NOVEL WEB Chapter 1095: A New Face
As the gravity increased sixfold, the cultists surrounding Felix immediately lost balance. The weakest of the bunch were ruthlessly slammed to the ground, their bones creaking from the abrupt increase in gravity.
Magi would struggle when gravity was doubled, let alone increased by six times. The Mana Vortex-level cultists were viciously thrown to their knees, unable to believe what was happening all around them.
One moment, they were patiently waiting for Lord Felix to finish preparing the magical component of whatever spell he was casting, hoping that the spell would strengthen them for the upcoming battle.
But the next moment… it turned out that their Lord was actually using a spell against them, not for them!
In an instant, the cultists were left dumbfounded.
What the hell was happening?
Why was their Lord moving against them?
Wasn't he on their side?
Seeing the stunned look on their faces, Felix offered a genuine smile. "At ease, men. This spell is for the enemies that have secretly made their way to us. They are being crushed underground as we speak. Rest assured, you all will be safe."
Crack!
At that moment, someone's spine shattered from the immense gravitational pressure, and he died.
Felix's lips twitched, and he corrected himself:
"...Most of you will be safe."
While some of the gullible ones believed his words, hoping that the pressure would soon be lifted and the Acadian Magi who dared to assassinate them from underground would be squished to death, the vast majority of the cultists knew that something had terribly gone wrong.
However, they had never been so confused. The man in front of them looked like Felix, spoke like Felix, and even behaved like Felix. But more importantly… his mana signature was very familiar to them as well. No matter how they saw it, the man in front of them had to be Felix of the Cult of Bones.
So why was a mighty Mana Core Magus of their Cult, whom most of them were familiar with, now suddenly acting this way?
The next moment, a black object streaked through the night sky, radiating an otherworldly aura. Then, it perfectly settled in Felix's hand.
As the faint whispers of the Faceless Mask washed over his mind, the elderly man's lips curled into a mischievous smirk as he said:
"Rest assured, it'll all be over in an instant."
As the last of the words escaped his mouth, Felix swung the Staff of Calamity, and erupted in a whirlwind of bloody carnage!
The cultists kneeling or sprawling before him had their eyes widen in utter shock, fear, and disbelief. Under their fearful gazes, the black staff increased in length, and then… they were enveloped in darkness.
Hot blood sprayed in the air, severed limbs scattered on the ground, bones shattered, and viscera flew in all directions. In a single, swift motion, Felix swung his staff and reaped dozens of lives.
Because of the shock of seeing their own ally attacking them, and the fact that the gravity prevented them from making any movement, even Mana Vortex Magi met their ends.
And amidst it all, Felix moved unhindered. Everywhere he went, the gravitational pressure followed like a cape that billowed in the ghostly wind. The Staff of Calamity flashed through the air, harvesting one life after another.
It didn't matter if they were Mana Foundation, Mana Liquefaction, or even Mana Vortex Magi. They died all the same—unable to move, fear shadowing their faces, and crushed beneath the staff.
Felix's figure moved with the vicious, blood-chilling grace of a natural-born killer. He had perfect control over every inch of his body, dealing maximum damage with the least effort. It was efficient. It was beautiful. Red mists and screams of agony surrounded him like a mantle.
The Eternal Soul Lotus sang with delight as it devoured the souls of the fallen. The whispers of the Faceless Mask softened into a twisted lullaby. The cultists howled in misery as they reluctantly welcomed oblivion. Blood, screams, and explosions… together, they wove a macabre symphony of death!
And then, the killing spree had ended just as swiftly as it had arrived. The gravity field had abruptly vanished as well. And when people started to get to their feet to take a look at the carnage around, Felix had already disappeared.
No, Felix had not disappeared…
It would be more accurate to say that he had already changed faces!
The Magi of the Cult looked around in horror. The battlefield around them had become a graveyard of undug corpses. By now, they would be fools not to realize that Felix had been an impostor. Still, the chaos he had left behind was simply blood-chilling to witness.
Dozens of cultists had perished in those few seconds. Worse still, many of them were Mana Vortex Magi! Now, the cultists were starting to believe that Felix, their superior from the Cult, had defected to the enemy's side.
But the keener ones thought something else. For they recognized the staff…
With an ashen face, one of the Mana vortex-level cultists stepped forward and roared, "Don't let your guard down. The enemy might still be in our midst!"
Those few words sent a chill down everyone's spine. They looked around frantically, trying to look for any signs of Felix. Some looked for Adam, instead. They employed all sorts of arcane means to detect them.
But of course, neither could be found.
One of the Mana Liquefaction Magi approached the person who had spoken before. Then, he said in a meek, trembling voice, "M-my Lord, we… we need to get in battle formation. T-the forces of Ravenfell are almost upon us."
The Mana Vortex-cultist looked at this person with vigilance. But when he realized that it was his subordinate, he relaxed a little. Then, he solemnly nodded as he gazed south. There, the armed forces of Magi had already gathered, ready for the final showdown.
He inhaled deeply, then roared, "Get in battle formation! Face southward! Stick close to each other and look out for the impostor. Don't fear! The Elder is with us—"
His final words, however, never escaped his lips. His subordinate—the one he had just spoken to—had stabbed him in the neck with a dagger.
It was a beautiful black dagger carved in the likeness of a raven's feather.
The Mana Vortex-cultist's eyes widen in shock and fear. Before he could even attempt to get away, his subordinate's dagger swept out, nearly severing his head. His head was now left dangling from his neck by a thin strip of flesh.
Everything had happened too quickly for the nearby people to even react. And what transpired next caused them to tremble in fear.
The Mana Liquefaction-cultist grabbed the Mana Vortex-cultist's head and then, with a vicious pull, tore it free—spine and all—from the body.
Then, a stygian serpent with topaz eyes slithered from the cultist's sleeve and sprayed venom on the bloody spine. Following that, the man's hands blurred, and before anyone knew it, a brilliant magic circle had enveloped the venom-coated spine.
Adam's lips curled into a mischievous smirk as he spoke in the voice of the man whose face he now wore:
"Anything can serve as a material component, most of all a body part of Mana Vortex Magus. As long as you know the spell and physical components… the world is yours."
The spine shuddered, then transformed into dozens of razor-sharp spikes that shot out in all directions, instantly killing the nearby Magi. And for those the projectiles didn't kill, the venom surely would.
Before the last of the bodies hit the ground…
Adam was already wearing a new face.
And the Laughing God continued to whisper in his mind…