Chapter 181: Hostage

Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation

“Julia, you and Sunier should go back. The rest of us can take care of them,” Gibran said in a light voice, his eyes staring straight in front. Manteco was less than one kilometer away at this point, and they needed to respond appropriately. However, neither Julia nor Sunier appeared to be fit for battle, especially not Julia; she had an unmistakable look of rage and shame on her face, which Manteco would notice the instant he arrived.

Julia kept quiet, neither agreeing or disagreeing. Sunier slowly caught her hand. “Let’s go find Raphael. He must have something up his sleeve!”

Julia wasn’t content simply leaving like this, nor was she happy about leaving her sister’s safety in someone else’s hands, but what Sunier said had convinced her. In the past few days, the mysterious and powerful Eight Gates Heaven Lock Matrix had left a profound impression on her. As one of the eight guts, she knew some secrets about the matrix, and the more she knew, the more powerful Han Jin appeared in her eyes. How powerful did a man have to be to arrange such a nature-defying magic matrix?!

Julia had seen the power of magic matrices before, but those were all “dead”, yet this one seemed to have a life of its own! Besides, the magus Yalina would often talk about Han Jin and the magic matrix, which provided them with extreme conveniences, in a respected and confused manner. Yalina was the one with the most knowledge in this matter, and if even she was confused, or in awe, what other proof of the matrix’s power would one need?

Julia nodded and followed Sunier to the top of the hill. Gibran sighed in relief. If Julia had insisted on staying, he wouldn’t have been able to force Julia to leave. The situation would have become even more dire when Manteco noticed her abnormal behavior.

Gibran looked at Cain. “Cain, go find Hayden and Charles.”

Hayden and Charles were both warriors of the Red Vanguards. For unknown reasons, maybe because his gut told him not to, Han Jin hadn’t let them become stars. Even though they could move freely within the Eight Gates Heaven Lock Matrix, they didn’t know the secret behind it. Neither Gibran nor Cain told them about it; one, because they didn’t want to alert Han Jin and cause unnecessary trouble, and two, because their rash friends would do something stupid.

Truth be told, Gibran and Cain had the same feelings as Yalina and Julia. The more secrets they learned about the Eight Gates Heaven Lock Matrix, and the more they moved around in it, the more they respected Han Jin, even though they weren’t aware of the fact that Han Jin could eliminate them at any time the moment they had become guts!

“What do we need them for? They can’t help us, right?” Cain clearly hesitated.

“I just want the whole process to appear more natural,” Gibran slowly said. “And go tell Julia not show her face under any circumstances before Manteco reveals that he has Edwina. After that… she can do whatever she wants – I won’t stop her.”

“Understood.” Cain nodded, then walked toward the camp.

“And now it’s our turn.” Gibran sighed.

Manteco stood atop the Abyssal Ghost Snake’s back, glancing at his surroundings while whispering to Eva. He had a faint feeling of being watched by countless pairs of eyes, but that was normal; on the contrary, it would be odd if no one had spotted them at this point.

The enormous body of the Abyssal Ghost Snake abruptly halted, and it roared in a booming voice. Its savage eyes sized up the man who stood in front of him from above, while the perfectly round, blood red third eye slowly opened on its forehead.

“Gibran, is that you?” Manteco said in his lazy voice.

“What? Do you not recognize me?” In comparison, Gibran’s reaction was indifferent.

“Haha, I only know the Gibran who likes to hide in the shadows. This Gibran who blatantly stands in my way, however… truly feels like a stranger.” Manteco smiled. “You have something to say?”

“There’s no need for this nonsense between us!” Gibran said. “It seems you still haven’t given up, Manteco?

As if it sensed Gibran’s rudeness, the Abyssal Ghost Snake let out a loud roar. However, Gibran stood there imposingly as if he had nothing to fear. It was true that the Abyssal Ghost Snake’s Cursed Eyes of Demon-God were fearsome, but that depended on the person. If it was a seventh or eighth-grade professional, the curse was almost guaranteed to hit, but for a tenth or top-grade professional, the curse would become extremely easy to miss. If it were someone as powerful as Yalina, they wouldn’t have to worry about the curse at all, unless they had exhausted their magic powers or mental strength. The only reason she had felt nervous during the last attack was because she had been worried about her friends.

“Calm, my friend.” Manteco smiled, and the Abyssal Ghost Snake obediently stopped its roar. Manteco paused for a moment before continuing, “Let’s put aside those things for now Gibran. I have only one question, and I hope you can give me a clear answer.”

“Ask if you want to,” Gibran said in a cold voice. “Whether you get an answer or not depends on my mood.”

“What do you hope to get from helping them? Do you want all three dragon crystals for yourself, or…” Manteco’s pupils suddenly dilated, and he sighed. “It seems I don’t need an answer from you anymore.”

Yalina, Cain, Hayden, and Charles all appeared in front of him. The final target appeared together with members of the Red Vanguards. The situation was clear at this point.

“Manteco, go back with your men. We can pretend nothing ever happened and still be friends.” Gibran basically repeated what had been said to him back then. Clearly, he appeared less confident, since Edwina was being held hostage, and added, “If you insist on making a mistake, then don’t blame us for being rude.”

“You have defeated many mercenaries in the past few days and have proved your strength. I am quite surprised, but it isn’t nearly enough reason for me to cower back.” Manteco smiled scornfully. “And last question, do you truly not want the three dragon crystals?”

“Some things are far more important than dragon crystals,” Gibran answered coldly.

“Like what? Friendship?” Manteco laughed loudly. “Well then, Master Gibran, here is a test for your friendship!”

Before he had even finished laughing, Manteco bent down and grabbed someone’s hair, then pulled the person up. A triumphant note appeared in his voice. “Allow me to grandly introduce this beautiful elf, tenth-grade ranger, Lady Edwina of the Red Vanguards! Wow… why are your eyes so wide?”

Gibran, Cain, and Yalina all put on an astonished expression, and so did Hayden and Charles. The more reckless Hayden even charged forward.

Gibran raised his arm and stopped Hayden, then said, word by word, “Manteco, you dare touch a member of the Red Vanguards?!”

“Touch?” Manteco narrowed his eyes as if he were trying to understand the meaning of the word. He then twisted Edwina’s hand and touched her face. “I touched her again. What can you do?”

“You fucker…” Hayden cussed loudly.

“Shut up!” Gibran shouted, took a deep breath, and then stared coldly at Manteco.

“Not happy?” Manteco scratched his head, then acted as if he finally understood something. He pressed down on Edwina, grabbed her back armor, humped her butt twice with his crotch, then asked with a snicker, “Is this the ‘touching’ you meant?”

The Abyss’ mercenaries laughed maniacally. This affront to their dignity instantly enraged Hayden. With an angry roar, he raised his sword and charged out with a furious roar. At that moment however, a raspy scream suddenly echoed through the forest, “MANTECO, I’M GOING TO KILL YOU!!”

Julia charged out of the forest like a mad tiger. When she saw her sister being humiliated like that, she forgot everything Han Jin had told her and even her profession. She charged at Manteco as if it was the last thing she wanted to do with her life. Even though Sunier held her from behind, the shorter Julia had still somehow managed to run forward with Sunier still holding her.

“CAN WE ALL FUCKING CALM DOWN!” Gibran roared in rage, which finally made the Red Vanguards pause. Immediately after, a light breeze blew past them and mysteriously cleared their mind.

“Manteco, what do you want?” Gibran said in a shaking voice. The shake in his voice was not because he was afraid, but rather, because he was furious.

“Let me be clear.” Manteco loosened his grip. At this point, he was quite happy; everything was proceeding as he had expected. “Last time, Lady Julia here killed many of my men, so I feel like I have plenty of reason to do whatever I want to Lady Edwina here! But… I also understand Edwina is the basis of our negotiation. The better condition she is in, the more chips I have in this bargain. Rest easy. Up until now, I haven’t harmed her at all. And Gibran, you understand what I mean by ‘up until now’, right?”

“Tell us what you want!”

“It doesn’t matter what I want. The key is what you want. Gibran, here is a test for you.” Manteco snickered. “It’s easy. Go kill that woman and give me her wand. Only then, will I return a perfectly safe Edwina to you.”

Gibran’s face sunk, and he kept his mouth shut. Hayden and Charles, on the other hand, looked as if they were considering it.

Manteco kept quiet too as he looked at Gibran.

Threatening the Red Vanguards with Edwina would have been a great plan, and Manteco would have gotten a satisfactory result, if only it had happened twenty days ago. In the heart of Gibran and his companions, there was nothing more important than Edwina’s safety; even Julia was trapped in a dilemma. If Gibran could promise not to hurt Sunier, she probably would have surrendered. Unfortunately, the circumstances had changed; the charm Han Jin had injected into them, and the feelings they had in the matrix, had left a deep impression on them. Just like how they couldn’t ignore Edwina, they could not possibly think to attack Han Jin.

“My patience is limited,” Manteco said flatly. Compared to the others, he noticed that Hayden and Charles were tempted, and decided to encourage them a little.

“Hayden! What are you doing?” Gibran said coldly.

Hayden suddenly froze. “Capitain, are we really going to let them have Edwina?”

“And you would do anything for Edwina? What if he tells you to kill me next?”

“He… he won’t.”

“He won’t? You think Manteco is an honorable person??”

“Ah… speaking of honor, I don’t think I was particularly known for that.” Manteco smiled. “But what other choice do you have?”

Gibran fell silent, the only thing he could do.

Manteco glanced at each one of them with interest. Under his predictions, the ruthless Gibran had at least a fifty percent chance of surrender. The current stalemate was expected, hence why he had a secondary plan in motion. Edwina was not only the chip in this bargain, but also a bait for the slaughter to start!

Several hundred mercenaries had already formed a big circle, surrounding all of Gibran’s men. His most trusted confidants were prepared too; the magicians had retreated into the distance, the thieves were invisible, the archers had gathered and raised their longbows, and the warriors had quietly formed a hexagon to the right of the Abyssal Ghost Snake, prepared to trap anyone who decided to attack.

Eva had stood the entire time with a faint smile, but she held a magic scroll behind her back. According to Manteco’s plan, the moment the battle started, she would strike first to attract the attention of the enemy magus, while the archers and thieves were responsible for assassinating Cain and Julia. Manteco, in the meanwhile, would bait their enemy with an opportunity, allowing Gibran, Hayden, and Charles to approach. He would then personally ambush the three of them with the warriors. Not everyone had to succeed, but as long as they eliminated at least two people, they would be in the absolute advantage!

“I’m getting tired…” Manteco yawned. “Have you decided yet?”

Gibran kept calm, but Hayden was truly getting anxious and constantly gave Charles looks.

“Gibran, to be honest, my children have always wanted to have a taste of the elves. And if you refuse to cooperate, don’t blame me for what happens next.” Manteco smiled sinisterly. “Do you understand? My children, do it one by one. We wouldn’t want our beautiful elf lady to die now!” As he finished, he grabbed Edwina’s hair and threw her down.

Since Gibran had kept his calm to wait for an opportunity, he would give him one right now!

Edwin’s body flew in an arc and accurately landed in the hectagon of warriors.

The mercenaries all cheered as if they actually thought their wishes were being granted. The Abyss Mercenary Team was a weird hodgepodge of mercenaries. They had only a few dozen true elites, but still had a surprising amount of mercenaries under them. At its peak, they had over 500 members, far exceeding what a mercenary ‘team’ should have. But after a while, their numbers would drastically decrease to fewer than a hundred. This was why Manteco didn’t care about the ordinary mercenaries and accepted anyone who wanted to join. He just wanted to choose the few of them that had potential; as for the rest, they were mere cannon fodder.

Gibran’s eyes twitched. He could see the malice in Manteco’s eyes, but he didn’t have a choice. Edwina had left Manteco’s control; this was their only chance!

Gibran’s body suddenly shot forward, and he force-activated his invisibility. Hayden and Charles stopped thinking about Yalina as well, and shot forward beside him.

At this moment, Han Jin opened his eyes at the top of the mountain. He clenched his left hand, then forcefully opened it, while his right hand quickly formed a series of signs. “Dharma outside of the body, light separate from the shadow… go!”

A light that came out of nowhere hit Edwina, and with a wave of thunderous crackling sounds, countless specks of light splashed everywhere. Every single speck turned into an Edwina, every one of them real, and fell on the mercenaries below like rain.

In an instant, the ground, within several hundred meters, was covered by Edwinas. They landed in different positions, some face down, some curled, some on their sides, but they all had the same hair, cloth, and even the same rope on their bodies.

There were twenty or so Edwinas just within the hectagon of warriors. This absurd scene stunned all the mercenaries present. Manteco had told them to go one by one, but now there was enough for everyone to have ten!

A gale swept past, and the first one to be undressed wasn’t any of the Edwinas, but the leaves of the endless forest. Flying branches and barks covered the sky, and the few invisible thieves who had tried to approach Cain, screamed as they were exposed. Leaves, an object so thin and so light, were somehow managing to cut into them like a fist, and causing extreme pain! The mess of broken branches were even sharper than daggers, and easily penetrated their armor and buried themselves inside their bodies.

Immediately after, the Abyssal Ghost Snake let out a thunderous roar. Its body had suddenly became even more bloated as countless leaves stuck to it. Its neck, which was usually as wide as a bucket, had bloated several times its size. It couldn’t even see anything, let alone cast the curse. All it could do was desperately shake its neck, trying to get rid of the leaves.

Though Eight Gates Heaven Locks wasn’t a lethal matrix, it still had its own ways of offense and defense. Usually, Yalina and the rest were enough, and Han Jin didn’t have any need to use the matrix’s offense and defense systems, but now, the true power of the Eight Gates Heaven Lock Matrix was being perfectly showcased!

The wind blew harder and harder. The layers of dancing leaves and broken branches blocked everyone’s vision, as well as the light from the sky, making it seem as though night had fallen. They could only see, at most, a meter in front of them, and everything further away became a blur.

One after another, mercenary after mercenary was wrapped in leaves, then turned into a rolling green ball as it was blown into the sky. After flying upward several dozen meters, they would be slammed back into the ground. The dense layer of leaves and branches would dissipate the moment before the impact, and the person within the green ball would land with a bloody head, and some even dying on the spot. Some with strong bodies survived with only wounds, but before they could react, countless leaves would blow up again, wrap them around, and lift them high up into the air, repeating the process.

Gibran didn’t know the matrix could do something this astonishing, and unconsciously stopped his advance. By the time he noticed the gale and the flying branches, it didn’t affect him at all, and he was about to join in on the battle when he heard a muffled scream from behind him. “Captain, help…”

Hayden and Charles had both been attacked as well. At the start, they didn’t care and shook of the leaves off by releasing their fighting strengths. However, as if they were attracted by an unknown force, the leaves would always fly straight back, no matter how far they had been shaken away, or even if they had been ripped apart. On top of that, as time passed, more and more leaves and branches gathered, taking over the entire space.

With Hayden and Charles’s power, the couldn’t physically manifest their fighting strength yet. Since they couldn’t form a physical barrier, they couldn’t block the leaves which latched onto them like leeches, and were ultimately wrapped tightly.

Gibran smiled wearily. He knew this was Han Jin’s punishment for even considering harming Yalina, and that they weren’t in any real danger.

The gale roared across without any signs of stopping, and a dozen green turtle shells appeared on the battlefield. They were the few magicians who had attempted to block the torrent of leaves with their magic barriers. Due to the nature of magic barriers, they were the ones who had lasted until the end, but still, they could only ‘last’. As more and more leaves fell on their barriers, some layering up seven or eight meters thick, the pressure would eventually shatter their barriers!

Yalina raised her wand, and a ball of lightning shot straight forward, landing accurately on one of the biggest green balls. The painful howl of the Abyssal Ghost Snake came from within. The Abyssal Ghost Snake’s body was enormous, and had the most leaves latching onto it. At this point, it had become a small hill about twenty meters tall, one which constantly writhed around.

Yalina’s spell seemed to have woken everyone else. They stopped admiring the grand scene and started attacking. Julia drew her longbow, and Gibran dove forward with his knife, but none of them knew where to start.

“Watch out!” Yalina yelled in a low voice. She didn’t have time to cast powerful spells, and hastily released an arc of lightning which streaked toward the small mountain of leaves.

The mountain of leaves suddenly collapsed downward and, after a flurry of smoke and dirt, finally exposed the empty ground underneath.

“Fuck! Interspatial Scroll again!” Moxinke’s shape appeared beside her, cursing angrily. “Where did they get all these scrolls from?!”

“You can buy them too if you have enough money.” Reg appeared soon after as well.

“Impossible.” Yalina shook her head. “These aren’t scrolls made by the magicians or alchemists in Isolated Cliff City! From what I have seen, the most their scrolls can carry is twenty people; how can they possibly bring the Abyssal Ghost Snake with them as well?”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep