On the peak of Sicar Mountain, due to the volcanic eruption, the Ring術士 of the Orthodox Church who were originally stationed there had already evacuated. Some went into the mountain to fight the evil spirits attempting to enter the City, some went into the City to maintain order, and others joined the great battle raging above the City.
The eruption of the volcano, the God's strike on the peak, and the descent of the silver moon into the mountain pass completely destroyed the landscape of the peak. Although the volcano had extinguished, only a few sparse trees remained on the peak, and the peak lake had transformed into an abyss leading to the underground.
Countless white light figures emerged from the abyss, following the path of silver 碎光 towards the starry sky. On one side of the peak, a prominent cliff extended slightly over the abyss.
The wind was strong, and the deep autumn night was very cold. No one noticed a wisp of silver-white light falling from high above, and then Xia De landed on the cliff of the peak.
He curled his body and fell onto the uneven ground, with the starry sky above his head. Beneath the starry sky, four all things are impermanent cards spun down and landed beside him.
“Oh!”
Xia De groaned in pain. It wasn't that he didn't want to go to the shore of Bena Lake, but the excessive use of his power only allowed him to land here at the moment.
It felt as if all the muscles in his body were melting, and his soul was more like it had shattered into fragments, each fragment being gnawed by borers. The last time he burned his divinity, he fell into a coma until he was rescued by Iluna and Luvia. But last time, he also had the “divinity overflow” state after devouring the second drop of divinity from the Blood Feast Lord, and the divinity within his soul could still protect him.
This time, the divinity obtained from the God of Vampires was used to defeat the evil god, and then transformed into the Nether Moon to guide the myriad souls in the Gap to truly depart. He had no divinity left at this moment. Although he would not face death now, the tormenting pain made the Outsider truly experience a feeling worse than death.
Miss Felianna had said long ago that even if Xia De’s soul could bear divinity, burning divinity with a mortal body would always come at a price.
Due to the intense pain, Xia De fell into a semi-conscious, semi-awake state. Pain and emptiness tormented him. He lay curled on the ground, black blood continuously spilling from the corner of his mouth. His body felt as if it was being scorched by flames, yet also as if it had been thrown into an ice cave in the far north. It seemed as if insects were gnawing at his internal organs, but also as if someone was cutting his muscles piece by piece with a knife.
The night was quiet. The mountain pass, close at hand, was where souls walked towards the starry sky along the 碎光 path. Xia De, drenched in sweat, was on the verge of collapse. If the pain was bearable, the extreme emptiness of his soul was unbearable even for Xia De, who prided himself on his strong will.
His soul and body had once ascended to an extremely high dimension, but in an instant, they plummeted back to being mortal. Without another drop of divinity to support him, this bone-deep and soul-deep emptiness made Xia De feel as if his soul was turning pale and his physical body was about to disintegrate into chunks of flesh.
【Do you regret it?】
In his dazed state, he saw many illusions and many people, but the voice in his ear was the clearest.
“No regrets.”
His blurry consciousness gave an answer, and his hazy eyes looked up at the starry sky, at the band of light moving through the starry sky:
“At least I’m not dead yet. Helping these souls was my own choice.”
【Outsider, you really are foolish.】
“She” chuckled, and under the sea of stars, Xia De, looking up at the moon, actually saw the silver moon at the end of the sea of stars appear as a double image, splitting into three moons: red, silver, and yellow.
He painfully closed his eyes, his body twitching, still unable to move. He didn't even have the strength to reach for the youthful immortality leaf.
And “she” was singing softly, the same hymn as before, a wild and primitive song praising the moon.
In a half-dream, half-awake state, a gentle body seemed to embrace him. In the embrace, his consciousness sank deeper, but he also felt how warm this embrace was.
But when he tried to see who was embracing him, he was still alone, lying on the cliff of the peak. In the distance, above the City, the sound of fierce battle erupted again. Four-colored spiritual light, combined with high-level Miracles that were impossible to distinguish, fought against the last forces of the Gap. He even saw the ancient Phoenix fall into the mouth of a giant beast.
But these matters no longer concerned Xia De.
He didn't know how long passed, perhaps only a few minutes, perhaps several hours. When Xia De could finally control his arm, he tremblingly took out his pocket watch from his pocket. He tried several times to open the watch cover, but his hand trembled, and the pocket watch fell to the ground again.
His fingers fumbled frantically on the ground, trying to pick up the pocket watch, but footsteps came from the direction of the mountain steps.
Xia De wanted to stand up, or at least crawl up, but in the end, he only managed to change from lying down to lying prone.
He didn't know who had come here, and the footsteps indicated only one person had arrived.
A pair of fair hands picked up his pocket watch beside him, but did not return it to him. Then, a bright flame lit up beside him; someone had lit a bonfire.
On the cliff of the peak on a deep autumn night, the fire was so warm. When the warm firelight illuminated half of Xia De’s body, he realized that although the terrifying pain and emptiness were still present, he could at least barely support his body.
He was currently in a prone position. He tried to use his right hand to support himself on the ground to get up, but failed again.
But he at least saw who was by the bonfire.
It was Sister Devlin, still wearing a black-grey nun's robe that looked like silk, with a matching shawl on her shoulders. Her silver crown-shaped eye mask reflected the light of the bonfire.
The Sister slowly squatted down until she knelt on one knee in front of Xia De. Behind her were Helen and Grace lying by the bonfire, and Mia also ran over excitedly. Seeing Xia De in such a state, she cried “Meow meow~” with a mournful tone in her voice.
It seemed Sister Devlin had gone to the lakeside below the mountain and brought them all.
“The City… above.”
“That’s my clone.”
“Sister, please… give me… my pocket watch.”
He lay prone on the ground, his vision limited to the pebbles on the ground, the Sister's left knee touching the ground, and her robe.
The fair hand that had taken the pocket watch appeared in his sight, illuminated by the firelight. The pocket watch was placed in front of Xia De, its small shadow dancing in the firelight:
“Help me… open it.”
“No.”
The Sister refused, and Xia De, surprised, tried to look up, but the intense pain made him almost unable to control his body. Mia had already come to Xia De’s side, rubbing her face against him, meowing as if trying to help him get up.
“Why?”
“Xia De · Su Lun · Han Mi Er Dun, are you willing to accept the power of the First Fire?”
A clear and serious voice asked.
“What?”
“Not everyone can accept the power of the First Fire. But you have proven in death that you can. This power can support your empty soul and partially fill your missing strength. Now, you only need to reach out your hand to the flame I am holding, and you can inherit the power of this ancient fire.”
Sister Devlin knelt on one knee by the bonfire, holding her hands out in front of Xia De, and the slender flame appeared.
“Sister, you… lent me power in death, and then appeared now. How… how is it like you’re planning step by step, planning for me… for me to touch…”
He spoke intermittently, even uttering these words consumed a great deal of his strength:
“Sister Devlin, what exactly do you… want to do?”
“To find a hero who can bear the First Fire, and together with him, collect sparks, light the kindling, so that this extremely weak flame can continue to burn.”
“You…”
“To propose such conditions when you are so weak is indeed my despicable act. But the fire of civilization has weakened to its extreme. If nothing is done, the world will decay sooner. I apologize, favored one of the moon.”
“What exactly do you want…”
“All things have an end, and even the world is no exception.”
The Sister’s voice was soft. She maintained her posture of kneeling on one knee in front of Xia De, but did not attempt to help him up:
“All things have an end, and the end of the world is actually not far off. From the ancient first epoch to the present, extraordinary power has continuously diminished, and the scope of the material world has continuously shrunk. As the one who inherited the duty of guarding the First Fire, I believe that perhaps the sixth epoch is the final epoch.”
Xia De lay prone on the ground, no longer wanting to speak. To his side was the firelight of the bonfire, and the cat had already settled beside him. He really wanted to just lie there, instead of contemplating whether the world would be destroyed after a great battle.
“Perhaps I am wrong, perhaps this is just my illusion. But the prosperity of the First Fire can nourish civilization. Although this is not a decisive factor, it can at least allow this world to continue for a longer time.
Xia De · Su Lun · Han Mi Er Dun, at this moment I am the despicable one, and you are the noble one. I ask you, I implore you, touch this flame, even if it is just with one finger.”
For a moment, Xia De thought Sister Devlin had gone mad, because her voice was trembling.
He struggled on the ground, trying to use his own strength to barely support himself and sit up, but still failed. Sister Devlin was right in front of him, her head slightly bowed, the firelight dancing on her fair face; kneeling on one knee, holding out her burned hands in front of her, was the cluster of slender flames.
To their side was the silver 碎光 path leading to the sea of stars. The souls paid no attention to this scene at the mountain pass, quietly heading towards their destination, the Nether Moon.
The wind on the peak was strong. Xia De, who thought everything was over for the night, never expected such a thing to happen:
“Sister, you could have just told me directly. Why do it like this?”
His voice was still trembling, but “she” had already given a hint: touching that flame and absorbing some of it could indeed effectively treat his current condition, especially the emptiness of his soul. Even if the First Fire was far less powerful than divinity, it could at least temporarily restore that terrifying sense of emptiness to normal.
“Because not everyone is willing to take responsibility. I am despicable, and I am willing to compensate you in any way.”
The fire moved closer to Xia De.
“No need, but after this, you must tell me in detail about the Spiritual Cultivation Order, the First Fire, and your speculation about the end of the world.”
