Chapter 174: Struggle

  "What should we do, what should we do, it's been so long and he still hasn't come out. Could something have gone wrong?"

  Berryman paced anxiously back and forth outside the castle.

  The frost condensed on the outer layer of the huge castle had already begun to change slightly from the previous snow-white to light blue. The strong cold air came, turning this place into a world of ice and snow.

  Berryman and the cavalry team had to retreat again. After retreating several times, they were now nearly a hundred meters away from the castle.

  A cavalryman was shivering, constantly rubbing his hands together. And the warhorse beside him looked listless, with a thin layer of frost condensed on its mane.

  As time passed, the warhorses fell one by one because they could no longer bear the strong low temperature.

  "The Third Prince... The warhorses are about to give out."

  Berryman said anxiously: "Retreat! Retreat again!"

  Inside the castle.

  It was already impossible to see what it originally looked like. The stone pillars, the ground, and the walls had been completely covered by thick ice layers, concealing their original colors.

  "One hour is almost up. The cold air emanating from this kid is getting stronger and stronger. About sixty percent of his cold air is already the cold air of the Hydra Emperor. If this continues, when all his cold air is replaced by the Hydra Emperor, the three of us will also freeze to death."

  Valeri reminded.

  How could Mauren and Chalad not know this? Han Ming's water magic was indeed powerful, but it was impossible to be so powerful that it could freeze the three top experts of the Northern Alliance Continent into their current state. There was more of the energy carried by the Hydra Emperor's core itself.

  "Mauren, Chalad old ghost. The one-hour agreement we made is about to expire..."

  Valeri reminded again.

  Chalad's lips were tightly pursed.

  Mauren watched Han Ming gradually turn into a snake, and the tears in his eyes could no longer be stopped from rolling down.

  "Little friend Han, do you still remember? In the Barbaric Ancient Forest, you once said to Charles that people will always suffer all kinds of hardships and pain in their lives. But these hardships and pains are the greatest wealth in our lives. I actually knew about you and Kuro long ago. The reason I didn't tell you was to wait for the day when you discovered it yourself and figured it out. I think, by that time, your mind will have matured."

  Mauren choked twice and continued: "You once said that the happiest thing in a person's life is to have a few closest people on this unknown and dark life journey, who can be good to you unconditionally and accompany you through this part of your life, sharing the same life experience with you. These words were yours, what you said to Charles. Charles is gone. I believe he was happy before he left, without any regrets."

  Han Ming's frozen snake face suddenly moved.

  "Ah! It moved, it moved! Old ghost Mauren, continue!"

  Chalad was overjoyed when he saw this.

  Mauren continued: "Do you remember our private chats? You once kindly advised me, saying that people should not be too selfish. Even if the people they care about most leave them, they should not fall down for this reason. From the moment we are born, each of us is a process of constantly bearing various responsibilities on our shoulders. These responsibilities may become more and more and heavier, but what are we living for? On the one hand, it is for ourselves, and on the other hand, it is for the responsibilities on our shoulders. I believed you, so I supported it. I didn't fall down because I lost Charles."

  Han Ming's stiff neck twisted slightly, and his flat and sharp mouth gently opened as if he wanted to say something, but he couldn't make a sound.

  "Little friend Han, I believe your words are from the heart. Each of us cannot put down the responsibilities on our shoulders. If you put it down, it is to escape, it is to be ungrateful to your own life, and it is also ungrateful to those who care about and care for you. I also believe that Vivienne understands the meaning of your words. Therefore, at the critical moment when our motherland was lost, she did not choose to flee, but chose to stay in her motherland until the last moment. She, like Charles, left happily. The two siblings are great, they are the greatest wealth in my life. And after losing them, I still persisted. Do you know why? Because I know that hundreds of millions of people in the Monte Empire are waiting for us, waiting for us to go back and rebuild our hometown. Compared with me, what have you lost? Am I less than what you have lost? They are my only hope to live on. And what are you doing now!!! Tell me!!! What are you doing!!!?"

  By the end, Mauren was almost shouting.

  "One hour is up, we can't hold on anymore!" Valeri gasped violently due to excessive consumption of magic power. And Mauren and Chalad, who had saved Han Ming earlier, were even worse.

  "I'm telling you, little friend Han!!! My life is about to be over!!! The reason I am still alive is not for any other reason, but because I still have you, I still have a million citizens of the Monte Empire, and I still have the responsibilities on my shoulders that make me suffocated!!! We Monte people are at the mercy of others in the Rhine Empire! We have no dignity! We have no hope! Our only hope can only rely on the kindness of the Kabu Empire and the Rhine Empire!!! We are people without a home!!! Do you understand!!! Do you really understand what I'm saying!!"

  Living under someone else's roof, no matter how prominent your status is, no matter how strong your strength is, you are always just an outsider, an outsider who cannot be fully accepted and trusted by others. The respect they give you is not from the heart. You can see that behind their smiles, there is pity, sympathy, and sarcasm. They give you a place to stay, but the land under your feet belongs to others, not yours.

  How many people know the sourness and bitterness in Mauren's heart?

  Valeri and Chalad also sighed when they heard Mauren's words. Who wouldn't be obsequious and respectful when they saw the old ghost Mauren, who used to be domineering across the Northern Alliance Continent? But for a country, for a belief, he was willing to lower his stance, beg others, and in the Rhine Empire, behind the grand welcoming ceremony, who had ever seen the supreme expert, even a king, Mauren, begging the king of the Rhine Empire for his responsibility, and even kneeling. This is the sadness of a master, the sadness of a king, and the sadness of a country. The motherland has fallen, which means that you can no longer have a domineering posture, no longer have a proud expression, and every move you make involves the lives and hopes of hundreds of millions of people.

  At this time, you are no longer yourself.

  Two lines of ice tears slowly flowed down from the corner of Han Ming's eyes.

  "Mr. Mauren, thank you..."

  "Here it comes! Here it comes!!! Han Xiaoyou has regained consciousness!!! He has woken up, and his core has begun to tremble!!"

  Chalad was the first to feel the movement of Han Ming's core.

  "It's too late... Sigh... It's too late..."

  Valeri sighed that Han Ming's awakening was too late. Chalad's magic was almost exhausted, and Mauren had used up the last bit of his combat qi. And herself, without Mauren's support, could no longer control the Hydra Emperor that was about to escape from her body.

  "Roar!!!"

  A deafening roar suddenly came from Han Ming's mouth.

  The eight virtualized snake heads behind his neck instantly materialized. Every part of his body was covered with snow-white scales.

  "Oh no!!!"

  Mauren was shocked.

  "Weren't there two hours?"

  Valeri smiled bitterly: "This kid woke up too late, it has been more than an hour too long. The Hydra Emperor felt his awakening and knew that his chances were getting smaller and smaller. Now he is desperate, and he wants to make a final struggle."

  Whoosh!!!

  Han Ming's big snow-white tail swept violently behind him, sweeping the three exhausted people out and knocking them into the snow-white ice wall.

  "Roar!!!"

  Han Ming suddenly stood up, clutched his head tightly, and struggled painfully.

  "Third Prince! The temperature is getting lower, we must withdraw!"

  A cavalryman said nervously.

  Berryman opened his mouth, just about to speak, when he saw a huge explosion burst out from the top of the castle, and a nine-headed snake-headed humanoid monster rushed out.

  "What!! What kind of monster is that!!!"

  The cavalry team shouted in horror.

  The monster bent down, its feet firmly grasping the edge of the castle, and the nine snake heads waved continuously, and the nine mouths sprayed snow-white frost.

  "We can't let him escape! It will be bad if he runs to Norad!!!"

  Valeri, who had the most accumulated strength among the three, cast wind magic and rushed into the sky above the castle.

  The snake monster incarnation of Han Ming was constantly wailing and screaming at this time, and several bloodstains had been scratched on his head. Han Ming's will was struggling with the Hydra Emperor for the right to control the body.

  "Why didn't you catch any beast soul! Why did you have to catch such a perverted thing? You can't control it, and once it gets out of control, it will cause such a big loss. I really admire you!"

  Valeri scolded angrily, raised her hand high.

  Instantly, the sky changed color, and the clouds in the sky quickly moved and condensed together, forming a huge funnel shape.

  A huge tornado rushed directly from the sky, and the tail of the wind was steadily dragged by Valeri on her palm.

  A four-stage mage has broken away from the limitation of only being able to use its own core energy, and can use its own core to attract the magic elements in the world to attack. At this time, her core is a general, and the elements in the world are her soldiers.

  "Valeri, this woman is also desperate... Her own magic power is almost exhausted, and she dares to use such a medium-sized magic." Chalad saw Valeri's move and sighed secretly.

  "No, I can't let him kill little friend Han!!" Mauren shouted loudly and rushed to the top of the castle.

  "Die!!!"

  Valeri shouted in a deep voice. She waved her right hand towards Han Ming, and the huge tornado moved towards Han Ming with a roar.

  At this time, the essentials of the Water God Decision were rushing rapidly in Han Ming's mind.

  Suppress it! Suppress it! You are my beast soul! You must obey me!! Han Ming roared in his heart. The Water God Decision was continuously cast out.

  "Roar!!!"

  Han Ming's body rushed out suddenly, directly facing the huge tornado.

  The tornado condensed by this medium-sized magic skill is not comparable to an ordinary tornado. Everything in its path is instantly torn into pieces, and even the railings made of huge stones and steel on the top of the castle are rolled into pieces by the edge of the tornado, turning into countless fragments. It is obviously a tornado condensed by countless powerful wind blades.

  "Little friend Han!!!"

  Mauren shouted anxiously, and his body rushed out suddenly, trying to knock Han Ming away.

  "Old ghost Mauren, are you looking for death!! Come back!!" Valeri was also very anxious when she saw Mauren so reckless. She quickly used the last bit of magic power to turn into a huge wind wheel and swept it out instantly, sweeping the Mauren who had lost all his combat qi energy and flying far away.

  "Pfft..."

  Valeri also spat out a mouthful of blood due to the overdraft of magic power.

  "Whoosh!!!"

  The moment Han Ming approached the tornado, the nine huge heads suddenly blew out nine cold currents. And his body also began to crack and crack. Although the Hydra Emperor's core itself carries a very powerful magic energy, it also needs Han Ming's own core to guide it. When he summoned the Hydra Emperor's beast soul at the beginning, Han Ming relied on a large water magic crystal, but at this time, he could only consume his own core energy.

  The huge tornado was swept by the nine cold currents and suddenly became violent. It tried its best to get rid of the nine cold currents, and the huge wind body twisted back and forth in the air.

  The entire castle could not withstand such a strong wind force, was uprooted, rolled into the tornado, and turned into countless fragments.

  "Damn! Scared me to death!"

  Chalad broke through a small hole under the castle and fled out miserably.

  "This Han kid is too useless! It's just a woman, why did you make yourself like this."

  Chalad looked at Han Ming, who was fighting against the tornado in the sky, and was very angry.

  "Kuro... Master... Why..."

  Tears flowed down from the nine snake heads of Han Ming.

  "Why! Why!!! Ahhhhh!!!!!!"

  The resentment accumulated in Han Ming's heart finally broke out at the last moment. He struggled violently, twisted his hands like crazy to grab his own body, and large pieces of scales fell off.

  "Why did you do this to me!!"

  Han Ming stretched out his hands with long nails, and suddenly inserted them into the neck of a snake head behind his neck. The veins on his hands bulged, and he suddenly tore off a snake head and threw it far away. Large amounts of blood were splashed down.

  "Ao!!!"

  A painful roar came from Han Ming's body. It was the hiss of the Hydra Emperor.