Chapter 42: Allies
Muffled thunder rolled across the sky, a cool wind blew, and a light drizzle began to fall.
This rain was caused by the battle between Su Xiao and that mage lord. Earlier, a massive amount of fire element had gathered above the sky over Aisenla City. After that mage lord died in battle, the fire element dispersed, and the collision of warm and cold air currents led to the light rain.
From this rain, one could gauge the strength of that mage lord. Unfortunately, he had actively sought out his natural enemy and was completely finished before even bringing half his combat power to bear.
Figures braved the rain, moving through the streets, searching house to house. The sudden upheaval earlier had touched upon their interests, so the wizards mobilized, voluntarily maintaining order in Aisenla.
At 10 PM, the rain stopped. Some reluctant wizards gave up the search and put out word that if anyone dared to continue causing trouble within Aisenla City, they would no longer consider the Wizard Council's face.
Clearly, these wizards knew tonight's events were Su Xiao's doing. They didn't really want to get involved either, but Aisenla was the only sanctuary, and they still had to live here, so they were forced to act.
Compared to the wizards, Sphinx did nothing at all. He didn't even send anyone to search for Su Xiao. He was waiting, or rather, he had already made a certain decision.
The reason Sphinx didn't send people to search for Su Xiao was that he had already figured Su Xiao had left Aisenla.
In fact, Su Xiao had indeed left Aisenla and returned to the Wizard Council headquarters in Helu City. There was a Wizard Council branch at the edge of Aisenla City, and the teleportation array there connected to the Wizard Council headquarters.
Sphinx hadn't destroyed this teleportation array. If he did, it would offend all the wizards in Aisenla City. These wizards needed magic potions, and the suppliers of magic potions were permanently stationed inside the Wizard Council headquarters.
Anyone who dared to destroy this teleportation array would simultaneously provoke three factions: first, the Wizard Council; second, the loose wizard alliance within Aisenla City; and third, Bone Harbor, which needed fresh blood—the criminals expelled from Aisenla City were their reserve members.
Upper level of the Wizard Council headquarters, inside the Old God Church. Su Xiao was currently sitting on the stone steps belonging to Gus, a thoughtful look in his eyes.
"Everything you need is here."
The upside-down Gus spoke. This old man had a strange temperament. Su Xiao had dealt with the Dominator, which made Gus feel like he owed Su Xiao something. He had previously promised to help Su Xiao deal with the puppet, but before he could act, Su Xiao had canceled the commission.
Now, after helping Su Xiao with one task, Gus felt much more at ease. He didn't like owing anyone anything—it made him very uncomfortable. Now they were even.
Su Xiao opened the cloth pouch Gus tossed over, confirmed the contents were correct, then turned his gaze to Laurent.
"Laurent, have you decided?"
"..."
A tentacle extended from beneath the stone chair where Laurent was, serving as his response.
"You still have a few days. Cherish this final time."
Leaving these words, Su Xiao walked toward the exit of the Old God Church.
"Kid... is this the only way?"
Gus's somewhat deep and low voice came. Before Su Xiao could speak, a tentacle had already wrapped around Gus.
"I know, old friend."
Gus closed his pale white eyes and continued hanging upside down in midair.
Laurent was ready. Although he had never exchanged a single word with Su Xiao, Laurent chose to gamble with his own life. It wasn't that he trusted Su Xiao that much, but simply because Su Xiao had slaughtered the Dominator—nothing more.
Bringing Bubu Wang, Amu, and Baha, Su Xiao left the Old God Church and returned to the Sleep House. He hadn't rested much in the past few days and had been constantly engaged in high-intensity battles.
...
Jingle~
The wind chime on the wooden door of the Sleep House rang softly. The ring of oil lamps inside the chandelier was lit, the glass lampshade closed, and the chandelier was pulled up by a rope.
Su Xiao sat on a wooden chair beneath the chandelier, removing his upper garment. His entire right arm and most of his torso were eroded by darkness.
"Lord Kukulin."
The Maiden of Sorrow knelt on one knee beside Su Xiao, her voice gentle.
"What is it?"
"Lord Kukulin is very fatigued."
The Maiden of Sorrow pressed Su Xiao's hand against her own forehead and began helping him cleanse the darkness. Su Xiao had previously thought that after dealing with "Sightless Azathoth," the "darkness" erosion would stop, but it seemed it wasn't that simple.
Black threads climbed onto the Maiden of Sorrow's fair cheeks, eventually absorbed by the holy silver ornament on her head, whether devoured or stored away.
"Was it you who broke Achid's leg?"
"Yes, Lord Kukulin."
The Maiden of Sorrow spoke in a calm tone but averted her gaze.
"Reason."
"..."
The Maiden of Sorrow's mouth opened and closed, but no sound came out. The puppet had learned some bad habits.
"Lord Kukulin, please... do not crave the darkness."
The Maiden of Sorrow lowered her head, a few strands of pale golden hair falling along her cheeks.
"Oh?"
Su Xiao looked at the Maiden of Sorrow with interest. This puppet didn't need a "heart" at all. She was Dawn's finest creation, the kind that couldn't be replicated.
The Maiden of Sorrow stood up and went to pour tea for Su Xiao.
After eating a late-night snack, Su Xiao went upstairs. He urgently needed rest.
Lying on the small bed in the temporary alchemy laboratory, Su Xiao immediately fell into a deep sleep. From the battle with the Dominator onward, he had barely rested. After that, he dealt with Sightless Azathoth and then fought in a chaotic melee with a large group of violators.
After this stretch of high-intensity combat, Su Xiao still couldn't rest, and tonight he clashed with the Violator Alliance again.
He didn't know how long he slept before being licked awake by Bubu Wang. With Bubu Wang, Baha, and Amu on alert around him, Su Xiao had rested quite well.
Sunset light seeped through the curtain cracks. Just waking up, Su Xiao was still in his daily daze, not yet fully alert. A moment later, he came to his senses. Today, Helu City actually had sunlight—a very rare occurrence.
It was now 5 PM. Su Xiao had been sleeping since 1 AM last night until now. The most noticeable feeling was that his thinking was clearer.
"Woof."
Bubu Wang, squatting on the small bed, barked.
"A team from Holy Light Paradise?"
"Woof~"
"Where are they?"
"Woof."
"Let them in."
Bubu Wang turned and left the room. After a while, he brought up five female contractors.
"You people from Holy Light Paradise... do you screen contractors based on looks?"
Baha, who was eating dinner, was a bit stunned. This team from Holy Light Paradise had quite varied appearances. As for combat power, it was hard to judge—they were all injured.
"Sorry to intrude. We're also forced into this. From a standpoint perspective, we should be allies."
A girl with long ice-blue hair, clearly an ice-type ability user, spoke. Contrary to her ability, her personality was very humble, and her voice was soft.
What the ice-type girl said was true. Apocalypse Paradise had traded with Holy Light Paradise, the trade failed, and space-time power along with a large amount of important materials were lost. Under these circumstances, the two sides could indeed become temporary allies.
"We found the White Goat, fought a battle, sacrificed many, and lost. Her regenerative ability is just too strong, so..."
Before the ice-type girl could finish, Su Xiao raised his hand to interrupt her.
"Where did you come from?"
"This..." The ice-type girl exchanged glances with her teammates before answering, "We passed through Aisenla and then arrived at Helu."
Clang!
A dagger pierced into the wall behind Su Xiao, completely without warning, with astonishing penetrating power. Su Xiao's figure became somewhat illusory. After 0.2 seconds, he emerged from the space penetration state.
Zzzt~
The Realm Severing Thread snapped into the hole in the wall, extending nearly a hundred meters before wrapping around the hilt of a dagger underground.
Pulling back the Realm Severing Thread, a short blade appeared in Su Xiao's hand.
[You have obtained: Demonic Short Blade (Epic Rank).]
[Due to the enemy's ability, the durability of the Demonic Short Blade has been depleted. Current durability: 0/92.]
...
That female violator capable of ultra-long-distance assassination had struck again. And this time, her attack allowed Su Xiao to deduce the key point—her ability wasn't as unsolvable as imagined; it required a medium.