It wasn't just Aug. Every powerhouse present who understood astrology or possessed prophetic supernatural abilities began independently confirming the life or death of the "
On matters of such importance, they trusted their own judgment above all else — especially when dealing with "colleagues" they could never truly trust.
Lucian was no exception. The crystal ball in his hands quickly lost its luster, turning pitch-black as pinpricks of starlight emerged within, tracing strange and arcane trails.
Since no one had attempted to interfere with or obscure the circumstances surrounding Netrawos's life or death, Lucian quickly obtained his result: the Legendary mage known as the "Abyss Lord" had indeed perished utterly.
"Netrawos is truly dead." After a dozen seconds or so, Aug spoke the result in his rusty, rasping voice, his tone carrying a note of wistful sentiment and bewilderment.
Right after him, the other Legendary powerhouses arrived at similar conclusions one after another, and the atmosphere at the scene grew ever more taut, as though a storm might break at any moment.
Suddenly, the "Time and Light Dragon"
This was not a direct reversal of time itself. Any event, to greater or lesser degree, left "residual traces" in the "River of Time," and only those who had rudimentarily grasped the mysteries of time could trace and investigate them.
These residual traces faded the longer one waited. Even the "Primordial Time Dragon" Danisos could not trace visions of events too far in the past, unless the imprint left on the "River of Time" was exceptionally deep. Of course, whether by deliberate design or mere coincidence, there would always be cases where even recent events could not be traced clearly.
At Danisos's words, the Beholder Lord, Sonite, Dubenar, the Epic-tier knight "Six-Armed Arbiter"
Lucian put away the crystal ball in his hand. With a solemn expression, he nodded to the "Nightmare King" and Vampire Prince Set, indicating that his results obtained through the "Moon Clock," "Dawn Crystal Ball," and "Mirror of Fate" were the same. As for the "Lord of the Dark Side" Aug, he had similarly confirmed Danisos's words through other divination spells.
The "Elder Brain" went rigid in its seat. Its entire body suddenly seemed hollow and vacant, as if its soul had departed. The two eyes atop its octopus-like head turned murky and dim, yet not at all weary with age. Every powerhouse who met its gaze abruptly felt their own thoughts slow to a crawl.
"The 'Master Brain' has completely taken over the body." Lucian nodded almost imperceptibly. Across such a vast distance, deep within the Dark Mountains where spatial rifts were everywhere, for the "Master Brain" to exert such control over the "Elder Brain" — that was truly something worth studying.
The "Elder Brain's" voice turned unnaturally hoarse: "I only 'saw' that Netrawos's mind at the moment before death was filled with pain and pleasure."
Pain and pleasure? The former was easy enough to understand — whether brought about by one's own recklessness or by another's hand, in the vast majority of cases, death was extraordinarily painful. But what was with the pleasure?
Every Legendary powerhouse present unconsciously raised this question in their minds, but they quickly came to the realization: Netrawos had been a masochist. The more pain he felt, the more pleasure he derived — much as ordinary humans enjoyed fine food and wine, encountered happy occasions, or satisfied their various desires.
"Could Netrawos really have taken his 'hobby' too far? But that still shouldn't have been enough to blow up his phylactery... or perhaps pain that didn't directly cause true extinction could no longer bring him pleasure?" The thoughts arising in Lucian's mind were no different from everyone else's. For some, without the pressure of death, many things lost their savor of satisfaction. "Netrawos seems to have had a very severe pathological condition. It's a shame he didn't receive 'psychotherapy' sooner."
However, this was merely the "Master Brain's" unique judgment, with no other corroboration. Moreover, even if the judgment held true, it did not rule out the possibility that Netrawos had been killed. Perhaps being tortured to death by someone else could have brought him both pain and pleasure simultaneously.
While Lucian was turning various thoughts over in his mind, the "Lord of the Dark Side" Aug, "Six-Armed Arbiter" Cervantes, and the others had already begun a telepathic exchange.
"Regardless of whether Netrawos was truly murdered, we must seize this opportunity and use it as a pretext to delay the conference!" Aug said, his tone somewhat urgent. He appeared to be strongly opposed to Danisos and Dracula's consolidation plan.
The "Void Demon" Sterling said gravely: "Exactly. We must first investigate the cause of Netrawos's death. Otherwise, even if we agree to Danisos and Dracula's demands, nothing good will come of it. We'll only lose the initiative — and who knows, we might end up dying mysteriously like Netrawos someday!"
He too was opposed to consolidation and would not let slip any chance to resist it.
"But if we agree to the consolidation, as Legendary powerhouses, we carry enough weight for Danisos and Dracula to court our support. Why would they still move to kill us?" the "Six-Armed Arbiter" Cervantes said with some puzzlement. He held a relatively neutral stance toward the consolidation.
"Hmph — what if their true goal isn't consolidation at all? We still don't know the real reason why so many Legendary powerhouses have fallen in recent years," said another, a werewolf prince named Sonite, whose hatred for the vampires ran bone-deep.