The Vanished Artifact (Part One)

This was indeed exciting news!

Even better, Dus wasn't finished. He continued, "As more and more of The Undead fall, Fifth Brother, I reckon, at this rate, once these hundred thousand Undead are purified, the Fifteenth Trigram will certainly bloom fully. The Sixteenth will likely open more than halfway. And if humanity wins this battle, and we count your invaluable intelligence as well..."

"...Then the Sixteenth Trigram will surely fully open, and the Fourth Trigram will be complete!"

Du Chen slammed a fist into his Lotus Pedestal, his joy evident. He couldn't help but be thrilled. Master Grape's tattoos comprised only eight Bagua Trigrams in total, and today, he might complete the Fourth. This was a monumental leap!

Halfway there!

Three years, four Trigrams... Du Chen almost saw a priest in a wedding chapel beckoning to him.

Heh heh, given the current situation, the war with the Fiendkind is bound to drag on for a long time. There'll be plenty of good deeds to accrue Merit. So... shouldn't he start considering finding a girlfriend?

Du Chen's handsome face flushed, and he quickly banished the thought.

First, focus on truly converting these good deeds into Merit. Still, this was indeed excellent news!

Outsiders couldn't perceive Du Chen and Dus's Divine Sense exchange. Beibei looked up curiously, "Daddy, you're smiling so mischievously!"

Du Chen smiled, gesturing for his daughter not to disturb him, and continued asking Dus, "So, what's the bad news?"

Dus replied, "The Fourteenth Trigram vanished after blooming. Even I can't find him!"

Du Chen's jaw dropped, his good mood instantly halved. His voice was soft, laced with helplessness, "The Twelfth vanished, the Thirteen vanished, and now the Fourteenth is gone too. Are all the brothers of the Fourth Trigram just going to disappear?"

Fifth Brother, ever the scoundrel, shrugged indifferently, "You ask me, who am I supposed to ask? The Fifteenth Trigram will bloom soon. Keep an eye on it; you'll know if it vanishes too!"

...

The line stretching from Amulang Mountain to the Auerbach Grand Canyon had become the primary battlefield for the second great war between humanity and Fiendkind. Yet, beyond this front, two other factions warranted mention.

Inside Amulang Mountain's Divine Tomb, the Tomb Guardian, Old Warma, set down his watering can and gazed towards the battlefield. "The Fiendkind haven't been exterminated yet? How many more lives will be lost this time?" He patted a tombstone, sighing, "You were all heroes, mighty figures in your prime! After today, many more will become heroes just like you, to lie forever in these cold coffins, their names forgotten by posterity in a few centuries!"

Old Warma returned to his small cabin, rummaging through chests to retrieve dozens of memorial tablets. He then went back to the garden, plucking a flower or herb from each gravestone, placing them with the tablets onto a wheelbarrow. "Posterity may have forgotten you, but this old man hasn't! The Fiendkind are coming; you'll come with this old man too! Otherwise, those Violet-Bloods will see your tablets and surely not let those who slew their Fiendkind ancestors rest in peace... Alas!" He let out a long, sorrowful sigh.

Creak, creak, Old Warma pushed the wheelbarrow, carrying the memorial tablets of heroes who had fallen for humanity, away from the graveyard. His trembling, ancient figure seemed forlorn and desolate in the empty, barren mountains.

No one knew where he went.

...

Another faction resided in a small city near the Grand Canyon—Bloodaxe City!

News of the Fiendkind's reappearance had reached here. Some beastmen were terrified and panicked, others roared and charged towards the Grand Canyon, shouting, "Protect the Supreme Father God's tomb!" Still others were lost and bewildered. The city, with nearly a hundred thousand inhabitants, was in chaos.

Amidst this bedlam, outside a casino in Bloodaxe City, Old Bovin dusted off his rear and stood up, watching Jamis and other beastmen rush out of the establishment. He grumbled, "Hear that? The Fiendkind are here! It's ruined all my business!"

Jamis wore a bitter expression. "Indeed. The dealers and gamblers have all fled too. Damn it, why is the life of an artist always so fraught with hardship?"

Together, they bellowed at the sky like two Old Madmen. "The Fiendkind are here!"

Arm in arm, the two Charlatans, true to their roguish nature, ambled down a secluded alley. They seemed entirely unsurprised by the news of the Fiendkind's return.

Without warning, two robed figures, wearing The Flat-Top's Helm, appeared behind them. One of them said, "A violent power fluctuation just occurred in the direction of the Sacred Tomb, containing five elements. The plant-based elemental fluctuation was slightly weaker. It must be Bonis's legendary Secret Technique—Devour!"

Jamis slapped his forehead. "Bonis is here too? Heh, the life of an artist just keeps getting more colorful! Old Charlatan, do you think the Pontiff and our little brother can withstand Bonis? We get a little scared just seeing that guy!"

Old Bovin grinned, his yellowed teeth showing. "Pfft! Have you forgotten? I've divined the Pontiff's fate! That fellow still has two full years of grand fortune ahead. And his destiny will only grow stronger over these two years, until he reaches the pinnacle of all past Pontiffs, and then... *thud*!" With the onomatopoeia, he suddenly flopped to the ground, chuckling sheepishly. "So, whoever crosses the Pontiff now, that Goddess of Fate will cross them! Bonis is no exception!"

The other robed figure in The Flat-Top's Helm asked, "What about Francis, whom you designated as Number Ten? He's also joined this war and will face Bonis!"

Dusting off his rear, Old Bovin clambered up and pouted. "Francis, like you, is someone tied to that tree by the Goddess of Fate. I can't divine the fate of such people! Please, Lord Number Nine, don't ask me such questions in the future!"

Number Nine remained silent for a moment, then followed the other three through the alleys. "So, what should we do now? The Fiendkind are here; should we help fight them?"

Jamis abruptly turned, his face grim and icy. "From the moment you accepted my Ninth Secret Diagram, you ceased to be Roland, the Sword Emperor of Resentful Water, and you are no longer human! What do the grudges between the Violet-Bloods and Red-Bloods have to do with you?"

Number Nine was speechless!

Jamis spoke with grim resolve, "With the Violet-Bloods appearing, that hussy Margaret will surely get wind of it soon. Knowing her temperament, she'll definitely come to the Three Continents to seek revenge on Bonis! When that happens... however many come, we'll kill them all, leaving none alive!"

Old Bovin's jovial Charlatan facade also vanished, replaced by a fierce, cold expression. "Number Nine, do you understand? Our current goal is to exterminate Water's Embrace Lake!"

Number Nine, or perhaps Roland, said faintly, "I understand. Eradicating Water's Embrace Lake is my lifelong wish, but not everyone from Water's Embrace Lake is evil. At least Sherine..."

"Don't mention Sherine!" Old Bovin sighed inexplicably for a moment. "Among Margaret's nine disciples, besides the youngest Xue Ji, the rest are all pitiable. That's why we allowed her to live in seclusion on Battle God Isle for thirty years!" He suddenly nudged Jamis with his shoulder, grinning, "Old Gambler, look at the aura fluctuations from that battlefield. The Pontiff and Bonis are desperately fighting over Orbach's corpse. What do you think will happen if one of them gets Orbach's coffin and discovers *that secret*..."

Jamis also chuckled, then abruptly smeared a blob of iron-blue paint across his face. "Their faces will surely turn just like mine then! Hahahaha, heeheehee..."

Jamis guffawed.

Far in the distance, a beastman mumbled, "Whose crazy old hag is going mad? Laughing like a man!"

...

One of these two factions had vanished without a trace, while the other remained fixated on Water's Embrace Lake. It seemed this initial clash between humanity and Fiendkind was destined to be unrelated to them.

But how that Goddess of Fate arranged things, no one could say for sure!

After half an hour of fierce struggle, few of The Undead remained in the Earth Burial Sacred Tomb. Du Chen sat on his Lotus Pedestal with a wry, helpless smile. Deboning and Grand Matriarch were both nestled within his personal lotus, while only two children had been brought out by Du Chen to watch the spectacle. Both little ones stared oddly at Du Chen's dejected face.

Just as Fifth Brother had relayed with his good news, more and more of The Undead were purified, and the lotuses bloomed ever faster. The Fifteenth Trigram had bloomed, and the Sixteenth was more than halfway open, but...

The bad news also unfolded: The Fifteenth Trigram had vanished, together with The Fourteenth!

Du Chen glanced towards the Grand Canyon, where battle cries shook the heavens. The Pontiff, Rebadon, and Lombaton had already ascended into the sky. The purple flames of the Raging Fire Scorcher Cannon glittered across the firmament, indicating that Bonis and the Pontiff had engaged. And from the excited roars of the beastmen, it seemed Bonis was being suppressed by the Pontiff's Raging Fire Scorcher Cannon.

He sighed helplessly. "Fifth Brother, you've been monitoring my body all this time. Have you found anything?"

Dus said, "They just vanished into thin air. Who knows where those two brothers went? Francis, never mind the Arcane Artifacts for now. How are your inner strength and Primordial Spirit Power?"

Du Chen gazed at his jade-like hands. "They've clearly strengthened, but I can't pinpoint just how much. I need to test them!"

"There are still a few thousand Undead left below. I'll weaken the Holy Light, and don't kill Andy either. Go down there and practice on them; let me see your inner strength!"

There was no other option for the time being. Du Chen said, "Then you impersonate Du Chen, the Divine for me, and I'll go down as Francis to observe. Also, release Deboning and both Grand Matriarchs. But be careful when you communicate with the Grand Matriarchs; they don't know you're an imposter god!"

"Alright, go ahead! Beibei can cover for me!"

Du Chen tidied up his affairs, unsheathed his Vanishing Snow Sword, and leapt from the Lotus Pedestal. He brought no Arcane Artifact, intent only on discovering the true extent of his inner strength!