Chapter 578
“Do you... wish to connect with the world beyond the dome?” The voice of the God of the Dead Star trembled slightly, its previously weak breath now filled with newfound strength.
“If you could provide some information,” came the reply.
A faint smile appeared on Xia'er’s face.
The potion of the “Subverter” still surged within Xia'er’s body.
To overturn a dome that shrouded a lost world, to shatter the eternal night that loomed over a civilization?
Nothing could be more “subversive” than that, could it?
“I know a little...”
“It’s in the Eternal Silence Mountains, where the voice of Morros, the Herald of Eternal Silence, resides. At the peak of the Weeping Summit, it is said to be the place that connects to the outside world...”
“How do I get there?” Xia'er pressed on.
“Extinguish the light in the darkness, and in the blackness of Eternal Silence, follow the whispers that call to you... that will lead you to the Eternal Silence Mountains.” The God of the Dead Star’s chest heaved.
At that moment, it was hard to tell whether its heart was filled with sorrow or joy, or if it regretted not meeting Xia'er sooner. A tangle of complex emotions made it difficult for the deity to remain calm.
Eventually, it composed itself, half-kneeling before Xia'er, lowering its head, and spoke:
“My body must remain in the village to burn, and the divine messengers must stay here to resist the darkness...”
“If there are no other questions, you may proceed...”
Xia'er raised her head, gazing at the grotesque visage of the God of the Dead Star kneeling before her. After a moment of contemplation, she slowly said:
“I will give you the slowest death possible...”
“I hope you can witness me overturning all of this before you die...”
The only way to preserve the altar and its believers was to tear apart the shroud of darkness that enveloped the sky, allowing the possible light from the outside world to shine through.
The potion of the “Subverter” quickly faded from Xia'er’s body, and the power of the “Source of Plague” began to surge within her.
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PS:
Taking a short break; there are still 4,000 words to go.
I plan to finish tomorrow’s writing today and set the update time to before noon from now on!
Perfect schedule! Perfect update time! Here I come!
I don’t want to be a creature of the underworld anymore!!
Good morning!
Chapter 297: The Sorceress (4068 words)
In the wilderness chapel, atop a pile of white bones, a red-haired girl swayed a wooden bowl in her hands.
The grayish-white liquid within emitted an unsettling aura. With her right hand holding the bowl, she brushed aside a few strands of hair with her left, slightly bowed her head, and brought the bowl to her lips, taking a shallow sip.
Almost instantly, the veins at her temples bulged. She slowly lifted her head, gazing at the enormous, grotesque creature before the chapel.
Under the influence of the potion, the whites of her eyes had nearly turned bloodshot, until her eyeballs were completely covered in black blood, leaving only her crimson, crystalline pupils visible. Only then did she speak:
“The toxicity is about right. After you drink this, you should die without any pain within three days. Although it will taint your flesh and blood, the burning will prevent the poison from evaporating into the air.”
Xia'er slowly raised her hand, offering the wooden bowl, and added, “As for when to drink it, that’s up to you.”
The God of the Dead Star watched as the girl crafted this deadly poison using corpses and limited flesh. It also witnessed her ever-changing methods and abilities...
“Do the gods above... have multiple paths like you?” the God of the Dead Star asked, looking at Xia'er.
It seemed to think that all beings above were like the girl before it—after all, it had no knowledge of the world beyond the Abyss.
“That’s hard to say,” Xia'er shrugged slightly. “I haven’t studied it.”
The God of the Dead Star slowly reached out, taking the bowl of poison from the girl’s hands, and, as if eating a jelly bean, swallowed the entire bowl, including the wood, crushing it in its mouth.
For it, death was a release. It had almost forgotten why it had persisted until now, but at this moment, the God of the Dead Star only wanted to rid itself of the increasingly maddening whispers in its mind.
“When do you plan to set off, Your Excellency?” the God of the Dead Star asked, looking at the girl before it.
“Now.”
“I’ll accompany you. Before we reach the edge of darkness, please allow me to give you something.”
Xia'er did not refuse the God of the Dead Star’s company. She watched as it struggled to move, dragging its tangled, branch-like hair along the path that seemed to lead back to the village. Xia'er followed closely behind.
The candlelight from the God of the Dead Star illuminated a wider area, revealing scenes that Xia'er had not seen on her way in.
Beyond the white bone fragments beneath her feet, there lay a heap of decayed, grotesque corpses—definitely not human. With her clear understanding of human anatomy, Xia'er quickly made the judgment.
So these are the monsters lurking in the darkness...
The sheer number of corpses, piled high like a small mountain, made her wonder how many dark creatures had been killed over the years. The bones she had seen earlier were merely the tip of the iceberg.
“Can’t their bodies be used to make ‘wax’?” Xia'er couldn’t help but ask as they passed the remains.
“They can,” the God of the Dead Star’s voice came from ahead, “but not enough. Most of the ‘wax’ still needs to be made into food.”
No wonder Hei Ni said the intervals for blood sacrifices vary... It seems it depends on whether there are enough monsters.
Moreover... the “wax” from the God of the Dead Star not only dispels the eternal darkness but can also serve as food...
This must be a specialized method evolved to survive in such extreme conditions, a means of adaptation to thrive in this desolate darkness.
As the “Source of Plague” potion faded from Xia'er’s body, her pupils turned pink again—navigating through the darkness, the “Subverter” would find it easier.
Soon, Xia'er saw the village she had first visited.
Under the greenish glow of the God of the Dead Star, she could finally make out the general layout of the settlement. The buildings were mostly simple square houses made of compacted earth, closely huddled together like a makeshift earthen wall.
The villagers knelt in reverent submission, facing the God of the Dead Star, but a small figure ran toward Xia'er, kneeling before her.
“I’ll need you to remind the others to take good care of this child,” Xia'er said as she passed by Hei Ni, reaching out to gently pat her head twice.
Suddenly, as if recalling something, she crouched beside Hei Ni and said, “Lift your head and look at me.”
Hei Ni slowly raised her head, her eyes filled with admiration and respect.
It seemed that Xia'er’s arrival and her act of “saving” her had a significant impact on the girl.
Xia'er could not take her with her to the Eternal Silence Mountains; the journey was fraught with danger, and they might encounter the mad Morros.
If a battle truly broke out, Xia'er wouldn’t be able to look after her.
Instead, leaving her in the village might give Hei Ni a chance to survive.
If Xia'er succeeded in opening a path to the outside world, this village, along with any other survivors in the Abyss, might have a chance to live. But if she failed, the Abyss would remain unchanged, buried in history, leaving not even a trace of dust.
But what if this child named Hei Ni really survived...
Let’s consider it an experiment.
“If you can survive,” Xia'er said, placing her hand on Hei Ni’s head with a smile, “remember what I said.”
“Mm-hmm...” Hei Ni nodded vigorously.
“Collect all the literature you can find, record everything you can document, witness the history you can witness... To do all this, you’ll need your own organization. Let me think...”
Xia'er squinted slightly; it seemed she couldn’t come up with a good name right away.
She would be blocked, and if the name “Time Binder” were to spread, certain beings from the other realm might react adversely.
At that moment, the middle-aged man who had first approached the God of the Dead Star with a candle crawled over, kneeling beside it.
“O great God of the Dead Star... it was this heretic... this witch who should have been killed by the darkness that murdered the divine messenger!”
“She disrupted the blood sacrifice!”
“Kill her!”
“She is a dog of Eternal Silence!”
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