Although Gauss sensed that the hunger did not originate from him, since Aria had offered the mana berries, he did not refuse her goodwill.

“Thanks.”

He tossed several mana berries into his mouth;

the berries’ energy quickly spread through his body.

As expected, eating the berries did not ease his hunger. The white egg still transmitted that gnawing emptiness, which in turn affected him.

Are you trying to…

Gauss looked at the archway in front of him and swallowed.

Although Thorin’s group found Gauss’s sudden, ill-timed hunger strange, this was not the moment for gossip. Their attention was fixed on the rock face ahead.

“Is this the aura of Laduguer’s evil god?”

Feeling the malignant, ominous aura emanating from above, everyone frowned at once.

Especially the dwarf Thorin—he instinctively tightened his grip on his hammer handle, feeling a deep-seated revulsion.

The dark red fungal patches on the archway exuded an odor that made the air viscous and filthy, as if inhaling it into the lungs would corrode them.

Fortunately, Elton’s holy emblem emitted a radiant barrier;

otherwise most present would have fainted within moments.

Nancy’s staff tip glowed with a brighter detection light, probing the arch’s patterns. Her tone turned grave: “This evil god aura is stronger than we thought… Thorin.”

They had received the prophecy warning that an evil god aura was awakening here, but the prophecy could not specify its strength.

The aura behind the archway had clearly awakened recently—just stabilized enough to maintain its shape—and was rapidly regressing, polluting the main world.

Shen Hongye’s expression hardened: “We must destroy it! Otherwise, given time, it will solidify into a pollution source and a coordinate. Then the evil god’s interference and influence on the real world will become far easier.”

My faith forbids me to tolerate that eventuality.

The god that Randul betrayed was Loshanda, Lord of Dawn. As a neutral and stern deity with faint divine power, Loshanda still commanded widespread worship in that small land, symbolizing dawn, rebirth, hope, revival, and youthful vigor.

The Loshanda Church’s doctrine encourages people to dispel darkness and bring new beginnings—dedicated to cultivating hope for humanity and its allies. That was in absolute opposition to the filthy, rotten aura behind them, which aimed to drag vitality into dead silence.

Fortunately, even though that evil god aura was weaker than imagined, I had not come unprepared.

I extended the rose-red circular holy emblem in my hand backward.

At the same time, I finished chanting the final prayer.

With my chant, a blinding, sunlike orb of light hurriedly radiated from beneath the emblem. The first thread of golden sunlight was cool and full of hope, yet it carried a purifying, searing power that could cleanse the white-darkness.

The sunlight reacted the moment it touched the dark red fungal patch.

Two forces collided in the air.

“Shhhh!”

Where the light contacted the dark red patch, a sizzling burning sound rose;

a small amount of white smoke billowed. The inner layer of the patch scorched pale and withered.

“Roar!!”

Gauss even faintly heard a voiceless, roaring sound in the air.

The evil god aura seemed restrained;

despite emitting a shrill screech, it thrashed more wildly.

That counterattack was ferocious;

in an instant the previously dominant light quickly retracted and began dimming.

Seeing this, Gauss silently felt relieved that he hadn’t rashly advanced because of the egg’s hunger.

Divine power is on such a different level that even a single aura, a seed, or a mark can possess force beyond low-level adventurers’ ability to resist.

Elton, as a priest of Loshanda, channeled divine power, yet he was on the back foot against this evil god aura. If Gauss had recklessly charged in, the consequences would have been unthinkable.

The dark red arch’s aura intensified;

suddenly, blackness at its center began to rotate slowly.

Several pitch-black shadows struggled and squeezed out. They resembled no known creature—more like twisted humanoid shapes formed purely of malice and negative energy.

They had no facial features, no clear limb boundaries;

only constantly undulating, stretching dark outlines and sharp tendrils extending from their torsos, with a tar-like black viscous liquid dripping continuously.

On their necks, a faint lock could be seen, the other end connected to the arch’s black vortex.

The moment they appeared, half the light in the cavern seemed to be swallowed. Elton’s emblem glow was suppressed and dimmed further.

A cold chill flowed through the air and washed over everyone.

“What the hell are those things!” Thorin barked.

Seeing them lunge at Elton, he hurriedly raised his shield to meet them.

But the next instant, his hammer and shield were passed straight through by the shadow.

The shadow slithered along his weapon as if wrapping around it;

wherever it touched, the runic glow on Thorin’s armor rapidly faded.

Luckily, when the shadow reached his neck, the pendant hanging there released a warm light that instantly dispelled it.

“Phew—”

Cold sweat poured down Thorin’s back;

the brief suffocating pressure left him weakened.

“Everyone be careful—physical attacks seem useless against them!”

“Stand behind me.” Elton gritted his teeth.

He squeezed the emblem as hard as he could;

the light once more tore into the darkness, forcing back the ominous force and those lock-bound humanoid shadows.

He was losing ground because, although he could borrow the god’s power, personally his strength was too low and held the team back.

Not to mention that great gods have no time for minor matters;

even if a god noticed and lent power, his bodily strength would struggle to bear more.

Now he had exhausted himself and could only barely match the evil god aura.

Maintaining that would be difficult.

Elton even began considering ordering the team to retreat.

Gauss watched the scene intently;

he could see how desperate the situation had become.

However, the duel between the two divine powers provided a chance for an intervening third party.

The white egg inside him seemed to sense external changes, and the hunger it transmitted grew stronger, urging him forward.

It seemed to claim it could handle the evil god aura.

“You really can do it, little one?” he communicated mentally to the egg.

The white egg transmitted chirruping thoughts, affirming him.

Though still slightly uneasy, Gauss recalled how, in the Dark Forest, relying on the egg had saved his life. He chose to trust it again.

He looked at Elton, whose face showed strained determination, and suddenly spoke.

“Elton, can you increase suppression a bit more? I think… I might be able to help.”

“You?” Elton was about to protest, but when he saw Gauss’s resolute aura, the words died on his lips.

“I’ll do my best. If you’re going to act, hurry—my strength is limited.”

“Thanks.” Gauss nodded.

The next moment, an intent surged out from the white egg;

Gauss half-understood it.

He gripped the Sun Wand with his left hand, and a dazzling Light Cantrip burst forth.

“Yik!!!”

A piercing shriek echoed again through the inky darkness.

The fully-driven Light Cantrip, combined with Elton’s gritted effort, pressed the darkness down.

Of course, such overwhelming advantage could not last.

Though the darkness sizzled as it burned, it stubbornly clung to the rock wall.

“Ha….”

Gauss wiped his right hand;

energy scales instantly covered it, and an energy dragon claw coalesced.

This time a white-and-golden radiance welled from within him, coating the dragon claw and imbuing the once brutish, forceful appendage with a noble, sacred hue.

“Now!” sensing the darkness compressed to its limit.

With Elton’s startled gaze on him, Gauss exploded forward, nimbly dodging the distorted shadow humanoids’ agonized cries.

The dragon claw, glowing with a white-gold halo, lunged straight for the arch’s core that was under dual suppression—into the very center of the black vortex!

“Roar!!!”

The evil god aura emitted a shriek of terror never heard before.

As if sensing a “lethal” threat, it grew frenzied and boiled.

Countless black filaments spewed from the vortex, countless threads flying to entangle and restrain that white-gold dragon claw.

“Pfft!” The instant the black filaments touched the claw, they exploded with a bang, as if meeting a natural enemy.

The dragon claw cut through the outer boiling corruptive energy without hindrance and, powered by Gauss’s tremendous force, slammed into the convulsing dark core.

“Boom!!!” innumerable black particles detonated.

The whole cavern convulsed violently.

Gauss felt as if his right arm hadn’t struck rock but pierced a layer of viscous, slimy swamp.

A cold, purist evil energy was siphoned out by the dragon claw from the arch’s interior.

Numerous condensed dark streams crazily surged into his raised right hand.

When his claw closed, the dark energy was instantaneously refined.

The once ferocious evil god aura wilted as if its spine had been ripped out.

The peripheral dark red fungal patches visibly withered, carbonized, and collapsed! The shadow constructs dissolved like smoke with a single cry of despair.

Elton felt the pressure lift and slumped to the ground, utterly drained.

At that moment he no longer cared about personal dignity;

he stared at Gauss in disbelief.

Looking at the dragon claw’s strange glow and the completely eradicated evil god energy, his mind went blank.

Who could tell him what—what kind of power this was? How could it so simply and brutally wipe out the evil god aura’s influence?

Thorin, Nancy, Aria, and Serlandul in the rear were equally stunned.

This had been a god—yet even a whisper of a god’s aura normally required equal-level power to counter. That was why many adventurers, even higher-rank ones, revered deities.

Some among them might not be devout, but in critical moments, borrowing a scrap of divine power could save lives.

Gauss closed his eyes.

The evil energy refined into the white egg gave him a flash of icy cold sensation.

The egg, like a creature tasting a rare delicacy, ravenously devoured the ominous power.

Within a few breaths, the evil god energy was consumed completely.

After devouring it all, the mysterious white egg transmitted a pleased, satisfied thought and did not forget Gauss.

A pure energy surged from its shell surface and infused into Gauss’s body.

“Vroom!”

Where he had felt cold, warmth flooded his body instantly.

Deep in his consciousness, the Mana Cup emitted bright light;

mana flowed faster.

A full, plump energy rapidly refilled it, leaving Gauss feeling immensely gratified,

as if he saw an invisible experience bar rapidly climbing.

However, the pure energy the egg returned was not used up entirely;

part of it remained within him, subtly nourishing his body and spirit over time.

“Phew—” Gauss opened his eyes, a satisfied expression on his face.

In those few seconds, he could sense his Rank experience advancing significantly.

Considering this continuing nourishment, after some commissions and adventures he might soon reach the threshold for Rank 4.

Divine power indeed—just a sliver of it could propel a professional’s advancement.

Advancement is difficult;

some ranks can consume a lifetime. Cases of taking decades for one level are common;

even the gifted may need years.

He had only just reached Rank 3 not long ago;

now he’d been pushed nearly halfway to the next level in a flash—an astonishing surge.

A dozen meters away, Aria and Serlandul both shuddered at the same time.

They exchanged a glance, then looked toward Gauss.

“You…”

“You too.”

“Let’s talk about it later.” Aria swallowed.

“Fine.”

Serlandul had wanted to say he seemed to have broken the bottleneck from Rank 3 to 4—a barrier that had blocked him for a long time—and suddenly many insights had come through.

He thought that after returning, he might soon complete his upgrade.

Although sudden, linking Gauss’s actions to the change in his own state made him suspect their leader was involved.

“Haha! Kid Gauss, I still don’t know exactly how you pulled that off, but… nice work!” Thorin’s loud voice broke the silence first.

Their team’s mission in the Emerald Forest was accomplished. Despite twists and turns, and ultimately relying on Gauss to clear the evil god aura, they succeeded.

Even aside from their commission, this was joyous news to Thorin—any setback to the Duergar was good news.

Nancy and Elton relaxed at once.

They had feared earlier that the aura’s intensity would force a retreat.

Luckily, their team had Gauss.

Their gazes turned to Thorin.

To be fair, his Second Brain instincts had been useful.

When Thorin persuaded them to invite outsiders for this commission, they hesitated at first, but after considering his talent, they agreed.

Unexpectedly, it didn’t just help—it was decisive. Their purification team had become accessories to Gauss’s actions.

“Let’s get out of here.” Gauss glanced at the team and said.

When he had struck the rock, the entire cavern trembled. Though it had stabilized, it still felt like it could collapse at any moment.

“Right, right.” Thorin agreed enthusiastically.

Soon they retraced their path.

Along the passage, countless cracks had already sprouted;

as they moved, the fissures slowly widened and stones began to fall from all sides.

“Hurry up!” Seeing that, they quickened their pace.

They managed to climb out through the entrance crack before the ruins completely collapsed.

“Boom!!!”

A muffled subterranean explosion buried the fissures and the tunnels that had retreated into them.

“I think… we can’t rest yet. We need to withdraw quickly,” Gauss warned the exhausted Elton. “With a commotion this large, nearby monster camps probably noticed.”

“Sss—”

At that reminder, everyone broke out in cold sweat.

They had been underground so long they nearly forgot the outside wasn’t safe.

Outside could be far more dangerous than the ruins.

They all reached the same conclusion instantly—run!

Fearing patrolling monster squads would arrive soon, they didn’t stop for a moment and sprinted away from the monster camp.

As they ran, horns sounded through the forest;

the camp’s monsters were clearly mustering en masse.

They ran for more than ten kilometers before daring to slow and rest a little.

If they’d been trapped by such a massive enemy force, survival would have been impossible.

Even teleporting a few hundred meters would not shake that many foes.

Eventually they returned to where they had left their mounts, mounted up, and rode for the forest edge.

Deep within the Emerald Forest

A forbidden place that ordinary adventurers might never set foot in their entire lives—yet the scene was not terrifying;

it overflowed with breathtaking splendor.

Ancient trees towering beyond life’s ordinary bounds reached into the clouds like primordial giants standing above a sea of green.

Each ancient tree had an emerald, translucent texture. The leaves weren’t merely green;

they shimmered with magical light, forming a canopy of interwoven emerald and dark-gold hues that nearly blocked the sky.

The air brimmed with life energy so dense it seemed almost tangible... and with an extreme, overwhelming pressure.

Under that invisible oppression, an area spanning dozens of kilometers fell eerily silent—no insects, no birds—only a low, slow breath that pulsed with the earth itself. That breath originated in the forest’s center, a colossal, natural palace twisted and formed from living ancient trees.

There lay the Emerald Forest’s true core and sole ruler: the Green Dragon Queen’s lair.

Under the dome naturally woven by the thick branches of the Shadowsong tree stood a resplendent palace.

Walls and floors flowed with natural magical runes that provided light and formed a powerful defense—without permission, few beings could set foot inside.

The palace’s interior was vast;

the light dim, but piles upon piles of treasure were visible everywhere: gold, silver, jewelry, gems, ancient artworks, lost magical gear—countless riches dazzling the eye.

From a huge mound of gold coins, coins began to tremble and cascade, clinking melodically.

A long, stately head emerged from the gold mound, followed by a neck covered in scales more radiant than the finest jade.

Suddenly, its enormous, closed, green vertical pupil cracked open a slit.

That mere slit sufficed to drape the once tranquil palace in a viscous, terrifying draconic majesty.

Servants nearby instantly dropped to their knees, trembling, pressing themselves low to the ground and barely daring to breathe.

Aetherass lifted her massive head with swift, graceful precision and fixed her gaze on a direction. Had Gauss been outside then, he would have been astonished to find she was staring straight toward the direction where they had just purified the evil god aura and caused the cavern ruins to collapse.

A faint trace of curiosity and puzzlement flashed through her deep green eyes.

She had sensed it!

That faint, nearly negligible evil god aura—at this scale, even if it came from a deity, it normally wouldn’t merit much of her attention.

What truly piqued her interest was another, extremely brief yet peculiarly strange energy fluctuation.

That fluctuation extinguished the evil god aura in an instant and emitted a quality unfamiliar even to her.

As if, in a forest she knew inside out, she had suddenly smelled a spice she’d never encountered before.

“Hmm…” A deep, majestic rumble shook like thunder through the vast palace.

She flexed a claw far thicker than any human hand.

A nearby elder lizardfolk shaman immediately prostrated himself, pressing his head to the ground.

“Go…” the queen’s voice echoed within the shaman’s mind, an order brooking no refusal.

“Investigate… what happened in that direction just now. There is a… intriguing scent. I want details.”

“By your will, Great Jade Watcher, Mother of All Things.” The old shaman hissed with his forked tongue and obeyed, bowing and departing at once to carry out the queen’s command.

The Green Dragon Queen Aetherass resumed her repose.

Although intrigued, that aura was too faint to warrant a grand outing;

she would not waste the effort to go to the forest edge yet.

Moreover, she should not approach human kingdoms for now.

Recalling that frozen deployment order, a barely perceptible irritation flickered in the depths of her green pupil.

Enough—sleep on.

Her heavy eyelids slowly drooped, hiding those all-seeing green irises beneath mountains of gold and gems.

Silence and solemn stillness returned to the palace.