by Zhuang Bifan
Then Lin Li's eyes became big…
There was a reflection in the middle of the lake!
"What… What's going on?" In his surprise, Lin Li did not even bother to think about whether the lake might be poisonous before he flew over to the center of the lake with a Levitation Spell.
Then, he inhaled sharply. The reflection in the center of the lake was clearly that of a towering palace. It was mysterious, solemn, and eerily enchanting, all at the same time. What else could this be if it was not the legendary Palace of Darkness?
But where was this reflection coming from?
Lin Li looked around with wide eyes, but there did not seem to be anything besides the gloomy gray skies, dark red water, and raging black flames. Even the demons that roamed everywhere seemed to have disappeared without a trace, much less the Palace of Darkness!
"I must be seeing things…" Lin Li stared with wide eyes as his mouth hung agape. Wasn't this too strange? The legendary Palace of Darkness did not exist, so why was there a reflection in the middle of the lake? Wasn't this too much of a joke?
"See, I told you! If not for my help, you might not even find the true Palace of Darkness even if you ask around all your life." After staying quiet the whole time on Lin Li's back, Connoris finally spoke. "Huh, I'm not tooting my own horn, but besides the ruler of the Abyss of Tharlen, there could not have been more than three people in the whole of Anril who knew where the true Palace of Darkness is!"
"Yes, yes, yes…"
Perhaps it was because he had been cooped up in the Ring of Endless Storm for too long, but there seemed to be no end to Connoris's singing his own praises. Unfortunately, Lin Li had a favor to ask of him, and thus he did not dare to cut him off out of frustration, and even had to add a few words of affirmation occasionally so as to satisfy this lonely hammer's twisted sense of achievement.
Connoris' praises for himself lasted a good 10 minutes—until Lin Li thought his ears might drop off and Connoris realized there was nothing more that he could praise himself about. Only then did he happily say, "Alright, step aside, both of you!"
"Sure." Lin Li nodded before he quickly came up with an excuse and dragged Hutton to the side of the lake.
Then, Lin Li heard an incredibly convoluted string of chants coming from afar…
The chant was incredibly strange: it was not said in the common language, nor was it in the language of the High Elves. It was not even in language of the ancient deities nor that of the ancient dragons. It was a language that Lin Li had never heard of. However, the language had simple sounds, and was merely a mix of repeated vowels and consonants. There were even a few sounds that sounded like the growls of magical beasts; based on that, Lin Li wondered if it could be the legendary language of the demons?
Hutton fared no better than Lin Li. In fact, he had been in a constant state of shock ever since Connoris made his appearance.
It was not that Hutton was making a big fuss out of nothing—anybody in his position would have the same reaction. After all, his companion had suddenly produced a hammer that could chant spells! Anyone else would have been terrified to the point of insanity, so he was quite impressive to only be in a state of shock…
"Mage Felic, this… this…" Hutton had a glazed look the whole time, and he even stuttered when he spoke.
"Well, this…" Lin Li scratched his head before seriously replying, "I picked it up along the way. At first, I thought it was left behind by a human blacksmith, but I didn't think that this fellow was capable of speaking. I think this must be some twisted demon, so you should be careful not to ever go too near. Who knows whether this fellow will hurt anyone…"
"I see." Hutton nodded firmly, but he started cursing away in his head. Damn it, I knew you wouldn't speak the truth, but could you at least put in a bit of effort when you're lying? What do you mean a twisted demon, you think it's the first day I met you?
But of course, this was all in Hutton's head, and he would never dare say it aloud…
Connoris' chanting lasted a long time, almost as long as the ritual at the altar.
He finally ended the long and mysterious chanting with a loud growl after a good 10 minutes.
Then, Lin Li realized that the calm lake water started boiling over.
It started out with a few ripples, but then the surface of the lake started bubbling. In the end, the water started churning, and the deafening sounds of the thrashing water filled their ears. It looked as though the whole lake was boiling.
"BOOM!"
In an instant, a loud noise could be heard, and it sounded as if the world was collapsing. When Lin Li came back to his senses, a towering palace had abruptly emerged from the surface of the lake, spanning across nearly half of the lake. The sight of it emerging from the surface could only be described as breathtaking. Even though Hutton and Lin Li had seen many things in their life, they still couldn't help but stare with their mouth agape at that instant. It did not even cross their mind to dodge the splashing water as they were still in shock.
Thankfully, Connoris had thought of that, and had the both of them stay aside and out of the water's way.
Nobody knew how long it was until Lin Li started to regain his senses as he studied the palace that had suddenly appeared with a face of disbelief.
Mysterious, solemn, and eerily enchanting all at the same time. It was as if the reflection in the lake had suddenly been turned around.
"This… This is the Palace of Darkness?" Hutton gulped, and his voice seemed to be unusually hoarse.
"I guess so…" Lin Li was not much better than Hutton in that moment. After wondering what he should do for a while, it finally occurred to him that he should call Connoris over to ask him a few questions…
Lin Li calmed himself down before he picked Connoris up and placed him on his back again, and used his mental strength to ask, "My noble Soul Trader, where exactly is this chant from?"
"Huh? Don't bother asking where this chant is from, since you won't get it anyway. This chant has to be recited in the language of the demons, and unless you are of a devil's lineage, your chant won't have the same effect. As for why I know this chant, there's an interesting story behind it…"
"What story?"
"Something that can drive the lord of the Abyss crazy…" Connoris suddenly stopped here. "Alright, stop asking so many questions I won't answer anyway. You're a person of questionable credibility, so before you help me create a new body, I will not tell you this secret. Of course, if you can make me a new body as soon as possible, I may reconsider and tell you a part of it…"
"What secret could be so powerful?"
"I'm not blowing my own horn, but if you know this secret, you'll be able to do whatever you want in the endless Abyss, and not one Demon Lord will dare disrespect you. Why else do you think Geresco tried so hard to capture me then…?"
"Wait a second, what did you say just now? Geresco tried so hard to capture you?" Even though Connoris spoke quickly, Lin Li still picked up on the tiny detail. "Say, noble Soul Trader, didn't you tell me that you were once the lord of one of the levels of the Abyss and that Geresco sealed your soul in this hammer after attacking your palace?"
"Did I say that…?" Connoris sheepishly said before he realized that he might as well continue with his bluff. "Alright, alright, take it that I did say that. This happened so many years ago, so how could I remember everything clearly? You must know that this happened over 1,300 years ago! Would you remember what you had for breakfast today 1,300 years later?"
"…"
"Alright, alright, stop wasting time asking questions like that. If you don't hurry into the Palace of Darkness, I won't help you if Mephistos catches up with you."
"That's true…" After hearing what Connoris said, Lin Li realized that now was not the time to ask questions. Mephistos was after the Palace of Darkness as well, and wouldn't he be inconveniencing himself if he met him here?
"Alright, Hutton, let's go."
Lin Li intended to head into the Palac
e of Darkness after calling upon Hutton, but he suddenly heard the sound of wind coming from the surface of the lake. Lin Li looked up in shock, and saw a black figure flying over from afar. It was a thin figure in a black long robe—who else could it be but Stephen?
"You finally caught up, Stephen." Hutton was pleasantly surprised to see that Stephen had caught up with them. There was no telling what was hidden in the Palace of Darkness, after all, and it was better to have Stephen's help if they met with any danger.
"Yes, I was delayed on the way." Stephen nodded at Hutton in a greeting, but did not even spare a glance at Lin Li.
However, Lin Li did not mind it this time. Oh, no… more than that, Lin Li even warmly welcomed him despite his apparent nonchalance. "Could it be that you met demons along the way? Mage Stephen, I nearly forgot to ask you: how did you manage to find your way here?"
After finishing his question, Lin Li stared closely at Stephen.
"Only a few Minion Demons." A trace of panic flashed across his face, and if not for Lin Li staring closely, nobody would have noticed that. "Don't forget that I, too, am an Archmage. It is a basic skill for an Archmage to track others using magical waves."
"Hehe, I see…" Lin Li smiled and nodded as though he never noticed that trace of panic.
The door to the Palace of Darkness was still wide open, and after the trio finished their short chat, they flew into the open doors of the Palace of Darkness with the Power of Flight.
As they passed through the door, Connoris moved on Lin Li's back. "He's lying, I sense Mephistos's aura on him!"
Chapter 456 - Soul Fragments
"Mephistos?" Lin Li was only slightly taken aback before he masked his expression. This was not too big of a surprise, as he had already noticed a couple of loopholes in Stephen's words. Firstly, there could not be Minion Demons in the forest, as every level of the Abyss was a closely guarded world. If a Demon Lord appeared somewhere, even the common Demons would avoid the place, much less the Minion Demons.
Furthermore, Stephen mentioned that he followed them here by tracking their magical waves. That was not incorrect in itself, as shadowing through tracking magical waves was indeed a basic skill that every Archmage ought to know. Unfortunately, Stephen was dealing with Lin Li this time.
Lin Li was a cautious man… well, one could say he was paranoid. He was never without a magic shield when dealing with magical beasts below level-10, much less an existence as terrifying as Mephistos! He had already been taking notice of his magical waves along the way here, and every time Hutton stopped to recover his mana, Lin Li would inconspicuously lay down a Magic Dissipating Field to silently get rid of any traces of his magical wave.
Of course, this was not a foolproof solution, and anyone in the Legendary-realm would be able to disregard the existence of the Magic Dissipating Field and locate him with just a bit of Spiritual Brand when tailing them.
However, Stephen was quite clearly a good distance away from the Legendary-realm, and it was almost impossible for him to trace Lin Li with just a bit of Spiritual Brand.
It would be unusual for Lin Li to not realize that something was off based on the loopholes in Stephen's words.
Connoris' reminder was merely affirming Lin Li's conjecture…
"I got it." After replying to Connoris, Lin Li continued ahead without confronting Stephen, carrying on as if nothing had happened.
Lin Li had only ever seen a palace as massive as this once—it was the Eternal Furnace that was hidden in a spacetime crack in the Fire Plume Ridge. However, the two equally massive palaces were vastly different in style.
The Eternal Furnace was modelled in the classical High Elves style: grand, extravagant, and glamorous. Walking into the Eternal Furnace was like entering a High Elves art gallery as every nook and cranny was flawlessly crafted thanks to the High Elves' almost twisted sense of perfectionism. Even though it had been left vacant for over 1,300 years and Osric had taken every valuable and placed it in his own mausoleum, Lin Li was still in awe over the artistic grandeur of the place.
The Palace of Darkness before him was a different story. The second he walked into the place, Lin Li felt as though he had entered an eerie and sinister world. The walls on both sides were plastered with greenish algae, while the ground beneath him was wet and slimy. A cold draft swept past his ears and made his hair stand on ends. While he was flanked by corpse candles on both sides, the flickering white light only served to make the place even more eerie than it already was, and did not help in lighting up the place at all.
There was no trace at all of the attics, balconies, gardens, and corridors that were so abundant in the Eternal Furnace. The Palace of Darkness gave off the vibe of an abandoned massive tomb from the prehistoric times as the huge pillars were the only decorated pieces in the whole place. They came across two huge pillars every 100 meters or so, each one at least 100 meters in length, and requiring at least 10 humans to surround each of them.
Somehow, the sculptures had been carved into the pillars, and each one of these sculptures looked ferocious and was filled with a vicious aura. Some of them had wings of flesh on their back, while others had horns on their heads; the only thing all the sculptures had in common was that they had at least one or two weapons in theirs hands. There were swords, machetes, hammers, chains, daggers… almost every weapon that Lin Li could think of could be found on one of the sculptress.
"What demon is this…?" Lin Li had been studying the Abyss of Tharlen for some time, and even though he might not be of at Guru level in terms of knowledge about demons, he was definitely at Master level. Still, he found that he did not recognize any of the sculptures carved on the huge pillars. There were 50 pillars and 50 sculptures, yet Lin Li did not know any of them.
Connoris' voice held a rare admiration as he said, "These are ancient demon deities…"
"Ancient demon deities?"
"None of you humans know that during the prehistoric times, when prehistoric magical beasts roamed while the Dragons and Titans fought to rule the world and the High Elves were born from the Tree of Eternity, there were also 99 ancient demon deities who created the 99 levels of the Abyss World."
"99 ancient demon deities? There are only 50 here…"
"These 50 ancient demon deities have fallen."
"What about the other 49?"
"If you're able to enter the 50th level of the Abyss, you might get a chance to meet them…"
"Are you kidding me??" Lin Li retorted angrily. The Abyss beyond the 50th level was no place for a human. Even the great Highlord Osric and his Magic Legion could not go beyond the 20th level when they attacked the Abyss, much less a measly mage like Lin Li.
The difference between the 20th and 50th level of the Abyss World was so vast that they might as well have been different worlds. Before the 20th level, some Greater Demons had a chance to become the local Demon Lord, yet after the 50th level, they were merely spawns that could be readily disposed of.
Nobody in the whole of Anril had any idea what it was like after the 50th level of the Abyss. After all, not one person had managed to return alive from beyond the 40th level of the Abyss since the Dark Ages. Hence, anything beyond the 40th level was a mystery to humans.
"Come to think of it, my great Soul Trader, I see that you're pretty familiar with the Palace of Darkness…"
"Nonsense…" Connoris' voice brimmed with disdain. "But I'll advise you to drop it and not ask questions. If you're meant to know, I'll let you know with time, but what you're not meant to know I'll never tell you no matter how much you press me."
"Say, Connoris, you're a great Soul Trader, after all, surely you know that the heart of doing business lies in being honest? If you're always so mysterious, it's not going to help our partnership…" Lin Li said unhappily.
Even an idiot would be able to detect the threat in his words, much less a freak like Connoris, who had been around since who knew when.
After being silent for about half a minute, Connoris
visibly relaxed as he spoke, "It's not that I don't want to tell you about it, it's just that those profound secrets are beyond what you can comprehend at your power level now. So what if I let you know that there is a branch of the Tree of Eternity in the 30th level of the Abyss that could be crafted into a magic staff much more powerful than the one you wield now? Well? Do you have the guts to venture down there to retrieve it?"
"Isn't there anything more practical than that?"
"Something more practical?" Connoris thought for a moment. "There is, it's in the Palace of Darkness."
"Tell me about it."
"I'll have to start from the origins of the Lord of Darkness. I told you earlier that the Lord of Darkness is actually the shadow of the Dragon of Destruction, but do you know why the Dragon of Destruction had cast its own shadow into the Abyss?"
"If my guess is correct, it's because the Dragon of Destruction wanted to absorb the energy of the Abyss of Tharlen."
"Well, you've guessed it…" Connoris' voice held a trace of surprise. "That's right, the Dragon of Destruction had cast its own shadow into the Abyss of Tharlen in order to absorb the Dark Force and Evil Force of the Abyss of Tharlen. This is the only way it could hide from the other four Dragon Aspects."
"Why does it have to hide from the other four Dragon Aspects?"
"Have you forgotten what the five Dragon Aspects are for? They are guardians of the 10 basic rules of the whole of Anril, including light, kindness, darkness, evilness, time, space, start and end. These 10 rules stand against each other yet rely on each other to coexist while maintaining an incredibly peculiar balance. Do you dare imagine what would happen should this balance be disrupted?"
"If the balance between the 10 basic rules is disrupted?" Lin Li paused for a second before he broke out in a cold sweat. It would be nothing short of a tragedy for Anril if the balance between the 10 basic rules was disrupted. It would be scarier than if prehistoric magical beasts charged out from a crack between time and space.
That would be an upturned world with no order at all…
