Advent of the Archmage

Chapter 630: Is It Real? Or Is It an Illusion? (1/2)

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Hundreds of dragons were circling in the air, whipping up a roaring wind that could be heard miles away.

Celine stood on the edge of Girvent Forest to the west of Ferde silently looking out from high ground at the dazzling magical city in the distance.

Knowing that Link had finally calmed down, she let out a sigh of relief.

After wiping away a tear from the corner of an eye, Celine turned around and began walking towards the forest behind her. Suddenly, a huge green silhouette emerged from the trees, its aura tumultuous and menacing. However, Celine did not move a muscle.

It slowed down as it drew closer. Finally, it materialized into a green-furred tiger before Celine. It then spoke, “Mistress, you finally came.”

It was Dorias. Ferde was no longer a place he could reside in, especially as the city became even more prosperous and its population grew every day. Ordinary folk feared him, so Dorias thought it best to live in Girvent Forest, away from civilization.

“Are you waiting for me?” said Celine curiously.

Dorias shook its head furiously. “Of course. The lord has ordered me to. He said that you may need a ride, though I must say this is the most degrading request I’ve ever received from him. I’m supposed to be a Warrior, not some mule to be ridden on… Then again, orders are orders. Can’t really say no to the man himself, can I?”

Celine decided to go along with Link’s arrangement. “I don’t need a ride right now. I do, however, require a guide. I need to find a quiet place to continue my magical training. You’ve lived here for a long time now. Surely you must know a couple of places like that?

Dorias pondered on this for a moment. “I do know a few secluded places in the area, but I’m not sure if they’re quiet. Should I take you there then?”

“Of course.”

“Then get on, and hold on tight.”

Celine climbed up onto the tiger’s back. In a single bound, it was able to cover 100 feet. Before long, both Celine and the tiger vanished into the forest.

…

Ferde, outside Scorched City, in an ordinary courtyard

While the dragons were circling in the sky, a well-built man was driving a battered-looking horse carriage towards the entrance of an ordinary courtyard. Once there, he undid the horse’s reins and led it into the courtyard.

Inside, a woman in a linen dress was busy working a loom, which rattled on endlessly.

“I have no idea what’s going on, but somebody needs to do something about these dragons that’s been flying in the sky these past few days,” the man muttered irritably, looking up at the sky.

“Didn’t the lord announce what’s going on? The dragons have crowned the lord as their king. They’re celebrating his coronation right now,” said the woman. Her eyes were still glued to her work. Though they were not exactly living in poverty, most of their furniture was old and shabby. She thought her work might be able to earn them enough money to afford repairs around the house.

“Oh, you sure know a lot, don’t you?” said the man with a huff. He led the horse into the stable, gave it a bit of hay in its feeding trough, and then poured a ladleful of water into its water trough. Fearing that it might swallow more than it could handle and end up sick, the man added a bit of straw wine into the water.

As he did all this, the man felt as if he had been doing the same thing for the last ten years… What was he thinking? He had always been a coachman. What else was he supposed to do for the rest of his life, anyway?

The man shook his head. For some reason, he sensed that something was wrong. He should be living like the soldiers out on the street, clad in their brilliant armor and armed with their elegant swords. No, he should have been someone important, maybe even an esteemed master like those Magicians in Ferde’s Mage Tower.

He looked down at his own hands. They were covered in dirt and grime. He then sniffed at his sleeve. It smelled of horse urine. Finally, he turned to his wife, who was still busy working her loom… Wait, when did he marry her? Why could he not remember a thing?

“Hamilton, what are you doing there? Still having one of your daydreams? Why don’t you come here and make yourself useful? I can’t carry all these spindles by myself, you know!” His wife was standing beside the loom. She was staring at him furiously, her hands clasped on her waist.

Hamilton jolted from his reverie and hurried over. “Coming, dear. I’ll handle this. Why don’t you go cook something? I’m starving.”

Hamilton felt a sharp stab of hunger in his stomach. The piece of bread he had this morning was not as filling as he thought it would be.

Suddenly, a dragon’s roar reverberated in the sky. Hamilton looked up at the sky.

A dragon was flying especially low in the sky. Hamilton could clearly see the dragon’s dark red scales which gleamed with a metallic light. The dragon seemed to be glowing as well. As it flew over, countless specks of light fell like raindrops to the ground.

One of these specks of light landed on Hamilton. In an instant, he felt a sudden warmth flow through his body. All the exhaustion he had accumulated after a whole day’s work vanished without a trace, along with the hunger he had worked up.

Noa came running out of the house. She looked up at the sky and happily said, “That’s the Dragon’s Blessing. How wonderful.”

“What’s a Dragon’s Blessing?” asked Hamilton, perplexed.

Noa hit his arm indignantly. “How ignorant can you really be? The royal messenger has been going around from door to door telling us all about it. There should also be announcements posted at every corner on the street. You could have at least stopped to take a look at some of the posters outside.”

Hamilton tried to recall what he had seen and heard as he made his rounds around the city, and realized that he had indeed heard something about the Dragon’s Blessing. However, as he had been a bit absent-minded of late, feeling that there was something wrong about his life, he did not pay it much mind.

“Alright, a blessing’s nice and all, but I still have dinner to make for tonight.” Noa pulled up her sleeves and returned to the kitchen.

Hamilton began piling up the spindles under his arms. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. A voice sounded behind it. “Is anyone home?”

Her wife shouted from the kitchen, “Hamilton, there’s a customer outside our door. I’m busy right now, so go answer the door!”

“Oh, okay.”

Hamilton walked towards the entrance and pulled open the shabby door, which whined noisily in its hinges. He was taken aback by what he saw there.

There were two men standing outside the courtyard. One of them was wearing a silver-black battle robe with a sword dangling from his waist. What immediately stood out about the other man was his blue skin. He was clad in a dark blue robe with golden edges, which was usually reserved for high-ranking Magicians in Ferde. What came as a greater shock to the senses were their eyes which glowed with a piercing light. He was now feeling a bit light-headed as his heart thumped incessantly against his chest.

“Who’s at our door?” shouted Noa again from the kitchen.

Hamilton swallowed. “No… no idea.”

“Useless old fool!” shouted Hamilton’s wife. Hurried footsteps sounded behind him. Upon reaching the courtyard’s entrance, she gasped in surprise when she saw who their guests were and immediately knelt down before them. “Peace be upon you, my lord.”

She then pulled at her husband, trying to get him to kneel down with her on the ground. At first, Hamilton seemed reluctant to do so. After much resisting, he finally gave in and knelt on the ground beside Noa.

Hamilton was just an ordinary commoner, and it was customary for commoners like him to kneel before someone as important as a lord. Still, it did not sit right with him.

Link observed the man and woman who was kneeling before him, somewhat surprised. He then turned to Piasce. “Good job.”

Soul magic was simply incredible. Two Level-14 masters had been subdued so easily without shedding a drop of blood. Fooled into believing that they were mere commoners, both of them even behaved like actual commoners before the lord of Ferde.

Both Link and Piasce entered the courtyard and closed the door behind them. Link then gave two quick taps on Hamilton and Noa with a hand and cast a spell on them, sealing both their powers in them.

Hamilton and Noa looked at him quizzically, not sure what he had done to them.

“My lord, have we done something wrong?” stammered Noa.

Link smiled. He looked around the courtyard and found a chair to sit on. He then said to the couple still kneeling before him, “Get up, both of you.”

The two obediently did as they were told, looking uneasily at each other.

When the two of them got up to their feet, Link said to Piasce, “That’s enough, Piasce. It’s time to ask them a few questions.”

Piasce nodded. He looked at Hamilton and Noa, muttered an incantation and then snapped his fingers.

In an instant, the couple shuddered, and their glazed eyes cleared up. Then, there was a look of surprise on both their faces.

Surprise quickly turned into anger. Hamilton did not take this too well in particular. He was a Level-14 Infernal Warrior and was also a high-ranking member of the Fire Sect. He had every right to be furious at Link for playing such a dirty trick on him!

He growled through gritted teeth, “Well played, Link, well played! I’m gonna kill you!”

Link quickly cast a Distortion spell. A vague ripple appeared in the air with a hum. With their powers sealed inside them, both Hamilton and Noa were forced back down on their knees, unable to resist Link’s spell.

“End me if you can! Do it now!” roared Hamilton. He was still struggling to break free from Link’s invisible restraints.

However, his efforts were all in vain.

Link raised a hand, lifting Noa’s face by her lower jaw. “I can feel the seeds of life sown in you. It’s Hamilton’s child, isn’t it? But aren’t all Infernal Warriors supposed to abstain from matters of the flesh? Or have the two of you chosen to forsake your god?”

Piasce was able to uncover this piece of information from the two Infernal Warriors’ consciousness before confronting them.

“What?!” Hamilton was stunned. Noa had actually conceived his child. But this was in direct violation with the tenets of his religion. What was he supposed to do now?

Chapter 631: No Choice

It was not only Hamilton. Noa was also dazed.

As a Level-14 Inferno Warrior, she was very familiar with her body. Even if Link didn’t say it, she could feel it too. Now that Link exposed her, she instinctively clutched her stomach and looked at Hamilton, the child’s father.

In the Fire Sect, all Inferno Warriors had to swear before entering the sect that their life would belong to god. Their entire lives would be dedicated to the god. If a man and woman conceived a child, their pure belief would be tainted. This was the greatest blasphemy!

If it happened and they were discovered, not only would their bodies suffer the divine punishment, their souls would also fall into hell and suffer the Tatanrose torture. Afterwards, the tortured would feel a burning thirst inside them. Cool water would be right beside their lips, but once they lowered their heads, the water would retreat, rising when they raised their heads again. This torture would continue until their souls were burned to ashes.

As an Inferno Warrior, Hamilton had been taken by a priest to visit hell. He’d seen the punishment with his own eyes. At that time, he’d felt terrified. He didn’t expect this day would come to him too.

Fear seized his heart as he looked to Noa. “No, this child…”

He wanted to say that this child shouldn’t exist. But halfway through, Noa stepped back. Tears flowed down as she shook her head furiously. The days of being a regular couple were right before her eyes. Thinking back, it had been a deception, but their experiences had all been real. The baby in her was real too. She couldn’t give it up.

Hamilton was just panicking too. After the panic subsided, he couldn’t do it either. Seeing Noa like that, he sighed and looked to Link. “Ferde lord, you are so cruel… What do you want us to do?”

Since things were at this point, there was no way back. He could only surrender.

Link wasn’t proud about his dirty trick. Thinking, he said calmly, “I already know why you’re here. Go back to the Isle of Dawn and bring some news to those High Elves.”

With that, Link handed a scroll to Hamilton, who accepted it and started reading.

“I wrote the information on there, as well as my goal. Afterwards, remain on the island and keep working for the High Elves. Record their actions for me. For these two things, you only have to follow the current for the former. But for the latter, you must work hard.”

The High Elves on the Isle of Dawn were too xenophobic. The island’s situation was not transparent. Link had to stop the fusion of realms while the World Tree was the most important of all. He might have to personally step onto the Isle of Dawn to deal with it one day.

In that case, news from the Isle of Dawn was extremely important.

Hamilton looked at the scroll and was silent for five full minutes. Then he asked, “What about Noa?”

“Her? She will stay in Ferde. Her power will continue to be sealed, but she will have a manor in Scorched Ridge with servants. She will give birth to your child and raise it. As long as you do well, your woman and child will be fine.”

This was a dirty trick, but desperate times called for desperate actions. Link had done even dirtier things before. He wasn’t innocent anymore.

Beside him, Piasce couldn’t really take it. However, he’d once been a Soul Tutor in another realm and had seen these political tactics before. He didn’t like it, but he still kept his expression calm.

Hamilton fell silent. Half a minute later, he said, “Aren’t you afraid of me abandoning her?”

One only had to harden their hearts a bit to abandon a wife.

“Yes,” Link said honestly. “So I have another protection. Piasce, show him.”

Piasce walked up. He put a hand-sized silver mirror before Hamilton’s eyes and asked, “Do you see who’s inside it?”

Hamilton nodded. He saw his own reflection. The mirror was very smooth, and the image was clear.

Piasce took the mirror away. He took out a needle and stabbed it into the mirror. “Ah!” Hamilton cried. He looked down and saw a hole appear on his leg. Blood poured out.

“What spell is this?” Hamilton was shocked.

“A Soul curse,” Piasce explained. “A person doesn’t only have one soul. It has many divisions. Some are the core while others are auxiliary. One of your unimportant souls was captured by this silver mirror. No matter how far you go, even if you go to another realm, I can prick this little guy’s heart in the mirror, and you’ll be dead too. Of course, the lord doesn’t wish to kill you so quickly. Instead, he wants you to experience 3000 tortures before dying. That means that I’ll carefully prick 3000 holes in you while being careful to not let you die halfway through…”

Hamilton was terrified. Before Piasce finished, he was already covered in cold sweat. He quickly said to Link, “Don’t worry. I will complete your mission. Please take care of my child and Noa.”

Link nodded. He flicked a finger at Hamilton and a ball of light buried into his body. Hamilton shuddered. His power was unsealed. Feeling the power surging inside him, he stood up slowly. He looked at Link not far from him and sensed the man’s power. His expression darkened.

This Ferde lord was only Level-13, and the Magician beside him was only Level-11. They were less than six feet away. If he burst forward, he could kill those two and snatch the terrible mirror.

He might even be able to save Noa and his child and live out the rest of their lives, hidden in a quiet place.

This thought kept growing in his mind. He could barely control it. His only worry was that he had no weapons and wasn’t confident.

But right then, Link had another trick. The floorboards of the old cabin suddenly cracked open. A cloth bag flew out. It was the magic equipment Hamilton had carefully hidden earlier.

Whoosh. Link tossed the bag before Hamilton. “Take your things too. A Warrior needs a sword.”

This was a lifesaver! Hamilton bent over to pick up the bag. A familiar sword hilt peeked out of the opening. It was his Blade of Fire sword.

His weapon was right before his eyes. If he reached out, he would get his sword. Then he could pull it out and strike at the Ferde lord.

This thought flashed past his eyes. Then he did it!

Ignoring the extreme pain in his legs, he grasped the sword hilt. Power surged into it. Boom! Flames wrapped around the sword, fire splashing in all directions and illuminating the small cabin.

He used all his power with this move. He felt that this move was his most perfect attack.

At that moment, his sword was like the moon; the blade was like a tide. The power of fire poured out wildly, enveloping his two enemies instantly. In 0.1 seconds, he could destroy these two lowly bastards.

He really wanted to do that.

The next moment, something changed.

The Ferde lord had been sitting casually on the chair. Hamilton saw him suddenly raise a hand. When the hand moved, it had been covered in human skin. In the blink of an eye, it darkened and was covered in silvery black scales.

Clang! A sword radiating with moonlight suddenly appeared in his hands. The sword stabbed forward with impossible speed, instantly hitting his Blade of Fire.

Cling! There was a clash of metal, neither light nor heavy. Then Hamilton felt strange power surge into his sword. He could feel that the power was condensed and sharp like a needle. His own power was like a bubble full of water. It popped as soon as the needle came.

Whoosh! The surging flames around the Blade of Fire let out a gurgle and then collapsed. The strange power didn’t stop. It sped along the sword into his arm. He felt his arm go numb; he couldn’t hold the sword anymore.

Clang! The Blade of Fire flew out of his hand, spinning, and crashed onto the ground a few feet away. The sword with moonlight continued forward, going straight to the point between Hamilton’s brows. He retreated. While doing so, he discovered that the Ferde lord was still in his seat.

He’s that powerful? He just sits there. How can he hit me if I keep retreating?

As soon as this thought appeared, he saw a ring of extremely detailed runes light up around the sword tip. The tip buried into it. Then this ring appeared before him. The next moment, Hamilton felt coldness between his brows.

The feeling was fleeting and disappeared, along with the intricate halo of runes. The Ferde lord was still in his seat. His sword had already returned to its sheath.

Hamilton gulped. Feeling liquid flow from his forehead, he reached up to touch it. It was one drop of blood—no more, no less. The horrible attack was like a dream.

How could such swordsmanship exist in the world? How could such magic exist in the world?

He suddenly thought of the Black Forest. Back then, he’d faced some Magicians from Firuman. He couldn’t hit them no matter what. They seemed to all be prepared for his actions. Even though they weren’t as powerful as him, they could toy him as if he was a child.

These are all the top figures of Firuman, and the Ferde lord is one of them. No, he’s the most terrifying one. Oh, what stupidity did I just commit?

Thinking now, Link had already predicted this and voluntarily gave him his weapon. It was like giving a child a toy. No matter how the child played, he was still a child.

“Why don’t you kill me?” Hamilton asked dejectedly.

Link wagged a finger, and the Blade of Fire flew back into Hamilton’s hands. “Everyone makes mistakes. I usually give them a chance to change. Go back to the Isle of Dawn, Hamilton. I always keep your word. I will take care of your child and woman.”

Hamilton had nothing to say. He nodded at the soulless Noa, picked up the clothes on the ground, put his sword away, and turned.

After Hamilton left, Link said to Noa, “Madam, let’s go.”

Noa’s soul was clearly weaker than Hamilton. She’d already surrendered. Hearing Link, she nodded. White light flashed around her, and the three disappeared.

Link didn’t rest after settling Noa. He talked to Gretel, assigned tasks to Eliard and the others, and then went to the roof of the Mage Tower alone.

Everything was ready. It was time to enter the Sea of Void and find that mysterious piece of gear.

Chapter 632: Entering the Sea of Void (1/2)

Argh!!! A blood-curdling shriek sounded.

It came from an odd-looking blue-white tower. The two demons standing at the tower’s entrance sniggered at each other. One of them even licked their lips.

“Master Eilot’s having his fun again. Sounds like his toy is enjoying themselves too.”

This had been going on for more than three months. Every day, the Dark Tutor, Eilot would bring in an Omirian to torture for ten hours.

The Omirian prisoners had entered the tower physically whole. They had no scars on them. Some were even plump and white. However, after those ten hours of torture, the Omirians were all reduced to piles of minced meat.

The tower was now filled with said piles of Omirian minced meat. The demons seemed to love it for some reason.

Argh!!! Another shriek echoed from behind the tower walls. Following the shriek was a feeble voice, which pleaded, “I’ll talk, I’ll talk, Eilot, just stop. I’ll tell you everything!”

The tower’s first floor was a circular hall where the screams had been coming from. An Omirian with dark blue skin gave a brisk wave of his hand, and the demon executioners who had been abusing their victims in front of him immediately left the hall.

The Omirian was Eilot. Three months ago, he was a Soul Tutor respected by all Omirians. Now, he was Nozama’s Dark Tutor.

He was now sitting on a black throne. In a corner of the circular hall was a torture rack where a young female Omirian was left to bleed. Blood flowed profusely from her wounds before hitting the floor. The dripping sound it made was enough to make anyone’s hair stand on end.

There was a cage on the other side of the room. Ten Omirians in commoner attire were imprisoned in it. There was a young man kneeling in it, staring at the young Omirian girl on the rack. He pleaded, his eyes bloodshot with tears, “Let her go, Eilot, and I’ll tell you anything you want to know!”

Eilot’s face remained expressionless. “You’re in no position to negotiate.”

Saying this, he gripped at the void. A dark blue whip appeared in his hand in an instant. With a violent motion, he whipped at the girl who was hanging from the rack ten feet away from Eilot. Upon being struck, the barely conscious girl let out another blood-curdling shriek.

Whoop! The whip returned to Eilot. Fine steel teeth lined the whip’s length. With every stroke, its teeth would fasten themselves to its victim’s skin. It would then pull out chunks of flesh and skin from him or her every time it returned to its handler’s hand.

The girl on the rack screamed again, but this time, her voice was frail and lifeless. The prisoners in the cage shuddered. Tears streamed down the young man’s face even more as he looked on helplessly at the horrific scene.

Seeing how severe her wounds were and how much blood she had lost, the young man knew that she was beyond saving.

“No! No! Eilot, no!” shouted the young man in the cage, his eyes widened with growing hatred.

Eilot looked at him and then said, “Delin, I’m about to kill your sister. The next one to be hung on the rack will be your father. I’ll save your mother for last. Piasce was your tutor, but he is now a wanted man. Now he’s escaped, and still, you would give your life up to protect him?”

Delin had undergone rigorous training in Soul Magic. Forcibly extracting any information from his soul would have decimated his mind, and Eilot would not be able to gain anything from him. He would not have gone through this much trouble if there had been an easier way to make Delin speak.

Delin was now kneeling on the ground, emotionally exhausted. He said in a low voice, “I’ll tell you everything. I only ask that you give us a painless death. Please don’t torture us any more.”

“I can live with that,” said Eilot, nodding. He had always found the routine of torture tedious anyway.

An hour later, ten Omirian corpses were lifted out of the blue-white tower and thrown out onto the pathway leading to the tower’s entrance. A couple of demons rushed over and tore into the corpses, ripping their flesh clean off their bones.

In the tower, Eilot remained seated on his throne without moving a muscle. His eyes were closed. However, he was not asleep. Rather, he had slipped into a meditative state commonly practiced by the Omirians.

Physically, he was still within the realm. However, his soul had entered the Sea of Void.

The Sea of Void was filled with eddies of energy. A naked soul entering the Sea of Void was a risky affair. One would need to possess extraordinary skill in order to traverse the Sea of Void safely. There were only three… no, two people in the Omir realm capable of such a feat.

Eilot’s path was thick with white Mana mist, energy vortexes, and negative energy pitfalls. Wily Void creatures lurked in the shadows as well, but Eilot managed to avoid them all. Half an hour later, a red globe appeared before him.

From afar, the object looked like a tiny bubble in the depths of an ocean. However, as he got closer, the red globe grew bigger. After swimming towards it for half an hour, the tiny bubble had expanded into a huge globe, occupying Eilot’s line of sight completely.

Eilot made his way expertly through the bubble for half an hour. Soon, a whirlpool appeared up ahead. Without hesitation, he plunged into the eye of the vortex.

Beyond the eye of the vortex was a long tunnel. Dim, red light emanated from its walls, swimming around Eilot as he pressed on. The light wove all kinds of imagery across the walls. At times, it was a laughing skull; at others, it was a roaring beast. There was even one which depicted a giant pulling apart a dwarf limb by limb. All of it seemed surreal to Eilot.

Twenty minutes passed, and Eilot finally reached the end of the tunnel. There was a ball of dark red light up ahead. Eilot began to accelerate and soon burst through the light.

The scene before him shifted. In the next few seconds, the surreal imagery vanished, giving way to an empty hall.

The hall was built on a seemingly endless plain. There were no walls in it. Only four circular pillars were holding it together. Bits of sand were swept up by a bitter wind. The sky was a shade of red, and a lone sun hung from it, casting a weak, red glow over the plain. One could see silhouettes of towering demons lumbering aimlessly in the horizon. The bitter wind also carried with it inhuman screams across the wasteland.

In this dark, empty word, a soft, mellow voice spoke out, “Eilot, I take it that you’ve come here to bring me some good news?”

Eilot’s eyes searched for the source of the voice. They were drawn to a pile of bones shaped like a throne at the end of the empty hall. The bones were pitch-black, and they were mostly skulls. Each of their sockets was glowing with an eerie red light.

Sitting atop the throne was a middle-aged man. His hair was greying, and there were white strands of hair hanging over his forehead. Even from an Omirian standpoint, the man’s appearance was flawless. His eyes were black like the night. However, they gleamed with a raging bloodlust that would have given anyone the impression that they were looking at the streams of boiling lava in the Abyss.

The man was wearing an elegant robe with golden embroidery. He was looking at Eilot, his hand propping up one side of his face, a faint smile playing around his lips.

It was the Lord of the Deep, Nozama!

He looked completely out of place here in the middle of the barren wasteland. On the surface, he looked like a human master who had been cast out into the depths of the Abyss but had yet to reach rock bottom.

At first sight, no one would have taken him for the notorious Lord of the Deep.

However, Eilot knew who he was dealing with. He immediately bowed deeply before the middle-aged man and then said, “Master, I’ve interrogated all of Piasce’s disciples. Through the bits of information I had gathered from them, I was able to determine the location of that presence you seek. These are their statements. Please take a look.”

He then handed over a black orb of light to Nozama.

Nozama took it. After feeling it for a few minutes, his perfect face broke into a smile. “Well done, Eilot.”

He then opened his hand, from which emerged a thick haze of light. The haze solidified into strands of darkness and then flew out of the hall and towards the far corners of the wasteland.

A few minutes later, dust rose up in the horizon. Demons of all shapes and sizes were converging towards the hall from every direction at top speed.

The demons’ number grew by the minute. Half an hour later, approximately 3000 demons had reached the hall. Eilot could clearly feel just how powerful these demons were. Every one of them had at least Legendary-level power, the strongest among them being Level-15.

Seeing 3000 Legendary demon masters in one place would have made anyone feel despair. Eilot could even feel his spirit form quaking at the sight of them.

After making sure that everyone had answered his call, Nozama spoke with that soft, mellow voice of his.

“Eilot, return to Omir and have Mysin prepare a Void Ferry. My army of demons will seek out this presence.”

“Yes, Master,” Eilot humbly replied. Mysin was one of the three Soul Magic masters in Omir. His skill in making Void Ferries was second only to Piasce.

Nozama’s mind was set on obtaining his prize. His demons moved quickly. Soon, all 3000 demons were all aboard a vast disc-shaped Void Ferry.

Mana surged through the Void Ferry’s circuits, and the entire vessel roared into life.

“Let’s go!” ordered Nozama.

The Void Ferry plunged into the Sea of Void like a huge whale diving back into the depths of the ocean.

At that moment in the Firuman realm, Link had taken on his black dragon form. His dragon’s body was vast, its wingspan close to a hundred feet. Silver-black dragon scales glittered under the sun across the length of his body.

He almost blocked out the sun in the sky when he spread out his wings.

All the Red Dragons in Ferde were looking at their Black Dragon King in awe. In dragon society, size equaled power. It had been 30,000 years since a dragon as powerful as Link had appeared in their midst.

After making the necessary adjustments to his dragon body, he was able to propel himself 5000 feet into the sky with one powerful stroke of his wings. His body began to fade in the air until he finally vanished from sight.

He had also entered the Sea of Void.

Chapter 633: He’s Looking for Death

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

North, Black Forest

Crunch, crunch, crunch. It was the sound of walking in the snow. A Dark Elf was rushing over the snow in the forest.

He ran northward. The further he ran, the sparser the trees and thicker the snow. When he passed a hill, a boundless icy plain appeared. In the distance, there was a fortress made of bones. It was the Skeletal Fort of the Army of Destruction.

The Dark Elf kept sprinting and quickly arrived at the door.

“Report your identity!” Two Nagas crossed their weapons and blocked the Dark Elf.

“I am Pheron, commander of the Death Hand. I have important information for Her Highness!” The Dark Elf showed his emblem and was allowed to pass.

Pheron kept running and soon arrived at the main hall. Here, he slowed down and fixed his clothes. Taking a deep breath, he entered the hall.

There weren’t many people here. A finely made skeletal throne was at the head of the room. Dressed in a gauze dress, Princess Ellie sat in the throne and listened to the generals’ reports.

Pheron glanced at the princess’ flawless features and his heart sped up. He quickly lowered his head, not daring to look further. In reality, he didn’t have to come personally. However, he would always come to report important news to see the princess. It was the same for this time.

Dark Elf Princess Ellie Danas was extremely talented and had a strong aura. She was also beautiful and flawless. Many Dark Elves called her the “starlight rose under a moonlit sky.” So many youths were in love with her. Many High Elves were infatuated too and even betrayed the Isle of Dawn to join the Army of Destruction to be around her.

Her voice was mellow and smooth but also had a bit of roughness to it. It was very unique. Pheron felt that his fatigue would disappear by just listening to this heavenly voice. If he could kiss… No, this was blasphemy.

The princess would definitely become queen in the future. Her husband would be a noble. She would have nothing to do with a commoner like him. He couldn’t think too much.

Just as he was thinking nonsense, a voice came from the throne.

“Pheron, I heard that you have important news from the South?”

The voice shocked Pheron out of his thoughts. He immediately went up and lowered onto one knee. He took out a sheepskin scroll.

“Your Highness, this is news from a spy in the South. It’s about Ferde.”

“Oh, Ferde?” Eugene (Princess Ellie) was instantly interested. She reached out, and the scroll flew to her hands. After scanning it, her face darkened.

The scroll said that the Ferde lord had completely mended the Realm Crack in the Korora Mountain Range. This gave him much prestige. He married the Red Dragon Queen, and soon after, the queen stepped down. Link became king of the dragons, and the dragons joined Ferde. A huge and terrifying black dragon appeared in Ferde, but its identity was still unknown.

Eugene obviously knew who the black dragon was!

In such a short time, his strength and authority increased so much. How can we fight if this keeps going on? Eugene couldn’t help but worry.

Before becoming commander of the Army of Destruction, Eugene had been confident. She’d thought that Link and Ferde weren’t anything special. But after being in the position and getting familiar with politics, she felt helpless.

Admittedly, the Army of Destruction was powerful. However, its power was already at the peak. They couldn’t improve in the near future, especially after the Realm Crack was fixed. The realm would become smooth and flawless. It would be difficult for the Nagas and demons to enter the realm. Under these circumstances, it was already a feat to maintain the army’s current scale. It was near impossible to expand.

On the other hand, the humans had a large population of more than 200 million. If the dragons were added, there were millions more dragons and strong fighters. More terrifying was that the human Warriors were quickly strengthening. Ferde’s Sunlight Army was already able to fend off the demons.

The longer it drags on for, the worse it’ll become. Soon, even the Black Forest might not be able to stop the humans. What should I do? Eugene furrowed her brows.

Now, she was regretting the actions earlier. If she knew this would happen, she wouldn’t have ended their relationship with the High Elves.

Unfortunately, regret was useless. Eugene kept thinking but couldn’t think of a good way to restrain the humans. Just as she was frustrated, Molina walked over. Judging from her expression, she had something to say.

Eugene understood and said, “Pheron, I see. You’ve worked hard. Go rest now.”

“Yes, Your Highness.” Pheron looked up at the princess again. He didn’t want to leave.

“You all go now,” Eugene said. “I’m tired and need to rest.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Everyone in the room left, leaving Eugene and Molina.

“Saint, what’s wrong?” Eugene looked at Molina.

Molina nodded. “There’s something important about the Ferde lord.”

Eugene shrugged, feeling upset. “What now? Don’t tell me he’s going to marry some High Elf princess and the Isle of Dawn will join Ferde.”

“What? Marry? The Isle of Dawn?” Molina didn’t know about the South yet.

Eugene passed the scroll to her. “Look for yourself.”

After scanning the content, Molina’s brows furrowed too. Things were getting more and more difficult, but she quickly composed herself. Pointing at the scroll, she said, “The black dragon king is Link.”

“I know that. I’ve seen him in the Dragon Valley.” Eugene threw her hands up.

“But I also know that he isn’t in Ferde now. More accurately, he’s not in Firuman!” Molina continued.

“What?” Eugene straightened. This news was too timely. “How do you know? Did your god tell you?”

“Yes.” Molina nodded. “My master felt a slight ripple in the realm barrier and came to this conclusion after adding his observations. He is chasing the Ferde lord in the Sea of Void. He will definitely die this time!”

“Great!” Eugene exclaimed. “Link won’t stay in the realm and dared to go into the Sea of Void. He’s really looking for death!”

“My master also said that the Ferde lord isn’t a worry anymore. He sent an oracle. He wants us to use this chance to break into the Orida Fortress and continue southward!”

“No problem!” Eugene cackled. The only one she feared in Firuman was Link. She could still remember that sword. In his entire life, only one person’s attack could make her defenseless.

After that, she knew that she wasn’t Link’s match in a face-to-face fight. But now, Link went on a suicidal mission. Heh, what more was there to worry about?

Seeing Eugene’s expression, Molina felt unease. She couldn’t help but remind her, “The army at the Orida Fortress isn’t easy to deal with. Norton Kingdom’s army, Ferde’s Sunlight Army, Beastmen, and now the dragons…There are countless strong fighters. Don’t underestimate them.”

“Hmph, I don’t need you to remind me,” Eugene huffed.

She’d traveled throughout Firuman for centuries and only met two true opponents—Light Magician Halino and Link. As for the juniors at Orida, no one could fend off his dark magic.

Eugene was decisive. Since there was a chance, she wouldn’t waste even a second. She immediately called the troops.

Three days later, a huge army of 150,000 Dark Elves, demons, and Nagas started advancing southward.

The army made a big commotion. The news was instantly discovered by scouts stationed in the Black Forest. The huge amount of information moved south like snow. The war machine that was the Orida Fortress started turning at full speed, preparing for the final fight.

At this time, Link was deep inside the Sea of Void. He had a clear target, so he went straight going astray at all.

As he got closer, the gut feeling grew stronger. He believed that he would find the way to change the dark era using that gear!

Chapter 634: A Brush with Death

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Link let out a breath and then turned around. Behind him was a huge, black disc with a diameter of more than 10,000 miles, bigger than the entire Firuman realm itself.

It was a large-scale energy vortex, and it was spewing out powerful energy flares from within. He estimated that the vortex’s energy was more than Level-20. Otherwise, his sense of danger would not be making every hair on his body stand on end.

Though he had reached Level-13 with his dragon body and managed to strengthen his scales with the Crystal Essence the game system had rewarded him with a while back, he would still be slowly ground away into dust by the minute if he allowed himself to be sucked in by a vortex of this magnitude.

He had left the Firuman realm far behind. Behind him, Firuman was now no more than an insignificant dot of light. Though the white mist of Mana surrounding it had thinned considerably, it still managed to obscure most of Firuman.

He looked left and right in front of him. He was surrounded by an empty white fog.

Without any reference point anywhere around him, no matter how fast he flew, Link did not feel as if he was making any progress through the Void.

By Firuman’s standards, I should be flying at around 10,000 miles per second right now. I’m still able to go even faster, so at most I’ll be able to hit 12,000 miles per second. But nothing’s changed around me. Flying in the Sea of Void is almost like traveling through the endless void of space back on earth.

Suddenly, his body shook for a moment. Then, he felt himself being pulled to the left by a powerful force.

At the same time, he could also feel a coldness creeping into his body, sharp like a blade. It felt like an unseen claw trying to pull his very soul out of his dragon body.

Not good, it’s a negative energy pitfall! thought Link, panicking.

Negative energy was high-level dark energy that could only be found in the Sea of Void. When large amounts of negative energy came together, they would form a singularity, sucking in everything around it, including energy, matter, and even one’s soul. Everything would then be compressed into a single compact point.

The frightening thing about a negative energy pitfall was that it would ambush you when you least expected it to.

The pitfall was incredibly dark. It would not give off any kind of aura, making it almost impossible to detect its presence. Anyone or anything caught by it was as good as dead. Even one’s soul would be decimated by the singularity.

In the Sea of Void, a dragon’s body continually absorbs residual Void energy around itself as fuel. Link swept his wings back, and cold white light began rushing out from them like a pair of afterburners, propelling Link into the dark, empty void in front of him.

Link immediately received an enormous thrust forward. His body was locked in place as he struggled to break free from the pitfall’s clutches. Still, his body inched inexorably towards the left.

The pitfall’s pull was just too powerful. No matter how desperately Link struggled against it, he still could not break free from it.

Not good. The pitfall’s just too powerful. I won’t be able to resist it much longer. I’ll need to use something else!

Link was still an amateur when it came to navigating the Void. However, before entering the Sea of Void, Link had read through the notebook that Piasce had maintained during his trips in the Void. Incidentally, Piasce had written in it a way to deal with negative energy pitfalls.

Negative energy pitfalls come in all shapes and sizes, but structurally, they all look the same. A pitfall’s outer layer is known as the normal region, while its inner layer is called the irreversible layer. Sandwiched between both layers is a thin membrane known as an event horizon. Once you’re pulled past the event horizon, the only thing awaiting you there is death. In the history of Omir, there have been accounts of Omirians bold and foolish enough to defy a negative energy pitfall, but no one has ever gone past the event horizon and lived to tell the tale. The moment you sense its pull, break free from it as fast as you can. If you’re unable to pull yourself away, execute the spiral burst maneuver immediately. Remember, act immediately. A moment’s hesitation may very well be your end.’

These thoughts raced through Link’s mind in an instant. His body had already begun picking up speed instinctively.

This time, he stopped pulling away from it in a straight line. Instead, he began accelerating perpendicularly to the direction of the pitfall’s pull. With the pitfall still pulling him back, he was now swinging an arc to his left as he pushed forward.

You need to push against it with everything you have. A negative energy field is like a rubber band. Once it’s ensnared you, no matter you fast you’re going, this rubber band will simply be stretched taut. However, its gravitational pull won’t falter one bit. In fact, it may even intensify. You will need to pull back at this rubber band until it snaps, or else it will drag you down into the depths of oblivion!

Link recalled what Piasce had written in his notebook. This thing resembled a black hole in some respects. However, there were still a few major differences between them.

Link continued to accelerate. Soon, he realized that he was now moving in a circular orbit with a diameter of approximately 5,000 miles in the dark expanse.

At first, his orbit was circular. As he sped up, it grew longer and longer until it transformed into an oval.

The Void energy in his body was depleting rapidly. Though his dragon body was still absorbing the energy in the Sea of Void, it became clear that he was not replenishing his body’s Void energy as fast as he was spending it.

By the looks of things, he could still hold out for another ten minutes. If he still could not break free within that time, he would have to accept his fate and be pulled into the negative energy pitfall!

With a deep breath, Link cleared his mind and simply focused on accelerating.

Time slowly passed by. One minute, two minutes, three minutes… five, six minutes… Soon, Link was flying at more than 15,000 miles per second. However, the dragon body could barely handle the strain of maintaining such a breakneck speed. The trajectory he had carved out in the Void was now a long ellipse around the vortex.

Still, it was not enough!

The rubber band of negative energy still remained unbroken as it stubbornly held on to Link. He was now at his limit. Despite his resolve, Link began to fear for his life.

Will I really die here? thought Link. The energy in his body was all but spent, and he was now beginning to feel out of breath.

No, just a little bit more. I can do this!

Link let out a roar as he gathered every last bit of power in him. When he was farthest from the pitfall in his elliptical trajectory, he swept his wings back once more. Boom! A powerful burst of Void energy gushed out behind him. Link could feel his body being thrust forward. Then, he began to slow down. His wings were now completely spent.

Sensing that he was about to be pulled back by the negative energy pitfall, Link turned around, opened his mouth wide and spewed out dragon breath back at it.

His wings might not be able to push him forward any longer, but he still had some energy left in him in the form of dragon breath, which was usually reserved for offensive measures.

Boom! Link let out a streak of white Dragon Void Breath behind him, giving himself another forward burst of momentum and allowing himself to continue his struggle with the pitfall.

Link had stretched the pitfall’s gravitational rubber band until it was now more than 300,000 miles long. Its pull seemed to have weakened as well.

Just a bit more, just a bit more…. screamed Link inwardly as he sensed that he was slowing down.

There was a click in his mind. The unseen force pulling at his body suddenly vanished. Its icy claw had slackened its grip on his consciousness as well. Link now felt his body floating gently forward at a speed of ten miles per second.

He had finally freed himself from the negative energy pitfall.

Link let out a breath of relief. His ordeal had finally ended.

After bobbing in the Void for a few seconds, Link began to feel his power slowly coming back to him. He then flapped his wings bit by bit.

That was way too close. Link figured that even a divine master would not be able to survive being dragged past the pitfall’s event horizon.

This was not an exaggeration.

Link had read something of the sort in other magic books. For example, the Dragon magic book had made mention of the dangers of traveling in the Void a couple of times. The Soul Dominator had also given detailed accounts of his trips into the Sea of Void in the Book of Revelation. In them, he had mentioned how dangerous negative energy pitfalls could be, though not in as much detail as Link would have liked.

A Level-13 Legendary master like Link would be akin to a toddler who had only just learned how to walk in the perilous wasteland that was the Sea of Void. One wrong move would have sent him hurtling to his doom. On the other hand, a divine master could be likened to a grown-up, being much wiser and more powerful than a Level-13 master. However, they would still be no more impervious to the wasteland’s dangers than the latter.

Once he was free from the negative energy pitfall’s pull, Link was able to regain his composure. After resting for a bit, he continued flying forward. He made his way through the Void slowly and cautiously, giving himself time to restore his full power.

After flying for a length of time, Link’s surroundings began to change somewhat. The faint Void mist around him thinned considerably, increasing his visibility. Suddenly, a cloud-like object appeared in front of him.

The thick, seemingly endless layers of cloud seemed to be emanating a dark green light. It resembled the nebulas back in his home world.

As Link drew closer, they began to expand until they basically filled up his field of vision.

These must be the Seaweed Clouds that Piasce mentioned, thought Link happily.

After allying himself with Ferde, Piasce had kept nothing back from Link. Not only did he give Link the mysterious gear’s coordinates, but he had also shared with him his experience in the Void, as well as a detailed account of the scenery around the mysterious object.

The cloud before him was one of the landmarks leading up to the mysterious gear. Once he made his way through the labyrinthine layers of cloud, he would be able to reach the mysterious gear at the end of it.

Link began accelerating towards the clouds.

Soon, he was near the Seaweed Clouds. From afar, the dark green clouds looked compact, almost solid. However, up close, Link realized that the clouds were gaseous and impalpable like smoke. Visibility in them was a mere hundred miles.

The massive cloud wall was perforated with passageways, each with excellent visibility. From afar, the passageways seemed narrow, but in reality, each one was 100,000 miles wide.

Link did not enter the maze just yet. He recalled what Piasce had written in his notebook. Piasce mentioned that he found a square-shaped cloud formation somewhere among the clouds. He then passed through the center of it in order to reach his destination. Where could it be?

Piasce had already given Link the coordinates of his destination. He could fly straight towards it if he wanted to. However, this would mean leaving a trail behind him in the Seaweed Clouds. Also, there might be Void creatures lurking in the clouds, and Link thought it best not to draw any attention from them to himself.

His safest option right now would be to retrace Piasce’s route.

After circling around the clouds for a while, Link still could not find the square-shaped cloud formation that Piasce mentioned. As he was about to resume his search, Link saw something flash by behind him from the corner of his eye.

Compared to someone like Piasce, he was still relatively inexperienced in navigating the Sea of Void. He did not see anything resembling life on his way here. The sight of something moving behind him was enough to unnerve him.

With the 360-degree vision afforded to him by his dragon body, he was able to see whatever was behind him without turning around.

Link was soon able to locate the moving object.

It was a black spot. Straining his eyes, Link could see that it was shaped like a disc. It was also giving off a weak light from its surface. As Link stared at it for a moment, a message from the game system popped up in his field of vision, giving him a rundown of the object’s details.

Speed: 8000 miles per second.

Diameter: 400 feet

Estimated power level: Level-17

Current distance: 1,000,000 miles

Judging by its appearance, speed, and energy circulation, the object is man-made and appears to be a Void Ferry of unknown origin.

“Void Ferry?” Link was stunned for a moment. Not knowing whether the object was friend or foe, he turned around and plunged into a nearby Seaweed Cloud.

Each Seaweed Cloud was extremely thick. For instance, the one Link was hiding himself in was 20,000,000 miles thick.

At first, Link was afraid that there might be something lurking in the depths of the cloud and so remained floating near its surface, not daring to venture any deeper into it. However, he sensed that something was wrong.

The object seemed to have noticed him, as it swerved around and headed straight for his hiding spot.

Speed: 13,325 miles per second!

His mind was now screaming at him to get out of there.

The object was tearing straight towards Link. It was as if it had recognized him. The way it hurtled menacingly towards him was more than enough to suggest that the object bore him no goodwill.

Moreover, it was moving at breakneck speed, even faster than the highest speed Link was able to maintain. In no more than two seconds, the object would soon reach Link’s hiding place. The Void Ferry was Level-17, making it a lot stronger than Link, who was only Level-13. Even with his magically immune dragon scales, Link would not be able to survive a head-on collision with it.

Setting aside whatever dangers might be lurking within the depths of the Seaweed Clouds, Link immediately released a burst of Void energy from his wings and dove into the deeper regions of the clouds at 12,000 miles per second.

…

Behind Link, inside the Void Ferry

Nozama said to the Dark Tutor Mysin, who was piloting the Void Ferry, “Did you see that? What was that?”

Mysin shook his head. “I couldn’t see what it was. It dove into the depths of the cloud before I had a good look at it. It’s dangerous to travel into the clouds. Master, should we pursue?

This was not Nozama’s first trip in the Sea of Void. He had a good grasp of the dangers in it. After weighing his options, he said commandingly, “Go after it. It looks really familiar. I’m sure I must have seen it somewhere before!”

Nozama was sure that what he saw was not one of his minions since all of them were no more than his soul puppets. He was also certain that it was an enemy, given how familiar it had seemed to him.

What made Nozama even more suspicious was the fact that the other party had appeared in the vicinity of the mysterious presence. This could only mean that they might be after the same thing as him. It would be remiss of Nozama to let the other party flee without clarifying their intentions.

Upon hearing his master’s command, the Dark Tutor Mysin nodded at his co-pilot Eilot, and the two drove the Void Ferry into the Seaweed Clouds in pursuit of the black dot in front of them.

Chapter 635: This Time, I’ll Fight Personally!

Boundless Void

The Void Ferry behind Link was faster than him. At first, they were around one million miles away from each other. Now, the other was 25,000 miles away.

It was hard to see in the Seaweed Cloud. Link looked back but could only see endless murky green. He couldn’t see the other’s location, but both were flying at extreme speeds. The power waves were very strong, and he could clearly sense the disc-shaped Void Ferry following relentlessly.

This couldn’t continue. He had to find somewhere to hide and avoid the attack!

Link looked forward. He was more than one million miles into the Seaweed Cloud. The clouds seemed to get heavier before him. Visibility decreased, and the changes in the clouds became more complicated. Some places were thin, almost like a tunnel; other places had thick blocks of dark green clouds. From afar, they looked a fog-covered Firuman.

There might really be a realm hidden in the thick clouds. Who knew?

Link had read a paragraph in the Book of Revelations.

When a realm is first created, it is only an average ball of energy in the Sea of Void, usually a vortex of energy. As time passes, the energy vortex continuously condenses. The realm grows, evolves, and finally exchanges energy and material with the Sea of Void like a living organism. Gradually, heavy fog forms outside the realm. That is how the fog of the Firuman Realm was formed.

However, the dark blocks of clouds before him were too small. They were less than 30,000 miles wide while the white fog around Firuman was more than 300,000 miles. Even if a realm was hidden inside, it would still be in the early stages. They were too small, and Link couldn’t hide in them.

He continued flying.

Time passed, and Link flew 30,000 more miles. The energy waves from the Void Ferry behind him thickened. He still couldn’t see the other, but Link was sure that they weren’t more than 20,000 miles apart. If the other sped up, he would catch up.

A dark cloud appeared before him. The vapor around it looked thinner. In order to not leave traces in the thick fog, Link moved around it. Just as he was about to speed up, his vision brightened a bit. He looked up and saw a huge patch of light.

The vapor obstructed his vision, but the light was still strong. The light source was huge as well. It looked to be more than 60,000 miles wide—practically twice the size of Firuman’s cloud!

Light is moving energy. If a huge light appears in the Sea of Void, it’s possible that it’s a realm. These are usually advanced realms that have already evolved into life. These lights come from the core of the realm (the sun).

Something from Piasce’s travel log flashed past Link’s mind.

A realm? It also has such heavy fog. It’s enough for me to hide in.

Link turned to look. The vapor was still thick, and he couldn’t see the other at all. However, the power waves were stronger than before. If not for the vapor obstructing their vision, Link would probably be caught long ago.

He took a deep breath and pumped his wings with full force, rushing towards the majestic light.

It was around 150,000 miles away. After a while, it took up Link’s vision. He could only see the dark green light. It was boundless.

The vapor here was abnormally heavy. His range of sight was only around 25 miles. The vapor only got worse as he got close, and his sight decreased rapidly too.

This phenomenon is identical to Firuman. There really might be a realm inside, Link thought. He stopped flapping his wings and pulled them back. Wrapping his wings around his body, he used the inertia to slide towards the realm.

The dragon wings were very strange. Not only were they great at pushing while flying in the Void, but they could also become the best disguise when wrapped around one’s body. They could perfectly cover a dragon’s energy waves, so the dragon looked just like a regular meteorite in the Sea of Void.

Link did this to stop the pursuer from tracing him and also because the surroundings were complicated. He had to be careful.

The free energy around a realm was very thick. Some souls would run out the realm at times too. These things were delicacies for Void creatures, so it was more likely for them to appear around here too. It wasn’t good to alert these Void creatures.

Link floated for a while. Suddenly, a black shadow shot out from the corner of his eye. His heart jumped, and he stopped moving. His eyes followed the black shadow.

He saw that the shadow was shaped like a shuttle. It was more than 200 feet long and had something like fins in the middle. Its tail was really long too. It looked like a fish swimming in the sea.

It didn’t notice Link who had weakened his energy. When it passed by Link, it twisted powerfully to the side and sped up abruptly. It was probably more than 5000 miles per second and instantly disappeared from Link’s side.

Around ten seconds later, Link felt an abnormal commotion not too far behind him.

Buzz, buzz. The two sounds were like the whistle of a ship in the sea. They were very deep. At the same time, Link felt explosive energy ripple over.

Link’s heart jumped. It’s the power wave from that Void Ferry. It’s very powerful—at least Level-15. That “fish” attacked the Void Ferry and was probably killed… The other isn’t far from me now, but I don’t know if they’ve noticed me.

As soon as this thought flashed through Link’s mind, he realized that his surroundings brightened. He refocused his eyes and saw that a huge wall of light appeared before him.

This light wasn’t the dark green he’d seen before. Instead, it was a burning white. It was similar to Firuman’s, but it was brighter. At the same time, it looked very smooth. Link couldn’t see any flaws. It looked like a glowing crystal similar to the surface of the Firuman realm.

It really is a realm. This is so big. Its light is vibrant too. It must be a powerful realm.

While thinking, Link had already floated to the wall of the realm. He reached out a claw and hooked lightly on the wall, stopping firmly. He was like a ship resting against the pier.

Stopping here, he looked back at the Sea of Void. All he could see was heavy dark-green vapor. His line of sight was less than 20 miles.

Link could sense the other Void Ferry was close. It was probably less than 6000 miles away. He didn’t dare move now. Link just quietly hung on the realm’s wall like a lizard, waiting patiently.

Time passed bit by bit. Passage of time in the Sea of Void was different from in realms. Time in realms usually flowed steadily without any disturbances. However, time in the Sea of Void was warped. It flowed faster in places with more energy and slower in places with less.

If Link had a mortal body without Legendary protection instead of using his dragon form as a Void Ferry, half of his body might become old while the other remained youthful. He wouldn’t be able to live in that situation.

The Sea of Void was uninhabitable for mortals. If a non-Legendary person entered, their souls would scatter immediately. This wasn’t an exaggeration.

Link didn’t know how fast time flowed here, so he obviously didn’t know how much time had passed. But after waiting for a long while, he could still sense the Void Ferry’s energy waves.

The other is still circling this place. It probably knows my general location but can’t pinpoint it… If this continues, they’ll find me sooner or later. Then I’ll be dead.

Thoughts flew past Link’s mind as he tried to think of a way to escape. Soon, his eyes fell on the huge realm below him.

If I enter the realm and go to the other end, I should be able to escape safely. But how do I enter?

Flattened against the wall, he could clearly sense the principles and laws of this realm.

According to the feeling under his claws, the realm’s wall was very soft, like a layer of old leather. But if he applied force, the feedback from his claws strengthened. There was also a strange power that kept pushing out. It was about to push him off the wall.

It was repelling him.

This realm wasn’t Firuman. To Firuman, Link was part of it, so it wouldn’t repel him. Going to Firuman was like going back home, while the realm beneath him was someone else’s home. It had nothing to do with him. His relationship with this realm was like Nozama against Firuman. He was an invader.

Carefully sensing the force, Link had a general idea of the strength of this realm.

I should be able to forcefully break through this wall, but it will use up a lot of my energy and lead to the realm’s violent defense. Even if I enter the realm, my power will be greatly repressed. It’ll probably fall to around Level-7. There’ll be other restrictions too. Even the natives find out, they’ll try to kill me. The dangers aren’t any lower than the Void Ferry. This isn’t wise… Let me look for a realm crack.

The realm’s surface was smooth, and there couldn’t be any cracks, but everything had an exception. Because of some random reasons, there might be some temporary fissures. For example, perhaps something inside the realm was summoning a Void creature, or a Magician was stupidly studying the laws of the realm and created a temporary crack. These were all possible.

A realm had countless organisms. It was quite possible for there to be people who did idiotic things. Just take Firuman as an example. There was never a shortage of stupid people.

Of course, if he couldn’t find one, he would have to enter forcefully. The Void Ferry was too powerful. Facing a Level-17 while in Level-13, Link had no confidence at all. But inside the realm, everyone’s power would be restricted. The difference between them would close too. It would be much easier to escape.

Time is limited. I need to hurry.

Thinking of this, Link composed himself and carefully sensed for the realm wall.

Time kept flowing, and the Void Ferry’s energy waves were even more obvious. It was getting closer to him. There were less than 3000 miles between them. The other would soon be able to pinpoint his exact location.

Once they’re 1000 miles away, I’ll have to break in forcefully and figure out the rest when I get into the realm!

Link was ready to break in at any time, but he still didn’t give up on finding a crack. The latter could save him a lot of energy. He would face weaker repulsion inside the realm too.

Suddenly, there was a flash in the corner of his vision. This was the result of the realm’s energy spewing out. It meant that the laws in that area were weakened by some force, causing the realm’s energy to flow out.

In other words, there was a crack!

Such good luck!

A realm crack usually lasted for a short time. There were many complicated reasons—the distortion of time, the realm’s self-healing abilities, and more. He must hurry.

Thus, Link immediately used all his limbs and wings to scurry across the wall. This caused a much bigger commotion.

In the Sea of Void, Dark Tutor Mysin, who had been searching for Link in the Void Ferry, immediately noticed the abnormality.

A few seconds later, he pointed at the wall of light. “Master, look there! Something’s happening!”

Nozama squinted and looked. The light pulsing in his eyes abruptly strengthened. The bloody light that seeped out of his eye sockets were more than three feet long. His gaze passed through the vapor and saw the realm wall clearly.

There was a dragon with silvery black scales rushing towards a speck of light on the wall. Nozama was a master at passing through realms. He instantly realized that it was a realm crack. He also recognized the dragon.

He laughed in anger. “I was wondering who it was. It’s the Ferde lord! He thinks he’s powerful and dares to enter the Void alone… Kill him!”

The Void Ferry had already been rushing towards Link. A few seconds later, Mysin reported, “Master, we’re too far away. He’s already near the crack. We can’t stop him from entering.”

“It’s alright. He can’t escape even if he enters. Deploy the Void Ferry cluster and lock the realm. Glyn, my sub-commander!”

“Yes, Master!” Glyn flinched and walked out.

“Take 100 people and forcefully enter the realm. Chase—”

Before he could finish, Mysin yelled, “Master, Master! Another crack appeared in the realm! Someone’s using a large-scale summoning spell! I’ve responded to the summoner!”

“Oh? Great!” Nozama praised. Half a second of thinking later, he turned to his sub-commander. “Glyn, take people into the realm, kill the summoner and quickly build a super-summoning seal. This time, I’m going to act personally!”

He was going to capture that guy and personally tell him the consequences of snatching his daughter and ruining his plans.

“Understood!”

Glyn immediately waved at his trusted men. More than 100 Legendary demons walked out. They jumped out of the Void Ferry and started falling towards the crack in the wall.

Whoosh! Glyn was the first to enter. It was like diving into water.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh. Three Level-13 demons followed. After that, the crack’s light rippled and flickered like a candle in the wind.

“Master,” Mysin yelled. “Too many demons passed the crack. They’re too strong, and the crack can’t take it. It’s going to collapse!”

Before he could finish, the crack started mending and soon disappeared.

“Everyone else, come back.” Nozama waved his hand. Glyn and three demons had entered. They should be enough. Now, he would wait for Glyn to reopen the crack. He trusted Glyn not to disappoint him.

Chapter 636: Mortal, Are You the One Who Summoned Me?

There was a howling sound. It was the first sound that Link had heard since entering the realm crack. It sounded like a gust of wind blowing through a canyon.

In the next second, Link felt a sudden weightlessness. His body was now no longer under his control; he could not even move a single muscle. He seemed to be falling down a tunnel of sorts. Distorted images swam dizzily across the tunnel’s four walls, giving him the impression that he was now falling through a kaleidoscope.

This was the first time he was summoned into a realm. It was an entirely new experience for Link. He was also apprehensive about it, as he had no idea what awaited him at the bottom.

He tumbled on for a few seconds down the tunnel. Suddenly, a blood-red streak of light shot out of nowhere. Link could not make out what it was at first. As it got closer, he strained his eyes to see what it was.

It was a cluster of souls wailing in agony!

The ball of light was more than 50 cubic feet. There were at least 3000 souls in it, and each of them was disfigured beyond recognition. It was as if someone had kneaded them into a misshapen mass of putty. What was even more terrifying was the fact that as soon as the cluster of souls drew closer towards Link, it quickly began to melt away like wax.

Argh… Help me… Oh god… I don’t deserve this…

Link could hear a cacophony of agonized wailing coming from it, which grew louder as the clump of souls came closer towards Link.

When the ball of light finally came before Link, the souls inside it had melted completely inside it. Its contents were now a goopy blood-red mess. Link could not help but shudder at the sight of it.

The blood-red ball of light hurtled towards Link and finally collided against his dragon scales. Upon impact, Link could feel an icy sensation seeping into his body, all the way to the deeper parts of his body.

Throughout the whole process, Link’s body remained motionless. His power was still sealed within his body by an unknown force. He could only watch helplessly as the ball of light invaded his body.

As he panicked, a line of words popped up in his field of sight. Entry of unknown energy detected, now setting up quarantine area for unknown energy… Quarantine process successful.

This was the first line of words from the game system. The icy sensation remained still within Link’s body. However, it had stopped spreading inside his body.

After a while, a second line of words appeared before him.

Now examining composition of unknown energy… Examination complete. Unknown energy is determined to be soul energy, which is commonly used in Realm Summoning Contracts. Summoning technique currently in progress is a sacrificial summoning technique. Upon reaching the realm they are currently being summoned to, the player will be placed under the binding power of a summoning contract and will be prohibited from violating terms of said contract.

Link was now mentally prepared for this. May I know the terms of this contract? thought Link.

Examination in progress… examination complete. Player’s current contract is a mutually binding agreement. The Summoned will assist the Summoner in completing certain tasks as required from them. Upon completion, the Summoned will be allowed to keep the soul energy of the Sacrificed that was used to carry out the summoning ritual. However, the Summoned will be subject to the Dimensional Rejection’s influence once more after fulfilling the terms of its contracts. During the contract’s duration, both parties will be prohibited from hurting each other.

Hearing this, Link asked, “Is there any way to break the contract?”

Attempting to dispel contract’s binding power… Dispelling unsuccessful. Player has two options. First option is to reject the quarantined soul energy in player’s body in exchange for his freedom. However, the player will receive the full brunt of the Dimensional Rejection. The player will have his power severely suppressed and will only be able to use Level-7 power as a result. Second option is to maintain current course. Player will remain under the contract’s constraints. The Summoner will be forced to bear a portion of Dimensional Rejection the Summoned is subject to. The more powerful the Summoner is, the more Dimensional Rejection the Summoner will be required to take on. In consequence of this trade-off, the Player’s power will not be suppressed as much.

After pondering it for a moment, Link decided to choose the second option. He was repulsed by the source of the contract’s binding power. However, due to his current situation, he would be a fool to limit his powers any more than he had to.

Let’s go with the second option, then.

As soon as he said this, his body trembled slightly. There was that cold sensation in his body again. He then realized that the sacrificed soul power had taken up one percent of his total power, while the remaining 99 percent was still his own.

Only one percent of my power seems to be affected by this magical contract. I’ll probably survive whatever punishment it has reserved for me should I decide to violate any of its terms. This was even better than Link had imagined.

Soon, Link realized that he had stopped falling. He could feel his feet hit solid ground. The distorted imagery around him began transforming into a wall of fog, which then dissipated to reveal the scenery of the realm he had been summoned into.

Throughout the whole process, Link felt an irresistible power pressing against him. It was as if he was being compressed beneath the depths of an ocean.

He moved a finger slightly. He could feel an invisible resistance when he tried to cast the Magician’s Hand spell. This resistance seemed to be inhibiting his physical strength and the power inside his body by about ten percent.

In other words, his power level was currently within the neighborhood of Level-10, which was a lot more than what the game system had predicted.

This resistance must be the effect of the Dimensional Rejection. It’s a lot weaker than I had anticipated. My summoner must be taking on some of it right now. Judging by my current state, they must be quite the Magician.

At that moment, the distorted light show around him had faded away completely. Link now found himself in the middle of a canyon thick with grass and trees. The canyon was approximately 400 feet wide. Its two walls were around 200 feet high.

With his 360-degree vision, Link was able to take in his surroundings without turning his head.

He realized that he was standing in the middle of a 150-foot-wide magic seal which had been etched on the ground with fresh blood. The stench of blood wafted to his nostrils from every line of the magic seal. It was so pungent that Link’s face contorted in disgust.

As a Magician, Link’s trained eyes were immediately drawn to the structure of this bloody magic seal. He was stunned by what he saw. The seal seemed almost familiar to him. It greatly resembled the magical circuits that were found on the mysterious gear, the Astral Whetstone and the Book of Revelation.

This realm is within the mysterious gear’s vicinity. Is there some sort of connection between them? thought Link.

At that moment, a hoarse voice called out to him, interrupting his thoughts.

“Ah, almighty dragon, we are most pleased that you have answered our calls!”

The voice was speaking in a foreign tongue. However, due to the contract in place, whatever it was saying was automatically translated in Link’s mind.

Link followed the source of the voice and saw a wizened Magician with hair as white as snow in a black robe standing on one of the nodes of the bloody magic seal. Link was able to determine that the old man was a Level-6 Magician from the energy he was giving off.

He looks human. He also seems to know what I am. How fascinating. Link narrowed his eyes. The old man before him looked like any other human being from the Firuman realm. The only difference was that he had a wide forehead. His eyes were also especially small, and his features were primitive-looking.

The old man was not alone. There were six nodes on the magic seal. On each of them stood a Magician native to the realm. Every one of them looked human as well, barring a few differences such as their primitive facial features and wide foreheads.

The Magicians standing on the magic seal were marveling at Link, visibly excited about what they had summoned into their realm. The old Magician was practically on the verge of tears.

He bellowed, “Oh almighty dragon, we require your assistance. The army of Troym is at the gates of our kingdom as we speak. They are the sworn enemy of our great kingdom. We need your help to defeat them.”

Troym? Army? Link blinked at him. He somewhat understood what this was all about. He raised his head high up in the air to inspect the magic seal beneath him and saw that the ground was strewn with corpses. There were 4000 bodies lying on the ground, whose lives had been sacrificed to conduct the summoning ritual that had brought him here.

The corpses’ attire were different from the robes worn by the Magicians around him. Link figured that the ones who had been sacrificed were all prisoners of war from the Troym army.

In other words, these Magicians had sacrificed their captives in order to summon a powerful extra-dimensional presence like Link and hopefully turn the tide of war against Troym with the aid of said summoned presence.

Once he had made sense of the circumstances of his summoning, Link looked at the old summoner. He could clearly sense what the man was feeling at the moment, which was mostly excitement. He could also tell that his appearance had surpassed the old man’s expectations.

They were probably hoping to summon something else when they were carrying out their summoning ritual. I just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. It would also seem that I’m supposed to help them fight back the Troym army as part of the terms of my contract.

Everyone was staring at him with a mix of expectation and caution. Link remained silent. He then saw at least 5000 people outside the bloody magic seal. Most of them seemed to be military. There were also a few in their midst, dressed in resplendent garb. They looked royally important.

These Warriors must be the elites of this realm. However, most of them were only at Level-3, which was no more different than the time Link first entered the Firuman realm. Link would not be able to take on all of them at once if his power had been reduced to Level-7, as the game system had initially predicted before his entry into this new realm. However, with his Level-10 Pinnacle power, he figured he would be able to come out alright from a confrontation with them.

The Warriors looked at him warily, their nerves stretched taut as they waited for a reaction from him. Link could also see some of them trembling uncontrollably.

This was understandable. If Link had encountered a Level-10 Legendary master the first time he entered the Firuman realm, he would also be scared witless.

No mortal here would have any chance of surviving an encounter with a Legendary master.

He slammed his massive tail into the ground a few times. Boom! Boom! Boom! The earth quaked. Everyone in the canyon went pale. The important-looking people surrounded by their guards were completely petrified. Link could also see a few women fainting in their midst.

“Almighty dragon, do you agree to help us?” shouted the old Magician again. His voice was shaky. The circumstances of their summoning ritual were odd, to put it mildly. It had taken a peculiarly long time for them to complete the summoning process, and the thing they had summoned into their realm seemed to be more potent than anything they had ever encountered.

The old Magician had originally intended to summon a Level-8 or 9 presence. However, this creature before him looked exactly like the dragons as described in their legends. More than 100 feet long, it was as big as a small mountain. Its silver-black flawless dragon scales, its glittering eyes and that oppressive aura it was giving off were all telling him that he had summoned something with power beyond his imagination.

He was not sure if their summoning contract would even be able to restrain such a behemoth.

At that moment, Link was weighing his options. Should I accept the conditions of the summoning contract and help them take on an entire army? No, the contract’s terms seem lax. I could easily find a loophole and wriggle my way out of this. Also, only a fool would take on an army he had never seen before on his lonesome!

Right now, Link was only a bit stronger than the Red Dragon Duke Isendilan, whom he had defeated with the help of the Beastmen back when he was still a threat. Even if he was confident that he would be able to take on the entire Troym army with his current power level, there was just no guarantee everything would go his way. Also, as soon as Link completed his contract, he would still have to deal with the Dimensional Rejection. At that point, things would become extremely awkward.

What should I do? thought Link. A few seconds later, he finally arrived at a solution.

He lowered his head, slowly swinging it towards the old Magician. When his dragon horn was only 20 feet away from him, the old man could not take it any longer. His legs were trembling so much that he collapsed to the ground on his knees. He then cried out tearily, “Great dragon, please forgive me. I did not mean to offend you. Please forgive all of us!”

When there was a huge difference in power between a summoner and the summoned entity, the binding power exerted on the latter by its summoning contract would be extremely limited, and the contract could backfire on the summoner himself if he was not careful enough.

Seeing the pathetic pile of sobbing mess the old Magician was reduced into, the entire army in the canyon immediately descended into chaos.

Despite not knowing how summoning magic worked, when the Warriors saw the old Magician in such a state, everyone knew that the spell had failed. No one could work up the courage to stand up to the winged monstrosity the Magicians had summoned.

At that moment, Link opened his mouth. Due to his expansive body, his voice came out loud and sonorous. “Mortal, are you the one who summoned me?”

The question was directed at the old Magician.

Chapter 637: Starting Today, You Must Serve Me

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Valley

Dadara was full of regret now. The summoning was his idea, and he’d done it himself. As the most powerful summoner in Blacklan Kingdom, he’d summoned countless creatures before. Though he’d failed sometimes, it had never been embarrassing.

But today, things were completely beyond his expectations. Blacklan Kingdom was in a crisis, and Troym was already at the city walls. As an important member of Blacklan, he volunteered bravely to use a ritual summoning spell that had been banned.

But it only succeeded halfway!

The summoned creature was very powerful—so powerful it stole their breaths. But they didn’t seem to be able to restrict the other… It was strange.

There was a head the size of a mountain before him. The mouth was wide open, revealing each tooth that was as sharp as a sword. Smoke came out of the thing’s nostrils. Dadara could vaguely see dark red flames flickering inside. This reminded him of an active volcano he’d visited with his tutor when he was young.

The other’s eyes shone with silver flames. Dadara couldn’t see the other’s eyes, but they were definitely waiting for his reply. He was forced to brace himself and reply, “Majestic dragon, it is I who summoned you.”

Snort. The dragon pushed air out of its nose. The air before its nose distorted visibly and the gust of air rushed out. Dadara, kneeling on the ground, rolled backwards.

Even a slight exhale is this powerful. Oh my god, did I summon the king of dragons? Dadara thought as he fell back.

It wasn’t that he’d never summoned a great dragon before. Actually, he’d summoned a demon dragon to fight for Blacklan Kingdom ten years ago. That dragon had been very powerful. It had been Level-7 and had been the ruler of the skies in the Fedaro Continent (what the natives called the realm).

But compared to this black dragon, the demon dragon was like a little chicken.

As the most prestigious master in Blacklan Kingdom, Dadara usually dressed in elegant clothing and used fancy carriages. He never had to do anything and was always high and mighty. It was the first time he was sprawled so pathetically on the ground. But he couldn’t care about that. He only wished that the dragon wouldn’t put its claw on his back… Seeing the claw that was many times stronger than his body, he knew that he would be flattened even if the dragon just placed it down gently.

Just as everyone was in terrified silence, Dadara heard a voice from above him. “You wish for me to defeat Troym’s army?”

“Yes…” Dadara was overjoyed. The Warriors nearby who were close to breaking down were slightly relieved. It seemed that things could still be negotiated.

“Oh?” Link snorted in dissatisfaction. Air came out of his nose again, making Dadara too fearful to move. Of course, the Magician couldn’t protest either.

Link’s actions weren’t breaking the contract. He was just breathing normally and didn’t hurt his summoner at all. The other was only affected because he was too weak. Thus, Link didn’t feel any reaction from the contract inside him.

However, his actions had still expressed his intent. He wasn’t happy about Dadara’s request. Dadara wasn’t stupid either. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have become a Master Summoner. Now that he had to protect his life, his mind whirred quickly.

Once the current pressing down disappeared, he said, “Majestic dragon king, you misunderstood me. I do hope that you can defeat Troym’s army, but I know that’s unrealistic. I can’t help it though… sniff, sniff. I just wish for you to save the kingdom I’m loyal to.”

As he spoke, Dadara became emotional. He really didn’t want the Blacklan Kingdom to be defeated. His heart felt a twinge, and his tears and snot came out. Sprawled on the ground, he started sobbing.

Behind him, King Morahan of Blacklan Kingdom was also in the army. Seeing Dadara, he couldn’t help but think, Ah, I didn’t think he was so loyal…is my kingdom really going to end?

Thinking of this, he forgot his fear too. On impulse, he walked out from the rings of guards. When he was around 150 feet before Link, he started regretting this. He didn’t think the dragon’s aura would be so scary.

But it was too late. Gritting his teeth, he knelt on the ground and copied Magician Dadara and cried, “Your Dragon Majesty, I beg you to save my kingdom! The people of Troym are cruel. I cannot let my people live under their rule!”

When he knelt, everyone in the valley also knelt down. It was such a sight.

But were the Troyms cruel? His words were nice. Link scanned the mountainous piles of corpses in the valley and found it ironic. However… had the contract been changed to saving the kingdom?

The contract’s content was very broad. Loosely, as long as the royal family didn’t disappear, it was alright if the so-called Troyms took over the capital temporarily. They could still get it back later.

Even more strangely, this request had no time limit. He could save them in a month, a year, or a decade. The contract could keep going until Link could find a safe way to leave the realm… No, there was something else. If possible, he also had to research the origin of magic here. This would help him with understanding the mysterious gear.

These thoughts flashed past Link’s mind. He didn’t hurry to speak. Instead, he just looked at the mortals kneeling before him.

This went on for more than ten minutes. When the king was covered in sweat, Link finally said, “You mortals are as idiotic and weak as ants. I can help you, but you must listen to my orders!”

Dadara winced. How did things turn into this? They’d summoned creatures to help fight. How come it was like they’d found a conqueror?

However, he understood the situation. King Morahan was clueless about summoning magic and had completely surrendered to Link’s power. He was grasping this last bit of hope right now. He couldn’t care about the future.

Hearing Link say this, he immediately said, “Your Dragon Majesty, from now on, you are the protector of the Blacklan Kingdom. As the king, I will do my best to satisfy your every need!”

This king was very good, and Link was satisfied. However, he didn’t show it. His face was still expressionless. He scanned past everyone in the valley and finally stopped on the unconscious woman from earlier.

Judging from her skin, she was very young. Her features were similar to the king. Compared with the king’s age, she was probably his daughter. Judging from how the king brought her with even in crisis, she was probably well-liked. She must be very important to her.

Thinking of this, Link straightened a 15-foot-long dragon finger and pointed at the unconscious woman. “Then from today on, I am Blacklan Kingdom’s protector, and she will be my only royal servant.”

The king obviously would be generous during these times. Serving such a strong figure was a great thing too. He immediately said, “Protector, I have 13 daughters. If you wish, I can have them all serve you. I also have 16 sons. If you need—”

Hmph! Link huffed, and the king was silenced. He pointed at the six summoners beside him. “You six will be my magic servants. Without my permission, none of you are allowed to be one mile away from me. Otherwise…”

These six were helping him with the realm’s resistance and maintained the contract. If they ran into trouble, he wouldn’t have the upper hand.

As he spoke, he waved his claw at the cliff before him and cast the spatial spell Vacuum Blade.

Crack. A 30-foot-wide tunnel opened up in the 600-foot-high cliff. The cut was smooth as a mirror.

Wow…

Every mouth in the valley dropped open. Their faces reddened as if someone was strangling them. This power was beyond imagination.

Seeing their reactions, Link knew everything was set.

Just as Link became the protector Blacklan Kingdom, 12 Magicians completed a summoning seal near Troym’s camp.

Three demons appeared from the center. The leader was demon Magician Glyn.

Glyn was different from Link. As a demon who just wanted to take over other realms, he was experienced with being summoned. Ten seconds after he entered the realm, he figured out his strength compared to his summoner.

Damn, I shouldn’t have had three people enter. This realm is too powerful. With us three, the resistance is too powerful. My strength is repressed too much!

Now, he was only at the beginning of Level-9. The other two demons were Level-7. On the other hand, the summoners were taking too much of the resistance. They all spat out blood and were greatly injured. If only one person came, Glyn estimated that he would be at Level-11. His summoner wouldn’t be so hurt either. It would be much better than now.

Even worse, this realm was much stronger than Glyn had predicted. If the natives weren’t sharing the resistance, he would probably be even more repressed. It would be a feat if he was just Level-7.

I’ve miscalculated. I wonder how the Ferde lord is now.

Glyn scanned the 12 exhausted Magicians around him. The most powerful seemed to be at Level-6. Judging from things, they were probably the strongest in this realm. It was easy to deal with these 12. However, the army nearby had more than 150,000 well-fed and equipped soldiers… Things were troublesome.

I won’t be able to use brute force to complete Master’s mission. F*ck. Glyn’s expression darkened. He was pissed.

Chapter 638: Realm Protector

“Master, what should we do? Should we kill them all?”

Beside Glyn stood a Tyros Bladed Demon called Gaulle. The demon’s original power was at Level-11, but it was now reduced to Level-7.

However, he was at his full strength, whereas the summoners around him were only Level-6 and had spent most of their energy in summoning them into their realm. To Gaulle, these Magicians were simply lambs to the slaughter right now.

Gaulle’s eyes swiveled around ravenously as he spoke. He was swinging a pair of serrated swords in both his hands. As soon as Glyn gave his order, he would have these people slaughtered.

Glyn waved his hand. “There’s no rush. We may still need their help.”

“From these insects?” said the third demon, a Fine-Scaled Succubus by the name of Ganya. She originally had Level-10 power, but now she was reduced to Level-7, which was still more than enough to steamroll through this lot.

Glyn nodded. He then said coldly, “Restrain yourselves. I’m in charge now, which means I’m the one giving orders here. If any of you so much as sneeze in a way I don’t like, I’ll cut off your nose!”

Demons had no concept of decorum. Brute strength was usually a more efficient means of getting one’s point across among them.

“Understood, Master Glyn,” muttered the two demons, crestfallen after being shut down by Glyn.

“Good. From now on, you are not to say another a word unless I say so. I’ll talk to these people.”

Glyn then strode towards one of the aboriginals who seemed to be in charge and psychically asked him, “Mortal, tell me what it is you desire!”

As a Demon Magician, Glyn was extremely tall, standing at approximately ten feet tall. Magic runes were carved into his hands. A Shadow Gemstone as big as a fist was mounted on the tip of his wand. Concentrated Mana pulsated from it, sending off ripples in the air.

These were all signs of the terrible power he possessed.

Due to the massive Dimensional Rejection he had to take on, the Magician before Glyn began vomiting blood. Despite his efforts to speak, the man could only muster a gurgling sound from his mouth as blood gradually pooled in it. He seemed to be on the brink of death.

Seeing the state the aboriginal Magician was in, Glyn frowned. These summoners could not die on him right now. Otherwise, the full force of the Dimensional Rejection would come down on all three of them like a hammer. Even if they were not expelled from this realm as a result, their power levels would be severely suppressed. It would be a miracle if they were able to leave this realm alive at that point, let alone accomplish the mission that was given to them by their master.

Glyn raised his wand and muttered something under his breath. A moment later, rays of purple light shone out from the wand, hitting every injured Magician on the scene.

This was a Level-8 spell: Shadow Healing.

Upon being struck by a ray of purple light from Glyn’s wand, each Magician’s body began to emit a faint purple glow. They then shuddered and groaned for around 30 seconds. Gradually, magic runes similar to those on Glyn surfaced on their skins, which had now taken on a shade of violet. Their eyes had also turned blood-red, with purple light flashing out from their pupils.

A few minutes later, the Magician in front of Glyn was first to react. He prostrated himself before the demon and shouted, “Save us, almighty Magicians from the Void!”

“State your business then.” Glyn was not all too surprised to receive such a response. The summoning magic seal beneath him seemed primitive and shoddily put together, as if they had been in a hurry to complete it in order to attain power that they sorely lacked at the moment.

The Magician immediately responded, “Our scouts have informed us that the Blacklan Kingdom has gone mad. They’ve sacrificed all their war prisoners in order to summon a powerful Void creature into the Fedaro realm through a forbidden summoning ritual!”

“Blacklan Kingdom? Sacrifice?”

Glyn looked around him. He saw that broken stone fragments littered the magic seal he was standing in. These fragments looked like crystals. There were still traces of Magical Power left in them. Glyn figured that they must have been magical crystals. There were plenty of these rocks lying beneath him. They must have contained huge amounts of Magical Power before. Looking at the magic seal beneath him, Glyn estimated that it could probably summon a Level-8 Pinnacle creature from the Void.

No wonder my power has been inhibited so much. The three of us were all at once squeezed through a measly Level-8 summoning seal into this realm… Wait a minute, did he say that the Blacklan Kingdom used a sacrificial ritual to summon a Void creature?

Taken aback by what he heard, Glyn stared at the Magician before him and asked, “How many souls did they offer as tribute?”

“At least 4000.”

Glyn’s blood froze. The Blacklan Kingdom must have been able to summon the lord of Ferde through with the combined energy of 4000 souls. Not only would Link’s power not be as inhibited as his, but he might also still have Legendary power in him!

Despite possessing Level-9 power, Glyn still could not hold a candle to even a Legendary master like Link who had just been promoted to Level-10. To make matters worse, the lord of Ferde still had his dragon body, making him a monstrosity with a wingspan of 100 feet!

Glyn really wanted to leave this accursed realm behind him as soon as possible. However, his master had given him his orders. Also, the fact that they were summoned into this realm meant that they had basically signed a contract with the Magicians who had summoned them. Without completing the terms of their contract, Glyn and the others would have an extremely hard time leaving this realm.

Damn it, this could be a problem.

The lord of Ferde was already a difficult person to handle. He was even able to survive the God of Destruction’s divine punishment back then. How should he deal with this on his own?

The two demons behind him did not understand much about summoning magic. However, they were quite familiar with sacrificial magic and what it entailed. Hearing that the other party had offered 4000 souls as tribute in their summoning ritual, the two demons’ faces underwent a multitude of changes.

The three demons fell silent for a long while. Sensing that something was not right, the Magician who was still on the floor said in a timorous voice, “Almighty Magicians of the Void, is there nothing you can do for us?”

A sudden thought flashed through his mind. Glyn responded, “There is a way, but it comes with a huge cost.”

“Say it,” said the Magician hopefully.

Glyn’s idea was simple. He could not think of a way to deal with Link, but his master could. The latter had also mentioned that he would deal with Link personally. By bringing him into this realm, everything would be much simpler.

“Since the Blacklan Kingdom was able to sacrifice all 4000 souls for their summoning ritual, why can’t you? If you’re willing to offer even more souls as tribute, you’ll be able to bring in even more powerful creatures from the Void to help you defeat your enemy. If you don’t know where to start…”

Before he could finish, the Magician on the ground quickly shook his head. “No, it’s forbidden magic, something we of the Troym Kingdom would not sully our hands with. Otherwise, a Protector will make an appearance before us.”

Glyn was furious at first when he heard what the man said and was of a mind to show him how an actual sacrifice was made. However, upon hearing the last part of his sentence, he frowned. “What’s a Protector?”

The Magician replied, “A member of a clandestine council of Magicians. Each member is extremely powerful. It is also said that the strongest of their number possesses extraordinary power. The Blacklan Kingdom’s actions have probably drawn the attention of these Protectors. Those people will most likely be punished for what they have done. However, it may take some time. Until then, we should first think of a way to deal with the Void creature that they have summoned.”

Glyn’s heart skipped a beat at the mention of the words “extraordinary power.” This meant that these Protectors must be Legendary masters, and as luck would have had it, he was in no position to take on anyone with Legendary power.

There did not seem to be a way out for Glyn.

Wait a minute, there is still a way. Glyn looked at the magical crystals scattered across the ground.

“I happen to know the name of a powerful Void creature. If you could scrounge up another batch of magical crystals for me…”

The Magician interrupted him tearily, “These are the last of the magical crystals our kingdom had stocked up for the last 100 years. We’ve even bought up all the crystals from our neighbors.”

Glyn was out of options. It would seem that he had finally hit a dead end.

Gaulle and Ganya looked at each other. Hearing what the Magician had said, they could see that things did not look good on their end. Summoning their master into this realm in such a short span of time seemed impossible at this point. To make matters worse, they still had to deal with a lord of Ferde who still possessed Legendary power.

How was any of them supposed to come out of this alive?

As everyone present frantically considered their options, a roar rumbled from the mountains in their vicinity.

Roar!!!

The roar split the ground like thunder, causing every living being in the mountain to flee in fear.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Heavy footsteps then echoed from the mountains, causing the ground to quake beneath them. At that moment, all their hearts were beating hard against their chests, threatening to leap out of their throats at any moment.

The lord of Ferde had arrived.

“Master, the lord of Ferde is here. What should we do?” said Gaulle in a quavering voice. His swords were noisily rattling against each other.

“Master, please think of something, he’s already here!” pleaded Ganya. Her body was now shaking violently. If it were not for the fact that Glyn was still standing there, she would have left the place without any hesitation.

“Almighty Magicians of the Void, that Void creature is here. What should we do?” said the aboriginal Magician who was still lying prostrate before Glyn, trembling from head to toe.

Glyn was also at a loss. What was the use of knowing a wide array of powerful spells if he did not even have enough power to use any of them?

Is flight our only option? thought Glyn, reluctant to admit defeat just yet. Back in the void, he had Level-15 power. But now he was being hunted down by this Level-13 runt. He would not be able to face his master if he were to fail in his mission right now.

But what other options did he have left?

At that moment, they heard a voice from the sky. “I see that you’ve summoned three demons here with incredible power. They will have to do. Franklan, you did well.”

The Magician raised his head up and saw a snow-white unicorn glowing with a soft silver light as it hovered 30 feet above him in the air. On the beast’s back sat a young boy.

The boy appeared to be around fifteen years old. His features were handsome, complemented by a set of elegant, silver hair. He was wearing a pristine white robe with silver embroidery and a flawless emerald gemstone on his forehead. He was also holding a wand which was glowing with a white light. He did not look at all like a mortal.

“And you are?” asked Franklan, shocked to be addressed so familiarly by someone he had never seen before. He could feel the oppressive aura radiating from the boy on the unicorn.

The boy swept his gaze past Glyn and the others. He then said casually, “Me? My name is Romeon. I’m a Protector.”

Chapter 639: Magician, I Can Smell the Fear in Your Heart

Boom! Boom!

The sound of pounding footsteps kept getting closer. At the same time, there was a powerful surge of energy waves. Looking towards the mountains from here, one could see that even the air had distorted slightly.

“You know him?” The one who called himself Romeon, the Protector, looked at Glyn. His eyes were serious. When Glyn didn’t reply after a few seconds, he added, “I heard your conversation. You called him the ‘Ferde lord.'”

Glyn felt troubled now. At first, he thought that with Level-9 power, he would have no opponents in this world other than the Ferde lord. Now, a Legendary Protector suddenly appeared. He could feel from the guy’s tone that he only saw Glyn as a slightly powerful summoned. He also knew about demons and didn’t trust Glyn.

With someone like him here, it would be impossible to summon Nozama. Glyn really wanted to just leave now.

When he still didn’t reply, Protector Romeon frowned slightly. His hands tightened around his wand. “Demon, don’t test my patience!”

Glyn was forced to nod. “Indeed. His name is Link. He’s a very cruel black dragon. He once personally killed more than 100,000 people in another realm… I think that, with your experience, you must know how terrifying a Legendary dragon is, right?”

As soon as he finished, there was another booming footstep. After that, part of a huge black shadow appeared behind a mountain. It was only a part, but they could already see the dragon body clearly.

Romeon naturally saw it too. His brows knitted more tightly.

Right then, commotion arose from a mountain near the magic seal. Listening closely, one could hear screams, clattering hooves, yells, and chaos.

Summoner Franklan’s face paled. “The army revolted. Protector, what should we do?”

Troym’s army was camped at that side of the mountain. With at least 150,000 people, it was a huge force. But with such a horrible beast before them that could destroy the world, it didn’t matter how many people they had. They were only mortals and were definitely terrified now.

If they didn’t act quickly, Troym’s army would fall apart.

If they could assure the soldiers, take advantage of some catapult, group spell, piercing arrows or other machinery, they could at least distract the dragon. This would greatly lighten their burden.

Everyone present understood this.

Seeing that their opportunity was about to end, Demon Magician Glyn threw all caution to the wind. Turning, he called at Romeon, “Protector, please act before it’s too late!”

Only the Protector could fight Link. Everyone else was too weak.

Romeon was hesitant too. Seeing the black dragon’s might, he wasn’t confident in defeating it. But he was the Protector of the Fedaro Continent. Protecting this world was his lifelong vow when he’d joined this Magician’s organization. Now that there was a black dragon invader, he had to take responsibility.

Thinking of this, he inhaled deeply and turned. “Franklan, take your summoned with. It’s up to us.”

With that, the unicorn started galloping in the air, instantly reaching an extreme speed. It cut a silver-white arc as it flew towards the battlefield ahead.

“Yes, Protector!” At this time, the Legendary Protector was their last hope. After that, Franklan turned to Glyn. “Master…”

Glyn waved his hand. “No need. We will follow the summoning contract and help you defeat the black dragon king. Let’s go!”

Franklan was overjoyed. He turned and hurried to the frontline.

The two demons behind Glyn hurried over. “Commander, are we really going?” Demon Gamiwa murmured. “That Protector looks young and inexperienced. How can he be the Ferde lord’s match?”

The Ferde lord was the god of death. He’d killed so many demons. The demons in the Abyss hated him to bits, but power was power. To them, the Ferde lord was an impassable mountain.

Gaulle also nodded lightly. “How about we escape now?”

Glyn liked that idea, but he quickly shook his head. “Don’t forget Master’s mission! At least we have a Legendary figure helping now and Troym’s army. It’s still possible to win. Let’s go.”

It was risky, but if they could defeat the Ferde lord and control his soul, then Glyn would have accomplished something great. His master would definitely reward him.

The two demons had no objections and could only follow Glyn to the frontline.

Roar! The dragon roared again. Because they were much closer, disturbances visible to the naked eye rippled through the air.

Under the sound waves, big trees shook violently and could snap at any time. The Troym soldiers who were close plugged their ears and rolled on the ground. The weaker ones even started bleeding from their mouths and noses. They were actually injured.

How could they fight against this?

The Troym soldiers were losing their resolve; they were close to breaking down.

“Keep steady! Steady!” the general yelled hysterically.

A few generals had already slain some deserters to keep the situation under control. But this was only temporary. When the dragon got closer, even the generals would probably turn to flee.

In the mountains, King Morahan of the Blacklan Kingdom and the group of summoners looked at Troym’s camp from afar. Seeing this, the king gulped. “Master,” he murmured to Magician Dadara. “You’ve really done something great. Not only have you protected Blacklan Kingdom, but you might also even destroy Troym!”

Dadara was more clear-headed. “Your Majesty, it’s not definite yet. We’ve used the sacrifice spell to summon the black dragon king and must have alerted the Protector. The dragon might not be the Protector’s match.”

“The Protector? He can’t be that fast.” The king was shocked.

At this time, a soldier beside him yelled, “Look, there’s a flying unicorn in the sky!”

Everyone turned to look. There really was a snowy white unicorn flying towards the battlefield at an unimaginable speed. Looking closely, there was a youth dressed as a Magician on the unicorn.

“It’s Protector Romeon!” Dadara was shocked. He’d seen the Protector before. The silver hair, snowy-white robe, unicorn, and handsome, youthful features were all of Romeon’s characteristics.

He looked young, but he was actually more than 100 years old. He was one of the most powerful Protectors in Fedaro.

Dadara knew that his actions would alert the Protectors, but he didn’t think that he would attract the attention of someone so powerful. The black dragon king looked powerful, but Dadara wasn’t sure if he could win against the Protector.

The king had only heard of the Protector before. Seeing the unicorn streaking like lightning, he asked anxiously, “Master, that Protector looks so young. He can’t be that powerful, right?”

“I don’t know. One’s body isn’t the critical factor in a Legendary battle. Usually, just one spell can decide the victor.” Dadara was quite knowledgeable.

The king felt sweat seep from his forehead. From what he knew, the kings who’d gone against the Protectors never had good endings. These things had happened many times before.

Would he and his kingdom have a tragic ending too?

Roar! The black dragon, as big as a hill, walked out from the mountains. He was covered in a layer of air ripples. The specific details of his body were hard to see. After walking out, he stopped around 1500 feet from the camp. With a whoosh, he unfurled his huge dragon wings. The wings were at least 300 feet wide and they seemed to cover the entire sky.

Afterwards, the dragon wings flapped towards the army. A gust of wild wind appeared instantly, and the sky twisted violently. From afar, it looked like a tidal wave crashing towards the army.

One would expect that many soldiers would be dead or gravely injured once the wind rushed past the army. Their morale would be destroyed too.

Right then, Protector Romeon’s wand flashed in the air. His body was instantly as bright as the sun. An instant later, a pillar of light at least 30 feet thick fell from the sky. It spread into a wall of light, blocking the wild wind.

Whoosh, whoosh.

The wind pounded but couldn’t budge the wall of light.

Immediately after, the “sun” in the sky intoned with a voice that resonated through the world, “Black dragon, leave here. Leave this realm, or die!”

There was a Legendary Protector here?

Link squinted at the figure in the sky in some shock. The sacrifice spell isn’t accepted by the world and immediately alerted the top force in this realm. This is probably only the first wave of power. If I wreak havoc in this realm without caring, there will probably be many more resistors. I will become a public enemy.

If he really became a public enemy, the entire realm’s power would join against him. It was just like how Nozama had invaded Firuman and conducted many massacres. The different races immediately allied with each other. Many mysterious forces were helping too.

For example, Link felt that he was always weirdly lucky when fighting against Nozama. This was probably due to the aid of some unknown forces.

If he went too overboard, he would probably be resisted similarly by this realm. Of course, he was far from that level. He could still control himself.

These thoughts flashed past his mind, and he figured out what to do.

Looking up at the blazing “sun,” Link laughed. “Magician, I can smell the fear in your heart.”