On the road, a vast horde of Echoes advanced like an overwhelming army.
Meanwhile, Lucian and the other two rode atop a Violet-Feathered Heron, leading the way at the front.
"So, the goddess we encountered at the Court of Savantae is the same person from your earliest memories?"
Truthfully, Rover had already recalled this when she saw the goddess at the Court of Savantae, but she hadn't voiced it at the time—after all, Aalto and Encore weren't yet people she fully trusted.
Lucian fell into brief contemplation. "That goddess must be real. After all, she looked directly at us back then, and after I kissed you, she seemed like she wanted to say something."
"Can you remember anything else?"
Rover focused, trying to recall more details. Her memories of the goddess were still hazy—she had been half-conscious at the time.
However, her memories after waking up in the Etheric Sea were much clearer.
"I remember… besides looking down from the Etheric Sea, there were also several golden specks of light that flew out of my body and vanished somewhere…"
Lucian frowned. "Golden specks of light?"
Suddenly, he recalled what the system had once said—that Rover was a "growth-type character."
Based on the clues they'd gathered so far, Rover was likely some kind of ancient powerhouse.
He remembered how Baizhi and Mortefi had been shocked when they saw him wield multiple Resonance abilities at Huaxu Academy—though Mortefi had seemed like he wanted to say more at the time. It probably wasn't an isolated case.
Was it possible that the previous individual discovered with multiple Resonance abilities was Rover before she lost her memories?
If this speculation held, then Rover wouldn't just need to recover her memories—she'd also need to regain her powers.
This would align with the title "growth-type character."
After all, the system had once referred to Rover as the "Vessel of Sound," capable of acquiring new Resonance attributes.
Currently, Rover's Resonance attribute was Spectro. Could the golden speches of light she mentioned be fragments of her original abilities?
With this in mind, he shared his thoughts—though, of course, omitting any mention of the system.
Yangyang nodded in agreement. "I think Lucian's theory is very plausible."
"It closely matches the descriptions in the Chronicles of the Ages."
Lucian reassured her, "Whether it's true or not, we'll find out when the time comes."
Rover nodded slightly, comforted. "Mm."
Meanwhile, at the Desorock Highland.
A soldier fighting against Tacet Discords shouted, "The north gate! More Tacet Discords are charging in!"
General Jiyan, clad in azure robes and wielding a long spear, commanded firmly, "The enemy is at their limit! Hold the line!"
A short while later, all the Tacet Discords had been defeated.
Wiping the blood from his spear, Jiyan muttered, "The Tacet Discords in the camp have all been cleared. I wonder how Jinzhou is faring…"
Before he could finish, his terminal chimed—it was Taoqi calling.
"How is Jinzhou holding up?"
Taoqi: "As per the Magistrate's orders, the barrier has been activated, and all civilians have been evacuated to safe zones."
"Both Huaxu Academy and the Engineers are on standby. Baizhi is overseeing monitoring at the Academy, while Mortefi has already arrived at the Engineers' base. You don't need to worry about Jinzhou."
"Oh, and that Rover… she's heading toward the military camp with… well, the Magistrate's intelligence officer, Lucian, and Yangyang from the Outriders."
Jiyan blinked. "Intelligence officer?"
But he didn't dwell on it. "Understood. On our end, the Tacet Discord surge is also dying down."
"I'll rendezvous with them as soon as possible."
After ending the call, Jiyan gazed at the horizon with concern. "The rain is getting heavier…"
"There are also signs of Threnodians reviving in the Tacet Fields. High-density frequency fluctuations persist… That's along their route."
"I need to clear a path for them quickly."
The revival of the Threnodians had caused immeasurable changes to the environment around Desorock Highland.
The further they traveled, the more dangerous the wilderness became—especially as they neared Norfall Barrens.
Yangyang: "The air is thick with fear and the scent of blood… Desorock Highland must have just endured a fierce battle."
"Up ahead is the Tacet Field that Taoqi mentioned earlier. We'll have to pass through it to reach General Jiyan's camp."
"Who knows what kind of anomalies await us under this Retroact Rain…"
Lucian waved a hand dismissively. "Pfft! What's there to fear? Look behind you—I've got an entire Echo army! You think some puny Threnodians scare me?"
Yangyang smiled faintly. "I suppose we've never fought a battle with such an advantage before."
Rover glanced at the red capes tied around every single Echo—even the Violet-Feathered Heron they rode had one, making them look incredibly imposing.
Lucian puffed out his chest proudly. "With these, we won't mistake friend for foe. Otherwise, we might end up fighting our own allies!"
Yangyang: "If only Jinzhou's soldiers had this ability…"
Lucian: "No worries. Worst case, I'll just lend them my Echoes. With so many Tacet Discords running around, I can always capture more!"
Just as Lucian finished speaking, Yangyang suddenly stiffened. "Up ahead… is that a Midnight Ranger soldier?"
As they drew closer, Yangyang immediately realized—it was a "phantom" conjured by the Retroact Rain.
"These soldiers… they're phantoms of the Retroact Rain! Be careful, Tacet Discords are surrounding us!" Google seaʀᴄh novel(ꜰ)ire.net
Lucian raised a hand dramatically. "Echoes, heed my command! Break through their encirclement!"
At his order, the Echo army surged forward, clashing with the Tacet Discords.
Thanks to his Language Mastery, Lucian could understand the bewildered cries of the enemy.
[Enemy Tacet Discord: The hell?! Whose side are you on?! Why are you working with humans?! And taking orders from them?!]
[Lucian's Echo: We pledge loyalty to our master! Brothers, slaughter these foolish Tacet Discords!]
[Lucian's Echo: KILL THEM!!]
[Enemy Tacet Discord: What the— THERE'S A TRAITOR AMONG US!]
Roughly a few minutes later, the encircling Tacet Discords had been completely wiped out by their Echoes. With the Great Sage's Cloak boosting their strength, the enemy stood no chance.
Yangyang explained, "The phantoms formed by the Retroact Rain contain high-density Remnant energy. The Tacet Discords were probably drawn here because of it."
"The rain zone is expanding, and the flow of energy is growing more chaotic… We must hurry."
She turned toward the edge of the Tacet Field. "Over there! There's an injured Midnight Ranger soldier!"
"The energy flow is stabilizing… no anomalies detected. That's not a phantom—let's check on them!"
When the three approached, they found the soldier on the brink of death.
The soldier weakly opened his eyes. "You're… Yangyang? Thank goodness…"
Yangyang's voice was tinged with sorrow. "…What happened here?"
The soldier gasped out, "It's… the Thundering Mephis … it's revived…"
Lucian: "Thundering Mephis?"
He checked his terminal—it was an Overlord-class Tacet Discord.
Then, still seated on the Violet-Feathered Heron, he pulled out a megaphone and arrogantly shouted toward the center of the Tacet Field:
"Thundering Mephis! You're surrounded! Surrender now, and I might spare your life!"
Not far away, Jiyan—who had rushed over as fast as he could—stared blankly at the scene.
"…This is the intelligence officer?"