novelnext Chapter 326: Ashmi Evolves!
Chapter 326: Ashmi Evolves!
Ashmi came forward, holding a flat, silver-white chalice in her hands.
A dense, mysterious liquid sloshed gently within the chalice.
Bai Shi took the Teardrop Chalice from Ashmi and nodded.
Ashmi had successfully found the Teardrop Chalice, so it was clear what he had to do next.
It was time to drink the liquid from the chalice and quench Ashmi's thirst.
And so, under Ashmi's eager gaze, Bai Shi drained the deep purple liquid from the Teardrop Chalice.
The deep purple liquid had a texture like steel, a truly bizarre sensation on the tongue.
As the liquid from the chalice entered his body, he once again felt the peculiar sensation from the first time he drank from a Teardrop Chalice.
A profound darkness filled Bai Shi's vision, and everything fell into absolute silence.
Everything around him began to recede, as if time and space had lost all meaning.
It was the same feeling he'd had when he first met the Outer Gods.
And after drinking the liquid from the chalice, he had entered that state once again.
The last time, however, the state had lasted only for an instant before vanishing.
But this time, Bai Shi managed to maintain it.
He immersed himself in it, concentrating on this unique, mysterious power.
It was like achieving a state of unity with the cosmos.
However, the state soon began to fade, threatening to pull Bai Shi back to reality.
Although he didn't know what this state was for, Bai Shi fought to hold on to the lingering feeling, unwilling to let it dissipate so easily.
A moment later, Bai Shi was completely pulled from that state.
Although it felt like some time had passed, in reality, time had stopped at the very moment the liquid touched his lips.
Ashmi's core writhed, receiving all of the liquid.
Her core contracted and then relaxed back to its original state, repeating the motion like breathing.
Now, Ashmi just had to wait and absorb the liquid from the Teardrop Chalice to complete another transformation.
While Ashmi was absorbing the chalice's power, Bai Shi tried again to recall that feeling.
After a few attempts, Bai Shi finally succeeded in re-entering that profound and mysterious state.
This time, time was no longer frozen, but instead flowed at an incredibly slow pace.
It wasn't quite the same as the state induced by the Teardrop Chalice, but now that he had the experience, it was much easier.
With continuous practice, he was sure he could master it completely.
Bai Shi began to ponder the uses of this state.
Communicating with the Outer Gods seemed like one good option.
But what else?
While maintaining this state, Bai Shi suddenly sensed a silver mist enveloping Ashmi's core within him.
The mist was constantly expanding, like spreading mercury.
At the same moment, he perceived an even larger aura forming around his own body.
His was a blazing solar flame, wreathed in the lightning of storm and gravity.
It wasn't just him and Ashmi; it seemed that every living creature was now shrouded in an aura of its own.
Bai Shi immediately realized what this was.
This was not the kind of energy used to control weapons, but the aura of life itself.
No matter how small, as long as a thing possessed the power of life, Bai Shi could perceive its aura.
Beyond sensing the relative strength of various life forms, he could also discern the source of their power from the state of their aura.
All of Ashmi's power stemmed from her own mimicry, so she possessed only the purest essence of a Mimic Tear.
Bai Shi's own power, however, was an amalgamation of the sun, storms, and gravity.
Thus, the most dominant power, the sun, took center stage, with the others orbiting it in support.
It seemed this was indeed an application of the 'Arcane' attribute.
The Arcane attribute was somewhat abstract.
Unlike other attributes, its effects weren't clearly expressed through external values.
Only now had Bai Shi finally begun to grasp how to use it.
In future battles, he would hold the advantage of understanding his opponent's power from the outset.
At that moment, Ashmi's core gradually grew and expanded within Bai Shi's body, becoming considerably larger.
After absorbing the power of the Teardrop Chalice, she was continuously evolving, completing herself.
Ashmi's combat power was still rising!
Feeling the stirring within him finally calm, Bai Shi asked aloud:
"Ashmi, how do you feel?"
Ashmi's core spun in place, expressing great joy.
‘Host, I've gotten so much stronger!’
‘The weak me of the past is dead! Now, I am terrifyingly strong!’
But then, Ashmi's core writhed again, seeming somewhat dejected.
‘Mmm...’
‘Sorry, Host.’
‘I think my previous feeling was wrong...’
‘Although the thirst has been almost entirely quenched, there's still a tiny bit missing.’
‘I really thought the power from this one chalice would be enough to quench it completely...’
Ashmi emerged from Bai Shi's body, coalescing into her physical form.
She then displayed her power and aura without reservation, allowing Bai Shi to clearly sense her current strength.
Sensing a power almost identical to his own, Bai Shi silently shook his head.
He already knew what Ashmi's problem was now.
At present, Ashmi's power was incredibly close to his own...
But there was still a slight difference. Just that little bit.
And that little bit was now Ashmi's only remaining imperfection.
Ashmi spoke as well:
"Host, I can now wield over ninety percent of your power."
"Once I've completely absorbed and digested this power, my mimicry will be even more perfect than it is now."
"At that time, I might be able to draw out another half-percent of your strength."
"The power of the Teardrop Chalice is unquestionable; the degree of enhancement is actually about what I expected."
"But I can feel that this final gap is no longer something that a regular Teardrop Chalice can fill."
Ashmi suddenly fell into thought.
"No... maybe I know what's going on."
"In my memory, there seems to be another, completely different chalice."
"It seems to be a special Great Chalice, equivalent to a progenitor."
"That's it. This final bit isn't a problem that can be solved by quantity."
"Please, find the Great Chalice... the Great Chalice that holds the great secrets of the stars..."
Faced with Ashmi's pleading gaze, Bai Shi had no reason to refuse.
He had already promised to help Ashmi evolve completely, and besides, her growth was a great boon to him as well.
"Alright. We've already found two, so finding one more shouldn't be a problem."
"Next time I get a lead, I'll take you to find it." If he wasn't mistaken, the final Great Teardrop Chalice should be in the Nameless Eternal City in the Deeproot Depths.
Ashmi nodded, her form dissolving once more as she drifted back to her core inside Bai Shi.
She still needed some time to digest the power of the Teardrop Chalice.
However, Ashmi also provided another piece of information:
‘By the way, Host.’
‘While I was looking for the Teardrop Chalice, I found a strange place.’
‘It seemed to have the same aura as that blade of yours, but I was in a hurry for the chalice, so I didn't take a closer look.’
‘Perhaps you could go check it out?’
Bai Shi was surprised. He hadn't expected to actually find a clue about the Starfall Shadow.
But it made sense. There were only three Eternal Cities in total, and he had already explored two of them.
If there was no information in either of the first two, then he might as well give up on ever unsealing the Starfall Shadow.
Bai Shi thought for a moment and decided to head there now.
After all, Ranni had told him to call her when he was ready.
After pointing out the way, Ashmi fell into a state resembling hibernation.
She needed to digest for a while to completely absorb the power within the Teardrop Chalice.
Once she finished, the power she could wield would be even greater.
But even if her mimicry wasn't yet complete, Bai Shi was already very satisfied.
Perfectly mimicking him was Ashmi's ultimate goal for her own completion. Not achieving it felt like a thorn in her side, something she found completely unacceptable.
But for the sake of battle, being able to wield over ninety percent of his power was more than enough.
On the way to his destination, Bai Shi took the opportunity to plan his next course of action.
First, there were the things to finish in Nokstella.
He would check out the place Ashmi mentioned, then help Ranni kill the Baleful Shadow.
After that, depending on the situation, he might go for a quick dip in the Lake of Rot.
As for what came next...
Although Ranni had told him to go to the Altus Plateau, there was no rush.
Ranni hadn't pinpointed the Two Fingers' location yet, so he couldn't take them out in one go.
It was just a matter of delivering a gift, no need to be so frantic about it.
For now, the Numen in the Land of Shadow were the biggest problem.
Not only could Bai Shi himself not stand by and watch, but Melina was also in anguish over the suffering her people had once endured.
Of course, Bai Shi couldn't bear to let Melina watch as the Numen continued to suffer.
His return to the Lands Between this time was, in part, to try and resolve the Numen's plight.
Just a short while ago, Bai Shi had spoken with Ranni and briefly recounted what he had seen and heard in the Land of Shadow.
He had also asked Ranni if she had any way to solve the Numen's problem.
Unfortunately, such a thing was unheard of to Ranni as well.
She said she couldn't give him an answer without seeing it for herself, and she couldn't get away at the moment.
However, Bai Shi could bring the Small Ranni doll with him so she could assess the situation on-site.
Who else could help...
Later on, he should probably drag Hilbert out of Redmane Castle as well.
Though perfumes probably wouldn't be very useful for treating that kind of condition.
But perfumers were proper physicians, after all. He was bound to be of some use.
Even just mixing some aromatic balms to help the Numen restore their mental state would be good.
Speaking of Caelid, progress there also seemed to be painfully slow...
Thinking of this, Bai Shi sighed.
The only thing showing any promising progress right now...
Was likely his quest to repair the Elden Ring and become Elden Lord.
Not counting the Land of Shadow, once Bai Shi dealt with Volcano Manor and the Royal Capital, there would be no more obstacles.
Besides the Altus Plateau, most of the Lands Between had already welcomed the king's army.
In a little while, he would go check on Ranni's situation and gather some intel on the plateau.
He could also clear some achievements and collect a few uses for his Fengling Yueying system.
After spending a bit more time settling things in the Land of Shadow, Bai Shi planned to march on the Altus Plateau and ascend to the Royal Capital.
——
A short while later, Bai Shi arrived at the location Ashmi had guided him to.
It was a building far from the rest of Nokstella, shrouded in a black mist.
Seeing the ominous black fog, Bai Shi immediately felt he had come to the right place.
The mist permeating the area exuded a terrifying, blasphemous power that seemed completely out of place in Nokstella.
But this strange power was exactly what Bai Shi was looking for.
The aura emanating from this black mist was very similar to the feeling he got from the Fingerslayer Blade.
Bai Shi stepped directly into it, and a pool appeared before him.
It was an exquisite circular pool. Even though the building's exterior was dilapidated, this part remained perfectly intact.
The statue within the pool depicted a Nox Monk holding a stone basin.
Seeing the pool here, Bai Shi immediately made a connection to another place in the Lands Between.
It seemed the Church of Vows had a similar pool, identical in design.
The pool in the Church of Vows could be used for absolution and was filled with a holy aura. As for this place...
Not only did the swirling black mist emanate an ominous aura, but the pool's water was also filled with corpses.
Countless corpses, with their heads tilted up and hands reaching for the sky, their lower bodies dissolved into a deep purple sludge, all stuck together.
Given its appearance, this place did not seem to be for absolution.
However, Bai Shi grew expectant.
The Fingerslayer Blade, the great treasure of Nokron, Eternal City, was born from a corpse.
And the scene here, wasn't it a perfect match?
Furthermore, the material of the Starfall Shadow was identical to the Fingerslayer Blade, making them a pair of weapons.
If the place to unseal it was here, it would also correspond to the paired relationship between the two Eternal Cities.
Bai Shi walked forward and stood at the edge of the pool.
After taking out the Starfall Shadow, he truly did feel a sense of yearning from the blade.
It seemed this blade also longed to have its seal removed.
Thinking for a moment, Bai Shi took out a flask of Celestial Dew.
Since the design here was identical to the Church of Vows, perhaps Celestial Dew could also be used here.
Bai Shi floated before the statue of the Nox Monk and dripped the Celestial Dew into the stone basin in its hands.
Starlight gradually emerged within the black mist, and a force began to pull.
The Starfall Shadow began to tremble violently.
Bai Shi released his grip, and the sealed katana floated in the air on its own.
The black mist began to converge, and the corpses and sludge in the pool floated up in defiance of gravity.
Finally, as if swallowed by a vortex, everything surged into the Starfall Shadow.