Chapter 3948

The young apprentice explained to Xia De:

"The number of refugees outside the city is increasing every day. No one knows exactly how many people are out there now; it's impossible to keep an accurate count. Since the middle of this month, there have been rumors that someone in the city is dissatisfied with the refugees blocking the outskirts and refusing to leave, so they have turned into a serial killer, murdering refugees every night.

But this is likely just a rumor spread to scare the refugees away from staying here; I don't really believe anyone would actually do such a thing."

"I see. In that case, I will come back to visit tomorrow."

It was just as well that Mr. Finch wasn't there, as Xia De wouldn't have to delay his return home. And when he returned home with a belly full of news, the house today was just as lively as it had been for the past few days.

Appearing at the house tonight were Sylvia and Galina, and of course, Luweiya was there too; she was conducting stargazing activities all this week, so she was sure to come over every day.

Dinner was prepared by Tifa and the others, and Xia De shared today's findings at the dinner table. The witches lamented that the 【Creation Sect】 really had problems, and then they began to discuss what exactly Vigo's mother had done.

Luweiya was naturally more concerned about the "Calamity of Creation." She examined the "Source of Fire" that had become more powerful after absorbing the attack, and then asked Xia De in detail about the spell he had obtained:

"Is your spell extracting life force in the form of a fire seed? This shouldn't be a coincidence. You have been tainted by the power of the 'Source of Fire,' and in your subconscious, you have linked 'life' with 'fire seeds'... Have you tried the power of this spell? Is the fire seed you extracted different from the mutated fire seeds?"

"I haven't tried it yet; I was only concerned about Vigo at the time... Galina, don't look at me like that, she really was on the verge of losing control back then."

"I know~ I'm not that narrow-minded. Tifa, go to the kitchen and get a fish!"

Galina said to her head maid, who then went to the kitchen and soon brought out a fish with a towel—this was the backup ingredient for tonight, in case too many people showed up at the house.

"Meow~"

The cat on Xia De's right side meowed. Xia De guessed that it probably meant for him not to touch such a disgusting thing during dinner, but Xia De still turned and reached out toward the fish:

"However, even without casting this spell, it has already brought me some special power. Now I can vaguely sense the life force intensity of the people around me, and it is felt in the form of fire seeds. This doesn't mean you all have fire seeds; it's just that my perception has concretized the concept of life intensity into fire seeds for me to know—Spell: Life Fire Seed."

His right index finger lightly touched the fish, and the contact ended after just one second. At this moment, a slender red flame was dancing on Xia De's finger. The young ladies watching, whether it was Galina, Sylvia, Luweiya, or the maid ladies, all felt a longing stemming from the instinct of life.

They hoped to obtain this fire seed.

"One of the instincts of life is to extend the duration of one's own existence."

Sylvia said regarding this. As for the fish that Xia De had cast the spell on, it didn't immediately wither or dehydrate; it simply died.

"This fire looks very normal, without the distortion of the fire seeds Xia De described, so is this the normal life force?"

Galina asked with great interest, and Xia De said:

"Yes. And before the fish's soul leaves, if I return this flame to it, it can come back to life. However, the soul of a low-intelligence life form like a fish is extremely weak, and soon... well, it's too late now. Even if I returned this, it could only become a 'plant fish.' But if the distorted life force from the 'Source of Fire' were returned to a corpse, it would become the thing Iluna mentioned this morning."

Xia De said, and Tifa then carried the fish back to the kitchen; judging by the sound, she wanted to add another dish.

"Then what about this life fire seed?"

Luweiya, on Xia De's left, stared at Xia De's finger:

"A pure crystal of life force, so flawless and pure. This is indeed different from the 'distorted life fire seed.' Then, can it grant life to dead objects?"

Xia De shook his head clearly:

"I'm afraid not. Life can only be granted to life; this is one of the rules I learned after using this spell. But this kind of normal fire seed can also be stored by the 'Source of Fire,' only in that case, it will also be contaminated."

The flame on his fingertip was beginning to weaken at a speed visible to the naked eye; even a normal fire seed cannot exist independently away from life for too long.

However, Xia De did not use this fire seed himself, nor did he grant it to the young ladies or Little Mia, but instead got up and went to the kitchen, giving it to the other fish in the water tank.

After gaining the extra life, that "lucky fish" did not undergo any changes; it merely became healthier and had a longer lifespan limit.

"I have no intention of extracting other lives to seek a longer life for myself, and I don't want to use this spell for life experiments. The significance of this spell to me actually lies in the fact that it allows me to interfere with the 'distorted life fire seeds,' and the latter also falls within the range I can control."

Xia De explained to the ladies:

"Although the 'Source of Fire' can absorb other fire seeds, it cannot absorb them forcibly; it can only do so when the holder of another fire seed is destroyed and the fire seed briefly appears."

"But with this spell, I can try to forcibly strip away the fire seeds possessed by those mechanical life forms or 'living corpses' while they are still able to act normally. This is of great significance for the upcoming actions."

"But this also means that you have to frequently come into direct contact with that kind of distorted life crystal."

Sylvia reminded him, and Xia De nodded:

"In the past battles of the Chosen, didn't I also frequently come into contact with those calamities? This time is already much better; with that Source of Fire, all I need to do is extract the fire seed."

He sat back down to eat with everyone:

"I was just thinking, I mastered this ability because of the 'Emerald Tablet,' and Vigo also sensed the huge fire seed of the church directly this afternoon because of the power of the 'Emerald Tablet' in her soul. Does this mean that the Unknowable-level relic itself also has the ability to control normal life fire seeds?"

"Distorted life force existing in the form of fire seeds must have a reason. Perhaps the essence of life force was anchored by the Ancient Gods as 'fire seeds,' and the 'Emerald Tablet' has recorded this kind of power."

Luweiya said, and Galina reminded Xia De again:

"When you are by Vigo's side, remember to help her look for other clues left by her mother. She doesn't even know what is in her own soul and needs you to investigate. I think Vigo herself is a bit confused too."

Sylvia smiled; she was the youngest in the Council and had a relatively good relationship with every Great Witch:

"We didn't know much about Vigo's mother before; after all, it involved Vigo's privacy. If there is an opportunity later, I will let Margaret investigate that lady. Although she was a Ring Mage, she married the previous head of the Astley family, so the Grey Gloves should have some intelligence on her."

Although Sylvia thought that the intelligence might not be very effective, it was never wrong to investigate it while she was at it:

"Speaking of which, what is Vigo's mother's full name?"

Galina didn't know either, but Xia De had heard Vigo mention it today:

"Peggy Nicola Astley. Of course, this was her name after marrying Vigo's father. Her mother's original surname was Lemay, so the name Margaret should investigate is Peggy Nicola Lemay."

That night, everyone actually talked the most about the 【Creation Sect】, and Xia De did not forget to visit Dannister again in the evening to inform her of what he knew.

Regarding the possibility of a major problem in the church, the librarian lady didn't have much of a reaction; she just told Xia De that the "God-Caller" should not show up for the time being and let them solve it.

And the speed at which Dannister solved this matter was obviously faster than Xia De had imagined, or rather, Dannister's emphasis on this matter exceeded Xia De's expectations.

The next day, Tuesday, early in the morning, Iluna came to No. 6 St. Deran Square in a hurry, just like on Monday morning. But this time she wasn't here for a free meal; she was here to say goodbye:

"The Holy See has issued an emergency order for me to go on a business trip today. I will set off for the Arcadia region in a while. This time I'm not taking an airship; I'm using special means to go directly, and I'll be able to have breakfast there by eight o'clock."

It was six o'clock in the morning, and even Little Mia hadn't woken up yet. Galina and Sylvia hadn't come out of their bedrooms, and Luweiya had been stargazing until two in the morning last night, sleeping even later than the three on the second floor, but she still came to the second floor in her slippers, sleepy-eyed.

Only the two maids responsible for the night watch and Xia De were more energetic, but Iluna looked even more energetic.

"Going now? Did they tell you the reason?"

Iluna shook her head:

"They didn't say the specific reason, only that it was related to the 【Creation Sect】, so I came to ask you if you knew the situation."

"Sit down first; I actually do know the situation."

Xia De said, steadying Luweiya, who was about to lean onto him, and then ordered the two maid ladies to pour tea.

Iluna was leaving in half an hour, and now was the time for her to go home and pack her luggage, so Xia De kept it short and told her about the riot of the giant fire seed source at the Holy See of the 【Creation Sect】 yesterday afternoon:

"It seems Dannister has been busy with this all night. In any case, be careful when you arrive in Arcadia City... Take the 【One-Shot Kill Pistol】 with you in a while; there are still two soul bullets left in the magazine, and it can also damage activated machinery."

"Although this gun was seen by church people during the Fate War, it was in its disguised form at that time, and it was only restored by 'If' after the war ended, so it's fine even if you take it out."