Pillar of Yita

Fang Hong froze upon hearing, ”Then who is the master of this place?”

”Probably the owner of that fragment...” Ye Hua replied concisely.

The owner of the fragment, Fang Hong thought. Is it referring to the Star of Calamity’s Verdant? But if that’s the case, wouldn’t that be quite troublesome?

Princess Rupert paused for a moment and asked, ”Then how can we gain an advantage here? Mr. Ye Hua said these things for the sake of the subsequent combat, right?”

Ye Hua looked at the intelligent princess with appreciation in his eyes, ”Dragon Soul is one aspect. As I mentioned, those with strong soul power have a natural advantage here.”

”Secondly, there is the home-field advantage. Regardless of where this fragment originates from, Pale Glory is its origin power, and those who possess Pale Glory have greater strength here.”

”Do we have such a person among us?” Princess Rupert asked again.

Ye Hua glanced at Fang Hong and smiled.

That glance made Fang Hong suddenly feel as if he had boarded a pirate ship.

Perhaps Chairman Ye did not plot against him initially, but Delan and Xing undoubtedly knew from the start that he possessed Pale Glory. This was no secret, as outsiders speculated that the Hailin Crown was in his hands. If Kalatu and Tang De could figure it out, so could Delan and Xing.

”Is it really Captain Ade?” Princess Rupert’s voice revealed a hint of understanding.

”Possessing both Dragon Soul and Pale Glory attributes, Ade is indeed our secret weapon for this journey,” Ye Hua said with a smile.

Fang Hong remained silent, thinking indeed it was so.

Princess Rupert’s gaze turned towards him. After a pause, she softly thanked him, ”Thank you, Captain Ade. This matter was initially an affair of the Istania people and doesn’t concern you, yet it has dragged you into it.”

”It’s okay, Your Highness,” Fang Hong had long found his answer within himself. No matter how others decided, it couldn’t affect him, ”I can’t just run away; that doesn’t align with what I believe in. The Stargate Declaration doesn’t stipulate this, but I know what I should do.”

Rupert paused lightly, this simplicity was somewhat rare in her world. She suddenly understood what Miss Nightingale had said. She had encountered various Invokers, some greedy, some unremarkable, but indeed, there existed a certain few.

They are referred to as ’Pioneers’, those who, during that generation, built bridges between the natives and otherworld visitors, leaving behind an era full of legends and flashes.

She grew up hearing about that era, but it didn’t exist in the environment she grew up in. The arrival of the Invokers might have brought great change to Istania, possibly even altering the destiny of the Penelope Family.

But at this moment, looking at him, she suddenly began to anticipate.

Anticipating the future of this world and Istania—

She turned her head back.

”And what about me?” The Grand Princess of Istania asked, ”What is the reason Mr. Ye Hua brought me here?”

”I didn’t bring you here, Your Highness,” Ye Hua shook his head. ”It was Xing’s decision; I am merely a participant, similar to Ade. However, the reason you are here is indeed somewhat different from ours—”

He paused, ”You’ll understand shortly.”

Rupert nodded blankly, as if she had thought of something, gripped her sword, and stopped asking further questions.

Now, Xing, who had gone ahead to scout, returned. The tall Yinhanz Type Four separated the jungle, accompanied by the Alchemist, appearing before the three. Xing remained his cold and reticent self, softly speaking, ”The path is over here, follow me.”

...

Emerging from the dense forest, the Holy Sanctuary stood right before them.

The first sight in the vision of the four was a long flight of stairs, along with countless cloud-like steps leading up to the Sanctuary. In the verdant landscape, dozens of snow-white halls climbed up the ridge, scattered along the ascent, extending halfway up the mountain.

Fang Hong looked up and realized who Ye Hua and Xing had been referring to.

Four guards, cloaked in heavy ring armor, wearing gray robes, wielding spears, with gleaming eyes beneath their visors, turned towards them. The guards tightened their grip on their spears, emitting a rattling noise, crouching into a pre-attack stance.

At that moment, Fang Hong noticed the insignia of a closed eye on their gray robes—recognizing them as the Blind Followers.

The reason why the guards hadn’t launched an attack was due to a person emerging from the great hall.

Princess Rupert recognized the person, her expression turning solemn, ”Seniman, how are you here? Weren’t you already dead?”

She had naturally heard from Fang Hong about all that transpired in the Phantom Sea, as one of the Servants of the Blind Followers. This Left Minister personally appointed by the King of Sand had died at Ye Hua’s hands long ago.

Moreover, after the King of Sand Barbaltan absorbed his Starlight with the Soul-Capturing Cube, he shouldn’t appear here by any means.

Seniman, also in a gray robe and holding a magic wand, appeared slightly aged, looking down with a calm expression at Princess Rupert, ”Your Highness, it seems your understanding of eternity is somewhat lacking. What is called eternity would not be troubled by mortal death.”

Fang Hong listened, slightly startled, yet another Eternal One?

He looked up, although there might be some connections among the followers of the Dark Saints, the Eternal One mentioned unprompted by both the Dragon Worship Sect worshippers and Blind Followers raised some doubts in his heart.