Ryan's offensive against the mountain orcs had ceased. Though no official word had been released, anyone paying attention to the war could guess the reason.
That terrifying Silvermoon Knight was dead at last.
Deprived of the empire's mightiest paladin, even the supremely arrogant Ryan had no choice but to halt its invasion. When the orcs learned this, they launched a full-scale counteroffensive. In the end, four of the five cities Ryan had seized were reclaimed by the orcs, leaving only the final bastion, Fang City, firmly held by Ryan's forces.
The orcs mounted several assaults, but after abandoning over a thousand warriors' corpses, they had no choice but to give up for the time being.
Ryan held Fang City, the gateway to the mountains, but they had lost a Silvermoon Knight. It was hard to say whether they had come out ahead or behind on the ledger.
Anbaixiu, however, had certainly profited lately.
After waiting two days by Naomi's side, Naomi finally awoke from the dreamscape.
As her master, Anbaixiu had already sensed the changes within her.
Before, Naomi had merely been an ordinary young druid girl—neither particularly talented nor possessing much skill. Entering a contract with Anbaixiu had forcibly thrust her into the legendary realm, which felt somewhat like pulling up seedlings to help them grow. Though she had slept for just two days, she had in truth spent a vast amount of time inside the dream.
This Nature's Dream could flawlessly simulate everything a druid required. Naomi was diligent enough, and upon waking this time, she had undergone a complete transformation.
"Can you transform into a dragon now?" Anbaixiu asked.
Naomi nodded. "Though I've only tried it in the dream, I'm confident I should be able to do it. Besides, my wound has completely healed."
She pointed at her throat, where a wound once slit from ear to ear had existed in an overlapping state of being and not being. Now it was entirely healed, proving Naomi had assimilated and thoroughly mastered the temporal power lingering in the injury.
The hourglass artifact deserved some credit as well. Anbaixiu could sense nothing from it, and Catherine was the same, wholly unable to use it. But the moment Naomi touched the hourglass, the residual temporal power in her body resonated with it, enabling her to master this extraordinary power much faster.
Catherine said with a hint of excitement, "Shall we give it a try right now?!"
Traveling back in time was a novel experience even for an elven queen.
Anbaixiu hurriedly replied, "If she turns into a time dragon here, she'll blow this castle apart. Besides, this is druid territory. There's no telling what consequences invoking time reversal might bring."
Catherine asked, "So you mean it's time to leave?"
Anbaixiu nodded. It was indeed time to depart. The only real nuisance left was giving an explanation to the Raging Tide Kingdom.
Mengge Grayriver had sworn so many vicious oaths; it was high time he died without leaving a whole corpse behind.
Leaving Catherine's treehouse castle, Anbaixiu returned to that small ravine.
The illusion he had conjured was still dutifully playing its part. Anbaixiu had instructed it to act listless and remain bedridden for extended periods, and of course to refuse all medical treatment.
The illusion performed flawlessly. At the very least, neither Ariel nor the druids had noticed anything amiss, assuming this Child of the Storm simply couldn't stomach the local druid fare. Old Sares had even caught a few fish for him to improve his diet.
The effects of this illusion magic were truly incredible—easily among the most preposterous spells Anbaixiu had ever mastered.
Returning to his room, Anbaixiu cast the illusion once more, transforming into the guise of Mengge Grayriver. This time, he added a little extra flair to the disguise, making his face look sickly and pallid, his ashen skin mapped with dark bluish-black veins. Anyone who laid eyes on him would know something was dreadfully wrong.
As soon as Anbaixiu stepped out the door, he saw Ariel standing guard outside, fiddling with something in her hands that looked like medicinal herbs.
Catching sight of him, Ariel gasped in surprise. "Your face... What on earth happened to you?"
Anbaixiu gave a bitter smile. "Does it look bad? Heh, there aren't any mirrors here, so I can't even see my own face."
No matter how naive Ariel might be, she could tell from his tone that something was off. "What illness did you contract?" she asked anxiously.
Anbaixiu didn't answer the question directly. Instead, he asked, "Your Highness, accompanying me to the Emerald Dream Forest this time, you must have learned quite a bit, haven't you?"
Ariel furrowed her brow, a bad premonition welling up within her. Why did this sound like a dying man's last words?
Seeing her silence, Anbaixiu continued, "Well, I suppose you won't be satisfied unless I tell you the truth. Haven't you felt that I've changed a great deal over the past few days, as if I became an entirely different person?"
Ariel nodded.
"You really did seem like a different person. You were far smarter than before."
Anbaixiu smiled faintly and explained, "A person's intellect is mostly innate. As their experience broadens, it might improve slightly, but natural talent matters most in the end. A man cannot become significantly wiser in a matter of days. Wouldn't you agree?"
Utterly baffled, Ariel pressed, "What are you talking about? Are you saying your newfound wisdom came at a price?"
"Indeed. Your Highness guessed correctly. I traded my own life in exchange for these few days of wisdom. Fortunately, the gods blessed us. Though it was only for a few days, I managed to turn the tide for our kingdom. The Silent Night Pirates are no longer a threat, the Emerald Dream Forest has expressed intent to cooperate, and even the elves exchanged gifts with us. Your Highness, so long as you continue to adhere to these diplomatic policies, the kingdom will be able to turn peril into safety no matter what crisis strikes."
"Wait, what are you saying?! What do you mean by trading your own life?!" Highly agitated, Ariel reached out and grabbed Anbaixiu by the arm.
Her grip made Anbaixiu's bones creak. In the past, such force would have been enough to shatter his transformation effect. But his true illusion was extraordinarily resilient; even if his bones were crushed, no one would notice anything.
Thus, Anbaixiu could pour his heart into the performance.
"Your Highness, I cannot explain in great detail, for the entity I bargained with is an unspeakable existence. All I can tell you is that on the day our ambush against the Silent Night Pirates failed, I had already died at sea. It was a great existence who granted me an opportunity, allowing me to spend my final days serving the kingdom.
"All my life, I enjoyed His Majesty's favor, yet over all these years I achieved nothing of note. Instead, I led the kingdom into defeat time and time again. Only after dying once did I realize my errors. And so I came to my senses—my past methods of governance were wrong, and your ideals, Princess, were right all along."
As he spoke, Anbaixiu broke into a violent coughing fit, spitting a thick spray of blood into his palm.
Ariel stared dumbfounded. Hurriedly supporting him toward a chair, she raised her hand to cast divine magic and heal him. But the moment she lifted her arm, she cursed under her breath.
She was still wearing the vine bracelet; channeling divine magic would only plunge her into a deep slumber.
Ariel was about to call the druids for help, but Anbaixiu grabbed hold of her.
"Your Highness, my time is running out. Listen carefully to what I say next, and remember every single word."
Seeing his grave demeanor, Ariel could only suppress the anxiety churning inside her. "Speak, quickly! Once you're done, I'm taking you back for treatment!"
"Your Highness, my life is coming to an end. But after I vanish, you must not make a scene. Return quietly to the kingdom, hold no one accountable, and do not speak of this to the druids. We worked hard to reach a preliminary agreement on cooperation; we cannot let any mishap jeopardize that. Besides, my life or death has nothing to do with them, so seeking them out is pointless.
"Second, do not investigate the cause of my death. Dying does not mean ceasing to exist entirely. I will find a way to return. But if you investigate the truth behind this, you will anger that great entity, and I will be subjected to endless torment.
"Finally, once you return to the kingdom, keep a close watch on those court wizards—especially that necromancer. Keep your eyes pinned on him."
Ariel listened intently, her expression darkening with every word. She couldn't comprehend what was happening, only that there was nothing she could do.
"Don't give up! The greatness of the Lord of the Storm needs no elaboration. If we pray to him, perhaps..."
Anbaixiu cut her off at once. "No, we cannot involve the gods! This was the price I paid for the Raging Tide Kingdom. If we beseech the gods to intervene, all my prior efforts will come to naught. Your Highness, remember: death is not absolute annihilation. So long as you do as I say, I still have a chance to return. But if you blow this out of proportion, I fear I may never come back."
Ariel ground her teeth, her chest burning with fury, yet she had no target upon which to vent it.
This catastrophe had struck far too abruptly; she had no preparation whatsoever.
Giving her no time to ponder, Anbaixiu grasped both of Ariel's hands and said impassionately, "Your Highness, I deeply regret not understanding your ideals sooner. I regret squandering so much of our kingdom's resources and manpower. But to have changed all of that before drawing my last breath brings me immense satisfaction.
"Fret not. We shall meet again soon. I promise!"
The dark bluish-black veins bulged even more prominently, crawling across Anbaixiu's face like a spider's web.
The moment he finished speaking, his body cracked apart at frightening speed, dissolving before Ariel's eyes into a mound of ash.
Ariel's eyes went wide in shock as she stared in disbelief at the ashes on the ground.
Really dead? Just like that, dead without explanation?
Concealed off to the side, Anbaixiu watched her reaction carefully. The silly girl stood frozen in helpless bewilderment for several minutes before carefully gathering up the ashes from the floor, even scooping up a layer of the dirt beneath to take with her.
Ariel didn't kick up a fuss with the druids. Instead, clutching the ashes with a tense, guarded expression, she led her retinue and departed in haste.
Watching Ariel's retreating figure, Anbaixiu finally let out a sigh of relief.
There were plenty of holes in the act he had just put on, but so long as Ariel didn't realize he was a fake, their own imaginations would patch up whatever didn't add up.
After all, those bone ashes were genuine. No matter what tests they ran, they wouldn't find any flaw.
The only possible wild card was the Lord of the Storm.
Ariel might turn to that deity for aid, but Mengge Grayriver had never been a devout believer; his soul had almost certainly descended straight to Hell. Since his soul wasn't in Talos's divine realm, tracking it down would be no simple feat. Talos wouldn't stoop to negotiating with the archdevils of Hell over a matter so trivial.
With all preparations complete, it was time to leave the Emerald Dream Forest and embark on this journey through time.
Chapter 205