Chapter 749: A Future Without You... Part-1.

Cyria-229, In the Hidden Half-Orc Settlement.

"The battle in the sky... it seems to be getting more and more intense. What is Rio even fighting?"

Looking at the sky, Lia frowned a bit.

Just a few seconds ago, they noticed that one of the moons of the planet was shattered due to the battle, and its debris soon came crashing into planet Cyria-229.

Lia had to create a massive spirit magic barrier above the half-orc settlement to keep them safe.

"Maybe I should go and help him?"

Link, who heard Lia’s concerned-filled voice, glanced at the sky, and his heart shuddered a bit as he could feel the insanely powerful fluctuations of sword intent even from this far away.

’That guy... he’s really going on a rampage. Is it just me, or does his sword intent seem to have become many times stronger than before?’

’We are thousands of kilometers apart right now, and I can still accurately sense the overwhelming power radiating from his sword intent even from such a distance...’

"If something has pushed him to go all out like that... maybe he needs my help?"

Just when Link was thinking about going over, Lia’s golden hair started glowing, and golden threads that only she could see suddenly appeared all around her.

The vision didn’t last long, and she returned to her normal state in just a few seconds, but a frown appeared on her face as she muttered to herself in confusion.

"Wait... did Rio just use my destiny manipulation power? He also sent a message over to me saying that we all should stay back for now..."

Using the strings of destiny and the power granted to him by Lia, Rio was able to send a message back to her without needing to worry about anyone else interrupting it.

"I see; the opponent might not be a good match for us if he’s telling us to stay back... maybe it’s the type that can ignore physical defenses and can target the mind directly?"

Link wasn’t an idiot; if Rio, who never bothered issuing a warning, was giving them a warning, it meant that the situation was not something they all could meddle with right now.

If they go over now, they might even hold Rio back.

"Well, if he doesn’t need our help, let’s get going and do our mission..."

At Link’s suggestion, both Riya and Lia nodded their heads.

The group had decided to go to the central plaza and inspect the five strange statues and that altar by themselves; leading them forward were the half-orc village chief and the big half-orc with a funny voice.

"Lord Angels, you all need to be careful; I think we all half-orcs might still be under the influence of that powerful being, and once we get to the altar, the influence of their power will increase..."

"So, if possible, try to remain vigilant even against us; we might end up offending you all if the other party uses our bodies as its vessel to do evil things..."

Hearing the old chief’s words, Riya smirked and spoke in a calm voice.

"No need to worry about it; with my healing and purification magic field protecting us all, it’s impossible for any miasmic force to even come close to us without getting severely injured, let alone possess you..."

"Moreover, I have already cast a layer of purification magic on all the people inside this settlement, including the three of us..."

"If someone still managed to invade our bodies with their miasma, I would not be worthy of calling myself the Inheritor of the Heart of Eternal Nirvana anymore..."

Riya had absolute confidence in her ability to deal with miasma and corruption.

Aside from Rio, who was literally able to control miasma to his whims, Riya was the second most efficient and most resistant against miasma in this world, followed by Lia and then Link.

Their entire group were nemeses of miasmic corruption, and thus, they had nothing to fear at all.

Even if they somehow got corrupted by miasma, Rio would easily get rid of it all once he comes back, so they weren’t worried about corruption and possession in the slightest!

"That’s reassuring. I am glad you all came to save our humble settlement; thank you, Lord Angels!"

The old chief bowed slightly to Riya and the others before continuing to lead the way forward once again!

As the group walked toward the destination, Link and Riya chatted with the old chief about various things, while Lia focused more on observing the strings of destiny to keep an eye on everything.

[Lia... I have been wanting to say this for a while, despite using my spirit detection and all the other detection abilities... I am unable to sense who Rio is fighting; that being... it seems they have no form or existence at all...]

’I know... But I can see the strings of destiny to some extent; the person fighting Rio is without a doubt very strong. Their strings of destiny are too solid, and I can’t seem to be able to interfere with them...’

’Rio must have used his own sword intent to be able to interfere with the other party’s strings of destiny when he did that attack earlier...’

[That guy... he might even be able to copy your skills soon. Aren’t you worried about that?]

’Hehe, what’s there to worry about? If he manages to copy it, then so be it; it’s not like I am competing with him in terms of strength...’

’Even Link is having a hard time keeping up with Rio nowadays, so I certainly can’t compete with him in that aspect... All I want is that I don’t become a burden on him; everything else is fine...’

Unlike before, when Lia used to get upset over every small inconvenience, she was now more mature and more tolerant.

After suffering near-death situations and developing a deeper understanding of her own ’Path’, Lia was no longer prone to self-doubt; all she wanted was to have a bit of space for herself in Rio’s emotionless heart.

That much was enough for her.