Chapter 1127
Just as Hubert's massive palm was about to smash down on Stongge's head, he seemed to remember at the last moment that he couldn't actually kill the man. With a look of regret, Hubert swung his huge hand down, landing a vicious slap squarely on Stongge's shoulder.
Stongge's face instantly turned pale, and a crackling sound came from his bones—as if his entire skeleton had been shattered. Half his body went numb in an instant...
Hubert gripped Stongge's shoulder, hoisting him up like a helpless chick.
It was only at this moment that Stongge seemed to snap back to his senses. His magic exploded outwards, and a flurry of runes shot from his body, trying to form a shield to escape Hubert's monstrous grip.
But just as the runes emerged, Hubert, clearly annoyed, slapped them aside. A fiery red glow appeared on his palm, pure flame power enveloping his hand.
Hubert's palm collided with Stongge's runes, and it was like a fireball exploded right in front of Stongge's face—the flame runes were forcibly shattered.
The rune shield hadn't even formed before Hubert smashed it apart. The burst of fiery energy swept over Stongge's head, burning half his hair and leaving his face covered in black ash...
Stongge screamed in fury.
"Bastard! How dare you treat me like this? You're dead! All of you are dead! I will remember this humiliation, and so will the Burning Tower. Prepare yourselves for bloody revenge!"
The Burning Tower had never suffered such humiliation. You people...
Hubert sneered coldly, pinching Stongge's lower jaw. With a casual twist, he nearly dislocated it...
Only after walking out of the camp did Hubert toss Stongge a dozen meters away. If Stongge hadn't managed to conjure a shield, he'd have been half-dead from the throw.
Stongge tried to storm back into the camp in a rage, but just as he was about to cross the threshold, Hubert slammed his fist into the ground at the entrance. Instantly, the earth began to tremble, cracks like thunder splitting the ground for dozens of meters, some even stretching twenty or thirty meters further...
Seeing this scene, Stongge finally didn't dare step forward. And then, catching sight of a group of cold-faced army mages slowly approaching from inside the camp, Stongge calmed down a little, let out a cold snort, and hurriedly left...
Damn it, there's no point negotiating with these brutes. These idiots probably don't even know the reputation of the Burning Tower...
Besides, that guy from Merlin's camp said it himself—who knows if his savage followers will take it seriously? These people aren't weak at all, especially that terrifying orc. To have such strength without even using battle aura... that's scary.
Damn it, if these muscle-headed fools actually kill me, wouldn't that be such a pathetic way to die...
Whatever, I need to report this to Dida La first. These idiots actually dared to ignore me, ignore the Burning Tower—this is humiliation, naked humiliation, and it must be avenged. Bloody vengeance...
Damn it, for now I'll just steer clear of these savages...
After being roughed up a little, Stongge finally understood—the name 'Burning Tower' held no sway here. He could only slink away, tail between his legs...
Once he'd put some distance between himself and Lin Yun's temporary camp, about halfway back, Stongge's anger began to cool a bit.
Flying through the air, he could already see the Burning Tower camp in the distance. Stongge's expression shifted strangely, and he quickly stopped in midair.
Damn, I almost forgot my actual mission!
This time, Lord Dida La sent me to find Merlin for a cooperation. Dida La himself said it—cooperation, we were supposed to make it happen together...
But what do I do now?
I just wanted to scare Merlin a little—how was I supposed to know that country bumpkin orc would flip out so fast? I barely said a word before he lost it. That's not how this is supposed to go...
Now the whole cooperation is ruined. How am I supposed to explain this to Lord Dida La?
Last time, the alchemical device malfunctioned, such a huge mistake—our Burning Tower lost several powerful mages, even two out of three researchers in charge of the Beast God's Blood and the device died...
Now I'm the only one left. If Lord Dida La doesn't throw me into that creepy magic mine to dig for the rest of my life, I'll count myself lucky...
If there were anyone else usable on the Blazeforge battlefield, I doubt he'd send me to negotiate with Merlin.
Now it's all ruined. I just wanted to scare Merlin a bit, and he immediately turned hostile and threw me out. I didn't even get to say the rest—cooperation wasn't even mentioned before it all fell apart...
Lord Dida La probably won't care why the cooperation failed. He'll just be furious and toss me into the mines—or maybe just kill me outright...
Floating in midair, Stongge's cold sweat dripped down. Remembering how Dida La punished subordinates for mistakes, his face turned pale...
He hovered there for a long while before finally letting out a helpless sigh.
That's it, I'm finished. When I get back, even if Lord Dida La goes easy on me because he needs people right now, it won't be pleasant. As soon as we leave the Blazeforge battlefield, I'm done for. If I'm lucky, maybe I'll get sent to some remote little plane to manage a Burning Tower outpost...
If I'm unlucky, I might just get banished to dig in the mines of the Blazeforge Realm...
The more Stongge thought about it, the more discouraged he became, dreading the punishment that awaited him. But there was no way to avoid going back, so he could only grit his teeth and slowly fly home.
After flying a little further, Stongge suddenly heard someone calling his name, guided by a wave of magical energy.
Casting Eagle Eye, he glanced into the distance and instantly spotted people from the Shadow Tower handling the corpse of a pseudo-Sky Rank magic beast.
The one releasing magical energy was Diras. Seeing Diras, Stongge's face soured.
That stupid groundhog again—just as disgusting as a goblin. If he hadn't blamed Merlin for sabotaging the alchemy experiment, I wouldn't have tried to scare Merlin at all...
If I hadn't gone to spook Merlin, maybe the cooperation would already be settled. Once the Beast God's Blood technique matures and the potion is refined, I'd be first in line to break through to Sky Rank. Now, look at me—I've got nothing...
Stongge's face looked ugly, and he secretly despised Diras—and the Shadow Tower as a whole.
No wonder the Shadow Tower has such a lousy reputation in Odin Kingdom. Plenty of powerful mage factions openly look down on these ratty magicians.
If the Shadow Tower weren't at least somewhat useful—there's always someone who needs their services—and if they weren't at least somewhat respectful to those stronger than them, they'd have been wiped out ages ago...
Stongge didn't want to bother with Diras, but Diras came over anyway, blocking his path and greeting him with exaggerated enthusiasm.
"Lord Stongge, I never expected to run into you here—what a stroke of luck! I've always heard of your great reputation. I knew you were overseeing the alchemical device, and I've always wanted to visit, but you know how it is—maybe my enthusiasm disturbed your research, so I never got a chance to speak with you alone..."
If Diras hadn't mentioned the alchemical device, Stongge wouldn't be so angry. That failed device—anyone who doesn't understand will pin the blame on him. But the truth is, his main research was the device itself; the Beast God's Blood was just a side project...
Stongge's face grew darker, and Diras quickly spun his words to make up for it.
"Of course, I know that the accident with the alchemy experiment was nobody's fault. But I also know, Lord Stongge, your device had no issues at all. After all, you weren't the main one researching the Beast God's Blood—that was someone else's job. Your device was flawless.
If it weren't for that despicable Merlin, maybe none of this would have happened, and we'd have had a huge success.
Your name would be etched on this era-defining alchemical device—right at the very top."
Diras started off with a flood of flattery, and Stongge's mood improved a little.
"Hmph, exactly. That selfish Merlin—he clearly saw those two idiots making mistakes with the Beast God's Blood research, but just stood by and watched, never warning us.
If he'd warned us, none of this disaster would have happened, and we wouldn't have suffered such huge losses..."
Diras nodded along, helping Stongge shift the blame—everything pinned on the dead and on Merlin.
Stongge had flown from that direction—which was where Merlin's camp was. This accident had happened less than a day ago, so why wasn't he at the Burning Tower camp investigating the failure, but instead off visiting Merlin?
Damn, could it be they've realized Merlin's research and use of the Beast God's Blood already surpasses theirs?
The Burning Tower's alchemy experiment was a total failure, but the potion Merlin refined let Morgan break through smoothly. Morgan is still alive and well, with no strange side effects at all.
Did this guy get something from Merlin?
That won't do. After this fiasco, the Burning Tower definitely won't cooperate with me anymore. My drop of Beast God's Blood has already been wasted.
And judging by the situation, the Burning Tower won't be able to make any breakthroughs soon. Teaming up with Merlin is the best option now.
Even if I don't want to admit it, I have to—Merlin's research is probably way stronger than I imagined...
If the Burning Tower works with Merlin, what use am I? No, I need to get the truth out of Stongge...