Chapter 661 - 420: The Key to the Final Holy Hall

Chapter 661: Chapter 420: The Key to the Final Holy Hall

Just as the Mages appeared, level-up effects flashed before Zhou Chen’s eyes.

The experience bar, which had been on the verge of filling, instantly emptied from the massive influx of experience points.

LV 16 → LV 19!

Killing two Dark Stalkers in succession, on top of completing the quest, allowed Zhou Chen to jump straight to Level 19, leaving his experience bar completely empty.

[Wish Points +20, +30... +200, +210...]

With the academy’s crisis resolved, his Wish Points skyrocketed, totaling 5,167. And that seemed to be only from the Mages who had just emerged; there were surely more people still inside.

"Outlander, I am Gandoldov, the headmaster of Butonbus Magic Academy."

The white-bearded old man in a white robe stepped forward and bowed slightly. "Thank you for helping the academy out of its predicament."

"You’re welcome... but I have one question." Zhou Chen looked around and asked the burning question. "With so many of you, you couldn’t take down a single Harpy?"

The expressions on the many Mages’ faces became strained. Headmaster Gandoldov coughed lightly and said with a helpless tone, "That Harpy was exceptionally powerful, far beyond our ability to handle. It would have been very difficult to kill it without resorting to large-scale destructive Magic... So, our only option was to activate the lockdown and wait for outside support."

Zhou Chen thought for a moment. He decided not to reveal the Harpy’s true identity for the time being. ’I’ll find an opportunity to speak with the headmaster alone. It’s best if only a few people know about this sort of thing.’

The headmaster was old and shrewd and could tell Zhou Chen had something more to say. "This isn’t the place to talk. We can discuss it in detail later... But could I trouble you with one more thing?"

"What is it?"

"Could we borrow the light from that sword?" the headmaster asked sincerely.

The lethality of the Demon-Breaking Sword’s light against Dark Demons was plain for all to see. If the Magic Academy could obtain the Anti-Demon Light, its defenses would improve by several levels. They wouldn’t be so helpless, even if more Dark Demons were to attack in the future.

"I can, but how would I lend it to you?" Zhou Chen said.

The headmaster raised his Magic Staff and tapped it lightly on the ground. WHOOSH!

The scene changed in an instant. The two of them were transported to a spacious, secret chamber. It was brightly lit but had no doors or windows, a completely sealed room. A complex and profound Magic Array glowed on the floor. It belonged to a system entirely different from Alchemy; Zhou Chen studied it for a moment but couldn’t make heads or tails of it.

With a wave of his Magic Staff, magical runes flickered, and a pedestal rose from the center of the array. "Please insert the sword here. The Magic Array will collect and store the light, analyze it, and finally generate a light of the same origin."

[You have triggered the side quest: "Anti-Demon Light"]

[Quest Description: Insert the Demon-Breaking Sword into the pedestal to light up the Magic Array and provide assistance to the Magic Academy.]

[Quest Reward: 1,500 Experience Points]

’This Magic Array is pretty smart,’ Zhou Chen thought as he summoned the Demon-Breaking Sword and inserted it into the pedestal.

VMMMM!

The blade trembled, and a brilliant Anti-Demon Light flared from its body, swiftly illuminating the dim Magic Array.

"That’s enough," the headmaster said with a nod.

SHING. Zhou Chen pulled the blade out. Even without the Demon-Breaking Sword, the Anti-Demon Light radiating from the Magic Array didn’t extinguish; in fact, it grew even brighter.

[Quest "Anti-Demon Light" complete. Experience +1,500!]

"Thank you so much. Now the academy can activate its large-scale defensive array. With this unique light, we won’t be completely powerless even if the Dark Demons attack again." The headmaster bowed slightly in thanks once more, then said in a solemn voice, "I can see you have something you wish to say. Why not speak of it here?"

So, Zhou Chen told the headmaster the true identity of the Dark Stalker and presented Lester’s Master’s Scepter.

The headmaster was stunned. He stared at the Master’s Scepter and fell into a long silence, finally letting out a deep sigh filled with indescribable grief. "Lester... *Sigh*. He was a very kind and excellent Mage... Why did he have to suffer such a fate... The Desecration Church... what in the world are they plotting..."

"Ah, you probably don’t know. The Desecration Church is an evil cult that emerged over eighty years ago. They ally themselves with the Darkness and want the Abyss to rule over Gaia. Over these past eighty years, they have grown steadily stronger through their virus-like methods of infiltration, engaging in countless battles with the Alliance."

The headmaster looked at Zhou Chen. "The former owner of the clothes you’re wearing, Shafali, fought against the Desecration Church on many occasions. But later, she also..."

"One of the reasons I came to the Magic Academy was to investigate the cause of Shafali’s fall," Zhou Chen said. "After I killed her, I found something on her body called a Desecration Emblem. You must have heard of them, Headmaster?"

The headmaster nodded. "The Desecration Emblem Shafali had was confiscated from a believer of the Desecration Church after a great battle. But she didn’t tell anyone; she began to research it in secret."

"By the time we realized what was happening, it was too late. Her mind had been severely corrupted by the Desecration Emblem. She grew irritable and extreme, claiming to have comprehended supreme knowledge from it—that the only salvation for Gaia was to embrace chaos and Darkness."

"After that, she slaughtered her fellow academy members, betrayed the academy, and her whereabouts have been unknown ever since."

Zhou Chen pondered for a moment, then asked, "Does Shafali still have a room at the academy?"

"Yes. When she defected, she placed a warding spell on her room. If anyone tries to force the door open, the spell will detonate and destroy everything inside. We suspect there must be something important in there, so we haven’t made any rash moves," the headmaster replied.

"Please take me there. I have the key to her room." Zhou Chen took a slightly rusted key from his Player Backpack.