Chapter 386 - Sacred Mark

Cassius wasn’t intent on showing off, but he wanted to test something. While he had gone through White Aster's memories, he had discovered that he might be able to use White Aster's Phantom Aster ability in a unique way.

Illusionists were a group of people with varied origins, but their abilities shared a common foundation: illusions affected enemies through the user's mind and soul. Under normal circumstances, this mind energy is uncharacteristic, like water or mist. It could not be used to attack directly. But illusionists could alter its form through their abilities, shaping it with imagination and willpower to create deadly illusions.

For instance, White Aster's Phantom Aster ability involved deep meditation over time, allowing him to build a solid illusion structure that could take effect immediately in battle, creating a seemingly real environment. This was his "illusion realm," and it was the beginner stage of illusion techniques. At this stage, the illusory environment only looked realistic on the surface, but lacked any genuine essence.

The intermediate stage is when illusionists could add their willpower to illusions, bringing fake things to life momentarily and making them feel almost real.

The advanced stage conjures a reality where the illusion traps enemies in a deadly environment, conjuring vicious creatures that kill. When the illusion ends, the enemy dies in reality as well, in the same manner as within the illusion.

This progression describes the general development path for an illusionist. Cassius now faced a question; he had tried earlier and found that his overwhelming Qi, currently sealed within his body, might replace the need for mind and soul energy and serve as the source of his illusions.

What kind of effect would an illusion powered by Qi have?

Cassius turned to look at the young woman standing by his bedside.

Rose raised her slender eyebrows, slightly surprised by Cassius's calm and confident demeanor. But after a few seconds of consideration, she nodded. The Illusionist Association only required members to pass a qualification review, which they can only submit three times. If Cassius wanted to waste a chance, it was none of Rose's concern—even if he was bedridden and not in his best state.

The minimum requirement for joining the Illusionist Association was mastering beginner-level illusions, meaning exerting full control over sight, hearing, and smell. If an illusionist could draw an enemy into a sensory illusion, they qualified as a beginner. White Aster had just reached this stage recently, essentially reaching the threshold.

"You can try using your illusion ability on me. I'm an intermediate illusionist, so I can partially resist and evaluate your level," Rose crossed her arms over her chest, lifting her soft, ample figure, and added, "But given your current condition, you may not perform at your previous level. Do your best and don't push yourself too hard."

"Alright," Cassius replied with just one word, then raised his right hand.

He activated White Aster's Phantom Aster ability from memory. An aster-like pattern on his chest began to glow, emitting a soft blue light that spread to the skin near his ear. Just as the ability was about to activate, Cassius swapped his mind power with his Qi.

Boom!

The entire room suddenly shook as if an immense force was pressing into the space.

The curtains billowed, the door rattled, and objects vibrated. Rose's eyes widened as she felt a profound sense of danger. It felt as if some terrifying beast had been unleashed from a cage, opening its blood-red maw.

But after a few seconds, the disturbance ceased. Rose blinked her bright eyes, finding nothing out of the ordinary. Where was the illusion cast on her?

It felt like a false alarm—a dud that tightened her heart, only for nothing to happen.

"Uh..." Rose opened her mouth. "White Aster, did you injure your brain during that last mission? Or maybe your mind hasn't fully recovered since waking up..."

She had phrased it gently, but inwardly she suspected that his core ability might have been damaged. Otherwise, even the weakest illusion would leave some effect. Although Cassius's initial attempt had indeed felt intense.

"You..."

Rose stopped mid-sentence, her words cut off as she froze in place. It felt like something was gripping her neck, rendering her unable to speak or think. To Rose's left, a massive crimson eye completely filled the window frame.

Violence, viciousness, and bloodlust emanated from this eye. A regular person's mind would shatter just by glancing at it.

Screech!!!

The shriek of a monstrous bird of prey boomed like an artillery blast, sending shockwaves throughout the building. The walls seemed to tremble as ash fell from the ceiling, and a buzzing filled her ears.

When Rose regained her senses, the enormous eye blocking the window had vanished. Beyond the window lay a scene like a gateway to hell: a blood-red world where scarlet mist floated like clouds.

Even the sun had turned red, transforming into a blood-red disk. Thick mist churned directly across from the window, forming vortexes that howled in the air. At the center of each vortex, a hideous vulture, mostly concealed within the mist, revealed only its giant head, lifting its beak toward the blood-red sky. The bird's blood-colored beak looked ready to swallow the red sun whole.

Judging by the size of this creature's head, its full body must span over fifty meters. Even from a distance, Rose could feel the violence emanating from its massive form, as an overpowering sense of insignificance welled up inside her.

This monstrous bird could probably devour this room in one gulp!

The thought involuntarily crossed her mind.

What Rose didn't realize was that the illusion realm contained more than one monster. Due to her perspective, she couldn't see the other two. If one looked down from above, the otherworldly landscape had a hundred-meter radius, painted in interwoven red, black, and purple hues.

A towering humanoid figure walked slowly in the black mist, its heavy footsteps resounding like explosions on the ground. Occasionally, a spiked, scaly arm would emerge, revealing a brutal war machine made for close combat.

Meanwhile, within the purple mist, a giant serpent coiled around a tall building, its head rising upward. The ridged nose seemed like twin sharp blades. It was now clear that Qi could indeed serve as a source for illusions—with astonishing effectiveness.

The effect was so remarkable that Rose was nearly scared out of her wits.

"This... this is an illusion? Could an illusion even cover such a vast area? Can creatures of this terrifying scale actually be conjured from nothing?" Rose's mind went blank. The scene before her surpassed her understanding.

Who am I? Where am I? What should I do next?

Five minutes later, Cassius passed the qualification review, earning an additional bottle containing one unit of sacred spring water. He also gained a small admirer—a young fan who wanted to be his disciple.

Rose found herself captivated by the terrifying range and aura of Cassius's illusion. She believed that Cassius was actually a deeply concealed master of illusions and had joined the Illusionist Association more as a mentor figure to see how skilled the newer Hunters were. She assumed he occasionally offered pointers to promising juniors, and saw herself as one of those favored few.

After showing her admiration, Rose left, leaving Cassius alone in the hospital room. From his recent experiments, Cassius had a rough understanding of the effects of using Qi as a power source for his illusion abilities. To be honest, his technique was crude, yet the illusion had been overwhelmingly powerful. This crudeness stemmed from White Aster's current level as merely a beginner illusionist; the illusion spaces he created lacked realism and structural intricacy, making them easy to see through for alert enemies.

However, the raw strength was quite straightforward.

When Cassius used Qi as the source for his illusions, the power of Phantom Aster bypassed the level of a beginner and intermediate illusionist and ascended instantly to an advanced level, perhaps even beyond. After all, the illusions of advanced illusionists were still not real; they could kill enemies within illusion spaces, but such attacks remained ephemeral, intangible mind energy that couldn't be physically touched.

Qi, on the other hand, was different—it could be manifested! Like a fifth limb of a combat artist, it could transform into the Will of the Fist. The Blood Vulture's Beak of the Southern Dipper Red Falcon Fist was a prime example of this, dealing both mental and physical damage. If a Blood Vulture within the illusion were to devour you, it would be a real, physical attack.

So, from Rose's perspective, Cassius truly deserved the title of master of illusions, albeit in a serendipitous way.

***

In a hospital room on the second floor of a nursing home.

Cassius got out of bed and looked out the window. This wasn't the headquarters of the Dark Hunter Organization but an independent nursing facility that treated injured Hunters. Mastering White Aster's illusion ability was actually a temporary adaptation. While he had brought his Qi into the body of the antique owner, he still needed to use this frail physique to complete his tasks.

Despite his extensive combat experience and formidable fist techniques, his abilities were constrained. If he were to rely solely on his combat power to gather spring water, his efficiency would likely be low in the beginning, delaying his progress. White Aster's body was so weak that Cassius could hardly utilize his Qi without risking his body's collapse.

𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

However, illusions could serve as an intermediary, allowing him to release his powerful Qi in an alternative form, greatly enhancing his efficiency. Cassius's combat strength was thus enhanced, evolving him from a frail combat expert to a master of illusions.

This gave him a stronger starting point, enabling him to take on high-level missions right from the outset and quickly amass a significant amount of spring water. This, in turn, would allow him to enhance his physique beyond that of a combat artist, fully unleashing his combat potential in a short time.

It was important to note that illusion was merely an auxiliary skill for Cassius. His illusions, fueled by Qi, could create realms, but they would never reach the sheer power of Covert Martial Arts or Secret Techniques that drove Qi through the body for immense force. This was an adaptive approach for the early stages of his time-travel.

He half closed the window with a rustle, allowing some sunlight to stream into the room. He lay partially on the bed, holding three transparent glass bottles, each containing one unit of sacred spring water. The liquid, a pale golden color like flowing sand, radiated an indescribable vitality. This was undoubtedly something extraordinary.

Cassius decided to give it a try.

He opened one bottle and drank it in one gulp. A warm sensation spread down his throat and into his stomach where it dispersed throughout his body. Pores all over his body opened and closed, bringing a sense of clarity.

White steam rose from his body, distinctly visible in the sunlight. Upon closer inspection, one could see impurities floating within this steam, with occasional traces of gray amid the white. Soon, black and red vapor also began to emerge, representing congealed blood and damaged tissues and organs, which had transformed into fine powder expelled through his pores.

The spring water's effects were potent, and comparable to life vibration energy. It only took a short time for White Aster's severely injured body to be completely healed. The remaining half-unit of sacred spring water began to enhance his relatively weak body at a fundamental level.

Without wasting time, Cassius took out the remaining two bottles and drank them all. Instantly, his body grew hot. It felt as if his limbs were soaking in a hot spring, as it gently rippled with the liquid. It felt as though both his body and spirit were cleansed.

As time passed, a faint mark appeared on the back of Cassius's right hand, about the length of a thumb. It was pale gold, slightly thicker than a strand of hair, and straight.

He looked down and muttered, "Is this what they call a sacred mark?"

When one drank enough sacred spring water, the body would reach a saturation point, resulting in a unique effect known as the sacred mark. This mark acted as an amplifier, selectively enhancing and evolving one of the user's abilities. Cassius had just reached his initial saturation and produced his first sacred mark. If he continued to consume spring water and reached saturation again, he could gain a second, third, fourth mark, and so on.

White Aster didn't know the limit on the number of marks.

Lying on the hospital bed, Cassius looked at the golden mark on the back of his hand. He could feel the Phantom Aster ability automatically receiving an amplification effect, allowing him to construct more refined and expansive illusions.

"Phantom Aster is an ability," Cassius mused, rubbing his chin. "Could Covert Martial Arts also be counted as an ability?"

"Shed the sacred mark, transfer it to the Southern Dipper fist techniques..." He focused, and the mark on his hand glowed as red and purple Qi surged within him. Cassius immediately straightened, his previously casual demeanor turning intense.

Because, in that instant, there were faint signs of fusion between the Qi of the Southern Dipper Red Falcon Fist and the Southern Dipper Sonic Snake Fist!

"Something's wrong, very wrong. I need to unlock the acupoints in the Southern Dipper fist techniques to check the state of Death's Fang Force and Reverberating Force."