I Ascend to the Divine Throne through Arcane Means
Chapter 926 - 560: Special Undead_2

Using a Concealing Spell, the unconscious residents are hidden away to avoid being discovered by others passing by.

Lis flickered out of sight, leaving the alley.

Outside the Sand Sea Town of Ihelos, atop a sand dune,

Lis stepped on the soft dune, feeling a sense of relief in his heart.

As expected, his abilities in space were not restricted, allowing for a bolder exploration of this secret realm.

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Ding!

[Notice: You have left the designated area for the mission [Ihelos' Determination]! Please return promptly, or the mission will be deemed a failure, and you won't be able to accept it again!]

[Failure Countdown: 60...59...58...]

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Lis looked at the small town shrouded in darkness in the distance, with the system prompt ringing in his mind.

Hurry up!

This time, Lis left the small town not just to secure an escape route.

Raising his hand, Lis carefully examined the severed arm that should have appeared in his hand.

But instead, the lifeless arm had turned into a pile of gray-white dust, scattered across the sand dune.

Lis still held some of the dust that the severed arm had become, feeling no special aura from it.

Glancing at the dust in his hand, Lis quickly returned to the alley without delay.

He didn't want the mission to fail due to a prolonged absence.

When Lis returned and looked again at the unconscious resident, despite having his arm sliced off earlier by Lis, it was now perfectly intact as if nothing had happened.

So it was like that!

Lis nodded, then dispelled the Concealing Spell and left the area.

The residents of the small town, rather than being undead, had bodies unlike the common undead creatures.

Undead refers to the spirit or consciousness left by the living after death, appearing as evil beings due to their own grievances or other influencing factors.

The most common undead are skeleton soldiers, corpses, and similar evil creatures, where the soul of the dead resides in the bones of their former body.

These newly born undead are very weak and lack wisdom, acting purely on instinct.

Ordinary people can defeat these undead creatures, but the biggest trait of undead creatures is their lack of fear of death.

With enough numbers, time, and space, these undead can continually devour the soul fire of other undead like raising insects, strengthening their power.

Once reaching a certain level, the undead may develop new wisdom, becoming almost entirely different from their former selves, with their past memories having little influence.

Because of this, nearly every human town has a cemetery guarded by the Church of the Gods to bury the deceased residents, reducing the appearance of undead as much as possible.

Without the soul fire as a support, these undead can hardly survive.

Meanwhile, undead have another possible form of existence: becoming a ghost, an existence without a body.

A so-called ghost is an undead whose soul has been strengthened to independently exist, often appearing in their former likeness, usually without a fixed form, invisible to the naked eye of ordinary people.

The state of Ihelos' residents is very similar to that of ghosts.

Although they have physical bodies, they don't entirely depend on their bodies like skeleton soldiers do.

In Lis's view, these forms seem more like a form of undead magic binding their souls to the small town named Ihelos.

In other words, what sustains these residents is the city, not their bodies.

So when Lis took the resident's severed arm out of the small town, it lost the connection to the soul and turned to ash.

Meanwhile, the resident within the town had his body return to normal.

This shows that these residents likely exist relying on the city, with their souls almost unaffected.

So, has everyone in the town been turned into undead by Ihelos, earning it the name [Time-Stagnant Town]?

After all, an undead city can't undergo new changes, with wisdom repeating the previous life day by day.

Though this makes sense, Lis felt it wasn't that simple.

If it were just this, then this Legendary Rank mission would be too simple.

There must be something I haven't noticed...

Lis pondered over everything he had witnessed since entering the small town, but found no new revelations.

Could it only be the coming Gur Festival?

Life in this small town was not unusual, except for the Gur Festival, which made Lis feel uneasy.

Divine Gul?

Could it have a special connection with the Legendary Rank Undead Mage Ihelos?

Otherwise, it can't explain why the City Lord appears specially at the Gur Festival celebration.

And it seems like everyone in the town participates, making it unlikely for a legendary being to appear every year for this event.

Unless it's closely related to him.

Divine...

Could it be that Ihelos wants to walk the Path to Divinity and become a Divine?

And is Divine Gul his avatar, through which he collects faith?

Lis was unsure, this speculation seemed highly possible, but it also had many flaws.

Firstly, the residents of this city are mostly undead. Although they have souls, the generated Power of Faith is extremely sparse and highly diverse.

If not, those Legendary Witch Demons controlling the Undead Calamity could easily gather massive amounts of faith power.

Even if outsiders come to this city, Ihelos does not seem welcoming to outsiders, giving the impression of an enclosed, self-isolated place, which doesn't align with a legendary being on the Path to Divinity seeking to collect faith.

But, Old Milo also said that during the Gur Festival celebrations, many outsiders used to come here specifically to participate in this small town's celebration.

Although Lis hadn't heard of the Gur Festival before, if what Old Milo said was true, Ihelos might have had that intention before.

Then why has it stopped now?

Is it because of Jue's departure?

Lis's thoughts began to scatter, but no matter how he thought, the information he knew seemed incongruent.

It was as if the town's history didn't align in many places, giving a strange and uncomfortable feeling.

What event caused such a result?

Perhaps the reason the Legendary Mage Ihelos created this illusory undead city was because of this.

...

Beneath the deep night, standing in the heart of the town was a lonely three-story building, like a giant forgotten by time, quietly guarding secrets unknown.

The building was entirely constructed of massive gray stones, fitted tightly together, exuding an untouchable solidity and a sense of age. The sparse moonlight faintly outlined its angular silhouette, adding a chilling and mysterious aura.

Inside the building was a dead silence, with no trace of light, even the faintest glow seemed swallowed by the heavy stone walls. The windows were tightly closed, like pairs of silent eyes, refusing outside curiosity and prying.

The stillness evoked the thought that perhaps this place had long been devoid of life, becoming an abandoned ghost house.

The streets around were empty and desolate, with only the occasional night breeze stirring a few fallen leaves, creating a rustling sound on the stone pavement, adding an unsettling melody to the tranquil night.

Lis hid in the shadow of a nearby house, observing the building.

According to Old Milo, this was the residence of the City Lord, the domain of the Legendary Mage Ihelos.

It indeed seemed to have a bit of the undead mage style, dark and devoid of any ornate decoration.

Lis pondered in his mind, sending a Mirror Body Avatar toward the building.

Let's scout the area to see what the situation inside this building is.

Non-option to retreat is always available if needed!