The grotesque man in black robes was unwilling to let go of the holy scripture even after it burst into flames. He clutched the book tightly till the silver-white flames on it engulfed his body as well.
Flames pounced on him and his comrades, their dancing tongues like creeping tentacles, or like avaricious thorns that clung tightly to the necks of these people.
Lin Jie withdrew his body and transformed into the appearance of the young man he had been using for several years. He glanced down at his body, and every strand of hair was the same as before. Even the loose threads on his pants were clearly visible.
Lin Jie felt much better. He raised his hand and looked at his palm, seeing the familiar lines that seemed to have hinted at his destiny a long time ago.
Memories had come flooding back after fusing with Blackie, and Lin Jie's personality made him accept his own fate rather easily.
Regardless of the death of his parents, his transmigration, or the fact that he was an evil god, Lin Jie had always possessed an extraordinary ability to accept things.
After reverting to his human body, Lin Jie finally looked toward those beings that were holding Myths & Legends, a book which he had written. Or more precisely put, the title of this book ought to be Dream of Chaos. Those fanatical zealots that refused to let go were being incinerated to ashes.
Lin Jie silently headed toward the burned ashes, and the surrounding dark elves made way for him out of fear. For them, escaping was impossible. There was no other place in this world that could accommodate them besides the Village of Dark Night.
Moreover, the dark elves had also witnessed Lin Jie transform from a silver dragon into a human as well as wiping out the enemies that had tried to exterminate them. On top of that, the overflowing aether that Lin Jie had was unimaginably huge. If it had to be quantified, it was as much as what a hundred Wildes possessed.
The dark elves silently stepped aside, opening a wide path for Lin Jie to walk through. As Lin Jie passed, the dark elves knelt on the ground successively. Lin Jie glanced at them but didn't halt their actions, and finally reached the burning men and books.
Seeing the burnt remains of those books, he couldn't help but sigh as he thought to himself, Though Myths & Legends was viewed as Dream of Chaos by them, the contents were nothing more than some weird dreams of my past... Even a fairytale perhaps. But they somehow interpreted it as a slumbering god about to awaken and destroy everything.
From a certain sense, this book was indeed a standard of judgment which distorted and worsened their greed. The Lower District also needs to be purged and revolutionized as well... lamented Lin Jie.
With the black cloaked man's reciting of the holy scripture stopped, Wilde gradually returned to his senses and slowly returned to Charlotte's form, sprawled on the tavern's floor, panting heavily while regaining his strength. Then, he saw a familiar figure.
His eyes widened as he struggled to open his mouth. "Boss... Lin..."
Lin Jie nodded.
"I'm sorry, Boss Lin, I made you..." Wilde wanted to get up but couldn't after making several attempts. Suddenly, he felt a powerful force flowing from the back of his collar, and a strong energy filled his body.
He got up immediately and gazed at Lin Jie. Boss Lin wouldn't have actually come personally to the Village of Dark Night to save me, would he?
...Wilde immediately started to speculate in his mind. Moreover, it didn't seem that Boss Lin was in a good mood, and even his aura was different from before.
If he had to describe it, Wilde would probably guess that Lin Jie had probably 'watched enough drama and gotten sick of role-playing games and was about to do something serious'.
Wilde's gaze fell on the black cloaks from Lower District. Hmph, it's indeed these bunch of naive fellows that have offended Boss Lin, huh?
Wilde came up with a handful more conjectures. Then, after selecting the most reasonable one, he stood aside deferentially.
At this present moment, Lin Jie was aware of what was going through Wilde's mind and forcefully stopped his lips from twitching.
It's no wonder you were able to do so much when I knew nothing, even saying that I was guiding you... Haa, your imagination is indeed top-notch, Wilde...
"You've protected Cherry well," Lin Jie said.
Wilde knew that Boss Lin was no longer playing the role of bookstore owner anymore and thus responded earnestly, "It's all that I ought to do. It was your will that guided me. Also, I'm grateful that you chose me in that battle." Wilde was somewhat emotional.
Lin Jie waved his hands and rebuffed, "I can't take credit for this. Surviving was due to your teacher's will. However... you probably won't be able to see him anymore."
Wilde was slightly stunned, and disbelief filled his eyes. He couldn't imagine how that majestic body could ever fall.
He suddenly realized his mistake and immediately gazed up at the dark sky of the Village of Dark Night. The stars above were dim, and the life star that symbolized his teacher had vanished.
He clenched his fist tightly in disbelief and felt a hard object on his thumb. The ring that his teacher had passed on to him had already inherited all of that ancient giant king's power. This was the final legacy his teacher had bestowed upon him.
At that moment, Wilde seemed to awaken. Gazing at Lin Jie's still ordinary-looking back, he immediately understood the existence of that individual, which gave him an even greater shock.
Lin Jie passed by Bella, and a green light glowed in his hand, healing the wound on Bella's back. The loyal maid, whose body had already turned cold, twitched her fingers.
Lin Jie continued forward and saw Cherry curled up in the corner like a tiny hedgehog. With a smile, Lin Jie squatted down and patted her little head as if he was knocking on a door, gently relieving 'Enchanted Heart Alteration' that Cherry had placed on herself.
Cherry slowly opened her tearful eyes and, upon seeing Boss Lin, flung herself into his arms like a little flying squirrel.
"Boss Lin! Uwaaaah! You are so late!" She hugged Lin Jie tightly and began to cry.
Lin Jie had no choice but to pat her back gently and comfort her. "Since you knew that I would come, did you have to be this frightened?"
Cherry looked up, seeing Lin Jie's nonchalant demeanor, and immediately realized that she had gone too far. She hurriedly withdrew from the embrace and choked, "B-B-Bella, she..."
Lin Jie raised his chin and pointed to the side where Bella had just gotten up from the ground, looking utterly bewildered.
"Bella!" Cherry pounced on Bella.
Lin Jie stood up and noticed the uncertain look on Old Wil's face. At once, he understood that the latter had accepted the ancient Giang King's memories.
Like Silver, the Giant King knew Lin Jie's identity and had imparted everything, including his memories, principles, and standards, to his disciple. Perhaps this was his last lesson to his precious disciple. There was no better teacher than him.
Lin Jie smiled warmly at Wilde, who immediately bowed respectfully. The old black magician felt ashamed at his fear toward Boss Lin just now.
"Boss Lin..." Cherry wiped away her tears and forced a smile. "Why have you come to the Village of Dark Night all of a sudden? ...Have you really come to save me?"
Partly... To be precise, I came to save you because it's along the way... However, this answer will probably hurt Cherry's feelings. What she wants as an affirmation.
"Are you intending to go to the Lower District?" Wilde interjected.
"I'm preparing to head there." Lin Jie breathed a sigh of relief. As clever as ever, Old Wil.
The dark elves outside were whispering, oblivious to everything that was about to happen. Lin Jie turned to Wilde and Cherry. "I've already said goodbye to everyone else. You guys are the only ones left. The Village of Dark Night is also my last stop before I leave."
Cherry's eyes widened, feeling at a loss. She asked cautiously, "Are you not coming back?"
Lin Jie didn't answer. It was rare for him to not have an answer after becoming a god.
"Can you not go?" Cherry pulled on Lin Jie's shirt. "It doesn't matter who or what you are. All I know is that you are the first ray of light in my life."
Lin Jie rubbed her tiny head and said, "There's something I must do. If I succeed, we will meet again one day. If you too have such conviction, then go change Norzin. Let the Ash Tree of Commerce replace Rolle Resource and end the monopoly."
Cherry froze for a moment, then nodded resolutely.
Lin Jie let go of her hand and stepped outside the tavern. The dark elves had seen Lin Jie's strength with their own eyes, and at first, were afraid. But he had also been the one who had saved the Village of Dark Night.
"There's no need to kneel. From now on, in Norzin, you all don't have to kneel to anyone," Lin Jie spoke softly, and his words were light, like a gentle breeze blowing through this lightless land.
At some point, Lin Jie pulled out a cloak and draped it over himself before heading toward the darkest recess of the Village of Dark Night.