When the plot-skips players into the game world

There is no doubt that this was an unprecedented scene for the Serpent Celestial Marshal in the cycle of reincarnation.

Aleister had not been recorded on the system's panel, but now it was finally engraved there.

"Come out, Aleister."

Aiwass threw out the card in his hand without hesitation.

The Phantom Card, which now resembled a two-dimensional game card, disintegrated into a mist of blood. Translucent, blood-colored tentacles rolled out from it, then instantly retracted inward, revealing the petite figure of Aleister.

She was still wearing that thin, plain white dress, but her arms were now adorned with numerous thin, golden bracelets, necklaces, anklets, and leg chains. She looked like a moving wind chime, with the slightest movement triggering the sound of metal clashing.

And Aiwass could immediately recognize the essence of these items — they were a kind of seal.

Gold, a metal belonging to the Path of Balance, was now used here to restrain the Power of the Perfect.

Aleister's pupils were still bright red... However, compared to the dark red like blood or red wine before, they were now more transparent and closer to bright ruby and pink. Her long black hair had grown even longer, almost trailing on the ground... Or one could say, she had become shorter, but her hair had not shortened accordingly.

Once summoned by Aiwass, she arched her back like a cat and stretched lazily.

"It feels so good."

Aleister sighed leisurely, "Finally, no longer suppressed by the Hourglass..."

Even though she had increased from level 50 to level 51, still within the Sixth Power Level, with the limit of the Path of Love broken through, Aleister, like Vinesse, would no longer be restricted to only three minutes of activity like Ultraman.

Her languid voice, the fragrance emanating from her body, her every move, were enough to sway the will of others, making their joys and sorrows dance at her fingertips.

It was a feeling similar to that of the Swan King — in the face of that power, even Aiwass could feel that his body was not entirely under his control. It was not an invasion by Extraordinary Power, but manipulation from the underlying code. Because Aiwass felt no resistance or sense of invasion, nor could he resist. Just like a person cannot resist gravity, or rather...

"... Is this the [Law]?"

Aiwass murmured softly.

Compared to Vinesse's fallen law, Aleister's power was more straightforward — after all, Vinesse could not employ her law on her master. Aleister's power, however, was neutral... just like the Bloodthirst Technique is a boon, as is the Mechanical Mind.

The ability to manipulate "desire" is neither inherently good nor bad because desire itself knows no moral classification.

"What can you do now?"

Aiwass asked as he grabbed Aleister's waterfall-like black hair, "This hair is a bit too long... can you make it shorter?"

"Of course."

Aleister replied with a cheerful smile, then reached out to brush over the top of her head.

The hair began to shorten at a speed visible to the naked eye — but when it reached a certain limit, they suddenly twisted and transformed into terrifying snakes!

The snakes danced and lunged wildly, startling Arsene. Sherlock also shuddered — he was somewhat afraid of snakes. Aleister's playful mischief was clearly intended to scare Sherlock a bit.

But Aiwass, entangled by those snakes, remained completely unresponsive and unafraid because he knew that Aleister would never hurt him in any way.

"Medusa, huh? Can this also use the Petrification Gaze?"

"—Yes, it can do even that... Am I awesome or what?"

Aleister said as she retracted her serpentine hair, turning it into waist-length black hair.

"Indeed, very impressive. This is the power of the 'Holy Blood Baptism', right?"

Aiwass nodded in admiration, "To what extent can it do?"

"It can grant life... well, it's sufficient, I'm too lazy to measure precisely. Just trust my judgment."

Aleister replied with a smile, "Vinesse prepared for so long, and didn't even use it this time? You were planning to use Vinesse's curses, restraints, weakening, and suppression to counter the Blood Celestial Marshal, weren't you."

"...Indeed."

Aiwass glanced at the confused little Cain watching him and nodded slightly.

Cain's vitality was too tenacious, making it virtually impossible to kill her, with enough "Blood Packs" to last through a prolonged battle... A battle of endurance against the Path of Love, known for its vigorous life force, sounded absurd.

But from a game perspective, Aiwass was not particularly afraid of such tank-type bosses.

—Just a sitting target.

The Path of Love is a power from the Source River of Creation. Just as witches can create werewolves and concoct a myriad of miraculous magic potions, and witches attach animal powers to themselves, fairies can create various divine weapons... the Path of Love is not particularly adept at combat.

The true nature of the Blood Lord's ability is to create a generalized magic power called "Blood Qi," using it to mimic the abilities of other Paths. The Blood Celestial Marshal creates Sons of the Moon, who in turn create their own kin, or use the divine arts of the Blood Celestial Marshal to condense blood into various instruments... fundamentally, it's the same.

Compared to the Fallen Celestial Marshal's troublesome mechanic monsters that instantly kill or betray, the Blood Celestial Marshal is much easier to understand. It's the purest type of "pop and hit," "dodge and block" athletic-type boss, where you're basically running the entire time in battle.

And for this theoretically infinitely vital enemy, defeating it is relatively straightforward.

—That's by curse.

Simply put, it's a matter of layering.

The inherent immortality and bloodthirst of the Son of the Moon is a curse, bearing curse vulnerability. Like an open community gate, it's challenging to control ingress and egress — to maintain the curse, you cannot allow the curse to naturally fade away, right?

The Blood Celestial Marshal is similar... He is also bound by the curse named "love," and unless he's willing to renounce his reverence for the Eternal Self, he cannot be immune to curses.

Layering is all it takes. In the original game, combating the Blood Celestial Marshal was also a matter of exploiting NPC mechanics — the Blood Celestial Marshal would repeatedly regenerate and grow stronger, with increasing damage, becoming more monster-like, but increasingly cumbersome. This is a manifestation of being corroded by the curse... this stacking percentage-based curse becomes increasingly outrageous.

From being a noble youth, to a frenzied bloodthirsty warrior, to losing his human psyche and becoming a bizarre beast, and finally a gigantic, menacing Demon Dragon... and ultimately regaining his sanity momentarily, reverting to a human form to fight with all his might. This is why Aiwass knows that the intensity of the Blood Celestial Marshal theoretically has no upper limit, even as he continues to hunt Sons of the Moon, yet he is not particularly daunting.

——It's merely a meat shield without control, low damage, and susceptible to control, ideal for stacking layers. The battle feels very satisfying, eliminating the possibility of being knocked out without even stacking the layers.

Although game mechanics are strictly speaking not the same as reality, the intelligence is applicable. Moreover, the accuracy is very high. Only some details unknown even to the Serpent Celestial Marshal show slight variances... For instance, with the Banquet Master, there are slight differences....

Just as Aiwass, glancing at the oblivious little Cain, subtly nodded.

Cain's vitality was too formidable. If she had enough "Blood Packs," killing her life after life would be nearly impossible, it would be exhausting... Engaging in a war of attrition with the Path of Love, known for its most vigorous life force, sounds completely outrageous.

Simply put, it's all about stacking layers.

And from a game perspective, Aiwass is not at all afraid of such a type of stationary boss.

—Just a practice target.

The Path of Love uses the power of the Creation Source River. Just like witches can create wolves and concoct a myriad of miraculous magic potions, and demon witches attach animal powers to themselves, fairies are able to create various divine weapons... the Path of Love is not particularly adept at combat.

The essence of the Blood Lord's power lies in creating a generalized magic power "Blood Qi" to use it for various capabilities. Whether creating vampires or zombies, or utilizing the Blood Celestial Marshals' divine arts to condense blood into various instruments... fundamentally, it's the same.

Compared to the Fallen Celestial Marshal's troublesome mechanic monsters with a "whack-a-mole-like" combat style, the Blood Celestial Marshal is of the simple "pop and hit," "dodge and strike" type. Most instances involve continuous running during the fight.

For such infinitely resilient enemies, overpowering them depends on curses.

——It's all about stacking debuffs.

The innate longevity and bloodlust of the Son of the Moon make her prone to curse vulnerability. Like leaving the community gates open, controlling access is challenging. You can't allow the curse to naturally dissipate, right?

Similarly, the Blood Celestial Marshal is bound by the curse called "love" to the Eternal Self. If he's unwilling to forsake this devotion, he cannot resist the curse.

Stacking debuffs is all that it takes. In the original game, the strategy to deal with the Blood Celestial Marshal relied on the NPC's mechanic kill — the Blood Celestial Marshal would repeatedly regenerate, grow stronger, inflicting higher damage and becoming more monstrous, but also moving increasingly sluggishly. This is the telltale sign of a cursed creature... the stacked curse becomes progressively overwhelming.

From an honorable youth to a berserk, bloodsucking warrior, to a heartless peculiar beast, and finally a massive, fierce Demon Dragon... before ultimately regaining its reason and returning to human form for an all-out battle. That's the strategy for tackling the Blood Celestial Marshal.

That's also why Aiwass understands that the power level of the Blood Celestial Marshal is technically uncapped, and he continues to hunt the Sons of the Moon, yet it doesn't particularly intimidate him.

——just a motionless target after all.

The Path of Love, akin to the creative powers of the Source River, is much like how witches can create werewolves and concoct remarkable magic potions, demon dragons harness animistic strength within themselves, and fairies can create various divine artifacts... The Path of Love is not particularly combat-skilled.

The essence of the Blood Lord's ability creates an all-purpose magic power "Blood Qi," employing it for different functions. Whether it's vampires, ghouls, or zombies, it's all the same... The Blood lord collects the "Blood Pack" not to consume human food.

The only thing is, once this authority has been exerted, it is impossible to create a second lineage unless the entire ethnic group perishes.

Aleister mentioned thoughtfully: "I am planning to try this power on Shasha when I return. What do you think?"

"As you wish," Aiwass replied, not particularly concerned, "Just don't start a biohazard outbreak on me."

"That's the power left on the other side of the Celestial Marshal Shard, which the Blood Celestial Marshal did not accept."

Aleister shook her head, showing more interest in this particular power, "It's more akin to a revived power... I can mold a tangible 'entity' out of an intangible 'mind' once more.

"For example, by copying and preserving the mind of someone dying, I can recreate their entity. Since it's the personality that's copied, not the soul, it doesn't trigger the taboo of the hourglass. Or perhaps..."

As she said this, Aleister paused, meeting Aiwass's eyes.

Both of them thought of the same thing.

"""