Chapter 104: Nueslaughter
The tall figure sped along the path, with runes shimmering with blue light fluttering up and down, illuminating Cordova's expressionless face.
"Damn it! I knew something would go wrong..." The player, who had accidentally become a Deputy of Tian Zhu Mountain, cursed under his breath, then suddenly performed a standing long jump, leaping dozens of meters. After landing on one knee, he once again increased the energy output of the acceleration runes on his back, and his entire body shot out like an arrow, moving even faster than an ordinary warhorse.
This was a mountain path in the southern part of King's Capital Troon, within the Shavin Empire. However, although it was a path, it had been abandoned for decades. Due to its ruggedness and frequent monster sightings, almost no one used it except for a few adventurers in a hurry.
But Cordova had no choice but to be there!
Because if he wanted to reach Banse City as quickly as possible, this mountain path was the shortest route...
If he didn't have this runic body, even ten Cordovas would have collapsed by now. He had been traveling continuously since noon yesterday in game time, resting for less than ten minutes in total.
Although those ten minutes were equivalent to twelve hours outside the game, in a sense, he had indeed been rushing day and night.
This was not part of the previous plan...
The Deputy named Faraosis did not appear in the Mage Tower but had gone ahead to the ruins of Banse City, forcing Cordova, who had originally planned to meet him first, to temporarily change his plans and head to that dead zone.
Because the astrological conditions required for the Retrospection Array were constantly changing, Fara had indicated when communicating with Tian Zhu Mountain that he might be teleported to Banse City in advance. However, he would leave a relatively stable teleportation gate so that even if support arrived after he had left, they could immediately reach Banse through that gate.
Perhaps due to bad luck, the moment Cordova was teleported from Tian Zhu Mountain to the Osiris Mage Tower, the previously stable temporary teleportation gate collapsed. The reason was that the activation of the Mage Tower's own teleportation array slightly disturbed the spatial structure, and that tiny interference just happened to resonate spatially with the teleportation gate Fara had left, ultimately...
Cordova could only run.
【Special Mission: Nueslaughter】
Condition: After Fara successfully casts the Grand Retrospection Spell, use the apocalypse crystal to help him find the true culprit who destroyed Banse City.
Mission Reward: Hidden Attribute: Luck +50
Failure Penalty: World Collapse Degree +5%
【Note: Do your best, leave the rest to fate】
"What the hell does 'do your best, leave the rest to fate' mean!?" Cordova continued to sprint while looking at the mission panel in front of him, constantly muttering, "What is 'World Collapse Degree'? What does it have to do with me?"
He looked down at the transparent crystal in his hand, his eyes shimmering with an indescribable fanaticism, and whispered, "In short, it's the 'Shadow' that those Observers talk about, right? Tsk tsk, even for those 50 points of luck, I have to give it my all!"
That's right, although he should logically be a staunch materialist warrior, the experiences of this period had forced Cordova to start believing in the existence of 'metaphysics', because he really couldn't find any more excuses for his 'luck'...
【Better to believe it than not. Krypton might not change fate, but metaphysics might save a bit of bad luck!】
With this thought, Cordova ran wildly, leaving a trail of dust behind him...
According to the Mage Apprentice, there should still be about twenty minutes before Fara finishes casting the Grand Retrospection Spell. For safety's sake, Cordova felt he should reach him as soon as possible before then. On one hand, Lu Wei had told him that the Shavin Empire was very unsafe right now, and on the other hand, Cordova himself didn't want any more complications with this mission.
Anyway, he was currently at full power... I mean, full energy. Even running at full speed from Teron to Banse City would at most consume twenty to thirty percent. As long as his luck attribute could increase, let alone running for a day and a night, Cordova would even be willing to run all the way back to Tian Zhu Mountain in the Northwest Continent!
Find the Deputy named Fara as quickly as possible, then have him protect himself, and then secretly use the apocalypse crystal to conduct a secret investigation within Shavin, lock onto the target, and immediately return to Tian Zhu Mountain!
This was what Cordova thought...
【Almost there! Activate two more acceleration runes, I'll be there in about ten minutes!】
Cordova silently calculated his position and immediately felt a surge of energy. Two more blue lights flashed behind his shoulders, and his entire body even turned into an afterimage. His speed, which was already comparable to a warhorse, instantly increased even further!
A small drop of water hit his face...
"Is it raining?" Cordova looked up at the sky in surprise, then suddenly realized that the surrounding environment was unusually oppressive...
The sky was still clear, and this forest on the mountainside was lush and green, but for some reason, Cordova still felt a chill all over.
"This is?" He subconsciously glanced at the crystal in his hand, then his pupils suddenly contracted: "It's black!!"
The previously crystal-clear rhomboid crystal was now continuously emitting wisps of black light, noticeable like drops of ink falling into water. Although it only occupied about one-fifth of the entire crystal's area, it still made Cordova's heart tighten.
【Could the location be...】
He immediately stopped, carefully aimed the crystal in his hand at a certain direction, and extended it slightly forward...
The ink-like black shadow immediately grew a little larger!
"Sure enough, Banse City! That big brother who said he would cover me is in danger!"
Cordova clenched his fists, then instantly overloaded the several acceleration runes on his back, shooting forward at an unprecedented speed!
He had a bad Premonition...
His 50 points of luck might be gone!
... ...
Banse City
Fara was still holding on...
His left shoulder was covered in a layer of white frost, freezing the severed arm and temporarily eliminating the risk of excessive blood loss. The enormous magical sequence, reaching straight into the sky, was still operating in an orderly fashion. The real illusion, which consumed a large amount of his magic power, ensured that the array's structure would not be externally damaged. Unless the caster died, this massive retrospection magic would be completed in less than ten minutes...
But...
Boom!! Boom!! Boom!!
Several more knights who rushed towards Fara instantly exploded into a bloody mist, and the splashing white bones simultaneously pierced several mages nearby who had almost exhausted their magic power...
"Damn it! This demon!"
"Kill him, he can't use that evil spell frequently!"
"Seventh Squad, Ninth Squad, Charge! Pin him down!"
"Combined spellcasting, prepare!"
"Damn it! My leg is broken!"
"Drag him back, be careful of that old..."
Boom!!
With another loud bang, the knight who bravely covered his teammates' retreat instantly turned into a pool of blood. A frantic malice permeated the air, making the old figure appear as terrifying as a demon.
The old man, who was a God of Law and revered by most present not long ago, was now so hated!
【Can I still hold on...】
Fara wielded the massive, silvery staff with one hand, his somewhat cloudy eyes filled with exhaustion and sorrow.
"Vanishing Earth - Sevenfold Tower."
The earth surged, and a black tower erupted from beneath the old man's feet, lifting him high into the air. At the same time, it counteracted a combined spell from the Hurricane Mage Group, instantly dispelling the large-scale group speed buff.
“We can’t let the warriors bleed any more…” The old man looked down with a complex expression at the two legions furiously attacking him on the ground. He had been using defensive magic from beginning to end and never intended to harm anyone. But as soon as anyone rushed near him, they would be instantly blown to smithereens by an inexplicable evil force, turning into a rain of blood.
This debt was naturally attributed to him by the warriors, but only Fara himself knew that all of this was at the hands of that Sin Duke!
Just before, when he heard the sound of 'Sin Devour', that summoned creature, filled with murderous intent, exploded in front of his eyes. Unlike those innocent warriors, that previous explosion almost cost Fara half his life. His already gaunt and aged body was immediately engulfed in a bloody mist. If not for carrying a Holy Light-Department defensive scroll that could automatically activate, he might have already fallen at that moment.
【Now that I think about it, the protective crystal on me at that time also exploded because of him, right...】
Watching the man whose expression was unclear, Fara's anger was almost uncontrollable. Although at this moment he no longer cared how many unfounded Charges were leveled against him, those who shouldn't have died were innocent. The young knight who rushed out wanting to say something, his life hadn't even officially begun!
And the tens of thousands of lives in Banse City!
If the first face to appear after the Retrospection Array was completed was that of the Sin Duke, Fara would not be surprised in the slightest.
The young man who had shed his disguise had no humanity left in his eyes, only a chaotic calm, an indescribably clear desire for destruction, and... a deep hatred for this world!
"Tired, aren't you, esteemed God of Law?" Mo's whisper once again echoed in Fara's mind: "But you don't seem to have time to rest now. The magic that can retrace the crime scene hasn't been completed, my true face hasn't been revealed, the Empire is still facing a crisis, and warriors as loyal as you are being devoured by sin..."
A hint of malice curled at the corner of the mask's mouth, as he chuckled softly: "It's far from the point where you can give up struggling, you know~"
The soul-snatching voice could not affect Fara's mind, but it still managed to unsettle him. The playful mockery, laden with malice, was so brazen...
Death could no longer bring any fear to this weathered old man, but he was unwilling to fall without meaning!
He could tolerate the hatred of the ignorant, but he was unwilling to let these national forces of the Empire bleed and sacrifice in vain...
He didn't care about bearing eternal infamy, but he knew he absolutely could not let that unfathomable young man succeed...
He could kill Duke Garros and even Marshal Galahad within a short time...
He could choose to clear the area with large-scale spells and then escape...
He had enough reasons to go on a Nueslaughter...
But he didn't...
The reason was simple, and foolish.
"I am Faraosis, the God of Law of the Shavin Empire, and a Deputy of Tian Zhu Mountain." The old man slowly floated up from the high tower, standing in mid-air and proclaiming loudly, "I will not condone your crimes, nor will I abandon the Empire I serve..."
Mo tilted his head slightly and whispered in a voice only Fara could hear, "So?"
"Even if I die, I will expose your crimes, or... kill you here!"
The old man raised his staff high, and countless elemental runes, shimmering with colorful light, emerged from behind him, forming two constantly rotating rings...
"Very well, then you shall die."
Mo nodded, his index finger, burning with black flames, pointed at Fara from afar: "Don't hold back, spare no expense."
A teal gale and a murky yellow sandstorm swept past simultaneously. Garros and Galahad had already appeared on either side of Fara, their eyes gleaming with frenzied killing intent.
"Knight Skill - Sand Emperor's Sword!"
"Mahashute - Hurricane Shot!"
Thousands of sword shadows, burning with dark golden light, crashed down, and at the same time, an almost imperceptible fluctuation flashed through the air, accompanied by a sharp whistling wind that tore through the sky.
And in front of Fara was...
A woman with short yellow hair, holding black twin blades, and an extremely eerie smile.
【Black Grimoire: Gale Breaker】
Active Skill
Mastery Requirements: 60 Dexterity, 40 Constitution, Max Health > Max Magic, 【Evil】 Alignment, Profession: Black Wizard, Kills 500+, Live Nueslaughter Count 100+.
Cost/Restriction: 10% Max Health, 30% Max Stamina, Wielding Special Equipment: Black Grimoire
Effect: Summons Gale Breaker - Clementine, lasts 1 hour, cooldown 12 hours.
【Note: I'm not sure if this is a good idea...】
※ Hyperlink ※
【Gale Breaker: Clementine】
Base Attributes: All 60% of Caster's
Traits:
Betrayal: Clementine has a certain chance to betray and attempt to Nueslaughter her summoner.
Pleasure: Each of Clementine's attacks will increase her Dexterity and Strength by 1%.
Torture: Each of Clementine's attacks will apply 1% Vulnerability to the target, refreshable and stackable, lasts 30 seconds.
Hoarder: Every ten attacks, Clementine has a certain chance to forcibly snatch a distinctive item from the target.
Comical: Her smile is very cute.
【Note: Look, there's a comical one here!】
And two massive magic arrays, one silver and one colorful, appeared abruptly beside Mo!
"Let's die together, old man!"
Chapter 101: End
