The Sorcerer's Handbook

Aside from the map update, Ashe's Conjuring spirit also underwent new changes.

The Conjuring spirit appeared as a triangular bipyramidal hexahedron. Previously, only one of its faces glowed blue. Now, after absorbing Varkas's Blood Tomb Conjuring spirit, another face lit up in deep red.

"Conjuring spirit has successfully assimilated a spirit of the same name. New unit types unlocked."

Available Unit Types

Blood Tomb · Blood Moon Servant: Grants +10% ranged damage against souls. Features three layers of armor and a flexible form. Can consume life force to fire blood arrows. Costs 1 point of soul energy per unit.

Blood Tomb · Adventurer: Grants +15% melee damage against souls and a 30% increase to movement speed. Each kill on a war unit grants the commander 1 point of soul power. Features two layers of armor and a humanoid form. Costs 2 points of soul energy per unit.

Blood Tomb · Bloodrage Hunter: Grants +20% damage to souls with firearms and swordsmanship. Features four layers of armor and a humanoid form. Equipped with a sword and the Miracle, Blood Rage. Cost 4 points of soul energy per unit. (Blood Rage: Self-cast to enter a state of mindless rage. Attack speed and movement speed increase drastically until death.)

If the Adventurer unit might pass as a mere coincidence in naming, then the Bloodrage Hunter pointed directly to the signature profession of the Bloodmoon Kingdom, which was also the lifelong enemy of the cult leader.

In truth, ever since hearing the Swordswoman mention that a figure resembling a Star Prayer Devotee had appeared in her kingdom, Ashe had harbored suspicions. These Blood Tomb professions fully confirmed it for him. Unit types in the Virtual World were intimately linked to professions in real society. In other words, every unit in the Virtual World had a real-world prototype.

Thinking back to when the Empress Hero pursued him earlier, Ashe recalled seeing Spider Tower units wearing red hats. He had not paid much attention at the time, but now the connection was obvious. Those perfectly matched the Red Hats security forces of the Gospel Kingdom.

This left another question. Were Virtual World units merely copies of real-world archetypes, or did reality seep into the Virtual World to give rise to these entities?

Compared to the Blood Tomb units, whose names felt oddly familiar, the new unit listed below left Ashe entirely puzzled.

Anchor: Features two layers of armor and a 20% Anchor chance. Cost 2 points of soul energy per unit. When subjected to any external influence, such as physical attacks, mental shocks, curses, or debuffs, or when altering oneself through consuming mana or applying buffs, there is a chance to trigger Anchor. Once triggered, for the next five seconds, you cannot be affected by external forces, nor can you affect anything external.

Unlike the other options, the Twin-Colored Anchor lacked a faction prefix like Star Hall or Blood Tomb. This suggested it belonged to no specific faction. It offered no offensive bonuses either. Its sole defining trait was the Anchor effect.

At first glance, the ability seemed incredibly powerful. Once triggered, nothing from the outside could touch him. It was essentially absolute invincibility. But there was a catch. While Anchor was active, Ashe was equally powerless to affect anything around him. He would become a mere observer. Wait... could this be a unique unit tied to my title, the Watcher of Doomsday?

Despite the many questions in his mind, the unit suited Ashe's needs perfectly. If the Spider Tower Legion truly hunted them down, that twenty percent chance to trigger Anchor might help them bypass several lethal blows. Even if Anchor temporarily restricted their ability to strike back, it hardly mattered. Against the Legion of Heroes, they stood no chance in a direct confrontation anyway. Their survival depended entirely on fleeing and using tricks to stall their pursuers.

After sorting through his gains, Ashe looked up at Varkas. "You're just handing this over? Aren't you afraid I'll go back on my word? Besides, if you were willing to surrender, why didn't you do so to those two sorcerers earlier?"

Varkas tapped her temple. "I may lack emotions, but I do not lack intelligence. The Ashe Heath in my memory is an overly kind fool. Furthermore, I have no means to restrain you. It makes no difference when I give this to you, so I can only choose to trust you. As for those two... my memory tells me they cannot be trusted."

Ashe did not dwell on it. From his perspective, Varkas had simply encountered unfamiliar sorcerers and did not dare risk her safety on them.

"Can't you just surrender and leave?" Ashe asked, genuinely puzzled.

The Last Stand Arena permitted surrender. It made sense that Knowledge Creatures and sorcerer projections never did so. The former could not speak, while the latter lacked self-awareness. But Hero Commanders possessed a degree of intelligence. Why would they choose not to surrender?

"You sorcerers can surrender because once the arena drains your mana, you simply leave the Virtual World and return to reality. But we cannot. Even after the arena drains our mana, we remain here. It will continue to absorb our souls until we are completely consumed and merged with it."

Varkas spoke the phrase "you sorcerers" with complete ease. He went on, "Sorcerers and creatures of the Virtual World are entirely different. You outsiders cannot survive here long-term, but in some aspects, you possess advantages we can never hope to match."

Only then did Ashe realize he was speaking to a true Virtual World creature. To him, this world was a place for adventure, for unexpected encounters, and even for escape. If one day he chose a quiet life filled with family and warmth, he could sever his connection to it completely.

However, to Varkas and her kind, the Virtual World was their reality.

The Ascending Golden Rain, Last Stand Arenas, Resource Points, the River of Flowing Gold... wonders that Ashe and his companions rarely ever encountered were, to them, just everyday surroundings that had to be recorded onto their maps. Life and death hung before them like an insurmountable curtain.

If ordinary sorcerers were tourists exploring the Virtual World, then Ashe might be one of the very few who had truly begun to understand the culture of its native inhabitants. Other sorcerers could, at best, communicate with Violent Slashing Dragons through roars. Ashe, on the other hand, had already held in-depth conversations with two Hero Commanders, learning truths that even Sacred Realm or Legendary sorcerers might never uncover.

The Empress Hero had even grown quite fond of him after their exchange, so enthusiastic, in fact, that she had insisted on keeping him in the Virtual World forever.

Ashe let his thoughts drift. If I die in the Gospel Kingdom, would I end up as a colleague of the Empress Hero? But my body belongs to the Blood Moon. I even participated in the Blood Moon Tribunal. Would the Blood Moon Lord fight the Omniscient Weaver over me like a piece of prized talent?

He asked, "So the only option is for me to surrender and leave?"

Varkas nodded. "That's right. But if you insist on killing me, I can't stop you. Before dying, I already gave you all my spirits, including the Conjuring spirit. I have absolutely no way to fight back."

Ashe suddenly summoned the Swordheart spirit. Varkas looked at it, then slowly raised her head and exposed her smooth neck, as if waiting for a final punctuation mark.

"This was yours. Do you want it back?" Ashe asked.

Varkas froze slightly, then shook her head. "Spirits cannot be traded in the Virtual World. Once you release Swordheart, it will immediately dissipate and escape."

Ashe only then remembered that rule. "Right."

The elf asked, "Besides, you have already upgraded it to a Two-Winged spirit. Are you sure you still want to return it?"

Ashe countered, "But wasn't this supposed to be a gift for your child?"

After a moment of thought, Varkas said, "Keep it for yourself. But... speaking of that, I have one request."

"As long as it's not asking me to become your colleague, anything is fine."

"During my final moments before being executed by the Titan Executioner, I... there was a message Varkas wanted to leave for my child. If you have the chance, please find them and pass on my final words."

Ashe fell silent. But I'm no longer in the Blood Moon Kingdom...

After a moment, he nodded. "Alright."

The elf gazed into the distance, as if looking at the final page of an invisible book, and spoke the ending in a calm, detached voice. "I'm sorry... I hope you live well from now on. I disappointed you. Don't ever become like me, and don't break the Bloodline Prohibition Law."

Ashe remained silent for a long moment, then said, "Earlier, you said you had no desires except to understand your memories. So why do you want me to deliver your last words?"

Varkas glanced at him, the corners of her mouth lifting slightly to form her only smile throughout their entire conversation. "Yeah... why, indeed?"