Agni could hardly believe her own eyes.
For several years in the field, she had experienced many things.
In her lifetime, she had seen good people, even great people, but never a saint!
That the youth had previously sacrificed himself to save Kavensis was incredible enough.
But his current actions were even more astonishing to Agni, even incomprehensible.
He had actually approached proactively, drawing the attention of two Void Moths away.
Did he not understand how bizarre and terrifying void creatures could be… He obviously did, yet he still chose to come forward.
What was he doing it for?
Through the layers of the Holy Light Barrier, Agni watched An Su's face, only able to see the plain features beneath his simple hood, the faint righteousness between his brows.
Just by looking at his face, one could feel that he must be a good person, even an excellent one.
Even as the two Void Moths were swooping in to attack, his expression remained calm.
Only a madman or a master could deliberately court death like this.
Suddenly, Agni remembered how this young man had blocked Kavensis's light spear—with movements so swift, even Agni had not clearly seen how he did it.
Could it be that this youth was a master of righteousness?
Or rather, was he really a 'youth'? Could a youth possess such skills?
She had heard that certain saints, most favored by the goddess, would forever maintain their youth.
Agni couldn't help but harbor some hope—
But what she hadn't expected was the nameless youth's next move.
What was he doing?
He had reached Kavensis's body, clearly ignoring the approaching Void Moths.
The youth slightly lowered his gaze, his eyes brimming with compassion and tenderness, like a tranquil spring lake shimmering with broken light.
Was he—was he mourning for Kavensis and ferrying his soul?
To elevate the spirit of a villain who had sought to kill him into peace?
Agni could hardly believe her own eyes.
She saw An Su half-kneeling on the ground, gently touching Kavensis's bloodied chest, carefully adjusting his collar,
Then flames soared into the air, enveloping the corpse and rapidly vaporizing it, letting him depart from this world with dignity and peace.
"May your soul find peace. Return to the goddess's Heaven,"
An Su's lips curved into a gentle and satisfied smile.
Kavensis's flesh may have been tainted, but in death, his soul was clean and pure; surely he could depart in peace.
—Yeah, right.
An Su had just discovered that Kavensis was still breathing!
If rescued in time, the Holy Knights might even be able to save him.
If he were to wake up, who knows if he would spill everything about An Su!
Moreover, An Su had other reasons for coming to Kavensis.
He watched the two Void Moths at close range.
Four seconds left.
How confident must this man be in his abilities... to so disregard fourth-order creatures.
No.
Compared to void creatures, perhaps elevating souls was most important in this man's eyes.
Agni's expression was solemn; she had never encountered a man with such a pure heart during her years in the Church, where she had seen too much darkness. She understood the corruption beneath the Church's bright facade, but she had no power to change it.
She could only adapt and accept, gradually becoming a 'person with high emotional intelligence', a 'captain with high emotional intelligence',
Protecting her teammates was the duty she could fulfill.
But Agni had never seen anyone as noble and selfless as An Su.
To embrace with kindness and compassion an enemy who had sought to kill him—that was surely what was recorded as a saint in the Bible.
Agni watched An Su intently, waiting for his next move.
"Three seconds left."
An Su thought to himself, it seems he needed to stall for time a bit longer.
An Su's plan was actually quite simple: since it was impossible to explain why the Void Moths suddenly died, it was better to make it look like he had killed them.
He would attract their attention, let them attack him,
Then, timing it to the second,
He would unleash a deadly magic attack at the very moment they naturally perished.
This would make it seem like Xianzong was an expert, killing them instantly with one strike.
This achievement could be credited to himself!
An Su could already imagine how much he could earn from the Church's Holy Knights' gratitude for saving them.
The Void Moths were summoned by him; the blame was on Kavensis; the credit was his own.
It was yet another triple-win day.
But there was one prerequisite, and that was that one must maintain an air of prestige.
An Su's performance just now, along with the image of a righteous master deeply compassionate yet inscrutably stoic, was enacted with great finesse.
Next,
it was time to think of a move that would be suffused with prestige.
Something flitted through Xianzong's mind, but he maintained the same unfathomable composure as before, his eyes still clear and bright. Facing the two Void Moths rushing to attack, he murmured softly:
"Heaven gives birth—"
"To all living things."
"To nourish mankind."
Was he... chanting a magic spell?
A thought crossed Agni's mind.
Chanting magic differs from ordinary magic; it requires a verse of incantation to be recited before it can be executed, and its power greatly surpasses that of regular magic.
Any cleric capable of using chanting magic had to be at least above the Fourth Order.
Heaven gives birth to all living things, to nourish mankind... This verse of blessing seemed to expound on the content of the first chapter of the Holy Record, "Genesis."
The reason for An Su's recitation of this verse was simple, he obviously wasn't casting any chanting magic, he was merely buying time.
Two more seconds.
But the Void Moths were already upon him, their jaws full of sharp teeth about to make contact with An Su's skin.
Could he complete the magical incantation... Agni couldn't help but worry.
The other saints also wore tense expressions, swallowing hard as they watched An Su intently—they knew their lives were in his hands.
"Mankind
is forever complaining—"
The final second.
It was too late.
Two Void Moths collided with An Su in an instant, their strange and evil power exploding forth. The combined strike of a fourth-order void beast and a third-order void beast was unstoppable by anyone!
The ground around them began to fracture, rings upon rings of cracks spreading like spider webs as dust and debris filled the air.
Humans simply couldn't withstand such a blow.
Agni despaired.
But when the dust cleared, there was a calm face.
And the calm smile at the corners of the mouth.
Everyone couldn't believe their eyes; after taking such a hit head-on, the man before them was completely unscathed.
How immensely strong and confident he must be.
What nobody expected was that underneath An Su's chest, under the thick layer of his winter school uniform, a talisman necklace was slowly dimming. It would need to be recharged before it could be used again.
[Intermediate High-Quality Talisman]
[Can withstand attacks or curses below High-Rank (0/2)]
This talisman necklace's original owner was Kavensis.
It was a birthday gift from his Priest father.
Previously on the brink of death and too weak to use the talisman when being gnawed at, Kavensis had left two more chances for the talisman to resist.
All of this was noticed by An Su.
The talisman was what An Su had discreetly stolen while tidying up Kavensis's collar, compassionately consoling him—it was taken from around Kavensis's neck!
But this wasn't stealing, it was something An Su had picked up, considering it unwanted by anyone else.
At this very moment, the Void Moths ran out of existence time.
An Su quietly instructed Miss Enya, who was hiding nearby, "Release the magic power outward simply, power is not needed, only special effects."
Enya wouldn't hesitate to follow her master's command.
When a Fourth Order being fully exerted magic power for special effects, the spectacle was extremely terrifying.
Even the blood moon in the sky dimmed a few shades, the air vibrated non-stop, and a terrible pressure spread from beneath An Su's feet. In an instant, it burst forth, the dazzling light engulfing the world!
"Heaven is heartless."
In full view of everyone, in the sight of all, An Su gently reached out and touched the two Void Moths.
A Fourth Order void beast, a Third Order void beast.
Just like that,
turned to ashes.
They were obliterated in a single strike!
This had surpassed High-Level Magic; only a saint could achieve this!