Chapter 452: Chapter 236: Self-defense
Flowing water has no shape, drifting wind cannot be traced; every case hinges on the heart, and the only one who saw through the truth was Mr. Ethan, who appeared as a suspect.
With the fall of the Warlord, the violent energy that tore the heavens and earth came to a halt.
The building was surprisingly quiet, and the subhumans were utterly dumbfounded.
Despite their recent doubts about many of the Warlord’s strategic routes, he was ultimately the nominal supreme commander; once he died, the war would end with alarming speed.
He was stabbed to death by a spear.
The killer who stabbed the Warlord did not leave; he stayed at the spot, attempting to explain the difference between self-defense and intentional murder.
This time Ethan was no longer the great detective; if forced to categorize him, he would be considered a co-conspirator to the murderer.
He was the only one who could see the green-haired maiden, thus he was clearer than anyone present about what had transpired—at the moment his reflexive act raised the spear, the green-haired maiden suddenly stepped forward, elbowed the Warlord’s chest, and a penetrating wound appeared straight through.
Ethan increasingly felt he had underestimated the Wind Elemental Elf.
Though she seemed soft and harmless usually, when it came to fighting, she was fiercer than other elements; previously at Wilson’s manor, the green-haired maiden had lightly slapped Mr. Wilson into a block-like shape.
"Now, where should we go?"
A subhuman voiced his inner confusion.
In truth, they were not interested in Ethan’s self-defense theory; they were trying to analyze the situation before them.
McCarthy Delin suddenly arrived, bringing a shocking message.
This war was meaningless; all death and sacrifice were to please Kaisaros, the Father of War.
Before Ethan could speak, the rumbling sound outside the building replied to their inner question.
Accompanying the collapse of armor, the earth and sky showed several cracks. The subhumans near the windows saw through the other end of the cracks, where an unknown dark substance emerged; this apocalyptic scene once again verified the truth brought by McCarthy Delin.
This world was pieced together by Kaisaros’s power.
"Not good."
After investigation, Kane said, "The collapse started early, perhaps triggered by the Warlord’s death."
This was a courage trial left by Kaisaros; each time the trial was completed, the world experienced a collapse and reformation, and all creatures in the world would perish until after the ’New World’ was reshaped, new creatures who looked the same as them would replace their positions.
The condition for victory was clear.
Take McCarthy Delin’s head and destroy the demon network.
But they hadn’t considered the conditions of failing the trial, not even before this did any candidates trigger the result of a failed trial—after all, no one besides them would stab the Warlord under Kaisaros’s gaze.
His death meant defeat, blowing the horn of "doomsday."
Through the crack, Ethan saw more; the unrecognizable energy was Kaisaros’s true form, he recalled his encounter with Old An and realized their current situation was akin to being inside Old An’s crystal ball.
Now, the process of the cracking allowed them to briefly see the scenery outside the crystal ball.
Before the world within the crystal ball completely collapsed, they had only two choices left.
One option was to find a way to repair the cracks and stabilize the world again.
The other was to escape to areas outside the crystal ball through the cracks, at the cost that once the crystal ball was repaired, the creatures within would revert to their original state.
As Kane was in a daze, the reforged Spear of War was handed to his hand.
The weight in his hand pulled him back to reality; he felt a distinctly different power from the spear, a breeze seemed to swirl at his fingertips; it was some ancient power, not belonging to this world.
"This is..."
"Spear of War +23."
Ethan named the new Spear of War; the craftsman who reforged and strengthened it was the Wind Elemental Elf. She had learned some ancient techniques from old books, and was probably the most knowledgeable Elemental Elf; Ethan found many rare materials from the armory, which Kaisaros had left before falling into "slumber" as materials for reforging the spear.
And now, the adventure story once penned by Him has finally reached its conclusion.
A collapsing world, a reforged Spear of War, and a metamorphosed human "hero."
"Open a door for me."
Kane’s eyes grew firmer, he looked directly at McCarthy Delin and spoke of a place branded in his mind since childhood.
That place was atop the snowy mountains, a place overlooking the world.
The "old butler" said he would return to the throne and reclaim everything that belonged to him.
A pitch-black door opened wide to everyone.
Kane was the first to walk through it.
Ethan supported the "weak" Lindong and followed closely, with a twist of vision, on the other side of the portal, they were greeted by a magnificent castle.
The castle was perched atop the mountains, unaffected by the cracks from the collapse.
Almost at the same time, a resonance occurred in Kane’s heart, guiding him to a certain place in the castle.