Chapter 27: The Final Words, Part One

“Outsmarted by one’s own cleverness!”

This was Ash’s assessment of the commander from the Arbor Research Institute. When it came to intelligence, no in-game character could compare to a living, breathing human like him. So Ash wasn’t worried at all about the other side sending someone to snatch the spoils. Let’s not forget, they had Little Bob here—an upgraded turret if there ever was one!

Anyone could see the Arbor side intended to retreat. But if they wanted to seize the spoils and escape unscathed, their only option was to send in a high-defense, high-health tank to endure the combined assault of A Cup of Wine Grows Stronger and Little Bob. Even two wouldn’t suffice, because the remaining six were already struggling just to hold back the ferocious attacks of the patrol guards. Diverting anyone else risked complete annihilation.

To guarantee they got the loot, the brave warrior from the Arbor Institute had used an exceedingly precious defensive item—a specially reinforced shield that greatly improved his survivability. Not even a single explosive fireball, nor a combination of a critical arrow and a reinforced fireball, could kill him in one shot. Both sides knew this all too well.

So, when the damage calculation showed that two explosive fireballs could kill him instantly, A Cup of Wine Grows Stronger’s role became to eliminate all uncertainties and ensure that Little Bob’s attack would be fatal.

And then, the once-invincible Arbor warrior died, swiftly and cleanly.

Ash didn’t consider himself especially clever, but thinking one step ahead of a game character was well within his abilities. This was how the right to plunder the spoils fell to the three of them.

Eager to bring the Bloodvine Ring to its complete form, A Cup of Wine Grows Stronger immediately began searching for the upgrade components she needed.

“Tenacious… tenacious… always tenacious… why can’t I find a frenzy attribute Bloodvine Core… Ah! There it is! Quick, quick, I’m only missing one frenzy-attribute Bloodvine item now!”

She nearly ransacked the entire battlefield in her search, but in the end, she found nothing to fulfill her hopes. Cradling a handful of Bloodvine items, she was on the verge of tears.

Her gaze drifted to Little Bob in the distance, hoping he’d had better luck. But he shook his head regretfully, dampening her spirits further. With no other choice, she looked to Ash, who stood just outside the battlefield, unmoved as ever. Her eyes brimmed with disappointment. She knew this might be her best chance to upgrade the Bloodvine Ring, as the six retreating enemies would surely report back to the true leaders of the Arbor Institute. Getting mature Bloodvine items again would never be this easy.

Why does luck always turn against me?

Not only did I miss out on rare equipment—even Bloodvine items elude me…

Seeing her sigh and frown, Ash couldn’t help but laugh. He flipped his hand, revealing a Bloodvine item he’d found at his feet.

“The fireball explosion probably blasted a good number of Bloodvine items all over. If you widen your search, you’ll get results. See? Here’s one. It’s yours, free of charge—don’t mention it.”

At his words, all her gloom vanished. She rushed to Ash, impatiently completing the Bloodvine Ring’s final transformation. Beaming, she showed off the ring’s enhanced effects.

“The damage bonus increased from two hundred percent to five hundred percent. That means a single normal attack deals forty-five points of damage, and a critical arrow doubles to ninety—that’s almost as much as Little Bob’s reinforced explosive fireball!”

Like a child with a new gift, she boasted to her companions, “And the new effect is Skill Overdraft—I can ignore cooldowns and fire two critical arrows in succession, though it does hurt my sanity. I should’ve realized it earlier: the Gardener Symbiote’s ability to chain overdraft skills is definitely linked to Bloodvine enhancement. Even if the Bloodvine inside him isn’t complete, just the juvenile vines on his right arm number nearly thirty!”

“You’re happy, but I’m in trouble,” Ash said with some exasperation. “The difficulty has ramped up way past what I can handle. If there are even two enemies with fully-mature berserk Bloodvines, not even a shield will save me. Let’s hope the Arbor Institute’s research hasn’t advanced past mass-producing mature Bloodvine items, or one misstep could spell doom.”

“Don’t worry, it’s not as bad as you think,” A Cup of Wine Grows Stronger replied, radiant with newfound power. “There can’t be many complete Bloodvine items, and Little Bob and I should be able to take one out before you’re in danger. You won’t have to bear too much pressure directly!”

“I’ll take your word for it. Let’s hope so.”

Ash nodded, then accepted an unopened bottle of basic healing potion from Little Bob—not a wasted effort, after all. Without further delay, the three set off, leaving the chaos behind to avoid revenge from the Arbor Institute. They made their way toward the final point of written records.

With Little Bob’s vision aiding them, they avoided many dangers along the way and finally stopped before a dilapidated temple. The area was barren, as if cleared specifically for the temple, and patrol guards swarmed the surroundings. Without the guidance of the leaf markers, they would never have come here.

“It looks like the Arbor Institute hasn’t explored this place yet. Let’s go in. I hope all our questions find answers here!”

As always, Ash led the way, climbing the broad stone steps, skirting fallen columns and collapsed beams, until they reached the pedestal that once held a divine statue.

A massive white jade pedestal stood empty—the statue that should have rested there was now shattered, its identity-defining features deliberately smashed. Only fragments hinted that the being once worshipped here was not human.

Then… who was it?

The Six-Eyed Evil Spirit?

Would a heretical faith really be enshrined within the inner city? That seemed highly improbable!

Full of questions, Little Bob followed the final leaf marker around the back of the pedestal and found the last written record left by his father. With trembling excitement, he began deciphering and reading it aloud, word by word.

…

Through the stone tablet records shared by the High Priest of the Sun and the Six-Eyed Prophet, I finally understand the true significance of the Gardener’s belated arrival.

This is a long story, Little Bob. You must prepare yourself.

While the powerful of Paradise and Fairy Tale Worlds strove to save themselves, so too did those from two even more ancient worlds.

Thus, the once-heretical Six-Eyed Church was welcomed into the Sun’s inner city, given a temple, and the Six-Eyed Holy Spirit was worshipped alongside the Sun’s High Priest, all in hopes of sharing destiny.

But the results were poor. Neither world could save itself, nor could they even hope to preserve their civilization.

When doomsday arrived, the world’s will, collapsing upon itself, would sweep away all life and everything connected to it—words, history, and more.

To preserve a spark of civilization, the High Priest and the Prophet used the properties of the Dark Veil to create life-forbidden zones to resist the doomsday’s assault.

But even this could not fully offset the self-annihilation of the world’s will.

Had the High Priest and Prophet not left behind their stone tablet records, the scattered clues would never have revealed the whole truth.

Little Bob, my child, you must be curious—how did the stone tablet records, containing all the truths, survive the world’s end?

The answer is simple: the tablets never experienced doomsday, and thus escaped destruction.

The turning point came when the first doomsday approached. The High Priest of the Sun found a way to rekindle soulfire, while the Six-Eyed Prophet discovered the existence of Bloodvine among the endless evil gods.

The two wise ones quickly realized that not only could they prolong civilization, but they also had a chance to unravel the world’s mysteries, with the life-forbidden zones being the key.

On your journey, you must have noticed—apart from the Nightmare Pumpkin Carriage, all other beings are undead, aren’t they?

Yes, to rekindle the soulfire, one must first extinguish it—by becoming a walking corpse, one could be protected by the life-forbidden zone, safe from doomsday’s assault.

And the purpose of Bloodvine is to preserve the body from decay, absorbing the Dark Veil’s energy and growing until it becomes suitable fuel.

Little Bob, do you remember the story I told you of that ancient empire?

Fire meant everything to them.

The soul was born of fire, and life burned for fire.

In their belief, the body was the fuel for the soul’s flame; as long as the fire burned, the body was undying.

A great flame could create a great being and grant divine power.

This led the whole empire to worship fire and believe it would ultimately conquer darkness.

Thus, the High Priest and the Prophet agreed to ignite unprecedented fuel with the world’s greatest flame.

This would shatter the Dark Veil’s prison in the life-forbidden zone, carrying the glory of the empire into the future.

The world’s greatest flame is the soulfire of an imperial king.

And the unprecedented fuel is Bloodvine in its ultimate state.

Each emperor of the empire bore the same title—the Lord of Cinders.

The ultimate form of Bloodvine is also known as—the Matriarch.