Why Am I a Priestess When I Reach the Maximum Level? - [Vol. 6] Chapter 118

[Vol. 6] Chapter 118: The Secret of Immortality

“Interesting… You’re quite sharp.”

The Spirit Maiden gave a slight nod.

“Tao Mu is the [Supreme Sacred Fox God] companion, much like how the nine children of the dragon are to the [Ancestral Dragon]. She was chosen by that god to guard the [Great Secret Realm of Chaos] and was given power to do so.”

“If we talk about her race… she’s probably [human], or more accurately, a [divine human].”

“I see…”

If that’s the case, many things that were difficult to understand now made sense.

“Hen, I have one final question.”

The Spirit Maiden didn’t speak or show any sign of irritation, simply gesturing with her eyes for the black-haired girl to go ahead.

Violet didn’t hesitate.

“Although you said it was a coincidence that we met here, the most important clue that led us to find Cangyun Mountain and Peach Blossom Peak was because He Zhu once accidentally saw the letter you wrote to the Peach Blossom Sage. I’m curious…”

“Was it really an accident that she saw the place names you wrote in that letter? Before the ambush, did you not expect He Zhu to act with you?”

“After all, why would you specifically put meaningless addresses at the end of a confidential letter meant for direct contact?”

“…?”

The girl turned around. Her cold, light silver eyes met Violet’s silver-blue ones, creating a few sparks in the air.

This was the first time the Spirit Maiden actively made eye contact with Violet since their meeting, the first time showing her emotions openly.

She suddenly laughed. It wasn’t the reserved, polite smile she had before, but rather an unrestrained burst of joy, a loud laugh that barely contained the pleasure welling up within her.

Violet also laughed just like the other girl who was standing so close by.

“Pfft… You still can’t be honest, huh?”

“…Hahahahaha!!”

Fate weaves its threads, entangling causes and effects.

A butterfly flaps its wings somewhere, and in the farthest reaches of the world, a storm of unimaginable proportions begins.

Who could say that this was all just a coincidence?

………………………

As Hen and Violet stepped out of the underground together again, the battle outside had already settled.

The Peach Blossom Guards were dealing with the aftermath of the fierce fight not far away. While many of the young girls were down, and most of the rest had injuries, it seemed that no one had actually died. Given that they had fought against the Seven Heavenly Demon Lords, this outcome was already quite impressive.

The [Hidden Fog]’s avatar seemed to have been completely shattered. While this wasn’t a critical blow to it, at least it wouldn’t be able to return to the [Great Secret Realm of Chaos] and cause trouble anymore. As for the other one…

*Snap.*

Xiao Kong, accompanied by several Peach Blossom Guards, casually threw a body pierced by a dozen spears onto the ground, then turned to look at the two women walking beside her, concern in her eyes.

“Violet, are you alright?”

The black-haired girl nodded.

“If you’re referring to the [Taotie] seal, it seems to be holding up for now. As we guessed earlier, the spirit vein below that was supporting the seal had been overused, weakening the suppression. But before I arrived, Hen had already replenished and repaired it, so it’s pretty stable now.”

“Oh…?”

The cat-girl tilted her brow slightly, sizing up the silver-haired girl beside the priestess. She seemed to know something, asking knowingly.

“So, this is the Spirit Maiden that Tao Mu entertained, right? Hello, I’m Xiao Kong.”

“…Hen.”

These two… why did the atmosphere feel so strange?

As if trying to break free from this inexplicable, yet stifling tension that couldn’t be explained in words, Violet quickly changed the subject.

“I didn’t expect you actually killed the [Apothecary]. Impressive.”

Seeing that the priestess’s gaze had shifted to the body Xiao Kong had just thrown on the ground, Xiao Kong didn’t mind. She explained with a completely different tone than she had used with Hen.

“This guy wasn’t that strong. Even if you added up all his miscellaneous tricks, it wouldn’t come close to the threshold of the [Ultimate Transformation]. His own strength and lifespan probably hadn’t even reached that point. It’s strange that he couldn’t be killed.”

“Hmm? But he clearly…,”

Violet looked surprised, her gaze focusing on the body lying face up on the ground, nearly drained of blood.

Although it had been stabbed multiple times, the tight-fitting white robe still showed signs of being the same one worn by the [Apothecary], and the face and body matched her memory of him perfectly.

There was no doubt that this man was dead. Unless Violet personally cast a resurrection spell, there was no way any of the known methods in the [Ancient Spirit Realm] could bring him back to life.

But the [Apothecary] had clearly taken her lethal strike before and was unharmed. If he could withstand that kind of attack, how could he just die so easily now?

The  [Apothecary]… could he really have been killed so easily?

No, something was definitely wrong here.

Several troubling possibilities crossed the black-haired girl’s mind as her expression grew more serious.

“Xiao Kong, can you describe the battle in detail, especially the part where this guy died? Try to be as thorough as possible.”

The cat-girl nodded.

“Come to think of it, it is a bit strange. After I helped the Peach Blossom Guards defeat these two so-called Demon Lords, the misty avatar immediately dispersed when its energy ran out. As for the [Apothecary], when he saw that the situation was hopeless, he actually threw himself into the spear formation, almost like he was seeking death and died on the spot.”

“I thought it might have been some strange technique where he placed himself in a life-or-death situation to trigger a hidden power, but after staying on guard for a while, he didn’t show any special changes, so we confirmed that he was really dead.”

“You mean… he sought death on purpose?”

The priestess furrowed her brows, her thoughts drifting back to the strange things she’d noticed about the [Apothecary] earlier.

For example, despite taking an attack that had been significantly enhanced, at least equal to an 8th-tier spell attack, he had been hit directly and still appeared unharmed shortly afterward.

For example, earlier, he had been able to hold his ground for a short while against one of the Twelve Peaks’ leaders. But when faced with the encirclement of the Peach Blossom Guards, the [Apothecary] seemed much weaker, even resorting to some rather underhanded tactics to protect himself. His power seemed vastly different from before.

Xiao Kong confirmed this point once again in their conversation. She was indeed much weaker now.

There were also other odd details, like the subtle differences in his clothes and height. The battle with him on Peach Blossom Peak had involved the Thunder Strike Sage, yet when they met before, he had referred to their fight as if it had been with Violet, calling it “thanks for your attention” and other strange remarks…

Could it be…?

“This is why the [Apothecary] is impossible to kill.”

The Spirit Maiden, who possessed mysterious powers and could foresee and understand many secrets, spoke quietly from beside them.

“The so-called [Apothecary] is actually not a single individual…”

……………………………

“Whoosh, whoosh~”

In the quiet, dimly lit secret chamber, two paper figurines placed at the center of a mysterious formation suddenly erupted with light. In the next instant, the paper figurines vanished and transformed into the figures of a frail old man and a pink-haired girl.

“Cough, cough, cough…!”

As soon as they landed, the old man coughed up dark blood once more, supporting himself with a cracked, flag-waving bone staff that barely held him upright. His face was deathly pale.

The pink-haired girl, whose entire right arm and much of her shoulder had vanished, her body riddled with wounds like it had been sprayed by machine gun fire, had completely fallen unconscious. Her breath was so faint it was barely detectable, and yet, somehow, she had managed to cling to life.

“Ah, seems like things aren’t looking too good, huh~”

From the shadows, a pale young man with white hair, his skin delicate as that of a newborn, appeared with a smile on his face. He was dressed in simple white cloth and slowly walked over to the near-death [Bone Immortal], handing him a small porcelain bottle filled with medicine. The old man took it without hesitation and swallowed the contents, coughing a few more times.

The [Apothecary] sighed in resignation.

“Even the substitute death vessel has been forced out… looks like… I can’t come back anymore. What a pity~”