Chapter 190: The Combination of Abilities

Chapter One Hundred Ninety
The Combination of Abilities

Duke Negan’s residence. The ballroom.

Disguised as Baron Gramir, Qilangos held a glass of blood-red Aurmir wine and stood leisurely behind the railing of the second-floor gallery, admiring the men and women in the dance hall, admiring the richly dressed young ladies and madams.

Yet there was not the slightest desire in his eyes. They were calm as a frozen lake. Only occasionally did he glance from the corner of his eye at the enormous crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling, or at Duke Negan, who stood a few steps away, his gaze pursuing one beautiful figure after another.

The Duke wore a crisp dark-blue admiral’s uniform. A red sash ran across one shoulder, linking rows of medals of honor. In all formal settings, he liked to dress this way, using it to commemorate the glorious military career he had enjoyed in earlier decades.

However, his waist had long since grown bulky, and his body was full of fat. The sharp, shrewd gray-blue eyes of the past were now left with only muddiness and desire. Still, because he had maintained himself well, the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes, near his mouth, and on his forehead were shallow, and his black hair remained thick.

This was Pallas Negan, the current Duke Negan, one of the chief supporters of the Conservative Party, the elder brother of Prime Minister Aguesid, and one of the wealthiest and most powerful people in the Loen Kingdom.

At the same time, he was Qilangos’s target in secretly infiltrating Backlund.

Assassinating such a great figure truly makes one tremble all over with excitement…

Qilangos withdrew his gaze and closed his eyes briefly.

He had accepted this commission partly because the price offered by the other party was sufficiently tempting, and partly because he himself loved adventure and enjoyed challenging difficult matters.

If I succeed in this assassination, my fame will spread across both the Northern and Southern Continents. I will stand above the “Four Kings.” And more than that, I will obtain a card—one of the cards made by Emperor Roselle, one of the cards that contains the mysteries of deities!

Qilangos suppressed the excitement in his heart and lowered his gaze to examine his left hand.

Creeping Hunger had already turned transparent. Whether through sight or touch, outsiders would never be able to tell that “Baron Gramir” was still wearing a glove.

“This really is a miraculous item… Without it, a mere Sequence 6 like me would never have been able to become one of the pirate admirals…”

Thought after thought flashed by, and a faint emotion of regret suddenly welled inside Qilangos.

Over many years as a pirate, he had seen and come into contact with quite a number of Beyonders. Among them were even members of the Aurora Order, people fond of venturing toward the end of the Sonia Sea.

Therefore, he knew that compared with a true Shepherd, Creeping Hunger still lacked quite a lot.

First, its state-switching was too slow. It required at least one second, whereas a true Shepherd could change instantly. Second, the driven souls could use only one to three abilities from their lives. As for how many and which ones, that was entirely up to luck, and once fixed after the initial “herding,” the result could no longer change. A true Shepherd, however, could selectively decide three, without needing to throw dice like a gambler at a table. Finally, Creeping Hunger could “herd” only five souls at the same time, while a true Shepherd could reach seven at most.

Of course, both also shared the same limitation: only one soul could be driven at a time. One could use only the Beyonder abilities corresponding to that soul and one’s own inherent abilities. And if one wished to replace an existing soul with a new one, the process was irreversible. There was no chance to regret it afterward.

After seven or eight years of adjustments, Qilangos had finally fixed five souls. Their abilities complemented one another, making their master seem exceptionally terrifying.

It was precisely because of those years of constant adjustment and experimentation that, among pirates, the stories of Vice Admiral Hurricane being omnipotent and capable of anything had begun to spread.

Amid the passionate dance music, Qilangos rehearsed his upcoming actions in his mind once more. At the end, he sighed inwardly with slight regret.

“What a pity. I did not find that ‘Traveler’ these past few days. Otherwise, I would not need to worry so much tonight.”

If he could capture that woman suspected of being a Traveler, Qilangos would not hesitate for even a moment. He would feed one of the five souls he currently “herded” to Creeping Hunger.

To him, every ability from that Sequence pathway was extremely useful.

Qilangos glanced at the enormous crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling and decided not to wait any longer.

The soul he was currently driving possessed only one ability: the ability to alter his own appearance and build. It did not reach a level capable of confronting other Beyonders. But because that extraordinary power was very useful in many matters, Qilangos had always been reluctant to replace it.

The good side was that no matter which soul he was driving, Qilangos could simultaneously use his own Wind-blessed Beyonder abilities.

Finally, he once more pretended to be chasing the graceful figure of a certain noble madam with his gaze, allowing his eyes to sweep past Duke Negan and the gentlemen gathered around him.

Duke Negan is a devout believer of the Lord of Storms. He is a key figure through whom the Church of Storms influences the Kingdom’s political situation. Beside him, there must be Beyonders from the Church of Storms protecting him. And although the Negan family is not an ancient family with a thousand-year history, its wealth and influence both rank among the highest in the Kingdom. They would certainly also secretly seek Sequence potion formulas and the allegiance of Beyonders…

As thoughts surged, Qilangos eliminated the gentlemen who were clearly nobles and officials, locking on to a man who had always remained by Duke Negan’s side.

The man wore a black tailcoat, with brown hair and blue eyes. His face was almost expressionless, and he remained constantly vigilant toward his surroundings.

Qilangos nodded almost invisibly. His right hand pressed forward with a very small movement.

Woo!

A sudden gale swept over the dance hall, blowing out candle after candle on the crystal chandelier.

At the instant light and darkness interwove, at the instant everyone’s gaze was drawn upward, several thin wind blades borrowed the cover of the gale and slashed at the metal chain suspending the crystal chandelier. Every blade struck the same spot.

Creak!

Amid a teeth-aching sound of snapping, the enormous crystal chandelier fell straight into the dance floor. It smashed down with a loud crash, drawing one scream after another. Quite a few guests were injured by flying fragments and let out cries of extreme fear.

Seizing the opportunity while the hall was plunged into darkness and chaos was everywhere, the glove on Qilangos’s left palm wriggled and changed, condensing a golden surface.

His expression immediately filled with dignity. His gaze pierced through the darkness and fixed upon the man beside Duke Negan.

All at once, two rays of light like lightning lit up in Qilangos’s eyes.

The Beyonder responsible for protecting Duke Negan immediately screamed, covered his head, and fell to the ground, rolling and struggling without end.

In a flash, Qilangos’s figure crossed the darkness, rushing swiftly toward Duke Negan.

However, the target reflected in his deep, shadowed eyes showed not the slightest panic. He was filled with confidence.

Duke Negan’s tall, fat body stood where it was. With a downward posture, he looked at the attacking assassin.

He raised his right hand and pushed it forward, speaking in a low voice in ancient Hermes:

“Imprison!”

Silently, without warning, Qilangos abruptly stopped. Around him, it was as though transparent walls had formed, or thick, viscous liquid had begun to flow.

It made him seem like an insect trapped inside amber, or a prisoner inside a jail cell.

The leader of the conservative nobles, the hereditary duke, Pallas Negan himself was actually a Beyonder—a rather powerful Beyonder.

Duke Negan spoke in a low voice once more and waved his right hand.

“Whip!”

Pap! Pap!

Qilangos seemed to be struck by invisible whips. His clothes ripped apart, his skin and flesh split, and white bone showed beneath.

Immediately afterward, Duke Negan leaned forward, clenched his right fist, and judged with authority:

“Death!”

Pap!

His arm swung. His entire body dragged afterimages behind it as it slammed into Qilangos, while the fist struck the target’s head with a posture that could not be resisted and could not be dodged.

Crack!

Qilangos’s head shattered. But everything around him shattered as well. Duke Negan still stood in place; he had merely dreamed.

At some unknown point, the pirate admiral had already switched abilities and entered the Nightmare state.

And unlike a normal Nightmare, after pulling someone into a dream, he himself could still move.

Qilangos’s figure silently appeared behind Duke Negan, his dark, icy eyes locking onto the target.

His right fist wrapped itself in rapidly rotating wind and stabbed like a sharp blade toward the target’s back.

Woo!

Amid surging wind, Qilangos’s right fist pierced through Duke Negan’s body, pierced through the man’s heart. Yet Duke Negan’s figure rapidly became transparent, like a summoned spirit.

That nearly formless shadow rippled and scattered, while Duke Negan appeared before the double doors on the other side of the gallery, an appraising smile on his face.

Another Beyonder… They prepared in advance? They are ambushing me?

Impossible!

The thought flashed through Qilangos’s mind. Though he was unwilling to accept this reality, he still responded calmly.

The glove on his left palm wriggled, revealing fine dark-golden scales. His pupils faded and turned vertical.

Immediately afterward, an invisible wave swept outward in all directions. One gentleman after another, one lady after another, all fell into uncontrollable fear at the same time. They left their hiding places and ran everywhere without purpose, throwing the entire scene into even greater chaos.

This made the Beyonders hesitate to act rashly, afraid of harming relatives and friends.

Seizing that chance, a hurricane wound around Qilangos. He ran at high speed, smashing through a lounge door and then through the glass of an oriel window.

Amid the crash of breaking glass, he leaped out of the building. With the blessing of wind, he actually flew a fairly long distance and left Duke Negan’s residence.

The instant his feet landed, Qilangos immediately ran toward the woods opposite. It was a municipal park, and he had already scouted the nearby terrain.

So long as he shook off the pursuit behind him, he could change his appearance and merge into the more than five million people of Backlund.

That was also his confidence in daring to accept such a high-difficulty commission.

After a while, violent wind swept toward Duke Negan’s residence. The Cardinal of the Church of Storms, Archbishop of Backlund Diocese, God Singer Ace Snake, “carried” several Mandated Punishers directly over by flight.

He had no time to notify other Beyonders.

Alger was one of those who followed Archbishop Ace to arrive, but his mood was extremely poor, because he saw the shattered window and his colleagues who had just chased out of the building.

This indicated that Vice Admiral Hurricane Qilangos had escaped.