Chapter 127: Lygus
Just then—
You suddenly felt something. It was as if a hungry dog had sniffed out the scent of rotting flesh and was approaching.
Sure enough, the next moment, the space behind you tore open, and a pitch-black rift appeared out of thin air. A familiar figure stepped out from it.
The Thief of Fire.
You turned around, looking at him expressionlessly.
His eyes under the mask stared intently at the Flame Seed in your arms. "The Flame Seed… must… be recovered…"
He drew his Sword of Ultimate Darkness and charged straight at you.
You also pulled out a Sword of Ultimate Darkness. Two identical swords clashed in the air, sparking black flames.
"Must… restart… Amphoreus…" the Thief of Fire's voice was fragmented, a clear sign that his mind had collapsed.
But now, he was incredibly weak before you.
Just one sword strike. Your sword slashed across his mask, cutting it off.
Beneath the mask was a face you recognized. White hair, handsome features, but his face was covered in cracks, like a shattered porcelain piece barely held together.
It was Phainon's face.
You weren't surprised in the slightest. "As expected." As early as when you copied his ability, you had felt that sense of familiarity.
But he was not Phainon.
"What exactly are you?"
"Flame… Seed…" he repeated mechanically, swinging his sword again.
You sighed. Since communication was impossible, then—
With the first move, your sword sliced open his arm. With the second move, the sword's edge grazed his chest.
The third move—
Pfft!
The Sword of Ultimate Darkness accurately pierced his tenth thoracic vertebra. You knew he was immortal… and had the same weakness as Mydei.
Indeed. The Thief of Fire's movements instantly froze.
He looked down at the sword in his chest, his lips still moving mechanically. "Flame Seed… must…"
His voice became more and more fragmented. Finally, his body began to disintegrate, turning into black ashes and scattering. Only a star-shaped ornament and a Flame Seed remained.
You bent down and picked up the ornament.
Instantly—shattered memories flooded your mind.
Reincarnation… Amphoreus… restart… 12 Flame Seeds… collection…
Countless reincarnations… countless failures… countless restarts…
Your head throbbed with pain. But when the pain passed, you seemed to understand something. A corner of Amphoreus's secret… had been glimpsed by you.
You looked at the Flame Seed on the ground—the Flame Seed of Death. "Did you also take Castorice's Flame Seed? That saves me the trouble."
You put away the Flame Seed and turned to pick up Cifera's cold body. A pitch-black portal opened before you. It was time to go back.
Okhema.
The former Holy City of Dawn was now shrouded in eternal night. Chrysos Heir corpses lay strewn across the streets—Phainon, Tribbie, Trinnon… all were the handiwork of the Thief of Fire.
A trace of sadness flickered in your eyes, but only for an instant. Then, you carefully buried Cifera's body in the garden in front of the Weaving Workshop. That was her favorite place.
"Wait for me a little longer, Fei'er," you whispered softly before the grave, then turned and left.
In your hand were three Flame Seeds—Sky, kephale, and Death. The entrance to the Vortex of Genesis was just ahead.
But just then, a figure blocked your path. Gray hair, amber eyes.
It was Stelle.
You weren't surprised. The Thief of Fire had been to the Underworld, which meant it had fallen. Castorice naturally couldn't hold her back anymore.
"Orion!" Stelle glared. "Dan Heng and Phainon came to the Underworld and told us everything!"
"Why did you betray everyone? Why did you stop the Journey of Chasing the Flame?!"
You didn't answer, only looked behind her. "Where's Castorice?"
Stelle's expression was somewhat complex. "Her Flame Seed was taken by the Thief of Fire, but in the Underworld, she won't die… It's just that she refused to believe Dan Heng and Phainon."
"She didn't believe you would do such a thing to stop the Journey, so… she didn't come."
"It's better she didn't come," you said indifferently. "She wouldn't want to see me now."
"What exactly do you want to do?!" Stelle shouted. "Castorice likes you so much, she did so much for you, yet you—"
"She's on the wrong path," you interrupted her. "The Journey of Chasing the Flame is nothing but a scam."
"A scam?" Stelle was stunned. "How do you know…"
You didn't answer, only slowly drew your Sword of Ultimate Darkness.
"Get out of the way, Stelle. I don't have time to explain to you."
Stelle immediately raised her Blazing Spear, adopting a combat stance.
But—in just one encounter.
Pfft!
The black sword pierced her abdomen.
"How… could this be…" Stelle's eyes widened, unable to believe she was utterly defenseless.
"Goodbye, Stelle."
You pulled out the sword, and blood gushed out. She fell weakly, her eyes filled with unwillingness and confusion. You didn't look at her again, walking straight into the Vortex of Genesis.
[Successfully wiped out the Astral Express Amphoreus team, Villain Value +500!]
However—in the center of the vortex, a figure was already waiting.
The Council's "Ritual Observer," Lygus.
He looked at you, a mysterious smile playing on his lips. "It seems this time is different."
You looked at him coldly. "Are you also going to stop me?"
"No, no, no." Lygus shook his head. "I am merely an observer, a witness. I will witness the new Savior—Orion, your re-creation."
However, the next second—your action made this perpetually composed observer show a shocked expression for the first time.
"To hell with re-creation!"
You slammed the three Flame Seeds onto the ground. The Sword of Ultimate Darkness was raised high—
Swish!
The blade struck down, and the three Flame Seeds instantly shattered! Pitch-black flames devoured the shattered divinity, incinerating it completely.
"???" Lygus's eyes widened, losing his elegant composure for the first time. "Do you know what you're doing—"
His answer was a streak of black sword light.
You had completely lost control. Black flames erupted from you, devouring everything in the Vortex of Genesis. Stone pillars collapsed, the ground cracked, and ancient runes twisted and melted in the flames.
"Destroy! Destroy it all!"
You wildly wielded the Sword of Ultimate Darkness, striking at everything you could. Lygus tried to escape, but your speed was faster.
Swish!
A head flew high. Lygus's body crashed down, his mechanical single eye still flashing with an eerie red light.
But you didn't stop. The blade sliced through walls, through the ground, through the air itself. The entire Vortex of Genesis collapsed under your attack, black flames spreading everywhere.
At this moment.
"What a pity." An emotionless voice sounded again.
Lygus stood behind you, completely unharmed. He looked at you, disappointment in his eyes. "Even after being glimpsed by Him, is it still a bug?"
He sighed, shaking his head. "Never mind, re—"
Re—
Suddenly, your vision began to distort. It flickered black and white, like a broken monitor. You tried to say something but found your voice was also breaking. Your consciousness began to dissipate, your thoughts becoming fragmented.
██ Error… Abnormal data stream detected…
Re… Re██… Amphoreus, repairing for the ██████ time…
ERROR: ██████ - Memory access violation
Restoring ██… Progress… ██… ██%…
Warning: Timeline collapse… Data anomaly…
Attempting to recover… Failed…
██████████████
FATAL ERROR: Flame-█████.exe has stopped working
Forcibly terminating process…
Clearing cache… Clearing temporary files…
…
…
Villain Simulator detected a malfunction…
Forcing re-repair, loading simulation…
Loading progress: 10%… 35%… 67%… 89%…
Data verification in progress…
World reconstructing…
Character data recovering…
Reloading Villain Simulation successful.
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