"Ah, I see now," Gospel had been warning me to stay away from Ash from the very beginning."
Igula retreated behind the wall of Legendary Mages and, upon hearing Hanna’s mutterings as she reloaded, asked with a frown, "How did it warn you?"
"Do you still remember my reward from the ’Art Ranking’?"
The shy young miss Donna blushed, modestly spewing metal gun bullets that, like a spring breeze, skimmed over the shoulders of the Legendary Mages, causing ripples on the barrier of the suitor’s Holy Sanctuary.
Hanna’s voice, mixed with the tumultuous gunfire, seemed like the sudden realization of the correct solution after an examination had ended, "One is ’Calamity Eye’ and the other is ’Tongue of Relief’."
"You don’t seem to have used those two rewards much." Opening the Gospel Book and rapidly restoring his Magic Power with Gospel Points, Igula was burning through both silver and Golden Technique Power as fuel to power the three-winged Technique Spirit, in an all-or-nothing gamble. But it was precisely the rapid depletion of Magic Power that made his head spin and weaken his soul to the point where he felt an overwhelming desire for a simple embrace.
"’Calamity Eye’ can recognize calamities afflicting others, while ’Tongue of Relief’ allows verbal termination of any contract if both parties are willing," Hanna explained cheerfully. "Combined with the first-place work in the ’Art Ranking’, Gospel’s suggestion is pretty clear—this person is trouble; you’d better break off your relationship and leave him."
"It is quite clear, how could you not have seen it?"
"I did see it," Hanna replied. "But I don’t take Gospel’s suggestion to heart. My favorite thing to do is to go against what Gospel wants."
"Irrefutable," the Swindler mocked, "In our Blood Moon, a dreamer with such a firm will like you would be on the emergency list or even have a Blood Moon Judgement held just for you."
"However, Gospel is indeed a more advanced nation than Blood Moon, having sent ten Holy Sanctuary Mages to round us up. The scale is by no means less impressive than a Blood Moon Judgement."
While they were talking, a bullet exploded Alice’s head. A ghostly green fire kindled from the severed neck, coalescing into Harvey’s visage.
Though this body burns with Ice Cold Flowing Fire, it still longs for the moment when all is consumed.
Bones, nerves, muscles, skin... it was as if a seamstress were improvising her creation; in a matter of moments, Alice was restored to her original state—skin soft enough to be broken by a blow, eyes sparkling with life, lips glistening with moisture, and her hair flowing smoothly!
But those present at the Funeral Ceremony all knew the terrible price hidden beneath this beauty: Harvey, merged as one with Alice, was using his own living body to repair a corpse!
He was extracting his own bones, marrow, muscles, nerves, skin, blood, and injecting them into Alice’s emptiness! Although a Necromancer certainly had ways to restore his own consumption, this was battle, and if Harvey ’overspent himself,’ then he would have to rely on Alice to provide for him in turn.
After all, the idea of using a living person to repair the dead was abnormal, bizarre, terrifying; a normal person would never entertain such thoughts—just as you wouldn’t feed your blood to a newly purchased doll, even sacrifices should be made for something more important.
So, like the pale bones spurting forth on Alice’s restoration, they could feel very directly and piercingly Harvey’s mindset—it wasn’t that Alice was more valuable; it was that he believed this world had no value at all.
As for the potentially self-destructive consequences... that was like asking someone who exclusively eats instant noodles to pay attention to nutritional balance; if one’s diet is already instant noodles, why would they care for nutrition?
With a push of Alice’s right hand, the shadows in the underground hall surged like a flood. Harvey had silently unlocked the fourth tier of the ’Ghost King Chains’, the ’Shadow Spirit’—even without the related Technique Spirit, he could directly wield the power of shadows, binding enemies’ shadows, and even overwhelm them with tangible darkness!
This was the truly terrifying aspect of the first prize from the ’Family Ranking’, the ’Ghost King Chains’—it allowed the Necromancer to bypass the barriers of Magic Factions, mastering the powers of other factions through the conversion of necromantic troops, without the need for additional Technique Spirits, almost making one a makeshift all-faction Mage!
Apart from the throne in the underground hall, shadows lay everywhere for Alice to manipulate. Moreover, most Miracles found it difficult to defend against the shadows, making Harvey’s offensive combat power arguably the first among the Funeral Ceremony participants.
But this advantage was negligible under the crushing force of absolute power.
The incessant gunfire, blazing white flames, and the Holy Sanctuary Mages’ attacks instantly obliterated the shadowy surge. Even the most ordinary attacks, enhanced by the Holy Barrier, had miraculous destructive power.
As they counterattacked, Alice dove into the shadows to dodge, while gunshots rang from another direction; a handsome blue-haired youth darted and leaped among the Legendary Mages, his twin guns singing like a music box, and the frost bullets, unable to breach the Holy Barrier, still spread a mist to obstruct their view.
Banjee’s self-created Miracle, also his signature—Melting!
The older his appearance, the more Frost Magic Power he would gain, elevating his combat power to a Three-winged level!
Igula suddenly turned to look at the swordsmanship Holy Sanctuary who was drawing his sword, then the swordsmanship Holy Sanctuary launched a distant slash towards Hanna, but it was his own Holy Sanctuary behind him that suddenly shattered, as if he had slain himself!