Listening to Ian's account, Pierce gradually pieced together the whole story.

  Originally, Yuna and her companions were ordered to garrison a resource point. Just yesterday, they had reached the end of their deployment period. After handing over control to the Wizards sent to relieve them, they began their journey back to Red Maple City.

  However, halfway back, they were ambushed by the Witch-Hunter Force.

  The enemy had a full two Rank 4 Priests among them, and their overall strength far exceeded Yuna's squad.

  The Rank 2 Wizard leading the team sacrificed himself to hold off all the Winter Frost Priests, buying the others a desperate chance to escape.

  But even so, they suffered catastrophic casualties, and Yuna was severely injured in the process.

  Upon hearing this, Pierce's face had already darkened into a gloomy scowl.

  "Doesn't the Witch-Hunter Force usually avoid the Wizard-Hunter Force? Why would they set up an ambush halfway?"

  Ian shook his head, his expression utterly devastated. "We don't know either. In the past, we were always the ones chasing them. I guess they wanted to exact their revenge."

  "From the organized way they launched the attack, it must have been planned for a long time. They had already figured out our movements and our exact strength."

  Pierce remained silent, offering no further comment.

  They sprinted all the way to a stone house. Guarding the door were over a dozen Legendary Knights with fierce, elite auras—likely the followers of certain Wizards.

  They clearly recognized Ian. Seeing Pierce arriving with him, they didn't stop them, opening the door to let the two inside.

  In the spacious living room stood over a dozen Wizards, some standing, some sitting. All of them carried a sharp, military aura. Pinned to their chests was the unique black-and-red badge of the Wizard-Hunter Force, its emblem depicting two clasped crimson gloves.

  Among them was a Rank 2 Wizard.

  Seeing Ian bring in an unfamiliar Wizard, the Rank 2 Wizard frowned and was about to question him. A female Wizard beside him quickly leaned into his ear and whispered a few words.

  The Rank 2 Wizard's gaze sharpened slightly. The look he directed at Pierce suddenly carried a mix of astonishment and scrutiny. Asking no further questions, he waved his hand, signaling for the two to enter.

  Led by Ian, Pierce crossed the living room and headed straight for the innermost chamber.

  Ian stopped at the door, hesitated for a moment, and handed the healing potion he was holding to Pierce. He whispered, "You go in. I'll wait outside."

  Pierce glanced at him, took the potion, and then gently pushed the door open and stepped inside.

  The room was incredibly quiet. The curtains were drawn, making the lighting somewhat dim.

  Yuna lay quietly on the bed, her hair scattered to the side. Her pale, exquisitely beautiful face looked almost translucent in the dim light.

  At this moment, she gave off a fragile vulnerability, as if she would shatter at the slightest touch. It was the first time Pierce had ever seen her like this.

  In the past, Yuna had always carried the demeanor of a calm, reliable older sister. Amidst her gentleness, she projected an aura of confident strength.

  Whenever he was around her, Pierce always felt a sense of genuine, heartfelt peace.

  But now...

  Seeming to sense someone by the bed, Yuna's eyelids fluttered, and she slowly opened her eyes. Seeing Pierce standing by the window, a flash of surprise crossed her pale face, quickly melting into a faint smile.

  "Pierce, why are you here?"

  The moment she saw him, the young woman's eyes seemed to brighten a fraction.

  Pierce smiled warmly. "I ran into Ian on the way. He told me you were injured, so I rushed over immediately."

  Pierce sat down by the window, gently supported Yuna so she could lean against the headboard, uncorked the vial, and brought the potion to her lips.

  "Drink the potion first. We can talk after."

  A look of tenderness surfaced in Yuna's eyes as she slowly drank the potion, guided by Pierce's hand.

  As the potion began to take effect, a bit of color returned to her face.

  "I'm actually fine. I just overdrew my mental energy. I'll be better after resting for a while," Yuna said softly.

  Pierce smiled faintly, his gaze momentarily flicking toward Yuna's right hand, which was hidden beneath the blanket.

  From the moment he stepped into this room, he had sensed the intense fluctuations of Divine Grace radiating from it.

  Yuna's injuries were absolutely not as simple as she claimed.

  For Wizards, physical injuries were trivial; there were countless ways to heal them.

  Overdrawing mental energy was slightly more troublesome, but it could always be recovered with some time and nourishment.

  What was truly severe was bloodline contamination, soul damage, or the erosion of alien energies.

  If Yuna's injuries were truly that simple, Ian wouldn't have used the word "severe" to describe them.

  But since Yuna didn't want to say it, Pierce wasn't going to expose her lie. He smiled and nodded. "Mm, but you need to rest properly from now on."

  Pierce then stayed and chatted with Yuna for a while, mostly recounting his experiences since arriving in Red Maple City.

  Even though she had heard some of it from others, hearing it directly from Pierce still surprised Yuna, causing her to cover her mouth and gasp softly from time to time.

  Injured as she was, she seemed to have lowered her guard, revealing a slightly more girlish side in front of Pierce.

  It wasn't until he noticed the fatigue creeping into Yuna's face that Pierce told her to get some good rest, opened the door, and stepped out of the room.

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  Closing the door behind him, Pierce turned to meet Ian's inquiring gaze and said quietly, "She drank the potion and went to sleep."

  Then, without waiting for Ian's response, he walked straight into the living room, swept his gaze over the crowd, and asked in a deep voice, "I want to know the truth about her injuries."

  When dealing with ordinary Wizards, the members of the Wizard-Hunter Force more or less carried a sense of aloof superiority.

  If any other Rank 1 Wizard had asked them a question in such a manner, even if they didn't lose their temper, they certainly wouldn't have given them a good look.

  However, Pierce was no ordinary Wizard.

  Not only was he the most outstanding genius Aurora City had seen in nearly a century, but he had also personally slain a Rank 4 Priest. Furthermore, he was Yuna's junior from the academy. By reason and logic, he had every right to know the specific situation.

  The female Wizard subconsciously looked toward the Rank 2 Wizard. Seeing him nod slightly, she stepped forward and said, "Yuna's injury was caused by a Quasi-Divine Artifact. That artifact left behind a high-intensity concentration of Divine Grace within her body. We've temporarily sealed it inside her right hand, and we are currently trying to find a way to purge it."

  A Quasi-Divine Artifact!

  Pierce's expression instantly grew much more solemn.

  In the Turin Plane, Holy Artifacts were magical items forged by high-ranking Priests of the church.

  Divine Artifacts, on the other hand, were forged personally by the gods and possessed unimaginable power.

  As for Quasi-Divine Artifacts, they fell somewhere in between. They were magical items forged by high-ranking Priests but had received a direct blessing from a god.

  While the power of a Quasi-Divine Artifact couldn't match a true Divine Artifact, it vastly eclipsed ordinary Holy Artifacts.

  Pierce had never seen a Quasi-Divine Artifact, but he had heard Jared, Anton, and others mention them.

  It was said that a single Quasi-Divine Artifact could grant a Rank 4 Priest the terrifying power to slay a Rank 2 Crystalline Phase Wizard.

  Furthermore, because Quasi-Divine Artifacts had been blessed by the gods, their Divine Grace possessed an erosive property that far exceeded ordinary Power of Faith.

  Even for Wizards, once eroded by the Divine Grace of a Quasi-Divine Artifact, it took massive amounts of time and energy to slowly purge it.

  Setting aside the agonizing pain of the process, it could ultimately leave behind permanent side effects.

  If the erosion lasted too long, it could even cause irreversible damage to a Wizard's Spirit Crystal.

  "What needs to be done to purge that Divine Grace?" Pierce asked, his brow furrowed.

  "There are two ways," the female Wizard said gravely. "The first is to ask a Rank 4 Wizard to step in and use their immense mental power to eradicate the Divine Grace inside Yuna. However, all the Rank 4 Wizards in Red Maple City have gone to the frontline battlefield. We can't find anyone to help at the moment. We are currently contacting House Yvaine, requesting them to send someone over."

  "And the second method?" Pierce's face was unreadable.

  "Consume Moonwater," the female Wizard replied. "It's a wondrous item with incredibly potent purifying effects. Once consumed, it can purge the vast majority of alien energies, including the Divine Grace within Yuna."

  "The Exchange has Moonwater in stock, but it is extremely expensive. It costs 9,000 Merit Points. We are currently trying to pool our points together."

  Saying this, the female Wizard looked slightly embarrassed.

  The expressions of the others in the room also grew somewhat unnatural.

  Although the Wizard-Hunter Force offered generous benefits and rewards, the high intensity of their battles meant that injuries and damaged Magic Tools were commonplace. Whether it was healing or repairing Magic Tools, the expenses were staggering.

  Not to mention they still needed to exchange for cultivation resources.

  They wished they could spend every single Merit Point on improving their strength, lest they die on the battlefield due to a lack of power, rendering all their accumulated Merit Points useless.

  Therefore, everyone present, including the Rank 2 Wizard, had very little in the way of savings.

  9,000 Merit Points was no small sum. Scrounging it up on short notice was genuinely difficult.

  "Don't worry," Ian said in a low voice. "I've already contacted the family. They are trying to find Moonwater as we speak. It should arrive by the day after tomorrow at the latest."

  "The day after tomorrow?" Pierce frowned. "As far as I know, the longer the Divine Grace of a Quasi-Divine Artifact remains in the body, the higher the likelihood of it leaving behind permanent side effects even after it's cured."

  Ian fell silent. He obviously knew this as well.

  But they simply couldn't get their hands on the rare Moonwater immediately.

  Whether it was finding the Moonwater or transporting it to the Planar Battlefield, the family needed time.

  After all, Red Maple City wasn't within House Yvaine's sphere of influence. If they were in Gale City or Silent Blue City, this would be much easier to resolve.

  If I had known, I should have convinced Yuna not to come to Red Maple City.

  Just as Ian was secretly filled with regret, he saw Pierce casually toss something to the female Wizard.

  She caught it reflexively, looked down, and instantly let out a gasp.

  "Mithril!"

  "This Mithril is enough to exchange for the Moonwater potion," Pierce said.

  The living room instantly fell dead silent.

  Everyone exchanged bewildered glances, unable to hide the shock in their eyes.

  They weren't surprised that Pierce could produce Mithril. After all, rumors said he had conquered a Mithril resource point; it was perfectly normal for him to have some.

  What shocked them was that, just to help Yuna recover a day or two earlier, Pierce had tossed out Mithril worth 9,000 Merit Points without even blinking. This was far too extravagant!

  In that moment, the way everyone looked at Pierce fundamentally changed.

  Ian stared blankly at Pierce for a long time, an incredibly complex emotion surfacing on his face.

  "I'll have to trouble you to make a trip to the Exchange," Pierce said, looking at the female Wizard.

  She jolted awake as if from a dream, subconsciously agreed, and then quickly hurried out of the stone house.

  Pierce then looked toward the Rank 2 Wizard and asked, "How may I address you, Lord?"

  "My name is Gideon."

  Perhaps because of Pierce's actions just now, the Wizard named Gideon had a much warmer expression.

  "Lord Gideon," Pierce didn't mince words and got straight to the point. "I want the intelligence on the Rank 4 Priest who injured Yuna."

  Gideon nodded and said, "I don't know the exact details either. I only know that he is a high-ranking member of the Witch-Hunter Force. According to those who survived the ambush, the other Winter Frost Priests referred to him as Lord Maynard."

  Pierce took out a magic map, unrolled it on the living room's coffee table, and asked, "Where exactly were they ambushed?"

  Gideon took a look and pointed at the map. "Right here."

  Pierce focused his eyes. The straight-line distance between that location and the Mithril resource point was over three hundred kilometers.

  Considering he had also encountered Combat Priests of the Witch-Hunter Force not long after leaving the Mithril resource point, their operational range was clearly vast.

  Looking at it this way, finding this Rank 4 Priest named Maynard wouldn't be easy.

  Gideon also faintly sensed Pierce's intentions at this moment, and his brow instantly furrowed. "You want to go after Maynard?"

  Pierce glanced at him and nodded calmly.

  Although life and death were left to fate on the battlefield, and one had to be mentally prepared to die the moment they stepped onto it—making it perfectly normal to be ambushed and severely injured by the enemy...

  Pierce wasn't a saint. His friend had nearly died and was now lying severely injured in bed. He certainly wasn't going to just let this go.

  "Don't be impulsive!" Gideon said with a grave expression. "Maynard wields a Quasi-Divine Artifact. Even a Rank 2 Crystalline Phase Wizard might not be his match. If you rush out recklessly, even if you find him, you won't necessarily be able to get your revenge."

  In truth, Gideon was putting it mildly.

  In his eyes, while Pierce was undeniably powerful—even possessing a record of slaying a Rank 4 Priest—Maynard was no ordinary Rank 4 Priest.

  A Rank 4 Priest wielding a Quasi-Divine Artifact... even Gideon himself would have to avoid taking him on directly.

  If Pierce really went to deal with Maynard alone, he would likely suffer a massive loss, or even lose his life.

  "Rest assured, the Witch-Hunter Force made us suffer a massive loss this time. We will make them pay the price sooner or later!" Gideon said with utmost seriousness.

  However, upon hearing this, Pierce merely shook his head, his expression impassive.

  "That is your business."

  With that, he put away the magic map, turned around, and left the stone house.

  Since he couldn't get any more useful intelligence from the Wizard-Hunter Force, he didn't plan on wasting any more time. He was going to leave the city right now.

  However, he hadn't walked far from the stone house when Ian caught up to him.

  "Wait!"

  Ian strode up beside Pierce, looking at him with a solemn expression.

  "I'm going with you!"

  Pierce frowned slightly. "I don't have the spare energy to look after you."

  "You won't need to. I have a trump card. I can escape on my own at a critical moment. I won't be a burden to you."

  Seeing Ian's resolute expression, Pierce's eyes flickered. Ultimately, he nodded in agreement.

  "Alright."

  Without delay, Pierce sent a message directly to Sophia and Payne, instructing them to handle a few things, and then headed straight for the city gates with Ian.

  Not long after the two arrived at the city gates, Sophia and Payne hurried over, leading the Giant Eagles.

  Without any unnecessary words, the four immediately mounted the Giant Eagles.

  Since Ian hadn't prepared a mount, he had to share one with Payne.

  The three Giant Eagles spread their wings and soared into the sky, flying out of Red Maple City and diving deep into the wilderness.