Medical Sage

”Give up resistance? End me with your own hands? Heh...” However, upon hearing this, Mardo let out a strange, soft sigh before his expression twisted into a cold sneer.

A strange glint appeared in his eyes as he murmured to himself, ”It seems I can’t hide it any longer.”

Hearing this, Kane’s brow furrowed. ”Mardo, do you really think those little tricks will work on me?” he shouted coldly. He refused to believe Mardo possessed any trump card capable of upending his own dominance.

But before the thought could even solidify in his mind, his pupils contracted slightly. Mardo had actually dared to strike first! He was attacking him, the mightiest Grand Duke, an existence on the verge of the legendary Prince Realm!

”Heh...”

With a cold sneer, Mardo raised his hand. A pitch-black object, exuding a chilling dark aura, appeared in his palm.

Seeing the sinister object, Kane’s expression shifted again. ”The Dark Nether Jade! Your guild leader actually gave you this Holy Artifact?”

The Dark Nether Jade was the strongest Holy Artifact of the Scorched Earth Sect, one of the two most powerful dark magic guilds in the European Dark World. It was a treasure on par with Blood Emperor Solam’s Judgement and Trial, a top-tier Mid-Grade Holy Artifact. But it’s supposed to be held by the guild leader of the Scorched Earth Sect... I never expected Mardo to bring it today. Damn it!

”Kane, just hold him off! Once we’ve killed Melsdom, we’ll come and deal with him!” Prince Schumacher, who was in the middle of besieging Saint Magus Melsdom, seemed to notice the situation and called out coldly.

He knew exactly what a top Mid-Grade Holy Artifact signified. He himself was a perfect example. He was clearly an ordinary Blood Clan Prince, but with the enhancement of two top Mid-Grade Holy Artifacts, he was now even more formidable than Wenn Tianxiong, an ancient being at the Innate Late Stage Peak!

And that was the power of a top-tier Mid-Grade Holy Artifact. It meant the current Mardo, despite only being at the ss+ Ultimate level, was no longer someone Kane—who possessed no Mid-Grade Holy Artifacts—could handle.

”Damn it!” Kane cursed, his face livid. He understood this all too well, and his eyes filled with murderous intent.

Just moments ago, he had been playing with Mardo like a cat with a mouse, convinced his own strength was more than enough to take him down. But now? This Dark Nether Jade, this top-tier Mid-Grade Holy Artifact, was a rude awakening. How was this any different from a hard slap across the face? With such a terrifying Holy Artifact in his possession, Mardo could likely fight back against not just me, but even a true Blood Clan Prince or an sss-Level Powerhouse! In that case, what did that make my prior actions? A clown’s performance?

”...Heh.”

At that moment, a cold sneer broke the silence. Mardo squinted and flicked his wrist. The pitch-black Dark Nether Jade in his hand spun, transforming into a massive, fog-like current of energy that surged directly into his body.

Instantly, the dark aura emanating from him doubled in strength. A hint of mockery touched the corner of Mardo’s eye as his entire body flared with dark energy, and he began to recite a powerful incantation.

”...Grant me power from the Netherworld. Netherworld Magic Serpent Flower!”

As Mardo’s merciless, imperial voice echoed, the very light in the area around Kane seemed to flicker. An eerie surge of pitch-black dark energy erupted from the void, engulfing Kane’s battle-ready figure. Simultaneously, a hazy, turbulent patch of black land materialized beneath Kane’s feet, causing his expression to fall. Strange and terrifying black vines, like demon serpents, burst forth, lashing out with their maws gaping.

”Do you really think this is enough to drive me back? Mardo, aren’t you overestimating yourself? Don’t think that just because you have the Dark Nether Jade in your... Ah! No, you... you... this is impossible!”

Seeing Mardo use such a Third Tier ancient dark magic against him, Kane was initially furious. In the next moment, however, he couldn’t help but sneer inwardly, his eyes brimming with scorn. In his view, if Mardo had gone all out from the start, using his most powerful attacks boosted by the Dark Nether Jade, he might have actually had trouble stopping him. But this? Was he so overconfident that he was looking to die? He, Kane, was not like the other trash here! You better get this straight!

But to his utter astonishment, just as the vines of the Netherworld Magic Serpent Flower were about to entangle him, he moved to casually tear them apart. At that moment, a far more terrifying dark power erupted from within the flowers. It effortlessly pierced his protective aura of blood light, blossoming into a spray of gore!

SQUELCH!

In that instant, a gaping, bloody hole was torn in Kane’s body. Horrifying magical energy surged into the wound, causing his pupils to constrict. The fear and shock in the depths of his gaze could no longer be suppressed, erupting in a violent tremor.

He couldn’t believe it. How could the ’Netherworld Magic Serpent Flower,’ a mere Third Tier ancient dark spell, unleash such terrifying power? Wait... could it be... At that moment, an inconceivable theory flashed through Kane’s mind.

WHOOSH!

He suddenly looked up, his blood-stained face contorted in horror. Trembling, he stammered in disbelief, ”You... you... you broke through?”

”You’re not that dumb. But it’s too late now,” a mocking smile touched Mardo’s lips. The truth was, he was no longer at the ss+ Ultimate level. He had become a sss-Level Dark Element Holy Magister!

Furthermore, with the power boost from the top Mid-Grade Holy Artifact, the Dark Nether Jade, his strength was likely no less than that of Innate Late Stage Peak figures like Wenn Tianxiong. From the very beginning, he had never taken Kane seriously. The delay was merely a feint to lull Schumacher and the others into complacency.

”Enough. Farewell,” Mardo said coldly. A beam of darkness swiftly claimed Kane’s life.

Without hesitation, his figure flashed as he muttered an incantation. FWUMP! A pair of demonic wings burst open from his back.

From his initial feigned weakness to his sudden explosion of power, revealing his strength as a Dark Element Holy Magister to kill his opponent, and finally to the unfurling of his demonic wings—the entire sequence was over in the blink of an eye.

”What’s happening? What is this... Mardo, you!?”

Not far away, Schumacher was besieging Melsdom when he felt the sudden, astonishing surge of ancient dark magic. He froze, then whipped his head around just in time to see Kane—the Brad Family’s most promising candidate for the Blood Clan Prince level—die horribly at Mardo’s hands. His aura erupted into chaos, his face twisting into a vicious snarl as he bellowed in rage.

”What? Damn it! This guy hid his strength so well? A Dark Element Holy Magister?” The Wenn brothers, Tianxiong and Yongshou, also turned pale, their faces contorted with fury.

A Dark Element Holy Magister who was also a successor to an ancient dark magic lineage, equipped with a top Mid-Grade Holy Artifact like the Dark Nether Jade... This was no laughing matter. This man could very well ruin their plans, perhaps even reverse the outcome of a battle that had seemed a sure victory!

”...COUGH, COUGH... Mardo, I never expected you were hiding such strength. Let’s join forces! Together, we might stand a chance against them! Even if we can’t win, if we both try to escape, they won’t be able to stop us! COUGH... COUGH, COUGH, COUGH...”

From the side came Melsdom’s surprised and delighted voice. Judging by the blood he couldn’t stop coughing up, however, it was clear he was in terrible shape.

Mardo’s gaze swept over the scene. Schumacher and the two others who had been besieging Melsdom had now stopped, staring at him with pale, wary faces. Melsdom, on the other hand, was looking at him with an expression of mingled shock and elation. Clearly, Mardo’s performance had given him a flicker of hope for survival.

”Mardo, if you stay out of this, I will consider everything that has happened as water under the bridge! I also give you my word that I will not attack you!” Schumacher said, his expression changing immediately.

”Water under the bridge? Your word? Heh...” Mardo let out a cold laugh, his face impassive. But inwardly, he didn’t believe a word of it. He wasn’t a fool. It was obvious by now that this entire affair was a trap Schumacher had laid for them from the very beginning. But what was that man’s ultimate goal? Surely it couldn’t be just to take their lives.

At the thought, a chilling glint flickered in his somber eyes. FWUMP! The demonic wings on his back beat furiously. His figure was instantly shrouded in darkness before shooting forward like a bolt of lightning.

In the blink of an eye, he appeared before one of the two remaining peak Grand Dukes. He licked his lips with a sinister flick of his tongue. A chilling, demonic voice echoed as the Grand Duke’s pupils widened in terror: ”Netherworld Magic: Ferryman!”

Instantly, a horrifyingly potent dark power invaded the Grand Duke’s body, clinging to him like a maggot to bone. At the same time, as everyone watched in horror, a dense network of dark lines, as if drawn from the Netherworld itself, spread across the Grand Duke’s pale skin.

Then, for a moment, everything seemed to stand still. The figure suddenly went limp, toppled backward, and hit the ground with a dull THUD, utterly lifeless.

HISS!

Everyone present stared, their pupils contracting violently. A cold dread crept up their spines.

”Mardo, what is the meaning of this! Are you looking to die?!” a furious roar erupted.

It was Schumacher, his face horribly contorted, his frosty eyes fixed on Mardo.

Clearly, even he had never anticipated this. For Mardo to be so decisive and ruthless... to kill again without a moment’s hesitation! He had just made the Brad Family lose another one of its peak Grand Dukes! This one, plus Kane... that was two peak Grand Dukes. For the Brad Family, it was an immense, catastrophic loss! The mere thought of it made him want to slaughter everyone present just to vent the fury raging in his heart!