# Chapter 14: Saint
For a single instant, as he met those eyes, Joshua actually lost focus. The other's white pupils were like an infinitely folded mirror, making it impossible to look away. Although he immediately recovered, there was no doubt that the warrior had committed a serious error in that moment.
Because just as he pulled himself together and forcibly averted his gaze, the 'white light' surged forward, carrying an overwhelming momentum that could drown everything.
It was the light of fire, the power that gave existence to all things, a pure white tide that human vision could not penetrate. Even Joshua could not look directly at this scene. He instinctively raised his hand to shield himself, squinting slightly to filter the other's blinding radiance. In that moment, the warrior had only one thought — 'strong'.
Unbelievably strong.
The power of the same origin and nature did not directly strike Joshua. The tide of light surged past, embracing the warrior's existence like the sea, but the immense pressure brought by that colossal force descended upon him at the same time. Instantly, Joshua felt as if he were at the extreme depths of ten thousand meters underwater, with infinite force crushing his bones and muscles, threatening to shatter him into dust.
And this was merely the aftermath.
As a former legendary warrior, one of the world's strongest who had fought against Abyss Lords and clashed with Demon Lords, Joshua's experience far exceeded 99.9% of the people in this world. He believed that even if an Evil God descended in person, it could not make him feel that he could not look directly at it, could not fight it.
But this mass of light, overflowing with Order Force, had done exactly that.
What kind of power was this, that even its residual radiance could make a warrior who had once reached the peak of destiny, approaching the realm of gods, feel unable to look directly at it?
Joshua did not know, but he was unwilling to give up. Blood flowed with difficulty through his veins, bones creaked and groaned, and even though instinct and body were screaming to end the resistance, the tenacity and fighting spirit deeply rooted in the warrior's blood and bones made him persist.
He gritted his teeth until they nearly cracked, exerting all his strength to withstand the crushing pressure. His crimson pupils reflected light far brighter than any star. Joshua raised his head, staring directly at this mass of radiance. No matter how painful it was, he would never admit defeat.
Pleasantly, this persistence bore fruit. Not long after, as the infinite white light surged, the warrior, having roughly adapted to the intensity of the light, vaguely made out a blurry humanoid figure.
A simple humanoid figure, as if sketched with black lines against a white background.
Within a mass of burning pure white flame, light that seemed to be the embodiment of Order itself, a long-haired 'human' in white robes, with white hair and white eyes, was gazing forward. He stood quietly on an ocean of light, his gaze passing over Joshua, staring directly at the endless, distant Abyss of corruption and poison.
As if sensing this person's gaze, the Abyss on the other side began to churn. Countless slimy, rotting tentacles dripping with black blood, pus, and venom extended from the formless darkness. They twisted together, forming a wall covered in sores and tumors, as if trying to resist the impact of the tide of light.
But it was useless.
Without words, without action, the white humanoid merely gazed. The evil fluctuations that had been entrenched in Joshua's mental sea, which even the full power of the Azure Orb could not expel — that is, the true body of the Dark Abyss — began to collapse.
Accompanied by a scream twisted to the extreme, the dark green fluctuations were purified from their tiniest fragments. In the dark sacrificial hall beneath the distant island, the obsidian altar covered with blood-like patterns instantly disintegrated completely. Countless patterns radiating white light emerged on its surface, then turned it inch by inch into ash. The immensely powerful Order Force shot out along the channel of causality, and two massive figures that had been waiting for the curse to take effect were instantly completely enveloped.
In agonized howls, one could see that these were two dragons with curved, goat-like horns. Their faces were ferocious and terrifying, as if they were monsters that had crawled out of the Abyss. But under the illumination of Order Force, their nightmare-inducing horrific features twisted into a mess. The completely opposite, restraining power penetrated deep into their bodies, destroying the structure of their flesh and energy circulation. Even if these two dragons managed to survive, they would be utterly reduced to useless cripples.
In Joshua's mental sea, the foul Abyss had been completely expelled. White light covered everything, whether around or above and below, all was pure white. Now, the light dimmed slightly, and the warrior could see the white humanoid more clearly.
It was a massive temple built of pure white marble, located at the center of a vast city with no visible end. The white humanoid stood at the center of this temple, radiating infinite light that illuminated the dome of the temple. The youth who had spoken words of contempt — even Joshua could not help but be startled.
But perhaps because it was too perfect, too holy, it seemed otherworldly. This white-haired youth lacked a sense of reality, making one feel that he was not an existence that should belong to this world.
A summer breeze passed by his side, causing the grass on the hills to ripple, forming patterns of varying depth. The clouds in the sky moved slowly, blocking the sunlight and casting patches of shadow on the earth.
The white-haired youth advanced slowly along the path through the fields, and Joshua watched him approach.
Involuntarily, he felt a rare tension.
The distance between them grew closer and closer, until the two were almost face to face.
One was a legendary warrior who had undergone countless trials, emerging from blood and fire.
One was a flawless, pure white youth who seemed not of this world.
But Joshua discovered that the youth passed by him like a passerby, without any other action.
He seemed to be merely a phantom, a visitor to this world. He suddenly understood this.
Turning his head, the warrior wanted to see where this youth was going, but at this moment, the illusionary world began to slowly collapse, shattering into countless scattered afterimages.
Joshua opened his eyes.
It was only an instant. From the moment he had manipulated the Order Force of the Azure Orb to contact the chaotic fluctuations that had come from nowhere, everything had passed in an imperceptible moment. He breathed slowly, feeling the familiar atmosphere of Ural Fortress. The warrior's perception returned to this world, this human world.
The sounds of people around him flooded into his ears, and his thinking ability gradually recovered. Joshua took a deep breath, and sufficient oxygen flowed into his brain along with his blood. He sensed that at least three Gold-rank experts were rapidly approaching, and Ying and Lin were also closing in quickly.
He also recalled everything he had seen in the illusion.
So the question could finally be asked.
"Who... was that?"
(To be continued.)