258: Chapter 258 The Seal of Conflict in Andalus is Activated! The Time Is Not Yet Ripe!

The North, Will Province.

Aksai City, Duke Weiduns Estate.

Inside the study, Duke Witton gazed at the intelligence report that had just arrived, lost in deep thought.

The western Golan Fortress had fallen.

The Night Federation army had begun marching north.

He leaned back against the chair, muttering to himself:

"Has it finally arrived..."

After a long while, he slowly sat up straight and turned to the aide-de-camp standing in the darkness: "Send word to Mason, tell him that the plan can begin."

The aide-de-camp bowed slightly in the darkness:

"Yes, my lord."

He did not ask any questions, simply walking quickly out of the study to relay the order.

...

Cangyuan City.

After receiving the message, Mason's expression remained calm.

He turned and walked down the city wall, heading toward the newly built Wizard Tower within the city.

Inside the Wizard Tower, Wizard Hurley stood on the terrace at the top of the tower, his hands clasped behind his back as he gazed at the bright moon slowly rising on the horizon.

Mason walked to his side, also looking at the moon, and said indifferently:

"The time has come. Begin."

Wizard Hurley chuckled upon hearing this:

"Indeed, it is about time."

He slowly raised his right hand, fingers spread, palm facing the sky.

A moment later, a vast and cold magical fluctuation began to surge within the Wizard Tower.

Finally, a beam of blood-red light shot up into the sky, piercing the clouds!

Immediately following, a deafening roar echoed from deep within the Mess Mountains.

A blood-red earth dragon, which had been sleeping deep within the earth's veins, was awakened and roared in anger.

Deep within the mountains, inside a massive blood pool, the boiling blood churned and surged like a living thing, then transformed into a beam of blood-red light as well, shooting into the sky!

In Aksai City and Yabu City in the southern part of Will Province, the same happened, with beams of blood-red light shooting into the sky.

The four beams of blood-red light converged high in the air and exploded with a boom, turning into a faint circle of blood-red ripples that spread out in all directions.

They formed a pale red light curtain that covered most of Will Province.

The curtain was extremely thin and almost imperceptible, as if only a faint veil of blood-red gauze was draped over the sky.

But beneath this curtain of light, certain subtle changes had already begun to occur quietly.

On the street corner of a small town, two drunks who had originally been arguing over a trivial matter found their argument growing increasingly heated, until one of them suddenly grabbed a wine bottle and smashed it fiercely against the other's head.

The bottle shattered, and blood flowed down the man's forehead, but he seemed not to feel the pain. Instead, he grinned, grabbed a piece of broken glass, and lunged at the other person.

In the night breeze, faint whispers of some kind drifted through the air, elusive and ethereal, inciting the deepest desires and violence within everyone's hearts.

...

Gino City, Wizard Tower.

In the monitoring room at the top of the tower, Aurora was sitting cross-legged in the center of a wizard formation, meditating with her eyes closed.

Suddenly, the detection wizard formation she had specifically established after learning the intelligence from Garuvi was activated!

This meant that the Seal of Andalas Strife had begun to operate!

She did not hesitate, immediately taking out a wizard formation rune she had prepared long ago and activating it directly.

A nearly transparent, silvery-white light curtain slowly expanded from the tip of the Wizard Tower, like an inverted bowl-shaped barrier, enveloping the entire Gino City and a section of the area outside the city walls.

The light curtain shimmered with a soft luster under the moonlight, isolating the fluctuations that were spreading through the air.

...

Golden Flame Castle.

Second underground level, alchemy laboratory.

Rowan had originally been sorting and bottling a newly prepared batch of potions.

Suddenly, his movements stopped.

He felt an extremely subtle change in the air for an instant.

It was as if something was quietly seeping into the cracks of the world, attempting to incite the deepest desires and violence within people's hearts.

After breaking through to become a Sky Knight, the Vampire Prince's perception made him exceptionally sensitive to this kind of change.

He put down the potion bottle in his hand and instructed Flora, who was standing to the side:

"You try to formulate some basic potions on your own first. I have something to take care of, so I'll be going out for a moment."

After speaking, Rowan walked quickly out of the laboratory, went up the stairs, and arrived at the terrace on the top floor of the castle.

The night breeze blew against his face, carrying a hint of coolness. He looked up toward the direction of the Wizard Tower and saw the silvery-white light curtain that was slowly expanding.

At this moment, a sound of footsteps came from behind him.

Rowan turned his head and saw Garuvi walking over.

She stood beside him, and the two stood shoulder to shoulder.

Garuvi's gaze turned toward the direction of Cangyuan Territory, a trace of sorrow rising in her eyes.

She knew that this time, a great many people would likely die.

And she still could not do anything about it.

Rowan looked toward the sky that seemed to be shrouded in a faint blood-red color, his gaze somewhat subtle.

With the revival of the Red Moon, almost all living beings in the North began to hear, to varying degrees, those whispers coming from the distant depths.

Some called it the Red Moon Whispers, while others called it the revelation of the Lord of Scarlet...

He was naturally no exception.

In fact, what he heard was only more, clearer, and more complete than what others heard.

Those whispers were interspersed with various ritual processes, forbidden knowledge, and certain shortcuts... like honey hanging right before his eyes, within reach, constantly inciting the deepest desires in his heart.

This was also one of the reasons why, even though he felt a slight sense of urgency in his heart, he still proceeded step by step.

He did not want to dirty his own hands.

But in this world today, he needed power.

If someone were to do the work for him, to tread through blood for him, to bear all the filth and carry all the sins for him...

Then... that would be perfectly acceptable...

After all, even behemoths like the Church and the Empire had chosen to retreat; what could he, a mere small border Earl, change even if he were to act now?

He could only wait, waiting for the moment when that main blood source vein in his territory revived.

By then, perhaps he would be able to obtain the power sufficient to change the situation.

He lowered his eyes, concealing the faint light that flashed across his gaze.

At this moment, the blood core deep within his furnace pulsed slightly, as if craving something.

Rowan took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and slowly suppressed the surging craving in his heart.

It was not yet time.

He needed to wait... wait...

He opened his eyes again and looked at Garuvi beside him.

She was gazing toward the direction of Cangyuan Territory, a deep sense of melancholy in her beautiful, slightly lonely eyes.

The night breeze blew the hair on her forehead, making it look somewhat messy under the moonlight.

Rowan thought for a moment, then reached out and gently put his arm around her shoulders.

Garuvi's body stiffened slightly, but she soon relaxed, leaning against his side and resting her head gently on his shoulder.

A faint, clean fragrance wafted from her hair, and the warm, soft sensation of her head came from his shoulder.

Rowan looked at the stunning woman on his shoulder.

The moonlight traced her delicate jawline, her long eyelashes drooping to cast shallow shadows, her lonely appearance evoking pity.

The heat that had just been forcibly suppressed uncontrollably rose again from the depths of his heart...

But upon encountering the lingering gloom and sorrow between her brows, Rowan also became somewhat melancholy.

Today, the timing is just not right...