No Choice but to Host!

"You didn't see the layer of grime I just scrubbed off." Yaxiu shrugged. "Last night I was rolling around in the muddy rain and fighting a Sanctuary sorcerer. I was filthy and exhausted. Never mind the Four Pillar Cult attacking—even if the Four Pillar Gods themselves came to cause trouble for me, I was taking this bath no matter what!" Even though Igola was thoroughly enjoying the soak himself, he could not resist remarking, "If we had used this time to search for an escape route..." "Escape? How?" Harvey set down his plate, let out a burp, and calmly replied, "Don't be fooled by the lack of people in here. There are thirteen sorcerers guarding outside, and one of them is a Sanctuary Sorcerer. Even if you went to take a leak, they'd probably send someone to hold it for you. Where would you find an opening to escape?" "I am a mind sorcerer proficient in the Domination faction," Igola said coldly. "I have never needed others to leave an opening. A swindler doesn't count on people leaving their coin pouches unguarded." "And just how many can you dominate?" Harvey asked nonchalantly. "Besides, can you dominate a Sanctuary? Not to mention the Four Pillar Cult has likely surrounded the Calamitous Fire Sanctuary. Even if an escape route existed, it would have been sealed off long ago. Yaxiu's suggestion was the right one—rather than racking our brains over counterplans, it's better to soak in the bath, rest up, and wait for fate to serve us a feast." "How amusing. In the past, I was the only one who bathed regularly, while you usually treated embalming as cleaning. Now you actually understand the benefits of a bath?" Igola chuckled in annoyance. "As the First Gospel, Yaxiu is bound to receive the highest level of scrutiny, but you won't. You clearly have the ability and the chance to look for an opening, yet instead you sit here using nihilistic values to shoot down my suggestion!" "You're too afraid of dying." Harvey shook his head. "You clearly weren't mentally prepared, so why did you come along? For a swindler, is regret considered a professional blemish?" "You just want to die too badly. Though, as a necromancer, I suppose that makes sense. After all, who wouldn't want to soak in embalming fluid?" Igola sneered with heavy mockery. "Besides, I never intended to come. I only got dragged into this by accident while trying to save Anfiel." "...I'm sorry," Yaxiu muttered, sinking almost entirely beneath the water. "I dragged you two into this." The two froze for a moment, neither acknowledging Yaxiu's apology. "...Let's just say you did it for Anfiel," Harvey said. "Still, rather than daydreaming about escaping unscathed, you'd better start thinking about how we fight our way out later." "Fighting is necessary, but it isn't an end—it's a means and a bargaining chip," Igola said. "If the Four Pillar Cult really can wipe out the Calamitous Fire Sanctuary, we most likely won't be able to escape anyway. But we can surrender." "Surrender?" "Since the Gospel believes I can build a Four Pillar Cult from scratch, why can't I integrate into the Four Pillar Cult here, or even seize power when the chance arises?" Igola's train of thought was already shifting. "If you can't beat them, join them. It's completely reasonable. So even if we make a frontal breakthrough, it should be to demonstrate our value. Think of it as a job interview in a foreign land." "...Suit yourself." Harvey lowered his eyelids. "As long as you and Yaxiu agree." Tension. Panic. Confusion. Though neither would admit it, Harvey and Igola were indeed affected by these negative emotions. Even as a necromancer who walked in the footsteps of death and a mind sorcerer skilled in managing emotions, they were not immune to the shock of unfamiliar surroundings. Especially after they had finally grown accustomed to the Gospel Country, only to be abruptly hurled into an alien land. Anyone would be irritable under such circumstances—even a cat would have a stress reaction. Thinking about it this way, Annan stuffing them into a carriage filled with anesthetic spray right after capturing them had actually been quite thoughtful—they had been so exhausted and drowsy that they didn't even have the luxury of dwelling on negative emotions. It was not as though Harvey and Igola truly had irreconcilable grudges against each other, or rather, their mutual dislike was nothing new. They were simply venting their psychological stress onto someone familiar, which made every exchange reek of gunpowder. Complaining and passing the buck truly was human nature's fastest way to relieve stress. Yet as the Rust Crow and the Ghost King, they could still quickly recalibrate their mental states. By contrast, the other person—who seemed completely unbothered by their current predicament—appeared thoroughly bizarre. "Yaxiu, why don't you seem worried at all?" Igola asked. "Do you have a way to escape this place? Some trump card Diyin prepared for you, for instance?" "No, no," Yaxiu waved his hand with a wry smile. "If I had something like that, I would have taken you both and left already. Why would I still be sitting here? But it's true that I'm not particularly worried." "To put it tactfully, I've seen too many raging storms. To put it bluntly, fate has beaten me down so many times that I don't even bother groaning anymore." He spread his hands. "Imprisonment, the Blood Moon Trial, prison break, fleeing Blood Moon, being sold off by Annan, working as Annan's employee, posing as a Sennheiser clansman, acting as Burdette's lapdog, assassinating a princess, becoming the First Gospel... and that's only half of it. "Even though our current predicament seems unsolvable, which of the things I've been through in the past was easy? Even if I were a Lalafell, after being forged all this time, I ought to have turned into a Fishcleaver Dragon by now. Besides..." "Besides what?" Yaxiu stood up from the bath, wrapped himself in a towel beside him, looked at them, and said, "Even though it might not sound very nice, from the bottom of my heart, I really feel that dragging you two down with me is wonderful. "A corpse-desecrating necromancer and a heart-toying swindler. Embarking on an unknown journey with the two of you..." The cult leader couldn't help bursting into laughter. "(*￣▽￣) It really puts my mind at ease. "To put it nicely, it's ridding the world of evil. To put it harshly, even if we all die together, someone will be there to pad the bottom of the corpse pile, won't they?" At that moment, Igola suddenly reached out and grabbed Yaxiu's ankle, dragging him straight back into the bath and sending up a huge splash. Yaxiu's curses were choked back down his throat; no sooner had he surfaced than Harvey shoved him down again. Now the cult leader was provoked—he was also proficient in the water sorcery faction, yet these two dared to play with water against him? Yaxiu dove beneath the water like a fishcleaver dragon and dragged both of them under as well. The three Sanctuary Sorcerers fought in the bath all the way to the edge of the cosmos, until the Great Dao itself was obliterated. By the time half the bathwater had splashed out, the three finally wrapped themselves in towels and climbed out in exasperation. Yet Igola and Harvey seemed to have been infected by Yaxiu's demeanor; the worry and bewilderment between their brows had faded considerably, replaced by a touch of calm confidence. Only then did Yaxiu reveal an encouraging deduction: "You don't need to be so nervous. The Calamitous Fire Sanctuary should have a trump card to counter the Four Pillar Cult." Igola asked, "Why do you think that?" "Because the First Gospel's ability is intelligence, not combat power," Yaxiu explained. "When you're being chased and bitten by a vicious dog, do you need a stick or a *Handbook on Beating Vicious Dogs with a Stick*? Yet the Calamitous Fire Sanctuary was ecstatic to summon the latter. That can only mean..." Igola's eyes widened in realization. "They have the stick to beat the vicious dog, but no way to wield it!" ... And indeed, it was just as Yaxiu had anticipated. When they finished dressing and emerged from the palace, the red-robed priest had already been waiting outside for a long time. "First Gospel, the God-Hosting Ceremony is prepared. The beings of the Calamitous Fire thirst for your sweet dew; the heretical villains tremble before your thunder." Harvey took the initiative to ask, "What is the God-Hosting Ceremony?" "A ritual to entrust the power of a divine grand law," the red-robed priest replied. "The Calamitous Fire Sanctuary's divine grand law will march into battle alongside the First Gospel." "Hosting a god?!" Igola was taken aback. "You actually possess a god?" The red-robed priest glanced at Yaxiu, and only after confirming he had no intention of elaborating did he explain, "Not a true god, but a divine grand law just one step shy of godhood. "In our Senluo Land, everyone possesses divinity, and anyone can become a grand law. A century ago, during the Dawn of the Gods, Senluo witnessed the magnificent spectacle of eight hundred grand laws coexisting in the world! "However, the power of a grand law cannot be wielded by just anyone. Ordinary sorcerers can only borrow a grand law's radiance. To contend against the Four Pillar heretics, the grand law's power must be unleashed to its fullest!" The red-robed priest looked at Yaxiu with fervent eyes. "It is said that the First Gospel can command any divine grand law. Please follow me to perform the God-Hosting Ceremony, and then you, the First Gospel, shall wield the all-destroying divine might of the Calamitous Fire!" Yaxiu blinked, sweat breaking out across his freshly washed back once more. He had never imagined that after finally escaping the Gospel god's erosion, he still could not escape the fate of hosting a god. Furthermore, the cultists surrounded them in dense ranks, faint sounds of battle echoed from outside, and the urgency in the red-robed priest's eyes was completely undisguised. There was no room for him to stall or hesitate! This time, he truly had no choice but to host!