The Swallow sailed across the emerald green sea.
The originally azure waters were now stained a vibrant green by the earth-like vines that spread beneath.
On board were Sofia and the others, but the puppet girls, the largest group, were nowhere to be seen.
Not a single puppet girl was present this time.
"Why aren't you taking them with you this time?" Lucilia asked curiously, perched on Alka's shoulder.
When they had just left the camp, Alka had specifically instructed the puppet girls to remain within the camp and not to accompany them on this mission.
Not only Lucilia, but Sofia and the others nearby also had the same question and turned to Alka.
Alka explained, "Because this is a pure battle, it's not just them. You must also help defend the perimeter and not participate directly in the battle."
Without waiting for anyone to ask, Alka continued, "This time, the enemy is an abomination from the ancient age of the gods. They are pure spiritual monsters, and all their attacks are directed at the soul.
Not only for you, but also for the puppet girls who have just awakened their souls, this is absolutely fatal, and it is very likely to cause them irreparable damage."
The puppet girls were originally soulless puppets.
It was only because Alka and his team specially created the puppet girls from their hair, and with Lucelia's improvement, that they began to gradually develop their own spiritual intelligence.
This spiritual intelligence is not yet sufficient to form a complete soul. If they were attacked by a soul at this time,
No matter how you look at it, it is certain that the process of their soul formation will be irreversibly affected.
They may even never be able to condense into a true soul again. This is something they cannot allow.
Besides, their participation wasn't essential at this stage, so for safety's sake, Alka kept them in the camp.
As everyone pondered, Alka continued.
"I can't guarantee success this time, after all, those monsters are incredibly powerful.
I'm mainly going to test the waters. If it works, I'll take them all and get the item right away.
If not, I can escape unscathed.
My soul is stronger than any of yours, and coupled with the power of the dream world, it's highly defensive. Ordinary soul attacks have little effect on mine.
But you're different. Soul wounds are difficult to heal, and severe damage can have even greater consequences."
After saying this, Alka looked at everyone and said, "So, you can just assist me up there. Don't worry, we've been together for so long, and I'm not a reckless person."
After hearing Alka's words, everyone thought for a moment before nodding.
As Alka had said, they truly couldn't offer much help this time.
Even if they reached the fourth stage of strength, it would be difficult for them to survive underwater against monsters that targeted soul attacks.
After all, their souls were far weaker than Alka's.
It wasn't just Alka; 99% of the people in the Boundless Sea couldn't possess the soul defenses Alka possessed.
He was practically unique now.
As everyone chatted, the Flying Swallow neared the spot they had explored earlier.
As the Flying Swallow slowly came to a stop above the point,
Alka glanced down at the hole they had dug through the vine layer.
It had almost been repaired, though it appeared slightly thinner than the surrounding area, and the vines were even greener.
These vines were growing very quickly.
Pororo swam over and, without hesitation, slashed his claws twice, once again severing the intertwined green growth. This revealed the entrance to the deep sea below.
Besides Pororo, Matlisa and Julia also dove in.
However, they didn't descend through the entrance, but waited.
"Wait, Pororo. The three of you will come down with me, but you only need to stop at 150 meters and wait for me. This is very important, do you understand?"
The three nodded.
Then Alka looked at Sofia: "Give me a long-lasting, powerful darkvision."
Without darkvision in the deep sea, that's not good. Simply seeing your surroundings clearly is a challenge.
Sofia nodded, and a triangular yellow gemstone headband appeared on her forehead. She followed her hand and tapped Alka's eyes.
Powerful darkvision settled into Alka's pupils. Even in the pitch-black depths of the ocean, Alka could see everything around him as clearly as if he were on the bright, daylight surface.
A mirror appeared in his hand, and Alka brushed aside his hair. He carefully examined the flower mark hidden beneath.
The mark was still clearly imprinted on his forehead, and he could clearly sense the blessings it brought.
He nodded in satisfaction.
Jason walked over and reached out his right hand to grasp Alka's left forearm. A large number of crystals adhered to Alka's forearm.
A crystal arm armor formed on it.
"Can you use it?"
"Don't worry, I've used it before."
Hearing Alka's words, Jason nodded.
Next came Juanlu, who took out his treasure.
He waved the three spheres on it, and they floated directly beside Alka.
At this point, the spheres were still in their normal form, not opening their mouths to bite.
"These three can help you attack any enemies that approach you, even if they're spirits, we can bite them off."
Alka nodded, looking at the three spheres floating beside him.
Then Juanlu took out a cookie and handed it to him.
"Eat it! It's a powerful nutrient block. It might not taste great, but it can help store energy and quickly restore your strength.
But it only lasts for an hour."
Alka nodded. They'd all tasted it before when Juanlu was developing it, and it certainly didn't taste very good.
It was a bit like eating wet algae freshly dug out of the soil.
He suppressed the strange taste and stuffed the cookie into his mouth.
Simon, with his patrol plane ready for exploration, dove underwater first.
This time, he prepared six patrol aircraft to monitor each other, and he would be in charge, so he should be able to clearly see what was happening below.
Everyone waited for him to complete his exploration.
As the six underwater conical probes rapidly sank to the seafloor, they quickly sank.
As they approached 160 meters, they gradually slowed down, activating all their detection devices to maximum.
They created some distance between them, allowing each to sense the status of the others.
Then, they suddenly accelerated simultaneously, exploring downwards together.
As the attack continued, one after another was destroyed, but this time, they were not all destroyed simultaneously.
Through mutual observation, Simon finally determined the exact number of them.
"There are six in total. I didn't see what they were, but there are at least six. Be careful."
Alka nodded.
The pearl she had obtained earlier appeared in her hand and fastened it around her waist.
Following Pororo and the other two, they swam down from the cave entrance.
As soon as she entered the water, Alka felt as if she could breathe the air underwater just as if she were on land.
The experience was truly fascinating, especially since the water around her wasn't a lethal element.
The area around her mouth seemed to have a barrier, keeping the water out.
Although the surroundings were pitch black, Alka could clearly see her surroundings.
Not far away, a massive rope, woven from countless vines, draped straight down.
The four of them swam slowly downwards.
Their records showed they had reached approximately 150 meters.
The Pororo and the other two stopped at their source.
Alka turned to look at them. Matresha gently raised her hand, and 16 fine needles emerged and pierced Alka's body.
The needles inserted into his body would provide healing at critical moments and overcome certain conditions.
Julia closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, they were blood red.
The coin appeared in her hand and began to flip, revealing the side of a flaming skull.
Crimson lines entwined Alka's body.
Alka could feel his own strength growing stronger, and his pain perception diminished, giving him the illusion of fearlessness.
He could even sense a slight increase in bloodthirstiness and brutality.
Then she gently waved her hand.
Pink energy, combined with some mirror shards, enveloped the three people, instantly concealing them.
Three streams of gold and silver energy separated and enveloped their heads, strengthening their soul defenses.
He watched the three people nod.
Arka began to slowly descend alone. Two massive crystal antlers had unknowingly extended from his head.
A wild pattern representing a deer also appeared on his face.
As he drew closer to the area, he could already sense the hatred within.
The intense emotion stung his skin through the water.
Even with the powerful dark vision Sofia had equipped him with, he couldn't see through the dark membrane beneath.
It wasn't darkness, but a barrier formed by some kind of hateful energy.
It blocked the inner and outer worlds.
It must be this thing that trapped the soul of this former flower fairy saint here, unknown to anyone.
He took a deep breath.
Arka suddenly pierced through the membrane.
"Ahhhhhhhhhh!"
A piercing scream rang in his ears, madly trying to pierce his soul.
Alka felt no pain in his soul; instead, the frantic screams distracted him.
He turned his head and looked around.
The gray-black mist pierced his chest directly, but the attack didn't cause any wounds. Instead, it caused his body to rapidly lose temperature.
His physical strength began to drain rapidly, and he could also feel the chill in his mind and soul.
It was an attack targeting the soul.
There were eight of them in total.
Eight strange soul monsters, draped in tattered black robes, swam frantically in the water, like sharp arrows made of black mist, piercing and piercing around him.
They kept piercing his body, trying to attack his soul.
In the water, their speed was like teleportation.
The three spheres surrounding Alka had transformed into red monsters with gaping mouths, whirling and biting relentlessly. Each bite tore off a cloud of mist and chewed it.
But as they chewed, the spheres' biting speed slowed, and they were inevitably affected.
Already moving in the water, Alka, lacking agility, found it difficult to resist.
The crystal shield on his left arm opened, blocking the monsters charging head-on.
These monsters collided directly with the crystal shield, not penetrating it.
But several others pierced Alka's body from the sides and behind, draining away his warmth.
"Ding!"
A crisp, ding-dong sound.
The eight soul monsters, frantically swimming and piercing around him, seemed frozen in place.
Alka, icy, gasped twice.
Although the enemy's attack hadn't damaged or destroyed his soul, the chilling aura still lingered within him. The Flower Fairy's Blessing on his forehead was emitting a faint glow. Ahead, bound at the base of the drooping vines, lay a corpse. The corpse hadn't decayed, but the armor it wore was covered in dirt and seawater sediment. However, it was covered in cracks and debris. The armor vibrated as if it had come alive. The dust dissipated, revealing its patterns. Embroidered across it were dense floral designs, with the Flower of Heaven at the center. The corpse's eyes remained closed, but Alka could see clearly. A broken spear pierced through her body. The spear was already covered in rust and tangled with weeds.
A faintly pinkish-white, glowing spirit emerged from the corpse.
This spirit was missing something and, compared to a normal soul, was more transparent.
She arrived before Alka.
Looking at the blessing on Alka's forehead, she closed her eyes, her face filled with hope and relief.
"My god... is still alive, right?"
She spoke the exact same language Lucilia had spoken earlier, the same language of the Land of Fragrant Flowers.
Alka nodded. "The flower fairy is still alive, and is even on the verge of revival."
"Really? That's good! That's good!"
She spoke with a weak voice, but the excitement was palpable.
"Your soul's defenses seem strong. Go quickly. Don't think about killing these hateful spirits; I'll help you suppress them.
Defend against their attacks, then remove the broken spear from my body. Carry my body and leave this area. They will naturally break and disappear.
This area has been transformed. Here, they will never die, forever hating everything."
She quickly recounted the surroundings to Alka.
Alka nodded and immediately swam towards the body.
As Alka moved, the evil spirits also began to struggle, trying to break free from the soul's suppression.
But their speed was far greater than their previous, exorbitant, lightning-fast pace.
A large amount of pink mist and mirrors filled the surroundings.
Alka looked at the body's location. A full-height mirror appeared above Alka's head, then swam around to envelop him.
Alka, encased, instantly vanished from the spot. The evil spirits frantically darted around. They could sense Alka's location, but they couldn't affect him at all.
Alka, now in the mirror world, could sense even the slightest movement.
A smile crossed his face.
"It actually works like that."
Although his fake mirror world didn't cover a large area, he himself wasn't far from the corpse in the outside world; the boundary just happened to be right where the corpse was.
However, Alka only enveloped herself, flipping into the mirrored world.
What remained outside was a temporary mirror constructed from the surrounding seawater.
The hateful undead spirits, like madmen, shuttled and attacked the real-world location corresponding to Alka's mirror, but nothing changed.
The floating spirit released its suppression of the evil spirits.
Looking at the distorted mirror beside her.
"Mirror Master? No, that damned fellow should have been dead long ago.
Why would this thing appear on a mortal? And with the blessing of my god, what's going on out there?"
She was puzzled, but she knew something must have changed drastically to cause this.
Still, she smiled at the use of this ability, because it was very useful in this situation.
Alka swam through the mirrored world to the location of the corpse in reality.
Taking a deep breath, the mirrored world flipped again. He appeared directly beside the corpse.
The surrounding evil spirits began to attack frantically.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, the spirit once again exerted its powerful suppressive force, causing its soul to flicker and become extremely unstable.
But the eight evil spirits were also instantly immobilized. Alka said nothing and immediately sprang into action, quickly grabbing the broken spear and pulling it from the corpse.
The spear's removal brought out some fragments of flesh and blood, but the blood was long gone.
Holding the corpse, Alka inverted the mirror once more.
The spirit instantly vanished, and the surrounding evil spirits screamed frantically, wandering around aimlessly.
However, their attacks were completely ineffective.
They clearly only needed to break the mirror left outside to release Alka.
But clearly, in their frenzy, they had no such thoughts. Alka in the mirror began to swim upward.
He soon touched the air wall. Checking the distance, he seemed to be within range.
He felt the changes caused by the attacks of the evil spirits.
If his soul continued to be attacked like that, while he wouldn't be injured, the chill would slow him down, until he was completely submerged.
Thinking for a moment, he drew out the golden and silver energy and sheathed it around himself.
In an instant, Alka was outside.
The eight evil spirits gathered around Alka, frantically attacking his soul.
The piercing chill drained away his body's heat and strength.
The pink mist suddenly exploded.
He pushed the evil spirits away, and taking this opportunity, Alka threw the body out of the water.
"Bororo! Catch it!"
The corpse's legs had barely passed through the black membrane when they were suddenly pulled upward and vanished.
The dark area began to shake madly.
The screams of the evil spirits pierced his soul.
These hateful spirits began to wander around aimlessly, no longer targeting Alka.