Elden Ring, building a legion of ashes

Chapter 142 Activating Grek's Great Rune

As Xia Tong placed her palm on the teleportation stone, the magical vortex inside the stone was instantly activated.

With a dizzying, weightless sensation, Xia Tong found herself on the other side of the broken bridge.

Oreg and Ruthel teleported to Xia Tong's side in a few moments.

"This divinely inspired tower is really tall!"

Xia Tong raised her head high, gazing up at the magnificent building before her.

Its height reaches at least 300 meters, piercing the clouds, and its surface is covered with traces of erosion from the years.

"I wonder how such a magnificent building was constructed in that distant era."

Xia Tong was secretly amazed, then strode into the dark and deep hall of the Divine Tower.

The hall was very spacious. Xia Tong walked to the middle and stood on the huge circular elevator in the center. The stone platform under her feet was engraved with ancient and intricate patterns.

As Xia Tong activated the mechanism, the patterns began to light up, and the low, humming sound of the stone rubbing together was very jarring in the silent hall of the Divine Gift Tower.

The massive stone elevator began to slowly ascend.

Because the entire Divine Tower is so tall, and the speed of this ancient mechanism is far slower than the elevator Xia Tong rode in her previous life.

Three or four minutes later.

Xia Tongcai arrived at a large hall above, where the first thing that caught her eye was a warm, blessed golden light.

Xia Tong stepped forward, reached out and touched the blessing point.

He then continued up the outer staircase.

At the top of the Ninmugefu Divine Tower, the view suddenly opens up.

Xia Tong had originally thought that at the top of the tower, more than 300 meters high, there would definitely be howling winds that would make it difficult to stand.

But unexpectedly, there was almost no wind at the top of the tower, only a gentle breeze.

The entire space appeared very quiet and solemn.

The faint roar of waves crashing against the cliffs below could be heard.

Looking into the distance, the golden trees droop with thousands of rays of light, like a compassionate god looking down upon this fragmented land.

And at the very center of the top of the tower.

On that desolate and arid altar stood two huge, charred, and long-withered finger remains, like two twisted dead trees.

Even though it had been dead for countless years, it still exuded a faint divine aura.

"This should be two fingers."

Looking at the strange remains, Xia Tong couldn't help but feel uneasy, and a sense of awe, stemming from instinct, welled up within her.

Two fingers are the physical manifestation of the supreme will in the present world, and also a secret medium for conveying the will of the gods.

They cannot speak, but through the tiny movements of their fingertips, they can convey a grand will to the devout old women who untie their fingers. They can not only provide guidance for becoming king, but also bestow blessings upon the two fingers and provide proof of legitimacy for the scattered Great Runes.

Of course, these are just official, positive statements.

Xia Tong was well aware that none of the two fingers in the border area had the ability to communicate directly with the supreme will.

All they could connect with was the "Mother of Fingers," Maetel, who was hidden deep in the shadows, delirious, and insane.

Xia Tong took a deep breath and gently touched the charred remains of the two fingers with her slender fingers.

"Buzz—!!"

In an instant, a thunderous tremor spread from my fingertips throughout my body.

The once deathly silent tower top erupted with blinding golden light, and ancient golden runes swirled wildly in the air.

jump.

The Great Rune hidden deep within Xia Tong's body sensed the call of the same divine origin and began to awaken violently throughout her limbs and bones.

A warm and profound divine authority, like molten lava, was completely revived in his veins.

A distant echo, like the whispers of the gods, resounded in the air.

At the highest point of Nymgford, the Great Rune that had been sleeping within Xia Tong's body finally shed its gloom and shone with the purest golden radiance.

"It's a pity that we still can't directly use the power of the Great Rune."

Xia Tong opened his eyes. He could clearly feel that the Great Rune within him had only been awakened and was no longer an inanimate object, but it was as if it was locked, making it impossible to actively guide its power.

"The Great Rune is a fragment of the Ring of Law. It only accepts guidance from forces of the same origin, namely the resonance caused by the bottommost fragment of the Ring of Law."

Melina slowly appeared beside her and explained softly.

"Normally, it takes the consumption of Rune Curves" to truly use the power of the Great Rune.

"The power of the Great Rune can be described as a divine blessing, and the Rune Curve is the part at the bottom of the Elden Ring that receives this blessing."

Xia Tong sighed softly. Of course he knew all this. He had originally wanted to try to see if it would work without the Rune Curve, but now it seemed that it was indeed impossible.

Then, with a grin, he took out the Rune Curve that he had prepared beforehand from his pocket.

It is only about the size of a palm, with a perfect concave curve, and its whole body exudes a dim yet warm deep golden glow.

The material is neither gold nor stone, and the surface is covered with ancient patterns as fine as blood vessels.

This rune arc was naturally a spoil of war he had plundered from Grek's treasury.

Following Melina's instructions, Xia Tong took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

He focused all his attention on feeling the newly activated Grik rune within his body.

"Wake up!!"

Xia Tong suddenly exerted force, tightening her five fingers.

"Snap!"

He crushed the rune in his hand.

Then, the rune, upon being subjected to force, instantly transformed into a pure and scalding golden fluid.

It burrowed into Xia Tong's skin through her palm, surged wildly along her arm, and reached the core of her torso.

"boom--!!"

A deafening roar, audible only to Xia Tong herself, exploded within her body.

The foreign golden fluid crashed directly onto the Great Rune.

In an instant, the Great Rune within his body began to buzz wildly.

If Xia Tong had to describe it, it would be like a heavy V8 engine suddenly being injected with high-octane fuel, starting to run wildly and unleashing terrifying power.

Pain and extreme pleasure swept over my whole body in an instant.

Xia Tong felt as if every tiny cell in her body was being torn apart, and then instantly reorganized and strengthened under the nourishment of that golden energy.

Xia Tong's heart was pounding so loudly it sounded like a war drum beating in her chest.

Golden sparks swirled in his blood, each breath bringing boundless energy.

Xia Tong clenched her fist.

"Crackling sound"

The knuckles made a popping sound like popping beans.

An unprecedented sense of fullness gave him the illusion that he could take on the Valkyrie Malenia one-on-one.

In addition to physical changes, mental changes are also taking place rapidly.

Xia Tong looked around at everything.

The world before him seemed to become clearer than ever before.

Tiny dust particles in the air, ripples on distant waves, even time itself seemed to slow down.

Xia Tong thought for a moment about the magic she had learned before.

With our current level of intelligence, those things that were originally obscure and difficult to understand have become extremely easy to comprehend, and we can even detect the faint traces of magic in the air that are normally imperceptible.

"Is this the power of the Great Rune?"

Xia Tong murmured softly, feeling the surging power within her.

But while feeling fulfilled, he also felt a strange sense of awe.

"If Grek, the weakest demigod, has such a powerful rune, then how powerful must the other battle-hardened demigods be?"

The road ahead is long and arduous!

"You have successfully used the power of the Great Rune."

Melina watched him with a smile from the side.

Xia Tong nodded gently, then opened her attribute panel in her mind.

[Character Data]

Rating: 42

Holds 13456 Runes

Vitality: 30

Concentration: 35

Stamina: 25

Strength: 27

Dexterity: 26

Intelligence: 35

Faith: 20

Sensing: 15

(Wearing the brand of Ladagan)

(Equip and activate: Grik's Great Rune)

Greck's Great Rune increased Xia Tong's attributes by five points.

Sobbing on the peninsula, pilgrimage to the church.

Xia Tong slowly emerged from the golden light of blessing.

He then took out a somewhat antique painting from his own blessed space.

This is none other than the painting titled "Prophecy" in Stoneville.

-

Through Gotock, Xia Tong acquired many valuable items, including this painting, "Prophecy."

The scene depicted in the painting is a solemn view of Stoneville, looking north from the cliffs near the pilgrimage church.

Xia Tong rode the Torret, holding the painting, and kept comparing it with the surrounding scenery and terrain.

After about several tens of minutes, he finally found a cliff whose terrain was almost exactly the same as that depicted in the painting.

Xia Tong looked at the painting.

Above the city of Stoneville in the painting is a surging sea of ​​clouds, above which shines a sacred and warm golden light.

It's not just realism; it's more like an artist's vision for the city, hoping that the raging storm can return to orthodoxy and tranquility.

Xia Tong stood among the rocks, her fingertips gently tracing the dried oil paint on the canvas.

After activating Grik's Great Ron, the world he sees is different from that of ordinary people, and his perception has been greatly enhanced.

Xia Tong keenly sensed the extremely faint fluctuation of soul energy in the air.

"Buzz"

The canvas in his hands began to get slightly warm.

"I never imagined I would have the chance to see this painting again."

An aged voice suddenly came from behind Xia Tong.

Xia Tong turned her head to look.

An old spirit with a hunched back, dressed in commoners' clothes, slowly walked towards them from behind.

Its spiritual strength is very low, almost transparent.

Not to mention comparing it to legendary ashes like Ruthel's, it's far inferior even to Xia Tong's lone wolf ashes.

The old man slowly walked to Xia Tong's side and stood shoulder to shoulder with her, gazing together at the majestic Stoneville City across the strait.

"It's changed—it's really changed."

The old man's voice trembled, filled with barely concealed excitement.

"I can feel that the storm has returned to normal."

"In the past, a persistent gloom always hung over Stoneville, and the wind was filled with the cries of the wronged souls whose limbs had been cruelly dismembered."

"But now—all those disgusting things seem to have disappeared."

"It's as if we've returned to the prosperous era when the Storm King ruled."

The aged spirit's voice spoke slowly.

Xia Tong followed his gaze and looked back at Stoneville City.

At this moment, the afterglow of the setting sun pierced through the thick sea of ​​clouds, and golden sunlight shone on the ancient city walls of Stoneville.

This fortress, which had endured so much hardship, seemed to have been reborn.

"During the long years that greedy, despicable old dog usurped the throne—"

The old man paused, his tone filled with deep-seated hatred.

"I can only sit on this cold cliff, watching the black smoke rising from Stoneville, and listening to the cries of my compatriots dying tragically on the limb-setting table."

"I once thought that until the day I completely vanished, that city would only be a hell filled with rotting flesh and despair."

.

He extended a translucent finger, pointing towards Stoneville.

"Look, the storm over there—it's gone clean."

"The clouds are parting, and the light is shining in."

"That self-proclaimed demigod, who was in reality a scoundrel, must have already turned to ashes on his filthy throne, right?"

"I can feel that the guy's disgusting aura has completely disappeared."

The old man turned his head and looked at Xia Tong with gratitude.

"Although I don't know which great hero ended that nightmare—"

"May the golden tree protect him forever."

Xia Tong looked at the old man and said calmly, "I was fortunate enough to participate in the battle of Stoneville. I can tell you definitively that Greck was indeed defeated."

"His head has been cut off, and there will be no more limb reattachment in Stoneville."

"Those nobles who led the limb repositioning—all of them died, not one was left."

"Okay—okay!!"

Although the old man was just a fragile soul, he still shouted excitedly, his voice filled with the joy of revenge.

Xia Tong even saw that his illusory spirit eyes were glistening with tears.

"Are you one of the faded ones?"

The spirit carefully examined Xia Tong, then took out something that emitted a faint glow from its bosom.

"To have participated in that battle and survived, you must have been a great warrior."

"Take this."

He handed a crystal of soul to Xia Tong.

"It, like you, is a warrior of the past."

"After its master was defeated, this war eagle's wing was also severely injured."

"Its gaze remained fixed on its homeland until it breathed its last."

"7

"Thank you, Faded One, for bringing this painting that awakened me and also let me know the good news of my homeland's liberation."

"This war eagle spirit must be very happy to be able to follow such a powerful warrior as you—"

As he spoke, he burst into laughter, as if releasing years of pent-up emotions.

Amidst laughter, his illusory body transformed into specks of light, then vanished completely into the wind.

Xia Tong picked up the soul crystal in her hand and looked at it. Inside was a phantom of a Stormhawk—the soul of a Stormhawk whose talons had been severed and cruelly embedded in a thin knife.

One day later.

Great blessings bestowed, in the round hall.

As the golden light of blessing dissipated in the center of the round table hall, Xia Tong's figure slowly appeared.

Then the air in the entire hall seemed to freeze instantly.

Beside that enormous round table, his signature attire was particularly striking: he wore the uniform of a Kadan mercenary, carried the demi-human queen's staff on his back, and hung the menacing hound's fangs at his waist.

Now, almost everyone recognizes this outfit.

Especially after using Rune Curve to activate Grek's Great Rune.

As Xia Tong stood there, a unique divine aura emanated from her every move, making people afraid to look directly at her.

Colin, who usually stayed in the round table hall to provide reception and guidance, even stopped flipping through the book he was reading.

He looked at Xia Tong with a sense of awe at the faint light emanating from her body, the light of the Great Rune's grace.

"Is he Xia Tong?"

"Yes, it's him! The guy who personally beheaded the demigod Grik!"

"I could feel a strange sense of oppression emanating from him."

"I heard he went to the Divine Tower a few days ago —"

"You mean?"

"Yes, he activated Grek's Great Rune!!"

'

""

The surrounding faded individuals whispered among themselves, their gazes towards Xia Tong filled with awe, curiosity, and even a hint of jealousy.

Xia Tong ignored the stares around her and was about to look for Rodrik in the hall.

Just then, Enxia, ​​who was wearing royal armor and was as cold and indifferent as a corpse, walked straight towards Xia Tong.

He looked at Xia Tong, and very unusually, took a step to the side, giving up half a body space.

Then, he slightly raised his right arm, palm facing upward, and made a solemn and humble invitation gesture to Xia Tong.

"Lord Xia Tong." Enxia's dry, hoarse voice rang out in the quiet hall.

"Lord Baizhi—he wishes to see you."