Chapter 379: Inspecting the Plague

Chapter 379: Chapter 379: Inspecting the Plague

Chapter 379: Inspecting the Plague

Returning to their guest courtyard after the battlefield confrontation, Rhain, Lyra, Karsten, and the mercenaries gathered in the main room.

They all had grave expressions as they had finally realised the true nature of the trial.

"So this is the trap of the Third Trial," Karsten muttered bitterly, "It was never about raw combat. It isn’t just a matter of killing an evil Domain Master or saving a weak tribe..."

"It’s a moral deadlock," Lyra finished for him, her arms crossed tightly beneath her chest as she paced the room, "An endless cycle of hatred spanning five hundred years, with no righteous side to choose. If we had just slaughtered the Bone Skulls, we would have failed the old man’s test. If we had abandoned the Crystalveil, we would have failed too."

She turned her gaze toward Rhain who had not spoken anything since they have returned from the battlefield, seemingly in a deep thought.

"Rhain," Lyra asked, voicing the question that was hanging like an executioner’s blade over all of their heads. "You promised them a cure in fifteen days. How exactly do you intend to cure a plague that has haunted these canyons for five centuries?"

The mercenaries held their breath, looking at Rhain hopefully.

But Rhain simply shook his head.

"I have no idea," Rhain stated calmly.

The words dropped into the room like a heavy boulder.

Karsten’s jaw practically hit the floor. "Y-You don’t know?! Lord Rhain, all that you spoke there was just a bluff?!"

"It was not a bluff," Rhain replied, his dark grey eyes were as placid and unreadable as a still lake. "It is simply the logical process of Alchemy. You cannot cure an affliction you do not understand. My first step is a thorough examination of the disease itself—its fundamental nature, its pathway of infection, and exactly why the Spring of Life is capable of suppressing it."

Before Lyra could ask how he planned to do that without any essence, a gentle, hesitant knock echoed from the courtyard doors.

"Enter," Rhain said.

The doors open, and Anya stepped inside.

She wore a simple white dress, her hands clasped nervously in front of her.

"Benefactor Rhain," Anya bowed politely. "I received your message. You... you sent for me?"

Lyra and the mercenaries exchanged confused glances. They had no idea Rhain had secretly requested the Chieftain’s daughter.

"I did," Rhain nodded, gesturing to the empty space in the center of the room. "I need your help, Lady Anya."

Anya blinked her large eyes, tilting her head slightly. "My help? Whatever you need, benefactor, I will do it."

"In order to formulate a cure, I must inspect the Marrow-Rot Plague first-hand in your body" Rhain stated calmly. "To do that, my consciousness must enter your body."

The moment those words left his lips, Anya’s entire body stiffened.

The blood rushed to her cheeks, and her face instantly burned a brilliant crimson.

She wasn’t a foolish child. She knew exactly what a spiritual inspection entailed.

Allowing a stranger’s consciousness to see through her body... it was an incredibly intimate act.

It meant leaving no secrets, baring her entire existence before him.

Anya bit her pink lip, her eyes darting nervously toward the ground.

But as she thought of the dying children of the Bone Skull Tribe, and the heavy burden resting on her father’s shoulders, she forcefully swallowed her embarrassment.

Knowing the survival of both tribes rested entirely on this, she bravely raised her head and gave a firm nod.

"I understand," Anya whispered, her voice trembling slightly. "I will comply."

"Good. Come with me," Rhain said.

He led her into the quiet inner chamber of the guest house, leaving Lyra and the mercenaries waiting in the courtyard.

Inside the room, Rhain gestured toward a flat wooden platform.

"Sit down," Rhain instructed.

Anya obediently sat cross-legged on the platform. Rhain sat directly across from her.

"Extend your hands," Rhain said softly.

Anya hesitated for a second before slowly extending her delicate arms.

Rhain raised his own hands, gently placing his palms against hers.

"For some reason, I cannot use my essence," Rhain explained as he looked at her nervous expressios, "And so, I cannot actively force my consciousness into you. You must channel your own essence and pull my Soul Power directly into your body."

"I... I am ready," Anya whispered, closing her eyes.

Taking a deep breath, Anya slowly circulated her essence.

Buzz—!

A faint, pure light enveloped their joined hands.

Guided by her essence, Rhain pushed his vast, ocean-like Soul Power forward.

His consciousness seamlessly slipped past her physical defenses, diving straight into the intricate network of her meridians.

Within Anya’s body, Rhain’s spiritual perception expanded.

What he saw immediately caused his brow to furrow into a deep frown.

’This is not an illness,’ Rhain analyzed. ’It is not a virus, nor a conventional poison.’

Woven deeply into the walls of her meridians was a strange, highly corrosive, rotting energy. It clung to her life force like a parasitic insect.

But as Rhain traced the origin of this rotting energy, a flash of profound realization dawned on him.

This corrupted energy possessed the exact same foundational signature as the surrounding spiritual essence lingering in the Howling Dust Canyons outside the valley!

"The plague is in the spiritual essence itself,’ Rhain concluded inwardly.

Because the environment was incredibly desolate and corrupted, the cultivators living in these canyons were actively absorbing this rotting energy every single time they cultivated or breathed the surrounding air.

Over time, it accumulated, ravaging their flesh from the inside out.

And this realization instantly answered another glaring question.

’That is exactly why Karsten, Lyra, and I have not been infected,’ Rhain mused.

Because the old man had completely sealed their essence upon entering this third trial, their bodies were entirely closed off.

They could not absorb a single drop of the surrounding spiritual energy, rendering them completely immune to the "plague."

Rhain shifted his focus deeper into Anya’s dantian.

Surrounding the rotting energy was a layer of incredibly pure, pristine white essence.

The Spring of Life.

The pure white energy was aggressively suppressing the corruption, acting as a powerful neutralizing barrier that kept the rot from reaching her vital organs.

However, it was purely a defensive measure.

It did not eradicate the source; it only delayed the inevitable decay.

Swoosh—!

Rhain slowly withdrew his Soul Power.

He opened his dark grey eyes, breaking the connection and gently pulling his palms away from hers.

Anya opened her eyes, her face still flushed a deep shade of pink. She looked at him expectantly.

"Benefactor... did you find anything?" Anya asked softly.

"I did," Rhain replied, his expression turning incredibly solemn. "But to find a permanent cure, I must analyze the unhindered assault of the corrupted energy upon the body. I cannot do that while it is being actively suppressed."

Anya blinked. "How do we do that?"

Rhain’s dark grey eyes locked onto hers.

"Anya. I need you to stop consuming your daily Spring of Life elixir."

Anya’s eyes widened in sheer shock.

Stop consuming the Spring of Life?

To a Crystalveil tribesperson, the Spring of Life was their only salvation. Without it, the agonizing rot would awaken, tearing their meridians apart.

"I will not lie to you," Rhain continued, his voice chillingly serious. "When the suppression fades, the corrupted energy will aggressively attack your meridians. It will be an excruciatingly painful process."

Anya’s delicate frame trembled. The terrifying stories of the plague victims dying in agony flashed through her mind.

But as she looked at Rhain’s placid gaze, she saw a god-like confidence that calmed her racing heart.

"But you have my word," Rhain stated firmly. "I will be watching your condition every single second. I will not let anything happen to you."

Anya bit her pink lip, her hands clenching tightly over her knees.

She knew the fate of thousands rested on this gamble.

She took a deep breath, her eyes hardening with a fierce resolve that defied her gentle appearance.

"I trust you, benefactor Rhain," Anya nodded firmly. "I will do exactly as you say."