Versatile Mage

Translated by XephiZ

Edited by Aelryinth

—

Mo Fan made his way back to Hohhot and transited to Hanzhong. He received an update after leaving the Dark Abyss. The old herdsman that had witnessed the destruction of his town had woken up.

Mo Fan made his way to the hospital, but he realized everyone in the room was silent.

He glanced around and noticed Qu Kang and Fujie were not around. The other members of the Preventive Committee had gathered at the old herdsman’s sickbed.

The old herdsman’s eyes were hollow, a sign that he had suffered a tremendous blow mentally. Mo Fan was wondering if the man had actually recovered from the shock.

“Mo Fan, you better hear what he has to say,” Zhao Manyan said in a deep voice.

Mo Fan went up to the old herdsman. He could see the old man’s hands were trembling.

“Old man, did you really see the pyramid?” Mo Fan asked sternly.

Mo Fan had come immediately after hearing a brief description of the old man’s statement on the phone. He believed it would be best to ask the old man in person.

The old man raised his head and looked at Mo Fan with dull eyes. He nodded.

“Can you briefly describe what happened when you saw the pyramid? I’ve seen the pyramid in Egypt, so I would like to compare it with the one you saw,” Mo Fan said.

“There’s the deathly light, the Realm of the pyramid, and lots of undead, black and gray, the triangle mirror…” the old herdsman’s words were barely intelligible.

When people experienced extreme sorrow and fear, they would selectively forget the past if the scenes were too painful.

The old herdsman was currently in a situation like that. He had witnessed something unusually terrifying. He was struggling to describe what he had seen in detail. He only remembered seeing the pyramid, the undead, and blood everywhere…

“The deathlight of the pyramid… Mo Fan, only a pyramid’s Realm would allow the undead to move about in broad daylight. I already asked the old man about it before you came. His description of the light is the same as the glow of the mirages we saw in Egypt. I don’t think the old man made it all up,” Zhao Manyan spoke up.

“The undead of the Ancient Capital are still in their tombs. They have nothing to do with the incident.” Mo Fan looked out of the window. For some reason, he did not feel the usual warmth from the clear sky. It felt like something was making the sky hazy and was blocking it.

“Could it really be undead from Egypt? But, why would Egypt’s undead show up in the northern territory of our country? That’s impossible!” Qi Yang blurted out in disbelief.

He had never heard of Egypt’s undead showing up in other countries. Qi Yang had already reported the incident to the Magic Association, but the Beiguo (North Country) Magic Association insisted it was just some misbehaving undead coming out from their graves and had killed everyone in the town.

Mo Fan was about to ask more questions when a few people wearing the white-orange uniforms of the Enforcement Union came into the room. One of them was wearing a tall hat. It was rather artistic and strange.

He Feikun strutted up to them. “I’m an Enforcer of the Beiguo Magic Association, He Feikun! We have some questions to ask this survivor!”

He was clearly not asking for permission, but notifying them what he was here for.

“Old man, did you say you saw the pyramid?” He Feikun asked. He sounded suspicious of the old man.

“I…I already told you everything!” The old herdsman was mentally unstable. He immediately lost control of his emotions when the man doubted him.

“Humph, what a ridiculous excuse you’ve come up with! I believe you’re covering up for the culprit, am I right?” He Feikun took another step forward.

“How can you say something like that!?” Qi Yang snapped.

“I can say whatever I want! The Beiguo Enforcement Union is in charge now. You can hold me responsible if anything happens. Your Preventive Committee can continue on with your work, and stop interfering with ours,” He Feikun replied disdainfully.

He Feikun went forward without waiting for the others’ response. He snapped imperiously, “What pyramid? I’m sure it was just the work of an evil Undead Mage. We’ll be taking the old man with us.”

“What? He’s our important clue. How can you take him just like that?” Qi Yang was furious.

“Can you please use your brain?” the Enforcer, He Feikun, snapped. He glanced at the Preventive Committee and Mo Fan’s crew disdainfully and said, “The whole town is dead, but why is he alive? He doesn’t know any magic. If he witnessed it all, how is he still alive? Most ridiculously, he said that he saw a pyramid! The pyramids are in Egypt; since when does our country have a pyramid? None of his words make any sense. He’s either a lunatic that has lost his mind and kept thinking about ridiculous things, or he’s an accomplice of the culprit, trying to mess with our investigation!”

The members of the Preventive Committee were left speechless.

The truth was, they were willing to believe the old man in the beginning. After all, he did see the undead, and his description of what happened matched the details they noticed at the scenes. However, as soon as he mentioned the pyramid, everyone assumed the old man had yet to recover from his shock.

“I’ll find some valuable information from him. Isn’t the Preventive Committee following the trail of the Black Vatican? If it really has something to do with the Black Vatican, I don’t mind you being involved. If not, just mind your own business!” He Feikun snarled.

Before anyone could speak, He Feikun dragged the old herdsman away and left. The old herdsman suffered a mental breakdown again after being forced around and interrogated. He kept smashing the things around him and cursing.

“See, I told you he’s crazy,” He Feikun grinned coldly back at them.

Mo Fan, Zhao Manyan, and Lingling were overwhelmed by anger. They had come all the way here to search for clues and find out the truth, yet this asshole had come out of nowhere and driven their important witness insane. How were they supposed to continue with the investigation?

“Mo Fan, what do you think?” Zhao Manyan asked.

“I don’t know. What the old man said was indeed ridiculous. The pyramid… that’s not possible. I was also thinking that an evil Undead Mage was behind it on my way here,” Mo Fan admitted.

“I’ll show you the recording. See if you think the old man’s description of the Realm of the pyramid was on point. I’m a little light-headed now,” Zhao Manyan said.

Zhao Manyan played the recording for Mo Fan. It was the description that the old man had given about the Realm of the pyramid when Mo Fan was not around.

Mo Fan listened to the recording carefully and frowned.

“I don’t think anyone that hasn’t seen the Realm of the pyramids before could describe it in such detail,” Zhao Manyan declared.

“Likewise; it seems he did see the Realm of the pyramid,” Mo Fan nodded.

“Doesn’t that mean he actually saw a pyramid?”

“Is there really a power that can move the pyramid to somewhere so far away in this world?” Mo Fan asked.

“I’m afraid it’s actually possible,” Lingling said.

The old man’s description was on point. If they could find the reason why only he survived, it would mean he was telling them the truth!

“It’s useless making wild guesses here. They are the only clue we have,” Mo Fan whispered.

“Are you referring to the Shepherd and Cheng Ying?” Zhao Manyan said.

“Mm, I really hope the old man was only imagining it, and mixed up the things he saw in a movie with what happened in real life,” Mo Fan said.

It was not like Mo Fan did not have any pity for the old herdsman, but even he was having a hard time imagining what would happen if a pyramid actually showed up in Beijiang…

—

—

Normally, the Enforcement Union was responsible for incidents like this. It was obvious that He Feikun was an absolute asshole and a piece of trash, but unfortunately, the Preventive Committee’s first priority was to track down the Black Vatican and gain access to its higher-ups.

The Shepherd and Cheng Ying were still on the loose, living like normal people. They were even being extremely friendly to the strangers around them. No one would possibly think they had anything to do with the Black Vatican.

Mo Fan did not make a move, either. The Black Vatican was being extremely cautious. The two were still waiting patiently, even after they assumed they had gotten away. Perhaps their higher-ups were afraid the two would bring them trouble if their identities had been compromised.

“Say, is there a chance that the Cold Prince and the Chief Extraditor have given up on them?” Zhao Manyan was getting a little impatient.

The Shepherd and Cheng Ying were not moving after so long. Mo Fan’s Darkness Corruption would not last forever. Once its effects were gone, the two would surely slip away. Everything they had done so far would be in vain!

“Their ranks aren’t low; I don’t think the Black Vatican is going to give up on them. They are probably trying to make sure everything is fine,” Mo Fan said confidently.

“But what if they aren’t crucial to the conspiracy they are busy with?” Zhao Manyan said.

It was a possibility. They had to consider every scenario, knowing the risks involved.

“We’ve tried our best,” Mo Fan could only say.

The only thing that Mo Fan could do was stay on the two’s trail. They were an important clue that Leng Qing had traded her life for. He had to keep following them. Even if he was not able to find the authorities of the Black Vatican, Mo Fan would not have any regrets, since he had done everything he could!

—

His targets were extremely patient. Mo Fan took his time, too. He continued to cultivate with the energy he had obtained from Little Loach’s recent upgrade.

His Shadow Element was about to have a breakthrough. He was using every second he had, hoping to increase his odds against the Black Vatican before the clash took place!

Zhao Manyan was pretty bored, and kept walking back and forth. When he returned to Mo Fan, he felt like he was about to go insane when he saw Mo Fan calmly meditating.

Mo Fan’s eyes suddenly sprang open as Zhao Manyan was about to leave. His eyes emitted a sharp glitter!

“A breakthrough?” Zhao Manyan asked.

“Mm! And… they are on the move!” Mo Fan replied.