A Wizard's Secret

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

"Rumble rumble."

Before Wizards Ernie and Watson could even exit the cave, the entire cave was shaken by a huge bombardment, like the entire structure was quaking.

Flames, ice crystals, tornados… Almost every spell conceivable had been concentrated to full power and aimed straight at the mouth of the cave. The power levels of the spells were also vastly different. There were Fifth-, Sixth-, and even Seventh-level spells.

Under the siege of so many spells, the previously determined looks on Wizards Ernie and Watson changed rapidly into despair. With speeds faster than before, they flew back into the cave.

"Master, there's really no way to go out!"

Wizards Ernie and Watson hung their heads bitterly. They really dared not dash out again. If the horrible wave of attack resumed and landed on their bodies, no matter no how many layers of Defensive spells they wore, the impenetrable barrage of spells would kill both of them in an instant.

The mere recall of the horrible attack still left some residual fear in them.

This was the reality of Subzero Snowfield. As long as there was a common enemy, regardless of whoever it was, these Spell Caster would join forces. Ernie and Watson could just imagine that hundreds of Spell Casters joining forces outside, waiting for Merlin to appear and launch a vicious attack on him.

The scale of attack earlier had shocked even Merlin as he was not sure if he would be able to withstand it.

"What do we do now? We can't just hide in here!"

Merlin's face sunk and his eyes landed on Ernie and Watson in contemplation. He was thinking if he should use the two of them as cannon fodders to divert the attention of the Spell Casters outside so he would dash out behind them.

As long as he could exit the cave, he could rely on Flash Wind to further increase the speed of Rainbow Wind, and no one would be able to catch up to him.

Seeing Merlin sizing them up with his gaze, Ernie and Watson's expression waned slightly. They were Wizards who had survived as Seventh-level Spell Casters in Subzero Snowfield, so they were, of course, aware of Merlin's line of thought to use them as cannon fodders.

If they previously held a tiny trace of hope to survive the dash outside, after the horrible siege of spells, they no longer held any hope. If they really continued to dash outside the cave, they would be killed by the endless barrage of spells in an instant.

The fact that these two were willing to sign such a severe slave contract with Merlin in the first place proved that they were less than eager to die. Therefore, before Merlin could speak, Wizard Ernie said, "Master, we can't just dash out like that. We might be killed by those hiding at the mouth of the cave itself."

Since some of the Seventh-level Spell Casters managed to escape earlier, they must have spread the word that the Neverending Book was with Merlin. That was why so many people had joined forces to kill Merlin as it was their only hope to obtain the Neverending Book.

"What ideas do you have?"

Merlin asked slowly. Unless he had no other choice, he, too, did not want to sacrifice these two Seventh-level Spell Casters as cannon fodders. However, if there was no other way, then they would have to do it.

Wizards Ernie and Watson obviously knew their lives were hanging on the line, so they cracked their brains to think of a solution. After a moment, they came up with a plan.

"Master, we can help test the waters and take the risk dashing outside, but we'll have to make some preparations, and we need your help." Wizard Ernie paused, then bit his lip and continued. "Please also lay out some Runic Magic Circles on our bodies, especially those with powerful defensive powers!"

"Oh? Runic Magic Circles? That's quite easy!"

With the Runic Heartprint, Runic Magic Circles were a relatively simple solution for Merlin. He activated the Runic Heartprint that was looming between his eyebrows.

The Runic Heartprint contained an array of Runic Magic Circles, including some powerful defensive Runic Magic Circles, but they required a long time to be set up.

Fortunately, they were not pressed for time right now because none of the Wizards outside dared to step inside the Thousand Miles Snow Cave. Therefore, Merlin had plenty of time to slowly arrange the Runic Magic Circles on Wizards Ernie and Watson.

Soon, with the help of the Runic Heartprint, Merlin had arranged two Runic Magic Circles that covered Wizards Ernie and Watson from head to toe. The mysterious runes glowed brightly, giving Ernie and Watson a little peace of mind.

With the protection of the Runic Magic Circles as well as their own powerful Defensive spells as Seventh-level Spell Casters, their confidence increased a notch to dash out of the cave.

Nevertheless, before exiting, there was one last critical step.

"Puppet, come out!"

Wizard Ernie used his large hand to grab two golden puppets from his ring. These puppets were commonly used in alchemy products.

Of course, an intelligent puppet would require advanced knowledge of alchemy to produce but an ordinary inanimate puppet like this was relatively simple to make. All it needed was a large number of alchemy ingredients.

Once these two puppets were affixed with elemental crystal stones, they began to move slowly. Their abilities were not very strong, only about equivalent to a Sixth-level Spell Caster but the purpose of Ernie and Watson summoning the puppets was to use them as cannon fodders. They would at least divert the first wave of attack, which would hopefully enable Ernie and Watson to dash out the cave after them.

Although it was still highly dangerous, the Thousand Miles Snow Cave had only one exit. Moreover, since they had become Merlin's slaves, they had no choice but to dash out. It was their only hope of survival.

Otherwise, with just a single intention from Merlin, he could sentence them to death!

"Go!"

Wizards Ernie and Watson were now Merlin's cannon fodders, but even then, they did not want to just wait helplessly to be claimed by death. On the contrary, they would do all they could in exchange for a hope of survival.

In fact, the two of them had a good grasp of the psychology of the Spell Casters waiting outside. If they were one of the Spell Casters outside, they, too, would be aiming straight at the exit. No matter whoever appeared from the cave, they would do whatever it took to kill the person, all for a chance at obtaining the Neverending Book.

Following the low growl from Wizard Ernie, the two puppets were the first to dash out of the cave. Despite their huge physiques, upon emerging outside the cave, a barrage of spells already blasted them into fine ashes.

The two powerful puppets dashed out of the cave and just like that, they were blasted into ashes. This made Wizards Ernie and Watson feel very uneasy.

Nevertheless, they followed after the puppets and dashed out, seizing the tiny gap after the first wave of attack to exit the cave.

"Bang bang bang!"

However, despite having managed to dash out of the cave, they were still faced with a series of terrifying attacks. Numerous Spell Casters wielded their strongest powers, hell-bent on killing anyone who exited the cave.

Unfortunately for Wizards Ernie and Watson who were cannon fodders, they attracted the attention of all the Spell Casters, and a barrage of spells rained down upon the two of them.

"Crack."

The incomparably powerful defensive Runic Magic Circle only managed to withstand the attacks for a small amount of time and suddenly broke apart. Even the Defensive spells on their bodies flashed continuously as if they were going to collapse at any time.

"Master, save us!"

Wizards Ernie and Watson did not care anymore. At the brink of life and death, they shouted at the top of their lungs.

"Whoosh."

When their voices fell, a Spell Caster had appeared outside the cave, unbeknownst to everyone. It was Merlin!

While Ernie and Watson were occupying all the Spell Casters' attention, nobody noticed that there was still one more Spell Caster left inside the cave. It was their real target, Merlin, who also held the Neverending Book.

After Merlin exited the cave, he saw a dense group of Spell Casters gathered below, driving Ernie and Watson into a dangerous situation.

"Humph!"

Merlin's eyes glimpsed as he had not perform a massacre for a long time. After all, killing was almost part and parcel of Darkness-type spells. Additionally, Spell Casters who cultivated Darkness-type spells for an extended period tended to be more or less affected.

"Darkness Illusory Death!"

By nature, Darkness-type spells were never limited to a certain number. No matter how many people were present, it did not affect the effectiveness of the spell. Thus, with just one Darkness-type spell, most of the Spell Casters were trapped in an illusion.

With a wave of Merlin's finger, the bright clear sky suddenly dimmed and darkened into a night sky. Large slabs of Darkness Elements began to shroud the entire sky.

The sky was completely pitch-black, and nothing could be seen. Even their Mind Power did not seem to have any effect, and most Spell Casters were still trapped inside the infinite illusion.

"Slash slash slash."

Darkness Illusory Death could not only entrap but also kill a Spell Caster. In this case, the Darkness Elements morphed into a razor-sharp blade and slashed the Spell Casters who were still trapped in the illusion.

Although the attacking power from the Darkness Element was quite weak, for Spell Casters who were trapped in the illusion, even the weakest attack could not be resisted.

Therefore, from the moment Merlin wielded Darkness Illusory Death, numerous Spell Casters were slaughtered. The stench of blood and death rose into the air and lingered.

Merlin activated Darkness Eye. He could clearly feel the negative emotions grow as the number of deaths increased which were subsequently absorbed greedily by Darkness Eye.

Negative emotions were the source of power for Darkness Eye. As long as it continued to absorb negative energy, Darkness Eye would become more and more powerful and could be cultivated to its fifth or even sixth form.

"It's not surprising that Spell Casters who cultivated Darkness Eye are often accompanied by killing and fear. It's the favorite source of power for Darkness Eye!"

Merlin muttered under his breath. Naturally, the negative energy did not affect him but it gave him a deeper understanding of Darkness Eye.

"Our Master's Darkness-type spell is truly formidable!"

Seeing that Merlin was able to effortlessly kill numerous Spell Casters, especially those who were completely immersed in the illusion, they could be killed with any spell.

Wizards Ernie and Watson felt a slight chill in their bones. Compared to Merlin, the so-called "massacre" in Subzero Snowfield was nothing but a child's play.

This was a true massacre. Wherever darkness shrouded, the stench of blood appeared…