Chapter 131: No One Can Escape
However, before Herman's great plan could unfold for long, the bombardment behind him suddenly stopped.
"What’s going on?" He turned around angrily. "Who gave the order to stop the attack?"
There was no way they had run out of shells.
Herman was furious—this was a challenge to his authority.
But no one knew what had happened. The three-masted ship was eerily silent.
"Send someone to check it out—"
Before Herman could finish speaking, someone came sprinting toward them at full speed. His mouth was wide open, his face twisted in terror.
Herman, along with a Level 3 apprentice beside him, moved to intercept him.
He shouted, "Why did the bombardment stop?"
But the approaching man did not answer his question. Instead, he wailed in sheer panic at the sight of Herman, screaming, "Gone! They're all gone!"
"What?" Herman grew even more anxious. Time was running out—he couldn’t let the people from the Wizard Tower escape.
But the man still didn't answer his question. He just kept flailing his arms and repeating the same words.
"Gone, my body... it's gone!!!"
"Get a hold of yourself!" The apprentice next to Herman rushed forward, intending to slap the man back to his senses.
But just as he reached him, the man's head suddenly fell off!
At the same time, his body started to vanish bit by bit until only his feet remained.
His severed head landed right on top of the two mutilated ankles.
The Level 3 apprentice froze in his tracks.
His eyes widened in horror, the corners of his eyes nearly splitting open.
He raised a trembling hand, pointing at his comrade—who now had nothing left but a head and two feet—still stumbling forward.
"Man... man..."
Before he could finish his sentence, Herman suddenly flashed forward, clamping a hand over his mouth.
"Shut up!" Herman averted his gaze, refusing to look at the monstrous thing on the ground. "You didn’t see anything!"
The apprentice, now silenced, finally came to his senses and looked at Herman with gratitude.
Even though he knew Herman hadn't done it to save him.
The Head Monster.
Head Monster attacked those who made eye contact with them.
A small number could be dealt with—but a large enough swarm could devour a person instantly, turning them into one of their own.
Herman's face darkened as he glanced back toward the valley's center. Now that the bombardment had stopped, he had lost sight of the Wizard Tower members.
He was unwilling to let them escape, but more than that, he couldn’t risk anyone returning alive and bringing the Wizard Tower’s wrath upon him.
"If there aren’t too many Head Monster, I should be able to hold them off..."
Holding onto that thought, Herman cautiously turned his head—only to freeze in place the moment he did.
"XX damn it..." Even the always-arrogant Herman couldn't help but curse.
Behind them, and all over their three-masted ship, a countless horde of head monster was swarming.
When Herman turned to look, many of them stared back at him eagerly, hoping he would lock eyes with them.
"Ahhh!!!"
A nearby apprentice let out a blood-curdling scream—his head tumbled to the ground, instantly transforming into a new headless abomination.
Even Herman's expression changed.
He knew that no matter how much he controlled his own emotions, he couldn't guarantee that everyone around him would stay calm.
And if someone panicked, the head monster might stop distinguishing between them and launch a massacre.
"Everyone!" Herman roared, drawing the others' attention. "Follow me! We’re going down there to drag those bastards out!"
Though reluctant, they had no choice but to move toward the valley bottom, trapped between the swarm of head monster behind them.
At this point, Herman had given up on eliminating all of the Wizard Tower members. He just wanted to escape the monstrous horde.
---
The Wizard Tower’s Struggles
On the other side, things weren’t going well for the Wizard Tower members either.
Bill almost stepped on a severed head.
Just as he was about to react, countless head monster rained down from the cliffs.
Bill didn’t hesitate—he turned and ran.
Behind him, Wright also saw the grotesque scene, nearly gasping in horror.
He quickly turned around and followed Bill, sending out a message through a communication spell.
"Why are these things here, at the outskirts of Hanging Valley?"
"You’re asking me? Who the hell am I supposed to ask?"
A strong sense of unease filled Bill's heart.
Hanging Valley’s outskirts were supposed to be a place where Level 3 apprentices like them could roam freely.
Why had powerful spectral wraiths and an entire swarm of headless abominations suddenly appeared?
And why did the Landship Sail faction dare to attack them over and over again? Did they really want a war with the Wizard Tower?
Already low on mana, Bill cursed viciously in his mind.
The plan had completely fallen apart. Right now, he just wanted to return to the Wizard Tower and report the situation.
But first, he had to survive.
---
Saul’s Flashback
Saul felt as though he had returned to the Wizard Tower—to a particular day in the past.
When he opened his eyes, he found himself standing in the third corpse chamber.
Before him lay a messy experiment table: crucibles, notes, potions, plastic bones…
Saul looked down at his hands.
His left hand was a translucent pale gray, while his right hand remained normal.
He remembered now.
That day, he had just successfully reconstructed his left hand and refined spirit resin for the first time.
Because the experiment was complex and required him to inscribe an anti-electric force field, the mental strain had been heavy. Saul didn’t leave the corpse chamber until nearly 8 PM.
Realizing how late it was, he hastily tidied up his table, grabbed his backpack, and rushed out.
At that moment, the burly man in charge of cleaning the corpse chamber passed by him—they nearly got stuck in the doorway.
Having worked in the corpse chamber for over a year, Saul was no stranger to racing against the clock to reach the West Tower before curfew.
Occasionally, he would encounter strange occurrences at night. But after mastering several Tier-0 spells, he was no longer the defenseless boy he once was.
Though his mana reserves were still lacking, his spell efficiency made him one of the strongest Level 1 apprentices.
Because he knew the most.
By 8 PM, the East Tower no longer seemed like a deadly trap to Saul.
As long as he was careful…
But tonight, as he ascended to the third floor, he suddenly felt a thick, jelly-like wind sweep toward him.
The moment it touched him, Saul had the sensation of being cleansed from the inside out.
Out of the corner of his eye, something flickered.
Turning his head slightly, he saw his shadow and the other shadows around him scatter into tiny black dots, which then jumped up in a panic and vanished into the cracks of the stone walls.
Saul blinked, then slowly turned his head back.
As expected, standing at the top of the ramp was someone he hadn’t seen in a long time—Tower Master Gorsa.
As always, he was wrapped in pink bandages, with only his silver eyes visible.
The chances of seeing Mentor Kaz depended on the latter’s mood.
But the chance of meeting the Tower Master? That was pure fate.
"Tower Master," Saul immediately bowed with respect.
He no longer felt the same terror when facing the Tower Master, but he was still nervous.
Gorsa tiptoed forward, swaying slightly as he walked down.
His silver eyes curved in a smile, and his voice was as gentle as ever.
"It’s been a while, Saul. Do you have time for a chat?"
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