Chapter 111: Hatred

Chapter 111: Hatred

“What the hell!”

Constantine cursed as he spat out the salty, bitter saliva mixed with blood.

Just a few dozen seconds or maybe a minute earlier… when the red and blue glows collided, he had already struggled backward, lowering his body as much as possible, barely managing to hide behind a broken wall. But with the enormous roar, the wind pressure’s impact still swept him up and slammed him hard against a solid wall!

Struggling, he slowly pushed himself up using the sturdy obstacle at his back. Pain that felt deep into his bones made Constantine’s head spin. He felt like his bones were almost shattered, and dizziness washed over him. What the hell! He cursed under his breath, staggering to his feet. Smoke filled the surroundings. Blue-white mist quickly covered the gap torn open by the wind pressure. Even with the powerful vision granted by the Demon God, he couldn’t see the scene thirty feet away. He blinked, barely noticing that the place where a house had stood was now ruins. The two battling creatures had vanished.

Is this the battle between top-tier beings?… It’s terrifying.

The young man muttered to himself, only to realize his voice was trembling uncontrollably. Compared to before, he prided himself on having some understanding of the Arcane Arts. But what happened before him clearly exceeded his scope. Even using all his related knowledge, he was completely lost.

Since coming to this world, the most common so-called combat he had seen was just warriors with weapons hacking at each other. He always thought beings like Walter, who could dismember dozens of opponents with a wave of the hand, were extraordinary powerhouses. But now it seemed he had looked down too much on this world’s strong ones… In the sky, an intense flash of light suddenly pierced through the mist. The earth trembled. Even with his eyes tightly shut, the blinding light still seeped under his eyelids.

What method did the other party use to unleash such power in an instant? The scale and effect were almost on the same level as his imagined battle with the Lich in the Soul Channel. But that was an imagined battle…

“Still, it’s best to leave this troubled place quickly…”

The somewhat redundant suggestion came from the Lich through the Amulet clenched in his left hand. Constantine sighed weakly. He took out another vial of glowing blue potion from his belt, pulled out the stopper, and the pungent, bitter smell made his face scrunch up… In fact, he was already regretting in his heart – if only he had kept a mouthful of that fast-acting restorative potion the old mage had prepared…

“Gentle hometown is a hero’s grave… the ancients truly did not deceive me… Nirwen Venutiel, I’ll definitely get double payback from you for this! Wait for me to drip and drip again…” Frowning, he swallowed the possibly imperfectly brewed potion. The young man gritted his teeth and muttered lowly.

…

Of course, to do anything restricted with his maid, he first had to escape this awful scene. Using unconventional thinking to cheer himself up a bit, Constantine slowly stood.

Thinking for a moment, the young man pulled out three Scrolls from the small pouch on his belt. He unrolled one.

A pure white glow flashed on the Scroll, then vanished along with the exquisite white leather. The young man shuddered slightly. A serene, peaceful energy rippled in his mind. He felt as if a piece of ice had been stuffed into his brain, making him exceptionally alert and calm. The fear-induced intimidation from the Dragonkin’s aura had now vanished without a trace.

This was a rare Divine Magic Scroll from a Mage Tower. Though not high-level, it was still quite valuable. “Such a loss… this damn dragon…” Constantine shook his head painfully. Then, at a speed unreachable by ordinary people, he dashed toward the other end of the street. The effects of Haste, Cat’s Grace, and the Gloves of Dexterity hadn’t worn off yet. With the help of these magical effects, his speed was almost that of a galloping horse!

The potion he just drank was one of the high-tier items exchanged from Christine. Though not as good as old Nikolai’s collection, it could still repair his exhausted stamina without much difficulty. However, Constantine clearly knew he had lost at least nearly half of his combat ability. Maximizing the use of his body’s functions was no longer possible – the effect that forcibly enhanced physical abilities was, after all, granted by a being not from this Plane. Completely canceling its side effects was unrealistic.

Muscles in his legs sent waves of unbearable soreness and numbness into his nerves. It felt like fire was burning between his chest and abdomen. But Constantine could only grit his teeth, forcing himself to keep running.

“So I’ve said long ago, only increasing your own power is the most important thing at any time…” “Shut up! Rather than complaining, help me think of a way to deal with that damn lizard!” The Soul Amulet glowed green, but was immediately silenced by Constantine’s mental roar.

Actually, without any reminder from the Lich, Constantine clearly knew he was still in considerable danger. The surrounding mist grew thicker. Constantine had to focus most of his attention on his hearing, though this wasn’t very effective either. The dense mist seemed to have effects far beyond natural phenomena. The screams of the crowd, which he could hear before, were almost completely absorbed now. But Constantine could still hear, from the thinner mist above his head, that peculiar, booming vibration, and the flapping sound of wings. This meant the fierce beast was still circling in the sky not far from him, battling the powerful warrior in a way unimaginable to ordinary people.

But this couldn’t be a standard of safety… who knew if the other party would find some opening to attack him? The young man clearly knew he had to preserve his life as much as possible until reliable, strong reinforcements arrived – such as an Archmage, or over a hundred Knights.

The mist in his vision gradually thinned. Constantine’s gaze sharpened. A dark shadow appeared in his sight.

It was a statue of his Majesty Emperor Kaniko III, the third King of the Phoenix Second Dynasty. He was riding a warhorse rearing high, pointing forward with a long sword in hand, as if commanding thousands of troops. Though everyone knew this surprisingly short, frail Majesty never experienced any proper war in his lifetime, not even a proper military parade, the artist successfully used a huge, tens of thousands of pounds of natural bluestone to create an imposing, majestic spirit.

This was the immortal masterpiece of Luden, the most famous artistic master in Phoenix Dynasty history. It was said that even sixty years ago, when his Majesty King Ralphe VI, who claimed to be the legitimate heir of the Phoenix royal line, announced the legitimate dynasty’s return to power and destroyed all symbols of Kaniko’s usurpation, this statue – representing one of the biggest usurpers – was spared from destruction and dismantling due to its superb artistic merit and hundreds of years of history, earning only a sigh and the imperial decree from that Majesty.

But for Constantine now, it merely marked the intersection of Central Avenue and Little Linton Street. He was now in the central area of Phoenix City.

Once here, it should be within the range where Knights could provide aid.

The young man’s mind relaxed slightly.

But just then, he suddenly heard a very faint sound, like leaves rustling in a breeze. The sound grew louder, almost instantly becoming like an approaching storm, then the roar of a hurricane!! The thick clouds were torn open with a huge crack by a loud noise! The figure of the Dragonkin woman emerged from deep within that crack!

The figure with spread wings trailed countless afterimages in the air. Clouds and mist rolled around her, adding streams of ribbons to that dazzling silver. The metallic color rippled endlessly, making the figure seem like the arrival of a Deity.

Constantine froze, his body torn by unimaginable fear. For a moment, it was eerily quiet around the young man. He could hear his heart pounding uncontrollably but couldn’t control his breath. He could only watch helplessly as this creature released its deadly beauty.

Her delicate lips parted slightly. She uttered just one word – a spell. Then – an overwhelming Darkness descended from the sky. But Constantine saw clearly it wasn’t ordinary dark clouds, but countless dancing ice flakes! Scenery dozens of feet away was instantly engulfed in billowing dust and smoke. Yet, in the hazy light, those ice crystals sparkling with lethal brilliance looked like elegant divine objects!

Crack, crack, crack! Countless ice shards collided, producing sounds like a sudden downpour.

But this attack missed again – the young man’s advancing figure abruptly turned for some reason, disappearing behind that huge bluestone statue. So the sharp but not heavy ice shards could only cut a series of stone dust from the rock! The human creation symbolizing the peak of art wailed, helplessly being reshaped.

But the Dragonkin girl showed no pause. She seemed to have already predicted her opponent’s move!

She drew an elegant turn in the air. The clouds and mist under her feet seemed solid enough to step on. Using this, she fiercely charged toward Constantine! During this rush! Her hands, originally covered in silvery clothing, twisted entirely, transforming into silver-glowing, scaled, massive claws!

Those huge, reptilian-form hook claws flashed with a cold light rivaling sharp weapons. Speed-wise, the half-dragon girl’s huge claw would cover Constantine’s body in less than a second. And the statue Constantine had used as a Shield now became an obstacle blocking his retreat!

Fortunately, basic arithmetic like addition and subtraction wasn’t needed now.

Just before contact, the young man’s body twisted oddly. He reached out and unrolled a Scroll! The statue of the Emperor behind him suddenly emitted a blinding white light. Then, this city landmark that had stood for hundreds of years at the intersection of Central Avenue and Little Linton Street vanished abruptly in the light!

Constantine flew sideways! The silver-scaled giant claw narrowly missed his chest, only drawing a few insignificant streaks of blood! At the same time, the final Scroll in Constantine’s hand flashed! Arcane energy formed in the air and took effect on that silver body!

After reaching adulthood, Dragons more or less gained some immunity to their own type of spells. This grew stronger with age. An extremely old or ancient Dragon not only was immune to spells it could control but even entire schools or several schools of magic couldn’t affect it. Therefore, they could dominate even against High-Rank Mages.

But the dragon before him obviously hadn’t reached that stage. Judging by appearance, manner, and ability, she was merely a young adult, at most just entering adulthood… Although spells meant to harm her would basically be negated by her will, Constantine wasn’t trying to harm her now…

In a split second, his whole body tumbled down through the gap in that giant claw. As they passed each other, the slowed sense of time let the young man see the silver dragon’s golden eyes, almost spitting fire, fixed on him. She seemed to be roaring something… Then a cold, sneering curve appeared at the corner of the young man’s mouth. He watched as the half-dragon girl, unable to control her own power, shot like a cannonball and crashed headfirst into a building behind her!

The silver dragon’s speed was considered top among Dragonkin. And Constantine had just cast Haste on her. The combined effect skewed her judgment. With a loud crash, a huge hole appeared in the walls of those brick buildings. Countless dust and debris flew!

“Die!”

He roared like a curse. In the same motion, Constantine hurled a purple light toward the Dragonkin! A sprawling, sticky web formed in the air, instantly covering a large area. Then came a rapid series of Magic Missiles!… This action seemed somewhat inexplicably crazy, like an angry drunk or someone with a mental disorder venting rage with whatever was at hand. The young man’s proficiency would shame ordinary Mages, but for a dragon, it could only cause a slight hindrance. The silver figure turned in the ruins. The Magic Missiles popped and burst like soap bubbles against her silvery exterior, unable to harm her in the slightest.

But we know Constantine was not a drunk or a lunatic… Divine Magic continued working in his mind, sending a chill into his thoughts. At this moment, he was more clear-headed than anyone…

“Stupid insect… This kind of thing will…”

The Dragonkin lady uttered an echo-like, hollow taunt, but then her voice stiffened at a movement from the young man!

A blue-black object kept expanding in the dragon’s golden pupils… Not from getting closer, but truly expanding – with a gesture from the young man, the small, stone-like thing flipped in the air, restoring itself. The Emperor of Phoenix and his warhorse, in that commanding posture, charged forward with the weight of thousands of pounds!

The next second, the young dragon’s unwilling roar mixed with the sound of heavy impact…

“That should do it…”

The giant statue kicked up clouds of dust. The wind pressure it created dispersed the surrounding mist. Watching the huge half-statue deeply embedded in the ground, Constantine weakly sat down backward. He murmured to himself.

This was Reduce Object, a low-level Transmutation School spell, achievable by touching the third layer of the Weave of Magic. It could shrink the volume and mass of a certain size of non-magical item to one-thousandth of its original. Originally invented by Mages for convenience, but it could produce strange effects if used flexibly. Something like Constantine’s usage!

“If you hit accurately enough, perhaps you can knock her out… but the chance isn’t high… There’s a saying: things go contrary to one’s wishes…” The Lich spoke.

The answer was undoubtedly depressing. That last move was already Constantine’s final available tactic. Even though Scrolls remained, he had no strength left to cast any more spells now – even a mere grazing blow from a dragon’s claw was no joke. Icy blue cold blossomed from the wound. A bone-chilling cold made the young man feel as if the injury on his chest had lost all sensation. Even his heartbeat became weak and listless…

“Then all we can do is pray… Another saying goes, miracles often appear in despair…” Before the young man finished speaking, a silver radiance burst from the dusty ruins toward him! The shining silver giant claw was almost at Constantine’s nose again the next instant!

…

Or was it to validate Constantine’s words as well?

In an instant, silver light flashed before him!

The wail of twisting metal was sharp enough to pierce eardrums. The heavy wind pressure almost knocked the young man unconscious!

But Constantine stubbornly remained conscious, watching everything happen before him… with an expression of disbelief.

Blocking the silver dragon’s hand was a halberd… In Constantine’s impression, a halberd was a mix of spear and dagger-axe. But in this world, halberds were slightly different – the back was a hook blade, the front an axe blade, with a spear-like tip at the end. About three meters long, it could stab, thrust, chop, slash, hook… Oh, it was like the weapon used by medieval European Swiss Mercenaries and the Vatican’s Papal Guard. It seems to be called a poleaxe or something.

That wasn’t surprising. Constantine’s surprise was for the person holding this weapon.

A face with sharp, well-defined features, belonging to a warrior. Deep-set features and neatly trimmed beard added a touch of gentleness, but only a touch. That dark red, nearly half-face-long slender scar was like the pupil of a vicious beast, observing everyone facing it…