“You can go and tell that fellow now. I’ll agree to his request. The two First Class resource sites will be handed to him immediately. Have him arrange the matter properly. I definitely…will…receive…them, with all I have!”
A cruel smile appeared on Yurga’s face after he quickly sent a message to the white-robed adept. He then coldly stared at the three approaching adepts.
The atmosphere of the hall turned ever more solemn.
Chapter 839 - A Fair Duel
Sworn enemies tended to collide violently upon meeting.
However, they were in the public location that was the Rhein Adept’s Tower. Moreover, Greem had come at the invitation of the Association. It cut off all possibility of Yurga taking the chance to plot anything against Greem.
His reputation might be in the mud, but he could not set aside appearances still. Yurga might harbor great hatred and resentment within him, but he still had to keep up the dignity of a high-grade adept on the outside.
“My greetings, Lord Yurga!” Greem was the first to bow and offer his greetings to Yurga respectfully.
The two of them did not share a subordinate relationship or any familial ties. An active greeting from Greem as a Second Grade adept was about as appropriate as it could ever be. Yurga could not pick at anything to criticize.
“You people. Very good; you are all very good!” Yurga’s face was cold as stone as he squeezed these words out between his teeth.
His furious red eyes glared at the silent bug adept standing behind Greem, unblinking.
He wanted nothing more than to kill these three people in front of him on the very spot. However, what frustrated Yurga the most still had to be this Bug Adept Billis. It was this rat who never fought anyone head-on and only ran about assaulting low-grade adepts.
The reason the Kamala Clan was in such a terrible situation was due to this damned bastard ravaging all of the Kamala’s resource sites and territory without exception. All the low-grade adepts were either killed or turned into monstrous insects. All of the apprentices had their blood and Spirit drained from their bodies.
His actions had been so vicious and vile that the Kamala Clan would need a hundred years to regain its former strength even if it managed to survive the crisis this time.
Such terrible actions were supposedly strictly forbidden in the World of Adepts!
However, this was no ordinary time either, as it was a period of war between the two clans. Bug Adept Billis had also not spread the fires of war anywhere beyond the Kamala Clan. Yurga could only swallow this bitter fruit without another word and request help from the Zhentarim Association.
The consequence of this request? Yurga felt his heart writhe in pain every time thought about it!
A First Class resource site. That was something that every clan had to expend considerable resources to create. It was the very foundation by which a clan could hope to last and develop throughout the years. Now, the only two First Class resource sites of the Kamala Clan had become the possessions of the locusts in the Association. Meanwhile, he had to watch as a few Second Grades paraded boastfully before his eyes.
The elementium flux around Yurga was intense and chaotic. Just as his heart was succumbing to fury, the white-robed adept’s cold voice rang in his mind, “Yurga, you cannot lash out here! They are all here because the Association invited them. Not to mention, most of the adepts here know what the situation is. If you lash out here, any agreement between you and the Association will be void. Don’t you force me to chase you with an executor in tow!”
The white-robed adept turned and looked calmly at Greem and the two others. He said, “You must be Clan Leader Greem of the Crimson Clan! I am Laurent, the leader of the Disciplinary Corps of the Zhentarim Association. I am the one who invited you here.”
The Disciplinary Corps of the Zhentarim Association
Greem’s heart trembled slightly.
He had some faint impression of this name. Someone seemed to have warned him that this Disciplinary Corps was an adept organization with immense authority in the center of the continent. The organization was almost wholly composed of elite combat adepts. Their responsibility was to exterminate and clean up the rotten eggs among the adepts.
They were the ones responsible for capturing and hunting down those who had violated the Adept’s Code of Conduct!
This group was a powerful adept organization with actual authority and capacity to act. Greem couldn’t provoke these vicious and malicious individuals if he wanted to establish himself here.
Greem hastily put his arm to his chest and bowed in respect.
“Since you are all here already, let us not waste any time; come with me!”
Yurga, Greem, and the others walked to a magical room under the lead of Adept Laurent. They took seats inside the room and started a difficult negotiation.
Once everyone was seated, Adept Laurent calmly started, “During this period of time, your two parties have churned up a storm in the Ailovis area. It has already severely affected the basic order of the region. I represent Elder Nicolas and Elder Matthew of the Association and hereby solemnly warn you two that you must end this war in the shortest time possible. You must also provide explanations for certain incidents of massacre and slaughter that have occurred during the period of war.”
At this point, Laurent paused as his gaze fell on Billis.
“O’ respected Lord Laurent, I am sure that you already know of the entire story.” Greem was not at all intimidated by the threat of Laurent and replied with a smile, “The cause of this matter was because Lord Yurga of the Kamala clan led people to attack our clan headquarters and killed a great many members of our group.”
Adept Laurent did not reply. For the first time, he narrowed his eyes and assessed this young clan leader.
“As such, in accordance with the Adept’s Code of Conduct, we of the Crimson Clan, having repelled the enemy’s attack, naturally possess the right to exact vengeance against the opposing clan. Moreover, we have strictly adhered to the Code of Conduct throughout the process of vengeance and have not caused any disturbance to territories of adepts not of the Kamala Clan.” Greem smiled and said, “I believe that the Association wouldn’t rob us of our right to vengeance, would they?”
Adept Laurent had no choice but to explain himself when Greem put forth the question, “No, no, no; please don’t misunderstand what I mean to say. I have never said that the Association wanted to rob you of your right to vengeance. However, the war between you two has already involved far too many territories and resources. It has had a fairly large impact on the overall strength of the center region. As such, the Association elders hope that you may end this war through more ‘reasonable’ means!”
It was Greem’s turn to narrow his eyes now.
“May I know what is this reasonable means that Lord Laurent is speaking of?”
“A clan duel!” Adept Laurent put on a sinister smile but continued speaking as if it was a fair decision, “Yurga has already requested for a forced intervention and arbitration from the Association. Two Association elders have also approved this request. Your two clans must immediately stop all acts of conflict and settle this dispute through a fair duel.”
“A clan duel? How will it be done?”
“Your two clans must each send a clan member to decide victory, defeat, death, and survival through a fair duel. The defeated will have to provide compensation and apologize to the victor, while also paying for all damages and reparations from the war.”
Mary, who was sitting behind Greem, immediately let out a shrill cry when she heard these strict conditions.
“Fair? How is this fair in any manner? We have clearly won this war. On what grounds do we need to participate in such a clan duel.”
Mary had just gotten up from her seat in her fury when Third Grade Adept Laurent flicked his finger. A green light bloomed as a dozen wooden ropes made of intertwining branches reached out from beneath her and tied her to her seat.
“Little person, someone probably hasn’t taught you a proper lesson on how to respect a high-grade adept. Kehkehkeh. Just those words earlier would be enough for me to convict you of the crime of disrespecting a high-grade adept. Hmph!
“Do you think the central region is a place where a mere Second Grade vampire like yourself can do as you like?” Terrifying magical fluctuations rippled between Laurent’s hands as he coldly looked down upon Greem and his two subordinates.
“Today’s meeting is to notify you of this matter, not to discuss it with you. Therefore, if you have any complaints, feel free to raise them with Elder Nicolas and Elder Matthew. Hehehe, but if I were you, I would not do that. After all, the two elders were the ones who made the decision. Even if you were to send your complaints to the Zhentarim Association, it wouldn’t end much better.”
“I understand!” Greem frowned, “It seems that the one representing the Kamala Clan will be Lord Yurga then. Then we of the Crimson Clan can also choose our challenger as we like?”
“Hmph, of course not! It is a battle between your two clans. No other clans or forces can be involved in it. As such, the one representing the Crimson Clan can only be an internal member of the Crimson Clan with the identity of an adept. No outside help is allowed!” Adept Laurent continued to chuckle as he spoke, “I have heard that your clan has some dragons from another world in it. They can’t be considered as members of the Crimson Clan, and they cannot represent your clan in battle!”
Greem’s eyes turned sharp upon hearing this, and Mary struggled even more furiously. Billis also raised his head abruptly. His ghostly green insect eyes swept past Adept Laurent before he looked down once more.
Greem laughed chillingly as he said, “Until this moment, our clan has yet to register a Third Grade adept with the Association. Do you mean to say that we are to send a Second Grade to have a ‘fair’ duel with Lord Yurga the Third Grade?”
Greem spoke with a tone dripping with frost. He gritted his teeth especially hard when he spat out the word ‘fair.’
“You can think of it that way!” Adept Laurent was still smiling without a care in the world, “At any rate, this duel has already been approved by two Association elders. You will have to agree with it even if you don’t. Otherwise, we, the Disciplinary Corps of the Association, will have the right to deal with the rebellious figures who refuse to abide by the Association’s rules!”
“Time, location?” Greem’s forced smile had almost broken into one of unrestraint fury.
“Three days from now, inside the public arena of this tower!” Laurent still had a shit-eating grin on his face, “Don’t worry, we will make sure to keep order. Nothing will be able to disrupt the order there!”
Greem no longer said anything. He turned back and poked with his finger. A red flame concentrated in his hand into a strange blade which quickly sliced through the wooden ropes binding Mary.
The ropes snapped where the blade went, and Mary regained her freedom.
“Three days from now; we will be there!”
Greem left the magical room after coldly leaving behind this sentence.
Chapter 840 - The Arena
Three days later.
The public arena of the Rhein Adept’s Tower.
News of the duel between the Kamala Clan and Crimson Clan had already spread all over the tower. It had become the most popular topic of conversation for the people.
As internal information about the two clans was slowly revealed, more and more people started to understand the story behind this duel.
The Kamala Clan had a powerful Third Grade adept!
Death Heralding Crow Yurga. In the central region, this terrifying name could even stop the cries of an infant and put a halt to an adept’s step.
Yurga might not be the most powerful of the Third Grade adepts in the central region, but his fearsome death beams made him a terrifying figure that even other Third Grades didn’t dare to provoke for no reason.
Yurga could kill anyone and anything in his way if he activated the Death Gaze effect of his death beams. He was practically an elite Third Grade adept!
On the other side, the Crimson Clan was a newly risen adept clan. No Third Grade adepts registered with the Association had appeared within the clan yet. It was highly likely that the Crimson Clan would have to challenge Third Grade Yurga with a Second Grade adept.
Challenging a Third Grade with a Second Grade; was there even any purpose to a duel like this?
Perhaps the Crimson Clan would immediately surrender and hand over large quantities of magical crystals as compensation for the Kamala’s losses. Or maybe they would send out Bug Adept Billis and use his death to end this meaningless farce!
Despite all the chatter, no adept cried out for the obvious injustice that the Crimson Clan was facing.
The physical might of a clan was truly a portion of the clan’s power, but was its soft influence not as well?
The Crimson Clan had always strong-armed their way through all their problems since their establishment. They had never attempted to socialize or win the favor of the Zhentarim Association. The fact that they ran into a wall in this scenario was not beyond the expectations of the adepts.
Apart from raising their strength, adept clans in the central region also had to establish a good relationship with the Association. It was best if they could find one or two Association elders who could represent the welfare of their clan. That was the only way to ensure the successful development and growth of a clan.
However, the clan leader of the Crimson Clan was a rookie. He had not only failed to find someone to rely on but had even offended the elders of the Association on some issues.
The so-called Association elders were all prominent figures at Fourth Grade. Naturally, they wouldn’t go through the extra effort to make trouble for a Second Grade adept. However, several unexpected problems had still found their way to the Crimson Clan because of this strained relationship, causing them to have a difficult time dealing with it all.
The two parties finally met in the public arena at the promised time.
The tall spectator’s stand around the arena had been filled with adepts and apprentices who had come to watch the show.
Adept Laurent represented the Disciplinary Corps and walked onto the platform to announce the cause for this duel. It was now that he cast his sight onto the two parties involved.
“Yurga, you are the only one that has come from your Kamala Clan. I assume you will be the one representing the Kamala Clan in battle?”
“Indeed!”
Yurga’s black robes trembled, and his entire being exploded into a cloud of black smoke. The smoke drifted to a side of the arena before reforming into Yurga’s human form.
“Greem, who do you Crimson Clan intending to send into battle?” Adept Laurent asked loudly.
Bug Adept Billis, who was standing behind Greem, shivered. He couldn’t help but lift his head and stare calmly at the expressionless Greem.
He lowered his head when he crossed eyes with Greem. Instead, it was Mary who actively responded to Greem’s gaze, volunteering herself for the task.
“Me. The one representing the Crimson Clan in battle will be me!”
This shocked everyone. The young and handsome leader of the Crimson Clan actually took this immensely dangerous mission upon his shoulders and was now striding into the arena.
“No. Greem, you can’t go yourself.” Greem’s sudden action was clearly beyond Mary’s expectations. Her face flushed red as she charged toward Greem without any regard for herself.
Unfortunately, her body slammed into a defensive shield that had risen around the arena, keeping her outside. Regardless of how she scratched or attacked, the blood energy could not create an opening on this resilient and dense defensive shield. In fact, the ripples of energy caused Mary’s nails to snap and her fingers to bleed.
Bug Adept Billis was utterly stunned and remained frozen on the spot.
In all
honesty, he would never have guessed that this situation would occur even if was allowed to guess ten more times.
Winning against a Third Grade as a Second Grade was impossible. Instead, the adept who attempted this colossal task was facing a very high likelihood of death!
With the resentment between the two clans, Adept Yurga would never show mercy to a Crimson adept. The chance to rightly murder the opponent and obtain victory in the clan war in doing so was too attractive. Adept Yurga would undoubtedly be fighting his hardest.
After leaving Mary and Billis behind, Greem strode to a side of the arena and locked eyes with Adept Yurga from afar.
“It’s you?!” Surprise also appeared on Yurga’s gaunt and withered face.
Of course, he wasn’t fearful of Greem. It was simply because he couldn’t figure out Greem’s purpose in doing this.
Was he not afraid of death? Or was the title of the Death Heralding Crow so weak that it could no longer intimidate anyone?
Yurga chuckled coldly as his entire body slowly floated ten meters off the ground. His already crimson eyes started to turn an even more brilliant shade of red.
“Good; very well, let us properly settle the disagreements between our clans here then!”
Yurga’s body exploded once again, and a thick, ink-black cloud of smoke engulfed half of the arena. The black mist rolled across the stage; no one could see what was inside, but they could hear the loud and noisy squawking within. It seemed the black mist had already been filled with a large flock of Death Heralding Crows.
The aura of this Third Grade adept had already been so fearsome before the battle started. It seemed like he intended to overwhelm and crush Greem!
“Little guy, you are a brave one, but this decision is not a very wise one. I will give you a minute’s time to prepare now. After a minute, I will announce the start of the duel.” Adept Laurent’s voice rang out in the arena. It was clear that he didn’t think highly of Greem’s chances either.
Greem’s face was solemn. He took in a deep breath and threw out two magic golem cores. As they roared and transformed into six-meter tall Flame Fiends of Terror, Greem also started changing.
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