...
This was another Broken Ring in the outer dream realms.
Different from the endless caverns of the previous quarter-ring.
In this world, Matthew saw an endless grassland, interspersed with a few snow-capped mountains.
He glanced over.
The grassland seed without bounds.
And likewise, the snow mountains towered into the clouds, their peaks unseen.
This was a more vast and majestic space, but as soon as Matthew entered, he felt an unprecedented sense of oppression and suffocation—
On a field far away.
Large pools of blood had solidified into black crystals, rging with the green grass, causing that patch of lawn to appear black and red, giving off a sharp and painful feeling.
Hundreds of bodies lay haphazardly across the Black and Red lawn.
Half of the bodies were foreign won from the astral world, while the rest were rely scattered spiritual dust and shattered tallic structures.
The distinctive patterns on the constructions made their identities unmistakably clear—
They were a group of Ancients from the Sky Heart Land.
Now, they had been destroyed by a force so powerful that it seed invincible.
Matthew glanced at the chanical butterfly defeated nearby, knowing the tragic sight before him was not the work of the God of Truth.
If it had been the havoc wrought by Chaotic Ether, it certainly wouldn't have been so orderly.
Matthew observed the thod of action.
It more closely resembled a legendary powerhouse acting alone, who, in a matter of seconds, had torn apart all biological armor, flesh, and souls, creating the scene left behind.
His expression grew even graver.
A few dozen seconds later.
Matthew crossed the tragic site and approached the massive figure of the God of Truth.
The chanical butterfly seed to be dormant at the mont.
Matthew could sense its unique life fluctuations.
But at the sa ti.
The originally uncontrollable Ether Ripple from the God of Truth had dropped to a very low frequency.
Matthew's face showed a hint of curiosity.
The butterfly seed to have found a way to contain its Chaotic Ether Core within?
He took a few steps closer.
Suddenly.
A pair of wings behind the God of Truth unconsciously fluttered for a mont, and then a tired yet familiar voice erged from within the butterfly:
"Matthew, you finally arrived."
"I'm truly glad to see you."
"But I'm sorry, you can't go any further..."
That was the butterfly's voice.
Matthew knew this legendary Machinist had chosen to rge with the God of Truth to safeguard the beings of Order City.
From the looks of it.
The butterfly's Will was still fairly clear.
Yet the other's words made Matthew frown:
"Did Sif ask you to stop from going further?"
The butterfly sighed:
"She doesn't want to et you now."
Matthew perplexed:
"Why?"
The butterfly bitterly smiled:
"I don't know."
"But part of the agreent I made with her was to stop all uncertainty that could sabotage her plans."
"And you are the biggest uncertainty of them all..."
It was indeed Sif.
Matthew steadied himself.
He knew Sif's visit to the Red and Black Castle was bound to bring so changes and was aware of the incredible power brewing in the Blood of Barthor.
But after experiencing all this in person,
He still instinctively felt it was both abrupt and surreal.
"How did you co across her?"
Matthew controlled his emotions and kept calm, questioning the butterfly in a flat tone.
The butterfly thought for a few seconds and then spoke slowly:
"You know, my integration with the God of Truth is to control the Chaotic Ether Core."
"But I quickly realized that I had underestimated the strength of the Chaotic Ether."
"I really don't know how the Goddess of Magic and Lady Isabelle resisted the assaults from the Chaotic Ether, but the mont I ca into contact with it, I felt as if I was going to be torn apart by that infinite, wild, and chaotic force..."
"At that ti, so parts within the God of Truth also underwent over-etherization, to the extent of exhibiting the activities and even spirituality of the Self."
"If I didn't intervene, it wouldn't have taken long before the God of Truth and I beca sothing akin to a Super Divine Monster."
"Consequently, I was forced to leave Aindor, and the reason I chose to fly to the Storluk Planet was that I knew they had a type of construction material that could induce long-term dormancy in Ether."
"This material is rather precious, and I was already prepared to trade with Storluk Industries when I arrived—I am well aware of the ambitions of these space undead; cooperating with them would certainly an relinquishing most of the benefits, but I had no other choice in the face of inevitability."
"However, just at the mont of landing, I was unexpectedly greeted by Ms. Sif's call."
"She inford that she happened to have a batch of construction material that could stabilize the God of Truth, and she was willing to offer it to for free.
She also told that she was very interested in the "God of Truth," as long as I helped her complete her current plan.
Afterwards, she would help suppress the Chaotic Ether Core within the "God of Truth" with all her might…"
"I weighed the decision for a while and decided to cooperate with her."
"She kept her promise imdiately and gave all the materials, which is why you can now see the stable state of the 'God of Truth'."
"As a return, I must stay here and block any unexpected factors for her."
"I actually guessed you might co, but I didn't expect you to arrive so soon…"
Butterfly's voice was full of apologies.
"I know you ca for the 'God of Truth,' and the situation was urgent at the ti; I really couldn't explain in detail. Now the circumstances have changed drastically, and I have to stand on your opposing side…"
"I'm really sorry, Matthew."
Matthew remained silent for half a minute before he slowly said,
"Tell her plan."
Butterfly pondered,
"She didn't go into detail with , but it seems she plans to pocket the Storluk by enslaving or controlling the star spirits."
Matthew countered,
"So, you agree with her plan?"
Butterfly sighed,
"I have no choice."
"But then again, Lady Sif's plan is not as wicked as you imagine."
"The outer world's star spirits are not as kind as you think; they are but larger Nature Souls."
"From what I know, in the ancient history of Storluk, the star spirit of this planet had a long-standing routine of demanding human sacrifices of young n and maidens."
"Moreover, this type of star spirit from the outer planes mostly remains in the phase of creating massive calamities to instill fear and obedience in the natives."
"They might be pure, powerful, perhaps the embodint of this planet's Natural Will;
but they are also evil, also savage, and also symbols of backwardness and ignorance."
"In short, the star spirit of this planet is not as innocent and pitiable as you imagine…"
Matthew abruptly asked,
"So, becoming part of purgatory is a fitting end for it?"
Butterfly paused for a mont,
"At least for Aindor, it is a good thing that Storluk gets devoured by purgatory."
"On one hand, Aindor loses a potential competitor in the material plane;
on the other hand, purgatory becos more stable after devouring Storluk, delaying the demons' invasion of Aindor."
Matthew couldn't help but laugh,
"You really are a good persuader."
Butterfly chuckled dryly.
Matthew continued,
"Hibernation is just a temporary solution, right?"
"What are your plans for dealing with the Ether Core later?"
Butterfly didn't seem to be hiding anything:
"I plan to find a place to imitate the thods of the Starry Night God and create a smaller, more efficient Golden Ring, which will allow to build a small Magic Pool."
"This is going to cost a lot of gold and supplies, far beyond what just the Order City can provide."
"Plus, the location for the Magic Pool cannot be on Aindor. Otherwise, all my previous efforts would be wasted. The best location would be a Secondary Plane adjacent to Order City."
"Of course, Storluk would also be an excellent option."
Butterfly had made their intentions quite clear.
Matthew grasped the aning.
He pondered for a few seconds before pretending to casually ask,
"So, she promised to build a small Magic Pool in Storluk to house the Ether Core after all this?"
Butterfly answered,
"The condition is that she can conquer this planet."
"There are many uncertainties currently in Storluk, but to Lady Sif, Matthew, it seems like you are the most likely one to hinder her."
"That's why I must stop you."
Matthew squinted and asked,
"Is this part of the contract you signed with her?"
"You should know that demons are quite skilled at tampering with contracts,"
"especially beautiful female devils."
Unexpectedly, Butterfly answered,
"No, I actually didn't sign a direct contract with Lady Sif."
"What we have is just a verbal agreent."
"In fact, the loyalty contract I signed with the 'God of Truth,' under the na of the summoned creature, points to the na of another unknown demon…"
At this point,
Butterfly's tone turned slightly strange.
Matthew promptly asked,
"What na?"
Butterfly said in a subdued voice,
"Sumr Night. Blood Banner."
Matthew blankly asked,
"Who?"
…
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