Pillar of Yita

Fang Hong turned around, ”Are you going back now?”

Hes nodded. ”I can’t stay away from home for too long, and I’ve been out for quite a while.”

Fang Hong then bowed to her and said, ”Then take care, and thank you, Miss Hes.”

”Don’t worry, the way back is safe,” the young girl answered, ”Let me wait for you to go up first, Mr. Ade, I’ll take the Wind Lantern later.”

Fang Hong nodded, reached out to grab the ladder, and prepared to climb up.

But at that moment, the young girl’s voice asked again, ”By the way, Mr. Ade, are you a friend of Hudi?”

”Hudi?” Fang Hong was slightly startled and turned to look at her, ”You know him?”

”I’ve met Mr. Hudi a few times, he is a good man.”

Fang Hong paused for a moment and then asked, ”May I ask you a question, Miss Hes?”

Hes nodded.

”Are you an Apprentice Alchemist?”

The young girl displayed a surprised expression. ”Mr. Ade, how did you know?”

”I saw the notice.”

Hes lowered her eyelids, and after hearing this, her frail face seemed somewhat shaken. She clenched her fists before looking up and answering, ”Yes, when my mother was seriously ill, my father was always sighing. We had no real options back home but to mortgage our workshop.”

”In Dolifen, the only way for commoners to get ahead is to become alchemists. I know I’m just a girl, but I also hope I could be strong and help alleviate some of my father’s pressure.”

”I can rely on my own efforts to slowly buy back the workshop. If that incident hadn’t happened, everything might have slowly improved...”

She rambled on about some seemingly unrelated matters.

But Fang Hong looked at her without speaking immediately.

A moment later, he finally spoke, ”Miss Hes, did you come to see me also because of Hudi?”

The young girl shook her head, ”Not entirely, Mr. Ade.”

”Not entirely?”

Fang Hong nodded, feeling as though he had an epiphany, and the earlier confusion seemed to find an answer at this moment. ”I understand.”

He lifted his head to look towards the direction of the City Hall.

A chess game? he thought.

Hes barely smiled. ”Mr. Ade, if you see Hudi, could you thank him for me?”

”Thank him?”

”—Because thanks to Mr. Hudi, when I was most desperate, he helped me a lot. My father’s workshop... it was all due to his efforts.”

”Why not go and tell him yourself?” Fang Hong asked.

Hes shook her head and stepped back.

”Alright,” Fang Hong sighed and replied, ”I promise you.”

”Thank you, Mr. Ade.”

The young girl then bowed to him and without caring about the Wind Lantern, she turned and ran into the darkness.

Fang Hong watched her disappear without calling after her. He lowered his head, opened his palm, and there was a brooch—a black round shield with a tarnished silver Dragon Head missing a horn.

He opened the system and could clearly see the tag on this brooch.

The Zealot’s Mark of Sacrifice.

Fang Hong looked up, recalling a piece of the past he had learned about while studying the history of alchemists in Holite Academy back in Kapuka.

In the Cloud Sea Region, there once was a once-great Alchemy School—Holite School, whose members called themselves Immortals, unlike the Magic Guided Craftsmen, known for studying the art of Immortal Life.

However, the downfall of this school occurred about ten years ago, due to being involved in the Battle of Bain and alleged collusion with the Osh Empire, compounded by the scandal of using ”Forbidden Alchemy” — including Biological Modification and Demon Blood Sacrifice, was ultimately branded as a Cult Organization by the Kingdom and completely eradicated.

Holite Academy rose about half a century ago.

Its birthplace was apparently in Dolifen.

Fang Hong slowly recalled the name of the founder of this school—Holite Manlo.

He took one last look into the dark corridor, put away the Mark, never anticipating that this matter would be connected to Hudi. Then he turned, grabbed the ladder, and slowly climbed up.

This vast chess game slowly became clear in his mind.

...