Being deceived feels awful, and this was especially true for Twilight. The experiences of her predecessors, Units One, Two, and Three, showed that besides Li Hua being a bit dim-witted, they were always the ones doing the deceiving, never the other way around.
Twilight's intelligence was certainly not lacking. After all, she was a creation of the Aeon of Erudition. No matter how short her operational lifespan, her quality was guaranteed. Despite this, she now chose to be deceived... After all, she was just a baby less than a year old. With her poor physical condition hindering her ability to perceive others' strangeness, being tricked seemed quite normal, right?
Therefore, Twilight ultimately chose to jump right into Phantylia's plan, following her prompts and rushing about exhaustedly on the Xianzhou, stopping the rioting Borisin and various other disturbances.
Solving each incident was simple for Twilight, but these continuous events chipped away at her lifespan, bit by bit.
Finally, under the expectant gaze of Phantylia, who had remained constantly by her side, Twilight, after slapping the last Borisin attempting to harm an innocent passerby into a wall, finally stumbled for a brief moment.
In that instant, Phantylia almost couldn't resist revealing her true form!
She's dying... she's finally dying! All her long planning wasn't in vain; it seemed everything was worth it now...!
Phantylia stared at Twilight, her eyes practically glowing.
Look, this perfect body, almost flawless except for its lifespan... It would soon be hers! Phantylia could even say Twilight's body was equivalent to the Ambrosial Arbor—perhaps even higher in essence. Besides the Aeons, no one else in the universe could create such a being.
Phantylia wasn't human, but a formless energy being called a Heliobus. Therefore, possessing a body of her own could even be called her ultimate wish. Her previous target was the Ambrosial Arbor, wanting to use the miracle left by the Aeon of Abundance as material to craft the most perfect vessel in the galaxy.
But after seeing Twilight, she had a new idea—as the esteemed Lord Ravager, why set her sights so low?
The Ambrosial Arbor was indeed good, but sometimes, broadening one's horizons reveals a wider world.
What if she used Twilight's body as the base, the Ambrosial Arbor as the bones, Shuhu's flesh as the muscles, the Borisin Warleader's heart as the core, and utilized the Vidyadhara's Transmutation Arcanum combined with the power of immortality... What perfect result could be achieved then?
Just imagining it made Phantylia's heart pound—even though she didn't have one. With such a body, even Zephyro, the Lord Ravager skilled in direct combat, likely wouldn't last a single round against her.
And the most perfect part was, everything she needed happened to be right here on the Xianzhou Luofu...
The only annoying thing was that those Express crew members were still trying to find ways to save Twilight, even considering longevity. This wasn't good for Phantylia. If Twilight truly escaped the threat of death through such methods, where would she find such a perfect base vessel?
As for the supposed pain brought by the physical defects... Please, she was Lord Ravager Phantylia. Did they really think she was as weak as that Sunday from Penacony? She was forged in piles of corpses, blood, and fire; such trivial matters couldn't shake her will.
But Phantylia knew her own strength; she didn't think she could snatch Twilight's body by force. Not only that, but the Ambrosial Arbor, Shuhu's flesh, the Warleader's heart—none were easily obtainable for Phantylia. But she was a strategist; why resort to brute force?
Such matters could just be entrusted to the enthusiastic Express crew~ As long as she blocked their path to seeking longevity and then pointed them in a certain direction, Phantylia believed these people who valued their companions would eventually walk the path of evil.
She had originally intended for the Express crew to seek longevity from her and the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus, then tell them it wouldn't work on Twilight. Unexpectedly, they went straight through Jing Yuan's back door.
Unable to manipulate them through the longevity angle, Phantylia could only directly cut off their possibility of seeking it, hence the operation using the Ambrosial Arbor and the Stellaron to seal everyone in the Scalegorge Waterscape.
And currently, everything she planned was proceeding smoothly.
"Benefactor! Are you alright?" Phantylia feigned concern for Twilight's condition. "It seems the disturbances have subsided for now. Why don't you rest first?"
"Caelus and the others... cough cough... are they okay...?"
Twilight coughed twice, then slumped weakly against a nearby wall, brow furrowed, gasping painfully, her chest heaving.
Whether Phantylia planned to recycle this 'thing' later was another matter, but at least for the current Twilight, this body had indeed reached the point of exhaustion.
Twilight wasn't exaggerating; she probably only had a few days left now. Logically, this period should be the golden time for farming favorability, but the Express crew was entirely trapped in the Scalegorge Waterscape, leaving her without a single sheep to shear... But Twilight never cared. Sheep nearby had nearby shearing methods; sheep unseen had unseen shearing methods. This was called being well-rounded.
Besides, this time, Twilight wanted to try some new methods her predecessors hadn't played with.
Otto, Denji, Kevin—no matter how painful their final farewells were, they at least accompanied their loved ones in the end. Although Kevin missed a crucial short period, they had at least said proper goodbyes before that.
But what if there wasn't even time for a final farewell?
Perhaps the energy harvested this way would be more efficient... With Phantylia providing such an excellent opportunity, Twilight had no reason not to try. Besides, she definitely had to die once in the middle; she had even upgraded her Delayed Retreat trait for this. If this trick didn't work well, she could always switch back for the final death~
"Apologies, Mr. Caelus and Miss Himeko are still unreachable... How about, Benefactor, you return to the inn first and wait? I'll notify you if there's news?"
"I'll... go find..."
"Benefactor, your current physical condition is too poor. It's best to rest obediently in your room... Mr. Caelus and the others will be fine. On the contrary, if they saw you in this state, it would only worry them."
"Besides... Benefactor, you know you've been causing them trouble all along, right?"
Phantylia's manipulative words left Twilight looking somewhat dazed and blank, finally nodding dejectedly. "Mm, can't cause trouble... for everyone...!"
Heh, what's the use of strength? In the end, it's brains that matter. Even with power, isn't she still being played like a fiddle in my hand right now?
Looking at Twilight, who instantly wilted after ceasing to force her power, Phantylia sneered inwardly.
Everything was according to her plan. Now, she just needed to wait a few days for Twilight to die, then release the seal on the Scalegorge Waterscape.
Heh, the Express crew might even thank her then....