On the icy platform at the center, Jenna's corpse lay still. Half her face had been corroded away, covered in all manner of deranged expressions, as though the faces of countless different people had been fused together into one. A faint smile of release lingered at the corner of her mouth, making the sight all the more grotesque.
The venom of the Komoyin Giant Serpent possessed an extremely potent corrosive effect on the soul as well. The ancestral spirits that had taken up residence within Jenna's body had all been eaten away and utterly destroyed by the terrifying toxin.
"Pitiful!" After obtaining Holy Light Candlefire, this advanced Meditation Method, Leilin had also used the Chip's analysis to determine its characteristics.
Gathering the spirits of past ancestors and having them inhabit a descendant of the bloodline — even by dark wizard standards, this advanced Meditation Method was bizarre and terrifying beyond measure!
Moreover, as the host vessel, Jenna would have descended into a state of spiritual split personality, becoming something neither human nor ghost.
In a sense, the moment Jenna had cultivated Holy Light Candlefire and inherited the ancestral spirits, the original Jenna had already died.
"What a bizarre Meditation Method. And what a tragic family." Leilin rubbed his chin.
The strange properties of Holy Light Candlefire filled him with a quiet wariness. Until he had fully understood this Meditation Method and developed specific countermeasures, he had no intention of touching it again.
Half a day later, Leilin emerged from the castle.
Crack — crack — After he left, gray stone fragments began sliding steadily from the castle's surface, and soon, enormous cracks spread across the entire structure.
Boom!
With a thunderous roar, the entire castle collapsed completely, reduced to a pile of rubble. From this day forward, the Portley Family had vanished from this world forever...
Thick dark clouds blotted out the sky, and silent flashes of lightning flickered within them from time to time.
Moments later, droplets of black rain began falling rapidly from the heavens.
In the distance, the massive Trigons Volcano suddenly erupted, spewing an enormous pillar of fire into the sky. Vast quantities of volcanic ash were sent high into the air, and after being mixed with other artificial compounds, they rained down across the land as fertilizer, bringing tremendous vitality to the Trigons Great Plains!
Farmers working the fields on both sides knelt by the roadside, their mouths chanting praises to the wizards of the Evernight City.
Under the wizards' protection, they could reap bountiful harvests each year — yields more than sufficient to leave them with surplus even after paying enormous taxes and their lord's tribute, enough for them to live without want for food or clothing.
A massive black stallion cut through the curtain of rain, and the faint silhouette of a young man could be seen atop it.
"Hulk... what a shame..."
Leilin urged the horse forward at a gallop, his thoughts drifting idly.
Inside the Ganges Secret Realm, the range of his Toxic Gallbladder attack had been far too wide and its destructive power far too great. Even Hulk, the Venom Drake stationed at the outpost's perimeter, had been unable to escape and had perished in the indiscriminate assault — costing Leilin a mounts he had grown quite fond of.
Beforehand, Leilin had been juggling his confrontation with Xishan, setting up the Myriad Spirits Magical Array, and secretly communicating with Reisman, keeping his mind running at maximum capacity the entire time. Hulk was merely a pet for transportation, and in the midst of everything, Leilin simply hadn't accounted for it. The drake had died along with all the other peripheral wizards, caught in the crossfire of Leilin's poison.
"Still, Venom Drakes hit their limit at First-level Wizard due to racial constraints. Especially now that I've advanced to Second-level Warlock, Hulk's usefulness would only continue to shrink. I'd been meaning to release him at some point, but I never expected..."
Leilin sighed softly, pausing in brief mourning for Hulk's misfortune.
Then he cast the thought aside. Gazing upon the towering silhouette of Evernight City standing silently in the rain, a cold smile surfaced on his face.
He turned the horse's head, and the stallion veered slightly off its original course, heading toward a mortal settlement near Evernight City.
Due to the tremendous gravitational effect of the city, dozens of large mortal towns orbited around Evernight City like satellites.
Every day, countless ordinary people from all walks of life arrived here — some harboring dreams of becoming wizards, others fleeing persecution, and still others simply drawn by the allure of youth and adventure. Eventually, they all came to grasp the cruelty of reality, were driven out by Evernight City, and could do nothing but linger in places no more than small towns.
Leilin came to the outskirts of a small town called Kailin, found a tavern, and slipped inside. He ordered a mug of mead and drank it in silence.
"Master!"
A dozen minutes later, several figures clad in black cloaks and hoods approached. The elderly man at their head called out in a low voice.
"Mm. Follow me!"
Leilin tossed a silver coin onto the table and led the group out of the tavern.
The old man at the head of the group then brought Leilin to a villa on the outskirts of the small town.
"Master! Upon receiving your notification, we immediately packed our supplies and departed Evernight City. We rented rooms here and have been awaiting your arrival!"
Once they were inside the villa, the lead figure removed his hood, revealing the appearance of a silver-haired old man.