Chapter 60: The Silently Blooming Flower
The warrior gripped the great axe that had gathered countless rays of light, then reversed it and thrust it into the earth.
Silver-white patterns instantly emerged on the gray stone ground. Sacred runes appeared one after another, layer upon layer, like a massive net encompassing the world, spreading without end.
And a beam of intense light pierced through the dark clouds, dispelling the shadows.
With Joshua as the source, a bright yet non-dazzling radiance was released. This light, like a silver thread, shot straight into the sky, piercing through both heaven and earth, connecting them, and tearing a massive hole in the surging chaotic canopy.
Under the illumination of this light, the earth and the floating rubble began to gradually turn crystalline and translucent. The black chaotic mist was forced out, gravity stabilized, and layer after layer of light ripples spread across the surface. On the long-decayed ground, green grass unexpectedly began to grow anew, and newly sprouted trees and flowers also began to bud and bloom once more.
The decayed and cold wind began to carry warmth and a fresh scent. The silent, dead earth gradually regained its vitality.
The wind grew stronger.
The corpses of the three Ultimate Wild Gods, under the light's illumination, began to slowly burn, bit by bit turning into red sparks that danced through the air. These sparks, carried by the gale that swept across all things, slanted across the earth, then scattered among the mountains and all creation.
A gentle light, tinged with a few sparks, swept across the world. Compared to the Order Force Joshua had used before, this light was softer, more penetrating. It swept across the plains, crossed the valleys, traversed the rotting swamps and the frozen oceans, covering the entire continent.
Number 3, quietly buried and lying beneath countless tons of earth and stone, saw it. She blinked, raised her head, and looked at this light as it arrived, somewhat puzzled yet delighted, as it swept away the obscure and restless aura around her.
Moria and Claire, who were slowly digging their way up from underground, also saw it. They pushed the mud and gravel behind them, somewhat astonished as a few sparks and rays of light penetrated the earth and stone, arriving beside them.
"Nature's Force... is restored?!" The Elf touched one of those sparks. Her whole body trembled slightly, as if she couldn't believe it. "What is happening?"
The Old Dwarf, on the other hand, felt a surge of energy. The weakness that had been buried deep in his bones ever since the transit completely vanished. He laughed heartily, "Who cares! Things are getting better, aren't they? Let's dig our way out first."
The light continued to sweep across. Countless space-time channels imbued with chaotic energy slowly closed under this power. Weaker Wild Gods were even directly ignited by this force. The chaos burned, releasing even more light and fire, joining the gale and radiance that swept across the world.
And in every corner of the Carlis World, outsiders who had come to this world willingly or unwillingly, for various reasons, all felt the eruption of immense power from afar. Within a certain small temple ruin, the soul of a certain Silver-Haired Girl was swept by the light. She, who had been somewhat dazed, suddenly woke up.
"...This... why am I here? I remember I just fell asleep..."
She looked around in confusion, but saw that under the silver-white light, the barren hills were sprouting green grass, and flowers were blooming along with it.
And the source of the light.
In the final seconds of the Soulflame King form, Joshua truly felt what the 'Power of Protection' was.
Flames, burning chaos, restoring the world to order, reviving the barren world—this was the power of the World Guardian, the [Soulflame King].
But a sigh came.
"As expected, it's still not enough."
The light faded, the flames receded. Stepping down from the Soulflame King state, Joshua slowly pulled the great axe from the earth. The armor on his body returned to normal. The traces like ceramic cracks and the faint firelight within them gradually faded. The black killing intent fluctuation also slowly discolored, turning back into crimson Battle Qi, then disappearing.
Letting out a breath, Joshua looked somewhat regretfully at the light and spreading flames beside him. Now that he had withdrawn from the Soulflame King state, the manifestations of this Order Force had lost their source and were gradually receding.
The sprouting grass and blooming flowers gradually withered, turning back into mud and sand. The fresh air reverted to its decayed and dead taste. The earth was no longer full of life, returning to barrenness.
"The Steel Serpent was right... my flames are still too weak, and the souls I have stored are too few."
The crown mark on his forehead gradually faded, then turned into a sky-blue crystal orb, falling into Joshua's palm. The spark within the Azure Orb was still burning, although it seemed slightly larger than at the very beginning, it was still so faint.
"The power of the Ultimate Wild Gods was all burned by the Order Flame of the spark, turning into the power of the Soulflame King. We fought so fiercely, but in the end, I didn't gain any experience this time. What a huge loss... cough!"
Joking to himself, Joshua suddenly coughed. He frowned, feeling an emptiness inside him, as if he had been hollowed out.
A flash of Arcane Power. The black great axe in his hand returned to its original form. Rin appeared beside him. The young boy moved close, supporting the swaying Joshua, helping him stand steady.
"Master... your face?"
A puzzled voice sounded. Rin looked up, somewhat surprised at his master's face. That face, which had been relatively young, was now covered in wrinkles, showing obvious signs of aging.
"Don't worry. It's the aftereffect of overexerting my power. It will slowly get better. It's just that I really can't act rashly for a while."
Explaining slowly, word by word, Joshua frowned, but his mind was on other things.
"According to the Steel Serpent, Famine, Plague, and another unknown Evil God are spying on the Mycroft World... No wonder the Far South was so turbulent and full of incidents in my past life. Thinking about it, it must have been the gods repelling the first invasion of Chaos. Come to think of it, whether it was the Abyss Demons or the Five-Colored Dragon Clan, they were all tentacles of the Evil God's invasion... So in my past life, without even realizing it, I had already clashed with Chaos so many times?"
There really are so many lurking enemies.
Thinking of this, Joshua couldn't help but clench his fist. He said in a deep voice, "The work of cleansing is a heavy responsibility and a long road."
*Crunch, crunch.*
The sound of earth being dug came from nearby.
Not far away, a mound of earth rose from the ground. Accompanied by the appearance of golden Battle Qi and green Nature's Force, after spending a considerable amount of time, Moria and Claire finally crawled out.
Due to the earlier fight and the gravitational imbalance, the ground now had no undulations at all, completely a vast stone plain. The Elf and the Old Dwarf immediately saw Joshua standing ahead. They exchanged a glance, then hurried towards where the warrior was. Joshua and his group also naturally moved forward to meet them.
When the two groups met, before they could figure out what to say or how to greet each other, Claire couldn't help but exclaim softly, "Joshua, your hair... what happened?"
Moria followed the Elf's gaze. Although he was shorter, he could still see Joshua's hair. He was also stunned for a moment. "Joshua, how did you get so old so quickly?"
Curiously touching his own head, then pulling out a strand of hair, Joshua stared at the silver-white strand in his palm. He was silent for a moment, then shook his head. "It's nothing. I fought a bit fiercely just now and consumed some life force. I've rested for a while now, and I feel much better."
"The Elf clan has Mother Tree fruits that can restore life force. When I return to the Far South, I'll be sure to send you a few."
"Then many thanks."
*BOOM!!!*
Suddenly, a violent thunderclap exploded in the sky. Accompanied by the flickering of blue-white lightning, a deep-blue Void Portal slowly unfolded on one side. It seemed as if someone was restraining its expansion speed. But even so, within a few breaths, the diameter of this space-time door exceeded ten meters. A wave of aura that was exceptionally familiar to everyone surged into the Carlis World along with its opening.
"A Space-Time Gate!"
Staring fixedly at this door connecting two worlds, Moria's face was full of joy. He shouted loudly, "The Space-Time Gate has opened again!"
"It's a Space-Time Gate leading to the Mycroft World!"
The Elf clasped her hands together and let out a soft sigh. "Finally, we can go back."
"It seems someone is guiding us from the other side."
Unlike the Dwarf and the Elf, Joshua sensed a different trace within the fluctuations of the Space-Time Gate. With his experience, he could see that behind this gate, there was a very powerful person constraining the tension of the dimension, preventing it from opening too quickly, and stabilizing the flow of the passage.
Without further ado, everyone ran together towards the direction of the Space-Time Gate. But after running for a short while, Joshua stopped.
Moria and Claire both looked at him with puzzled expressions.
"You go first."
Joshua stopped in his tracks. His expression was somewhat hesitant, but then it calmed down. "There are some things I need to do."
Having said that, without giving Moria and Claire a chance to ask, he simply turned around and walked towards the location of the collapsed mountain range.
Raising their hands, too late to call him back, the Old Dwarf and the Elf could only watch Joshua run off into the distance. After Rin gave them a slight nod of acknowledgment, he immediately followed his master's footsteps.
Before long, the two of them arrived at the place where Number 3 was buried.
"Start digging."
Said briefly, Joshua gathered the little power he had left and began to dig rapidly. Rin also silently assisted the warrior.
One was Gold High-rank, the other Silver Peak. The two working together just to dig a hole couldn't be faster. Before long, they had dug down at least a hundred meters. Then, faintly, they sensed the aura of the Crystal Sun.
Changing direction, they immediately dug their way to the location of the giant crystal sphere. This pinnacle of Carlis civilization's orderly creation was now nearly completely extinguished, with only golden electric sparks like strands of hair flickering within.
And below the Crystal Sun, at the dark and deep entrance, a mana projection with black wings and sky-blue hair stood quietly. She was dressed in a white experimental robe, looking at Joshua and Rin with a confused expression.
"Warrior from another world... why have you come here?"
Number 3 spoke softly, her voice like a dying ember in a fire, about to go out at any moment. "I sensed it. The Void Portal has opened. You can return to your world..."
"I'm taking you with me."
Interrupting Number 3, Joshua's answer was simple and direct.
"What meaning does that have..."
The Artificial Intelligence's blue hair drifted. A voice like a murmur came from ahead. "My world and my creators have been destroyed. The Chaos monsters have been killed... Now, the greatest motivation that kept me alive is gone..."
She raised her head, looking at Joshua. Number 3's pupils were incredibly dim. "I have no reason to exist anymore. Let me rest... Let me die together with this world and have a good sleep."
"Do you want to die that badly? But I didn't come here to ask for your opinion."
Ignoring this projection, Joshua, with Rin, walked straight past her side and headed towards the core of the fortress. "You have plenty of reasons to exist. I'm not the kind of person who would just sit by and watch someone who helped me die."
"..."
Silently watching Joshua and Rin advance, passing through the deep and long corridor, Number 3 seemed to be pondering something. Then, with a long, leisurely sigh, her projection gradually dissipated.
After walking for a while, Joshua once again arrived at the Central Doctrine District.
The massive, circular vertical pit was the same as before, although it seemed slightly deformed due to the earlier impact. The mana light flowing overhead, compared to last time, had become extremely dim, as if it had exhausted its stored energy. Below, in the steel city, the mana mist had also become incredibly thin.
Jumping down directly, using Battle Qi as a cushion, Joshua, with Rin, once again arrived at the [Central Doctrine District].
The massive steel city where Number 3's main body resided.
The tips of countless towering steel spires flickered with faint magical energy. Subtle arcs of electricity maintained the operation of this enormous mana construct. Orienting himself, Joshua immediately walked in a certain direction without any hesitation.
A few minutes later, he arrived at the city center, beside the tallest Rune Mechanical Building.
A flash of mana light. Countless mana streams converged. Number 3's projection materialized again around Joshua. She opened her mouth, as if wanting to say something, but was bluntly interrupted by the warrior.
"Don't say anything."
Joshua turned his head to look at Number 3's projection, his tone becoming domineering. "You want to die. I won't allow it. That's how it is. No matter how much you say, it's useless."
Saying this, he couldn't help but let out a scoff. "Chaos is not extinguished. The Evil Gods are not dead. Dying now would be too easy on those monsters. You, a life born after the Evil God's invasion, haven't even seen a normal orderly world once, have you?"
"Don't you want to see it? A normal world, and the sight of me tearing apart Chaos and the Evil Gods together."
"..."
Opening her mouth slightly, Number 3 wanted to say something but didn't know what to say. This Artificial Intelligence created by the Carlis people could only sigh, but unconsciously, a smile appeared on her face.
Perhaps.
Stepping on air, Joshua rose bit by bit to the very top of the Rune Tower. There, a cylindrical rune core emitting a purple-blue light was located. On this crystalline core, forged from crystal and metal, countless mana lights swirled. Dense, overlapping runes flowed like water and ripples, as if reflecting all the wisdom of the world.
Joshua knew clearly that aside from this man-high rune core, the entire steel city was merely an external device for amplification and controlling the mobile fortress. Number 3's soul resided within this piece of crystalline metal. Taking her meant taking the entire mobile fortress.
Touching this rune core, Joshua lifted it from the groove that held it in place with one hand. What he felt was a warm sensation. Accompanied by a series of flickers like snowflakes, Number 3's projection slowly disappeared.
Before disappearing, Number 3 looked at Joshua with a complex expression. After staring at this black-haired, red-eyed warrior for a moment, she bit her lower lip and said softly, "Thank you."
"You're welcome."
*—Boom, boom, boom!*
After Number 3's core was removed, the entire steel city erupted in large bursts of electrical sparks. Further out, the entire mobile fortress shook violently.
The Crystal Sun embedded at the top of the silver-white pyramid was already on the verge of destruction. The departure of its controller only accelerated this process.
Accompanied by a violent flash of golden light, countless cracks appeared on its surface. With a rapid energy fluctuation, the Crystal Sun simply exploded. The Order Force, in its most violent form, swept across the entire land, blasting away all the earth and stone that buried it, clearing it all.
And amidst countless flying rocks and earth, a red orb flew rapidly out of the golden, semi-circular energy shield generated by the Crystal Sun's explosion. Inside were two people and a blue crystal cylinder the size of a person.
They flew towards the deep-blue Void Portal in mid-air.
...
[Mythological Event - Soulflame King]
[Stellar Calendar, Era of Desolation, Year 1314, Central Region of the Monadra Mountains. Visitors from another world descended upon the Carlis World. With the help of the Intelligent Mobile Fortress and the God of Steel, the warriors from another world successively defeated many Ultimate-rank Chaos monsters, temporarily ignited the spark, transformed into the Soulflame King, and revived the world. Although it ultimately failed, this feat was enough for the gods above the high heavens and the demons in the void to know your name, and the gods looked askance.]
[Falling Star Calendar, Year 832, March 1st, 10:09 AM.]
[The visitors from another world return to their world.]
...
The Carlis World, on the verge of destruction.
Barren land, plains of dust, decayed mud and rock formed everything.
It seemed all things were eroded by Chaos. The briefly lit light had no way to completely change this world that had already begun to fall into the abyss of sinking.
The wind was like a thread, sweeping across the plain. Gravel scraped across the ground, creating wave-like ripples.
And in a small corner where the wind could not reach.
A silver-white, steel-like flower was quietly blooming.
— End of Volume Three, The World Without Fire (To be continued).