Advent of the Archmage

The dark sky

There were two figures—one light and one dark—entangling with each other at an unimaginable speed. Their weapons clashed with an impossible frequency. Every time they collided, the air would shake. The air felt like the sea’s surface during a storm.

This violent battle had no sound. Other than the air shaking, there were occasional flashes too.

“Help!” Eliard yelled. He could see more clearly than Dylosen. Link could block Morpheus’ attacks, but the demi-god had the upper hand. Link was dancing at the edge of death right now!

He also knew that the attack hadn’t been aimed at Link. The original target was Dylosen, but Link had changed the direction and blocked Morpheus.

Among the three, only Link who was a master in both magic and martial arts could block Morpheus. If Eliard or Dylosen got close to Morpheus, they would get killed immediately!

Right now, Link was holding Morpheus up. It was the best chance for them to defeat Morpheus—and the only chance!

While yelling, Eliard had already started acting without hesitation.

A dark golden wand appeared in his right hand. It was a Legendary magic tool from the Golden Rune Workshop, called Broken-Winged Angel. He’d designed it himself and had used up all his allotted resources. He’d even used his credit too and had Evelina and Link’s help. Now, this wand wasn’t complete yet, but it was already at Level-12.

Fragments of light lit up at his left hand. Two runestones appeared. One was an Ethereal Crystal while the other was a pure magic stone. Link had made it just for this trip.

“Soul Lasso!” In the blink of an eye, the runestone flashed. A feathery golden beam of light came out and snaked towards Morpheus.

Soul Lasso

Level-14 Soul Spell

Cost: 29000 (Currently in energy storage mode)

Effect: After activation, the mysterious power will wrap around the target’s soul and restrict its movement. The specific symptoms will be that the soul is unable to escape, the target will react slowly, their memory will deteriorate, and they will become dazed.

(Note: It will trap your soul.)

When the Soul Lasso appeared, Morpheus was using all his power to restrict Link. In reality, he wanted to kill Link, but after two seconds, he realized that he actually couldn’t.

He was faster and stronger, but Link’s battle techniques and endurance were better. Link’s sword was more like a dragon. The blocks, stabs, slices, cuts, and sweeps were all the most basic moves and were clear too. But when put together, they formed many incredible sequences.

Some moves dismantled his power, making Morpheus feel that his dagger had stabbed a ball of cotton. Others were used to set things up, making Morpheus feel that he’d entered a jungle of traps. A poisonous viper could strike out at any time. He didn’t dare get distracted.

If Link was his only enemy, he could still survive until ten seconds later when his power recovered even if he couldn’t defeat Link quickly. By then, he could kill Link with brute force.

But he had three enemies!

Golden light suddenly appeared behind Morpheus. Without realizing, it wrapped around him. He felt his mind tremor and then it was as if there was a cotton ball stuffed inside. His movements slowed too. It became harder to block Link’s attacks. Danger rose.

And he was a demi-god. If he was a regular Level-15 Assassin, he would definitely be dead when attacked by Link now.

Damn Magician! He obviously knew what had happened. He wanted to kill the Magician who’d attacked him secretly, but then Link attacked with renewed strength. He couldn’t escape.

But Morpheus had other tricks.

“Mist!” Black light pulsed around him. At the same time, black mist rose up in the air, swirling towards him. They connected and snapped the golden beam around him!

At that moment, alarms raised in Morpheus. Using his rich battle experience, he dodged to the side, head turning. At almost the same time, sharp silver light scraped past his face, bringing with it dark golden blood that shone with a black light. It was Link’s sword!

This move was extremely dangerous. If he was an instant slower, his head would be somewhere else now.

Before this subsided, another wave came.

“Restraint Force Field!” This was Eliard with another Ethereal spell.

“Soul Rend!” This was Dylosen. He used a Soul spell. It was clear now—if they could disturb Morpheus’ mind, Link would be able to kill them. Thus, attacks on the soul were the best thing right now.

The two Legendary spells acted upon Morpheus’ inside and outside together.

He shook violently. His movements slowed again. It was only for around one-tenth of a second, but when faced with Link, it was basically a date with death.

The result was set!

Buzz. A sword buzzed softly. The Ode of a Full Moon lit up with cold light. A shred of “moonlight” circled Morpheus. After that, Link crossed behind Morpheus and then turned around, facing Morpheus’ back.

Morpheus couldn’t move now. Faint silver light snaked around him. From afar, it looked like a crack in a mirror. After two seconds, he slowly turned towards Link and finally spoke. His voice was hoarse and weak.

“When I first laid my eyes on you, I felt danger, but I didn’t think I would die at your hands.”

Clang! Link sheathed the Ode of a Full Moon. That move had cut off all hope for Morpheus to live. He could only speak now because it was just a reflection.

“I only feared your Divine Fragment. I never saw you as an opponent.” Link just saw Morpheus as someone who’d gotten lucky, and this opinion had never changed. Morpheus wasn’t the Divine Fragment’s master—he was the slave!

Morpheus sighed. It sounded like a cry and laugh. “When I received the Shadow Divine Fragment, I thought it was a blessing. After 100 years, I realized it’s a curse. Whoever gets it will live miserably. I didn’t believe it when I first heard that. I thought I would be special and break through destiny’s shackles. Ha. Mortals, I wish you luck.”

With that, a strange smile appeared on his face. The spidery silver cracks on his body expanded. With a boom, the power within him lost control, and he exploded.

Shadow Stalker Morpheus who had terrorized the land for hundreds of years died just like that.

Once his flesh body was destroyed, his territory disappeared too. The omnipresent shadows vanished, and the sun peaked out.

Under the sun, Link, Eliard, and Dylosen hovered in the air. They were all relieved.

That battle had only been around six seconds, but it was possible for them to die at any second. It had been like a danse macabre—a dance of death.

“Is he really dead?” Eliard was in disbelief.

“He should be,” Dylosen confirmed. “The Chaotic Moon says that the target has disappeared.”

“Look, the Divine Fragment should be there.” Link pointed at the end of the valley.

Because of the battle, the fog had scattered. A wall with a castle built into it appeared at the end of the valley. That was Morpheus’ lair: the Shadow Fortress.