Just as he was about to say something else, a rumble interrupted him.
It was the sound of the palace gates opening.
The heavy rocks scraped against each other, and the solemn faces on numerous carvings seemed to roar with open mouths, singing out a hymn in unison. An overpowering scent of Incense rushed forth, engulfing them...
Yet Fu Yi indicated that he hadn't smelled anything and wasn't affected at all.
He simply reminded him that the map showed an enormous red reaction ahead, one that the Astronomical Society's system panel couldn't analyze, asking him to be cautious.
With the successive opening of the palace gates, Huai Shi marched straight in. He saw hardly any Guards—only a few hunched figures shrouded in Armor stood in the corners, their breathing and coughing sounds so fragmented.
Should they all collapse in the next moment, Huai Shi wouldn't be surprised.
Eventually, Huai Shi finally saw His Majesty the King in the once grand and solemn hall... but everything was different from what he had imagined.
The once magnificent splendor had now dimmed and decayed, and the solemn chill had turned into an unsettling eeriness and oppression.
Among the hoarse chants of the monks, Huai Shi smelled the stench coming from behind the curtain.
It was a decayed air that no amount of solemn hymns or rich Incense could mask...
The gray gauze and silk enshrouding the lofty throne was so dusty one had to wonder if the Imperial Palace's curtains had ever been washed since the decoration was completed.
What was more disconcerting was the hunched, emaciated silhouette upon the throne, and the faint groaning sounds that were like whispers.
As if speaking.
But the voice was indistinct.
Only the aged Sacrifices crawling before the throne knelt and listened respectfully. After a long while, the elderly high priest lifted his murky eyes, scrutinizing the massive figure of Huai Shi standing on the steps below.
"His Majesty expresses his heartfelt gratitude and appreciation for your arrival, admiring both your abhorrence of evil and your indignation towards the Impure," the high priest translated.
"..." Huai Shi was dumbfounded.
So, you're all translators now?
But don't try to fool me. The King just coughed a few times and gasped for breath. How did that turn into such a long speech when you translated it?
His eyelids shot up in shock, afraid the old man would suddenly tell him, "Sorry, I didn't understand what the King was saying either; I was just making it all up."
Behind the curtain, the groaning from the throne rose again. The high priest grinned and, raising his hands with pride, declared, "The Emperor's heart is pleased!"
"The Emperor's heart is pleased!!!"
Below the steps, the prostrate Sacrifices shouted excitedly.
Alright then. Making such a big fuss just because he's happy—is he afraid people won't know?
"The Eternal War is about to begin, oh Great Spirit bearing the will of God, please rest for a while in the Temple like the other Great Spirits," continued the high priest.
"It is your Sky's Command to excel in this war upholding justice and divine will. As for everything else, there is no need for any concern.
"We will offer you all our food and water, hoping only that you will rejuvenate and prepare to put the final full stop on this Eternal War that will prove the existence of divine will."
After finishing, he paused for a moment as if listening to the moaning behind the curtain, and then solemnly said, "At that time, the strongest of the Great Spirits will merge with the revered Holy Body of God... into one on the altar!"
With his fervent cry, the thickly fallen silk curtains were finally pulled open slowly to the sides by the Attendants with long hooks.
And Huai Shi finally caught a glimpse of the Sacred Relic behind the throne, enshrined upon the high altar by the rich Incense.
The evidence of the Gods' existence.
A withered and decayed broken eyeball.
No bigger than a fist.
Covered in cracks.
Like a shattered glass marble, its crimson color almost seeping out of the cracks, forming a thin line that wound down the altar.
That was the source of the huge, inexplicable red reaction.
Simply gazing upon it brought stinging pain to his eyes, as Huai Shi's scales rubbed in agony. The ancient gaze squeezed his consciousness and soul, forcing him to bow down before the noble Holy Body.
But what concerned him even more was the hunched, aged King upon the throne before the altar.
Why hadn't he died yet?
Anyone seeing the King for the first time would surely think the same.
He looked so decayed; he must have started to rot, right? Yet on the desiccated, hunched shell, one tenacious eye still stubbornly remained open.
Even though it was dim and lightless.
It was like looking at a mummy.
But from the Sacred Relic on the altar, a line of thick, subtle blood slowly meandered to him, falling on his husk, sustaining his life with divine Power.
His meaningless suffering seemed to stretch into eternity.
Unsightly deformations were intertwined in every part of the husk, but he still breathed, groaned, and experienced the pain of existence.
Alien bones pierced through his skull, adorned with gem-like fungi, forming a distorted Crown on his head.
Underneath the faded silk garments, on his chest, as gaunt as a Skeleton, the heart stubbornly beat.
With the challenging rhythm of his pulse, the blood vessels that had grown from his body entered the throne behind him. They threaded through the stone, spreading like tree roots deep into the city, enveloping the entire cold and gloomy Capital City.
Linking him with the city.
The frail breathing, like Spider Silk, tugged at immense forces, desperately sustaining the last breath of the nation.
Huai Shi finally understood why this city was still standing amidst so many Disasters.
"I beg of you... oh Great Spirits..."
On the throne, the dying yet undying King managed a grotesque smile and finally spoke hoarsely from his groaning.
"Please bestow upon me... upon this nation..."
"The final redemption and deliverance..."