Medanzo’s words did not shake Qianye. He pulled the trigger as though he had heard nothing at all, his finger as firm as a mountain.
Dragonsgrave rumbled as an origin bullet left the chamber and shot straight toward an empty space near Medanzo. The monarch’s expression shifted drastically as his figure flickered in an impossible direction, appearing right in front of the bullet.
However, the black hue surrounding the projectile unfurled into a pair of vivid black wings—the bullet turned toward an empty space beside Medanzo once again!
“The Wings of Inception!” Medanzo cried out in surprise. The monarch’s illusion burst apart like a bubble and his real body appeared—right in front of the bullet!
The black wings carried the origin bullet quietly into Medanzo’s left abdomen. The Lightless Monarch’s figure suddenly became distorted and fluctuant, almost as though he were in a soap bubble. His expression made it clear that he was in great pain, almost as though he were screaming silently.
The distortion lasted but a moment before his figure disappeared along with all the illusions.
Of course, Qianye wasn’t going to think that he had blasted the man to oblivion. Medanzo had obviously fled, and it was hard to say how much damage the shot had done.
Qianye stood up atop one of the stone pillars and scanned the battlefield, hoping to find any traces of Medanzo.
“No need to look, I’m here.” The Lightless Monarch’s voice echoed behind him.
Qianye slowly turned around, unfl.u.s.tered by the sudden development, and found three Medanzos in front of him. After careful observation, he had to admit that it was difficult to tell them apart even at this distance. Even in Qianye’s origin-power vision, the imagery was exactly the same. It would seem that this was the apex of his domain, capable of producing two illusions that could even deceive the Eye of Control.
Qianye said slowly, “Is this the real Lightless Monarch in front of me?”
“Two of them are fake and one is real. You wouldn’t be standing here, either, if they were all fake.” Medanzo sounded pretty calm.
Medanzo’s gaze changed very subtly when Dragonsgrave vanished. A flash of anger appeared in his expression as he glanced at the azure blade. “That shot I can endure. It’s quite the feat for you to be able to utilize Andruil’s secret art to this level. Unfortunately, the man himself is gone, and as his successor, you will follow suit.”
Qianye shook the blade in his hand. “Everyone will die one day, and the vampire race will fall in time. Since all paths lead to the same outcome, why not live with dignity while alive? Is it fun being the lapdog of a different race?”
Medanzo was furious. “What do you know? You’re just a little bastard who has never seen the Sacred Mountain before! Only those at the highest peak can see the truth of this world. Andruil is an exception, he became stupid because of his infatuation with that human girl. If things had kept going the way he wanted it, the entire Sacred Mountain would’ve been destroyed by now!”
“Andruil’s position, whether as the Black-Winged Monarch or the Lord of Evernight, is much higher than yours, no? If he can’t see the truth, are you saying you can see it?” Qianye mocked mercilessly.
Who would’ve thought Medanzo would remain unfazed by this. “I couldn’t see, that’s why I chose to trust those who can. For instance, the Demon King and the Queen.”
“You betrayed the Queen! What gall!”
“Time will prove who the real traitor is. At the very least, compared to Andruil, I’m the one who has the vampire race’s interests in mind.”
Qianye gripped the azure sword tightly. “You wouldn’t massacre your comrades if you had the vampire race in mind, nor would you stab Reynold in the back. You wouldn’t lead the remainder of the vampires to become the demonkin’s dogs! I might only be half-vampire, but for Nighteye and Reynold, I will not let you remain alive in this world! Lightless Monarch Medanzo, your eternal dream ends here!”
Medanzo sneered as he pointed at the azure sword. “Trying to kill me with Howard’s little toy? This sword could do nothing against me in Howard’s hands, are you saying it’s more powerful in yours?”
“I told you that shot didn’t do much damage! I might’ve fled if it was Andruil who unfurled the Wings of Inception, but you’re not qualified. Your blood energy is rather strange, but it’s not enough to be a threat.”
When all was said and done, the Lightless Monarch Medanzo was still a second-generation primogenitor. His dark purple blood energy might be inferior to Qianye’s dark golden blood energy, but its grade was also extremely high. Considering the home ground and numbers advantage, he could keep Qianye’s origin power at bay for the time being.
“That means you took the shot f.o.r.c.i.b.l.y in order to lure me out?”
“Smart. I didn’t think it was you at first, I thought it was some human bastard hiding behind the natives. Who would’ve thought I’d catch such a big fish?”
Qianye sneered. “Well, I say you thought you’d be able to dodge the shot.”
Medanzo snorted heavily. “Insolence! So what if you managed to hit me once, can you escape now? Perhaps you can try taking a one out of three chance and see if you can find my real body. Of course, you’ll die if you lose this bet.”
Qianye became much calmer. “You thought I didn’t know your plan to lure me out? Also, you didn’t know that I only wanted to weaken you with that shot. Now that you’ve been weakened, you can forget about leaving here alive. That’s because the grand finale isn’t the azure sword, but the Red Spider Lily.”
Seeing the legendary revolver appear in Qianye’s hand, a look of utter terror washed over Medanzo’s countenance. “How come it’s in your hands?! Why did you not use it against Progia?!”
A pair of black wings appeared behind Qianye and much smaller ones on the Red Spider Lily. Space transformed as the trigger was pulled—everything was rippling, as though they were looking at this world through the surface of a windy lake.
An origin bullet then flew out from the Red Spider Lily and shattered the mirrors!
