Continent opposite.
The towering spires point straight to the dark and eternal night sky, and a scarlet waning moon hangs far away in the sky, like a scar that has not yet healed.
A strong smell of blood spread in the city of Aster.
All creatures in the city trembled in this unusually solemn atmosphere, even the demons at the top of the food chain in the magic city were no exception. They are more cautious than usual, lest their neglect lead to disaster.
- The magic city is about to change.
This is the only consensus of all dark creatures.
Throughout the epochs, the Melville family has been the top noble among the high-level demons. Each of their patriarchs has purple eyes and a strong affinity for the dark elements bestowed by the Dark God, and they are the leaders of the entire continent. Deep and powerful mage organization - for thousands of years, their status has never been shaken in the slightest.
until now.
The current Melville head has made terrible mistakes one after another.
The process of finding a way to break the seal can be traced back to tens of thousands of years ago. The research and study for several epochs has made the corpses buried under the mage tower deeper and deeper. Except for the voluntary victims, more is wasted and Butchery experiment. In such a long time, only one human survived the horrific experiment, but was disposed of as a corpse by the mages of the Melville family - even if they argued that the experiment did not have vital signs at the time, but this did not offset They made such a fatal mistake.
Worse yet, this is just the beginning.
After the search failed by all the staff, they were even put together in reverse, not only letting go of the only key, but also missing the once-in-a-thousand-year full moon.
They showed their weak side in front of the whole dark world.
This sunless world celebrates strength, cruelty, and privilege, and the only thing they cannot tolerate is weakness.
Although the Melville family still temporarily retains its former status, its prestige has already plummeted. Status and power - if they can't recover their losses in the short term, all that awaits them is the destruction and annexation of other high-level demon families.
This is the most heavily guarded Mage Tower in thousands of years.
Countless high-level demons and subordinate demons who are loyal to the family patrol the tower closely, casting complex magic circles and guardian spells to protect the entire stone tower from the air, and everywhere seems to be heavy pressing some kind of immediate tension. atmosphere
In the high spire of the mage tower, the thin and dim blood-colored moonlight could barely pass through the narrow windows, the room full of alchemy equipment and old parchment was shrouded in darkness, only the sporadic spell stones on the table shimmered in subtle light.
Melville paced the room restlessly.
The magician of the Demon Race knelt in front of him and said something in a low voice.
But before he could finish, he was interrupted by Melville's deep voice: "Do you know what your proposal represents?"
The mage choked, and his voice suddenly became weaker. He murmured: "Yes... But, but, my lord, only the attraction between Shengzhu and Shengzhu is exact..."
That's right, Sanctuary.
Not only Este Demon City, but also the Melville family rose from the burial ground of the Dark God.
Thirty thousand years ago, the God of Light sealed the Godhead of the God of Darkness and all the followers of darkness on the reverse side of the continent.
As the demons with the most sensitive perception of dark elements, the ancestors of the Melville family are the followers of all the dark gods, with the most advanced spell attainments.
They had been very clear from the very beginning that the seal was constructed from the bones of the Dark God, so, naturally, it had to be broken by the bones of the Dark God—but, during these thirty thousand years, the Melville family had to be tight-lipped.
After all, experimenting with the corpse of a god, even in Calvary, is the most terrifying taboo.
The demons outside the Mage Tower only know that they are conducting experiments, but they do not know the specific content of the experiment.
Once this is leaked, what awaits them may be a situation even more terrifying than death.
Melville gritted his teeth and asked, "...Are you sure there's no other way?"
The mage was silent, but lowered his head even lower.
In fact, Melville did not understand.
Their entire family's tens of thousands of years of experimentation and attempts have failed - the human being is the only variable, but he escaped from them before they could go any further.
The only thing they can borrow is the instinctual attraction between the holy corpse and the holy corpse.
- Existing in the human body is a skeleton belonging to the dark god. And the only way to find him is another piece of God's remains.
The holy skeleton has no effect on the reverse side of the continent, because this is the place where the God of Darkness is buried. No matter how many bones there are, it will always point to Este Demon City.
But on the mainland front, it's different.
Melville took a slow, deep breath, turned around, and spread his arms down on the table.
After pondering for a long time, he finally spoke:
"Contact our followers on the ground..."
- In fact, after such a long time, the seal has begun to loosen. Although it can prevent the dark creatures from leaving the abyss, it cannot stop the escape of the dark elements, and the people who come to the front of the continent together are naturally tempted by the demons. .
The dark god is dead.
But the dark side of the human heart remains forever.
Although they cannot gain freedom, their erosion of the front of the continent has never stopped, and there are more and more followers of darkness hidden under the light.
Melville seemed to have finally made up his mind at this moment, and finished the remaining half of the sentence:
"—Send the holy corpse up."
·
Compared to the thin and almost out of phase appearance in the last punishment world, Ge Xiu's appearance in this world is obviously much more pleasing.
In particular, the zigzag line from the brow bone to the tip of the nose is almost very close to his real appearance, but it is far from being so aggressive, nor is it so beautiful that it makes people feel dangerous and oppressive - on the contrary, his current picture The contours of the face are extremely soft, the cheeks are pale and thin due to injuries, the mandible bones are thin and pointed, and with those bright and deep black eyes, he is completely a poor boy who has been tortured by dark spells and almost died.
Relying on this fragile and delicate face like a work of art, and his innocent and innocent demeanor, Ge Xiu won the love of almost everyone at the fastest speed.
The female members of the team loved him so much that they could not wait to stuff him with all the candies. Even the serious-minded Dreyer would subconsciously soften his tone when he saw him.
Only the Paladin Ed has always been very vigilant towards him.
He even took the opportunity to chat with Deretel several times in private during the journey, and each time he was persuading the other party to increase their vigilance and not be confused by the appearance of the person in front of him - after all, those powerful mages who surrendered to the darkness, All of them have the strange charm of a magnet.
The two broke up again.
Ed was holding the white holy sword and walked quickly to the front of the team with a gloomy expression, while Deretel was also unhappy and worried. He waved his hand to remove the noise barrier beside him, and threw a brief swipe at Ge Xiu, who was walking behind the team.
Ge Xiu slowly adorned the back of the team, took out a candy from his bulging pocket, stuffed it into his mouth, and narrowed his eyes happily.
Under the long eyelashes, the blue sky is reflected in the bottom of his eyes, like a clear lake locked in the depths of his pupils, with sweet waves glowing.
He smiled brightly at Dretel, the corners of his raised mouth seemed to be filled with honey, and his expression was innocent and innocent, like an ordinary teenager who knew nothing about the surging dark tide.
Except—the mage-placed sound barrier was almost useless to him.
Ge Xiu is very clear about the point of contention between the two people, as long as he wants to, it is very easy to dispel doubts - but he has no intention of resolving this contradiction.
- That would be so boring, wouldn't it.
Ge Xiu jumped over the tree stump on the ground, yawned, and raised his hand to rub the tears from the corners of his eyes.
Since he came to the front of the mainland, he began to feel sleepy very often, his physical strength also declined rapidly from the previous peak state, and it became more and more easy to feel tired.
He wasn't quite sure why.
Although Ge Xiu can also see the light elements around him like he sees the dark elements, he can clearly feel that the light elements have a very cold attitude towards him. He guesses that his affinity for the dark elements is probably higher. , so his physical state decline is likely due to leaving the familiar elemental environment.
This change is not completely without benefits - after leaving the back of the continent, although the severe pain torture at twelve o'clock every night still arrives on time, it is far less severe and terrifying than when it was in Calvary. This kind of pain can be endured, It's almost like scratching compared to the previous level.
However, in addition to this speculation, there is another possibility.
— After all, he had a similar experience in the last world of punishment.
This means that his vitality is gradually withdrawing from his body, and the moment of departure begins to approach quietly.
At this moment, suddenly, a distant exclamation pulled Ge Xiu out of his thoughts.
"Be careful!"
Ge Xiu looked up in the direction from which the voice came.
He was not tall, and the team members standing in front of him almost completely blocked his vision, completely unable to see what was happening at the front of the team.
But Ge Xiu's vision is different from ordinary people.
He fixed his eyes on the void above everyone's heads, and raised his eyebrows gently.
After coming to the front of the mainland for such a long time, the rich light elements surrounding him have always been around him, like soft and sparkling light floes, occupying every inch of the field in the air, but in the air in the distance, it seems like light Thick ink dripped into the sea, and a cold and gloomy cloud spread over people's heads.
Ge Xiu almost instantly recognized the familiar faces on the back of the continent that accompanied him day and night.
Dark elements.
There was another loud and noisy sound from the crowd in front, followed by the metal friction of the sword blade unsheathed. The crisp sound of the golden iron tool was extremely penetrating, and it cut through the human wall almost instantly. Buzzing whispers.
The deep voice of Dreyer's purifying spell rang out.
The front suddenly shines brightly.
At this moment, a slender girl squeezed out from the team. It was the girl who found Ge Xiu by the lake. With bright eyes, she reached out and took Ge Xiu's hand:
"Quick! The teacher is releasing the purification spell in front! This is the first time I have really seen the dark element, come here! Otherwise, I won't be able to see it after the teacher's chant is over!"
Emily hurriedly wanted to turn her head and go back, but she tugged, but didn't move.
"Eh?"
She frowned and looked behind her with some doubts.
But he saw the slender young man standing there, frowning slightly, staring thoughtfully at the air not far away, as if he was scrutinizing something.
His pupils were pitch black, like an abyss where no light could shine through. The kind of thinking and scrutiny that did not carry any human emotion made people feel cold all over.
Although it was still a familiar face from that chapter, Emily felt inexplicably unfamiliar and uneasy.
Subconsciously, she turned to look in the direction of Ge Xiu's line of sight - but saw nothing.
The clear sky is dyed red by the bright sunset, like a huge picture scroll laid out, without a trace of haze.
Emily shrank her shoulders, looked at Ge Xiu again, and asked in a low voice, "What are you looking at?"
Before she could finish her words, she felt that the slender and thin phalanx of the young man suddenly tightened, and she yanked herself towards him.
Emily let out a low groan, and was staggered when she was caught off guard. Before she could react, she stumbled and fell in Gexiu's direction, her ankle was sore from a sprain, and she almost lost control. fell to the side.
"what are you doing?!"
Emily was startled and angry, but before she had time to get angry, she heard a sour "cluck" sound behind her, as if it sounded behind her ear, causing her to groan behind her. A layer of cold sweat broke out, and he hurriedly turned his head and looked behind him.
I saw that where she was standing just now, the soil did not know when it had been opened, and the white skeleton drilled out of the ground. The friction between the bones made a harsh "cluck" sound, and the dark eye sockets were burning with dark blue. Soul Fire, looking gloomy and terrifying—there were successive screams from the team in front, and it was obvious that the same problem had also occurred in front of them. Several of them had their ankles grabbed, and they were pulled into the soil one after another. .
At this moment, Ed's incredible exclamation came from the front:
"… Necromancer!"
The bright chant in front suddenly intensified, and the bright white light seemed to contain a powerful force, instantly wrapping the team in the warm light, the skeletons made a more and more harsh gurgling sound, and it seemed that the hard bones were in the light element. During the purification, the corrosion melted and quickly flowed down like silt, but outside the barrier of the light spell, more skeletons climbed out from the ground, and the pale fingers were glowing with a ghostly cold light, a rotten The gloomy atmosphere instantly surrounded everyone.
The others finally reacted one after another, and more chants joined them, and the light suddenly flourished.
But at the same time as the barrier was solidified, the top of the head was gradually covered with dark clouds, spreading at an extremely abnormal speed, covering the sky and sunset in an instant. Slowly appeared in the middle, a hooded, bony man sat on it, the skinny joints resting on the bones were glowing with unhealthy blue, and the body was wrapped in a terrifying breath of death.
Emily repressed and sucked in a breath of cold air, her pupils contracted slightly, and she turned her head in disbelief to look at Ge Xiu, who was standing not far from her.
- The position where the Bone Seat appeared, happened to be the direction he was staring at just now.
Did he discover the trail of the Necromancer before everyone else
impossible!
When he was still in a coma, Mr. Deretel once tested him for his magical talent and element affinity, which was even slightly lower than the normal level of ordinary people. How could he have detected the undead before the academy tutor and the Holy See knights? traces of...
This... This is totally illogical.
Difficult, did you just read it wrong
Emily was at a loss, and subconsciously raised her hand and gently stroked her red wrist.
Ed, who was standing at the front of the team, was also in disbelief—this was just a bronze-level purification mission. How could he possibly encounter a necromancer? Even a Paladin directly under the Holy See cannot solve a task of this level alone, not to mention... This necromancer is obviously capable of summoning dark products on the continent where the light element dominates, even if it is just a skeleton made of alchemy. Incredible enough.
It just goes to show... He's very powerful.
Ed clutched the hilt of the sword tightly, as if facing a great enemy.
At this moment, the necromancer spoke, the only chin that could be seen under the hood was pale and shrunken, but his voice was extremely low and magnetic, as sweet and mellow as fine wine, when he entered his ears:
"I didn't expect that the lackeys of the Holy See and the waste of the college could find me. It seems that I underestimated you."
Ed's eyes suddenly widened, his jaws clenched, his masseter muscles almost tense—he recognized the sound.
Now he finally remembered who this was in front of him.
The necromancer who suffered heavy damage to the Holy See White Knights expedition three months ago and retreated completely. He was the first Dark Follower to appear in front of the Holy See of Light, just like the first domino to be knocked down. After him, more Necromancers appeared one after another across the continent.
This necromancer is extremely dangerous, and now they are even... with a few academy apprentices who have not yet developed a sense of combat.
Deretel leaned forward slightly with his staff and made a defensive posture. He raised his voice and said calmly:
"I'm very sorry to disturb your Excellency, we are just passing by, so let's leave."
The Necromancer seemed to be seriously thinking about something. After a long time, he said, "If that's the case, then I'm not an unreasonable person."
His voice was friendly and friendly, like a close teacher or friend, but no one dared to take it lightly. The bluish skinny knuckles were attached to the skull inlaid on the seat, and a thin green snake emerged from the dark eye sockets of the skull and wrapped around his wrist, making a regular tapping sound. Ren's heart was almost lifted, and he graciously added the second half of the sentence: "...Select four people to stay, and the rest can leave."
"… what?!"
—Even if you include Ge Xiu, who was picked up halfway, their entire team is only ten people.
Ed's eyes widened, staring at the necromancer in disbelief.
"My seat needs new bones." The necromancer fondled the thin snake intimately, as if rubbing his lover's cheek: "I have a rare kindness today, and I can make some compromises for you—you can do it yourself. Choose who goes and who stays."
The atmosphere fell into a stalemate for a while.
"It's rare to be kind?" Deretel's voice hardened: "You're just enjoying manipulating people's hearts."
His words seemed to be a long-established agreement - in an instant, the tip of the staff in Deretel's hand was shining brightly, and with a metallic sound of "keng", the holy sword blessed by the blessing of light was unsheathed. , the figure of the Templar knight is like a bolt of lightning that cuts through the darkness, and it rushes forward with the attack spell of the mage!
The two seemed to have a tacit understanding long ago, and their movements were coordinated perfectly and quickly.
As personnel with rich actual combat experience, they have long known that the trick with necromancers is to never trust them, let alone think that they can get any sympathy - from the beginning to the present, they are just looking for a It's just an opportunity to take the initiative.
At the same time, the voices of all the students chanting incantations suddenly intensified, and the barriers around them suddenly became more and more shining, almost dispelling the cloud over their heads.
The Necromancer snorted coldly.
In the next second, the entire bone seat disappeared from the air, and both swords and spells were thrown into the air.
"I don't know what's good or bad." Only his gloomy voice, like the first torrential rain, came from all directions:
"Since you are unwilling to accept my proposal, then I have no choice but to skin your beloved students one by one in front of you. There are old parts on my seat that need to be replaced - rest assured, I am very skilled. Their bones must have been white and beautiful under my treatment, like the most perfect work of art."
Deretel was shocked and turned around quickly. The protective shield released by the staff almost instantly shrouded all the students in it.
However, that shadow was too fast.
It was like a sharp weapon that brutally tore the light, and the shadow struck instantly with a terrifying force. The barrier seemed to be eaten away by a big hole, and a large piece was suddenly missing.
The silhouette of the necromancer slowly appeared above the back of the team.
The difference is that this time there is one more person in his hand.
The atmosphere was stagnant for a while, trapping everyone in place like a sticky solid.
The necromancer smiled: "Why don't we start with this beautiful young man."
He lowered his head, his eyes fell on his victim this time, the trembling panic and hysteria he expected did not appear as he expected—
Instead, he met a pair of eyes that were looking at him.
The young man who was tightly clasped in his palm was so calm that he was beyond imagination. He calmly and curiously looked at the necromancer who was close at hand, and a strange expression shone in the depths of his abyss-like pupils. There seems to be some kind of unstable factor trembling, tearing, and eagerly trying to break free from the cage, but the most difficult emotion to ignore... is actually interest.
It's like... he's amused by how things are going.