“`
But after some time, they still managed to do it.
Upon finding the original spot, they saw a body that had mostly dissipated, presumably that of the Great Demon.
It was completely unrecognizable.
In Rizzo’s judgment, this was not due to being bombed, but rather, after the Demon Engine was destroyed and it lost its connection with the Chaotic Abyss, such impurities had no way to continue existing in the real world.
What remained of its body was still rapidly evaporating.
Next to it, they found fragments that seemed to be the remnants of the destroyed Demon Engine.
The Abyssal Rift had disappeared.
“So, this should count as a success, right?” Matins asked, somewhat uncertain.
Rizzo closed his eyes, carefully sensed his surroundings, and replied, “It should be.”
“Then I’m relieved.”
Just then, Matins received another communication from the Wind Falcon, which was relayed twice, originating from Revival City.
Governor Gu Hang had sent the message to the starship, the starship then transmitted it to the Wind Falcon, and the Wind Falcon relayed it to him.
“Bring back whatever the Great Demon’s body leaves behind after it disappears.”
Matins and Rizzo exchanged glances, both somewhat perplexed.
They had just managed to clear the flooded ruins and had found this place, confirming their victory. How could Mr. Gu, thousands of miles away, be certain the Great Demon was dead?
…
Gu Hang had seen it on the [Event] panel.
At first, he was unaware of any Great Demon, because after Matins and the others broke into the lower levels of the Central Spire and encountered formidable enemies, they had no time to send out messages.
It wasn’t until the orbital bombardment was about to be executed that he received information from the Blade Tiger.
Right after he got the message, his [Event] panel updated with new information:
[Unclean One – Ge Wajia]
[Ge Wajia is not the Unclean One’s true name, but it is the name he currently uses. He is about to tear the veil between the Abyss and reality, bringing his vast army to descend upon the Rage Owl Star. This is a catastrophic threat, what will you do?]
Gu Hang was genuinely startled the moment he saw this message.
My goodness, could this be any more thrilling?
What does Rage Owl Star have to deserve the attention of a Great Demon?
What is wrong with this planet that it encounters all kinds of monstrous deities?
To be honest, if Gu Hang didn’t have the system, he would have died countless times upon coming here. Even with his extraordinary abilities, having resolved many issues that multiple previous governors could not fix and having united the alliance and all the surviving forces, if either the Green Skin disaster or the Demon disaster had taken root, that would have been the end.
Even then, with the system, neither the Green Skin calamity nor the Demon calamity was something that a still-developing Rage Owl Star could perfectly resolve.
In the rear, Gu Hang was even contemplating whether to fly personally to the South.
After all, he was a level five Spiritual Energy user, an entity not inferior to Matins in a one-on-one fight, which might be somewhat useful.
In any case, should the worst happen, his fate would be sealed regardless. He’d either die on Rage Owl Star fighting an endless number of demons or perish under the subsequent Empire’s judgment. With such significant issues arising on the planet that might even affect other Star Sectors, he, as the governor, wouldn’t escape responsibility.
In any case, the matter had to be resolved in its incipient stage.
Thankfully, it didn’t come to that.
About an hour after he was on tenterhooks, a new message appeared on his [Event] panel:
[Unclean One – Ge Wajia (Resolved)]
[The Unclean One – Ge Wajia has been driven back to the Chaotic Abyss. This time, he would need to recuperate for a while.]
[Reward: 7777 Blessing Points]
[Selectable Blessing: After driving away Ge Wajia, the chaos essence he couldn’t escape from has condensed on his Rusty Greatsword. Spending 777 Blessing Points, you can transform it into a Holy Artifact weapon suitable for humans.]
…
Continue your adventure at empire
Looking at this message, Gu Hang felt a chill run down his spine.
The number of Blessing Points offered as a reward was substantial, but something about this number… seemed odd.
And besides, the essence of chaos left behind by a Plague Great Demon being used for a Holy Artifact, for a weapon?
“`
“Are you eager to die?”
“The required Divine Gift points are also 777…”
However, Gu Hang noticed the phrase ‘usable by humans’ mentioned in the description.
If that’s the case, it seems, maybe, probably… it could really work?
The thing is, sacred artifacts were something he had only heard of in legends.
What if it’s really powerful?
It’s just 777 Divine Gift points anyway, and if spent, so be it.
After all, he still had seven thousand left.
So, he gritted his teeth and exchanged for the optional reward.
[Inferior Sacred Artifact: Purifying God Plague Greatsword (Imitation)]
[Containing a small portion of the Chaotic Origin from a major unclean entity, it can be used by humans after being purified.]
[The holder gains the effect of +2 to physical constitution and +2 to spirit, which ceases to function if either attribute exceeds 22 points.]
[The holder is immune to plagues and diseases.]
[The greatsword has a gravity-like field; it also has a ‘guaranteed hit’ feature that can be activated once a day.]
[Even after purification, an inferior sacred artifact has a very low probability of becoming a bridge to the Abyss, causing the owner to occasionally hear whispers from its original master. Those with unstable wills should not use it.]
…
Looking at this thing, Gu Hang felt a bit of a toothache.
The artifact was strong, especially in the hands of someone who was already powerful.
A dual boost of +2 to both spirit and physical attributes meant that the holder’s physical and spiritual prowess could more than double on their existing basis according to the system’s calculations.
With it, Gu Hang would effectively gain an entire level.
With it, a squadron champion like Matins could reach the true strength level of a Starship warrior squadron leader.
But, Gu Hang was quite conflicted and hesitant about the part of this inferior sacred artifact saying it could be influenced by the Abyss.
He didn’t want to use it himself.
On one hand, he wasn’t a warrior, and the enhancements to his physical attributes, the latter two features, were of no use to him; besides, the chances of him having to fight personally on the battlefield in the future probably wouldn’t be too high. The main effectiveness of the equipment he could utilize would be those two points in spirit.
On the other hand, Gu Hang didn’t want to personally test whether he was susceptible to Abyssal corruption. He didn’t think of himself as a person with an unstable mind, but it wasn’t necessary to gamble, not even on a one-in-ten-thousand chance.
The most suitable person to use this inferior sacred artifact was Matins.
But that guy…
Gu Hang was worried about his level of willpower.
A Starship warrior who had gone through a penitent expedition and was now tasked with rebuilding a combat team, who also had the level of a squadron champion, should absolutely be a person of firm will.
However, after arriving at Rage Owl Star, Matins’s performance, which had been influenced by Gu Hang’s psychological tactics, made it difficult to fully trust him.
Even though the chance of the Abyss whispering was already very low; Matins’s chance of corruption was also very low. But as long as it wasn’t zero, Gu Hang was reluctant to take the risk.
Having an extra piece of powerful equipment was good, but it wouldn’t be worth it if it caused serious issues.
Matins could stick with his Fine Work Dynamo Sword.
“Did I just waste over seven hundred Divine Gift points for nothing?”
“If it’s wasted, so be it. Better to have the sword kept in the sea, a sword with a Great Demon’s essence; who knows what trouble it could cause otherwise?”
“It’s been purified by the system and then collected, kept under strict supervision, which is better than letting it be out there.”
Gu Hang could only console himself in this way.
Overall, the gains were significant.
An enormous Divine Gift reward, the largest and most unexpected reward Gu Hang had ever received.
He felt as though he had struck it rich.
An inferior sacred artifact that seemed unusable but at least posed no hidden risks.
And the greatest gain of all was averting a potential world-ending crisis!