Extraordinary Voyage-Chapter 773 - 664: Corruption and Extraterrestrial Visitors

Broken Star Sea, the westernmost side of the Celebes Islands.

This vast sea area, spanning three hundred kilometers in width, serves as a buffer zone between human wizards, non-mainstream path extraordinaries, and the inner layer of the Broken Star Islands shrouded by "War Fog".

The dozens of islands scattered within are also habitats for many indigenous people, whose danger is not that high, and even humanoid extraordinary creatures. Some have resided here for generations, while others have been gradually driven here by wizards.

On a small island within the buffer zone that does not even have a name.

A group of breezy, lightly-dressed girls, each holding a coarse clay pot, walked along the forest path. The pots were filled with fresh water just drawn from a spring in the mountains, the only safe freshwater source on the island.

They were a group of youthful, charming "young maidens," but distinct from ordinary humans: slightly pointed ears, white hair, with blue-violet, pearl-like lustrous skin, all possessing a unique charm.

The most special trait was that almost all of them had heterochromatic eyes—golden, silver, amber, emerald, blue, brown, red, black... all astonishingly beautiful.

Without a doubt, this was a group of "Night Spirits."

Suddenly.

The laughing and chatting "Night Spirits" noticed a figure walking toward them from the opposite direction, also carrying a clay pot.

They all greeted him amicably:

"Good afternoon, Mr. Yellen. Why didn't your attendant come? Do you really need to fetch water yourself?"

"Hahaha, good afternoon, lovely Night Spirit ladies! Fetching water is a small task; I can do it myself without troubling others. Having left my homeland, I'm no more noble than anyone else."

Though he wore a plain gray robe that covered his body entirely, replacing his usual luxurious attire, this former Crown Prince of Ilya still maintained his graceful demeanor.

After a brief exchange of greetings, the two parties walked past each other until even their silhouettes could no longer be seen.

A "Night Spirit" asked her companions slightly puzzled:

"Did any of you hear a faint insect buzz around Mr. Yellen?"

"I think so, but on an island with a warm climate like this, there are insects all year round. It's not that strange."

"Indeed, indeed, let's think about what to eat tonight instead?"

"What else could it be? Wild fruits! Wild fruits! Always wild fruits! I do want to eat meat, but even a fish in the river might be harder for us to catch!"

This blunt companion's remark laid bare the harsh reality, and the group of Night Spirits heaved a collective sigh:

"Alas—we are so pitiful!"

"Night Spirits," as naturally semi-extraordinary species, were artificially created as non-combat adjuncts. Combined with their long history of dependency and way of life, even with their inherent {Sentinel} profession that made them far stronger than normal humans, they never were qualified warriors or guardians.

They were even optimistically carefree, forgetting pain remarkably quickly.

After the foundation they relied on was defeated in the survival competition, the entire tribe scattered completely. Some were lucky enough to escape to the New Continent, where there was less survival pressure, and eventually became workers for Aiven and Olivia's Mechanical Immortality Enterprise.

But a large number still struggled on nearby scattered islands, and this group of Night Spirits was evidently a part of them.

Yellen had been plotting to rely on the Legendary Battleship: Southern Cross in his possession, along with a group of strong followers, to delve into the interior of the Broken Star Islands and complete great maritime expansion work, thereby gaining the "World's Favor."

The saying "dreams are high as the sky, but fate is as thin as paper" holds true. If the Broken Star Islands were so easy to exploit, wizards would have done it hundreds of years ago, so why would it be his turn?

After suffering considerable losses due to a reckless head-on collision, he now temporarily found himself on this insignificant little island.

Both sides, sharing a common plight, were licking their wounds at this time. Especially, the rabbit-like personalities of the Night Spirits made them incapable of posing any threat, thus living together in temporary peace.

Even more, the Night Spirits, naturally more adapted to the "Broken Star Islands" environment, out of their nature, offered much assistance to Yellen and his group.

Until the news spread about the {Clock Tower} on Celebes Island, attracting many people hoping to try their luck, Yellen, urgently seeking power, naturally wouldn't let this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity pass.

The initial journey could be considered "smooth." Even though he, lacking a {Beacons}, couldn't team up with his Great Knight attendants, his utmost efforts only got him to the third level.

Nevertheless, leveraging the benefits he gained from inside the {Clock Tower}, he successfully advanced to a Tier 3 Great Knight.

Under normal circumstances, such power would have been enough for him to secure the throne with ease.

At least among the mainland countries, even though every royal family has a "Titled Knight" ancestor overseeing them, the strong bloodline could only ensure they used substantial resources to scrape by and reach the Official Knight Peak.

No one could guarantee that every generation would produce a Monarch whose will could shatter steel and arrows.

But all of this came with its costs...

Starting today, the friendly relations with the "Night Spirits" would come to a complete end. Even with those relatives, guards, and followers who followed him across mountains and waters to arrive here, the relations would never be the same.

In the past, they were lord and ministers; hereafter, they became merely servants of a shared great existence.

Yellen walked alone toward the clear circular spring at sunset.

Sizzle—

Casually tearing open the collar of his clothes, revealing a robust body that was mostly covered in carapace, it was not just his body that the Ancient God had corrupted, but also his mind.

This was the tacit alignment between a mortal's "ambition" and a god's "power"!

Regardless of whether he would counterblow against the wind as he said when he left the Old Continent, he had undoubtedly taken a path away from the sun.

He took out a fine enchanted dagger and cut firmly across his chest. Murky blood, tinged with small particles, gushed out and disappeared into the clear spring water.

This was the [Corrupting Blood] of the Ancient God.

It was also the basis of what the "Oathbreaker" Balger had mentioned: "With the aid of the Chaos Worm, even enemies can become one's own."

"Hehehe, the revival of the Ilya Kingdom begins from here. Everything you took from me, I will take back, and even more!"

"Squeak squeak squeak..."

Meanwhile, outside the mountain forest, the "Night Spirits" living in simple treehouses were still squabbling over whose fruit was tastier today, completely unaware of the impending catastrophe.

...

[Witchcraft Garden] Laboratory.

Besides personally ordering the resumption of this year's literacy classes after winter began, Aiven had already set the development tone for the territory. There should be no major adjustments in the short term, and once enough talent was amassed, they could develop methodically as planned.

However, Aiven and his core team couldn't afford to let their strength enhancement slow down. Whether it was the destined maritime supremacy battle, coping with the Spirit Tide of the New Continent, venturing into the "Broken Star Sea" to seek the World's Favor, or exploring the Endless Ocean behind the Door, strength was indispensable.

Aiven always believed in the adage, "A person without long-term concerns must have imminent worries." Getting stronger is satisfactory for a moment; consistently getting stronger remains satisfying forever—this is the ultimate truth.

Coincidentally, the yields from the [Clock Tower] had provided them with ample materials. If not now, then when would be the time to convert this accumulation into tangible power?

What intrigued Aiven and Angie the most was, apart from the [Blood Chalice] that could conjure the blood of any known creature and the yet-to-be-studied [Divinity], the residue remaining from the vanquished [Ancient God's Descendants] and the embedded "genetic information."

DNA is the hard drive of life. With the current capabilities of the Vitalist School, what can be extracted from biological tissues is immense.

"Teacher, although this [Divine Descendant] as a Divine Creature possesses typical genes, there is entirely no trace of the [Golden Chain], and its genetic sequence differs greatly from all known creatures, including the Lower-Level Demons.

Is our theory... flawed?"

But the analysis results made them frown, their findings causing Angie to doubt the [Golden Chain] theory she meticulously organized.

According to the theory Aiven established,

all life forms born on this planet, regardless of the Era, should originate from a single ancestor, namely the original "One," thus sharing a common primordial gene.

However, the samples collected from the Divine Descendants of the Chaos Worm clearly violated this principle.

Contemplating for a moment, Aiven suddenly had a bold hypothesis:

"Perhaps the 'Chaos Worm' is a foreign entity!"

With this hypothesis, he instantly recalled the ballad sung by the corrupted Skeleton Kings on the seventh level:

"Gods come from faraway Calcsa!

Gliding by the shoreline, slicing through clouds; an amber sun sinks into the lake.

...

Only desolation and silence remain in the lost Calcsa..."

Judging from multiple pieces of evidence, this Ancient God wielding Space-Time authority was an extraterrestrial visitor who landed on this planet countless years ago!

If this hypothesis is true, it would be astonishing, possibly an ultimate secret unknown even to other Ancient Gods, including the "God of Black Wings."

After organizing their experimental materials, the two walked out of the lab, facing complex emotions.

Gazing at the splendid starry sky above, Aiven, though incapable of leaving the atmosphere, was somewhat wistfully drawn to the world beyond due to this unexpected discovery.

Finally, after a while, he instructed Angie beside him:

"Temporarily shelve the analysis work on the [Ancient God's Descendants], and focus entirely on breaking through with the [Blood Chalice] for now. If my theory holds true, the new type of biological armor available for you should also come to fruition soon."

"Understood, Teacher!"