Annette and Bei Ya Si both took water bottles from Xia De, as the previous battle had been too exhausting, leaving Xia De near exhaustion and unable to produce much water this time. They could only prioritize treating potentially fatal injuries for the three of them.
After doing this, he looked at the tree: "One last thing, burn this tree."
The canopy rustled, but it dared not attack the three people beneath it. Xia De's divine overflow state still had two minutes left, and its approach was correct.
"What do we do now? I still don't understand, this is a Secret Keeper Level relic after all, how do we destroy it?"
Iluna asked. Xia De stood under the tree, with the two ladies behind him. In the underground cavern, the giant tree glowing with a faint blue light was indeed beautiful, but it was better to destroy this thing.
"Just set it on fire."
The woman's soul appeared before them again, and she still only spoke to Xia De:
"My corpse was absorbed by the tree, almost merging with it. The Chosen, you set fire from the outside, and I will help from the inside. This is equivalent to the Secret Keeper Level relic, the corpse tree, self-destructing, which will eliminate this tree."
She then disappeared again.
"Is it that simple?"
Bei Ya Si still didn't understand, but Xia De realized that the other party probably sensed the power that originally belonged to an Old God on him:
"I'll set the fire, you two rest for a bit."
As he spoke, to prevent the Silver-Eyed One's headless corpse from being burned along with it, Xia De bent down to pull the corpse aside. But the vines bound the corpse, preventing Xia De from pulling it close.
"Hmm?"
Golden light flickered in his eyes, and the tree vines receded. Xia De pulled the corpse to his feet, raised his right index finger, and a flame popped into existence.
Then, with a blow to the flame, a sea of fire spread forward.
"Oh my~"
A painful groan emanated from the tree trunk in front of them, then seemed to come from all directions. The flames licked at the trunk, then rapidly surged towards the entire canopy.
The giant tree swayed, and the vines trembled constantly above their heads.
Behind Iluna, the golden Destiny Ring slowly materialized, then transformed into a golden Balance:
"Balance."
The power of The Chosen spread outwards, further suppressing the relic's power.
Burning branches and falling leaves crackled in the sea of fire, but none of the burning debris falling from the top of the canopy hit the three people under the tree.
They looked up at the great tree above them, instantly engulfed by flames. The heart-trembling wails echoed constantly from all directions.
And as the flames grew fiercer and the wails grew sharper, a dazzling white light appeared before them.
Ms. Gina Angela Sewell, who died a thousand years ago, reappeared. The death of the corpse tree seemed to have made her soul more complete. Appearing before the three, her transparent body radiated a soft white light.
She wore a white robe and was barefoot, bowing slightly to Xia De:
"Thank you for your help."
"Are you here voluntarily as a Guardian, or a soul left behind due to an accident?"
The Diviner was very curious about this. The sacred white soul shook her head beneath the furiously burning tree. The firelight illuminated the three living people, but only pure white light emanated from her soul:
"I am not residual here; I have always been here, guarding this ruin."
"Then what will you do now?"
Bei Ya Si also asked, looking around hesitantly:
"This place is already known to Mercury Blood, and more people will probably break in later."
"Then, may I ask you to transfer my Lord's statue, holy emblem, eighteen golden carved plates, and collected classics to the Orthodox Church for safekeeping?"
Ms. Sewell asked the brown-haired Sorceress, recognizing the Sunlight Gun and thus knowing Bei Ya Si's origin from the Orthodox Church:
"When my Lord awakens and the order revives, we will reclaim these precious items."
"No problem."
Iluna nodded:
"But the Church might review those materials; I hope you don't mind."
"No problem, as long as they are not damaged, you can copy them freely."
"What about you?"
Xia De also asked. Although he lit the fire, it was completely out of his control. In just a few minutes, at least two-thirds of the canopy had disappeared, the temperature was rising, and swirling black Ashes were falling to the ground. Even the tree roots beneath the floor were ignited by the flames, with firelight showing through the cracks.
It became hot and stuffy here. Fortunately, the ruin itself had a unique gas exchange function, otherwise the three would eventually suffer from gas poisoning.
"I will depart, and continue on."
She said softly. Xia De and the other two ladies were filled with respect. Not many people can face death calmly, especially souls that have long remained in the world, who would be even less likely to want to leave... The two souls in the cemetery were exceptions, they had no more attachments.
"Also, my Lord's creation."
She looked at the god's gift box, which Xia De had temporarily placed on the ground, and paused:
"The Chosen, please keep this item for now, and when my Lord revives, please return it to its rightful owner."
"No problem."
Xia De certainly wouldn't refuse.
"Furthermore, I have nothing to give you. My companions' and my own property were all donated before sealing this place. However, each of us kept a personal item. I have no right to dispose of others' relics, but my inheritance belongs to you."
The sacred white soul pointed to the tree trunk behind her. Amidst the crackling sounds, the giant tree's trunk was licked by the flames, revealing the corpse hidden inside the trunk. The corpse was already reduced to a skeleton, but the skeleton was as crystal clear as a precious jade. Tentacles inside the trunk entwined around it, absorbing power from it over the years, but now both were to be completely annihilated by this great fire.
Xia De looked into the flames, puzzled, not understanding what the other party wanted to give him.
Annette's vision was better, though. She let out a soft sound of surprise, then waved her hand, and a small piece of paper floated out from the corpse and tree trunk engulfed by the fire.
Xia De reached out and caught the flying paper between his fingers. Luvia and Iluna both leaned forward to look. On the side facing Xia De, abstract patterns of the sun, moon, and stars were superimposed, forming a strange combined graphic.
"The back of a rhode cards?"
Bei Ya Si said in confusion. In the firelight, the card back seemed to shimmer:
"But I remember, wasn't the issuance of rhode cards a few hundred years ago? Why would a Ring術士 from a thousand years ago possess a rhode cards?"
She asked Annette, who was from the Prophet Association. The latter's tightly furrowed brows relaxed, and her purple eyes looked at Xia De with a smile:
"I understand now. Did you guess it?"
"Could it be..."
Xia De stared blankly at the card in his hand, not turning it over to see the front, but looking up at the soul before him:
"How did you get this card? Did your God tell you to collect it?"
The Innocent Creator had once suggested to Xia De to collect all thirteen all things are impermanent cards.
Ms. Sewell's soul shook her head slightly:
"No, this is my mother's relic. I don't know its specific origin either. I kept it by my side to commemorate my mother. I didn't actually know what it was before I died, but remaining intact for a thousand years, it shouldn't be an ordinary item."
Xia De's fingers moved slightly, and the card was flipped to its front. The front of the card only had white, black, and cool tones near these two colors.
A robed man, whose face was unclear, hung upside down at the top of the card with his arms outstretched. His right leg was extended straight, touching the upper border, with wooden tendrils wrapped around his right foot and disappearing into the card's border. His left foot was slightly bent, resting on his right knee. His left hand held a familiar-looking bell, and his right hand held a Balance. Below was a blurry depiction of a City, serving only as a background.
The upper right corner of the front was marked with the number 7, and the upper left corner had a small flower symbol. Between the two, in the center of the card's upper front, a black vertical line was drawn within a white circle, which was the symbol of the Founding series.
At the very bottom of the card face, there was a small blank space where a line of small text was written:
"If the points exceed 21 when using this card, the points reset to zero, all your hand cards are discarded, and you draw new cards."
"Founding - Balance?!"
Bei Ya Si said in surprise.
Xia De looked at Annette, very puzzled by the timely appearance of this card. He corrected softly:
"No, it's all things are impermanent - Balance."
The crackling of the flames overhead quieted down a bit. This unusual fire didn't cause many branches or leaves to fall, but instead almost completely consumed everything of this plant.
The weakening firelight signified the corpse tree nearing the end of its life, but also that the soul before them was about to depart.
"I hope this card is useful to you."
She said to Xia De, the smile on her face making the light around her body even stronger:
"Guarding the ruin alone for a thousand years, suppressing this relic, enduring the darkness and loneliness, I think it's time to leave."
"You are truly a person worthy of admiration."
Bei Ya Si praised her. She also came from the Church and knew what kind of devotion this was.
"No, this is what I should do. The three of us voluntarily guarded the ruin, voluntarily accepted such a future. Now that only I remain, this is not because others forced me; this is my own wish..."
The fire completely engulfed her corpse within the tree trunk, but the flames could not suppress the white light on her body.
"I have no regrets."
Before her words finished, the three of them and the soul looked up at the sky together. At this moment, the tree canopy above their heads was basically burned away, leaving only swirling Ashes floating. Suddenly, a beam of heavenly light descended from above, enveloping the sacred white soul.
"Hmm?"
Within the pillar of light, Gina Angela Sewell's surrounding white light gradually gathered behind her, transforming into two pure white wings. At the same time, golden light within the pillar condensed into a dazzling golden halo above her head.
The three were dumbfounded.
"Then, farewell."
Ms. Sewell was not surprised by her own transformation; instead, she looked up with great concern, towards the direction above the ground.
She bowed slightly to the three for the last time:
"Greater dangers await you. Please always believe in light, believe in justice. The Chosen, I wish you good luck."
Her voice was a little distorted. She shook her head and extended a finger to the three. The white light from her fingertip entered each of their bodies, and then she flapped the wings on her back, ascending continuously into the heavenly light, finally disappearing from sight.
The burning tree beside them was left with only its final embers. Xia De and the two ladies remained looking up at the sky, no one speaking.
After a long while, Bei Ya Si quietly asked:
"She... became an angel?"
Annette looked at the now dark sky, surprised and questioning:
"It's just like an ancient myth, a devout believer... Her God has already departed, hasn't he? What I'm more interested in is where an angel actually goes."
Xia De also looked at the stone wall above his head. He didn't know what to say either:
"Even though so many incredible things have happened tonight, this one is absolutely the most incredible."
After all, the other things had been anticipated by the three before they entered the ruin.
The firelight gradually extinguished, and the whisper element around them slowly returned to Balance. At their feet was the Silver-Eyed One's headless corpse, and further away, a black mass was buried in the Ashes—the remains of the Vampire.
Having witnessed an angel appear and then disappear before their eyes, all three doubted whether everything they had experienced today was real. But the sensations of their bodies could not be faked; the angel had given them healing before leaving, and except for Bei Ya Si's left eye, all their physical and spiritual pains had vanished. Even the drowsiness after divine overflow disappeared because of this.
Of course, this was mainly because he hadn't used much power.
However, Bei Ya Si's left eye still had no eye. She had sacrificed her left eye to gain wisdom, so ordinary means could not restore that eye.
As the firelight gradually faded and the light disappeared, Bei Ya Si also gradually became disheartened. Even though Annette promised to help her find a suitable magical eye, the young brown-haired Luvia of Long Hair was still a bit sad. She took out a pre-prepared eye patch from her pocket and put it on, showing a forced smile to Xia De and Annette.
Actually, Xia De had just picked up the Silver-Eyed One's two silver magical eyes, but they originally belonged to the Silver-Eyed One, and she obviously wouldn't use them.
By now, all tasks of delving into the ruin were completed, and the three prepared to leave to prevent being trapped inside the ruin. As for the departing angel, the items that Bei Ya Si was to transfer to the Orthodox Church for safekeeping were temporarily stored in the ruin's secret room. Since Mercury Blood hadn't discovered them, the Church could retrieve them later.
The Secret Keeper Level relic, the Thousand-Eyed Gargoyle (No. 3765), and the Secret Keeper Level relic, the Mirror Behind the Back, were also planned to be left in the ruin for the Church to retrieve.
The gargoyle, affectionately known as the "Giant Divine Soldier," was too large for them to move, and the mirror was too dangerous. Therefore, these two items and the ruin itself were left for the Church, serving as a storage fee for the Church to help preserve The Innocent Creator order's heritage.