Across the ocean, on the Starfall Continent.
In the heart of the Western New Continent lay the ancient and venerable sacred land of Shamanism—Ancestral Valley—which had just shed the dusky glow of the setting sun and welcomed the arrival of night.
Under the cover of darkness, faint underworldly lights flickered across Ancestral Valley. Although various lamplights now lit up the deep gorges that had once remained shrouded in darkness, and many more inhabitants than ever before had arrived, the valley still retained its tranquil atmosphere.
At the edge of the Ancestral Valley, atop a high cliff hidden within a secluded grove, stood the young Great Shaman in a long robe: Pasadiko. Beside him were several trusted aides. In this quiet place, the Western Great Shaman was now gazing intently at a complex and intricate ritual array—one marked by the power of Silence.
After a moment of observation, a faint glow began to rise from the array. Upon seeing this, Pasadiko stiffened for a moment, then immediately knelt down and began chanting softly. The followers behind him quickly followed suit.
As Pasadiko adopted a posture of humility, the glow atop the ritual array grew brighter. With a flash of eerie light, three figures slowly manifested within the array—three spirit forms. The one in the lead waved a hand, and the three began to solidify, their transparency decreasing until they became fully corporeal.
The man in front was gaunt and sickly in appearance. He had long pale hair and ashen skin, his cheeks sunken and eyes ringed in black, giving him the look of a man in the final stages of a terminal illness. Though not appearing old, he was emaciated and frail. A skull-decorated circlet rested on his head, and a plain black cloak hung from his shoulders, beneath which he wore a refined noble outfit in the ancient style of the Main Continent.
To his left stood a tall, muscular man with short black hair, dark skin, and fierce features that clearly bore the traits of North Ufiga. He wore a set of light brown-black leather armor with his powerful arms exposed.
To the right was a knight clad entirely in bone-white full plate armor of Main Continent design. Towering in stature, his face was concealed behind a helmet, making it impossible to see his features.
“Lord Kudoshum…”
Upon seeing the trio emerge from the ritual array, Pasadiko—already kneeling—bowed even lower. The man addressed as Kudoshum merely cast a cold glance at him, then shifted his gaze beyond, peering through the gaps in the surrounding trees toward the massive totem at the center of the valley.
“How long until the Great Wild Rite begins?” he asked coldly, his voice hoarse and icy.
Pasadiko promptly responded.
“Very soon! The ritual has been advanced again. Shamans are already entering the ceremonial zones. The rite that begins tonight will complete the summoning after midnight.”
“Good…”
Nodding slightly, Kudoshum withdrew his gaze from the distant totem and turned it back to Pasadiko.
“Now… yield your body.”
“I’ve been awaiting this moment!”
Pasadiko declared, and without hesitation, stood up and allowed his soul to leave his body, becoming translucent. Simultaneously, Kudoshum's spirit form detached from his own body and calmly entered Pasadiko’s.
Thereafter, “Pasadiko” moved again—Kudoshum now in control. He raised one hand and examined it silently before giving a slight nod.
“Well-crafted… perfect compatibility… Excellent.”
Then, Kudoshum turned toward the spirit-form Pasadiko and the two others who had accompanied him, issuing a cold command.
“Seal my body well. Maintain a strict perimeter. Do not allow any interruptions while I’m inside.”
“Understood.”
All three—including Pasadiko’s spirit—bowed respectfully. Kudoshum glanced once more at his original body standing silently in the array, then turned and led Pasadiko’s former subordinates toward the massive totem.
Now, Kudoshum, occupying Pasadiko’s body, would participate in the Great Wild Rite as the Western Shaman. Pasadiko had been a deep-placed plant by the Nether Coffin Order within the Shamanic Church for many years, all to prepare for this very moment.
His body had already undergone numerous covert modifications in collaboration with the Nether Coffin Order. It had been specially prepared to suit Kudoshum’s spirit, offering near-perfect compatibility—just shy of his original vessel. With this painstaking long-term preparation, Kudoshum could even flawlessly replicate Pasadiko’s spiritual signature, fooling even True Spirit Shamans. Thanks to the Nether Coffin’s precise planning, even those who could recognize souls by their resonance would be deceived.
By entering the Great Wild Rite as Pasadiko, Kudoshum—this Gold-rank soul—would take a critical position in the ritual as the Western Shaman, assuming a key role. Through Pasadiko’s prearranged channel, Kudoshum would secretly interfere with the entire ritual—right under the nose of the True Spirit Shamans—modifying its core components.
The Soul-Eagle that would be summoned through this tampered ritual would be embedded with the Nether Coffin failsafe, paving the way for the cult’s next phase of operations in Frisland.
As he watched Kudoshum leave with his former attendants, vanishing into the distance, Pasadiko's spirit finally straightened from his bow. Turning to the other two who had remained behind, he politely addressed them.
“You must be Meihag and Norris, yes? I've long heard of your names. It’s our first time meeting as Lord Kudoshum’s subordinates—let’s cooperate well.”
At his words, the two men who had just stepped out of the array paused briefly. The one named Meihag, who appeared to have North Ufiga blood, was the first to speak.
“Your existence was classified at the highest level within the sect. We only just learned there was someone like you.”
From beside him, the one encased in armor—Norris—spoke in a muffled, heavy tone.
“The fact that Lord Kudoshum entrusted New Continent operations to you proves your ability. Now that the sect’s plan has reached its critical phase, we must ensure the Lord’s actions proceed flawlessly. Is there anything here we should be wary of? Any potential sources of disruption?”
Pasadiko smiled and replied calmly.
“Potential issues? There were some… before. But they’ve all been dealt with. My preparations are foolproof. You have nothing to worry about.”
After hearing his confident reply, Meihag and Norris exchanged a glance, then said nothing more. Their gazes turned toward Kudoshum’s physical body nearby.
“In that case, let’s proceed to seal the Lord’s vessel.”
Meihag said, and just then, from deep within the Ancestral Valley, a long, clear note from a flute echoed out—penetrating straight into the soul. In response, countless wandering wild spirits across the valley lifted their heads and howled to the sky.
In that moment, Ancestral Valley trembled with the resonance of countless souls. Pasadiko and the other two turned their gazes toward the source of the sound. Pasadiko knew what it signaled.
The Great Wild Rite was officially about to begin.
…
Beneath the dark night, in the ancient sacred land, the long, lingering flute-song intertwined with the howls of countless souls. The chant-like voices of spirits echoed throughout the entire Ancestral Valley.
Across the valley, wherever the shamans had set up camp, they all immediately stopped what they were doing upon hearing the sound. After giving instructions to their attendants, they swiftly donned their ceremonial garb and headed toward the valley’s center.
On a small hillside at the valley’s edge, Uta, a shaman of the eastern Tupa Tribe, stood at the front of his camp, staring solemnly at the massive totem in the distance. His face showed clear signs of unease.
“It’s starting… It’s been moved up again?” he murmured, then turned around to face the two spirit forms hovering nearby—Harald and Rachman.
“Still no news on Kapak or Miss Boyle?”
“None. I’ve checked with all the shamans who took part in the soul-sealing ritual. They all said they returned directly afterward. Shaman Lari was the last to see Boyle—she said after speaking with her, she left early using the wild spirit passage. Boyle should’ve been picked up by Kapak after that.”
Rachman replied with a grave expression. Beside him, Harald added bluntly.
“I’ve rowed my boat through every stretch of water within a hundred li of this place. Not a trace of either of those kids’ soul signatures. My guess is: either their souls are sealed somewhere, or they’re not in the physical realm anymore. Either way, something unexpected happened!
“Hey, old man, do you have any enemies? One’s your disciple, the other’s an outsider from the Eastern Continent. They wouldn’t have offended anyone around here. If someone targeted them… I’m betting they were caught in something aimed at you.”
Harald’s blunt accusation made the already anxious Uta furrow his brow and fall into thought.
“…Maybe. But I doubt it’s that simple…”
Uta muttered, gazing again toward the central totem. Suppressing the growing sense of dread in his heart, he spoke again to Rachman and Harald.
“Gentlemen, time is short. The Great Spirit Barrier is about to be activated—I must head to the ritual grounds.
“Since Boyle and Kapak are both missing, if their souls haven’t been sealed, then they may have been banished to the Nether Realm. I ask that the two of you search the shallower layers of the Nether Realm to see if you can locate them. I’ll also leave behind some messages here—though it’s a faint hope, if they manage to return on their own, they might see them.”
Upon hearing this, Rachman and Harald paused for a moment before nodding lightly.
“Go on, old man. I’ll keep looking for them. It’s rare anyone manages to dig up the method to summon me from those ancient ruins. Gotta make the effort count.”
“Miss Boyle… she helped me, in a sense. I won’t give up easily either.”
Their words made Uta exhale faintly in relief, then he set off on his way.
“Then I’ll be counting on you both…”
…
Across the ocean, Northern Main Continent, Frisland.
Late at night in Aransdel, inside a luxurious suite of an upscale hotel, Dorothy, still awake at this hour, sat on the balcony with a serious expression, attentively analyzing the intelligence she had just acquired from the depths of the Nether Realm.
“I had already suspected that Nephthys was linked to some peculiar spirit that was draining her spirituality… but I didn’t expect that spirit to be Kramar! A fragment of Kramar’s soul is actually contracted with Nephthys!”
Dorothy thought in astonishment. She had previously deduced that Nephthys was connected to some mysterious soul, which was the likely cause of her abnormal drift rate in the Nether River. But she hadn’t expected the identity of that soul to be such a bombshell.
“If what Kramar just said is true, then it all makes sense now—how the message appeared aboard the Twilight Devotion, why the Kramar in the physical world has been so fanatical and extreme since April last year… It’s all because the real Kramar uncovered the Nether Coffin’s plot back then and was hit by a divine curse…
“Now that we’ve made contact with the rational part of Kramar’s soul, there’s finally a chance to turn things around here in Frisland. But that chance depends on getting both of them out of the Nether Realm first…”
With her mind focused, Dorothy confirmed her current top priority. Then she redirected her attention through the information channel, re-entering the Nether Realm.
…
Deep in the Nether Realm, floating atop the Nether River, Nephthys had yet to fully digest all that Kramar had revealed. Holding her head, she spoke with some horror.
“So… you mean… you’ve been contracted with me for months, following me around the inner realms this entire time? And the reason my spirituality’s never been full… is because you were the one draining it… and you’re… a soul fragment of a Gold-rank Saint who was cursed with divine Forgetting?”
“Yes. At first, I thought you were just an ordinary Silence Beyonder. I only intended to borrow your summoning to briefly interfere with the physical realm—not to maintain the link permanently.
“But after briefly taking part in the divine disaster in Tivian, I sensed the presence of that dual-blessed one—by Night and Revelation. I knew then that you were a Bearer of Revelation, and that you had a deep connection to that Chosen of the Gods. Following you and seizing the opportunity to approach her was my only chance to lift the curse. So I kept the contract going… until now.
“Finally, after an entire year… someone has sensed me again. I can talk to someone again.”
Kramar spoke with a trace of emotion. Nephthys scratched her head with her spirit-form fingers and muttered.
“This is… a really complicated situation… But even if you can talk now, we’re both still stuck. At this rate, we’ll both be pulled to the Great Soul. So, Honorable Inquisition Cardinal, do you… have any plan to fix this?”
She looked around at the flowing Nether River and asked directly. Kramar replied immediately.
“That’s easy. First… do you believe in the Holy Trinity?”
As he asked, Kramar fixed his gaze on Nephthys. She blinked, unsure how to respond. After a moment of hesitation—and mentally asking Dorothy for guidance—she mumbled uncertainly.
“…I used to…”
Nephthys had, more or less, already converted to Aka by now.
Hearing her answer, Kramar smiled slightly.
“Perfect. That makes it easier.”
His expression grew solemn. A golden radiance began to glow faintly from his spirit-form. With solemn authority, he declared:
“Heretic Nephthys Boyle, you stand guilty of apostasy. You are sentenced in absentia, and judgment is inescapable!”
“Ehh?!”
Nephthys jumped in alarm at Kramar’s pronouncement, but just as she was about to protest, she realized something astonishing—her drift through the River had… stopped. The shock overtook her fear.
“Wait… It stopped? What just happened? How did you do that?” she asked in surprise.
Kramar calmly withdrew the golden light from his body and replied.
“This is the power of Sacred Law. In the name of the Inquisition Cardinal, I have issued a writ of arrest against you for apostasy. Therefore, you cannot ‘escape’. Any force attempting to pull you away will now be resisted and suppressed.
“In the Nether Realm, the pull you feel from the Great Soul is interpreted as an attempt to remove you from judgment. Since judgment would be impossible if you were reabsorbed by the Great Soul, that force is now being suppressed.”
With his hands clasped behind his back, Kramar spoke calmly to Nephthys. Hearing his words, Nephthys couldn't help but speak in disbelief.
“So… sentencing me, delivering a judgment… is your way of saving me? That’s allowed?! You… what exactly is this power? Sacred Law? It feels kind of like that Asceticism Path’s Commandments… Both are mystical forces that restrict others, right?”
Nephthys asked with curiosity. She had experienced the Battle of Yadith, and although she hadn’t directly clashed with the Savior’s Sect’s Crimson-rank fighters, she had studied the battle afterward to supplement her spiritual knowledge with Dorothy’s help.
“Commandments of the Ascetic Path? Yes, there are similarities from an outside perspective, but internally they’re quite different...” Kramar replied.
After a brief pause, he elaborated further.
“This is Sacred Law—a power wielded under the name of Saint Kramar, the Inquisition Cardinal. It is the prototype from which many nations’ legal enforcement systems were developed. It is divine power that transforms codified law into tangible force.
“Though both are ‘laws,’ the Commandments of the Ascetics originate internally—from oneself. They are precepts. Sacred Law, by contrast, derives externally from Church law—it is legislation. The Ascetic’s commandments are born of rigorous personal cultivation, and because each practitioner’s path is unique, the commandments they develop differ. Each person typically masters only a few due to the difficulty of cultivation. Meanwhile, Sacred Law comes from written doctrine, doesn’t require cultivation to use, and offers countless fixed, publicly known clauses. But unlike the precepts, Sacred Law lacks flexibility—it cannot change.”
Kramar clarified the differences between his power and the Ascetics’. Nephthys nodded in understanding, then continued.
“So… you stayed in the Nether Realm this long without falling because of this power? Then why didn’t you judge me earlier, right after I got banished here? If you had, I wouldn’t have fallen this deep.”
Nephthys questioned. Kramar answered matter-of-factly.
“No, I didn’t fall simply because my soul was strong enough—capable of maintaining clarity—and because of the tether to my half-soul still in the physical world. For legitimacy, an Inquisitor does not easily judge themselves.
“And the reason I didn’t judge you as soon as you entered the Nether Realm… was because at that time, I couldn’t.”
“…You couldn’t? Why not?”
Kramar responded steadily.
“Because you couldn’t hear me.”
“Huh? Couldn’t hear you?”
“Yes. Judgment requires declaration. That declaration carries a quasi-Logos-based effect. And any supernatural ability with Logos-like nature requires someone to hear the declaration… or at least perceive it. After all, if no one hears a word, it ceases to be a word.”
Kramar explained patiently, seeing Nephthys still confused.
“Due to the Forgetting Curse, no one could sense me. I couldn’t transmit anything to anyone. All the usual ways Inquisitors force declarations—soul-speech, mental whispers, inner realm portents—were ineffective under the divine distortion of the curse. If I made a declaration you couldn’t perceive, it had no meaning.
“It wasn’t until just now, when you, under divine influence, were able to perceive me and communicate, that the curse was pierced. Only once you could perceive my information did my ability begin to work.”
Kramar’s explanation brought realization to Nephthys, who then asked eagerly.
“So I have to hear you for your power to work, huh? Got it… Well now that it’s working, can you send me back to the physical world? Just return me to where I fell in from!”
Kramar paused briefly, then replied solemnly.
“I’m afraid not… At our current depth, we’re too far from the material realm. I’m only a fragmented soul; my capabilities are incomplete. Among all the Sacred Laws I know, there isn’t one suitable for returning someone that far. I can prevent you from falling further, but for going back, you’ll need help from your side.”
Kramar’s gaze locked with Nephthys’s, as if seeing something far beyond her eyes. Nephthys slumped slightly at his response.
“…So you still can’t do it…”
…
“Still have to find another way ourselves, huh…”
On the balcony of her hotel suite in Aransdel, Dorothy sighed after hearing the latest developments from the Nether Realm.
“Though Kramar has now anchored Nephthys and resisted the pull, she can technically swim back herself… but that would take way too long. At her current depth, by the time she returns, everything will be long over.
“So we must find a way to bring Nephthys… and Kramar, back quickly. And the most effective method… is summoning. Powerful necromantic summoning.”
Dorothy turned her thoughts from the Nether Realm to the Ancestral Valley in the New Continent.
“Looks like the breakthrough must come from there. But the only point of contact I have… is…”
As she thought, she closed her eyes and began linking her consciousness via the information channel, reaching toward the New Continent and establishing contact with the only person she could reach there. In a subtly altered voice, she sent a message.
“Kapak…”
“Ah! Sir Scholar, you’re here! Did you contact my teacher? Did you warn him about Pasadiko?”
Kapak’s urgent voice replied immediately through the channel. Dorothy’s tone grew serious as she responded.
“Unfortunately… I currently have no way to intervene in your world. I can’t reach Uta. If he’s to be warned, it’ll have to be by you.”
“Me…? But in my state right now, I can’t do anything…”
Kapak answered helplessly.
After Pasadiko extracted his soul, Kapak had been sealed within a vessel, trapped in a dazed, formless state. Dorothy had recently reached out to him via the information channel, successfully awakening his consciousness.
While Kapak had regained awareness, his soul remained sealed. He felt as though he were trapped in a pitch-black, narrow void—unable to see or hear anything outside. No matter how he struggled, he couldn’t escape. With his current strength, the seal was impossible to break.
“To bring Nephthys and Kramar back quickly, the best method is necromantic summoning. Most of the powerful shamans capable of that are currently in Ancestral Valley. I need a way to influence that place. But the only viable conduit, Kapak, is sealed… What now? Is there any way to break that seal?”
Dorothy thought intensely. Her real body was far from the valley, and most of her means couldn’t reach that far. She had to find another way to free Kapak.
Rubbing her chin, she carefully reviewed her thoughts. Then, suddenly, an idea struck her.
“Maybe… it’s worth a try…”
Focusing her spirit once more, she reached toward the depths of the Nether Realm.
…
Deep within the Nether Realm, atop the Nether River, Nephthys, still troubled about how to escape, was startled by another message from Dorothy. After listening, she turned to Kramar and asked.
“Say… do you have any Sacred Laws that can break spirit seals?”
Kramar paused, thought briefly, and then answered plainly.
“I do. Did the person behind you ask you to check? What do they want to do?”
He asked, but Nephthys didn’t respond directly. Instead, she posed another question.
“Does your ability require the target to be sensed directly?”
“No. While it would be stronger if I could perceive them, it’s not strictly necessary. The key is that the target must receive my message, or rather… hear my declaration.”
Kramar replied seriously. Nephthys, processing this, continued.
“Then please, make a declaration now… Here’s the information of the one to be judged…”
She then relayed a string of details to Kramar, who listened carefully and nodded solemnly.
“So that’s the one… understood.”
A golden glow began to radiate once more from Kramar’s spirit-form. Then, with a voice of sacred authority, he pronounced.
“Heretic Kapak—repeatedly have you attacked the Lord’s faithful flock and obstructed the spread of His gospel. Your soul is laden with grave sins! You are hereby sentenced to immediate arrest. No shelter shall hide you from judgment!”
Kramar’s solemn declaration echoed across the Nether River. Nephthys listened with full attention, while far above, in the Nether Realm’s upper layer, Dorothy relayed the declaration in full through the information channel to Kapak.
Sealed in darkness, Kapak first felt confused.
“Why would Scholar be sending something that sounded so hostile to me?”
But before he could question it, he felt a strange power ripple through his surroundings.
Under this force, the small, confined space holding him began to crack with clear, brittle sounds. Splits appeared in the blackness, and light began to seep through.
“The seal… it’s breaking?! What’s going on? Was it that sentence just now? But wasn’t that declaration… condemning me?”
As shock filled his mind, Dorothy’s voice rang out once more.
“The seal’s breaking. Get ready to run. Head toward your camp!”
Hearing her voice, Kapak immediately cleared his thoughts. No more hesitation, he focused all his attention on the breaking seal. Then, with a sharp crack , the space shattered, and Kapak saw the outside world once more.
…
In a secluded forest clearing on the outskirts of Ancestral Valley, several tribal warriors and shamans under Pasadiko’s command were standing guard. What they guarded was a lifeless body bound and hanging from a tree—and, within a hollow tree trunk, a bone fragment sealed within a complex ritual array.
These loyal warriors and shamans stood stationed around the area, watching in all directions for any suspicious spirit or person approaching. But while they focused on securing the perimeter, they failed to notice that the very thing they were guarding had begun to change.
Inside the ritual array within the tree hollow, the bone fragment that served as a sealing vessel was now silently cracking. As the fissures spread, the bone eventually shattered completely, and as the sealing array dimmed, a faint green soul-flame flared from within. It was Kapak’s soul.
Through the power of Kramar’s Sacred Law, Dorothy had successfully broken the seal that Pasadiko had placed on Kapak!
Since Sacred Law requires the target to perceive the declaration for it to take effect, Dorothy had used Nephthys as a conduit, transmitting Kramar’s declaration directly into Kapak’s awareness through the information channel.
Kapak, once a member of the native resistance, had fought off many invading colonists from the Main Continent and killed no small number of Radiance Church believers. In Kramar’s view, such a heretic was unquestionably guilty of severe transgressions—and deserving of full judgment.
As Inquisition Cardinal, Kramar issued a mystical arrest warrant against Kapak. While the declaration remained active, Kapak could not hide from Kramar or his subordinates by any means. Clearly, Kramar had interpreted the seal Pasadiko placed on Kapak as an attempt to “hide”, and defined Pasadiko as a “harborer.” Thus, under the power of Sacred Law, the seal was forcibly broken, and Kapak could no longer be "sheltered" by it.
“I’m… out!”
“What happened?! What’s wrong with the seal?”
While Kapak was still reeling from his sudden escape, the surrounding guards noticed something amiss and turned toward the shattered seal, eyes widening in disbelief. At that moment, Kapak quickly fled.
“The seal’s broken! Restrain his soul immediately!”
The shamans guarding the area began activating abilities to recapture Kapak’s soul, but by then, he had already darted back into his body.
Catching them completely off guard, Kapak's soul swiftly reunited with his physical form, rendering their soul-targeted spells ineffective. The moment soul and body merged, Dorothy immediately cast a Devouring Sigil on him. Empowered by the sigil, Kapak snapped the ropes binding him and dropped from the tree, regaining his freedom.
“Catch him!”
With that command, the guards lunged at him from all directions. But Dorothy extended threads of spirituality through the information channel, linking one of them directly to the tribal warrior who was charging first, forcing him to turn and attack the others.
“What the—?! Stop! What are you doing?!”
Spiritual threads were one of the few abilities Dorothy could project at long range. She had used them previously to help Kapak escape at the port. Though few in number and incapable of restraining someone like Crimson-rank Pasadiko, they were more than enough to deal with his subordinates.
In an instant, the pursuing guards were thrown into chaos, attacking each other. Kapak seized the moment and slipped away into the forest.
After running for a short while, Kapak soon recognized familiar surroundings. From a clearing, he spotted the massive totem at the valley’s center. Confirming his location, he sprinted toward his home camp. He needed to find Uta, fast.
“Hurry! Some of those guys are reporting to higher-ups. Pasadiko could be on his way. You’ve got to move!”
While controlling the puppets to stall their pursuers, Dorothy urgently warned him. At the mention of Pasadiko, Kapak immediately picked up speed, dashing toward the camp. Dorothy reinforced him with a Shadow sigil to lighten his body and increase agility.
With the combined power of the Chalice and Shadow sigils, Kapak's speed became extraordinary. He reentered the valley and rushed to the camp at the edge. But when he finally climbed the slope and reached his tent, he froze in shock.
“Where… is everyone?”
Staring at the empty tent, Kapak stood dumbfounded. After a stunned pause, he entered the tent to search for Uta. Though he found no sign of his teacher, he did find a carved message left behind.
“The Great Wild Rite has been moved up… Teacher went to participate? How…?”
After reading the inscription, Kapak stared in despair toward the center of the valley. From where he stood, a hazy glow was already visible. He guessed it must be the ritual barrier of the Great Wild Rite. Uta was likely already inside it.
“Damn it… and I’ve still got a ways to go.”
Grinding his teeth as he looked at the grand ceremonial site in the distance, Kapak prepared to run toward it. But just then, Dorothy—who had been quietly monitoring Pasadiko’s movements—interrupted him.
“No… You can’t go. The ritual site is sealed off by a barrier. You won’t get through in time. Pasadiko is almost there. If you go now, you’ll be caught! …Why didn’t he attend the ritual?”
Dorothy’s voice carried a thread of doubt. Her earlier reports had said Pasadiko should’ve gone. Hearing her, Kapak responded anxiously.
“Then what should I do, Scholar? Just sit here and wait for death?!”
On the hotel balcony, Dorothy’s mind raced. After a brief, intense silence, she came up with a plan.
“Kapak… Is Thief’s luggage still there?”
“Miss Thief’s suitcase? Yes—it’s right here!”
Kapak turned to the large women’s travel case deeper in the camp. Through his vision, Dorothy confirmed it was Nephthys’s.
“Good. Now listen to me. We need to move fast, before that bastard gets here!”
“Understood, Scholar!”
Kapak gave a crisp reply, then stepped into the camp and began rummaging through Nephthys’s suitcase.
…
Meanwhile, Pasadiko had just been helping his two associates secure Kudoshum’s body when he received an urgent report. Upon hearing of the seal failure, his heart sank. Leading his colleagues, he rushed toward the direction Kapak had escaped.
“So this is what you meant by flawless preparation? I’m impressed, Great Shaman,” mocked Meihag, the North Ufigan man, with a hint of sarcasm.
Pasadiko said nothing, his face grim, as he raced ahead.
Inside, Pasadiko was seething with fury and shock. Furious that Kapak’s escape had humiliated him during their first operation together, and stunned that someone of Kapak’s level could break the seal.
With doubts in his heart, Pasadiko, Meihag, and Norris soon reached Uta’s camp. Several subordinates were already waiting. Upon seeing Pasadiko, they quickly bowed.
“Get up, you useless fools. Where is that brat? I just sensed him here…” Pasadiko barked.
The guards flinched, and one answered hastily.
“Y-yes, we found his body in the camp, but… his soul is gone…”
“…Gone?”
Frowning deeply, Pasadiko stormed into the camp. Sure enough, he spotted Kapak’s body lying motionless in the tent. But as he focused, he sensed no soul within it.
Upon seeing the scene, Norris, who had followed closely behind, scanned the area briefly. He soon spotted a roughly drawn Silence ritual array etched into the muddy ground not far away. After inspecting it, he spoke up.
“It’s a ritual for realm-crossing. His soul likely escaped into the Inner Realm.”
“That brat’s just a shaman apprentice, Black Earth-rank. He can’t cross into the Nether Realm on his own without ritual assistance…”
Pasadiko muttered as he examined the ritual circle in the mud, then turned his gaze toward Kapak’s body.
“He must’ve realized he couldn’t hide anymore, so he tried to flee into the Nether Realm… Hmph. Leaving such a pristine body behind. He’s not escaping that easily.”
As he spoke, Pasadiko turned toward Meihag, standing beside him, and continued.
“Lord Kudoshum ordered us to work in full cooperation. Mr. Meihag…”
“Of course, Great Shaman. I wouldn’t joke around at a time like this. Come on, I know what to do…”
Meihag replied, and with a nod from Pasadiko, the latter’s spirit drifted forward and merged into Meihag’s body.
Once Pasadiko’s soul had fully merged, Meihag’s eyes gleamed faintly with spiritual light. He looked down at Kapak’s motionless body and murmured softly.
“You’re not getting away… kid…”
“Seance…”
Whispering as he spoke, Meihag began channeling Pasadiko’s immense spiritual might through his own body, unleashing a powerful Great Shaman-rank summoning spell. Using Kapak’s body as a medium, a glowing Silence ritual array emerged beneath him.
“Found him…”
In moments, Meihag’s summoning linked with its target in the Nether Realm through the medium. He tried to forcibly pull the soul back into the Physical Realm, but found that a strong opposing force was also tugging on the soul, resisting his summoning.
“As expected… Someone’s helping that kid. Otherwise, he could’ve never broken my seal. They’re trying to rescue his soul—amplify the summoning. Don’t let them succeed!”
Pasadiko’s spirit, riding within Meihag, spoke bluntly. Meihag, upon hearing him, immediately poured in more spirituality, further empowering the summoning ritual to forcibly drag Kapak’s soul back to the Physical Realm.
But at the very center of this ritual spell—Kapak’s body—there was another presence… something not belonging to Kapak… also reacting as a medium beneath the spell’s effects…
…
Deep in the Nether Realm, upon the wide-flowing Nether River, Kramar’s spirit form now glowed with golden radiance. With solemnity, he used the Sacred Law to halt Nephthys from being pulled by the Great Soul, while simultaneously interfering with the summoning targeting Kapak in the upper layers of the Nether Realm, preventing his soul from being easily pulled away.
And then, beside Kramar, Nephthys, who had been in quiet meditation with her eyes closed, suddenly opened them wide and looked up into the abyssal skies of the Nether Realm.
“I feel it… I feel it! It’s coming from the Physical Realm… It’s a summoning force!
“The medium… my medium… is working!”
Feeling the pull from the Physical Realm, Nephthys was ecstatic. She was being summoned as well, not just Kapak!
Just moments ago, before Pasadiko’s pursuers arrived, Dorothy had instructed Kapak to open Nephthys’s suitcase at Uta’s camp and look for anything that could serve as a summoning medium.
Due to her frequent use of illusory makeup, Nephthys always carried a large vanity kit, which unfolded into a small dressing table. Under Dorothy’s guidance, Kapak searched her brush container and found strands of Nephthys’s hair, and even some nail clippings that hadn’t been cleaned—perfect summoning mediums.
Following Dorothy’s instructions, Kapak hid these summoning items on his person. After cleaning up the scene, he left his body behind, projected his soul out, and used his Black Earth shamanic power to enter the Nether Realm, waiting for his body to be found.
When Pasadiko discovered Kapak’s body, he quickly deduced that the soul had fled to the Nether Realm. As a Great Shaman, the best response was summoning. And with such a perfect medium—the intact body—right before him, he naturally wouldn’t waste the chance.
But what Pasadiko didn’t know was that Nephthys’s medium was also hidden within that body—and would subtly activate during the summoning. The plan now was to use Kramar’s Sacred Law to provoke Pasadiko into intensifying the summoning, which would open a path for Nephthys’s return to the Physical Realm.
“Get ready, Your Excellency, the Inquisition Cardinal. I see the path. We’re going back!”