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eath 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.
He had returned to his guild an official Magus. He had also made them pay, to a certain extent, but the result was far from what he had imagined.
That young noble who had stolen his fiancee still had a Magus family backing him, with an official Magus in charge. Aaron could do little more than accept his apology for stealing his bride.
After this experience, his thirst for power had become more intense. This was why he was in a hurry to wander around, as well as gather materials to forge the Meteor Sword.
“So where is the area where destiny converges?” Aaron looked at Grandpa Merlin, eyes full of hope.
“You’ll need to find out yourself!” Merlin seemed to be implying something.
“En! I have to use Sacred Flame!” Aaron’s eyes brightened.
“That’s right! You’ve been promoted to an official Magus, and can therefore take a peek at the real long river of destiny!” Merlin gave an amiable smile.
“I’ll take a look now!”
Aaron impatiently sat down and entered a meditative state.
A unique spiritual force emanated from his body, linking with passage of time in the underworld and the rivers of history.
“Hm?” Aaron suddenly moved, holding onto his head and crying out miserably.
Scattered images, containing the bloodlust and vengeance of spirits flooded his mind.
—In the central region of Twilight Zone, a young Magus in black robes was currently speaking in a basement to an audience of malnourished and sickly teenagers. These teenagers, however, had extremely bright eyes that were almost blazing. Behind the Magus, the twisted image of a spider seemed to appear—
—The Dark Elven Empire! A teenager riding on a large Underground Winter Spider cheered excitedly, with a dark elf smiling wryly beside him—
These and a few other sporadic fragments appeared in Aaron’s mind, making him feel like a brick had been stuffed into it.
About half an hour later, Aaron reawakened, but he was breathing roughly.
“Those two people must be the ones around which the powers of destiny converge!” He sounded resolute.
“As long as I’m by their side and gain their trust, I can affect the children of destiny and accelerate the progress of Sacred Flame!
“When the time comes, you will all die! Haha
”
Aaron began to laugh madly, a faint trace of insanity in his expression.