver Lamp would definitely offend other sects and opportunities to take advantage would eventually arise, it was extrely frustrating not to have control of such a tily mont.
Ash and his companions had to wait for Silver Lamp to court disaster before they could kick her while she’s down; other than that, all they could do was to draw circles and curse her.
Moreover, due to their experiences in the Kingdom of Gospel, both Igula and Harvey had developed a strong dislike for being controlled by others. Despite their bone-deep hatred for Silver Lamp, that wasn’t a reason for them to accept commands from the rcury Wooden Horse – and yet, only the rcury Wooden Horse could predict Silver Lamp’s location.
Though it was a cooperation, it was effectively following the orders of another bad woman to hunt down yet another.
Even Ash was not pleased; he was at best not averse to Hanna, but that didn’t an just anyone had the privilege to command him around, especially not the rcury Wooden Horse that kept changing skins.
If they could find the Reconstruction Elixir, apart from Ash’s Half-Touch issue remaining unresolved, the rest would largely be free from life-threatening danger and wouldn’t need to get involved in the disputes of Senluo.
Let Silver Lamp, the Four Pillars God Sect, and the Qinri Alliance fight it out at their own pace; we’ll slip away first.
Even Ash was getting tired of this chase; what he wanted now was to quickly reach the Void Realm and explore the Distant Realm with the Sword Maiden, Witch, and Weiser, happily progressing. The atmosphere in the group was getting more and more comfortable every day; Ash would occasionally burst into a silly grin in the dayti, wishing he could hurry back to a safe place to push forward with the Void Realm.
After all, this Wasteland had no unified governnt, dangerous inheritances were everywhere, and the Holy Sanctuary Mages were not as secure here as during the Blood Moon – In Senluo, a room was less comforting than a bed by the Shattered Lake!
Then, they received so bad news.
*
The setting sun was like blood, the desert like a sea, dust flying for miles, and magic raining down like a downpour.
Ash’s group of four rode their motorcycles to the cliff’s edge and gazed at the distant sight of tens of thousands of soldiers besieging a city.
The One-winged Mage provided cover for the ground infantry invading the city, while the Two-winged Mages chased and battled fiercely in the sky. Holy Sanctuary Mages on both sides crisscrossed the edges of the battle lines, with each Miracle stirring up a bloody and fierce storm.
Non-Mage soldiers, ard with simple muskets and bayonets, wearing light yellow chainmail, their eyes turned cold and heartless under the inspiration of a Spirit Mage, used ladders and tunnels erected by Earth Mages to scale the walls and engaged in a bloody lee with the city’s guards both above and below.
Outside the city, thousands of Mages linked together along four walls, with vast sandstorms engulfing the city like a deluge;
inside, one Miracle after another exploded, and the seeds within the city’s walls quickly took root and sprouted into vines that strangled soldiers and held back the sandstorm.
Every second, Mages fell from the sky; every second, lifeless bodies looked up to the heavens.
Corpses piled up, swallowed by the dust, their lives becoming the weight of the desert, their flesh the most striking color amidst the chaos, while cries and roars seed rely the sound of the winds passing through ti.
Boom!
In the midst of the yellow-clothed army, suddenly a brownish-yellow column of light erupted, then a figure soared up, catching a Holy Sanctuary Mage attempting to retreat and brutally pressing them against the city wall, piercing through the wall like a siege spike!
At the sa ti, another purple-blue column of light burst forth inside the city.
The two lights entangled, directly shattering the city wall’s defenses!
This was the grim news they witnessed with their own eyes.
The origin of the Reconstruction Elixir, the base of the Twin Sect, known as ’Nightfall’, was in a state of war.
"The Hosted God has made a move," Tamasi said.
"Whether it’s the Hosted God or the Holy Sanctuary Mages, their combat power is far too superior to the others, and their victory or defeat will decide the outco of the war," Ash frowned and asked, "Why then send Low-level Mages and ordinary people into battle?"
It wasn’t out of kindness that Ash couldn’t bear to see death; in fact, as soon as he realized he was in a world full of Miracles, he’d braced himself for the expendability of ordinary lives. Mages, who represented advanced violence and productivity, would not surprise Ash with their brutal rule over the populace.
However, as things stood, there didn’t seem to be a nation of Mages that exceptionally mistreated people. Let’s not speak of the Evangelism, still ranking the highest; although Senluo was quite strange, judging from the previous Divine Eras, the living standards of their people probably far outstripped those of other nations, though it was not stable; even Blood Moon, as the lowest benchmark, still t the basic material and spiritual needs of the common people.
So Ash was truly puzzled—what did it matter if one army could annihilate another? The Holy Sanctuary and Hosted God were armies of their own, with high-end power obliterating any military advantage. If the high-end combatants determined the victor, why bother with large-scale battles?
"There’s no room for ordinary people in your wars?" Black Crow retorted.
"In most Mage nations, there isn’t," Igula spoke, "I think I might know the reason... In other nations, war is an extension of politics, but here in Senluo, war is a conflict of faith."
"They kill for the sake of killing."
"Essentially," Tamasi replied, "As you pointed out, Ash, with the Hosted God representing the highest combat power, their battle could indeed decide the outco of the war. However, even if the Hosted Gods have their strengths and weaknesses, they have great endurance and are not easily defeated."
"Even if a Hosted God dies, as long as the Great Skill is there, soone might continue to successfully Host God. Faced with desperate situations, resonating with the Great Skill, and then turning the tide against overwhelming odds, such incidents are too nurous to count."
"And the number of followers is directly linked to the strength of the Great Skill," Black Crow’s distorted voice filled with Senluo’s indifference, "The real aim of the war is to slay the heretics."
"Why doesn’t the Hosted God join the war from the beginning?" asked Ash.
"There are four walls here," the Swindler pointed to the distance, "If I were the attacker, I would send the Hosted God to attack the second or third strongest walls, forcing the defending Host God to engage and enable the most advantageous front to break through the city gates; if the defenders strike first, I would have the Hosted God support the strongest front to break through... Regardless, it requires waiting to see how the battle unfolds."
"Although I am not a Hosted God, I’ve heard that Hosting God is a very exhausting process, best used at critical monts. Forced Hosting consus life... Don’t you find it tiring to Host God, Ash?".
Ash was sowhat puzzled, "Not at all, I even feel energetic, and my body feels light and floaty. Could it be that I use it for a short period and haven’t hit the danger threshold?".
Harvey interjected, "That sounds like you’ve snuck a taste of my candy."
"It might be because you are a perfect Host," offered Tamasi, "but that’s how the sect wars are. They may not determine a victor this ti, instead mutually depleting their followers before retreating, regrouping for the next assault. Gradually accumulating losses, eventually, one side will collapse first."
"But aren’t they all part of the Qinri Alliance?" Ash asked, "I thought..."
"The Four Pillars God Sect has already stopped expanding," said Tamasi, "And this place is too far from the Four Pillars God Sect."
"I’ve always been perplexed by sothing," Igula pondered, "Whether it’s the Holy Temple of tribulation, the Transcend Sect, or the two sides we see here, they all seem to be able to muster a considerable size of Mage troops, backed by potentially hundreds of thousands of people, even though they are not the largest sects... For a Wasteland with such a high mortality rate, your fertility rates seem extrely high, but along the way, I’ve seen few pregnant won."
"Especially for the Transcend Sect—are their followers really desirous of procreation?"
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