The power of these dark red flames had clearly surpassed that of Scorching Touch from before.
Matriarch Alicia had a solemn face. Suddenly, she took out her whip and cracked it in the air.
*Pa!* The cracking of the whip had compressed the air, producing a sonic boom.
“Come out!” Complex black patterns emerged on Alicia’s face, covering the right side of it like a mask.
“As you wish, My Lady!” Space seemingly split apart, and a cute spider as white as jade materialised out of thin air. The blood red lines across its carapace only served to make it look cuter.
*Hiss* The matriarch let out a hiss, similar to the sound of a spider stridulating.
That white jade spider immediately targeted Leylin, its back shooting out large amounts of thread that emitted cold air.
The densely packed threads tangled together, forming a white cocoon that surrounded the elf and beast.
The A.I chip made his vision flash blue, and the details of the white jade spider surfaced immediately.
[Underground Frost Spider, a mutation of the Underground Winter Spider. Has an extremely strong ability to mutate!
Strength: 35; Agility: 16; Vitality: 46.9; Spiritual force : 27; Special abilities: 1; Thread defense: the Underground Frost Spider’s threads have the ability of ice, and is the bane of many rank 2 fire-type magi; Stealth: the Underground Frost Spider’s shell has abilities to reflect light, allowing it to be concealed with the surroundings.]
Leylin had never slacked off on feeding the A.I. Chip’s database with information after entering Twilight Zone. By now, a large portion of Twilight Zone’s special items were already recorded within it.
“A matriarch with an Underground Frost Spider as a familiar? One that can suppress fire elemental Magi?”
Leylin’s smiled lightly. “What a pity, my Shadow Flames are mainly composed not of fire, but of darkness!”
Along with the change in Leylin’s intent, the dark red pillar of fire immediately transformed. The red glow at its center quickly faded, being replaced instead by a dark black which took over most of the space. In a moment, the shadow forces occupied most of the pillar.
”Ingest!” Leylin grabbed at the air with both hands, and the large pillar swept Alicia’s giant white cocoon into itself.
*Sssii!* Large amounts of white gases appeared on the surface of the white cocoon, moving about in the air.
*Hiss* Leylin even heard the bloodcurdling sounds of the giant spider.
*Boom!* The large white cocoon suddenly exploded, smashing into the reddish-black flames.
From within the white fog, a silhouette surfaced.
The matriarch had connected her body directly on top of the Underground Frost Spider, forming a monster that was half-human and half spider. It reminded him of his subordinate, Skrill.
‘This look is very compatible with Skrill!’
Leylin laughed mockingly, but he knew that these two parties were vastly different. Skrill had used his meditation technique to alter his physical appearance, but this matriarch had fused her body with that of her pet, maybe even her soul!
Based on strength alone, Skrill could not compare to this elf who was already rank 2 and possessed many techniques that he did not.
”Disgusting, disgusting humans!” the elf that formed the upper half of this abomination hooted on the spider’s back.
*Ding! Ding!*
The elf held a spider leg that looked like white jade. The long spider leg instantly transformed into a white scimitar. Along the elegant curve of this scimitar were pretty patterns that glowed repeatedly. The blade emitted some white fog, which emanated cold rays.
”Kill!” The voice of the elf transformed into a wave of bright rays that enveloped her, which gradually disappeared into the air.
“Is she concealing herself now?” Leylin stroked his chin and smiled wryly.
Although dark elves were quite capable in open combat, they preferred more underhanded tactics. They would make use of their own bodies and beauty to tempt their opponents, or hide away in corners, to launch sneak attacks.
However, as a dark Magus, Leylin had come across many of these tactics, and employed them himself. He tilted his head and smiled, rooting himself to the spot and narrowing his eyes.
A few minutes later, a ray of cold white air quickly slashed across Leylin’s body, but was met with the exterior of his body rippling. The body had been a mere phantom.
“You’ve fallen into my trap!” Leylin materialised in a corner, his body ringed by defensive darkness elemental particles.
“You are the one who fell into a trap!” Alicia laughed softly, as another body shot out explosively from the side, targeting him with his own tactic.
*Boom!* A large white web filled with mucus flew out and trapped Leylin. White sap fell onto him, and the sounds of corrosion rang out as it continuously seeped into his body.
“So that previous attack was fake!”
Leylin smiled gently, but his expression did not show any dejection, as if the person trapped was not him.
With a flash of white light, Alicia appeared in front of Leylin. Currently, she looked apathetic. She held a white scimitar and was about to directly chop off Leylin’s head.
However, Leylin’s demeanor made her feel uneasy.
*Boom!* As Leylin’s head flew upwards, a strange transformation occurred in mid-air.
The head dissipated into a large number of black shadows, condensing many darkness elemental particles to form a cage that bound the matriarch.
“Rank 2 spell, Illusory Body: Second Stage!”
The surrounding space flashed as Leylin removed the darkness elemental waves concealing his body, appearing in front of Alicia.
Closer inspection revealed the sensuality of this matriarch’s body; the temptation it induced was shocking.
However, Leylin’s expression was as cold as ice. A black spear ringed with red flames instantly appeared in his hand.
“Rank 2 spell: Lance of corrosion!”
“Go die!” Leylin said beneath his breath, the black spear in his hand being launched forward.
The space warped where the spear passed, and a strong corrosive force continuously condensed onto its tip.
“Explode!!!” Upon seeing the terrible force the spear contained, as if able to destroy the very earth, Alicia’s face changed instantly. She resolutely chanted a few spells under her breath.
Suddenly, the Underground Frost Spider screeched irritably, the blood lines on its body enlarging and dying almost its entire body red. Moreover, weirdly, its body swelled up.
A ray of white light swiftly separated Alicia and the white spider.
*Boom!*
The spear exploded intensely at Alicia’s original location.
The black chains instantly exploded, which caused the exploded flesh and blood to strike the black spear.
Two large energy forces melded and grew denser, causing large distortions to the void.
*Bam! Bam! Bam!*
When the distortions had condensed to a point, it ended off with a violent explosion.
Even though the forces collided in mid-air, the remains of the energy waves they generated headed towards the ground, blasting off layers of stone and soil. The waves swept the area, causing large-scale destruction.
Alicia’s silhouette flew out of the explosion. However, things did not seem to look good for her, her lower body dripping with fresh blood. Being caught right in the middle of the explosion, she’d naturally received the brunt of the force it generated.
However, she currently did not have time to care about her injuries. Looking over herself restrainedly, she turned into a ray of blood that disappeared into the horizon.
Leylin stood where he was silently, and did not give chase.
To him, helping the humans retain their lands was just a passing favour. He did not want to kill a rank 2 existence of the opposing party, as he did not desire an animosity that could not be resolved.
Of course, some preparations had to be made to expedite the end of the war.
Leylin smiled wryly. Having roughly figured out his next course of action, he rushed towards the other two groups.
Fendix’s opponent was the matriarch who wore the two rings on her bosom. This opponent’s strength was tyrannical, and she had suppressed Fendix and limited his movements. Fendix ended up constantly on the defensive, which embittered him.
Death And Insanity
“Hm?” At this moment, Fendix and the dark elven matriarch looked toward the side.
“Fendix, I’m here to help!” Leylin closed in rapidly, his clothes rustling in the strong wind.
“Umbra’s Hand!”
Large numbers of shadows emerged from behind him, and transformed into what looked like a giant hand which obstructed the matriarch.
“What’s your situation? How much magic power do you have left?” Leylin glanced at Fendix, who was already slightly pale.
“Half, and I can release one more formidable spell. How about you?” Upon seeing Leylin’s arrival, Fendix heaved a huge sigh of relief.
“I’ve already sent that matriarch away. All that’s left is her,” Leylin pointed at the matriarch across them, “I remember you still have a powerful offensive spell—Violent Thunder Chains, right? I’ll keep her occupied. Quick, go and prepare it!”
“Alright!” Fendix gritted his teeth.
Though he had seen through Leylin’s intentions, this matriarch was his arch-enemy! In the past, Duke Fendix, the army’s commander and a member of his family, had been killed by this person’s army. He could not wait to end her!
Besides, they were at war. Killing a matriarch would reward him with an enormous number of merit points!
Leylin watched the matriarch, a slight smile creeping onto his face…
Minutes later, Fendix roared. A dazzling blue light filled the region, and snakes of electricity began dancing in the air, trapping the opponent within.
Innumerable streaks of lightning fell, and a few minutes later all that was left of the matriarch was ash and charcoal falling from the air.
“The dark elves are withdrawing!” Just as Leylin and Fendix had taken care of the situation here, the other rank 2 Magus hurried to them, “The matriarch who was fighting me seemed to have received some news, and suddenly escaped. I couldn’t catch up to her at all… Ah! You! You killed her…”
The female Magus clapped her hand on her mouth, unable to express her astonishment with words.
……
The dark elves that surrounded Dolon City retreated quickly. The three thousand Underground Winter Spider knights that had attacked were a very large power in the eastern region. Many of them had temporarily been transferred over from the other two armies.
Now, with Leylin’s poison facilitating a counterattack, a good number of them had been lost. The siege of Dolon had ended, and their victory even led to a chain effect.
What’s more, the death of a rank 2 matriarch had caused Dolon City to become the heart of the battle.
However, Fendix and Leylin did not choose to rest. Instead, riding on this momentum, they led troops in to save the other two large cities.
After their formidable forces had been weakened considerably, the dark elves were pushed back step by step, and were finally chased out of the east. This gave the human race a ray of hope.
As for the merit points from killing the matriarch? Since Leylin was intentionally keeping a low-profile, all of them ended up in Fendix’s hands.
He cared little for reputation, and this seemed to be very important to Fendix, as if there was a grudge involved. Hence, he was happy to do him a favour. After all, Fendix had helped him quite a bit previously, and had also promised to make it up to him in the future.
……
“We won in the east? That’s great!” Aaron, who was currently in another city, heard the news.
Shockingly, he was dressed in a gray, tattered cloak, and soot covered his entire face. The ring in his hand concealed his energy fluctuations.
The whole city was now caught up in a wave of joy.
Whether it was nobles, commoners or knights, they darted to the streets the moment they received the news, exhibiting their ecstasy with no inhibitions.
The threat of the dark elves had loomed over this area for far too long. Hopes had plummeted further when the north was broken through, and the news of whole cities being slaughtered had terrified everyone. The people needed some good news to raise their spirits.
The city master’s residence had been opened to the public, and he’d even ordered chefs to serve great amounts of oatmeal bread and fruit juice to the public.
“This may be good news, but it’s much too distant from you right now.” A white ray of light shot out from the black ring, projecting the image of a wise old man in Aaron’s mind. “Leave the moment you get it! The Mambo Family that governs this city is not something you can take on easily!”
“I know!” Aaron nodded seriously, and disappeared into the crowd.
*Gu!* Minutes after he left, a small squadron surrounded the area, red flames burning. Among them was the figure of a woman in a pink gown.
“He was here not long ago. Seal the city! We can’t let him escape!” the woman exclaimed grimly, and the soldiers immediately dispersed. Soon, the shrill sound of bugles resounded throughout the city.
“You actually dared to steal my family’s most valuable treasure! You will pay for this in flesh and blood!!” The woman glanced at the area once again, and issued this frightful vow before travelling through the flames.
*Rumble!* A tongue of flame swept up to a height of five to six metres, and the figure of the woman completely vanished.
*Hah…*
After a few close shaves, Aaron stealthily left the city and reached a hideout he had previously prepared.
This was an underground karst cave. After doing away with all traces of the entrance and activating a defensive spell formation, Aaron finally heaved a sigh of relief and sat on the ground.
“That was too dangerous! It was only one item, did they have to chase after me so fervently?” Aaron complained, and then glared at Merlin in his mind. “Let me make this clear. If it will still be this dangerous to gather materials for the Meteor Sword in the future, I might have to give up on it. The sword may be a precious high-grade artifact, but it isn’t as precious as my life.”
“Hehe, don’t worry. This Teardrop Gemstone was the most difficult material to obtain. As long as you have your predictions, the rest are relatively easier to get our hands on.”
Immediately after, the old geezer looked stern. “The Teardrop Gemstone is a precious treasure of the Mambo Family, and it’s only natural that it was guarded so tightly. The weakening curses cast on your body are a pain, and I’ll need to spend some time analysing them. For these next two months, your strength will be restricted to that of an acolyte.”
“Sigh… But it can’t be helped!” Aaron sighed, and then thought back to the female Magus in the pink gown, his facial muscles twitching.
“I’m still far too weak. Grandpa Merlin, is there any method to advance in Sacred Flame quickly?”
“Of course!” Merlin stroked his white beard.
“Although most high-grade meditation techniques become harder to train in the further you train in them, and require many otherworldly materials to allow one to advance, my Sacred Flame is different!”
Merlin’s voice carried a hint of pride as he delved into his memories.
“Not only does my Sacred Flame give you the power to see the future, it can also allow you to advance quickly through the convergence of destiny’s powers. In theory, as long as you interfere with destiny as much as possible, you can advance at a terrifying rate!”
“Hss…” Aaron breathed in sharply, “So if I cause havoc in Twilight Zone, doesn’t that mean I can rush to becoming a Morning Star Magus?”
“Dream on!” Merlin was ruthless as
he glanced at Aaron disdainfully. “How strong is the power of destiny? Just prodding the river of destiny could cause you to be ground into powder by the inertia of fate. I trained in Sacred Flame for hundreds of years and still only dared follow in Destiny’s footsteps, merely speeding up the process.”
“No matter what it is, this can help me increase my strength! I’ll do it!” Aaron suddenly clenched his fist.
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