One-Eyed Monster

Wizard Reed gently stroked his Obsidian Staff. For a Wizard, a magical tool might not be the most important thing, but for a Dark Wizard, a magical tool was sometimes more valuable than his own life.

He had spent a great deal of effort finding this Obsidian Staff and expended much of his Spirit Power to modify it. It was imbued with Spirit Power, infused with an aura of death, and treated with various herbal concoctions; indeed, this Obsidian Staff had endured numerous trials.

Wizard Reed had already sensed that both of his Soul Puppets had completely dissipated. He still had the ability to launch another attack using the lingering wave of rotted flesh and bone. However, his familiarity with Spirit Power Feedback made him aware of a Wizard in holy robes on the opposing side. Thus, even if he launched a final assault, it would be futile.

Luckily, the two Soul Puppets had completed their task. The aura of death had already permeated the seal. All he had to do next was to further activate this pervasive aura of death.

We came to this mountain for an aura of death—an aura that could make the living no longer envy the powerful and the dead no longer cling to their regrets.

But while all this is happening, how many people will understand how much the Black Crow has sacrificed for this?

Secrets should never exist.

In this world, it is always a minority that controls the destinies of the majority, while the majority live their lives in oblivious confusion.

Just like the so-called Absolute Truths widely circulated in this world, they are merely lies concocted by a few to deceive the many.

Wizard Reed shook his head. He had, yet again, unknowingly slipped into his old ways. He always found himself inadvertently dwelling on too many extraneous matters. It was a peculiar affliction; after all, excessive contemplation was rarely a good thing. Many failures, he knew, stemmed from just that—too much contemplation.

Wizard Reed continued onward. Though he had no idea where the path before him led, he knew he had to press on.

Even if the first seal was not opened, he should still be able to step into this secret.

Wizard Reed found it odd that he hadn’t encountered any difficulties on this journey. Are the Soul Guardians really that incompetent?

Of course, he didn’t believe it. He suspected it was a trap set by his adversaries, and he needed to be exceedingly cautious.

Wizard Reed lived a life of caution, compelled by his sensitivity to Natural Force. It was a peculiar phenomenon: the more ways one mastered to control Natural Force, the more sensitive one became to it. Or perhaps, it wasn’t sensitivity, but a kind of forgetting.

Wizard Reed had completely forgotten what sunlight felt like. Every ray seemed alien to him; only the darkness of night could grant him peace.

He conducted most of his activities at night. However, under special circumstances, he would expose himself to daylight. At such times, he would use a large cloak and hood to shield himself from the sun. Over time, this attire became his standard appearance, his entire body enveloped in darkness, save for his eyes.

The Power of Darkness gives me the motivation to press on. Only in darkness can I find my true self.

Wizard Reed quietly sensed the Power of Darkness. He felt the world was too clamorous in the daytime; too many voices and colors interfered with his inner judgment.

No one knew his true strength, nor his weaknesses, except for Boss Willem. He feared no one in the Black Crow, although he was not considered its second-in-command.

This mountain sealed a scroll, a scroll that recorded the method to unlock a great power. This method was coveted by many and feared by many more.

Wizard Reed reached out to touch his Obsidian Staff. It remained unchanged, still pointing straight ahead.

He had expended considerable effort scouring the Dusk Market and the Dark Market. This Obsidian Staff was Guzan’s creation. Obsidian Staffs themselves were not rare, especially since the Alchemy Workshop’s efficiency had greatly improved, making trading for obsidian no longer difficult. However, among the countless Obsidian Staffs in the world, finding this particular one that Guzan had traded was no easy feat.

For this, he had Kuyi Tulan to thank, one of Grand Master Guzan’s few prize apprentices. The information Kuyi Tulan provided had saved Wizard Reed a significant amount of time. The current chief of the Alchemy Workshop possessed a discernment of materials far superior to most; he could identify even the faintest speck of impurity—a speck Master Guzan had deliberately left on this Obsidian Staff.

According to the Dark Market vendor, this Obsidian Staff was once used by an Earth Wizard of the Wizard Alliance, who had been a high wizard within the Alliance.

The Wizard Alliance commissioning the Alchemy Workshop to craft magic staves was indeed a novel affair. Regardless of the truth in the vendor’s words, this Obsidian Staff had undeniably been traded by Grand Master Guzan.

The Obsidian Staff was now in his possession. Reed was neither ecstatic nor despondent. It was one of his magical tools, but not his be-all and end-all. Its greatest utility to him was merely guidance.

Hunters possessed the finest tracking skills, but for a Dark Wizard, the keenest tracking sense came from a dog’s nose.

His Obsidian Staff had been enchanted by Boss Willem with the Canine Nose Spell. Relying primarily on its pull, Wizard Reed was able to determine the direction where Great Mentor Guzan was hiding. Once he found Guzan, he would be one step closer to the seal.

The Obsidian Staff possessed Guzan’s residual Spirit Power. The Canine Nose Spell was utilizing this faint trace to pinpoint Guzan’s location. The pulling force exerted by the spell grew steadily stronger. In a sense, this meant Master Guzan was drawing nearer to him.

The mountain’s secret was no secret to the Black Crow. Willem had been one of the Soul Guardians; he had long known what this group was protecting. The power contained within this Scroll of Death could grant one an invincible army in an instant, or it could bring back a dearly missed person, making them materialize before your very eyes.

Everyone yearned for Spirit Connection. They longed to communicate with those who had entered the Eternal Tranquility Realm, to learn the secrets held there.

The sealed scroll contained the Spirit Communication Spell, capable of summoning the dead and allowing them to reappear in this land. With this scroll, ancient powers could be resurrected, and those who had perished could return to familiar places.

This scroll was more than just a Spirit Book; it was true Necromancy. If the caster willed it, they could resurrect any of the mighty departed…

Wizard Reed dared not dwell on it. Not because he found the spell too terrifying, but because the mere thought of wielding such power… The prospect was almost too magnificent to bear.

Perhaps this was the main reason Boss Willem had sent him here.

Once this mountain’s seal is broken, everything will be set right. When all things yield to darkness, injustice and discrimination will cease to exist. In that era, everyone will be unified in darkness, all at the same starting point…

Wizard Reed couldn’t help but quicken his pace, eagerly anticipating the moment the seal would be broken. But before that, he had to confront one more problem.

This problem concerned Master Guzan of the Alchemy Workshop: was he a Soul Guardian or a Gravedigger?

If he were a Soul Guardian, why did none of the current members know of him? That made no sense; the Soul Guardians were not prone to such oversights.

But if he were a Gravedigger, then Reed would have another rival, making the situation even more challenging.

He wasn’t afraid of confronting Guzan. Whether Guzan was a Soul Guardian or a Gravedigger, a battle was inevitable. However, if Guzan was indeed a Gravedigger, didn’t that imply the seal on this scroll was exceptionally formidable?