Xilin plunged the dagger into his throat, but he did not pierce his windpipe. Instead, he pushed the blade downward, slicing all the way until it stopped at his waist.
He sliced open his closely woven shirt, carving a straight line of blood that divided his upper body precisely into left and right halves.
Yaxiu's expression changed. "You've changed your mind."
"Yes."
Xilin tossed the dagger aside and tucked his long hair behind his ears, regaining his elven grace. His expression was serene, his voice gentle. "Imprisoning you was merely wishful naivety on my part. You are the 'Touch' that Heath summoned with painstaking effort; you even broke out of Shattered Lake Prison, so how could I possibly keep you imprisoned?
"There are too many unforeseen accidents in this world. As long as the Four Pillar Gods still gaze upon you, chance alone is enough to puncture all my arrangements.
"I cannot imprison you, nor can I kill you, much less hand you over to the Sin Hunting Hall. I cannot even afford to delay—the power of the 'Touch' could allow you to escape at any moment.
"Therefore, I have reached a conclusion."
The elf extended the middle and index fingers of both hands. Like hooks, they drove into his chest along the bloody line he had just cut.
"It must be at this moment, it must be in this place, and it must be me," Xilin said placidly. "I will purify you."
Yaxiu tilted his head slightly. "In my understanding, 'purification' and 'healing' mean more or less the same thing..."
"'Purification' means expelling the impure, destroying the invading, and annihilating the parasitic!" Xilin's green eyes grew brighter and brighter, as if radiating light. "And you, the half-finished 'Touch' lodging inside Heath, are precisely what needs to be purified!
"I originally intended to use this miracle to destroy Heath... but I never dared. I was always terrified, which is why I became Heath's puppet and committed so many sins. Touch, I thank you. You have given me a chance at redemption."
Yaxiu narrowed his eyes. "Isn't this the same as killing me, though? The moment I die, the ritual will be completed—"
"Which is why I am resorting to this forbidden miracle."
Xilin was glowing.
His green eyes, his blood, his black hair, his skin—every shade of color upon him rippled with vivid luster. It was almost as though he were turning into an oil painting.
"Not only 'you,' but all the arrangements the Four Pillar Gods placed on you and every trace Heath carved into your body will be expelled without a shred remaining. Everything that does not belong to this body will be thoroughly purified."
Yaxiu took a deep breath. "Xilin, you're only a Two-Winged Gold Sorcerer. Do you really possess such power?"
"Of course I don't. But... the Void Realm does."
A faint smile suddenly surfaced on Xilin's face. "You attended my lecture on the Ancient Ritual faction a couple of days ago, didn't you?"
Yaxiu's pupils shrank. "A forbidden ritual..."
"There was actually one thing I didn't mention back then," Xilin said, as though giving a lecture right on the spot. "If special means are used to force a Two-Winged Sorcerer to serve as a sacrifice, one can at most pray for the full-strength blow of a Four-Winged Sorcerer.
"However, if a Two-Winged Sorcerer conducts the highest tier of forbidden rituals entirely of their own free will, that devotion will be acknowledged by the Void Realm, allowing one to pray for power... surpassing Four Wings!
"Under the shelter of the Blood Moon Sovereign, the Four Pillar Gods can grant you at most a 'blessing' of the Four-Winged level." Xilin showed a blissful smile. "Fate favors me after all. In all of Kaimeng City, only I am positioned perfectly to eliminate you, the 'Touch.'"
Yaxiu's thoughts spun rapidly as he hastily urged, "There's no need for us to take this to a fight to the death! Now that I know you were forced into this, I won't cause you trouble in the future. I actually plan to leave the Blood Moon Country. Why not help me leave the Blood Moon instead? That way, I'll be gone and you won't have to sacrifice your life—a win-win for both of us. How about it?"
"Touch, what kind of person do you take me for?"
Xilin sneered. "The president of the Elven Rights Protection Association? A council member? The mastermind behind gangs? A professor? A shameless opportunist chasing petty profits? A cowardly long-lived being afraid of death?
"I am already two hundred and three years old this year. When I was born, the Blood Moon Trial had not yet begun. After reaching adulthood, I took part in the Outland Hunting Festival. I have traveled across the entirety of the Blood Moon, witnessing the fall of old cities and the rise of new ones. All the suffering and amusements of this world—I have seen and even experienced them all.
"Did you truly think I would cling to this decrepit, aging life?" Mockery filled Xilin's eyes. "If death could have defied Heath's orders, if suicide were not forbidden by law, I would have stepped into the Blood Moon Heaven long ago!"
Yaxiu was startled. "Longevity Syndrome? Has the lantern of hope in your heart gone out?"
"Longevity Syndrome? No, there is no lantern of hope in my heart, for there is something far warmer and far more beautiful."
Xilin smiled. Directly behind him was the enormous, gorgeous blood moon. The crimson moonlight draped softly over him, like a god's blessing.
"I wanted to perish together with Heath long ago, but I could not resist him. I have been waiting for this chance. I do not seek revenge; I merely wish to prove...
"...that I still deeply love this blood moon.
"Ritual Miracle: Void Colors Staining the Origin Forbidden Ritual."
*Riiip!*
The hands Xilin had dug into the central bloody line wrenched outward to both sides, tearing his chest open like a set of curtains!
What met Yaxiu's eyes was not bright red blood or cyanotic organs, but color!
Vibrant, riotous colors surged out from Xilin's chest, engulfing Yaxiu like a river!
"The language of both the crown of thorns and the water lily is loyalty," he murmured.
At that moment, Valkas suddenly surfaced in Yaxiu's mind—since Xilin hadn't pursued and attempted to kill Yaxiu willingly, why had Xilin felt such disgust and hatred toward Valkas when the assassination failed?
Xilin hadn't despised Valkas because he failed the mission.
He despised Valkas because Valkas *wanted* to complete the mission!
Just moments ago, Xilin had stated that Valkas's reward for the mission was "reunion with his biological son."
Accepting the mission meant Valkas was still unrepentant, that he still wished to rebel against the laws of the Blood Moon Country! To Xilin, a devout believer in the Blood Moon, this was the truly unforgivable sin—the law was God's will, the rules were God's desire, and Valkas had desecrated Xilin's faith!
"Upon my passing, may the Flaying Twins peel away my mortal coil; may the Scarlet Handmaidens draw forth my blood; may the Night Shadow Priests arrange my remains; may the Blessing Angels guide my soul..."
Xilin closed his eyes, softly reciting a prayer for himself.
He thought he would see the emissaries coming to guide him, yet what surfaced in his mind was a dust-laden page of the past.
A young Xilin sat cross-legged on the wooden floor, watching an elven toddler clumsily crawl toward him with outstretched arms, begging to be held. Smiling, he scooped the toddler into his arms and used a handkerchief to wipe away the child's drool.
"Read with me. Val-kas—"
"Valkas?"
"No, I'm not Valkas. I am Xilin."
"Xilin?"
"Right. You are Valkas, and I am Xilin."
"Xilin!!~"
"...We shall ultimately reunite in the promised land."
As the final splash of color spilled forth, the scholar robes of the elf, having lost what bore them up, drifted gently onto the carpet.
Moonlight fell upon the pure white fabric, reflecting the purest shade of blood.
In the vast study, only Yaxiu Heath remained.
Lacking a supply of sorcery power, the tree entrapping Yaxiu swiftly withered and decayed, turning into brittle remains that shattered at a touch.
Yaxiu looked down at his hands, his eyes filled with bewilderment.
"I seem to be... fine?"
Chapter 158