Silent Crown

Chapter 287 Light and Shadow

A strange neigh sounded. After a moment of suspense, the frozen Dagonet began moving again. After their shell had been shattered, the parasitic demons instinctively felt terror. Frenzied, they scurried around the corpse. They stimulated the long dried-out brain and attempted to utilize the last bit of emotions remaining in the corpse.

"Arthur…" Dagonet’s body shook and he slowly looked up. Burn marks from the scalding metal paste still remained on the damaged face that had been covered in foul fluids. "Return to me…" the remaining anger said.

The hatred hidden in the corpse was awakened. He roared, repeating the same name. It was raw hatred from the bones. He wanted to win back the honor and status he deserved.

"Arthur!" he screamed. The stone tiles under his feet shattered abruptly. His body swelled and the already exaggerated strength increased again. His armor creaked sharply, harmonizing with his angry roars.

On the ground, the sword was crushed by his feet. The steel was pulverized into powder and sank into the cracks of the tiles. Finally, the single blazing red eye looked toward Ye Qingxuan. And then the furious giant charged.

"Arthur!"

He had not yet reached Ye Qingxuan but his strength created a torrential wind, forcing one to close one’s eyes. But Ye Qingxuan stood still. Only his black robe fluttered in the wind. He looked like an eagle unfurling its wings.

A tightly coiled melody shot out from his hand like a sharp blade. It resounded within the wild wind. The youth focused on the demons hidden within the cracks of the armor. Countless eyes appeared within the bubbling fluid. They were looking at him too. However, there was no panic on his face; there was only coldness.

If Ye Qingxuan had any fear toward the former Round Table Knight before, he had nothing to be afraid of after seeing the true nature of these demons. Faced with the overwhelming power, the youth raised his cane and slammed it onto the ground. Boom!

Instantly, the vibrations of iron transformed into the majestic blaring of a horn. It had the wild heat of a blazing sun as if it wanted to chase away the endless and desolate night. It announced the coming of dawn! The darkness was instantly illuminated by firelight.

Countless half-meter long nails carved with music notes and scores flew from his bag. Sensing the clear breaths of demons, they spat flames and shot forward like cannons destroying a city.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! It was the sound of iron being torn apart.

Sixteen silver nails instantly pierced into the cracks of the armor. The giant Dagonet flew backward from the shock and slammed against the wall. The nails pierced the sticky demons, dried corpse, and the armor before finally digging into the wall.

Hellish fire spewed from the nails. It overtook Dagonet’s body from inside out, transforming it into ashes and burning the countless demons.

The nails were the chant material the Shaman had given Ye Qingxuan. Alchemists had created these pure silver nails in the short few days. They were customized alchemy equipment for Night on Bald Mountain. Now, the music score’s fatality had more than doubled!

Dagonet struggled in the fire but was unable to free himself. The flames ate at him from the inside. Sticky bodily fluid spewed from the cracks of the armor. Trying to escape, the demons poured out like a fountain. However, they were already burning. After the violent spasms, not even ashes remained.

Through the heavy firelight, Dagonet’s body returned to brink of death. He protested pathetically and pounded the wall that restrained him. The cracks extended. Finally, he stopped moving. The aether waves disappeared. All that remained was the armor that was red from the heat.

Ye Qingxuan could finally let out a sigh of relief. Cold sweat seeped from his back but he smiled. "I’m not an official musician but I’m pretty good, huh."

While he spoke, a scoff sounded in the wind. His expression froze but he comforted himself, "A normal person can’t compete with those beasts. Gotta compare myself to people below me."

As he muttered things others could not understand, he walked forward and yanked the silver nails from the red armor. The already crumbling wall now shattered and revealed a giant hole.

The damaged wall and the armor in it fell into the night sky outside the tower. They broke apart in mid-air.

"I’m already this high up?"

Cold air from the high elevation rushed into the room. Ye Qingxuan stood beside the crack and gazed at the clouds. Looking down his expression froze. Between the gaps of the clouds, Ye Qingxuan saw a bustling and busy city. It was covered in lights. Carriages raced down the streets.

There was the solemn graveness of uptown, the bustling song and dance of midtown, and the messy chaos of downtown. Countless ships were anchored in the harbor. The departing ship sounded its horn, which rang in the night sky. This lively city was like a pearl shining in the night. Everyone who saw it would be genuinely shaken by the sight.

"Avalon?" Ye Qingxuan looked back blankly. He felt the thick aura of natural catastrophes in the room and then glanced at the flourishing city outside the crack. His expression was filled with shock.

He was in the heart of Avalon’s Shadow so how could he be looking down on the real Avalon? If he was not looking at an illusion then…where was he right now? In the Shadow? Or…

-

Under the same night sky, the clock shop was filled with light ticks. Hermes had finished his late night snack and rested on the sofa. He had loosened his belt and his impressive belly bulged.

He had a vintage floor mirror before him. Resting his double chin on his hands, he gazed at the scene in the mirror. In it, demons and barren sites flashed past. Finally, the image stopped on an overlooking angle. Demons surge in the dark city. A white tower rose to the sky with a strange aura.

"Avalon’s Shadow?" Bai Xi, passing by, stopped before him and knocked against the mirror curiously. "You can see another world with this?"

"Sorry, no." Hermes shrugged. "But Avalon’s Shadow isn’t in another world. At most it’s just a difference of ‘here’ and ‘there’."

"What does that mean?"

"Would you believe me if I said that we’re in Avalon’s Shadow right now? Okay, you won’t, but that’s the truth." Hermes smiled his trademark evil smile. "Everyone knows that when King Arthur failed, his Sword in the Stone split apart. He lost control of his scepter ‘Kingdom Come.’ It dragged broken pieces of Avalon deep into the sea of aether and buried everything, creating Avalon’s Shadow. But a shadow must be behind light. So how far is the shadow from the city?"

Hermes raised his hand. The light passed through his arm and left the shadow of his hand on the wall. The shadow changed as he moved his hand, causing Bai Xi to shudder.

"The answer is that it’s right here." Hermes studied his shadow. He pressed his hand onto the shadow and the two became one. "It’s funny, isn’t it? In Avalon, hundreds of thousands live, die, breathe, eat, sleep, mate…but nobody has realized that they’re only a step away from the deep abyss."

Hermes glanced at Bai Xi cheerfully. "You live in the same city as demons. You brush past each other and live in the same houses. You interact every day but neither knows. For example, right now, there’s a spider mother above your head."

Bai Xi’s expression darkened and she smacked Hermes with the dictionary in her hands. "How would a clean freak like you let demons into your house? Do you think I’m a three-year-old kid?"

"Ha, as expected of my student!" Hermes reached out and caught the dictionary with a chubby hand as he laughed loudly.

"Explain clearly if you’re going to talk about it," Bai Xi said coldly. "Don’t beat around the bush."

"I’m getting there, be patient." Hermes shook his head and sighed. Drawing in the air with a finger, he stated, "The three kings of ancient times called their place the material world. The place of the Originator was the aether world. There were nine levels of the aether sea between the worlds.

"However, there isn’t such a large distance between the material and aether world…Rather, it overlapped long ago. The nine levels of the aether sea have connected the two.

"The saints used their scepters to create music theories and used the formless territory as a high tower that reached into both worlds. They wanted to create unbelievable miracles and hoped they could enter the Originator one day.

"King Arthur was not an exception. In reality, Avalon was the foundation he created for his scepter Kingdom Come. Everything was done to increase his strength to the max. Thus, he practically became a demi-god. When he died, the piece of heaven that had descended onto earth fell apart as well and sank into the aether sea with him. It entered eternal sleep in the darkness.

"At first, the demons hiding in the shadow would have the chance to cross the door and appear here whenever fog shrouded Avalon. But as Avalon’s Shadow sank deeper and deeper into the aether sea, they became further away from ‘here.’ In the end, only the Blood Path connected them. For centuries, only the royal family would use their blood to open this path for some unspeakable secrets.

"Unfortunately, some people have been meddling recently…this demonic world that had sunk into darkness is awakening again."

Hermes paused and his face twitched. "In the end, you have to blame that troublesome guy. The Ye family had almost died out in the east and they still wouldn’t rest in the West. It’s been thousands of years and none of them have been normal! Including that cousin of yours."

Bai Xi fell silent. She stared at the world in the mirror. Her slowly-maturing face was heavy and unreadable. However, Hermes arched an eyebrow.

"Are you worried for him? Don’t be. Why don’t you worry that your Yunlou daddy has finally decided to snatch you back to keep his cause alive? His life is sturdier than yours."

Hermes huffed in annoyance. "Ye Lanzhou had used all his tricks to hide many good things. Unfortunately, he didn’t know his son would be so stubborn. He looks colder and more realistic than anyone else but he’s actually so na?ve."

As he spoke, he grew gleeful and sighed, "I’m really excited. I wonder how interesting Ye Qingxuan’s expression will be when he finally realizes that he’s always been purposely overlooked because of his naivety."