Rawr… Rawr…
The growls of dark creatures echoed before the golden wall. Surrounded on all sides, the creatures of darkness encircled the city of the living, eyeing it with hunger.
"Oh, that's it…" Looking at the golden wall now in sight, Damon sighed. Moving stealthily among the crowds of undead, enduring their grotesque forms and rotten stench, the journey had not been a pleasant experience so far as he made his way toward the inner walls.
"But…" He looked up. A giant bone dragon—a being straight out of fantasy—circled the inner city. Damon braced himself as he entered its shadow.
The NetherBone Ruler. Another monarch-class creature, far stronger than the Silver Sky Ruler. Damon frowned. He waited as the giant ruler passed by, its attention solely focused on the city of the living and the super magician hiding at its center.
'Hah… I want to fight that thing.'
He wasn't frightened by the monarch. Instead, he felt a strange excitement at the thought of facing someone on equal footing. For Damon, as he was now, the Night Bone Ruler was a worthy opponent.
Perhaps he was overestimating his capabilities, but the desire for a good fight burned within him—maybe even earning a title like Dragon Slayer. Damon chuckled at the thought and, instead of engaging in combat, decided to enter the city quietly.
A fight would attract the attention of other monarchs, and if he succeeded in slaying the bone dragon, the rest wouldn't wait—they would bombard the city with their full power.
Knowing this, Damon dashed toward the golden barrier at full speed.
An ancient protective formation, created by the Ancient King Ying Zheng himself.
The barrier could withstand several powerful blows from mountain zombies even thousands of years after its creation. It was a truly marvelous invention, one that had allowed the ancient city to stand unshaken to this day.
Black mist passed through the golden barrier. Deemed eligible to enter, Damon observed the scene before him, still in his mist form. Army posts and mages stationed along the barrier worked continuously, monitoring the situation.
Their shoulders were heavy with fatigue, yet their eyes remained alert—clear proof of their dedication and resolve to protect the city with their lives.
Floating above them, Damon landed on the terrace of a tall building.
He took out his phone and glanced at the screen. No signal.
"A barrier?"
The internet in this world functioned through a magical net—magical waves covering the entire world. The Black Vatican must have destroyed the communication nodes or set up a barrier to make it impossible to call for reinforcements in time.
"This might be why there's no news regarding the attack…" Damon muttered before disappearing from the terrace.
He moved deeper into the city, toward its center, where the magic tower stood.
****
Under the giant clock of the Clock Tower Magic Association, Mo Fan, Han Ji, the mysterious masked man, Zhang Xiaohou, Zhou Ming, Mu Bai, Fang Gu, and the others waited patiently. Along with them were Wang Kai, a leader of the Imperial Magicians; Shi Zheng, an elder of the Enforcement Union; Yao Ting, a commander of the army; and Chu Jia, an elder of the Hunter Union.
"Do we really have to negotiate with scum from the Black Vatican?" Shi Zheng spat in disgust.
"We have no other choice… We need to stop the awakening of the Ancient King no matter what. If not—" Wang Kai, equally furious, barely restrained himself as his body trembled. "If not, everyone in the city will die."
Everyone grimaced at those words. Dark shadows clouded their faces as they fully grasped the gravity of the situation.
"We need to let them go… There is no choice. If we can live, that's all that matters," Chu Jia said, trying to sound optimistic. "They want Salan—we give him to them. That's it. Our lives are what matter."
"But if we let him go now… there won't be a second chance," the mysterious masked man said. "Thousands—no, millions—have died under Salan's schemes."
"If we let him go now, he will bring another great disaster upon mankind!" He looked toward Han Ji, trying to persuade him, but no one responded.
"Hah." Chu Jia scoffed. "We can deal with Salan later. For now, survival is what matters."
"But then again, I understand your point," Chu Jia continued coldly. "So how about this? Instead of releasing Salan, we execute all of them now."
"We can torture Mu He to extract information, and if things go south, just abandon the city and leave."
"Chu Jia!" Yao Ting shouted. "How dare you talk about running away!"
"Hah. I value my life more than this city. If you don't like it, then stand here and wait for death—"
"Shut up!"
Han Ji, who had been silent until now, shouted in anger, glaring at both of them.
"Shut up, both of you!"
Taking a deep breath, Han Ji continued, "This is not the time to fight among ourselves. We will talk to Mu He. Even if there is only a slim chance to save this city, I am willing to lay down my life to ensure its survival!"
"Listen, everyone!" Han Ji's shout straightened their backs. "I will not abandon this city! Not now! Not ever!"
Mo Fan, Fang Gu, Mu Bai—everyone present felt their hearts race as they listened.
"We are mages! We fight for humanity! We protect humanity!" Han Ji's eyes gleamed with fury and resolve as he clenched his aged fists. "Even if it means death, we will fight! For Xi'an! For humanity!"
Mo Fan listened in silence, his heart heavy and his expression conflicted. He wasn't the type to risk his life for lofty ideals—he lived for himself and only himself.
Selfish? Sure. That was how he had always lived.
Today, he wouldn't hesitate to run from a battlefield filled with monarchs—beings completely beyond his current level. But the involvement of the Black Vatican hardened his resolve. He would disrupt their plans no matter what.
As emotions churned within everyone, the sound of rustling wind swept through the area. Magical perceptions flared.
Their senses picked up on something unusual.
Mo Fan and the elders looked up, startled, as black mist suddenly converged above them.
"An attack?" The officers tensed, staring at the gathering magical energy—until their eyes widened as the mist slowly took the shape of a foot.
The black mist churned, forming a humanoid figure before dropping to the ground with a heavy thud in front of them.
Clad in black armor and holding a claymore, a super-tier aura radiated from the black-haired young man. He raised his blue eyes to meet Mo Fan's gaze.
"Damon?!" Mo Fan's eyes bulged in shock. "You're back?"
"Yes… I am back."
***
Author's Note:
Hey guys I am back.
The past two months it were heavy. I tried ending my life.
Depressed. Anxious. Okay I wasn't in right mental state.
The past two months were kind of headache and I also was unable to give the university exam which was why I would be repeating a year in mbbs.
Sigh Idiot I am messing my life aren't i?
Whatever, promised to never do that again and just focus to get myself back on track.
Anyways I am already a newbie author with less than 10 days of writing experience and the break of 2 months so the quality might drop a little but I will finish this story in this month itself.