Proofreader & Editor: Lotas
The Black Skull Archipelago.
Unlike its usual bustle, a bloody purge was unfolding here. The malevolent knights, followers of the Skull Lord, along with their villainous cohorts, were cleansing the pirates who refused to bow to this deity.
Blood stained the ground of Black Skull Island red.
In the gathering place of the pirates, at the center of the clearing, skulls stripped of flesh were piled up, forming a small mountainous outline.
The malevolent knight, Balbert, stood before the mound of skulls, gazing upward.
He was still clad in his silver-white knight's armor, now speckled with bloodstains not yet cleaned, like sinister blossoms splattered across the armor.
Beneath the night sky, the cold moonlight shone down.
The malevolent knight closed his eyes slightly, arms spread as if embracing the world. The runes of tyranny on the back of his hands emerged almost tangibly, a steady stream of power flowing into his body, elevating his biological level to sixteen.
Originally a high-ranking seventh-tier knight at his peak.
After a massive blood and skull sacrifice, he broke through to the high eighth-tier, as if the bottleneck that had trapped him for over two years never existed.
His inner desire to kill grew stronger.
But the power he gained was undeniably real.
The malevolent knight rejoiced in his decision to follow tyranny, to serve the Skull Lord. Initially hesitant and doubtful when he first chose to serve this otherworldly evil deity, he now believed he had made the right choice, having broken through to the high eighth-tier merely through slaughter.
"With the Blood God's protection, stepping into the realm of legend is but a matter of time," thought the malevolent knight.
Meanwhile.
He shifted his gaze and drew a white communication crystal from his waist.
"Balbert, the target is an adult dragon! At Moon…"
The voice cut off abruptly.
The malevolent knight was taken aback, then his stern, cold face darkened.
"Moon… Moon Gorge, Moon Bay. Where have you found it, Antonina?"
A bad premonition arose in the malevolent knight's heart.
He made a snap decision to lead the pirates, now followers of tyranny, to set sail from the island. But before he could call his subordinates, his expression changed suddenly, and he knelt on one knee, bowing his head in deference.
The surrounding pirates also knelt down.
For all the skulls atop Skull Mountain had transformed, their eye sockets glowing, lips moving, spewing roars and screams intelligible only to the followers of tyranny.
The Skull Lord had delivered an oracle.
The malevolent knight and the other followers bowed their heads in silence, listening to the decree of their deity.
Moments later, Skull Mountain returned to calm.
The malevolent knight lifted his head, stood up, his expression conflicted as if struggling.
The pirates around him also rose silently, their eyes blood-red, veined with blood, gradually filling with a terrifying, predatory light. Black Skull Island was enveloped in a dreadful silence.
The malevolent knight took a deep breath, his expression fluctuating.
Just now, the Skull Lord's oracle was simple and brutal—seal off Black Skull Island, for He would initiate a trial to select a powerful warrior of tyranny from all the pirates.
Using the skulls of all pirates except himself to build a mountain, the victor of this trial would be granted great power and reborn anew.
"Great Blood God, great Skull Lord, I do not question Your command."
"But I have other matters at hand,"
The malevolent knight caressed the runes of tyranny on his hand, whispering inwardly.
But the response was an angry roar, like a booming bell that caused the knight's head to ache as if gnawed by a beast. Clearly, the Skull Lord cared little for his so-called other matters.
On one hand, a lover whose fate was unknown, a dragon that had stolen treasures.
On the other, the irrefutable decree of the Skull Lord.
The malevolent knight found himself in a dilemma, hesitating.
A sixth-tier pirate assassin with blood-red eyes stealthily approached from behind the knight, emerging from his shadow, a shadow dagger poisoned and enchanted with various buffs aimed at the knight's lower back.
However, a hand clad in silver-white gauntlet deflected the strike, gripping the assassin's wrist firmly.
With a twist and pull, the assassin's arm, just one step away from the higher tiers, was broken.
The malevolent knight turned, delivering a simple yet fierce kick that sent the assassin flying like a cannonball, his chest severely caved in, blood foaming from his mouth. But as soon as he hit the ground, he roared, a bloody aura bursting forth, and his body unnaturally twisted, sharp bone spurs growing from his joints, his severe injuries seemingly inconsequential.
Looking around.
In the deep night, a multitude of pirates were already engaged in battle.
As they fought, a blood-colored aura spread, infusing every pirate's body, making them fearless, bloodthirsty, and violent, mutating them into non-human forms with greatly enhanced attributes.
"Win the trial, be reborn anew!"
"Or, as a worthless loser, become a stepping stone for others."
It was as if whispers were echoing in his ear.
The malevolent knight's gaze flickered, then his fluctuating expression settled, he took a deep breath, his eyes turning blood-red, his wavering demeanor now resolute.
Treasure?
Lover?
These were all useless.
Slaughter, battle, endless carnage, constantly engaging in war, preparing for the next, indifferent to the tolling of the death knell, indifferent to whose blood was spilled, fighting purely for the sake of battle, for the sake of killing!
—These were what he needed.
Unable to resist the temptation of an evil god, the malevolent knight, who had received many benefits from the Skull Lord, now inevitably sank deeper into the doctrines of tyranny.
And this was one of the prices of serving tyranny.
Buzz!
Drawing the knight's greatsword from his back, the malevolent knight became a merciless meat grinder, a bloodthirsty beast, unleashing a bloody slaughter on Black Skull Island, beginning a gruesome carnage.
This trial was prepared by the Skull Lord for him.
To create a stronger, more easily dominated warrior of tyranny, and then forcefully claim the 'champion' He favored.
The opponent was backed by the powerful Dragon God of this multiverse, and this powerful evil deity from another galaxy did not wish to confront a mighty deity head-on, nor did he possess the capability.
Saga's prayers might not catch the Dragon God's attention, as countless creatures pray to deities every moment, and while the gods can hear them, most are disregarded.
However, the Skull Lord, still gathering strength, was unwilling to gamble.
The malevolent knight was unaware that the Skull Lord's trial for him was actually for another creature He favored.
He was immersed in this bloody trial of slaughter, unable to extricate himself, and growing stronger in a battle that nurtured him like raising a gu.
***
Moon Bay, First Quarter Island.
The battlefield had now been cleared, the corpses of pirates and their deceased kin collected and placed in the same location to form a burial ground. In the necromantic energy-rich burial ground, the Necromancer set up a skull transformation array. With time, without the need for additional magic power, the buried corpses all had the chance to rise again, to live anew as undead, loyal to Saga.
The massive Tremorboar skeleton was also moved to the burial ground.
Similarly, in a place rich with necromantic energy, this behemoth could 'come to life' more quickly, and the energy would nourish its bones, making it stronger when it transformed into an undead skeleton.
"Speak, where do you come from, how did you come into contact with the evil god that granted you power?"
Atop Gemstone Peak, Saga held the magic-sealed shaper mage with one hand and inquired.
The adult Topaz Dragon was opposite, also watching the powerless shaper mage.
Caught between an adult dragon and a mysterious Outsider dragon, feeling the air stirred by their breaths, the shaper mage's face turned pale.
"They are all Gemstone Dragons, they shouldn't be too brutal. If I cooperate, there might be a chance to live," the shaper mage thought to himself.
Then he slowly recounted the information he knew.
After listening to the shaper mage, Saga and the adult Topaz Dragon exchanged glances, gradually understanding.
"Clearly, the leader of the Black Skull pirates has recently taken to worshipping an evil god, then spreading the faith among the pirates."
"Blood sacrifices to the Blood God, skulls offered to the Skull Throne, fighting for the sake of battle—this evil god gives me an uneasy feeling, not one that's unrecorded in the Dragon Legacy," murmured the Topaz Dragon.
Across from him, Saga nodded, saying gravely, "Perhaps it's a new visage created by a powerful evil god from the legacy, it wouldn't be the first time this has happened."
Based on his understanding and knowledge of the multiverse, Saga made this deduction.
The Topaz Dragon nodded slightly, adding, "Indeed, that's possible."
After a pause, its gaze deep, it said, "These pirates didn't believe in the evil god earlier or later, but just recently. This is too coincidental. Their leader is a pirate general, certainly not a foolish character. Even if he wanted to worship and follow an evil god, it wouldn't happen so suddenly."
Saga's eyes narrowed slightly, reminding:
"Don't forget the impact of the Eternal and Time Dragon's appearance, how far-reaching it was."
"The pirates' belief in the evil god coincides with the appearance of the Eternal and Time Dragon. It's very likely that, realizing how powerful deities can be, they made a decision to follow an evil god to gain strength."
The Topaz Dragon agreed with Saga's idea, nodding.
"If so, similar events will likely occur frequently in the future."
"Deities, divine authority, may rise again in our prime material world, whether they are good or evil gods. It's just uncertain what kind of turmoil will arise when divine authority rises and clashes with the many empires' royal authority."