Greatest Legacy of the Magus Universe

Chapter 1742 Dark and Ominous

No one answered.

The soldiers in the front lines watched the Dark Kingʼs figure with abject terror.

When they shifted their attention to the deep line carved in front of his feet, none of them thought of going even half an inch beyond it.

Forget advancing, they were having thoughts of retreating!

The Dark King had killed a Mana Core Magus in the central camp. He had carved a bloody ridge of corpses all the way eastward, slaughtering hundreds of soldiers in the process.

Then he burned down the eastern camp in an explosion, killing hundreds more and injuring all the Mana Core Magi stationed there.

As for the western camp… all the Mana Core Magi near the command tent there had died.

The explosion in the eastern camp had been nothing but a diversion for his true objective — killing the commanders in the western camp.

After achieving his goal, the Dark King returned to the place where he had started, taunting them to cross the line.

But this time, no one could gather the courage. Not the regular soldiers, not the Mana Core Magi, and definitely not the otherworldly assassins.

They no longer thought that numbers could overwhelm the Dark King. His ability to teleport away had not gone unnoticed.

The only way they could prevent him from escaping was if they locked the spirit world overlapping the battlefield. Alas, they neither had the artifacts nor the skill to make that possible.

As a result, the Dark King could move unhindered across the battlefield.

After his display of might, the Empireʼs army did not choose to advance any longer. His actions had brought the Unionʼs soldiers the night.

That would be enough time to regroup and restore order.

Or at least, thatʼs what they hoped.

***

The following day, the battle resumed. But not in full force.

Both sides held back. The Unionʼs Magi had not slept. The memory of the devil assassins slipping into their camps and killing their commanders so easily still weighed on them.

Every shadow felt wrong. The soldiers felt as if the shadows would come alive at any moment and strike them.

The Empireʼs Magi were no different.

The Dark Kingʼs actions from the previous night had left a mark. The image of him cutting through their ranks lingered in their minds. Their confidence had been thoroughly shaken. Even with their numbers, hesitation had taken root.

So the battlefield remained quiet. Skirmishes broke out here and there, but neither side committed fully. Both armies watched, waited, and gathered themselves, each wary of what the other might do.

As the sun moved across the skies and the battle drew to a close, Rekan and his shadowkins gathered in the Empireʼs command tent, along with the cultists.

These devils preferred to move at night, with darkness as their cover. So they had refrained from joining the battle during the daytime.

A shadowkin raised the tent flap and glanced at the horizon. He murmured in slight distaste, ”An hour until sunset.”

Rekan nodded lightly. He gazed at the parchments on the table and said in a cold voice, yet his voice carried a trace of intrigue.

”The Dark King seems to know much about us,” he said.

The parchments he was studying were none other than Adamʼs notes on the different kinds of species inhabiting the Nine Hells.

”I wonder what his background is,” said another shadowkin, his dark eyes flashing with curiosity.

”Could it be that heʼs from the Greater Universe?” A devil proposed.

But immediately after, he shook his head and countered, ”No, thatʼs unlikely. No person in their right mind would leave the mana-rich planets of the Greater Universe and come to this backwater world.”

When the cultists heard his words, they displayed complicated expressions.

”That is not important,” Rekan said in a grim voice.

He drew another rolled parchment and placed it on the table. The shadowkins gathered around him. Meanwhile, the cultists remained at a slight distance but still paid attention to the document.

”Firstly and most importantly,” the shadowkin leader began in a grim voice. ”It would appear that the Dark King also walks the path of the Paladin.”

He paused for a moment, certainty creeping into his voice. ”No, I am certain of it. The manner in which he crushed Kenoyueʼs head…”

Rekan didnʼt finish the sentence. The other shadowkins had solemn looks on their faces. Of course, theyʼd all witnessed the savage manner in which Adam had crushed their comradeʼs skull. To be able to do such a thing… he had to be a Paladin.

”Apart from that,” Rekan continued. ”He seems to be a master in the School of Summoning, as evidenced by his teleportation skills. His mastery of illusion magic is also nothing to scoff at. When he turned invisible, even I couldnʼt sense him.”

”Snakes!” A cultist blurted out. ”He can also summon an army of snakes.”

Rekan looked toward the man with cold, emotionless eyes, causing the latter to shrink back.

The devil nodded in acknowledgment. He scanned the faces of every Mana Core-level cultist in the tent and said:

”Tell me everything you know about the Dark King. The more information we have on him, the better.”

***

At the same time, in the central command tent of the Unionʼs camp, an important discussion was taking place.

Kenoyueʼs headless corpse lay on the table. His clothes and armor had been stripped off, and his lifeless body was treated as a specimen, examined for study and intelligence.

The Magi of the Tsuitsui Clan had been working relentlessly to glean information from the corpse. They were skilled Herbalists, after all.

Meanwhile, the rest of the commanders stood at a distance, gazing at the devilʼs body in quiet disbelief.

The Shadow Sectʼs leader gazed at the devilʼs ashen skin and murmured, ”Itʼs as if… he has been tainted.”

”Is there something you know, my lord?” A Tsuitsui Herbalist turned to him and asked.

”No.” The Hermit shook his head. ”Not particularly.”

”Even in death, it radiates such a dark and ominous aura,” Goro muttered in a solemn voice.

The Hermit nodded. He then looked around the tent and asked, ”Where is Adam?”

”He was in the communication tent last I saw him,” Edward replied, his gaze glued to the corpse on the table.

Suddenly, the tent flaps parted, and a figure stepped inside.

Goro turned to the newcomer, and his lips curled into a smirk. ”Well, speak of the devil.”

Adam gestured to the corpse on the table and let out a soft chuckle.

”But the devilʼs dead.”