The warm light of the Radiant Star poured over Jialesi, cut by the villa's window into a clean block that shone upon Yaxiu like a slice of pudding.
Yaxiu slowly opened his eyes. He sat on the bed in a daze for a moment, picked up the pitcher from the nightstand, and poured half a glass of water. Then he lifted the glass and took half a sip, the trembling rim splashing droplets onto his face.
The glass wasn't trembling; it was his hand.
"I'm still alive..." Yaxiu exhaled a long breath of turbid air, wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, and flopped backward onto the bed. "I survived..."
Recalling his first night on Ruby Mountain, Yaxiu still felt a lingering dread.
No one had expected that while the three of them were in the middle of their civil war, a Legendary blood sorcerer would suddenly appear out of nowhere.
The instant the gun barrel locked onto him, Yaxiu felt as though he had reverted to a frail mortal. A shudder surging from the depths of his soul paralyzed every nerve throughout his body. He lost all his strength; even his life seemed to flee his vessel alongside his blood in a desperate rush. An overwhelming darkness engulfed him, as if the entire world were forsaking him.
That was death.
Pain was merely death's sensation; loss was death's essence.
In that sense, sorcerers were fortunate. Even if a sorcerer lost everything, they still had the Void Realm as their sole, ultimate sanctuary.
Only then did Yaxiu truly grasp the chasm between himself and a genuine Legendary. Facing a Legendary lethal move, he had been incapable of mounting any reaction whatsoever. Most absurdly of all, despite being merely a soul entity, a physical body had briefly materialized on him by sheer force of the miracle, which was then thoroughly overwhelmed by the rebellion of his own hormones and blood, causing him to bleed uncontrollably from all seven orifices!
From that single strike, one could catch a glimpse of the tip of the iceberg that was a Legendary sorcerer. If One-Wing sorcerers "used whatever they had," Two-Wing sorcerers "created miracles with heart and will," and Sanctuary sorcerers began to "handle various situations," then Legendary sorcerers "conquered the boundless with the finite."
The world was limitless, and the Void Realm was infinite. The sorcery system was evolving with every passing second; even a Legendary sorcerer could not keep pace with the times at every moment. Moreover, it was hardly rare for ancient arts to find new life or obscure factions to suddenly surge into prominence.
Not every miracle could be countered. When an exceptional miracle was first invented, there was often no established strategy to neutralize it. Anyone facing it was bound to suffer a defeat, a phase known as a miracle's "monopoly of advantage."
Many low-ranking sorcerers assumed that Legendary sorcerers must possess trump-card-level "unsolvable miracles." While Legendaries indeed held such aces, their true power lay in their ability to handle unsolvable miracles.
Once sorcerers advanced their craft to the Legendary realm, they were no longer satisfied with trading spells back and forth. Such exchanges were an endless arms race; there would always be miracles beyond their means to counter. This was not due to personal incompetence, but because every faction of sorcery possessed inherent flaws and limits.
Thus, Legendaries took a different path: they made the entire chessboard their own. No matter what brilliant move an opponent played, they could never escape the constraints of the board.
An outstanding miracle was "technique," an exceptional combat system was "method," and transforming any environment into one's home field was "dominance."
The gunshot Yaxiu had faced was the inception of that dominance.
Had the bullet struck him, his entire body would have burst into a blooming blood lotus. The splattered blood would have served as the Legendary blood sorcerer's casting medium, followed by step-by-step detonations until the surrounding area turned into a vast ocean of blood.
Therefore, to say nothing of the present, even if Yaxiu reached the pinnacle of the Legendary realm in the future, he would likely only be able to mitigate the blow, not evade it entirely. If an opening tactical gambit by a Legendary sorcerer could be so easily countered, all subsequent tactical maneuvers would be rendered completely useless.
The strength of a Legendary sorcerer lay in severing the enemy's connection to the world.
When even your own blood chose to betray you, what else could you rely on?
Then, two brilliant answers made their stunning entrance, becoming the only two colors in Yaxiu's blood-tinted vision.
After a cataclysmic clash of thunder and fire, the Legendary blood sorcerer's soul scattered and mind shattered to the tune of a loser's wails. Of course, he certainly wouldn't die, but how many years he would spend as a vegetable in bed was anyone's guess.
Though none of them knew why taking down a veteran Legendary had been so effortless, the joy of triumphing over a formidable foe and surviving against the odds still had the three of them excitedly high-fiving—only for the atmosphere to quickly turn awkward again. When Yaxiu said, "The three of us are really amazing," both of them glared at him fiercely.
Thus Yaxiu was deeply grateful to this Legendary blood sorcerer. Even though the man had been battered to a pulp, at least the Sword Princess and the Witch couldn't continue fighting each other!
Only then did Diya remember to share common knowledge about Ruby Mountain. As the three attempted to climb the mountain, they chatted, learning essential survival intel about the sorcerer list, ruby angels, weather, and more. Sonia chimed in with what she knew of Legendary sorcerers' experiences, helping everyone quickly acclimatize to their new workplace on Ruby Mountain.
Just when Yaxiu thought he had slipped through the net, Sonia remarked casually, "You're staying at Felix's villa right now, aren't you? I know where that is. I'm coming to see you tonight."
Before Diya could speak, Yaxiu objected immediately. "It's far too dangerous to be associated with me!"
"I'm not going there for you. Can't I visit Felix? Professor Trozan just happened to ask me to notify him about something, so having some contact with him is completely reasonable. As for Felix, I can simply tell him I came to consult him on matters regarding the Four Pillar Cult, which won't arouse his suspicion. When the time comes, you can tie him up, knock him out, and lock him in the basement. He won't even know whether I entered the villa."
"Besides, if I don't visit you, do you really dare come find me at Sword Flower University?"
Yaxiu was left speechless. Naturally, he wouldn't dare seek out the Sword Princess at Sword Flower University. Once discovered by anyone else, Sonia would have no choice but to elope on the run with him—though she might actually relish that romantic notion.
With that, Sonia lifted her chin, the corners of her mouth curving upward as she shot Diya a sidelong glance. She practically had "petty triumph" written across her forehead, as adorable as a kitten that had successfully stolen a treat.
"In three days, I'll open a portal from the Gospel to Jialesi," Diya said leisurely. "Miss Anfeier misses Auntie Bogin very much. Uncle Harvey is injured so severely; he needs proper medical treatment."
Diya quietly hugged Yaxiu's arm and cast a subtle glance at the Sword Princess. Her lips curved into a disdainful smirk, her eyes brimming with smug satisfaction, alluring like a little fox whose scheme had just succeeded.
Sonia instantly bristled. Even though she had never met Igola or Harvey, she knew the weight those two men held in Yaxiu's heart.
For instance, Sonia had once playfully asked Yaxiu, "If Igola and I both fell into the water, whom would you save?" Yaxiu's reply had been, "Could we change the question to you and Harvey falling into the water?" Even though both were men, on Sonia's alert list their threat level was only slightly below that of the Witch and Weise.
Using the two of them as bargaining chips, Yaxiu was guaranteed to take the bait!
Sure enough, Yaxiu didn't hesitate in the slightest. "When the time comes, I'll take them back."
Sonia couldn't object, nor could she ask Yaxiu to stay behind alone—that was far too dangerous. So she blurted out at once, "I want to go too!"
"But Sword Princess, you can't abandon your career, connections, and family in the Starry Country, can you?" the Witch smiled. "Why not wait until you take control of the Starry Country before inviting Yaxiu as a guest?"
Sonia was so furious her stomach felt like it was burning up. She grabbed Yaxiu's wrist, pressed her lips together, puffed out her cheeks, and looked at him with an aggrieved, stubborn pout. "You won't abandon me, will you?"
Diya's tone was equally thick with yearning and sorrow. "We're all waiting for you to come back... You promised us."
On the surface, those two sentences sounded pleasant enough—if one ignored the fact that each of them held one of Yaxiu's hands, if one ignored that they were employing miracles to restrain his arms, and if one ignored that they were on the verge of tearing him in half...
Yaxiu couldn't even remember what he had blurted out to survive that trial of torment. After struggling to pull himself back into reality, he genuinely felt as though he had brushed against death.
Yet seventeen hours later, he would still have to enter the Void Realm. And before that, the Sword Princess was going to hunt him down early.
What was he supposed to do?
After pondering for three seconds, Yaxiu felt his brain simply lacked the processing power for such heavy calculations and decided to face life with optimism instead.
Why worry so much? Life was a stage of unpredictable twists and turns; what if he dropped dead the very next second!
Having bolstered his mental state, Yaxiu quickly freshened up and opened *Aurora's Sorcerer Handbook* once more. Three pop-up messages suddenly greeted his eyes.
They were long-absent growth reports.
Yaxiu hadn't seen growth reports for a long time. Ever since he stopped configuring training policies, they had ceased appearing. For some reason, they had surfaced again today.
"Dead Frenzy Sword Princess's Growth Report: 7.4 – 10.17"
"Bond Level: 4 (75% EXP Sharing)"
"Sword Faction: Gold -> Sanctuary"
"Light Sorcery Faction: Silver -> Silver"
"Water Sorcery Faction: Silver -> Gold"
"Time Faction: Gold -> Gold"
"Space Faction: Silver -> Gold"
"Sorcery Power: Sanctuary One-Feather -> Legendary Zero-Feather"
"Training Evaluation: SS!"
"Having achieved an SS evaluation, Dead Frenzy Sword Princess receives the Handbook's class enhancement: Sword Demon!"
"Sword Demon Class Trait: When the Sword Demon locks onto any target, the target undergoes a willpower check every 10 seconds. Upon failing the check, the target will enter a state of Chaotic Fear for the next 10 seconds, drastically increasing miracle failure rate; if the first check is failed, the target will fall into 0.5 seconds of Absolute Fear, rendering them unable to control themselves."
"Due to the advancement in sorcery power, Dead Frenzy Sword Princess's innate talent has been enhanced!"
"Having achieved an SS evaluation, Dead Frenzy Sword Princess receives the class assessment quest 'Sword Demon'!"
"Sword Demon: Within the next 360 days, intimidate and defeat more than ten Sanctuary sorcerers or three Legendary sorcerers using the Sword Demon trait to permanently solidify the Sword Demon class trait! Current progress: (0/10) / (0/3)."
Damn!
Yaxiu was completely stunned. This Sword Demon class trait was absurdly powerful. It was practically equivalent to a Legendary mind miracle, required no sorcery power to maintain, triggered once every ten seconds, and upon success immediately inflicted Chaotic Fear.
He wanted such a powerful class trait too!
More importantly, now that the Sword Princess had this Sword Demon class, would a single glare from her make him lose all will to resist and obey her completely?
However, Yaxiu quickly made his peace with it—even without this class, he didn't dare resist the Sword Princess anyway.
The terminology of the Sword Princess's talent had also undergone some changes:
"Innate Talent: Sword Princess (Celestial Rank): Obtains an additional 250% sword experience, with a low chance of obtaining 10,000% sword experience; occasionally triggers the phantom of the Extinction Resentful Blazing Dragon (talent tier can be unlocked after improving strength)."
The dragon breed bonded to the Sword Princess had evolved from the Resentful Blazing Dragon to the Extinction Resentful Blazing Dragon. Strangely enough, even though Yaxiu had already reached Ruby Mountain, he had never heard of any Resentful Blazing Dragon.
"Black and White Witch's Growth Report: 7.4 – 10.17"
"Bond Level: 4 (75% EXP Sharing)"
"Mind Faction: Silver -> Silver"
"Fist and Claw Faction: Gold -> Sanctuary"
"Time Faction: Gold -> Sanctuary"
"Water Sorcery Faction: Silver -> Silver"
"Space Faction: 0 -> Silver"
"Sorcery Power: Sanctuary One-Feather -> Legendary Zero-Feather"
"Training Evaluation: SS!"
"Having achieved an SS evaluation, Black and White Witch receives the Handbook's class enhancement: Empress!"
"Empress Class Trait: While the Empress is present, all allied units receive Morale Boost based on their loyalty to the Empress, significantly increasing sorcery power recovery speed, sorcery spirit resonance rate, and Void Realm inspiration frequency; meanwhile, the loyalty of allied units affected by Morale Boost will continue to deepen and increase."
"Due to the advancement in sorcery power, Black and White Witch's innate talent has been enhanced!"
"Having achieved an SS evaluation, Black and White Witch receives the class assessment quest 'Empress'!"
"Empress: Within the next 360 days, recruit 100 followers using the Empress trait. Upon completion, the Empress class trait can be permanently solidified! Current progress: (0/100)."
Yaxiu blinked. He hadn't expected Diya's new class to be an area-of-effect buff aura, and an exceptionally potent one at that.
Setting aside sorcery power recovery speed, the sorcery spirit resonance rate was equivalent to a critical strike rate, and increasing Void Realm inspiration frequency was akin to giving sorcerers more flashes of insight. Looking at it made Yaxiu want to stick to Diya's side every waking moment.
Moreover, the assessment quest for the Empress was effortless for her—she was an actual Empress, after all. If she wanted to recruit a hundred followers, the Gospel families would scramble over one another for a spot, wouldn't they?
However, this Empress trait actually caused others' loyalty toward the Empress to deepen continuously...
Yaxiu pondered for a moment and felt there was nothing to worry about—his loyalty to Lisi and Diya was already maxed out anyway!
The Witch's talent had also changed slightly:
"Innate Talent: Witch (Celestial Rank): Obtains an additional 250% time experience, with a low chance of obtaining 10,000% time experience; occasionally summons the aid of the Chiming Bronze Dragon (talent tier can be unlocked after improving strength)."
The Bronze Dragon had evolved into the Chiming Bronze Dragon... Yet Yaxiu had at least witnessed the phantom of the Resentful Blazing Dragon once, whereas he had never seen the Witch's Bronze Dragon even a single time.
Beneath these two growth reports, one message remained.
With a faint premonition stirring in his chest, Yaxiu gathered his courage and tapped on it:
"Youlan Weise's Growth Report: 7.4 – 10.17"
"Bond Level: 4 (75% EXP Sharing)"
"Sorcery Power: Sanctuary One-Feather -> ???"
"Training Evaluation: SS!"
"Having achieved an SS evaluation, Youlan Weise receives the Handbook's class enhancement: Silver Lantern!"
"Silver Lantern Class Trait: Any area illuminated by the Silver Lantern will undergo continuous silverification. Everything silverified is controlled by the Silver Lantern—destruction, purification, alteration, restructuring, reconstitution... Specific effects await further development by the Silver Lantern."
"Due to the advancement in sorcery power, Youlan Weise's innate talent has been enhanced!"
"Having achieved an SS evaluation, Youlan Weise receives the class assessment quest 'Silver Lantern'!"
"Silver Lantern: Within the next 360 days, completely purify the decaying green beasts of the Senluo world. Upon completion, the Silver Lantern class trait can be permanently solidified. Current progress: 0.8%."
Yaxiu froze for a long time. Suddenly, he threw a punch, sending faint ripples across the interface of the Handbook.
"This broken game..." The corner of his mouth twitched, forming a smile that looked uglier than weeping. "Is it mocking me?"
She had already turned into a god... trapped in the vast, distant darkness of a dead apocalypse... What meaning was there in continuing to generate her growth reports? Was it pretending that she would still meet them in the Void Realm?
Yaxiu held his forehead and lay back on the bed, letting out a soft sigh, before swiping over to the operator interface.
"Innate Talent: Arbiter of Fate (Celestial Rank): Obtains an additional 250% truth and destiny experience, with a low chance of obtaining 10,000% truth and destiny experience; occasionally attracts the gaze of the Reincarnation Phantom Mirror Dragon (talent tier can be unlocked after improving strength)."
He stared at Youlan Weise's portrait for a long time. Then he suddenly sat up straight, patted his cheeks to clear his head, took a deep breath, and let light return to his eyes. "Right. Even the Handbook hasn't given up, so why am I moping around here?"
"I will definitely rescue you from the Senluo apocalypse." Yaxiu clapped his hands lightly, closed his eyes, and muttered to himself, "I will never abandon my operator."
Having checked all the information, Yaxiu was just about to close the Handbook when something suddenly crossed his mind, and he opened the "Operator Recruitment" interface.
Chapter 770