NFBE Chapter 456 - 377: "Giant Mage" Gordo
Chapter 456 - 377: "Giant Mage" Gordo
"Ed!"
"Read the list!"
Raylo said.
Ed stepped forward and unrolled the sheepskin scroll in his hands.
He cleared his throat and announced in a loud voice.
"Earth Knights Bolin, Monk, Feg, and Ron! For leading the charge and your outstanding service in battle, you are rewarded with a Sky Knight’s Breakthrough Potion!"
In the crowd, Bolin and Monk puffed out their chests.
Beside them, two other tall Knights were so excited they trembled all over.
They were former prisoners from the Fiery Sun Kingdom, serving in Black Stone Territory as Sin Soldiers. Only by risking their lives time and again did they clear their names and become Official Knights of Black Stone Territory.
They had never imagined that happiness would come so suddenly.
Sky Knight—that was a realm they had only dreamed of reaching!
The four of them walked onto the high platform, and Raylo personally placed a Crystal Bottle containing a sky-blue Potion into each of their hands.
"Don’t squander it."
That was all Raylo said.
"We swear to die for the Lord!"
The four of them knelt on one knee, their voices firm.
The cheers from below the stage grew, wave after wave.
"Great Knights Mafey, Rold..."
Ed continued reading, calling out eighteen names in a row. They all received the reward of an Earth Knight’s Breakthrough Potion.
Next were thirty-five Knights, who received the Great Knight’s Breakthrough Potion.
Finally, there were forty-three Knight’s Attendants of distinguished merit. They received the Knight’s Breakthrough Potion they had dreamed of, which meant they would officially cross the threshold of Extraordinary Power and become true Knights!
The entire square erupted in a sea of celebration.
The Knights raised their weapons, their cheers thundering like a tsunami, soaring to the heavens as if to tear a hole in the sky itself.
Raylo stood on the high platform, looking down at the faces flushed red with excitement, feeling the fanaticism and loyalty that had solidified into something almost tangible. A surge of pride and ambition rose in his heart.
This was the foundation of his confidence to stand firm in this land of chaos!
However, just as this jubilant atmosphere reached its peak, a sudden change occurred.
An indescribable sense of oppression spread from the northeastern horizon without any warning.
The clamor in the square gradually died down as everyone subconsciously raised their heads to look toward the northeast.
The once-clear sky was visibly growing dark.
To the northeast, massive dark clouds gathered out of thin air, churning and twisting together to form an immense vortex of thunder.
Those were not ordinary dark clouds, but cloud masses formed from the convergence of near-pure black Magic Power that emanated an aura of destruction.
RUMBLE!
A purple bolt of lightning, as thick as a mountain range, exploded deep within the clouds. Yet, it did not produce the expected thunderclap, only a muffled, colossal boom that made one’s very soul shudder.
The very ground of Black Stone Territory trembled slightly under this flash of light that pierced through heaven and earth.
A terrifying pressure, like a physical tsunami, swept over them from a great distance.
Some of the physically weaker commoners even turned pale, their legs grew weak, and they could barely stand.
Even the Knights on the high platform felt a tightness in their chests and shortness of breath, as if an invisible mountain was pressing down on their hearts.
A fierce wind howled, kicking up dust from the square and making the banners dance wildly.
On the high platform, Raylo stood with his hands clasped behind his back.
His gaze was fixed on the raging thunderstorm.
He knew that in that direction, the Catastrophe Level avatar of the Nine-headed Demon Serpent had been born.
The terrifying storm of thunderclouds occupied the distant northeastern sky like a herald of the apocalypse, exuding an unsettling, deathly silence.
This was the brief calm before the storm.
However, for Black Stone Territory, the pressure did not breed despair, but rather a frenzied drive.
The rewards from the celebration ceremony and the immense threat from the catastrophe acted like two potent catalysts injected into the blood of every Black Stone Knight.
For the next few days, Black Stone Territory was plunged into a fanatical training atmosphere.
The training grounds of the entire territory were filled twenty-four hours a day with the clash of weapons and the roars of Knights.
Bolin, Monk, and the other two new Sky Knights worked almost without sleep to consolidate their power.
And those who had received the Earth Knight and Knight’s Breakthrough Potions pushed themselves to their absolute limits.
They kept the potions awarded by their Lord close to their bodies, choosing to consume them only when their bodies and wills had been honed to their peak.
Joyful news came in one after another.
"Report, Lord! Knight Rold has successfully broken through during training and advanced to Earth Knight!"
"Report! Three more Knight’s Attendants have channeled their Life Energy and officially become Knights!"
"Report! Knight Mafey..."
The wrinkles on Ed’s face seemed to multiply as he reported to Raylo.
In just a few short days, the Extraordinary Power of Black Stone Territory shot up like bamboo shoots after the rain, climbing higher and higher.
The number of new Earth Knights reached five, Great Knights increased by eight, and the number of Official Knights grew by a full twenty-four.
This fervor for training caused the strength of Black Stone Territory to swell at a visible rate.
Once the affairs of Black Stone Territory were on the right track and the morale and strength of the Knights had reached a new peak, Raylo decided to set off for the Giant Dragon Realm.
「Inside the study of the Lord’s Castle.」
"Ed, for the next few days, I’m leaving the territory’s defenses to you," Raylo said.
"Internally, ensure training doesn’t slacken. Externally, maintain the highest level of alert, especially in the direction of the Jade Swamp."
"Yes, Lord!"
Ed solemnly accepted the order.
Raylo nodded and said no more.
...
After a brief sensation of weightlessness, the world opened up before Raylo.