Purpalus rapidly retreated. Amplicia and Corane chased after him. The two Monster Girls cast their spells, shaking the forest below them with their might. Corane's crystalised wings waved, creating rains of sparkling jewels. They imploded into balls of colours, resembling countless spells of various types. Their explosions rumbled the sky and pushed the clouds outwards, brightening the world.

Unlike Corane, Amplicia's attack was subtle. Her silvery body glowed under the soft sunlight, heating up into a radiance. She flicked her hands at Purpalus. Her neat clothes detached themselves from her and swung outwards, stretching into a whip, which soared through the air, leaving a blazing trail about its path.

Purpalus pulled his purple cloak, the Archbishop Cloak, in front of him. It concealed his figure and shone in purple light. The runes on its fabric glowed in translucent light, protecting him from the impact of the whip and the spells.

While the Monster Girls were generally stronger than the Pure Races, the Pure Races were wealthier and more united, having the supports of the Divine. It took Undrila a long time to collect enough material to create one legendary artefact, but Purpalus got his from the Pope, who bestowed it upon him when he became an Archbishop.

"What happened to your arrogance, Redemption Archbishop?" Amplicia said. "Are you anxious? Sandoris has already gone to wreak havoc on the Crusade. Why didn’t you stop her?"

The silver whip struck the Archbishop Robe, producing screeching noises and a violent storm. Purpalus coughed, his hands shaking, his mouth chanting. A gigantic symbol manifested behind him, emitting a holy aura, which swept across the battlefield, brightening the atmosphere, suppressing the Corruption Power in the air.

Once Purpalus finished his chant, the symbol behind him collapsed into a ray of holy light. It shot towards Amplicia, who met it head-on with her firm palm.

Her silvery skin hardened while her eyes darkened. The Corruption Power around her surged into a whirlpool, its colour shifting to silver. It crashed against the holy light, grinding each other, annihilating all radiances. For a moment, the world turned dark, illuminated only by the particles of the aftermath.

The ray of golden light penetrated Amplicia's hand, reaching deeper into her arm, but not enough to split her shoulder apart. She heavily panted, but there was a smile on her face, the satisfaction of crushing the power of Faith, of the Divine.

Purpalus frowned. Though Amplicia was injured, Undrila was still beside her. Purpalus indeed wished to chase Sandoris, but his speed couldn't compare to the Condensation Phase Light Elemental, and he couldn't simply leave.

It was hard to kill a Condensation Phase Monster Girl or the equivalent, but it wasn't hard to stall one, not when there was a numerical advantage.

"That Light Elemental will fall under the might of the Divine. Two more Archbishops are coming. You all shall fall." Purpalus pulled back his Archbishop Robe and tapped on his ring. It quivered and discharged a series of blue runes.

After a moment of silence, the three tangled themselves above the clouds, creating explosions whose impact shattered the ground below. Most of their battle consisted of Amplicia and Undrila gradually exhausting Purpalus's energy and artefacts.

A similar scene also happened near them. The twin Plant Girls, Trilal and Lalit, were beating back Branim, though he was in much better shape than Purpalus. His Cold Arrival Stuff, coupled with his Archbishop Robe, gave him a higher defence and offence than Purpalus.

With a pair of ice wings on his back, he flew across the sky, manoeuvring away from the Monster Girls, fighting while dodging. Though his speed was superior to the Monster Girls, he couldn't retreat too far from them, for they would give up on him and go to kill Purpalus.

If Purpalus died, the Crusade would be over. The death of an Archbishop would be a devastating loss for the Churches.

"Archbishop of the Seven Goddesses, please die for us," Trilal said. The black roses on her body released a black mist, which instantly covered her surroundings. "Because of your faith, we have to lead a life of constant struggles, only gaining enough power when we reached Condensation Phase."

"Because of your doctrine, we were hated by our former friends. They thought of us as evil, broken, even though we feel better than ever, livelier than ever," Lalit said, her white roses quivering. "If not for you, all of us would have been together. Now, except for us two, the rest are forever resting under the ruin of our village."

"It is our duty to purge the tumour of this world," Branim said. "We might have failed back then, but we won't fail again."

He raised his Cold Arrival Staff, igniting blue flame at its tip. The flame flickered in reverse, not exuding heat but absorbing it. The air surrounding him stagnated, turning into snowflakes and hail.

Winter arrived and engulfed the forest below, painting white and cold tints atop the lush greenery.

The twin Rose Girls merged their power, creating a spiral of black and white rose petals. It clashed against the winter winds, erupting a tempest of heavy rains and lightning.

As the battle approached the climax, two groups of figures rushed from both sides of the horizon, rapidly approaching the battlefield. Two more Condensation Phase Monster Girls joined the war, as well as two more Archbishops. Everyone immediately separated before heading straight in, forming a gigantic royal rumble.

Like them, the weaker Monster Girls and the believers were fighting across the Sinking Dark Forest, spreading their forces thin, battling for their beliefs, for their survival. Some were victorious, while others lost their lives in the process.

The blood of the Pure Races mixed with the blood of the Corrupted Races, forming an all-consuming puddle, which outstretched across the forest, quietly sinking towards Mount Purple Cloud.

It stood motionless, silently drinking the pain and suffering of all beings.

One step closer.

...

It wasn't clear how much time had passed, for everything was hectic throughout the process. The process of saving every Monster Girl snowballed out of control as their number increased. Iris couldn't command nor compel those Monster Girls; she also had no desire to organise them and thus left everything to Kurion and Noviscar.

To other Monster Girls, Iris was merely one of the first Monster Girls who joined the operation. She was a distinct Slime Girl who knew many strange things. If not for Kurion and Noviscar's asking for her opinion, Iris would have remained relatively unknown to other Monster Girls.

She did become popular among the Monster Girls, but it was because of her Slime Girl appearance. They wanted to touch and feel her, inside and outside, for she was one of the rarer types of the Monster Girls.

The Monster Girls journeyed from one world to another, destroying everything in their paths. With Serinda's Seer Eye and the pooling of material from other Monster Girls, they had more than enough attempts to cast the destiny spell repeatedly, giving them boundless advantages that the Overseer couldn't keep up.

When they failed to save some Monster Girls, Iris would use her redeem chances to get them out from the imperial treasury, earning her multiple friends and connections.

Everyone appreciated that Iris gave up her chances to save others because, one day, they might end up one of those unfortunate Monster Girls.

A particularly wealthy Monster Girl handed Iris a Virtual Space Ring, and soon many Monster Girls flooded her with a large number of exotic materials. Though most of them weren't rare or sufficiently compatible with Iris, they were valuable ingredients for potions and equipment. These Monster Girls selected from their pouches things that weren't too common or too rare.

The wealth was enough for Iris to live comfortably with her sisters for a few years in the Main City Layer. She wouldn't even need to run errands or take commissions from the First Hall.

"Everyone would love it," Iris said as she walked through the divider curtain, looking at the same ancient treasury. "It should be enough to raise them all to the Transformation Phase. They'll have the strength to at least protect themselves."

The ancient treasury was duller than the first time Iris entered the place. The Puppeteer Legacy Ground had continuously broken down, gradually assimilating back into the material plane. Even the imperial treasury was getting affected by the passage of time and the hand of destruction. Cracks and rifts started to appear on the bookshelves and the tables, spreading further into the ground, faintly shaking the treasury now and then.

"In the end, it's all coming down." Iris looked at the ancient treasury, an urge swelling inside her soul. "Countless years, slumbering, waiting, all for this end? Is it worth it? I don't really know."

Miss Quasi, is this what you saw back then, the dusk of your civilisation? I hope you made the right choice.

Iris gripped the Puppeteer Token, staring at the symbols on it. After saving multiple Monster Girls, they came together and helped each other, making the fights against the Floor Guardians became one-sided massacres. Coupled with the falling of the Legacy Ground, the Monster Girls friends had practically ransacked the imperial treasury, picking and choosing whatever they desired.

If not for the restriction of the divider curtain, the Monster Girls would have emptied the ancient treasury too. Instead, Iris was the only one who could enter it, and she had to spend all her chances redeeming the captured Monster Girls. The Overseer didn't want Iris to gain any more legendary artefacts.

Iris didn't mind it. Saving the captured Monster Girls would benefit her grand plan of saving everyone and befriending the Monster Girls.

The more connections she had, the more secure her future would become.

"Now, who can I save?" Iris giggled.

She walked towards the deepest part of the ancient treasury, the altar where the Puppeteer Token used to reside. There were multiple crystal cylinders in front of her, each containing a weak, unconscious Monster Girl. They silently floated in the warm liquid, their naked bodies all for Iris to examine.

She quietly enjoyed the view as she checked their number, their silhouettes, and their faces. Most of them were expressionless, but some were smiling like they had a sweet dream. They were cute, so cute Iris wanted to hug them and do many things to them.

No, Iris, you must not think like that. Keep your emotions in control. Don't let the Mind Breaker side take over.

Shaking her head, Iris placed the Puppeteer Token onto the crystal cylinder, freeing the Monster Girls. She held them in her hands, caressing their soft, delicate skins before carrying them with her slime tentacles. If possible, Iris would hug them all, but she was too small for such a task. At least she could feel the sensation of her tentacles rubbing against their lovely bodies.

After redeeming all the Monster Girls, Iris paused, looking at the Puppeteer Token. She blinked, but the information inside her head didn't change.

She still had one last chance to redeem a reward.

Impossible. Iris rapidly looked around, but there was no Monster Girl left to redeem.

The ancient treasury was quiet, with countless artefacts and books resting, waiting for someone to take them.

Have I saved all the captured Monster Girls?