My health recovery is incredibly fast.

"They were really careful," the cloaked man remarked.

Xia Zuo remained expressionless.

Seeing that Xia Zuo remained silent, the cloaked figure shook his head and said, "Alright. Let's get down to business."

The vines behind the cloaked figure changed, with tendrils extending out and weaving into a rattan sofa where a person could recline.

The cloaked figure adjusted to a comfortable sitting position:

“I had people extract the power of Cales’s bloodline, and what’s happening now in the altar plaza on the circular island is also my doing. The forgery of the temple emblem, the cracking of the communication channel of the secret message ring, and those illegal secret messages that have resonated widely were all orchestrated by me.”

The cloaked figure raised his head, pulled back his hood, and stared directly at Xia Zuo with a faceless expression:

"In the future, I will do many things: overthrow the Holy Mark Department, dissolve the Council of the Two Temples, reorganize the Temple, and then ascend to the throne of the Temple's leader. I do all this simply to correct the foolish mistakes made by humanity."

"Human beings are no different from other races. Like spontaneous mutations in organisms, they are short-sighted."

"They only make changes based on the current situation. Even if they plan for things 20 or 30 years from now, they will find that the decisions they made in the past were obviously flawed and that they could have done better a hundred years from now."

"I possess the ability to see the changes in all things in the world. I can stand at the end of time and manipulate the present and the past. Every step I take is before the temple's actions. I will achieve the final victory, just as I saw at the end of time."

"And then what? Enjoy your end times? Wait to die in the apocalypse?" Xia Zuo mocked.

The cloaked figure shook his head. "No, I will change it, not for the so-called salvation of the world, but for myself."

"You're not a demon, are you?" Xia Zuo thought for a moment. "And you're not a member of the Temple either, right?"

The cloaked man was definitely not a high-level mage or above; Xia Zuo was 100% certain of this, otherwise the light element would have killed him long ago.

“The Otherworldly Demons, the Temple…” The cloaked man shook his head. “You and I are at different levels, so you only see these two organizations that are enormous to ordinary people.”

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."

Chapter 17 Trust and Transactions

The faceless man snapped his fingers:

“I know very well that simply describing the future will not gain your trust, so I will show you some sincerity.”

"The pure-blood mage faction holds a very awkward position within the Temple. The longevity methods you provide to the Temple members are gradually being replaced by bionic alchemical bodies researched by the alchemy school. In time, you will have almost no special skills other than your own longevity."

"In terms of alchemy, you cannot compare to the alchemists who have transformed themselves into half-machines and half-humans and installed mind enhancers."

"In terms of magical skill, you are no match for the tower mages who are thirsting for magic."

"In terms of numbers, although pure-blood mages live long lives, most of them have difficulty having offspring. Compared with other departments of the Two Palaces Council, you are a minority among minorities."

"How do you think the Temple will treat you under these circumstances?"

The faceless man pointed at Xia Zuo:

"Your ending will be better, after all, you are a male pureblood mage, your strength is strong enough, and you have good relationships with the Demon Hunter School and the arcane mages."

"But Christo and the others probably won't fare so well."

"On the one hand, they don't possess the highly functional offensive blood magic like [Blood Magic Attack and Defense] that you do."

"On the other hand, hey, you might not know this, but the people in the temple have done things in order to pursue female pureblood mages and their offspring. These things have given Krestor and others a very bad impression of factions other than the Witcher School and the Mystics."

"Once the function of pure-blood mages in granting longevity is replaced, many people who were once protected by you and thus had their lives extended will quickly become your enemies. Your own bloodline power will be an invaluable treasure to them."

A distinct curved crease appeared on the faceless man's face, resembling a wicked grin.

"I promise Christo and the others that from the day they join me, all my subordinates in the Temple will unconditionally protect the pure-blood mage faction, and all proposals detrimental to you will be rejected. After I reorganize the Temple, you will still be the most important members of the Temple."

"All Christo and the others have to do is contribute a quarter of their bloodline power each."

"This collaboration does not conflict with opening the [Land of Rest], and each of them will receive two rewards."

The faceless man rubbed his hands together lightly. "I informed them in advance what would happen on the ring-shaped island, proving my abilities and the temple's weakness. Guess, did Christo and the others agree?"

Xia Zuo's tone was icy, "To agree to your request would be to betray the Temple. If Christo and the other two had done that, the light elements in the spiritual ocean would have executed them long ago. Clearly, your scheme failed, and they held their ground."

"Hahaha~" The faceless man laughed wildly, as if he had heard the funniest joke in the world. "Light element, hahaha. According to you, Touwinset, who works for me, would have died long ago~"

Xia Zuo's expression froze.

Yup!

The faceless man clearly wanted to overthrow the temple.

To conspire with him would be to directly violate the most stringent provision of the Temple Law.

But Tawwynset is completely unharmed.

The faceless man suddenly stopped laughing, stood up from the rattan sofa, and abruptly spread his arms wide.

Xia Zuo thought the other party was about to make a move, and he was about to send Janice away first, but he was stunned by what he saw.

The faceless man's hood and cloak were ripped off by several silver sand hands, and his smooth artificial skin was also torn off.

A humanoid creature composed entirely of energy appeared before Xia Zuo:

This humanoid creature has limbs and a head, no obvious gender characteristics, and a flat chest and crotch.

Its head, where the brain is located, contains something that Xia Zuo is very familiar with—a rhomboid container of chaos;

Inside its lungs, in each of its two thoracic cavities, there was a ball of wind energy radiating a bluish-green light;

Its stomach, spleen, kidneys, and heart are all fire-type energies of varying brightness;

Its feet, hands, and limbs are made of earth-based energy, which is brownish in color.

Water energy became its skin and internal filling material. A layer of pure water that refracts sunlight enveloped the entire humanoid creature, outlining its human appearance, while the pure water filling its body effectively fixed the internal organs, which were composed of various energy elements, in their designated positions.

The moment this humanoid creature appeared, Xia Zuo's attention was drawn to the chaotic container inside its head.

This was the first time he had seen a Chaos Vessel outside of the Pillars of Creation... Could this thing be fished out of lava?

Xia Zuo was very confused.

"As you can see, Xia Zuo."

The humanoid creature pointed to its own head:

"The Chaos Container is not a unique artifact exclusive to the Temple. As long as one possesses a Chaos Container independent of the Temple, it is equivalent to completely controlling the Ocean of Spirit and becoming its master. This is what makes a truly free mage."

The humanoid creature extended a semi-transparent, pure water finger and drew a circle next to its head.

A crack appeared on the edge of the center of the rhomboid chaotic container. The crack slowly opened to both sides, and a hazy ball of light emerged from it. Countless bright, star-like flashes of light flowed within the ball of light, making it look like a dazzling jewel that was constantly shimmering with seven-colored light.

"See that white light here? That's the light of the element of light. This element, which symbolizes the authority of laws, is abundant in my chaotic container, yet I'm still alive and well, aren't I?"

The crack in the Chaos Container closed, and the humanoid creature, under the care of Silver Sand's palm, donned its artificial skin and cloak once more.

"Your understanding of elements comes entirely from the elemental magic theory instilled in you by the Temple. I can't say it's wrong, but I can only say it's incomplete and biased."

"Once you join me, I will teach you how to have your own chaotic container and use elements better."

"At that time, the light elements you originally possessed will no longer pose a threat to you; they will serve you completely instead of carrying out the orders of the Temple's laws."

“The terms you’ve offered are indeed very tempting; I must admit that,” Xia Zuo said calmly.

"You used those words to persuade many members of the Temple, didn't you? Tauvinsett is certainly one of your followers. You recruited people of high status within the Temple, and then used them to control even more people. At least a third of the seats in the Council of the Two Temples are already in your hands, aren't they?"

"Yes." The faceless man shrugged, looking quite proud. "So, what's your decision?"

Xia Zuo fell into thought.

Since joining the Temple and participating in the Council of the Two Temples, he has always adhered to a strategy of not going against the trend.

This strategy is not suitable for all scenarios.

Because it is a strategy for resolving internal conflicts, rather than a strategy for confronting external forces.

When faced with internal conflicts, choosing to follow the crowd to avoid internal friction can resolve the problem more quickly.

The only difference is whether Xia Zuo is riding the wave or going against it. If he's riding the wave, he can reap more benefits; if he's going against it, he'll have to sacrifice some interests to avoid greater losses.

Ultimately, the bandwagon strategy is about making the temple's pie bigger before dividing it up.

This strategy cannot be used when confronting external forces, because external forces will not share their spoils with the Temple; the only relationship between them is one of enslavement, being enslaved, and life or death.

The initial strategy adopted by one force when targeting another often best reflects its true purpose.

To recap, how did the Faceless Man initially attempt to obtain the bloodline power of the pure-blooded mage?

Did he cordially invite the pureblood mages to sit down and discuss the matter, sharing his intelligence and making commitments with them in an open and honest manner?

No, right?

He secretly sent people to extract Calles' bloodline, used despicable means to remove Calles from the list of successful people, and finally planned to make Calles, who had become a commoner, disappear.

No matter how many sweet words are used to try to make amends afterward, it will never change the faceless man's despicable behavior.

He harbors nothing but malice towards the pure-blood mage faction!

There was no good intention involved!