CHAPTER 641: CHAPTER 430: SWORD WIND LEGEND

If one were to ask what Sali can’t forget most since joining the Light Eagle Group.

It wasn’t the great victories achieved in battles with the Captain against enemy forces, nor the slaying of fearsome monsters, nor the bits and pieces of everyday life in the Mercenary Group.

What etched itself deeply into his memory was...

The disastrous defeat the Light Eagle Group faced at the Casas Underground Tomb that day!

Yes, it’s the one where they were successively battered by Overlord Vonier, the Dawn Dragon, and the invading Black Swordsman!

The tragic state of the Light Eagle Group at that time is still vivid in his mind.

For a while, every time he saw Eliphas, he couldn’t help but recall how he was burned by the Sin Fire and fell into a coma. When he awoke, his appearance was... indescribable.

It felt like being subjected to the ultimate humiliation for a long, long time, making every man who saw him shudder.

Looking back now, it seems that since that disastrous defeat, the fortune of the Light Eagle Group has been declining, with minor setbacks, but major issues show a tendency to hit rock bottom. Recently, there’s been a consistent trickle of new members leaving the group, leaving only the veterans loyal.

Although Sali is just the deputy captain of the Charging Team, his intellect and background are appreciated by Eliphas, and he often gets involved in the daily affairs of the Light Eagle Group, almost acting as Eliphas’s secretary.

Watching the Light Eagle Group seemingly going downhill day by day, he couldn’t help but wonder:

What will become of our Light Eagle Group in the end?

Choked up.

Dealing with daily affairs already keeps him busy enough, and he had hoped to quickly forget the experiences in the Casas Underground Tomb. Still, whenever he was close to succeeding, various things would pop up, dragging him back into memories.

For example, this painting world known as the Sword Wind Legend.

One fragment of this painting world appeared shortly after the invading Black Swordsman left, and Sali picked it up casually.

With too many things going on in the group at that time, he didn’t pay much attention. Among adventurers, finding similar painting fragments was rare, with almost no discussion about it, so he gradually forgot about it.

Later, a few weeks passed, and rumors began circulating among mercenaries about occasionally encountering grotesquely distorted monsters in the Casas Underground Tomb. These monsters weren’t particularly strong, matching regular elite levels, but their terrifying appearance was enough to spook SAN scores, almost requiring a sanity check just to glimpse at them.

Upon defeating them, mercenaries unexpectedly acquired other painting fragments of the Sword Wind Legend painting world.

These monsters appeared very infrequently, making them extremely rare, and it wasn’t always possible to seize the chance to defeat them even if encountered.

It wasn’t until recently that mercenaries collected all the painting fragments and assembled them into a complete painting world.

However, at this time, the Light Eagle Group was in no state to spare the manpower to explore this painting world. Sali happened to bring it up, leading to the current conversation.

Gazing at the painting world "Sword Wind Legend • Erosion," Sali’s gaze was very determined, convinced he was the best match for Elsa!

The two had shared many joyous adventures before, and he was certain he could use this mysterious painting world to win Elsa back.

For Sali to have such thoughts might seem a bit odd, but it was the result of a red aura messing with his mind, leaving him a bit confused.

But wasn’t this painting world originally called Sword Wind Legend? Why now is there an extra "Erosion"?

The term gave a certain spine-chilling vibe.

"Sali..."

Elsa’s expression was a mix of helplessness and compassion. She glanced up at the sky, the night was deep. She had already come close to the dungeon’s closing time, and now it should be closed, yet to reopen.

"Alright, I’ll accompany you once more."

Perhaps, to prevent him from having regrets, she chose to agree.

It’s just a painting world; she could accompany Sali through it a few times and then use her method to exhaust her spiritual power and exit quickly. It shouldn’t take much time.

Perhaps she might even make it back to the Light Eagle Group by dawn’s early light, to bid farewell to those remaining in the Charging Team, though she wondered how many would still be there.

After receiving her consent, Sali’s spirits seemed slightly lifted. To better hold onto Elsa, he continued recounting their past while waiting for the dungeon to reopen.

Some of the stories indeed brought a smile to Elsa’s face, and the friendship between them never changed.

However, no amount of reminiscing could keep her from fulfilling her determined duty as a hero.

Gradually, Sali fell silent too.

Soon, from the distant little town established around the Sain Dungeon Teleportation Gate, a bell akin to the dungeon’s chime was heard, signaling to the adventurers that the dungeon opening time had arrived.

"Let’s go."

Elsa stood first, dusting herself off, with Sali following close behind, a look of dejection on his face.

Luluwo’s group, hiding afar and peeking at the duo’s situation, couldn’t help but worry:

"Are those two really alright?"

Passing through the Teleportation Gate, they arrived at the Firelink Shrine.

Curiously, you must pass through the Casas Underground Tomb’s teleportation gate to reach the Royal City, but if you enter through the teleportation gate from the Royal City, having ignited the Firelink Shrine’s bonfire, you would appear directly at the Firelink Shrine.

Elsa, now rid of her hesitant nature, immediately entered the painting world with Sali upon entering the dungeon.

Sword Wind Legend, its name evoking a sense of ancient legendary ballads, felt different in style from Sain’s other painting worlds, it seemed.

It seemed it might tell a beautiful story filled with swords and iron, legend and romance.

This time, the Painting World unusually had no introduction whatsoever, leaving the two of them to guess.

The first thing upon entering the Painting World was, unsurprisingly, a segment full of distinctive Sain-style imagery.

"Ah—"

Accompanied by the cry of a baby, a sudden brightness appeared in the dark vision. Sali saw a pitch-black tree in the distance and said, "Willow tree?"

"No, those are hanged people."

As the vision zoomed in, the two saw a pitch-black tree charred by flames, its fluttering "branches" being corpses of hanged people, their bodies so decayed that the white bones were exposed, clearly dead for a long time.

Yet a baby appeared beneath the corpses, letting out a loud cry.

Death and rebirth, as a noble with the privilege to appreciate numerous artworks, Sali immediately grasped the meaning of this picture.

But why were there dead people here, and why was there a baby?

A team of armored people passing by asked the same question, and a woman picked up the baby to raise it.

Judging by these people’s attire, Sali concluded that this Painting World was recording a story from a war-torn era, although he couldn’t associate it with any documented historical period.

However, compared to other Painting Worlds, the story described this time seemed closer to people’s lives.

The two watched the baby grow into a young man, raised by a group of mercenaries; naturally, he became a mercenary and joined battles, showcasing a remarkable battle talent at a young age, struggling on the battlefield, and his name was...

"Gus!"

Sali’s expression suddenly became strange. He turned to look at Elsa, surprised that the name coincided with the alias she used.

Elsa just found it rather intriguing and felt nothing else, continuing to watch.

Gus’s youth was rather troubled; his foster father saw him as a sign of misfortune, maintaining a poor attitude, even selling him off to a pervert for one night.

Seeing this scene, Sali wanted to cover Elsa’s eyes, but instead, Elsa covered his.

Later, the young man’s life took a sharp downturn, mistakenly killing his foster father in a confrontation, forcing him to choose to flee and continue as a mercenary amid turmoil. Years later, his martial skills became exceedingly superior, proficient with a great sword, even attracting attention by capturing enemy commanders in large-scale wars and receiving rewards.

Sali yawned, so far feeling nothing exciting. Was Gus the protagonist, then this was likely to be a tale of his rise to fame becoming legendary? It seemed rather generic. Are we going to be part of the war?

Elsa’s expression remained unchanged.

The story developed smoothly; Gus shone brightly in wars and unexpectedly joined the renowned Mercenary Group "Eagle Group" upon leaving, and when seeing their Captain Griffith.

Both Sali and Elsa’s expressions turned odd for a moment; how could such symmetry exist in the world?

No, no, no, this must be coincidence, a huge coincidence, although Griffith and Eliphas resembled each other a bit, their names were a bit alike, even their mercenary groups were somewhat similar, this was a story from unknown how many years ago, undocumented in history, how could they correspond?

But nonetheless, the two couldn’t help but feel a bit strange, akin to the feeling of recognizing someone familiar in a TV drama.

What happened next was akin to classic hero legends; upon joining Eagle Group, Gus embarked on the happiest phase of his life, meeting many interesting and warm companions, becoming the Charging Captain, and under Griffith’s leadership they triumphed in every battle, becoming the most famous mercenary group in the Kingdom, receiving royal recognition, and all their companions became nobles, achieving great success.

Griffith and Gus were inseparable friends, their interactions often considered the closest of bonds, whether overtly or covertly, whether in open battle or hidden assassination, Gus flawlessly executed Griffith’s brilliant plans.

Sali yawned.

"Such a classic hero legend, I can find dozens of similar stories from bards, lots of dungeons also have similar backgrounds."

He gave a sharp critique.

"When did Sain become so mainstream."

Laughter, music, a ball; the banquet celebrating Eagle Group’s achievements was serene, exuding a reassuring atmosphere everywhere. Sali thought that such an ordinary story was nice, maybe the camaraderie recorded here among mercenaries might awaken Elsa and bring her back.

During the ball, Griffith looked into the distance. On a balcony separated by glass doors, Gus and he exchanged gazes.

Their smiles revealed mutual understanding.

The scene seemed to freeze; was this the story’s end? A model hero tale.

Just as Sali was about to express some thoughts, the picture suddenly shattered like glass, crimson light squeezed through the cracks.

"Griffith—"

A heart-wrenching scream startled Sali into a tremble, he blinked his eyes.

Upon reopening his eyes, both the sky and ground were crowded with twisted faces, crimson and extreme darkness intertwined, everywhere in sight were horrifyingly contorted and distorted Evil Spirits.

It was simply like... Hell!

A giant clenched hand towering over heaven and earth stood amidst this hellish scene, seemingly nurturing something.

Sali was utterly stunned by this sudden change, unable to speak; the previous moment was a warm and touching celebration ball, how did it suddenly turn into a Demon King’s descent-like scene?

Wasn’t the one who screamed Gus? Where was he? What exactly happened?

Suddenly, Sali discovered a terrifying fact.

They could move!

At this instant, the Evil Spirits packed in this hell all turned to look over.