As he spoke, Caine raised his right hand. By some unknown time, a dark, foul mass of flesh had formed in the center of his palm, pulsing with an inexplicable madness. "The answer is the encroachment of 'The Hangman,'" Caine said to the "Shadow." What the "Shadow" lacked, Caine possessed—this very encroachment, the lingering influence left behind by the "True Maker," an effect that even the combined strength of "The Source Citadel" could not yet eradicate! Caine was certain, however, that before he encountered the "Dark Angel" Salsir, the "True Maker" would not allow him to lose control or perish easily. Therefore, he deliberately allowed the areas of his being affected by the encroachment to be infected by the "Spirit Plague," creating the false appearance of imminent collapse. He then manipulated the "Spirit Threads" indiscriminately, concealing the fact that his true target was the "Saint of the Audience," and when the "Shadow" launched further attacks, successfully induced a state of sluggishness in him, thereby creating the perfect opportunity for the "Silver Knight" to act. As Klein had anticipated, the areas that were eroded absorbed the seeds of the "spirit plague," preventing the negative effects from manifesting. During this process, the "shadow" had prematurely withdrawn, concerned about the impact of the "spirit plague," and thus failed to promptly detect the anomalies in the "Audience Saint's" "spirit thread." How carefully and cautiously Klein had been, he still wasn't entirely sure. Of course, when he met the "dark angel" Salsir, and how the erosion would evolve, whether the contained "spirit plague" would eventually leak out and exert some influence—these developments remained entirely unforeseeable, and he could only focus on resolving the immediate issue. Upon hearing his words, a surge of crimson flame erupted suddenly from the pure "shadow," instantly enveloping him. At the edge of the "Land of No Darkness," near the residence of the Giant King, a cluster of flames rapidly rose upward, and the "shadow" emerged. He didn't hesitate—he simply chose to flee, rushing toward the palace where the "Dark Angel" was sleeping, completely ignoring Enyuni and the "Solar Saint!" Even克莱恩, wielding the "Virtual Persona," was momentarily stunned, lifting a corner of his mouth and shaking his head in amused disbelief at the "Spirit Worm." "I never realized I was so timid," he mused. He suspected that the severed "Shadow" had carried away most of his caution and thoughtfulness, leaving behind only impulsiveness and recklessness. — The "Realm of No Darkness" has no physical boundaries; anyone can directly leave or exert influence upon the outside. Yet, the torn "shadows" eventually transformed into thin sheets of paper and swiftly vanished. Once again, several streams of blazing crimson flame fell, and the black "shadows" used them to leap, gradually approaching the open gate of the Giant King's residence, while the successive flashes of silver-white sharp light only tore through his "stand-in paper figures"—the "Warrior" path has the ability to perceive illusions starting from Sequence 5. Without the aid of psychological "invisibility" techniques, the "paper figures" clearly outperform the mere creation of illusions, making it more likely for illusions to fragment during duels between two "Seers." Within just a few seconds, a series of crimson flame pillars rose outside the Giant King's residence, as if releasing a welcome smoke. In the very next instant, the "Shadow" would leap into one of these columns of flame and retreat into the place where the "Dark Angel" slept. Yet at that precise moment, a figure swiftly materialized before each of the crimson columns. Dressed in a long black coat and wearing a half-high silk hat, with his right face normal and his left face enveloped by transparent, writhing worms—this was Caine himself. Caine's lips curved upward once more, and with his already-raised right hand, he gave a sharp tap. Crack! All the crimson columns of flame went out, forcing the dark "Shadow" to emerge clearly, now standing once again on the steps bathed in morning sunlight. "Command of Flame!" Caine had been able to arrive at the palace of the Giant King ahead of the "Shadow" and intercept its advance because, once the "Shadow" had fled, it could no longer interfere with his summoning of images from the historical fissures. He effortlessly summoned "The Hunger That Crawls" and switched his soul to that of a "Traveler." Being overly cautious wasn't always a good thing. Klein smiled warmly at his shadow, bending his knees and lowering his back. As he bent, his silhouette suddenly transformed into the knight clad in silver armor. The knight drove his great sword into the fissure, creating an invisible barrier that sealed the gate to the sleeping realm of the "Dark Angel." At that moment, Klein and his secret doppelgänger, the "Silver Knight," had exchanged positions, now presenting to his shadow a poised stance—offering it free access to the Giant King's palace, as long as it could breach the barrier originating from the "Protector." Of course, his physical form would interfere with the shadow's ability to summon historical projections and manipulate the "spirit threads." Meanwhile, the battle dynamics had shifted on the other front, where the three half-gods of Silver City, along with Enyuni and the "Sun Saint," were now experiencing changes in their engagement. When Colin Iliat once again entangled Eununi, who had lost his black armor, Deryck repeated his previous strategy: occasionally unleashing "Yami" to deal area damage, trading the chief's injury for battlefield victory, and at other times concentrating the pure, blazing white "Gun of No Darkness" for precise strikes—though this was less common, as Eununi often evaded it, even accidentally injuring Colin Iliat. After three successive waves of "Yami," Eununi finally faltered, once again extending one of the last two pairs of his ethereal black wings, transforming the area into a vast, dark ocean that absorbed all light and engulfed Colin Iliat, leaving the Silver City chief with a thick layer of dark liquid on his body and significantly impeding his movements. Seizing this opportunity, Eununi broke free from the entanglement, avoided the subsequent "Gun of No Darkness" attacks, and took on the form of shadow, swiftly moving toward the Giant King's residence, aiming to coordinate with the shadows to breach the barrier. At that very moment, a sharp, silvery brilliance erupted from within him, tearing him apart into clumps of dark red flesh! This sudden, precise attack came from Loviya. The senior member of the "Council of Six" had unexpectedly abandoned her defensive maneuvers against the "Sun Saint," and at the exact instant Enyuni was disengaging from the battlefield, decisively switched the guardian spirit she had been tending to, now channeling it into the "Silver Knight" demon, staining her black armor with streaks of silver-white. Immediately, the giantized "Silver Knight" took a step forward, swinging his sword of dawn's light, extending the "Storm of Light" that had just begun, sweeping it forward to engulf the clusters of dark red flesh. A pair of ethereal black wings appeared and then faded, calming the "Storm of Light," yet Dariq's "Yang Flame" surged in succession, igniting each cluster of flesh with sacred fire and melting everything with pure radiance. Seeing this scene, the "Sun Saint" knew his essence was doomed to be destroyed; he could not spare another blow for Loviya, and turned to withdraw from his "Domain of No Darkness." Suddenly, he heard a voice rich with malice and filth: "Slowly!" Loviya, bracing herself to break free from the residual power of the "Gun of No Darkness," teleported to a point near the "Sun Saint," then switched her guardian spirit to a demon and cast the "Language of Filth." At this point, her black armor had completely shattered, and the purple-streaked robe bore numerous cracks, revealing melted flesh that was slowly pulsing and moving—her breath frail. While a "slow" pace from a non-half-god could not sustain the "Solar Saint" for long, it was already sufficient for Colin Iliat. He summoned a "silver-white slender sword," which then "transmitted" itself to the enemy's front. This "silver-white slender sword" underwent a sudden transformation, piercing straight through the Solar Saint's sacred armor and exploding within his body. Radiant silver light burst forth, dividing the Solar Saint into countless fragments. Crisp—these pieces of flesh landed and vanished instantly, as though returning to history. Following this engagement, the three half-gods of Silver City swiftly gathered around the Giant King's residence, sealing the "shadow" in the center. The "shadow" leapt upward, attempting to retreat into the historical mist, but as soon as he caught sight of the gray-white vapor, it was immediately pressed down by a translucent, worm-like hand. Neither he nor Caine had anticipated that the other would surely obstruct or wait there! The "shadow," now with nowhere to hide, was immediately surrounded by the three half-gods of Silver City. His various abilities were nullified by Caine, and even his "flame leap" was hampered by Caine's "manipulation of flame," making it difficult for him to break free. Several seconds passed, and as one after another of the paper figures shattered, the "shadow" finally lost all his substitutes and was pierced through the abdomen by Deric's "Gun of No Darkness." A bright, miniature "sun" then exploded, rapidly fading and completely dissolving the dark "shadow." Caine felt a sharp pain in his head; his spirit, which had been on the verge of collapse, suddenly stabilized. Instinctively, he turned his gaze to his feet, where, under the morning light, a faint black shadow extended out. "We're too weak…" Klein bent slightly, chuckling at himself. After all, without the abilities of an ancient scholar, without a spectral companion, and unable to manipulate the "lines of spirit"—a "seer" was truly quite weak when compared to a half-god. His spirit had fully recovered, yet he hadn't yet canceled the "virtual persona," and he didn't intend to immediately summon the historical projection of the "Lady Justice" to do so, because the Enyuni, now tainted by the "Dark Angel," exhibited characteristics of the "Sun," "Audience," "Storm," and "Secret Priest" paths. Should he enter the Giants' palace, he would need to remain vigilant against potential mental influences. The "virtual persona" served as a solid protective measure. At this moment, the translucent worms on his left face and left body rapidly settled, returning to flesh and skin; however, due to the lingering sense of wildness embedded within the "virtual persona," the surface retained a semi-transparent quality, allowing one to see beneath it the network of "spirit worms" concealed within. As Derek and Loviya and the others turned their gaze toward him, Caine straightened up, reached out, and grasped his "Staff of Life," pointing at the open door of the Giant King's residence and smiled, "Hurry up—the 'Dark Angel' is waiting for us inside."