Chapter 127: Grey and Dark Clouds
The Antler did not take the King’s head for himself, but wished to give it to another.
“Let’s make a deal… I’ll just take care of the mission this time, you can keep those people to kill.”
He negotiated with Lily, displaying his harmlessness and good intentions.
He spread his hands, palms facing outward, signaling he had no hostile intent: “This time, I’ll just be your helper, your bait. I’ll stand outside to attract attention, and you can seize the opportunity for a sneak attack when the time is right… If I’m in danger, you don’t need to rescue me.
“This way, you don’t have to worry about me betraying you, and I can be your loyal teammate—what do you say? There’s no downside for you, right?”
The Antler knew that those who adapted the Path of Adaptation were prone to betrayal.
But didn’t he encounter plenty of duplicitous people in his daily life?
He was long accustomed to dealing with such individuals.
Those accustomed to betrayal did not necessarily betray. As long as they were given enough benefits and a sense of security, and the price of betrayal was raised, these people could still be utilized.
Moreover, the Antler was confident that Alistair should be a young person under twenty. The ‘Knight’ was just in his early twenties, and now he had also confirmed that the King was one of the rare utilitarian Extraordinary individuals who stopped advancing after acquiring Mystical Art.
In other words, everyone else remaining was a dual-path user. This included the ‘Grey Robes’.
Since they were dual-path users, they would not be as extreme as single-path Extraordinary individuals… just as he, although on the Twilight Path, was still very talkative.
And the Antler always felt that the other party’s personality should actually be quite good.
Because he didn’t feel any hostility towards this Mr. Grey Robes, and even felt a subtle sense of affinity. This was not based on any evidence, merely his instinct—but his instincts were usually quite accurate.
Although the Antler did not immediately receive a response from the Grey Robes, he faintly heard the King’s breathing suddenly disappear, and a very low “cackling” sound. It was as if someone had been choked, yet the Antler couldn’t detect the Grey Robes’ exact location.
After a short while, a low voice sounded.
“All right. His corpse is yours.”
—It hadn’t even been half a minute?
Such skilled hand-to-hand strangulation… Was he from the Strangler Gang?
The Antler harbored a vague guess.
But the Strangler Gang could still be cooperated with.
He laughed cheerfully: “It’s fate that we meet… I don’t know if you’ve heard a saying. The Nine Great Paths: Three are active, three are at rest, three are variable. Wisdom, Adaptation, and Twilight are all paths that prefer stillness. You are a very typical adapter.
“But compared to those on the Twilight Path, I’m considered quite talkative.”
As he spoke, the Antler reached out and felt around the ground, finding the King’s corpse, still warm.
He placed his hand on the deceased King’s forehead, and a dim yellow radiance, like worms, slowly crawled across the corpse’s face along his fingers.
“My friend, my kin, my lover. Those I have mistakenly killed, those I could not save.”
The Antler chanted in a low voice with a peculiar rhythm: “I am the sorrowful messenger of Boötes, the dog of Icarus. There is no place for you in the underworld; please return in silence.”
Saying this, he used his other hand to pry open the King’s mouth and blew a breath into it.
At that moment, the King’s corpse lit up like a lamp.
A dim yellow radiance illuminated his entire body, growing brighter.
These lights moved within his corpse, eventually gathering half in his heart and half in his brain.
The King’s eyes suddenly opened, and dim yellow light shone in his pupils.
He nimbly got up from the ground and followed behind the Antler. He slightly opened his mouth, but could not utter a sound.
“…He can’t speak?”
Lily, who had been watching the “resurrection ritual” from the side, finally couldn’t help but ask.
“Yes, he can’t. But he is still Mr. King, not an empty shell. It’s just that he cannot think normally.”
The Antler replied frankly: “Speech and song belong to the domain of beauty, reproduction and emotion to the domain of love. Thought is related to wisdom, training to transcendence—those who are dead but their bodies remain have had four domains stripped away; those who are dead but their souls remain have had six domains stripped away; those who are dead and whose souls no longer exist have had eight domains stripped away, leaving only Twilight.
“From this perspective, those resurrected by necromancy… are still in the world of the dead.”
This was a principle of necromancy that normal Necromancers would not explain.
But for the Antler, whose primary profession was Law Master, there was nothing to hide.
The Antler examined the huge door and commanded, “Go open the door.”
The resurrected King silently opened his mouth and, with abnormal agility, rushed towards the door, climbing up like a monkey.
“It’s a shame I don’t have a bone staff.”
The Antler sighed, “If I had a bone staff, I could further enhance Mr. King’s remains. I wouldn’t have to issue commands like this.”
“Aren’t you a big shot from Avalon?”
Lily asked indifferently, “Isn’t it easy to make a bone staff?”
“It’s actually quite difficult. Weapons that can be brought into a ritual must be self-made,” the Antler said casually, “I’m getting old, and it’s not easy to learn carving from scratch.”
The speaker spoke carelessly, but the listener took it to heart.
Just this single sentence, “I’m getting old,” caused Lily’s heart to stir.
Although it was normal for a big shot to be a little older… for some reason, the first time she met Mr. Antler, she had a vague sense of familiarity, as if she had seen him somewhere before.
At this moment, the Antler also spoke, “Speaking of which, what should I call you?”
“Grey.”
Lily replied.
The Spider Silk Grimoire she inherited came from Grey Heavenly Envoy’s teachings. Using this name now was most fitting.
“I will protect you from the shadows.”
She said in a low voice, “I will follow you, but don’t try to find me… I am the spider in the corner.”
Of course, this was a lie.
She was quietly observing the Antler, looking for an opportunity to deliver a fatal blow.
In truth, she hadn’t fully understood the mission… but Lily was keenly aware of one thing.
—As long as six people were killed in total, victory was assured. And Young Master Eivass would surely achieve it.
However, the first “Antler” to appear in the ritual was the most uncontrollable variable.
No one knew how many trump cards he still had. Therefore, Lily had to stick close to him, looking for an opportune moment to kill him.
However, apart from that…
“You say you’re a big shot.”
Lily, lurking in the shadows, couldn’t help but ask, “Do you know anything about the Ministers in the Round Table Hall?”
She was still somewhat curious about her nearly unknown biological father.
Upon hearing this, the Antler revealed a confident smile: “Of course. No one knows those at the Round Table Hall better than I do.”
Meanwhile.
Gordon, disguised as ‘Lightning,’ the Knight, and the man who resembled a withered wood in poor mental state, had already escaped.
They left the storage room without any casualties.
“Where are you heading next?”
Gordon naturally took on the role of team leader: “Let me see if we’re going the same way—if we are, we can help each other. If not, we’ll have to go our separate ways.”
“I want to find the Holy Lance.”
The Knight said without hesitation, “Then I’ll use the Holy Lance to shatter that Giant’s magic cauldron! If I have the chance, I’d also like to challenge those Giants who worship Evil Gods!”
“I can accompany you to get the Holy Lance,” Gordon nodded solemnly, “and I can accompany you to shatter the magic cauldron. But I strongly disagree with you attacking the Giants—though if you must, I won’t stop you.
“I will accompany you and try to protect you. If you unfortunately fall, I can take your place and retrieve the Holy Lance.”
Both of them had strong enmity towards the Giants.
Compared to the Knight, Gordon’s desire for Ascension was not as strong.
However, the man who stood quietly by, resembling withered wood, couldn’t help but let out a low laugh: “Evil Gods? Hehehe…”
His voice was completely inconsistent with his messy and decadent appearance, sounding exceptionally calm and magnificently elegant. He didn’t sound like a madman, but rather like a nobleman.
“Supreme Heaven is of course an Evil God.”
Gordon furrowed his brows slightly, but patiently explained to the man, “‘Supreme Heaven’ is the name given to Him by the followers who worship Bear Heavenly Envoy. He is a Heavenly Envoy on the Path of Authority, leaning towards the Path of Love. They yearn for a world where violence, inability, and chaos prevail, and the strong can bully the weak at will.
“The former Giant Kingdom of Arctos was a dynasty that worshipped Bear Heavenly Envoy. As you’ve seen… they eat all races, even their own kind. And Supreme Heaven even blesses this evil race—”
“Mr. Lightning! Did you see the ‘Successful Escape’ mission?”
The Knight added from the side, “Father Snake said we need to find the key and escape Pankor Sanctuary… the place we are in is called Pankor Sanctuary!”
Gordon confirmed: “These ‘Giant Couple’ are definitely not ordinary. They can kill an Apostle, live in a Sanctuary that worships Supreme Heaven, and possess a magic cauldron bestowed by Supreme Heaven. And they are so huge… these might be the legendary high giants.”
At Gordon’s level, he could access some historical records regarding the Giant Kingdom.
Generally speaking, pure-blooded Giants were only six to seven meters tall.
Giants weren’t born tall; the older the Giant, the taller they became. Although Giants could run from birth, a three-year-old Giant was less than a meter tall, and a teenage Giant was usually only two meters tall, looking like a slightly taller human teenager.
But unlike humans, Giants had a very long development period. They could grow for hundreds of years, constantly becoming larger. However, generally, depending on a Giant’s talent, the maximum height each Giant could reach varied.
Because Bear Heavenly Envoy was said to be extremely large, the Giants protected by Him took pride in growing taller. Usually, the taller the Giant, the higher their status. Giants who reached a certain height were called ‘high giants,’ usually considered ‘Gifts of Supreme Heaven.’
The Ministers of the Giant Kingdom were each taller than the city walls of the royal city. They were tall and thin, nearly twenty meters in height, with white beards like waterfalls.
Human weapons could not harm them easily, and killing humans was no harder for them than humans crushing insects. These Giants could cause earthquakes when they ran, so they usually sat still and ate constantly. Only during festivals and celebrations would they stand up and wrestle each other, resulting in days of earth-shattering tremors.
Judging by the door in this Sanctuary, this Giant couple should be at least over twenty meters tall. That is, three times the height of a regular Giant.
“This ‘Giant Couple’ is likely an Apostle of Bear Heavenly Envoy in reality.”
Gordon looked at the Knight and said solemnly, “It’s normal for an Apostle to guard a Sanctuary, which is why they could kill an Apostle of the Path of Devotion and seize the Holy Lance. Just as in the Akropolis Shrine, Hippocrates and Akropolis would occasionally appear… The Giant Kingdom worshipped Bear Heavenly Envoy, built Shrines everywhere, and Apostles could manifest completely within Shrines.
“This is why I don’t agree with you attacking the Giants. Even if the Apostles of Bear Heavenly Envoy are not as powerful as the Apostles of the Nine Pillar Gods… Bear Heavenly Envoy is, after all, a Heavenly Envoy of the Path of Authority. You challenging two Apostles of the Path of Authority with the weapon of an Apostle of the Path of Devotion, I still consider it a reckless act.”
Hearing this, the withered-wood-like man laughed again: “Path of Authority? Hahaha…”
Gordon finally couldn’t help himself.
He turned back sternly and asked, “Sir, what exactly do you find so funny? Please state it directly. Stop speaking in riddles, it’s only disheartening—I believe we are at least teammates who escaped together. Is there anything that cannot be said openly?”
“…Are you sure you want to hear?”
A subtle smile appeared on the man’s lips: “You said it yourself, don’t blame me.”
Although Gordon and the Knight vaguely felt a sense of foreboding, at this point, they didn’t want to back down.
“You can call me Dark Clouds. I am a werewolf being hunted by the Child of the Moon. A… poor writer preparing to flee to Avalon. I hope you can give me some convenience then… Mr. Lightning.”
The withered-wood-like man leaned against the immense, rough, cyan stone wall, raised a finger, and the corners of his mouth curved upward slightly with ill intent: “This is knowledge you will never obtain in Avalon. Although the Silver Crown Dragon may not care herself, her Apostles will; her Apostles may not care, but mortal Monarchs must care—why didn’t they finish off the Giants back then?
“This is a secret from Avalon’s founding, history from when the ‘Authority’ Path did not yet exist, the only event of the Nine Pillar Gods’ succession witnessed in human history.
“Listen, and then face the truth…”
Seven thousand words updated, update complete!
