Traveler of the River of Time and Space-Chapter 413 - 29: The Second Fire Transmission Ritual Site

Su Ziyu, accompanied by Sister Frieda, temporarily retreated from the Fortress of Farran.

Although signs of zombification had appeared, Sister Frieda's power had not waned; in fact, the sparks on her body surface seemed even more vigorous.

She appeared very calm about her once beautiful face turning this way. She merely covered her face with a veil, then drew a ritual spiral sword and thrust it into the extinguished bonfire before her. As the bone-assembled bonfire rekindled with wisps of flame, Sister Frieda stared blankly at the spiral sword and fell into contemplation.

"What are you thinking about?" Su Ziyu cautiously asked.

After a moment's pause, Sister Frieda lifted her head and looked at Su Ziyu, speaking softly, "Many things."

"Things I had forgotten."

Su Ziyu hesitated slightly, then slowly said, "Some things from the past don't need to be delved into deeply."

"If this world no longer has a reason to exist."

"Then let it end."

Su Ziyu was genuinely somewhat afraid that Sister Frieda's overthinking might trigger some unknown restriction. Her initial appearance was as if she might be completely consumed by the flame. At that time, he was truly afraid Sister Frieda would self-immolate just like that. It was hard to find such a powerful ally, and they had learned quite a bit, losing her would be a real pity.

This was the first time he explicitly expressed his intention to 'extinguish the fire.'

"To end it, huh?" Sister Frieda murmured, pondering for a moment, "Indeed... there's no need for this to continue..."

"Might as well let it end..."

Sister Frieda mentioned there are two Fire Transmission Ritual Sites.

This implies that during the continuous Fire Transmission Ceremony, there had been some massive changes.

In the past, there were no unkindled embers, and the Lord of Cinder wouldn't be repeatedly burned like this. These changes are related to the emergence of the second Fire Transmission Ritual Site, which is the one currently in use. Su Ziyu speculated that there was possibly a time when the Fire Transmission Ceremony nearly failed, and the continuation of the First Flame was close to impossible, prompting some people of this world to make some alteration to preserve the age of fire.

And this alteration led to certain outcomes.

The first was the birth of the unkindled embers, as there were no unkindled embers in past history.

The second was the possibility of burning the Lord of Cinder again—some Lords of Cinder could remain alive after performing the Fire Transmission Ceremony, possibly half-burned, leaving only a part of their body.

These changes were beneficial for the inheritance of the First Flame.

Firstly, the unkindled embers can be used against those Lords of Cinder unwilling to transmit the fire, as their power was immense. It wasn't hard to forcefully take the heads of unwilling Lords of Cinder. Like the Sun Knight encountered before, with his strength, dealing with the Falan Undead Squad should yield about a fifty to sixty percent chance of success, and the unkindled embers could still be resurrected.

Secondly, previously burned Lords of Cinder could be repurposed.

If ever the top warriors of this world were no longer available, and there were no Lords of Cinder to burn, or the Lords of Cinder were unwilling to transmit the fire, they could bring out the once-burned but not thoroughly deceased Lords of Cinder to burn again.

The First Flame's craving for power should remain unchanged.

But the demands of the Fire Transmission Ceremony likely reduced, possibly adopting some life-prolonging fire-transmitting method, allowing half-burned Lords of Cinder to be rescued, saving them for next time when needed.

It's like a bonfire about to go out.

Each time it nearly extinguishes, a log (Lord of Cinder) is thrown in to prolong the fire. If the fire thrives a bit, they remove the burned logs, which have become charcoal (Lords of Cinder who have transmitted fire), for preservation; in case no new log can be found next time the flames weaken, these charcoals can last a while. (During the transformation into charcoal, some Lords of Cinder might have died, leaving just an unburned shell.)

During this process, the unkindled embers may have come into being.

Because sometimes what's removed isn't charcoal, but perhaps completely burnt-out embers (such as Sun Knight, Sister Frieda, etc.).

The fire might have been preserved without extinguishing.

But the dim flame provides far too little energy, turning the world into what Su Ziyu sees now, where there are almost no normal living people, only aimless undead, because the energy produced from the Fire Transmission Ritual Site was insufficient—not only failing to save this withering world, but even couldn't preserve its survivors.

This is why after Sun King Gwyn transmitted the fire, the world could continue for so long properly, yet now, with frequent fire transmissions, the undead only increase, and scarcely a normal person remains.

The truth is.

Just a few powerful ones' souls cannot stop the historical process of an era's ending.

If not for the many formidable and exceptional warriors of this world, the First Flame might have long since gone out.

As for the Incarnation of the Lord of Cinder.

Su Ziyu feels it is likely a source of pollution, possibly even the unextinguished First Flame unwilling to die; with so many powerful bodies and souls as fuel thrown in for combustion, he's not at all surprised by whatever monstrosity might emerge from it.

"But the current question is, what should I do?"

"The Incarnation of the Lord of Cinder."

"How much power has it actually retained? How strong is the body Sun King Gwyn left behind?"

"It said it saw me!"

"Do I stand a chance against it?"

Many questions swirled in Su Ziyu's mind, but there were no answers. The climax of the Fire Transmission Ceremony required defeating the Incarnation of the Lord of Cinder. Historically, the incarnations the embers faced weren't strong, resembling more of a concluding ritual. But if it were up to him to combat the Incarnation of the Lord of Cinder, he'd likely face the actual Sun King Gwyn's body remnants and whatever power the numerous Lords of Cinder from past eras left behind.

Just the thought of it sent shivers down his spine, but without defeating the Incarnation of the Lord of Cinder, there's no reaching the First Flame.

This main mission is tough!

Can it even be done?

Su Ziyu pondered for a moment, muttering to himself: "The situation with the Incarnation of the Lord of Cinder is unclear."

"But over at the Fire Transmission Ritual Site."

"They must not be allowed to take the souls of the Lords of Cinder. If the souls of the Lords of Cinder are burned, there'll be even less chance of extinguishing the fire."

The Incarnation of the Lord of Cinder surely is conscious.

Su Ziyu must not allow it to further strengthen, even if he can't extinguish the fire; he must seize the souls of the Lords of Cinder and keep them away from the unkindled embers.

As time passed by the minute and second.

While Su Ziyu was immersed in his thoughts, the Demon Gourd in his arms suddenly shook slightly.

.........