NOVEL NEXT WORLD Chapter 1007
<1007 – Eastern Experience Record (6)>
Sadi’s persistent interruptions irritated the nerves of the wizard who had lived through the long darkness of the Eastern Empire.
“A hindrance to the great undertaking has appeared.”
“Who is the enemy?”
“It’s the Dark Sorcerer from the Western World, skilled in the arts of darkness.”
The declaration from the wizard in charge of magic caught the attention of the wizards responsible for various magics across different regions.
“From the Western World?”
“A Dark Sorcerer.”
“Seems we’ve got a nuisance even more bothersome than the Grand Witch, the Principal’s disciple.”
“However, even the witch’s curse could not defeat our magic.”
“That curse, too, is currently smothered by the vast riches of the Eastern Empire.”
“But adding another front we need to defend against is a loss.”
“The day when the great undertaking is completed must not be postponed.”
“By whatever means necessary.”
“Ensure he is defeated.”
“We shall grant you 10% of our resources.”
The alliance of wizards, the Alliance of Necromancers, shared their magical power to provide greater strength to areas that required it.
As support from the wizards who dragged the empire into a calamity for their lofty aspirations gathered, the presence of the Dark Sorcerer’s pawns was detected in the Amhyeol.
“Entering my territory with the minions you took from me, Dark Sorcerer. That hubris of yours will be your downfall.”
Amhyeol planted nightmares in the minds of the soldiers. He had figured out that the opponent was trying to dominate the soldiers’ spirits.
When a curse completely dominates a single mind, the vessel doesn’t wish for its soul to be destroyed and instinctively directs the curse elsewhere.
Sometimes, it manifests as sleepwalking behaviors, or the afflicted becomes a madman spewing ominous prophecies through foul words.
In a sense, Dobi from the Church of the End in the Western World might fall into such a category.
However, now the soldiers were expressing the curse in another way.
The curse was backfiring.
The curse flowed back to the Dark Sorcerer along with the soldiers.
Even if the loss of the curse is considerable in the process of being conveyed to Sadi, who has a higher rank of soul, it doesn’t matter.
There are plenty of vessels, and if they gather, it will become an undeniable great curse.
“This guy…! Such terrifying capabilities. Even after I laid that curse of nightmares, I can only sense an illusion, unable to gauge your true position!”
As Sadi used the ‘terminal’ to manifest the vessel bearing the curse that crossed from East to West, Amhyeol struggled to keep up with the Dark Sorcerer’s skills.
Amhyeol switched tactics. Not a curse, but a contract mark.
He had never thought there would be a dark magic that could entirely transfer a spirit to another entity, so this time he was convinced that Sadi had fallen under the contract mark.
Then he dispatched a legion of high-ranking demons from the Dream World.
Victory was at hand.
If even a high-ranking demon of such caliber was a nuisance, even Amhyeol, the one controlling them, wouldn’t find a way to survive.
Waiting for the moment to defeat the enemy and gain experience to grow stronger, Amhyeol happily closed his eyes.
His eyes shot open.
His power had not increased.
It had decreased.
Instantly, it was slipping away.
Something was wrong.
By the time he hurriedly tried to withdraw the cursed marking, it was already too late.
The nightmare’s heart, the Nightmare Core of Dreamland.
The source of evil energy had been damaged.
High-ranking demons that had spilled out were gone.
An empty core.
The enemy had pretended to fall into this from the start and had allowed themselves to be attacked by the high-ranking demons.
Moreover, the signals of the dispatched demons had been completely severed.
In an instant, Amhyeol had lost all his strongest weapons.
As the source of darkness in Dreamland vanished, the fear of nightmares that plagued everyone also dissipated.
People were no longer oppressed, and the unclean energy they emitted in their dreams, as well as the charge of the Soul Gem, was cut off.
“How could my position deteriorate this much in an instant!”
The Soul Gem determines the status of wizards within the gathering of wizards, the Alliance of Necromancers.
It is the culmination of the evil deeds perpetrated across the empire and the precious key vessel for sacrifices.
There was no way such a wizard would continue to receive special favors under these circumstances.
“You are not qualified to open the gates of the Soul Sky Palace.”
“Resume charging the Soul Gem.”
“If you can’t kill the Dark Sorcerer, I will expel you.”
“You will be given a chance.”
“Ten days.”
“Kill or be killed. There are no exceptions.”
Allies.
Such a loose term held no weight for wizards from each region, who mercilessly inscribed a curse on Amhyeol’s body and soul.
A curse of death if the Dark Sorcerer wasn’t dealt with within ten days.
“Is this the feeling of being a discarded pawn? Heh. You intend to make me a mountain of offerings to gauge the power of my annoying enemy? Bastards. You crossed the line first. Now, it’s my turn to go all out.”
Amhyeol had no intention of simply complying.
But neither did he plan to dance to their tune.
Gulp.
The Soul Gem entered his throat.
Horrific pain and despair surged within the body of Amhyeol, which was dwindling after losing the Nightmare’s heart.
He gained power by plunging his soul into hell.
Amhyeol committed the dangerous act of performing the law of darkness as a dark wizard.
Now, there was only one way for his soul to be saved.
To gain greater power and expel the Soul Gem within him to the Dream World.
If he failed, he would lose both his body and the wicked power of the Soul Gem to the Dark Sorcerer.
But that couldn’t happen.
The Soul Gem was a medium that concentrated the accumulated darkness and despair of an area.
“The despair of one who is alive yet dead is something even a highly skilled Dark Sorcerer cannot withstand, as long as they are still considered alive!”
*
The growing undead Sadi Chocolate lazily fanned himself from the palanquin held aloft by the soldiers.
It wasn’t because he was hot; it was because he found the sight of housewives fanning themselves sexy.
“I want to do it too!”
“Here, take this.”
Oknodie joined in fanning from the side.
The palanquin broke apart as a gust of wind dashed through the street, scattering some stalls to pieces.
“…You’re doing it too hard.”
“But it felt refreshing, right?”
I genuinely want to smack him.
If we cause a stir, our identities might be exposed, and we could be spotted by the wizards who might be watching us.
Sadi quickly manipulated the soldiers’ sword fight to divert the source of the commotion away from them.
“Stop it!”
The Sonbaek Sword Examination of the Son family couldn’t ignore the chaos occurring in their territory.
With the influence of nightmares gone and life returning to the city, warriors who were no longer helpless began actively securing order on the streets.
“Why is the official army making a ruckus in the realm of the sword examination? As the official army should uphold the prestige of the Heavenly Sword System, stop this unjust riot at once!”
“Shut up.”
“Shut up?! Are you telling us that now?!”
With Sadi commanding the official army, he lashed out, taking out his frustrations on Oknodie.
“How dare you say a word after being mute while the strong seized control of the city and the residents were tormented by nightmares?! Only after the official army has cleared out those rabble do you come out to talk back arrogantly!”
The warriors’ faces flushed with shame.
“It has led to such disastrous outcomes to hand over official matters to civilian forces. I’ll verify whether your clan has the qualification to carry on the will of the Heavenly Sovereign. What are you doing? Hurry and guide the way through the sword examination!”
With Sadi’s help, the official army, now freed from a cycle of endless servitude and doing meaningful work, found their morale greatly boosted and shouted loudly.
In an era when the might of the examination surpassed that of the official army, they boasted even more.
“So you’re saying that these trash dared to invade our examination’s honor?!”
A martial arts instructor from the examination brandished his sword with an extremely furious face.
“These outsiders have no right to act this way. If you want to overstep your bounds, then face me with your sword skills. If you’re not skilled enough, be prepared to pay the price for your rudeness.”
The official army was taken aback, thinking, “This is not good.”
In terms of actual power, the swordsmen of the examination simply outclassed the official army.
– Don’t be afraid. I will show you the path your swords should take.
Sadi placed his hand on Sing’s shoulder.
“What would you do if you could defeat the examiner’s swordsman with your sword skills?”
“…You plan to pass down your skills to the official army with your power of mind-reading.”
“If it feels like too much pressure, you can give up. I have countless sword techniques that I ‘remember.'”
Sadi’s words might hold some truth.
The Knight Department of the Academy indeed boasts one of the largest schools specializing in swordsmanship.
Moreover, the 980th class where Sadi enrolled was the year when notable powers, including the Masugaki Princess, were suppressed by the state and interest groups, resulting in historical-class strong individuals being assigned as upperclassmen.
While their skills might not reach the professor level, they could definitely rival third-year students and, for the highest tier, even challenge fourth-year students.
But Sing also held a grudge.
“The Sonbaek Examination may not be directly responsible for my younger sister’s death, but they were among those that cornered me… me and Sing, due to their bounty contracts.”
Sing glared coldly at the Sonbaek Examination Hall outside the palanquin.
“I permit you to borrow my sword skills.”
As Sing and Sadi collaborated, an astonishing event unfolded as the mind-to-mind sword techniques were directly transmitted.
An ordinary member of the official army began parrying strikes from a martial arts master’s sword.