Having been promoted to a Second-Circle Arcanist, Xia De stood still, feeling the changes within himself.
Punching through the ground was, of course, just an illusion, but after washing his First-Circle Ling Runes with a complete drop of divinity and advancing to the Second-Circle based on the power of divinity, Xia De understood that he was no ordinary Second-Circle Arcanist.
His foundation was more solid, his Miracles and spells were more powerful, and his reserves of spirit and elements were greater.
Moreover, his body had become stronger due to excessive divine contamination and the special sublimation ritual, and his life essence was transforming.
Even if he couldn't easily defeat higher-circle Ring術士 as a Second-Circle Arcanist, as long as he continued on the “Twelve Divinities Sublimation Path,” he could acquire power sufficient to rival any Ring術士 in the material world, even before reaching the peak of the Thirteenth Ring.
“You have not actively used your power, so the divine overflow state is still ongoing, estimated to end in 7 minutes and 32 seconds.”
She whispered in his ear.
“Xia De!”
While he was still listening to the voice in his ear, the two ladies had already walked over.
Annette merely looked at him with a smile, while Bei Ya Si directly gave him a hug.
“It’s alright, it’s all over,” Xia De said, a little embarrassed, but fortunately, the light was dim now, and no one saw him blush.
Bei Ya Si hugged him for a moment before letting go, her face also a little red.
“Regardless, we owe it all to you this time.”
“But I’m more curious, who is this person?”
Annette’s voice came, and so the three of them looked together at the ghost beside the statue.
She had spied on Xia De in the tomb and given him a candle during the battle just now, and not long ago, she had briefly helped him drive out the crack.
The melancholic, transparent woman in a white robe finished her prayer and stood there, looking at the three of them.
She appeared to be around thirty years old, barefoot, with her hair loose behind her, and a crown of thorns on her head.
Her body was extremely unstable, her transparent form flickering continuously, as if she would disappear in the next second.
The woman bowed slightly to Xia De.
“Good evening, God-Favored One.”
Xia De understood the origin of this title; Bei Ya Si was a bit confused, and Annette said nothing.
“You are...” Xia De asked hesitantly, though he had already guessed the answer.
“Gina Angela Sevel. The last Guardian. After my death, I did not leave, but stayed here to guard this tree and guide later generations to completely destroy it.
It hasn't fed for a long time, and its power has weakened to a low point.”
The ghost replied, and Xia De exchanged glances with his companions.
“We can, but we need to finish our own business first, and we don’t know how to destroy a relic.”
“No problem, I will guide you; my body is still within that tree, not yet fully digested.
With your power, it is enough to bring this tree to its end.
And you will receive my gift.”
The cult had donated almost all their inheritance, and there were no valuable relics here for Xia De to take, so the so-called “gift” was probably the legacy of this Miss Sevel.
Xia De, holding the god's gift box, returned to the base of the tree with the two ladies.
The soul from the past temporarily disappeared, waiting for them to finish their own business.
At this moment, more and more vines hung down from the canopy, making the area under the trunk glow blue.
Perhaps because it absorbed the Vampire’s corpse, or because it was scared by Xia De, the tree still did not attack the three of them.
The Silver-Eyed One, however, remained trapped by the vines under the tree, leaning against the trunk with a pale face, watching them approach.
“You will all die; no one will survive.”
His mind seemed to be in some trouble.
“Do you still recognize me?” Bei Ya Si lowered her head and said fiercely, even kicking him in a very unladylike manner.
The Silver-Eyed One laughed miserably; this middle-aged man seemed to be going mad after witnessing everything that had just happened.
“I have offended countless people in my life; why would you think I could remember every single one?”
“Then, do you still remember Hawthorne, the grave robber? Do you still remember The Society of Truth?” Bei Ya Si asked again.
“What happened to that old Hawthorne… The Society of Truth?”
The Silver-Eyed One was stunned, widening his eyes as he looked at Bei Ya Si.
“Oh, so you were that First-Circle Arcanist who escaped back then.
At that time, I helped The Society of Truth snatch a stone tablet inscribed with a part of the whispering chapters from the Orthodox Church, and it seems a survivor was indeed left.
Oh!”
Bei Ya Si pursed her lips and kicked him in the chest, sending him crashing backward against the tree trunk.
“So it was you!”
He laughed maniacally, a laugh that made one’s hair stand on end.
“I understand now; so The Chosen was you! The prophecy was about you! Why didn’t we figure it out back then?”
Bei Ya Si lifted her skirt, wanting to kick again, but Xia De coughed, and she gave up the movement.
The canopy swayed, rustling sounds echoing continuously; the corpse tree seemed to understand that its prey was about to be killed, but Xia De didn't care.
The divine overflow state hadn't ended yet; no one here could defeat him.
“Let’s perform the ritual now, so Bei Ya Si can become The Chosen; we need to leave here as soon as possible.”
He was already very tired now.
“It’s time to end this.
Oh, and one more thing, Lawrence isn’t the only vessel for the evil god; I was reminded just now, and I think I understand now.”
He glanced at the deranged Silver-Eyed One.
“Do you still remember the doctor’s Gluttony patient?”
Bei Ya Si didn't understand, but Annette immediately did; a look of horror appeared on her face, a look she hadn't even shown during the previous situation.
“Count Abrash’s wife and daughter?”
“Yes, but don’t worry too much; as long as the banquet doesn’t happen, the two extra vessels are useless.
But for safety, we need to let the church know about this as soon as possible.
This variable is simply too great.”
“I’ll go tell the church later; you two have worked hard, there’s no need for you to show yourselves to the church.”
Bei Ya Si said, and Xia De and Annette agreed.
The two retreated to the side, Bei Ya Si holding the Holy Bell of the Judge, but looking up at the canopy above.
“By the way, how am I supposed to hang upside down?”
“I prepared a rope,” Annette said with a smile, but Xia De shook his head.
“No need for such trouble; I’ll use the Miracle Moving Objects to lift you into the air.”
“Can you?” Bei Ya Si asked shyly.
“Yes.” In truth, his Miracle wasn’t that strong; even after advancing to the Second-Circle, moving a small animal like Mia was difficult.
But now, with divine overflow, that was no problem at all.
The duration of unconsciousness after divine overflow was determined by how much power was actively used.
Last time, a full-power strike resulted in a day, but Moving Objects would probably only cause a few tens of minutes of unconsciousness.
“Attention, it’s about to begin.”
Xia De gestured, and Bei Ya Si subconsciously covered her pants.
Xia De then realized that she wasn’t wearing a skirt today, and that was the underlying reason.
“Look, I was ready long ago,” the seventeen-year-old girl said with some unease.
After the life-and-death battle, everyone was in good spirits, and Xia De and Annette both smiled.
Xia De slowly lifted Bei Ya Si into the air, positioning her upside down, then stood silently with Annette.
The brown-haired girl hung upside down beneath the tree; her expression became serious, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath, and then the golden Balance phantom appeared directly above her body.
“It’s starting, Xia De; let’s witness history together.”
The female Diviner beside him whispered, and Xia De nodded, watching intently.
Iluna Emilia Beyars took a deep breath and declared loudly, “I, Iluna Emilia Beyars, hereby declare...”
She breathed heavily, looking at her friends once more.
Faint golden light emanated from her body, and prayers, a myriad of voices overlapping, came from an unknown source.
The wind picked up again here, and the tree canopy rustled in the breeze.
Hanging upside down beneath the tree, Bei Ya Si reached up to her left eye, gritting her teeth and using her hand to forcibly dig out her own eyeball.
Xia De sincerely admired her courage; if he were in that position, he would probably hesitate for a few seconds.
The bloody eyeball dripped blood downwards, but she did not utter any cry of pain.
“To the Ancient God, the hanged judge, I sacrifice my left eye in exchange for wisdom.”
The golden Balance light from above her head enveloped her, and Xia De suddenly realized that a strange power had taken over maintaining Bei Ya Si’s posture, so he stopped his Miracle.
Fatigue washed over him, but he held on.
The left eye that Bei Ya Si had dug out floated to the left side of the Balance above her head; the Balance tilted, but then an ancient Ling Rune appeared on the right side of the golden Balance.
Even in the divine overflow state, deciphering this Ling Rune still caused him severe dizziness and discomfort; the Ling Rune exchanged for the left eye was named “Balance.”
“I will fairly judge my enemies,” the upside-down girl said with a tremor, struggling to shake the Holy Bell in her right hand.
This time, the sound was different from before, and the bell itself was imbued with the golden light of the Balance at this moment; it was undergoing a metamorphosis.
“I… Silver-Eyed One Diack, you…”
Without using any means to stop the bleeding, the blood from Bei Ya Si’s left eye continuously dripped downwards; she became increasingly weak.
“You murdered the innocent, harmed the weak, plundered the remnants of heretics, and, together with Cultists, attempted to summon an evil god to the material world.”
Her gaze gradually became hazy, but the light on her body grew more and more distinct.
Bei Ya Si’s Second-Circle Arcanist Destiny Ring appeared behind her, gradually rising into the air and overlapping with the golden Balance.
White heavenly light pierced through the earth, shining down from above and enveloping the upside-down person beneath the tree.
A ritual halo composed of thirteen different colored light points extended from her feet above to her head below.
She said with difficulty, “As The Chosen of Balance, I sentence you…”