Chapter 199: The Book of Challenges (2)

“Mmf... Mmph...!!”

The frail woman struggled desperately under Karyl’s grasp, clutching his hands and gasping for air, her ragged breaths filling the air.

Anyone would have screamed in terror seeing Karyl mercilessly plunge his sword into the woman’s neck. Despite the sheer brutality of the act, Karyl twisted the Freezing Talon deeper into her throat, as though his anger hadn’t yet subsided.

“Ugh... Urk—!”

More blood gushed from her neck; it also bubbled in her mouth with each cough.

“Does a god bleed? I’ve never seen it, so I wouldn’t know. This test shows one’s desires, not what they can achieve.”

“You...” Yula tried to speak, but Karyl pushed the blade even deeper to silence her, not interested in anything she had to say.

“Can one kill a god? I couldn’t before, but now things are different.”

Yula, her face half-mangled, gave him a strange smile.

“Do you... regret your life?”

“That’s complicated,” Karyl replied, withdrawing his sword. His face turned cold as he looked at her. “The trial of the library is known for its complexity.”

The meaning of the test was elusive, its name ambiguous, and whether it symbolized the past, present, or future was unclear. Regardless of that, the test was bound to have a profound impact on the taker, and its meaning, although unclear at first, was significant.

Ultimately, the fact that Yula had appeared before Karyl meant she was inextricably linked to his life.

[The past you and the present you... Are they truly different?]

Yula, what part of my life are you influencing now?

Karyl turned his sword sideways.

“There’s a legend that the Book of Challenges wasn’t created by humans but by the Nephilim, a race of gods. Initially, I thought it was just an embellished story, but...”

He grabbed Yula by the collar, lifting up her mangled, bleeding form.

“Ugh... Agh...”

“Maybe it wasn’t made by humans after all. It gave me the chance to kill you, didn't it?”

Thud!

𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

Slash!

He kicked Yula in the abdomen with all his might, sending her airborne, then swung his Freezing Talon against her neck.

“I should be grateful to the Immortal Council for tainting the Nephilim's work so thoroughly.”

The blade, imbued with the deathly chill of Zarka Hoch’s spirit, released a pure white frost as it made contact with Yula’s neck, severing her head cleanly.

Thump—!

No blood was spilled, as her neck and head instantly froze at the cut.

“I should be thankful for the chance to retake this trial.”

Her head rolled a few times on the ground before coming to a stop.

“...”

With a satisfied look, Karyl stomped on Yula’s frozen head, shattering it like glass, scattering shards everywhere.

At that moment, the darkness that had engulfed his surroundings vanished, and Karyl could feel Nain Darhon’s gaze upon him. As the master of the Grand Library and the orchestrator of the trial, Nain Darhon had likely been observing Karyl during the test.

“You...”

As the owner of the Book of Challenges, Nain Darhon had the privilege of knowing why the challenger had received their specific trial, though only vaguely.

"You’re crazier than you look."

Nain Darhon stared at Karyl with a grim expression.

“You really stomped on a god’s head.”

It seemed Nain Darhon hadn’t realized that Karyl had traveled back in time. Fortunately, Karyl hadn’t given himself away when speaking to Yula, but even so, the long-lived sorcerer seemed to have sensed something from his words.

“Do you have a grudge against the Church?”

“Isn’t it the same with the Immortal Council? The reason the Dawn Council and the Immortal Council clash is because their purposes in magic research differ."

“Huh... So, you want to challenge the realm of the gods?” Nain Darhon asked.

“I’m not interested in creation. That’s for you.”

Karyl lightly swung his Freezing Talon as if to shake blood off even though the blade was clean.

“Summoning corpses and spirits once was enough.”

“Oh, so you

are

interested?” Nain Darhon remarked with a smirk.

Karyl made no reaction. Instead, he glanced at Mikhail and Serica, who were still lying on the ground. He then said, “Now that it’s quiet, we can continue our discussion.”

“Right. I had anticipated that you would be the first to finish the trial.”

“The Dust of the Void... I’ve seen something similar before. At the beginning of time, when the gods created the world and the realms expanded, the current planes were completed.”

Karyl held his Freezing Talon horizontally, then moved it up and down as if stepping through the next phase.

“The human realm, the heavenly realm for the Nephilim, the lowest demonic realm, and the magical realm above it. These four realms were created.”

“...”

“Although elves and dwarves were said to be separated into different dimensions in the Genesis, that’s not a confirmed story.”

“Why tell me this fairy tale? Even the children outside know this,” Nain Darhon retorted with a slight yawn.

Karyl smiled at his reaction and continued, “As those realms expanded, fissures inevitably formed. And the residue accumulated in those fissures became creatures known as Tarak.”

“...”

Nain Darhon’s mocking expression disappeared, now looking at Karyl with a newfound severity.

“The gods tried to annihilate them, but instead of disappearing, the condensed power of the fissures absorbed the element of each realm, gaining immense power.”

“...Great Spirits.”

Karyl nodded, confirming his thoughts.

“That’s why you included spirit power in the mana net you created to catch the Dust of the Void. Because the residue contains the power of the spirits. Right?”

“...”

“But unlike the Great Spirits, the residue known as Tarak inherently possesses a property opposed to the gods. Yula feared that power and sealed it away.”

Karyl nodded again, as if to confirm his understanding.

“The Power of Darkness.”

“How do you know that...?”

Karyl smiled faintly at his question.

“The head of the Assembly of Seven Elders, Allen Javius... The repository of knowledge he left behind is right in here,” Karyl explained as he lightly tapped his temple.

“...?!”

Karyl spoke softly to the astonished Nain Darhon.

“It’s your choice whether to believe me or not, but I’m telling you the truth. The power you thought had vanished, the Power of Darkness, you found in the spirits.”

“What are you talking about...?”

“The spirit realm is almost gone, and the dimensional gates connecting it to the human realm no longer exist. But that doesn’t mean the spirits themselves have disappeared.”

Karyl took another step closer.

“We know the five primary elements: fire, water, wind, lightning, and earth. But there are two Great Spirit Kings born from the very essence of the fissures. Their power is what truly constitutes and constructs this world.”

“...”

“Indeed, their power is similar to that of the gods, marking the point of creation and destruction.”

Another step forward.

“In the end, the fissures are essentially the opposite sides of the gods. Because of this, the world can harbor two coexisting forces.”

Karyl was now close enough to reach out and touch Nain Darhon.

“Light and darkness.”

“I don’t understand what you’re talking about.”

Nain Darhon turned his head, but Karyl continued in a soft murmur.

“Light is destruction, and darkness is creation. The latter is necessary for the creation of fissures. That power belongs only to the gods, but there is one entity besides them that can wield darkness.”

Karyl raised his ice blade and pointed it at Nain Darhon’s neck.

“Duaat of the Darkness.”

“...”

A cold chill flowed between the two.

“Nain Darhon, how is it that you possess the Powers of Light and Darkness, sealed away by the gods?”

Nine Darhon swallowed nervously and replied, “I... need that power too.”

At that, Karyl sheathed his sword.

“The Dust of the Void is an entity born from the fissures, just like the Tarak. The same goes for spirits. Do you want to know why the mana net you created was triggered?”

The corners of Karyl’s mouth slowly curled into a smirk.

“It reacted to my spirit power. You see, I possess the power of the Blazing King.”

Karyl raised his hand, showing the embedded red gem of the Ein Trigger, which gleamed in the hall’s light.

At that moment, Nain Darhon’s expression contorted with shock.

“...!!”

“I will help you with your research. And with my current strength, I can find a way to harness the Power of Darkness. This could lead to the completion of the ultimate necromancy you envision.”

Nain Darhon couldn’t tear his eyes away from the essence of the Blazing King embedded in Karyl’s hand.

“But you can’t do it alone. Instead, that power will crush you and turn Antihum into ruins. You must think the same, considering you can’t even deal with the Dust of the Void roaming around."

Nain Darhon's face remained rigid, and he was unable to respond. Everything Karyl had told him was true.

“...”

The Dust of the Void lurking around Antihum was an incomplete Tarak accidentally created by Nain Darhon. He had failed to find a way to destroy it, leading to the current predicament.

“I will destroy the Dust of the Void for you. It’s not a difficult task for me.”

“Hah...”

Nain Darhon couldn’t help but laugh at Karyl’s casual attitude toward this. Of course, he didn’t know that Karyl had slain countless Tarak already, far more dangerous than the Dust of the Void, and that he would face many more in the future.

The Void Speck was nothing to him.

“What do you think?”

Of course, nothing ever comes for free. Karyl wouldn’t solve Nain Darhon’s biggest problem without a fitting reward.

“When it comes to extracting elemental stones from Mana Mines, there’s this stone called adamantite that’s often discarded. Other mines discard it because they don’t know what it can be used for, but you know the black stone isn’t worthless.”

“No way...”

Reading Nain Darhon’s thoughts, Karyl patted him lightly on the shoulder before leaning in.

“You may have heard of the Kadhium Mana Mine. It’s mine. While it isn’t fully operational yet, it will yield octagonal stones. That means it will also produce octagonal adamantite, which you can use to supplement the Power of Darkness in your research. However...”

Karyl’s voice dropped to a whisper.

“I reckon the Dark Spirit King would be well over your head,” he said with a smile. “If you can’t handle it, just give it to me.”