Shield

The change happened in an instant.

The blackness in the sky seemed to suddenly thicken, like a viscous curtain or a light veil, silently spreading outwards.

The Twilight light reacted immediately; its orange-red hue became dazzling, shimmering and attempting to dispel the encroaching darkness.

The change itself wasn't obvious, but on the battlefield, all the soldiers and officers instantly fell to the ground, falling into a deep sleep. The area fell silent in an instant; even the echoes of artillery fire faded away due to the lack of follow-up sources.

In the silence, a rustling sound silently spread from Underground, as if something was growing in the darkness, breaking through the soil and turning this land, steeped in iron and blood, green.

As the lush green burst forth from the ground, the black seemed to receive a sudden boost, swiftly lunging towards the orange-red Twilight.

In the Astral World, a frozen, orange-red realm.

A reddish-orange halo shone on a blurry mountain peak. On its uneven surface grew layers upon layers of vibrant green vines and flowers, enveloping the entire peak. Bathed in the reddish-orange light, they withered and turned a grayish-yellow, falling in Ling Ling pieces, only to be replaced by new shoots.

In this strange interplay of conflict and balance, darkness creeps in from afar, gradually engulfing the Twilight.

As darkness drew near, the towering mountain suddenly trembled, and the solidified orange-red hue began to flow and swirl within it, forming a vortex.

A crimson vortex formed Storm, swirling towards the mountain peak itself. The verdant greenery on the peak suddenly began to writhe, rapidly disappearing into the Underground. In less than a breath, it reappeared in the darkness-soaked shadows, sprouting Moon Flower and Night-Scented Herb.

These plants grew wildly, quickly becoming as dense as trees that had survived for thousands of years in a primeval forest, blocking out the "sky."

Among these trees, a figure entwined with deep green vines and adorned with various herbs and flowers stands out.

His figure was as enormous as a mountain peak, with a full figure and flowing robes, cradling a phantom infant in his arms.

From the depths of darkness, an equally large figure emerged, dragging a long, gigantic scythe.

She wore a long, layered, yet simple, dark dress, adorned with countless sparkling jewels, like stars embedded in the night sky.

Two arms grew from each of His sides and His waist, covered with short, dark hair.

Of His six hands, two held the heavy, black scythe, two held a crimson "Moon," and the remaining two were empty.

As they converged, the mountain finally "stood up," its massive form towering majestically in the Twilight light, shaking its tattered armor and constantly shedding the remaining withered branches and leaves.

Its limbs were abnormally long, and its face was covered by a mask, revealing only a faint orange-red orb of light. It held an exaggeratedly large sword in its hand. As darkness spread to its feet, it gripped the sword with both hands and slammed it against the dark "ground" before it, forcefully stopping the spreading darkness in its tracks.

Then, He looked at the female figure holding the illusory infant and uttered a name, one syllable at a time:

"Lily, Lily, Si?"

No one paid him any attention; only the figure dragging the long scythe moved slowly forward into the darkness, while the figure cradling the illusory infant stood silently behind.

As night fell, a familiar, tranquil aura of darkness enveloped Neph. She did not resist. When her vision returned, she found herself in an environment indistinguishable from the battlefield, and several figures who had clearly not been visible before.

She scanned the group of people one by one. There was the ascetic Ariana, someone she didn't recognize but dressed in a dark blue priest's robe, and someone in military uniform.

Church of Evernight, Church of Storms, the military...

Neph looked around, nodded slightly, and couldn't help but ask, "Where are the Steam people?"

"The Church of Steam and Machinery is busy renovating its own cathedral," the man in the dark blue priest's robe said coldly, "The infamous ' Pure White ' Miss."

Neph paused, thoughtfully observing the unknown Church of Storms Angel, and stroked her chin.

>p/<"? I hate you because you seem nice"

>p/<: He stopped the man in his military uniform, his mouth opening to speak further, a cold laugh coming from the man in the dark blue robe of a pastor.

>p/<. Sloka, that's good"

>p/<". Look at us from the outside"

>p/<. Observing from outside the boundary, it was easier for them to see, through half the night, the color of the face of the woman was slightly moved, and a voice called out in the middle of the quiet, and for the time being, a man named Sloka.

>p/<. Under the slumber of the officers and soldiers, the night was nourishing, and from the lush greenery, a weak but continuous stream of life force emerged, covering the battlefield. The night was filled with countless strange and wondrous plants.

>p/<: The subtle exploration of the taste revealed the emotions flowing within, and Naanlia and her figure, already dressed in military uniform, were looking towards the center of attention... the territory of the God of Power is vast.

>p/<"? What is the situation? In the present moment, can the two positions be explained or ""

>p/<. Naanlia turned her head to look, then suddenly seemed to realize that Funa... she didn't know that they were still there.

>p/<: Dao replied, shaking his head calmly, without any change in color or form. This ascetic cultivator had not undergone any transformation.

>p/<". What happened? I don't know."

>p/<: Dao smiled and said it was reasonable, she gently spread her hands, and when she looked down at him, she knew he was not really pretending, but was trying to find out.

>p/<"? You know I don't think you'll be able to tell me"

>p/<. Mu Su's expression changed, his gaze shifted, and he looked away, his eyes suddenly narrowing. He spoke, and then let out a cold Sloka.

>p/<. She grasped the boots at her ankles, her hand like a circle, then, as she looked down at the white boots, her gaze fixed on them. A section of lush green vines emerged from the dark, tranquil depths behind her, and she lowered her head, her eyes following the light.

>p/<. Looking at this hidden fragment of the human realm, Funa raised her head and said, "?..."

The Ascetic had acted on behalf of the Concealment Authority, remained unchanged in expression, simply repeating what he had just said:

"I know nothing."

... You'd be a ghost if you didn't know!

Neph's eyes widened, but the vines that had wrapped around her ankles seemed to confirm something, continuing to grow, hooking around her other ankle, and climbing up her legs.

Almost instantly, the vines climbed over her hips, wrapped around her waist, then her chest, neck, and head...

Neph's vision was shrouded in darkness. It felt as if something pulled her sharply from behind, and she felt herself falling. The air was thick with the smell of earth and decaying leaves. She seemed to be sliding through the ground, and then, in a flash, she was propelled out of the earth by a tremendous force.

Splash--

The world was instantly restored to light, Neph saw a halo of orange-red light.

The halo of light rapidly dissolved in Neph's vision, but time seemed to slow down at that moment. Neph could see the orange-red gradually melt away, revealing mottled black spots—a deep, colorless darkness, so pure it reminded Neph of the blinding white she had seen when she first opened her eyes.

Thoughts seemed to freeze under an invisible force, everything slowed down, until darkness eroded a sufficiently large hole in the orange-red, completely exposing its watery texture, and only then did a thought finally take shape in this slowed time:

Holy crap, you guys are using me to block out Eternal Darkness?!

"The Forsaken Land of the Gods," on an unnamed mountain peak.

The seated silver-haired Angel had finally vanished, leaving only a Blond Priest, a huge, illusory Cross, and a blurry figure hanging Cross on it.

At that moment, the voice from the enormous figure boomed, as if the entire mountain was trembling with its sound:

She will hate you.

"You've worked so hard to change that impression, and now all that effort is going to be wasted."

The Blond Priest held the Silver Cross to his chest, his expression gentle and smiling.

"I didn't want it to be like this either, but her behavior and her responses told me that she hadn't inherited from her mother that courage to face death for the sake of achieving something greater."

The upside-down figure seemed to disagree with the idea, and the voice continued, "You could have done something else..."

The Blond Priest nodded slightly in agreement.

Yes.

"But you can't deny that this is the best opportunity."

The upside-down figure fell silent, seemingly giving up arguing with its other self and instead bringing up another topic:

"Medici seems to have some suspicions about the relationship between you and me."

"Of course," the Blond Priest nodded again, "He will know the truth, and then hate me. Of course, He will eventually forgive me, but His pride will make Him refuse to submit to me again, or even oppose me."

His gaze fell upon the enormous, upside-down figure, his eyes clear as a baby's, yet the words he uttered sent chills down one's spine:

"... But if we merge and you take the lead, this problem won't exist."

"It was I, the inhuman one, who made a mistake, betraying Him. And you, although you didn't tell Him the truth for some reason, you were thinking of the bigger picture. Besides, in this matter, you are not only innocent, but you are even opposing me..."

"When we are reunited, He should return to you."

He paused briefly, then added:

"... But the same trick won't work on that child."

"Pure white cannot tolerate even the slightest blemish; even if she knows it wasn't your fault, a rift will still exist between you."

>p/<"... Why do you want this? I know you don't want this, but this incident..."

>p/<: The hanging figure of the open mouth and faint shadow

>p/<. The law you think you've become is not the original self, forget about it.

>p/<. The battle scene moved forward, she had already left, the agreement had already been reached with you in the dark of night, but I told you about this incident at that time.

>p/<". Choose me and I'll let you figure it out, then it's the root of you"

>p/<...

>p/<"... I have the intention to purchase, but if the medicine is not available, I will no longer need it. I will assist the 'Priest of Calamity' in his ascension. I have already performed the ritual for the Lord of the Sea, Mantekao Enya. Please pass on this to 'Little Pure White '..."

>p/<. He breathed a sigh of relief, his eyes opened, and the spirit of the "hanging man" had already steadily risen, the four-tiered advancement was complete, and the prayer ended.

>p/<. The extraordinary nature of the "priest's calamity" can be exchanged for a price, he once promised, the extraordinary nature of the "Pure White" girl, a large group of extraordinary people, swept away from the storm, but he has not forgotten, but he has obtained promotion from the inner church through the path of joy.

>p/<. This is also a situation where the exchange of information is used by those who exchange goods or items. In some cases, there are very few channels for exchanging goods, and in others, there are no channels at all. According to observations by Jerah, the amount of money used to measure this is already insufficient, but the value of the goods in the 4th order is exceptionally high.

>p/<. The situation is rarely seen, and exchanging money is not always possible.

>p/<. He could choose another option, as a member of the Rota Association, but of course, he couldn't take out that sum of money, even though the price was high, and he could exchange it for enough money.

>p/<. He would give him a chance to teach him directly, but he was not a special person who could exchange for anything. That's how it is. He would not be able to find a good opportunity to contribute to the cause, but he would also be able to obtain it.

>p/<. He was worried that this was a way for the young lady, "Pure White," to advance her career, and that he was very concerned. He knew that some people in high positions were too familiar with him and had too much experience dealing with others. But this was a good thing.

>p/<. Absolutely refuse to be the one who should not, easily hand over the mention of Him, and make the name of Heaven one with the end.

>p/<. This matter is not simple. He has been sitting on this cold bench for a long time. He is afraid of being rejected. In that situation, he might refuse a promotion. As for Jeremiah, he is not afraid of his ambition. He will teach him the conditions for promotion, but he will never refuse.

He probably really needs to consider how to defect from the Church.

Despite harboring deep resentment towards the Church's leadership and despite a significant erosion of his faith in the "Lord of Storms," Alger never entertained the thought of apostasy. At most, he would occasionally worry in the dead of night about his identity as a member of the Tarot Club being discovered.

When he thought about this, he couldn't help but think of another Official Beyonder at the Tarot Club —the almost open-ended Beyonder of the Church of Evernight, "The Star" Leonard.

His position in the Church of Evernight seems quite good... and he's trusted... Speaking of which, I've always felt there's a subtle intimacy between the Tarot Club and the Church of Evernight. In many matters, "the world" always seems to favor the Church of Evernight... Is it because of the relationship between Miss "Pure White" and the Evernight Goddess? Or is there another reason...?

He shook his head slightly, dispelling the thoughts in his mind, sighed, and silently prayed in his heart:

I hope my promise will show Miss "Pure White" my sincerity...

"... Ah, there are many opportunities, but although there are dangers, is the reason for the war...? It's all for promotion."

>p/<. A sudden movement occurred, and Funa, who was searching for the deep red star, shook her head slightly, retrieving the "hanging" spirit from the "fortress source" of the deep red Enlake.

"... Shouldn't it be? There's one less the Star, isn't there...?" He frowned, nodding slightly. He observed the "empty star" piece. "Huh?"

>p/<. Each star in the body, once recognized, began to open, Enlake's face suddenly changed color, as if a bad feeling was about to spread.