“You will know everything you wish to know.”
Xia De was still prone, so he barely managed to support himself with his left hand, raising his right hand to touch the flame, but the severe pain in his arm made the action fail.
Sister Devlin held the flame in one hand, wanting to help Xia De, but he refused.
He struggled to change his posture, wanting to kneel on one knee to make his body more stable. But then he thought that the Sister in front of him was also kneeling on one knee:
“Sister Devlin, please stand up.”
After the Sister stood up, he tried his best to kneel on one knee. Sister Devlin knew what he meant and carefully extended the flame she was holding forward.
Xia De was in too much pain to lift his head, so he could only instinctively reach out his palm.
The bonfire illuminated their profiles. Xia De only wanted to fill the emptiness in his soul with this flame, while Sister Devlin was unusually solemn, yet her voice was very gentle. In ancient delarion, she softly asked:
“Xia De · Su Lun · Han Mi Er Dun, are you willing to bear the power and will of the First Fire, assist me in collecting flames, and ignite the kindling? This is the contract between the Sister guarding the flame and the Hero bearing the fire.”
“Agree to her.”
This was very rare; “she” gave him the answer before Xia De made his choice.
“Yes, I am willing.”
Xia De whispered, by the bonfire, by the path where countless souls departed, beneath the boundless starry river, his palm rested in Sister Devlin’s hand.
Their shadows swayed violently on the cliff as the flame swept over Xia De’s entire body along his arm, as if to completely ignite Xia De. But the fire did not harm Xia De, because cracks appeared on Xia De’s body.
The Divine Radiance had disappeared, and there was no golden light in the cracks. The First Fire’s flame permeated, reaching the surface of Xia De’s exposed skin and the cracks in his clothes. The scorching firelight gradually receded, just like Sister Devlin in front of him.
When the night wind blew, the firelight on their bodies dragged out trails of fire in the same direction. The fiery red embers drifted into the darkness with the wind, and a clear smile, one never seen before, appeared on Sister Devlin’s face. Behind the silver eye patch with intricate patterns, made of mithril from the ancient death god cult, those eyes were definitely looking at Xia De:
“Indeed, you are the Hero who can bear the First Fire.”
His soul felt warm and full, as if he had just eaten a delicious meal. The terrifying emptiness caused by the loss of Divine Radiance was slightly dulled, but the severe pain and weakness in his body, as if it was about to disintegrate, still remained. This flame filled the void of Divine Radiance, but Xia De was still severely injured.
“Outsider, you have accepted the power of the Original Fire.”
“Original Fire burns the body, purifies the soul, removes curses, and guards the will. Your fire resistance is greatly increased, your soul strength is greatly increased, and your physical quality is comprehensively improved.”
“The trend of Divine Radiance gradually dying out due to the lack of Divine Radiance has slowed down, but once the Divine Radiance disappears, the First Fire will no longer be able to fill that power.”
It seemed that the First Fire could be considered an extremely degraded version of Divine Radiance, but unfortunately, it was not Divine Radiance after all, and could only serve as a substitute until Xia De found the next drop of Divine Radiance.
“The Ancient Voice was triggered, and you learned the story of the Original Fire—”
“From the very beginning, fire and the Sisters who guarded it have always existed. The Original Fire is a symbol of civilization, and the Sisters who guard it carry out the will of the First Fire. This is a contract, a contract created by the world itself for the continuation of civilization. The ancient flame comes from the very beginning, even older than this world.”
The Destiny Ring appeared behind Xia De amidst faint whistles and bell sounds. Firelight spread towards the Destiny Ring, and due to the severe injury to Xia De’s soul, the Destiny Ring also seemed to be cracking, showing mottled marks. But within the brass cracks, there were faint golden traces.
The flame enveloped the Destiny Ring. The primitive and ancient power enriched Miracle, blasphemy, inspiration, and whisper element. As the Destiny Ring rotated at high speed, the firelight left a bright ring of fire behind Xia De.
But bathing in the First Fire did not grant Xia De Ling Rune, Miracle, or spellcraft.
“I’m sorry, the power of the First Fire is no longer enough to provide you with stronger power.”
Sister Devlin apologized softly.
“It’s okay, the power of this fire is enough for now.”
Xia De wanted to smile, but he fell because he couldn’t maintain his kneeling posture. This time, Sister Devlin helped him up.
“Sister, how did you find me?”
“My clone was fighting above Mi Fort, and my main body ventured to the shores of Bena Lake where the divine appeared, seeking the truth. When I saw the Red Butterfly Twins and the cat, I knew.”
“Then do you know what I just did?”
The Sister still shook her head gently:
“I don’t know what your relationship with the Summoner is, but since you have bathed in the First Fire, we are unbreakable allies. Please rest assured, everything tonight will be spread according to the version of the story you tell.”
“Alright… After I left Cassandra Auction House, I originally wanted to go up the mountain, but you stopped me. Then I stayed with you, and we both saw the Summoner appear on the mountaintop.”
“Yes, this is what happened tonight.”
“Alright, quickly give me the leaf in the pocket watch.”
The emptiness in his soul was gone, but the weakness and pain in his body remained. The last time Iluna gave Xia De a whole bottle of “No. 1 holy water” raw liquid to save him, and now he only had No. 2 holy water from the Gap Church. The difference between No. 1 and No. 2 was too great, so he could only use the only two youthful immortality leaves he had left.
Sister Devlin reached for the pocket watch on the ground, but suddenly stopped, “looking” at the deep night sky:
“I think, there’s no need.”
“What are you doing—oh!”
In the moment, a brilliant white light rain surged from the broken light path under the sea of stars. The twinkling lights, like fireflies on a summer night, sprinkled onto the cliff at the top of the mountain.
Under the deep night sky, beneath the sea of stars and that tranquil body of water, the light rain was so dazzling.
Those leaping white lights, like a waterfall of light, merged into Xia De’s body, completely illuminating the cliff at the top of the mountain.
A warm power surged in, but this power was not violent at all; instead, it nourished every wound in Xia De’s soul and body. It was like suddenly sliding into a hot spring in extreme cold, and Xia De even had some uncontrollable urge to groan:
“Oh~”
He gradually controlled his body, broke free from Sister Devlin’s support, and stood up, bathing in the white light stream under the night sky, raising his arms and stretching his body.
He gently bent down, picked up Mia from the ground, and held her in his arms:
“What is this?”
Reaching out to touch the dazzling lights that gathered, the white light seemed to envelop Xia De in the starry river as well.
“A more sincere gift than soul tears. This is a gift from departing souls to those who helped them.”
The Sister said softly.
Xia De stood by the bonfire, in the continuously healing white light stream, looking up at the sea of stars. He saw countless souls standing on the broken light path waving goodbye to him. He saw the corporal who died in the Gap, he saw Professor Higgins, the Carson Rick spy, he saw the innocent ladies murdered by the serial killer Henry Val, and he also saw Count Darak, the third nail.
They all turned at the end of the broken light path, smiling and waving at him, then walked onto that body of water, moving towards the Nether Moon.
The Nether Moon did not guide all souls away, but at least 99.9% of the souls in the Gap were reaching their destination through this starry sea path.
“Teacher!”
A voice came from behind, it was Grace and Helen. The pale-faced girls had woken up, supporting each other as they passed Sister Devlin behind Xia De, stumbling to Xia De’s front, and looking at the nearby path with him.
The five people who emerged from the banquet in the fifth epoch 3014, gathered again on the top of Sicar Mountain in the late autumn of the sixth epoch 1853, under this thick night.
“It’s truly like a dream, and we are always those little Red Butterfly on the wine table.”
However, the witch and the armored old man turned into ghosts, the twins became relics, only Xia De remained Xia De.
The middle-aged witch smiled and stood on the path, waving at the twins. The armored old man looked at Xia De with satisfaction, nodding slightly as a farewell:
“Don’t forget us.”
They said nothing more, turned around, and walked into the distance with those myriad souls along the path in the sea of stars. This was the direction they should have departed a thousand years ago.
An endless stream of souls surged out, and an endless stream of white light points entered Xia De’s body, healing his body and soul injured by burning Divine Radiance. The expanding Ling gave him the illusion that he was about to level up again. He also waved at the sky, waving at the souls willing to say goodbye to him. He knew he had done the right thing.
All mortals die, all things end; this is the true conclusion.
Mia stood curiously on Xia De’s shoulder, looking at the surrounding white light points, even extending her small paw to try and touch them.
“Outsider, your soul quality and weight have greatly increased. No spiritual creature will actively attack you, and at the same time, destiny will favor you more.”
“I can understand the improvement of the soul, but why the favor of destiny?”
“This is the gratitude of the world.”
Xia De put his hands in his pockets, wanting to smile, but then he noticed Red Butterfly fluttering on the starlight path:
“Hmm? Where did the Red Butterfly come from?”
He looked around in astonishment. Helen and Grace stood to his left and right, closer to the edge of the cliff and the broken light path. Their bodies were becoming transparent, and the colors in their bodies transformed into Red Butterfly, accompanying the white shadows, flying into the deep night sky.
