Whispering Poems

Chapter 3833 First Fire and Wax Stone

After learning the unique secret of sensing the First Flame from Sister Beren in the Tombstone Wasteland, Shad could always sense the flame of the First Flame in the snow-capped mountains, but he couldn't pinpoint its exact location.

As he stepped out of the passageway behind him, the vague senses suddenly became clear, and he distinctly felt that the flame he was looking for was right here.

"Was it because of the ringtone just now?"

The cave before them was a pit, higher on the outside and lower in the middle, descending in a stepped fashion. It was clearly a sacrificial site inside a mountain, and apart from a ring of dozens of stone pillars standing in the middle of the descending steps, it was very similar in layout to the "First Fire Sacrifice Site".

Shad hurried down the steps, intending to enter the sacrificial site, but stopped when he reached the stone pillars. Some ancient force was guarding this place; approaching rashly was unwise.
He then pulled out the snake scale that Ms. White had given him from his pocket. This was a key given to Shad to unlock the seal and obtain the First Flame, and to unlock almost all the "treasures" in the snow mountain.

Sure enough, the snake scales emitted light as soon as they appeared, and the faint yet real power disappeared.

Shad then stepped over the stone pillar and continued downwards. As if sensing the power of the Primordial Fire within him, the surface of the surrounding stone pillars cracked softly as he entered the sacrificial site, and then streaks of firelight seeped out.

These flames were not bright, but after they spread across the stone pillars, they also revealed streaks of crimson chains in the air.

At the same time, a square stone platform rose in the center of the sacrificial site, upon which rested an ancient stone basin. A small flame flickered within the basin, and crimson chains connected this flame to the high stone pillars, forming the complete seal of the area.

The instant Xia De saw the flames on the stone platform, he knew immediately that this was what he was looking for:
"The First Flame".

But instead of immediately taking the flame, he looked at another item on the stone platform.

The flames provided light, and a small walnut box, about the size of two palms and inlaid with silver vine patterns, sat in the southeast corner of the stone platform, resting on a soft velvet cloth. The box was unlocked; the brass clasps gleamed with a warm luster from the passage of time, while the box itself was brand new, as if it had been placed there just moments before Shad looked over.

This box doesn't fit the ancient style of the sacrificial site at all; it's obvious at a glance that it's not part of the seal here.

"The things that Violet, Theresa, and Sister Beren left me are indeed here."

Shad approached the stone platform and, as he unfastened the clasp of the box, the hinges made a soft click. Shad then saw that the inside of the box was lined with a layer of dark purple velvet.

What was at the bottom of the box was not immediately clear, as a folded letter lay quietly on the top layer. The letter was folded into an exquisite rhombus, with the edges pressed straight. On the exposed corner, one could glimpse a faint embossed pattern: a white rose entwined with thorns, with a small emblem at the stem—the personal mark of the Witch Empress Violet.

The luxurious paper itself indicated the letter's origin, and the perfume scent that wafted out when the box was opened made Shad vaguely recall the smiling, blonde witch emperor.

Unfolding the letter, one sees a ring of extremely fine gold foil around the edge, and the letter itself is written in rather ornate cursive script—

Dear Shad,

I knew you would find this letter. Sister Beren and I found this place three months after the "Tombstone Wasteland" incident. The nun said that the flames here need to maintain the seal, so the flames cannot be retrieved for the time being, but can be retrieved in your time.

I have investigated the ancient serpent worship and the legends of the pilgrimage of destiny circulating on the island. Sister Beren has also found the notes left by the nuns in ancient times, and knows that the ancient god once sealed destiny here.

I anticipate this place will become a crucial battlefield in your time, so I left some items in the chest in the hope that they will be of assistance to you.

I hope to see you soon.

I love you.
Violet Marshall

The letter wasn't dated, but that wasn't important. Shad carefully put the letter away before looking into the box.

The small, one-hit-kill gun lay inside, exactly the same as it had been in Theresa's hands years ago. Only after taking out this angelic relic did Shad notice the rolled-up rune paper stuffed into the muzzle, realizing it was a containment technique.

Besides the relic that Shad already knew about, the bright red liquid in the slender, wax-sealed glass test tube lying in the box was clearly the Philosopher's Stone. Violet knew that this relic was very useful to Shad, but for the demigod queen, these Philosopher's Stones were actually nothing special.

After taking out the test tube, Shad found another small paper package in the box. Inside the package was a white wax stone about the length of a thumb, and there were words on the paper package containing the wax stone.

This time there's a bit more text, and it's also written by Violet.

Sister Beren had heard Shad mention the [Fire Sign] he had learned from other nuns in the mid-Fifth Age. Violet, based on the principles of the Fire Sign and combined with the circumstances of her being summoned by Shad's low-level Ascension Word, created this special wax stone with the help of several "friends".

For some reason, this wax stone could only be produced in the Fifth Era, and it was a consumable item. However, its effects were quite remarkable—

If Shad writes the names of the demigod witches he wants to summon on the ground using wax stones, the spirit Shad needs to summon them using ascended words, as well as the spirit needed to maintain their existence, will be reduced. The spirit needed for the summoned witches to cast spells can also be partially provided by their own bodies.

In addition, using this unique wax stone for summoning significantly reduces the requirements for the summoning location. While it still requires a sufficiently ancient and time-related location, the range of options is considerably wider than before.

"Significantly reduce the cost of using low-level Ascendancy words? Violet has really come up with something amazing."

The wax stone that Violet placed in this walnut box can only be used once to summon one person, according to the instructions on the paper package.

Shad's current state was not yet sufficient to use Ascended Words, and even if he were to force it, it would consume the Philosopher's Stone. However, since he had this wax stone, and the current sacrificial site met the minimum requirements, Shad simply bent down and wrote Violet's name on the ancient bricks at his feet.

Only after he finished writing did he realize that this way of using sublime language was very similar to the method of summoning Adele in past lives.

The wax stone shattered immediately after the name was written, and even though Shad hadn't done anything, the white wax marks on the ground spontaneously emitted a golden light.

Shad then summoned his Life Ring, its core runes [Time and Space], Miracle - [Echo], Blasphemy - [Vibration], Enlightenment - [Sleeping Princess], and Whisper - [Power]. The five runes resonated on the Life Ring until their light aligned into a single line—

"An echo of time and space, shaking the dormant power!"

The bell tolling from the void resonated with the witch's echo that Shad possessed, and the golden name beneath his feet immediately shone brightly upwards.

The essence of that bell's sound was the vibration of Shad's soul. That great soul located the witch through the echoing sound of the witch, traversing time and space to find the witch located at the other end of time.

As Shad felt as if he had simply unleashed a magical spell, golden light, like a curtain of light, shone upwards from the wax marks on the ground. Within that golden light, Violet, lifting her skirt, slowly rose to her feet.

She wore black boots adorned with scattered gems, and a seemingly simple yet exceptionally form-fitting black dress swayed in the primordial winds that appeared in the cave when the Ascended Word was used. The wide belt around her waist was clearly the work of an elf.

She wore three jeweled alchemical rings on each hand, and her long, wavy golden hair cascaded down her back to her waist. The Witch Empress's exquisite face and beautiful eyes sparkled with tiny stars as she straightened up and smiled at Shad before her.

This time, it was neither a projection nor an echo that became a mark; Violet had returned to this era.

She completely ignored her surroundings and instead smiled at Shad, saying:
"I thought the first person you would summon would be Miss Feliananna."

This is the first sentence.

“It’s been a long time, Shad. I knew you would find this place even if I didn’t leave any clear clues.”

This was her second sentence, after which she took the initiative to hug Xia De's neck and kiss him.

After the kiss, the demigod witch didn't say much. She just tossed her hair gently and then stroked his face with some reluctance.

Shad kissed her cheek lightly again:
“In the letter in the box, you already said you looked forward to meeting me soon, so why would I use the wax stone you left behind to summon someone else?”

The demigod witch made no attempt to hide the smile on her face:
"So now, what do I need to do?"

She knew she couldn't afford to waste any time. Even though she was inside the mountain, she could still feel the turmoil of fate and the terrifying apocalyptic power.

Shad explained:
"This time, the enemy is Fate, the end of the Sixth Era, and it has completed its molt. Let's go to the mountaintop to help, and also, the Ring of Fate."

"You don't have to worry about that."

Violet smiled and reached out to grab at the air, whereupon a pink ring appeared out of thin air—the destiny of [eternal youth], its meaning quite clear:
"For those of us who have traversed the path of demigods, in such a turbulent environment, it is an incredibly simple matter to solidify our own destiny."

(End of this chapter)