World-saving Plan: The Only Savior

In the camp, only fewer than a hundred people were left after the battle with the Insect Race, teetering on the brink, at risk of being overrun at any moment.

...

Night, in a temporary camp somewhere on the Planet.

The crackling flames brought a sliver of Light and warmth to this small camp.

The survivors of the Phantom Spirit Clan used dry wood and Rocks to build makeshift shelters, barely able to withstand some of the sandstorms.

Although this still couldn’t block the real storm, at least tonight everyone could have a somewhat good night’s sleep.

"Sarah, how many companions do we have left?"

In front of a small shelter, by the bonfire, Raton was bandaging his wounds in the crudest way while inquiring about the current situation.

Beside him, a female Phantom Spirit Person with slightly gray skin was stirring a glob of viscous liquid in a shabby little bucket, her face showing a trace of distraction; after hearing Raton’s words, she took a long time to snap back and said:

"Only eighty-seven people left, among them only fifteen warriors capable of using Spiritual Energy, including you, and there are still five Holy Temple Knights..."

"Only five left..."

Raton’s face was grim, lost in thought.

The female Phantom Spirit person seemed to suddenly remember something and hurriedly said:

"Raton, now that you have Awakened the Spiritual Shield and become a High Order Saint Knight, it’s an unprecedented honor. Maybe you can lead us out!"

Sarah’s face was filled with expectation; it was perhaps the best news they had received recently.

However, compared to the excited female Phantom Spirit person, Raton remained very calm, even slightly dejected.

"Sarah... It’s useless. Although a High Order Saint Knight can use the Shield to fend off the Alien Insects’ attacks, they are too many. I alone cannot withstand them..." 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

"You saw today’s battle, didn’t you? The main force of those Insects hasn’t even arrived yet, just the vanguard sentries have already crushed us... I don’t know how to face these creatures. If I had to do it again, I might not have the same courage..."

Sarah reached out to touch Raton’s cheek, then handed him the little tattered bucket, saying:

"Don’t say that, Raton, you are our hope; you need to be strong to lead us out of this predicament. Here, eat something first."

Raton instinctively took the little tattered bucket, staring at it blankly.

After a long moment, he snapped out of it, his braid-like hair unfolding, diving into the small bucket, and began to devour the paste-like viscous liquid within.

Sitting beside him, Sarah watched with a pleased look but when she wanted to make another bowl of food, Raton stopped her.

"Our food is running low, Sarah, save some for the journey ahead..."

At this moment, a male Phantom Spirit person with a sharp gaze, wearing a cloak, walked in – this was Raton’s friend who had saved him in the camp earlier.

Upon seeing Raton, he plopped down unceremoniously, inserting his "hair" into Raton’s bowl to share the food inside.

"Zeroda! That’s Raton’s food!"

Sarah reminded him displeased.

Zeroda ignored her, ate a couple of bites, then retracted his tentacle, saying:

"Raton, I just took people to scout the area. We haven’t spotted any Insect activity for now, but we can’t rule out the possibility of them moving underground. No water source was found nearby, and with our supplies, we can only last for three more days at most."

"Only three days left... It seems we must find a way to get out of here, preferably to another Planet..."

"That might prove difficult. Our last Crystal was left at the camp in Crystal Rock region, which is certainly under the Insect Race’s control now. Unless we retrieve that Crystal, there’s no point in thinking about leaving."

Confronted with Zeroda’s presented difficulties, Raton clearly had no good solution. He knew retrieving the Crystal was an impossibility given the sheer number of Insects there; for them to rashly proceed was tantamount to courting death.

Moreover, after the teleportation during the day, they didn’t even know their position on this Planet. To search for a Crystal in such an endless expanse of yellow sand was like finding a needle in a haystack.

"I have some power to resonate with Crystals. As long as we’re near it, we should sense it... But all the Crystal teleport points on other Planets have been destroyed, even if we find a Spiritual Crystal, where could we possibly escape to? Do we conduct a random teleport?"

Sarah said.

"Yes, since the teleport points are destroyed, now we can only rely on random teleportation. But if we were to teleport to a high gravity Planet, then we might all end up dead there..."

Zeroda shook his head.

Raton remained silent, the situation once again falling into a dilemma.

"Regardless, we must retrieve the Crystal. Only then can we ensure a way out at the last moment."

"Let’s do it this way, let’s first find the Crystal, then I’ll distract those Insects, and you seize the chance to retrieve it. It’s our last hope..."

"No way! That’s too risky! We should just abandon the Crystal, find a place to hide on this Planet. With it being so large, the Insects should find it hard to locate us!"

"You’ve seen the Alien Insects’ reproduction speed. Since they’ve located us, it won’t take them long to make this Planet uninhabitable for us; in the end, it’s still a dead end..."

"Damn it!"

Raton hammered the ground, Zeroda looked at the bonfire in silence, while Sarah’s face was filled with sadness.

"Raton, you said our Spiritual Energy Talent has returned, does it mean the Void God has truly awakened...?"

Sarah stared into the sky, lost in thought.

Zeroda glanced up at him, then continued lowering his head, seemingly in meditation.

The surrounding companions also perked up to listen, but none spoke.

Raton shook his head and said:

"I don’t know if the Void God truly exists, but since I was born, I’ve heard the elders tell tales about Him, yet I’ve never seen Him in truth..."

"The Phantom Spirit Clan was destroyed by the Alien Insects; countless clansmen were killed by them. If there truly is a Void God, why hasn’t He appeared? His worshippers and followers are on the brink of extinction, yet there’s not even a shadow of Him. Even if such a deity exists, what is there worth our belief?"

Raton sighed softly, his gaze suddenly becoming immeasurably determined.

"Forget about the Void God. Rather than kneeling before His Divine Statue leading to slaughter, I would rather stand and fight the Alien Insects to the end! The path of the Holy Hall is a bright one, but I would rather embrace the Dark, just to awaken the souls of our fellow people!"

His words didn’t deliberately avoid the surrounding companions, and upon hearing them, their faces showed a trace of regret, yet somehow, a sense of release grew within their hearts.

Seeing everyone’s attention focused on him, Raton stood up, then reached out to slash his arm branded with the Holy Hall emblem, tearing the sign of the Void God Tartaros and revealing dark blue blood.

At this moment, within the Phantom Spirit Clan, a group emerged that no longer believed in deities.

They pierced the mark of the Holy Hall, renounced their faith in the Void God Tartaros, abandoned the yearning for Light, and chose to embrace the name of the Dark.

From this moment onward, the flame representing the true will of the Phantom Spirit Clan ignited. Though small, in due time, it could engulf the entire plain.