The villainous young master just wants to live a Buddhist-like life.

　But the "disappearance" had already occurred.

　Moreover, the criteria for selecting objects are also very obvious.

　If Hermes had deliberately taken away an older person, it wouldn't have given anyone the impression that he did so.

　But as Professor Mydia previously speculated, Hermes' current situation is likely not good, and he may no longer have the energy to use his abilities on someone who is not his target.

　The current situation is that the information about the need for young people was likely deliberately leaked by Hermes!

　The Holy Church, the North, and the Royal Family were likely unaware of this.

　However, the Academy was well aware that Hermes's abilities had long since spread beyond the "Mountain of the Gods".

　Even if Hermes did indeed release the "message about the need for young people," it's not impossible.

　If it's true, then it means... they're stepping into a trap set by the gods!

　At this point, Dark's expression became unusually serious.

　Everyone in the academy received Ergani's "blessing of wisdom," making each of them extremely wise.

　At this point, it's impossible not to have similar thoughts.

　Professor Cazell frowned and said, "But if this is a setup, then what would be the reason Hermes would go to such lengths to set it up? Would it simply be to get those three factions to send their most talented young people here? But if that were the case, he wouldn't need to do this unnecessary thing. Aren't we already sending the people he wants into the 'Heavenly Court' according to his plan? Could there be some hidden secret we haven't noticed?"

　"Did he intercept it halfway because someone else wanted to compete with him?" Ophelia guessed.

　Professor Sylph, who had been deep in thought, looked up and said, "I hope that's not the reason."

　Having Hermes alone is troublesome enough; if there are other gods, then their continued journey will be meaningless.

　Faced with an overwhelming number of gods, continuing would only result in certain death. They had absolutely no chance of survival.

　However, if we re-examine the logic, we'll find that this possibility is not high.

　Because Principal Art wouldn't lead them to a dead end! At least, Professor Sylph believed that.

　Just as the academy members were having a heated discussion inside the carriage, the Holy Church group walking in front of them suddenly stopped and exclaimed in surprise.

　The crystal ball displayed a portion of the scene from that side.

　Even without those images, Dark and the others immediately guessed what had happened over there.

　—Following Abbott, Emily Grantham also mysteriously disappeared.

　“This is the fourth one already,” Dark said in a deep voice. “There should be no more suitable candidates among the Holy Church and the Northern forces.”

　Professor Lily, stroking her chin, said, "Then we're definitely next."

　"If they weren't hiding, then it should be," Dark said. Professor Sylph immediately added, "We don't have much time left! Try to be prepared."

　After speaking, her gaze fell upon Aurora. Aurora's expression was grave.

　She traveled as a "snake exorcist," and her own abilities were limited. Even with the surprise attack before departure, she only gained some additional self-defense capabilities.

　If she were to face Hermes head-on, her chances of winning would be zero. Her only chance of survival lay in the clothes she wore, made from the shed skin of an "oil snake."

　That snakeskin coat had one very basic function: to help Nix locate herself!

　The procession did not stop.

　News of Emily Grantham's disappearance spread quickly, and the last of the Northern troops suddenly found some psychological balance.

　Their gazes naturally fell upon the academy's pumpkin carriage.

　As for the Holy Church troops, after a very brief period of chaos, they seemed to have no more scruples and accelerated their sprint at full speed!

　The academy and the northern region followed closely behind, and the entire three-way force shot towards the unknown horizon like an arrow.

　Aurora's mysterious disappearance occurred shortly after that.

　The professors bestowed upon her various defensive and escape-enhancing auras. But whether those auras remained after she "disappeared" is unknown.

　Professor Sylph and the others clenched their fists.

　The pumpkin carriage instantly outpaced the Holy Church's procession, rushing to the front in the blink of an eye.

　"Serpent Goddess" Nix sat there alone, staring wide-eyed at the empty seat next to her.

　Dak closed his eyes and pondered, trying to calm himself down.

　He has already collected all the magical spirits, including "Shami," back into the magic cards.

　Aurora's "disappearance" just now confirmed that the magical spirits will not be taken away with the mage.

　At the same time, it also proves that [disappearance ≠ death]!

　Because the magical spirit that Aurora summoned beforehand disappeared after its magic power was exhausted following the break in the connection with the mage.

　In addition, Aurora's "Sun Elf" and "Ice Moon Elf" that she always carried with her were also left here.

　But she took away the "Blessing of the Wind Spirit" that Professor Sylph had given her!

　Therefore, the intricacies of this matter are already very clear.

　Magical spirits and elemental spirits are considered to be independent life forms, so they cannot be taken away.

　But the "blessing of the wind spirits" does not belong to life.

　In fact, the fact that magical spirits were regarded as independent life forms was something that Dark and the others had not expected.

　The "disappearance" mechanism distinguishes between Magic Spirits and Magic Spirit Cards.

　Therefore, Dark also temporarily entrusted the flower fairies, who were bewildered because he had taken back "Shemi", to Professor Sylph's care.

　But after he had made all the preparations, the sixth person to mysteriously disappear was not him.

　Angrey, vanished.

　……

　With his extensive combat experience, Angry Dimon is at least more reassuring than Aurora.

　She not only drew power from a total of seven "Netherworld Flames," but also gained the approval of the "Aquarius Armor."

　She came as a guard, and was a truly powerful one. "Hopefully, Angrey and Aurora were taken to the same place." Dark opened his eyes and looked at Ollie after Angrey disappeared. The only two left who were most likely to have "disappeared" were him and Ollie. Ollie stood gracefully, her expression and demeanor serene.

　Dak then closed his eyes again and continued to cultivate his inner energy.

　Hermes' purpose in taking the young man away is unknown.

　But he did not harbor unrealistic fantasies like Gavin North. If his earlier judgment was correct, what remained of the twelve gods above the "Heavenly Court" might be pure consciousness.

　There is no divine body, no divine soul, only divine consciousness.

　And after being polluted for thousands of years, that divine consciousness could never return to its former state.

　Researching the personalities and temperaments of the Twelve Heavenly Gods from historical documents is of little use. If the Twelve Heavenly Gods were to awaken, their first priority would likely be finding a body to possess.

　In other words, it's possession!

　"But if it's Hermes, then Fred North would be the best target for possession."

　"However, he did not stop after taking Fred North away."

　"He couldn't possibly be accumulating bodies for other gods to possess, could he?"

　“In that case, Quintina is more suitable for Zeus, Albert and Emily are suitable for Apollo, Aurora can be Apollo or Artemis, Angry is suitable for Poseidon, and Auly is also suitable for Apollo.”

　"And what about me?"

　Dark didn't witness the moment Ollie mysteriously disappeared. Because he became the seventh person to vanish before Ollie!

Chapter 967 Heavenly Court: Breath of the Wilderness (4k)

　Perhaps because they were already mentally prepared, Darko Dimon's disappearance did not cause much of a stir.

　The entire team advanced in silence, creating a very oppressive atmosphere. But even at their current pace, after advancing for so long, they still hadn't seen the end of that bloody tunnel.

　This unusual phenomenon made the people in the group vaguely realize that something was wrong.

　If this passage is indeed a road leading to the "Heavenly Court," what reason could there be for it to be so long?

　But if it is not the road to "Heaven", then what is it? Whether it is from the scriptures of the Holy Church or the Academy, or from the legends passed down from generation to generation in the North, it is clearly pointed out that the entrance to "Heaven" is at the highest peak of the Mountain of the Gods.

　This point shouldn't be wrong.

　Inside the pumpkin carriage, the academy also had doubts.

　The professors quickly analyzed the information, searching for the missing pieces to try and piece together the correct answer.

　The remaining three maids were constantly anticipating possibilities so that, if Ollie also "disappeared," they could make the most accurate and immediate choice in the shortest possible time.

　Ollie herself had already prepared for her "mysterious disappearance"—she even seemed somewhat anxious.

　Dark's earlier "disappearance" made her uneasy.

　However, in a short period of time, there were no major changes on this side of the passage.

　And on the other side.

　Dark Dimon, who "mysteriously disappeared," appeared in a completely unfamiliar environment.

　He immediately checked his own condition and found that apart from a portion of his magic power disappearing into thin air, there was no change in his body.

　The most important magic card in the card pack remained unchanged. And the two elemental spirits, which should have been asleep, were indeed left in the pumpkin carriage. Only Professor Sylph's "Blessing of the Wind Spirit" remained, still wrapped around her ear.

　"It's still there!"

　A thought struck Dak, and he quickly scanned his surroundings to check for any potential dangers.

　But as far as the eye could see, there was only desolation.

　Although some faint black mist floated in the air, it was completely different from the mist on the Mountain of the Gods.

　The black mist was just a collection of sparse black particles, spaced far apart, drifting slowly through the air.

　If you pay close attention, you'll realize that it's the speed of the wind. Excluding the black fog that doesn't actually affect visibility, the surrounding environment is completely unobstructed because it's all flat ground.

　He could not see any threatening living creatures, nor did he see the other six people who had disappeared before him!

　This is completely different from what Dark initially envisioned.

　Logically, they deduced that Hermes was the mastermind behind the "mysterious disappearances".

　In other words, it was a highly purposeful act. Under such circumstances, all those who "mysteriously disappeared" should be taken to a designated location.

　It is highly likely that all six people who disappeared were in the same location.

　If that were the case, Dark would not need to bother finding Aurora and facing the potential variables together.

　If it's not the same location, then it's possible that, according to his plan before he disappeared, everyone was taken to the place where a god with a higher affinity resides.

　However, the six missing individuals—Quintina, Fred, Albert, Emily, Aurora, and Angel—had significantly overlapping aptitudes.

　This clearly contradicts Dark's subconscious idea of ​​a "one-on-one" scenario. But the current situation is that neither of those scenarios is correct.

　He seemed to have been taken to a random location without any obvious features. "I wonder if Aurora and the others were in the same situation."

　Dark frowned slightly, channeling his mental energy to perceive the details.

　He did not sense any special energy in the air, nor did he sense any divine aura.

　The surrounding environment felt no different to him from the real world. This made him unsure whether he had even entered (the Heavenly Court).

　However, figuring out exactly where he had ended up was not Dark's first priority.

　His first priority is to find Aurora as quickly as possible! And the current situation isn't necessarily a bad thing.

　At least here there is no fog to obstruct the view, and spiritual perception can extend to the limit of the sensing distance.

　Under these circumstances, he could use that wisp of "Wind Spirit's Blessing" to have a direct voice call with someone who also possesses "Wind Spirit's Blessing"!

　This is the simplest and fastest way to contact someone.

　Before even summoning "Magical Beast: Destroyer", Dark reached out and pulled the wisp of "Wind Spirit's Blessing" that was wrapped around his ear to his finger.

　That almost invisible "blessing of the wind spirit" coiled around his index finger like a small snake.

　"Hey"

　After injecting a trace of magic to activate it, Dark attempted to transmit the sound.

　Besides him, Aurora and Angeli have also "mysteriously disappeared".

　If the three of them are in the same realm, do not interfere with each other, and are not too far apart, then they should be able to transmit the sound successfully.