"Sister Lumina, what's wrong?"
On the gates of Okhema City, seeing Lumina stop mid-sentence with a stunned expression, Aglaea also felt a bad premonition and hurriedly asked.
Sister Lumina is always with Big Sister Herta. Now that Big Sister Herta isn't by her side, she must be with Hyacine and the others, right?
Sister Lumina stopped speaking halfway, as if she had sensed something.
Could she have sensed... some danger on Big Sister Herta's side?
"It's... it's nothing, it shouldn't be a big deal... right?" Hearing this and sensing Aglaea's worry, Lumina first forced a smile to calm her down.
Hyacine was in danger, but Stelle and Herta were not.
This was very strange.
If Seliose's target was Hyacine and all the attacks were directed at her, Herta should have been able to react in time.
Unless... unless an Emanator of the same level had intervened. In that case, with Hyacine as the target, it was possible that Herta would fail to react in the first instant, ultimately leaving Hyacine in danger.
But this possibility was also extremely slim, it should be impossible to happen.
If an Emanator had appeared in Amphoreus, even if they had concealed their energy and entered silently, they would absolutely not have escaped Lumina's perception.
At least in Lumina's perception, no Emanator-level power had emerged.
In other words, the danger Hyacine encountered was from a being below the level of an Emanator?
Then how could Herta possibly allow Hyacine to fall into danger from a being below the level of an Emanator?
Hmm... forget it, forget it.
"Let's discuss the rest when Hyacine and the others return. I'll go check the Eye of Twilight."
After leaving these words and offering a slight smile, her entire figure vanished from before them.
In the blink of an eye, Lumina once again appeared within the Eye of Twilight.
In another blink, Lumina's figure silently stood beside Herta, standing shoulder to shoulder with her, taking in everything happening before her eyes.
Hmm... no danger had appeared, the dangerous aura in the surroundings had already dissipated. It was obvious that Hyacine and the others had already defeated that Seliose and were now conversing on their way back.
So where did the danger come from?
Lumina was utterly bewildered. In this situation, couldn't they just follow the original path? What kind of danger could there be?
Could it be... that divine decree again?
Ever since she had a slight suspicion about the outcome of that Era Nova, Lumina felt that the divine decree didn't seem like anything good.
All the divine decrees given to the Chrysos Heirs ended with "Death," and then guided them to construct a false Era Nova.
It was just like some evil organization, painting a pie in the sky for them, telling them that every action they took was for all of humanity, all for the sake of saving the world, constantly gaslighting them.
In the end, the so-called salvation of the world was actually the destruction of the world...
A super grand conspiracy through and through.
Combining this with what Lygus had said earlier about that Lord Ravager, a suspicion faintly formed in Lumina's mind.
Ever since entering Amphoreus, Lumina had never sensed the aura of another Lord Ravager, yet that Lygus claimed a Lord Ravager was right here in Amphoreus, waiting to awaken.
So could Lumina assume that the Lord Ravager hadn't actually been born yet, but was merely in the process of absorbing energy and growing?
As long as there was enough energy, once the growth was complete, it would truly ascend to the status of a Lord Ravager?
If that were truly the case, then Lumina also knew what this so-called "Era Nova" was.
It was the energy being nurtured for this Lord Ravager.
Although this energy was very little for a Lord Ravager, but what if... there was a lot of it?
Endless cycles, providing energy continuously, with the blessing of Time, this Lord Ravager would sooner or later be born.
And that Flame Reaver was because he discovered the essence of Amphoreus, discovered that Amphoreus was only the fuel for a Lord Ravager, and understood that if this Lord Ravager were born, not only would Amphoreus be completely destroyed, but even the world outside Amphoreus would also be thrown into a sea of misery.
Therefore, he went through the cycles again and again, stopping the so-called Era Nova again and again, preventing the birth of the Lord Ravager, and while fulfilling his duty as a "Savior," he also avoided a Galaxy covered in blood and misery...
He was a truly remarkable person. Based on Lumina's judgment, he must have gone through at least ten thousand cycles to end up in this broken state.
Of course, this was only Lumina's estimation, a minimum. The actual number of cycles would be far greater than Lumina imagined.
Still, these were all just conjectures Lumina had made based on the current information. The specific details would still need to be verified.
But it didn't matter. Even if that Lord Ravager were truly born, Lumina could still send him back to where he came from.
With that, Lumina stopped thinking about it and focused her attention back on reality, silently watching to see what kind of danger Hyacine would encounter.
Just as Lumina finished her thoughts, Hyacine, her expression serious and grave, asked Phainon, "Mr. Phainon, in the myths of Amphoreus, the Dawn Machine was a gift given by Aquila to Kephalos, right?"
Neither Hyacine nor Phainon, nor Dan Heng, Stelle, or Mem, noticed Lumina's silent appearance beside Herta.
The only one who noticed Lumina's appearance was Herta, who glanced at her briefly before ignoring her.
"Why ask about this all of a sudden? Let's go back to the surface first..."
"Mr. Phainon!"
Hearing Hyacine's sudden, strange question, Phainon looked a bit puzzled. On a normal day, Phainon would be more than happy to answer such a question, but right now... this Sky Fortress was about to collapse, so they should hurry and get back to the ground.
Phainon wanted Hyacine to set this question aside for a moment, but before he could even finish speaking, he was interrupted.
Seeing Hyacine's earnest and grave expression, he couldn't help but freeze up. Though confused, he still hurried to give the answer: "Yes, the Dawn Machine was a gift given by Aquila to Kephalos, a consensus all authors of the myths have reached."
"..." After receiving this answer, Hyacine fell silent for a moment, her face showing a hint of disbelief, but soon she took a deep breath and regained her composure: "Everyone, please calm down and listen to me."
"The Coreflame just told me that the Dawn Device... has gone out."
"...!"
When Hyacine's words fell, Phainon, Stelle, and the others' pupils suddenly constricted.
Coming from Hyacine, even a piece of news this far-fetched had to be believed.
Hyacine was the one told by the Coreflame, so the chance of this being an error should be very, very low...
That means the Dawn Device, which has protected Okhema for a thousand years, has truly gone out at this moment...
What could be the reason?
This confusion hung over everyone's hearts, and they all fell into a daze of deep thought.
The Dawn Machine had protected Okhema for so long; it couldn't have gone out without any reason, there must be a cause or a fuse.
"We have no time to figure out why!" Seeing everyone else lost in thought because of this heart-trembling news, Hyacine hurriedly shouted, pulling their thoughts back from their musings.
"Without the light of the Dawn Machine, the Holy City won't be able to hold out for long even with Castie and the others, because... that Flame Reaver has been watching covetously from the side all along!"
Hyacine focused everyone's attention on the Flame Reaver, reminding them.
Okhema has several Demigods, so the Black Tide alone would definitely not be able to conquer it in a short period, but... but what if that Flame Reaver also participated in this battle?
Or rather, wasn't that exactly his goal?
The Flame Reaver has already destroyed The Grove; if he doesn't have eyes on Okhema, that would be absolutely impossible.
"Everyone, you must get back to the surface safely," Hyacine said, taking a deep breath as if she had made a decision. Her expression was solemn and serious as she gestured to the group.
"And what about you, Hyacine? Do you plan to stay in the Eye of Twilight?"
"Me? I will use the Divine Authority of [The Sky] to do what I must!"
A soft, low voice quietly reached Hyacine's ears. Without thinking, Hyacine blurted out the answer, declaring her resolve in a single short sentence.
"Eh?"
But very quickly, Hyacine realized something.
This voice didn't seem to belong to Phainon, Stelle, or anyone else in their group.
This gentle, healing voice... in Hyacine's memory, it could only belong to one person...
"Lumie?!" Hyacine turned her head toward the source of the voice and immediately saw that familiar figure.
For a moment, the gravity and seriousness on Hyacine's face were instantly replaced by a look of joy.
But soon, that joy vanished, replaced by a sense of frustration and reluctance.
Assuming the Sky Divinity, that part was not a problem at all.
The problem was that what Hyacine wanted to do after assuming the Sky Divinity had a bit of a problem.
The problem was not with the people of Okhema or everyone else, but rather that Hyacine would be unable to continue staying with Sister Lumina.
Hyacine would assume the Divine Authority of the Sky and then... remain in the sky to bestow Protection upon the people.
It was similar to the Nether Realm, yet different.
By remaining in the sky, Hyacine would merge with the sky, and only then could she ensure that the Protection descended upon every person in Okhema.
With a Demigod guarding Okhema, there would be no problem in the short term if only the Black Tide invaded.
In the long term... there would be a major problem.
It would not be that the Demigods would fall and the Black Tide would completely overrun Okhema, but rather that the people within Okhema would first lose their minds...
The Protection bestowed by Hyacine could not only protect the people of Okhema, but also preserve and maintain their spirits.
Someone had to do this, and Hyacine was the best person for the job.
Hyacine was reluctant. She was reluctant to part from everyone and reluctant to part from Lumina, but for her mission as a Descendant of the Sky, Hyacine had to do it!
"Hyie, could you please stop making that expression, as if you're ready to die?" Lumina wasn't entirely clear on what was going through Hyacine's mind, but the look of grim resolve on Hyacine's face made her very unhappy.
As long as I, Lumina, am still here in the Galaxy, no beautiful girl I've ever known will ever die, and they will absolutely never suffer a fatal blow!
Hyacine, wearing this expression of readiness to die, aren't you cursing me?
Hmph, you naturally wicked little Hyacine, how dare you curse me. Just watch as I teach you a good lesson, I'll mess you up, and make you understand the consequences of cursing me, Lumina!
"Lumie, I..." As Lumina's words fell, Hyacine fell into a silence, offering no explanation. She wanted to say something, but her mouth opened for a long time, yet she couldn't utter a single word.
"Hyie, do you know how I solved Castorice's problem?" Seeing Hyacine's cute, speechless expression, Lumina smiled. Instead of shocking her with direct action, she asked a question.
"Castie's problem?" Hearing this, Hyacine froze, and a hint of confusion appeared on her cute face.
Castie's problem? What problem did Castie have?
Why was Lumie asking such a question at this time?
Could it be... the problem with the divine decree?
After a moment of silence and thought, Hyacine generally understood what Lumina's question meant.
After a while, Hyacine slowly spoke with a hint of uncertainty, "Castie's problem... was it that Lumie used something to replace Castie's identity in the Nether Realm, so she could walk freely in the mortal realm?"
"Um... something like that." Lumina nodded. Although it wasn't entirely accurate, it was generally correct.
"...What does Lumie mean by that?" Hyacine wasn't a fool. Through this conversation, she could probably guess what Lumina wanted to do.
Lumina smiled, walked up to Hyacine, stretched out her small hand, gently placed it on Hyacine's head, and started stroking it softly. "What else could it mean?"
"What I'm trying to say is, Hyie, you absolutely don't have to sacrifice yourself for everyone."
"These things can be achieved even without any sacrifice."
Rumble!
After Lumina's words fell, Hyacine was slightly stunned, her green eyes filled with Lumina's stunningly beautiful face.
Her crystalline pink lips parted slightly, wanting to say something, but before she could speak, a thunderous crash echoed, signaling the imminent collapse of this massive Sky City-State.
"Um... Miss Lumina, Hyacine, we should probably go down and talk." Seeing this, Phainon didn't just stand there waiting anymore and quickly spoke up, "If we stay any longer, we'll be in trouble."
"Mm, let's leave this place first." Hearing this, Lumina had no objections. She nodded, stopped all her movements, and agreed with Phainon's words.
"Mm..."
After thinking for a moment, Hyacine also nodded and agreed.
After understanding Lumina's thoughts, Hyacine also abandoned her own idea.
Since sacrifice could be avoided, surely no one would refuse.