Chapter 26: Echo of the Oath, the Ascetic's Deterrence

Scram, Lai De's lackey!

Scram back to Dawn Castle and report to your master!

Having uttered the holy oath, the princess no longer felt any hesitation or fear in her heart.

Ande the mage's body trembled slightly, his heart full of helplessness; after a few seconds of silence, he sighed, "Your Highness, I am deeply sorry."

He gave his subordinates a gesture and said, "Let's go."

Now that things had come to this point, even the holy oath had been shouted; he could only carry out the Duke's ultimate plan.

We can't really go to war with the Allen Kingdom, can we?

But just as he was about to turn, his arm was seized by the adjutant at his side, and the adjutant's whisper reached his ears.

"Sir, don't let us bear this disgrace for a lifetime!"

Ande felt a violent shock in his heart, turned his head toward his adjutant, and saw only a resolute gaze.

He turned again to the other Black-Iron Guard, and found them all looking at the princess with reverent eyes, each warrior gripping his weapon tightly, clearly ready to clash with the Aaron Night Guard.

Ande instantly understood: "This is the echo of the holy oath."

Weilan's warriors could not stand by and watch Weilan's princess die at the hands of foreigners.

But Ande also knew that five hundred Black-Iron Guard were no match for three hundred Aaron Night Guard.

In past covert battles, a single Aaron Night Guard's combat power was roughly two to three times that of a Black-Iron Guard, and the ratio grew with numbers, even reaching five times.

If a real fight broke out, the Guard would be crushed, Shahelamu the Master would be slain, and countless nearby civilians would be slaughtered by the spillover of battle.

Thus, the two sides truly could not fight! Yet his thoughts no longer mattered; reason could not fully control hearts.

The Black-Iron Guard had already steeled themselves to fight for the princess; even the Duke's arrival might be useless.

On the other side, Xueyan Saras also sensed the tension of drawn swords.

He felt no fear at all, only excitement, and couldn't help licking the Blood‑Drinker staff lightly with his tongue, chuckling.

"Aha~ Looks like we'll be shedding a lot, a lot of blood tonight~~"

The higher‑ups ordered the conflict's intensity be restrained, but that was a politician's concern; he was a pure warrior.

His first mission was to cleanse the king's disgrace; the rest of the details could be left to the domestic politicians to fret over, after all they specialize in bickering.

He was confident he could wipe out the opposing Black‑Iron Guard, along with the princess and the Baron, completely.

Just as the situation seemed about to spiral out of control, someone in a black cloak stepped out from the onlookers.

He removed the cloak, revealing a graceful female mage clad in tight leather armor.

The mage had long violet‑black hair, amethyst eyes, delicate features, and a slightly voluptuous, elegant figure.

She was Lady Agneth, Luosen's mentor.

She raised her staff high and shouted, "Mages of Weilan, the foreigners dare to slaughter our princess—are we to just stand and watch?!"

At her words, Xueyan Saras the mage was slightly taken aback: "Is there any reinforcement?"

Indeed, there was reinforcement.

Before Lady Agneth's shout faded, people kept emerging from the crowd around the square.

In no time, over a thousand mages stepped forward.

They were all well‑known mages from Dawn City, not only themselves but also their apprentices.

Among them was even Sir Hanfulai, who had lost a duel to Luosen.

Shahelamu the Master hesitated briefly, then finally stepped out as well.

Lady Agneth first moved to Selena's side, and the thousand‑plus mages stood beside the Black‑Iron Guard, confronting the Aaron Night Guard opposite.

With their arrival, the Weilan forces seized an absolute advantage.

Even the Weilan civilians who had only been watching for fun began shouting loudly.

"Aaron folk, get out of Weilan!"

"Drive out Aaron's mongrels!"

"Kill them all!"

At first the shouts were scattered, but they grew louder and soon spread like a wildfire.

"Aaron mongrels, get out of Weilan!"

Countless civilians began chanting in unison, the roar instantly terrifying like a landslide and tsunami.

The princess's holy oath finally received the wildest, fiercest spiritual echo! The turn of events was sudden and terrifying, and Xueyan Saras's expression grew very grim.

The Night Guard formation, once orderly, began to stir uncontrollably.

But Saras did not retreat, for a stronger force lay behind him.

A passage opened in the middle of the Aaron Night Guard's formation, and two figures emerged.

One was short and stout, the other short and muscular; one wielded a short staff, the other a long staff—both were the Arcane Masters participating in the revenge‑for‑honor operation.

The short, stout one was the supreme commander, the famed King Aaron's hound, Arcane Master Shi Mi Te.

He first invoked the Four-ring "Voice of the High Heavens", letting his voice resound through the night sky.

"Aaron and Weilan are both members of the Natural Alliance, once comrades‑in‑arms!"

"We will never raise blade against comrades."

"But the Baron of White Sturgeon Island insulted our king; we must wash away the disgrace with his blood!"

"Once we achieve that, we will depart."

At the same moment, the short, muscular man beside Master Shi Mi Te abruptly halted his staff; a black aura flickered around him, expanding into a shadow giant nearly thirty‑something meters tall! The shadow giant bore blood‑red eyes and let out a thunderous roar.

"I am Lysent, others call me Shadow Master, but I prefer to call myself the 'Butcher'."

"Shi Mi Te likes to argue, but I detest verbal disputes the most."

"I have only one sentence: the Baron must die!"

As they spoke, the colossal shadow giant raised its head to the sky and let out a roar; the massive sound wave spread outward and literally smothered the noise in the plaza.

Including the Black-Iron Guard, the faces of the Weilan people changed color, and they involuntarily looked toward Arcane Master Shahelamu of Weilan.

As a result, Master Shahelamu remained silent.

The Master was short of breath, and the crowd's rainbow‑like momentum stalled as well.

And the ordinary onlookers had never seen such a terrifying display, so most of their faces showed signs of retreat.

Many people couldn't help but think that since the other side had said only the Baron's life was at stake, there was no need to make such a big fuss over a single Baron.

Shi Mi Te keenly sensed the cowardice in people's hearts, grinned and chuckled, "A very wise choice."

"This is inherently an uneven battle; retreat is not disgraceful, but rational."

Before the words finished, another voice suddenly rose from the onlookers.

"I quite want to see the prowess of the Aaron people."

The voice echoed through the night sky, and it was also the Four-ring Master spell "High Sky Voice."

Immediately after, a massive multicolored light sphere shot out from the crowd, soaring upward and shining like the sun.

The entire garden plaza was illuminated as bright as day by the sphere. The terrifying shadow giant manifested by the Shadow Master was instantly pierced by the light, becoming translucent, and its deterrent effect on ordinary people faded by ninety percent.

Just as the crowd was astonished, a tall figure stepped out from the onlookers.

He stood nearly 1.9 meters tall, with an extremely robust build; his heavy cloak was woven from linen, feathers, and straw, he wore a tattered rain hat, and leaned on an ordinary long wooden staff, looking like a wandering poor adventurer.

Both Aaron Masters, upon seeing the tall elder, turned very solemn, and their previously arrogant aura largely subsided.

The hound Shi Mi Te said coldly, "Master Levin, are you also going to intervene in this?"

Originally, the two Masters on their side had the advantage over Weilan; a stronger intimidation would have subdued the meddling civilians, and the matter would have been settled.

But now the opponent has produced another Master, a legendary Arcane Master famed for his combat skill, instantly tipping the scales back to balance.

The Weilan onlookers whispered to each other, excitement flickering on their faces.

"It's the wandering Master Levin!"

"Great, we Weilan also have a hard‑boned Master."

"But the wandering Master seems to lack a decent artifact; can he manage?"

"What do you know? Whether he can manage, just watch the Aaron's reaction; he's definitely capable."

Under everyone's gaze, the plainly dressed elder walked slowly to the center of the garden plaza, confronting Aaron Night Guard face to face.

He gave a faint smile, "Shi Mi Te, I need to correct you on something."

As he spoke, a crystal light sphere emitting multicolored glimmer slowly materialized atop his staff.

"I am no longer a wandering Master, but a wandering Sage now."

The words were not heavy, but amplified by "High Sky Voice", they reached every ear in the garden plaza.

Regardless of the listeners' status, the moment the word Sage appeared, their faces instantly showed shock.

The Fifth Magic Ring, mana crystallized and manifested in multicolor, denotes an Arcane Sage.

Out of five hundred High-tier Mages, only one is promoted to Master, and among dozens of Masters, only one Sage emerges.

The entire Nature Alliance currently has only nine Sages in total, known as the "Nature Nine Sages".

No, now it should be called the Ten Sages.

The King's hound squinted at the pure multicolored mana and remained silent for a full five minutes.

He finally spoke, whispering with Spiritual Whisper, "The Sage may be strong, but is still mortal."

"Together with Shadow Master Lysent and an additional 300 Night Guards, a single combined strike could send you to hell!"

"We are also warriors; dying in battle is our destiny."

"Even if all Night Guards perish tonight in Dawn City, if it saves a Sage's life, it's worth it!"

Levin smiled faintly, "Shi Mi Te, you don't naively think the one standing opposite you is actually me, do you?"

Shi Mi Te was startled, "Isn't it?"

Levin slowly shook his head, "The power of the Five-ring has some marvelous applications that the Four-ring lacks."

"You could certainly destroy my proxy, or ignore my killing of the Baron and Princess, but my revenge will make your King regret forever."

Shi Mi Te fell silent again, because Levin's threat was truly terrifying.

If he covets material pleasures, longs for the warmth of human kinship, and is bound by worldly ties, then even as a Six Rings Archmage he is merely a somewhat stronger mage.

Sending a single army could easily grind him into powder.

But he happens to be a completely free wandering ascetic.

When a mortal lets go of all worldly bonds, it is his moment closest to the divine.

If that mortal also wields the Five-ring Sage's power, he is essentially a god walking among mortals.

Even the king and emperor dare not provoke him lightly.

But Shi Mi Te was unwilling to accept defeat.

He sneered, "Sage, you can of course stay hidden. But you are not the only one with Five-ring power; Aaron also has two Sages."

"Therefore, you cannot pose a real threat to my King."

Levin replied, "Sage spells are the cutting‑edge of Arcane power, with almost no related research."

"I cannot guarantee to block other Sages' spells, nor can they block mine. As long as I wish, I can certainly summon a batch of sacrificial victims."

Shi Mi Te fell completely silent, because he knew Levin was right.

A few minutes later, he was forced to take a step back.

"We cannot retreat like this; I must answer to the King. If the Sage prevents us from giving an answer, we would rather all die in battle!"

Levin also stepped back: "A holy duel then."

"Let the Baron duel Bloodflame Saras, and let Mother Nature decide the final fate."

As soon as these words were spoken, Shimite was taken aback.

"Sage, you're basically sending the Baron to his death; he won't agree."

Levin gave a faint smile: "In other words, you agree?"

Shimite did not answer right away, turned and discussed it with the few people nearby.

Upon hearing this, Salas laughed heartily: "This is really interesting; I don't mind carrying out the execution myself."

Since that's the case, Shimite nodded: "I agree."

Given such a huge disparity in strength, if the baron could still pull through, there'd be nothing left to say.

Levin turned and explained the situation to the Weilan people.

Lady Agneth shook her head as soon as she heard it.

"Sage, I respect you, but this proposal is going too far; it's basically sending Luosen to his death!"

Aaron the battle mage is famed for his fighting ability, and Salas, renowned abroad, is a notorious battle maniac.

Not to mention low-level mages, none of the high-tier mages present dare claim they could win, including the Black-Iron Guard commander Ande.

Selena, however, said: "This is already enough; I'm willing to fight in my husband's stead!"

She has fully faced reality, knowing this is currently the best way out.

Before she finished speaking, a figure flashed beside her, and Luosen had already walked out of the crowd.

"Madam, let me handle this."

Without waiting for Selena's response, he loudly announced.

"I, the lord of White Sturgeon Island, Luosen Saxon Baron, am willing to accept Salas's duel challenge."

"I will fight with all my strength for myself, for the Princess of Weilan, and for the dignity of all Weilan people!"

Before his words even fell, the garden square rang with thunderous cheers.

The nobles and upper-class people present basically thought Luosen was sure to die.

But the vast majority of commoners thought Luosen, this bird-dung baron, was an ironclad tough guy, a true hero.

This is far better than those greedy, hypocritical nobles of Dawn City.

(End of chapter)