klisemfg Chapter 219, Section 218: The Raven and the Phoenix
Chapter 219, Section 218: The Raven and the Phoenix
Chapter 219, Section 218: The Raven and the Phoenix
The realm of the underworld.
It was as if all great beings had realized the extraordinary nature of this moment.
however.
The little wizard himself was unaware of this.
Ian transformed into a raven and soared freely over Helheim, intoxicated by the feeling of freely traversing the clouds. His black feathers trembled slightly in the wind, shimmering with a metallic sheen. The wind whistled through the feathers, and each flap of his wings brought him a new and wondrous experience.
This is a feeling that neither a magic broom nor a flying cloak can compare to.
Humans are born with an indescribable longing for the sky, and at this moment, Ian is putting that longing into practice. He can keenly perceive every subtle change in the air, and the world seems to be magnified countless times as far as his eyes can see, with every minute texture and movement clearly reflected in his vision.
"The unusual nature of magical creatures!"
Ian slowly flapped his wings, and his hands, which originally belonged to humans, now transformed into a pair of wings. He felt the unfamiliar power flowing through his blood.
The feeling of soaring through the sky filled him with joy, making him almost forget his original identity, and for some reason, it also gave him a very confusing sense of familiarity.
As if everything was meant to be this way, Ian adapted to his current state very quickly for this reason. This special Animagus shapeshifting body is extremely powerful. To use a phrase that even people from his hometown can understand, he can feel that the speed generated by each flap of his wings is no less than that of the Monkey King doing a somersault.
No.
Strictly speaking, each flap of its wings should produce the same effect as Sun Wukong's somersault, covering 108,000 li. I don't know what kind of coincidence this is.
"As expected of the power of a divine bird!"
Ian not only experienced the thrill of speed, but also felt the power of his current body. He even doubted that even a pure-blooded dragon could possess such a powerful body—a body capable of withstanding such high speeds could not be simple, and it seemed that he could control both thunder and storms.
not only that.
Ian could even sense that there were many interconnected threads between all things, and he only needed to move his mind slightly to activate these connections in the invisible world.
It must be said that this strange feeling immersed Ian in the awe brought by his newly acquired ability. After transforming into a raven, the powerful force that allowed him to control thunder and storms had already amazed him, but now, perceiving the threads connecting all things was like opening a door to some kind of authority.
These threads, like the veins of destiny, are intricately interwoven, connecting everything in the world, perhaps not just this world but also the world outside.
"What are they?"
At first, Ian cautiously tried to touch the threads. As he focused his mind and felt the mysterious connection hidden behind all things, a subtle yet immense power flowed within him. He discovered that as long as he gently touched the threads, the world seemed to change according to his will.
Yes.
They are like spider webs, densely covering the air, some as thin as a hair, others as thick as vines. Each thread represents a destiny, a possibility.
Ian saw a hill in the distance, its scenery beautiful, yet amidst the interplay of black and white, a sense of melancholy pervaded the air. Out of curiosity, Ian decided to manipulate the silk thread connecting the hill to the mountain. His spirit, like a slender finger, gently yet firmly touched the thread.
In an instant, the situation changed drastically, as if a king had issued his decree.
Black cracks spread across the mountain's surface, as if the earth were groaning in agony. The trees on the mountain began to wither and fall, and the rocks continued to crumble under the invisible pressure. In just a few moments, that once majestic mountain seemed to have been mercilessly crushed by the wheels of time, heading towards its end.
Trees fell one after another, and rocks tumbled down the mountain. En stared in disbelief at the scene, his heart filled with shock and unease. He had never imagined that his gentle touch could cause such a tremendous change—this was probably the original power of that raven, an incredible force capable of manipulating destiny.
"No wonder Merlin said that the raven is equivalent to a god."
At this moment, Ian finally felt the weight of the gods with perfect clarity, because his Animagus form was a divine bird through and through.
"My Animagus form is probably unprecedented." Ian didn't know why the previous anomaly had occurred, but he knew that he might have benefited from it.
To know.
Let alone his incredibly powerful biological form, even the forms of ordinary magical creatures are rarely heard of among Animagus practitioners throughout history. Most wizards who have obtained the magical Animagus form are so because their ancestors were comparable to Xu Xian (a legendary figure in Chinese mythology known for his romantic escapades) and had a relationship with magical creatures.
"This feeling... is truly wonderful."
After immersing himself in this strange sensory world for a long time, Ian finally remembered the great hall he had broken into and that he was still in a tomb.
then.
Ian flapped his wings again and flew towards the main hall. However, when Ian's small but agile figure reappeared through the hole in the main hall, he was not greeted with peace.
Instead, it was an overwhelming magical attack.
"Damn evil raven! You don't even spare children! He's just a child! And you actually took him as your target for possession!" Merlin stood in the center of the hall, his eyes filled with vigilance and determination. With a wave of his hands, dazzling magical beams shot towards Ian like lightning.
obviously.
Merlin mistakenly believed that Ian had been possessed by the raven's corpse. The Ian that appeared before him was no longer the familiar Ian, but Ian's body controlled by some kind of evil spirit.
"What the hell?"
Ian was caught completely off guard by the sudden attack. He felt both helpless and amused; Merlin actually thought he had been possessed by the raven's corpse!
This is absolutely absurd!
"Can you please speak properly?"
Ian did not dodge.
His physical body was directly receiving the magic.
no way.
This is being willful.
Since he was still in Animagus form, the incredibly powerful magical creature seemed to be immune to magic, and one spell after another could not affect him in the slightest.
There's no need to hide.
All the magic shattered the moment it touched Ian.
"I am Ian, your creditor, not some unfortunate soul who has been possessed!" Ian tried to explain to Merlin, but the tone of his voice when he spoke in his raven form was quite peculiar.
"Oh."
Merlin vividly remembered the familiar tone and manner of the voice, clearly disbelieving Ian's explanation and remaining unmoved. Instead, his attacks on Ian intensified.
All I saw was...
In an instant.
All sorts of magic were displayed in this hall. Even without the blessing of a physical body, Merlin, with his special bloodline, was still able to exert strength no less than that of a human.
only.
Even as a legendary demigod.
Countless beams of magic rained down on Ian, but Merlin's magic was like paper; aside from creating a massive spectacle that shook the surrounding halls, it couldn't do anything to harm the young wizard.
"You've really gone too far!"
It is said that even a clay figure has some temper, let alone Ian, who is not a clay figure. Faced with Merlin's tireless attacks, Ian also flapped his wings and flew directly towards Merlin.
His speed exceeded the speed that the naked eye could perceive, and even Merlin couldn't react in time. Merlin's magic beam exploded behind him, but it couldn't keep up with his speed at all. Merlin's protective measures in front of him were not much better than paper, and Ian plunged right into them.
The magical shield shattered without even a ripple. Ian flew straight to Merlin's head and pecked him hard on the head with his beak.
"ah!!!"
Merlin cried out in pain.
Ian remained unmoved.
He continued pecking at Merlin with his beak, as if he had mastered it without any instruction, and was so skilled that he could hardly speak. In the blink of an eye, he had pecked Merlin until his head was covered in bumps.
"Ouch!"
Merlin cried out in pain, nearly dropping his wand.
"Damn it! They still say it wasn't possession!"
He was running away with his head in his hands, but he couldn't escape Ian's attacks no matter what he did—actually, Ian was holding back, after all, Merlin still owed him a huge debt.
Otherwise.
Ian even felt he could easily devour Merlin's brain, and after doing so, he realized he would gain access to all of Merlin's knowledge.
"These shadowy crows are truly sinister."
Realizing this, Ian couldn't help but sigh. However, even so, he didn't stop chasing Merlin and pecking at him, and the two of them darted around the ruins hall.
Of course, to be precise, it was Merlin who was running around everywhere. No matter how he ran, he couldn't escape Ian's attacks. In terms of reaction speed, he simply couldn't avoid the lumps constantly growing on his head.
Looking at Ian from afar, it seemed as if he were right above his head, with nowhere left to bite him, and he was about to engulf his handsome face. Even a wizard as tough as Merlin couldn't hold back anymore.
"I believe you! I believe you! You haven't been possessed! Stop it!" Merlin finally couldn't help but shout, clearly giving in, his voice filled with helplessness and pain.
No one knows what he's thinking, but they know he doesn't dare mention possession anymore, since his forehead has already been affected and his cheeks won't be far behind.
"If we had recognized the truth earlier, none of this would have happened..." Ian stopped when he heard Merlin's shout, flew to Merlin and slowly transformed into human form.
"Tsk tsk, Medivh as a raven, it really suits him quite well." Ian looked down at his reappeared hands and felt his familiar human body.
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It's said that Animagus consumes a lot of energy.
But the little wizard only felt the excitement that had not yet dissipated.
"Phew~"
Merlin let out a long sigh of relief.
He covered his head, which was as large as a Buddha statue, with a bitter expression.
"I shouldn't have come to this place in the first place. If I hadn't come here, I wouldn't have..." he muttered to himself, his frustrated expression bordering on insanity.
"You're the one causing trouble. How could I possibly be possessed..." Ian rolled his eyes. Faced with his taunts, Merlin remained silent, neither admitting nor refuting.
Those slightly flickering eyes seemed to reveal a hint of distrust.
"Um?"
Ian made only a slight sound.
Merlin was struck dumb.
"Of course, you're right, I made a stupid mistake." Merlin quickly backed down. Regardless of what he was thinking, at least in terms of his actions, he was still deeply traumatized by what had just happened.
Just as Ian was about to prove himself, suddenly, a hand appeared directly from the large hole above the palace. The enormous hand clearly belonged to Ares, the God of War, who was outside.
"You guys are so noisy!"
Ares, the God of War, grabbed Merlin and Ian and threw them both away. "You can disturb me, but you can't wake up the sleeping ones..."
Before they could even fully hear what the God of War was saying, Ian and Merlin were already thrown a great distance away—a truly great distance—as if they had been "expelled" from Helheim.
A sudden dizziness.
Ian shook his head and saw the colorful Merlin again. However, Merlin was lying in front of the bronze door with his butt sticking out. It took three strong men to wake up slowly enough for him to take turns.
"It seems Merlin's soul truly did enter Helheim. Perhaps his soul had already completely separated from his body when we passed through the Bronze Gate..."
Ian looked up at the bronze door, lost in thought. He watched Merlin struggle to get up from the ground and even vomit, but he didn't feel any discomfort himself.
This might explain the different feelings between soul travel and physical travel.
"I'm leaving here!" Merlin got up from the ground and rushed out of the ruins without looking back, as if this place had given him too many bad experiences.
Ian followed closely behind.
however.
As we were about to completely leave the underground ruins and step out of this underground palace.
"Never forget your promise to the gods, Medivh." A majestic voice suddenly rang in the young wizard's ears; it was Ares, the god of war, seemingly reminding him from across time and space.
"What promise?"
"You're scamming me?"
Ian couldn't help but ask.
However, no response was received.
Perhaps when he stepped out of the underground palace, Ares, the god of war, would no longer be able to transmit his voice to him. After all, he was not the god of war at his peak; he was merely the shell of Ares.
The question of whether some divine power still exists is definitely a vague one.
"Alright, Archmage, we've been to the tomb. Now it's time to talk about our bet." As soon as Ian left the tomb, he wanted to ask Merlin for what he had won.
He was well aware of the situation.
Based on what I just experienced...
Merlin might just decide to avoid him.
"Don't worry, I haven't forgotten." Merlin sighed, took out a stone and an exquisite box from his pocket, and threw them to Ian.
He seemed to still be catching his breath, lying next to a tree and dry heaving repeatedly—it was certainly polluting the environment, but it could also be considered fertilizing the forest.
Although the forest may not lack fertilizer, and the surrounding area is lush with vegetation, with birds singing merrily in the branches, it is completely different from the mysterious and dangerous Helheim that we just left.
"You're quite trustworthy, Archmage." Ian got what he wanted and breathed a sigh of relief. He couldn't help but look back at the mountain wall behind him, which had returned to normal.
If nothing unexpected happens.
This will definitely not be the last time he comes to this place.
after all.
The magic to unleash the fel energy hadn't been set up yet, which meant he would return one day. However, Ian couldn't imagine what circumstances would lead him to set up such magic here.
"What kind of image do you have of me? Don't tell me you'll have a bad opinion of me in the future?" Merlin finally couldn't help but ask Ian.
"Well, I love reading, and everyone in our academy loves reading, so I've read books like 'Merlin's Secret Lover: A Legend of Magic and Betrayal,' 'Merlin and the Forest Witch: A Cursed Love,' 'The Forgotten Wife and Children: Merlin's Dark Secret,' 'Merlin's Seven Loves: From Mortal to Legend,' and 'Merlin and His Beast Girl Men' in the lounge of our academy..." Ian kept spouting out some unofficial historical stories.
Each time, he would say the title of a book.
Merlin's eyelids twitched even more violently. Just as Merlin was speechless and helpless, Ian opened the box to examine the ancient time converter.
"Oh my God! Are you wizards?"
A voice suddenly appeared.
All I saw was...
Suddenly, a handsome young man appeared in the forest. He exclaimed in surprise when he saw Merlin and Ian dressed as wizards.
"Um?"
Ian's gaze wasn't on the young man, but rather on the bird perched on his shoulder—a fiery red bird staring warily at him and Merlin.
"Holy crap! Phoenix!"
He exclaimed in surprise.
(End of this chapter)