My health recovery is incredibly fast.

The cloaked figure asked, "How much do you know about the starry sky above us?"

The air was still for a few seconds.

“Hmm, it seems you don’t know much about the vast world beyond this land.” The cloaked man raised his chin at Xia Zuo. “Join me, and I’ll tell you the answer.”

Xia Zuo did not respond.

“I know you are somewhat hostile towards me, just like I was when I first met Christo, Letunia and Sinfia.”

The cloaked man's words moved Xia Zuo somewhat.

No wonder Christo and her two companions looked strange; it turned out they had met the cloaked man not long ago.

Xia Zuo quickly pieced together the whole story.

I reckon the cloaked figure also communicated with the original pureblood mage through the descendants of the pureblood mage, just like they do now.

“I can tell you frankly that I do need the bloodline power of a pure-blood mage, and the stronger the better. Doing so will not only not cost this pure-blood mage his life, but may even allow him to master some strange spells.”

The cloaked man shrugged, looking utterly sincere—provided one ignored his face, which lacked any facial features.

"I have been preparing to open the gates of the [Land of Long Sleep] for many years. I have collected a large amount of materials, and now all that is missing is the bloodline power of a pure-blooded mage."

"After gathering all the materials together and holding a specific ceremony, we can enter the [Land of Rest]. Those who have made contributions will benefit from it; this is my promise."

"Of course, I won't tell you what the benefits are unless you join me." The altar square returned to calm after a brief commotion.

The temple guards entered a meditative state under the guidance of the exploration team members.

The scholars, alchemists, members of the Holy Rune Department, and guards of the Inquisition sent by the Temple to witness the events stood quietly at the edge of the square.

Rexor and Ceretus discussed it and decided to enter a meditative state together. One of them would go find Rena, while the other would be responsible for tracking Nyxsatter.

After the Temple Guards intervened, they didn't have to do this, but considering that the Demon Hunter School had broken its promise to Letunia and failed to take good care of Hurley, they absolutely could not repeat the same mistake with Reina, which would further worsen the relationship between the Demon Hunter School and the pure-blood mage faction.

They descended from the pyramid, passed through the crowds meditating cross-legged, and found the temple guards watching over the site below the stone tower.

After a conversation, Rexor and his companion were granted permission to enter meditation, and the Temple Guards assigned two agents to guide them.

Xia Zuo's bloodline connection is powerful, but it cannot be used on spirits because spirits themselves do not have flesh and blood.

After Rexor entered a meditative state, the perspective he provided to Shazo became one of complete darkness.

The ceremony entered an agonizing waiting period, with the audience unable to do anything but patiently await the final result.

Xia Zuo switched the image gems to view the images of the other gems.

The surface of the circular island was entirely under the control of the temple guards.

The vast majority of people on the island were forcibly removed from the island; these people were mainly alchemists and scholars from the tower who were conducting experiments on the island.

The shamanic tribes remained within the designated area of ​​the temple. A dome-shaped, semi-transparent red magical veil surrounded the area, and several teams of glass spheres hovered in the nearby sky.

After watching for a few minutes, Xia Zuo got a little bored, so he took out a book from his alchemy pouch and started reading.

He also kept an eye on his pureblood mage colleagues behind him.

Christo and the other two had regained their composure. They summoned a low table in front of the sofa and watched the live broadcast together.

Xia Zuo wondered if it was just his imagination, but the three of them seemed to avoid looking him in the eye, and their expressions appeared somewhat strange when they spoke to him.

Xia Zuo was a little confused, but he didn't take it to heart.

Over the next three or four hours, members of the Temple Guard team responsible for retrieving the expedition members continuously used replica shrines to send messages to the Temple Guards in nature.

Each time a temple guard brings back an agent, they will, in their spirit form, manipulate the spiritual materials on the plaza ground using the characteristics of the replica shrine to piece together a message, report the situation to the captain guarding the stone tower, and then go to find the next agent.

Finally, after 5 hours, the spirits of all the agents, including Rena, returned to the altar plaza.

Nyxat's spirit was also captured.

According to the temple guards responsible for capturing him, it was fortunate that the Witcher Master helped, otherwise Ner'xath might have escaped. This guy had set up a lot of fake wooden signs to mislead the temple guards.

Rexor and Ceretus are now guarding the restless Ner'xath in spirit form, preventing him from escaping while the meditation spice burns faster, leaving the temple guards with an empty alchemical body.

The temple guards stationed at the foot of the stone tower flew to the top and stood around the circular skylight at the top. They joined forces to cast a spell, unleashing a blazing beam of light with thousands of points of power.

In an instant, a bright "sun" appeared in the altar square, and dazzling golden light shone from the top of the tower.

The golden light pierced through the spices piled up inside the tower without damaging the stone tower itself. The temple guards precisely controlled the length and thickness of the beam of light, keeping its diameter just enough to penetrate all the spices.

At the same time, all the spices were lit.

Thick white smoke billowed from the top of the tower.

Some of the white smoke rose to the ceiling, forming a white column that obscured the figures of the temple guards.

Another portion of the white smoke was a darker, grayish color. It cascaded down the stone tower like a waterfall, quickly engulfing the agents, temple guards, and demon hunters sitting cross-legged in the altar plaza, and piling up along the four pyramids at the edge of the plaza.

In just about 30 seconds, everything and everyone on the altar plaza, except for the tower scholars, tribunal guards, and members of the Holy Rune Department who had evacuated the plaza in advance, was engulfed in grayish-white smoke.

This huge cloud of smoke did not spread to the cave next to the square; it eerily lingered on the square for a long time without dissipating.

Xia Zuo immediately tensed up.

He switched the images a few times but couldn't see any of the temple guards casting the spell—those temple guards who were accelerating the burning of incense at the top of the tower were among the few people in the altar plaza who weren't in a meditative state. They should have left the top of the tower after all the incense had been completely burned, but they didn't emerge from the thick, grayish-white smoke…

Could something have happened amidst the thick smoke?

Xia Zuo frowned.

At that very moment, the temple guards on the ground arrived to provide support.

They cast multiple layers of magical shields around themselves, activating their elemental husks and a complete set of incredibly protective alchemical armor.

When the Temple Guards tried to find an scout to ask what might be inside the thick, grayish-white smoke, they were all surprised to discover:

Not a single member of the exploration team remained outside the altar plaza!

None of them, whether they were meditating or free to move around, left the area of ​​the altar square.

Xia Zuo replayed the footage, repeatedly watching the short segment where thick smoke billowed.

During the few dozen seconds that the thick smoke erupted, several members of the waiting reconnaissance team unanimously chose to stand still and let the smoke engulf them.

From the appearance of the thick smoke to its coverage of the pyramids, a full half minute passed—more than enough time for the agents to evacuate... but they didn't.

Xia Zuo was momentarily stunned, and a sense of foreboding washed over him.

The only good news is that Rexor is still alive, his bloodline connection hasn't been severed, and his perspective remains completely black. The others in the thick smoke are likely either forced into a meditative state or unconscious.

The temple guards by the square reported the unusual activity of the exploration team to their superiors.

A portion of the temple guards who had been blocking the shamanic sect entered the tribal dwelling. They sought out the shamanic masters who had presided over the rituals, demanding all information related to the thick smoke, but were met only with a deathly silence; all the shamanic masters had chosen to remain silent.

The temple guards were suddenly caught in a dilemma.

Should we use magic or alchemical tools to forcibly dispel the thick smoke? Or should we move the people out of the smoke?

Or do nothing and patiently wait for the smoke to dissipate; perhaps the smoke won't linger in the altar square for long.

Whatever decision is made, it means that the Temple will gain some things while losing others.

No Temple Guard knew what would happen if they took any action, just as no Temple Guard knew where the smoke came from or where it was going.

The unknown became an insurmountable barrier standing in front of the temple.

Just as Xia Zuo was feeling slightly uneasy, An Ru'er took the initiative to activate his bloodline connection.

"Xia Zuo, please help Janice!" Anru'er's tone was anxious.

...

Three minutes before thick smoke billowed from the altar square.

Inside the academy in Poseidon City, Silvermoon Federation.

Janice had just finished lunch at the university cafeteria.

Carrying a stack of books and carrying her backpack, she found a shady corner in the vine-covered corridor of the academy, as usual, and flipped through her alchemy notes from that morning while feeling the gentle breeze.

Sunlight filters through the vines on the ceiling of the long corridor, leaving dappled patterns of light on the floor and the stone pillars of the corridor. Whenever a breeze blows, the branches and leaves of the vines sway, and the dappled light transforms into twinkling stars.

Janice likes this tranquil atmosphere and lingers here every day for a while instead of taking a midday nap.

A white shadow flashed past in the corridor, like a shooting star darting through the star-like spots of light.

Janice caught a glimpse of the white shadow out of the corner of her eye, but when she looked over, she found nothing unusual.

"Hello, Janice."

Janice was startled by the unfamiliar male voice.

Suddenly, a white cloaked figure with a hood appeared on the stone chair opposite her.

"Don't be nervous, relax."

The cloaked man's voice was extremely gentle, as if it possessed an irresistible charm. Janice quickly calmed down and did not shout or cry for help, but simply looked at the other person quietly.

“Yes, just sit like this.” The cloaked figure chuckled.

As he spoke, an invisible magical barrier unfolded in the corridor where the two were.

Looking out from the corridor, the place where they were was completely empty.

The cloaked figure waited for a short while.

The necklace around Janice's neck emitted a bright red glow of blood magic.

The light emanated from the crystal pendant of the necklace, flew out of Janice's collar, and coalesced into the figure of a young man in front of the cloaked figure.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Shazo. I’ve been looking forward to seeing you for a long time. Please have a seat, don’t be shy.” The cloaked figure gestured to the empty seat opposite Janice.

Xia Zuo, who arrived here using a blood magic clone, turned to look at Janice behind him.

The little girl had closed her eyes and was sitting up asleep.

Several vines extended from behind her, supporting her arms, head, and back, preventing her from tilting and falling off the stone bench.

"As you can see, I have no ill intentions. I just want to find the right time, the right place, and the right person to talk to you."

Xia Zuo's clone condensed a line of blood, took a crystal from Janice's bag and stuffed it into his throat. This was a pre-prepared alchemical voice device.

"I think I know who you are. What would you like to talk about?"

Xia Zuo moved over and sat down next to Janice.

He summoned a sharp blood magic artifact to cut the vines, then wrapped the little girl in a thick blood magic shield, isolating her from everything around her.