Chapter 999: Erasure

At night, Blackwater City became even more captivating.

Lights could be seen everywhere, casting a dim glow over the streets.

In the busiest districts, the city pulsed with life.

The Faelorian mages did not limit their magic to combat—they had seamlessly woven it into their daily lives.

For instance, the streetlights of Blackwater City were powered by elemental energy.

A simple illumination spell cast by a low-ranking mage could keep these lights burning throughout the night for at least a month.

Blackwater City had four major districts that never slept.

One was the city’s largest shopping street and pleasure district. The other three housed Blackwater City’s major places of worship—the Church of Bones, the Temple of Storms, and the Temple of Stealth.

The Church of Bones was bathed in an eerie, grayish light that created a bone-chilling atmosphere. Even at night, devout followers prostrated themselves before its gates in solemn prayer.

The Temple of Storms radiated a blue glow, while the Temple of Stealth was illuminated in pitch-black light.

One could only wonder whether the thieves who worshiped there truly relished the darkness. Even in the dead of night, the temple’s black lights remained lit.

Sein’s destination was the Church of Bones.

Not only was he gathering information at the Spider Queen’s behest, but he also harbored a deep personal curiosity about this world.

So far, he had refrained from meddling with the other temples.

The Church of Bones had already made substantial contact with him, and the Bone Lord had unmistakably sought to take his life.

If Sein was going to meddle with one of these three religious organizations, who better to target than the Church of Bones?

Moreover, the information he had extracted from the minds of five adventurers had given him a more comprehensive understanding of the Church of Bones than of the other two temples.

For example, he knew that the strongest individual there was only a Rank Two being, and that the church kept several forbidden scrolls hidden away in its underground chambers.

In truth, the Church of Bones in Blackwater City was rather small; it could scarcely even be considered a branch.

After all, this was only a minor city, far away from the church’s primary branch.

That morning, a divine message had abruptly reached every Church of Bones’ branch across the continent, prompting a significant mobilization of its forces.

While low-ranking members remained oblivious to the details, the higher-ups sensed that something unusual was unfolding.

The Church of Bones in Blackwater City was no exception.

Aside from a few devoted believers still lost in prayer, nearly all of its combat-capable personnel had been dispatched.

Thanks to the Spider Queen’s intervention, any trace linking Sein to the incident had been erased.

The Bone Lord was left clueless, unable to recognize Sein’s appearance or pinpoint the exact location of the conflict.

He could only surmise that something had transpired somewhere within the vast regions of Blackwater City, New Crescent Bay, or Giant Wooden Fortress.

Consequently, a sizable portion of the church’s forces spread out, investigating surrounding areas for any signs of unusual activity.

Fortunately, the five adventurers Sein had killed had only just embarked on their mission, so the Church of Bones had yet to connect their disappearance to anything involving Mora Village.

Otherwise, they would have rallied all their might to hunt him down with ruthless efficiency.

Even if Sein had been in peak condition, that would have posed an enormous challenge—especially since Lorthisra, the Spider Queen, could not always be there to rescue him.

Thus, he waited, hovering high above Blackwater City until the church had dispersed most of its forces.

It was only then did he make his move.

He had left Lou safely tucked away on the rooftop of a residence.

Shielded by Sein’s isolating barrier, the girl slept peacefully.

Meanwhile, under Sein’s elemental power, several Viridescent Seeds, planted around the church, grew into towering plant giants nearly ten meters tall with Rank One strength.

Had Sein fully recovered, he would not have needed such additional measures at all.

The sudden emergence of towering plant giants sent a ripple of horror through the believers praying outside the building.

These followers were mostly ordinary civilians, powerless in the face of such monstrous creations.

Many could not even react in time before they were crushed into bloody pulp beneath the feet of the rampaging giants.

The Church of Bones’ forces quickly recognized the attack was aimed at them and promptly sprang into action.

A thin divine barrier flared to life around the Church of Bones, radiating a pale-gold aura.

In this large plane, where the faith system had been developed to a remarkable degree, the Church of Bones demonstrated a level of power more sophisticated than what Sein had seen in other worlds.

The barrier appeared to be fueled by the power of faith, but the church in Blackwater City was just a small outpost.

In Sein’s estimation, this divine barrier could only hold up briefly against attacks from a Rank Two being.

Sein snorted coldly in the sky and began reciting a complex, drawn-out incantation.

Given that he was taking the time to build up the spell, it was clear that what came next would be far from ordinary.

“Who’s there? Who dares desecrate the Church of Bones!” a furious voice roared from deep within the building.

It came from a Legendary Being who had been stationed in the Church of Bones—another Elementalist like the gray-robed man Sein had killed earlier.

Even so, he was hardly a threat in Sein’s eyes.

“Allow me to show you what real magic looks like.” Sein sneered in disdain. Raising his magic rod, he swung it forward.

Suddenly, a cluster of meteors rained down from the sky, hurtling straight toward the church building.

Such large-scale, area-of-effect offensive magic was well beyond what most Faelorian mages could even fathom.

Furthermore, every meteor was engulfed in gray flame; a mere glance was enough to sense the terrifying power contained within.

A deafening roar split the night.

The feast of magic had begun above the sky of Blackwater City.

***

Sein’s assault on Blackwater City lasted under an hour.

His primary goal was to gather valuable information from the Church of Bones, not to wage an all-out war against it.

After effortlessly defeating the so-called Legendary Being and seizing stacks of records and scrolls stored within the church, Sein disappeared with lightning speed.

He had killed his opponent using his “Radiant Heart” spell, unleashing a pillar of light through the high-grade magic rod he wielded.

This spell—stored within the rod—had been enhanced after Sein’s promotion to Rank Three at the Divine Tower of Dark Flame, giving it enough power to gravely wound even a Rank Three foe.

Naturally, deploying such power against a Legendary Being who could only cast a few Rank Two spells through divine blessings was overkill.

Sein’s attack devastated several nearby buildings and civilian homes.

Strangely, the other two temples in Blackwater City did not so much as bat an eyelid.

𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

He sensed the presence of two additional Rank Two beings lurking in the shadows, likely observing him; however, realizing the vast gap in power, they refrained from interfering.

Besides, the three religious organizations in Blackwater City had a relationship defined by both cooperation and rivalry.

As long as Sein showed no interest in provoking them, those in the Temple of Storms and the Temple of Stealth seemed content to watch the Church of Bones suffer its misfortune.

Even after Sein conjured a fire lotus beneath his feet and left Blackwater City, most of its residents remained utterly confused about what had transpired.

Nevertheless, word of the incident would inevitably spread throughout the Dark Alliance—and even reach the Justice League before long.

For over a millennium, peace had prevailed across Faeloria.

From the perspective of lower-ranking beings, it had been ages since anything as drastic as the destruction of a significant place of worship had occurred.

Could this herald the dawn of another divine conflict among the deities?

Ominous undercurrents began rippling across the continent.