Lu Mingfei, become the King of Elden!

Chapter 101 Ashes
In a quiet corner of the round-table hall, the light and shadows were dim.

Rodrigo turned her head slightly to look at Lu Mingfei beside her and said softly:
"You should know about Guishu, right?"

"Um"

Lu Mingfei subconsciously scratched the back of his head:

"I roughly know about it, the cycle of the Golden Tree. But what does that have to do with spirit training?"

Rodrika looked serious:

"After the ring of light shattered, the souls of the dead lost their way back to the roots of the golden tree. They could not attain eternal rest."

Those souls with nowhere to go could only wander and cling to their long-decayed flesh and bones, leaving behind only... ashes carrying their obsessions.

“Some of these souls are resilient and powerful enough that they can briefly appear near their remaining ashes through certain mediums, and even retain their appearance and fighting instincts from their previous life.”

She took a slight breath, and her once empty eyes now shone with a strange light, as if she had found her mission:
“Spiritual intercourse is about engaging in dialogue with those wandering souls and achieving a deeper level of harmony. It is a technique that allows the living to establish a brief empathy with the deceased.”

Through spirit manipulation, I can stabilize those fragile spiritual forms and, more importantly, access their deeply buried past, awakening those dormant fragments of memory.

Lu Mingfei pondered Rodrica's words, recalling what he had seen and heard at the border heroes' cemetery. Those soldiers who were now only spirits, and the lost knight guarding the Dragon's Mark—weren't they the epitome of this existence?
Even after death, they remain bound by invisible shackles, mechanically guarding long-forgotten glory or cold relics day after day, year after year, slaughtering any living thing that steps into their domain.

Stormwing "Oreg"... such a legendary hero, did his soul also have enough resilience to leave behind ashes that carry his will after death, continuing to protect everything he cherished?
If it truly existed... if I possessed the means to summon that majestic figure...

A fleeting thought crossed Lu Mingfei's mind. He could even imagine that figure, more reliable than the old knight, leading the way, while he simply followed along, cheering like a lazy bum...

"Then where can I find such a medium?" he asked, suppressing his turbulent thoughts.

The glimmer of light that had just appeared in Rodrika's beautiful eyes was now shrouded in confusion. She shook her head gently, her voice tinged with helplessness:
“Mr. Xiu Gu said... that it is an extremely rare, almost legendary item... I have never heard of it either. I’m afraid it can only be found by Mr. Lu Mingfei himself... in the border area.”

Upon hearing this, Lu Mingfei understood.

In this land, valuable clues are always hard to come by. He didn't press further, but simply nodded, silently memorizing the words "rare medium."

"understood."

He stood up, his tall figure casting a long shadow in the torchlight:
"Then you should stay here and make the most of it. The Round Table Hall may not be a safe haven, but it's at least safer than outside. You might have a better future learning spirit manipulation from him than wielding a sword."

Rodrigo also stood up and looked up at him slightly:
“I will, Mr. Lu Mingfei. Thank you for everything you have done for me.”

Lu Mingfei waved his hand, his playful expression returning to his face:
"Hey, it's nothing. I'm off now, take care of yourself here."

With a clanging sound of armor plates colliding, he stood up, his armored boots making a dull thud on the stone bricks.

Are you leaving?

Rodrik's voice, tinged with urgency, rang out behind him.

Lu Mingfei paused, turning back in confusion.

Rodrigo quickly stepped forward, carefully holding an object in her hands before her chest. It was a small, simply polished wooden box, no bigger than the palm of her hand, its surface undecorated, almost plain. She lowered her head, her gaze tenderly fixed on the small box in her hands, as if it contained an invaluable treasure. Then, she took a deep breath and handed the box to Lu Mingfei.

"Please accept this."

Lu Mingfei was somewhat surprised and did not immediately answer:

"This is……?"

"It's Kurara's ashes."

Rodrika looked up, her eyes filled with a tender reminiscence and a sense of reluctance to part:

"She...is a child I met on my travels, and she's always been with me..."

With boundless affection, her fingertips gently brushed across the surface of the box, as if caressing a child's cheek.

"Now... I no longer travel. This is where I belong."

Rodrigo pushed the small box forward a little further, looking earnestly at Lu Mingfei:
"So...please let this child continue to follow you in my place. She may be small, but she is very gentle and may be able to offer you some assistance."

Lu Mingfei was stunned. He looked at the small wooden box in front of him, and then at Rodrika's eyes, which were filled with complex emotions—a longing for the past and a blessing for his future.

He got it.

This gift is the most precious companionship that this girl, who has lost everything and has just emerged from the abyss of despair, can offer.

Lu Mingfei remained silent for a few seconds, his nonchalant expression completely vanishing. He reached out his hand, covered by a metal arm guard, and gently took the cold wooden box, as if afraid of disturbing the sleeping soul within.

"The ashes that house souls. The soul that can summon soul jellyfish. Floating in the air, illuminating the souls around. A tearful young jellyfish searches for her distant homeland. She will try her best to spray venom. The young jellyfish is named Kurara."

"Kurara?"

Lu Mingfei read aloud:

"...That's a really good name."

He looked up at Rodrik, his voice serious:

"Don't worry. I will... take good care of her."

Rodrika's face finally broke into a faint, relieved smile, dispelling the last gloom from her brow. She bowed slightly again, her posture reverent:
"Thank you, Mr. Lu Mingfei. May your future be blessed with guidance."

Lu Mingfei carefully tucked the small wooden box into his bosom, close to his breastplate. He glanced at Rodrikka one last time, nodded, said nothing more, and turned to stride away.

Rodrica stood there, watching the lonely figure carrying two swords disappear into the dim light and shadow. After a long while, she turned and walked towards the forge. Kurara... would take her place and continue to accompany the knight, witnessing his story.

(End of this chapter)