Above the endless snowy plain, Malpas transformed into a black eagle and broke through the blizzard. He flew into the sky, angrily chewing the sun. However, the sun hung high in the air like a taunt.
Lola’s gentle voice sang amidst the endless wind and snow. “I see three suns in the sky. I stare at them and they stare back as if they don’t wish to leave me…”
“Come out, b*tch! Come out!” Malpas roared. His feathers stood straight up and godly light shot from his eyes. It broke the hallucination but then he fell into another one.
Endless black crows poured out of thin air, brashly attacking the lone eagle. Black feathers scattered in the wind. They ate hungrily and chewed up the steel-like eagle feathers. It was Die Krähe of Wintereisse—the crow!
Crows brought the sign of death and emerged continuously. Angered, Malpas shot out his feathers, ripping through the flock of crows, shaking them away, and flying high into the sky. But no matter how he flew, he could not escape the d*mn hallucination.
Seemingly familiar scenes appeared before him; he was going in circles but the tide of crows was catching up. He was lost… It was Der Wegweiser of Wintereisse—the signpost!
Next, it was Der greise Kopf, the gray head which eroded determination; and Täuschung, the deception of countless changing illusions. Finally, amidst the hoarse singing of a seemingly-ancient musician, the power brewing in him started fading quickly. It was Der Leiermann, the hurdy-gurdy man that could force one to a lower level!
“You f*cking clown!” Malpas roared in anger. “You maniacs playing with illusions! You dare…you dare!”
The power around him shook. With a limitless explosion of strength, he tore through the hallucinations one after another and fell into another one.
Once all twenty-four movements of Winterreise were cast, it would turn into an endless hellish loop. Last time, Lola had just done it casually and the dark musician was practically dazed. He had assimilated into the illusion and disappeared!
The Blue Moon was born on the night of the full moon. It was the peak of Lola’s strength. All knew that Illusion musicians would definitely die when forced to fight face to face. However, once the enemy fell into an illusion, he would be the one to die.
After days of detailed arranging, she and Ye Qingxuan had left an immense amount of mediums. Once illuminated by the Blue Moon, the hallucination’s power would be at its max.
The Distortion level music theory wrapped around Malpas tightly, forcing him to fly around like a headless fly, unable to escape. Because she had all the Deva’s blood she needed, Lola was able to throw away her worries and put her all in! The terrifying illusion ability inherited from “Moon Chant” was deep in her bones. Lola was able to toy with the big demon after her detailed calculations. It was difficult to maintain for long but she could temporarily trap this godly demon in her illusion.
Between layers of shadows, Lola sneered. She guided the deathly rays of the Blue Moon, blurred the difference between hallucination and reality, and used all her power!
“Are big demons scary?” She chuckled. “I was like that before…”
–
In the Elizabeth Tower, Naberius was at the brink of defeat. His right hand was completely hacked off by the bone saw. He was failing.
Six new wounds opened on his body instantly. He was practically cut apart. Roaring, he tore off the face on the back of his head and hurled it at the Butcher. It flew through the air and stuck onto the Butcher’s damaged armor.
Whistling, it exploded. A giant bloody vortex appeared in thin air. Like the mouth of the abyss, it closed abruptly and chewed.
Crack! Steel cracked apart and the armor shattered. A giant gaping hole opened in the Butcher’s abdomen. Hot blood poured out. This was a fatal hit but the Butcher did not care. He forced his bone saw out—boom! He pierced through Naberius’ chest. The flesh exploded and Naberius could not mend the hole.
The youth passed the Butcher. Moonlight covered his cane and he pierced into the chest. Naberius’ body shook with the explosion that followed. He fell out of his demonic state and returned to his original appearance. He fell to the ground pathetically, four limbs up.
Ye Qingxuan stepped onto his shattered chest, prodding his face with the cane. He said coldly, “Naberius, your side lost.”
In the pool of blood, Naberius was a mess of flesh. He forced his remaining eye open and squinted at the youth, trying to see clearly. When he heard the youth’s words, he could not help but laugh.
His shattered lungs writhed and he spat out fresh blood. In comparison, his laugh was pathetic and mournful, but also mocking. “You still…don’t understand…”
His throat was sliced. One could see his vocal chords shaking as strands of blood flew out. “I’m just a clown to Hyakume, Mr. Holmes. Who would gamble everything on a clown? Did you forget something?”
Bone stuck out of his face but he still managed a smile, mocking both himself and Ye Qingxuan. “The true winner has already reached the top. The Royal Musician Division that you put all your hope on…they’ve probably been massacred.”
Ye Qingxuan blanched but quickly grew furious.
Seeing his anger, Naberius laughed loudly, bloody spittle flying out. “We already have the power in our hands… Ha! Ha! Ha!” Amidst the maniacal laughter, his heart shattered. Blood poured out, melting his body and taking his laughter into the cracks of the tiles.
Ye Qingxuan could not stop the sudden change—this *sshole still had a backup plan! But Ye Qingxuan did not care anymore. He threw down most of his medicine and bandages; he did not even have time to care for the fatally wounded Butcher. His nerves were on fire.
The Butcher waved his hand, motioning for Ye Qingxuan to leave. He tore apart his broken armor and expertly gave himself emergency first aid.
Ye Qingxuan had already sprinted out the door. The entire way, he could only see charred black ruins. The bodies of dark musicians and royal musicians were everywhere. Every room was covered in blood, looking menacing and sad.
No, no, no, no! Gritting his teeth, Ye Qingxuan’s expression darkened. He kicked down door after door, flipping through the bodies.
It’ll be okay if there’s no body. No news is good news. He comforted himself again and again but he could not push down the feeling of anger and failure. Crazed, he kicked aside all obstacles and sped up. God help you, Bench Guy, please be okay!
Boom! Ye Qingxuan kicked down the last door and found…it was a dead end. He had reached the end—the top of the Elizabeth Tower.
In the coldness and gales of the high elevation, cold moonlight illuminated the ghastly blood at the top of the tower. Corpses lay scattered around the sacrificial altar in the center. They had been fighting even to their death. He could find signs of suicide and the dark red stains of evaporated blood. They had…all died.
He was too late.
Ye Qingxuan lost all strength and practically collapsed.
“F*ck! F*ck! F*ck! F*ck!”
Naberius’ maniacal laughter sounded in his mind. Roaring, Ye Qingxuan flipped through the corpses, looking through the unfamiliar faces over and over again.
Finally, he stopped and froze.
“Bench Guy…”
Gavin lay in a pool of blood under two bodies. His chest was dyed red; his steel gray eyes were blank and reflected the moonlight.
Ye Qingxuan touched his neck. He could still feel some warmth. Gavin was still alive!
Overjoyed, Ye Qingxuan almost cheered. He pulled out all his medicine and began injecting them into Gavin’s veins.
“You have to live!” he muttered frantically. Drenched in sweat, he pressed onto Gavin’s chest again and again. He cast electricity with his hands to give the weak heart some strength.
Finally, Gavin’s blank eyes trembled. His body convulsed as he was shocked awake.
“Don’t come over!” As if finally breaking free from a nightmare, he stared at Ye Qingxuan in sheer terror and screamed, “Don’t come over!”
“Bench Guy, it’s okay, it’s me!”
Ye Qingxuan grabbed his hand but then it loosened. The arm fell from Gavin’s sleeves. The blood on the wound was already dry. He gaped; Gavin’s right hand had been broken long ago.
“Ye…zi?” Gavin seemed to finally recognize Ye Qingxuan. Unrestrainable terror appeared in his eyes and he enveloped Ye Qingxuan. “Natural catastrophe! Yezi, you gotta go! It’s the natural catastrophe! It’s here!”
Natural catastrophe? Ye Qingxuan froze but his expressions changed quickly. Then a crisp sound came from his arms.
Snick!
Ye Qingxuan stiffened. Looking down in confusion, he saw the dagger sticking out of his chest. Gavin was holding the handle with his unharmed right hand. The blade had been pushed through all the defenses and flesh. Now, he finally felt the cold pain of his heart being cut apart. It felt unrealistic.
“Bench Guy?” Ye Qingxuan looked up in confusion. “What…are you doing?”
“Yezi, I told you not to come. Why didn’t you listen?” The fear and terror disappeared from Gavin’s face. His gray eyes recovered its coldness as he studied the youth. His voice was gentle and clear, elegant as always as he said, “Mr. Holmes, you hurt my heart.”
Ye Qingxuan flinched. Finally understanding, he chuckled bitterly. “It’s you…” When it dawned on him, he uttered, “Robin.”
“It’s you…Robin.” Ye Qingxuan saw the truth that he had ‘overlooked.’”So it’s you, Gavin.” He had been looking for the Robin for such a long time but he had never thought that the Robin would be hidden so close to him. So close they had become such good friends.
He should have known that no place in Avalon would have a musician so well-versed in Summoning and Modifications other than the School of Royalty. Why did Gavin, from the School of Royalty, only show his attainment in Modifications and never Summoning?
Other than the royal musicians who had Galahad’s help, who else would be able to escape from Moonlight that night in the asylum? This was how it was…
It was so natural yet felt so sudden when he realized the truth. It was so sudden that Ye Qingxuan…wanted to cry.
“When?” the youth asked tiredly, “When did you discover me?”
“The school anniversary day. You used Bolero the first time we met. That was your only flaw.”
“As expected, showing off isn’t a good habit.” Ye Qingxuan laughed at himself. “So you didn’t approach me because you liked me?”
“Yeah.” Gavin nodded and lowered his eyes. “But I was telling the truth when I said I’m jealous of you.”
He let go and Ye Qingxuan collapsed. Blood flowed out soundlessly. Ye Qingxuan looked up at the moonlight from the pool of blood. He just wanted to laugh. Laugh at himself, laugh at his naivety…
“I thought…we were friends.”
“We are but why wouldn’t you listen?” Gavin’s eyes were upset. “I already warned you, didn’t I? We would still be friends if you stayed in the academy, Yezi. As long as you didn’t come, we’d be friends forever.”
“That’s great.” The youth panted weakly. “I didn’t die in the hands of a friend.”
“Yes, how can the Robin and the Vengeful Spirit be friends?” Gavin closed his eyes sadly. When he opened them again, only coldness remained. He yanked the dagger out. Blood poured out onto him. They dyed the steel gray eyes red.
“Farewell, Yezi,” Gavin said quietly as he walked across the youth. “Someone as naïve as you doesn’t suit this dirty world.”
The youth lay in the spreading blood and sank into darkness. However, Gavin—no, Robin—changed into his blood-colored ceremonial robe. He climbed the corpses to reach the highest point.
The crystal eye in his hand caught the moonlight and shone with cold light. The light fell upon the enchantment of Avalon. When it fell on the tip of the Elizabeth Tower, the enormous white tower boomed and shook. Above the sacrificial altar at the tip, a huge hole opened up. The entire tower trembled and whined as if it was about to break apart. Darkness poured from the hole.
The container held down by layers of metal chains lifted, escaping the restrictions. Finally, it emerged from the darkness to see the moonlight. The cold song sounded once again.
“The king and helpers kidnapped the queen, imprisoning her in dreams…” Something was singing softly inside the small metal coffin. It carried centuries of hate and desolate; its voice was gentle yet lonely.
Gavin’s dagger flashed. He brought it down, hacking away the seal covered in metallic paste. The coffin shattered. Clear fluid shook inside the glass beaker within. The moonlight illuminated the charred oddly-shaped infant.
The wounds on its ruined face slowly opened and closed, singing the chilling song. Gavin stared enthusiastically at it. He pressed against the glass, feeling the power within.
“After all these centuries, you’re still alive. What kind of power did Arthur give you?”
As if sensing the living organism close to it, the infant cracked its eyes open. The eyes were empty and cold with the natural arrogance and eeriness of demons.
“Drink and enjoy the fountain of life!”
Gavin cracked the seal open. Cackling, he slit his wrist. Fresh blood flowed into the crack. It diffused and drowned Mordred’s body. All that remained was a faint shadow.
In the blood, the strange shadow began to distort and grow. It absorbed the blood and grew rapidly. After waiting for hundreds of years, it finally came to this cold world.
The lycoris flower fluid bubbled and the cracks of the container extended quickly before finally shattering. The song grew clearer and clearer. It echoed in all directions, making anyone pale. It grew from a weak man’s voice to the roars of countless demons. The song resounded in the darkness, transforming into a majestic ode and the frenzied song of revenge!
“…its key has been inserted in the case. The demon will realize our dreams. The bell has already rung in the cemetery. Did you hear the eerie song? Respond to our calls, the blood debt will be paid… Oh ho, raise the sails, we’ll return home. Pull, the thieves and beggars, we will be immortal in death!”
Be immortal in death.
Under the cold moonlight, the ball of boiling blood suddenly shattered, evaporated, and disappeared. In mid-air, the cold and handsome boy slowly opened his eyes. The orbs seemed to contain endless thunder and fire. One could not meet his eyes.
Within a few snaps of the finger, he had recovered from his burned state. He grew quickly and already looked to be seven or eight years old. His gold hair danced under the cold moonlight. He was ineffably strange and majestic. The rebellious child who had been sealed away for centuries had finally arrived to the world from death!
Mordred looked up slowly. He gazed at the moonlight and smiled with malice. Reaching out, he clenched a fist. Gold light flashed in his hand and countless demonic apparitions appeared!
It was the Chapter of the Golden Victory!
Boom! Waves crashed in the sea of aether! Mournful cracks appeared on the Elizabeth Tower. Its core shattered abruptly. The entire Avalon’s Shadow began to quake violently. The enchantment was collapsing!
The enchantment that had enveloped this golden city for centuries was now like a candle in the wind. It quickly died away in Mordred’s hand. The collapse quickly moved from the shadow to reality.
Everyone felt the ocean’s cry, the earthquake, and the cracks on the Elizabeth Tower. The faint glow enveloping the night sky extinguished rapidly; the aether rippled wildly, signaling the coming of darkness.
Avalon had lost all protection.
However, deep inside Avalon’s Shadow, darkness was quickly dissipating along with the thick and endless fog. The bell rang and echoed through the city of darkness.
At the highest point of the city, the gate chained by layers of darkness and fog suddenly opened! The gate of the palace had opened!
And in the endless darkness deep inside the layers of doors, the throne was burning. A pair of sleeping eyes slowly opened a crack within the flames.
The sleeper was about to awaken.
–
“Yezi?” For a moment, Lola felt a sudden heart palpitation. Deep inside the hallucination, she spun around. The marker she had put on Ye Qingxuan suddenly disappeared—the resonance was over and the heart of sound had dissipated. What had happened?
The angry Blue Moon lit up inside her eyes. She scanned the dark city, seeing layers of corpses and demons dancing within the blood and ruins. And the youth awaiting death at the top of the tower.
“Ye…zi?” She froze. The surrounding moonlight went out of control and flashed. Immense hatred and gloominess appeared in her eyes. Darkness surged and the demonic blood within her roared.
Who did it?
The moonlight burned like the sun. It became tangible outside the hallucination and the blade swept across Avalon’s Shadow. In its path, demons were split apart, their blood absorbed by the moonlight, and transformed into cold dust.
Who did it?!
She screamed and her broken scepter appeared around her. She performed her symphony of predestination again and transformed into a towering shadow. This was the god that the moon spirits worshipped—the physical incarnation of the Blue Moon.
Her scepter was the Dark Side of the Moon!
The insubstantial shadow shook and dissipated. The broken scepter broke once again. A crack appeared across Lola’s face. She spun around and looked inside the hallucination.
Malpas was no longer flying. He had stopped in mid-air, allowing the hallucinations to eat away at him and drag him in. Countless eagle feathers floated above the thousands of black feathers. It all transformed into a black vortex. He was going to…give up!
The moment he felt the Avalonian enchantment end, his restrained power suddenly shot to the peak of the Distortion level. He distorted the hallucination and rays of light as if they were real. However, this guy did not think of turning the tides when he recovered his ability. Instead, he chose to…give up?!
Malpas’ body swelled rapidly because his blood absorbed the aether. It bubbled as if boiling. Each feather contained burning power that could wipe an entire street off the map.
“I offer this feather to you, the creator of all, Eagle Wing Mother!” Murmuring hoarsely, he recited, “I offer this blood and bone to the mighty followers of the darkness; I give this soul to the almighty lord!”
“He has arrived!”
“He has arrived!!”
“He has arrived!!!”
The wild incantation came from the black vortex. His screams lifted wild waves in the nothingness of the aether sea. The power that had shot upward from the Distortion level now transformed into flames that burned the hallucination. The endless snow field and blizzard were ignited instantly, turning this place into a hell.
Deep within the hell, Malpas had swelled to his limits. The giant eagle that wanted to swallow everything radiated with light and fire. He burned himself endlessly, transforming into an aggressive sun.
The overlapping music theory shattered and the hallucination scattered. Huge tremors traveled thousands of miles with the broken music theory and crashed onto Lola.
She shook. Slicing the air with her fingers, the music theory suddenly disappeared. The dozens of demons trapped in cages around her suddenly shook and died with an explosion.
Blood trickled out of her openings. Her entire body jolted violently as her moon spirit blood boiled. She could barely control it.
Demons were maniacs after all. They would explode without any forewarning. If she had not retreated in time, she would have been swept into that ball of light and burned to death as well.
Before she could catch her breath in the dark alley, she injected the remaining Deva’s blood into her body to forcefully cover her wounds. Gritting her teeth and holding onto the wall, she stumbled toward the slowly crumbling white tower.
Yezi, you must live. If you die…if you die… She lowered her eyes. Sharp fangs pierced her scarlet lips. Then let this entire city die with you!
–
In the heavens, Malpas finally burned completely inside the sun. His body transformed into a black vortex that endlessly sucked in the aether and exploded. However, a heraldry appeared in the center of the vortex—the Eyes Within the Eye.
The skies and earth shook! The vortex pierced the boundary between light and shadow and opened a crack that led straight to the abyss. And within the abyss, something…was coming!
“Am I finally going to die?”
He was at the top of the white tower, the highest point of the dark city. It was silent amidst the corpses. The Robin and Mordred had gone. Only the youth was alone in his puddle of blood. He had given up on struggling.
Emergency sewing was useless. He had not learned any healing scores and they would be useless too. As for the medicine, he had eaten them all and they were useless. In other words, he had tried everything to no avail.
His heart had completely shattered and the poison had spread to all his organs. He had lost two-thirds of his blood. Ye Qingxuan lay in the warm blood and stared at the sky. He felt himself going closer and closer to death.
“It’s so quiet.”
Gazing at the darkening world, he unexpectedly did not feel any fear. He only felt regret. There were so many things he had not done and so many things he had not said.
A pity. It was such a pity…
Faint footsteps sounded in the silence. The footsteps walked through the puddles of blood and stopped beside him. Clear eyes looked down on him.
“Ye Qingxuan, you’re dying soon.” The faraway voice sounded in his heart. It seemed like a hallucination but was so familiar. However, he could no longer hear it clearly.
“To be honest, I don’t want this either but I can’t do anything, Ye Qingxuan. No one is immortal.”
“Are there no other ways? I think I can be saved.”
“Ye Qingxuan, you can’t be saved.” The comer gazed at him pitifully and shook his head sadly. “I’ll miss the days we played marbles together.”
“Really? Seems like there aren’t any solutions.” Ye Qingxuan closed his eyes in regret. “I’m sorry. It’s been so long but I never asked your name.”
“Gawain,” they said. “You can call us Gawain.”
“Gawain?” The youth sank slowly into darkness. “Since you can read my mind, can you help me leave some final words?”
“Yes,” Gawain agreed. “Anything else?”
“Take…my heart out…”
–
Late at night, the waves of Avalon were abnormally angry.
First, the rumbling from the Elizabeth Tower sounded throughout the city, shocking everyone from their dreams. However, they then sank into another nightmare.
Next, the enchantment of Avalon collapsed. The entire city fell into chaos. Without the restrictions of the enchantment, the heaviness of aether rose rapidly. Within a few hours, the white safe zone had become a yellow zone. It even showed signs of becoming a red zone.
The Musician Union and Church had acted and activated their own enchantments. However, they hardly had an effect. Who would have expected that the century-old enchantment would collapse?
Then a black sun appeared in the sky. The chaotic vortex of Avalon’s Shadow emerged and hung above the moon. It swallowed everything and emanated the thick aura of the abyss.
Every musician’s heart shook. They were afraid any movement would cause their souls to be tainted by the aura. Every connection and message to the outside world was suddenly cut off… Right now, Avalon had truly become a lonely island in the sea.
However, a man sitting on a bench in the dark alley of the chaotic downtown slowly opened his eyes. Outside the alley, the noise of metal scraping sounded.
Hundreds, thousands… The military had acted at this critical moment. At least a small battalion now rushed into downtown. They raised their shields and were covered in armor as if they were stepping onto the battlefield. Their spears reflected the cold moonlight.
Endless clangs of metal sounded in all directions. Countless people swarmed over. Their eyes were filled with cold murderous intent. Their steel boots crushed all obstacles; the rumbling rang in their ears.
“It seems that the parliament…has finally acted.” Coldness flashed through Ghosthand’s eyes. He looked back at the closed door. “Sir, it’ll be too late if we don’t go now.”
The dark room behind him was silent. The Shaman opened his eyes as if he had woken from a dream. “Let’s wait a bit longer,” he said and closed his eyes again.
The darkness was still.
Taken aback, Ghosthand sighed in frustration.
“Is this what you mean by ‘guard the door and don’t let anyone in’?” Ghosthand rubbed his face and sighed. “Mr. Shaman, this is an entire armored battalion. Your command is a bit hard to follow.”
Clunk, clunk, clunk. The locks snapped. The black glove restricting his invisible arm fell onto the floor.
The cold light of metal appeared at the entrance of the alley. The incoming heavy-armed military hoisted their spears and aimed at the old man before them.
Amongst the group of soldiers, someone yelled, “Kill him! Kill him! Drag the Shaman out. Anyone who fights back will die!” The wizened man with a hunchback waved the heraldry in his hands and yelled, “These are the Queen’s orders! Do not be doubtful and follow the command!”
Elegance and grace no longer existed in Ingmar. His hair had practically all fallen out during these short few days, revealing his spotted scalp. With his hunchback, he looked decades older.
The immense withered flower medicine cured his mental illness but also twisted his mind, causing him to become heavily addicted. Within the short few days, he had sunk to this crazy state. He would obediently follow any command if his mind was filled with hints, no matter how strange it was. He was like a ragged puppet.
“What are you waiting for? Hurry! Hurry!” he yelled and hurried them like a clown.
The mind of the commander beside him was clearly controlled. He sat woodenly on his horse. Hearing Ingmar’s orders, he raised his hand and pressed down.
Boom! The armored soldiers stepped forward in unison, charging like a forest. They shattered the wall and crumbled the tiles as they pushed toward the lonely old man.
“We’re…starting now? At least let me get ready.” Ghosthand was taken aback. He quickly ripped a piece from his shirt and tied up his graying hair. His face was filled with regret. “I should’ve drank some wine.”
His muddled eyes raised and reflected the wailing and growling battalion.
Ghosthand licked his lips. “Give me some blood…”
–
Ten minutes before, the sound of metal scraping sounded in the center of the city swallowed by fog and darkness. In the heavy fog, a large door suddenly appeared. Before it, all men were as insignificant as dust. One could vaguely see a terrifying shadow between the tightly closed crack.
“What…is this?” Charles’s voice almost cracked.
“What else can it be? It’s the palace.” Jerome tossed a piece of paper into his arms. “Don’t waste time. If Gavin fails, there won’t be time for you to hesitate. You have to create a defense with fifteen people and four-hundred spears of Mary. Newton promised that you can do it. I hope you won’t disappoint me.”
“That’s impossible!” Charles shook his head in shock. “Do you know how many calculations I have to do for the defense fulcrums of four hundred spears in such a big place? You need to at least give me a manually-powered calculator.”
An aether ball was tossed into his arms. “You have four minutes and forty-five seconds.”
“An aether ball is useless!” Charles threw the aether ball in anger but then picked it up again. “Whatever, it’s better than nothing. F*ck, there’s even the Tetris that we developed. Your score is pretty high.”
“You still have four minutes and thirty seconds.”
“Okay, I’m working now. Shut up, old man.” Charles glared at him. His expression was crude and frustrated as if he was glaring at an idiot who was disrupting his work.
Taken aback, Jerome quickly looked away. “Whatever.”
He spread a few feet of paper on the ground. Charles used the aether ball as light and studied the complex map and aether parameters. He was immobile as if he had turned to stone.
No one spoke in the silence. The only sound was his heavy breathing. His pupils trembled as he scanned the map over and over. Sweat seeped from his neck and forehead, rolled down his chin, and dripped onto the map, leaving wet trails.
Three minutes.
Swallowing thickly, he took out his pen. After short hesitation, he quickly pressed down and drew three overlapping ovals on the map. The palace was the center of the ovals.
He rapidly marked the parameters and positions with scrawled handwriting amidst the fine ink blots. He focused entirely on it to the point of forgetting his surroundings.
Two minutes.
He tossed his pen to the side. The sound attracted Jerome’s attention. He looked back and saw Charles, collapsed on the ground, and the map filled with markings.
“Done.” Charles glared at him and panted. “What are you looking at? I’m awesome when I get serious.”
Two minutes and fifteen seconds. He was so fast!
Jerome’s eye twitched. He waved and the royal musicians with sealed weapons quietly disappeared into the fog.
Sharp sounds came continuously from the still mist. It was the sound of long nails being driven into the ground.
“You’re even more amazing than what Newton described.” Jerome stood before the towering gates and looked back at him. “No wonder you’re the genius of the Royal Research Institute. Your calculation abilities are incredible.”
Charles shook his head. “I just have a good head. There’s nothing impressive.”
…As if!
Charles actually felt guilty inside. He was drenched in sweat and now his expression froze. Have a good head? When had he ever used his brain since he started?!
Charles had used his good looks and gut feeling to survive in Avalon for so long! So basically…he had just made wild guesses for the positions.
This type of work would take a group two weeks even with a mechanically-powered calculator but he only had five minutes! What a joke? It would be easier to suddenly fly!
Thus, he became even more anxious after he turned in the results he had guessed with his instincts. If the activation was not successful, would he be killed by those angry royal musicians? And what did these *ssholes even want to do? Holding sealed weapons before the palace…did they want to pull a coup and start a revolution?
Who else would try to seal the palace?! No, this group was too weird. He had to find the chance to escape. But the moment Charles made this decision, he realized that everything was silent.
Everything was silent. Even the gradually dissipating thick fog solidified in the air. The musicians breathed heavily in the depth of the mist. Before the iron gate, Jerome took the bag from his back and opened it layer by layer. He melted the red wax of the royal seal and the broad seal to unlock the shackles.
Thus, a coarse black iron spear was revealed from the linen cloth. With dried scarlet blood on it, it was captivating. When it was swung, it howled like dragon roaring. It cut the fog but also stung the eyes.
“St. George’s spear?” Charles gasped. Something felt wrong. “Wasn’t this thing lost long ago?”
Among those few remaining artifacts which were admitted to own the power of a ‘scepter’, Anglo possessed three of them nominally. They were respectively the ‘Sword in Stone’ for governance and declaration of kingship; the ‘St. George’s Spear’ which could completely destroy the natural catastrophic dragon; as well as the ‘Holy Grail of Destruction,’ which was known as the worst and wildest deterrence. Once it was triggered, both the whole country and the enemy would go to ruin.
Among these three deadly things, the ‘Holy Grail of Destruction’ possibly did not exist in the world. The successive emperors would only tell the next successor the relative information before death. No one else in the world knew where it was.
As for the Sword in Stone, it had disappeared since the fall of King Arthur. It was claimed to be kept by the royal family but no one knew whether it was still there. St. George’s Spear had appeared once. However, it was said that ten years ago, it had disappeared too for some unknown reason. Now the spear appeared so abruptly before Charles that he temporarily could not accept it.
“This was the spare made by the current King of Black after St. George’s Spear was lost.” Jerome clenched the weapon in hand with all his strength to restrain the force that could erupt at any moment. “I never thought that I would actually use it one day.” Jerome looked determined. “I’m afraid this is the worst solution.”
“Hey! Hey!” Charles was terrified. He immediately clenched Jerome’s pant legs. “What the h*ll are you going to do, man? Don’t mess around! Can someone please tell me what the h*ll are we doing here?”
“Don’t you understand, Charles?” Jerome looked back at him with a serious look. “When necessary, we will isolate the area with a seal and then, with the power of St. George’s Spear, completely destroy Avalon’s Shadow and banish the palace to the deepest place of the aetheric world.”
“Is it necessary?” Charles was confused. “If you’re going to do this, you’ll definitely be killed by the royal family. And you’ll die in the most painful, cruelest way!”
“Rest assured. At that time, I’ll be banished forever along with the palace.”
“But I’m still here!” Charles was speechless. “I have an eighty-year-old teacher and an underage sister to care for. Can’t you just let me go? How come you don’t think about anyone else? I don’t even have a girlfriend. How unlucky am I!” He was trying to squeeze out some tears and cry, but his collar was yanked up.
“Listen, Charles!” Jerome glared with cold and solemn eyes. “Complaining can’t solve any problems. You have your own responsibility! Today, even if we all lose our lives, we shall not allow those d*mned dark musicians to…to defile His Majesty’s remains! Understand?”
Charles froze. “Re-remains?”
“Hundreds of years ago, His Majesty failed. ‘Kingdom Come’ fell into the Shadow and the westernmost line of humanity was crumbling—since then the royal family had tried all means and sacrificed many people to maintain this fragile balance.
“Now, His Majesty’s throne and remnants is the core of Anglo’s security. Once this security collapses, all the sacrifices of hundreds of years would all be in vain.” Jerome’s voice was resolute and hoarse like rubbing metal. “We will make every effort to protect His Majesty from being transformed to a natural catastrophe by those guys!”
Bang! The whole world shook. The whole city trembled.
Burning light spread above the dark sky and illuminated Charles’s pale face. In the distance, the white tower stretching to the starry sky trembled, crumbled, and collapsed. A dark vortex turned into the sun and slowly rose into the sky. It was telling the coming of destruction. The breath from the abyss descended from the sky.
“What a shame.” Jerome lowered his eyes. “It seems that we have no time to hesitate.”
In his hands, the dark sacred spear dug into the ground. The earth echoed as if the dragon sleeping underground woke up and roared with wrath.
Around the palace, the spears of Mary wedged into the earth on the dozens of fulcrums. They roared with a sharp resonance. Lightning projected and hot light connected to each other, which turned into a huge matrix of melting gold.
As Abraham had said, Charles was a genius, and there was no one who had more gifts than him on the musician’s path. He could find the best fulcrums merely using his guts.
The four hundred spears of Mary trembled. They resonated and projected electric light among each other. On every fulcrum, there was royal musician in black, chanting the movement.
“…It’s me, I shall confess with my hands and feet in Hell.”
They cut their wrists and their blood fell into the earth. The blood spread under the chant, flowing like a snake into the vast matrix. Life passed in that rapidly growing power. The resolute musicians chanted hoarsely. “My soul shall be whipped and shackled, as you have suffered…”
Passion.
This was the movement for the martyrs of saints. They offered their lives in exchange for the miraculous melody. Once it was triggered, their lives would be forever buried in a dark world whether they would succeed or not. The vast enchantment started from the fulcrum and covered the entire palace in a twinkling. The palace was totally isolated.
Before the enchantment, Jerome held St. George’s Spear. The majesty that could overwhelm everything surfaced silently on the blade.
Charles almost suffocated. He raised his hand and shouted hoarsely. “Hey, old man, don’t be impulsive. Wait!”
“Gavin has the Royal Musician Division’s resonating bell. It’s enough to temporarily borrow the power of all the royal musicians outside of Avalon, including the four grandmasters besides me…If he fails, then we have no other choice.” Jerome lowered his head toward the slowly opening gate and the shadow on the burning throne. “I’m sorry, Your Majesty. If I am a sinner of Anglo, please let me accompany you in Hell forever.”
He grasped his spear and lifted it up with all his strength. Thus, the magnificent movement burst out of thin air. In the void, countless souls praised together as if divine power fell from the sky. It ran in the water, land, fire, and wind. It had created all and could now destroy all as well.
The heart of Avalon’s Shadow roared and shook.
Outside of the kingdom of shadows, the grandmasters of the Royal Musician Division closed their eyes and resonated with each other in the dark room. They injected all the power into Jerome’s body so that he would not be quickly burned out by the horrible flame.
Jerome was covered with mournful wounds by the terrible power. Blood flowed but soon evaporated. Above his head, the ring of the aether that resonated with the world surfaced silently. It glowed and trembled. Overwhelmed by that terrifying power, it was about to crumble.
“May all glory be vested in Anglo. May we rest in this great glory,” he roared. Grasping his spear, he thrust it down his feet.
It was earth shattering.
Amidst the booms, blazing light projected from the spear. Twisted ripples appeared around the vast enchantment that enveloped the palace. The shadow world had been distorted and was about to be completely torn apart.
Vigorous power emerged from Jerome’s body and melted into the holy spear. It was going to throw the palace into the depths of the aetheric world, making it vanish from this world forever.
Charles’ body was lifted by the power like a fallen leaf. He floated in the air, involuntarily flipping. He forced himself to look back at Jerome’s shadow.
Enveloped in a frenzy of flames, Jerome held the holy spear high. Before the holy spear, the music theory within Avalon’s Shadow broke apart layer by layer.
But at that moment everything became still.
The flames solidified in the air, the blast became stagnate in the air, the cracks stopped spreading, and the rumbling stopped. Everything stopped in the sudden stillness. It was as if time was at a standstill.
Charles gazed at the gravels hovering before him. All he felt was fear in the depth of his heart—at that moment, everything in Avalon’s Shadow ceased. Everything seemed to be rooted to the spot, unable to move. Even the magnificent aetheric sea solidified under this terrible majesty. This was the most extreme example of Modifications. It was a force terrifying beyond human imagination.
In the dark vortex overhead, a hand slowly stretched out.
It pressed into the void.
So everything stopped in time.
“He has arrived!”
“He has arrived!”
“He has arrived!”
The dark musicians enthusiastically praised, cheering and dancing. They offered blood and bones, water and earth, souls and the life of their prey to welcome his coming.
Having planned for decades, consumed countless treasures and accumulations, and Malpas’s resolute sacrifice, they finally exchanged the coming of the ‘power.’
It was a terrible shadow cast from the aetheric world; it was the incarnation of the abyss.
It was the root of all evils, the master of darkness, the mother of chaos, the king of destruction and killing. The God who ruled all the sources of darkness of this world—the natural catastrophe Hyakume!
God’s incarnate had descended. Thus, a frenzied song of destruction played in the world in the shadows.
When that hand reached out, the dark vortex immediately collapsed silently. All the power was drawn by that palm to turn itself into a faint figure. There seemed to be layers of curtains in the middle. The shadow was so vague but kept disturbing the surrounding music theory. Everything it passed all fell into the black zone of the rioting aether.
The dark area trembled, making the figure seem especially unreal. This was the resistance of Avalon’s Shadow.
Here was Arthur’s scepter, the fallen ‘Heaven on Earth.’ Its music theory rejected the invasion of external forces. The immense presence in the aetheric world could not enter the physical world. If he wanted to pass through that door, he must suppress his power from the level of God and truly become his incarnate.
That figure huffed coldly. The aura of the abyss changed violently. Instantly, countless music theories interweaved. When the terrifying aura was gone, the figure grew gradually clearer after the blurry illusion.
An old face first emerged. That weathered face had thirty-two faces. They changed constantly but were full of gloom and deceit. The two eyes were overwhelming like an abyss. He wore a vague robe that contained the splendor and majesty of the world. He was one of the nine incarnations of Hyakume in the World, the king of change and chaos—the Dark Lord.
He stepped into the void, walked toward the direction of the palace step by step leisurely. Looking at Jerome’s stagnant figure, he sneered.
“Presumptuous.”
Boom! The frozen world broke free from the shackles and began moved again. But under the rumbling, everything was different from before. The enchantment collapsed instantly. All the royal musicians were fatally wounded and bled from all openings. The matrix of the spears of Mary fell apart. This was only from the aftershock.
Jerome’s body warped. The symphony of predestination brewing in his heart broke immediately. The ring of resonance disintegrated and dense blood mist spouted from the body. He collapsed to the ground soundlessly. The sacred spear fell from his hands and rolled in the pool of blood.
The Dark Lord fell upon the Earth. Gavin, dressed in a red robe, knelt. The dark musicians knelt as well and dared not move. The Dark Lord passed his disciples and went toward the palace.
At the end of the line, Naberius shook and twitched. He forced himself to raise his head and look at the approaching shadow. He made his all effort to ask with his hoarse voice, “I’ve met my promise! After sixty years of penance, where is my freedom?!”
The Dark Lord passed by without looking at him. A finger pointed vaguely between his eyebrows. The hoarse voice said, “As you expect, clown, you are free.”
Naberius only heard a snap in the brain. Blood flowed down his face, tragically and pathetically. He bowed his head, vomiting blood, but he could not help but smile in ecstasy. The shackles that had restrained him more than sixty years had disappeared.
He lowered his head and grinned widely. “Well, what else can I do, your Majesty?”
“These realms are beyond thou. Thou shall only look up.” The Dark Lord laughed disdainfully and thoughtfully gazed at the dark palace ahead. “Witness the wonders of the world! A new member of the ‘dark followers’ is born!”
–
“Hey, are you alright? How can you die so easily? At least struggle a bit!” Charles shook Jerome’s body in the pool of blood. “You couldn’t act cool for more than three seconds! How can you go?”
Jerome was still breathing. He opened his eyes with difficulty and vomited foul blood. The theory of the abyss was lingering in his body, dragging him into the Hell. He was rapidly aging and dying.
“Wait a minute. I’ll treat you right away.” Charles wanted to bandage Jerome but he froze. He did not know where to start. He did not even know how Jerome was hurt.
“It’s no use.” Jerome was very weak now. “Charles, nothing can save me.”
“Then what will I do?” Charles wanted to cry. “You all pretended to be cool, but why do you have to take me with when you die! Help! Help! If anyone can help me, I’ll marry them.”
“Shut up.” Jerome’s face was pale with wrath. He vomited more blood but stared at Charles seriously. “Can you be a man? Charles, where is your dignity? You shout for help but who’s going to save you?”
“If I believe it, it’ll be real.” Charles wiped his tear and choked out, “Perhaps in the next moment, my junior will descend from the sky and save me. He’s really powerful!”
“You…” Jerome kept vomiting out blood with no strength to scold him again. Then just enjoy your dream, at least you can die with hope. He lay in a pool of blood and looked wearily at the dim sky. He saw the moonlight. Among the dim stars, moonlight shone from the sky.
–
Fifteen minutes ago, the dying youth lay in a pool of blood at the top of the Elizabeth Tower. The blood was guided by an invisible power to sketch out his ‘last words.’ The scarlet blood spread like the complex branches of thorns and vines. That was the music score Moonlight.
The scarlet expanded as if there were thousands of hands moving at the same time. When the blood crossed, the aether was agitated and projected sparks. In the end, the whole tower was enveloped in this scarlet red.
Cold moonlight fell down and seemed to melt into the blood, making the blood reflect with a soft glow. The silent melody of that bloody message flowed in the moonlight, echoing in Ye Qingxuan’s mind.
“It’s so beautiful.” Ye Qingxuan gazed at the bright moon in the sky and felt the last bit of his body heat drift away. He could no longer feel the weight as if his body was flying up into the sky. However, his consciousness fell into the darkness, slowly sinking. This was the effect of the potion. The short time of lingering finally ended.
Death came quietly without pain. The lethargy gradually engulfed him and his eyes closed slowly. His breath severed and he walked into the eternal serene slumber… That was a joke! How could he be serene?! He was barely twenty years old! He would absolutely become an angry spirit. He had only been stabbed. How could he just lay down and die?
In that instant, Ye Qingxuan suddenly opened his eyes. He clenched his fists with his last strength and smashed down at the bloody movement under his body! To live or to die depended on the last fight!
Faint light brewed in the amber jewel on Jiu Xiao Huan Pei. It was like a candle in the wind. But when it fell into the blood, it turned into a wild forest fire. Lightning cracked instantly.
Indra’s Eye absorbed the blood and turned the blood of Deva into thunder and lightning. Thunder stretched to the sky, extending to all directions along with the blood.
The alchemy matrix was activated and instrument strings emerged from the thunder. They crossed and erected in the void, playing out the gloomy melody. With this frenzied thunder and blood, the melody echoed with the moonlight. Thus, moonlight descended from the sky!
The moonlight soon dispelled the Gawain’s apparition like a torrent. It melted into the bloody movement and illuminated! In that light, Ye Qingxuan trembled as if he was struck by the lightning. He yelled with great pain.
Endless moonlight rushed into his shell along with the residual blood. It melted into the aether and flowed through his veins like fire.
His body seemed to extinguish in an instant. Every inch of his flesh and blood felt severe pain. Finally, he breathed again. He regained his senses slowly. The youth’s blank eyes reflected the moon above the sky and brightened again.
The power that was stronger much more than his expectations gathered in his blood. It glowed like lava and illuminated his empty chest.
Gritting his teeth, he put his hands on Jiu Xiao Huan Pei to control the melody’s changes. He guided the moonlight and aether to rush into his shell. The cold light rushed out of the rift in his chest. Endless aether gathered in the empty chest. It brewed and gradually produced a pulsating sound. It was the construction of the sub-originator! If there was no heart, then he would just make a new one!
By losing sixty percent of his blood, Ye Qingxuan finally gathered the final moonlight and melted it into him to create the body’s source of aether. He created an interval with a present note to then create a music theory. The music theory guided the aether by overlapping. At last, the fiery power was awakened from the aether.
“As above it, as under it, so is the beginning of all things.” Based on this alchemical matrix, he was going to build a heart for himself by using the sub-originator technology!
Ye Qingxuan suddenly crushed the blood conch in his hand. So far, it was no longer useful since he had mastered the basic theory of the School of Mind and could freely enter Avalon’s Shadow. He would rather use the conch here. After all, he was creating a heart. The more the power the better it was.
In a twinkling, the essence which was condensed from thousands of people’s blood burst. It surged into Ye Qingxuan’s body and slowly and continuously transformed into the blood of Deva.
At this moment, under the stimulation of the movement, Deva’s blood was also extracting the bright moonlight greedily. The hidden strength contained in it was getting stronger and stronger. In the end, it almost glimmered.
Not only was the Pure White Moon’s light attracted, the Blue Moon was also melted into it. The two moons’ light blended in his body; the aether was transformed into a new power.
Ye Qingxuan carefully controlled the glow that was enough to destroy his body. The light gathered in his empty chest and emerged from the rift in his chest.
A gentle melody sounded under the light. It was like the sound of gentle water and soft wind. Amidst the water and wind, the moonlight’s melody lingered. All began to grow in the barren land.
It was as if all the good in the world converged here. It was so gentle and charming, fascinating.
It was the Spring Song.
The Spring Song.
It was the key movement of School of Stone Heart, the origin of sub-originator technology, as well as the mystery that could make the soul and the aether coexist in the same shell. This was not merely a pure healing movement. Under the extreme complex guidance of the theory, one could achieve the balance between two, eliminating conflicts, so that all could coexist in the realm without harm.
The original pain and suffering seemed to vanish in an instant, freeing Ye Qingxuan from the hell-like torment. In his body, the aether sewed the broken veins while singing the movement of rebirth to turn destruction into creation. For an instant, he perceived a faint resonance beneath the body.
In the Elizabeth Tower beneath him, Avalon’s vast enchantment which had already fallen apart seemed to be awakened too. The shattered core responded to the call of the Spring Song. The collapsed theory within it showed signs of recovering.
At this moment, Ye Qingxuan did not notice his surroundings. He was totally absorbed in constructing his sub-originator. If there was sweat, he must have been drenched already because the sub-originator was much more difficult to build for him.
The sub-originator should be attached to an organ in the body, but now, this was reversed. It would replace the heart’s function, so the construction was very difficult. Had it not been because of the precise operation of Jiu Xiao Huan Pei, he would have been burnt to ashes.
He continuously extracted the moonlight to make the notes appear and assemble the intervals, transforming them into music theory. Then, the sub-originator constructed in the void could become tangible. Moonlight condensed into an ethereal embryonic heart. Vast aetheric light was brewing in it.
In just a twinkling, the phantom of the heart twitched, trembled, and almost collapsed. Ye Qingxuan only felt a burst of emptiness and was immediately terrified. The aether extracted from the moonlight into the blood was not enough! He had miscalculated. Building a heart out of thin air not only had a great difficulty, but required great strength too! The moonlight he drew with the blood of Deva was quit a lot, but the consumption was also soaring. The moonlight had been completely depleted without him realizing.
The strength that he got from the moonlight on the tower was running out. However, he could not stop once he started the sub-originator construction. Otherwise, he would not only die, but die without even leaving a body behind!
“As expected, you’re flirting with death.”
A sigh came from the distance that made Ye Qingxuan practically start cheering. “Lola, come help me!”
“Yezi, you are really mean.” Lola’s eyes grew sad. She squatted down and touched the youth’s cheek. Her fair face was full of resentment and sadness. “I am so worried about you. Coming here is not easy thing, but you just greet me by turning me into a tool?”
Ye Qingxuan’s face twitched. He squeezed out, “One thousand CCs, no more than that!”
“Deal.” The resentment on Lola’s face disappeared. She revealed a charming smile. “I like a straightforward man like you.”
Before Ye Qingxuan could say anything, Lola bent down. She put her hair up and moved closer. Her eyes reflected the teenager’s startled face. A soft touch came from the lips.
As if being struck by lightning, Ye Qingxuan was unprepared and thoroughly frozen. What followed was a heavy heartbeat echoing in his brain like the deep sea. The sound was unprecedentedly clear.
With the support of Lola’s resonance, Ye Qingxuan’s range of induction was instantly enlarged a lot. Too busy to be startled, he seized the opportunity to send his mind into the Elizabeth Tower. For a moment, all he could see was…utter destruction.
Avalon’s enchantment had been forcibly destroyed from the core and was completely out of control now. The layers of music theory were deadly silent and falling apart. They were like giants who had been beheaded and were rapidly collapsing and dying.
Working in concert Spring Song, Ye Qingxuan put his mind into it. He could also feel the pain but, at this moment, there was no time for him to lament.
The world was cruel. People with pain should always help each other since they were suffering together!
Relying on the power borrowed from Lola, Ye Qingxuan suddenly pushed the stagnant enchantment forward. His will ran through the center of the disintegration. Since the moonlight that he drew by himself was not enough, he just looked for something bigger.
With his own bell authority and the music theory of the School of Stone Heart, Ye Qingxuan obtained the control of the enchantment effortlessly. Then, his will rushed into the complex music theory cycle and began to reactivate the movement!
Wasn’t it just fixing something? He had fixed things in Luther for three years!
The enchantment began falling apart more rapidly. Under Ye Qingxuan’s violent maintenance, the collapsed notes and movements were directly removed from the entire system. Ye Qingxuan demolished those things violently and removed those that could not be fixed. Since there was no possibility to repair it completely, he just robbed Peter to pay Paul!
The weakened enchantment truly suffered in the hands of someone like Ye Qingxuan. A large amount of music theories in the core were mercilessly demolished to mend the parts that were comparatively complete. He forcefully activated the dead silence.
Protection music score? Demolish! It was already so damaged that there was no use in protecting it! Climate adjustment movement? Demolish! Did anyone need a rainstorm for entertainment at this time? Contact score? Demolish! Control movement? Demolish!
Demolish! Demolish! Demolish!
Ye Qingxuan practically demolished all the music movements engraved and constructed by hundreds of past musicians. Through unprecedented high-speed interpretation and manipulation, and the help of so many materials, Qingxuan quickly repaired the remaining areas. He reconnected the relatively complete music theories with each other.
Fortunately, he had the experience in manipulating the Requiem enchantment and was not nervous before such a large operation. The enchantment instantly contracted. Two-thirds collapsed while almost the whole downtown district was abandoned.
Next, the dying enchantment began to recover rapidly and was activated. Broken movements lit up continuously from everywhere in the tower. The Elizabeth Tower, which was originally falling apart, stood again on the ground.
A mass of aether approached and gathered on the enchantment to ignite the flame at the top of the tower again. The enchantment, sewn back together and now horribly ugly, was finally restored to its full. Then, next…
“If I die or live all depends on you now!” Ye Qingxuan gritted his teeth, clenching his fist. The Elizabeth Tower began to tremble.
Bang! Bang! Bang! The thunderous bell suddenly rang, producing a desolate and hoarse yet grand sound. Sound waves were set off and spread to all directions. A faint curtain of light suddenly lit up in the sky. The enchantment riddled with holes had finally unfolded again! Avalon’s enchantment had resurrected!
The moon that hung high in the sky suddenly came down. As if suddenly pulled to the ground, the moon enlarged as if it was falling. In the end, it covered half the Avalon’s sky. Light illuminated the entire city of demons. The darkness trembled and dispersed. Both the sky and the land became an ocean of moonlight.
Endless moonlight surged into Ye Qingxuan’s body along with the enchantment, making him roar hoarsely. Jiu Xiao Huan Pei produced a gloomy but unique melody.
The moon was still falling! Falling! Falling! Ye Qingxuan laughed and spread his arms to greet the moon’s arrival. Come here and invite the moon into one’s arms!
In the blink of an eye, that moon flowing with white and blue light had covered Avalon. Carrying a cold melody, it descended silently. The closer it came to the tower, the more unreal its silhouette became. Countless music theories were interwoven with each other inside the light as it played the eternal movement.
Through the layers of aetheric waves, the moon’s ‘spirituality’ descended from the aetheric realm to the material realm. The huge moon gradually shrank, until it finally became into a ball of faint light and entered Ye Qingxuan’s arms.
In Ye Qingxuan’s chest, a heart as illusory as the moonlight quietly emerged. It beat silently, leading the Deva’s blood to flow.
The sub-originator was created!
At that moment, a new pulse was born. It was the sound of a heart beating. Together with the bell’s ringing that resounded through Avalon’s Shadow, it spread to all directions. In its path, waves were created in illusory moonlight, and later became the tides!
The rumbling bells echoed, roaring and melting into the ripples of the heartbeat. It abruptly transformed and became erratic. It was vaguely between the real and the unreal. No one knew whether it existed or not. But no matter where it passed, there was always a terrible roar.
All the demons screamed, crawled, and trembled. They tumbled under the moonlight tides and illusionary bells. Numerous demons were startled in the shock of the bell. Their skulls burst and they died on the spot.
The dark musicians were not better either. For a time they unexpectedly felt the bells penetrating into their own consciousness to control their pulses. They could feel their heart swaying. They sweated and breathed heavily in the shock of the ringing.
“Who’s there?” In the midst of the bells, the Dark Lord’s footsteps stalled. He turned back, looked behind him, and gazed at the thin figure on the top of the tower.
Under the pale moon, the youth awoken from his sleep. Moonlight burned in his eyes. His figure looked like the man from back then.
“What a pity that it isn’t him.” There was a glimmer of disappointment in the Dark Lord’s eyes. However, it soon became disgust. “But the eyes are also unpleasant. Gavin, it seems that you didn’t finish your job as well as I thought.”
Gavin listened to the bell blankly. He seemed to have not yet processed it. After a long time, he lowered his head and gritted his teeth. “I’ll take care of him.”
Hyakume waved. Behind him, the dark musicians retreated while kneeling. Demons and beasts were called out and pounced toward the tower.
“Do not let me down, Gavin. Don’t let your deeds be defiled by folly.” The Dark Lord looked away and went ahead to the dark mist. The palace was not far away. Under his feet, the earth trembled faintly.
Darkness gushed in his path and turned into the soil of the abyss. In the sky above, moonlight surged.
Above the tall tower, Ye Qingxuan studied the rift in his chest with a shocked expression. The heart of the enchantment of Avalon’s Shadow had somehow moved into his own heart. A heart created by the royal capital’s enchantment? A one-of-a-kind sub-originator? No one would believe him, right? It was too theatrical…
He closed his eyes and connected to the rhythm beating within him. He was instantly intoxicated by the heavenly heartbeat. His vision seemed to leave his body and rise up to the sky with the moonlight.
It rose, rose, and rose…until it was at the top of the heavens. Avalon’s Shadow instantly became too small to see. His mind hovered above the sky and looked down on the large world.
Light dotted the endless land. Above him, stars dotted the heavens. The stream of aether created a large “star ring.” It shone like stars and ran across the skies and earth like rivers and streams. For a moment, he could not tell the sky and land apart and was lost. Then, he heard the song.
Waves of aether rolled between the two extremes and formed a faraway song. It spread long and wide but was fleeting and untouchable. It disappeared within an instant. However, it left an odd enlightenment in his heart.
“Is this Deva sensing?”
When it dawned on him, Ye Qingxuan reached out toward the world. The complex music theory weaved at his fingertip and played the melody. Small ripples formed in the aetheric sea. The ripples spread in all directions and instantly reached thousands of miles away. Melting into the endless lights, the stars were touched as well before the ripples disappeared.
In that moment, Archbishop Albert, who was sleeping inside the Sacred City, was startled from his sleep. Opening his eyes, he saw the full moon rise from the darkness that had covered Avalon and enter the musician’s world.
“What…is this?” he murmured.
Deep within the aetheric world, the sleeping minds opened their eyes and looked at the ripples in the starry sky with confusion. It was a small greeting. Someone was saying, “I am here.”
–
“An official musician now?” Lola, layed weakly on the ground and asked softly.
“Yeah.” Ye Qingxuan chuckled and helped Lola up. “Thanks to you, I’m finally on the third level.”
“You’ve just become official but you made a bigger commotion than when I went for the scepter level.” Lola coughed quietly and spat out fresh blood.
“Are you injured?”
“I accidentally embarrassed myself. I could’ve succeeded but that guy committed suicide.” She managed a smile, revealing a bit of disappointment. “And then he dragged that big thing down.”
“You’ve worked hard.” The youth took off his long robe for her. “Take a rest and hand everything to me. Old Phil will come find you after it takes the Butcher away. Just follow it.”
“You’ve finally survived and now you want to die again?”
“To collect my debt.” Ye Qingxuan rose and patted the wound on his chest. “He broke my heart. I should express something.”
Lola managed a smile and closed her eyes. “Remember to run if you can’t beat him.”
“Don’t worry, I’m the best at running.” The youth pushed the brim of his hat down. He slammed his cane on the ground. “But first let me act cool.”
Boom! The white tower trembled and the twelve zodiac gates fell open. Moonlight swept into the darkness like a tide! Amongst the dark musicians, Naberius froze. Seeming to think of something, he subtly retreated and hid inside the darkness.
“What is this?” The dark musician in the front wrinkled his brows. He shook his head when the broken moonlight fell upon him and he looked at his companions. “It looks like…like…”
Like what?
Suddenly thinking of it, he raised his hand to pat his head. However, his arm loosened and a clump of sand fell onto his face.
He was stunned. His companions stared at him as if they had seen a ghost. The dark aura of demons flowed in that place covered by moonlight. The aura writhed like a dying snake and dissipated.
The moonlight surged like waves that destroyed the castle on the beach. It destroyed the dark musician’s body as well. Shrieking, he stumbled back. However, his companions could see that his mutated body parts were rapidly deconstructing and scattering in the wind and moon.
“What…curse is this?” he stuttered.
His face became weathered, baring the goat-like skull. Three eyeballs trembled in the eye sockets as they were invaded by moonlight. Horror, panic, despair…and finally, a terrifying serenity.
“It’s so beautiful.” The dark musician had eroded into a skeleton but he bathed in the moonlight. His remaining flesh smiled and waved at the others. “Come on, come look! I-I sublimated!” He abruptly yanked out his demonized heart and then put a hand to his forehead. His sound of heart was activated and his body shuddered…he had killed himself!
What kind of f*cked up sublimation was this?!
Freaked out, the other dark musicians hurriedly avoided the moonlight but it was too late. The semi-realistic, semi-illusionary moonlight fell upon each person equally.
Agonized cries sounded one after another. The abnormal power quickly eroded under the invasion of the moonlight. The music theory that controlled the power extinguished as if its spine had been yanked out. It collapsed without a sound.
Practically every dark musician had undergone the ritual to strengthen themselves with demonic blood. While receiving power, they were also tied to this power. When the power began to dissipate, it was undoubtedly the end of their lives.
“Hurry and release the nightmare fog. Hide yourself!” someone finally reacted in the silent horror and yelled. “Push down your strength! Leave here!”
The dark musician had cruelly broken the lower half of his own body. Gray mist rolled out of his body and covered the moonlight, allowing him to recover his strength. His body quickly regenerated.
Overjoyed, he called a shadow wolf to carry him. “Leave this place! That guy had transformed the enchantment’s power into a curse! If you leave, he’ll be powerless.”
A hand reached out from the moonlight and yanked him off the shadow wolf by the collar. A smiling face appeared before him.
“You want to leave after pissing off the Vengeful Spirit?”
His eyes changed and the shadow under his feet trembled. An immense object rose from it and was instantly shattered by lightning. The pouncing shadow wolf was ejected. Lightning burst from it and it shattered.
The dark musician was now charred. His expressions changed and quickly showed decisiveness. “Let me leave and I promise to be loyal—”
“Don’t worry, I won’t kill you.” Ye Qingxuan glanced over coldly and cut him off.
The dark musician froze. But he saw moonlight shoot from Ye Qingxuan’s fingers and surge into him. The undefeatable purification had begun from inside him.
“To be honest, I’m not good at killing and I never force myself.” He tossed the dark musician to the floor and gazed at the others. “The moonlight only purifies demons. If you cut off the contract with Satan then you won’t die. The asylum and Hell are two places so…you can decide if you want to live or not.”
Darkness rose out of nowhere. Thick fog spewed from the dark musicians. It contained the moans of countless people and snaked into their ears, murmuring endlessly. This was the ‘nightmare fog’ that dark musicians often used. It was aether transformed by satanic power. Not only could it swallow light and sound, it could also create boundaries and suppress their enemy’s abilities.
This was the dark musicians’ reply.
The moonlight that poured from the door was just scrap material left from creating Ye Qingxuan’s sub-originator. It was powerless against the nightmare fog with complex music theory.
“Ye Qingxuan, still alive…” A cold voice traveled in the wind. Behind the Dark Lord, Gavin looked back. He studied the face with steel gray eyes. “As expected, I should’ve been more direct. This is my mistake.”
“You’ve made many mistakes, Gavin. This isn’t the only one.” Ye Qingxuan gazed at him from the other side of the endless wind and moonlight. His face was expressionless. “Don’t worry. I’ll help you fix them all!”
Clenching a fist, Jiu Xiao Huan Pei shot out. The cane thudded on the ground with a crisp echo. Strands of moonlight appeared and scattered in all directions.
“You don’t know your place!” A beastly musician roared amongst the dark musicians. Under the nightmare fog, his figure changed dramatically and fused with his beastly nature. Then he disappeared. This was the upgraded version of the formless ghost—the void predator!
A hoarse song came from somewhere. It left behind a thick decaying aura in its path. Even aether lost its liveliness and fell into slumber. This was compound beast fusion!
He had fused multiple demonic powers at once. After Modifications musicians turned to Satanism, they no longer needed to worry about the backlash of the beastly nature. They could use the skill to their full extent and was beyond human imagination. He had fused four types, including toxic poison and the curse of burning blood.
He charged to Ye Qingxuan instantly under the nightmare fog’s cover. He opened his invisible arms and embraced! He was able to suck the vitality out of living things with just a touch and enhance the originator within him.
In reply, the youth pulled a long nail from his bag.
The silver nail reflected the moonlight as if it contained hellish fire. Sensing the demonic aura, it began ringing. In the embrace of death, the youth raised his hat, revealing icy eyes. “Since you looked over, then I’ll show you all something nice!” Chaotic aether shot out instantly—but it came from all directions instead of Ye Qingxuan’s hands!
Without communication, pre-planning, hesitation, waiting, or mercy, this was an all-out and aggressive attack with nothing held back.
The dark musicians had begun!
The dark musicians did not even need to think in order to know what the guy was holding—holy nails from the Silence Governance!
These days, the only ones who would carry these chant material were either ascetic monks from the Church’s Ministry of Faith or silent monks from the Sacred City’s Silence Governance. Either way, it was not good news!
The former were executioners trained by the religious judiciary. They existed to tie everything heretic onto stakes to be burned. The latter were the trademarks of the Silence Governance. They were musician killers—musicians who existed to hunt musicians! Neither of them were anything good.
This guy looked like a newly official musician but everything could happen in this strange place. At this critical moment, they would not have any hesitation or relaxation. If they acted, they would not hold back—they would rip him apart and burn him to dust. Otherwise, they would be the ones being burned to dust.
An explosion happened amidst the cacophony of sharp and chaotic singing. The wind tunnel in the abyss was opened. One could see the darkness going wild beyond the tunnel, creating waves in the air. Thick darkness poured out and covered the moonlight, swallowing everything.
A ferocious demonic limb flashed across the darkness. It was abruptly torn apart. Blood sprayed out like rain. Fireworks of sparks and light flashed and cast destructive power like meteorites. There was also cursed ghastly green fog and a spray of splitting rays.
It destroyed all illusions, shields, and obstacles; sealed all exits; and made sure the prey could not escape. Then…a skeletal hand emerged from the wind tunnel. It reached out, tore the air with a deafening boom.
No one knew which Summoning musician had risked burning his blood to use his best card and summon this mysterious existence from the aetheric world.
The hand was so big that merely a knuckle was meters long. It shot torrential winds, thunder and lightning, fire, and frost to the youth. Explosions boomed. The scrapes of giant stones sounded continuously. Even pure iron and a fortress would be pulverized under this orangutan pressure. Powder flew, scorched dirt cracked, and a gaping hole appeared on the earth.
Finally, the giant skeletal hand disappeared. The darkness in the fog was ravaged. There was only the sound of the dark musicians breathing heavily. They sensed the aether waves with confused eyes.
“Is he dead?”
“Can’t sense any breathing.”
“No corpse or skeleton.”
A dark musician scoffed. “Ha, that’s all he is.”
“Yeah.” A soft sigh came from the nightmare fog. “That’s all.”
All the dark musicians instantly felt a burst of cold air shoot from their feet to their heads. Their expressions flipped and they attacked again in their shock.
The nightmare fog swelled and the demonic shadows overlapped. This time, they did not care about keeping their best cards secret anymore and acted as one. However, a pure white light emerged from the fog at the same time.
It was so clear and pure. This flawless light was not moonlight nor did it come from the sun. It did not belong to this world. It was as if heaven really existed. God was sitting on his throne and radiating with this glow. Under it, all strength became submissive, all demons were purified, and all heresy surrendered.
God lived within this light. Though the light only existed for a flash, countless dark musicians screamed. Their eyes were scorched and they had become useless trash! This light could not be looked at directly!
“The Requiem!” someone yelled while covering his eyes. “Don’t look at the light! That’s from the Requiem!”
“Holy!”
The youth stood upright in the ray of light, amidst the dissipating nightmare fog. He lifted the brim of his hat and smiled. He bathed in the light. The glow was thin but isolated him from all the dirtiness of the world. It seemed to come from another world. All the power in this world was nothing to it.
“This was personally created by the gods. It’s a priceless holy gift…”
Countless deities seemed to sing in the light, “Holy! Holy! Holy!”
This was Holy, the music score passed down from the School of Stone Heart, one of the sources of the School of Abstinence! The power was not expressed in elements, nor did it create or destroy. This was a pure territory created by music theory, the prototype of all scepters, and the foundation of all precincts.
Ye Qingxuan used the resonance between his sub-originator and the Elizabeth Tower to borrow the power of Avalon’s enchantment. Using the music theory and chanting, he activated the inherited music score in his hat.
Thus, the source crossed the nine layers of aetheric sea from the aetheric world and covered the material world with the song. It changed the rules, twisted the laws, and created a protected zone that could not be violated. No music score under the Scepter level could disturb it.
The dark musicians’ fatal mistake was that they did not know Ye Qingxuan had moved the enchantment into his own heart! Now, the large enchantment of Avalon was his source of power. It continuously supplied him with endless aether.
As long as he was under the Elizabeth Tower, he would have no shortage of strength. Only something as strong as the Avalonian enchantment could provide the strength required for the music score Holy.
Ye Qingxuan could feel the terrifyingly large amount of aether being put into the music score at every second to maintain this absolute boundary. Merely acting as a fulcrum caused him to feel that his soul had been ignited. Using Jiu Xiao Huan Pei’s detailed control to guide the strength used up all his energy.
However, now…
“…Is it my turn?” Ye Qingxuan grinned at the dark musicians.
The long nails in his hands clanged. The frantic melody and blaring of the horn shot out! The majestic melody resounded under Jiu Xiao Huan Pei. Using the sub-originator within him as the fulcrum, Ye Qingxuan was able to experience the aether he had transformed for the first time. He could interact with the aetheric sea and tried resonating with the world. Thus, the world replied with a boom.
He was performing above his level!
For the first time, the Resonance level of Night on Bald Mountain shot from his hands. Using the sub-originator as a fulcrum, Ye Qingxuan leveraged the majestic strength from the aetheric sea.
In the next moment, the expressions of the rapidly retreating dark musicians changed. Because the ground cracked open, blazing red light spewed out. It was as if the entrance to hell had opened. All sinners were dragged toward the fire.
The rapid melody resounded in everyone’s ears. Silver light shot out and dozens of long narrow nails trembled along with the song of punishment. The endless darkness seemed to solidify. It shook under the crashing song. Then the horn blared and black steel stakes broke through the earth, wrapping around the dark musicians.
The stakes were like a forest. They overlapped and sealed all exits. The silver nails whistled through the air. The runes carved on the surface glowed with blazing light. The invaluable alchemy equipment had now become one-use material. They let out all their power in the blazing light.
Piercing sounds came one after another. Everything with a demonic aura were pierced cruelly and nailed to the stake, cutting off their ties to the aether. Then wildfire poured out from the cracks in the earth.
Firelight shot to the sky, burning it red-hot amidst the cries of pain. Hellfire burned vigorously. This was the infamous score used by the Ministry of Faith when it was still known as the Inquisition. The stakes that were rooted across the wilderness lit up every dark night. Using demons as firewood, they created inextinguishable flames that announced the coming of dawn! The judged ones paid for their sins in the fire. Otherwise, they would burn to the end of time!
Within a snap of the finger, the unlucky souls nailed to the stakes were burned completely. Their bodies turned into flames and melted into the music score, providing Ye Qingxuan with an endless source of fire.
The remaining dark musicians huddled together. They resonated with each other and kept trying to fight back. However, this was Ye Qingxuan’s show the moment Night on Bald Mountain became complete. They did not have the chance to turn the tides. The melody roared and pushed the score to the climax.
Ye Qingxuan charged and commanded the fire of judgement. Firelight rolled and burned the surviving dark musicians. The fire burned away the aether they had gathered and counterattack melodies as well.
Once a music theory from the School of Abstinence was formed, it would reject power from the other schools and suppress them. With the enchantment as a power supply, Ye Qingxuan finally experienced how it felt to have the upper hand.
He would return to his original state once he left the Elizabeth Tower but he had to have fun here and practice with the dark musicians! He had to hurry though. He did not know how long he could maintain the temporary enchantment.
“So scary,” Naberius murmured as he gazed at the youth from the shadows. “How much has he accumulated? He had just become an official musician and is already close to the Resonance level. If not for the barrier of knowledge, he could probably upgrade directly. So terrifying…”
Listening to the youth’s thunderous melody, his ears moved as he distinguished the weaker rhythms. His hands quickly created pieces of metallic muscle.
“Sorry, Mr. Holmes, let’s not fight face to face. I haven’t transformed this new body yet and don’t have much power…but I’m a dark musician. You won’t find it odd if I make a despicable sneak attack, right?”
“Sorry, Mr. Holmes, let’s not fight face-to-face,” Naberius muttered. “I haven’t transformed this new body yet and don’t have much power. But I’m a dark musician. You won’t find it odd if I make a despicable sneak attack, right?” Looking down, he studied the metallic heart in his hands. Coldness flashed past his eyes. “Since you’re not at the Resonance stage yet, let’s undergo the ‘sound of heart duel’ fairly!”
He abruptly clenched the beating heart. There was a sharp sound and it resonated with Ye Qingxuan’s heart. This was a direct attack to the sound of heart that acted as life itself. This was the basic competition between two musicians!
Ye Qingxuan’s melody instantly weakened. His face darkened but then became red as if his blood was boiling. The aether in his hands practically dissipated. Naberius cackled. He played his odd instrument and continuously controlled Ye Qingxuan’s new heart. It beat wildly as if it would not stop until it exploded.
The surviving four dark musicians used this chance and screamed the dark music score from the Calixtinus Codex. They showed their true appearances, called forth the power of demons and the abyss, and surged toward the gaping youth. But in the next moment, Ye Qingxuan looked up and grinned toothily. “Tricked you!”
Boom! The sluggish melody burst forth once again. This time, it was accompanied by the fire of Night on Bald Mountain and the thunder of Indrah’s Eye. A frantic flood swept past instantly and swallowed the four.
Naberius’ instrument exploded too. A giant hole appeared in his face, creating a bloody mess. He looked at the shards embedded into his palm and shock flashed past his eyes. He had used this skill to break countless musicians’ sound of hearts through the years. However, this time, Ye Qingxuan destroyed the instrument he had created?!
Before he could react, rows of stakes flew toward him with rolling flames. His figure separated and six shadows dodged the pursuit of Night on Bald Mountain. However, the youth’s figure suddenly appeared amidst the rolling flames and he pressed down—the Sigh.
Boom! Naberius flew back and slammed into the wall; he was pierced by a silver nail. The fire within did not spew out but clamped down on him so he could not escape.
“Capturing the sound of heart…was useless?” he asked hoarsely, staring at the youth before him. “Why?”
“If you want to know why,” Ye Qingxuan looked down at him chest. A crystal-like heart beat between the crack. It swallowed blood and aether with a dreamy moonlight glow. “Maybe it’s because I have a stony heart.”
Naberius froze. He coughed out black blood and forced on a self-deprecating smile. “I lost. I lost completely. But sadly, there’s no winner in this game.”
“What does Gavin want?” Ye Qingxuan asked coldly. “That thing, the physical incarnate of the god…why is it here?”
“Didn’t you already guess it? Mr. Holmes, why are you asking me?” Naberius looked up with difficulty. He looked at the black shadow that filled the sky. “Look, the god has descended…our existence is less significant than dust to those creatures. You’ve already failed, Mr. Holmes. The winners win all in this game, but ordinary people like us can’t get anything.” He suddenly spat out blood and pieces of his organs. Blood flowed from all openings and his body split apart.
Ye Qingxuan froze. Naberius was destroying his last chance at surviving!
“No need to be shocked. This choice…doesn’t deserve your furrowed brows.” Naberius looked down and said with his last strength, “Humans were born with shackles. Even someone as clever as me could not escape them, even with sixty years of struggling. Thankfully, I still have…the freedom to choose death. Mr. Holmes, if Hell exists, I’ll wait there for you. Hopefully there, we’ll be able to become…become…friends.” Naberius’ head hung and he stopped breathing.
He was dead.
Ye Qingxuan gaped at him. His outreached hand froze in the air. Behind him, an ear splitting thunderous boom sounded deep in Avalon’s Shadow. Harsh cracks emerged on the ground and snaked out.
The quaking could even be felt deep inside the ocean, resulting in tsunamis. The Dark Lord could no longer resist the resistance of Avalon’s Shadow while advancing. Even if he suppressed himself to such an insignificant level, he still could not avoid the arrival of the limit.
This was the country of King Arthur’s scepter. The clashing of their respective music theories were at the extremes. If a spring was suppressed to its limits, it would rebound. The music theories overlapped and the aftershocks from their collapse warped the material world. However, he did not stop. He continued forward to the heart of this shadowy world.
One step, two steps…
Ye Qingxuan’s expression changed. He could barely breathe under the pressure of the air. The damaged enchantment could no longer resist the aftershocks and was close to collapsing. Now, the enchantment was like the other half of his body. If it broke apart again, he would be forced back to his original state. He might even be fatally wounded.
“Shaman, I hope you’re not waiting for me to go back and help you.” Ye Qingxuan clenched his jaw. His body shook and his sanity was almost robbed by the terrifying shadow behind him. However, he still could not help but worry.
If the dark musicians were so unscrupulous, the parliament would definitely be causing a commotion too. They had controlled many places secretly all these years. With more than a century of accumulation, they had the connections and power to cause a mess in Avalon if they did not have to worry about the royal family anymore. The Shaman probably was in a dangerous situation now!
–
Avalon was in darkness now. The enchantment was Avalon’s most important defense. The guards were sent into action the moment it collapsed. The nine city gates slammed shut, isolating the city. The city—downtown, midtown, and uptown—were divided into sixteen sections that were completely isolated from each other and the outside world.
The bright city filled with lights suddenly fell into darkness. Scattered firelight shone and illuminated the metal armor in the streets of downtown.
The armed soldiers charged down the streets, obediently following commands. The Parliament’s connections in the military were finally put into action. They uprooted the Shaman’s strongholds one by one.
This was no longer a street fight. It was complete war. All resistance was laughable before a proper army.
The darkness of downtown was spotted with firelight. Amidst the fire, a horn was blown and the armored soldiers hoisted their spears to break down the defenses and buildings. They left a trail of rubble and dust. All resisters were pierced by the spears and tossed to the side. Snaking trails of blood formed red police lines that blinded anyone who saw.
The violent gangs of downtown could not unite to form any sizeable resistance at the short notice. They were squashed easily and turned into carcasses littered on the ground.
Thunderous booms sounded continuously. Those were the terrifying sounds of cannons flattening buildings. One could faintly hear pained cries before they were cut off. All that remained were the dull clanks of armor. The sound of metal echoed in the chaotic darkness. As well as the sound of dripping blood.
Another armor plate was torn apart in a ravaged alley. A hole appeared in the chest and blood spurted out. A heart was crushed by an invisible hand.
Ghosthand panted and roared.
Boom! The armored soldier flew out and crashed into the crowd. He upended the incoming soldiers.
Ghosthand sucked in the foul air. The rotting scent of the sea and the decayed odor of the sewer entered his lungs like fire burning at the remains. Merely breathing hurt like fire.
His mottled white hair was dyed red by blood. His torn shirt revealed ghastly wounds. Creamy blood flowed across his invisible hand, sketching the contour of his broken limb. The hand was not fixed; it kept changing. Sometimes it was a human hand, other times it was a claw with scales on the five sharp nails—terrifying.
“Fourth time.” He breathed heavily as his legs trembled. He truly was old now. This was only the fourth time.
Within a short few minutes, the garrison had charged four times. No matter how many fully armed soldiers charged, they were pulverized when they reached this old man. Without exception, they were like waves crashing onto a reef.
The mill was on the right and the steel mill’s warehouse was on the right. These two large buildings sandwiched the small alley and the narrow terrain was his biggest advantage. No matter how many charged forward, he would only have to face a few. He could deal with them easily without fearing the large masses.
However…he could not retreat.
He could not let anyone pass…
Roaring, he stepped forward. Brushing past the blades, he forced himself into the soldiers’ arms. The invisible ghost hand sank into a neck. With a crisp crack, it was shattered and the soldier’s neck was broken.
Then the soldier shook. Holes appeared on his back and a crossbow arrow pierced through his chest. Stuck in the armor, it was only a hair’s breadth away from his eyes.
Ghosthand bent down and dodged an incoming sword. His hands closed around the blade. He turned and the blade shattered. Following his hands, it pierced through the helmet, through the skull, and wedged in the brain. Another soldier fell.
A broadsword hacked at his shoulder, jamming into bone. Ghosthand roared. His invisible hand twisted and yanked the soldier’s head off as if there were no joints.
The wind howled. A strong arrow was close to his face before the invisible hand grasped it. Sparks flew; it brushed past his face and dug into the chest of the soldier behind him.
Blood splattered like rain. A flurry of blades streaked through the air under chaotic clashing. Howling sounded endlessly. Finally, only the bloody old man remained standing in the alley.
He painfully yanked a dagger out from his leg. He pushed himself up from the two piles of corpses and stood up. His glare at Ingmar was chilling.
“Ingmar, you’ve wasted too much time.” The man in a gray cloak behind Ingmar raised his head.
Ingmar shuddered. He stuttered out, “Mi-mister Sparrow, I just…Mr. Robin told me to…”
“Enough. Robin isn’t here. I’m in charge of the parliament.”
The Sparrow moved past him and glared at Ghosthand, who was surrounded. He looked past the man, saw through the wall, and looked into the dark room. His brows furrowed. “That dying old man is the Shaman?” He scoffed. “I always thought he was just hidden but I didn’t know…he really is dying. Ugh, how disappointing.” The Sparrow raised his hand. “No need to fear anymore. Fire the arrows!”
Thus, chilling whistles sounded in the darkness.
Boom! The walls on either side shook with the explosion. Hundreds of holes appeared and a downpour of arrows flew in. Two groups of archers squatted behind the walls with black crossbows fit for the military. One needed the help of a pulley group to pull the bow taut. Shot at this short distance, the arrows were enough to tear down the wall before them and create a bloody path through the crowd.
Ghosthand roared. Like a flash, he transformed into a shadow and practically teleported countless meters away. His invisible arm turned into a beastly claw and blocked the storm of arrows. His speed was incredible.
The arrows shot forward and scattered onto the ground.
Boom! The alchemy arrows mixed into the flurry exploded. Red flames sprang up and overthrew the walls, swallowing Ghosthand. He flew out of the fire and landed heavily on the broken door. Half of his body was charred and blood seeped from his pores. His heart quivered and he spat out blood.
The room was ravaged. The machinery maintaining the Shaman’s life had shattered. The Shaman himself was on the ground, his flesh torn out by the broken tubes. It was unclear whether he was alive or not.
“B*stard!” Gritting his teeth, Ghosthand climbed up with difficulty. “Hey! Sir, are you still alive? Please don’t die.”
“I…guess…” The Shaman cracked open his eyes. “Ghosthand, can you do it? I want another bodyguard.”
“To be honest, I want another boss!” Ghosthand sighed. “I don’t think we should complain about each other now, right?”
“Oh, then good luck.”
“That’s useless!” Ghosthand coughed out some blood. “Hurry up and take out your hidden tricks. The kind that can bomb all of them.”
The Shaman looked at him as if looking at an idiot. “Would I have ended up like this if I had those things?”
Ghosthand sighed. “So you’re saying that we’re dead meat?”
“Yeah.” The Shaman nodded. “Go. I won’t blame you. As long as the forest still remains, you will have firewood for another day.”
“I can’t move anymore.” Ghosthand shook his head with a wry smile. “I’ve been with you for more than thirty years. My bones are old enough to be used as firewood. I don’t need any forests. I just hope they’ll be merciful enough to bury me.”
“What about me? You don’t care about me?” The Shaman widened his eyes. “So I should just be dried out under the sun?”
“Yeah.” Clenching his jaw, Ghosthand pulled himself up and shielded the Shaman. “Sometimes, I really wish I could chop you to pieces.”
The wind whistled and howled. A torrent of arrows suddenly broke down the wall. Ghosthand shielded the Shaman and roared. His invisible hand transformed into an ax and hacked down! This time, it was an unavoidable hardness!
Boom! Like a tidal wave curling backward, the black cloud of arrows halted and shattered onto the ground. Blood streamed out of Ghosthand’s wounds. Clenching his jaw, he waved his reddened arm to welcome the destructive wind and rain!
“Hey, sir,” Ghosthand said hoarsely as he looked back. “Do you still remember what you said before?”
“You still remember what had happened. I’m sorry, I lied.” The Shaman lowered his head ruefully. “No one stole that money. I took it to buy liquor.”
“It was you!” Taken aback, Ghosthand grew furious. “I wondered why everyone was so poor. It was you who took our money to drink!”
“It’s been so many years so don’t mind it.” The Shaman shrugged awkwardly. “Didn’t I pay you back?”
“I can’t feel any sincerity now!”
“I’m sorry, I’ve lied to so many people. I feel guilty and these are my sins.” The Shaman sighed and coughed. “I’m sorry, I lied to you too.”
“Whatever.” Ghosthand shook his head and chuckled. “I’m…used to it.”
He walked forward to face the roaring arrows. He chopped down and his invisible arm sliced the air, creating torrential winds. The incoming arrows were all blown away like weak waves that broke apart on the rocks.
Ghosthand shook. He was pushed back by the aggressive strength; arrow shards dug into his face and chest, ripping a gaping hole in him. Sticky blood flowed out. The ghastly red was menacing and ugly—he looked like a monster.
Outside the alley, there was the sound of metallic explosions. Countless soldiers had grouped from all directions. They were advancing toward the monster; cold light reflected off their spears and blades.
The Sparrow’s face darkened. He dropped his hand. “Fire!”
Ghosthand roared. The bloody flames quaked and blood-colored dragon scales appeared on his invisible hand. He grabbed at the thundering rain. The arrows shattered in his fist.
Boom!
His invisible hand was toppled under the rain of arrows. Ghosthand stumbled back. He was pierced by dozens of arrows. Blood spewed out and mixed into the dirt under him, turning it into a bloody quagmire.
“Sir…I never regretted trusting you,” Ghosthand murmured. He wiped the blood away from his lips. “Look, people like me were born like dogs. There’s nowhere to go but the dog pen. I’m willing to do anything in order to not be a dog anymore. All these years, only you told me that no one has to live like a dog. Lowly people can have value and meaning too.”
For all these years, the homeless fallen ones in the dirty sewer could only look up at the sunlight of the big figures. They wallowed in darkness with no hope of salvation or knowledge of how to live with dignity. But even the lowly ones should be able to walk with their head held high. Even if they could not bathe in the luxurious sunlight, they should go to the grave with pride.
This was a wild wish no one had ever thought about. This was enough.
This was already enough to satisfy one who had nothing.
“To be honest, I never understood what you said.” Ghosthand looked at the Shaman with eyes filled with hope. “But I want those things called ‘dignity’ and ‘meaning.’ I lived for this, sir, and I’m willing to die for it.”
“Idiot, you only have dignity and meaning if you live!” the Shaman roared.
However, Ghosthand started laughing. He welcomed the advancing soldiers and stumbled toward the ruins before him. “Sadly, there’s no more liquor.” Ghosthand lowered his head and licked at his blood as if drinking. He happily recited a toast, “Hope there are more days to come.”
Roaring, fire shot out of his bloody invisible hand. The flames burned at his body, turning it into a shocking red. Terrifying power surged from the old man’s frame. The strength coursed through his veins and body until he was bathed in flames. The weapons could not kill him, the storm could not break him—he was on fire!
If the gods were looking from heaven, they would see his figure jump into the mass of steel. The steel light in his path were dyed red. The red stretched forward in a straight line. It bloomed in the mass of metallic light. Like blood dropped into mercury, it was ghastly and wild. For a moment, Ghosthand was so fast he was a blur.
“Come, b*stards!” Ghosthand cackled. His scarred face was as menacing as a wolf. “The banquet has just started!”
The crazy old man was covered in injuries now. The horrible wounds revealed the white bone underneath as if he was a monster who had crawled out of a pile of corpses. He fought in the crowd, drinking bloody wine and roaring. Everything in his path was torn apart by his invisible hand, turning into a pile of ruins.
“Stop him!” Ingmar yelled from his stallion. His expression was twisted and fanatic. The commander parroted him. His voice sounded more and more laughable.
Boom! Blades cracked, armor shattered, bodies twisted, heads splintered, hearts were crushed. Ghosthand felled an incoming spear. He abruptly jumped like a bird and stepped onto the soldier’s shoulder. It caved in and the soldier fell to his knees. Ghosthand flew past the formation and pounced directly at Ingmar, his face bloody and monstrous.
Ingmar screamed. He twisted and pulled the commander before him. However, the commander shattered into pieces. Under the spray of blood, a red figure dropped from the sky. The invisible hand grabbed at the Sparrow behind Ingmar.
The Sparrow’s expression changed dramatically. He retreated and his cape billowed as he shot out a music score. The earth cracked apart to spit endless flames, swallowing Ghosthand. Within the fire, all steel turned red-hot and melted. The mud bubbled like liquid. Ghosthand’s figure instantly turned to smoke and disappeared.
“He died?” In the silence, the Sparrow looked at the empty hole. The fear in his eyes finally disappeared but the aftershock crept in. This was only an old killer close to death and yet he killed hundreds of fully armored soldiers without any music scores. He had almost killed the Sparrow as well.
The Sparrow looked at the silent old man and gritted out, “Shaman, you raised a loyal dog.”
“He’s not a dog.” The Shaman looked up coldly from the mud. “His name is Keirin Moria. Do not underestimate my friend.”
In that instant, the Sparrow received a shock. A hoarse song traveled from the burnt dirt and ashes. It came from the faraway barren lands—it was a prayer by Theban priests. They offered fresh blood and sacrifices to beg the cold deities for a miracle. Thus, there was a miracle.
The shattered invisible hand was regrouping and the power hidden within erupted completely. Evaporated blood and fiery ashes came together to construct that figure. As if crawling back to the realm of the living after struggling in hell, the figure slowly opened his blood-red eyes and howled soundlessly.
“Once this thing accesses your body, you’ll truly receive Hell’s arm. You will have the strength you want and no one can stop you.” Hermes’s cold and low voice sounded in passing.
“This is the strictest contract. There’s no turning back once you sign it. You’ll receive strength but it will gnaw at your life. You’ll become its food and prey. You’ll suffer day and night from the curse.
“After you die, there will be neither heaven nor hell waiting for you. You will crumble to dust without anywhere to go. Answer me, is this the future you wish for?”
Good. That kind of future was carefree!
Ghosthand roared and his shattered body regrouped. Blue flames shot out from his body, giving him strength and the furious fire of the dead!
Die!
This time, the formation of steel could no longer stop him. He advanced and shattered the rows of armor with his hands of fire. He bathed in the blood. He was no longer old or in pain; he no longer had human restrictions. With the power from the burning souls, he reached unprecedented speeds. Layers of armor disintegrated under a wave of his hand. The flesh under the armor ripped off in chunks and their hearts shattered silently. All obstacles were destroyed under his invisible hands. Only blood flew forward.
Amidst the endless blood, Ghosthand roared and charged at the Sparrow.
“This guy…signed with the life of the aetheric world?!” The Sparrow’s face was deathly pale. He gritted his teeth subconsciously and swore. He beat the drum in his arms with a rhythm from the abyss. The dead on the ground suddenly began withering. Demons grew from them and climbed up, charging at Ghosthand. But all the demons were nothing before him!
“Fire!” Sparrow yelled. “What are you waiting for?”
Black arrows rained down but Ghosthand did not care. He let them pierce his body as he tore through the demons before him.
One step, two step, he was advancing! He advanced slowly without any disturbances, charging through the obstacles.
Blood splattered and covered everything, dyeing it all red. The burning Ghosthand created gales of wind and thunder. Transforming into the god of death, he used his regenerated hands to tear into the military. He was unstoppable!
The Sparrow screamed. A giant snake sprung out of the earth. It opened its mouth wide and swallowed Ghosthand. But then it writhed painfully, cut open by daggers, then disintegrated.
Ghosthand roared. The fire he had received from the burning souls shot out. Blood increased around him and he charged past the last obstacle. The Sparrow was right before his eyes.
The Sparrow stumbled back. Layers of shields appeared before him but they were shattered immediately. Broken light was swallowed by blood chillingly.
Fire and wind emerged abruptly and charged at Ghosthand. He drowned in the fiery cage. He pushed forward with his hands and a melody shrieked out. The aether changed, transforming into different elements. The surrounding dirt rolled and melted blazing red steel appeared out of thin air. It created two incomparably sharp blades that shot out.
Damocles’ Movement.
The thundering was endless. The figure knocked aside countless swords with his bare hands but more descended from the sky, stabbing into his chest. He roared and shook. Pulling out the blades with his right hand, he parried and his invisible left hand whistled. The blade warped, curling backward.
The Sparrow’s expression changed. He barely dodged the blade coming for his head. Growling, he pressed down. Blood burned and melted into his music score, causing the blades to multiply by the thousand-fold.
Ghosthand chopped down. Countless blades flew backward and cut apart the Sparrow’s robe and drum. The drum exploded and the Sparrow screamed but Ghosthand charged forward relentlessly! Two arms fell off cleanly. Blood spewed.
“Ingmar, what are you still waiting for?!” the Sparrow screamed as he stumbled back.
Ghosthand closed in and his hands cut through the air. A gaping crack appeared in the Sparrow’s chest. Blood streamed and Ghosthand grasped his heart. It would disintegrate in the next second. But Ghosthand’s movements suddenly stopped. He froze in place.
“Oh, there’s a time limit,” he murmured in shock. He watched as his body quickly withered and fell apart, cracking like a piece of pottery burned too long in the kiln.
He was so close! He looked at the pale Sparrow and then at the beating heart in his hands. Just a bit more! Just a bit more and all of this would be over.
Pop! His body fragmented.
“I still…didn’t do anything.” A shattered face fell to the ground and lifted into a self-mocking smile. “Sorry, sir, a life as meaningless as mine…I’ve no value even in death.” He was smiling but tears slid down his cheeks, seeping into the broken cracks as if he was a crying clay figurine.
“What do you people know? You can’t even look at the situation! You almost…” Clenching his jaw, the Sparrow looked down on Ghosthand. He stomped on Ghosthand’s face, one foot at a time until the smile was completely shattered. “The Shaman failed long ago. He failed, you understand?!”
A wind tunnel from the abyss appeared in the sky above him. An immense shadow flashed by, causing the world to shake. The god’s incarnation had descended in the shadow world. This country, this city, everything here…was destined to be buried in the abyss.
“Did you see?” The Sparrow looked up at the shadow earnestly. “You couldn’t stop anything! Everything you did was meaningless! You have no value even if you die.”
“No, Ghosthand, your life wasn’t meaningless.” The Shaman’s hoarse voice hung in the air.
Everything in the path of the sound waves froze. The Shaman rose from the mud and yanked out the tubes in his empty chest. He crossed the frozen world, stepping on the ruins and carcasses, until he was beside Ghosthand.
With a wave, the Sparrow turned to dust under the Modifications theory.
“Thank you, Ghosthand.” The Shaman lifted him from the mud. His voice was harsh as grating metal as he said, “You helped me win time at the most critical moment.”
Ghosthand forced his eyes open and clutched the Shaman’s hand as if grasping salvation. “So did I really…save anything?”
“Yes.” The Shaman closed his eyes. Turbid tears rolled pathetically down his wrinkled face. “My friend, the fifteen minutes that you created saved all of Anglo and…changed the world.”
“Really?” Ghosthand smiled. “That’s great, sir. This feeling…is so great.” His expression froze. The cracks extended across his body and he shattered. His life spent, he turned to dust and scattered.
The Shaman stared at him, grasping the hand until it turned to dust and flowed from his fingers. He could freeze the world but could not keep this life here. Ghosthand was dead.
“My friend, the pain in your life has ended. I hope you…will receive eternal slumber in death.” The Shaman looked up, allowing the tears to roll down his face. He glared at the abyss in the night sky. Raising a hand, he declared, “Open the Fifth Seal in my name!”
