The moment Leon stepped out of the illusion, the Death Garden underwent a drastic transformation.
The lush trees withered, the verdant grass beneath his feet turned yellow, and the exotic flowers in the flowerbeds wilted one after another. Even the butterflies that once danced among the blooms suddenly stiffened and dropped from the air. The Death Garden, once bright and fresh, seemed to die in an instant, reverting to a gloomy and terrifying underground tomb.
Because the death energy that once shrouded this place was rapidly dissipating.
The Death Garden itself was a bizarre domain, birthed by immense death energy. Now that the energy had faded, the garden naturally ceased to exist.
Leon leaned against a withered trunk, silently watching the upheaval unfold. He had no idea how much time had passed when a sudden jolt of anxiety struck him. He quickly reached into his pocket, searching for a bottle of Duskwell Elixir, but his hand froze mid-motion. Leon realized that the faintly fragrant green mist was still gently wafting around him, keeping the tomb's pervasive red poison fog at bay—unable to approach within ten meters of where he stood.
This discovery gave Leon a new perspective on the Death Garden...
No wonder it was a bizarre domain spawned by boundless death energy. He’d battled in the illusion for most of the night, yet in reality, not even the time it took to use a bottle of Duskwell Elixir had passed. That meant the Death Garden had reached the point of distorting time itself. Leon even suspected that the illusion he experienced might not have been an illusion at all...
Distorting time, shifting space—what kind of terrifying power was this?
Thankfully, he’d managed to escape...
As Leon reflected with lingering dread, he watched the last petal in the Death Garden wither away. Then he saw the garden vanish completely, leaving only ruins in sight—blackened earth, decayed trees, a dried-up fountain, and a palm-sized gray Deathstone Tablet...
"This..." Leon's mouth twitched, his smile looking more miserable than tears.
Initially, when Leon saw that the Death Garden had vanished without leaving any magical materials behind, he couldn’t help but feel a bit relieved, thinking at least he wasn’t as unlucky as that Grandmaster.
But when Leon’s gaze landed on that Deathstone Tablet, he found it impossible to keep smiling, because the tablet didn’t emit the slightest magical fluctuation...
Although the Death Garden had always been an unsolved mystery in the Northend World—even the most powerful mages of the peak era couldn’t explain its principles—Leon had personally experienced it. He might not know the theory, but he’d gained some insights.
In Leon’s understanding, the Death Garden was essentially a world created by death energy—a fragile world that would collapse completely once someone escaped the illusion. The immense death energy, left without an outlet, would inevitably condense into something: maybe a power, maybe magical materials, maybe something else entirely...
That’s probably why, throughout Northend World’s history, no one has ever acquired a Magic Relic from the Death Garden. Magic Relics are crafted by alchemists; no matter how bizarre or powerful the Death Garden is, it could never replace an alchemist in creating such artifacts.
But regardless, whatever the Death Garden leaves behind is bound to contain immense death energy—since it’s condensed from death energy itself. Yet the tablet on the ground didn’t emit even a trace of magical fluctuation. Did this mean he’d come all this way for nothing?
Fine, forget the tablet...
The real issue was that the power Leon imagined didn’t appear.
There was no fooling himself—Leon was a Grand Mage, and his understanding of his own body was meticulous. Any change, no matter how minute, couldn’t escape his notice. The moment the Death Garden vanished, Leon paid extra attention, but nothing had changed. In other words, the power he’d hoped for simply hadn’t appeared.
"Isn't this just a bit too unlucky?"
Honestly, Leon was feeling pretty disappointed right now.
After all, this was the Death Garden that had produced a Lich King. Leon had risked so much and put in so much effort—wasn’t it all for the final reward? He didn’t expect to be as ridiculously lucky as Sandro, scoring both the Undying Pact and the Soulstone, but at least one of those would’ve been nice, right?
But now?
Not only did the power he imagined fail to appear, but the only harvest from all that condensed death energy was a tablet with no magical fluctuation at all.
In the end, Leon just sighed, tossed the stone into his pocket, and checked his supply of Duskwell Elixir—only five bottles left.
Leon knew it was time to leave this underground tomb.
Next time he came here, he’d make sure to bring enough Duskwell Elixir. He absolutely had to find the legendary Eye of Reincarnation—the only thing that could make up for the loss in the Death Garden.
With another burst of Accelerate, enhanced by his Mana Harness, Leon retreated to the passage entrance at lightning speed. At his command, the vines fixed at the entrance gently curled around him, carrying Leon out of the Prince’s tomb.
Maybe it was because he moved so fast, or maybe it was just his mood...
Whatever the reason, Leon—usually meticulous—failed to notice that before he left the underground tomb, a considerable number of skeletal warriors were lurking nearby. Each wore full armor and wielded pristine scimitars—standard issue for the royal guards of the Third Dynasty.
There were at least a hundred of these skeletal warriors. With such gear and numbers, if they all charged at once, even Leon would be in serious trouble.
Originally, this squad of skeletal warriors had been lying in ambush for a long time. When Leon appeared, their soul fire flickered constantly. Yet as Leon approached, they all simultaneously stepped back, and the soul fire that had been flickering instantly dimmed.
If any mage with even a passing knowledge of undead creatures saw this, they’d probably have a heart attack on the spot.
A dimming soul fire in undead creatures only happens in two cases: either they’re about to die, or they’re feeling fear.
The first is out of the question—over a hundred skeletal warriors, all lively as ever, none of them looked remotely close to dying.
The only explanation had to be the second...
But the only thing that could make undead creatures feel fear is an even higher-level undead. Leon was just a human Grand Mage—how could he possibly frighten the undead?
*****************
Looks like I really am ahead of schedule this time!
So, how about tossing me a vote or two?