Blockading Ruby Mountain

In the Gospel Country, inside Nabistin's Yisu Imperial Palace. "Total blackout across Modora." "A massive drone riot in Azura has left seventy-eight injured." "The autonomous driving systems are malfunctioning continuously. Traffic accidents nationwide today have surpassed ten thousand cases, far exceeding the total of the past ten years..." Diya had originally been fretting over whether Yaxiu and the Sword Princess's date tonight might end up causing a casualty, but now she had no time to worry about such trivial matters. If she couldn't quickly remedy the various catastrophic mishaps plaguing the Gospel Country today, she herself was going to be the next casualty. The Gospel system had crashed. From basic resource distribution to complex interpersonal mediation, everything in the Gospel Country was built upon the operations of the Gospel system. Now, with so many problems erupting across the country, the root cause was the Gospel system's sudden failure to function normally. Every societal mechanism reliant on the Gospel system's underlying services instantly blew up. The blacked-out cities were the tribute, the colliding drones were fireworks, and the completely paralyzed urban thoroughfares were festive celebration grounds—the entire Gospel Country was throwing a mad carnival. After all, the Weaving Ceremony had only just concluded, and everyone still remembered that the omen of "Doomsday" revealed during the ceremony had started with the breakdown of the Gospel system. To begin with, this year's Weaving Ceremony had been an utter mess, with numerous rankings swept by those outlanders, so people had assumed the whole thing was pure fabrication and theatrical farce; naturally, they had not taken the doomsday prophecy to heart. Yet that past moment bore such an uncanny resemblance to this very instant, instantly shattering the psychological defenses of the Gospel populace—was it actually coming true?! The major corporate families were practically going mad. The collapse of social order affected them most severely, and every family frantically reached out to the Yisu imperial house hoping to resolve the issue as soon as possible. Yet overt or covert, their underlying message was singular: The Gospel system had never malfunctioned before, only to crash during this particular empress's reign. And coincidentally, this reigning empress was unlike past empresses—she was the First Gospel endowed with an intense sense of self... Your Majesty, do you have any clues? Aside from the two family heads, Qinna and Evalyn, nearly every other clan stood in opposition to Diya, demanding that she become a "complete" First Gospel and take absolute control over the Gospel Country. Qinna and Evalyn were not genuinely that close to Diya either; it was just that Senheiser and Berdette were tied far too deeply to Diya. Moreover, both of them knew Annan, and Annan had once told them: "Lisidiya will forge a new era." Annan was Qinna's daughter and Evalyn's best friend. They might not believe in Lisidiya, but they were willing to believe in the Purple Moth, Annan. More importantly, even if they stood against Diya, the best outcome would merely be perpetuating the millennium-old status quo of Gospel. But if they followed closely behind Diya, there was the possibility of reaping returns a thousandfold. Although Qinna and Evalyn had completely different personalities, they shared two traits: both held a carnal interest in Yaxiu, and both were gamblers. What gamble could be more worthy of going all-in than wagering on a sovereign? Precisely because of the disruption and interference from these two families, Diya could remain quietly in the imperial palace rather than being forced to face the interrogations of the various noble houses. At this moment, she was lying in Annan's arms, her hair an eclectic mix of colors—a sign that all her sisters were possessing her simultaneously. As the bearer of the Gospel God, the Yisu Empress possessed the authority to inspect the low-level data of the Gospel system and, if necessary, even patch vulnerabilities. At a time like this, even Lisi did not dare make trouble, obediently helping her elder sisters examine the documents. After an unknown span of time, Diya's furrowed brow slowly smoothed out, and she said, "Convene a remote conference in Diyin Palace. Contact all honorary advisors." Annan was startled. "Is there a solution?" "There is no solution, but it can be handled." "Why don't you discuss it with us first—" "Carry me to Diyin Palace to convene the meeting," Diya said, rubbing her eye sockets as she leaned limply against Annan's soft body, speaking languidly. "I don't want to say it twice." Did she not want to explain twice, or not want to issue an order twice? Though it sounded like a child acting spoiled, Annan's heart skipped a beat as she suddenly realized that the girl she was holding was an emperor commanding hundreds of millions of living souls in Gospel. Even with chaos of this scale breaking out, Nabistin remained as calm as ever, and the Diyin Empress still wielded limitless power. Diya's order was swiftly carried out. Sitting upon the throne of the New Diyin Palace, dozens of light screens materialized before her. On them, some figures appeared grave, some calm, and some even wore faint smiles, but having earned the title of honorary advisors to the imperial family, every single one of them was a person of high standing capable of shaping the future of Gospel. "Of the four Legendary Sorcerers, aside from the one who was wounded in the Thousand Wishes inheritance and is still recuperating, of the other three: one is dead, one is wounded, and one has left." Without any preamble, Diya dropped a bombshell. "What?!" Three cries rang out from the light screens, coming from the families of those three Legendary Sorcerers. Diya yawned and adjusted her posture, leaning lazily against the throne. "It was the order of the Weaver." Diyin Palace fell into utter silence in an instant. Everyone in the light screens seemed to have lost the power of speech, not even daring to breathe, lest an impolite breath be misconstrued by the Weaver as harboring discontent. "Those three Legendary Sorcerers were dispatched by the Weaver on a mission," Diya said slowly, rubbing her temples. "The method to carry out the mission was to reach other countries via empty doors. As for where they went and what mission they were given, I have no idea. But the Gospel system recorded traces of them—the Weaver commandeered 95% of the entire nation's computational resources and even borrowed against future computational power specifically to open targeted empty doors for them. "This did not just happen today. A month ago, the Weaver had Gospel commandeer all idle resources to analyze and calculate empty doors... but today appears to be the deadline, so the Gospel system spared no cost—even paralyzing society—to fulfill the Weaver's task. "Even so, two of the three empty doors malfunctioned. Lord 'Poetry of Cloud' was torn to shreds by spatial turbulence." 'Poetry of Cloud' was the legend of the Zuyundasi family. The head of the Zuyundasi clan looked as grim as pooled ink, forcing a smile uglier than crying as he managed with great difficulty, "To serve the Weaver is the honor of the Zuyundasi family." These high-ranking figures, who had dared speak sarcastically to Diya and push her into a corner just moments ago, were now meekly and quietly digesting the information. Only after quite a while did someone ask in a timid voice, "Then... when will the Gospel system be restored?" "Hmm..." In truth, it would recover by tomorrow. Diya was about to speak, but Black Butler and White Queen suddenly had a new thought. "It will take three days to recover," the Yisu Empress said lazily. "However, starting tomorrow, a sliver of resources can be allocated to support minimal societal functions." The crowd breathed a sigh of relief, only for their blood pressure to skyrocket again the next second at the empress's words. "However, such occurrences might become the norm." "What?!" "The emergence of empty doors connecting the six countries is an unstoppable historical trend, a momentous upheaval unseen in a millennium," Diya said. "Over the past 1,668 years, regardless of what transpired across Gospel lands, the Weaver never took the initiative to intervene in the destiny of mortal beings—yet now, an exception has been made. "When even the Divine Masters are stepping into the arena, do you really think you can live in peaceful comfort? Today may very well mark the dividing line between the idyllic pastoral era and the new era!" Everyone's expressions shifted unsteadily. Evalyn suddenly asked, "But what can mere mortals like us do?" "Gaze upon me, revere me, and follow me!" Diya opened her eyes and swept her gaze across every pair of eyes in the light screens. "Even the greatest Divine Master can only rule over Heaven and cannot meddle in the mortal realm at will. Holding Gospel in my hands, I am the god of this mortal world! Only I can protect the Gospel Country in the days to come, and perhaps even... unify the six realms!" With a whoosh, Diya unfolded three illusory wings, displaying her identity as a Sanctuary Sorcerer! Do not forget, she was still in the form of a little girl! This sight was undoubtedly a tremendous shock to the advisors. The vast majority of family patriarchs were merely two-winged sorcerers; seeing this white-haired little girl already possess a full set of three wings made them feel as though all their years had gone to the Lalafells. "Glory to Her Majesty Diyin!" Qinna was the first to shout and declare her allegiance, followed quickly by the heads of the Six Crest families. "Glory to Her Majesty Diyin!" "Glory to Her Majesty Diyin!" In the end, Diyin Palace was filled with flattering praises directed at Lisidiya. Diya knew that most of them were merely swimming with the current rather than submitting from the bottom of their hearts, but it did not matter. She only intended to consolidate power and further advance her Overcoming the Superior plan to thoroughly conquer the Gospel God. The crash of the Gospel system was both a crisis and an opportunity! Through this catastrophe, the leaders of each faction realized that their social order had actually been built on a bed of loose sand; how could they not harbor thoughts? The Weaver hadn't even acted with malice—He had merely made a slight move, and the entire Gospel Country was on the verge of falling apart. How could they not feel a sense of crisis? Compared to the Weaver in the Kingdom of Heaven, Lisidiya in the imperial palace was unquestionably a figure far more worthy of following. At the very least, if the entire Gospel Country went down, the palace certainly wouldn't escape either—they trusted that Lisidiya wouldn't slam down on the accelerator while the Gospel Country was heading downhill. Originally, they were quite displeased with Lisidiya's new policy of "reducing Gospel intervention and increasing planned regulation." But with an event like this unfolding, even if Lisidiya didn't bring it up, they would proactively demand expanding the government's scope of authority—so that if another catastrophe like the crash of the Gospel system occurred, the imperial house would possess the means to maintain social stability. Beside her, Annan looked at Diya in surprise, but soon bowed respectfully toward her as well. Although she had quietly taken another step toward centralization of power, Diya did not feel much joy inside; instead, her worries grew heavier. While querying the Gospel system's low-level data earlier, Diya had also uncovered a new piece of intelligence and had already personally verified it: Sorcerers of the Gospel Country could not enter Ruby Mountain. ...... ... "Here is the sorcery spirit you asked for." Inside the affiliated hospital of Kaimeng City University, Xifulin looked at the blood-eyed nun before her—who wore a nun's habit that was so revealing it oozed sin—and carefully accepted the box. "Thank you, Senior Sister." "No need to thank me. You earned it," said Blood Weep Vice Director Selei as she crossed her legs, the high slit cut to the base of her thigh teasing glimpses of deep shadow. "It's Headquarters' own fault for doubting you without reason." Xifulin checked inside and raised a brow slightly. "Senior Sister, I believe I requested five sorcery spirits..." "I know." Selei produced another box. "Your senior knows you're thoughtful and went out of your way to request a three-winged mind sorcery spirit for me. I'm so grateful to you—how about I repay you properly in a little bit? What do you say, right here in the office, or over in the examination room next door?" Xifulin's face stiffened. "I... um, there's no need..." "Oh? Was this not a gift for your senior?" Selei wore a look of utter surprise. "You major in water and blood sorcery and have never touched the mind faction before. Why would you request a three-winged mind sorcery spirit?" The black-haired young woman looked utterly stifled, unable to conjure any counterargument, and could only say helplessly in the end, "...That's right. This was indeed a gift prepared for you, Senior Sister." "Pfft." Selei lunged directly across the desk, hugging Xifulin tightly and rubbing against her as though trying to knead her into her own body, giggling, "Junior Sister, you're just too cute! I want to gobble you all up, eat you up, eat you up!" Xifulin felt not the slightest hint of romance; instead, her whole body went rigid, like a tiny insect ensnared by a venomous spider. Her senior sister was quite renowned among the Blood Saint clan. After all, it was already the year 1668, and the Blood Saint clan was preparing to abandon traditional blood-drinking in favor of blood jelly and the like. Yet her senior was a thoroughgoing gastronomic retro-traditionalist who had even joined the Church of Ultimate Love to learn from the ancient Moon Shadow clan how to better feast on humans. "I'll stop teasing you. But I won't give this sorcery spirit to you; I'll only give it to its true master." Selei poked Xifulin's cheek. "Call your assistant in." Xifulin's expression changed. Just as she raised her hand, Selei caught her wrist in an iron grip. The latter extended a crimson tongue nearly ten centimeters long and lightly licked her junior sister's cheek. "Relax, I don't care for Veelas. They taste like cotton candy. My favorite... is only my own kind." Xifulin remained silent for a moment, then pressed a button on the desk. Soon, the Veela hurried in through the door. "Has that pervert senior of yours left—hello, Blood Weep Vice Director." "That's the first time a Veela has called me a pervert." Selei chuckled and tossed the box over. "This is your junior's gift congratulating you on your advancement to Sanctuary Sorcerer." "Thank you!" Freya opened it and looked inside, her eyes lighting up with delight as she gave a sweet word of thanks. Yet she quickly caught herself. "How do you know I advanced to Sanctuary?" The Veela snapped the box shut, shifting her wary gaze between Selei and Xifulin. "Xifulin, you weren't threatened by her, were you? Like, 'Junior Sister, you wouldn't want Freya's true strength to be exposed,' or something along those lines..." "Oh right, that works too!" Selei said, as if suddenly enlightened, rubbing her cheek against the cheek of Xifulin that she had just licked. "Junior Sister, you wouldn't want Freya's true strength exposed, would you?" "Selei." Xifulin neither resisted nor complied, merely saying calmly, "What exactly do you want?" The blood-eyed nun narrowed her eyes. "An angry junior is cute too... But don't blame me, this was actually Teacher's idea. She told me to rein you and your little girlfriend in a bit, hoping you two would mind the impact you make. "It's not that she can't protect you, but the situation lately has been rather strange. If you're singled out as a target and attract the gaze of those even higher up, things will become unpredictable." Xifulin's eyes widened—their teacher was already among the highest tier of the Blood Saint clan in the Blood Moon Country; even the Blood Emperors revived from antiquity could at most stand on equal footing with her. The "even higher up" that even Teacher feared could only be... "No matter how conspicuous you are, it's fine, but your little girlfriend must keep a low profile," Selei said. "There are simply too many eyes on you two." Xifulin went silent for a moment, then nodded slowly. "I understand. Thank you, Senior Sister. But let me clarify: Freya is not my girlfriend." "That's right, that's right!" The Veela strode over, pulled Xifulin out of Selei's embrace, and wrapped her up in her own arms. "Little Xifu is my girlfriend!" Xifulin expressionlessly gave the Veela's perky rear a vicious pinch. The Veela gave her an aggrieved look, as if saying: "I just rescued you from that pervert senior, and you pinch me?!" "My, even cotton candy bites?" Selei chuckled. "I thought you were the loyal dog type, Freya—the sort who never repents once you fall in love with someone, determined to chase after him no matter how far away... Did I misjudge you?" No, you judged completely accurately, the little bat and the Veela thought to themselves. "Well, in that case, I won't disturb you two any longer. The quality of this chair isn't great; you should switch to one you can recline on." The blood-eyed nun stood up. "I'm off to visit an old friend." "Senior Sister," Xifulin suddenly asked, "why didn't Teacher warn us herself instead of delegating you to make this trip?" "Teacher is strict with all of us and only gentle toward you—as if you didn't know. She didn't want to play the bad guy," Selei shrugged. "The other reason is... she nearly died not long ago and is currently recuperating." "What?!" Disregarding how revolting her senior sister was, Xifulin rushed over, grabbed Selei's shoulders, and asked anxiously, "Is Teacher all right?" "She's fine. You know our Blood Saint clan's regenerative abilities, which means you two can explore some pretty wild games," Selei said. "She was just caught in spatial turbulence; at least she kept an arm. In a few days, she'll be able to video chat with you. "By comparison, have you heard that Director Micah nearly died in the Void Realm?" The blood-eyed nun chuckled at the thought. "He didn't even have to go on this mission, yet ironically he ended up the most severely injured." Xifulin: "Mission? What mission?" "I don't know the exact details either, just that Legendary Sorcerers were dispatched through empty doors to other countries on business. To that end, Headquarters and the Church even dug up some ancient relics from their coffins, but not many succeeded in crossing through the empty doors." Selei spread her hands. "Our research on empty doors is still far too shallow. Only sorcerers who have cultivated the spatial faction to the Sanctuary realm have any real shot at utilizing empty doors for targeted crossings." Selei took two steps, then suddenly turned back. "Though it's unlikely, I should still give you a heads-up—neither of you should advance to Legendary anytime soon." Xifulin and Freya exchanged a glance. Without agreeing, they countered, "Why?" "With that attitude, you're going to make me think you really can surpass your senior sister soon..." Selei grumbled, then continued, "It's nothing much, really—it's just that Ruby Mountain has been blockaded." Yet that explanation left the Veela and the little bat even more bewildered. "Blockaded... what does that mean?" "It means you can't get in," Selei said. "Teacher says Ruby Mountain is now completely enveloped on the outside by a starry sky barrier. Sorcerers from the vast majority of countries can no longer connect to Ruby Mountain." An entire tier of the Void Realm had been blockaded? And it was the pinnacle of mortals, the sacred land of sorcerers: Ruby Mountain?! This was no assigned ward or private domain; it was the boundless Void Realm explored jointly by countless sorcerers over tens of millions of years! The sheer absurdity of such a thing sounded as ridiculous as claiming one could monopolize knowledge, outlaw curiosity, or forbid learning. The two young Sanctuary Sorcerers were struck with bewilderment, but the Veela picked up on a detail: "The vast majority of countries... meaning there's still a country that can enter Ruby Mountain?" "Though Teacher didn't say, it's pretty easy to guess," Selei said. "It has to be the country Teacher and the other Legendary Sorcerers are trying to cross into— "The Starry Kingdom." ...... ... "Welcome!" In the Nation of Stars, inside a barbecue restaurant, Yaxiu was struck by lightning right out of the gate. A dark-skinned barbecue chef with curly hair was turning skewers, baring a set of gleaming white teeth as he greeted Yaxiu with sunny, boisterous enthusiasm. His apron was spotless, and he was positively steeped in the scent of spices. "Welcome Lord Heath to our restaurant! Your reservation is for the grill-side counter seats—hot off the grill, straight to you!" The dark-skinned chef pointed to the seats directly before his grill, announcing, "Please enjoy the next hour of our barbecue feast!" "Wait, wait, wait, wait..." Yaxiu massaged his forehead. "You're making my head spin. I only have one question..." He pointed at the skewers in front of Harvey, the barbecue chef, and asked, "What kind of meat are you grilling?"