It was a cell choked with vines and roots. A woman sat leaning against the wall, eyes closed, her body bound by countless creeping tendrils. Manacles held her wrists and ankles, and she appeared utterly motionless.

"Shia, I've come to the Ediru Garden, just like I promised that day. Even though I’m so late, and you’ve waited so long… why has it come to this? Shia, what happened to you all alone here?" Lei ran to the front of the cell, shaking the heavy iron bars and screaming hoarsely at the woman inside.

"She is… Shia?" Lin Luo stared blankly at the woman before him, disbelief coloring his words.

He could sense she wasn't dead, merely asleep. It was unimaginable that someone subjected to treatment as a living specimen five hundred years ago could still be alive now. To say the Ediru Garden had shown mercy would be a lie Lin Luo would never swallow. Moreover, he felt that while she lived, her vital aura was unnervingly chaotic—powerful yet incredibly faint, pure yet complex and volatile, as if containing countless forms of life essence, making her seem more monstrous than a genuine Yao guai.

"This person is both dangerous and fragile, like a monster on the verge of death," CC observed, a slight look of surprise crossing her features as she regarded the figure.

"Lei." The woman, whose eyes had been closed, quickly awoke upon hearing Lei's call. A warm smile spread across her face, though tears mingled with it—whether from sorrow or joy, it was impossible to tell.

The woman leaned forward, drawing the vines clinging to the floor along with her, starting to move outward… or perhaps shuffle, for the vines were now inseparable from her, as if they were extensions of her own body. She leaned against the bars, smiling, and asked, "Hey, Lei, where's Keith? Do you know where Keith is now?"

"Huh? Shia doesn't know? Keith already…" Lei stammered, momentarily stunned. Five hundred years—no human could live that long. Keith should have been dead long ago, though she had heard from Grayazz that Keith had miraculously lived for over two hundred and fifty years.

"Tsk, Lei, you don't recognize him anymore?" Seeing Lei's expression, the woman merely laughed. "Keith is the Captain of the Goodwill Envoy Corps, a hero of Olkynard, the Gem Hunter—the Jewel General, Keith Fielgong."

"Uh… Gem Hunter?" This statement completely stunned Lei. She had only heard fragments a few days prior and missed the core details, thus remaining ignorant of Keith's true identity.

"I miss him so much. I should have helped him more. Look, not only can I make the flowers bloom more abundantly, but I've also become stronger," she said, smiling. Suddenly, the woman stood up, and the vines that had seemed withered instantly burst forth with countless blossoms. This spectacle left the three of them dumbfounded.

But what shocked Lin Luo and the others even more was her body… it hadn't been obvious before, but now that she was moving, her cracked and fissured form was revealed. Her face, arms, thighs, lower abdomen—not a single part of her was whole, covered instead in a dense network of fissures, as if the slightest touch might shatter her entirely.

Even as she stepped onto the ground, fragments of her toes broke off and fell away.

If she had merely been a prisoner before, now… she could no longer be called a 'human' being.

"Shia, how could you… look like this?" Lei gasped, covering her mouth, nearly speechless with horror.

"Am I strong? That’s because I worked so hard." Shia, whose face seemed ready to crumble at any moment, offered a gentle smile, entirely unconcerned. She then gestured to the vines covering her body. "I hate it when you guys look at me like I'm some kind of monster. I just have longer hair, right?"

"..." In a different setting, one might have found a spark of humor, but here and now, no one could laugh.

"Wait a moment, I'll leave this place right now." In a posture reminiscent of a Nine-Tailed Fox spirit, countless vines whipped around like tails. The heavy iron gate was squeezed open as if it were soft tofu, and the chains binding her limbs snapped under the pressure of the vines. This cell clearly could not hold her now that she was awake.

"Lei, you should come too. We’ll go find Keith together," Shia said with a light laugh.

Buzz. At that moment, a dull resonance filled the entire cell, followed by an oppressive sensation of immense weight. Caught off guard, even Lin Luo's expression shifted. Fortunately, his physical body was robust enough that as he reacted, he instantly pulled the two girls beside him close, preventing them from falling.

"Is this gravity?" The heavy feeling was undeniable; either gravity was suddenly imposed, or it was a similar type of formation.

"Aaaah!" The sudden pressure forced Shia to her knees, but she wasn't defeated. Instead, she erupted with even greater power. The gentle expression on her face twisted into one of profound fury, and with her roar, even the entire Sky City began to tremble.

Boom! With a sudden violent explosion, under the force of her rampaging power, the floating city finally gave way, its foundations completely pierced through. As expected, the four individuals in the cell plummeted downward…

"Bad! CIA… the CIA has awakened!"

"The Cuju Prison and the Heavenly Tower have both been destroyed! The CIA is out!"

"Damn it, this situation has actually occurred!"

"Hadn't that entity been sleeping soundly for hundreds of years? Why wake up now?"

"Damn it, Mezerans' target is indeed the CIA! If this continues, the catastrophe of that time might repeat itself!"

"No, it will be worse than before, because this time there are two monsters!"

...At this moment, the high command of the Ediru Garden could no longer maintain composure and descended into utter panic. If Lin Luo's power inspired fear and threat, the CIA was a nightmarish entity to them. Centuries ago, the human tragedy orchestrated single-handedly by the CIA was etched deeply into their memories.

On the other side, caught off guard by Shia’s sudden rampage, Lin Luo, Lei, and the others were falling. Mid-air, even Lin Luo couldn't help but frown; piercing the entire Sky City showed Shia’s strength was far beyond his expectation.

"Lin Luo, what do we do now?" Lei asked anxiously.

"Let's observe for now. I don't have a good plan yet, but don't worry, I absolutely won't let anything happen to her." Lin Luo offered reassurance. Shia's power was indeed unbelievably strong, but it wasn't enough to overwhelm him—however, that applied when dealing with an enemy. He certainly couldn't treat Shia as an enemy to be slain.

"Before we discuss that, perhaps we should first figure out how to land," CC stated calmly.

"I don't think we'll need to."

While the three were speaking, several vines suddenly shot out and wrapped around them.

"Are you all okay?" Shia asked, standing atop the largest vine, smiling.

"W-we're okay, Shia."

"But since we're still falling, we’re not entirely okay, hehe." With that, Shia giggled innocently.

Rat-a-tat-tat-tat. Just then, the sound of machine gun fire rang out, and countless bullets zipped towards them. Although most were blocked by the vines, a few struck Shia, spraying blood.

"How dare these guys still come?" Lin Luo glanced over and immediately saw numerous fighter jets circling nearby.

"Perhaps they are beyond rational thought now; the situation is so critical they've lost the ability to think clearly," CC commented lightly, then casually wiped a trace of blood from her arm. Stray bullets had grazed her too, though given her constitution, being merely grazed, or even having her body pulverized, wouldn't kill her.

"Since they’ve come to seek death, I suppose I should oblige them…" Lin Luo sneered, preparing to move, but suddenly a vine lashed out, instantly blowing up the nearest fighter jet.

Before Lin Luo could act, Shia had already launched the first attack.

"Unforgivable…" Clutching the blood welling from her chest, Shia’s smiling expression instantly turned cold. "You dare hurt me?"

Her gaze was ruthless and merciless, the momentary ferocity akin to a savage beast. Then, countless vines spread out, lashing toward the fighter jets circling above. This was no ordinary attack; every single vine carried a special energy attribute: Dark, Wind, Thunder, Light, Water, Fire, Sword… Without a doubt, these were the attributes of the Holy War Angels.

And Shia alone seemed to encompass almost all attributes, yet theoretically, each Holy War Angel possessed only one attribute—Lei’s was Wind, and Shia’s original attribute was Life.

The moment Shia attacked, not a single fighter jet survived; all were torn to shreds instantaneously. Even those who managed a miraculous escape and survived were immediately swallowed by the vines, meeting a more agonizing end.

"Hehehe, you attacked me first, so it's your fault," Shia said, a look of satisfaction spreading across her face after finishing her work.

"This is…" Lei’s eyes widened in shock, not just because of Shia’s multiple attributes, but more so because of the nature of her attack. No, this couldn't be Shia. While she could be clumsy, prone to tears, and occasionally stubborn, she cherished all life above all else. What happened to Shia?

"Haha, wonderful, wonderful! Let’s land right over there," once the enemies were gone, Shia resumed her innocent smile, clapping her hands as she pointed to a floating city not far below.

Her mind was clearly unstable… Even Lin Luo found this rapid transformation unsettling. At times she was brutally cruel, yet at others, she appeared as an innocent girl; when fighting, she was utterly merciless. She seemed like two different people.

Crash! With a violent impact, the sphere enveloped by vines slammed heavily into the castle of the floating city below. Because all four were protected by the vines, the collision caused them no harm.

"Safe landing. Is everyone alright?" Shia retracted the vines enveloping them and once again offered a warm smile.

"I'm fine, but Shia, you’re bleeding a lot. You were injured just now; you need treatment quickly," Lei said, pointing excitedly at the wound on Shia’s chest.

"Don't worry, I just need to… let her regenerate." Saying this, her gaze locked onto something ahead, and that cruel, merciless look returned.

"CIA! That’s the CIA!"

"Why is the CIA here?"

"The CIA has reached the Third Floor!"

The people originally stationed here descended into chaos upon Shia’s arrival. Some fled, some attacked, some reported to their superiors, but all actions were futile. Under Shia’s cold smirk, countless vines wrapped around their bodies. Then, blood splattered everywhere; all life vanished in an instant, subtly flowing as energy through the vines into Shia.

The deceased left nothing behind but the clothes they wore, devoid of their owners.

"This is… absorbing life?" Lin Luo’s expression flickered. This was clearly the core of Shia's original ability, merely amplified to a terrifying degree through modification. Recalling how intimately he had just been in contact with those vines made his scalp tingle.

"Haha, there, I’m healthy now," Shia said, looking at Lei with the expression of a little girl after absorbing the life force of everyone present.

But Lei was now utterly speechless. Shia's cruel and ruthless methods made it impossible for her to believe the woman before her was the Shia she knew.

"Let’s keep moving," Shia dragged the mass of vines behind her and walked forward. Anyone who stood in her way—human or Holy War Angel—suffered the same fate: their life force absorbed. Before her, all living things were mere offerings.

This was the Holy War Angel who had been a living specimen in the Ediru Garden? The experiment, after modification, had far surpassed the power imagined by its creators… Lin Luo finally understood why she had survived and why she had been locked in that cell.

"Please, don't kill me, spare me…" A Holy War Angel, entangled by the vines, let out a mournful plea.

"Hehe." Shia remained unmoved, taking the Angel's life with a soft chuckle, then moved on to seek her next target.

"Shia!" Lei could bear it no longer and rushed forward. "Please stop, Shia! You aren't the kind of person to do something this cruel. What happened to you? What on earth occurred?"

"Ah?" Shia turned her head, looking at Lei’s figure. A flicker of confusion suddenly crossed her eyes. "Who… are you?"

"Huh?" Lei froze.

"If you dare interfere with me, I will kill you!"

"Shia, I…"

"Don't obstruct me!" Suddenly, a ferocious glint appeared in Shia’s eyes, and a vine, under her control, shot rapidly toward Lei.

Swish! A white electronic thread flashed, instantly shattering the incoming vine. Lin Luo grabbed Lei's hand and retreated backward with lightning speed. "Don't go near her. She recognizes no one now."

Although Lin Luo hadn't acted before, he had been observing. Life absorption was no trivial matter. After absorbing so much life essence, Shia had assimilated countless humans and Holy War Angels. Under such circumstances, maintaining a clear consciousness would be miraculous.

Losing her sanity was inevitable.

"So, right now, she is purely a monster. Anyone who approaches her meets only death," Lin Luo stated gravely.

"Then what do we do?" Lei asked, full of worry.

"We have to defeat her first."

"Fighting Shia? But I…"

"I’ll handle it alone. Although her power is terrifying, it's not enough to threaten me."

"No, I'm coming too. I can't stand watching Shia like this," Lei shook her head, her tone unyielding.

"Very well." Lin Luo didn't refuse, knowing Lei desperately wanted to save Shia. Thus, the next moment, the Synchronicity was completed.

Shia's power was horrifying; her life-absorbing ability might barely qualify as Spirit Rank or higher, but for Lin Luo, it wasn't enough to make her a true match. However, this time his objective wasn't to destroy Shia, but merely to subdue her, which made things significantly trickier. At the very least, his Destructive Black Flame couldn't be used, as even a slight touch would cause irreparable damage.

Furthermore, he couldn't easily use even powerful Wind-elemental ultimate skills, because there was no guarantee that Shia's current body, swept by the East Wind Ring, wouldn't completely disintegrate.

What truly tied Lin Luo’s hands was that even during the fight, Shia's body was continuously breaking down. Despite absorbing so much life essence, her own life was draining away at an alarming rate. Clearly, one body couldn't contain so much life. After all, she was only an ordinary Holy War Angel, far inferior to combat-type Angels, let alone possessing the power of the Seven-Jeweled Sacred Tree.

"Lin Luo…"

"It's fine. While this prolongs things, at this rate, she will self-destruct soon, and then we'll have a chance."

Just as Lin Luo predicted, her already chaotic modified body fared even worse in combat. Soon enough, it collapsed. Taking advantage of this, Lin Luo instantly severed the attacking vines, circled behind her, cut away all the remaining tendrils, and the moment he stunned her, he immediately cast Divine Healing.

The Divine Healing restoration brought the human body to a 'perfect' state. Regardless of whether the injured party had an extra hand or was missing one, the spell could revert them to having two hands. In other words, it could be understood as clearing all positive and negative BUFFs.

Therefore, with Lin Luo's ability, he could certainly restore Shia to her pre-modified state, though healing a being equivalent to a low-tier Spirit Rank would likely consume a substantial amount of his life points.

All of this was anticipated, but during the restoration, an accident occurred.

Shia's original memories began to flow outward due to Lin Luo's healing. The moment Lin Luo sensed them, Lei, still connected via Synchronicity, sensed them too.

"This is… Why is it like this? The Ediru Garden… the experiment… the tool that turned Shia into this… Keith… kill him… Uwaaaaaahhhhhh!"

After experiencing all those memories, Mezerans of the (Emerald Wind) roared toward the sky, the inexpressible fury unleashing a gale that shook the entire Sky City.

In the sky, darkness descended—not night, but a black wind.

The entire Ediru Garden was enveloped in a black tempest.

P.S.: Ugh, my stomach hurts terribly. Not sure if I’ll have the strength to post more today; if I don't update today, I'll make up for it with twenty thousand words tomorrow. V