Chapter 288: Reborn as a Vengeful Spirit
"Arcane team? We are a team?" Lotton repeated Ayrin's words.
"Of course!"
Ayrin didn't consider the weight of Lotton's words as he immediately replied, "If we are going to face dangers and fight together, then of course we are a team!"
"A team?"
Lotton repeatedly muttered under his breath.
The concept of teams and teammates was something he had never considered before.
Lotton fell into deep thought once more.
After a while, he said, "I wish to enter and obtain the Lunar Spring Essence."
"Lunar Spring Essence?"
An expression of surprise emerged on Stingham's face as he turned to Rinloran and asked, "Isn't that something which belongs to the elves?"
Shock emerged on Rinloran's face as he cried out, "There is Lunar Spring Essence within the Abyss of Evil?"
"Yes. There is Lunar Spring Essence within the Undead Bishop Tangwen's Land of the Undead," Lotton replied.
As always, Lotton lowered his head as he spoke, causing him to seem unconfident and weak.
"Land of the Undead?" Stingham's eyes widened. "Just the name gives me shivers. You Evil Dragon Followers really come up with such excessive names. Why is there a Land of the Undead within the Abyss of Evil? Is there so much land that every bishop can establish their own territory?"
"The Abyss of Evil is an underground domain consisting of several levels. It is no smaller than this plain," Lotton replied. "But I already know how to reach the Land of the Undead."
"What? It is just as vast down there?" Stingham exclaimed as his eyes bulged in shock.
"Rinloran, what does Lunar Spring Essence do?" Ayrin asked at this moment. He knew that the Tree of Life and Lunar Spring were the two major symbols of the Elven Kingdom during the Era of the War with Dragons, but he had no knowledge of their properties."
"The Tree of Life symbolizes health and life, whereas the Lunar Spring symbolizes purity and baptism," Rinloran answered Ayrin. Being an elf, he was naturally very knowledgeable in regard to these two things.
"Ah."
Ayrin nodded his head. Then he responded, "I still don't get it."
Stingham felt like slamming his head into the wall as he exclaimed, "If you don't understand, why did you go ah?!"
"The Tree of Life contains the powerful energy of nature. During the Era of the War with Dragons, the roots of the Tree of Life spread throughout the entire forest of the elven kingdom. As the protectors and governors of the forest, we received the acknowledgement of the Tree of Life, allowing us to absorb some of that energy. The Tree of Life also releases an aura of vitality, providing us with stronger vitalities and allowing us to live longer. Furthermore, if a wounded elf is placed before the Tree of Life, they will receive its blessing, and the essence of life which it exudes will heal them. Thus, in the ancient elven kingdom, the Tree of Life was the symbol of health and life."
Rinloran looked at Ayrin and then continued to slowly explain, "As for the Lunar Spring, it has a special cleansing power. Any harmful toxins, arcane energy, and even mutations, can be cleansed by its power. This is especially true for us elves, who have an innate purification ability to begin with. In the ancient elven kingdom, any elves with the bloodline of moonlight swordsmen would bathe within the spring upon awakening their bloodline to further awaken the potential hidden within them. Thus, the Lunar Spring was a symbol of purification and baptism."
"Rinloran, don't you have a moonlight swordsman bloodline? So does that mean if you bathed within the Lunar Spring, your talent would become even greater?" Ayrin asked.
Rinloran nodded in response.
Indeed, fragments of the Tree of Life or the essence of the now destroyed Lunar Spring were both things those with high rank elven bloodlines spent their entire lives searching for.
Ayrin nodded at Rinloran, then turned to Lotton and asked, "Lotton, why do you wish to obtain Lunar Spring Essence?"
Lotton lowered his head and didn't respond.
Ayrin felt some lingering doubts as he observed Lotton. He couldn't understand why Lotton, who had answered him so readily before, was now silent once more.
"Hello? If you act so secretively, how can we make a deal with you? Remember, as a team, we need to take risks together," Stingham shouted in dissatisfaction. "Why does being teammates with you seem even harder than being teammates with freaks like Rinloran and Ayrin?!"
"Idiot!" Rinloran swore at Stingham as he heard Stingham's words.
"You once told me about the reason arcane masters exist… for me, only by obtaining the Lunar Spring Essence can I truly live freely, and try to understand what you told me," Lotton abruptly replied.
"This…" Ayrin and Rinloran exchanged glances as they thought of the same thing.
"Eh? Do you mean you are currently an undead?" Stingham exclaimed in horror.
"Idiot!" Black lines filled Rinloran's face as he was stunned speechless by Stingham's comprehension abilities.
But right at this moment, Lotton raised his head, seemingly in reaction to Stingham's words.
"What?!"
Stingham's teeth clattered together in fear as his entire body jumped back.
Ayrin and Rinloran felt their breaths catch as their hearts tightened and an intense chill pervaded their bodies.
It wasn't just shock, but also their fear of death.
Lotton's face was a deathly gray!
His pupils were pitch black and released an intense aura of death.
Ayrin had already felt Lotton was abnormal when they fought in the past, but it was only because his arcane skills were affected by the Evil Dragon's blood. The abnormal sensation Ayrin felt from the current Lotton was due to death!
"Vengeful Spirit!" Rinloran cried out as his body violently shuddered.
"Lotton, he…" The emotions currently welling up within Ayrin couldn't be described with words.
For some arcane masters, they would be able to keep their spirit from scattering if they died while full of hatred. Thus, in conjunction with some arcane skills, they would be able to maintain their 'life' while having died.
As they kept their consciousness and remained able to use arcane particles, these existences were considered different from normal spirits, and called vengeful spirits.
But ultimately, these vengeful spirits were as dead as regular spirits!
"Did you die from your wounds received while fleeing Eichemalar? But why did you become a vengeful spirit? Do you feel hatred towards the Office of Special Affairs for chasing you?" Ayrin asked as he felt sadness well within him. Lotton was his enemy, but Lotton's current state was just too miserable, and he felt responsible for it.
Ayrin could hear bones cracking as Lotton raised his head.
It was clear that Lotton's neck had ever healed.
"You…"
Stingham loudly grit his teeth as he remained at a loss for words.
But then, much to Rinloran's annoyance, Stingham abruptly shouted, "Can you lower your head already? Do you not realize how terrifying you look?!"
The sound of bones cracking and grating rang through the hall as Lotton lowered his head and finally answered Ayrin's earlier question, "Even if I am no longer alive, I do not wish to be controlled by others. I shall take control of my own destiny."
"You were always under the control of others? You were a weapon ordered to kill?" Ayrin clenched his fists as he shouted, "So you require this Lunar Spring Essence to free yourself from their control?"
As Lotton nodded, more grating sounds rang from his neck.
"I beg you, please stop nodding your head." Stingham seemed to be on the verge of tears as he said, "If we help you obtain the Lunar Spring Essence and there is more than you require, would you be willing to split some with Rinloran so that he can increase his strength? You are, after all…"
"……" Rinloran's patience seemed to be nearing its limits.
Although Stingham was currently trying to help him, his manner and appearance while speaking was irritating and made Rinloran want to beat him up.
"To pursue your beliefs even after death, Lotton, you are a true brave warrior!"
Ayrin took a deep breath as he felt his blood boiling in his chest. Everyone around him could see the flames springing up within his eyes.
"Good. Then we will help you obtain the Lunar Spring Essence from the Land of the Undead!"
"Is there anyone else? Or do you have a stretcher?" Stingham abruptly chimed in. "But even with a stretcher, how will you be able to carry all three of us?"
"Idiot!" Rinloran screamed as he kicked Stingham in the ass.
At the same moment, Rinloran's body released countless faint blue particles of light. These sprite like particles scattered through the air and landed on Stingham and Ayrin's bodies.
"This is the Tree of Life's energy… Rinloran, have you gained the abilities of a powerful medicinal master like Teacher Ciaran?" Stingham cried out. His eyes bulged out in shock as he felt energy coursing through his veins once more.
