The vortex of ice crystals and flames erupted suddenly beneath Aelia's feet, and twelve Crystal Chandeliers shattered in response.
Leonard's Ailya's Roar, accompanied by thunder, pierced through the Dome. "How dare you use Chaos Magic against your own daughter?" The Obsidian Fragment in his palm coalesced into the Judgment Sword, and from the Time-Space Rift torn apart by Jian Feng emerged the reflection of Aelia from three years ago by the Moonlight Lake.
"Father... Mother is trapped by Black Thorn..." Luna curled up in her swaddling, sobbing. The badge of the Diaper Hidden Layer was transforming the black mist emitted by the Contract Stone into fine Xing Mang.
Her emerald-colored pupils suddenly shimmered with an empathy not befitting an infant—this was the Great Mage's Remnant Soul forcibly activating the Purification Spell.
Aelia's Wedding Ring Fragment suddenly floated into a ring, each shard of gemstone reflecting the faces of different men. "Slander!" She crushed two Guardian Stone statues with her snow-white hair, the tips tainted by Black Magic sweeping over Luna's Mei Xin. "It must be you who devoured the evil spirit of the Contract Stone..."
"Enough!" Leonard's Judgment Sword abruptly changed direction, the sword handle embedded with Long Jing shooting forth a scarlet beam of light.
Within the illusion of the reshaping Wedding Ring, a man's Thorn Night Rose Tattoo on his collarbone stung his eyes—that was a Brand only traitors of the Glorious Demon Fortress bore.
Clang!
The Silver Tea Set held by Qin Si shattered at the end of the spiraling staircase.
The maid who had served Aelia for seventeen years trembled all over; a purple Crystal Necklace around her neck was seeping an Eerie Blue Liquid identical to that of the Wedding Ring Fragment—a testament to their lover's Resonance.
"Bring me the Kuyin Mirror from the East Tower." Leonard's voice caused the scattered ice shards to reassemble into a toxic Serpent Pattern. "And explain why you stole my wife's Moonlight Veil dress during last year's Midsummer Night."
Luna's cries suddenly shifted to an eerie light laughter.
She expelled a Milk Foam bubble, its surface emerging with Aelia and a mysterious man kissing in the rose garden, Lucius.
The infant's pink palm glowed with a Contract Symbol spell, forcibly triggering the fading remnants of Qin Si's Charm Spell around her neck.
"Yes... Lord Roderick said we need the Moonlight Veil to resist the curse..." Qin Si knelt on the ground, a Thorn Pattern emerging on his neck that resembled the man in the illusion. "The Magic Brand on his right shoulder changes with the Lunar Phase..."
Aelia's wand suddenly lunged towards the maid's throat, but was ensnared in black mist emitted by the Contract Stone.
From the swirling fog, a figure wearing a Silver Mask gradually took shape. The man's left hand was entwined with Dark Purple Thread, perfectly matching the energy of Aelia's wedding ring left on her ring finger.
"Use the Holy Emblem of the First Generation Fortress Master to initiate verification," Luna suddenly spoke in an ethereal voice typical of an adult woman. The badge in the Diaper automatically flew towards the back of the Kuyin Mirror.
The mirror instantly reflected Leonard's Last Night from five years ago during the Sanctuary Festival—Aelia, who should have been in seclusion, was caressing a man's chest adorned with a Rose Tattoo using fingers stained with Zikao Dan.
Leonard cut his Palm and let blood spill onto the mirror, causing the Ancient Contract Array to rise from underground.
Just as the Blood Pearl was about to touch the Tattoo in the mirror, Aelia suddenly detonated a twelve-layer Defensive Barrier, and shards of Magic Crystal splintered off, severing three of Qin Si's fingers.
"Is Mother afraid that Father will see that man's Luna?" Luna murmured with the blood-stained badge in her mouth, as a Resonance from the First Generation Fortress Lord Statue suddenly echoed from the East Wing.
The floating Kuyin Mirror shook violently; twelve moonlight stones embedded in its Gold Frame exploded one after another. Just before the last one shattered, it revealed a Dragon-Shaped Birthmark beneath her lover's Collarbone—a unique Curse Mark belonging to a branch of the Leonard Family.
Wind and Snow suddenly poured in through the broken Dome, and Aelia's Ice Crystal Hairpin melted into venom.
She raised her hand to wipe away the last image from the Kuyin Mirror but was burned on her Palm by the backlash of the Contract Array—Ailina's Burn.
The blood-stained wand traced a crooked Track on the ground, perfectly overlapping with the betrayal Curse Mark she had carved on her lover's back three years ago on a rainy night.
Luna's swaddling cloth was suddenly drawn into midair by the Contract Stone, and powdered milk falling from the Diaper Gap formed a Family Tree Diagram within the Magic Circle.
A name crossed out by Bloodline glowed red beneath Aelia's feet, while the left hand of the First Generation Fortress Lord Statue penetrated the West Corridor, cradling the Oath Book that opened on its own, the yellowed pages stopping at the chapter detailing the Illegitimate Child Sealing Technique.
The Judgment Sword suddenly emitted a mournful cry akin to a dying dragon, its hilt cracking with spider web-like patterns.
Blood surged from Leonard's throat, crystallizing in mid-air into ice spikes, their tips reflecting the venom melting from Aelia's hair—clearly the forbidden drug known as Lover's Tears used for Refining.
"You let Roderick's descendant touch the Moonlight Veil!" With each word he spoke, the castle's foundation sank three inches.
The floating Family Tree Diagram suddenly ignited, and the name crossed out by Bloodline reformed in the ashes as "Theodore Leonard," his cousin from fifty years ago.
Aelia's Snow White Hair suddenly ignited with Azure Blue Flame, ice crystals falling from her hair transformed into Poison Scorpions. "When you used the Snowy Owl to spy on my Grooming back then, why didn't you mention that twelve steeds were missing from the Moonlight Veil cabinet?" Fragments of her Bloodstained Wedding Ring suddenly coalesced into a Thorned Crown, but exploded into Zi Wu upon touching the Contract Stone.
Emerging from the mist was Leonard's Last Night, when he secretly met with a Black Market Merchant last winter.
Luna's swaddling cloth suddenly landed on the shoulder of the First Generation Fortress Lord Statue, and the badge on her Diaper Hidden Layer began to absorb energy overflowing from the Contract Array.
She seemed to gnaw at her fingers without Awareness, but was actually using Saliva to draw a Prophecy Rune on the statue's Ear—this was precisely where the original record indicated Leonard's illegitimate child's awakening would occur.
"Lord!" Qin Si cried out, clutching her bleeding right hand. "Madam goes to the Holy Spring for purification every month, but last year's Harvest Festival..." The maid's voice abruptly cut off as thorn patterns emerged from her neck, sprouting thorny vines. From within a black rose came Roderick's hoarse laughter: "Little Nightingale shouldn't be pecking at the secrets of the Moonlight Veil."
The Obsidian Floor Tiles beneath Leonard exploded with a thunderous roar as twelve Ancestor Statues opened their eyes simultaneously.
Just as the Judgment Sword was about to shatter Aelia's Mei Xin, a loud cry of an infant echoed through the West Corridor—the Oath Book automatically flipped to the chapter detailing the Marriage Dissolution Ceremony. Emerging from its yellowed pages was Aelia's Blood Pact signed during her pregnancy, with Theodore's Magic Brand glaringly visible at the Witness Signature section.
"So even the Pregnancy Contract was a lie?" Leonard’s cloak was torn to shreds by rebounding magic, revealing fresh whip marks on his back—wounds sustained three days ago while suppressing the Northern Territory Rebellion.
He staggered as he grasped the railing of the spiral staircase, his fingers brushing against the remnants of the Moonlight Veil that Qin Si had secretly hidden last Midsummer Night. The edges of the fabric were embroidered with Wisteria flowers, identical to the emblem of the Roderick Family.
Aelia suddenly let out a shrill laugh reminiscent of a Night Owl. The energy from her shattered Wedding Ring intertwined above the Contract Array, forming a blood-red Cradle. "When you used the Dark Purple Thread to control my heartbeat back then, you should have anticipated that the Contract Stone would eventually backfire!" Her fingers, stained with Zikao Dan, plunged into her chest, but instead of pulling out her heart, she extracted a half-locked heart inscribed with Theodore's name.
Luna's pupils abruptly transformed into swirling starry skies as the left hand of the First Generation Fortress Lord Statue pointed towards the East Tower.
Fragments of the Kuyin Mirror reassembled amidst the violent Wind and Snow, reflecting Leonard's last night at the Emerald Pavilion, where he had embraced a Black-Haired Woman. The scales on her ear resonated with the dark Magical Energy swirling within the Contract Array.
"Enough!" Leonard swung his sword to sever the fragments of the Kuyin Mirror, but one shard embedded itself into his right shoulder.
As blood stained the hilt of Long Jing, all candle flames in the castle turned a ghostly green. From the North Tower came an eerie laughter of an infant—his illegitimate daughter, secretly nurtured in the forbidden grounds, sensed the pull of their Bloodline.
Seizing the moment, Aelia thrust her bloodied wand into the Earth Rift. The twelve layers of Defensive Barrier suddenly constricted into Demon Binding Shackles that ensnared Leonard's twin legs.
The energy from her shattered Wedding Ring enveloped the black mist of the Contract Stone, forming a rudimentary Teleportation Circle in the West Corridor.
However, hovering at the center was a badge that Luna had intentionally left behind—its surface tainted with baby powder was subtly altering the spatial Coordinates.
As the violent Wind and Snow swept away the last remains of a Crystal Chandelier, the right hand of the First Generation Fortress Lord Statue suddenly pointed towards the dungeon.
The Oath Book flipped open on its own to the Last Page, where blank space slowly began to emerge with a Prophecy Scene set to occur three days later: a Feather Pen dipped in Rose Essence was poised to write an address for a certain Emerald Pavilion on the Lining of an Infant Swaddling.
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