Colin Iliad, whose expression had relaxed after a brief exchange with the former chief while he was still lucid, let out a sigh of relief and proactively put away the "Proof of Glory" he had been holding in his hand: "We naturally won't violate the promise witnessed by Mr. Fool, but the 'Gift of the Land' involves the secrets of the City of Silver..."
Aaron smiled and waved his hand, interrupting Colin's explanation: "Secrets are always relative, and I came here precisely for that."
"As for your concerns, this projection clone can move independently. I will go with you alone; no one else will accompany us."
Colin was silent for a moment, then nodded gently, turning to look at Waite Chirmont and the other elders of the "Six-member Council": "Take our distinguished guest back to the City of Silver. The news of the former chief's impending revival can be spread. Everyone has been suppressed for too long and needs hope!"
Waite Chirmont, who was being groomed as the next chief, nodded solemnly, watching Colin and Aaron's figures disappear before quickly leading the crowd gathered outside the mausoleum back towards the City of Silver.
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At the base of a gray-blue round tower, dim candlelight illuminated the surrounding lush but distorted plants.
A silver radiance flashed and disappeared. Colin, who had sneaked into the underground Sealed Land by its light, quickly raised his palm. The dormant "Proof of Glory" immediately emitted a dazzling light, instinctively suppressing a certain power leaking from underground.
Feeling the strange fragrance of earth, grass, and flowers filling his nostrils, Aaron had a sense of déjà vu, as if he had arrived at the backyard of a Sanguine Duke.
His gaze swept past the hair-like black-faced grass hanging on the surrounding walls. Aaron looked directly ahead where the dazzling light was concentrated. There, dark brown earth was piled up, with a withered, huge tree trunk inserted into its top.
Within the pure and thick light barrier, most of the gray-brown bark had fallen off, revealing an empty interior. Ring-like patterns outlined a legless, human-like figure.
That figure used the branches on the trunk as hands, its face extremely contorted, and two crimson giant flowers served as its eyes. Even under the suppression of the "Proof of Glory," traces of blood color faintly appeared.
Examining the figure revealed in the textures, Aaron, who had close contact with the Earth Mother in the Astral World, felt the power contained within it that instinctively repelled him—it originated from the Brood Hive!
After confirming the target, Aaron no longer waited. The next second, the withered, huge gray-brown tree trunk was teleported in front of him.
Raising his hand to grasp the "Gift of the Land," Aaron ignored the aversion and resistance of this Grade 0 Sealed Artifact. His slightly ethereal figure emanated a tide-like dark gold mist.
Colin, who was about to introduce the usage and negative effects of this divine Sealed Artifact to Aaron, felt his hairs stand on end. An irresistible, vast power descended through the suddenly diffused mist.
Without needing to set up a ritual, Aaron instantly opened the medium to the Nation of Disorder by leveraging the connection between the historical projection and his main body.
Amidst a dull creaking sound, the dark gold double doors, faintly visible in the mist, slowly opened. Golden chains inscribed with strange patterns pierced through the darkness, one after another tightly coiling around and binding the "Gift of the Land," dragging it away behind the Door.
Under the protection of the "Proof of Glory," Colin, who witnessed the entire process, saw his pupils suddenly contract. His face, marked by the ravages of time, was momentarily dazed but was called back by a majestic, low voice:
"The transaction with the City of Silver has been completed. The Sequence 2 'Glory' Beyonder potion formula is the remaining compensation."
"From now on, there will be no need to suppress the 'Gift of the Land.' Once your Beyonder potion is digested, I can help you shatter the 'Proof of Glory' for free."
"Furthermore, the hidden secret of the 'Gift of the Land' ends here; there is no need to pass it down orally in the City of Silver!"
Colin was stunned for a moment before he pulled his attention back from the Beyonder potion formula that had appeared in his mind. Looking at the empty underground hall, his hands, holding the "Proof of Glory," slowly relaxed, but the complex expression on his face lingered for a long time, seemingly a mix of relief and remembrance.
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After leaving the "Glory" Beyonder potion formula, which he had traded from the Evernight Goddess, for Colin, Aaron's consciousness detached from the projection in the Forsaken Land of the Gods and returned to his main body within the Nation of Disorder.
Almost the instant the "Gift of the Land" appeared in the divine kingdom, the primeval island where Roselle slept, perpetually shrouded in shadows within the boundless dark gold mist, began to tremble violently.
Inside the mausoleum deep within the primeval island, Roselle, who had already gathered from pure shadow into a human form, kept his eyes tightly shut, but his body suddenly began to twist and distort.
The Mother Goddess of Depravity's corruption, which had fallen silent under the influence of the "River of Eternal darkness," continuously stirred. Blood-colored fissures reappeared, and crimson dots constantly gathered, forming a miniature Crimson Moon-like object.
This commotion naturally attracted Aaron's attention, but instead of immediately suppressing this anomaly, he restrained the Nation of Disorder's instinctive counterattack, allowing the residual will hidden within the "Gift of the Land" to constantly call out.
Feeling the changes in order within the Nation of Disorder, Aaron could confirm that the "Gift of the Land" had established a connection with the corruption within Roselle's body.
Aaron, ignoring the unfolding situation, retrieved the all-red-gold "Sun Chaser Scepter" from the dark gold mist. Under the dual blessings of the Authority of Law and Distortion, this Grade 0 Sealed Artifact of the Sun Pathway erupted with a power surpassing that of an ordinary King of Angels. Its purifying, scorching radiance surged towards the continuously reviving "Gift of the Land."
The dark brown bark constantly cracked, as if sensing the crisis of complete destruction. On the withered tree trunk, a distorted face outlined by protrusions and depressions let out a shrill cry. The two crimson giant flowers serving as eyes faintly seeped blood.
As if reaching a critical point, Roselle, in his slumber, frowned. The crimson Moon that had gathered around him, at the call of that shrill cry, largely detached from his body and surged towards the location of the "Gift of the Land."
The corruption originating from the Nation of Disorder had already gradually gained the upper hand in the tug-of-war. The moment the balance was broken, it formed an absolute suppression over the remaining Mother Goddess of Depravity's corruption!
The next second, a blinding white light that filled the entire field of vision, accompanied by a dull roar, swept through the Nation of Disorder, churning the boundless dark gold mist.
Before the light faded, Aaron's figure appeared at the core of the power eruption, examining the "Gift of the Land" which had endured a full-strength attack exceeding that of a typical King of Angels.
The once tall tree trunk was now only arm's length. The crimson giant flowers that served as eyes had all withered, and the figure outlined by the textures curled up like an infant in swaddling clothes.
However, the once empty tree trunk was now filled with a constantly contracting and distorting crimson moonlight, and the corruption that even a true god could do nothing about was continuously nurturing the "Gift of the Land"!