Chapter 299: Act 66 – The King of the Underground (Seventeen)
“What… is that?”
Everyone maintained the same action—looking up, mouths unconsciously agape, eyes wide open, terrified of missing a detail.
In the sky, countless holy swords were arranged at equal distances, shining with golden light—they formed a gigantic diamond shape, as if the stars were raining down—while the wind element spider appeared as an azure pattern atop the holy swords, fitting seamlessly into a whole.
The IV-type cavalry hunters also witnessed this scene; these metallic beings looked up, a massive threat reflected in the diamond-crystal visual systems they possessed, prompting them to make a uniform choice.
The ‘whoosh’ of numerous long spears leveling pulled everyone’s attention back to the arena, as thirty IV-type cavalry hunters aimed their long spears at Brendel—
Each spear’s base with six black muzzles simultaneously targeted the young man. “Be careful!” someone shouted from the cage, though it was unclear whose voice it was.
As this cry echoed, the magical conduction system began to power up, causing six barrels to start rotating. The crisp clicking of grinding gears filled the air, and a long fire tongue appeared on the spears—thirty fire tongues.
“ptyoona—!” (Ancient Elven: Wings of Spirit)
A volley of stray bullets whizzed past Medisa, kicking up clouds of dust; the Silver Elf Princess’s first responsive action was to raise her long spear. Ethereal power emanated from her, forming a massive pair of luminous energy wings that spread wide at her sides in an instant—
The maiden stood in front of Brendel, blocking all the bullets, which were intercepted by a hexagonal crystal lattice, filling half the arena with flashing sparks, the sound of clanging ringing deafeningly, causing everyone to instinctively cover their ears when they witnessed the scene.
The IV-type cavalry hunters promptly shifted their focus to Medisa, the central point of the wings, but Brendel had already pointed his raised hand downward.
He stood on the opposite side of the arena, one hand aimed at the metallic knights, like a commanding officer issuing orders.
A buzzing sound filled the air as the holy swords began to glow, then became white-hot. As the incandescent light ignited, it quickly converged into a blinding point at the tips of the swords—next moment—thousands of arrows were loosed.
It was a sight everyone present would never forget.
As light began to coalesce in the sky, whether it was Kuran, Joeka, Kewen, or Mahler, they all began to envision the unfolding scene in their minds.
Yet, despite exhausting their imaginations, they were still shocked by the spectacle of the next moment.
Countless beams of light pierced the ground in an instant, the scorching pillars of light made the air between them seem to vaporize, creating an illusion that the entire arena would be turned to dust in the next moment.
At that moment, Kuran suddenly remembered a phrase used by the ancestors of the Crusian people in their Azure Poem to describe war:
“We saw the clouds part, the sky turn blood red, steel seemed to burn, descending from the sky, golden rain columns slanting down to the earth, all creatures plunged into a sea of flames.”
So fitting.
This old soldier had certainly witnessed the November War, having seen those wizards unleash devastating powers, capable of annihilating an entire army with a mere gesture. But that had long become a past; Kuran thought he would never return to that nightmare battlefield again, yet at this moment, such a similar scene unexpectedly released the nightmare buried deep in his soul, which he only encountered occasionally in his dreams.
Unbeknownst to him, his pupils slightly widened, his eyeballs trembled, and his breath became hurried. He subconsciously reached for his sword, but grasped at nothing.
Kuran was immediately drenched in cold sweat, recalling where he was. Yet he remained in doubt, gazing at the persistent flames between the sky and ground, astonished by the means only those grand wizards could possess.
But the metallic beings in the arena felt it even more profoundly; the IV-type cavalry hunters reacted simply—they collectively halted their attacks, moving the yellow runes in front of them. As they did so, the rocks beneath their warhorses trembled and roared, then lifted from the ground, forming a rock shield.
Golden pillars of light subsequently fell from the sky, slamming into the rock walls, the rain of light splattering against the magically reinforced surface of the rocks like molten steel, the underlying layers glowing red, yet remaining intact.
Watching from a distance, the young boys gaped; this level of battle exceeded their imagination, whether it was the destruction brought by the falling light or the rock defenses capable of withstanding such an assault, it brought them profound shock.
Joeka stood motionless, while Mahler instinctively recoiled until he collided with the cage’s far side before stopping; by the time he realized it, his forehead was already drenched in cold sweat.
Kewen’s eyes reflected a layer of golden light; he clenched his fists tightly, fixated on the scene without moving. Unlike the majority, whose gazes were drawn to the dazzling magical effects, he remained fixed on Brendel, the one orchestrating it all.
“This is…” Juliette gripped the iron bars, the rain of light pouring into her soul, sending a shiver through her being.
She now understood how insignificant she and her mercenary group were, how laughable their persistence seemed, for this young man had no reason to be here—she at least comprehended that, even in this decayed kingdom, such power deserved respect—if Brendel wished, he could acquire far more power than he currently had under any influence.
The so-called territory of Grudin now seemed like a joke to the female mercenary leader. She couldn’t fathom why someone with such power would choose such a barren land.
Even to stand against Count Rendener and the entire upper echelon of Erluin—
Juliette suddenly found herself unable to conceive any possibility that could explain it all.
Yet finally, she remembered that night when Grudin got what he deserved, that night that altered nearly everyone’s fates—the young man bringing that little girl, along with the determination in his eyes.
‘He is the envoy sent by heaven, establishing a banner for all, and when people gather beneath this banner, everything changes—’
Juliette suddenly recalled a passage from the Azure Poem describing the Knight of Azure, feeling how fitting it was.
Hundreds of years ago, this passage had also been applied to the former lord Eke—
The protective spells of the IV-type cavalry hunters bought them only a brief reprieve; as the second and third beams of light coalesced, the magical defenses quickly crumbled, and the solid rock layers vaporized under high temperatures, while metals with higher melting points melted into molten steel and overflowed.
The scene resembled the egg white flowing from a broken eggshell, only this egg white exhibited a glaring crimson and gold color, possessing temperatures of hundreds or even thousands of degrees. The molten metal flowed onto the sandy ground, instantly crystallizing into a smooth layer.
In less than a minute, the pillars of light disappeared one after another; when the last pillar faded, there was a deathly silence in the arena.
Most of the crystallized sandy ground still emitted wisps of smoke, while the breached and charred rock fortresses stood lifelessly on one side of the arena.
There were no survivors; the IV-type cavalry hunters all melted into a heap of metallic debris within their self-constructed graves.
Forget about others, even Medisa, standing in the battlefield, was astonished. The Silver Elf Princess looked up at the rows of holy swords in the sky, then glanced at Brendel, “Is that it, my lord?” she couldn’t help but ask softly.
“What else can be done?”
Brendel shrugged nonchalantly, feeling the girl’s tone suggested she found it insufficient. It should be noted that had he not been an itinerant mage, these thirty-plus IV-type cavalry hunters would have truly been quite a handful.
But he let his hands fall, relishing the feeling of being in control. It was just a pity that the holy swords’ attack power seemed a bit low; even the combination of three beams of light nearly couldn’t penetrate the defenses of silver peak.
The arena fell silent; it seemed Brendel’s actions bewildered even the builders of this sanctuary.
The sudden silence made the young man wary; he was aware the Fate Arena was not without the potential for difficulty calibrations. After all, it was a manifestation of fantasy based on material foundation—according to players’ words—this was essentially a form of self-challenge.
But after a brief pause, a voice suddenly echoed in his heart:
“Three challenges completed, additional rewards granted.”
Brendel was taken aback, “I almost forgot about this!” He couldn’t help but want to smack his forehead. In the Amber Sword’s Fate Arena rules, he was well aware that the first challenge was often mandatory, while the second could be chosen but offered no benefit.
Only after completing two challenges could players choose to challenge the ‘core reward.’ The necessary number of challenges for the ‘core reward’ was two, meaning to complete this dungeon, one had to challenge at least four times.
Moreover, there was no upper limit to that.
Of course, the so-called ‘core reward’ here referred to the Earth Sword; Brendel looked in that direction—if he wanted to obtain that sword, he would need to undergo at least two more challenges.
Additionally, there was another rule that every challenge from the third onwards would grant extra rewards upon success. The rewards would grow increasingly better, even possibly surpassing the core reward. However, it was said that this could only be discovered after at least thirty challenges during the later stages of the game, which Brendel didn’t dare to even imagine now.
“Would you like to claim your reward?”
Brendel looked at the shimmering string of glyphs appearing on his retina, internally responding, “Of course.”
“Please select an interface—” Another line of text appeared.
Brendel was momentarily taken aback; he had never heard of choosing any kind of interface. He pondered for a moment and, with a thought, continued to look downwards.
The green text indeed changed again:
General Interface—
Traveling Mage Interface—
“Huh?” Brendel was genuinely stunned; he had never heard of game tasks providing additional options due to a change in profession. Though some task rewards did have various options, they were pre-established—not extra choices springing up after advancing in a certain profession!
He stared at these two options, hesitated for a bit, but ultimately decided to give it a try.
“Traveling Mage Interface.”
The screen transformed again.
…
(PS: Tragedy. I forgot to turn off the air conditioning last night when I went to sleep, and you know how that goes. Today there’s only one update.) (To be continued. For more chapters and to support the author, please log in and support legitimate reading!)
