A blurry light gradually flickered in Viktor's eyes as he slowly opened them and surveyed his surroundings.
Before him lay nothing but desolation. The dry wind, like withered hands, tore the barren earth into countless cracks.
Broken rocks stood lonely on the ground, letting the fierce wind cut through them at will.
Endless sand and dust rolled in like giant waves, covering the earth.
The intense chaotic aura seemed ready to tear this barren land apart.
Vega stood firmly on Viktor's shoulder, its feathers trembling in the sandy wind as it sensed the desolation around.
"Are you really that comfortable letting that old man take your precious princess away?"
"He's her grandfather," Viktor said calmly.
Then, he bent down and reached out his hand, picking up a pinch of soil from the ground.
But the fine dust didn't stay long in his palm, quickly slipping away through his fingers.
Vega seemed not to notice, busy grooming its wind-ruffled feathers:
"Grandfather or not, it's their first meeting, and he's from another country."
"You've been so quiet, I thought you'd gone mute today."
Viktor didn't respond immediately, just shook his hand as if to get rid of the remaining sand.
Even though nothing was left to shake off from his palm.
"Too many words would steal the show," Viktor said flatly, looking at his palm.
"We're here."
Vega was stunned, seemingly not understanding what Viktor meant.
Suddenly, through the desolate sandstorm around them, it heard what seemed like the agonized screams of souls.
The sound was piercing, clearly reaching its ears despite the howling sand.
"The Underworld?"
"No, this isn't the Underworld."
Vega knew what the Underworld looked like.
The true Underworld had an extremely stagnant river of death separating the far shore.
Swaying soul flowers covered the entire Underworld, with broken and deep rocks and sculptures occupying almost every corner.
And there were groups of fierce-looking undead, carrying various weapons.
They guarded the multiple territories of the Underworld, seeking to find those wandering, insane lonely souls in the Underworld and tear them apart completely.
But the scene before them was vastly different from the Underworld - here there was only endless dust and silence.
Yet those wailing souls were unmistakably real.
So where had Viktor brought it?
At this moment, Viktor said calmly:
"This is a place abandoned by the Underworld, a place the living are unwilling to touch."
"The Domain of the Dead."
In the game, only players or NPCs who mastered necromancy could enter the Domain of the Dead.
But it was also possible to enter with the help of a necromancer.
Like Aurelianne's grandfather.
Festan Balo.
As the only necromancer currently existing, Festan Balo was also the only human who could freely enter the Domain of the Dead.
"Some souls, due to their heavy attachments, cannot enter the Underworld," Viktor explained.
"In the end, they can only remain in the Domain of the Dead, dissipating themselves in the flow of time."
Viktor grabbed some flying sand in his hand, watching it slip through his fingers with the wind.
"No matter how you try to grasp it, you can't hold on to it."
He put his hands back in his pockets and continued:
"The Domain of the Dead is a mysterious realm exclusive to necromancers. An exceptional necromancer can carve a Domain of the Dead into their own undead kingdom, where all wandering souls become their knights."
"And powerful necromancers don't just have one Domain of the Dead."
Vega shuddered, ruffling its feathers as it looked at Viktor strangely.
"I'm puzzled. Understanding the Underworld is one thing, but how do you know about all this?"
"You're not even a necromancer."
Looking back, Vega thought some more - this wasn't the first time Viktor seemed to know everything.
It should be used to it by now.
Viktor ignored Vega's puzzlement, his gaze fixed deeply on what lay ahead as he said quietly:
"This land we stand on is one of Grand Duke Balo's numerous territories."
"And his allowing me to set foot here means..."
Viktor's eyes flickered slightly, as if the endless desolate land before him was all within his control:
"He's willing to transfer this Domain of the Dead to me."
As soon as he finished speaking, the sand-swept ground began to tremble slightly.
Bone arms burst from the ground like monsters from a nightmare - from above, it looked like a dense forest of bones.
Skeleton after skeleton pulled themselves completely from the ground.
As the wind and sand passed through them, their bodies suddenly burst into green flames.
Like an ocean of white bones covered in terrifying fire.
Each skeleton revealed broken but shining weapons, wearing armor of ghostly green.
There were even skeletal knights riding undead horses.
They carried sharp spears, trampling over their fellow soldiers as they charged toward Viktor.
Faced with this sudden crisis, Viktor didn't move at all.
Only his coat gained a white stripe down the back.
Violent wind elements surged around him.
Powerful air currents rose from the ground to the sky, completely lifting Viktor's coat.
Under his calm expression, brilliant silver light blazed around him.
[Fourth-tier Magic: Dance of the Four Winds]
Four weak streams of magic power burrowed into the undead army like they were diving underground, spreading in four directions.
Behind Viktor, formations and runes began to spin rapidly.
The intricate formation seemed inlaid with endless complex arrays, colliding with each other, constantly producing conflicting waves.
Immense magical power flowed along the paths to where the four weak magic streams were.
The undead soldiers caught between two hurricanes were even more pitiful.
Under the tearing force of two massive powers, their entire flame-burning bodies were completely ripped apart.
The flames within them burst like fireworks in mid-air.
The explosions between the hurricanes lit up the sky with green flames, reflecting in Viktor's eyes.
Some undead who hadn't even had time to transform into soldiers were scattered completely as the hurricanes passed over them.
Around Viktor, the wind still lingered.
He just calmly watched the white bones being scattered by the wind ahead and said quietly:
"But the prerequisite is..."
"I have to be capable of taking it myself."
Viktor was already familiar with the necromancer conversion test, having done it hundreds of times.
There were always players who couldn't beat this kind of dungeon but still hoped to perfectly complete the conversion quest.
They were unskilled but eager to play.
That's when they needed power-levelers like Viktor to help them complete such tasks.
Viktor was already deeply versed in the powerful system of necromancers.
And the first step to becoming a necromancer was to possess a Domain of the Dead of one's own.
There were two ways to claim a Domain of the Dead.
The first was to make the wandering souls in the domain submit.
But Viktor chose the second method.
He reached out one hand, continuously compressing an amazing wind force within it.
Finally, he clenched the wind force in his hand and slammed it down onto the ground like lightning.
"Now, stand up!"
He swung his arm up, and the endless desert seemed to be torn apart by Viktor's hand, like a ripping curtain.
The souls surging from underground completely broke free from their restraints, constantly swirling high in the sky.
Countless souls almost formed clouds, rapidly twisting their bodies around the hurricanes.
Green flames burned on their bodies, transforming them into more terrifying undead soldiers.
Numerous souls flapped their grown withered wings, and among them were skeletal soldiers as huge as mountains, rising from the ground like ancient giants.
Their bodies were completely engulfed in eerie flames, massive black armor attaching to them.
The undead tide came wave after wave, trampling over each other as they surged toward Viktor.
But faced with this undead army that could almost flood the entire land and sky, Viktor just smiled slightly:
"Unfortunately, not strong enough."
The wind around him suddenly increased by several levels.
Chaotic winds began to rapidly circulate high in the sky, the massive storm seeming to form the body of a scaled dragon.
The flickering body released terrifying pressure, the sharp elemental magic power becoming countless sharp blades that randomly tore apart the entire world.
Behind Viktor, the powerful elemental magic formed a dazzling halo.
The shadow behind him also released a deep roar.
Viktor raised one finger to his lips, as if warning all the undead armies to be quiet.
"Shh."
[Sky Hold]
Bang—
Suddenly, the wind around Viktor surged into wild waves.
With him at the center, white mist accompanied by chaotic storms completely rolled out, thoroughly rushing toward the armies in all directions.
The massive winds even engulfed the storms burning with ghostly green flames, as tornados descended from the sky.
Like countless thick tentacles constantly swaying throughout the world, completely crushing all enemies.
Boom—!
Even the sky was devastated to the extreme by this massive and oppressive force, the entire world becoming incredibly chaotic.
White light blazed, carrying thick clouds that pressed down over the entire land.
When the light faded away, all the souls had vanished.
Those ghostly green flames had become like fireflies, scattered points of light in the air gradually fading away with the last remaining forms.
All the souls disappeared together, and the gentle breeze could no longer stir up violent sandstorms.
It only lightly brushed Viktor's face, playing with his disheveled clothes.
The barren land no longer felt oppressive - though still empty, it seemed peaceful under the clear daylight.
Even the air was no longer as chaotic and heavy as before, becoming much fresher.
"Finally, quiet."
"The dead should maintain their silence."
Vega stood on Viktor's shoulder, its feathers somewhat disheveled by the strong wind.
Watching Viktor's coat gradually change from dazzling white to deep night-like darkness, it finally folded its wings and slowly came to its senses:
"Did you kill them all?"
"Oh sorry, I almost forgot they were already dead."
After a pause, Vega asked again after realizing:
"Weren't you trying to learn necromancy? Without enslaving these undead, how will you become a necromancer?"
Viktor reached out a hand, and a gust of wind blew open the ground, gradually creating a small depression.
At the same time, he calmly said:
"They are Grand Duke Balo's servants, nothing to do with me."
"Even if I could make them submit, they would still bear someone else's mark."
"In that case, better to eliminate them all."
Vega was confused - what was wrong with something belonging to someone else?
Wouldn't it become yours once you took it?
But Viktor just continued:
"There are many paths to becoming a necromancer, not just limited to this."
Besides, Grand Duke Balo would surely teach his necromancy to Aurelianne.
He could just spend some money to learn from her then.
Then, Viktor looked at the depression that had been blown open by the wind, and a golden wheat spike appeared out of nowhere in his palm.
"Besides, I just want a piece of land."
Vega stared at the wheat spike for a while, its brain freezing for a few seconds.
Seeming to realize Viktor's actions, it couldn't help but say:
"Viktor, you're truly crazy."
"Am I?"
The wheat spike fell from Viktor's hand, slowly floating into the depression, hovering in mid-air.
The wind stirred up the soil, flying in the air, refilling the depression.
Only a golden wheat spike stood planted in that loose soil, swaying in the breeze.
"I think so too."
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