Bai Shi looked at the puddle of a silver tear that was the Mimic's corpse on the ground and began to analyze the information it presented.
First and foremost was its most notable ability: mimicry.
This was the Mimic Tears' most powerful technique, one that could force a stalemate with any opponent.
However, it seemed to have some flaws.
For instance, it couldn't perfectly master abilities instantly, and it appeared to favor Night sorceries in combat.
Furthermore, against an enemy with exceptionally high attributes, it might require multiple Mimic Tears to fuse together to perfectly replicate those stats.
But that made sense.
If they could replicate things without any logic or reason, Bai Shi could just bring a host of Mimic Tears into the Erdtree later.
If the Mimic Tears could transform into a legion of Elden Beasts, wouldn't they be invincible?
Mimic Tears were merely a type of artificial lifeform; they still had to abide by the basic law of conservation of energy.They couldn't just create energy from nothing to fill in those stat values, so they naturally had to rely on fusing with their companions to increase their volume.
Moreover, the two tears that fought Bai Shi were completely devoid of intelligence.
How effective they were after mimicking someone depended entirely on their opponent's combat prowess.
It was unclear whether this was because these two Mimic Tears weren't perfect specimens, or if all Mimic Tears shared this weakness.
Regardless, the Mimic Tears had allowed Bai Shi to complete an achievement, granting him another use of Fengling Yueying.
During the Radahn Festival, Bai Shi had three uses of Fengling Yueying remaining.
He used one for a five-fold rune bonus when defeating Radahn.
He used another for "Super Damage" against Astel.
However, defeating Radahn completed an achievement and gave him one use back.
And defeating the Mimic Tear just now gave him another.
The two Astels didn't grant any uses, so it seemed he had to defeat the named "Naturalborn of the Void."
Mohg's apparition, however, didn't require defeating the specific one in the Subterranean Shunning-Grounds. The criteria for judgment was a mystery.
From now on, Bai Shi would have to try to fight strong enemies with the five-fold rune bonus active as much as possible.
It couldn't be helped. The higher his level, the more runes were required for the next.
And unlike the game, this world didn't grant more runes for later-game enemies. The number of runes a demigod dropped was more or less fixed.
For the powerful foes Bai Shi encountered now, he had to activate Fengling Yueying's five-fold rune bonus just to save up some runes.
Otherwise, he would have no chance of reaching higher levels.
That one time he used the five-fold bonus, he was originally just aiming for Radahn. Even alone, a demigod would drop a considerable amount of runes.
Fortunately, the two Astels arrived later, which was a pleasant surprise.
The returns suddenly became much greater. Radahn's 350,000 runes, multiplied by five, became 1,750,000 runes.
The two Astels combined were worth 230,000 runes, yielding him a practical gain of 1,150,000.
Godrick had previously dropped 150,000 runes, slightly more than a single Astel, but he was of the Golden Lineage, so his rune count was naturally inflated.
Including the runes he had saved up here and there, he had nearly three million runes.
However, while three million runes sounded like a lot, leveling up now cost him hundreds of thousands of runes at a time, so it wouldn't get him very far.
Bai Shi hadn't decided which stats to increase yet, so he saved them for now.
The Erdtree had also formed a Remembrance of the battle for him.
This time, Bai Shi didn't have the heart to crush it for runes and chose to keep it.
Radahn was an incredibly powerful opponent. The memory of such a battle was precious, far more valuable than a few hundred thousand runes.
Bai Shi could enter it whenever he wanted to test new moves and hone his skills.
And perhaps in the future, when he learned gravity magic, he could even steal a few tricks from it.
—
Bai Shi called over to Blaidd, who was lost in thought, and the two of them stepped out of the temple that housed the Mimic Tears.
Blaidd stood behind Bai Shi, silently observing his back, his eyes shimmering with admiration.
During the fight, he had been watching Bai Shi's every move intently.
He was fighting a copy with identical strength, yet Bai Shi had handled it with such ease.
Bai Shi effortlessly dealt with the Mimic Tear's attacks as if he knew exactly what move was coming next, leaving Blaidd in awe.
If the battle at the festival against Radahn was an earth-shattering, mythological war, then the fight just now was a delicate clash of supreme martial skill, where victory was decided by the slimmest of margins.
Blaidd knew that if he were to fight the Mimic Tear that had copied him earlier, he would never have won so easily.
Bai Shi's immense strength filled him with deep admiration and respect.
At this moment, an indescribable joy swelled in Blaidd's heart.
With a powerful ally like Bai Shi, he firmly believed that the realization of Ranni's dream was just a step away.
‘Ah, Ranni, your wish will surely come true now.’
—
The two of them walked from the left side of the temple onto a wide, long bridge.
The bridge was constructed in three tiers. The supporting pillars grew thinner from bottom to top, while their numbers increased.
The pillars at the very bottom were the thickest, rising from the Hallowhorn Grounds below.
The design of this aqueduct-like bridge strongly resembled the elevated aqueducts of ancient Rome in Bai Shi's memory.
In Rome, people built many aqueducts to transport water from outside the city to supply the great baths and for other uses.
He wondered if this bridge served a similar function.
After all, the map did show a Siofra River Aqueduct. It was very likely that it was once connected to this place, transporting water.
The bridge was overgrown with verdant plants, and small creatures like deer ran across it.
The decline of civilization had allowed this magnificent structure to return to nature.
Bai Shi looked back again to observe Nokron.
Nokron was submerged. Although it was on higher ground, the surrounding rock formations prevented the water from draining out.
Perhaps when Nokron was attacked, meteorites had shattered the surrounding rock walls, causing groundwater to seep out and flood the city.
Bai Shi studied the terrain below, thinking that perhaps in the future, he could break through the rock formations.
That would allow the accumulated water in Nokron to drain out, making it possible for archaeological research.
If not for the special influence of 'mystery', this place might even be suitable for habitation.
As they reached the middle of the bridge, the path to the left led to the Hallowhorn Grounds and the way to the Night's Sacred Ground.
Bai Shi didn't rush to the left. Instead, he stood at the edge of the bridge and looked to the right.
In the far, far distance, he could see a faint glimmer of light, and the silhouette of a towering mountain was vaguely visible beneath it.
That light came from a blurry temple atop the mountain.
Even from such a distance, it shone brightly in the pitch-black night sky, like some kind of beacon.
Unfortunately, this night sky was a false one, and the beacon was also a false beacon, one that would only lead people into an abyss of madness.
Bai Shi knew that place was Mohgwyn Dynasty, the hiding place of Mohg, the Lord of Blood.
There was no need to deal with him now. He would settle the score later.
Bai Shi and Blaidd avoided the reclusive Ancestral Followers in the Hallowhorn Grounds and quietly made their way to the edge of the cliff.
From here, they could see the massive, chair-like temple in the Night's Sacred Ground with its back facing them.
But the distance between the architecture of the Night's Sacred Ground and their position was probably a kilometer.
It was a dynastic sanctum, after all. If one could simply jump over from a nearby cliff, it would be a major design flaw.
Blaidd scanned the border where the Night's Sacred Ground met the rock face, but he couldn't find a way across and was very frustrated.
"The distance is too great. I've looked all around but can't find a way to cross."
"There was probably a road or an elevator here before, for getting across."
"But they were likely all destroyed during the disaster, so there's no path now."
Bai Shi stared at the distant Night's Sacred Ground and indeed could find no path leading there.
It seemed he had to use Fengling Yueying again.
He still had three uses left, so there was no reason to hesitate.
"It doesn't matter. I'll make my move."
Blaidd glanced at Bai Shi in surprise.
He then saw Bai Shi levitate into the air.
Propelled by a storm, Bai Shi instantly crossed the vast distance and flew to the side of the massive, chair-like temple.
Blaidd blinked.
"Hmm..."
"General Radahn could fly, so I guess it's not that strange for Lord Bai Shi to fly either..."
—
Bai Shi had activated the "Zero Encumbrance" function of Fengling Yueying, which, as expected, completely nullified his own weight, allowing him to float weightlessly in the air.
But another question occurred to him.
If he was carrying something heavy and activated zero encumbrance, wouldn't he be able to lift anything into the sky?
Lift the Earth with a handstand?
With any other ability, Bai Shi wouldn't have entertained such a thought, but this was Fengling Yueying...
Maybe one day he could literally throw the Erdtree into outer space.
Whatever, he would ponder such wild ideas later.
Bai Shi checked the remaining time on his zero encumbrance—29 minutes left, more than enough.
Bai Shi didn't follow the game's path; he flew directly under the giant skeleton in the Night's Sacred Ground.
This gave him a chance to get a direct sense of the giant's terrifying size.
It was completely incomparable to any existing species in the Lands Between.
He wondered just how big the Fire Giants in the Mountaintops were in this world, and which was larger, this skeleton or them.
The throne this skeleton sat on was where the Fingerslayer Blade was kept.
The moment Bai Shi landed, the silver tears gathered on the main path swarmed toward him.
Bai Shi casually summoned a storm and wiped out most of them.
However, there were some more troublesome ones among them that couldn't be eliminated so easily.
Two of the tears writhed and took on humanoid forms, attacking Bai Shi from the left and right.
These two transformed into the image of Nox people, their skin reflecting a silvery-white sheen.
They were both dressed in the characteristic attire of the Nox.
One of them wielded a two-handed greatsword, with a resolute, gaunt face and short, white wavy hair, reminding Bai Shi of a certain ruined king from another tale.
The other one was less distinctive in appearance.
He had a crew cut, carried a tower shield and a long spear, and constantly jabbed at Bai Shi with shield pokes.
Besides these two, there was another very large tear that had transformed into the shape of a troll.
Bai Shi took out the Sword of Night and Flame from his spatial disc.
These few Mimic Tears seemed different from the two he had encountered earlier.
They didn't take on his appearance, even though mimicking his stats would have made their coordinated attack much more effective.
It seemed they were locked into a certain form and couldn't change on their own.
Perhaps they were byproducts from the journey of seeking the perfect Mimic Tear and finding the Lord of Night.
However, the two individuals they copied were not weak; they would be considered quite skilled among heroes.
As for the troll, it was on par with a Carian Troll Knight.
Trolls were a species whose strength was often underestimated. After all, with their size and power, their true combat effectiveness was not weak, especially against large armies where they could be devastatingly effective.
After being trained, their strength was even greater; a Carian Troll Knight was already considered very powerful in the Lands Between.
Not wanting to get entangled with them, Bai Shi swept flames with his storm, clearing them out one by one in just a few moves.
After defeating all the enemies, Bai Shi extracted the cores from their bodies.
The number of Larval Tears increased by three.
Then, Bai Shi turned and entered the chair-like temple where the Nox treasure was kept.
He opened the heavy chest with ease, encountering no resistance.
Bai Shi took out the Fingerslayer Blade and a Great Ghost Glovewort that were stored inside.
Since ancient times, great gloveworts have been used to console the spirits of heroes—
A flower offered to the greatest of deaths, in the hope that the hero may become a myth.
He just didn't know for whom this glovewort prayed.
Was it for the hero who once wielded this blade? Or for the person who became this blade?
Picking up the Fingerslayer Blade, Bai Shi touched the blood-stained, sinister weapon.
The Fingerslayer Blade—a blade born from a corpse, the secret treasure of Nokron, Eternal City.
This was a true divine weapon, capable of harming the 'Greater Will' and its vassals, the Two Fingers.
It could be said that this was another Sacred Relic Sword.
Bai Shi took out the Starfall Shadow katana from his spatial disc.
Upon careful comparison, he could confirm that this Starfall Shadow katana and the Fingerslayer Blade indeed shared a deep connection.
It was highly likely they were created using the same technology.
Unfortunately, he didn't know where he could unlock its seal.
Bai Shi put away the Fingerslayer Blade and the Starfall Shadow, then looked around at the buildings in the Night's Sacred Ground.
The normal game path would lead through the building on the other side, which seemed to be a royal residence.
Bai Shi thought for a moment. Time was limited; he might as well look for the room that held the famous summon.
Bai Shi then started from the Site of Grace on the other side of the Night's Sacred Ground, went up the stairs, and explored in the opposite direction of the normal game flow.
Inside this building, a giant iron ball sat quietly in place.
It was in the shape of the Dark Moon worshipped by the Nox dynasty.
However, the steel patterns on the iron ball, identical to those on the silver tears, exposed its true identity—it was also formed from a tear.
And within this building, ornate pews lined both sides, clearly indicating a chapel-like structure.
One could imagine that the people who came here to worship in the past were all of noble status.
There were also two Nox Swordstresses in the chapel, who immediately attacked upon seeing Bai Shi.
It seemed the Nox Swordstresses here had all lost their minds and could not be communicated with.
Bai Shi had no choice but to eliminate them.
As for the black iron ball, after he destroyed it, it reverted to a puddle of silver liquid, revealing a Larval Tear.
Bai Shi floated directly up to the second floor and picked up the Black Whetblade from a corpse.
After searching around, Bai Shi arrived before a sealed door and inserted a Stonesword Key.
Easily defeating the Nox swordsman in this room, Bai Shi opened the enshrined chest with joyful anticipation.
Bai Shi opened the chest, but to his surprise, there was nothing inside.
His smile froze on his face as he silently closed the chest.
Was there a problem with the way he opened it?
Taking a deep breath, Bai Shi opened the chest again, but it was still empty.
Bai Shi carefully searched the inside of the chest and found a fist-sized hole.
He lifted the chest and saw that the hole went straight through it.
The Mimic Tear that had been stored here had escaped.
Bai Shi put the chest down and began to ponder.
In the game, the Mimic Tear was a Spirit Ash, completely lacking self-awareness, and it would be impossible for it to move out on its own.
But it wasn't entirely inexplicable.
If the Mimic Tear here was based on its cut content design, then its escape wouldn't be strange.
In the cut content, the Mimic Tear was a sentient being with self-awareness and the ability to think independently.
It even had a gender and a name, and it was afraid of death.
If he remembered correctly, her name was Ashmi.
If it was based on the cut content, then it made sense.
It wouldn't be strange for an intelligent and self-aware Ashmi to escape on her own. In the cut content, her first appearance was also in the surface world.
If it was truly the cut content storyline, although she had escaped, it wasn't necessarily a bad thing, as long as Bai Shi could find her.
Because compared to a Spirit Ash, Bai Shi would rather the tear had its own consciousness.
Undoubtedly, that would allow it to unleash even greater strength.
However, the prerequisite was that he had to find her.
If he couldn't, then it was all just empty talk.
Bai Shi tried to recall. In the cut content, didn't the tear first appear in some shack in Limgrave?
He would have to search a bit when he returned to Limgrave and see if he could find her.
Bai Shi shook his head. Since he hadn't found the tear, there didn't seem to be anything else here.
"Bai Shi, your flying ability, is there still time left?"
Melina's voice suddenly rang in his ear.
"There's enough, more than twenty minutes left. What's wrong?"
Melina thought for a moment and said:
"Why don't you go have a look behind the throne?"
"Do you remember back in the Town of Sorcery, Sellia?"
"The chair-like temple there was exactly the same as this one, and it had a hidden door behind it."
"Maybe there's something hidden here too."
Bai Shi considered it and realized it was indeed possible.
Besides, the remaining time for Fengling Yueying would be wasted on the way back anyway, so he might as well explore a bit more.
"You're right, let's go take a look."
Bai Shi left the chapel and floated towards the back of the giant throne.
Here was a thick wall, with nothing special about it at first glance.
Bai Shi knocked hard on the wall. If it were a hidden wall, it should have been broken by now.
Unfortunately, there was no reaction.
Bai Shi thought for a moment, then went to the front of the throne temple and knocked. Suddenly, the feedback from his hand felt a bit different.
Bai Shi increased the force of his knock, and this time, a brick came loose from the wall.
Behind the brick, a wall of a different color was revealed.
Bai Shi's eyes lit up, feeling he was onto something.
So, he took out the Ruins Greatsword and began to strike the area repeatedly.
Soon, an entire wall section was exposed by Bai Shi.
On this wall was an indentation, the shape of which felt very familiar to Bai Shi.
He then took out the mysterious sealed key he had confiscated from the Cuckoo Knights in his spatial disc.
After a quick comparison, sure enough, the shape was exactly the same.
And as soon as he took it out, the sealed key began to emit a faint black light.
Bai Shi pressed it against the indentation, and the key was instantly sucked in, fitting perfectly.
Bai Shi let go, and a large door slowly swung open.
"See, see! I told you, I knew there'd be something."
Melina's voice was a little excited.
In truth, she had only been guessing, but her guess turned out to be correct.
"Yes, thanks to you. Otherwise, I might have missed it."
Bai Shi also found it somewhat unbelievable that there was actually something here.
Melina smiled faintly.
"Hehe, hurry up and go take a look inside."
Bai Shi nodded and then walked through the doorway.
It was a downward staircase, exceedingly deep, leading to an unknown destination.
The surroundings were pitch black, forcing Bai Shi to take out the Sword of Night and Flame and illuminate the space above his head with starlight.
As Bai Shi descended deeper, the passage grew colder.
The stone steps under his feet gradually became coated with a silvery s