Chapter 145: Eternal Glory in Dreams

"What a pity..."

Lin Wei suddenly looked up, smiling very strangely.

"A pity?" Boenshu tilted his head. "Indeed, it is quite a pity. A biological mutation genius like you—had you not been snuffed out by me today—might have carved out a place for yourself in the Shadow Forest, or even across the entire League of Wizard Academies. Moreover, I remember your cultivation aptitude is also quite good. Continuing like this, becoming a formal wizard would only be a matter of time... What a pity, truly a pity..."

"Aren't you afraid that the Shadow Forest will sentence you to death once your crimes are exposed?" Lin Wei asked.

"Afraid?" A trace of morbid, manic laughter appeared on Boenshu's aged face. "Why should I be afraid?! What is there to fear from a Level 1 Wizard Apprentice whose mentor is dead?! An experimental subject with pure shadow aptitude—do you have any idea how many years I have waited for this?!"

Lin Wei was also smiling. He was laughing at Boenshu's ignorance.

"Patriarch Boenshu, your ancestors recorded this method of devouring wizards. But do you know how it was invented?"

Lin Wei's eyes curved into slits with his smile, and the lavender mark at the corner of his eye elongated by a fraction.

"How do you know this was recorded by my clan's ancestors?!"

Boenshu looked at Lin Wei vigilantly.

"She told me, of course!"

Lin Wei pointed at Cetoli, who was standing to the side.

"Hmph?!"

A wave of intense pressure surged directly toward Cetoli.

Splat!

Cetoli spat out a mouthful of fresh blood, dropping to her knees as blood trickled from the corners of her mouth in a thin stream.

"Lord Patriarch... It wasn't me..."

Cetoli squeezed out the last breath of air from her chest.

Hearing Cetoli's words, Boenshu was stunned at first, then halted his movements.

If Cetoli had truly leaked the secret to Lin Wei, why would Lin Wei have come here?

"Boenshu, the illusory glory of your family has brainwashed you into a fool! A tiny bit of discord sown by an enemy is enough to make you this sensitive and volatile! This isn't self-assurance; it's deep-seated inferiority!" Lin Wei's laughter rang out unrestrainedly. "Family glory... nowadays, it's just called... mental illness!"

"You!"

The veins on Boenshu's forehead bulged. "Go to hell!"

The aura of a Level 3 Wizard Apprentice erupted abruptly!

"Dark Judgment—"

Boom!

Before Boenshu could execute his spell, his entire body was struck like a cannonball by a solid mass of black shifting sand and slammed against the wall.

Under this immense force, blood began to ooze simultaneously from Boenshu's ears and nostrils.

"You..."

Boenshu raised his hand tremblingly, pointing a shaky finger at Lin Wei. "You... your strength!"

Boom!

Another deafening crash echoed.

Lin Wei flashed instantly in front of Boenshu, throwing a physical punch straight into Boenshu's chest, sending the old man crashing violently into the wall once more.

"The Hammering Technique..." A flash of nostalgia crossed Lin Wei's eyes. "Using mortal martial arts against a Level 3 Wizard Apprentice is quite an interesting experience..."

"You... you use mortal... things... to humiliate me!" Boenshu's aura was already beginning to disorder. "The glory of the fam—"

Slap!

Lin Wei delivered a direct, forceful slap across Boenshu's face.

"Do you feel humiliated?" Lin Wei leaned close to Boenshu, his smile carrying a sadistic pleasure. "Trampling on the dignity of a fool is actually quite pointless..."

"You..." Boenshu could no longer form a complete sentence.

Lin Wei grabbed Boenshu by the hair and slammed his head mercilessly against the wall.

"Not bad! As expected of a family with a millennium of heritage, this wall doesn't even have a single crack. It must have been forged by a formal wizard, right?!" Lin Wei stopped his movements. "If there were a formal wizard holding down the fort here right now, I would have tucked my tail and fled long ago..."

"Boenshu... starting from the mortal kingdoms, all those who ever schemed against me..." Lin Wei stared straight into Boenshu's eyes, speaking one word at a time, "are all dead."

By this point, Boenshu was losing consciousness.

"Family glory... family glory..." Boenshu began to mutter.

Lin Wei shook his head and then looked over at Cetoli.

Cetoli was trembling all over, the look in her eyes as she gazed at Lin Wei filled entirely with terror.

It wasn't the terrifying display of strength that chilled Cetoli to the bone, but the fact that Lin Wei had shattered—punch by punch—the faith she had held since birth: the so-called glory of her family.

This was a thorough negation. Cetoli felt the towering walls of her family crumbling down before her, piece by piece.

"Cetoli..."

Lin Wei squatted down in front of the blood-stained Cetoli and pinched her chin.

"We were once companions who went through life and death together. Why did you scheme against me?" Lin Wei stared into Cetoli's eyes, his voice soft and gentle.

Cetoli didn't react at all. She was in a daze, her eyes completely unfocused.

Lin Wei sighed, released her chin, and stood up.

"In this world, what family glory is there to speak of? Individual strength is the supreme authority..."

A tiny black sphere flew from Lin Wei's fingertip.

Suspended in mid-air, the black sphere drifted slowly toward Boenshu.

Boenshu simply kept repeating "family glory" and "family honor."

The black sphere was minuscule; it slipped directly into Boenshu's nasal cavity.

"Shadow Extremity."

Lin Wei whispered softly.

Boom!!!

Boenshu's head burst apart like a dropped watermelon, spraying crimson blood and white brain matter in all directions.

"Interesting. The explosive force of Shadow Extremity is completely under my control..."

Lin Wei showed not the slightest bit of discomfort at the gruesome scene.

"Lin Wei..."

Suddenly, Lin Wei heard Cetoli calling out to him from behind.

The deafening explosion had jolted Cetoli back to consciousness.

"Cetoli."

Lin Wei called her name as if addressing a friend.

"Can I still go on living?" Although Cetoli asked the question, there was not the slightest trace of a desire for survival in her tone.

"Sorry, no chance." Lin Wei shook his head.

How could Lin Wei possibly leave someone alive in this world who had once schemed against him?

Cetoli nodded, then let out a slight sigh.

"Then can you grant me an easy death?" Cetoli asked abruptly.

"Why?" Lin Wei countered.

Cetoli managed a smile. "Carrying the glory of the family... is simply... too exhausting."

Lin Wei fell into a brief silence.

"Alright, I promise you."

After a moment of silence, Lin Wei replied.

"Thank you." A smile still lingered at the corners of Cetoli's lips—a very relaxed smile.

"Dream Halo."

Lin Wei activated his spell.

Cetoli's consciousness began to scatter.

A long, sharp black thorn condensed on Lin Wei's index finger.

Splat!

The black thorn was driven straight into Cetoli's forehead, piercing all the way through to the back of her head.

Clatter.

Cetoli's body slumped to the ground as red and white fluids silently seeped from the back of her head onto the floor.

"Can the family glory in dreams last for eternity?"

Lin Wei murmured softly to himself.