Chapter 458: Same Soul, Different Bodies
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
The three Rainbow Manticore Kings moved incredibly fast. They had only just charged out from their cage a moment ago, but they were almost at the Humerus Wyrm’s side now…
However, what awaited them was a mouthful of ice flames. The Humerus Wyrm was a Legendary creature, and even though it was under the control of an Archmage, it was still incredibly powerful. The ice flame immediately covered an area of at least 100 meters in radius, and the ice and Death Energy permeated the place so densely that even the magical wave felt stifling. Even though the three Rainbow Manticore Kings were powerful magical beasts above level-18, they still could not help but shy away from the powerful Legendary-level creature.
However, even though the three Rainbow Manticore Kings retreated, they did not back off too far away, as they still hovered about the edge of the Abyss Arena. With a blood-chilling look, they kept their eyes on the Humerus Wyrm as well as Lin Li on its back. The Rainbow Manticore Kings were crafty magical beasts by nature, and had a natural knack for hunting. Moreover, the three Rainbow Manticore Kings before them were above level-18, and their intelligence was not far off from humans’.
The Humerus Wyrm made them feel threatened with its aura; hence, they retreated to the edge of the Abyss Arena.
However, that did not mean that they had given up…
Truth be told, even the weaker Hutton and Stephen could detect that the magical wave around them was becoming more intense—especially the earth, water, fire, and wind magical elements. They seemed to be boiling over. Hutton and Stephen’s expressions soured immediately. It was no secret that the Rainbow Manticore King was well versed in elemental magic; how could these two Archmages not know that given their experiences? As they looked at the magical elements around them become more and more intense, it would be a lie to say that they were not anxious…
Even Lin Li did not dare let down his guard.
This was how powerful the reputation of the Rainbow Manticore Kings was—they were the servants of the prehistoric magical beasts, the Minotaurs, and were powerful magical beasts born in the Maze. There might be a Thousand Miles of Ice coming from one of those spikes in an instant…
Lin Li stood firmly on the Humerus Wyrm’s back and held the Aether Staff in his hand. Without needing a word, an Elemental Shield had appeared. It was made up of the earth, water, fire, and wind Solar Spheres that circled endlessly around Lin Li. Even if a Legendary-mage were to attack Lin Li now, they would have to use at least two spells to break the shield.
However, Lin Li was not in a rush to attack even after conjuring up the Elemental Shield. Instead, all he did was to stand on the back of the Humerus Wyrm and carefully observe the three Rainbow Manticore Kings from afar.
The Rainbow Manticore Kings were difficult to deal with because they were impossible to see through. Nobody knew what magic would come out of the spikes on their tails; it would not be much of an issue if they were simple spells, but one would be in trouble if they were mutants who could use powerful magic like Thousand Miles of Ice or Pyroblast. Hutton and Stephen aside, even Lin Li would be done for if he met with such destructive instantaneous magic without a magic shield.
Moreover, Lin Li had a hunch that these three Rainbow Manticore Kings commanded magic that was not as simple as mere Thousand Miles of Ice or Pyroblast…
This was the Abyss Arena, after all, and it was used to test the prospective Lords of the Abyss. All the Greater Demons that had sat on the throne of the Palace of Darkness had survived this test. Who knew how many earth-shattering fights had occurred here throughout all these years? The Rainbow Manticore Kings could not be as simple as they appeared if they could survive for so long…
Hence, Lin Li did not dare to attack carelessly. After all, he was still an Archmage, and not a true Legendary-mage. Once his Elemental Shield wore off, he’d need another 10 seconds to replenish it, and if the three Rainbow Manticore Kings suddenly unleashed their magic and it was a powerful one, Lin Li would be done for.
And truth was, Lin Li had every right to worry…
The three Rainbow Manticore Kings had only retreated for about 10 seconds before the Abyss Arena’s magical wave changed drastically. There was suddenly a chilly and sinister aura amidst the boiling magical elements, and this aura was growing at a tremendous speed. It was only in the blink of an eye that this aura covered the four magical elements…
“F*ck!” Lin Li’s expression changed—he was very familiar with this chilly and sinister aura. Ever since he’d come to Anril, he experienced many encounters with energy similar to this—in the Shadowglen, Syer Town, Scar of Death… That was right, this sudden and strange aura was Death Energy in its purest form.
This Death Energy devoured the other four magical elements in the arena in less than 10 seconds, and started growing at a frightening speed.
Lin Li could even feel that this Death Energy was so powerful that it rivaled Legendary-level beings the likes of Sendros.
“Goddammit, why am I so unlucky…?”
Lin Li understood everything at last.
These three Rainbow Manticore Kings were rare mutants indeed. Their very existence would change what everyone knew about Rainbow Manticore Kings. If he lived to tell the tale of the Abyss Arena, he would create a sensation in the whole of Anril. There had not been such a strange Rainbow Manticore King in Anril for thousands of years. Their innate magic was not of earth, water, fire, or wind elements, but of true Necromagic!
Setting the issue of the Rainbow Manticores aside, this was impossible if they considered the timeline of events…
There were many views regarding the origins of Necromagic in Anril, but there was one thing that they were unanimous about. It was that the first appearance of Necromagic was slightly after the birth of the High Elves, which was to say that Necromancers first appeared somewhere in the prehistoric times and the Dark Age.
But what about the Rainbow Manticores?
Legend had it that they were the servants of Minotaurs, and had spent an eternity in the Maze. Only when the High Elves appeared and the prehistoric magical beasts started to decline in numbers did some of the Rainbow Manticores manage to escape the control of Minotaurs and leave the Maze.
In other words, the Rainbow Manticores had a longer history than Necromagic…
Magical beasts were not mages, and all their magic was innate rather than learnt. This magic came from a brand on their soul, and was passed on through generations. This inheritance was something that transcended time and space—even after thousands of years passed, there’d be no change in this inheritance. Of course, there might be mutants along the way, like these Rainbow Manticores. There would be a Rainbow Manticore that could conjure Thousand Miles of Ice or use Pyroblast every few centuries or so, and it’d be called a mutant.
But no matter how they mutated, there was no way the mutation could be so drastic. The Rainbow Manticores inherited Elemental magic from their ancestors, so how could there suddenly appear one that used Necromagic? This overthrew the very law of inheritance—they were as good as two different species.
However, that was not the worst part for Lin Li.
After all, no matter how a Rainbow Manticore mutated, it did not have much to do with Lin Li. Necromagic was powerful, but it was nothing he could not deal with.
What perplexed Lin Li the most was that these three Rainbow Manticore Kings shared the same soul!
Now that was tricky…
The same soul but in different bodies—this was not hard to comprehend, for it literally meant that different bodies were sharing the same soul. This was something that Lin Li had just discovered as well. He did not notice at first, but after the Death Energy devoured the other magical elements, Lin Li suddenly noticed something amiss.
At that instance, the magical wave in the Abyss Arena seemed unusually unified. Besides the slight disturbance caused by the Elemental Shield, it was as though all the magical waves were emitted by one person.
It was not unusual to see magical beasts sharing the same soul, as there had been at least 10 such cases in the Felan Kingdom since the Dark Age. However, none of these magical beasts lived past 20 years—for a simple reason. It was too much for one soul to take if it was shared by different bodies, especially so for magical beasts whose innate magic came from a brand in their soul. Even the most powerful of souls would not be able to withstand this.
But now, these three Rainbow Manticore Kings sharing the same soul stood before Lin Li, and were conjuring up some very powerful magic.
Now that was a problem for Lin Li…
These Rainbow Manticore Kings were only round level-18, or at most level-19, but after Lin Li realized that they were sharing the same soul, his expression changed.
Three Rainbow Manticore Kings sharing the same soul would be unusually powerful, and even by the most conservative estimate, they would be at least level-20 in terms of combat strength, but the fact that they could use Necromagic made it even worse. Who knew, they might even be close to level-21! Moreover, Lin Li could not even be sure that these damned Rainbow Manticore Kings were not hiding any more secrets…
While all of this sounded complicated, it had happened merely in the blink of an eye, and the Death Energy had devoured all the Elemental Power within 10 seconds. Now, darkness loomed over the Abyss Arena…