Being a Saint since the age of myth

"What people call 'ghost fires' in graveyards are precisely this."

"Using this as a basis, we developed a new flame fueled by purer Sekishiki. Its name is 'Demonic Blue Flames.'"

"And because of Sekishiki's unique properties, it possesses both the physical destructive power of ordinary fire and the ability to cling to and burn spiritual powers such as souls."

"In other words, until spiritual powers such as souls have been completely burned away, Demonic Blue Flames will not go out!"

Hearing this, Wuxin understood at last. "I remember that Cosmo is an energy guided by spiritual power. Does that mean these flames are a natural counter to Cosmo?"

He knew Demonic Blue Flames could burn an opponent's energy, but he had never understood why. Now he finally did.

"Exactly! You have a gift for understanding!"

Hakurei nodded in satisfaction. "All Cosmo requires spiritual power to guide it, and that very spiritual power becomes fuel for Demonic Blue Flames."

"If an enemy's soul catches these flames, it will be utterly incinerated, leaving not a trace!"

"This is 'Sekishiki: Demonic Blue Flames'!"

The old man paused briefly, looking down at the flames in his hand, then continued, "Demonic Blue Flames are certainly destructive, but their burning speed also gives enemies an opportunity to respond."

"As long as they quickly cut off the flow of Cosmo, they can easily avoid the agony of having Demonic Blue Flames cling to and burn them."

"With that in mind, we refined Demonic Blue Flames further and developed an even stronger move, named 'Sekishiki: Soul Burial Wave'!"

As he spoke, the slowly burning flames in Hakurei's palm became extraordinarily violent, like a pot of boiling water, releasing their energy in every direction without restraint.

Even from two meters away, Wuxin could still feel the energy the flames suddenly released. It stung his skin painfully, as though a single touch would tear him apart in an instant.

"What terrifying power!" He involuntarily took two steps back.

Compared to before, the flames' power had risen by far more than a notch. Their destructive force was on an entirely different level!

"When flames burn violently, they become an explosion! Like this!" As Hakurei spoke, he closed his right hand into a fist, clutching the flames in his palm.

Then he punched forward hard, and the pale flames instantly exploded.

Boom!

As flames scattered, a terrifying pulse spread outward. Wuxin could even clearly sense that the phosphorus gas in the air ahead, within a radius of nearly ten meters, had been burned away in an instant.

Hakurei withdrew his fist and continued explaining, "By making Demonic Blue Flames burn violently, then using the enemy's power as fuel, you can create an even stronger explosion!"

"This is 'Sekishiki: Soul Burial Wave,' a finishing move that grows stronger against stronger opponents."

"As long as you use these three moves well, they will be enough to handle the vast majority of enemies!"

"Thank you, Master!" Wuxin thanked him again.

"There is one more move. Originally, I had no intention of teaching it to you!"

Hakurei sighed softly and continued, "This move is extraordinarily difficult. Learning it requires an extremely high degree of control over and understanding of Sekishiki."

"That senior brother of yours cannot learn it no matter how hard he tries, but your talent far surpasses his. You may not be able to master it now, but you should have no trouble in the future!"

"Master, by senior brother, do you mean the Cancer Gold Saint, Manigoldo?" Wuxin asked tentatively.

Hakurei and Sage were twin brothers, so the disciples they taught were naturally all his senior brothers and sisters. But he could not tell which one Hakurei meant.

"Yes!"

Hakurei nodded. "That brat's talent is actually quite good, but he is rather impetuous. Given a few more years to settle down, he should still be able to grasp that move."

"Unfortunately, the Holy War is approaching. None of us has any time left!"

As he spoke, the old man sighed again.

Noticing the sorrow in the old man's voice, Wuxin immediately changed the subject. "May I ask what this final move you intend to teach me is, Master?"

The old man collected himself and said solemnly, "This move is the ultimate technique achieved by refining 'Sekishiki Meikai Ha' to its utmost limit. Its name is 'Sekishiki: Spirit Rotation Wave.'"

"It uses the Underworld Wave's ability to open a passage between the Underworld and the human world to summon the heroic spirits of the Underworld into this world, combining all their power to annihilate the enemy's body and soul."

"It sounds very simple, but the heroic spirits of the Underworld are all bound by its laws. Breaking those bonds and summoning them into this world requires sufficiently powerful Cosmo, along with bringing the Underworld Wave to its absolute limit."

"Even your martial uncle Sage has never mastered this move!"

"If you want to learn it, you must put in enough effort!"

This time, the old man gave no demonstration, because the price of using this move was too great.

"Yes, Master. I certainly will!" Wuxin solemnly agreed.

Chapter 21: The priestess's death

Over the following days, Wuxin threw himself into practicing the secret techniques Hakurei had taught him, rapidly absorbing them like a dried-out sponge soaking up water.

Besides the Sekishiki techniques, he also learned quite a few close-combat skills from Hakurei, in particular mastering a move called "Cancer Pincer Death Grip."

Perhaps because the Sekishiki techniques consumed considerable spiritual power, Wuxin's mental will also grew very quickly. This indirectly improved his development of Cosmo, and his strength increased rapidly.

At first, he could only set a single stellar system in motion, but gradually, he could even set an entire galaxy in motion. Naturally, the amount of Cosmo he could draw upon increased greatly, and his strength soared, bringing him directly to a speed of a thousand times the speed of sound.

Compared to when he had first mastered Cosmo, he was already stronger by far more than a single tier.

Of course, that was compared to his former self. Compared to a Silver Saint like Yuzuriha, he was still far behind.

Wuxin had sparred with her several times, but without exception, Yuzuriha had defeated him easily.

The gap in speed was too great. He could not even see Yuzuriha's moves clearly before she knocked him straight to the ground.

After easily defeating Wuxin once again, Yuzuriha said with a hint of pride, "If you want to exchange blows with me, you need to reach at least a hundred thousand times the speed of sound. That is the basic standard for a Silver Saint."

"Then what level are you at now, Yuzuriha?" Wuxin asked, rising unhurriedly from the ground and brushing the dust off himself.

"About four hundred thousand times the speed of sound. That makes me a mid-level Silver Saint!" Yuzuriha replied, the corners of her mouth lifting.

Such strength was formidable even within Sanctuary as a whole.

"No wonder. No wonder!" Wuxin did not know whether to laugh or cry.

A thousand times the speed of sound seemed impressive, but compared to Yuzuriha's four hundred thousand, it was a full four hundred times slower. No wonder he had no chance to fight back.

Even if he reached the Silver level, there would still be a fourfold gap in speed between him and Yuzuriha. He would only barely qualify to exchange blows with her, with almost no chance of winning.

So Wuxin trained even harder, and his strength advanced even faster.

Perhaps his talent was better suited to cultivating Sekishiki, or perhaps it was his inexplicable sense of familiarity with Cosmo, but Wuxin grew at a positively flying pace, leaving both Hakurei and Yuzuriha dumbfounded.

In less than three months, he rose straight to a hundred thousand times the speed of sound, reaching the level of a Silver Saint.

After sparring with Wuxin again to assess him, Hakurei nodded and praised him openly. "Originally, I thought you would need at least a year to reach the Silver level."

"Now it seems I still underestimated you!"

"However, training in constant safety cannot make you truly strong. Only by weathering the wind and rain can you grow into a true pillar of strength!"

"Go out and see the world. Do not stay here any longer!"

"Master, do you mean you want me to temper myself through plenty of real combat?" Wuxin asked tentatively.

"Yes!"

Hakurei nodded, looked west, and said earnestly, "Go to Sanctuary. With your current strength, you can absolutely obtain a Cloth of your own and become a true Saint."

"With a Cloth, your strength can improve further, and your safety will be better assured!"

"I understand, Master!" Wuxin also grew a little excited.

He could not resist the temptation of possessing a Cloth of his own.

"However, before that, there is something else I need you to do!" Hakurei turned back and said.

"Please give me your instructions, Master!" Wuxin lowered his head.

Hakurei said unhurriedly, "West of Jamir lies an enormous saltwater lake called the Caspian Sea."

"South of the Caspian Sea is a city called Tehran."

"Yesterday, I received word from Sanctuary that there is a temple to the goddess Athena in Tehran. One of its priestesses was violated and killed, and her body was then dumped on the goddess's statue."

At this point, the old man paused, then took a deep breath, seemingly suppressing the anger in his heart.

Wuxin's eyelid twitched. He immediately understood that this matter could not be brushed aside.

Whether the murder, the violation, or the final act of dumping the body on the statue, each was enough to enrage all of Sanctuary.

After calming his anger, Hakurei continued his instructions. "On your way to Sanctuary, stop by Tehran and investigate exactly what happened!"

"If you are confident, deal with it yourself. But if you encounter an enemy you cannot handle, do not act rashly under any circumstances. Head to Sanctuary as quickly as possible and leave it to other, stronger Saints!"

"Whoever they may be, anyone who challenges the dignity of the goddess and Sanctuary must pay a sufficient price!"

As he spoke, the old man involuntarily clenched his fists.

"Yes, Master!"

Wuxin agreed at once.

Finally, after bidding farewell to Hakurei and Yuzuriha, he left Jamir.

Traveling at a hundred thousand times the speed of sound, Wuxin took only about half a day to reach Tehran, south of the Caspian Sea.

In fact, had he not needed to ask people for Tehran's exact location, he would have arrived even earlier.

The violation and murder of the temple's priestess had already caused an uproar throughout Tehran, so Wuxin found the scene without much effort.

It was a simply built temple in a relatively remote location.

Although Athena was a true goddess, that did not mean everyone worshipped her. In particular, far from Greece, Sanctuary's influence was extremely limited, which also accounted for the temple's humble construction.

To be precise, finding a temple to Athena so far away was already a pleasant surprise.

However, the mayor of Tehran had already sent men to seal off the temple, and a crowd of soldiers carrying muskets surrounded it.

It seems the mayor here is not a fool. He knows to send men to secure the scene first! Wuxin silently commended him at the sight.

With such a major incident occurring on his territory, if he could not even protect the scene, the mayor's tenure would probably be over.

Of course, his current situation was not much better.

The nature of this incident was far too heinous!

Wuxin immediately walked forward, preparing to enter the temple and investigate.

"Stop, please. Until the people from Sanctuary arrive, no one may approach the temple without permission!" The soldiers on guard immediately blocked Wuxin's way.