Extraordinary Rise: Starting Contract with the Silver Dragon Countess

The moment Charles ascended to godhood, his newly born divine power swept uncontrollably across most of the Demon Tide Continent.

All members of the Holy Healing Order, regardless of their location or the type of healing magic they were performing, were horrified to discover that the effects of the healing spells they cast under standardized procedures were reduced by nearly half.

It was as if the laws of healing in the dark had spontaneously "corrected" and "suppressed" the contradiction between the birth of the new god and the old belief system!
The high-ranking members of the religious order instantly turned ashen-faced.

They understood that this meant Charles had not only successfully achieved godhood, but his divine authority had also directly and thoroughly suppressed the healing laws that originally belonged to the faith of the Holy Healing Order.

The very foundation upon which the order exists has been truly and utterly shaken this time!
In order to protect themselves and to seek a glimmer of hope under the majesty of the new god, the remaining conservative forces within the monastic order were instantly made scapegoats.

A swift and brutal purge was launched internally.

All the core conservatives accused of participating in the persecution of Charles and his family, as well as many dissidents who were purged in the process, were swiftly convicted and arrested.

They were taken to the hastily erected temples in various places dedicated to the new god "Charles the God of Healing".

Under the watchful eyes of countless people, including many lower-ranking members of the original religious order, these former persecutors were burned to death by divine fire.

Subsequently, the senior members of the Healing Order publicly announced that they recognized Charles Wilson as "the eternal revealer of the true meaning of medicine" and "the true master of the path to healing."

They formally recognized Charles as the sole supreme deity worshipped by the order and began to comprehensively revise their doctrines and reform the order's structure in accordance with Charles's early ideas and any new divine pronouncements that might follow.

Thus, Charles completed his legendary journey from a persecuted fugitive to a god-like figure who then turned the tables and controlled and transformed the forces that had persecuted him.

When Cohen reviewed Charles's path to godhood, a journey filled with blood, fire, faith, and struggle, even with his extensive experience and unwavering will, he couldn't help but sigh inwardly:
"From being labeled a heretic, his family destroyed, and fleeing in panic, to swearing an oath in dire straits, rising up on the margins, gathering faith, rising against all odds to become a god, and finally turning the tables and taking control of his enemies' fate... This is simply the ultimate interpretation of 'never underestimate a young man's potential,' a living, breathing 'protagonist model' belonging to the divine level!"

……

Silence fell once again in the Jade Hall. Chairman Buze was completely prostrate on the ground, his body trembling.

He heard far too much that he shouldn't have heard, whether it was the gods' "plea for help" or this grand plan involving a future divine kingdom, all of which were beyond the capacity of a saint on earth to bear.

A glint flashed in Adele's eyes as she seemed to be quickly analyzing the feasibility of Charles's request and its impact on Cohen's future plans.

Cohen fell into a brief silence.

A divine kingdom based on contracts...

Charles's demands were undeniably high.

This is practically asking Cohen to mortgage his future "foundation" in exchange for a high-profile ally seat and a promise of asylum.

On the other hand, the price they paid was equally staggering—the full support of the entire Holy Healing Order, and the personal intervention of a deity to resolve the unknown, potentially fatal, hidden danger on Mavis.

Cohen's gaze met Yalder's again, and the latter nodded slightly.

Cohen then looked again at the fading projection of Charles and replied in a deep voice:
“I can agree.”

Seeing Cohen nod, Charles finally showed a relieved expression on his projection face.

Without further delay, he immediately said:
"Okay, now, I'll tell you about Mavis Tinuville's problem!"

She is currently in good condition; at least on the surface, she appears healthy and strong, and her bloodline power is steadily awakening.

But that's because... she hasn't broken through to the Saint level yet!

Once she reaches the Saint level, her life undergoes a qualitative change, and her soul and bloodline begin to merge and sublimate at a deeper level... The oldest and purest primordial bloodline belonging to the Arcane Empire's royal family within her body will begin a true and comprehensive revival.

This is an inevitable consequence of a leap in the level of life, a process that no external force can stop!

Cohen's heart sank, and an ominous premonition enveloped him.

Charles continued:

"Once her royal bloodline begins to fully awaken at the Saint level, completely binding with her soul and becoming the core source of her power... then the cause that led to the extinction of the Arcane Empire's royal family and the collapse of the empire ten thousand years ago will also reappear in her!"

Charles's projected gaze seemed to pierce through time and space, gazing upon the tragic past; his voice carried a heavy tone:
"Back then, when the Well of All Laws collapsed, the bloodline of the Arcane Empire's royal family, which was closely connected to the well, also suffered a devastating blow and almost instantly collapsed and disappeared."

This is a curse etched into the very source of one's bloodline and into the very rules!
Mavis escaped the immediate collapse due to the seal, but the connection was not lost; it was merely frozen.

When she awakens the full power of this bloodline at the Saint level, it is equivalent to reactivating the connection with the collapsed Well of All Laws.

At that time, she will, like her ancestors, begin to suffer the backlash from the collapse at the very core of her bloodline.

Moreover, because she was in perfect condition when she experienced this collapse that should have occurred ten thousand years ago, the intensity and strangeness of its backlash may be far beyond imagination!

At best, their strength will never improve; at worst, their bloodline will collapse, their soul will be torn apart, and their physical form will dissipate... It might even trigger the residual purifying power in the dark, leading to even more terrifying consequences!

Cohen fell into deep thought, and after a long while, he slowly asked:
“Your Majesty, if what you say is true, once Mavis reaches the Saint level, he will trigger the curse left behind when the Well of Myriad Laws collapsed due to the complete revival of his bloodline, and face the crisis of bloodline collapse and soul tearing.”

Then please tell me, when the Arcane Empire was at its peak, with the combined power of the entire empire, countless brilliant arcane masters, those sages who touched the limits of the rules, and even the beings behind them who might be as powerful as you or even more powerful.

The bloodline backlash caused by the collapse of the Well of Myriad Laws could not be resolved, or even prevented.

"Your Majesty, a deity of middling power, even if you are in charge of healing and purification, what makes me believe you can solve problems that even the Arcane Empire at its peak couldn't solve?"

Charles answered quickly:

"Just because there was nothing we could do back then doesn't mean there's nothing we can do now!"

What's more, what they had to face back then was the collective collapse and backlash of the entire Arcane Royal bloodline, a disaster that swept through an entire race!
Now, it is only necessary to address the bloodline risks in one or two individuals.

The scale and the difficulty are worlds apart!

My method can not only help her overcome her bloodline crisis, but may even restore the source of power to the Arcane Empire!

These last words struck Cohen like a thunderclap.

Can the source of power for the Arcane Empire be restored?

Cohen's heart skipped a beat, and he forcibly suppressed his surging emotions.

He reacted extremely quickly, countless thoughts flashing through his mind in an instant, and a bold, even somewhat absurd, guess emerged in his mind.

He almost blurted out:

"You mean you have a way to reshape the Well of All Laws?"
"Or rather..." Cohen's gaze was sharp as a hawk's, fixed intently on Charles, "The Well of All Laws... wasn't completely destroyed back then?"

He used the word "destruction," which was based on conventional understanding—the collapse of the source of power naturally leads to destruction.

Charles's answer carried a strange hint of approval:

“Your Majesty Corleone…you are very perceptive, but your choice of words is not precise enough.”

The Well of All Laws will never be destroyed.

It's...only temporarily closed.

"It's closed?"

Cohen frowned, pondering the word.

Just then, Charles asked a seemingly unrelated question:

"Your Majesty, do you truly understand what the Well of All Laws of the Arcane Empire is?"

What is the Well of All Laws?
Cohen fell silent, his brow furrowed, as fragments of information about the "Arcane Empire" and the "Well of All Laws" flashed through his mind.

Some of this information came from scattered records he made in the game before his transmigration, while the rest came from vague descriptions he saw in some extremely ancient and incomplete books or relics after he became the King of Efein and came into contact with higher-level information.

In popular belief, the Well of All Laws is the source of all power and miracles of the Arcane Empire, and a symbol of the pinnacle of its magical civilization.

It is not a magic well or energy pool in the traditional sense, but a more mysterious existence.

The extraordinary beings of the Arcane Empire—those arcanists—possess a unique power known as "arcane."

This "mysterious" power is completely different from the energy forms commonly found on the mainland, such as magic, battle aura, divine power, and natural power.

It seems to be closer to the underlying rules of the world, purer, and more powerful.

The spells cast by arcanists, the golems they control, the floating cities they construct, the forbidden research they conduct... all their core energy originates from "arcaneness."

The Well of All Laws is the source of this power, "Mystery," and its ultimate manifestation and convergence point in the material world.

It is like an inexhaustible well, constantly gushing out the power of "arcane," permeating and infiltrating the entire territory of the arcane empire, and even its sphere of influence.

The arcane mages of the Empire, through a unique method.

It is usually described as establishing a kind of "resonance" or "link" between one's own soul and the Well of All Laws.

They draw upon the power of mystery from this well to cast spells, conduct research, and strengthen themselves.

The deeper the connection and the higher the soul affinity, the more powerful and subtle the "mysterious" power that can be mobilized.

It was precisely by relying on the almost limitless "arcane" power provided by the Well of All Laws that the Arcane Empire was able to create so many magnificent and splendid magical civilizations that still amaze later generations.

The core driving energy and sealing power of the devices used by the Arcane Empire to seal the first Elf Queen, Virekis, came from the Well of All Laws.

It was precisely through the immense and unique "Arcane" power provided by the Well of All Laws that the ancient and powerful being like Vilekis was successfully suppressed and sealed. Later, the sudden collapse of the Well of All Laws caused the "Arcane" power it provided to be instantly cut off.

Without this most fundamental source of power, not only did the magical civilization system upon which the Arcane Empire depended for survival collapse and the royal bloodline suffer a severe blow, but even the device that sealed Virekis failed due to energy depletion.

This allowed the terrifying first Elf Queen to break free of her seal, and even directly led to the deaths of Mavis and Melantha's maternal grandfather.

Cohen quickly reviewed all the information he knew about the Well of All Laws in his mind.

It is indeed the core of the Arcane Empire's power, the source of "arcane" power. Its form of existence is extraordinary, linked to the souls of arcane sorcerers, and drives the entire empire.

However, Charles deliberately corrected his wording, emphasizing that it was "shut down" rather than "destroy".

This distinction is crucial!
If it's just "closed", does that mean the Well of All Laws itself has no problems?
Is there simply a lack of a way to restart it?

Charles claims that his method can not only help Mavis resolve her bloodline crisis, but may even "restore the source of power of the Arcane Empire"... Does this mean that he knows how to reopen this "well"?
Charles claims that his method can not only help Mavis resolve her bloodline crisis, but may even "restore the source of power of the Arcane Empire"... Does this mean that he knows how to reopen this "well"?
So, what exactly is this "well"?
Cohen abruptly raised his head, his gaze intense, as if trying to pierce through the void, and said in a deep voice:

"Please enlighten me, Your Majesty."

Charles began to explain:

"The Well of All Laws, you can think of it as a... plane."

A truly extraordinary sub-plane, surpassing ordinary planes and even larger, more stable, and with a higher energy level than many complete material planes!

Cohen's pupils constricted slightly.

Dimension?

Rather than some kind of magical creation or energy aggregate?

This definition instantly elevated his understanding of the Well of All Laws.

Charles continued, like unveiling a long-forgotten epic scroll:

"The interior of this plane is not filled with ordinary earth, rocks, wind, and clouds, but with endless energy of 'Ao' that is constantly generated and flowing from the plane's origin!"

It itself is a source manifestation, a core hub, of this unique power law of 'O' in the multiverse!

“Moreover,” Charles’s voice carried a complex emotion that was hard to describe, as if he were describing something great and tragic, “this special plane formed by the Well of All Laws is not isolated or closed.”

At the height of the Arcane Empire, it used unimaginable means to construct, link, and stabilize tens of thousands of stable channels leading to every corner and plane of the multiverse through its core!

It is through these channels that the power of 'arcane' flows and radiates, nourishing the entire arcane empire and extending the empire's reach, knowledge, and influence to countless worlds.

The most important, and most fatal, truth—which even the highest echelons of the Arcane Empire may not have fully grasped—is this:

The Well of All Laws, this special sub-plane, is not an unconscious collection of energy or a natural wonder... it possesses its own consciousness!
It is a living, self-willed plane!
This was discovered only after we gods purified the Well of All Laws!

"A living dimension?"

Cohen was shocked; this information completely overturned all his previous assumptions.

A power source plane with self-awareness?

"Back then, the 'filth' that invaded and polluted the surface of the Well of All Laws was so bizarre in nature and so fierce in its erosion that it was beyond imagination."

It is not a simple energy erosion or law distortion, but rather it acts directly on the consciousness level of a plane, attempting to pollute, distort, or even replace its plane's will, transforming it into some kind of indescribable terrifying existence.

We descended to purify by order of a great figure, using the most fundamental divine power of purification, with the aim of driving away and eliminating that filth.

However, we never expected that the dimensional consciousness of the Well of All Laws, already in a state of chaos, pain, and extreme sensitivity to self-defense due to pollution, would actually impact the divine power we intended to purify and save.

It was misjudged as another form of intrusion and attack, which was more intense and deadly!

And so, tragedy struck.

The terrified dimensional consciousness, in order to protect its core essence from being taken away or destroyed by the 'new invaders', made an extreme and resolute self-preservation response.

It actively severed all connections between itself and the outside world.

It severed the tens of thousands of stable channels leading to various planes of the multiverse, and also severed the most direct energy and rule links with the prime plane and the territory of the Arcane Empire!

Just like a startled clam, it tightly closes its shell, completely isolating its most precious pearl from the outside world, even if it means its own gradual withering and the destruction of the civilization that coexists with it!

The passage was severed, and the power of 'O' lost its path of flow.

The Arcane Empire, a glorious civilization built upon the energy supply of the Well of All Laws, collapsed like a giant tower whose foundation was instantly ripped out.

Because the royal bloodline is most deeply connected to the Well of All Laws, it suffers the most direct and severe backlash.

After completing its self-imposed isolation, the Well of All Laws fell into an even deeper silence.

Therefore, the Well of All Laws was not destroyed, but all its connections with the outside world were severed by itself from within.

The Arcane Empire perished from the loss of its energy supply, not from the destruction of the Well of All Laws itself.

The truth is just like this!
A special dimension that possesses self-awareness, was corrupted, and mistakenly took purification for invasion, thus becoming withdrawn and dormant!

This is the truth about the source of the Arcane Empire's power—the "Well of All Laws"!

This is also the root cause of its destruction!

A startling light flashed in Cohen's eyes, and his previous doubts instantly became clear. A thought flashed through his mind like lightning:

"So, you mean you have a way to reopen the Well of All Laws and the passage to the multiverse?"

If that's the case, then it would be incredibly significant.

This not only resolves Mavis's bloodline crisis, but may even mean that the power system of the Arcane Empire could be revived!

Charles shook his head:
"No, Your Majesty Corleone, I do not have such ability."

Reopen the Well of All Laws and the tens of thousands of channels to the outside world, especially the main channel that is stably linked to the prime plane.

Those passages were a vast network built by the Arcane Empire with the entire nation's resources and time invested, using the plane of the Well of All Laws itself as its hub.

I am merely a deity of moderate power, in charge of healing and purification, not a god of space and connection.

To think that one could restart a network of channels of that size on one's own is nothing short of a pipe dream.

Even if the gods who went down to the mortal realm to carry out the 'purification' joined forces, they might not have been able to do it, given that the consciousness of the Well of Myriad Laws actively closed itself off and refused all external connections.

However, by establishing one or two small channels, certain members of the royal bloodline, such as the newly enthroned Empress Mavis, could draw upon the primordial power of 'Ao' from within the Well of All Laws—power sufficient to maintain the stability of their bloodline and prevent its collapse and backlash…

I do have that skill.

Charles paused, seemingly organizing the most precise words to describe that astonishing idea:

"Based on my close encounter with the Well of All Laws back then, and my repeated research and speculation over the long years that followed..."

I believe that the existence and nature of the Well of All Laws, this special sub-plane with its own consciousness, may be far more complex and higher-order than we initially imagined.

It is not merely a living dimension, but more likely an existence that is closer to the embodiment of the world's rules, something that our current understanding cannot fully comprehend.

The reason it so decisively closed all passages and fell into deep silence back then, due to misjudgment, is likely due to another, more crucial reason besides mistaking us for intruders.

It was injured.

Moreover, it was severely injured, damaging its fundamental consciousness within its plane.

That eerie pollution wasn't just eroding its surface consciousness; it was more like a poison targeting the very foundation of its existence.

Therefore, in addition to rebuilding the channel, we also need to heal its wounds.

Let it slowly recover from its isolation and hostility; perhaps in the future it will even open all the passages on its own, restoring the glory of the Arcane Empire!

Healing a wounded, conscious dimension?

Cohen frowned; the idea sounded absurd.

He had never heard of how to heal a plane, and even the gods probably couldn't do it!

Charles said in a deep voice:
"According to my research, healing a plane, especially a plane with consciousness, requires something that can repair its plane's origin, nourish its consciousness, and be accepted and absorbed by it."

Cohen felt a sudden jolt, as if he had grasped something, but the idea was so astonishing that he could hardly believe it for a moment.

He asked in a deep voice:
"As you said, the Well of All Laws is a plane, a special plane that gave birth to self-awareness and has an extremely high level of energy."

So, what exactly can be used to repair and nourish a plane?

Charles was silent for a very brief moment, as if he were choosing his words carefully, or perhaps confirming his own conclusion:
"Based on my extensive research and understanding of planes."

The most effective way to repair and nourish a wounded plane, especially a special entity like the Well of All Laws, is through the other planes.

To be precise, it means using sub-planes or demi-planes as medicine and sustenance to 'feed' the Well of All Laws! (End of Chapter)