Chapter 914: The Chosen Takes the Bait

Above the high sky, a subtle golden ray slit the horizon, racing eastward.

Lei En sat alone on the dragon's back, looking down at the earth below. He had disguised himself in a pale‑blue wizard's robe, his appearance altered to that of a middle‑aged wizard, staff in hand, his stern face scanning the surroundings with vigilant eyes.

The golden three‑headed dragon had just crossed the Luokqisi Mountains, entering the central New Continent.

From the interior to the eastern coast, this vast plain was once the world's most fertile soil, its agricultural yield able to sustain hundreds of millions.

Now it has been polluted by evil energy into wasteland.

As far as the eye could see, countless demon nests and smoke rose everywhere, a perpetual black cloud blanket that never lifted, like an Abyss without daylight.

Lei En was no stranger to this region; it was Danmofu, the place where, a few years ago, he and his teammates hunted the Baro Flame Demon. At that time, Eternal Chosen Aikon took advantage of Baro Flame Demon's death, the Abyssal Gate's destruction, and seized the land.

Years later, it had become the domain of the Netifu Demon.

In the distance, several Demonkin tribes were visible.

"Go up."

Lei En barked low.

Bo Erqi flapped hard, accelerating upward, piercing the black clouds, using them to shield the Demonkin tribe's sight, suppressing his aura as much as possible, and continued flying east.

The golden three‑headed dragon deliberately skirted the Demonkin tribe, smoothly crossing the Danmofu region, flying for hours before entering the interior of Demonkin territory.

No enemies were encountered along the way.

Netifu Demons have flying mounts, and many Demons and Evil Beastmen can also fly, often patrolling the sky; however, Lei En always sensed them early, letting Bo Erqi bypass them before they noticed, making the journey smooth.

The sky gradually darkened as the sun set westward; after the golden three‑headed dragon flew for several hours into night, its stamina was exhausted.

It then descended onto a hillside far from the Demonkin tribe, hidden within a dim forest at the hill's base.

Lei En stood on the crate containing the Iola Core, raised his hand and cast an Invisibility Field, cloaking himself and the dragon within.

Neither man nor dragon spoke, remaining on guard.

Half an hour later.

Bo Erqi's stamina had nearly recovered; in a few minutes he could take off again. Lei En suddenly turned his head toward a corner of the forest and shouted low, "Who? Get out of here!"

Almost as he spoke, a beam struck the Invisibility Field.

Puff!

The Invisibility Field was dispelled, revealing Lei En and the golden three‑headed dragon. Lei En's spell fired instantly: a "Mind Whip" from an Eye Demon Elder's demon soul, a snap, an invisible psychic lash striking, warping the area within a dozen meters.

A dark‑red human silhouette emerged.

His body was as sturdy as an iron guard, yet he wore a wizard's robe, one hand gripping a heavy staff, the other a sharp broad sword; his skin bore countless evil‑energy tattoos, and a pale‑green shield radiated from his body. Though he looked human, the aura he exuded was stronger than that of a Demon.

A Purgatory Mage among the Netifu Demons!

The soul‑eye showed he was a Legendary High‑rank, eighteenth‑level Purgatory Mage.

Lei En's Mind Whip had seven loops; only a portion of its power pierced the mage's shield, lashing his soul, and a look of pain crossed his face.

But that was all; it had no other effect.

Every Purgatory Mage is forged in brutal trials, emerging from the Abyss's slaughter, long accustomed to pain.

Clap!

A Mind Blast followed immediately, but struck empty air.

The Purgatory Mage calmly flashed aside, widening the gap with Lei En; a few hundred meters away he stared intently at the golden three‑headed dragon, his eyes showing doubt and gravity. To be precise, he was not looking at the dragon but at the large crate on its back.

He sensed the crate's energy fluctuations—pure and massive, seemingly endless!

It must be an extremely precious magical artifact!

"Human."

The Purgatory Mage, unabashed in his greed, asked in Abyssal Language, "What is inside the crate? If you tell the truth, I will let you die more painlessly afterward."

Lei En responded with a spell.

A Mind Leap instantly closed the distance to the Purgatory Mage, yet stayed between the dragon and the crate, placing the enemy within his spell range; he raised his hand and unleashed three beams—a translucent dispel magic, a green Disintegrate, and a blue lightning ray.

"Hmph."

The Purgatory Mage sneered.

He keenly sensed that the opponent's spells were silent, clearly intended not to make a racket and attract more foes.

If so, I won't let you have your way.

The Purgatory Mage thrust his staff forcefully; with a booming sound like an explosion, red‑green evil‑energy flames erupted from his body, three beams shot into the fiery shockwave but missed, having no effect, and the mage's figure vanished.

Yet the flames he released spread for hundreds of meters, fire rain filled the sky, and the ground ignited into a sea of fire.

The Purgatory Mage specialized in lethal spells, especially evil‑energy flames.

Leap through fire!

In an instant the Purgatory Mage vaulted through space, appearing above the golden three‑headed dragon, his hand gathering a massive "evil‑energy fireball" which he flung out; the fireball elongated in the wind, quickly swelling to over a meter in diameter, bombarding the dragon at high speed.

"Roar…"

Bo Erqi reacted swiftly; all three heads turned and spewed dragon breath.

Just as the red, black, and gold dragon breaths were about to engulf the Purgatory Mage, he again performed a fire leap, vanishing from sight.

Boom!

A deafening blast, the evil‑energy flame struck the dragon and burst; the crate on its back was blown apart, its shell shattered, and amid the raging fire a radiant crystal sphere appeared. The evil‑energy flame burned the crystal but could not harm it a hair, and was instantly absorbed.

The Purgatory Mage, who had leapt to a distance, saw the scene, his pupils snapping shut, then displaying disbelief and ecstatic joy.

He recognized what it was and shouted in astonishment:

"Iola Core!"

The world's greatest magical artifact, the energy core of Fu Kong Cheng, the ultimate treasure coveted by every spellcaster.

The Purgatory Mage was also a spellcaster, equally coveting Fu Kong Cheng.

In that moment, countless thoughts flashed through his mind, all converging on a single idea: obtain it!

We must obtain this Iola Core!

Although he doesn't know why the Iola Core, which only Holy Soul Wizards of the Oriense Empire can forge, appears on the New Continent, he can confirm that this Iola Core is genuine.

If he can get it, he could build Fu Kong Cheng, his power would skyrocket, and he might be promoted to Purgatory Grand Mage. Even in the worst case, sacrificing the Iola Core to the Abyssal Four Gods to decipher its creation method would grant him the gods' supreme blessing!

In the next second, the Purgatory Mage sensed an extremely dangerous aura.

It came from that human Wizard.

Between heaven and earth, lightning elements surged like tides from all directions, dark clouds gathered overhead, lightning crackled in the air, and the terrifying aura made him gasp.

"Holy Soul Wizard!"

"Run!"

Before the Purgatory Wizard's thought could settle, a bolt of lightning struck straight down.

Boom!

At the last moment he triggered a flash, dodging the lightning, but before he could assess his surroundings, more lightning engulfed him.

Deafening thunder ripped through his eardrums, his mind went blank, and he could only rely on instinct to leap through the raging fire. Yet wherever he leapt, lightning followed like a shadow; after three consecutive jumps, his shield collapsed.

The Purgatory Mage let out a wail as his body turned to ash and vanished.

The sky‑filled lightning instantly dissipated.

Lei En reached out, feignedly grasped the hovering Iola Core, pulled it to himself, leapt onto the Golden Three‑Headed Dragon's back, and lowly barked, "Leave at once."

Bo Erqi instantly rose into the air and vanished on the horizon.

A few minutes later.

A dying ember on the ground suddenly flared intensely, swelling, and a figure coalesced within the flames—the just‑killed Purgatory Mage. His complexion was pallid, his evil‑energy tattoos dimmed, his soul was extremely weak, and this resurrection came at a terrible cost.

"Holy Soul Wizard..."

"And the Iola Core!"

The Purgatory Mage still wore a lingering dread on his face, watching the dragon's departure, his expression shifting between fear, greed, relief, resentment, and so on.

In the end, he gritted his teeth and resolved not to let this once‑in‑a‑millennium chance slip away.

He could never match a Holy Soul Wizard, but someone else could!

The Purgatory Mage transformed into a blaze, surged toward the distant Netifu Demon tribe, and vanished in an instant.

Shortly after he left, a void fluctuation arose nearby.

A faint silhouette in a black robe cast a spell, opened a portal, and stepped through.

Several dozen li away.

Lei En, seeing everything through Reslin's eyes, curled the corner of his mouth and whispered, "Teacher, Master, the big fish has taken the bait."

From the start, the Purgatory Mage fell into the trap.

Had he not deliberately exposed his aura, the Purgatory Mage could never have spotted the dragon's trail, nor followed it for hundreds of li. His breaking of the box was also his own doing; otherwise a single encounter would have killed him. His revival in the flames was also within his prediction—All-Seeing Eye had long seen through his flame emblem, granting him a single resurrection.

"Hmm."

A faint voice drifted from the void, indicating acknowledgment.

"Fly south."

Lei En patted the dragon's scales, prompting a change of course. Logically, a Wizard bearing such a vital item would never stick to the original route; they'd employ every trick to mislead pursuers.

A play must be done in full, act as if it's real.

Bo Erqi turned, raised his flight altitude again, and Lei En, sparing no soul power, cast an Invisibility Field every few minutes to conceal the dragon's silhouette.

They flew continuously through the whole night.

The Golden Three‑Headed Dragon changed direction many times, sometimes heading south, sometimes north, occasionally looping back or pausing briefly at a spot.

Overall, it progressed toward the New Continent's eastern coast.

At dawn, the sun rose.

Bo Erqi flew vigorously at high altitude; beneath lay an endless black sea of clouds, the ground invisible, while sunlight made the dragon's scales glitter. After a night of high‑speed flight, his stamina was heavily drained and his speed inevitably waned.

On the dragon's back, Lei En's complexion suddenly changed.

An invisible wave spread, sealing off space within several thousand meters; clouds a kilometer ahead roiled, and a massive behemoth burst through, blocking the path.

It was also a dragon, bearing three ferocious heads—from left to right: Plague Dragon, Void Dragon, and Purgatory Fire Dragon.

Hell Three‑Headed Dragon!

But its size dwarfed Bo Erqi by more than double; from head to tail it exceeded a hundred meters, its tail alone nearly matched Bo Erqi's entire length, and the tail bifurcated into two.

Its massive size did not hinder its speed at all.

In the blink of an eye it rose to the same altitude as Bo Erqi; Lei En saw three figures standing on the dragon's back, but his gaze fixed on the tall silhouette in the middle.

The person stood two and a half meters tall, clad in jet‑black heavy armor, wielding a massive crimson greatsword and a square shield; his towering helmet bore a pair of huge upward‑curving horns, its eye slits ablaze with blood‑red flame, his body suffused with vast abyssal energy, like a terrifying deity emerged from the Abyss.

The prophesied Eternal Chosen, ruler of the Netifu Demon, the Dreadlord—Aiken!

The two companions beside him were equally unfathomable.

Even without a Soul Eye, their aura alone revealed them as Saint Rank elites.

One was an Abyssal Knight blessed by the Abyssal Evil God, a Demonkin Chosen Champion, wielding a massive two‑handed hammer; the other wore a dark‑red robe, bore a staff and a longsword, his scorching aura like a volcano ready to erupt—he was the Purgatory Grand Mage!

"Roar..."

The Void Dragon in the middle of the Hell Three‑Headed Dragon roared skyward, emitting a dragon's bellow that stirred a void tremor, staring intently at its own kin.

Bo Erqi hurriedly halted his flight, and all three dragon heads showed apprehension.

Ancient Dragon!

And not just any ancient dragon—it was near a Primordial Dragon; in both age and power it dwarfed him by countless folds, its roar alone capable of bloodline suppression.

Bo Erqi shivered.

The boss never mentioned that the Eternal Chosen's mount is a Hell Three‑Headed Dragon!

"So it's you!"

Aiken saw through Lei En's disguise at a glance, his voice tinged with surprise.

A few years ago, while he was pursuing a group of human cultivators who had hunted the Baluo Flame Demon, he inexplicably fought Lei En and took a loss; later, after his subordinates investigated, they learned that the man was named Ryan Augustus, a rising new star of the Oriense Empire.

The more detailed his knowledge of this human became, the more anxious Aiken grew.

The founding of Gotham City, the retaking of Fu Kong Cheng from the Heavenly Disaster Legion, this series of events gave Aiken a premonition that Lei En would become his greatest enemy in the future.

He deliberately had people keep a close watch, gathering all information on Lei En.

Unexpectedly, Lei En soon became the Empire Consul and was promoted to Holy Soul Wizard!

He had thought that a human of Lei En's high rank and influence wouldn't appear again in the short term, yet today he suddenly stood before him.

After the surprise, Aiken immediately realized the problem.

It's a trap!

However, before he could react further, not even finishing a sentence, the world froze!

(End of chapter)