Chapter 289: Lost Blood Tower

The light sword was extremely fast, as swift as lightning!

"What is that!"

Lin Yifan just realized he needed to dodge, and the light sword was already before him; he could only reflexively reach out to block.

But the sword pierced straight through his palm, then entered his brow, and finally slipped into his sea of consciousness.

Lin Yifan's heart suddenly panicked, yet after the sword entered his consciousness he felt no discomfort, as if nothing had happened.

That gave him both doubt and a slight reassurance!

But a knot remained in his mind, and he didn't have time to think further.

At that moment, the light on the blade began to contract, yet Lin Yifan could still sense the immense power within, and oddly he felt a deeper connection forming between him and the sword.

He lowered his head to look at the sword in his hand, and for a moment felt a vague worry.

Such a powerful sword, still a damaged relic, now seemed eager to bind with him, which made him feel uneasy.

Just then, the unconscious Aieriliya's eyelashes twitched slightly, and moments later she slowly opened her eyes.

A flash of golden light flickered in her pupils before returning to a deep blue.

Seeing this, Lin Yifan stepped forward, crouched before her, and asked quickly:

"Princess Aieriliya, you finally woke up! What exactly happened just now? How were you suddenly devoured by that monster?"

"I... where is this?" Aieriliya reached out to rub her head, then asked weakly.

"This is the tower's outer world; we've left the inner world," Lin Yifan replied.

He then gently placed Dawn beside her and said softly:

"We rescued you from that monster's grasp, returned this sword to you, and you should take your belongings back yourself. My path differs from yours in the Dawnlight Alliance, we don't conspire, so I cannot help you."

Aieriliya's gaze fell on the long sword, and her expression suddenly froze.

She trembled as she reached out, but when her hand neared the hilt she jerked it back as if burned.

"No... this can't be..." she muttered, fear and disbelief filling her eyes, "This sword has been missing for centuries; how could it appear here?"

Then she looked up at Lin Yifan, exclaiming in shock:

"Also, I've been searching for this sword for many years without success; how could I possibly give it to you?"

"What exactly happened just now? Why did you say the sword is mine and ask me to bring it back to the Dawnlight Alliance?"

Lin Yifan furrowed his brows, instinctively stepped back, and stared at Aieriliya with suspicion:

"Who are you, really?"

"What do you mean who I am? I'm Aieriliya!" Aieriliya said, her face full of displeasure and helplessness:

"No, I was the one asking you a question; why are you now doubting who I am?"

"What about me suspecting you? Shouldn't I be allowed to doubt you?" Lin Yifan said coldly, his tone icy:

"You clearly handed this sword to me to deliver back to the Dawnlight Alliance, yet now you deny it. Either you're not Aieriliya, or you're deliberately playing me."

The tension over the sword escalated, and the atmosphere was about to explode.

Silver Face stepped forward, the silver mask glinting coldly in the sunlight:

"Miss Aieriliya, setting aside other matters, from what I saw you recognize this sword, you should know how important it is."

"You can see now that the sword has been bound to Lin Yifan as its true master; such a relic, once bound, cannot be unbound unless its master dies."

"What do you think the Dawnlight Alliance would do if they learned this? Would they kill Lin Yifan and hold you accountable, or let Lin Yifan keep the sword?"

Aieriliya's expression grew solemn, while Lin Yifan, confused, interjected:

"Can you tell me what exactly this sword is?"

"Alas!" Aieriliya sighed lightly before speaking:

"This is the Light God's companion sword. Since the Light God's fall, our Dawnlight Alliance has guarded it, but 300 years ago a traitor within the Alliance stole it from the vault, causing it to be lost for so many years."

"I came here this time because I received word that the sword was left in the Lost Blood Tower, which, as one of the corrupted trial sites, appears randomly; the last appearance was a hundred years ago."

"When it finally appeared, we seized the chance to search, but we didn't expect to run into the Dark Night Divine Cult and the Red Moon Cult's meddling. Of course I also didn't anticipate that the Lost Blood Tower had developed its own will, and after I entered, I received news from the Alliance that the Dawn sword wasn't here at all."

"Now this sword has appeared, how could I not be shocked? And you claim I gave it to you, which is even more impossible; the Dawn sword is of great significance to the Dawnlight Alliance, and once it's in my hands I would never give it to anyone else."

"So either you're lying, or the sword itself is problematic!"

Aieriliya lifted her head, her gaze sweeping the faces before settling on Lin Yifan, and said gravely:

"But Lin Yifan, regardless of whether the sword has issues, I advise you not to get involved with it. In the past few hundred years, many weapons left by Divine Beings have mysteriously been stolen."

"They appear sporadically, either in extremely dangerous Instance realms or in forbidden zones, and each emergence brings bloodshed and massive casualties."

"If the Dawn sword is genuine, once this news spreads you'll become the eye of the storm; then you and everyone around you will be drawn into danger, and you yourself will become a hunting target for countless people."

Her eyes grew complex as she sighed lightly and said:

"Although our positions differ, you did save me, and I don't want anything to happen to you."

"Then you don't want this sword anymore?" Lin Yifan asked, frowning.

"I want it but can't have it! Unless I kill you," Aieriliya forced a bitter smile, sighing helplessly:

"Even if our stances differ and we may become foes someday, you saved me, so I couldn't betray you, therefore…"

Her words halted abruptly as orderly footsteps sounded from afar.

A fully armed squad of soldiers rushed toward them, their chest insignia glittering in the sun—it was the emblem of the Alliance's High Council.