The black sun hangs high

Chapter 415 Rules and Cycles

Under the heavy darkness of night, amidst the strange magical light and shadow, the entire Watchtower City trembled incessantly.

However, the tremor was not caused by natural phenomena such as earthquakes, nor by the heavy crystal shells that landed in the area surrounding the city, but by the magic that was constantly clashing and colliding.

Most of the residents of Watchtower City are now huddled in the safest part of their own homes.

For the first time, as ordinary people, they experienced the existence of "magic" so vividly and concretely.

It is not only a magnificent miracle that can be observed with the naked eye, but also an invisible force that can directly affect everyone's body and mind.

A child cautiously lifted the curtain and peeked outside, but his mother immediately reached out and dragged the daring little guy back to the corner.

"Mom, it's scary outside!"

The child whispered, "The blue light and the black shadow are all mixed together..."

"Since you know it's scary, don't go near the window anymore; it's dangerous."

The mother held the little guy tightly by the shoulders and arms, afraid that he would run away again when she wasn't looking.

As ordinary people, they had absolutely no ability to protect themselves in the face of such a terrible and chaotic situation. The Black Sun Society members running through the streets, the Dark Dogs constantly lurking in the shadows, and the occasional explosions were all enough to pose a deadly threat to these ordinary residents.

Just now, some new situations have arisen in these families.

Since the Black Sun Society took control of Watchtower, strange sculptures have appeared in the homes of the residents. These sculptures have bizarre shapes and exude a gloomy aura. According to the Black Sun Society, these sculptures depict real gods who were active in ancient times and are great beings completely different from the "false gods" of Vaan.

Any family that worships or venerates these real deities in their home will receive protection from the Black Sun Society.

However, as the astonishing tremors continued to spread, these bizarre sculptures began to shatter.

The magical rituals and circuits buried inside the sculpture were forcibly destroyed by some force, causing the sculpture itself to collapse into pieces and powder. A foul, burnt smell wafted from these remains, making the residents afraid to pick them up or clean them up.

Not only these sculptures, but also other items in the residents' homes, from crystal lamps to clocks and fireplaces used for heating in winter, anything containing magical circuits, were destroyed by the continuous tremors. Even the permanent rituals buried inside the walls lost their effectiveness.

This situation made the already helpless residents even more frightened. Most of them dared not easily approach the window to peek at the scene outside, but even so, they could still feel the strong impact that directly affected their emotions and spirit.

The boy, held tightly in his mother's arms, stared intently at the blue light streaming into the room through the gap in the curtains. He couldn't forget the magnificent scene he had just witnessed: the blue pillar of light in the center of Watchtower City was constantly colliding with the surrounding gloomy shadows. It seemed that the shadows wanted to drown the bright light in endless darkness, while the light tried to drive away all the surrounding darkness.

The boy didn't know the specific meaning behind the two colors, but his life instincts made him feel resistant and disgusted by the shadows. In contrast, the clear blue, like water, made him feel inexplicably at ease.

The sheen is not scary at all.

He could even feel a faint warmth from it, as if it were a warm ray of light left by the sun that was already somewhat distant in his memory.

It felt as warm as the embrace of my mother behind me.

Thinking of this, the boy couldn't help but turn to look at his mother, and then he was surprised to find that there seemed to be a faint blue luster shining through one side of his mother's clothes.

"Mom, look here..."

Upon hearing her child's words, the mother lowered her head in surprise, and then she saw the light shining through her clothes.

For a moment she was slightly stunned, but then she realized something and immediately took action, reaching inside her heavy coat and pulling out a very old metal coin from a very well hidden pocket.

This is the source of the blue light.

A strange luster seeped from the inside of this old coin, clearly outlining the patterns on both sides of the coin—one side was a blazing fire of life, and the other side was the Eye of Mel imprinted on the calm sea.

The coin was left to her by her grandfather and is said to be a special souvenir provided decades ago at a large festival jointly organized by the Church of the God of Life, Merlinle, and the Legal Committee.

It not only represents a firm belief in the god of life and the goddess of magic, but also directly points to the essence of the two beliefs.

That is, the flame of life that never ceases to burn.

And the “Sinar Sea” which is composed of everything in Vain.

The mother held the coin, her expression incredibly complex.

She was supposed to destroy the coin when the Black Sun Society began to control Watchtower, but she secretly kept it because of her longing for her elders. She didn't know what kind of help the coin could bring to herself and her child now, but now, the coin lying in her palm was clearly conveying a gentle warmth to her.

"boom!"

Another violent tremor came from afar, even more intense than the previous ones, so much so that objects on the table inside the room rolled to the ground.

The mother pursed her lips tightly, then placed the coin in the boy's hand and told him to squeeze it firmly.

The boy had done this many times with his elders before the black sun appeared, and soon, low prayers came from the corner of the room.

Similar occurrences were happening throughout Watchtower City. This kind of prayer, which had long been forbidden by the Black Sun Society, was perfectly masked this time by the continuous tremors and roars.

……

The central square of Watchtower has now been destroyed.

The smooth brick and stone ground had been reduced to dust by the continuous tremors, and all the magical circuits buried beneath the ground had been completely destroyed by the power that had leaked out from that special battle.

This battle, which is beyond the imagination of ordinary people, has reached a fever pitch.

Although only the Invisible Wolf and Hugh were involved in the battle, the impact and influence they caused were comparable to those areas fiercely contested by two armies. In fact, it could be said that this place was even more deadly than those battlefields covered by crystal cannonballs and various magic and bullets.

Those Black Sun Society members and soldiers who failed to evacuate in time have all disappeared.

They either became food for the invisible wolves in the ever-expanding, distorting shadows, or they vanished on the spot among the drifting blue magical patterns. The two sides in the battle reached a peculiar tacit understanding in dealing with these members of the society.

The Invisible Wolf only values ​​the souls of these guys and the dark abyss magic within them, while Hugh is filled with hatred for these members of the society. He wishes he could wipe out all the Black Sun Society members within his sensing range in an instant.

The fact that these guys were spared from being devoured by the invisible wolves was the last bit of pity and mercy that Hugh had shown.

In this dilapidated ruin, the only relatively intact piece of ground is the location of the Black Sun Ritual.

After completely devouring Kzlov, who served as the projection carrier, the Invisible Wolf used the crypt as its new vessel. The crypt sculpture itself was more suitable than the fragile human body to bear those violent powers, and the dense dark abyss mist brought by the Invisible Wolf was constantly nourishing the black flowers blooming on the sculpture.

Even so, the balance of power in this battle has begun to tilt significantly in Hugh's favor.

With the help of that vast and strange ritual field, all the magic around, no matter how weak, began to surge toward Hugh. Even the dark abyss mist, which was originally manipulated by the invisible wolf, was "purified" and spontaneously transformed toward purity.

The tentacles that once belonged to the sea god Carron have now been transformed into part of this vast ritual field. Sometimes they take on their original tentacle form, blocking the impending deadly attacks for Hugh, and sometimes they transform into towering waves, launching a continuous assault on the invisible wolf and the Black Sun Ritual.

Supported by Hugh's rich imagination, this water-like magic manifested even more bizarre forms, including weapons and images that even Hugh himself found outrageous... Although they were ultimately just illusions made of dense magic, when they gathered together, they still brought an extremely exaggerated pressure to the Invisible Wolf. Under the continuous and fierce attacks, the dark shadows surrounding them weakened, and the space in which the Invisible Wolf could move was further compressed.

As Hugh continued to use and become more familiar with the power within him, the words of that distant will began to emerge further.

"When you hear these words, the terrible situation I had foreseen has probably already happened. The black sun has once again appeared in your field of vision, and the enemies that were once driven out and destroyed will gradually revive."

"However, this is not your fault, and I do not want you to feel ashamed or guilty because of it."

"Because this is the harsh reality, this is the universal rule we need to face... It exists not only in Vaan, but also in other worlds outside of Vaan. Even that terrible black sun cannot escape the influence of this rule."

“I call it a ‘cycle’.”

“A peculiar and powerful cycle that is difficult to escape.”

The surging waves of magic continued to surge forward, compressing the invisible wolf's living space in every direction and constantly attempting to directly destroy the Black Sun Ritual.

Amidst the ferocious wolf's maneuvering and counterattack, Mel's voice drifted over slowly.

“In the past, every deity active in Vaan has tried to break free from or utilize this rule… Magic is universally present in this world; soil, rocks, trees, rivers, and even herds and tribes are all carriers of magic.”

"Or rather, magic is the foundation of Vaan's existence. From the very beginning, it has been intertwined with everything in this world. The cycle of life and the changes in the world are manifestations of the flow of this magic. And when a large amount of magic is possessed and occupied by a specific individual, the concept of a god comes into being."

“Select those races that are close to you from among the Vain, make them believers and followers, grant them power and authority, and give them a mission—to expand as much as possible, devour other races, and sacrifice their spoils and captives to bring more power to the gods.”

Mel's voice was very calm, but her tone was extremely heavy. It sounded as if she was still feeling pain and sorrow for the tragic scenes that had occurred in Vaan when she left these words.

"As the clans continued to devour and expand, the gods began to come into contact... and what this often brought was war, war that could completely wipe out civilizations, tribes and communities."

"Either exterminate the enemy's entire clan and devour your opponent, or face your own demise, taking all your followers with you."

“They have no other choice but to… The black sun hangs high overhead, the great hunt never ends, and if a god does not wish to become prey of the Abyss, then he can only try his best to control Vaan’s magic in order to fight against the Abyss.”

Mel paused slightly, as if she were letting out a soft sigh. Hugh could even imagine the helplessness and melancholy that flashed across her face.

“Carjung is our enemy, but also a great teacher. He took the first step for us and revealed to us the possibilities that were obscured by the shadow of the black sun.”

"This road is so winding and bumpy, and we are just a group of weak children, destined to grow up slowly on this road..."

"During this long march, the destruction symbolized by the black sun will accompany us, and the shadow of the abyss will remain hidden in the hearts of some for a long time."

“It is different from those gods, different from any enemy or opponent we have ever faced. It is so powerful and special that we cannot kill or banish it completely all at once. As long as those tainted by the shadows are willing to call upon it, it is possible to make that black sun reappear in the sky above Vaan.”

"Prepare for a long battle, eliminate the traitors of Vaan, and let that shadow rot completely in our hearts."

"Sacrifice is the cornerstone of the 'Sinarhai,' and victory will surely belong to Van.

(End of this chapter)