Chapter 502: Act 250 – The Unyielding Belief, Golden Radiance
As the Pendulum Man played the last trump card, the Senior Sister was trembling with rage. Her almond-shaped eyes bulged in anger as she shouted, “Alright, Pendulum Monster! But you don’t have to remove your protection! You damn bastard, don’t you want to live? You brainless idiot with a wooden fish for a head!”
The Pendulum Man’s body cracked and creaked, but it looked down at its companion, “Yilian, this is the war of the Traveler Mage; it has persisted since the dawn of the era. You must learn to respect it. This is a world that the Master has sought all his life, and entities like the Master disdain the use of external items beyond the rules of destiny because we are filled with awe for the entire framework.”
It shook its head, “I admit my essence is powerful, but in this battlefield, I believe there is no essential difference between me and you.”
“You lunatic!”
The Centaur Lamia jumped in anger, pointing at the Pendulum Man and shouting, “Alright, Pendulum Monster, you will regret this! No matter what, this time I must defeat you! I will trample your so-called delusional pride into the ground, you idiot! Traveler Mage, let’s defeat this guy together!”
Brendel turned to look at Yilian; he understood the source of her overflowing anger to some extent.
The incomplete Pendulum Man stood proudly there but was already at the end of its life. Although they had been enemies for thousands of years, rather than being mortal enemies, they were more like friends with differing ideals. Yilian never dreamed that this damned Pendulum Monster was actually serious.
She felt disheartened, yet an indescribable sorrow and anger surged within her. She turned to meet Brendel’s apologetic gaze and said, “Traveler Mage?”
Brendel looked up at the sky, almost staring into despair. The immense shadow behind the door was a legend, leaving a formidable reputation in the Amber Sword, a destroyer of the Golden Land, an unmatched deity in dusk, a being from the same era as the divine people.
The Eternal Trauma of Imoku could suffocate one merely with its pressure.
“We can’t defeat the Eternal Trauma.” Brendel understood what the Eternal Trauma of Imoku represented.
“I still have a Fate Duel Card; it’s a colorless artifact card that can affect the Eternal Trauma.” Yilian took a deep breath, “I can only give you half a minute, no, at most 20 seconds. Can you defeat that Pendulum Monster?”
“You mean?” Brendel’s eyes flickered slightly. He couldn’t help but glance at the few remaining creatures of the Pendulum Man—the three injured demons, a few Doom Guards, and a ground full of Nightmare Furnace beings. Just dealing with those three injured demons was already beyond him, let alone the forty Nightmare Furnace Constructs that were the most threatening under the Pendulum Man’s control.
To be honest, running away and conceding defeat would have been the best choice. But looking at the Senior Sister’s bright eyes, Brendel found it hard to voice his thoughts. “I don’t know, it’s very difficult, and I have no confidence.” He changed his words at the last moment; that wasn’t what he truly wanted to say.
“It’s okay, anyway, I’m leaving it to you. Regardless of the outcome, I hope you can do your best for me. Consider it a favor!” the Centaur Lamia said in a low voice. She looked up at the Pendulum Man, her eyes flickering with bright flames. “No matter what, I’m going to try this once; it might be the last time, but I don’t want any regrets.”
“I understand.”
Brendel nodded, feeling a surge of strength from being trusted.
He placed his hand on the card again.
The Pendulum Man watched this scene like a spectator, remaining silent as it awaited Yilian and Brendel’s final struggle. Under its control, the Eternal Trauma of Imoku had entered the field, its pressure spreading throughout the arena. The soldiers and creatures changed expressions, all except for Andrigraphis, who remained unfazed.
The Centaur Lamia took one last look at the Pendulum Man.
Then she threw the Fate Duel Card towards the Eternal Trauma, a golden halo enveloping her and all her summons along with the enormous creature. Brendel discovered the halo could obstruct vision, as if Yilian and that terrifying monster had vanished to another space.
That was fine.
With the pressure gone, Brendel felt a release of tension. Now he had Repal, two Archangels as spirit puppets, countless Wind Elemental Spiders, and the Amber Sword, along with Andrigraphis. How to fight was a question; he also had the Charge, Golden Battle Flag, the Mystic Summoner, and the Vampire Duke in hand, but they seemed useless.
The most reliable was the Vampire Duke, as its unique ability should be able to synergize with Andrigraphis’s ability. However, he had no dark elements left.
As he pondered, one second had already passed.
He lifted his head and saw the Pendulum Man was looking at him too—Angels could fly, bypassing the battlefield, but the Angels themselves were too fragile, only level 20 elites, not much help. Andrigraphis and Repal wouldn’t necessarily hold an advantage even against a single demon. His only advantage lay in the firepower density of the Wind Elemental Spiders and the Amber Sword far exceeding that of the Nightmare Furnace Constructs yet needing to contend with the two other demons. Even counting himself, it wouldn’t guarantee a comeback—Brendel remained composed on the surface while his thoughts raced.
He saw no winning opportunities, but time was running out.
“Forget it, let’s go for broke,” Brendel raised the Earth Sword, took a deep breath, and shouted, “Attack!”
A dazzling golden pillar crashed into the cluster of Nightmare Furnace beings, while countless lightning spheres exploded in midair. One by one, the Nightmare Furnace Constructs erupted in golden-red flames, bursting apart and turning into pools of iron water. Above the sky, golden arcs flashed, as Wind Elemental Spiders rained down like droplets.
Amid this “downpour,” the Doom Guards, demons, and Brendel’s summons collided. A golden light flashed across the battlefield as he linked the Charge with Andrigraphis and Repal. The two charged into a demon, and the power from the card instantly decapitated that demon.
At that moment, Brendel encountered his formidable opponent—the same Abomination that had fought the Platinum Dragon and wielded a colossal sword of azure flame intercepted him. This demon had nearly the strength and level of a Platinum Angel; its sweeping sword filled the air with a piercing sound. Brendel didn’t dare to meet it head-on, stepping back to let the illusion of Queen Wind intercept the blow. The illusion was swept away and vanished in midair, but the Abomination’s colossal sword was momentarily paused.
With combat experience that defied the odds, Brendel seized this fleeting opportunity to activate the Charge skill, stepping forward and landing on the sword’s blade, using it as leverage to leap and perform a flip over the demon’s head.
In the air, Brendel rapidly repositioned while the illusion of Queen Wind formed three phantoms. All three phantoms inherited Brendel’s entire combat experience; as they rolled in midair, they thrust their swords down towards the Abomination below. But the Abomination, after all, was no weaker than Veronika’s level of existence. It let out a vicious howl and forcefully retracted its massive sword, countering with swift strikes, creating sharp metallic sounds as Brendel’s phantoms were all knocked away and vanished.
However, at that moment, Brendel had already moved behind it. He raised the Earth Sword and let out a furious roar as he slashed it into the Abomination’s back. The Abomination possessed iron attributes, forming a layer of metallic protection on its surface. The razor-sharp Earth Sword struck down upon its back, emitting a loud sound similar to metal clashing, causing the Earth Sword to bounce back, leaving only a shallow white mark on its back.
But Brendel’s attack was far from over. The illusion of Queen Wind continued to create seven phantoms, and he heard a series of consecutive metallic clangs as seven swords struck the same spot in succession. The final sword finally embedded itself into the monster’s back, its characteristic blue-purple blood splattering out, making the creature let out a cry of anguish.
“Shut up, back in my day, I took down one of you with a single sword; I didn’t expect you to be so troublesome now!” Brendel couldn’t help but curse inwardly, as he discovered that his sword was stuck fast in the demon’s back and couldn’t be pulled out for the moment. At that instant, another demon had arrived, raising its gigantic sword to stab him.
“Lord!” Repal reminded.
“Hmm?” That was the inquiry of the Vampire Girl, asking if help was needed.
“Don’t worry about me; you all go take down that Pendulum Monster!” Brendel shouted furiously, both demons were attracted by him, and this was the only opportunity. He didn’t release the sword handle, withstanding the attack from behind. With a piercing sound, the demon’s flaming sword almost penetrated half of his body. “Ahhh!” In that moment, Brendel felt as though his internals were burning up; being faced with an elemental-level existence was terrifying, and this single strike had nearly drained his life force entirely. The tenacity element took over his body instantly, his retina filled with a blood-red warning of low life.
Brendel gritted his teeth and unleashed his Frenzy skill to the fullest, the inherited power from the Dark Dragon erupted at once, doubling his attributes and output. He roared as he pulled the Earth Sword from the Abomination’s back, the blade almost still coated with a splash of blood and tissue. With crimson eyes, he turned and unleashed a powerful strike; the demon behind him was perhaps dreaming and never expected a mere human to attack so fiercely, which it met full-on. The piercing skill instantaneously detonated, and three blows from the illusion of Queen Wind—the demon’s face exploded like a crushed eggplant—it didn’t have iron attributes.
The system notified Brendel that he had gained 53,460 experience points, a notification that seemed absurd now because he was far too distracted to care about it.
He had defeated his greatest threat while himself swaying on the brink of collapse, standing in the center of the battlefield like a bloodied person. One hand dragged the Earth Sword while the other produced a bottle of Sacred Water No. 7, which he gulped down. The Sacred Water could heal wounds, but it couldn’t restore the weakness caused by excessive blood loss. Brendel gasped heavily, watching as another demon turned towards him.
Both had taken damage and were in a state of fury.
Yet Brendel did not lose his composure. He slowly retreated, attempting to create distance from the demon. Meanwhile, his attention was on Andrigraphis and Repal, who had already approached the Pendulum Monster from either front and back, victory seemingly within reach. But unexpectedly, as the Pendulum Man’s dark light flickered, another demon entered the arena, exactly like the one Brendel had just killed.
This guy can even draw from the grave!
The last semblance of hope turned into despair within Brendel. He had played every card but was still one step behind. At this point, he could only give it his all, leaving no regrets, and consider it an explanation to that Centaur Lamia Senior Sister. To be honest, he didn’t even hold much animosity towards the Pendulum Man at this moment; at the very least, its persistence had earned his respect. His own capabilities were lacking; he could hardly blame anyone.
What remained was the final struggle.
Brendel did not want to leave any regrets. He took a look at his hand, where only the Vampire Duke, Mystic Summoner, Silver Steed, and Golden Battle Flag remained. The Vampire Duke couldn’t be summoned, the Mystic Summoner was too low-level, and the Silver Steed was of no use. However, he paused slightly when he saw the Golden Battle Flag.
Speaking of which, he suddenly recalled that this card had been in his possession for quite a while.
This was… likely from the deck that Tumen had given him; most cards in that deck had been used, but it was quite humorous that he had never used this particular one. Because this card was just too junky, requiring 5 points of light elements, yet only able to promote all summons on the field by one level.
What good was a single level? It was almost like not upgrading at all. And 5 light elements were a considerable expense for him; he didn’t have many land cards capable of providing light elements.
Usually, Brendel wouldn’t even have given this card a second glance, but this time, as he carefully scrutinized it, he was taken aback for the first time. Because this card he had never paid attention to had the number ‘City Alliance I’ on it, and Brendel now knew that any card with the number one was the core card of that deck.
“This card is actually a core card?”
Brendel felt there must have been some misunderstanding; how could a card that only promoted by one level be a core card? He thought of the City Alliance deck, which also appeared fragmented, such as the Lubis Mercenaries, the Abundant Gold Mine, and the Charge; it seemed there were no powerful cards present in that deck. Compared to overwhelmingly powerful decks like the Reverse Heaven Paradise or the Fire Tribe, this deck was even below that of Wonders of All Things.
He blinked, but time was of the essence, and he had no time for deep thoughts. Regardless of whether it was a core card, this card was capable of elevating all creatures on the field by one level, and that was enough. Holding onto the notion of not wanting any regrets, he took out the card, preparing to play it.
But just at that moment.
The Pendulum Man’s eternally expressionless poker face finally changed.
It almost couldn’t believe its eyes as it gazed at Brendel, momentarily losing its grip on the bronze staff, which clattered to the ground. “You…!” it roared in disbelief.
“I?” Brendel was startled, looking at it aggrieved. “…What did I do?”
The Pendulum Man pointed at the card in Brendel’s hand, its face filled with astonishment, “Rare card! How do you have a rare card! This is impossible! You’re just an apprentice!”
If the Pendulum Man’s expression hadn’t seemed genuine, Brendel would have thought it was messing with him. Clearly, it had the absolute advantage, but now it looked as if it had seen someone on the verge of defeat. Even when Brendel was most confident earlier, he had never seen such an expression on the Pendulum Man’s face.
He couldn’t help but glance at the Golden Battle Flag in his hand, feeling somewhat confused, as he couldn’t pinpoint where its strength lay. However, Brendel was a perceptive guy; seeing the Pendulum Man’s expression, he knew something was off. While he didn’t know what the issue was, he decisively displayed the Golden Battle Flag.
Then, in that moment.
A square flag shimmering with golden radiance, emblazoned with the emblem of a saintly white city-state, materialized in his hand. Brendel, covered in blood, wielded the Earth Sword in one hand, while holding the flagpole of the Golden Battle Flag in the other. He stood in the center of the battlefield, bathed in the flag’s brilliant light, momentarily embodying the essence of a general commanding the field.
But at precisely that moment.
A miracle happened—
Wherever the radiance shone, Brendel saw all the summoned beings, allies, and companions on the battlefield undergo transformations. Suddenly, bone armor sprouted from Repal’s body, surrounding him and forming a full set of armor filled with fangs. The fire-tipped trident in his hand transformed into a golden-red war lance inscribed with mysterious runes as flames surrounded the Firepaw Lord. Brendel recognized at a glance that this was a manifestation of the elemental force.
High-level fire element.
At the same time, Andrigraphis’s evening gown transformed into a more splendid princess dress, complemented with combat armor, including an exquisitely crafted black breastplate and gauntlets. Her boots became iron high-heeled long boots. The Vampire Girl’s eyes flickered red and blue, burning with fierce flames in battle mode, a manifestation of the elemental force as well.
And most astonishingly, the Wind Elemental Spiders—when Brendel looked back, he saw no trace of the spider swarm in the sky. Instead, there was a flurry of Wind Elemental Dragons flapping their wings. This was a type of pseudo-dragon; although they were only a little over level 30, their numbers were astonishingly high. Moreover, what was the deal with the Sacred Sword Technique? Brendel stared as the holy swords hovering in the sky transformed into sets of golden dragon armor suited for these pseudo-dragons.
“This…”
Brendel was instantly dumbfounded; could promoting a level have such a grand effect? Was he struck on the head by that demon and was now dreaming? Or was his method of activating the Traveler Mage system wrong? Before he had time to switch to the Traveler Mage system for a check, he heard a shocked shriek.
“Bullrayman family battle flag! City Alliance! Traveler Mage Tumen!” The Pendulum Man looked as if its face would split, almost glaring at Brendel with a murderous gaze, “You… you are Tumen’s apprentice!”
At that moment, Brendel was also stunned.
Because he had activated the Traveler Mage system as well. In that instant, he understood the true function of the Golden Battle Flag.
He saw that the cards for Wind Elemental Spiders, Sacred Sword, and Firepaw Lord had changed to silver, while Andrigraphis’s card color sparkled like gold. Only a thousand voices echoed in Brendel’s mind, Oh crap, so this is what a level promotion means! Oh crap, this isn’t scientific! This is ridiculous!
…
(Tragedy, when I was writing, I somehow thought of the Turing Test and mistakenly wrote Tumen as Turing. I immediately knelt. It’s being corrected now. Additionally, this chapter is quite lengthy, and I can’t guarantee there will be more tonight.
Lastly, regarding the reverse color curse spells, my explanation had some issues. It should be to avoid becoming a target of (colored) spells and immune to all (colored) damage effects.) (To be continued. If you like this work, feel free to go to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendations and monthly votes. Your support is my greatest motivation.)
