Chapter 271: The Leader of the Dark Tunnel, Khar

“Fog? Is that… an illusion?”

Leina narrowed her eyes warily. The fog around her grew thicker, blinding her vision. She couldn’t even see a meter ahead.

As she searched for a way to dispel the fog, a threat came from her right.

She reacted instantly, leaping three meters into the air. However, another threat appeared above her.

Startled, she twisted her body and barely dodged it.

The moment her feet touched the ground, she retreated twenty steps and brought her palms together.

Boom!

The explosion tore through the fog, scattering it in all directions before it finally vanished.

Leina looked up and saw three figures floating in the sky.

They wore black cloaks and eerie animal-shaped masks.

“Leina Solayne, I didn’t expect you to be my opponent. Looks like this is going to be a fun fight,” the man in the middle said with a slight smile.

Leina remained calm, completely unfazed. She straightened her posture and replied, “So you’re from the Dark Tunnel, huh? I see. What’s your status in the organization? Is it high?”

Her words sounded like a taunt to the man and his two companions.

“How arrogant!” he snarled. “Even if my status isn’t high, I’m still an influential figure! Everyone, surround her and finish this quickly!”

The other two nodded without hesitation. The three of them charged straight toward Leina.

Facing their assault, Leina showed no fear. She bent her knees and launched herself upward.

Boom!

Just like that, a devastating battle began.

…

“Hey, I’m really lost. Where’s the way back?”

Victor scratched the back of his head in confusion. All he could see was complete darkness.

Since he wasn’t a mage, he couldn’t use fireballs to light his surroundings.

He took out the insects he had been keeping and scattered them around.

Closing his eyes, Victor tried to communicate with them.

After a moment, he understood the structure of the area.

“A forty-meter-long passage, huh? There’s a path on the left, while the right side… a dead end? No, there is a path, but it’s very narrow. I can only enter if I duck.”

With that conclusion, he moved deeper into the dark passage.

Guided by his insects, he passed through without trouble. However, when he reached the end, he chose not the left path but the right one, where a narrow passageway awaited.

Lowering his head, he stepped inside carefully. An unpleasant stench immediately filled his nose, followed by disgusting insects like cockroaches and centipedes.

Fortunately, Victor could tolerate it. If anyone else were in his place, they would probably have screamed in terror.

“There’s light ahead,” Victor whispered, excitement creeping into his voice.

He quickened his pace and finally reached the exit.

When he straightened up and looked around, his eyes widened in shock.

’What is this hall? Could it be a place of worship?’ he muttered in wonder.

The hall was not bright, only dim.

Two lamps and a few torches provided the only light. At each of the four corners stood golden demon statues.

They all shared the same appearance—two horns pointing upward and terrifying faces.

Nevertheless, what drew the most attention was not that, but the giant statue standing at the center.

The statue was black, with sharp fangs protruding from its jaws.

A huge eye sat on its forehead, making anyone who looked at it shudder.

As Victor analyzed his surroundings, an excruciating pain struck the back of his head.

He wanted to scream, but his voice caught in his throat. In the end, he collapsed and lost consciousness.

“Hehehe… The leader was right—one of them would come here. Luckily, I was on guard, so I managed to capture him.”

A short old man with a wrinkled face grinned widely.

He grabbed Victor by the leg and dragged him away from the spot.

…

Merlin walked carefully along the path ahead. He felt that he was close to meeting the bigwigs behind the Dark Tunnel Organization.

Suddenly, a faint light appeared ahead. Merlin quickened his pace, and soon a horrific sight unfolded before him.

It was a huge hall—far larger than anything he had seen before.

Decorating the hall were human corpses. Dozens—no, maybe… hundreds.

They were all citizens of the city of Helvar.

Merlin covered his mouth as an overwhelming wave of nausea churned in his stomach.

“This… is truly brutal!”

The cruelty was unbearable. The corpses were impaled on iron rods that pierced them from top to bottom, while the women lay stripped and humiliated in a pitiful state.

“Huwekk!”

Unable to endure it any longer, Merlin finally vomited everything in his stomach. Tears welled in his eyes, and his stomach burned as if on fire.

“Hahaha! Are you surprised by my masterpiece?”

The voice came from above.

Merlin forced his heavy head to lift.

A handsome man in a black robe hovered there. His pale skin and gentle smile made him look almost friendly.

But to Merlin, that smile belonged to a devil wearing human skin.

“Who… are you?” Merlin asked weakly, wiping the corner of his mouth.

The man slowly descended and stopped two meters above the ground.

“Me?” He chuckled softly. “I didn’t want to tell you at first. But never mind. You managed to get here, so it would be a shame if you didn’t know the one who will kill you later.”

He spread his arms wide and introduced himself proudly. “My name is Khar, and I am known as the representative of the Demons in this world!”

As he spoke, a violent gust of wind erupted in all directions. Even Merlin nearly lost his footing.

If he hadn’t quickly cast an earth spell to bind himself to the ground, he would have been blown away on the spot.

’This guy… is really strong!’ Merlin muttered grimly. ’System, open his status panel.’

[Status]

Name: Khar Maledict

Age: 35

Identity: Leader of the Dark Tunnel Organization, Demon Descendant

Talent: S

Rank: Eight-Star Mage

Bloodline: Arch-Demon (Blue)

Favorability: -80

When Merlin saw it, his eyes widened in disbelief.

“An Eight Star Mage…?!” He swallowed hard.

Eight Star was equivalent to a Second Core Spirit, which meant this man was as strong as Leina.

He hadn’t expected him to be so powerful. What’s more, he possessed the bloodline of the Great Demon, even if it was only at the blue level.

The man looked deeply satisfied when he saw the fear on Merlin’s face. Grinning, he declared, “Well then, let the show begin. Boy, become an offering to the demon!”

He brought his palms together. The surrounding corpses trembled, then fused into a giant dragon nearly four meters tall.

It opened its massive jaws and unleashed a thunderous roar.

Roar!

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