Mage Manual

Smack!

The falling momentum suddenly halted. Death Mad looked up and saw Ash grabbing the end of the chain with one hand and holding her wrist tightly with the other, gritting his teeth, muscles taut.

"Let go, I have to—"

"Shut up!"

For the first time, Ash lost his temper in front of her, his voice breaking with agitation: "Don’t let go, I’ll pull you up!"

"If you don’t climb up now, it will be too late—"

"Sonia Sevi!" Ash shouted her name loudly, then took a heavy breath, his voice hoarse and weak, but his tone unwaveringly firm: "I won’t let go of your hand!"

Sonia Sevi...

Death Mad was momentarily dazed, as if discovering a black stone in a storage room corner, and upon wiping it clean, found it to be a sparkling, transparent ruby, its brightness captivating her heart.

Memories floated to the surface—

"We’re almost at the exit, how can we stay here..."

At Shattered Lake Prison, the first time she saw this innocent and lonely Observer, she was surprised the young Observer was so harmless...

"Just a bit more effort, and we can leave..."

Watching him and Sonia soar together over the Sea of Knowledge, she thought their meeting could be a good thing...

"We’ve trapped the white snake in hell, we can think of a way outside..."

In the amnesia cabin on Time Continent, she saw even with amnesia, he and Sonia still believed they were lovers, and resolved to protect their relationship...

"If we can kill it once, we can kill it a second time..."

In the third Angel Hunt, Sonia met him and the Princess group, seemingly calm on the surface, yet so aggrieved that she cried continuously while sleeping. She thought she should help Sonia eliminate other rivals...

"So trust me, we can definitely..."

Volunteering to guide him to explore hell, threatening him to give up other lovers, she sincerely believed she was protecting Sonia’s romance...

But ever since he kissed her once in Fantasy Hell, in her mind, she couldn’t stop thinking about one thing, a thing she wouldn’t tell anyone, something hidden in the storage room corner, a ridiculous and trivial yet yearning thing...

Perhaps without saying it, she had her answer.

A one-sided answer.

"From now on, you are no longer the Final Observer."

Death Mad said: "No fate will bind you anymore, you are just yourself, Ash Heath."

She raised her hand to embrace Ash and gave him a gentle kiss, at the moment he was lost, she fiercely kicked up at his abdomen with force from her waist.

Sorry, Sonia, just this once.

"Vishi!" Death Mad burned the last of her Source Crystal, emitting a soul-piercing scream that echoed through hell!

Ash was kicked towards the hell exit, unable to catch his breath or make a sound, only able to watch Death Mad fall. Meanwhile, a ruby chain swung down from the hell passage, dyed immediately with grey decay but still served its purpose, wrapping around Ash’s waist at the last moment before he was pulled down by immense gravity, suspending him in mid-air, just one step away from the passage!

Death Mad spread her arms, like a swallow diving into the grey hell.

There’s nothing belonging to her tomorrow, no future worth anticipating, she should have died long ago. But living until now... doesn’t seem too bad.

"I kind of understand his feelings now." Her smile rose and fell, "Youmo, are you there?"

A phantom of an Elf girl appeared to Death Mad’s left, barely clothed except for underwear and several purple ribbons wrapped around her body, her skin snowy, her aura obscure, like a bewitching white lotus blooming in a filthy land.

"You’ve already pursued the ultimate power and tired of all entertainment in this world." Death Mad said: "Since you have nothing else to do, join me on one last adventure."

Youmo sighed, placing her hand on Death Mad’s shoulder.

"Mirror Demon, are you there?"

A silver-haired girl appeared behind Death Mad’s left, holding a Silver Lamp, wearing a high-slit tube dress, a fluffy white fox shawl, sexy yet cute.

"Where the Observer goes, you go, right?" Death Mad said: "Then come with me."

Mirror Demon pondered for a moment, lifting the Silver Lamp to illuminate Death Mad.

"Black Demon, are you there?"

A black-haired girl in a black dress appeared behind Death Mad’s right, her hair color not pure black but a dirty black of multiple colors overlaid. Her eyes lacked any light, but her mouth curved into an exaggerated arc, like a horrifying smile.

"No more fighting needed, no more struggling ahead," Death Mad said: "I’ll help you avenge and relieve you from pain."

Black Demon nodded, obediently clutching Death Mad’s sleeve.

"Observer."

On Death Mad’s right, a youth in a black coat appeared. Chains wrapped around his waist, a black vest over a white shirt with a red tie, his face shadowed under a hood.

"Come die with me." Death Mad said.

The Observer glanced at her, lowered his eyelids, withdrew a sharp sword from his waist, and handed it to her.

This spiritual conversation completed in an instant as she continued falling, the white snake saw its prey willingly delivered and let out a long howl, the faded disaster instantly turned Death Mad into a grey-white statue.

But in the next second, raging blood light repelled the grey corrosion, seven grand void wings spread from Death Mad’s back, all blood-colored, every full wing capable of obscuring hell, a slight flap sentences fate!

Her seventh wing resembled a demon’s tail, sharp as a sword, vibrant like poison, dancing gracefully with elegance, a casual sweep filling the sky with blood!

Within a breath, three thousand six hundred Secret Realm halos deployed, forty-nine overlapping mobius phases descended, coating the entire grey-white hell with her colors!

"I am the Death Mad Sword Maiden!" Death Mad solemnly declared: "I am the Great Annihilation!"

The instant grey-white met burning blood, it was as the dawn morning star’s destruction radiated hell. As it was about to burst out of hell, four chains sealed off the hell passage!

Wonder: Shattered Lake’s Lock!

Wonder: Fairy Tale’s Lock!

Wonder: Silver Lamp’s Lock!

Wonder: Soul’s Lock!

Ash slumped on the Hell Seal, raising his head blankly, seeing the Seven Heavens ablaze with war. Blood rain fell from the sky, the soil dyed dark red, world-ending wonders crisscrossed like raindrops.

He was momentarily dazed, suddenly remembering something, silently reciting Aurora’s Mage Manual in his heart.

The Light Screen that would always appear immediately before him, had nothing now.

He had finally lost Aurora’s Mage Manual.

The Mage’s Handbook was gone, so the Observer, Death Mad, Black Demon, Mirror Demon, Youmo naturally ceased to entangle him, their prearranged fate, curses, and everything drew to a close.

Strangely, this was something he had exhausted himself to achieve, yet why did his heart feel so... so...

"What’s wrong, Ash?"

Ash looked up and saw a red-haired girl kneeling down, her face capable of both anger and delight filled with worry. Oddly enough, even though they parted only a few days ago, Ash felt as though it was several centuries, the past days of fear, anxiety, worry, despair... all transformed into an indescribable bitterness choking his chest.

He took a deep breath and softly called: "Sonia."

"Hmm?"

"Lissdia."

"Ah?" The Witch’s voice sounded in unison, sisters all felt Ash was calling them.

"Weiser."

"I’m here." Silver Lamp also squatted down, tilting her head to look at him, revealing a sweet smile.

"Vishi."

"What’s up." Vishi tucked her hair behind her ear, seemingly unaccustomed to Ash’s solemn address.

Ash’s eyes filled with tears, his lips tightly pressed. The chaos of the Seven Heavens, the gods’ apprehension and hostility, in this moment could not reflect in his eyes, his gaze contained only them, nothing else.

He reached out to tightly embrace the surprised Sonia, unable to hold back his emotions anymore, he choked out, "I’m back!"

Aurora’s Mage Manual disappeared, but his Mage’s Handbook remained.

Sonia, Diya, Weiser, Vishi exchanged glances, each letting out a small laugh, the tension instantly dissipating, immense fatigue rushing in. Yet in this moment no one continued to forcibly persevere, with him by their side, they were used to no longer forcing themselves.

Sonia cupped Ash’s face and gave a light kiss, gazing into his eyes, gently said:

"Welcome back."

(End of Volume Five)