One-Eyed Monster

Of course, what Igor perceived, the others sensed as well.

The skeleton soldiers seemed somewhat listless compared to before.

Their first attack had indeed been quite formidable. If Kuyi Tulan hadn’t suddenly conjured vines, Igor might have been the first one injured by the skeleton soldiers’ swords. Igor was quite grateful to Kuyi Tulan for this.

At the same time, he felt that the words of the Great Mentor Guzan truly made sense: Kuyi Tulan was not inherently evil. After all, Igor and he were strangers, yet Kuyi Tulan had still saved him, which proved his inherent goodness. As for why Kuyi Tulan had such a major dispute with the monsters of Guru Mountain, that was something that required fresh analysis.

It was this rare moment of leisure that allowed Igor to reflect so deeply. After all, they currently held the upper hand; the skeletons and corpses had long since been smashed to pieces by their efforts.

That enemy floating in the air couldn’t have held back for so long just to unleash such an ordinary attack, Igor thought. There definitely had to be a trick to it. Yet, Igor couldn’t be entirely certain. Both Kuyi Tulan and the Great Mentor had demonstrated immense power, which made the current ease of the battle seem plausible, almost normal.

At this moment, Kadi was also engaged in an intense battle. He had longed for a proper fight, and now that the opportunity had finally presented itself, he certainly wouldn’t let it pass.

The defensive formation did not waver despite the current advantage. These seasoned soldiers remained vigilant, unwilling to become complacent over a slight upper hand.

Of course, there were also spectators among them. Besides Igor, several other unique onlookers were present. Let’s not discuss Hustace for now; for some reason, he no longer feared the unfolding events. Perhaps the large crowd had emboldened him, or maybe he had grown more resolute about his future journey. Whatever the case, Hustace was currently discussing the scene with the Little Black Hands, appearing entirely unhelpful.

The other lone spectator had to be Kuruto, the Witch Spirit, who seemed to have been forgotten. He currently lacked a physical body and could only float ethereally in the air, observing the endless fighting and suffering on the ground. Truth be told, he missed his master a little.

Kuruto couldn’t understand at all why he had come to this place, nor why his name was so similar to this mountain’s. He was a Witch Spirit, yet also a lowly being. He was unsure what his own power could accomplish. He used to rely on his master’s prestige, but now his master had abandoned him. Kuruto felt he was just like these mindless skeletons: blindly obeying one person, then completely lost when separated from his master.

The dim light provided almost no illumination, and Kuruto couldn’t clearly see how these people were repelling the skeleton soldiers. It’s utterly shameful, he thought, that so many of them are still struggling against mere Puppets manipulated by someone else. If it were his master, he would have likely attacked that dark shadow floating in the sky directly by now. But alas, his master wasn’t here. He could only watch this motley crew fiercely battling a pile of Puppets. Isn’t it shameful? So many people ganging up on a single enemy. And what was the deal with that chief from the Alchemy Workshop, bringing a whole team just to watch the show?

Naturally, Kuruto was referring to the Treasure Hunters whom Kuyi Tulan had brought up the mountain.

There were many of these Treasure Hunters, but they had all fallen under Stan Sol’s sleep spell, rendering them as immobile as Puppets. As for what they ate and drank after traveling for so long, that wasn’t their concern; the chief of the Alchemy Workshop could easily provide them with sustenance by converting ambient energy.

Kuyi Tulan had brought these people up the mountain specifically to deal with Wizard Reed. He and Reed were old acquaintances and had engaged in some transactions in the past. The information regarding the search for the Great Mentor had also been provided by Reed.

Of course, Kuyi Tulan now also understood that the Black Crow had used their Alchemy Workshop to pave the way. It had even intended to exploit the conflict between the Alchemy Workshop and the Great Mentor’s group to incite a clash, hoping to reap the benefits as a third party.

Kuyi Tulan also now knew what was hidden in this mountain. This means of enhancing power had to be reclaimed for his king. Both the Empire and the Alchemy Workshop needed this power.

Although Kuyi Tulan had dealings with Wizard Reed, he didn’t know the true extent of Reed’s strength. However, he knew that Dark Arts weren’t as simple as just summoning a few skeleton soldiers; there had to be more to it.

Kuyi Tulan never acted without assurance. He had brought the Treasure Hunters to confront the Dark Wizard. He still held a degree of reverence for Darkness Type magic.

Wizard Reed observed everything that transpired. Unhurriedly, he began to twist the invisible strings in his hands once more. For a Dark Wizard adept at summoning, all of this was exceedingly mundane. The Puppets he controlled didn’t require complete forms, nor signs of life.

Therefore, even as fragments, they could still constitute a formidable army.

Furthermore, these opponents had smashed all the corpses and skeletons to bits. While this looked spectacular on the surface, as if many enemies had been destroyed, that was not, in fact, the case.

Undying, and increasingly bizarre—when bizarreness reaches its zenith, it’s no longer a simple matter of mere monsters.

The destroyed bodies and skeletons released an endless torrent of evil, necrotic energy, causing a wicked grin to spread across the face of Wizard Reed, who practiced Dark Arts. You fools rely on absorbing Spirit Power, but I thrive on this death energy! Indeed, whether it was the death energy that bred plagues or the generally nauseating, putrid death energy, it was all his inexhaustible source of power!

These skeletons and corpses were not merely his Summoned Creatures; they were also his energy reserves!

After absorbing an abundance of this death energy, the reserves Wizard Reed needed for his ultimate move had gone from being merely full to reaching their absolute peak.

Next, Wizard Reed would let these overconfident fools taste their just deserts.

While Wizard Reed was preparing, his opponents below were also bracing themselves.

In an instant, they too noticed the anomaly. Everyone felt that repelling this wave had been a little too easy.

They all shared their observations, and just as the Great Mentor had instructed, they set aside their disputes and stood united.

Although the animate skeletons and corpses had all been shattered, it seemed the affair was far from over.

The smashed fragments now seemed to be floating into the air.

Everyone remained cautious. The appearance of this anomaly seemed to be within their expectations. They still maintained their defensive circle.