Mystical Journey

The red light beam pierced the heavens and earth. It was like a red giant jade pillar that stood tall on the grassy plains. It penetrated the clouds. As the sun shone through the hole in the clouds onto the beam, there was a rapid flowing air-flow like movement.

The beam lasted for a few minutes before becoming narrower, lighter and eventually disappeared completely.

Beneath the beam, there was a pitch black hole in the ground. There was only darkness within the hole, and it seemed bottomless. Only traces of white smoke and black gas came from within.

Piak!

A hand suddenly stretched out, grabbing the soil on the sides of the hole. As the fingers bent, the five fingers were like sharp claws, penetrating deep into the soil instantly.

Two dark figures were hanging on the sides of the hole. One of them held onto the soil with one hand, while the other was hanging onto the former's right leg. Both of them hung on the wall of the hole. From time to time they would sway, like a pendant on the wall being blown by the wind.

Garen grabbed onto the Cthulhu King's right leg with all his might. His left arm was gone, while his two legs had also exploded, almost becoming a stick-man[1]. However, he was grinning, revealing white teeth as sharp as the teeth of a saw.

Woooooo~~~~

A desolate horn cry came from afar. It was distant and dull.

In the white sky, numerous dark red dots were heading over from the distance. Each of the dots was actually a dark red Dual-Headed Salamander. Each of them had a salamander-like body, and a pair of wings made out of flesh on its back. An extra head grew from the center of each of their chests.

On each of the Dual-Headed Salamanders' back was a strong, horned warrior. Some of them were swinging heavy metal flails. Some of them raised black crossbows, while some of them gathered balls of dark red flames with their hands.

The sky was slowly occupied by the red dots. The numerous dark red Dual-Headed Salamanders were like flies, hovering over the sky. The golden sunlight projected down to form a bright beam.

More and more Dual-Headed Salamanders gathered around the golden beam. They circled around the golden beam and roared.

Ming!!~~~~~~

The horn sounded again.

The Dual-Headed Salamanders hovered over their heads, completely surrounding the two of them.

"You are definitely going to die…!" The Cthulhu King stared fiercely at Garen. He saw his opponent smiling instead, not panicking at all.

"You've almost finished your Origin isn't it?" Garen laughed and asked casually.

"I wouldn't die before you." The Cthulhu King let out a cold laugh. However, he was trembling in his heart. He had actually used up his Cthulhu's Origin significantly. After taking the glittering water plus using the Cthulhu's Origin, then only he managed to recover the injuries to his spirit. He really wasn't left with much. He only had three chances at reviving. If he died here once...If he faced Phiroth in the future, victory was unpredictable.

This was one of the reasons he didn't kill himself voluntarily to return to the headquarters.

"Your regenerative abilities should be finishing as well?" The Cthulhu King did not reveal the changes in his heart. He coldly laughed and asked instead.

"Who knows?" Garen laughed and stopped speaking.

Quietly, on the contact point where he was grabbing the Cthulhu King's leg, there was a fight going on between black sticky liquid and red jade stone-like shell.

The black light and red light were slowly blooming. It was abnormally striking on the sides of the pitch black hole.

In actual fact, both of them didn't have much energy remaining, but both didn't want to admit defeat. Until this stage, regardless of whether the Cthulhu King was willing, his subconscious already considered Garen as his biggest rival other than of Phiroth.

　　*******************

Screams, hoof sounds and the roars of the dual-headed flying dragons..

The grassy plains were in chaos.

Large crowds of flying dragons and black knights rushed into the white circular tribe. They were like an unstoppable black tide. Each swipe of their machetes would cut off a head. Blood spilled all over the ground, dyeing the grassy plains in red.

At the door of the white tribe, two men in smart, black suits stood still on the ground, looking at the massacre happening in the tribe.

"The Thirteenth Tribe on the grassy plains. Other than Ramstead, the others are merely preys before the sharp eagle claws." One of the men had sharp eyes. There was a white beard on his chin which swayed to the left in the wind.

"This is the consequence of not obeying the Wolf Tribe." His voice was cold, without any warmth. "On the grassy plains, everything belongs to the Atria Alliance."

Before he finished speaking, there was a crisp noise. A white boomerang was spinning rapidly, heading towards his head.

The sides of the boomerang were incredibly sharp. There were some remnants of blood on the boomerang. There was an intense howling sound as it spun.

The boomerang passed the neck of a black knight in its way. With a poof that brought along a bloody smell, a head that was still laughing flew off.

The boomerang, with the power of a recent murder, headed towards the black-robed man with a cold voice.

Dang!

The black man abruptly raised his arm and blocked the boomerang heads-on. Golden sparks splattered from the clash between his arm and the boomerang. Surprisingly, the collision between flesh and metal could emit the sound of clashing metal.

Looking over at the direction where the boomerang originated, there was a squad of white knights protecting two youths, allowing them to retreat into the distance. The surrounding black knights and flying dragons leaped over but were all killed or knocked back by the boomerangs.

There was a knight in full white armor. He wore a white-silver helmet that only revealed his eyes. In his hand was a giant sword enchanted with white electric arcs. With every swing, a black knight would be chopped down. The Dual-Headed Flying Dragons didn't dare to approach. Once the white electric touched them from afar, their bodies would become numb. They would fall to the ground, quickly emitting black smoke, eventually becoming black ash.

The white-bearded leader in black robes looked at the gradually departing white knights. He slowly let out a faint smile.

"Gulaman! I'll go and kill them!" The one with the cold voice was asking to be sent into battle.

"Patience…" Through the gaps among the white knights, the white-bearded man saw the two people being protected.

It was a boy and a girl. Both of them were not more than thirteen, fourteen years of age. They were dressed luxuriously in a white bandana on their heads. On the bandana was a green gemstone.

The two children had fair skin and pretty faces. The boy was like a delicate porcelain doll. The girl's long hair draped over her shoulder. Her tight clothing revealed her tiny waist. She had red lips and white teeth. Her watery eyes were red and swollen.

"Looks like I will have some good stuff tonight." The white-bearded man stroke his beard, looking satisfied.

"Gulaman, let me go capture them for you!"

"I want that boy. It's been a while since I've seen someone so fair." The white-bearded man nodded.

"Er…." The other person was a little shocked. This Gulaman's preference…..He initially thought he wanted to capture the little girl, he never thought….As he glanced at the calm white-bearded man, there was an uncontrollable coldness in his heart.

　　*******************

"Sister! Don't bother about me! Run!!" The little boy Lajay shouted at the top of his lungs. He continuously struggled. Yet he was still clamped between the armpits of a black knight leader. He was being brought towards the direction of the two black-robed leaders.

"It's an honor to be chosen by Lord Gulaman! Treat the old man well and you might live!"

The black knight leader laughed.

Larain was being held in one hand by a white knight. She stretched out her hands and looked in tears towards the direction of her brother. The white knights around them were protecting them as they retreated into the distance. However, the black knights behind were like wolves that fixed their eyes on raw meat. They were not going to let them go.

From the gap between the helmet and the neck of the white knight, there was red blood flowing downwards, dying his breastplate in red. However, his posture did not change.

"Princess Rain. Do not let His Majesty, Jay sacrifice in vain!" A determined voice came from beneath the helmet.

"Let me go let me go! I want to save my brother! Let go! Let go…" Larain knocked on the white knight's breastplate. She didn't even realize that her hands were being scratched by the sharp parts of the armor.

"Woooo….wo…..Let go…" Larain's tears were like pouring rain but the white knight wasn't affected.

The White Wind Tribe was gone. The Wolf-Hawk Atria Alliance was too strong...

Their totems were all over the air and the ground, more than the raindrops in the sky. In the whole grassy plains, they were rampant and unbeatable. After the demise of the second strongest White Wind Tribe, no one could hinder their footsteps.

Wooo!

The totem light of one of the knights beside was penetrated by an arrow. He tumbled to the ground. Another knight took his place without any hint of panic.

They were the most skilled White Wind Knights. All of them were skilled totem users that were developed since young. They were elites that were chosen among uncountable departments. The White Wind Knights had more than a hundred men. They were like a device. Once one of them fell, there would be a new knight to fill the void. There was no fear or panic, only composure.

After this battle, thousands of skilled totem users sieged the White Wind Tribe's headquarters. The White Wind King died in battle. This battle would definitely shock all the tribes in the grassy plains.

Buzzz!!!

Suddenly, all they could see was red. A vast light instantly flooded their vision.

The white knights quickly held the reins of their horses. The cries of panicked horses constantly came, while the Dual-Headed Flying Dragons fell to the ground like dumplings.

Bang!

A flying dragon suddenly landed behind their squad. It knocked into a protruding stone and let out a cry. Its four eyes were in a daze as it tried to get up, but it didn't work.

The white knight quickly recovered his vision. He looked at the Flying Dragon. With a raise of his hand, a white light shot out. It accurately pierced the Flying Dragon's head. The Flying Dragon instantly stopped moving.

He retracted the white light and continued to lead his team to scurry away.

"What is this!" "My eyes!"

"It's the White Wind's secret weapon!"

"Stop screaming!" "Stay still on the ground! Stay still on the ground!!"

The bellows of the black knight leaders came from the distance.

Then only the white knights saw what happened.

From the grassy plains in the distance, a vast red beam penetrated the clouds. The red beam was like moving water, rotating upwards. The whole beam was light red-jade, emitting sharp red light. It was incredibly bright.

At this point, there were huge crowds of black knights appearing in front of the white knights. Their leader was a black knight in a winged helmet. He was riding a strong black horse. He turned sideways towards them, but he was evidently affected by the red light. From time to time, the horses who were still in shock would neigh as they walked back and forth

"Flee towards that direction!" The white knight decisively changed their route and headed towards the direction of the red pillar. Their horses were also affected but fortunately, they were not looking in the direction of the beam. Since they managed to avoid the majority of the sharp light, they recovered much faster than the black knights.

　　****************

"Gulaman...Us?"

"Red light from the sky. An heirloom must be born." Gulaman stroked his beard. His gaze was solemn.

"According to the scouts over there, two elites were battling to the death near the red light. Both of them were severely injured. They look like people from the Central region." A black-armored knight on the side whispered. "Boss, what should we do now?"

"Let's go take a look. According to the old rules, let them kneel and join our alliance. If they are not willing, kill the males. For the females, disable them and send them to the army's red tent." Gulaman muttered.

"Yes!"

　　****************

Their arms collided fiercely.

Bang!

The red light and black light exploded. Garen and the Cthulhu King both were about to fall as they retreated a few steps. One of them leaned on a giant stone pillar, while the other one sat on the ground with a puff. He was out of breath.

Both of them were exhausted. They couldn't do anything to each other.

"You can't kill...me!" The Cthulhu King, who was out of breath, said fiercely. He leaned on the stone pillar with all his might, trying to maintain the original image of the Cthulhu King. However, the fatigue of his body was like a wave, knocking on his mental state. This weariness was a mental one. It had nothing to do with the body.

Both of them had battled for more than two months. It was an intense battle every single day. There was no chance of relaxing.

Until now, when both of them were in a mentally exhausted state.

Once the Cthulhu King couldn't kill Garen with his strongest move, he knew that he can only drag on the battle against him. After a series of fights, this was the state that they'd ended up in.

"So what?" Garen smiled as he sat on the ground. He didn't care about his image. He seemed much more comfortable than the Cthulhu King.

"I also can't kill you." The Cthulhu King slightly loosened up. However, he didn't move. He wasn't able to muster enough energy. He couldn't even crack the skin of a peak fifth form. "How about we come to a truce?"

"A truce?" Garen's expression was strange.

Wooo!!

Deafening horn cries came again from the sky.

The numerous red flying dragons circled around them. The horned warriors blew their horns, letting out low cries.

"You know what I want. You think we are able to have a truce now?" Garen looked directly at the Cthulhu King and started laughing.

"There are conditions for everything in this world. Tell me your conditions." The Cthulhu King really didn't want to have to die to return.

Translator's Notes

[1] An ancient punishment where all four limbs are chopped off, leaving only the head and the body.