Linde and his group moved at a very fast pace, and the heavy sealing container did not slow down this elite force too much.
The following morning, as the first rays of light pierced the outline of the towering towers of Ironrock Keep, they had already stepped into the solid territory of the Kree Empire.
When the Holy Knights were resupplying in the border town, their miserable condition inevitably caused a sensation and sparked discussion.
The silver-white armor was covered with purplish-black filth and dried dark brown bloodstains. The damaged parts told of a fierce battle. Exhaustion was etched on every weathered face, and several warhorses carried the bodies of their comrades covered with white cloth.
Whispers and awe-inspiring gazes followed them, but Lind and his knights kept their eyes fixed straight ahead, as if isolated behind an invisible barrier.
They silently replenished their food, water, and medicine, replaced some of their overly damaged equipment, and then set off again.
The midday sun shone intensely on the thick walls of Iron Rock Fortress.
When this group, carrying a strong sense of bloodshed and grim atmosphere, passed through the city gate, the hustle and bustle within the city seemed to pause for a moment.
The murmurs among the people grew louder, a mixture of shock at the heavy losses suffered by the Holy Knights, fear of the escalating threat from the Shadow Abyss, and a complex gaze toward the young viscount and oracle who walked at the head of the procession with a cold expression—awe, reliance, and perhaps a hint of barely perceptible worry.
Lind ignored this and, with a clear objective, led the group straight across the main castle square toward the Church of the Holy Light, which stands in a corner of the castle and is made of white stone.
The heavy sealed container was carefully moved deep into the church and placed in an underground vault that had been emptied and reinforced with multiple holy light runes.
The heavy stone door of the secret vault was closed, isolating it from outside prying eyes and noise.
The air was filled with the scents of incense and stone, as well as a trace of cold malice originating from the depths of the container, which was stubbornly permeated despite being suppressed by the holy light.
After entrusting the complex military affairs of reorganization, wounded care, and compensation to the composed Lillens and the loyal Astaire, Lind announced in an unquestionable tone:
"Although the source of the filth has been sealed, its corrosiveness far exceeds expectations. To prevent any mutations, I will personally use the power of the light veins in this secret vault to perform the final purification and stabilization. No one may disturb it except by my summons, including Chief Justice Priest, who needs to rest and recover."
Pris was seriously injured. Although his severed arm was barely stopped bleeding and reattached under the Holy Light spell, the backlash from Vorgak's decaying power penetrated deep into his bones and internal organs. He was currently lying in the church's meditation room, receiving intensive care from the accompanying chaplain, and had fallen into a deep sleep.
With Priest absent, no one dared to question the will of a priest when Lind gave orders.
The heavy stone door of the secret vault slowly closed behind Linde, cutting off the last ray of light from the outside world. The interior of the vault was not completely dark; the holy light runes embedded in the walls emitted a soft yet firm golden-white light, illuminating the mountains of sealed containers.
On the surface of the container, the simple holy light runes that Linde had drawn by hand flickered like breathing, struggling against the viscous, writhing, dark purple source matter inside that exuded pure malice.
Only when he was certain that he was truly alone in this absolutely safe space did Linde's tense nerves finally relax.
He exhaled a long, silent breath, as if a tremendous burden had been lifted from his shoulders.
The feigned sacred solemnity faded from his face, leaving only extreme calmness and an undisguised, intense desire for power deep in his eyes.
"Finally... we can begin."
His voice echoed softly in the silent vault, trembling slightly—not from fear, but from excitement.
Lind wasted no time.
He walked to the nearest metal can, gathered pure light energy at his fingertips, and precisely placed it on the core node of the simple rune at the can's opening.
"Sizzle—"
Like a branding iron being pressed onto ice, the golden-white light clashed fiercely with the dark purple energy surging from the can, producing a piercing sound.
The simple runes suddenly shone brightly, then quickly dimmed and crumbled like corroded metal. The seal on the jar's opening had been forcibly broken!
A more intense, colder, and purer aura of the Shadow Abyss erupted instantly! The temperature inside the secret vault plummeted, and the holy light runes on the walls seemed to be stimulated, humming and bursting out with even stronger light to suppress it.
Linde held his breath, his eyes sharp as a hawk's. He stretched out his right hand, his palm pressing directly against the dark purple liquid that had broken free of its seal and was violently churning and writhing!
[High concentration/high purity Shadow Abyss Source Detected... Absorb?] The system's prompt rang clearly in his mind, carrying an almost greedy fluctuation.
Absorb! Absorb with all your might!
Buzz—!
A suction force a hundred times stronger than the one in the underground laboratory suddenly erupted! The viscous, crude oil-like source substance, like a flood that had found an outlet, surged wildly and violently into Linde's body through his palm!
The system interface flickered wildly deep within his consciousness, and the progress bar representing "Shadow Affinity" soared at an unprecedented speed!
The energy reserves were soaring wildly, like a runaway horse! But along with these enormous gains came unimaginable pain and risks.
Countless twisted, blasphemous, and malicious whispers resounded directly in the depths of his soul, attempting to break his will and drag him into an eternal abyss of madness.
Those whispers spoke of the emptiness of the universe, the meaninglessness of life, and the fragility of order, tempting him to embrace chaos and become a part of the shadows.
His will was like a small boat tossed about in a stormy sea, yet he clung to the last vestige of clarity.
He recalled the order and warmth of the light veins, and his goal along the way—power! The power to control his own destiny! The power to transcend everything! This powerful conviction became the anchor against the erosion of chaos!
One container is empty.
Without pausing for a moment, Linde pounced on the next one! He was like a ferocious beast driven to the brink of starvation, greedily devouring these deadly "nutrients".
Time lost its meaning in the secret vault.
Linde moved swiftly among the piled-up containers, his palms pressing against the churning source of filth time and again.
The progress bar is soaring! 30%...50%...70%...90%!
When the source material in the last container was completely drained, turning into a lifeless pool of black residue, Linde finally lay down on the ground with a sigh of relief.
"Finally... it's done."
He forced himself to lift his head and look at the system interface deep within his consciousness.
[Shadow Affinity: 100%]!
The energy reserves reached an astronomical figure, far exceeding the total of any previous harvest!
An indescribable sense of power, seemingly originating from the darkness of the universe's origin, is continuously surging from the depths of my soul.
He felt that his understanding of "Shadow Abyss" had reached an unprecedented depth; those chaotic whispers were no longer just noise, but seemed to contain fragments of some distorted "rules".
At the same time, the originally distinct light vein power within his body seemed to have undergone an extremely subtle and indescribable change during this extreme confrontation and absorption, as if it had been tempered to be more resilient, and even acquired a trace of... adaptability to "Shadow Abyss".
"It's a success..."
"I wonder how the Shadow Abyss Aura is doing now?"
So Linde activated Shadow Aura, intending to see what was going on.
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