Chapter 174 Promotion, Candle Holder
Li Wen felt a scorching heat emitting from within, as if she had swallowed a red-hot iron. But soon, the heat source inexplicably receded, and her consciousness sank infinitely into darkness, accompanied by a chilling cold that penetrated her soul.
The two diametrically opposed experiences tore Li Wen’s consciousness in half, yet she remained conscious.
She opened her eyes and found herself in a deep, cold darkness. There was no monastery, no ritual magic circle, nor any light or fire.
The character panel showed her life continuously draining away, possibly due to the darkness, or the soul-piercing cold.
After some thought, Li Wen tried to use Divine Prayer to recover her lost life. However, her mana was consumed, and her divine ability showed no signs of activation. The mana lost out of nowhere seemed to have been devoured by the boundless, deep darkness.
It seemed that no magic could take effect here, Li Wen realized.
She needed to leave this place before her life was completely depleted, or she would never be able to complete her promotion.
This thought appeared in Li Wen’s mind without any obstruction. But how could she leave? It was pitch black here, as deep and dark as the legendary realm of shadows. She couldn’t even discern directions, how could she know where to go?
Just as Li Wen was thinking this, her left eye grew hot, and a fire-burning moth flew out of her pupil.
The moth’s appearance brought a faint yet sufficient light to see. It circled Li Wen once, then flew towards a certain direction at a rapid pace. Ash-like scales scattered on the ground with the flapping of its wings, igniting sparks, as if guiding her way.
Li Wen rubbed her frozen hands and managed to keep up with the moth. She glanced at the character panel, and the entry called “Moths wouldn’t sacrifice themselves to fire” had disappeared from the status bar.
Did that Saint foresee even this? The girl was somewhat shocked, but quickly calmed down.
Saint Floranne might not have foreseen her existence. That person might have merely been unwilling for the Path of Light Chasing to be severed, and thus left a legacy in the monastery, waiting for a destined person.
In that case, Li Wen could barely be considered a destined person.
Li Wen followed the trail left by the moth. She could no longer see the moth’s faint light before her; only the path under her feet, as if lit by flames, guided her direction.
A muffled thudding sound came from afar. That direction was where Li Wen was heading. She hesitated for a moment and quickened her pace.
Soon, she understood the source of the sound.
The fire-lit moth was repeatedly crashing into something massive, each impact bringing a muffled thud. Just as Li Wen was considering whether to step forward and help, the fiery moth’s impacts became more intense.
Its violent impacts sparked endless fire. In that instant, light flashed and disappeared. Li Wen took this opportunity to seem to see the true form of the object being struck – it was an immeasurably large stone bell, before which even a giant would choose to remain silent. Yet, this moth, no bigger than a fist, dared to try to shake this unimaginable behemoth, it was truly ignorant of its limitations.
Li Wen glanced at her life, which was about 30% remaining, and decided to wait quietly to see what would happen.
With another impact, tiny sparks exploded, bringing a light that could not be ignored. At the same time, Li Wen truly saw what kind of space she was in.
This was not a deep, lightless realm of shadows, nor an invincible pit inhabited by demons, but an extremely massive temple, a temple built by giants.
Giants, like Golden Elves, were residents of the Mortal Realm who existed since the Golden Age. At that time, their cities and dwellings spanned the entire world. They also believed in the Sun and revered the scorching fire and light, so this should be a temple built for the Sun.
The thirtieth time…
Li Wen counted the moth’s impacts, she had a premonition that something would happen after the moth hit a certain number of times.
The thirty-first time, nothing happened.
The thirty-second time, still nothing happened.
The thirty-third time…
Just as Li Wen thought nothing would happen this time, a cold light pierced the deep darkness.
Without warning, dawn quietly arrived, or perhaps it had never left.
At the roots of a decaying giant tree, an ancient temple worshipping the Sun stood here. The long passage of time had left too deep a mark on it. The surroundings were filled with ruins, or collapsed giant statues. A stone bell as large as a mountain lay horizontally in the center of the temple. The fiery moth circled the stone bell, and the light and heat brought by the dawn seemed to please it greatly.
Li Wen took it all into her mind. She looked up at the source of the light, the dazzling, great Sun.
It resembled a crown, or a white wheel, and with a merciful and cold heart, it scattered endless light and heat to every corner of this world.
Li Wen blinked her eyes. Just looking at it once made her feel as if her eyes were about to burn. She didn’t know if it was her illusion, but she seemed to see the Sun growing larger and larger. At first, it was only the size of a head, and soon it occupied the entire sky.
Soon, she realized it was not an illusion. The Sun was not growing bigger; it was getting closer and closer to this land, and the endless light and heat became more and more fierce.
The land caught fire, and crimson flames devoured every piece of soil.
Li Wen’s life rapidly decreased at a speed she could not react to. Before her life reached zero, the moth returned to her pupil, just like when she used “Thirst for Light.”
At the last moment of her life, Li Wen looked up and witnessed the Sun’s descent.
[You have completed the promotion (Stage Two) “Candle Holder”]
[Your Glorious Spectrum Series rank has been increased]
[You have mastered the ability “Candle of Giving Darkness Lv1”]
[You have obtained the “Trait – Lost Moth,” and your trait limit has been increased]
[Having witnessed the Sun’s descent, you have been deeply affected and obtained the “Status – Primal Fear”]
Li Wen recovered herself and met Moria’s calm and pure gaze.
“It looks like Miss Mephistopheles’ promotion went exceptionally smoothly.”
Smoothly?
People are usually unable to calm their emotions after encountering unimaginable things, and Li Wen was no exception. Although she had experienced the apocalypse and rebirth, the aftermath of the Sun’s descent still left too profound an impact on her.
To this day, she could still taste the scorching scent of flesh being roasted at high temperatures. Every part of her flesh and every cell was transforming into light and fire, as if in the next second she would melt like ice, turning into liquid light and dissipating. It was an illusion, yet not entirely.
“It was reasonably smooth.”
Li Wen summoned “The Primordial Codex of Ending,” forcing herself to calm down.
