Chapter 270: Wake Up, Old Friend!

Chapter 270: Wake Up, Old Friend!

Tafman had truly not anticipated the situation unfolding like this; currently, both factions had already clashed in open combat.

Neo stood up, preparing to seize this opportunity to head into the depths of the Palace of Remembrance.

Tafman stood up as well, his right fist clenching tight; more urgent than stepping out to halt both sides' meaningless conflict was first dealing with the man before him—he could not possibly allow this fellow to actually obtain the Covenant Conch and awaken Dorons.

As for why he had accompanied him in carrying things to this point, Tafman himself did not know; perhaps he simply wanted to see his plan clearly, perhaps it was mere curiosity, or perhaps he had been enticed by the treasure of the Philias family.

In short, it could not be because he had genuinely felt a stirring for the Light at that precise moment.

Impossible, absolutely impossible!

"Oh, right."

Neo suddenly turned around at that moment, pulling an ivory-white sphere from his clothes, its surface densely riddled with tiny holes.

"Do you know what this is?"

"What?"

"The hive of the Curse Insects."

Tafman’s gaze froze; he was almost certain that the man before him was the parasite host of Philias, and the Curse Insects designed to target the Dark Moon clan were originally bred by Philias in the first place.

Right then, a sphere of light manifested in Neo’s palm, and the hive began to spin; then, Neo hurled the hive directly at Tafman.

"Catch!"

Tafman instinctively reached out to catch it, but the hive burst mid-air, scattering a cloud of creatures.

"Light—Incinerate!"

A sea of fire immediately materialized before Tafman, completely sealing off the area where the hive had exploded; as the flames of light contracted, those flying insects were effortlessly annihilated, without even the slightest struggle.

These were not Curse Insects; they were just ladybugs!

When Tafman looked back at Neo's position, he found that Neo had already vanished without a trace.

Though Neo's body had once been entirely filled with such insects, that was a decade ago; how could he possibly have such insects around him now? Still, that did not stop him from using them to frighten this "traitor."

...

The Palace of Remembrance was a place of vital importance on Dark Moon Island, not only because it symbolized Ancestor Bernard's "epic and tearful" love story, but also because it was Ancestor Bernard's final resting place.

A tall statue belonging to Miss Pol stood there, and at Miss Pol’s feet ran a trench about a meter wide, which circled around before converging into the pool ahead.

What flowed within was no mountain spring water, but channeled lava.

Thus, the Palace of Remembrance was merely what most people on Dark Moon Island called this place; in reality, it bore many other names, some of which were related to fire.

Because Miss Pol excelled most in fire-attribute power, Ancestor Bernard had specially created this design just for her.

Furthermore, Bernard’s coffin was not buried underground but was placed right upon the platform, with a protective barrier surrounding the platform to shield it from the wind and rain day and night.

In the touching love stories of Dark Moon Island, this was because Ancestor Bernard was unwilling to leave Miss Pol behind and enter the earth alone, so he would remain above to accompany her forever.

Fortunately, guards were stationed here year-round to watch over it, leaving no worry about disruptions from grave robbers.

Of course, except for today.

Neo stepped up the stairs and came before the coffin, his hands twitching rapidly as strands of radiant thread extended from his ten fingers, sinking into the surroundings of the coffin.

The Captain looked as though he were playing a piano at this moment, but in truth, he was dismantling the coffin’s defensive barrier.

"Bernard, tell me, isn't it hilarious? The arrays you excelled in were actually learned from me; even if you added your own Dark Moon elements into them, the core of the array remains unchanged."

While breaking the array, the Captain cast his gaze toward the massive statue ahead; statues of Miss Pol were by no means rare on Dark Moon Island, given she was the heroine of the love story, but the one here was the largest, the most intricate, and also the most lifelike.

One could clearly perceive the personality conveyed by this statue: proud, uninhibited, and filled with self-confidence.

"For a time, I even thought it a great tragedy that you, Miss Pol, did not end up with Bernard. But the truth is, Miss Pol, you might have discerned Bernard's true face long ago."

The Captain's ten fingers instantly halted, and then he pulled backward with a sharp jerk.

"Hum!"

The protective barrier that had guarded the coffin for over a century was completely shattered at this moment.

This coffin was so confidently crafted that it did not even use coffin nails; which meant that although the coffin lid and the casket fit together seamlessly with barely a gap, in essence, the lid was merely resting on top without any other fastening.

With a simple push of a hand, the coffin lid could be slid open.

Yet, just as the Captain’s hand reached halfway, it stopped.

A faint smile graced the corner of his mouth: "Bernard, I know exactly what kind of person you are."

Right at that moment, Tafman appeared behind the Captain, his belated fist smashing directly toward him.

The Captain seemed to have anticipated Tafman’s approach long ago; facing this punch, he swerved his body to evade, while simultaneously vaulting to the other side of the casket, his left hand immediately delivering a powerful shove against the coffin lid.

Tafman’s silhouette leaped directly into the air, his fists enveloped in the power of the Dark Moon as he smashed down toward the Captain once more.

The Captain retreated, dropping straight down the steps of the funeral platform.

And just at that exact juncture, under the influence of that prior pushing force, the coffin lid slid open more than halfway.

"Boom!"

From within the coffin, a massive plume of black smoke suddenly surged upward; immediately following, an evil spirit emerged from the black smoke, opening its maw to bite directly at Tafman, who was currently closest to the casket.

Tafman had not expected this scene to occur within the opened coffin at all; his body was instantly swallowed by the evil spirit, but in the next breath, a blistering power of light erupted from him, forcing open the spirit's maw as he retreated rapidly.

After snapping this single bite, the evil spirit’s form dissolved entirely.

Upon Tafman’s body, dense black spots manifested, each one harboring an exceptionally terrifying contamination of the evil spirit.

Taking a deep breath, Tafman clenched his right fist, and the black spots on his body began to move rapidly, ultimately shifting entirely to the position of his right arm; in an instant, the black spots elsewhere on his body vanished, but his right arm had turned completely pitch-black.

Tafman raised the Dark Moon Blade with his left hand and chopped down directly against his own right arm.

"Splat!"

The right arm severed and fell away.

"Light—Purify!"

The power of purification struck that pitch-black arm, yet it unexpectedly failed to eliminate it.

Standing at a distance early on to avoid being caught by the evil spirit, the Captain called out at this moment: "It cannot be purified; use a seal."

Tafman immediately gathered a sealing technique with his left hand and struck it onto that right arm; the right arm was promptly covered in a layer of white frost.

"You are more powerful than I imagined, and your mastery of the power of light is higher than I anticipated."

Tafman swept a cold glare toward the Captain.

"But do not rejoice in your narrow escape; I understand the maliciousness of this ancestor of yours better than you do—of course, I too have been severely deceived before. This evil spirit contamination is not something you can halt just by forcibly severing an arm; it has already entered your soul, and you can last a week at most before your soul is possessed by the evil spirit."

Previously, although breaking the coffin's protective array had consumed some time, the Captain had been well within the window to open the coffin before Tafman arrived, yet the Captain had hesitated and chosen not to do so.

Because he understood Bernard far too well.

With Bernard’s disposition, how could he possibly lack a final layer of protection for his own coffin?

Whoever dared open his casket, he would ensure that person died!

The Captain walked toward the coffin, but Tafman, with only one arm remaining, blocked the Captain's path once again.

"Phileas, I am well aware of the deep feud between you and my ancestors. I also know it was my family that wronged you back then. But I am sorry—even though I command the power of Light, in my heart of hearts, I belong to the Dark Moon clan.

I practice Light only to protect Dark Moon, to safeguard my clan, and my people.

I will not allow you to awaken Dorons."

"The old you would have proven a thorny problem, one where I couldn't even guarantee victory. But the current you no longer possesses the strength to bar my way."

"I know."

Tafman nodded.

Then,

He placed his left hand over his chest. A mass of black shadow surged forth once more, molding into a ghastly wraith-like face against his sternum. This was the spectral corruption hidden within his soul, which Tafman now deliberately dragged to the surface, despite knowing this choice would hasten the specter's erosion of his spirit.

"I may truly be unable to stop you now, but I can at least ensure that you are infected with this very same corruption."

"Awakening Dorons is for the sake of the Light."

"I told you, I do not believe in the Light."

"And the treasure? Do you not desire it?"

"Would you actually give it to me?" Tafman countered. "Would you split half of it with Dark Moon Island, Phileas?"

"You might want to feel inside your chest pocket. There lies the half of the Samsara tickets I shared with you earlier."

"Do not waste your breath, Phileas. I can never trust you. There is not a shred of possibility for cooperation between us."

The captain looked somewhat troubled. "Well, that is quite awkward then. It seems there really is no fooling you."

"Heh." Tafman chuckled.

Though he had just lost an arm and his soul was plagued by corruption, he found himself unable to hate the man before him.

He could ruthlessly slaughter those remnants of the Light without a second thought, but he found this particular man highly intriguing, sensing some inscrutable cosmic alignment that made them remarkably alike.

And indeed they were.

One practiced Light while harboring faith in the Dark Moon;

The other practiced Light while harboring faith in Order;

Both radiated luminance outwardly, yet neither possessed a heart that was truly white.

By now, the sounds of combat outside had gradually died down. Evidently, the two sides, whose passions had flared from the prior explosion, had realized the absurdity of their brawl and were calling a truce.

Soon, the Dark Moon guards would arrive.

"How irritating. This was shaping up to be such an enjoyable endeavor, yet in the end, it still has to be thwarted by you. This makes me quite unhappy."

Tafman spoke up, "The commotion here is highly likely to draw the bishops of the two Great Churches. If you flee now, you might still make it."

The captain also smiled and said, "The general commanding the offshore fleet of Dark Moon Island turns out to be a remnant of the Light. Aren't you afraid I will expose this truth to the world?"

"If my identity can no longer be concealed, I would willingly choose suicide. Could you?"

"I could not. I only came looking for a bit of fun, not looking to die."

At this moment, the silhouettes of the Dark Moon guards appeared on the periphery, rushing toward their position.

The captain began to back away. "Look at this. Dark Moon Island has grown so suffocatingly repressed due to the negotiations between the two orthodox Churches. It is like a

I was not yet ready to face him, for the closer one draws to one’s homeland, the more cowardly the heart becomes.

In the end, it was Karen who suggested they go to the Guze Pool.

It was the resting place of Dorons, and in its own right, a place of exquisite beauty.

Karen reasoned that while he could not currently aid the Captain at the Palace of Remembrance, if the Captain succeeded, he would be able to witness the "sunrise" with his own eyes from the shores of the Guze Pool.

Karen and Ophelia sat atop a hill overlooking the waters; on one side the hill sloped gently, while the side facing the pool dropped off in a sheer cliff, and the two sat at the very edge of the precipice, appearing for all the world as if they were truly admiring the vista before them.

The evening sun cast a deep golden hue across the landscape, bathing the pool in a vision of soft, transcendent beauty, turning the waters into a gentle dressing mirror, like a massive shard of blue amber fallen into the mortal world.

Ophelia looked toward Karen and asked, "Is it only on Dark Moon Island that we can sit this close and watch the scenery?"

"We are friends. Good friends."

"I hope you aren't about to use that cliché line about only seeing me as a little sister."

"I won't, because I believe you are older than I am."

"Heh." Ophelia let out a soft laugh and pointed at the pool below. "Karen, the feeling you give me is just like this pool—as if no ripple could ever rise upon its surface, always so perfectly smooth and unruffled."

"Ah, as I've said, I am somewhat precocious. Perhaps due to certain unique reasons, I lack the drive and unbridled passion that should belong to this age."

"But if you possessed those traits, I might not have felt anything for you at all. I actually quite admire your elegance and propriety."

Well, so it turns out, you have a thing for older, mature men.

Ophelia let out a soft sigh, her expression tinged with a faint loneliness as she said, "Perhaps arriving late simply means arriving late; there are no spots left on the deck."

Karen remained silent.

Ophelia asked, "I thought you would tell me that I could wait for the next ship."

Karen shook his head and said:

"Thank you for having once waited at the pier for my ship to dock. It was beautiful."

"And yet destined to be nothing more than passing scenery?"

"I will remember it, truly."

"Will you? You will remember it. And so, I feel that no matter what I do, I can never truly move your heart. Your heart is like this pool, walled in on all sides by towering mountains; the wind that belongs to me cannot blow inside, and so it remains forever still for me."

"BOOM!!!!!!!!!!"

A terrifying roar suddenly erupted from the earth, followed by a horrifyingly violent tremor, and then...

The mountain

collapsed.

——

——

No sleep for over twenty-four hours, asking for monthly tickets once more, good night.