by Zhuang Bifan
Lin Li immediately took the chance to optimize his mental strength. He mobilized more abyssal force to put the Flame Dragon under layers and layers of shackles. Although the level-28 beast would be able to break free from these shackles easily, Lin Li knew that it would need some time to do so. Lin Li had no extravagant hopes that the shackles would be able to really suppress Lothar. He only hoped that he could buy time for Rogge.
Time trickled by. Then, Lin Li suddenly felt that the life force of the Eternal Forest was building up really quickly. It got to a terrorizing force in the blink of an eye, and seemed to have the power to break this space. At the same time, the massive life force entered the Throne of Darkness and rushed towards Lothar. The ring of gold flames around the Flame Dragon was instantly coated with a layer of green.
Finally, Lothar's indifference vanished, replaced with panic. Lothar could feel that the irresistible life force that entered his body was suppressing his power tremendously. Lothar felt that he had fallen to level-27 all of a sudden. It did not stop. He felt that he had gotten down to level-26, and then to level-25… Lothar knew that he could not wait any further. He growled at Nefa furiously before he tore the space in the surroundings and plunged into it. Then, he was not to be found anymore.
Did Lothar escape just like that? Lin Li sighed in relief as he watched the last bit of fire element disappear where he last saw the Flame Dragon. He rejoiced secretly. This ancient Flame Dragon could really afford to put his grudges down. It was no wonder why he had survived the war during the prehistoric era. If he had gone all out before his energy was completely sealed, he would've been able to get rid of his enemies successfully.
With Lothar's departure, the lush forest also started to wither at a rate visible to the n.a.k.e.d eye. The weeds and vines on the ground turned from green to yellow and to gray before vanishing into powder. The towering trees started to shrivel as the leaves fell from the canopy. They disappeared before reaching the ground.
In the blink of an eye, the once lush green Elemental World vanished like a dream. What was left was a b.a.r.e land and the branch of the Tree of Eternity that stuck on religiously near the passage of the Fire Elemental World. It was still emitting a green luminescent light as before. It appeared to be unaffected by everything that happened before.
After sending the Throne of Darkness away, Lin Li turned pallid. Although he had not fought the Flame Dragon for more than a few seconds, the use of the abyssal force had drained a huge amount of his energy. But, as compared to Nefa and Rogge, Lin Li was much better off. He had the ability to recover his mental strength and mana in a much shorter time than the two of them. The resolve of Nefa and Rogge vanished with Lothar's departure, which seemed to paralyze them.
Nefa lay on the ground on his belly without paying any attention to his image as the descendant of the Dragon of Destruction. He did not immediately return to his human form, either. All he did was to pant heavily and leave his deep wounds to slowly heal.
Although Rogge's injuries were not as severe as Nefa's, his body suffered greatly as he was the main pillar of support for the branch of Eternity. Rogge sat on the ground, and his weak wave of mana was almost undetectable.
Lin Li's brief period of rest had helped him regain a huge part of his composure. He glanced at Rogge and Nefa, and was not worried, as he knew that both of them were trying to use their own ways to recover. This was definitely the best chance to kill Nefa. But, having fought side by side with Nefa just now, and impressed that Nefa had not withdrawn from the battle prematurely… For whatever reason, Lin Li felt less d.e.s.i.r.e to kill Nefa now. What was more important was to prevent his personal interests from hindering his promise with Rogge, an elder worthy of his respect.
Although Nefa was lying on his belly lifelessly, he was trying to pay attention to Lin Li's behavior. He was feeling extremely depressed at the same time. Goddammit, what has he done? Why did he try to be the hero when he had no capacity for that? He knew that Lin Li had the power to decide his fate, despite his identity as the descendant of the Dragon of Destruction.
Nefa was extremely clear that no one would be able to forgive him for the tricks he'd played earlier on. That would not be a problem if he was not injured. After all, Lin Li was only a level-24 man who had yet to step through the gates of the Sanctuary-realm. In fact, he was still far from the realm. But now, he knew that his plight would render himself vulnerable to any common man, let alone one who had been in contact with the gates of the Sanctuary-realm.
However, just when Nefa was entertaining such thoughts, and trying to gather his powers discreetly, he was surprised that the young human mage did not fly towards him. Instead, he turned away. He picked up the branch of the Tree of Eternity and casually flung it at Nefa, who was expecting that he would keep it for himself…
It was not that Lin Li saw no value in the tree branch. It was due to his knowledge that the branch was what Rogge had promised to give Nefa. He knew that if he wanted to snatch that treasure in the future, he would naturally work for it with his own abilities. Now was not the time. After he threw the branch at Nefa, he silently proceeded to retrieve the seed of Eternity that had been hovering in mid-air. It was his possession, after all. Although it was a dead seed, it was still valuable as a source of mana.
However, just when Lin Li was about to put the seed away, he paused in surprise. He could clearly feel that something was different about the seed as compared to when he first took it out. The change was not due to the depletion of its mana. After all, they had been battling with a level-28 Flame Dragon. It was only normal for the seed to have an obvious decrease in mana no matter how massive its mana was. What shocked Lin Li was the faint life force he felt within the seed. It was as though there was something within that was in the midst of awakening.
Lin Li did not gain anything beneficial from battling Lothar the Flame Dragon. He knew that his progress into level-24 was a given. Even without this battle, a short retreat would suffice for the same results. In fact, Lin Li was at a loss for using the enhanced All-Knowing Potion. It meant that he wouldn't be able to use it in the future.
However, if the seed were to be revived because of this incident, it would definitely be an advantage for Lin Li. Could it be Rogge's interaction with the life force of the branch of Eternity that had awakened the seed? The thought of that made Lin Li extremely excited.
Yes, that's right! The seed of Eternity is definitely in the process of awakening! Lin Li held the seed in his hands carefully as if any bit of carelessness would cause it to be damaged. He sent his mental strength into the seed and tried to analyze the transformation. Then, his furrowed brows gradually started to relax. A sense of joy surfaced on his face involuntarily.
The Tree of Eternity had the ability to support a mighty species that ruled Anril for ages. There would definitely be unlimited benefits for the Tower of Dusk if the seed of Eternity could take root there. Of course, it would at the same time invite many jealous gazes. Yet, that would not be an issue for Lin Li.
After putting away the seed, Lin Li sat beside Rogge. Without his help, he would not be able to leave this world. So, what he could do now was to wait. But, Lin Li was not idle as he waited. Lin Li continued to consolidate his new abilities as a level-24 mage, and reflected on his insights of the Sanctuary-realm in particular.
To mages, the process of enhancing their abilities was through the never-ending acc.u.mulation of powers towards the benchmark of the next level. Yet to Lin Li, his already massive mana and unlimited mental strength that was comparable to a Sanctuary-realm powerhouse's made this process of acc.u.mulating powers a dispensable action.
Hence, while Lin Li only took a few minutes to enter level-24, his true ability was not what any newcomers could compare themselves to. The most important parts were Rogge's advice and his experience of being part of the battle between Sanctuary powerhouses. He caught a glimpse of the Sanctuary-realm when he rose to level-24. Although it was just a little inspiration, it mean
t that Lin Li was already at the peak of level-24, and was at the point where he could see the gate towards the Sanctuary-realm.
Although he had used the improved version of the All-Knowing Potion before the expected date, Lin Li did not a bit regretful of his decision. He knew it was a wishful thinking to expect that the All-Knowing Potion could help him enter the Sanctuary-realm after he had a vague understanding of the realm.
After what seemed like an eternity, Lin Li heard footsteps coming towards him. He came out of his contemplative state, and saw Nefa walking towards him slowly in his human form. But, Lin Li could tell that although the external wounds on Nefa's body had healed, he was still far from his initial condition.
The sight of Lin Li's gaze made Nefa sulk. He threw a ball of something towards Lin Li. "This is what was promised to you earlier on," said Nefa indignantly.
Lin Li reached out to receive the item. He saw that it was a robe that emitted a mysterious wave of nomological power. This robe was not any simple robe. Lin Li could even feel that its powers resembled that of Nothingness from the debris of stars. It seemed like that was what Nefa mentioned in the deal they had previously. It was a Domain Robe that Immortal King had input with the Laws of Space.
Lin Li had the least mastery in Nothingness out of the five pieces of the debris of the stars he had acquired. But, that could be complemented by this Domain Robe that had been integrated with the Laws of Space. Although it would not be able to help him exert all of the powers of Nothingness, it would be almost matchable to his powers with the other four pieces of the debris of the stars. Furthermore, the Laws of Space within the Domain Robe would be of a significant help for Lin Li to comprehend the nomological power within Nothingness.
Although Lin Li did not take advantage of Nefa who was severely injured, it did not mean that he had good feelings towards that crafty black dragon. But, when Nefa handed his Domain Robe to Lin Li voluntarily, Lin Li could not help but shift his preconceived judgment of Nefa by a little. After all, the situation now did not matter to the deal they'd wanted to make anymore.
Chapter 812 - From Foe to Friend
After handing the Domain Robe to Lin Li, Nefa gazed at Rogge who was in the process of recovery. He sat down, and said to Lin Li, "Having trapped here by Geresco for over a thousand years made me think that I will be enemies with all humans. I wouldn't have thought that we would be comrades against my own kind. But, you impressed me with your performance for your age. If I am not wrong, I sensed the abyssal force earlier on. I know that that is used by the ancient deities."
"What was the situation, then? I suppose for his powers, Geresco did not have to use any deception to seal you here. I heard that when you were defeated by Geresco, it was Tutankhamun who pleaded with him to spare your life," Lin Li responded without continuing the topic about the abyssal force. He was only curious, and did not intend to expose Nefa's emotional wounds. He knew that Nefa would not weave a weak lie in front of Rogge out of his ego. The same matter could be interpreted differently by different people from different angles. Hence, Lin Li only wanted to know more.
Of course, Lin Li's question was extremely straightforward. It was no different from exposing Nefa's scars. Nefa could only shake his head and smile bitterly. He glanced at Rogge, who was meditating, and said, "I suppose you heard that from Rogge? That's right, I have to admit that I wasn't a match for Geresco. I was really defeated then. But, it wouldn't be easy for Geresco to kill me. After all, the situation then was different than the battle earlier. If I wanted to escape, no one would be able to stop me.
"At that time, I wasn't aware that I was Geresco's target. I thought he was a friend of my brother. When he saw me and my younger brother, we were having a fight. I thought that it was normal for him to interfere to help my brother fight me. Hence, after being defeated by Geresco, I did not think of escaping immediately. Geresco probably knew that he would have to go through more hassle if I were to escape. So, he requested to strike a deal with me."
"And then you agreed to it?" Lin Li asked skeptically. He was really doubting Nefa's intelligence. How could somebody in charge of the Laws of Evilness be so gullible?
"I had no choice; I couldn't reject Geresco's offer. Also, I did not expect him to be like my brother after he destroyed the Tree of Eternity. He, too, was against the idea of me becoming the new Dragon of Destruction," Nefa said with a slight sense of indignation. He was still unable to accept how there could be such a powerful human—the species he deemed as vulnerable and weak. He was unable to accept his inability to reach the peak despite being the descendant of the Dragon of Destruction.
"What was the offer that hindered your ability to reason logically?" Lin Li inquired curiously.
"He said that there was a huge crack in the Night Canyon that needed a powerhouse in the Sanctuary-realm to suppress the violent energy. As long as I promised to help with that, he would tell me more information related to the Dragon of Destruction, especially the truth of the battle that happened between the Dragon of Destruction and Immortal King," said Nefa as he glanced at Rogge unhappily. It was obvious that Rogge had used the same tactic to implicate him.
Nefa could only feel indignant that he fell for the same trick twice despite being the master of the Laws of Evilness. He couldn't help but acknowledge that his weakness made him really prone to such exploitation. Although he knew that it was impossible, that didn't stop him from trying it out just for his dream. Now that they had overcome the crisis, Nefa only hoped that Rogge's knowledge would be beneficial to himself.
"I don't get it. Does this really matter to you? Don't you already know the key information about the Dragon of Destruction?" Lin Li asked curiously after hearing Nefa's complaint. Was knowledge of the battle that had happened between the Dragon of Destruction and Immortal King really important for Nefa?
"Imagine if there is someone who forbids you from progressing into the Sanctuary-realm, and he even threatens that he will kill you if you do. Do you proceed with the advancement knowing that you wouldn't be his match? Or would you want to clarify his reasons before doing anything?
"Before being tricked by Geresco to come to this place, I only wanted to know how to deal with my younger brother. I wanted to know Immortal King's intention behind setting my brother against me. After wrestling with Geresco, I finally understood that becoming the Dragon of Destruction would not be as easy as what I previously imagined it to be."
In fact, Nefa had already known how to become the new Dragon of Destruction very long ago. There was a high chance that Azardas' remains guarded by his younger brother Tutankhamun would play a crucial role in helping himself become the Dragon of Destruction. But, as Nefa got the answer to this question, new questions arose.
According to what was already known, Immortal King killed the Dragon of Destruction as he wanted to destroy the Tree of Eternity. But, Nefa was not entirely convinced this was true. It would be more reasonable to say that Tutankhamun was employed by Immortal King to guard the remains of the Dragon of Destruction to protect the Tree of Eternity. Nefa just could not understand why Geresco, the man who destroyed the Tree of Eternity, would want to prevent the rise of the new Dragon of Destruction.
If Nefa could not solve this mystery, he would not dare to take the next step even if the remains of the Dragon of Destruction were laid before him. Hence, the battle that ended the life of the former Dragon of Destruction was of great importance to him. He felt that understanding the battle would help him know the true motives of the Immortal King. That would help him make a more informed decision on what to do next.
Although Lin Li did not really like Nefa, he could not help but feel sympathetic towards Nefa's fate. His d.e.s.i.r.e to become the Dragon of Destruction was met with resistance from Immortal King and Geresco, the two deity-like powerhouses of Anril. That was a kin to cutting off the possibility for Nefa to progress further. This might mean nothing to a normal man, but to somebody with great ambitions, it was definitely the greatest tr
agedy.
"I see, seems like that is really of great importance to you. It was no wonder that it got you fooled. But, haven't you considered the date of Geresco's birth and that of the fall of the Dragon of Destruction? Do you believe that he would know the details of the battle that had no other witness?" asked Lin Li. He was certain that Nefa would have thought of this issue. Nefa's persistence got him curious.
"At the start, I definitely did not believe him. But, he did the same thing as old Rogge. He revealed minute information about that battle. Although it was not any crucial one, it was a proof of his knowledge," said Nefa as he turned to look at Rogge. The thought of his desperate encounter with the Flame Dragon, Lothar, made him indignant again. "Old Rogge, you have been resting for such a long time. I guess your injuries are no big deal now. Do not forget that I was at the frontline with Lothar just now. It is time to reveal what you know about that battle."
"I did not expect that you'd be on my side then. That wasn't the Nefa I knew," continued Rogge with his eyes closed. Although his tone was riddled with sarcasm, it did not seem like it was out of bad intention.
Frankly speaking, Rogge had been astonished when he had seen the huge dragon body before him. Although it was partly because of the deal between the both of them, Rogge felt that there had to be other reasons that had motivated Nefa's decision.
They had been enemies for over 1,000 years, and Rogge was aware of the catastrophe Nefa brought for the Darkness Shrine while he was asleep. Yet, Rogge could not help but gain a refreshed perspective of Nefa after they fought the Flame Dragon, Lothar, alongside each other.
"Hmph, your life wouldn't matter to me if not for the information you know about the battle," said Nefa straightforwardly.
"I know that. But, I am still curious why you have so much trust in me. What if Geresco is my only source of knowledge?" Rogge asked sarcastically as he opened his eyes.
Rogge had overheard the conversation between Nefa and Lin Li. He had been extremely surprised when he heard what Nefa said about Geresco's awareness of that battle. But, he could not recall he ever told Geresco that. In fact, he had not told anyone about it. How on earth would Geresco know about it, then?