Due to the Myriad Serpent Curse Mark, all of Leilin's data had declined sharply, and his remaining time was down to just two years. These troubles had always been like a noose tightening around his neck, leaving him unable to breathe.
But now, with the Filthbird's help, Leilin felt that his time was finally no longer so pressing, and he could breathe a little easier.
"The seal of my Chaos Rule can at most delay the Myriad Serpent Curse Mark for eighteen years. And after twenty years, even if you find me again or any other eighth-rank existence, the seal cannot be further delayed or reinforced... unless you can meet a ninth-rank Eternal..."
The Filthbird's voice rang out once more, though at this point, the gray little bird that appeared before Leilin looked somewhat ethereal, as if it had consumed too much energy.
"Thank you, great Sovereign!"
Even so, Leilin expressed his sincere gratitude. After all, without this, he wouldn't even have had the twenty-year buffer.
"Half of your sacrificial power remains. State your remaining request!"
At this moment, the gray bird spoke again in Leilin's mind.
"Great Wing of Undulation! I wish to obtain something that can conceal my identity. After all, to thoroughly resolve the Myriad Serpent Curse Mark, I will inevitably need to delve deep into the Heil Continent..."
Leilin pondered for a moment before stating his intentions.
He had long discovered that in this Infernal World where the ritualist path was prevalent, no matter how well he had disguised himself before, there was always a fatal flaw!
That was the existence of ritualist clones! Any ritualist who reached the fourth rank could summon a clone of a Sovereign to descend. And if those clones possessed sentience, they would certainly be able to detect Leilin's disguise nearby.
In the previous great battles, whether it was Iyas or Bekelak, they had only summoned partial phantoms and fragments of power, not direct clones, which had given Leilin the chance to conceal himself. But Leilin knew he couldn't avoid this forever — especially on the Heil Continent! So some form of concealment was absolutely necessary, and it had to be something capable of fooling the clones of rule-level existences.
Moreover, these rule-level existences might possess some kind of special detection methods. The Mother of Myriad Serpents in particular, being the origin of the Komoin bloodline, would surely have some unique sensory abilities regarding her own descendants.
Although Leilin had already made extensive preparations and countermeasures, there was no harm in adding one more layer of insurance.
"You are clever!" The Filthbird nodded approvingly. "Once you appear within ten li of a clone of our existences, you will never be able to escape our eyes!"
"I shall bestow upon you the Feather of Chaos. The holder of this item will be shielded by the power of chaos. As long as you do not encounter a Sovereign's true body, you will not be detected..."
The little bird's form grew ever more ethereal, until finally, amid a burst of light, it transformed into a gray, dreamlike feather that floated before Leilin.
"Descendant of the Myriad Serpents! Emperor of the Komoin! The Heil Continent shall be yours to roam freely — and tear apart the Serpent Throne of Myriad Serpents..."
The gray Filthbird clone vanished, leaving only a remnant of will reverberating throughout the entire chamber.
Boom! The sacrificial formation on the ground instantly exploded, turning into countless wisps of ash.
"Hah... the effect is even better than expected!"
Leilin exhaled a long breath, feeling suddenly fortunate.
Trading with an existence like the Filthbird was like walking a tightrope. Leilin had to consider every possible worst-case scenario.
Of course, given the arch-enemy relationship between the Filthbird and the Eye of Judgment, it would naturally be very pleased to see the Eye of Judgment's ally, the Mother of Myriad Serpents, suffer a setback. This was the foundation upon which their deal was struck.
More crucially, Leilin's own strength and meticulous planning meant that even if the Filthbird clone suddenly turned on him, he was confident he could break the sacrificial formation and escape in an instant.
With a common enemy, and Leilin's ability to escape, the Filthbird had come to regard him as something of an ally.
Furthermore, Leilin had no intention of completely trusting the Filthbird. After all, the relationship between them was purely one of mutual exploitation. Of course, since the Filthbird currently held an absolute advantage and there was no conflict of interest between them, this alliance could be expected to continue.
The fact that Leilin, a rather unfaithful ritualist, had been directly elevated to the fourth rank by the Filthbird was proof enough.
There were no eternal lucky breaks in the world. Only thorough, meticulous consideration and anticipation of every possible worst-case scenario could truly guarantee success.
"A fourth-rank ritualist can already begin drawing the other party's energy into their body to enhance physical attributes and permanently solidify them..."
Leilin mused: "However, this enhancement usually comes at the cost of having the Filthbird's energy brand imprinted throughout the entire body, possibly even causing irreversible tissue and cellular transformation, ultimately resulting in complete control by the other party... Chip! Full scan of my body's energy structure!"
[Ding! Task established, commencing scan!]The Chip's mechanical voice sounded, followed by dense streams of blue light scanning across various parts of Leilin's body.
[Unknown energy structure detected! Identified as Filthbird energy brand! Purge?]Before long, the Chip reported its findings.
"Pull up the schematic!" Leilin had already anticipated this result, so he showed no surprise, calmly issuing his command instead.
Immediately, on the Chip's display, he saw a cell image magnified countless times. At the center of the cell was an addition — something resembling a sea urchin, emanating a distinct fluctuation of chaos.
[Ding! This energy is a key factor in suppressing the Myriad Serpent Curse Mark. Purging it will trigger irreversible changes. Probability of premature activation of the Myriad Serpent Curse Mark: 99.99%. Purge?]
The Chip's voice made Leilin's expression darken slightly.
"It seems this is the failsafe the Filthbird has placed within me. Although it currently appears to serve only as a threat and tracking mechanism, I will still need to leverage its power going forward. Even the seal on the Myriad Serpent Curse Mark will require the participation of chaos energy..."
Numerous streams of light flashed through Leilin's eyes, and in the end, he issued his command: "Prioritize continuous monitoring! Maintain current status quo for now!"
[Ding! Task established. Activating real-time internal monitoring program!]
The Chip faithfully carried out Leilin's orders.
"...Regardless, the gains from this transaction far outweigh the costs. Not only has the activation of the Myriad Serpent Curse Mark been delayed, but I have also truly obtained the means to infiltrate the Heil Continent..."
Leilin murmured, his hand trailing along the wall.
A layer of liquid black flame instantly emerged from his palm, spreading rapidly as if alive, covering the entire area in the blink of an eye.
Subsequently, the binding runes on the walls and the traces of the sacrificial formation on the ground all vanished without a trace under the demonic black fire, their very aura burned away entirely.
After everything had been thoroughly cleaned, a mass of earthy yellow light emerged from Leilin's body and merged into the surrounding walls.
Whoosh! A circular pattern of light appeared on the surface of Coral Island, and then Leilin's figure flew directly out.
"Thank you! Big fellow!"
Leilin looked at the enormous tortoise and waved with a smile. Then a point of green light instantly flew from his fingertip and sank into the tortoise's forehead.
Although that tiny speck of green light was like dust compared to the tortoise's massive head, Leilin could still hear a note of delighted surprise in the creature's cry.
Especially after the light entered, the tortoise's cloudy eyes seemed to gain some clarity, and its gaze toward Leilin held a bit more goodwill.
"This is a gift from an ancient sage. Though it's merely a trace of external aura, it has remarkable effects on awakening intelligence in creatures. You want more? I'm afraid I still have great need of these, and can't give you any more..."
Leilin smiled and, under the tortoise's regretful gaze, transformed into a streak of black radiance that vanished into the distant sky.
"Aaoooh..." The great tortoise roared toward the direction Leilin had departed, as if bidding him farewell.
The enormous waves of sound continued to ripple outward, even causing massive tidal surges in the surrounding sea. This continued for half an hour.
In the end, the tortoise's body gradually sank to the ocean floor, leaving behind a massive white whirlpool...
...
Howling wind rushed past Leilin's ears, carrying the sharp sound of whistling air.
Leilin's expression turned solemn. Although he had already devised a plan to infiltrate the Heil Continent, when the time actually came to put it into action, he still felt a trace of mild concern.
"Intelligence Unit One! Report your position!" Leilin pressed his temple, and a point of blue light appeared in his pupil.
[Ding! Current coordinates: relative to main body as origin, 786.67 nautical miles to the southeast!]
A special transmission was sent directly to the Chip.
[Surrounding individuals emotionally agitated. Possibility of violent conflict cannot be ruled out! Suggest main body arrive immediately, otherwise puppet identities will be exposed!]
At this moment, another alert came from the other end, causing Leilin's speed to surge dramatically.
Although shadow puppets combined with the Chip could simulate his every action — even making their auras indistinguishable from the real thing — the moment a fight broke out, the deception would certainly be exposed.
At that point, even if Leilin arrived in time to kill them all, he probably couldn't prevent the information from spreading, and his identity as Nick would have to be abandoned.
More importantly, the plans that had been established beforehand would need to be revised, and the risks would only increase further. This was something Leilin absolutely could not accept.
"What exactly happened to cause things to escalate to this degree?"
Leilin carefully studied the report sent by Intelligence Unit One, and the events following the Battle of Iyas Port immediately surfaced in his mind.