Sea of Flowers, Sea of Fire

The flames on the deadwood torch suddenly shrank to their smallest point. At that moment, the entire world seemed to darken, leaving only the Sunlight Sunflowers' stems swaying gently.

Lincon watched the Pale Wraith slowly approach, his heart rising to his throat.

Only now, under the dim light, could Lincon make out the Pale Wraith's features.

She was a woman dressed in gray-white robes, her entire body filled with deathly energy. Her black, pupil-less eyes silently stared in the group's direction.

Surging malice swept over them like an invisible tide. Even the youngest children stopped crying, too afraid to make another sound.

The people hurriedly hid behind the sea of Sunlight Sunflowers, silently watching the man who had brought them here.

Lincon, meanwhile, stared fixedly at the Pale Wraith and the mass of dark creatures following behind her, constantly searching his mind for a way to fight back.

He did not know the Pale Wraith's rank, but his initial estimate was that she was absolutely no lower than C-rank.

Combined with the Black Tide behind her, which had already begun to take shape, this had completely exceeded the limits of his abilities. Nothing he had could stop them.

If he had not chosen to save the people behind him, perhaps he would be safely inside his own home right now, rather than gambling with his life.

Yet Lincon did not regret it in the slightest.

There were always things worth doing in life. As for the rest, that depended on what the people he had saved would bring him in the future.

"But... what should I do now?"

Thoughts churned in Lincon's heart. He had nearly three hundred points of Sunlight now, enough to evolve a powerful plant.

But against this Pale Wraith, who was at least C-rank, even a plant evolved with three hundred points of Sunlight would be far from enough.

"Is there any other way?"

As the Pale Wraith drew closer, Lincon became even more anxious.

Dense black fog visibly devoured the light, bringing the rotten, icy stench in the air to its peak.

Devouring Worms crawled along countless arms, flickering in and out of view within the black fog. Their twisted, blurred faces peered at the people behind the sea of flowers.

The Sunlight Sunflowers' proudly raised heads gradually lowered, while the sunlight radiating from the centers of their buds swiftly faded away.

Lincon's gaze collided with the Pale Wraith's. She seemed to realize that he was the most troublesome one among this group.

Amid the invisible tide of malicious thoughts, dark purple veins began appearing across Lincon's body. They spread like a spiderweb, as though some strange creature had parasitized him from within.

Suddenly...

Strands of consciousness flowed into Lincon's mind, like countless gentle hands softly soothing the anxiety in his heart.

"There's still me... there's still me..."

"Let me bathe in Purifying Fire. I will unleash the brightest light of my life."

"I am willing to offer everything to my master, until I burn into ashes."

"Please... ignite us!"

These thoughts did not come from people, but from the Sunlight Sunflowers surrounding Lincon.

Even when he had fallen into despair, these weak plants still held faith in protecting their master.

They were willing to offer everything to him, including their lives.

Countless thoughts merged into a single plea, echoing clearly through Lincon's soul.

They were willing to use their humble yet brilliant lives as the final, most blazing fuel, becoming flames that would burn away the darkness.

Lincon's gaze gently fell upon the Sunlight Sunflowers.

He had heard their call.

The Sunlight Sunflower was the first plant he had created in this dark world. To him, it was a light that pierced the darkness, a faint hope buried deep within his heart.

That was why he had always felt a greater fondness for Sunlight Sunflowers.

Sunlight Sunflowers had always accompanied him in his yard, and he had even filled the entire fortress with them, creating an unbroken sea of flowers.

But the gathering Black Tide and the Pale Wraith, who brought him unprecedented pressure, were advancing together.

Although Longwind Fortress had suffered the darkness's corruption over the past three years, and countless dark creatures had long infiltrated every corner of the fortress,

as long as a single lamp still shone, it meant that someone was still guarding this place.

"I have heard your conviction."

Lincon had no choice. He quietly closed his eyes.

But the next second, his eyes flew open. Firelight reflected in his pupils, blooming as brilliantly as flowers.

He raised his right hand, and the Ancient Maple Guardian made the same motion.

The dead tree in its hand, with only a few scattered sparks left, swayed in the dark wind.

Then, the firelight sank into the sea of flowers. It was clearly only a flame like a fuse, yet in an instant, it ignited the entire field.

"Burn!"

Boom!!!

There was clearly no sound, yet everyone felt a deafening explosion shake their souls.

Countless thoughts converged into a torrent, erupting in a silent roar that shook the soul.

Beneath Longwind Fortress's walls, the golden sea of flowers was like a rising sun, erupting with its most blazing firelight.

The inferno that ignited in an instant left everyone standing there in stunned silence.

They stared at the flowers blooming amid the endless flames, and the coldness and fear around them were instantly swept away.

Some could not help wondering, It was only such a tiny flame. How did it ignite such a vast field of flowers in an instant?

Yet in Lincon's eyes, the effects of Purifying Fire did not weaken because of the spreading blaze. Instead, they grew stronger amid clusters of golden torches.

The fire's radiance carried not only warmth, but also a sacred heat that purified all things.

In an instant, all of Longwind Fortress became as bright as day.

The Pale Wraith's advancing steps halted before the suddenly erupting floral flames. Her pupil-less black eyes seemed stung by the firelight, and she shut them.

Black smoke continuously rose from her body, while burn-like scars appeared across her gray-white robes.

The spreading black fog was driven away in an instant.

Many dark creatures close to the sea of flowers did not even have time to react before Purifying Fire clung to them, completely vaporizing them beneath its flames.

The Black Tide, which had only just formed, was scattered amid silent shrieks, and countless dark creatures retreated in terror.

The Pale Wraith faced the sea of fire and stood still in Lincon's direction for a long time before finally turning and retreating.

The Purifying Fire in the flower fields burned until dawn broke. Only when the dark curtain over the sky was scattered by the dazzling midday sunlight, and light returned to the earth, did it gradually die out.

By then, the dark creatures had retreated into the darkness, leaving only a scorched flower field outside Longwind Fortress.

Li Zhouhai raised a hand to catch the sunlight, tears of joy spilling from his aged face.

They had actually survived!

What he had believed to be certain death had ultimately been turned around by one man.

At the same time, the Sunlight Sunflowers that had maintained their sun-facing posture within the sea of fire, finally turning into wisps of glowing dust, became a sight he would never be able to erase from his heart.

At the moment the flames surged into the sky, Li Zhouhai had realized from that torrent of thoughts that shook his soul that those plants actually possessed consciousness.

They had willingly allowed themselves to be ignited. That was why, when the Purifying Fire fell, the flames had spread across the fields in an instant.

Even as an ability user, Li Zhouhai had never seen such extraordinary plants.

And these plants had likely all been cultivated by the man before him.

His gaze turned toward Lincon's back, standing tall ahead of them.