When Matthew arrives near the Grey Lake, the first thing he does is to disperse the creatures in the vicinity.

The number of Wood Elves near the Marks of the Dead is relatively scarce.

With the exception of those who are out of control, it's unlikely that normal Wood Elves will come around here.

But except for intelligent life.

The ubiquitous species of the Jade Garden can also stray into the vicinity of the Grey Lake.

Although nature would make these beings wary of the Grey Lake.

But the sudden arrival of ash monsters has the potential to snatch the lives of approaching animals in an instant.

This causes the power of the ashes to rise.

When Matthew began working on the Traces of the Dead project, he made demands on the security and biological dispersal of the southern city walls.

The elves are quite cooperative in this regard.

But before that.

The work of expelling nearby creatures is done by the gate guards.

But now it's a different story.

The situation in the Jade Court is turbulent, and many important positions are facing a serious shortage of manpower.

The gate guards were no exception.

When Matthew went to look for someone, he found that the original guard post was in a mess and empty.

In desperation.

He had to go to the Wind Chasers, who were still trying to maintain order.

Ultimately.

It was a Moonlight squad from the Wind Chasers that took over this duty.

They sent 6 Elven Moon Yao to be responsible for the large-scale evacuation of creatures near the Grey Lake.

After confirming the safety around the Ash Lake.

Matthew asks the apprentice in charge of stalking to return to the camp.

He also ordered a few mage assistants who were quite capable of their work to prepare some cold rhombic stone and coagulation potion—

The boiling intensity of the ash lake can be high or low.

Whenever it was intense, the ground near the Jade Court would tremble slightly.

It's also a good thing that there are many trees in the vicinity.

Many old trees have roots that have penetrated one or two hundred meters into the ground.

It is the presence of these woods that firmly guards the land.

Otherwise, this area is simply not habitable for life.

Three earthquakes a month alone is enough to toss.

And about the situation and emergency treatment on the boiling day.

Matthew was left to his men to plan.

Originally, he didn't have expectations for these people who rubbed the project.

However, since his return from the sampan plane.

Several independent mage assistants have actually worked out several strategies to stabilize the Grey Lake on a boiling day.

One of the solutions is to reduce the intensity of the boiling of the ash lake by incorporating ice elemental materials such as cold rhombic stone and combining them with high-strength coagulants.

After reading it, Matthew took someone to do a little experiment.

It was found that this plan was indeed effective in solving the boiling situation of the Ash Lake, and this plan was set up as a regular plan, and then a lot of relevant materials were prepared in the mage camp.

In the process.

Matthew also felt the benefits of having someone under him -

Many mages from professional backgrounds actually have no worse theoretical knowledge than Matthew.

All they lack is resources and opportunities.

If you can know how to use it well.

Matthew himself will be much more relaxed, and he will be able to devote his precious energy to more important causes-

Let's say planting trees.

While the mage assistants returned to the camp to prepare cold diamond stone and other related supplies.

Matthew came to the shores of the Grey Lake alone.

As soon as I got closer.

A strong force of ash slapped on his face.

With the boiling and tumbling in the middle of the ash lake.

Large swaths of Mars are shaking outward.

Mars was enveloped in mud and emitted a strong smell like a mixture of sulfur and silt.

The smell was disgusting at first.

I've been smelling it for a long time.

Matthew actually found it somewhat fascinating!

"Good pure ash power......"

Matthew looked at the ever-expanding boundary on the shore of the Grey Lake, at the scattered sparks and silt, and felt that as he got closer, the impact from the realm level became more and more violent!

Strictly speaking.

The power of the pure void cannot penetrate the material realm.

Because void and matter are a pair of antonyms.

Therefore, the tentacles cast on the earth by the Void Lord Eucruz are not the embodiment of the power of the Void, but the closest to the Void that he can find in the material realm—

Ashes.

The so-called ashes.

It is the state of the flame of soul and matter at a certain moment after the sublimation of the extreme realm.

It's in the Ash Realm controlled by Uracruz.

Time is frozen.

All matter is in a state of ashes, and the conditions are between burning and extinguishing, which can be described as quite harsh.

Turn.

Matthew could also peek into the true meaning of the Void Realm from these ashes in front of him.

He walked alone by the lake, unaffected by the ashes.

He has a realm of negative energy and the authority of the undead.

That's enough for Matthew to stand alone in the Ash Realm.

But nevertheless.

Even when he was so close, he still felt the terrifying power of the ashes.

It was a feeling of extinction.

Just feel it gently.

It can arouse the deepest fear of the universe and the void in the human bloodline.

And at this very time.

Matthew's ears suddenly sounded a human-like voice:

"Are you angry?"

"Then destroy!"

"Destroy everything!"

"Kill! Kill! Kill! ”

He was so excited that he immediately blocked out those crazy babbles.

Matthew's eyes were a little uncertain.

Because just as he heard those whispers.

Gray Lake Central.

The huge phoenix egg was exposed to the air under the violent boiling of the lake.

Matthew saw it very clearly.

Most of the shell of the phoenix egg was corroded by the power of the ashes, and a yellow and black layer of fluid was formed.

Inside the fluid layer is a clear tear-like liquid.

Bright flames flickered in the depths of the liquid.

The flame is dark red.

It's a pity that the scene was fleeting, and the phoenix egg sank quickly.

……

"Warning: You listened to an oracle from the 'Killing Realm'!

Keep listening, and you'll have the opportunity to get involved in the killing realm, but your own will may be interfered with by your will to kill in the process......

……

Killing Field?

Matthew was thoughtful.

Ash and carnage are not two areas that are particularly closely related.

But if you add a destruction in between.

The three areas can still be linked.

But here's the problem.

There doesn't seem to be a god of killing in the history of Aiindor.

Matthew rummaged through his mind and found only a few gods related to killing in terms of priesthood, such as the god of murder, but there was a significant difference between murder and killing.

It is impossible for a god who is so sensitive to the definition and interpretation of concepts to be wrong in this regard.

Since there is not even a god of killing.

Where did that come from?

"Could it be that in that phoenix egg, a creature was born with the ability to kill gods?"

"Terast was influenced by him, and his own will was deviated?"

Matthew thought to himself.

He tried to get closer to the depths of the Grey Lake—

He didn't dare to use the magic carpet, instead relying on the legendary flying technique to slowly approach the phoenix egg in the middle of the lake.

And in the process.

Matthew could clearly feel that even with the negative energy realm and the undead power protector.

The pressure on him is also increasing.

It was as if even the boundaries of his realm were to be eaten away by the power of the ashes.

A certain moment.

Matthew felt like he couldn't move any further.

And so on.

He may not be able to hold his own field anymore.

And that place is only about thirty meters away from the phoenix egg in the center.

This result was regrettable to Matthew.

But he still strictly adhered to discipline and chose to retreat without hesitation.

Just evacuated more than ten meters.

Suddenly.

Matthew's brow burned.

He knew something was wrong, but the reaction of the Void Bloodline and the power of the ashes was so violent that it instantly overwhelmed all the external realms!

in the blood.

A surge of energy erupted, and the relevant memories were deeply imprinted into Matthew's mind.

After that moment.

The ashes that surrounded it became less stressful.

Instead, it became an energy that made him feel very dear!

……

"Hint: Your Void lineage resonates with the Ash Realm!

You have mastered a new ability, "Ash Funnel", from the Void Bloodline.

Ash Funnel: You can dissipate the power of the ashes with the power of the Void Bloodline and gain a large amount of soul dust.

Soul Dust: Through the Law of Creation, you can fuse Soul Dust with Broken Spirits to obtain a large number of high-quality Soul Crystals!"

……

The ash funnel starts on its own.

In a flash.

Matthew had six more void funnels around him, up, down, left, right, front and back.

All the ashes that pass through the funnel will turn into a trace of grayish-white dust.

The dust looks a bit like ashes.

But lighter than ashes.

Faced with this situation.

Matthew's heart was full of joy and sorrow.

Happily, the new ability can dissolve the ashes in the ash lake, and there is also a chance to transform the dissolved items into high-quality soul crystals

Worriedly, in the resonance just now, he could feel that the inch of void in his eyebrows had become slightly expanded.

Although the degree is not serious.

But Matthew seriously suspected that every time he used the ash funnel, the Void Bloodline's cannibalization of himself would increase!

At that time, it is difficult to say whether Ekmond's otherworldly spell can really have a containment effect!

But Matthew was also a decisive man.

Seeing that the ash funnel had been activated, a large amount of soul dust had also been generated.

So he took out the storage items to collect the soul dust.

While relying on the dissolving power of the ash funnel, he walked towards the phoenix egg.

It didn't take long.

Matthew came to the tumbling phoenix egg.

The temperature here is actually not very high.

But Matthew looked at the phoenix egg, and there was always a feeling that his skin was burning.

This is the egg of the divine phoenix.

Soon.

Matthew's eyes were slightly silent.

Because the egg is completely dead in his eyes!

Even if it's the crimson flame in the heart of the egg.

It's just a projection of the divine phoenix left in the egg, and it's not even spiritual, let alone a soul!

"Those voices didn't come out of the phoenix egg just now."

"They ......"

"They're coming from somewhere else! Well? Something else down there? ”

With the power of the ash funnel, Matthew broke through the viscous and swollen surface of the lake and carefully sank down.

Walk over the slowly tumbling phoenix egg.

Matthew found a basement-like space underneath it!

The ceiling of the basement had been punctured by some force, and at any moment a stream of golden light was leaking out of it.

The phoenix egg was pressed right above the basement.

Every impact of the golden light will cause the violent surge of the gray lake and the tumbling of the phoenix egg!

"The boiling root of the Grey Lake is because of the power in this basement?"

Matthew was amazed.

He tried to lean in, and found that he was ostracized by several forces of unknown origin!

Those powers are very domineering, but their attributes have nothing to do with the Void Master.

"How can you make your own space in the Ash Realm?"

Matthew was even more surprised.

He turned on the perspective technique, and superimposed the balanced perception, and finally saw the situation in the basement after a few minutes-

It was an oval-shaped underground stone chamber.

It's not so much a stone chamber.

It's like a huge stone basin buried in the soil.

The ceiling above the stone basin was corroded by various forces, but the materials around it and underneath were intact, unaffected by the power of the ashes.

In the middle of that stone basin.

Matthew saw something quite familiar, it was a stone pillar rising into the sky!

The stone pillar was flat at the bottom, sleek around the perimeter, and had a bulge like a giant mushroom at the top, almost exactly like the stone pillar that Matthew had seen in the Troll Dungeon to store the Guilty Crown!

And when Matthew stared at the stone pillar.

He vaguely saw the outline of a sharp sword in the stone pillar!

……

"Warning: You've found the lost artifact, the Sword of Killing!"

……

Followed by.

Matthew saw a thin golden shadow around the stone pillar again.

The shadows swam so fast that they were like loaches, sometimes appearing on the walls of the stone basin, sometimes wandering around the hole-filled ceiling.

The golden light that Matthew had seen before was triggered by these thin shadows.

He took a closer look.

Only then did I find that those small golden shadows were golden koi!

Matthew could tell at a glance that the koi were not Ayndor's creatures.

Nine times out of ten, they're from the Eastern Continent!

He observed for a few more minutes.

A certain moment.

Those koi fish suddenly jumped high from different angles -

Matthew's ears rang with the sound of a dragon roaring like a tsunami.

Followed by.

The projection of the five-clawed dragon is reflected in the ceiling!

Rumble!

The vague Celestial Dragon Projection angrily smashed through the ceiling with its claws and slammed into the bottom of the phoenix egg, which bounced off and then tumbled in the gray lake, but eventually rolled back and was firmly pressed against the mud pot!

The five-clawed dragon pounded the ceiling in anger.

But soon.

The golden shadow dissipated again, and turned into countless small koi fish again, which began to wander rapidly around the most important stone pillar.

In the process.

Matthew seemed to hear the whispers from the killing realm again!

……

"Warning: You have discovered a sealed Celestial Dragon Soul, which longs to break free from the seals of the Sword of Slaughter and the Void Tentacles, and to return to the Seven Stars of the Abyss!

The Soul of the Celestial Dragon has discovered you and is trying to interfere with your will-

You (divinity +3) are exempt from the will interference of the Celestial Dragon's Soul!"

……

When I endure the interference of the will of the soul of the dragon.

Matthew could clearly feel the irritability, anger, and anger.

Although the exemption was completed by virtue of the divinity in his hands.

But he still didn't dare to be careless.

Exit the Grey Lake in one go!

It wasn't until about five kilometers from Grey Lake that Matthew stopped and breathed a sigh of relief.

He could feel it.

The will interference from the Soul of the Celestial Dragon has finally come to an end.

This exploration was a great surprise.

Matthew's brain was spinning, and in no time, he figured out the most crucial part of it:

"The phoenix egg is rolling in the gray lake because the sleeping soul of the heavenly dragon wants to break through the original seal and return to the seven stars of the abyss."

"Since the Five-Clawed Celestial Dragon and the Void Master are competitors in the same ecological niche, the latter certainly doesn't want to see the Five-Clawed Celestial Dragon return to its position easily, so after the seal of the Gray Lake was loosened, he threw the phoenix egg into it through the sorcerer bewitching the Wood Elves, which belongs to the second reinforcement of the seal!"

"Sure enough, I said that it was impossible for the wood elves to throw the phoenix egg into it for no reason......"

Matthew's eyes sparkled.

What is certain now is -

The phoenix egg is indeed dead;

The oracle from the Killing Realm that Matthew heard should have come from the stone pillar in the center of the stone basin, to be exact, the artifact Killing Sword in the stone pillar;

The Killing Sword's personality didn't seem to be under the domination of the Five-Clawed Heavenly Dragon and the Void Master, otherwise they would have been unable to stand alone under the increasing corrosion of these two existences.

"That Killing Sword may be the first seal against the Celestial Dragon's Soul."

"The tentacles of Ucruz may be the second time."

"The phoenix egg is the third time that it has been added temporarily!"

"According to this line of thought, the original sorcerer Lance bewitched the Elven Queen to give birth to the mark of the dead, not just to occupy a corner of the material world, but more likely to slow down the return of the five-clawed celestial dragon!"

Considering the return of the Five-Clawed Celestial Dragon, it is very likely to hasten the advent of the odd number of celestial changes.

Look at it this way.

Did the Lord of the Void do a good thing?

Matthew couldn't laugh or cry in his heart.

Of course, he also knows very well that at their level, every move is for their own ambitions, and they can no longer judge the other party's position by simple good or bad.

"Thankfully, I didn't blow up the lake directly......"

"If that's the case, the soul of the Heavenly Dragon is estimated to be liberated, and the Seven Stars of the Abyss will also usher in the third star to be lit."

Matthew was a little glad.

He thought about it again and again, and felt that his reasoning should not be too far off.

But there are still a lot of questions about the details.

For example, the origin of the sword of killing;

And why is that sword stored so similarly to the Crown of Sin, and could it be that the Sword of Slaughter is also related to the Troll Gods?

Even whether the return of the Five-Clawed Heavenly Dragon and the lighting of the Seven Stars of the Abyss are really related to the odd number of heavenly changes is only a guess.

In the absence of information, no matter what decision is made, it is risky.

Matthew stood there and thought for a full twenty minutes.

A thought popped into his mind:

"In fact, the Traces of the Dead project can also be transformed into a long-term operation project."

"From the perspective of interests and the actual situation, this decision is much better than recklessly blowing up."

"I just don't know what Terast and the league leaders think, if I can convince them to agree, then I can streamline the team after Umbrella 2.0 is completely completed, leaving only some people responsible for daily operation and maintenance, and then I can turn this project into a long-term project, and at some point in the future, completely solve it in other ways?"

I have to admit it.

The idea is much more enticing than simply blowing up the traces of the dead.

The latter is to make a fortune and leave.

The former is equivalent to raising a chicken that lays golden eggs.

And from time to time you can also pick up the wool of the wood elves-

The premise is that the situation in the Jade Court does not continue to deteriorate.

But Matthew is also well aware.

At the beginning, the necromancer in White Rock City probably had the same idea as himself.

But they failed.

There may be concerns about necromancers being corrupted by the Void Master.

But here is Matthew.

This question seems to be solved easily -

After all, he had already been booked in advance by the Void World, and there was no possibility of being corrupted again......

"I don't know if the top of the alliance knows about the existence of the Five-Clawed Celestial Dragon and the Sword of Killing."

Matthew muttered to himself.

Afterwards, the mage's assistants came to the gray lake with the materials, and Matthew immediately threw a large amount of cold diamond stone and condensation potion into the lake, and without the help of additional spells, the boiling gray lake became much calmer.

"The cold diamond stone and the condensation elixir should have physically alleviated the frequency of the five-clawed heavenly dragon's impact seal, which is a palliative but not a cure, if you want to operate for a long time, you have to find a way to solve the problem of the soul of the heavenly dragon."

After confirming that the Grey Lake is calm again.

Matthew groaned and returned to Windward Valley.

His discovery in the Grey Lake today involves a lot of hidden knowledge, and he has to go to the Crucible House and ask 177 to help him find out.

At night.

He received a private message from Rhaegar who, relying on his super high level of contribution, completely used the guild badge as a chat app, and sent Matthew a lot of texts.

Matthew gave a cursory overview at a glance.

The main content of the private message still mentions the progress of the establishment of Rolling Rock City-

The Southern Mage Legion does have the ability to build like a ghostly man.

According to Rhaeggar, the inner city has now been built, and the prototype of the outer city and the "Celestial Barrier" around the Rolling Stone City has also been basically completed.

It will be officially completed in June.

At that time, Rolling Rock Town will become an incomparably magnificent city, and a lot of land in the city will be opened to the public in batches and entrusted to various people to develop on their own.

Rhaegar said.

In order to build the new Rolling Stone, he already owes a large amount of money to the Southern Mage Legion.

The money was repaid as part of Rolling Stone's future revenues.

But that's going to have to be a full 60 years.

It can be seen that although the mages are quick to do things, the fees are also appalling.

However, Rhaegar felt that the money was well spent.

The New Rolling Stones is a super-megacity - or urban agglomeration that can accommodate a population of 30~500,000.

The city is divided into various functional areas, and is completely a self-sufficient fortress that can be self-sufficient under extreme conditions.

The only problem is.

The population of Rolling Rock is still too small!

When preparing for the Battle of the Mossy Hills, Matthew knew that the population of Rolling Rock was in the early 10,000s.

Now it has absorbed part of the population of the High Leaf Collar, the Golden Fertile Fields and the Red Clay Mountains.

The population of Rolling Rock is in the early 30,000s.

The exploding population has posed a great challenge to the original order of Rolling Stone.

A lot of people came to Rhaegar to complain.

But Rhaegar was sober.

He believes that the short-term pain caused by population expansion will pass sooner or later.

And if he wants to develop Rolling Rock City into one of the best cities in the southern land, he needs more people!

There is not enough population.

What the Southern Legion built was just a castle in the sky.

The so-called Rolling Stones Kingdom.

It's just a vassal that exists purely on the power of the mage.

The current Rolling Stones actually has a very good rate of population inflow.

But it's still far from Rhaeggar's expectations.

In a private message, he asked Matthew if he had a way to increase the population quickly.

Furthermore.

He also emphasized in the letter.

If nothing else, the Rolling Stones Kingdom will be announced at the end of July, and there will be a number of ceremonies to be carried out, such as the founding ceremony, and I hope Matthew will not miss the cloud no matter what.

"Ask the necromancer for a way to increase the population, it's yours!"

Matthew complained silently.

But he really has a way, in addition to vigorously introducing immigrants, he also has in his hands the field of reproduction and the vigorous aura that can stimulate fertility.

From a long-term perspective.

The population of Rolling Rock is nothing to worry about.

As for the founding ceremony of the Rolling Stone Kingdom.

"July ......"

"I guess I'll be able to participate."

Matthew filled out multiple memo notes for himself, so as not to be negligent and forget his business.

In the next few days, the jade garden was calm.

The horrific massacres of Terast slowed down.

In fact.

More than three thousand wood elves had died at his hands.

That's compared to the entire Wood Elf population.

It's already five percent.

Today, Terast has become the embodiment of terror in the city.

Thanks to Him.

The order of production and life in the Jade Court has completely collapsed.

At least half of the Wood Elves chose to flee.

They left the Jade Garden, some fled to the edge of the forest, some went to the vicinity of Riptide City, and some even returned to the more dangerous Court of Fallen Leaves.

There are still elves left.

Most of them are gentle-hearted and submissive.

Unable to do anything about Terast's rule, they finally chose to reconcile with themselves.

Matthew heard.

Some of the nimble wood elves have proposed that some tree houses can be built on the edge of the Jade Garden for the elderly over 600 years old who are reluctant to enter the Secret Light Jungle.

Others felt that they could work with Riptide and other big cities to give the banished elderly elves a place where they could live out their old age.

In their opinion.

With the superiority of elves, it is not difficult to mix in a good position in a human city-state.

These plans are circulating in the streets and alleys, and have not yet been officially put forward by those who have a strong weight.

But anyone with a discerning eye can see the change in the direction of the wind in the jade garden.

Terast wiped out some of them by force;

scared away some of them;

The current Jade Court is finally completely up to him!

Soon.

Matthew received an important piece of news -

Five days later.

That is, on the morning of June 10th.

Terast will personally send the first batch of elven elders over the age of 600 into the Secret Light Jungle.

It is said that these elven elders are all voluntary.

This is an important ceremony.

Terast sent a message to Matthew through Beana.

Hopefully he'll be able to attend.

Matthew naturally wouldn't refuse.

He was actually very interested in the Secret Light Jungle, a legendary ancient refuge for the Wood Elves.

So the time and the day were noted.

And then go about your own business.

On the morning of June 6th.

Matthew returns to the Crucible House and asks 177 about the results of the last time he was asked to investigate.

177 said leisurely:

"You guessed it right, Matthew, Ayndor has never had a god with the title of God of Killing."

"Historically, most of Ayndor's priesthood of killing has been in the hands of foreigners."

"The first master of the Killing Priesthood was the Demon Lord of the Abyss, Tempest;

The second is the famous great evil spirit in history, Philipchi;

The third master of the Killing Priesthood is a powerful god in Tianlun Palace.

But killing is not His primary priesthood.

Guess who He is? ”

Matthew thought for a moment:

"The God of Murder?"

177 shook his head:

"Don't put the sewer rats on the countertop."

Matthew asks again:

"Vasnov?"

177 showed a look of disdain:

"In my opinion, the second-generation God of War is a little stronger than the rat in the sewer......"

Matthew is in trouble:

"I don't know much about the gods, any hints?"

177 blinked:

"There's a realm in you that is strongly related to that god!"

Matthew made it even more difficult:

"Which field are you talking about?"

"I've got a lot of ...... on my body"

But suddenly he understood:

"You mean Gerald, the sun god?"

177 nodded with satisfaction:

"It is Him."

"Gerald got the killing priesthood a long time ago, and there was speculation at the time that he would be a god with the way of killing, but I didn't expect this kid to hold back for a long, long time, and finally chose the sun priesthood."

"But the priesthood of killing has always been in His hands."

"The killing sword you asked me to help investigate is also one of Gerald's special weapons."

Matthew was a little confused:

"But I heard there's a helix spear?"

"What kind of weapon is the sun god good at?"

177 shrugged:

"Oh, the historical Sun God was a true master of weapons, and he loved all kinds of weapons."

"It is said that in order to master as many weapons as possible, he cultivated thirty-two arms, and this is to facilitate the use of them at the same time."

"Of course, rumors are always exaggerated, but I don't think the number of arms of the sun god will be less than sixteen."

"Speaking of which, don't you really consider learning to become a weapon master?"

"I'm talking about a weapon master by the name of a high-level spell, and you can use multiple weapons at the same time, and you can also increase the proficiency of those weapons-"

"I see that you have a lot of weapons on your back......"

……

(End of chapter)