The Legendary Mage (Alavin) novel Chapter 337

Neasilis chuckled persuasively. "Don't be so heated—anger harms the body. If you'd kindly step aside and announce to the Northlands that you're entering secluded meditation, allowing the Grand Elder to act as Commander, wouldn't everyone be pleased? The other seven Organizations wouldn't have a thing to say about it."

"Begone!" bellowed The Commander at Neasilis.

"I'm looking out for you. I don't want to see you meet a grisly end. You can't avoid today's predicament, so if you relinquish your position willingly, we all save ourselves the trouble, everyone's happy, and Cobalt Strike will avoid civil strife. If you resist, our plan is this. First, we disable you, then we claim in your name that you've entered meditation. The Grand Elder will step in as proxy, and after a few years, once things have settled, with the Grand Elder in full control of Cobalt Strike, we'll declare that something went awry with your seclusion, that you were consumed by your own magic and perished. The Grand Elder will naturally assume the role of Commander. So, do you choose to step down with dignity, or would you rather be remembered for dying in madness?"

Neasilis spoke with a smile. His words were light, but his eyes were filled with deadly intent.

The Grand Elder added, "I don't wish for this to be unpleasant, so make your choice. Give yourself some dignity and give Cobalt Strike some peace."

"You bastards, to think you could force me to abdicate..." The Commander was about to unleash his power when suddenly he spat out a mouthful of fresh blood, staggering.

Tobin cackled. "This is a gift for our meeting, the Millennium Corpse Fungus!"

"You've poisoned me!" The Commander shook his head vigorously, trying to clear his mind, but his body's magic roiled chaotically, like an uncontrollable deluge crashing within him, and his skin began to show red blotches that spread rapidly across his body. The poison's onset was sudden and fierce.

"The poison has taken hold!" Tobin's smile deepened. This was the most potent poison from Amber Valley, extracted from an ancient corpse and enhanced with various toxins. Colorless and tasteless, yet terrifyingly potent. Normally, with the strength of The Commander, he would have detected the poison instantly and expelled it. But today was different; they had baited and angered him, drawing his focus entirely on them, delaying his realization of the poison. And his emotional turmoil only hastened the spread of the toxin.