Rivers of the Night

Theron was still staring at the plaque, flipping it in his palms again and again. It was hard to confirm with 100% certainty without his Third Eye fully active, but this plaque…

For one, its path was curious and mirrored the Black Limbo Tortoise very closely. However, Theron wasn't interested in it because of that.

Instead, it was because he could feel something else from it—something that reminded him of the two Mandates in his bloodlines. Not in that they were similar in function, but instead that this Mandate Plaque felt like it might be related to other ones.

And if that was the case… what would happen if the slab absorbed this one?

It felt like the two were reliant on one another.

'How interesting…'

After a long while, Theron made a decision. Rather than using the plaque and allowing the slab to absorb it, he actually just put it away, storing it into his robes and then beginning to meditate.

His mind was churning, trying to decide how to use this new pawn in his hand. Rather than a pawn, though… it was far more like a bishop, capable of crossing the board in a single bound so long as it had a clear shot.

The issue was that timing would be everything. He'd have to adjust his plans a bit, and just this bishop alone might not be enough to accomplish what he wanted to.

…

The following day, the Ancestor Veil came to visit again and Theron displayed his might for him to see. This time, there was even a sliver of a crack that formed on the Mandate Mark.

Though Theron ended up in an even sorrier state, he was rewarded with an even stronger elixir for his efforts.

The Ancestor Veil gave him a glance and then vanished once again. Seeing the sort of rush he was in, Theron could tell he was busy.

The new defenses had certainly been set up already. In that case, it wasn't that the Ancestor Veil was worried about that, but instead the fallout of certain things.

They were probably battling it out in the shadows with the Daggers of the Night right this moment.

Theron had heard the words of Elder Pipen back then, so he was also able to guess at what Scholar McIntyre's plan was. It probably wouldn't be long before the Scholar tried to find another way to take Theron out of here.

But no one would expect Theron to escape the day right after his failed rescue attempt.

Even so, that night, Theron slowly opened his eyes, standing to his feet.

Pulling his dagger and short sword out of his spatial ring, he almost too carefully clipped their sheaths onto his waist, a fresh black robe falling onto his body.

Raising a hand, he pulled back the sleeve, revealing the golden mark on his forearm. Pressing a hand to it, he took a deep breath and then exhaled.

In a swift motion, the Mandate Mark was pulled out of his body, trapped within a floating sphere of red.

Theron's blood, siphoned out right through his pores.

With a flick of his finger, Theron let the sphere of red fall into a controlled splatter on the floor, right beneath his bench. Ironically, the Mandate Mark within it kept it together.

Instead, it was a weakening of the runes around it that would wither the blood droplet away.

Theron had used a modified \\[Water Sphere] casting to form it—one that was purposely flawed so that it would collapse after a certain period of time.

Once the tension keeping the blood together gave way, the Mandate Mark would leak and then shatter as it had nothing to tether itself to. By then, Theron would be long gone.

The connection the White Veil had to his Mandate Mark was too strong. If Theron shattered it, he would be the first to know. Then, it wouldn't be long before it was reported.

Walking to the cage's edge, he pressed a palm against the glass casing. With his Third Eye, he could well and truly feel it now. It was even easier to pick out the small, insignificant bumps.

Theron's mind trembled, his soul strength practically pouring out in waves. He hadn't been able to notice the improvement due to the Mandate Mark, but right now he was finally free.

Unfortunately, he didn't have the time to consider this for too long. What improvements there were to his body and soul would have to wait.

Water Mana seeped out of Theron, his Law of Reflection acting as it spilled into the hidden crevices of the otherwise smooth glass.

Chi.

The glass split in front of him and he casually walked out.

Theron had seen the region around his cage many times before, but he knew that it actually changed after the lights returned.

The cage was suspended in nothing, a single bridge extending out infinitely. There seemed to only be one way in and one way out. But Scholar McIntyre had obviously come from a different direction.

The problem was that after exposing him, this exit would almost certainly have been accounted for by the Ancestor Veil. The price for Theron's schemes was that getting out of here had suddenly become thousands of times more difficult.

Luckily, Theron's Third Eye displayed its might.

He swept through the region and found the exit Scholar McIntyre had used after focusing on the general vicinity. As expected, there had been a change. Not only were there new formations there that hadn't been there before, but there was a duo of guards wearing special visors. They had been there the whole time.

The cage was suspended in a vast abyss, and the entrance was actually over 300 meters down on the face of a "cliff," recessed into the wall and giving just enough ledge room for two figures to stand.

Because of the blinding light, they hadn't noticed Theron's movement yet, but given those visors, Theron bet if they focused their intent, they could see through what was happening right now.

'Tricky…'

Two high-tier Gold Mancers, both with Mandate Marks, and both just shy of becoming Elder Veils.

And somehow he had to kill them—despite the shocking distance between them and lack of room—before they had a chance to report.