Ark Undead

It's just a pity.

Patriot sighed and looked toward the sacrificial site.

The sacrificial site has returned to its original appearance, ancient and solemn, exactly as the undead remember.

"Then let's go."

Seeing that everyone was alright, Solar clapped his hands.

"I'm home, friends!"

...

When the undead returned to the mortal world, the first thing he saw when he opened his eyes was the priest guarding the door.

The priest sat on a wooden stool, his eyes slightly narrowed, looking like he hadn't had enough sleep.

The priest opened his eyes only after hearing the footsteps of the undead approaching.

"Hmm...Eh?! Mr. War Knight!"

The immortal asked calmly.

How long has passed?

"Ah, seven days have passed since you entered the Relic Labyrinth. Although the relic has gone into a deep slumber, you have not yet emerged, and we dare not deal with the relic at this time."

The priest said excitedly after seeing the undead.

"Thanks to you, the Undying Arena has come to a successful conclusion, and the sacred relic is now peacefully asleep. The High Priest has been waiting for you to come out. Would you like to go see him now?"

The immortal seemed not to have expected that his journey in and out would take a full seven days.

"What about those heroes?"

"Oh, you mean those heroes who went in with you?"

The priest said.

"They came out on the same day they entered the relic and have already left. Speaking of which, your disciple also came out of the relic. We didn't make things difficult for the two ladies and let them leave. The guests from Rhodes Island left Yasenus a few days ago, and the High Priest is said to have left a message for you."

The immortal nodded slightly.

That makes sense. If they've been inside the Spiral Sword for so long, they must have received orders from the Doctor to leave.

"Take me to the High Priest."

Led by the priest, the undead left the underground facility where the sacred relics were kept.

In fact, the distance between the underground and the surface is not as far as imagined. The place where the Spiral Sword fragments are actually kept is only separated from the iron gate that the Undead had entered once before by a corridor.

The fog gate complicates everything, which can also be seen as a protective measure for the spiral sword itself.

After passing through the underground corridors of the Temple of Heroes, the undead quickly returned to the surface.

The priests who were working nearby saw the undead emerge from underground and all bowed or greeted him very respectfully.

The immortals nodded in response.

It seems everyone has a lot to do after the Undying Arena.

Finally, the Undead met the High Priest in the reception room.

The previous guest had just left the reception room, and the high priest was about to pick up his teacup to take a sip when he heard footsteps again and looked up.

That's when they realized that they were actually immortals.

"Mr. War Knight? You've come out!"

The high priest's face lit up with delight, and he quickly stood up and went to greet the undead.

The immortal simply waved his hand, indicating that he did not need such formalities.

The high priest then sat down again.

The priest leading the undead bowed and left, leaving only the undead and the high priest in the reception room.

"Seven days have passed, and you've finally emerged. Does that mean the sacred object has been taken by you?"

Faced with the high priest's question, the undead nodded, reached out and pulled aside the robe covering his armor, revealing the longsword hanging at his waist.

This spiral sword is different from the twisted blade that the Undead used to hang at their waists.

It was sharpened on all four sides, spiraling downwards, like a giant, twisted nail. And the crimson marks on it seemed to radiate heat.

The high priest even saw tiny sparks drifting from the blade.

"Is this what the sacred object we worship looks like in its complete form?"

The high priest naturally understood; he had seen the fragments of the Spiral Sword with his own eyes, but only today had he truly seen the Spiral Sword in its complete form.

Just one glance was enough to scorch and distort my vision, making it impossible to see the details.

The Spiral Sword was repaired and taken away by the undead, meaning that Minos would forever lose its protection. However, in return, Minos gained a new future, no longer needing to rely on the Spiral Sword as the primary means of development.

"I left behind a tiny flame."

"The Undead said."

"If you encounter any difficulties, you can go and seek help."

The high priest straightened his expression and bowed slightly to the undead.

"Thank you for your generosity, Mr. War Knight."

"This is what I should do. You helped her."

The Undead shook his head; he was merely returning the favor.

To be honest, it was precisely because Minos hosted the Undead Arena and had the habit of using the ashes of heroes to open its doors that the number of heroic spirits within the Spiral Sword remained at a certain level, ensuring that the Firelink Shrine would still have heroic spirits fighting throughout countless ages.

The Minoans drew power from the Spiral Sword and also sent countless warriors to it.

The undead could treat it as a bargaining chip. But since it protected the Fire Mage from disappearing, he couldn't ignore that.

"So, the people from Rhodes Island left?"

"Yes, before they left, Yato and Ms. Dobermann brought your disciple to see me."

The high priest nodded.

"They left you a message saying they would return to Rhodes Island, which is currently docked near Victoria. They also said that the doctor known as the Evil Spirit is waiting for you and hopes that you will return to Rhodes Island as soon as possible after you come out. The hero named Surtr also left with your disciple."

Recalling the memories he gained within the Spiral Sword, the Undead now has a lot of questions he wants to ask the Doctor.

"Besides Rhodes Island, the young knight from Kazimierz also left you a message."

The high priest was clearly referring to Maria.

"She said that if you ever plan to go to Kazimierz again, be sure to let her know."

Hearing Maria's simple message, the Undead's expression softened.

Indeed, no matter the circumstances, a disciple's pure concern always brings comfort to the teacher.

"I see."

They chatted with the high priest about Minos.

Even today, the veneration of individual martial prowess remains undiminished in Minos, and changing this mindset is clearly not something that can be done overnight.

However, team matches did have some impact on Minos.

At least now the heroes are starting to study the advantages and disadvantages of team combat. I heard that after the Undead Arena ended, many border heroes chose to travel in groups.

Regardless, this Undead Arena was indeed a turning point for Minos. Hopefully, after distancing himself from the relics, Minos can forge his own future.

Finally, the Undead said he should leave.

Before leaving, the high priest asked the undead if he needed any help, such as being sent to Victoria.

The immortals readily accepted.

Getting back sooner means we can light the campfire sooner.

But when the high priest summoned the other priests and asked them to prepare the chariots, the undead added a special note.

"Two positions."

He said earnestly.

"Yes, they should be close together."

380. Closer to the ground

Victoria border, Rhodes Island main ship.

"My recent immigration records are a bit strange; it seems like there are more and more Sarkaz people on them."

One of the agents was holding the entry and exit records for Lentinium, the main city of Victoria. His job was to find any possible traces of people from Kazdel in these records.

"It would be really strange if there weren't as many Sarkaz as we thought."

Ace glanced at the form in the operator's hand and said.

"The Doctor has a premonition that something unusual might happen in Londinium, and that it might be related to the regent in Kazdel. If it's hidden somewhere else in the Victoria wilderness, it will be even harder for us to make calculations and statistics. When problems arise, we'll be completely in the dark."

The operator suddenly realized, "So that's what it meant."

"So, does that mean there's bound to be a conflict between us and the regent in Kazdel?"

"Isn't it obvious? He was behind the Lungmen incident. Although the Doctor doesn't encourage everyone to talk about it, we still need to know the situation."

Ace took the form from the operator; his job was to record all of this.

Lately, there have been fewer and fewer opportunities for fieldwork; it seems that Rhode Island's focus has shifted to the Victoria incident.

To be honest, Victoria is in a good position. In the known regions of Terra, Victoria stands in the middle, separating the left and right sides, and can be regarded as a hub connecting the two countries.

If Victoria is influenced by Therese, it could have a huge impact.

Perhaps, war is inevitable.

However, elite operators like Ace were already mentally prepared for the war that would eventually break out.

It remains to be seen whether Rhodes Island now possesses the resources to sustain a war.