Rebirth of the Noble Mage Behind the Scenes

While chanting these spells, the Councilman used not a common language, but an extremely ancient and bizarre one.

The voice was light and mesmerizing, like feathers gently falling on soft snow, and seemed like whispering echoes from the deepest part of the Dream Realm.

And when listeners could not help but want to probe further into its content, it dissipated like snowflakes melting in the palm.

This strangely disturbing sensation didn't originate from the content of the spell he chanted, but seemed related to his tone, or perhaps, the organs used for producing sounds within his body.

As the Councilman began to chant the prayers, the shadow of Star next to him vanished instantly, fleeing far away from this place through a special secret technique.

As the prayer continued, an indescribable aura gradually permeated the night sky around the center of the Ritual Array.

The stars in the night sky suddenly became clearer and brighter, acquiring a slight, obscure yellow tint.

Strange music emanated from the dark depths of space, initially sounding incredibly beautiful, but if listened to for too long, it would cause listeners to unconsciously fall into eternal slumber.

In the Array, the numerous Ninth Ranks, from their previous intense struggles, gradually fell silent, their Will submerged in the endless depths of dark dreams.

Submerged likewise were not only the numerous unfortunate Ninth Ranks, but also the consciences of millions of Network Connectors within the network overseen by the Councilman.

In the network, countless people's will unknowingly plunged deeper into the Dream Realm. Everything in the originally illusory network world began to become bizarre and absurd, yet those immersed in the Dream Realm were completely unaware.

In the Net of Destiny, the lines of fate of half of the Network Connectors offered by the Councilman were tainted with an ominous dark yellow, starkly contrasting with the icy blue region controlled by Anvis.

And over time, more and more icy blue areas began to be stained by the dark yellow.

At this moment, the anomaly in the sky was finally noticed by the many Ninth Ranks below.

"Something's not right, what is that!"

Gazing at the strange occurrences in the night sky, a Ninth Rank spoke with some confusion and vigilance.

"...That is an alien object! He is calling upon alien beings not from this world!"

Upon hearing the somewhat hollow and eerie music from the deep night sky, [Thorn Crown] Mark shivered from head to toe.

Familiar with that ancient and cold aura, a look of disbelief flashed in Mark's eyes, which quickly turned into a mix of anger and fear.

"How dare he?!"

Being highly familiar with the aura of alien beings described in doctrines and knowing many more secrets as one of the Seven Bishops of the Church Court,

there are many ancient and powerful terrifying entities in this world. They existed long before human civilization, perhaps even before this world and will continue to exist.

The Master of Dreams, Ma'elim, is one of them, considered an alien Divine reigning over the Dream World, wielding authority over dreams. Its essence slumbers deep in the dark mist of the Deep Space Star Sea, perpetuating an eternal bizarre dream.

Very few Secret Sects worship such Alien Gods as idolic figures, and he once personally led a team to destroy an evil summoning ceremony conducted by a Secret Sect.

They did indeed obtain some bizarre power that could plunge Professionals into daze and deep slumber. But under his divine words, even their Great Priest could not withstand a single strike.

But today, Mark suddenly realized that compared to tonight's Councilman, all the Secret Sect summoning ceremonies he previously destroyed seemed so amateurish and laughable.

Digits of Ninth Ranks, millions of Federation beings!

This scale was enough to make his heart tremble.

As the phenomena in the sky continued, the many Ninth Ranks on the ground also began to realize that the situation was dire and were preparing to flee the battlefield.

But by the time they realized, it was already too late.

Soon, the consciousness of many Ninth Ranks also began to blur irresistibly, plunging into deep slumber. Only a few of the Ninth Rank Limit managed to escape using life-saving secret techniques while the effects of the phenomenon were still not too strong.

Except for Archbishop [Thorn Crown] Mark.

"Alien ancient beings bring chaotic darkness, that darkness devours the crowd."

"People cried out to god in despair, and thus god arrived with supreme radiance, banishing the darkness and the alien entities—"

After experiencing the initial fear, Mark's expression turned into determination.

Muttering the first Chapter and the first verse of the Holy Scripture, the bishop placed his right hand on the circular Light Holy Emblem on his chest, and with his left hand, he pulled out a Holy Crystal Stone and held it tightly, strenuously resisting the invasion of the soporific powers.

Meanwhile, as he recited, light emerged from the void and shone upon him, making his figure appear sacred and somewhat out of place compared to the surrounding anomalies.

"God says, when the light descends, darkness shall not linger in this world!"

At the moment he recited the Divine text, he fiercely crushed the Holy Crystal Stone in his hand. Simultaneously, a trace of sanctified white glow flowed from the hollow center of the circular Holy Emblem on his chest.

That was a divine favor, especially granted to those of the Seven Bishops' level; perhaps it could be better described as a divine visitation.

Under this flow of light, the bishop's body gradually became imbued, transforming into a figure composed purely of radiance.

From the shattered Holy Crystal Stone, enough Holy Power for a Limit-breaking attack wrapped fully around the bishop, briefly elevating his power to new heights.

After completing all this, the bishop resolutely charged towards the massive sun in the sky, aiming to disrupt it during the final moments of the ritual.

"Bound by pious yet illusory beliefs, what a pitiful existence."

Within the massive Defensive Magic Array, the overseeing Councilman looked indifferently at the luminous figure rushing towards him from below, unconcerned.

In the Councilman's gaze, the brilliance entered the range of the Defensive Magic Array, getting closer to him, but its power was continuously weakening.

Eventually, as the external network defensive forces were mostly depleted by him, the bishop's figure dimmed, helplessly reverting to his original flesh and blood body.

Reluctantly, after a final brief eye contact with the Councilman, his body fell, also succumbing to deep slumber.

However, his self-sacrificial attempt was not entirely in vain.

Due to the influence of Ma'elim's power, numerous Network Connectors who had fallen into deep slumber could no longer support the Defensive Magic Array with additional power.

The power consumed by the bishop from the Array had not replenished.

Yet, the Councilman did not mind.

Although the Defensive Magic Array's power was nearly exhausted, at this point, no one could threaten the operation of the ritual anymore.

"Hmm?"

But then, he suddenly noticed something amiss.

As the bishop's body ultimately fell, among the many Nine Ranks, another figure still maintaining consciousness in a black robe finally revealed itself.

Controlling his avatar to slowly float up, Anvis stood out distinctly among the stationary Nine Ranks.

When that bizarre melody from the night sky began to sound, at the distant location of Anvis's main body, the Ancient Secret Scripture hanging at his waist started hovering autonomously, its pages flipping open, emitting a strong ghostly glow from the text.

Whether it was the segment of the mechanical network controlled by Anvis, or his avatar located on a distant battlefield, all extensions of Anvis's main body's power were at this moment shrouded in a faint ink-green essence.

Using the spontaneously activated power of the Ancient Secret Scripture, Anvis's will bypassed the interference of Ma'elim's aura and did not succumb to slumber.

However, this time, faced with Ma'elim's Dream Power, the Ancient Secret Scripture showed signs of struggle for the first time.

The thick cover's ink-green ghostly glow flickered, desperately trying to suppress the dark yellow intrusion, but could only maintain a stalemate.

"...Is it you?"

Sensing the power of the Ancient Secret Scripture emanating from Anvis, the Councilman finally showed a sign of being moved.

"The world is truly small, isn't it, dear Far?"

Slowly removing his mask, Anvis bowed with a smile.