Chapter 62 Corpse Dissection of the Butterfly Fairy
The Silvermoon Federation has now become a desolate ruin. In endless decay, its former glory has quietly collapsed, like the bright moon hanging high being swallowed by layers of dark clouds, unable to shine even a ray of light anymore.
However, no matter how pervasive the darkness, some things have not been completely annihilated; those lingering embers still shine in unknown corners.
Amidst the ruins, the embers of faith still burn in a self-destructive manner. The fanatical followers of the Silvermoon Federation still roam this shattered land. Their prayers are low and barely audible, yet every word is filled with resentment and devotion.
Even in a collapsing world, they still believe that the silver moon will rise again, and that the moonlight that illuminates everything will one day dispel the darkness.
Clearly, since Exa was thrown into the black hole, the Silvermoon Federation has lost the ability to resist on a large scale. However, Bai Zhe did not take cruel measures to forcibly conquer the world. Instead, he used his sect priests to sow the seeds of faith in the ruins and guided the people's hearts with "appeasement" and "gentleness" and tried his best to suppress any uneasy emotions.
The priests of the Life Cult walked through the ruins, clad in green robes, their gentle faces concealing an undeniable resolve.
Unlike Exar's previous extreme methods, Bai Zhe's way of ruling was more cunning and subtle, but all of this came at a price.
Although this appeasement approach has achieved initial success in some respects, the progress of the struggle has always been slow and almost anxious.
Among these priests, Velen remains a special figure. Now, decades later, having fully seen through Bai Zhe's true nature, he no longer agrees with Bai Zhe's greatness. Clearly, Bai Zhe is not as benevolent as he claims. Nevertheless, he cannot deny the changes Bai Zhe brought to the Silvermoon Federation.
The power of faith in life undeniably brought about miracles of abundance and fertility. Fruit trees flourished on the land of Silver Moon, the soil was no longer barren, and even the lazy and indolent people were able to obtain enough juicy and delicious fruit for food through the priesthood of Baizhe.
In any case, Bai Zhe's rule was far better than that of the Black Death Moon God Exar, the great dictator who frequently massacred his people. Velen sometimes comforted himself with this thought.
However, culture and history have their inertia, and rebuilding faith in an extremely religious theocratic country is still a very difficult process, especially after Bai Zhe casually said "be gentle." As a result, Velen has been in the portal for a full year before finally making his way to the vicinity of Star Fortress with great difficulty.
However, the closer Velen got to the fortress, the stronger his unease became. More and more rumors circulated about it. It was said that Duke Lister and his entire family had mysteriously disappeared within its walls. From then on, Star Fortress became a symbol of terror.
The talk of the fortress grew increasingly quiet and somber as the eerie noises emanating from it faded. No one dared approach; even the bravest bandits who ventured inside vanished without a trace.
Velen felt that his responsibility was not only to be a propagator of faith, but also a guardian of order. If Starbase truly harbored some uncontrollable dark force, then no matter how dangerous it was, he had to investigate to ensure that the people of this land would not fall into deeper fear and danger.
So, as Velen silently passed through the entrance to the Star Fortress, a strange sound kept echoing in his ears—a sound that was both piercing and unsettling, as if something was being torn apart.
A terrifying atmosphere filled the air, making every step he took feel heavy, as if he were in an unknown abyss, with everything around him closing in on him and pressing down on his every breath.
As he reached the depths of the fortress, he suddenly stopped. Before him appeared a gigantic cocoon, its surface shimmering with an eerie light, enveloping something indescribable. From within the cocoon came a series of twisting, cracking sounds, as if something was struggling to break free.
Suddenly, the cocoon ripped open, revealing a huge, strange figure. A humanoid creature nearly two meters tall with six pairs of disproportionately large butterfly wings slowly crawled out of the cocoon. Its body emitted an eerie glow, and its wings shimmered like stars in the night sky. Every movement it made seemed unreal and otherworldly, as if it did not belong to this world.
Velen's sanity nearly collapsed; he felt his nerves utterly shattered by this illogical existence, the shock almost causing him to lose consciousness. However, in an instant, the butterfly-like being withdrew its unique aura, gently landing on the ground, smiling slightly, its eyes revealing an unfathomable depth.
"Greetings, priest." The voice was gentle as water, yet carried an overwhelming air of authority.
Velen's eyes widened, a chill running through his body. He was now certain that the person before him was no ordinary being.
The butterfly man gently raised his hand and slowly introduced himself: "My name is Li Tianhe."
Viren was slightly taken aback. He had heard of Duke Lister before, especially his seventeenth son, Li Tianhe, an ordinary man who supposedly had no supernatural powers. Because of this, Li Tianhe had always been inconspicuous in high society, but his story had been widely circulated among the common people.
"Li Tianhe?" Viren hesitated, a hint of confusion in his eyes. "You are Duke Lister's seventeenth son, right? I've heard of you. They all say that you don't seem to have any special abilities."
Li Tianhe chuckled softly, a thoughtful and complex look in his eyes: "Oh, no way. I was born of nature, where would I have parents?"
"Lister and Avril are nothing more than three corpses that I, Daoist Master, split off from. Lister is the human corpse, trying to project his ideal self onto me, wanting to pollute my personality and make me sink into his illusions; Avril is the earth corpse, trying to graft her body onto me, making me submit to her eventually decaying flesh and blood; and the silver goddess Tilia is my celestial corpse, she tries to impose her civilized order on me, forcing me to depend on the collective of the Silver Moon Federation, distorting my ideology."
Upon hearing these words, Velen was immediately overwhelmed with shock. He had never seen such absurd and illogical words before—this man seemed to have lost all reason, yet the powerful aura emanating from him, so different from human experience, made it impossible for Velen to ignore the weight of his words. A wave of panic washed over Velen, and he vaguely sensed that this man was probably an extremely powerful madman.
He also killed his own parents.
Li Tianhe remained calm, even exuding a certain serene composure: "Now, I, Daoist, have severed all three of my corpses, completed my tribulation, and transformed from a corpse into a butterfly. The path to immortality is right before my eyes."
Viren felt a sudden dizziness, as if everything around him was becoming blurry, and an irresistible force filled the air. His consciousness began to fade, gradually disappearing into that eerie emptiness.
The shock and fear he had just felt seemed to be gently washed away like water, becoming blurred. Li Tianhe's figure gradually disappeared before his eyes, like a dream.
A slight tremor jolted Velen awake. However, he couldn't remember anything; his vision was blank. Li Tianhe—the one who terrified him—he remembered absolutely nothing. It was as if that person had never existed, as if it were all just an empty illusion.
Viren opened his mouth, only to find himself completely unable to comprehend what had just happened. He was momentarily lost in a jumble of thoughts until he regained some clarity. By then, Li Tianhe had vanished without a trace.
He seemed to remember nothing at all, except for his mission—to continue spreading faith in this land and to maintain the balance of this fragmented world.
However, deep within his soul, an indescribable emptiness remained, as if the image and power of that ineffable great being had been deeply etched into his mind, but he could no longer trace it back.
However, Viren knew that a certain ultimate terror, which could not be ignored, was still quietly growing in his heart in the dead of night when he woke up drenched in sweat from nightmares.