Chapter 861: Four Golden Traits!
All the Ascenders, whether they had survived, perished, or were lingering in the chasm between life and death, were presented with screens of light before them.
The laughing Child of the Moon raised a mountain of blood without hesitation, piercing and throwing the guests in a line;
Eivass, with flowers growing in his eyes, severed the necks of the guests kneeling before him;
Eivass’s head, atop the candlemaster’s sacred statue, repainted all remaining pure white into crimson;
The White Horse, summoning thunder in the sky, was in a standoff with the Giant Bear that caused mountains to rise;
The carnivorous White Horse’s pupils turned black and red, the bearskin on his back burned with fierce flames, and the fox that had originally stood on his back crouched in a corner;
The mole, merrily devouring the Lion King’s liver, turned to look at the old dog standing at the entrance, bathed in backlight;
Above the light purple sky were silvery white stars filling the sky, a deep purple river surged like waves, and a shadowy figure, whose face could not be seen and whose mouth split into a happy or sinister smile, stood before him;
Behind the angel with an indistinct face, runes spun, and meteors and fire rained down from the purple-red sky;
And the last scene…
Alistair took out a long-handled scythe, turning herself into an ice sculpture like red crystal, shattering with a crisp ‘ping’!
—Only the two who had withdrawn in advance did not see this scene.
Eivass looked at these scenes, his gaze complex.
In those scenes… it was almost all him.
【—And me. I am with you.】
An ethereal voice sounded in Eivass’s ear.
—It was the consciousness of Alistair, existing like a phantom.
Just like the “Complete Shepherd’s Method” Eivass used for the first time in the Ascension Ritual—if one sacrificed their own life, they could give their soul and consciousness together to another.
The individual consciousness of the Deformed was not strong, so Eivass could directly control the demon’s body at that time; if the other party was already a demon with a clear individual consciousness, his soul could hide inside their body and wait for them to revive him.
Alistair and Eivass’s situation was rather special.
Although the Eternal Pope inherited the name “Eivass,” he was not the complete Eivass. When Alistair’s soul entered Eivass’s body, the two souls, severed by the “Yin-Yang Chasm,” merged again. Because they were originally one… they were two parts of the true Eivass, now perfectly fused again.
Eivass’s soul and memory were once again complete, back to their state before being severed—even more complete than then, reaching his true peak state up to this point.
—Compared to his original, murky will, which was often impulsive and temporarily out of control or deviated with the Path. The Eivass who had experienced separation and reassembly now completely understood the cause of every thought and every fleeting impulse in his heart.
Void or love, devotion or transcendence—he would no longer confuse them.
And theoretically, when two souls merged again… all traces of Alistair would completely disappear.
Because there was no one called “Alistair” in this world—she was merely Eivass’s “negative side.” When Eivass became whole, the incomplete would naturally become a part of the whole.
However, they were not re-stitched by the Hourglass—but merged in another way.
This was a miracle that could only be achieved in the Dream Realm—
In the Ascension Ritual that “allowed death,” Eivass’s soul, having completely experienced death and truly existing in the Dream Realm, had become a phantom demon like the undead; this allowed him to accept “shepherding flesh and blood.”
And Alistair held a third of Eivass’s soul, separated when he ascended to the Fourth Tier through the Path of Devotion, coupled with Alistair on the Transcendent Path, which was sufficient to meet the conditions for using the Shepherd’s Method; and by using the Complete Shepherd’s Method, she could store her soul and consciousness in the shepherded phantom demon’s body and have it revive her.
—Thus, an extra consciousness was created out of thin air compared to a normal fusion.
This gave Eivass the possibility of reviving Alistair… Now she clung to Eivass like a siren.
Although the revived Alistair would no longer be Eivass’s other half—because Eivass was now completely whole, no longer lacking “the part she possessed.”
However, this might be considered a new birth for Alistair.
She was completely freed from her fate.
As for lacking a soul—this was not a problem for Eivass.
Eivass already possessed the characteristic of “Dissolving Soul.” Once his soul recovered, he could extract more liquid soul to form the foundation for Alistair’s revival, without harming anyone, and without polluting Alistair’s memory and consciousness… As for lacking a physical body, didn’t Alistair prepare for it herself?
—Using Sasha’s remains, transforming into a Blood Angel.
Just as she wished.
“…No wonder the Candlemaster said that cryptic remark, ‘This ritual might be crucial for you.’”
Eivass’s expression was complex: “So that’s the opportunity you gave me…”
He had originally thought that the Ring Heavenly Envoy had intervened in the ritual midway.
But if the Ring Heavenly Envoy had interfered, given his personality… he would most likely have lost and directly intervened at the end after Alistair sacrificed herself. However, Eivass never saw the Ring Heavenly Envoy until the very end…
It was only then that he realized that this was merely a simulated future by the Candlemaster.
—The theme of this third painting was precisely the Ring Heavenly Envoy, the Endless Knot, and the Ouroboros Ring!
Eivass himself was the protagonist of that painting!
So, that’s why it’s the modern era…
As Eivass pondered, the score table appeared:
【Necessary Missions Completed】
【Endless Feast: Completed
【
【Animal World: Completed
【
【Goodbye: Completed
【
【Total Points: 10590, Rank: First】
【Special Victory: “Holy Revival” Completed】
With a burst of golden light, Eivass’s ethereal angelic body gradually took on a physical form.
His expanded consciousness gradually retracted, and his soul state returned to his physical body. His five senses slowly recovered and became clear; the omniscient perception from his soul state was gradually suppressed.
……In the end, no one lived on because they were Bound by Sin.
Was that a trap after all… No, one couldn’t call it entirely a trap.
If it were a few other paintings, it might have been. But this last painting was too difficult, leaving no room for infighting among the Ascenders…
“…The necessary mission was to escape from the painting.”
Eivass murmured, “…When did that happen…”
He paused, then suddenly realized.
It was during the last choice—he left the painting first, and then the painting was completed!
In other words, these “nine questions” were the real trap!
One must leave at least one question behind to be able to leave at the end.
This means the maximum was answering eight questions; otherwise, upon completing that painting, one would be enshrined within the final painting!
……Is this also some kind of metaphor?
This World had restarted eight times, meaning this was the ninth cycle.
If one were to be “inside the painting,” it would mean answering eight questions and having one last question left.
—That is to say, if one answered one more question without leaving, they would never be able to leave again.
“…Wait?”
Eivass’s eyes widened.
He suddenly realized what the Candlemaster, or rather, the Twin, wanted to tell him.
The ninth question—referred to the ninth cycle.
—If I don’t “leave” this time, I’ll never be able to leave!
Did the Candlemaster want him to leave?
“You can also leave, this is your last chance,”
A voice, warm and steady like a father’s, echoed in the space. “But if you don’t leave this time, you won’t be able to.
“You will also become ‘a person within the painting’… That’s why that child was so anxious.”
Looking at the bloody deer clad in Sin Thorns, walking with light steps from the depths.
Eivass subconsciously retorted, “But… if I leave, what will happen to the people of this World?”
“—Either forever trapped in a cycle, or descending into twilight.”
The Candlemaster’s voice was gentle. “Just like the choices you saw.
“You are not from this World, child. You yourself are just a wandering soul… but you carry such a heavy responsibility. There is no reason in this world for someone who arrives halfway to be held responsible.
“So you can leave, right up until the last moment.”
“…Is this why you did not stop the Ring Heavenly Envoy?”
Eivass’s eyes widened, clearly understanding the Candlemaster’s attitude.
The Candlemaster—and perhaps other Pillar Gods—were not unaware of the Ring Heavenly Envoy’s minor actions.
It was just that they also knew the path ahead was bleak.
If one wasn’t prepared to perish together, it was better to escape this sinking ship before the last moment.
So they supported Eivass, but did not oppose the Ring Heavenly Envoy.
Because they had already become “Pillar Gods”—as Pillars of this World, they could no longer leave.
“…I don’t want to leave.”
After a long silence, Eivass replied firmly, “There are people in this World who love me, and people who need me. There are people I must save, and people I must kill.
“My bonds are here—returning to another World, wouldn’t that be equivalent to leaving my hometown again? If you tear open a wound that has already healed into a scar, will it heal back to how it was before it was injured?
“I no longer have a home there… My home is here.”
“Then I hope you like this home, child,”
The Candlemaster said gently.
Although it was just a deer, Eivass felt as if he saw a happy smile on its face.
It nudged Eivass affectionately and said softly, “The hungry have no thoughts, the lonely have no love.
“—Quench your thirst with my blood… and you may sing and speak.”
Following the Candlemaster’s secret words, blood seeped from its neck.
Eivass subconsciously opened his mouth, and the blood droplets fell into his mouth.
The next moment, six traits suddenly appeared before Eivass.
—Not three, but six!
Three gold and three purple.
Three for Devotion, three for Transcendence!
Because Eivass was both on the Path of Devotion and the Transcendent Path, and since only one person survived, and the maximum promotion slots were three, when Alistair and Eivass merged, he had effectively won on both Paths!
【Noble Sacrifice (Purple): When you use “Sacrifice,” you can sacrifice 33% of your maximum Life force to unconditionally double the effect of this sacrifice. Usable three times per month.】
【Endless Compassion (Gold): Your healing can revive the recently deceased.】
【Four-Colored Wings (Purple): You gain Four-Colored Wings. Activating them can change your Mana Pool entirely into one of the four elements: Wind, Earth, Water, or Fire. Usable once per day per element.】
【Elemental Emperor (Gold): All your spells and abilities involving Wind, Earth, Water, or Fire gain +1 priority (Divinity).】
【Transcendent Serpent (Gold): When you confront an enemy with a higher Energy Level than yourself and fail the judgment, you gain an additional +2 priority (Divinity) on the next judgment.】
【Priority bonuses gained from the same source (e.g., Divinity) are counted only once.】
And with a clang, one of the purple traits turned into gold!
【Pillar God’s Grace—】
【The Candlemaster has promoted one of your traits for you!】
【Candlemaster’s Horn (Gold): You drank the blood from the Candlemaster’s neck and became the Child of the Candlemaster.】
(End of this chapter)
