Through some miraculous luck or marvelous skill, Jody managed to defeat all of the cultists in their midst after a long and grueling battle. With all the other members slain or incapacitated by his sun fire sword, Josiah's family was finally freed from their captivity beneath the city streets!
Jody's heart swelled with relief as he welcomed the arrival of two enormous and desolate wolves. The trillwolves were a sight to behold, their sleek and muscular bodies exuding strength and grace. Their fur was a dark, midnight black, but it shimmered under the moonlight, revealing occult markings etched into their pelts. Their piercing crimson irises seemed to glow with an otherworldly energy. Despite their fierce appearance, they both bowed humbly as they approached the group. All eyes were drawn to the blue-eyed youth in the center, whose dreadlocks drifted in the wind and were surrounded by small white flames - a symbol of his divine power.
Just as suddenly, the powerful presence surrounding Jody was withdrawn completely. It just disappeared as the flames dissipated harmlessly. With great joy in his heart, Josiah turned around and embraced his younger sister Gyllian for the first time in their lives. The little girl felt her chest flooding with warmth as she instinctively wrapped her arms around her brother's strong back. She had never felt more proud to be someone's sibling. Tears streamed down her face as they hugged each other tightly while Vivian wept tears of joy behind them.
The meeting between siblings had been a long-awaited one indeed. Forever since Jody had started traveling with his mother, no one knew where exactly they had gone off to. But now it seemed that wherever she may have taken him, he hadn't forgotten about his family.
The fight was tough, but Jody eventually overcame all the problems with minimal injuries to Sek and himself and none to his family. They were halfway back to the imperial district, and many loyalists had arrived to accompany them. Who wouldn't want the protection of a pack of desolate wolves? But Jody only felt comfortable once he saw Bright had appeared by his side at some point. Although this was a relief, why wasn't this thing with his mother? Was she not under siege?
"Where's my mother?" He asked Bright.
The trickster turned his head to look at Jody. Or maybe the park swings? The dead horse behind him? It was hard to tell.
"Mistress sent away. Bright, no want. Mistress commands," replied Bright in broken wolven.
Jody wasn't surprised as he had long learned Bright could communicate with him in this way. He couldn't speak the language of heroes, but he could speak various beast tongues.
Hearing Bright's words, Jody felt it was time for him to leave. His mother's situation was strange and likely grave. Jody found Gyllian sitting on a swing, her eyes red and puffy. He sat next to her, careful not to startle her. She glanced at him and hurriedly tried to wipe her tears.
"How are you holding up?" he asked softly.
Gyllian let out a shaky breath.
"Honestly? I'm still scared and stunned by what happened," she replied.
Jody felt impressed with how well she articulated herself. Milly couldn't do this so well back then. Jody frowned as he worried about his older sister's safety.
But he only nodded in understanding. "I can't even imagine what you must be feeling. But I want you to know that I'll always be here for you no matter what."
Tears welled up in Gyllian's eyes again as she looked at Jody with gratitude. She knew she could count on him, just like how he rescued her tonight.
Jody took a moment to talk to Gyllian who was still shaken from what happened tonight. He asked her about her new journey as a sage and assured her that no matter what she went through or would go through in the future, he would always be there for her - whenever she needed him most, he would burn cities to see her face.
Feeling overwhelmed with emotions, Gyllian leaned into Jody's embrace and held onto him tightly. At that moment, she finally felt safe again. She realized that their huge family was not only made up of individuals with unique strengths, but they were also there for each other through thick and thin – something she would never forget going forward.
Without another word to his elders, Jody grabbed Sek's hand. Sek blushed fiercely, but it couldn't be seen since only her eyes and hair were visible. Actually, Jody could always feel Sek's state of mind, but he unconsciously avoided doing so. It felt like an invasion of privacy. After all, Sek was a girl.
Sek regained her composure quickly as Jody whispered in her ear.
"We have to go. I need to find my mom."
Frowning, Sek felt a little unwilling. She didn't want him to risk his life.
But remembering the previous fight, how awesome this boy had been, and the mental command he gave her to wield his Fallen God's Last Stand divinity, she grew more confident. How did he even know she would be able to use his divinity? Sek didn't know many people with labor tattoos, but she knew one. That person definitely couldn't share the power even with his shadow-bonded companion.
Could it be because of her avatar?
Sek dismissed these thoughts and dived back into the shadows with her charge.
Minutes later, Vivian glanced at where the kids were, only to discover her daughter sitting there alone. Panicked, she immediately demanded to use a communicator to call her man and then find her sister.
🐉
This time Jody felt like they were traveling for an hour. Jody took the time to check all the seven colored prompts he had been ignoring since earlier today when things started going left.
[Imp: Enemy Slain! Loot captured!]
[Imp: You have slain the second-level Vicious Backhatter.]
[Imp: Loot - 350 death crystals, 250 rage crystals, 250 wind crystals, 500 origin crystals.]
[Imp: Esoteric knowledge of.....]
[Imp: Enemy Slain! Loot captured!]
[Imp: You have slain the third-level Vicious Broncodile.]
[Imp: Loot - 2,100 death crystals, 1,250 rage crystals, 2,500 earth crystals, 5000 origin crystals.]
[Imp: Esoteric knowledge of mud making.....]
[Imp: Enemy Slain! Loot captured!]
[Imp: You have slain....]
[Imp: Enemy Slain! Loot captured!]
[Imp: You have slain....]
[Imp: Enemy Slain...]
[Imp: Enemy Slain! Loot captured!]
[Imp: You have slain the lower elite negus Xorvax.]
[Imp: Loot - 2,200 death crystals, 1,250 slaughter crystals, 2,500 calamity crystals, and 5000 life crystals.]
[Imp: Esoteric knowledge of muscular stature expansion.....]
Multiple loot captures for the day and night's adventure had piled up. Jody didn't have the patience to sort through all the various crystals and enlightenment he had received, deciding to ignore the prompts from the twilight imp that continued to list themselves.
'Cosmo.'
First, he wanted to check his natural status and that of his sky wolves.
With a thought, the [Cosmos Revealing Grimoire] appeared in a flash of purple light and flipped open to the first page.
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[Name: Josiah Goldwolf]
[Age: 8 years, 5 months.]
[Status: 79% Health, 52:22]
'Sagacity: Origin Scholar, Basic Sophomore rank, 13 BP.'
'Berserk: Wimpy Man Level 9, 89 BP (+41).'
[Summoner Status Report]
[Guardian 1: Cosmos Devouring Sky Wolf, Compatibility rating: 62%.]
'Tier 1 abilities unlocked'
'Summon Status: Infant|Child Stage'
'Summon Time: 7:11|2:53 remaining'
[Guardian 2: Mighty God Sky Wolf, Compatibility rating: 45%.]
'Tier 1 abilities unlocked'
'Summon Status: Infant|Child Stage'
'Summon Time: 10:00|5:00 remaining'
[Pet 1: Twilight Sphinx, spirit-bound, Compatibility rating 100%.]
'Tier 1 abilities unlocked'
'Summon Status: Infant|Child Stage'
'Summon Time: ∞ + ∞ = ∞'
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After confirming this, he noticed the prompts had ended and checked his system.
'Sky Status'
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[Sky Status]
[Imp: Reporting celestial law status report.]
'Life - Truth 0 - 55/1000 stars, 205,113 crystals.'
'Death - Truth 0 - 205/1000 stars, 304,203 crystals.'
'Astral - Truth 0 - 10/1000 stars, 110,075 crystals.'
'Twilight - Truth 0 - 720/1000 stars, 403,999 crystals.'
'Fate - Truth 0 - 1700/1000 stars, 3,333 crystals.'
'Slaughter - Truth 0 - 20/1000 stars, 407,342 crystals.'
'Poison - Truth 0 - 10/1000 stars, 17,023 crystals.'
'Blade - Truth 0 - 10/500 stars, 91,300 crystals.'
'Fire crystals - 15,700.'
'Earth crystals - 13,900.'
'Water crystals - 19,900.'
'Wind crystals - 17,300.'
'Dark crystals - 19,457.'
'Light crystals - Convert to Astral.'
'Wood crystals - 16,250.'
'Lightning crystals - 11,212.'
[Imp: Detecting many miscellaneous law shards. Conversion is in process...]
For a moment, Jody didn't know what to think or say.
"We're rich! Filthy rich!" Xavier shouted from the host space.
Sylvester was also curiously examining the results.
"This Twilight System is actually pretty amazing," he commented with a rare expression of interest in his voice. "If all of these crystals can be elevated into truths at your disposal, then it should be possible to fuse them in the future. The store is basically a place for you to workshop the power of twilight. Too bad you're growing up in hell, how can you even enjoy it? You don't even know how good you have it."
Jody had to admit to himself that he had no idea what Sylvester meant so that the last comment may be correct.
"It doesn't matter," Jody replied, little emotion in his voice. "One thing you said is right. None of it matters until we get out of our current situation!"
"Why don't you check the store and see what's new? You have plenty of twilight to spare now," the younger prince suggested.
When Jody heard him, he realized it was true. He could more freely tour the twilight store before he rescued his mother. Maybe he'd find something useful.
'Tweet.'
The [Twilight Ankh] emerged from Jody's chest, and he sunk his perception within.
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[Twilight Store - Rookie Tier]
'Twilight Essence Pearl 1/2.....55 Twilight Stars.'
'Death Essence Pearl 5/5.....10 Twilight Stars, 12 Death Stars.'
'Fate Essence Pearl 5/5.....15 Twilight Stars, 15 Fate Stars.'
'Origin Gem 8/10.....10 Twilight Stars, 50 Origin crystals.'
'Source Star 100/100.....2 Twilight Stars.'
'Death Star 1,000/1,000.....2 Twilight Stars.'
'Fate Star.....BANNED.'
'Origin Star 1,000/1,000.....5 Twilight Stars.'
'Ruined Twilight 1/1.....Rookie-level Relic| 250 Twilight Stars, 50 Death Stars.'
'Purge Charm 3/3.....Rookie-level Relic| 500 Twilight, 30 Origin, and 10 Source Stars.'
'Lorac's Rage 1/1.....LOCKED.'
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Jody immediately zeroed in on the rookie-level relics and read the runes.
Item name: Ruined Twilight
Item type: Weapon
Item description: "The Gift Of Love Gave The Nephilim Wings of Light. The Loss Of Love Gave The Nephilim Wings of Spite."
Item grade: Mortal Armament, A-Grade.
Jody was ecstatic it was a weapon before being baffled by the description and gobsmacked by the item's grade!
Mortal fucking Armament.
This was a tier above combat gear.
No one Jody knew had a mortal armament. No one had ever even mentioned a mortal armament. Maybe his grandpa had one, but he didn't know for sure. His father possessed a natal weapon with more potential than mortal armaments. But an A-Grade armament? That was a full 100% boost in battle power! The wielder would instantly become twice as strong on top of its other enchantments.
Wasn't this really cheap, then?
Of course, these were stars and not crystals. Jody still remembered that he needed stars to advance his understanding of his obtained truths. No matter how many crystals he collected, he still couldn't afford to splurge.
Item name: Purge Charm
Item Type: Ornament
Item description: One bright star to purge all dark stars.
Item grade: Mortal Charm, A-Grade.
'Imp, please convert all crystals into stars,' Jody commanded without wasting another thought.
All of the items were at least mortal grade? He needed more stars immediately! Loot capture was a blessing from the skies themselves! Jody took a moment to pray to the True Pharaoh of Twilight for being so benevolent.
[Imp: Command received! Converting...]
[Imp: Conversion completed!]
'So fast?' Jody was a little stunned.
It was done in an instant. How powerful was this little guy? And was Jody mistaken, or did it sound...excited?
Summoning his sky status, Jody was presently surprised to notice changes immediately.
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[Sky Status]
[Imp: Update completed!]
[Imp: Reporting celestial law status report.]
[-Sleeping Truth-]
'Dawn - Truth 0 - 384/1,000 stars, 20 crystals'.
'Neon - Truth 0 - 8/1,000 stars, 371 crystals.'
'Life - Truth 0 -2071/1000 stars, 13 crystals.'
'Death - Truth 0 - 3240/1000 stars, 10 crystals.'
'Astral Light - Truth 0 - 1112/1000 stars, 75 crystals.'
'Twilight - Truth 0 - 4732/1000 stars, 373,221 crystals.'
'Dark Fate - Truth 0 - 1927/1000 stars, 90 crystals.'
'Slaughter - Truth 0 - 4090/1000 stars, 72 crystals.'
'Poison - Truth 0 - 170/1000 stars, 23 crystals.'
'Blade - Truth 0 - 504/500 stars, 23 crystals.'
'Fire - Truth 0 - 157/500 stars.'
'Earth - Truth 0 - 139/500 stars.'
'Water - Truth 0 - 199/500 stars.'
'Wind - Truth 0 - 173/500 stars.'
'Wood - Truth 0 - 162/500 stars, 50 crystals.'
'Lightning - Truth 0 - 112/500, 12 crystals.'
[-Unaffiliated Laws-]
'Rain crystals - 42.'
'Sovereign crystals - 10.'
'Draconic crystals - 96.'
'Cooking crystals - 15.'
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.
Looking at the list in this way put things back in perspective for Jody. He had made some overly decent progress. There were so many truth stars collected. He could use these forces since they lived in his matrix. Most of them were even ready to be upgraded, even though he didn't know how to do so yet. Unfortunately, he also didn't have many related skills...at least not yet. He had all types of information swimming in his mind, which would take a while to process. This system was a double-edged sword. It was becoming overwhelming.
'Cheat codes are never easy to learn.'
According to the Twilight Imp, it would be promoted from the Sleeping level to the Awakened level when he reached one thousand stars for any truth. After the awakened level was the sky level and the divine level.
Divine Truth!
He couldn't imagine.
But he was primed for upgrade, so he would have awakened rank forces soon. If he wasn't worried about nnot being able to properly control his ability afterward, he was seek an advancement this instant. For now, Jody decided against purchasing and exited the twilight store. There was nothing there that would be of immediate aid. If he needed anything else, he could buy at that time.
When the duo finally reappeared, they were in the shade of one of the branches of a huge ancient tree. Sek and Jody crouched low on the branch, looking down at the scene below. Earth-shaking explosions arose from the center of the vast wild lands. It was like the forest had to bear a bombarding from a rock slide. Massive holes appeared. Pieces of land settled deep into the ground. Trees were broken and knocked away. It was mayhem.
Jody released his spiritual awareness to get a clearer picture, unconcerned with the risk of discovery.
"Release the First Lady if you wish to survive this, Rotimi Black, you shit. Do not think I cannot recognize your Gu Birth ability. In the West Ward, only your Gurantula combat soul can do this. What is the point of these masks?" Mercer Trillwolf was fiercely battling against four dark elves in black leather armor as he shouted. "This is an act of war against the Pharaoh! Do you pussy-ass black knife-ears even have the guts?"
Jody felt slightly offended by the knife ears comment, as his ears had grown rather pointy lately.
"Focus!" Sylvester berated in his mind.
"Hahaha, it's far too late for this," a sinister voice like an evil serpent echoed throughout the wilderness.
Elder Mercer was clad in blazing armor with five wolves howling at a red moon designed on the rear. He was sending a barrage of enormous fire arrows that seemed to be made of liquid magma as his flaming red hair danced in the wind. The four dark elves were in a strange formation and attacked with various dark power blasts and different glowing weapons.
Jody was under the impression that these dark elves were mainly saint path elites. Origin and True Essence were different, but the resulting forces were similar. They could also both be interpreted through their negative or positive aspects. Hughes spent a lot of time letting Jody examine the difference in the resulting forces so he could easily identify them, and he was more proficient now.
Incantation runes flew out of Elder Mercer's mouth and sunk into the ancient and magnificent bow in his hands, seemingly charging up the firepower to another level. The bow suddenly looked like a miniature sun, and within the fiery atmosphere surrounding Elder Mercer, Jody could see 12 fist-sized stars.
Most of these stars were black, but four were on fire! The pressure emitted from elder Mercer at this time could influence even Jody, who was at least 45 meters away. Red hair, muscles, wolves.
Swish! Swish!
Swish! Swish!
In less than a second, elder Mercer had fired four molten arrows, each aiming a a vital organ of one of his opponents, who screamed manically as their bodies either exploded directly or melted slowly.
"How gruesome..." mumbled Jody.
This was the might of Advanced Power!
AP.
However, these dark elves were clearly no pushovers if they forced the Honored Pack to unleash such strength. These warriors were moving at speeds Jody's eyes couldn't keep up with. Even his spiritual awareness was struggling to follow everything. All over the forest floor below and the sky above it, there were hundreds of dark elves battling the fierce warriors of the Five Element Wolf pack.
Sharp sword lights, crushing boulders and walls of mud, chaotic winds, ice spikes, shields and arrows of magma, incantation runes, and rukh glyphs flying everywhere, Jody had never seen anything like this in real life! Dozens of dark warriors were clashing against a small army of wolf-armored warriors and mighty spirit wolves. He honestly felt like he was in some fantasy movie from his last life. Jody was still trying to find his mother in this mayhem with his spiritual awareness when he suddenly heard a voice in his ear.
"Little…Joe...?"
A strand of Jody's spiritual awareness locked on to the true essence fluctuation by his ear and his head whipped around. He instinctively sent his full perception in the direction he was looking. To his complete shock, his vision exceeded 150 meters in an instant! This definitely wasn't the limit, either. However, Jody had no time to focus on this. He adjusted his vision, and he could see his mother over 100 meters away from his position.
Glimmers of moonlight danced off the dented and scratched armor, revealing the wear and tear from battle. A deep gash ran across her chest plate, exposing the delicate brown skin beneath and a hint of one breast. She leaned against a towering tree, its rough bark pressing into her tattered robes and broken armor. The fabric was torn in multiple places, revealing bruises and cuts that marred her once chocolate skin. Blood seeped through the tears, creating a macabre design.
Despite her injuries, she held herself with an air of strength and determination, refusing to let anyone see her vulnerability.