The Crystal Chandelier swayed in the morning mist, casting fragmented Light Spots. Leonard, wrapped in a silver fox fur blanket, reclined on the throne, his pale fingertips brushing against the chin that had been scratched by the Jade Ring the night before.
Twelve high-ranking Magic Doctors knelt with bowed heads on either side of the Starlit Carpet. The elder in the Gray Robe was using Ice Crystal Tweezers to pick up the blood clots he had coughed up.
"The lady even insists on using Starfall Stone vessels for her medicine," Lord suddenly hurled his teacup against the Gilded Column, dark purple Yao Zhi trickling down the Griffin Emblem. "Does she think this seat is a poison-testing Puppet?" The Ice Crystal Tweezers clattered to the ground, trembling in the hands of Elder Yinxu, the Gray Robed Mage Doctor, stained with Yao Zhi.
From behind the Obsidian Pillar came the sound of Cursed Fabric rustling as Aelia emerged from the shadows, holding a skirt hem adorned with Moonstone.
Morning light filtered through her Xing Zi-shaped Hair Ornament, casting delicate Light Spots on her cheek. "Throughout history, every lord of the Magic Castle has used the Xing Yun cup for their medicine. Your husband once dismantled half an ice Crystal Vein to obtain this item."
The argument was abruptly interrupted by Luna.
The Magic Carpet embroidered with Guardian Magic Patterns burst through the Colored Window, revealing Luna with a Crystal Pacifier in her mouth, perched at the edge of a Velvet Blanket. Her chubby little hand clutched a shard of last night's Jade Ring.
Qin Si chased after her, carrying an Xunxiang furnace, a Peacock Feather askew in her Hair Bun brushing against the Flying Carpet Liu Su.
"Even a baby can't be kept under control!" Aelia leaped onto the Flying Carpet, her moonlight-like long hair sweeping across Qin Si's terrified face.
The Xunxiang furnace in the maid's arms toppled over, spilling Canaan Ash onto Lord's unhealed wound and stirring up a cloud of black mist.
Lucius pushed through the crowd to steady the staggering Qin Si. "Mother, this morning you dropped three medicine bowls; are you blaming the maid for not keeping watch?" The Ice Crystal Button on Young Mage's robe reflected everyone's expressions, and three of the twelve Magic Doctors nodded silently.
Suddenly, Luna laughed and released her grip; when the emerald shard fell to the ground, it unexpectedly formed half of a Puppet Curse Mark.
Leonard began to cough violently, his sleeve bearing the Black Dragon Emblem flickering ominously. "Take me to Sanctuary..." Before he could finish his sentence, Aelia swept him up in her arms, Starfall Stone and Moonstone Earrings brushing against his blood-stained lips.
Everyone stared in shock as the usually reserved lady wrapped her husband in a cloak embroidered with Backlash Curse as if she were handling Alchemical Materials.
The scent of medicine wafted through the Rose Terrace late at night as Aelia tossed three Xing Zi into the Silver Cauldron where she was brewing potions.
The Lord on the bed clutched a strand of her long hair in his sleep, murmuring in his dreams with the tremor of a proposal from twenty years ago.
Luna's web buzzed in the Nursery, reminding her that the Magic Contract would expire in seven hours.
At dawn the next day, the crystal array of the Sanctuary Dome suddenly erupted with Blood Light.
Leonard was surrounded by an uncontrollable Magic Flow, and the Black Dragon Emblem on his neck burned a Scorch Mark into his skin.
The twelve Magic Doctors' detection crystals all shattered, and the elder at the forefront, holding a Star Chart, had his hand mangled by the backlash force.
"How dare you use the Contract Backlash curse!" The Lord's magical blade severed three of Aelia's braids, and the fallen hair transformed into a struggling Silver Serpent on the ground.
The lady stepped on the Serpent Head and raised the Magic Doctor Order Arrow, projecting an image of the Gray Robed Mage Doctor who had modified the potion recipe last night—now standing as a stone statue in the corner of the Sanctuary.
As Luna's Loud Cry pierced through the barrier, Aelia's wrist Marriage Contract Bracelet suddenly shattered.
She bent down to pick up the ice crystal bowl that had rolled to her feet, unaware that the residual Magic Element at the bottom was forming a strange Hexagram.
At that moment, the Observation Crystal of the Sanctuary Dome turned towards the medicine cabinet, illuminating a bottle labeled "Evening Primrose" containing a Magic Potion, within which swam Deep Sea Fluorescent Jellyfish Tentacles that should not exist in the human realm.
The Gray Robed Mage Doctor's Star Chart suddenly burst forth with seven colors of Liuguang, and twelve detection crystals floated above the bowl to form a Judgment Ring.
Aelia's sleeves embroidered with a Star Moon Pattern trembled slightly, as the shadow cast by the Gilded Column perfectly covered her fingertip gripping the Magic Doctor Order Arrow.
"The concentration of Evening Primrose Juice exceeds standard levels by thirty percent!" The Chief Mage Doctor's Elder Yinxu ignited with blue flames, signaling that the Magic Oath had taken effect.
In the corner, a Little Demon Servant was pulled into the Halo by a Magic Chain. The Slave Brand on his neck emerged with a Truth Curse: "Last night, while Madam brewed the seventh round of potion, Third Young Master barged into the alchemy room with Frost Rose..."
Suddenly, Leonard's Black Dragon Emblem opened its crimson Shu Tong eyes, and the Protective Magic Rune on the Canopy instantly turned to Ashes.
Aelia's hand hovered in the air, longing to touch her husband's, but it was stained with Canaan Powder, which she had used to wipe his cold sweat.
"It seems my lady needs some peace," Lord Pale said, lightly tapping the Ice Crystal Armrest with his fingertip. Twelve Magic Doctors directed their detection crystals at Aelia's Mei Xin. "Leave the Marriage Contract Bracelet behind and go to the North Tower to gaze at the stars."
Moonlight sliced through the Colored Window, casting a play of light and shadow across Aelia's face. As she unfastened the bracelet, half of an Ice Crystal Rose fell from her sleeve.
Lucius suddenly dashed out of the crowd, trying to pick it up, but three of his fingers were severed by a magical blade that shot from his father's sleeve.
"My mother used this flower to bring down my fever..." The Hemostasis Spell on the Young Mage's robe had yet to take effect when Aelia wrapped his bleeding hand with her severed hair.
When Luna's Loud Cry pierced through the Three-Layer Barrier, Lord Pale suddenly coughed violently, expelling a Blood Pearl that crystallized in mid-air into a Warning Iris: Contract Backlash remaining three hours.
On the abandoned Stargazing Platform, a glowing Blue Tiger Swallowtail rested on the Wisteria Arbor. Luna tiptoed to reach the edge of the swaddled Crystal Pacifier, and the buzzing sound of the failed Magic Contract transformed into a joyful melody in her ears.
The shadow of the Black Robed Bandit Leader twisted behind a stone pillar, as an Illusion Crystal slipped from his cloak, projecting a singing Rainbow Jellyfish.
"Little Moon, do you want to see the starfish dance?" A raspy voice carried hypnotic waves, and Luna's Protective Yin Ling on her wrist suddenly fell silent.
As the Skinny Highwayman emerged from the Underground vines, he clutched a candy laced with Drowsy Pollen.
Lucius chased after Luna's magical aura and stumbled into a trap; the Ice Crystal Button on his robe shattered into tracking powder during the struggle.
The Short and Fat Bandit's prison cart rose from an ancient well, and poisonous Thorns entwined around Che Yuan suddenly bloomed with flowers of deceit: "Isn't Third Young Master best at spatial teleportation? What harm is there in taking your sister to see a Meteor Shower?"
As the first ray of moonlight illuminated the Confinement Spell on the prison cart, the Black Robed Bandit Leader's Communication Crystal glowed with Blood-red Runes.
When the Skinny Highwayman played a Requiem on his Bone Flute, Luna's pupil suddenly shimmered with a unique Yin Hui characteristic of Great Mages—unfortunately, this strange hue was quickly drowned by the Forgetfulness Potion poured down her throat by the Short Fat Thief.
The fog over the Black Pine Forest should have cleared by now. The Black Robed Bandit stroked the Ancient Emblem on the prison cart, where the totems, eroded by time, faintly revealed the outline of an altar.
As the tall, thin figure leaned closer to Luna's neck to apply the Tracking Charm, he failed to notice the Mage's Reincarnation Mark deep within her collar was glowing with heat.
In his dazed state, Lucius heard the sound of waves beneath the cart. This tide, which should not exist inland, reminded him of a passage from a Forbidden Book—deep within the Black Magic Valley lay a connection to another realm known as the Ghost Sea.
The prison cart rolled over decaying leaves, producing a sticky sound as the fog of the Black Pine Forest condensed into a spider web of Dark Purple Thread between the wheels.
The Skinny Highwayman adjusted the Curse of Three Degrees on the confinement collar for the third time. The inner side of the metal ring glimmered with Azure Purple under the moonlight.
"Why is this little brat still laughing?" The Short and Fat Bandit poked at Luna's puffed-up cheeks with his bone staff, causing her Crystal Pacifier to pop out in a comical arc.
The infant-like laughter startled a Night Owl perched in the trees, and those swirling shadows suddenly turned collectively towards the north—the direction of the Demon Fortress Temple.
The Black Robed Bandit Leader abruptly tightened his grip on the reins, causing ripples to spread across the totem patterns on the surface of the cart.
His Withered Branches-like fingers pinched Luna's nape, and within her Dark Red aura, a Halo of Peeping Magic emerged: "Out of three hundred children, you are the first one to drool over the Confinement Spell." The infant's Pink Palm suddenly slapped against the inner side of the collar, inadvertently smudging half of an ancient rune's stroke.
The Short Fat Thief hastily pulled out a Blood Moss Repair Spell document: "Boss, she can't possibly see..."
"The Ghost Sea will swallow all anomalies on the night before a full moon." The Black Robed Bandit flicked the reins, and the prison cart surged forward into a suddenly gaping Earth Rift.
Luna's silver hair danced wildly in the fierce wind, and amidst her hair flickered Xing Xu, illuminating the Hidden Layer on the wall of the cart—there, a Sacrificial Array Diagram drawn with Dragon Blood resonated subtly with the Guardian Magic Pattern wrapped around her swaddled form.
As the scent of decayed earth transformed into briny sea breeze, the prison cart came to a halt at the edge of a cliff in a circular valley.
The black-robed figures busied themselves around bubbling black marshes with their ritual implements, oblivious to Luna as she blinked at her reflection on the water's surface.
In her Pupil swirled Yin Hui, vividly reflecting a Wraith swimming beneath.
"Invoke Sevenfold Sealing!" The Black Robed Bandit thrust the bone staff into the swamp, and the Dark Green Flame instantly spread along the path of the Curse Mark.
The Skinny Highwayman suddenly trembled as he held the Spell Disk—the infant, who should have been crying, was using its saliva-covered Fingertip to draw a Track that completely opposed the Sealing Magic.
Wiping cold sweat, the Short Fat Thief reinforced the barrier. "Boss, the Sacrificial Array is repelling her aura!"
The Communication Crystal beneath the cloak of the Black Robed Bandit flickered ominously, and a chaotic Sound Wave came from the direction of the Magic Castle, mingled with the Blood Mist.
Luna suddenly tilted her head, staring at a swirling patch of mist where the shadow of Aelia could be faintly seen gazing at the starry sky in the Forbidden Chamber. The lady's newly replaced Marriage Contract Bracelet on her wrist glimmered with a weak Blue Light, completely unaware that a true crisis was brewing in the abyss forty miles away.
"The Midnight Bell Tolls is about to ring." The Black Robed Bandit yanked on a chain, suspending Luna above the altar, not noticing that she had secretly grasped a silver hair that was quietly drifting toward the direction of the Magic Castle Clock Tower.
The Wraiths beneath the swamp suddenly fell silent as an aura of authority, surpassing the infant's comprehension, seeped from deep within Luna's collar where the Reincarnation Mark lay, only to retract in an instant.
The waters below the cliff began to rise and fall, mingling with the sound of waves crashing against the shore and faintly carrying the distant call of Zhong Ming from the direction of the Magic Castle.
Luna kicked her little legs in glee, her laughter transforming into a comical backdrop that heightened the bandits' alarm and tension.
As the seventh layer of the Confinement Spell finally took shape, all the Mandala Flowers at the edge of the altar suddenly turned toward the east—where Aelia's window in the Forbidden Chamber faced, mistakenly interpreting the rising Morning Star as dawn's first light.
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