As they delved deeper, aside from the inexplicably piercing voices, everything else was relatively normal.
The priority was still to locate Phainon as quickly as possible.
However, a commotion broke out ahead.
It was a battle between a frenzied Okhema soldier and a Castrum Kremnos warrior.
Hearing the dialogue between the two, Caelus also guessed the truth.
What they were seeing and hearing now should have originated from the fear in Mydei's heart.
Just as the two refused to stop until one of them was dead, Caelus stepped in to stop them. "Please stop fighting!"
Unfortunately, it was still too late.
The Okhema soldier's blade had already pierced the Castrum Kremnos warrior's chest.
One could only hear him still thinking of the king who had left in his final moments. "Mydeimos… my king… avenge me…!"
The Okhema soldier was already close to madness. He looked at Mydei and Caelus. His body twisted violently, emitting cracking sounds.
The next moment, he transformed into the appearance of a Lance of Fury soldier. "Cowardly king… die…!"
Looking at the charging enemy, Mydei sighed. "This bottomless killing intent… is Nikador's fury."
The next moment, he threw a handsome punch straight to the enemy's brow.
Immediately after, the Lance of Fury soldier's body cracked apart once more and turned into a pile of powder.
Mydei laughed at himself. "How utterly ridiculous. I recognize this Okhema man. He was an upright warrior, yet he was twisted into this form by 「Strife」.
And this noisy voice… whenever it rings out, the killing intent in one's heart becomes difficult to suppress.
Phainon must have been overwhelmed by this battle cry and lost himself… Hmph, useless guy."
He subconsciously turned his head to look at the dead warrior.
Caelus asked, "Your expression looks very heavy…"
"It's nothing. Let's go."
At that moment,
a familiar voice came from not far away.
Mydei listened carefully and knew the person was the inverted-sentence master Chartonus.
Originally, Mydei and Caelus were prepared to help Chartonus look after his injuries.
But Chartonus kept verbally attacking Mydei.
In the end, he even took out the signet ring that belonged to Mydei's mother.
At this, Mydei finally understood. The person in front of him was not Chartonus at all.
Suddenly, Chartonus violently charged toward Caelus.
But a long, narrow shadow came from behind, piercing through Chartonus's illusion.
"Good skill." Mydei couldn't help but exclaim.
Caelus looked at this familiar scene and turned his head with a smile. Sure enough, it was Dan Heng.
"Are you… the real Dan Heng?"
Dan Heng was very calm. "The same question, returned to you — What was the last thing I said to you before I parted the sea in Scalegorge Waterscape?"
Mydei listened with some confusion. "Part the sea?"
[How would anyone know that?]
[Damn it, you're asking me about something from Season 3 in Season 8?]
[Caelus: Why don't you just nail me to death with one spear?]
[Did Mydei hear something extraordinary?]
[Mydei probably doesn't know that Little Azure Dragon is actually very strong.]
— —
Faced with Dan Heng's question, Caelus remained silent. After so long, who the hell would remember?
Dan Heng nodded in satisfaction. "Correct answer. Good memory."
A question mark "?" popped up above Mydei's head.
After the three successfully confirmed that none of them were fakes, they began exchanging information.
They could reach one conclusion: This trial was not targeted at any single person alone. Instead, it would materialize the fears of everyone who entered the trial.
However, this also indirectly proved that Phainon was definitely still inside. They just needed to find the source.
The three traveled together, heading toward the center of the battlefield.
Finally, at a square, they saw Nikador's incarnation.
Mydei: "Heh, as expected. This is the source of the battle cry... the true gateway to Nikador's trial."
Caelus looked at this person's appearance and couldn't help but hum in acknowledgment.
Dan Heng noticed Caelus's unusual reaction. "What's wrong, you two?"
Caelus explained, "It's Gnaeus, Nikador's incarnation…"
Mydei took a deep breath. "Although we've never met, I can feel it too. Without a doubt, that is killing intent belonging solely to 「Strife」... Nikador himself — the ruler of this battlefield."
Nikador did not turn around, but his voice resounded throughout the entire space. "「Heh, Mydeimos… You truly are a warrior with shining eyes.」"
"You recognize me?" Mydei's brows furrowed tightly.
"「Of course I recognize you, the blasphemous king.」 「I also understand: You have come for the soul of that white-haired warrior.」"
"Then that makes things simple. Hand over that pathetic swordsman and let us end this farce as quickly as possible."
"「I refuse.」 「I acknowledge the courage of all of you from the battle just now. But since you intend to trample upon the dignity of the defeated, I cannot sit idly by.」"
Caelus took out the Flame Lance and rested it on his shoulder. "Looks like a fierce battle is inevitable."
At this moment, Dan Heng caught some key words. "The defeated… Could it be that he failed to overcome the trial?"
Nikador continued speaking. "「He fought bravely against the deepest fear in his heart and perished in fierce slaughter. Therefore, I welcomed him into the battlefield behind me and granted him the glory that matches courage, perseverance, and sacrifice.」
「Want to take him away? You may: Take up your bronze spears and come prove that your conviction matches his...」
「As for cowards who refuse to shed blood… leave my sight now.」"
"Hmph, I'm not interested in the pathetic ravings of your mad king... But since you want to fight, then come, Titan — let me once again close your eyes with the fate of death."
"「Excellent! Your noble mother also used the spear in her hand to let me experience the same spirit.」"
Mydei clenched his fists. "Don't mention her name."
"「Why? She fought the previous king of Castrum Kremnos, knowing she would die from a treacherous plot, all to defend your dignity. Are you saying all of that was just her futile effort?」"
"Her tragedy originated from your hands — the embodiment of 「Strife」 — what right do you have to speak of her past?" Mydei's fists erupted with firelight. "Enough. Stop talking about useless things. As the god of 「Strife」, why don't you prove it with your sword? Let us settle this quickly!"
At that moment,
everyone around slowly gathered toward Nikador.
"「Heh! Your hatred is plain to see, Mydeimos. These words must have stung your heart. But precisely because of that, I finally understand...」
「This is the reason you killed your father to seize the throne, yet allowed the signet ring to sink into the underworld sea, unwilling to continue Castrum Kremnos's glory...」
「This is the reason you destroyed the Strife Titan yet refused the Coreflame, perpetuating 「Strife」...」"
Mydei gritted his teeth and did not answer.
"「Child abandoned by fate, I want to see whether you have the ability — whether you can personally extinguish your own destiny.」"
"I will definitely tear open your chest, Titan… just as I did to the previous king."
[There's so much information!]
[It feels like Mydei is someone with a very deep story!]
[I feel like I've seen this story somewhere before? Greek mythology?]
[Yes.]
— —
"「Hahaha! Since you want to repeat the same mistakes, then come: Ignite the flames of your fear, step onto the battlefield, fight to the borders of 「Strife」, and devour me; or lose yourself within it and let your battle-dead body receive the comfort of roasting!」
「But remember, Mydeimos: The son of the Gorgo, founder of Castrum Kremnos, must be crowned in blood——」
「When you break open my chest, that will also be the moment you ascend to godhood—— Successor of Castrum Kremnos, I salute you!」"
As Nikador spoke, more and more Lance of Fury soldiers gathered around him.
"「To be fair, I shall grant you the use of a drop of 「Strife」's blood!」"
Suddenly, an inexplicable golden light poured into Mydei's body.
His expression became extremely pained. "Restless power… difficult to suppress..."
"「Cast off your mortal shell in fear, King of Castrum Kremnos!」"
[Did you notice one thing? It feels like Nikador really hopes Mydei will inherit the Coreflame of Strife?]
[I noticed it early on. When he talked about patricide, I already knew. Amphoreus is heavily influenced by Western culture after all, and Greek mythology loves fatalism the most. Everything is destined.]
— —
The battle continued. The few of them fought fiercely against the seemingly endless Lance of Fury soldiers.
"Careful!" Caelus noticed something wrong and shouted toward Mydei.
An enemy was about to ambush Mydei from behind, but Phainon charged out from behind the enemy. The long sword in his hand seemed about to pierce Mydei's chest…
But Mydei dodged it sideways.
Mydei looked at Phainon. "Found you…!"
[Stabbing his brother in the back for his sake!]
[Dan Heng: I'm familiar with this.]
[Oh my god, that last line — "Found you!"]
[Eh? Caelus is actually using the Flame Lance!]
— —
The screen went black.
It was already some time later.
miHoYo skipped the process after Phainon was rescued.
Although Phainon was not seriously injured, his soul breath had not yet stabilized. He must have encountered his deepest inner fear.
Here, Castorice mentioned the "Black Tide" once again.
Taking this opportunity, Dan Heng quickly asked, "Could you please elaborate on what exactly this 「Black Tide」 is?"
Aglaea let out a long breath, found a place to sit, and began to explain slowly. "It is one of the culprits that drove the people of Amphoreus into madness. Since the Age of Strife, this indescribable thing has descended upon the land alongside the three Disaster Titans like a plague...
We do not know where it originated from. Instead, we discovered that it is like the sea surrounding the land, continuously encroaching upon the still-peaceful yet already narrow territory. It is precisely because of this that it is named the 「Black Tide」.
Anyone affected by it becomes twisted and hideous, losing their sanity and humanity, turning into bloodless and tearless beasts. And this is not a calamity exclusive to mortals — even the Titan gods cannot escape it."
Castorice added, "According to Gnaeus, although Nikador was one of the embodiments of disaster, he also shouldered the mission of resisting the Black Tide...
Perhaps this is another reason… why Lord Phainon would throw himself into the 「Strife」 trial without hesitation."
"And now, we must find another way to try to ignite 「Strife」."
Mydei understood the implication in Aglaea's words. "Speak, Aglaea. What's the next step?"
"You know, this does not depend on me." Aglaea slowly stood up and looked at Mydei with lifeless eyes.
"Mydei, as the successor of Castrum Kremnos, you naturally understand: Simply winning on the battlefield of 「Strife」 would be as easy as turning one's hand for you...
But the weight of a god's duty can ultimately only be borne by one person.
What pushes the world into dead fog is recklessness and hesitation, not suspended divinity."
Mydei lowered his head, seemingly wanting to respond to everything with silence alone.
[I feel like the whole world seems to expect Mydei to become the demigod of Strife?]
[It should be him who is supposed to become it. It's just that Mydei doesn't want to.]
[If that's really the case, based on Phainon's personality, Phainon probably knows Mydei doesn't want to inherit it, so he inherited it himself. That way, Mydei's pressure wouldn't be so great.]
[Mm, I still find this inference quite convincing. After all, these two like to bicker when they meet, but they're actually doing it for each other's sake.]
[Sigh, this brotherly bond, just listen to how you're describing it.]
— —
After settling Phainon, Dan Heng and the Trailblazer returned to the bath palace to rest briefly.
They also made some of their own judgments and summaries regarding the current state of the Amphoreus world.
"「Indescribable」, 「unknown origin」… When these keywords are combined, what do you think of?" Dan Heng glanced at Caelus, hoping to get some different answers.
[Cthulhu!]
[Honkai!]
[Eh? There are 12 Titans and 12 Herrschers. Could it be?]
[No, right? Amphoreus should be more closely related to the Thirteen Flame-Chasers.]
[True, but the Previous Era Elysian Realm is just a segment of data. Sigh...]
[Eh? Data? Could it be?]
— —
Based on past experience, Caelus said, "It should be a Stellaron, no doubt about it."
Dan Heng nodded, neither confirming nor denying this answer. "Correct. That is one possibility. Thinking back to Amphoreus's characteristics again — a world 「plunged into eternal night」, 「isolated from the world」, and 「being eroded by an unknown force」... I was already very concerned earlier. All signs indicate that Amphoreus is definitely not a world that has never come into contact with the cosmos. Whether it's the birth of the Titans or the arrival of the Black Tide… none of it can be explained by the natural development of civilization.
Its current 「isolation」 must have another hidden reason. It's just that if the cause is also the Cancer of All Worlds… some direct or indirect signs have not yet been confirmed."
"Stellarons' voices?" Caelus gave this answer not without reason. Back in Belobog, he and Cocolia had resonated.
"We thought of the same thing. Based on experience, the Stellaron inside you should be able to resonate with others of its kind. But so far, no such signs have appeared.
Not only that, there are other unresolved doubts. My intuition tells me it probably isn't that simple...
Pinochoni's history also proves that a world's appearance is not necessarily the result of a single Path's influence."
"Maybe it's Akivili's self-production and self-sales."
Dan Heng was momentarily stunned. "I think… even the Fictitious Historian wouldn't dare to adopt such a setting lightly.
Be that as it may, we'll have to take it one step at a time.
Let's treat the Black Tide as a breakthrough point. Since Nikador has already fallen, the power he suppressed will inevitably begin to counterattack... It seems… the significance of our 「Trailblaze」 journey has become even greater."