Chapter 201: The Strictly Enforced Words And The Law Of Domain
Nightingale appeared to be dreaming. In her dream, she successfully avenged her parents by beheading the Moon-eating Sky Wolf.
“Aww.”
Nightingale gently opened her eyes with a moan; her entire body was in agony. She found herself in Watson’s arms. The Moon-eating Sky Wolf had only two-thirds of its body left, and its bright red blood was sprayed all over the sky.
It was not a dream.
Nightingale blinked, held her breath, and reflected on what had just occurred. She had failed to ambush the Moon-eating Sky Wolf. Instead, the wolf had flicked her away with its nail before sweeping her up into the air. Watson was the one who had saved her.
Did Watson kill the Moon-eating Sky Wolf?
Then, she heard Watson’s worried voice. “Miss Nightingale, are you okay?”
“I’m fine, thank you.”
Nightingale looked at the dead Moon-eating Sky Wolf again; she felt warm as she laid in Watson’s small arms. She looked a little disappointed. Her shock at the killing of the Moon-eating Sky Wolf was palpable. She was not happy; if she killed the Moon-eating Sky Wolf, her parents would not come back to life. Furthermore, Watson was the one who killed the wolf, so she did not get her revenge.
The body of the Moon-eating Sky Wolf, whose head and one-third of its body had been eaten off, plummeted onto the Dragonspine Snow Mountain, causing the snowflakes to fall. The other magical beasts came to a halt, and they looked afraid.
“Your leader is dead. It’s your turn now.”
Watson descended from the sky with Nightingale in his arms. He placed her on the ground, took a step forward, and activated his second Great Sin Beast.
He had transformed into Beelzebub, the Beast of Gluttony, as black mist surrounded his body. Countless mouths drooled and moved in all directions over his massive body, which was in the shape of a black goat. The mouths made continuous grunts of hunger.
Gulp, Gulp, Gulp.
All the magical beasts that heard the sound were terrified, and they fled. The Moon-eating Sky Wolf had been gobbled whole, and that harrowing scene had cast a shadow over their hearts.
Watson, however, did not frighten all of the magical beasts. A swarm of gold-tier magical beasts roared and charged at Watson. They were the ice field wolves, the storm eagles, the firmament divine eagles, and a deformed earth dragon with three heads and six wings.
Those magical beasts were held back from reaching Watson by a massive claw that plummeted from the sky.
The Moon-eating Sky Wolf, whose head and half of its body had been swallowed by the claw, stood up shakily. A cold light flashed on its nail, and the other gold-tier magical beasts instantly turned into ice sculptures. They shattered rapidly; the silver-white ice melted into the Moon-eating Sky Wolf’s broken body and enabled it to recover the missing parts of its body.
The Moon-eating Sky Wolf’s body was returned to its previous state in a matter of seconds. It even sprouted a new head. It shook its blood-soaked fur and howled at the sky.
Roar!
The magical beasts that had stopped charging at Watson due to his intimidation were motivated to attack him again. The millions of magical beasts’ steps shook the entire mountain range.
“That Moon-eating Sky Wolf is not dead?”
Watson looked surprised.
The fact that it was still alive after its head was bitten off had startled him. He subconsciously examined the Moon-eating Sky Wolf’s data and discovered that it had a new skill called the Super Healing. As a result, its body’s regeneration rate was significantly increased. Even if its head were severed, it would not die as long as its energy was replenished quickly.
“The system did not detect that ability just now. Did it evolve after it died?”
That conclusion piqued Watson’s curiosity, even though he had intended to kill the Moon-eating Sky Wolf immediately. The most pressing need at that time, however, was to kill the magical beasts led by that wolf.
“System, fuse them.”
[Fusion activated. Congratulations, Master, for successfully fusing 500,000 magical beasts. You have obtained a platinum-tier body of a fused magical beast.]
Each of the magical beasts ran toward the Beast of Gluttony that Watson had transformed into; it was as if an invisible wall blocked them. Their bodies exploded and turned into streams of light that intertwined together. Not a single magical beast could charge past Watson; they died faster as they stormed forward.
The light that had intertwined gave birth to a strange-looking magical beast.
That magical beast was more than a thousand meters long; it looked like a limp centipede that had laid on the ground. Its two sides were covered with heads, some of which were bird heads, some of which were heads of larger beasts. However, instead of facial features, those heads had wings and claws. It also had eyeballs, noses, and mouths scattered on the back of its body; it had looked strange and disgusting.
Watson saw a silver-moon wolf attached to that magical beast. It had two bird claws for eyes and two naked eyeballs rolled in the center of the claws. It made everyone there physically uncomfortable.
Since he had fused so many types of beasts, innumerable lineages had been merged. It made it difficult for that monster-like thing to evolve in a certain direction. Fortunately, it did not unite with the other magical beasts to create a more formidable monster.
“Devour ability, activate.”
As Watson’s voice faded, the Beast of Gluttony opened his mouth and swooped in front of the monster-like giant centipede. He began to devour the monster’s head, and in less than a minute, he had utterly consumed the 1,000-meter-long monster.
During that process, the Beast of Gluttony’s body stretched as if it was expanding. A peak platinum-tier aura descended from a height of more than 100 meters to more than 500 meters.
At that moment, Watson had finally successfully advanced to the platinum tier.
The Great Sin Beast’s form had grown as well; he had gone from an ordinary platinum-tier magical beast to a peak platinum-tier monster. The world trembled. The magical elements in the air had infused his body and melted his shell. His true form was finally revealed.
His body, which had been taller than a ten-year-old child, was now a little taller. Watson’s tender face had also matured, and there was a symbol that looked like an eyeball without pupils on his forehead. It was the symbol of the source of chaotic-elemental magic. The source was initially located in his abdomen, but it had shifted to the middle of his brows. It had fused with his soul.
At the same time, he had obtained a new ability—Strictly Enforced Words.
The Strictly Enforced Words skill was the symbol of a platinum-tier mage. It could control the magical elements in the world through one’s speech. It could also create a similar magical attack without the use of any magic.
Since he had obtained a new ability, he had to give it a try.
“Let there be light.”
Watson waved his finger, and the sun above his head immediately shone brightly. Rays of sunlight intertwined and turned into a rain of arrows that descended from the sky. With him as the starting point, the beams crisscrossed and spread toward the endless mountain peak. That attack immediately pierced any magical beast within a thousand meters; fresh blood flowed with the light arrows.
That attack had killed more than a thousand magical beasts.
The light arrows also melted the Dragonspine Snow Mountain within a thousand-meter radius. The snow that had never melted had turned into crystal clear water columns that revealed the black rocks below.
Watson was quite pleased with the Strictly Enforced Words skill after he had tested it. After he had advanced to the platinum tier, he felt as if his brain had grown many times in size. His thoughts were cleared, and the magical elements in his soul had become much stronger. Even his chaotic-elemental magic source’s capacity had grown to the level of a diamond-tier champion.
“Other than the Strictly Enforced Words skill, I think my ability as a warrior has been enhanced too when I advanced to the platinum tier,” Watson muttered to himself. A gold-tier warrior would be able to teleport, and after one advanced to the platinum tier, that ability would evolve into something called the Law of Domain.
The Law of Domain was similar to the Strictly Enforced Words skill. The latter would use one’s will to change the world, while the former would release a majestic combat aura to form a domain. With Watson’s strength, he could release a domain within a hundred-meter radius, and his strength would be significantly enhanced while he was in that domain, and his enemies would be suppressed there as well.
The Law of Domain would be diverse as well, based on the combat aura released.
Watson lightly stomped his foot, and the earth trembled like ripples inside the 100-meter radius. A layer of incandescent light emerged from his feet and spread in all directions, creating a gleaming mirror on the ground.
The moment the domain was formed, data about the domain immediately appeared in Watson’s mind.
[Light domain: the host’s ability within the domain is greatly enhanced and can appear at any time within the domain. The enemy’s strength is also significantly suppressed and dimmed. The host can control all the weapons of light within the domain to attack the enemy.]
Over a thousand light weapons within the domain quickly zoomed up as a result of Watson’s thought. Each of the weapons was comparable to a peak gold-tier weapon. The whistling combat aura emitted a whistling sound as it coiled around him. Even the toughest metal would be shattered in the presence of such weapons.
Furthermore, those weapons could be reforged after they were depleted. One might say they were infinite. In terms of range and power, the Law of Domain could not be compared to the Strictly Enforced Words. The former was more durable and was better in close combat.
He did not only get a light-elemental combat aura. He had tried the light domain, and just as he was about to continue trying the other combat aura domains, Antonio and Sylvan arrived at his side.
“Watson, congratulations on advancing to the platinum tier! You’re only ten years old, and you’re already a platinum-tier elite; it is unprecedented in the kingdom’s entire history. Even the current sword saint only achieved the platinum tier when he was 15 or 16 years old. You are my most outstanding disciple, indeed!”
Antonio stroked his beard; his kind face seemed relieved. He had just become Watson’s master less than a month ago, and Watson had already achieved the platinum tier. Watson would undoubtedly achieve the diamond tier and get even higher accomplishments.
He was deeply honored to have such a disciple.
Sylvan stood beside Antonio; he looked surprised. “Watson, have you just achieved the platinum tier? Does that mean you were only at the gold tier when you fought with me?”
He thought that Watson was already a platinum-tier elite when he forced him into such a situation. He had not expected Watson to be only a gold-tier elite when they fought. What a monster! Watson’s strength must have increased by dozens of times after his advancement to the platinum tier. Under such circumstances, could he still defeat Watson? Was there anyone amongst the platinum-tier elites who could be a match for Watson?
Chapter 202: An Avalanche On The Dragonspine Snow Mountain
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
“You flatter me, master. I’m still far behind you,” Watson replied humbly as he stroked the pupil-less eye mark between his brows, which immediately disappeared; it did not seem to have changed much from before that.
He was certain that Antonio, who had cast the Time Stripping spell, could fight him for 300 rounds. Even though the final result was still likely to be Antonio’s triumph, it was a lot better than previously, when he was utterly powerless in front of Antonio.
His advancement to the platinum tier meant that he had become one of the strongest people in the world. He could protect his family from any bully and allow them to live a better life. He would have a bright future.
Watson’s heart swelled with pride. His future was in a galaxy of stars. He came, he saw, and he conquered—just as he had promised the Blackmoon Knights.
He lowered his head to face the Moon-eating Sky Wolf and the rest of the magical beasts. He was under no obligation to defeat those beasts then. All he needed to do was to defeat them.
“Wind, listen to my call. Strip everything!”
The spell was cast as a result of Watson’s words. Strong gusts of wind blew across the entire Dragonspine Snow Mountain. The snow water that the light had melted had been blown completely dry. The wind blew away a layer of the ground, and the air grew thin.
There was no reason for him to chant or perform any spell. He simply opened his mouth to stir the world, and the power was equivalent to that of a normal platinum-tier spell.
Living creatures could only exist because they needed to breathe oxygen and absorb energy particles. The oxygen got incredibly thin as Watson used the powerful winds to clear the air. Tens of thousands of magical beasts tumbled to the earth around him. In anguish, they scratched the rocks with their claws and whined as they rolled their eyes.
They were all suffocating, unable to move, and had no choice but to wait for death in despair.
Watson was correct in his assessment that he merely needed to move his fingers to slay those magical beasts. He did not have to move his hands at all. He simply needed to say a single word or cast a glance to end the life of those magical beasts.
Roar!
The Moon-eating Sky Wolf, who witnessed the action from somewhere nearby, was no longer smiling. Its expression tensed.
It could not breathe either. It did not understand what had happened. The magical beasts were on their way to attack Watson, and when the young man’s strength was almost exhausted, the wolf would swallow him. However, Watson had devoured the other magical beasts and became stronger because of that.
It looked like the young man had the same ability as it did—he could grow stronger with his devour ability. The young man was even stronger than the wolf. How did he get that talent?
The wolf felt envious, just like a human. Watson’s danger level had changed from dangerous to deadly. The wolf thought that it would die if it were to stay there any longer. So, it immediately turned around and ran toward the Dragonspine Snow Mountain peak.
It could win no matter the kind of conflict it faced. Even if it were to die, it could still resurrect itself. That was not its first failure, but it was the first time it felt terror. The wolf was willing to return and accept the purple-haired demon once more. Otherwise, it might die in Watson’s hands.
“You want to run? Stay here with me.”
Watson’s expression was calm. He stomped his feet and teleported above the Moon-eating Sky Wolf’s head and activated the Law of Domain.
At that time, he activated the primal chaos domain. The primal chaos’ combat aura was the strongest one he had. The moment the domain was activated, it enveloped the sky wolf. A greenish-gray air current appeared on the ground and surrounded Watson and the sky wolf at the same time.
A massive pupil-less eye appeared in the center of the green-gray air current. Distorted lines filled the eye; it was cold and emotionless, like a god’s eyes that treated all lives and deaths equally.
[Chaos Domain: the host’s abilities are greatly enhanced within the domain, and all enemy attacks will be suppressed. The host can use the pupil-less eye to release light rays within the domain. Anything that the light rays covered will be erased.]
The Moon-eating Sky Wolf charged left and right within the chaos domain. Its body emitted a biting cold air as it released a platinum-tier spell, the Absolute Zero. It was an extremely powerful spell that could freeze space and time. However, before the freezing air could spread, it had already touched the chaotic airflow and shattered.
The Absolute Zero spell had been nullified; the Moon-eating Sky Wolf looked desperate. It waved its claws crazily and opened its mouth as it tried to shatter the airflow in its surroundings. However, when it came into contact with the chaotic airflow, the fur on its body was corroded until its bare skin.
Then, the chaotic airflow destroyed its skin, leaving only a layer of flesh on its skeleton. It was removed layer by layer.
Watson did not even use the pupil-less eye, the core of his domain, but the Moon-eating Sky Wolf was about to die.
There was no way to retreat, and no attacks could break the domain. The Moon-eating Sky Wolf’s expression became even more desperate.
Antonio and Sylvan stood outside the domain and watched everything. No one moved since they knew it was pointless, especially Sylvan. He looked at Watson’s chaotic domain with shock and disbelief.
“This is a new element that is different from all the other known elements! Was Watson the one who developed the new magical element at the boundary?”
Someone had developed a new magical element on the border not too long ago, and it had altered the world’s composition. He had noticed it while he was in the mansion, and he even dispatched Nightingale to investigate the matter. In the end, he found nothing because he had put the incident on hold due to the impending winter.
He had previously believed that a mysterious platinum-tier elite had created a new magical element. He had wanted to find that elite and recruit him. He had never imagined Watson to be that person. Watson, after all, had only been at the gold tier. However, it seemed like he could create a new magical element that did exist in the world. What kind of talent was that?
When Sylvan turned around, he noticed that Antonio’s eyes were calm, as if he had known about it for a long time, which made him uncomfortable.
It seemed like Antonio’s decision to take Watson as his disciple had something to do with that matter. It was no surprise that Antonio, who had not left the mountain in a long time, had been at the border. He felt conflicted when he realized that the person he had been looking for to produce the new magical elements was Watson.
While he pondered that, the Moon-eating Sky Wolf had almost been obliterated; it had been stripped down to its skeleton. Watson had stopped; it looked like he did not intend to kill the Moon-eating Sky Wolf. He must have wanted to see if the Moon-eating Sky Wolf could still be resurrected with such extensive wounds. Perhaps it would develop a new ability too.
If the answer was yes, he could certainly injure the Moon-eating Sky Wolf repeatedly and wait for it to develop various abilities before he devoured it. Even though he had reached the platinum tier, he was still unsatisfied. He still had the potential to grow stronger.
Kacha!
Watson came to a halt when he heard a sharp sound. He was surprised to find that the rocks under the Moon-eating Sky Wolf’s feet, which had turned into white bones, had cracked apart. A dense black airflow rose from within and coiled around its white bones. Then, the airflow creaked.
Numerous giant black rats that were more than a meter long crawled out of the ground. In just a short moment, thousands of those rats had appeared. They had a bronze-tier aura, and as soon as they came out, they darted onto the Moon-eating Sky Wolf’s bone. Then, they started to bite with their sharp teeth.
Even though the Moon-eating Sky Wolf was a platinum-tier magical beast, it could not withstand the rats’ attacks. Furthermore, it only had its skeleton left, which made it even harder for it to hold on. The rats shattered the wolf’s bones and devoured it.
The black rats that had swallowed the wolf’s bones flashed with light. Then, they split into two, and the total amount continued to increase. However, those rats were swiftly killed when they touched the airflow within the domain. Unfortunately, their bodies split, and the number doubled even quicker.
“Where did those rats come from? How are they so tough?”
Watson used the system to investigate when he sensed the difference between those rats and ordinary magical beasts.
[Bronze-tier synthetic magical beast: Goldbiter Rat]
[Abilities: Rapid Devouring (their hard teeth can crush any hard metal, and they will devour everything in sight), Common Consciousness (all goldbiter rats share a single consciousness).]
[Additional abilities: Natural Selection (will automatically destroy weaker rats and continue to evolve), Infinite Fission (the energy converted by devouring will constantly replicate new rats, there is no upper limit).]
[Additional abilities: Advanced Fusion (different goldbiter rats can be fused, the level will increase, and they will gain new abilities).]
“What is a synthetic magical beast?”
Watson’s eyes narrowed. That was the first time he had heard of the existence of such a magical beast.
The goldbiter rats did not have any special offensive abilities, but their devouring attributes were enough to cause trouble. He did not know what the person who created those rats had in mind.
He did not have time to think. The thousands of goldbiter rats had changed after they devoured the Moon-eating Sky Wolf. Silver wings sprouted from their backs, and their black fur was covered in ice armor. Their size had also increased; they had grown to be as tall as humans and began to move toward Watson.
The ground beneath the feet of the surviving hundreds of thousands of magical beasts began to crack. The goldbiter rats crawled outward. They climbed onto the magical beasts and bit them until there was nothing left. Those magical beasts did not put up much of a fight as though they were used to that.
Perhaps the magical beasts’ presence at the mountain base was meant to feed the goldbiter rats.
The entire Dragonspine Snow Mountain was teeming with rats as far as the eye could see. People who have a fear of density would most certainly faint if they had witnessed that scene.
One could hear the cracking sounds as the goldbiter rats crawled out of the Dragonspine Snow Mountain. The entire mountain range had existed for an unknown amount of years, but it had collapsed that day. It had sunk to a hundred meters almost immediately. After that, one could see that the mountain was riddled with holes. Snowflakes and dust flew in every direction as the roar of an avalanche echoed all the way to the border.
Chapter 203: The King’s Conspiracy
“I shall complete the mission His Majesty assigned to me.”
The purple-haired man, half-flesh and half-skeleton, stood calmly in the sky above the Dragonspine Snow Mountain; he watched as the mountain range beneath his feet cracked and gradually sank. He put his quill pen and books aside.
The massive snow mountain had collapsed. There would be no winter at the border. Instead, it would be replaced by a never-ending swarm of goldbiter rats. It was unclear who posed the greater threat.
“On the one hand, using the goldbiter rats from the experiment to spend ten years hollowing out the Dragonspine Snow Mountain can remove the natural moat that spans between the northern and southern kingdoms. On the other hand, it can exploit the goldbiter rats to control the border. Aside from that, it is also an army of formidable magical beasts. I am curious how many people it can kill in one shot. His Majesty is truly a mastermind.”
The purple-haired man sighed. He extended his left hand, which resembled a white bone. A small black rat squeaked as it ran out of his body and onto his palm.
That black rat was no bigger than a palm. Its body was covered with silky black fur. It had a similar appearance to the goldbiter rats, but there were noticeable distinctions. First and foremost, the rat had a platinum crown mark between his brows. Its eyes were also platinum-colored and looked wise. Most significantly, the rat’s physique exuded a majestic air that belied its diminutive stature. Even heaven and earth appeared insignificant in comparison.
“The only product that has evolved to the top in that experiment is the platinum-tier Heaven-devouring Rat King. Its presence allows it to exert control over the other goldbiter rats. It permits them to travel around the border without causing too much damage, and it also prevents them from spreading to the other regions.” The purple-haired man turned his gaze to the endless north.
The beauty in the north was progressively unveiled as a result of the Dragonspine Snow Mountain’s collapse. It was a broad, never-ending white plateau. The terrain had begun to rise gradually. Every river was frozen beneath, and glaciers stood everywhere on the earth. That was a completely distinct place from the Holy Dragon Kingdom. All year long, it was bitterly cold.
The northern Winter Nation was based there.
King Landhar III, the ruler of the Holy Dragon Kingdom, was wise and brilliant. He was dissatisfied with the kingdom’s territory. He wanted to expand, and the Holy Dragon Kingdom was located in the center of the continent. The other four kingdoms had long coveted that fertile land. Rather than waiting for the other kingdoms to attack, it was better to strike them first.
Destroying the Dragonspine Snow Mountain was only the beginning.
The chilly air swept across his face, blowing the purple-haired man’s long robe. The Dragonspine Snow Mountain barrier had vanished. The frigid air from the north blasted across the border; it made the winter even colder. Sparse snowflakes fell from the sky and gradually grew heavier.
The man stared silently at the thick snow that covered the entire border. He turned around and took a stride toward the heart of the Holy Dragon Kingdom. Just as he was ready to depart, a young voice echoed from behind him.
“Stop right there!”
When the purple-haired man turned around, he noticed a young man with brown hair and blue eyes flying through the air. He was looking at him with a scowl on his face.
“Who are you?” The purple-haired man tilted his head slightly; he looked confused.
The young man in front of him was clearly from the border, yet he had never heard of such a person. He appeared to be around ten years old, but his body radiated the aura of a platinum-tier mag. It was somewhat surprising.
“My name is Watson. I’m from Blackmoon Castle.”
Watson?
Blackmoon Castle?
The purple-haired man became even more confused. He had never heard of those names. It seemed that he had stayed on Dragonspine Snow Mountain for too long, so he knew nothing about the outside world.
Both of them sized each other up.
The older man’s dark purple hair was oily, and Watson wondered how long he had not washed it, and his mage robe was frayed. The wind blew softly, and it exposed the man’s left calf. The man’s face was rather attractive despite the fact that Watson could see his bones. The corners of his eyes were painted with clown-like makeup, and it gave him a dismal and sinister appearance.
He was sure that the man was the one who had caused the collapse of the Dragonspine Snow Mountain.
He had previously used the Gluttony Beast to consume the Moon-eating Sky Wolf and advanced to the platinum tier. He had hoped to wait for the Moon-eating Sky Wolf to evolve a few more generations before he would devour it. However, a swarm of rats had rushed out and devoured the Moon-eating Sky Wolf instead. It made him feel quite uneasy.
At that moment, a strange fluctuation had stretched from the sky above the Dragonspine Snow Mountain. He immediately used teleportation and rushed over there. He saw a purple-haired middle-aged man opposite him.
“I’ve already told you my name. Now it’s your turn.”
The middle-aged man shook his head in response to Watson’s question. “There is no need to inquire. You will not let me go no matter who I am, right? Similarly, now that you have seen me, I can’t let you go either.”
He could empathize with Watson’s feelings. Everyone at the border would be upset if they saw the goldbiter rats running around the Dragonspine Snow Mountain and imagined the troubles they would have in the future.
However, what he did not expect was that Watson would growl at him. “Of course, I won’t let you go. There’s a 10,000-year-old ancient ruin buried beneath the Dragonspine Snow Mountain. I was just waiting to excavate it and learn some ancient spells. There are also those magical beasts, including the Moon-eating Sky Wolf. They belonged to Blackmoon Castle. But you just released a bunch of rats to eat them. Do you know how much I’ve lost?”
At least 100 million gold coins.
Watson’s heart was bleeding. Aside from the ancient ruins, the remaining hundreds of thousands of magical monsters were real and worthed at least ten million gold coins.
The purple-haired man opened his mouth slightly. Obviously, he did not expect Watson to say such things. He thought Watson was worried about the border; he did not expect the other party was only concerned with a mere ruin and hundreds of thousands of magical beasts. He really did not know how that young man’s brain worked.
The purple-haired man shook his head, collected his wits, and pointed at Watson. The Heaven-devouring Rat King, who stood on his palm, immediately turned into a stream of light and fled.
The Heaven-devouring Rat King was fused from evolved goldbiter rats. The rat king had the advantage of almost all the magical beasts because it had devoured a significant number of them. It was the strongest magical beast at the same level as a platinum-tier elite.
It had a unique skill—Heaven-devouring. It could devour combat auras and even the radiance of the sun, moon, and stars. Watson would leave no remains if he were killed by that particular method—it was the most basic and convenient way to do that.
“What is that flying past us?”
Watson did not even look up at the Heaven-devouring Rat King swooping overhead. He stomped his feet, and a hundred-meter-long chaotic realm appeared beneath him. The turbulent airflow produced a massive eye without pupils, which was focused at the flying Heaven-devouring Rat King. He activated his domain ability—Eliminate Light Rays.
The distorted light rays within the pupil-less eye intertwined and turned into a massive cyan-gray light pillar. It swept past the Heaven-devouring Rat King, leaving barely a few dregs behind.
After that, Watson summoned his domain and flew right to the purple-haired man’s side. He struck him furiously with his palms. The green wind in the air gathered spontaneously and transformed into two green hundred-meter-long palms. He held the purple-haired man in his palms.
“Remove all valuable items from your body. If you can satisfy me, I may not hold you accountable for the crime you just committed. You will not be able to go today if you don’t do that.”
“You dispatched the Heaven-devouring Rat King in a single blow, and you have also mastered the Law of Domain and the Strictly Enforced Words skills. You are a platinum-tier dual-class mage! Who are you?”
The purple-haired man looked shocked for the first time as he was held in Watson’s storm-like palm. His long, narrow eyes were wide open. It was one thing for him to be a platinum-tier mage at such a young age, but he was also a dual-class mage. It was a heaven-defying talent! He could not believe he had never heard of such a gifted mind.
“I’ve already told you that I’m Watson from Blackmoon Castle.”
Watson’s lips curled. “Don’t try to change the topic. I’ll give you another chance. You can stay and atone for your sins if you pay me enough compensation for the ruins you destroyed and the magical beasts you slaughtered.”
“What if I choose neither?”
The man’s long robe had been pierced. Bones emerged swiftly from the interior; they twisted and changed into larger bones. The bones on the man’s body multiplied by tens of thousands in less than ten seconds. He transformed into a skeleton that was hundreds of meters tall and floated into the sky, with six skeletal arms splayed out behind him. Each arm housed a unique treasure. There was a gleaming set of platinum-tier sword-and-shield that emitted an ancient aura.
The six weapons looked extraordinary, and the man’s body was embedded in the skeleton’s chest. He controlled the skeleton to aim the six weapons at Watson.
At the same time, the Heaven-devouring Rat King, who Watson had just destroyed, began to squirm and expand. First, it turned into a piece of meat, and then the meat turned into a brand new Heaven-devouring Rat King. Then twelve Heaven-devouring Rat Kings surrounded Watson. The domain’s size continued to expand, and soon it became a radius of 100 meters.
The Heaven-devouring Rat King, which had grown in size, had a platinum crown shape on its forehead; it had turned from illusory to real. Its mouth also opened into black holes that absorbed its surrounding light. Space seemed to be distorted as it enveloped Watson. He looked around him, but he could only see empty darkness.
“If I include the Heaven-devouring Rat King, that is more than ten platinum-tier elites. Even if we ignore the Heaven-devouring Rat King’s Splitting ability, there are still two of us, and we’re both platinum-tier elites. You are just one person. How do you intend to beat us?” The purple-haired man inquired.
A peak platinum-tier mage stood in front of him with the Heaven-devouring Rat King beside him. The rat king was also at platinum tier, so it meant that it was tough to kill. It would also split its body continuously. That could be the most severe crisis that Watson had ever faced.
Chapter 204: The Demon’s Blood
Watson did not answer the question. Instead, he began to chant. The spell he was chanting was composed of runes. As the beautiful language fell, a long river of time appeared in the sky. It was the River of History projection, which had fused with a peak platinum-tier spell.
The River of History projection was considerably stronger because Watson was a platinum-tier mage, and he was also chanting in runes. Watson had called 100 of his past selves. Even his most insignificant counterpart was at the gold tier.
The World Tree branches wriggled out of Watson’s palm almost immediately. He used the Starfall spell to manufacture golden cards swiftly. Then, he utilized the God’s Descent spell to meld them into each of his past self’s bodies. He twisted the Wish for the World ring on his finger and made a wish to regain his strength for all the cards he created. However, he would need to use ten years of his master’s life.
He made several wishes until he cast the God’s Descent spell on all the clones.
When the clones merged with the God’s Descent spell, they had an aura different from other humans. Some had black crowns on their heads and wore black robes. Some were hung upside down on crosses; their bodies were charred, and their faces were twisted. There was also a grim reaper who held a huge scythe in his hand and wore a black cloak, but there was nothing inside the cloak.
A hundred magical beasts had descended. Even the Heaven-devouring Rat King, who had consumed many magical beasts, let out two anxious roars when he sensed the aura of those magical beasts. The purple-haired guy was also there; he was a little taken aback.
“My clones are equivalent to a hundred platinum-tier elites. Even without their abilities, I can transform into more than 30 forms by myself. How are you going to defeat me?”
Watson repeated the purple-haired man’s words back to him, word for word and full of mockery.
The purple-haired man was speechless. Watson was able to summon a hundred platinum-tier clones; he could not do it. He was even more suspicious of Watson’s identity. He must be the top elite in the kingdom; why was he at the border? What was the relationship between that youth and the border count?
As he thought about that, the black hole created by the Heaven-devouring Rat King shattered. The light and space were no longer distorted, revealing the scenery outside. Sylvan and Antonio stood side by side, their faces grim.
The goldbiter rats had just fled the Dragonspine Snow Mountain. They did not go after them. Instead, they tried to think of ways to prevent the Dragonspine Snow Mountain from a total collapse. They were unequivocal about what the destruction of the snow mountain would mean to them. Finally, they discovered that the mountain’s interior had been plagued with holes for a long time. They would not be able to save it even if they worked together to cast an earth-elemental spell.
In addition to that, there was a lot of black gas inside the Dragonspine Snow Mountain. It expanded along the mountain, which had collapsed. To keep the gas from drifting toward the border, the two of them worked together to shift the mountain’s collapse toward the north. The shock wave created by the destruction pushed the snow on the ground thousands of kilometers away. The snow had reached a height of more than a hundred meters.
The two of them did not have time to catch all the rats that had escaped from the mountain. They were afraid Watson would follow them when they saw the young man trapped in a pitch-black space. They broke into the same space and discovered that Watson and a hundred magical beasts were in the space. The Heaven-devouring Rat King and the man embedded in the huge skeleton were also there.
“You!” Antonio’s expression changed when he saw the purple-haired man. He had recognized the man in front of him.
“Antonio?”
The purple-haired man gave Antonio a sidelong glance. He was perplexed at first, but then he exhibited an even more doubtful expression. “Weren’t you an elderly man? How have you become so young? Did you use the Time Stripping method? No, you do not have the Time Stripping technique’s aura on you. What is going on?”
“Moriarty, you are my first disciple. Won’t you address me as Master when you see me? As for your doubts, I’m more puzzled about you. You should have died in the Demoness riot ten years ago.”
Antonio cast a puzzled glance at the purple-haired man, especially when he noticed the boney body on Moriarty’s left side.
As the kingdom’s representative, Moriarty had gone on a crusade against the Demoness Church ten years ago. Finally, everyone said that Queen Avril had killed him. Half of his body had been stripped of flesh and blood, and he had perished in agony. Antonio had examined his body and determined that his disciple could not have lived. Therefore he had buried him with his own hands. The Demoness Church was defined as exceedingly evil and detested by people due to the kingdom’s deliberate propaganda.
Why would a disciple, who was dead, stand in front of him?
Many thoughts went through Antonio’s mind in an instant.
“I will address you as Master if you want me to do so. I did not expect you to be at the border as well, Master, and not in the Temple of the Stars. It looked like you were here for a stroll; what an elegant mood to have, Master.”
The purple-haired man named Moriarty revealed a somewhat lonely smile. “Does that mean you and my junior brother, who is also the border count, are working together to obtain the supreme position, Master?”
“Don’t talk nonsense.”
Antonio scolded him. “I am here to recruit a disciple.”
Recruit a disciple?
Moriarty’s gaze turned toward Watson.
Watson was the only one who met that profile. “No wonder he could reach the platinum tier at such a young age. Furthermore, the spell he used seems a little familiar. It looks like he is your disciple, indeed, Master. What a fantastic student! Alright, that’s enough gossip. If there’s nothing else, I’ll take my leave first.”
Moriarty took control of the massive skeleton body and grabbed the Heaven-devouring Rat King. A gigantic hole opened behind him, emitting a tremendous attractive force that drew him to another location.
“Stop! You haven’t told me how you’re still alive.” Antonio’s face shifted, and a layer of aura appeared on his body. The Time Stripping spell led him to transform into a diamond star and fly toward Moriarty.
He chanted a platinum-tier dark-elemental spell, the Black Hole, and summoned a massive black hole to fight against the Heaven-devouring Rat King’s Black Hole spell.
“And why did you destroy the Dragonspine Snow Mountain? Who are you working for? Tell me the truth!” Sylvan was right on his tail. He also cast the Time Stripping spell, and his strength immediately increased to the platinum tier level. Following that, he released the Vermillion Nova, the most extraordinary fire-elemental spell, and a little sun descended.
Moriarty appeared relaxed despite the fact that he was under attack by two persons comparable to diamond-tier elites. “Master, Junior Brother. Well, since we now have another junior brother, perhaps I need to call you First Junior Brother? Aren’t you guys too enthusiastic for a farewell?”
Moriarty controlled the massive skeleton and raised its six arms, two of which held a shield and the other a longsword, to face Sylvan and Antonio’s spells. The shield kept the Red Sun at bay, enabling the high-temperature flames to wash over it. The longsword slashed the black hole open.
Moriarty did not attempt to block any of their attacks at the same time. Black liquid oozed from the bones on his left side. It wiggled and wrapped itself around the bones and turned it black. The darkened skin formed wings from the back, a tail from behind his buttocks, and ultimately covered his face. It made a mask with jagged fangs.
A red texture was blended in with the black liquid. It flickered slightly, giving Moriarty the appearance of a demon that crawled out of hell. Moriarty’s aura immediately rose from platinum to diamond tier once the red-black liquid slithered out. The massive skeleton he had inlaid had likewise turned red and black.
Moriarty had truly entered the diamond tier, unlike Antonio. The latter exploited hundreds of his prior selves to stack together and attain the power of the diamond tier in his platinum-tier world.
“I am sure you did not expect it, Master. You abandoned me and buried me back then, but I persevered. I should thank you, Master. I would not be as powerful as I am today if it were not for you! When I was researching the magical beasts and figuring out how to get them to evolve, I came up with a strategy that could allow humans to evolve. I called it the Demon’s Blood. Speaking of which, I was inspired to create that solution by your Time Stripping technique. However, it is more powerful and has fewer adverse effects than the Time Stripping method. You are no longer my match.”
Half of Moriarty’s face was covered with a red and black mask, and his voice became low, hoarse, and confident.
“For the sake of our past friendship, I won’t kill you today. But you shouldn’t fight so needlessly either.”
No one knew how hard his life had been all those years ago. The King had pulled him out of the grave. Even though he did not know how the King had saved him, he was grateful for what he had done. That was why he worked for the King.
The prerequisite for his work was to live well.
He did not hesitate to apply the magical beast evolution fluid that he had tried on the goldbiter rats on himself to survive. Fortunately, he was successful. He had evolved into a demonic form. All of his powers had multiplied dozens of times under that guise. He had also received demonic powers which could taint everything, including magic and combat aura. He would pollute anything he touched.
The two magic spells that Antonio and Sylvan had cast had caused red patterns to form in the black hole. The attractive force drew closer to Antonio, and the flames of the Vermillion Nova turned turbid and burnt him. The demonic power had polluted the magical beasts that Watson had summoned before they ever came close—they were burnt into black and red ashes.
No one in the world, not even the most knowledgeable and strong mage, could harm him. Moriarty exuded confidence. Half of his body had already passed through the teleportation black hole. At that moment, he noticed a black shadow flash in front of him.
“System fusion, activate.”
A feeling of weakness washed over him. The Demon’s Blood that had spread on the massive skeleton had shrunk and turned into a fist-sized black and red ball that flew into the hands of the young man. It collided with the other blood in his hand and exploded with a bright light. The black-and-red blood immediately wrapped around the crimson blood and darkened it.
That youth was Watson.
“That’s impossible!”
Moriarty felt an incredible feeling of weakness as blood oozed from the corners of his mouth.
Even Antonio and Sylvan’s combined efforts could not break through the demonic power he used for defense. How could the young man in front of him quickly break in and grab more than half of his Demon’s Blood? After Watson did that, the young man looked at the massive skeleton with interest. It gave Moriarty a bad feeling about that.
Chapter 205: Watson’s Demonic Servant
[A platinum-tier special item: the Demon’s Blood]
[Effect: The essence and evolution fluid extracted from tens of thousands of magical beasts can allow the human body to evolve continuously. It can also enable the body to break through its limits and enter a stronger level. However, it does not have a 100% success rate. The consequence of failure is the host’s death, devoured by the Demon’s Blood. The current success rate of evolution is at 50%.]
[Additional effects: Super Self-healing (after fusing with the Demon’s Blood, as long as there is still a tiny piece of tissue left in the body, it can be resurrected), Power of Contamination (a demon-specific ability that can contaminate all magic and combat aura), Demon Form (after transforming into a demon, all of your strength will significantly increase. You will be immune to the attacks of the evil attribute and will be restrained by the light-elemental attacks.]
[Additional skill: Boiling Demon’s Blood]
Usually, the Demon’s Blood was stored in the bone marrow.
When activated, the blood would multiply and cover other items. Any object covered in the Demon’s Blood would gain basic intelligence, and the host could control it. It will also have the strength of a platinum-tier summoned beast.
Watson touched the Demon’s Blood in his hand as the complete data appeared in his eyes.
“This blood is a platinum-tier item. I can change my form once I consume it. Not bad at all.”
Even though the demonic form made him happy, he was surprised with the form’s ability to self-heal. He had wanted the same ability from the Moon-eating Sky Wolf. He would not need to be afraid of more powerful opponents. As long as his body and soul were not destroyed in a single hit, he could absorb more energy and resurrect his body.
Watson did not devour the demonic blood directly because there was a chance of failure if he did that. The success rate for evolving pure demonic blood was less than only 10%. Watson has just fused his blood with the demonic blood, and the success rate increased to 50%. After dealing with Moriarty, he chose to continue to fuse his blood with the demonic blood. Alternatively, he might use the Wish for the World ring to boost the success rate to 100%.
After he made his decision, Watson began to examine the massive skeletons that protruded from Moriarty’s torso. Those bones were not ordinary either.
[Platinum-tier special item: Purgatory Skeleton]
[Effects: the skeleton fossil of the platinum-tier demonic beast, Hell Baron, was extracted from the depths of the Dragonspine Snow Mountain. The Hell Baron was a species from ancient times. It had six arms, and each arm represented a punishment from hell. Those who fused with the skeleton could obtain the Hell Baron’s powers.]
[Additional effects: the Hell Baron Transformation (divided into complete transformation and partial transformation—a complete transformation allows one to transform into the Hell Baron, and a partial transformation can only summon the Hell Baron’s skeleton), Super Physical Resistance (almost immune to all physical damages), Super Magic Resistance (almost immune to all magical spells), Demon King (suppressive effect on dark-elemental creatures), Loss of Pain (due to its unique body structure, no physical or spiritual attacks can cause it pain).]
[Additional skills: Six-arm Torture (the weapons in those six arms are torture tools made for the toughest parts of one’s bones. Anyone injured by those six torture tools will suffer physical and spiritual pain and die in extreme pain.]
‘No wonder Moriarty’s body is half flesh and half bone. So it’s because of that tool.’
When summoned locally, the Purgatory Skeleton could replace the bones in its own body with those of the Hell Baron. The body’s strength could develop then, but it could also escape the impacts from its surroundings. It is ideal for places with a freezing climate like the Dragonspine Snow Mountain. However, when he looked at Moriarty’s figure, it was clear that he had not entirely merged with the Purgatory Skeleton.
Of course, all of that was not important to Watson. Since he knew the effects of the Purgatory Skeleton, he did not plan to leave it to Moriarty. The older man had destroyed the ruins in the Dragonspine Snow Mountain and killed hundreds of thousands of magical beasts. If he did not get something from him as compensation, Watson would feel like he had lost a lot of blood.
In short, he wanted that item.
With that thought in mind, Watson twisted one of the eight rings on his finger and made a wish. The white bone of an arm immediately appeared in his hand. It was a bone that he had used to duplicate himself. The price was one year of Antonio’s lifespan.
Watson held the bone and unleashed the system fusion onto the massive Purgatory Skeleton Moriarty had implanted.
“System fusion, activate!”
“D*mn brat! Die!”
Moriarty sensed something was awry and instantly abandoned his plans to assault Antonio and Sylvan. He controlled the six gigantic arms of the skeleton on his back and allowed six different platinum-tier torture instruments to run over Watson’s body.
The platinum-tier longsword represented the dismemberment punishment. It would cut off a person’s flesh bit by bit, causing them to die in grief. The shield represented the Iron Virgin punishment. When folded, the shield would act like a huge coffin that could trap a person in it. The rivets on it would pierce into that person’s body. Other than that, there were four other types of punishment methods that were exceptionally brutal as well.
Moriarty unleashed the punishments at that precise moment. Thousands of phantoms surged over Watson’s body as the Sword of Death instantaneously turned toward him. The Iron Virgin’s shield folded and encased him. Then, the casket was struck by the various layers of punishment methods.
Antonio and Sylvan’s expressions changed when they saw that scene. They wanted to step forward and help, but before they could do anything, the dignified statue formed by the Iron Maiden’s shield suddenly shattered and revealed Watson’s figure inside it. All the instruments of torture that touched him were like phantoms that did not exist—they passed through him.
On the contrary, the Purgatory Skeleton on Moriarty had quickly disappeared. It turned into light and fused into the bone in Watson’s hand; it had turned into an exquisite little skeleton. Its drooping head quietly floated in the air, like a highly skilled puppet.
Moriarty’s expression darkened when he saw that scene because Watson had looked relaxed even when he was attacked.
[Congratulations, Master, for successfully fusing the Purgatory Skeleton, a platinum-tier item. The Purgatory Skeleton and Demon’s Blood have been detected and can be fused. Would you like to fuse them, Master?]
“Fuse.”
[Congratulations, Master, for successfully fusing the Purgatory Skeleton. You have awakened a demon that had been in a deep sleep. You have obtained Hell Baron’s complete body.]
After the system notification, the demonic blood around Watson collided with the bone. Then, the demonic blood boiled and covered the bone. Black and red flesh grew and outlined a graceful body.
A perfect woman with somewhat ebony skin and beautiful curves materialized in front of Watson in less than a minute. The woman’s looks were so flawless that she did not appear to be from that world. She had two crimson curled horns on her head, six limbs spread out from behind her, and a slender demonic tail that extended from behind her. Her body was covered in enigmatic dark red markings that radiated wildness.
“That’s—”
The few platinum-tier elites there, including Moriarty, were taken aback. Watson’s eyes were wide open as well. He had no idea that when two platinum-tier tools collided, they would be fused into a human rather than a stronger tool.
The voluptuous and lovely demoness opened her eyes as if she sensed their gazes. Her eyes were pitch-black with vertical slits in her pupils. One could see bright red veins around her eyes. It was as if space had diminished the instant she opened them. Moriarty’s companion, the Heaven-devouring Rat King, let out an agonized shriek.
“Ah... how many years has it been? A thousand years? Ten thousand years? Ever since Gabriel, that d*mn woman, cut off my neck, I have not felt the warm sunlight for a very long time.”
The demoness sighed as she reached out to brush her stunning red hair. Black hellfire erupted from her naked flesh to form a long black gown. The six arms on her back retracted into her body at the same time.
“What kind of monster is that? Could it be—” Sylvan could not help but mutter. In his memory, there was only one creature that looked like that.
The voice was not loud, yet it reached the demoness’ ears; she turned her head and smiled. “How rude. I am not a demon. I am Lilith, the Hell Baron Group’s leader. You may refer to me as Queen Lilith, Demoness of the Night, or Lilith, and I am not a monster. Do you understand, you pitiful human?”
As soon as she finished speaking, the woman who called herself Lilith extended a finger toward Sylvan. A red ray of light followed her finger and flew toward him. That was the demons’ unique power of pollution.
Sylvan hurriedly summoned a protective shield as if he had not expected her to attack him so suddenly. Regrettably, it was too late. The red light breached the shield and settled on his chest. It melted his garments and splattered putrid flesh and blood on his chest. It made it difficult for him to breathe, and his face was pale.
“You worthless humans will become my sacrifices to celebrate the Great Lilith’s resurrection. But, first and foremost—”
Lilith walked with a brilliant smile after she injured Sylvan, the kingdom’s greatest mage, with a single blow. She walked toward Watson before she changed her attitude and knelt on one knee. She said, “I am Lilith, Great Master, and I would like to express my appreciation to you and swear my loyalty to you for resurrecting me. I shall grant all of your requests; please issue your orders.”