Chapter 2: The Devil's Rose
As the last heirs of the North Wind family, Diana and Schimako were given a four-wheeled carriage for a noble family, but that was it. The exiles who had been battered at Fort of Swords did not have any spare manpower, and Simako was reluctant to let strangers approach his sister, so he simply became a coachman himself.
It wasn't the physical trauma that prevented Diana from waking up, but the black sludge from the jealous apostle Pandora, like the most vicious curse in the world, that lurked in her flesh and blood after the battle was over, and even under the treatment of the Holy Light, there was no obvious sign of improvement.
This made Tiana almost begin to wonder if the divine power she had exchanged for blood had been discounted, but the truth was that the sun god was not so careful, and the same magic was effective on Ximako.
"That half-tone can't even heal the scars on your own face, so don't count on God's gifts. El wasn't talking to Shimako, but to the girl standing in front of him in a spirit state.
"In a way, we have a common enemy, so we're going to do everything we can to treat her. So you don't have to worry......" El whispered.
"Then I'll leave it all to you, General. The girl's soul bowed slightly, and her body gradually dissipated into the air, scattering into bits and pieces of starlight that converged on El's palm.
Devouring souls can plunder nearly thirty percent of the opponent's power, although it can only be used to consume but cannot be accumulated, but it is enough to change the outcome of a battle. However, El never wanted to rely on a little girl to nourish himself, he chose to make up for Kiki's last wish and free her soul.
Mortal souls without the favor of the gods will return to the river of souls, which is also the destination of all things. El is not yet in a position to free the girl he loves, but within the limits of his ability, he will certainly not refuse if he can help.
His kindness was rewarded, and Kiki left behind a rich gift to the North Wind family's inherited swordsmanship. These soul-imprinted sigils mean nothing to the dead, but they allow El to directly grasp the exact same understanding of swordsmanship as hers.
El opened his eyes and stretched out his index finger and gently tapped forward, and the fallen leaves that fell from the air shattered silently. He had personally experienced the sword realm of Cyprus, and now he had obtained the foundation of the North Wind swordsmanship, which was equivalent to opening a new path for himself.
Other people's Silver Secret Realm can only move forward on one path, and El has just merged his two paths into one, and there is a three-way intersection in front of him, it is difficult to say whether this is his opportunity or another challenge.
"God is omnipotent, but divine power is not omnipotent. The kobold Apache shook his head and said, "I believe in the goddess of the earth, but even if the earth is vast and boundless, it cannot make a bird break its wings. Followers of the goddess of life have more say in the treatment of these intractable diseases than followers of the sun god. ”
There were still a few Maple Leaf Nuns from the Temple of Life in the exile team, but the divine powers of those little girls were not of much use. If the Maple Leaf Sisters were still working part-time at that time, maybe they could have helped a little, now...... They can only be counted as ordinary clergy.
In addition to Diana, El now has another problem to solve, and that is Lorana. According to the kobold's description, in order to protect the safety of the camp, Lorana overdrew her life force and unleashed a wide range of forbidden spells, and the price she paid for this was to fall into a deep coma, a special case that could not be cured with ordinary divine arts.
"What the hell is that?" El asked, confused, having seen the black thorns that Lorana drives, and vaguely knew that the black thorns were in a near-symbiotic relationship with her. But he didn't know anything about what it was, and he didn't expect it to burst out with that kind of power.
He suddenly remembered that old Jupiter seemed to have told him about Lolana's illness, and was that referring to this black thorn?
"Oh, it's not a plant that grows naturally on the earth, maybe it's from the Black Forest or something more evil. The kobold shook his head with a bitter face and said, "Shouldn't you consult a professional about this kind of thing?"
The eyes of the two men turned to the third person, who had just bandaged the big crow lying on his knees, raised his head to reveal the unique vertical pupils of the Ko people, and smiled wryly at El: "Unfortunately, General, it is not a creature of Zendikar, and if I had a way to deal with it, I would not have been captured by Lord Lolana in the first place." ”
Perhaps due to Hagnam's deliberate protection, Tima also survived the final battle, as did the great raven Helmchacha, who was shot by El's arrow at the beginning of the battle, and the latter was also apparently a creature from Zendikar, and his vitality was quite tenacious.
The main reason why Tima was able to stay here was because she carried the unconscious El back to the exile's camp. Although she was secretive about the outcome of the final battle, she was forgiven by Palanti for saving her life, allowing her to return to her daughter's side.
"You're asking the wrong question, idiot. Hemchachacha looked up from Tima's hand with difficulty, and exclaimed in a mocking voice, "Tima has not been gifted since she was a child, and knows nothing about the inheritance of my clan. But for the sake of you being able to take her in, Uncle Ben can reluctantly give you a hint. ”
"I think the grey goblin chefs must be curious about the taste of your wings. The kobold said maliciously, rubbing his small shovel.
"I don't want prompts, you can just say something. El raised his right hand, revealing a shimmering rune totem, and said as he stared at the big crow with an expressionless face.
"You've killed me once, but I'm still alive and well. Hemcacha sneered disdainfully: "Don't think that violence can solve all problems, you can't help me!"
"Are you sure?" Elle pursed his lips and snorted coldly as he stared into the big crow's eyes......, "You think I don't know why you're here with a dead face?"
"Shut up!" exclaimed Hemcacha angrily, "Damn, you don't know what a horrible existence it is! If you don't want to get into trouble, never mention that 'adjective' again!"
"Okay, let's take a step back. El shrugged disapprovingly, understanding the kor's taboo, "It's not safe anywhere now, I don't know how important the thread of fate that Pandora saw is to you, but I can keep you and promise to take care of the child's safety." In exchange, you're going to help me solve my problem too. ”
"I can't solve the woman's problem, but I know what it is. Hemchacha's eyes flickered, tilted his head and said, "The god of nature has established a cycle of order in the biosphere in this world, excluding all 'aliens'. Our hometown of Zendikar is just one of the exceptions, and what is in your woman is another 'outlier'. If it's true as Tima describes, then it could only be the Devil's Rose from Hell!"
"A creature that is not of nature...... Devil's Rose?" Elle frowned, it was difficult for him to understand the definition. In his impression, the definition of nature is the mountain forest of his hometown, and the creatures are the animals and plants in the mountain forest. But the Zendikar swamp he saw that night at Sword Keep was beyond his knowledge of nature.
If it were enough that the kor, a legendary race, possessed such an inexplicable thing, Lolana was a real human girl, and El had known her father for years. Although he had also wondered how that old fellow of Jupiter could give birth to such a demonic breed...... But Rolana's teacher, Master Stephen, seems to be at least a reliable person, how could he allow this mutation to appear in her?
Thinking back to the rose tattoo on Lolana's back that she had spied on in the Mage Tower, and the strange attitudes of her elders, Elle realized.
"Specialties from Hell are all chaotic, and Devil's Rose is notorious for devouring flesh, and I've never heard of humans using flesh to nourish creatures from Hell. "Maybe that girl is a demon in human skin!"
In a way...... It seems that this is indeed the case.
"Not the thorns...... Have the roses been burned or something?" El looked back at the kobold.
"How do I know, why do you think I'm a prophet?" the kobold asked innocently, but he quickly retreated under El's gaze, shaking his head and exclaiming, "Okay, okay, I'll take a look for you...... I repeat that I am only a geodiviner, I am not a prophet of the Kor! You have resorted to crows and kobolds for such trivial matters, do you not care about the dignity of the human race?"
"Human dignity?" Elle opened the curtain of the carriage and looked at the men marching in two lines outside, with only trousers left on their bodies, and sighed, "The so-called Kingdom Guard is these things, how can human beings have any dignity at all?"
"Master Apache, I turned to you for help because you are one of the few wise men in this team, and it has nothing to do with race. El turned back to the kobold and said earnestly, "Our real enemy is more terrible than the plague, so we must unite every ounce of our strength on the road ahead." ”
"I see a flame called ambition in your eyes!" said Helmchacha with a low chuckle
(Jiangsu.com)