In the Sky Temple.

Anhofus was packing his belongings, with massive bone puppets kneeling in the temple.

They carried enormous bone frames on their backs, each containing large boxes.

The boxes were filled with various books, secret manuals, ritual stone tablets, sacrificial materials, and other items Anhofus had accumulated during his long tenure as God-Servant Priest.

There weren’t many items.

But each one, if it were to fall into the wrong hands, could absolutely cause turmoil.

“Thud!”

“Thud!”

Under Anhofus’s watchful eye, the bone puppets left the Sky Temple, circling around the city walls of the God-Servant City. They walked down the main road, where many Trilobite Men could be seen pushing carts. However, they didn’t seem too surprised by the sight of the bone puppets.

It was common to see third-rank seal priests using their seal spirits to quickly transport large quantities of their own belongings or those of the Sky Temple or royal palace along this road.

Anhofus looked at his mansion.

The scrolls that used to be scattered in piles, the dense bookshelves, and mysterious objects had all disappeared, leaving only luxurious and extravagant decorations.

Just like when he first arrived.

“Years have slipped by in the blink of an eye,” he mused.

His preparations to leave were almost complete.

Anhofus had already become a fourth-rank God’s Grace Priest, and this place no longer held any benefit for him, at least not for what he wanted to do next.

What he wanted to do next was beyond the realm of human effort and resources.

He hadn’t created the artificial human he had envisioned, the perfect divine form.

He had only obtained an unknown divine tool.

He didn’t know where the problem lay, but he was prepared to continue searching for the secret of immortality.

Anhofus gazed out at the prosperous capital and the cities and villages nestled at the foot of the mountain.

“This place,” he muttered, “it’s become far too noisy for my liking.”

More importantly.

He had grown weary of gathering with the nobles of Yinsai; they were fundamentally different kinds of people.

At this moment, someone arrived at Anhofus’s mansion, and the hall was filled with people.

It was the attendants of the King of Yinsai, accompanied by royal guards.

They brought a scroll, clothes, and a silver crown.

“Lord God-Servant Priest, the date has been set.”

“Moreover, the King has decided to place the Crown of the Sky upon your head that day, before all witnesses. You are to become the new Sky Priest.”

The attendant lowered his head, averting his gaze from Anhofus.

Anhofus took the scroll and glanced at it before remembering something.

“Wedding date?”

“Oh! There’s still this matter.”

He seemed to have just realized it, and Anhofus casually asked a question.

“Why so urgent?”

The attendant replied: “It was set by His Majesty.”

It was indeed quite sudden, but understandable.

After all, Anhofus had become a fourth-rank God’s Grace Priest, and His Majesty the King seemed eager to bind him to himself and the royal family.

But it didn’t matter now; he wasn’t planning to stay anyway.

He picked up the silver crown, looked at it, and then tossed it aside.

He let out a light laugh: “Sky Priest.”

However, when the bone puppets delivered the items to the auxiliary city at the foot of the mountain, they couldn’t find the leader of the Stone Monster Merchant Group. Anhofus found this strange.

“Can’t find him?”

The deputy of the merchant group knelt before Anhofus, saying that the group’s leader had been gone for some days, supposedly to handle affairs in a northern city.

After receiving Anhofus’s order, he had repeatedly tried to contact the leader but to no avail.

When inquiring with the merchant group’s branch in that city, they said they hadn’t seen him recently at all.

“Leaving at this time, and completely out of contact?”

Anhofus normally wouldn’t contact the Stone Monster Merchant Group people; he only needed them to deliver what he needed on time. He generally didn’t inquire about these detailed matters.

For him, the Stone Monster Merchant Group was just a tool to collect experimental materials and provide resources.

The last time he conducted the artificial human experiment was the first time in years he had actively contacted the Stone Monster Merchant Group.

However, this servant of his was the master of the prestigious Stone Monster Merchant Group, controlling one of the top merchant groups in Yinsai.

Ordinary trade and various affairs didn’t require the group’s leader to handle them personally. What business could require him to travel thousands of miles to a distant city?

And to completely cut off contact with the capital.

This servant was a confidant who had come with him from the border to the capital, following him from the very beginning.

He knew many of his secrets.

His identity as an evil sorcerer, his true name of Anhofus.

Especially recently, he had just completed an experiment about immortality and forbidden knowledge in front of this servant.

“Interesting.”

Anhofus suddenly had a premonition and looked towards the direction of the royal palace.

At the commercial hub of Cross City, connecting the Sacred Mountain to the God-Descended City.

In a secret stone building with a small courtyard, the leader of the Stone Monster Merchant Group had been hiding here recently.

He paced anxiously in the room, looking somewhat panicked.

“Ah!”

“Huff!”

He alternated between sitting up and sitting down, letting out sighs and long breaths.

“Anhofus is so formidable, how could I have lost my head and betrayed him?”

“But what else could I do if I didn’t betray him? Defy the King of Yinsai? That would mean certain death!”

Turning around, his expression became passionate again.

“What is there to fear?”

“Should I just be someone else’s servant for my entire life?”

“Does Anhofus care about you? He just treats you as a tool.”

“How long has he been the God-Servant Priest, and you still haven’t obtained true noble status? Don’t you understand? He doesn’t want to become a noble or an official.”

“He just treats you as a tool to obtain resources. He only needs a servant who obediently does his chores.”

The merchant group leader appeared somewhat neurotic.

After betraying Anhofus, he felt intense unease, and he guessed that the King might soon take action against Anhofus.

He was hiding here to avoid the storm, planning to return after everything had settled.

He was extremely panicked and uneasy, but also expectant and excited.

What brought him panic and unease was his master, that powerful, terrifying, mysterious evil sorcerer, who had transformed from the notorious student of the fire demon Haru into the God-Servant Priest of the Sky Temple.

What he looked forward to was the title of nobility promised by the King, along with a position of real power in the capital.

He would shed his identity as a merchant and servant, truly becoming a member of the upper echelons of the Yinsai Empire.

Here, he constantly paid attention to news from the capital.

If everything settled as expected, he would immediately return to the capital and take over the power left by his master Anhofus.

If his master didn’t die, he would immediately prepare to flee for his life.

“Dinner is ready.” A knock came from outside.

“Bring it in!” The merchant group leader sat down again.

However, just as he began to enjoy his dinner, suddenly the stone slabs on the ground began to jump, as if the entire house was shaking.

Bones began to squeeze through various cracks – in the walls, paintings, and windows.

They combined to form a bone puppet over two meters tall. It loomed over the merchant group leader, its imposing stance freezing him in terror.

The merchant group leader was so scared he wanted to run away, but his legs were too weak to stand up. He could only crawl to the corner and look at the bone puppet.

“Who are you?”

The bone puppet spoke: “It hasn’t been that long, have you already forgotten your own master?”

The leader of the Stone Monster Merchant Group’s face changed drastically. Although his mind was completely occupied by fear, he still reflexively pretended as if nothing had happened.

“Master~”

“So it’s you who has come.”

The Stone Monster Merchant Group leader trembled violently. He groveled on the ground like a lap dog, his heart filled with extreme terror while still harboring a glimmer of hope.

He hoped desperately that everything he had done had not yet been discovered by Anhofus.

This feeling.

It was like a thief caught red-handed by the owner, thinking that by covering his face, the owner wouldn’t see him.

Anhofus looked at his servant, barely able to contain his laughter.

This servant of his!

Usually so clever and composed, arranging everything in perfect order. How could he become so foolish when faced with a matter of life and death?

“My faithful servant, you ran quite fast!”

“What exactly did you do that made you so eager to run away?”

The bone puppet bent down, tilting its head to look at the merchant group leader’s trembling, lowered head.

“Could it be,” it mused, “that you did something to betray me?”

These words sent a shiver through the Stone Monster Merchant Group leader’s entire body.

The servant’s reaction gave Anhofus his answer.

Although before coming, he had already guessed.

“There aren’t many people in this world who could make you betray me.”

“Just about two.”

“Is it Lan, the Sage of Truth Temple?”

As soon as he said this name, Anhofus immediately discarded this answer.

“No, how could a despicable person like you come into contact with such a figure.”

“Then, it must be our great King of Yinsai?”

When he said the word “great,” Anhofus’s tone was even more mocking and sarcastic.

“Isn’t that right?”

The bone puppet had no expression, nor did it have eyeballs.

But the servant could already see Anhofus’s familiar smile, that classic noble smile reflected in his heart, making him feel it was more terrifying than the roar of a giant monster.

The servant’s voice broke for a moment; he had already foreseen his fate.

He knelt on the ground, constantly kowtowing.

“Master,” he pleaded, “I am loyal, please believe me.”

Before he could finish speaking, Anhofus reached out his hand and slowly pressed it on his head.

The servant couldn’t move at all, but his terrified eyes and dilating pupils all testified to his utter despair.

“Shh!”

“No need for you to speak, I can see for myself.”

All the servant’s actions and his conversations with His Majesty the King were laid bare before Anhofus’s eyes.

In front of a powerful ability user like Anhofus, lies and deception seemed laughably futile. Unless he chose not to pay attention to you, as long as he focused on you, he could dig out the darkest secrets from the depths of your heart.

After seeing everything, Anhofus showed no signs of anger. His tone didn’t even change.

He still used that gentle and courteous voice to speak to his “loyal” servant.

“You truly are loyal!”

“I’ve seen all of your loyalty, how would you like me to reward you?”

The moment the bone puppet’s hand left, the servant regained the ability to speak.

He opened his mouth and shouted loudly: “No, Master! Please, consider my-“

The sound of a monster chewing came from the room, and then the servant disappeared entirely.

The huge bone puppet opened its maw and spat out a small bone worm.

This newly born bone worm wriggled in the puppet’s palm, arching and falling segment by segment, as if trying to escape from the palm.

But as the puppet’s bone palm slowly closed, it became like a bone cage, firmly imprisoning it inside.

In life, he was Anhofus’s servant.

Even in death, he couldn’t escape his control.

Meanwhile, at the Sky Temple.

Standing on the edge of the cliff, Anhofus, who had been controlling the bone puppet while multitasking, finally understood something.

“I see.”

“No wonder they’re in such a hurry.”

The King of Yinsai had murderous intentions towards him, showing boundless greed for the so-called “fruit of immortality” in his possession, even willing to sacrifice his own daughter.

Anhofus suddenly made a decision, a terrible decision.

He decided not to leave.

He returned to his resting room and took out the flask hidden in his loose robe.

His eyes pressed tightly against the glass wall, as if staring at the small figure inside.

“Let me see what you really are!”

“Are you the myth of immortality?”

“Or something else.”

“Some things, it’s truly frustrating not to see the final result!”

Anhofus originally didn’t want to continue this experiment. He had seen the immortal form of the God-Created Man with his own eyes, and he knew that what he had created was clearly not an artificial human.

And this small figure in the bottle, to truly take form, would probably require filling it with all the mythical blood of every ability user in the entire capital, and even that might barely be enough.

This would essentially mean decimating the core power of the entire Yinsai.

To gamble on an uncertain outcome at the cost of sacrificing almost all of Yinsai.

This wasn’t an exploration of truth, but more like a madman’s outburst.

Although others called Anhofus mad, he never thought of himself that way; he was rational.

He would use any means necessary to achieve his goals, but he had a purpose.

He paid a price and then sought a result, never engaging in senseless killing or madness.

Compared to ordinary people, what he pursued and wanted was simply different.

“But now,” he mused, “it doesn’t matter. You brought this upon yourselves.”

Anhofus suddenly felt a strong desire in his heart, an anticipation for the imminent revelation of the mystery.

Princess Yeya stroked the bells in her hand, facing the smooth mirror surface.

The maid beside her helped her into an extremely complex ceremonial dress. The intricate strings and buttons alone were dizzying to behold.

But this outfit was indeed so splendid that it inspired admiration. As the maid helped the princess dress, her eyes shone.

“Princess, you are truly blessed.”

Princess Yeya: “How so?”

Maid: “That’s the God-Servant Priest, a figure like God’s apostle.”

Another maid also said with a smile: “The two of you together are like the legendary God’s messenger Polo and the Star Queen. It’s so romantic!”

“God’s messenger Polo and the Star Queen?”

This comparison instantly transformed Princess Yeya’s nervous and worried mood into one of sunshine.

“It’s time to go.”

The wedding was to be held in the side hall of the Sky Temple.

The sun was particularly bright today, shining on the palace’s grand doors.

As if a golden world was opening up before you.

Dense crowds stood on both sides, as if all the nobles of the Yinsai Kingdom had gathered here.

Today’s two protagonists were the princess of the Henir Dynasty and the God-Servant Priest of the Sky Temple.

They would witness the union of divine and royal power, as well as the combination of bloodline and strength.

Princess Yeya saw Anhofus, who was wearing the divine robe of the Sky Priest and wearing a silver crown.

He looked at her with a kind of melancholic and noble quality of the old aristocracy.

Under the golden light, she walked inside wearing her magnificent attire.

Her heart let out a cheer, and her body exhaled a breath of relief.

“Ah!”

“It’s today!”

It was as if that dream had only now truly come to reality.

The Yinsai-style wedding wasn’t that complicated. It only required making vows to the spirits in front of witnesses and then drinking the holy water from the Sacred Lake.

It was said that this was a tradition left from the time of King Yesael.

The royalty and nobility, to demonstrate their high status, made the process a bit more complex, changing the venue and various utensils. The bone cups originally used became silver and gold cups, and the Trilobite Men wore beautiful and luxurious ceremonial clothes.

But the core had never changed.

Princess Yeya looked at the majestic statue of the deity, at her husband’s profile, and she felt the taste of happiness.

However, when Anhofus was about to make his vow to the spirits holding the golden cup, he suddenly stopped, his gaze wandering left and right.

His action also drew the attention of the entire crowd in the hall, everyone looking at Anhofus.

Anhofus then looked at the King of Yinsai standing nearby, asking him in a playful tone.

“Your Majesty!”

“When do we begin?”

Princess Yeya stood beside Anhofus, bewildered by his abrupt question at such a crucial moment.

She gently tugged at Anhofus’s robe, whispering to him.

“When do we begin?”

“Haven’t we already started?”

Anhofus smiled at the princess: “I’m asking your father, our great King of Yinsai.”

“Why haven’t you started trying to kill me yet? I’m growing impatient with the wait.”

“What are you waiting for?” she asked, confusion evident in her voice.

Anhofus turned to face the crowd: “Are you waiting for someone to retrieve the magic bottle my teacher left me from my mansion? Then activate the barrier set up in the God-Servant City to trap my bone puppets inside?”

The attendees exchanged bewildered glances, unable to comprehend the sudden turn of events.

But the King of Yinsai’s face turned extremely unpleasant.

Anhofus raised the golden cup, then turned back, staring intently at the King of Yinsai.

“Or perhaps…”

“Are you waiting for me to drink this so-called water from the Sacred Lake?”

“How clever.”

“The saliva of a giant beast, refined by the renowned Poison Priest, which acts faster the more powerful the ability user is.”

With these words, the atmosphere instantly changed.

The once lively and celebratory hall fell silent.

From the side aisles, many powerful priests suddenly entered for unknown reasons.

The King of Yinsai glanced over there, then stood up angrily: “Do you know what you’re saying? On a day like this.”

Anhofus’s expression remained unchanged, calmly meeting the King of Yinsai’s gaze.

Princess Yeya, one of today’s protagonists, was the most shocked and panicked among the crowd.

Everything had been fine just moments ago, with everyone congratulating them. How had it suddenly turned into this?

Seeing the tense atmosphere and her newly wedded husband and father glaring at each other like mortal enemies, she grabbed Anhofus’s hand.

“How could this be!”

“You must be mistaken!”

Anhofus remained unmoved. The power of his ability burst forth, and the pressure from a fourth-rank ability user immediately made everyone struggle to breathe.

The King of Yinsai planted his scepter on the ground: “What are you trying to do? Assassinate me?”

“I gave my daughter to you in marriage.”

“What nonsense are you spouting at a time like this?”

Anhofus laughed: “Honestly, I don’t know where Your Majesty found the courage to get so close to me.”

Seeing the two about to completely fall out, the princess was on the verge of tears.

She didn’t know how to resolve the situation. She could only tightly grip Anhofus’s robe, looking at him with an almost pleading gaze.

Suddenly.

She saw the golden cup in Anhofus’s hand, containing the holy water they were supposed to drink after making vows before God.

She snatched the cup from Anhofus’s hand and, to everyone’s surprise, drank it all in one gulp.

Even Anhofus, who had been facing off with the King of Yinsai, hadn’t anticipated this. He reached out to grab her, but it was too late.

Anhofus looked at Princess Yeya, his eyes filled with confusion.

“What are you doing?”

Anhofus was stunned.

He couldn’t understand this woman, nor such a foolish action.

But Princess Yeya smiled.

She looked at Anhofus with a smile, speaking with a hint of smugness.

Like a little girl who had successfully pulled off a trick in front of her loved one.

“See?”

“There’s no poison. You were mistaken.”

“How could my father harm you?”

“No poison… no…”

However, as she spoke, her expression began to change.

She felt the changes in her body, which were certainly not signs of there being no poison.

“Clang~” The sound of the golden cup hitting the floor.

Then, Princess Yeya’s body went limp, and she fell against Anhofus.

Her entire body felt weak, and she could feel a bone-chilling cold starting to invade her body.

But what truly terrified her and left her in disbelief was that her father would poison her husband at their wedding.

“So it was true.”

Princess Yeya weakly collapsed into Anhofus’s arms. She tried several times but couldn’t stand up again.

She strained to look towards her father, desperate for answers.

She wanted to question him, still unable to believe what was happening.

She couldn’t understand why he would do this.

However, when she turned back, she saw the King of Yinsai being hurriedly escorted out of the great hall by his guards.

The King of Yinsai didn’t even look at her, quickly retreating the moment she fell.

Discarding her like an old shoe.

“Ah!”

“Someone’s dead, someone’s really dead!”

“Quick, let’s get out of here!”

Screams erupted from the crowd as the attendees looked in horror at Princess Yeya, who had collapsed and was coughing up blood.

Everyone truly sensed something was wrong and rushed towards the exit.

At the same time, many soldiers and priests who had been prepared beforehand, along with over a dozen figures in black robes, could be seen retreating together.

These people had originally been waiting to act immediately after Anhofus was poisoned, but now the situation had clearly changed.

She finally understood everything.

It was all true.

She gave up trying to look at the King of Yinsai and simply let her body go limp.

Anhofus looked at Princess Yeya, his wife in name, for whom he felt no emotion at all.

“How foolish.”

“When I said it was poisoned, it certainly was.”

She laughed a bit foolishly: “You do care about me.”

Anhofus laughed: “You call this caring?”

Then, she took out a small box.

It was a gift she had prepared for Anhofus, one she had been waiting to give him for a long time.

“This is for you…”

“I wanted to give it to you that night when you came back,” she said, her voice growing weaker.

Anhofus took the box, which contained a secret manual.

It was a secret text left by Schlode, the first-generation Sky Priest, the kind of thing Anhofus loved most.

It was clear that Princess Yeya had put a lot of thought into pleasing him.

Anhofus was at a loss for words. His rational mind struggled to comprehend the woman before him: “At a time like this, you’re still thinking about these things?”

“You’re about to die,” he said, his voice a mixture of disbelief and something softer.

Despite saying this, he still put away the gift.

Seeing Anhofus accept the gift, a faint smile appeared on her face.

After smiling, only sadness remained.

The moment Anhofus took the box, his originally cold tone suddenly softened for a brief moment.

“Is there anything else you want to say?”

Black blood continuously welled up in Princess Yeya’s mouth. Her gaze fixed on Anhofus, her eyes full of worry and fear.

She feared the coming of death and darkness.

But she was even more afraid of what would happen next.

With her mouth full of blood, her voice began to become unclear.

“I’m very scared, and very sad.”

Anhofus understood her fear; who wouldn’t be afraid of dying?

He only asked one question: “Sad about what?”

Princess Yeya’s voice was barely audible: “What happens next… nothing terrible will happen, right…”

Her voice was questioning.

But she knew that something terrible was bound to happen next.

Her father and her newly wedded husband were destined to engage in a life-or-death battle.

“Quickly, quickly.”

“Surround this place.”

In her final moments, from the corner of her eye, she could already see the shadows of soldiers outside the temple, and she faintly sensed the power fluctuations of priests activating rituals.

Filled with fear and sadness, Princess Yeya passed away.

From the beginning, she had been nothing more than a pawn and a tool.

Her father, the King of Yinsai, didn’t love her, and neither did her newly wedded husband.

She had thought this was her wedding.

But in reality.

It was a stage for an ambitious monster king and an even more insane evil sorcerer to realize their desires and goals.

There was no romance or warmth.

There was only greed, evil, and desire.