Mutual Dyeing

If sorcery spirits were a sorcerer's lovers, then void wings were their lifelong spouse. One could possess many sorcery spirits, choose them to one's liking, and replace them at will. Even if every sorcery spirit deserted you, it mattered little, for so long as you possessed the ability, you could always make a comeback. Void wings, however, were different. Void wings were intensely personal, irreplaceable, and had to be cherished with utmost care. Without void wings, a sorcerer was reduced to virtually nothing. A sorcerer could have countless sorcery spirits in a lifetime, but only void wings accompanied them until the very end. Yet atop Ruby Mountain, under the watchful eyes of all, this self-evident truth was shattered for the very first time! "So beautiful..." Diya murmured. The others stared dumbfounded at the purplish-red sword wings spreading boldly behind Yaxiu's back. Feather after feather stacked like sword blades into elegant curves, their blazing radiance resembling both raging flames and keen edges, casting over the side of Yaxiu's face an aura of wild arrogance and fierce ferocity. They had all seen Yaxiu's void wings shattered only moments ago, and void wings of this hue were certainly not his own silver void wings. More importantly, they could see the soul radiance of another within those purplish-red sword wings. *Whoosh.* Just as Yaxiu sprouted the purplish-red sword wings, Sonia's void wings were undergoing a metamorphosis. Silver, gold, rainbow, and sword color—the opulent hues upon her wings peeled away bit by bit, like a ritual preceding the emergence of a peerless treasure, or like a cocoon shedding before a caterpillar transforms into a butterfly. Mundane glitz and glamour could no longer obscure her heart's intent. When the fleeting splendors faded away, what remained was a sharp blade. As the last trace of extraneous color fell away, four blazing, radiant purplish-red sword wings unfurled slowly behind the Sword Princess. In that instant, even Hell seemed to freeze, and several fissures quietly split deep into the core of Ruby Mountain's mass. Amid the increasingly violent currents of air, the Sword Princess's gaze grew gentler and gentler. The moment the purplish-red sword wings fully spread, Diya and the others nearly deployed their Sanctuaries to fend off the overwhelming sharpness, yet what brushed against their faces was merely a gentle breeze. "Such a... strange feeling," Sonia said. "It feels as though a part of me resides in your heart, and a part of you resides in mine. We aren't quite fused into one, yet we are no longer separate individuals either." "Do you dislike it?" Yaxiu asked. "I hate it immensely—this feeling of no longer entirely belonging to myself." Sonia fixed her eyes on Yaxiu until the latter wore a dejected look of being rejected. Only then did the corners of her lips curl upward into a smile. "Yet you are the only exception I am willing to embrace." "What on earth is going on!?" The one with the most dramatic reaction was neither Diya nor Weise, but the little maid Weixi. "It's one thing for the Sword Princess's soul void wings to grow on you, Yaxiu, but how did your supreme tail feathers dye her void wings?!" As the demigod sorcerer Spectre Prophet, what hadn't Weixi seen? Yet this time, she had truly never witnessed anything like it! Setting aside the Sword Princess becoming Yaxiu's wings, how could Yaxiu actually dye her void wings with his tail feathers? Though she had never seen it before, her discerning eye allowed her to tell at a single glance that Yaxiu's and the Sword Princess's purplish-red sword wings had already surpassed the first four void wings of silver, gold, rainbow, and extraordinary color; even Hell void wings could not compare. Though it might only be a temporary gilding of supreme hue, the might of their void wings was already enough to strike terror into demigods—contending with a God Master was no longer impossible! Explaining *Aurora's Sorcerer Handbook* was far too troublesome, so Yaxiu simply said, "Aside from allowing me to share your sorcery experience, a higher bond level also allows us to share void wings. In this current situation, it's likely that the Sword Princess shared her void wings with me, helping me condense these purplish-red sword wings out of thin air, while my void wings were shared with her, dyeing all four of her void wings in the supreme hue." "Master!" In an instant, Weixi clung entirely onto Yaxiu, her eyes gleaming as though he were an invaluable treasure. It was the first time Yaxiu had ever heard her address him as 'Master' with such heartfelt sincerity. "Hurry, raise our bond level! What do we need to do? Kissing, or connecting? Ah, we're far too restricted here in the Void Realm! If we were in reality, I'd fly straight over right now and raise our bond to the absolute limit with you!" Putting aside the imminent Hell trial, merely being able to experience supreme authority in advance was something Weixi could never resist. Yaxiu could even guess her true thoughts—her calling him Master right now was by no means feigned, but if she gained the ability to sever the Ruby Chains later, her vengeance against him would just as certainly be genuine and heartfelt. Moral codes were utterly inapplicable to this viper; her own desires were the only law she obeyed. Yaxiu shoved the maid away and snapped in exasperation, "I don't know either! This time it was sudden—" [Detected that Operators are undertaking an ultra-high difficulty desperate mission together. Expending 40 source crystals to temporarily increase bond level to adjust difficulty. Note: Detected insufficient source crystals in inventory; automatically deducting points to purchase source crystals.] [Prompt: 'Black and White Witch' bond level has been temporarily increased to Level 5.] As Yaxiu condensed a second wing—a pink-gold time wing—the Witch's four void wings also shed all their colors to take on pink-gold. From the cracks in Ruby Mountain beneath her feet, waters of the River of Flowing Gold even began to surge forth, yet they did not affect her time in the slightest; years and seasons seemed to soften toward her. Diya flew over and threw her arms around Yaxiu, her body trembling slightly. Though she had stopped being afraid just moments ago, in Yaxiu's embrace, she reverted to that little girl who needed protection. "Will the Gospel God help you?" "No. It told me that the moment I die, it will return to Gospel." The Witch sniffled. "And after I liked it so much!" "Are you scared?" "I'm not scared." The Witch held Yaxiu tightly, her fingers digging into him like barbs. "To take to the battlefield together with Papa, I can die with no regrets." Though Yaxiu wanted to correct her way of addressing him, he said nothing in the end, gently taking her into his embrace. [Detected that Operators are undertaking an ultra-high difficulty desperate mission together. Expending 40 source crystals to temporarily increase bond level to adjust difficulty.] [Prompt: 'Eternal Night Silver Lantern' bond level has been temporarily increased to Level 5.] Feeling the strange sensation within her body, Weise paused in slight surprise, then smiled. "I can as well?" She unfurled five plain silver void wings. As a god, her void wings originally did not possess the four colors of silver, gold, rainbow, and extraordinary color. But as Yaxiu sprouted a third wing—a silver lantern light wing—Weise's almost purely decorative void wings suddenly grew heavy and solid, countless strands of sorcery power gathering into the feathers of her wings. The god let out a contented sigh as her void wings spread freely and boldly, as if reliving the vain glory of a sorcerer. For gods seeking to cast spells on their own, they could only rely on source crystals and sorcerers. Incapable of condensing sorcery power, they had been mere tools from the very beginning; the only distinction lay in whether they served as tools of the world or tools of sorcerers. Yet Weise broke this boundary—in the body of a god, she grasped the scepter of sorcery power! When she descended before Yaxiu, the silver lantern she held dyed nearly the whole of Ruby Mountain in silver. Perhaps because she possessed self-awareness, the Void Realm stubbornly regarded her, a god, as a sorcerer. But now, she truly was a sorcerer capable of shouldering Hell. "It is indeed a wonderful feeling, almost as if I have become your personal god." Weise tilted her head and smiled. "Be sure to use me well this time too, Yaxiu." "What about me? What about me?!" Weixi was practically beside herself with impatience, clasping her hands together as she gazed expectantly at Yaxiu. "It must be the turn of your fourth-favorite maid now, right?!" [Detected that Operators are undertaking an ultra-high difficulty desperate mission together. Expending 40 source crystals to temporarily increase bond level to adjust difficulty.] [Prompt: 'Demon Maid' bond level has been temporarily increased to Level 4.] Both Yaxiu and Weixi felt as though they had grown a bit closer, but it was nowhere near the degree of being virtually fused together. Weixi blinked, looking at Yaxiu. Yaxiu looked back at her in gloom. "Our bond level before this was too low. Even with the boost, it still hasn't reached the point where we can share void wings."