Chapter 262: The Faceless Stone Man, Mythical Era, Power of the Sanctuary

Ronan shook his head, "Where should I go to find you next?"

The giant green face spoke, "Just wait for me here; I will find you."

With that, the giant face exploded into countless green sparks that scattered into the air.

The flames on the ground extinguished as well. Since Evaque instructed him to wait in place, he decided to stay in this area.

To be honest, Ronan was new to the central region and unfamiliar with the surroundings. If Evaque had simply given him an address to find on his own, he would have frowned.

Before coming, Fa Lin from the Arcane Workshop had given him a simple map of the central continent, which only marked the territories of a few super-large wizard factions.

—Life Court, Fate Pendulum, and Tangista.

These were the three wizard empires of the central continent.

The Life Court resembled an oval, the Fate Pendulum had a triangular shape, and Tangista looked like a long snake coiled up. The three empires formed a triangular balance on the map, with a blank area separating them, while the center surrounded by the three empires was an unknown void.

Ronan's current location should be in a mountain range on the southern edge of the central continent, very close to the Life Court. However, he couldn't find the address for the "Elemental Ring" on the map.

Ronan stored the conspicuous airship into his space ring and lit a campfire, then caught some river fish from the stream.

He caught a type of fish that was generally two fingers long and half a finger wide, with pale purple scales. He didn't know its name, as he had never seen it in the south, but it was extremely delicious, perfect for grilling or making soup.

A third-level wizard was not completely transcendent and still needed to eat regularly. Ronan had been eating dry rations on the airship for half a year, so it was a rare treat to taste such fresh ingredients.

The aroma of the river fish attracted several wild beasts and magical beasts, but they were all deterred by the aura Ronan exuded.

Unknowingly, the sun set in the west, and the stars and moon filled the night sky.

By the stream, amidst the gentle sound of flowing water, Ronan wiped his lips lightly in the moonlight and stood up, finding that the fish bones had piled up into a small mountain under his wizard robe.

He had nearly caught all the purple-scaled fish in this wild stream today; it would take some time for it to return to its former liveliness.

Ronan had originally wanted to practice meditation and test the newly constructed secret method of the "Spiral Palace," when a large shadow flew towards him under the giant round moon.

He squinted to see that it was a group of black-bodied, white-headed owls. As they approached, the dense flock of owls gathered in one place, eventually transforming into a strong humanoid figure that quietly landed in front of him.

"May the spirits bless you, my friend."

Evaque performed an ancient greeting to Ronan, opening his arms and warmly embracing him.

Ronan returned the gesture, somewhat surprised that Evaque had arrived so quickly; he had mentally prepared to wait here for half a month or even longer.

"Thank you again for coming, Damien."

Evaque's eyes were pure, and his words were sincere. He was nothing like the domineering and aloof figure from the talent competition; perhaps this was his true self.

"I should be the one thanking you."

Ronan shook his head. Whether it was the mysterious finger bone Evaque had given him to conceal his soul's aura or the guidance he provided on a spiritual level, the help had been immense.

"Friends don't need to say such things."

Evaque smiled as he looked Ronan up and down, a hint of unusual color appearing in his eyes. "Your soul's issues have been nearly resolved; you have become stronger than you were a year ago. If I can successfully pass the trial this time, I might have a way to help you with the remaining issues you have."

Ronan's expression shifted slightly; he knew what Evaque was referring to—Hekalto's lingering will!

Although he had used methods to transfer most of Hekalto's revived will to the Ice Crystal Demon Serpent, as long as Hekalto's blood flowed within him and he continued to use that power, Hekalto's will could never be completely extinguished within him.

This had always been a thorn in his throat, with no good solution. The Ancient Spirit Witch was an expert in the realm of souls, and Evaque might indeed have a way to resolve it.

"Let's go."

After a brief exchange, Evaque beckoned Ronan to set off. "The nearest entrance to the Hall of Spirits is not far from here; we should be able to make it in time for the next full moon..."

Ronan nodded, and the two set off into the night.

Evaque was much more familiar with the central continent than Ronan, but relatively speaking, he also knew little about the three wizard empires and the various large wizard factions.

Evaque explained, "I have spent most of my time in areas outside of the factions in the central continent. With our level of strength, we can only be considered at the bottom tier here.

Before officially gaining the recognition of the spirits, I dare not fully expose myself to the sights of some large factions..."

Ronan understood. The Spirit Wizards had caused significant turmoil in the wizarding world during ancient times, and it was hard to guarantee that there were no grudges against them among the current wizard factions. After all, the central region was not like the south, where a fourth-level Dawn Wizard could almost walk unimpeded.

From Evaque's words, it was clear that even fourth-level wizards were quite common in the central region.

They might not even be considered a powerful faction; they could only be described as possessing considerable strength, barely qualifying to travel across the continent.

This was a larger stage.

Ronan felt a faint sense of anticipation growing in his heart.

The two wandered through the mountains, delving deeper into the wilderness. On the fifth day at noon, they finally arrived at the entrance to the Hall of Spirits that Evaque had mentioned.

"This is it."

Pushing aside the tangled branches, a damp, slightly foul odor greeted them. Evaque led Ronan to a place.

It was a small swamp, filled with gray-black mud, littered with dead branches and leaves, as well as the carcasses of wild beasts, both fresh and decayed, that had drowned within.

"There are three days until the full moon."

Evaque looked up at the sky and said to Ronan, "I need to make some preparations; you can rest for a bit."

Ronan nodded, and then he saw Evaque step into the swamp alone.

He completely disregarded the filth and stench, allowing the dirty mud to cover his body. With a solemn and devout demeanor, he picked up a half-rotten bird corpse infested with maggots from the swamp and slowly walked back to the dry shore.

Evaque quietly chanted an ancient prayer, gently placing the bird corpse on the ground. A mysterious aura of sanctity emanated from him, as if he were conducting a special ritual.

Ronan watched as the rotting bird corpse melted into the soil like wax, followed by a half-illusory glowing bird flying out from the ground, eventually transforming into countless specks of light that merged into the vast forest.

Evaque continued this act, one by one pulling animal corpses from the swamp and using a mysterious ritual to send their souls away, utterly devoted.

Once a wizard officially ascends, their soul undergoes a preliminary sublimation. Even if their physical body is destroyed, there is a certain probability that their soul can be preserved.

At this time, if there are special secret methods applied, a wizard can also survive for a long time in the form of a soul body, but it is difficult to take further steps, and ultimately, they cannot avoid returning to the peaceful land.

During Evaque's "ritual," Ronan stood by, contemplating the relationship between the soul and the physical body. For some reason, observing Evaque's ritual brought him an unprecedented sense of tranquility and peace.

He watched as the mud in the swamp gradually decreased with the removal of the animal corpses, and the water level slowly dropped inch by inch.

Three days later, as dusk approached the full moon, the entire swamp vanished without a trace, replaced by a dry basin. The mud from the swamp had seemingly flowed away, and in the center of the basin stood a faceless stone man.

"It's done."

After cleansing himself, Evaque gave Ronan a look, leading him step by step into the basin, moving toward the position of the black stone man.

At this moment, the sunlight had completely disappeared, and the round full moon rose above the treetops.

Silver moonlight flooded the entire basin, and the sounds of insects and birds in the forest had faded away, leaving the entire woods enveloped in a profound and tranquil atmosphere.

Ronan followed Evaque to the stone man, watching as Evaque took out a strangely shaped bone knife from a leather pouch, cut open his palm, and let his blood drip onto the stone man's head.

"Witnesses are also required. Otherwise, you will not qualify to enter the Hall of Spirits."

Evaque handed the bone knife to Ronan, looking into his eyes earnestly, "I need to inform you in advance that most spells cannot be cast once we enter the Hall of Spirits. If you regret it now, it's still not too late, Damien."

Ronan fell silent for a moment, then calmly took the bone knife from Evaque's hand. Imitating Evaque's earlier action, he cut his palm and let his blood drip onto the stone man.

Seeing this, Evaque visibly relaxed, and his gaze toward Ronan became even more intimate and trusting.

After returning the bone knife to Evaque, he urgently recited an ancient, convoluted incantation, while his fingers, stained with blood, began to draw strange patterns on the surface of the stone man.

It resembled some kind of special rune, or perhaps the totem symbols of an ancient tribe.

Evaque continued to add a few more drops of blood until the patterns covered the entire body of the stone man. At this moment, the full moon above them had just risen to its zenith, and the moonlight fell upon the stone man, causing a faint silver mist to rise. The black stone man trembled slightly, and then two black holes suddenly appeared on its featureless face, from which a thick black liquid began to flow continuously.

"Hmm?!"

Ronan noticed the stone man's "tears" and felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity, involuntarily letting out a slightly surprised sound.

"You've seen this sacrificial spirit stone sculpture before?"

Evaque turned to look at him, slowly wiping the blood from his hands.

"No."

Ronan shook his head, explaining, "I have only seen something similar."

He briefly told Evaque about the "sanctuary" stone pillar he had encountered when pursuing the Ice Crystal Demon Serpent outside White Stone Fortress.

Indeed, the stone man before him was made of a material strikingly similar to that of the sanctuary altar he had found, both sharing similar properties and also leaking an unknown black liquid.

He had initially thought they resembled each other, but to his surprise, after hearing his account, Evaque confirmed his speculation.

"Yes, the sacrificial spirit stone pillar is indeed made from sanctuary stone; your intuition is correct."

"Sanctuary stone..."

Ronan couldn't help but ask, "Can you elaborate on that?"

He had learned about the sanctuary from an ancient notebook given to him by Old Wells during his apprenticeship, and he had always been curious, but the notebook contained little information.

Evaque, knowing quite a bit, naturally did not want to miss this opportunity for knowledge.

At this moment, the black liquid flowing from the stone man's face had already accumulated a thin layer beneath their knees. Evaque showed no intention of moving, indicating that this process would need to be maintained for a while longer. He pondered for a moment, then spoke to Ronan, "There are many rumors about the sanctuary, and its origins can even be traced back to the era before the ancient times."

"Before the ancient times?"

Ronan was taken aback.

"Yes."

Evaque nodded, calmly stating, "That elemental ignorance, when runes had not yet been born, was the chaotic era.

That era is also known as the mythical period."

"Mythical... period?"

This was the first time Ronan had heard this term.

"Legend has it that during the mythical period, gods and their agents roamed the world, and they once erupted into extremely fierce wars. This war led to the fall of many gods, the retreat of mythology, and only then did the brilliance created by the ancient wizards emerge.

The wars of the gods left many remnants of power in the sky, earth, and oceans. These powers were preserved by those gods who were unwilling to fade away in a special form, hoping that the believers who picked up these powers could one day summon them back from their abandoned lands.

Unfortunately, the gods did not anticipate that the arrangements they left behind would not lead things to develop in the direction they envisioned, but rather would lead to our rise."

Evaque said lightly, "In a sense, the power of the gods is also an important enlightenment for wizard civilization."

"I understand."

Ronan pondered, "The sanctuary is a container for storing divine power."

The black liquid flowing from the faceless stone man's face had now risen above their knees.

"No."

Evaque shook his head, "The container for storing divine power is the divine altar; the sanctuary is a replica created by ancient wizards of the divine altar."

"The earliest batch of wizards never gave up on analyzing and researching the power of the gods. The true divine altar probably vanished long ago in ancient times; what can still be found now are mostly replicas of the sanctuary made by ancient wizards.

What is stored in the sanctuary is merely imitated divine power—possessing some effects of divine power, but not true divine power.

Sanctuary stone is a product of that era; it is said to be mined from otherworldly spaces, and now it is also quite rare."

Ancient, primordial, ancient times, and the mythical era before the ancient times, with divine altars and sanctuaries. As Ronan journeyed along, he unknowingly witnessed a corner of the profound and heavy history of wizards, feeling a sense of grandeur akin to witnessing an epic.

Evaque continued, "The ancient wizards attempted to integrate divine power, as well as their imitated divine power, into rune arrays, forging them into magical artifacts, and even refining them into potions... They preserved this topic for future generations to study, in the form of the sanctuary altar."

"Potions?!"

Upon hearing Evaque mention the ancient wizards' use of sanctuary power, Ronan's heart inexplicably skipped a beat.

He instinctively thought of the special "Soul Ignition Potion" that Anglie had given him.

It was precisely because of the special components contained in that "Soul Ignition Potion" that prompted his breakthrough in "Ascetic Body Forging."

Combined with the encounter with Anglie at White Stone Fortress, it was clear that Anglie was also after the power of the sanctuary. Was there a connection between these two? Could it be a coincidence?

Ronan's heart raced, and even the small sacred tree pattern engraved on his heart began to flicker uncertainly.

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