Chapter 103: Purification

Purification

Cough.

This sound seemed to startle the Sentinel; he wanted to do something, but found his hands holding the girl, unable to move.

His pale gold eyes stared at her for a long time, then moved to her lips; he obediently lowered his head and rubbed his lips against hers in a disorderly fashion, as if trying to rub back the kiss he had not received just moments before.

Fu Guang found it both laughable and exasperating; every move of the half-transformed Sentinel was full of randomness, making it impossible to predict, like an uncivilized small creature acting solely on instinct.

She reached out to push Xiguang's head away, passing some spiritual power from her fingertips to prevent the Sentinel from deep transformation.

The silver-haired Sentinel rubbed his forehead against her hand, his soft ear feathers brushing her cheek, like a bird seeking affection; this person became this way only because of her.

Although Fu Guang had looked up much information about Guides for survival's sake, and also glanced at some Sentinel data incidentally, she didn't really trust the information about Guides and Sentinels being bound together.

How could someone bind their whole life just because of a mental link? Isn't that too hasty?

To lay bare one's heart, subconscious, for the other to see is too much for her to accept.

She would not die for anyone, nor would she demand that a trading partner go to such lengths.

But Xiguang's actions had long surpassed her expectations; just because of that year's contract, was she supposed to stake her own life?

There are many Guides; even if she died, one could still seek another.

She knew she was cold-hearted; to entrust her true feelings to her was hardly a gamble worth taking.

Her brows twitched for an instant, she pressed her lips together, and in a dry voice she said, "Lower your head."

The Sentinel obediently followed her words, foreheads touching; Fu Guang passed half of her spiritual power to him, which was the greatest trust she could offer.

Now her body is weak, with only spiritual power as her means of protection; entrusting that trust outward makes her fingertips tremble uncontrollably.

She drew a breath, like the gasp of a drowning person reaching shore, letting her tensed heart loosen and beat again.

Fu Guang closed her eyes, placing the little sprite that had originally moved to her abdomen, now regained some strength and wished to leave, onto her palm.

The data says that spiritual entities share feeling with their masters, though it's unclear how strong that feeling is; compared to a person, does direct contact diminish or heighten sensitivity?

Lan'an also seemed worried about the two 'cripples,' and after leaving for only a short while, he returned.

He handed her the medicinal herbs he usually used for treatment, and only after seeing her eat them did he seem to let out a sigh of relief.

He could feel that the aura on the king's body was now A-rank and gradually increasing; though not obvious, at least the scattered spiritual power had vanished, indicating a good phenomenon, but she had grown even weaker, making it hard not to feel anxious.

"'What now?' Lan'an looked pleadingly at the girl, hoping for the Guide's embrace; for a Sentinel, that is perfectly normal

But now, with only him as combat power, we cannot be willful.

Fu Guang thought seriously; although repairing the mental landscape had gone awry, the task was ultimately completed.

"'Let's head back and see if we can regroup with the team.' Yummengze felt that something major had happened, but given the circumstances, retreat remained the safest solution.

"'Okay.'

Xiguang held the girl protectively in his arms; even when facing Lan'an, whom he had just met, he remained highly protective, hiding her beneath his wings so Lan'an could not see her.

"'Follow him.' Although simply purified, Xiguang's condition remained poor; he could not speak, and his actions relied solely on instinct.

Golden, delicate wings sprouted from his hands; touching Fu Guang's back caused a slight itch.

Fu Guang could only hold the little sprite, supplying it with some spiritual power whenever she managed to catch her breath.

The Sentinel's transformation is like a boulder rolling down a slope: on the rough ground it only speeds up, faster and faster, until it completely runs out of control.

The spiritual power Fu Guang now releases is like pushing a stopped boulder back uphill—no easy task.

But this is part of the contract; without mentioning Xiguang's sacrifice, she ought to free the Sentinel from transformation.

Fu Guang is undoubtedly proud; even with her mental landscape damaged and her strength only B-rank, she initially believed that freeing an S-rank Sentinel from transformation would be very easy.

Even if her spiritual power is lacking, isn't there still a purification elixir to aid her?

It was her arrogance; at the start of the mission she had prepared a S-rank purification elixir, obtained by exchanging within the White Tower.

Since the last Bloodthirsty Vine incident, her clearance within the White Tower has increased greatly, allowing her to exchange for a free S-rank elixir within that clearance.

Generally speaking, such high clearance belongs to an S-rank Guide; this elixir is merely a backup for when a Guide's spiritual power is insufficient for deep purification, to deal with a Sentinel's sudden mutation.

One only needs to hold out for a while, and the Guide can resolve the issue.

Fu Guang's spiritual power purity is S-rank, but the amount she can currently use is A-rank; though her aura is extremely faint, it remains A-rank.

Such drawn‑out purification barely prevents Xiguang from mutating further and offers only slight relief.

Or perhaps having Xiguang stay by her side as a guarding Sentinel would be a punishment?

On one hand Xiguang must obey her; on the other, the best match for an S-rank Sentinel is still an S-rank Guide, while lower‑rank Guides have no way to resolve an S‑rank mutation.

Just as an S‑rank Sentinel needs a basin‑sized amount of spiritual power at once to stop the boulder, a low‑rank Guide can only offer a bowl‑sized amount—truly a mantis trying to halt a chariot.

Thus in the Alliance, the combination of low‑rank Guides and high‑rank Sentinels is extremely rare, meaning the Sentinel will always remain in an unsafe mental range, liable to mutate at any moment.

Moreover, for a Guide this is also extremely dangerous: a Sentinel fallen into mutation distinguishes no friend from foe, slaughtering all living things, and it is highly likely that, in its inattention, it will injure an S-rank Guide.

Take S‑rank as an example: an S‑rank Sentinel's spiritual power can forcibly intrude into the mental landscape of an A‑rank or lower Guide; in Federal slang, this is called 'anti‑purification.'

The Sentinel's spiritual power possesses great aggression; for a Guide already lower‑rank than it, such fiercely aggressive spiritual power invading one's mental landscape would be a devastating blow.

Each occurrence of 'anti‑purification' means a Guide has perished; Federal law strictly forbids this, and a Sentinel that causes anti‑purification will be sentenced to death by the Alliance, executed immediately.

Unless it is an S‑rank Sentinel, it will not be made into an 'undead.'

Fu Guang gently stroked the little sprite's feathers, drawing from the spiritual conduit Lan'an's knowledge about purification.