The first ray of the morning sun shone upon the holy mountain.
At this moment, the Sacred Mountain was surrounded by halos, making it seem even more sacred. The Krakoks at the foot of the mountain all knelt on the ground and prayed for their race.
Hymns began to play from the temple at the top of the mountain.
Hummingbird riders hovered in the sky and sprinkled white petals from time to time, which added to the holy atmosphere of the ceremony.
When the sun shone on the altar, groups of singers walked forward and stood a few meters apart, forming a circle around the altar.
A group of clerics wearing white robes with golden edges walked out of the temple. The leader of the group was a bald old man with a white beard and a red robe.
"Welcome, Your Excellency High Priest!" From the top of the mountain to the bottom of the mountain, a chorus of voices rang out.
The old man staggered to the balcony at the top of the mountain and faced the crowd of Krakoks at the foot of the mountain. His expression was solemn and filled with a sense of compassion.
"May our clan leader rest in peace." The High Priest's first words were for the people at the foot of the mountain. Next, he began his speech. "Our race was nearly wiped out by the humans. It was the master of Citadel who allowed us to live for another thousand years. This ceremony is a way to show our respect to the master of Citadel."
While the High Priest was talking, Shadow, who was hiding in a tall tree, suddenly said, "This old man has a very strong energy reaction, but he is still a mortal."
"Even mortals can get divinity if they stay near the origin of laws for a long time."
"Mortals know nothing about power, so they can resist the temptation of the law. But Isabelle must have some bad taste. She built a temple here so that the Krakoks would come here every year to worship. They don't know that they are worshipping the soul fragments of their ancestors, who are about to be devoured. "
"It's ironic, but … I have a feeling that Isabelle wouldn't do something like this out of bad taste. There's probably another reason." Letting a mortal guard the origin of laws was a very strange thing in itself. Angor believed that a level-3 wizard who had reached the path of truth wouldn't do something like this.
"Eh? That's it? Nice old man. He didn't go on and on like the others. I thought he was going to sing praises for several hours. " Shadow's attention was focused on the temple. The High Priest's speech lasted less than a minute before he signaled the start of the ceremony. "But the opening speech for such a large ceremony seems a little perfunctory."
In Angor's vision, the Grand Priest's solemn expression was filled with respect for the Citadel. However, Angor could see something else in the man's eyes.
"Do you think this old priest knows about Hippocrotee's magic array?" Angor suddenly asked.
"I don't think so." After pausing for a moment, Shadow suddenly smiled and said, "But, if he knows and still says these pompous words in front of all the clansmen, then it's really interesting."
…
When the High Priest announced the start of the ceremony, the circle of singers around the altar began to sing hymns.
A group of armored guards carried a gorgeous stretcher through the crowd and stepped onto the central platform at the highest level of the altar. There was a magic crystal on the stretcher, which was about the same height as them. The four guards worked together to place the crystal into a groove at the center of the altar.
"They're here," Shadow said in a low voice when a bright light shone out from the altar.
"Are you sure there won't be any wizards coming?" Angor looked at the familiar ripple.
"No, there won't be any wizards if the old witch isn't here," Shadow said.
As soon as he finished speaking, a small figure slowly appeared at the center of the portal.
Compared to the height of a normal human, the Krakoks were still considered a giant. A female giant, no less.
She was wearing a black puffy skirt, a black half-veil, long straight hair, pale skin, and delicate cheeks.
Judging from her appearance, she looked like a twelve or thirteen year old girl. Angor also noticed that she didn't have any supernatural aura. She looked just like a mortal.
The little girl's eyes had been closed the whole time, but when the circle of light disappeared, she slowly opened her eyes.
The creature opened its crimson eyes and looked at Angor and Shadow.
Angor was puzzled. How did she find them so quickly if she was a mortal? But if she was an Apprentice Adept, then how powerful was her perception?
"Who's she, Diablo?" Angor used Voice Transmission.
Shadow didn't answer.
Unbeknownst to Angor, Shadow was trembling in fear while pointing at the woman on the altar. "How … how can she be here?"
The little girl seemed to have sensed Shadow's emotions. She smiled at the two of them.
Her pink tongue swirled around her bright red lips. It was both tempting and bloodthirsty at the same time.
"Hey, look who's there. Isn't that my little puppet brother, Diablo?" A high-pitched female voice suddenly appeared in the Spirit Bond between Angor and Shadow.
He tried to stay calm, but the sudden voice startled him a little.
He wouldn't be so surprised if it was just a voice transmission. But instead of destroying the Spirit Bond, the woman forced her way inside and turned the conversation into a three-way meeting. This kind of ability was definitely not something an ordinary Apprentice Adept could achieve! Maybe she wasn't even an apprentice?
"M-Lady Isabella, w-why are you …" Shadow's trembling voice came from the other side of the Spirit Bond.
Angor looked at Shadow's direction. Shadow was invisible, but Angor could feel the man's strong emotions.
Isabella? That name sounded so similar to Isabella, the "Lord of Twilight". Shadow mentioned that the old witch from Dark Castle was the apprentice of the Lord of Twilight, and she was imitating her teacher in every way. Even her name …
Angor didn't dare to think further. His heart was pounding so hard just thinking about it.
Could it be that "Lord" really came?
"I'm just here to see if you're suitable to be my future husband's apprentice." Isabella kept giggling, but her voice was still clear. It was as if there were two voices in the background. The giggling was the main voice, while the talking was the background.
It was a woman with her own voice.
Angor didn't dare to call her a "little girl" anymore. She wasn't big, but he still felt a little scared when he thought about her possible identity.
"Look at your trembling legs. Are you that scared of me? Tsk tsk tsk. I don't think you're good enough to be his apprentice. " Isabella's strange voice appeared in the Spirit Bond again. "But this little boy here is quite suitable."
Angor knew she was talking about himself.
Just as he was about to say something, Isabella suddenly spoke in a very high-pitched voice, and her tone changed from one of admiration to one of disgust. "But, I hate blonde people! Kill him, Diablo! Kill him! Kill him, and I'll accept your position! "
"Quick, kill him! Kill him! "
No other voice could exist in the Spirit Bond. The only thing that could be heard was "Kill him".
Shadow's eyes turned red. He looked at Angor and slowly reached out a hand to gather his mana. But before he could do anything, Shadow suddenly screamed in pain and disappeared from the "Light Blur". He rolled on the ground and fell heavily from the tree. He clutched his chest and couldn't move.
The Spirit Bond was still telling Isabella to kill him, but Shadow couldn't help himself at all.
Angor stood on the tree and looked at Shadow on the ground without saying anything.
As expected, the power of the bond was triggered. If Shadow didn't give up on killing Angor, his heart would explode and he would die soon.
However, Isabella's "kill him" seemed to be both hypnotizing and hinting at Shadow's mind. All Shadow could think about was how to kill Angor. But he couldn't do it because of the bond. Instead, he ended up hurting himself.
While Shadow was still howling on the ground, Angor turned around and looked at the altar.
"Little girl" Isabella was standing on top of the altar with a strange smile on her face. What was even stranger was that time seemed to have stopped. The poet stopped singing, and the Krakoks around the altar froze as well.
All the Krakoks froze at the same time.
"I don't know why you suddenly want to kill me. But if you really want me dead, you can do it yourself."
Isabella didn't say anything. Instead, she kept urging Shadow to kill Angor.
"So you didn't show up in your true form, did you?"
Angor reached out a hand and released a strand of nightmare aura from his fingertip.
With the appearance of the nightmare energy, the frozen Krakoks came back to life. Isabella, who was standing at the center of the altar, was shocked. Slowly, she shattered into pieces.
"Excellent illusion. But … it's just an illusion created by a wisp of consciousness," Angor muttered.
As the illusion was broken, the Krakoks came back to life. They started singing and cheering again.
The light from the teleportation array continued to shine, and a black figure gradually appeared. However, it was not Isabella's figure.
Angor glanced at the portal again before he turned his attention to Shadow on the ground. He snapped his fingers. A Melodious Illusion was pulled open, concealing both him and Shadow's figures.
As Isabella's illusion disappeared, Shadow's bloodshot eyes regained their clarity.
"Phew …" Shadow panted heavily, feeling the pain in his body. After a while, he said in a hoarse voice, "I was tricked by that old witch and almost died here. Thanks a lot! "
"I used my voice to hypnotize you. If your subconscious didn't want to kill me, you wouldn't fall for it."
Shadow felt a little embarrassed. But he didn't mind it at all. He stood up and pretended that he didn't hear anything. "Ahem … Wait. … Eh, I was right, it's really Fiona. "
"Don't change the subject. I don't care what your subconscious thinks. Just remember that you owe me a favor."
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