Chapter 56: Qiaolin Intervenes

When the group arrived at the scene in Lin City, the soldiers responsible for defending the city were already engaged in battle with the Black Fang Legion.

However, they were being overwhelmed in terms of both equipment and rank.

The leader was a sorcerer skilled in fire magic and a Four-Crown powerhouse.

He was also quite proficient in Taijutsu, making him a dual practitioner of magic and martial arts.

A single charged fireball of his had blasted a hole directly through the city wall, allowing the soldiers of the Black Fang Legion to charge inside.

The orders they had received were to eliminate all resistance in the city at any cost!

“You despicable Balthars!”

Several Lin City soldiers raised their spears and lunged at the fire sorcerer, only to be swept away by a giant flaming greatsword he summoned.

“The legion has taken over this city! Resistance will be met with death!” he announced coldly.

He then raised his hand and began chanting an incantation.

Fireballs rained down, bombarding the streets while the soldiers behind him launched their assault.

“I didn’t see your General Mode issue such an order. He doesn’t seem like the type to kick someone when they’re down.”

A clear voice came from behind the fire sorcerer.

He spun around alertly, chanting a spell at high speed.

Magic Power gathered in his palms, manifesting as flames, but the newcomer suddenly reached out toward him.

*Grab!*

The man’s palm clamped firmly over the sorcerer’s mouth, pinching his jaw shut.

“Shh… I just want to clarify a few things.”

The black-haired youth made a silencing gesture, and the fire sorcerer’s chanting came to an abrupt halt.

*Whoosh—*

A moment later, the sorcerer was whisked away to the top of a tall building.

From there, they could see the site of the attack where soldiers were slaughtering each other, casualties mounting steadily.

“You’re with the Black Fang Legion, but who gave you your orders?”

“My unit takes orders directly from Staff Officer Wiggins. He issues commands on behalf of the General,” the sorcerer sneered.

“Our small squad of soldiers is enough to occupy this place. It’s not too late to surrender!”

“Who asked you about that?”

Qiaolin smiled.

To ensure the man wasn’t lying, he pushed his Mental Power directly into the sorcerer’s consciousness.

Since the opponent was a Mage with relatively strong Mental Power, Qiaolin figured his mind wouldn’t be turned to mush by the intrusion.

After a quick search confirmed the man was telling the truth, Qiaolin knocked the sorcerer unconscious and returned to the ground.

‘Staff Officer Wiggins… what exactly is his goal?’

Qiaolin had a very faint impression of the man.

He couldn’t even recall his face, only knowing that he existed as a strategist for Mode.

He would rather believe that Mode had ordered a sneak attack out of shame and anger, breaking the vow of the Three Flag Challenge, than believe a military strategist would make such a foolish move.

This was no different from a direct declaration of war against the Demon Race.

Even though most of the Demon Race’s powerhouses had fallen during the Holy War, the current Demon Race was still not an entity the Balta Kingdom could afford to provoke.

This was quite puzzling to Qiaolin.

However, the current situation didn’t allow him much time to think.

More and more Black Fang Legion soldiers were entering the city and had begun harming the residents.

Aurora was rushing to the scene to provide aid, while Edmond, Lockes, and their companions joined the fray, preventing the situation from deteriorating further.

“Aurora, look out!”

Several Black Fang Legion soldiers swung their swords at Aurora.

Lockes stood in front of her, pushing them back with a horizontal slash.

“Lockes, go save the people!” Aurora cried out.

“I have to ensure your safety first!”

Lockes replied while dealing with the enemies.

Aurora ran past him toward the city walls.

That was the heart of the chaotic battle, and the outnumbered guards wouldn’t be able to hold out for long.

Aurora raised her hands, releasing magic to heal the wounded soldiers she passed.

During this time, members of the Black Fang Legion repeatedly tried to attack her, but Lockes intercepted them all.

“Ugh… Lady Aurora, you’re finally here… These guys came out of nowhere… The wall suddenly…”

“You’ve lost too much blood. Please, don’t speak.”

Aurora used her magic to stop the soldier’s bleeding.

However, her body was far from recovered after being poisoned.

Having used so many spells, her Mental Power and Magic Power were both approaching their limits.

Unfortunately, the number of people she saved couldn’t keep pace with the rate of casualties.

“No… no more deaths!”

*Splat—*

Aurora’s body trembled, and she suddenly coughed up a spray of blood.

Seeing this, Lockes quickly caught her.

“Aurora! Wake up! Don’t lose consciousness!”

“Kill them!”

The Black Fang Legion swarmed toward Lockes and the others.

He erupted with Magic Power, creating a violent gale that blew them all away.

“Get lost!”

“Heheh, it looks like it’s my turn to step in.”

A playful laugh sounded beside Lockes.

The black-haired girl summoned a mirror, and a red vortex began swirling within it.

“What are you doing now?”

Lockes asked.

“Clearing out the foreign enemies for Lin City, of course. Their actions constitute an invasion. I have no choice but to act.”

As Loki’s figure slowly floated into the sky, the flaming vortex in the mirror radiated increasingly high temperatures.

A massive fireball condensed in front of the vortex, dyeing the sky above Lin City a deep crimson, looking like a burning sun.

The people below looked up, seeing the fireball that was about to descend.

“It’s an enemy Mage! Retreat, quickly!”

“None of you will escape. Die!”

*Hum—*

Just as Loki was about to hurl the fireball at the ground, a palm lightly patted her shoulder.

Instantly, a surge of Magic Power disrupted her spell.

The fireball vanished into thin air.

“Hmm?”

Startled, Loki turned her head slightly and saw Qiaolin standing behind her.

“You’re planning to blow up everyone else in Lin City too, aren’t you?”

Qiaolin said in a heavy voice.

Loki remained silent for a few seconds before her lips curled into an inscrutable smile.

“Someone has to be sacrificed. If I don’t use some extreme measures, the other side won’t back down.”

“Killing the innocent is not the way of a Guardian.”

“Don’t get it twisted. I’m not some Hero. I don’t have those noble virtues. As long as the city itself is fine, it doesn’t matter.”

Qiaolin frowned at Loki’s words and reached out to push the girl aside.

“Eh?”

Under Loki’s surprised gaze, a complex magic circle began to form in Qiaolin’s hand at a speed visible to the naked eye.

It radiated a green light, and its gentle aura caused anyone who looked at it to feel a sense of drowsiness.

“SPRING ABUNDANCE: SERENITY!”

*Vrum!*

When Qiaolin pressed the magic circle down, a massive duplicate of the array reflected onto the ground beneath his feet.

A boundless aura of life erupted, covering everyone within the array with its gentle power.

In an instant, whether they were from the Black Fang Legion or the soldiers of Lin City, everyone felt an overwhelming wave of sleepiness.

Their consciousness faded, and they collapsed to the ground.

“This… this is?”

Lockes also felt the drowsiness that came from his body experiencing the pleasure of absorbing life force.

However, he thought it was some kind of negative effect.

Even though Aurora had already fallen asleep in his arms, he continued to hold on stubbornly until Loki punched him in the head, knocking him out.

“Talk about a determined will. By the way, Master Qiaolin, this magic of yours is truly miraculous. To think you can put people to sleep while healing their injuries. I wonder if it works on King-level Powerhouses.”

Loki looked at Qiaolin, who was now using Regression Magic to heal those who had died, and shock appeared in her eyes once more.

‘That guy… he was dead, wasn’t he? Is my mind playing tricks on me? He’s actually breathing again?’

“Are you done talking nonsense? Hurry up and help. Bring all the recently deceased to me,” Qiaolin said calmly.

To him, death was merely a state.

While he didn’t know if souls actually underwent reincarnation, if the time since death wasn’t long and the body was relatively intact, he could reverse it using Regression Magic.