Chapter 273: Khar’s Offer

Boom!

Jason slammed the man in the black cloak to the ground with tremendous force.

Cracks spread across the ground for nearly two meters, followed by a hole about thirty centimeters deep.

Krak!

The sound of bones breaking rang out, mixed with the man’s groans of pain.

Jason released his grip on the man’s neck and gasped for breath.

He was not in good condition either.

Bruises marked both sides of his face, and his breathing was heavy.

Although the man was inferior in technique and experience, he was still an Eighth Awakening, and his power was immense.

Defeating him had taken a great deal of effort.

“You’ve lost,” Jason panted. “Now tell me… who are you?”

He had no intention of killing the man immediately, burdened by the guilt of murdering a baby in the past.

The man remained silent, continuing to groan in pain.

Jason’s eyes narrowed as his patience wore thin.

“Tell me now, or I’ll kill you!” Jason threatened, gripping the man’s neck and lifting him up.

“Argh!” The man gasped and struggled, but it was useless.

Jason’s grip was like iron claws.

“I… I’ll tell you!”

His voice was extremely weak, as if that single sentence had drained all his strength.

Jason released his grip at once, and the man’s body crashed to the ground.

He breathed rapidly, desperately trying to draw in air.

“Tell me. Now,” Jason ordered coldly.

He didn’t want to get involved in this nonsense anymore. His instincts told him that something bigger was unfolding, and he had to get there as soon as possible.

The man looked at Jason weakly and replied, “I am the older brother of the baby you killed!”

His eyes, hidden behind the mask, burned with hatred and anger.

“You killed my parents and my sister! I will never forgive you, Jason!”

Angered by the accusation, Jason felt no offense at all. He knew… he knew he had gone too far back then.

He had consciously killed an innocent baby. But if he hadn’t done it, a grudge would have formed and never ended.

And his fear had been justified. This man was a member of the family he had wiped out.

His strength was on par with Jason’s, making the situation difficult.

If it weren’t for the mission Linda had given him, he would never have known that such a great threat was hiding in the shadows.

“So that’s how it is. I understand.” Jason nodded slightly. “But before you blame me, do you know what your family did?”

The question startled the man. A flicker of doubt crossed his face, but he quickly hid it and replied, “I don’t know. What did they do?”

Jason stared at him intently before saying, “They were a group of criminals who slaughtered dozens—no, perhaps hundreds—of merchant caravans along the kingdom’s border. They were bandit leaders, looting those they killed and dumping their bodies afterward. The king sent me to wipe them out, but I didn’t do that. Instead, I invited them to negotiate and put an end to their actions. However…”

His face darkened as he continued, “They challenged me and killed even more merchant caravans afterward. Left with no choice, I killed them all, including the bandits who worked with them. As for your sister… I admit to committing that cruel act. But as someone who has seen the world, you should understand the saying, ’pull out the weeds by the roots,’ right?”

Upon hearing this, the man’s face paled.

As the eldest child in his family, he bore the responsibility of providing for them. That was why he did not live at home, instead going to the capital to find work.

It could be said that he only knew of his family’s situation through letters and did not truly know what they were doing.

But one day, news of his family’s death reached him. They had been slaughtered by a man named Jason.

At that moment, he nearly lost his mind. He poured all his savings into uncovering Jason’s identity and tracking him down.

The problem was that Jason was already famous as an expert of the Seventh Awakening, while he himself was just an ordinary person.

Fortunately, he met a mysterious man who helped him rise to become who he is now.

He joined Dark Tunnel to gain greater power. Unexpectedly, Jason appeared in the city of Helvar to eradicate the organization.

Unfortunately, despite reaching a level of power equal to Jason’s, he was still defeated.

The man’s face flushed with rage as he stared at Jason with murderous intent.

“You’re lying! There’s no way my family would do that! It’s impossible!” he screamed with all his strength.

Jason remained unfazed. He crouched down and slapped the man’s face hard.

The mask fell off, revealing a pale yet somewhat handsome young face. However, the murderous intent in his eyes was terrifying.

“I don’t care whether you believe me or not. They were criminals who deserved to die,” he said coldly. “And now, you’re doing the same thing as them—killing innocent people in this city. So don’t expect me to forgive you just like that.”

As he finished speaking, he raised his right hand and punched him in the face.

…

Boom!

Leina obliterated the three men until nothing remained but dust.

She wiped her right palm and smiled faintly.

“What a bunch of fools. Did they really think their abilities could rival mine?”

She was a Second Spirit Core mage, and being born into a royal family made her far stronger than others at her level.

Because of that, she saw the two men’s actions as nothing more than futile desperation.

“Alright. Now let’s find Merlin first. I have a bad feeling about him,” she whispered.

Something deep inside her warned her that Merlin was in danger, and she needed to reach him immediately.

Using the communication bracelet on her wrist, she tracked Merlin’s location.

Once she found him, she snapped her fingers and vanished from view.

Meanwhile, the battle between Merlin and the dragon continued.

Unlike before, the dragon was now several times stronger, forcing Merlin to use all his strength.

Boom!

The pillars of the hall shattered, debris scattering in all directions.

Merlin spun around, planted his feet, and then leaped high into the air.

Spinning the magic staff in his hand, he shouted, “Advanced Magic: Windstorm!”

Whoosh!

A massive storm erupted, dust swirling violently in every direction.

The dragon, which had been about to attack Merlin, was instantly disrupted. It tried to destroy the storm but failed.

Seizing the opportunity, Merlin pointed his staff and shouted, “Advanced Magic: Divine Judgment!”

Buzz!

Four magic circles appeared on both his right and left sides. Each was enormous—two to four meters wide.

From the four circles, giant swords emerged and shot straight toward the dragon.

Screak!

The dragon’s body was torn apart by the attack. But it didn’t end there. The four swords released an intensely bright white light.

Roar!

The dragon felt its body being ripped apart from the inside. It struggled to shake off the swords, but it was useless.

In the end, under Merlin’s cold gaze, the light intensified and exploded, tearing the dragon’s body into pieces.

Merlin let out a breath and slowly descended. Exhaustion washed over him at once, but he quickly drank an exhaustion-relieving potion.

“Amazing! Truly amazing! Kid, you exceeded my expectations.”

Khar’s astonished voice came from above as he lowered himself to five meters above Merlin.

“Did you know that dragon possessed the power of a Fourth Spirit Core? Yet you defeated it with power one level lower. Your talent… is incredible,” he praised sincerely.

Merlin showed no sign of joy. In truth, killing the dragon hadn’t been difficult.

What worried him was the possibility that Khar might suddenly attack him after he had exhausted most of his strength.

“Enough with the pleasantries,” Merlin said coldly. He raised his magic staff and hurled a three-meter-wide fireball at him.

Whoosh!

Before it could reach Khar, the fireball vanished into nothingness.

“Oops! Don’t be so hasty,” Khar said with a small chuckle. “You are indeed strong, and I admit it. How about this—become my disciple. I will give you wealth, power, and strength. In this world, you’ll stand at the very top, and no one will dare touch you—not even the top dogs. How about it? Are you interested?”

A faint smile appeared on his pale face. During the fight, he had noticed something in Merlin.

He didn’t know what it was, but his intuition told him it would be extremely useful and beneficial to him in the future.

It was even possible that the success of his future plans was tied to the child standing before him.

Faced with the offer, Merlin remained completely unmoved. Khar was indeed strong, but that was all.

Compared to Linda, he was nothing. Moreover, Merlin realized that the offer was nothing more than a trap.

It was impossible for him to accept Khar as his master with his “-70” affection points.

With a mocking smile, Merlin raised his middle finger and said casually, “You want to make me your disciple? You’re overestimating yourself. An Eight-Star Mage is nothing but dust on this continent. If you want me as your disciple, become a Nine-Star Mage first!”

Khar’s eyes widened at those words. His smile vanished, replaced by anger and gloom.

“You’ve crossed the line,” he whispered coldly. “Since you refuse, then you don’t need to live anymore.”

Just as he was about to raise his right hand, a beam of light suddenly descended from the sky, landing right in front of Merlin.

Boom!

“Only a weak eight-star mage would dare act so arrogantly in front of my student? Your opponent is me!”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep