At the same time.

Third floor of the Evernight Guild base in Donghai City.

Moli came to Zhou Huai's door and raised her hand to knock gently.

"Knock, knock."

From inside the door, a slightly raspy voice could be heard.

"Come in."

Moli pushed the door open and entered.

The lighting in the room was soft. Zhou Huai was sitting alone in his wheelchair, with a simple dinner set on the small table in front of him.

Hearing the movement, he looked up, his gaze falling upon Moli.

"How is the collection of the Mortal Demon Source Stones going?"

A bright smile blossomed on Moli's face as she quickly walked over to him.

"My Lord, the harvest from the ruins is even greater than we anticipated."

As she finished speaking, she raised her hand, and the Storage Ring on her palm flashed with a faint light.

Clatter—

In the next second, a large pile of black crystals shimmering with a dark luster appeared out of thin air, instantly forming a small hill on the floor of the room.

Each piece contained pure yet eerie energy.

There were as many as forty or fifty pieces.

A gleam of light finally lit up in Zhou Huai's originally tired eyes.

He nodded in satisfaction.

"Well done."

"Tell the brothers to work harder these days and scavenge as many resources as possible."

"Once the people from the Military Department enter, we won't have the chance to move around so freely."

Moli immediately bowed and replied, "Yes, My Lord, I understand."

She looked up, and seeing Zhou Huai's face, which was much paler than usual, her delicate eyebrows furrowed slightly.

"My Lord, is your body... alright?"

"Your complexion looks a bit poor."

These past few days, Zhou Huai had spent almost all his time resting, trying to build up his energy before the decisive battle.

However, he felt himself growing more and more tired.

That feeling of exhaustion did not stem from his physical body, but seeped out from the depths of his soul.

This was a sign that his soul power was on the verge of exhaustion.

He had recently drunk many precious potions capable of restoring soul power, but they no longer had much effect.

His body had developed an extremely strong resistance to the medicine.

Now, the only thing that could save him was probably the Divine Artifact in the hands of the Kujo Family far away in Sakura Country—the Pendulum of Life.

Thoughts raced through Zhou Huai's mind, but his face remained completely expressionless.

He shook his head at Moli and forced a gentle smile.

"It's nothing, just a bit tired."

Hearing this, the worry in Moli's eyes deepened.

"My Lord, if there is anything you need, please do not hesitate to command us."

"You are the spiritual pillar for all of us."

"You absolutely must not let anything happen to you."

A wave of warmth washed over Zhou Huai's heart.

"Don't worry."

"Nothing will happen to me."

Seeing his resolute expression, Moli finally felt a bit relieved. After urging him a few more times to rest well, she bowed and withdrew from the room.

As the door closed gently, silence returned to the room once more.

The smile on Zhou Huai's face vanished instantly.

He leaned back against the wheelchair, his head tilted back slightly, and exhaled a long breath.

A wave of intense dizziness hit him, making his vision turn black in waves.

He closed his eyes and rubbed his temples hard, barely managing to suppress the sensation of nearly fainting.

"Time... is running out," he muttered to himself.

Then, with a thought.

A shadow quietly separated from the back of his wheelchair, rapidly lengthening and condensing under the dim light.

In an instant, a slender, silver-haired man with skin so pale it was almost translucent appeared silently in the center of the room.

It was Moria.

He slowly raised his hand and waved it gently toward the pile of Mortal Demon Source Stones on the floor.

As if drawn by an invisible force, the hill-like crystals turned into a black stream and flowed entirely into the Storage Ring on Moria's finger.

"With so many Mortal Demon Source Stones, it should be enough to raise the Levels of the Avatars a bit, right?"

The next day, Imperial Capital Academy.

A rapid knocking on the door woke Professor Li from his slumber.

Rubbing his bleary eyes, he scratched his messy hair, his face filled with impatience.

"Who is it?!"

"Disturbing someone's peaceful sleep so early in the morning!"

Shuffling in his slippers, he walked over with extreme reluctance and pulled the door open.

A familiar figure stood outside the door.

Professor Li froze for a moment.

"Gandalf?"

After clearly seeing who it was, the impatience on his face instantly vanished, replaced by a smile.

He pulled the door open wider and greeted him warmly, "What brings you to my place? Come in and have a seat!"

Controlling Gandalf, Zhou Huai showed an attentive smile.

"Professor Li, I'm here to continue the Body Tempering experiments with you, of course."

Hearing this, the smile on Professor Li's face immediately turned into a bitter smile.

He waved his hand and said helplessly, "You're too impatient."

"We just ran out of Mortal Demon Source Stones; there isn't a single one left in the warehouse."

"We'll have to wait at least two or three months for the next batch of allocation."

Zhou Huai smiled and shook his head.

"It doesn't matter, Professor Li."

"I don't need to wait for the school's allocation."

As he spoke, he took out a black crystal shimmering with a dark luster from his Storage Ring.

"I happen to have a batch of Mortal Demon Source Stones on hand."

Professor Li looked at the stone in Gandalf's hand with some surprise.

"Mortal Demon Source Stones?!"

He snatched it away, holding it before his eyes to examine it closely, clicking his tongue in wonder.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk, the quality looks quite high."

He looked up, staring at Gandalf in surprise.

"This stuff is a highly precious strategic resource. Where did you get it, kid?"

Before Zhou Huai could think of an excuse, Professor Li seemed to have figured something out and slapped his own forehead.

"Look at my memory."

"You are a contemporary prodigy of our Great Xia Nation, and the Imperial Capital Military Department gives you special attention. It shouldn't be hard for them to get you some Mortal Demon Source Stones."

He returned the Mortal Demon Source Stone to Gandalf, the excitement on his face plain to see.

"Since you're in such a hurry, let's not waste any time."

"Let's go!"

One after the other, the two walked quickly toward the Body Tempering Tower.

On the way, Zhou Huai organized his words and spoke as if casually.

"By the way, Professor Li, I'm not the only one who came this time."

"I have some friends who also want to experience the effects of the Body Tempering device. I wonder if that's alright?"

Professor Li gave an "oh" without stopping his steps.

He smiled and waved his hand, appearing very generous.

"Sure, why not? I happen to be lacking reference data for different Physiques anyway."

"However..."

He looked back at Gandalf, a trace of doubt in his eyes.

"Can those friends of yours withstand that kind of mental pressure?"

"That is no laughing matter."

Zhou Huai immediately nodded, his tone firm.

"They should be able to."

"Their capacity to endure is not any lower than mine."

Professor Li raised an eyebrow and didn't ask further.

Soon, the two arrived in front of the familiar, giant black tower.

However, when Professor Li clearly saw the people standing at the tower's entrance, his steps came to a sudden halt, and he froze on the spot.

There were a total of six people standing at the tower entrance.

These six people were either handsome and dashing, tall and robust, or ethereal and holy.

None of them looked like ordinary mortals; their otherworldly temperament simply could not be concealed.

Professor Li stared blankly at the six of them, then turned to look at Gandalf beside him, his voice slightly dry.

"Are these... all your friends?"

Gandalf nodded calmly.

"Professor Li, sorry to trouble you."