Upon receiving the message from Ulric, Ryan immediately sought information from the Church of Justice and the local garrison about the location of the ancient saint's relic. The information revealed that the relic was located within Nora's abandoned manor.
That day, when Ryan took Teresa to listen to Nora's lecture to the children, it was not a coincidence but a deliberate act. He needed a cover for his actions.
"According to Mrs. Nora, the compass that records time is in the basement," Ryan said, striding into the manor house.
As soon as he entered, a curled-up figure in the corner let out a shrill wail. The humanoid creature, looking like a middle-aged woman in her forties, had a grayish body. In the depth of winter, she was wearing only a single piece of clothing. Her eyes had been gouged out, and fresh blood trickled down. She lunged towards Ryan.
"Ahhhhh!!! Finally, someone is here!"
The middle-aged woman rushed at Ryan, her stiff hands reaching out, "Help me! Help me!"
Ryan raised his right hand, releasing psionic energy from his palm, illuminating the entire interior of the house.
As the bright psionic light touched the woman, her gray body sizzled as if being corroded by lava. Soon, she was engulfed in blue psionic flames.
"Help me! Help me! I'm just an injured traveler! Please, don't hurt me!" The middle-aged woman rolled on the ground in agony, pleading with the White Wolf Knight.
Ryan's expression remained indifferent. He said nothing but increased the power of the psionic light. The woman was quickly reduced to ashes.
It was an Eyeless One!
In Nord, if a person did not die of old age or a glorious battle but succumbed to disease, and their family or village lacked the means or willingness to give them a proper burial, they would be left to rot in the snow. Some of these "dead" would mysteriously reanimate as undead, attempting to return home. To prevent this, their eyes would be removed so that, even if reanimated, they couldn't find their way home.
Driven by hunger and resentment, these creatures would still try to return, their skin pale and eye sockets empty. These undead had no trace of their former kindness or love for life, only endless hunger and hatred. They hid their plots, luring kind-hearted travelers into pits and then sucking out their souls and gouging out their eyes to fit into their own sockets. Locals knew not to help any blind person with bleeding eye sockets in the wild; those who did often paid with their lives.
At this point, no mercy was needed. Sending these undead to their final rest was the true act of kindness.
After dealing with the hidden Eyeless One, Ryan began searching the ground floor for the basement entrance.
The house's furnishings indicated that Nora's claim of a fallen family was true. Despite many years of abandonment, Ryan could see that much of the furniture was already very old, and some floorboards were broken even before the abandonment.
Ryan quickly found the entrance to the basement. It was hidden in the kitchen. He cleared away the collapsed debris and pulled open the trapdoor.
An iron staircase led downward. Ryan tested it briefly, found it stable, then lit a torch and descended into the basement.
"This is odd... by normal manor standards, this basement is way too large," Ryan said to himself, raising the torch to examine his surroundings.
A foul stench filled the basement, which was originally used to store food, wine, and other supplies. But even the best cellars spoil over time if left unattended for decades.
Ryan cautiously continued exploring. He extended a blue psionic blade from his right wrist, using it alongside the torch to light the dim basement.
He moved through the decayed storage room into the inner chamber.
"I see." Passing through the storage area, the inner environment finally revealed why this basement was so large.
The compass of the ancient saint was enormous, truly enormous. This compass, with a diameter of at least five meters, was inscribed with countless patterns and runes. The time-recording markers on the compass extended beyond its range—evidence that more than ten thousand years had passed since the ancient saint arrived in this world.
At the center of the massive compass was a brilliant star, illuminating its surroundings. Around this star, the entire compass, with perfect circles and various complex shapes—squares, rectangles, polygons, diamonds—formed a harmonious and perfect unity.
Standing before the compass, Ryan hung the torch on the wall. After ensuring no one was nearby and nothing in the void was observing him, the White Wolf Knight raised his head and extended a hand toward the massive compass.
Pure light-blue psionic energy flowed from Ryan's hand, gradually infusing the compass.
Yes, this massive device was not an ancient saint's time-recording compass.
It was a device of the ancient saints, linking the planet's ley lines and storing their deepest, most ancient secrets!
The ancient device activated under the pure psionic energy.
"To activate the ancient saint's device, only your unique psionic energy on this planet can do it," his father's words echoed.
"Creak~ Creak~" The ancient device started moving under Ryan's psionic energy, the sound of stone and metal grinding against each other was harsh.
Even after ten thousand years, the ancient saint's machine was still functional. Ryan's light-blue psionic energy continuously poured into the compass, causing the device to emit squeaking sounds and start rotating. Dust was blown away, and the compass's energy seemed to respond to Ryan's psionic energy.
The device opened.
At the same time, a strong sense of sadness and despair flooded Ryan's mind.
His thoughts plunged into a vision.
It was a war.
A terrifying war that lasted millions of years, nearly driving the ancient saints to extinction.
In the end, the last of the ancient saints, to escape their enemies, found this star system shrouded in perpetual warp storms. The enemies were fully armed skeletal machines and terrifying beings engulfed in flames...
Ryan's head throbbed as he pulled himself out of the vision, knowing he lacked the strength to see more. Continuing further would be beyond his current abilities.
Instead, Ryan focused on infusing the device with psionic energy.
Time passed quickly. Ryan tirelessly channeled his psionic energy into the device.
One hour, two hours, three hours...
After five hours, having poured nearly all his psionic energy into the device, it finally activated.
It revealed its full form to Ryan, transmitting a mysterious message into his mind.
"Successor, we are the ancient saints, the oldest intelligent beings in the universe. Welcome."
Ryan silently added "one of" in his mind.
"After a terrible war, we came to this world. This planet and the surrounding star system are enveloped in perpetual warp storms. We are temporarily safe, but we know it is only a matter of time before the dreadful warp predators find us.
"Therefore, we have hidden all our accumulations on this planet. This includes a portion of the energy and technology our race has accumulated over tens of millions of years. Although much of it cannot be used on this strange planet, it is the continuation of our race's culture and technology.
"Please use them wisely, successor."
With the final words, the ancient device fully opened before Ryan.
Despite being mentally prepared, Ryan still felt a sense of awe and breathlessness when he saw what lay before him.
Inside the device was the purest cosmic energy collected and stored by the ancient saints over millennia!
The energy was so powerful that Ryan felt insignificantly small, like a grain of sand compared to the galaxy. Even the presence of the White Wolf God Ulric didn't make Ryan feel such trembling and excitement. He sensed that the energy was pure and clean, and with a mere gesture, it would be his to command!
Instantly, Ryan's mind was flooded with endless visions.
By accepting this immense energy, the great Ryan, this outsider, would become the most powerful psionic in the entire continent, no, the entire world. He would command an unprecedentedly vast army, planting the flag of victory in every corner of the world. Elves and dwarves wouldn't be able to stop him. He would unite the world, proclaim himself Emperor Ryan, and after a bloody conquest, endless praises and banners would celebrate his name.
Men would admire and worship him, and anyone dying for Ryan would receive the highest honor, the supreme accolade for a human. Women would adore him, his harem filled with the most beautiful women of every race and type. Cities and mountains, continents, would be named after him. Statues of Emperor Ryan would stand across the continent. Chaos, under his onslaught, would retreat to the darkest, deepest corners, trembling at the mere mention of his name, awaiting their doom.
Not enough! It's still not enough!!! He deserved more! The golden throne of his father awaited him, the loyal son would take the enormous scepter from his father's hand and become the master of the galaxy, the king of the universe!
Wearing a crown, holding a scepter, the proud "Emperor Ryan" sat on the golden throne, eagerly calling out to Ryan, "Come on! Absorb all this energy! Now! Take it all, and you will become me! This is your destined inheritance! Just move your hands and take it!"
Ryan reached out towards his shadow in admiration.
"Yes! Yes! That's right, it's just a small effort for you. Come, let's merge into one!" The shadow on the golden throne became happier, opening his mouth wide to reveal a thick tongue and a mouthful of golden teeth.
However, the White Wolf Knight's movement stopped.
"What's wrong? Power, beauty, authority, aren't these the things you desire? Take it! Take it now!" The shadow
became anxious as Ryan's movement halted.
Ryan responded by flipping his wrist and raising his middle finger high.
"F**K YOU!" Ryan said coolly to his shadow, "I'm not buying this!"
All illusions vanished, leaving only the damp basement and the ancient saint's relic before Ryan.
Nothing had changed.
No! Something had changed!!! A golden figure, clad in a massive set of golden plate armor, with long black hair, and an incredibly majestic and awe-inspiring presence, stood behind Ryan. The figure's face showed no expression, only eyes filled with endless wisdom and authority reflected Ryan's silhouette.
Ryan immediately turned around, his face filled with surprise and joy, "Father!!!"
The voice that answered, though cold in tone, carried a note of approval, "Well done, my son."
...
Far North, the Chaos Wastelands.
The Chaos Wastelands lie at the northernmost point of the world, beyond the vast expanse of the Empire, past the Nord Kingdom, past the Tazil Desert and the Kislev Kingdom deep within the desert. There lies the Chaos Wasteland—a barren and evil land where the winds carry the whispers of dark gods. At the heart of this wasteland lies the Kingdom of Chaos, where nightmarish horrors continuously emerge. The power of the Chaos Gods here is unmatched, and only madmen or fools dare to invade their territory.
The tainted winds of Chaos swept over the cursed land where no living being could stay for long.
The Third Eternal Chosen of Chaos, the King of Three Eyes, the Emperor of Chaos, the Lord of the End Times, the most revered Champion of Chaos, Archaon, sat on his throne of chaos, gazing coldly ahead. He longed to march south and bring an end to all things, but the pain in his body and the insufficient size of his army held him back.
He needed to bide his time.
At that moment, a flash of light from the south caught his attention, "What is that?"
The winds of Chaos quickly conveyed the whispers of the dark gods. Archaon retrieved a map, locating the brief flash's approximate position.
It was the largest port city in western Nord, Miodon Haven.
Archaon rose from his throne, and his loyal servants immediately heeded the supreme command of the Eternal Chosen of Chaos.
"Send word to Bileg! Attack Miodon Haven immediately!"