A Wizard's Secret

Merlin was fully-shifted, and his untamed ferociousness rose into the air. He was however stunned to discover that the figure standing beneath the blood-red clouds had yet to shapeshift. This figure remained in his human-form which exceeded Merlin's expectations.

"He's definitely not just an ordinary full-shifter!"

At that point, Merlin was only aware that full-shifters were the most supreme existences in the Almighty Beast world. After achieving full-shift, he did not know whether there were more degrees of differentiation.

The Black Gorilla King was a full-shifter, so was Orsato and Merlin. Yet, there was a world of difference between each of them. Therefore, there were skill-gaps between full-shifters, which were very pronounced.

"You're Leon? Not bad, you really have the Blood-eye Dragon's bloodline…"

This figure seemed to walk on air as he made his way towards Merlin.

"Blood-eye!"

Merlin's gaze steeled. The blood-red vertical eye on his forehead once again shot a crimson beam at the looming figure.

"Boom."

The crimson beam shrouded the figure, which collapsed instantly. Nevertheless, the blood-red clouds emerged again, as well as hundreds and thousands of crimson figures.

"There's no use. Your high-level almighty beast bloodline is indeed powerful, but just a little lacking. Regardless, this small deficiency means that you are unable to stand against me! Now, you'd better follow me back obediently and let me study you for a bit. A Host with the will of a high-level almighty beast, who is a full-shifter. It has been a long time since a person as interesting as you appeared, haha…"

Laughter rang from every direction. It was impossible to differentiate which was real and which was false, or perhaps, all of them were false.

Merlin looked at the blood-red clouds swirling in the sky. He had already guessed who this person was.

"Doomsday, I guess you came personally!"

Merlin had an inkling in his heart. Seeing the swathe of blood-red clouds, he knew that Doomsday was the newcomer. Previously, Merlin thought that once he became a full-shifter, he would become one of the top existences in the Holy Dragon Empire.

At that moment, he had indeed become a full-shifter. In terms of ability, he was certainly top-notch. However, compared to Doomsday, there was still an unbridgeable gap. Perhaps, upon achieving full-shift, there was a whole new realm that Merlin did not know of.

"Roar…"

Merlin attacked every crimson figure frantically. His immense power pierced through the blood-red clouds without difficulty. However, no matter how much strength he wielded, including the Blood-eye, he was unable to inflict any kind of damage on the blood-red clouds. He could not even identify who the real Doomsday was.

"It's useless. You may be powerful, but you still have a long way to go."

Doomsday's voice boomed again. Following that, the blood-red clouds began to tumble wildly and transformed into multiple tentacles that swiftly wrapped around Merlin's full-shifted body.

These tentacles formed from crimson beams contained astonishing might. Merlin was completely unable to free himself. This was the first time Merlin was in such a helpless situation since becoming a Fourth-form shifter. It was sheer inability to wield his abilities.

"Doomsday!"

Merlin could feel the danger creeping up to him. These blood-red clouds were perhaps Doomsday's full ability, but Merlin's current abilities were insufficient to break through them.

"If danger comes, I'll just have to give it my all."

Merlin closed his eyes slightly. The strongest ability he could mobilize was not the power of the fully-shifted Blood-eye Dragon, but instead the Illusory World in the depths of his Awareness.

However, once he mobilized the Illusory World, the will of the entire Almighty Beast world would most likely descend upon him. At that juncture, he was not sure whether his Illusory World could survive the onslaught.

Thus, unless he had no other choice, Merlin would not even consider mobilizing the Illusory World's power.

"Go to sleep."

Doomsday's voice resounded from every direction once again and echoed endlessly among the blood-red clouds.

"Thump".

Following Doomsday's command, Shiya, Iza, and Monty all slumped to the ground and had seemingly fallen into a deep sleep. Merlin also felt waves of drowsiness attacking his consciousness, but the Mind Power inside his Awareness immediately dispelled the drowsiness.

"Oh? Interesting, you can actually resist my hypnosis. It's probably because of the Blood-eye Dragon's will? I'm more and more interested in you. Let's go, stop resisting. No one can escape once I've set my eye to capture them!"

As soon as Doomsday's words fell, the entire swathe of blood-red clouds began to boil, as if something was brewing.

Merlin sensed danger approaching closer and closer to him. He took a deep breath. If he really could not withstand it, he would have no choice but to mobilize the Illusory World. However, if that happened, he might not be lucky enough to escape once again.

The greater possibility was that the will of the Almighty Beast world would immediately strike him dead. Even the Illusory World's natural order would be shattered. Then, Merlin would completely disappear.

"Old friend, since you've come all the way here, why the hurry to leave?"

Suddenly, a faint voice reverberated across the blood-red clouds. Then, an aristocratic-looking man holding a short staff materialized amidst the blood-red clouds. He did not shapeshift as well. There was a perplexing aura on his body.

"Farron?"

Amidst the blood-red clouds, Doomsday's figure reappeared. For the first time, his tone sounded worried.

"Minister Farron?"

Merlin was shocked but immediately understood that this middle-aged man was the mysterious Minister of Phantom. This man was the eyes and ears of the royal family and controlled their most powerful force. The mysterious Minister was always shrouded in secrecy and rarely seen.

All people knew was that Minister Farron was extremely powerful. His abilities were so unquestionably powerful that every Combat Team Leader had submitted to him wholeheartedly. No one had ever considered challenging Minister Farron.

Merlin thought that once he was a full-shifter, he would be on the same playing field as Doomsday and Farron, but now it appeared that they were far above his level. They were the true top contenders of this world.

"Doomsday, this is not Doomsday City. You're already lucky enough that the royal family didn't go after your blood. Get lost."

With just a soft growl from Farron, an immeasurable power burst out and stirred up a wind amidst the blood-red clouds. The mere words "get lost" caused the blood-red clouds to tumble around and split open.

"Boom".

Suddenly, the blood-red clouds disappeared. Even Doomsday's figure also vanished without a trace. All that was left was a crimson beam which flew rapidly into the distance.

"Fine, Farron, you're still the same, but the true battle has yet to come. I wonder, how long will Holy Dragon City remain standing? Haha…"

Doomsday's voice sounded more and more distant before finally disappearing completely. Obviously, he had been chased away by Farron. In a split second earlier, these two greatest top contenders must have cross-swords in their own way. As a result, Doomsday retreated, which meant that Farron must have had the upper hand.

"How are you? Still okay?"

Farron appeared very much a nobleman, and he had a friendly tone. No one would have thought that this man was a mighty existence who controlled Phantom and was capable of scaring Doomsday away.

"Minister, I'm fine, but the others have been hypnotized by Doomsday. I don't know when they will awaken."

Merlin took a look at Shiya and the others. This particular ability of Doomsday was quite unique. It seemed slightly different from his Mind Control.

"What hypnosis? It's just a glorified magic trick. Wake up!"

Farron shook his head as if Doomsday's 'hypnosis' was not worth mentioning. His body gave off a glimmer of light which surrounded Shiya and the others. Subsequently, they began to awaken.

Shiya was the first to wake. Upon seeing Farron, she was slightly confused, but seemed to recall something and asked in astonishment, "You… You're the Honorable Minister?"

Farron gave a slight smile. "You must be Shiya? Among the Combat Team, your abilities are very unique. For completing this mission, you will be awarded extra contribution points."

After that, Iza and Monty also regained consciousness. Upon discovering the mysterious Minister Farron, all of them behaved respectfully. They definitely showed greater respect towards this mysterious Minister than they did to the Combat Team Leader.

"Leon, come with me. His Majesty the King wants to see you!"

"The King wants to see me?"

Merlin was taken aback. Since when had his name been recognized by the King himself? Was his act of killing the Black Gorilla King already known to them?

Farron seemed to guess what Merlin was thinking and chuckled. "Deputy Team Leader Leon, don't underestimate Phantom's intelligence. Your act of slaying the Black Gorilla King, as well as the successful completion of your mission, had been immediately reported to His Majesty the King."

Merlin nodded. He was able to become a full-shifter using the will of a high-tier almighty beast, which made him a very rare Host, as well as a powerful full-shift contender.

This meant that, in Phantom Intelligence Department, Merlin was the most powerful person behind Minister Farron. The King would not sit idly and instead would try to win Merlin's allegiance.

After all, the royal family only had Holy Dragon City left under their control. Other than Holy Dragon City, the empire was mired in conflict. Rebel armies were everywhere. At such a time, the royal family needed strong contenders like Merlin more than ever.

Merlin followed Farron towards the palace. Along the way, Merlin wanted to speak up but stopped himself. Actually, he wanted to ask Farron about full-shifters.

Both Farron and Doomsday had obviously achieved a far superior realm. They were completely different from the average full-shift contenders. This information was something that could not be found in any book.

"Minister, about that Doomsday, what realm has he achieved? Is he more than a full-shifter?" Merlin finally could not quell the burning curiosity in his heart and asked Farron.

"Doomsday? Actually, he is still within the realm of a full-shifter. Both Doomsday and I are the same, we're both within the realm of a full-shifter. Whether it's the almighty beast bloodline or a Host, the ultimate form we can achieve is that of a full-shifter!"

Farron finally answered after a slight pause. However, his answer exceeded Merlin's expectations and even filled Merlin with disbelief.