Chapter 341: The Variable (Part 5)

  No one in this world can ever truly calculate everything without omission. Reality is not a novel. In comparison to the myriad, complex things of this world, humans are but mayflies, born to die in the blink of an eye. The idea of grasping everything and changing all is but the arrogant talk of those who know but half of nothing.

  Marquis Inham had understood this principle since a very long time ago. But when he saw that twisted, deformed steel prison, his mind went momentarily blank, completely at a loss.

  He was indeed intelligent, and his greatest intelligence lay in not believing his own cleverness could conquer the world. Therefore, he was always cautious and careful, and never let his desires obscure his judgment to forcefully seek anything. For this reason, his plans had always proceeded seamlessly, and everything he arranged and hoped for was realized step by step according to his will. So even though he had long understood that principle, he had developed a misconception that everything was truly within his arrangements. But no matter how well or ingenious his arrangements were, it was impossible to calculate the trajectory of the Meteor Shower and the blocking efficiency of the Archangel. Of the dozens of fire meteors that slipped past the Decapitating Greatsword to smash into The Radiant Citadel, one had actually struck the steel prison holding Ethan.

  It was absolutely impossible for human power to destroy that specially reinforced steel prison. But before the impact of a fire meteor weighing tens of thousands of pounds, it was not much stronger than an ordinary house. What was now embedded at the edge of the giant crater was just a pile of scrap iron. The anti-magic arrays on it were already completely unrecognizable.

  Inham looked carefully at the pile of scrap iron, and his expression changed, becoming more unsightly than ever before. He was stunned for a moment, then let out a cold snort and turned, flying towards the center of the plaza where the sounds of slaughter were heaviest.

  Before Aimee used the teleportation scroll, she had already made sufficient mental preparations. But when the blue light of the teleportation magic dissipated, she was so frightened she almost fell to the ground.

  A giant white screen of light enveloped the teleportation array. Aimee, who had just teleported, was naturally within it. Her ears were now filled with the overwhelming sounds of shouting, screaming, and the clashing of weapons. Hundreds of ferocious-looking, grim-faced beasts were surrounding the light screen, wildly waving their weapons and striking at it.

  A werewolf covered in blood leaped high. But it froze upon touching the white screen, embedding itself within it. A Templar flew over, and with a single slash from head to toe, cut the werewolf into two. Blood and organs flew everywhere. But as soon as it fell onto the light screen, it was immediately repelled away.

  Protected by the light screen were the mangled corpses of werewolves, and scattered flesh and blood... Aimee felt her stomach churn and, with a waaah, she fell to her hands and knees and vomited.

  Also enveloped in the light screen were more than twenty people. Judging by their attire, they were clearly all high-ranking members of the clergy. Besides the four Cardinals and two high-ranking Templars, the rest were all bishops and high priests. These were the bishops and high priests from various dioceses and religious nations who, upon receiving the warning chime's magic, had teleported here directly using scrolls.

  The orcs' battle was just a venting of their frenzied anger, with no deliberate tactical intent. No one deliberately tried to destroy the teleportation array. When a few of them came to their senses, several high-ranking bishops had already teleported in. Fortunately, the Cardinals had teleported in just in time, and they immediately joined forces to fully deploy this white magic protective shield.

  This white magic shield looked like just a translucent screen of light, but no matter how fiercely the orcs struck and hammered at it, they could not break through. But as the orcs struck and collided, the faces of the several Cardinals maintaining the shield gradually began to turn pale.

  "Help us!" a bishop roared at Aimee. The people who appeared in this teleportation array now were naturally all companions. Although they didn't know why it was a little girl, they could clearly sense she was a magic user.

  Aimee was in a daze. The scenes in her mind were churning just like her stomach. These familiar yet strange scenes overlapped and boiled in her mind, stirring up extreme fear and nausea, giving her a splitting headache.

  Several bishops and high priests threw firewalls and ice arrows towards the orcs outside. Unfortunately, their mastery of elemental magic was not high. And the orcs outside were also very alert. Some orcs even used some basic magic like fireballs. Their speed at killing the orcs was far from matching the speed at which the orcs were swarming in.

  Thump, thump, thump, two Scale Oxen, driven by Half-Orcs, charged towards the light screen with the rumbling sound of thundering hooves. If they managed a solid hit, let alone the defense of the light screen, even a city wall would not be able to withstand it.

  "The might of God is like a prison, the grace of God is like a sea. Settle." Two Cardinals within the light screen simultaneously used a Paralysis Spell. The two Scale Oxen instantly became like clay sculptures, completely still. Due to inertia, the Half-Orcs on their backs flew out and crashed directly onto the white magic light screen. And with the loss of magical support from the two Cardinals, the white light screen began to ripple. The other orcs' impacts, striking upon it as if stones were thrown into a pond, sent out ripples.

  "We can't hold on!" someone shouted. Several Cardinals' faces were incredibly unsightly to look at. They had never imagined that Celeste had just sounded the chime, and the enemy had already attacked this central plaza. Although they were all profound white magic casters, white magic was of little use when facing these hundreds of orcs in close-quarters combat.

  This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  No one had imagined the Cardinals would use the teleportation array to come here. Likewise, many swordsmen on the outskirts of the plaza wanted to charge here, but they could not get through.

  Beside the originally neat and grand central plaza, it was now a field of ruins.

  Lancelot and the other two Templars were fighting a difficult battle with Gru. Just these four people, colliding, fighting, and slaughtering, created a circle of a hundred meters in the very center of the plaza, a battlefield that belonged only to these four. No one else could get involved.

  Lancelot took the lead. The three figures of light, surrounded by various auxiliary magics, moved around the dazzling Battle Qi mass in the center. They leaped and struck, each collision producing an earth-shattering, massive explosion, with Battle Qi splashing everywhere. From time to time, the figure of a Templar would be sent flying out with a deafening clang, but they would soon fly back again.

  Lancelot did not join them in this all-out assault. He remained steady and composed, as still as a mountain, as quiet as a forest. He was fully responsible for withstanding Gru's attacks, creating opportunities for the two Templars to attack.

  This was no longer three people ganging up on Gru, but four. The Pope's all-out Universal Redemption had half of its power used on this battlefield.

  The attacks of the three had completely suppressed Gru, but the more they suppressed him, the more astonished they were. This opponent's potential was immense, his resilience astonishing, his endurance incredible. The more they suppressed him, the more his counterattacking strength and his shocking aura and killing intent did not lessen in the slightest; on the contrary, it grew more and more prosperous. They even felt they were full strength attacking and suppressing a giant, living volcano. If they could not completely subdue, crush, and finally shatter it into fragments and burn it to ash, it would be themselves.

  They did not even dare to split their attention. If this pressure lessened even slightly, the accumulated pressure and momentum would likely erupt and tear them to shreds. They could not relax; they had to go all out as quickly as possible, because when the rain of Universal Redemption stopped, they would have absolutely no capital to suppress him any longer.

  Gru's eyes were still pitch-black, but the whites had become completely red. That was from killing intent, fighting spirit, and a kind of instinct hidden deep within his soul that even he himself was unaware of, a color brewed from the endless slaughter of lives. To have such a killing aura, a person who possessed such a dagger, would absolutely not be someone who liked to make threats.

  These words of his were not just for the other to hear, but also for the other elves to hear. In truth, he hadn't been able to see through him at the start. The poison on the thorns was, after all, meant for dragons tens of thousands of years ago and had never been tested on people, which was why he had probed with words. And now, the other's reaction was enough to explain all problems.

  He glanced at the other elves, who were all at a loss. A cold sweat broke out on Elder Lloyd's forehead; it was from anxiety.

  "Alright, all of you, get the hell away from here." The Necromancer dragged the two elven elders and walked out. The elves outside made way for them.

  Elder Lloyd felt as if his veins were about to burst. He clearly felt that the hand holding his back was trembling slightly. He could now be certain that if the elves disregarded the danger to the two elders, whether by using the War Ancient Tree or by attacking, they could definitely strike this Necromancer down. At most, a few more people would die. But that was still better than the Leaves of the World Tree being taken away.

  The Necromancer, holding the two elven elders, walked swiftly to the edge of the War Ancient Tree and descended the stairs. Aimee, released from the thorn cage, ran along behind. The elves who had gathered did not dare to get too close, just surrounding them and constantly moving along. Luya didn't know if she was also being controlled; from beginning to end, she did not say a word.

  Finally, Elder Lloyd sighed in his heart. A feeling of utter helplessness and exhaustion washed over him. He knew these elven compatriots were not stupid. Even if they couldn't understand the Necromancer's situation, they could surely measure the value between the Leaves of the World Tree and the two of them. It was just that they could not harden their hearts to sacrifice the two elders, and perhaps many more elven lives.

  It is always difficult to make choices based purely on reason. The greater the thing one must sacrifice, the more inner strength is required. Those who discuss war and strategy on paper can never understand. Those who can be brave and decisive are one in a hundred. And the peace and simplicity the elves had always maintained was a very simple, kind nature. But in a situation like this, such kindness was indeed weakness.

  Even if they understood rationally that they should act, this weakness would make them unconsciously think that even if they didn't act, it would be useless. To suddenly sacrifice the two elders and many elven lives, the Necromancer would still escape with the Leaves of the World Tree. If they didn't act, at least the two elders would be safe... Perhaps the Leaves of the World Tree could be retrieved in the future... It was foolish, but reason was ever just a tool of emotion.

  It seemed the elves had always suffered more disasters than blessings. There was never a time they weren't in a passive position, never a time they didn't suffer a bitter defeat. It was all because of this weakness. By following Mafa's teachings, they had maintained a kind and peaceful culture, preserving their good, gentle nature and not getting lost in the accumulation of desire and conflict like humans, but in doing so, they had also lost their fangs and claws.

  Just as a human's true strength lies not in their weapons but in their heart and soul, a race's strength lies in its culture. When the will to fight was deliberately suppressed, preserving kindness and simplicity, they also lost the ability to defend themselves. Even with a great, invincible fortress like the War Ancient Tree, they could not protect the Leaves of the World Tree.

  Perhaps it had reached this point where the Leaves of the World Tree could no longer remain in the hands of the elven race. Elder Lloyd could only think so now.

  Along the way, they did not encounter much obstruction. The Necromancer with the dark golden skull mask, holding Elder Lloyd and Luya hostage, walked to the edge of the Whispering Woods.

  "Don't follow. We will release the elven girl after we leave," the Necromancer said, seemingly sighing in relief as they walked out of the Sunwell's anti-magic field. He dropped Elder Lloyd and continued pulling Luya, leading Aimee towards the distance.

  The elves wanted to continue following, but Elder Lloyd waved his hand to stop them.

  "Perhaps this is truly fate... At least we can be more relaxed in the future," Elder Lloyd said, with a hint of melancholy but also some relief.

  When they could no longer see the elves, the Necromancer finally let go of Luya. Then she suddenly knelt on the ground and, with a waaah, a large mouthful of blood sprayed out from behind the skull mask.

  This was blood, because of the strong, coppery smell. If one only looked at its appearance, it seemed more like a large splash of green paint. This large mouthful of blood sprayed onto the ground, splashing onto the Necromancer's clothes. Immediately, some faint green vines and other plants grew on it. These plants grew vibrantly for two or three seconds, then quickly withered along with the strange blood, turning into a pile of gray ash on the ground.

  The Necromancer suddenly stabbed the dagger in his hand into his own arm. The blood that oozed out was also green. A mixture of blood-colored and black aura flashed on the dagger and disappeared into the Necromancer's body. Only then did he stand up.

  "Thank you, little girl. It has been decades since I last thanked anyone," the Necromancer said, surprisingly speaking to Luya, whom he had been holding hostage.

  Luya did not speak, only shaking her head. Her expression was strange. Aimee, who had followed, looked at them both, bewildered. She seemed to understand a little, but not completely.

  "Alright, I have done my best. The rest is up to you," the Necromancer said, taking out the verdant Leaves of the World Tree from his robes, along with the dagger, and handing them to Aimee.

  "You... you are..." Aimee stammered, not daring to take them. "Wouldn't it be better if you took them to exchange for Brother Ethan...?"

  "No. I've reached my limit. That elven fellow was right, I really can't take the poison on those thorns," the Necromancer said, shaking his head. Although his voice was still hoarse and indistinct, a sense of weakness could now be felt. "I can no longer let that kid of Inham see my true state. That would only make him act without restraint. You take this Nick Dagger and say you have urgent business to return to Diya Valley. If he dares to try any tricks... just wait for his head to be cut off by this dagger."