Chapter 6 Chapter 4: Crystal Shard

It was dark all around. It's God's mercy!He doesn't remember what happened or where he is.There is only darkness all around, a comfortable darkness. The chill on his cheek made him gradually wake up from unconsciousness.Naturally, he opened his eyes, but what he saw was so cruel. He found himself lying face down in the snow.All around were towering mountains, jagged peaks and thick snow that reminded him where he was.They dropped him on the Spine of the World.They left him here to die in the snow. Akar Kessell tried to lift his aching head from the snowdrift.The sun was shining brightly in the sky, but the brutal cold wind drove all the warmth of the sun away.What's more, it was still winter, and he was only wearing a thin robe that could withstand the attack of the deadly cold wind.

They left him here to die in the snow. He barely moved his body, knees deep in the snow, and looked around.Below him is a deep canyon, and to the north of the canyon is the tundra, with a path around the mountains.Kessell saw the little speck of his wizarding caravan heading back to Luskan.They lied to him.He was just a puppet they used to get rid of Mokai, the red wizard. Eldrook, Dandybar the Mottled Wizard, and others. They never really wanted to give him the title of wizard. "I'm so stupid!" Kessell moaned.Because of the guilt in his heart, the image of Mo Kai, the red-clothed wizard, kept appearing in his heart, the only person who really respected him.He remembered many happy experiences the wizard had given him.Mokai once turned him into a bird so that he could experience the feeling of flying freely, and once turned him into a fish so that he could explore the wonders of the deep sea.

And he gave the good man a knife. On the path below, the departing wizards heard Kessell's wailing of pain from the valley. Eldrook smiled, urging his horse to go on.It was a great satisfaction to him that their plan had been carried out so perfectly.    Kessell struggled to move through the snow.He didn't know why he was moving because he had nowhere to go.Eldruk threw him in a bowl-shaped hole full of snow, his hands were so cold that he couldn't feel it, and it was impossible to escape. He tried to call the magic flame.He stretched out his hands to the sky and spoke the incantation from his trembling mouth.

Nothing happened, not even a little smoke. He had to keep moving.His legs were in excruciating pain, and he felt several toes on his left foot had snapped off.But he dared not take off his boots to prove the truth. He began to circle the pothole again, following the footprints he had left before.Suddenly, he found himself in the middle of the pothole.He didn't know why, and in his near-delirious state, he didn't stop to figure it out.In his eyes there was only a piece of whiteness, a piece of frozen snow.Kessell felt himself fall.He felt the ice biting his cheek again, and felt that life had come to an end.Then he suddenly felt warm.It's barely felt at first, but the warmth builds up steadily, and something is beckoning him.Just below his body, buried in the snow.But even though it was blocked by layers of ice and snow, Kessell could still feel the warmth emanating from that thing.

He started digging.He dug for his life even though it was impossible to see how deep he had dug.Suddenly, he dug into a solid object and felt its warmth.Frantically clearing the snow from it, he made one last attempt to pull the thing out.He didn't know what he was seeing, maybe it was the fault of his insanity.In his frozen hands was a neatly cut ice cube.Its warmth penetrated Kessell's body, making him feel reborn. Kessell had no idea what was going on, and he didn't care at all.At least now, he has the hope of surviving, and that's enough.He hugged the crystal block tightly to his chest, and leaned towards the stone wall on the side of the pit, looking for any place he could find where he could rest.

Kessell passed his first night on the Spine of the World on a boulder that had melted snow from the heat of the crystal.His pillow was the crystal, the Crystal Shard--Crinshinibon, an ancient artifact waiting here for unknown ages, hoping to be found.The Crystal Shard awakened again, and it began to plan how to control the weak-willed Kessell.This monster created by ancient times has disappeared from the world for hundreds of years, making all evil people frustrated because they can't find it. Crenshinibon is a mysterious, evil force that enhances its magical powers by absorbing the light of day.It is an instrument that plays the movement of destruction, a tool that can be used for divination, and a magic weapon that can protect the holder.But the most terrifying power of the Crystal Shard lies in its ability to transmit its power to its wielder.

Acar Kessell slept peacefully, unaware of what had happened to him.All he knew and cared about was that he was still alive.But he would soon begin to take hints from the Crystal Shard.He'd soon learn that he didn't have to be a lackey for the likes of Eldruk and Dandyba. He would soon be the Akeel Kessell known for his deeds, before whom all men would kneel. "Respect." He murmured in his sleep, in a dream that Smashing Demon Changjing wove. Akeel Kessell, the violent king of Icewind Dale.    Kessell woke up the next morning, a morning he thought he would never see again.The Crystal Shard protected him in the long night, not just to keep him from freezing to death.Kessell felt like a different person this morning.Before that night, he simply wanted to live longer.But he's now starting to think about how he could be better off.Survival was no longer a problem, and he felt strength in him.

A white stag stood on the edge of the pothole. "Venison," Kessell said to himself.He stretched out his forefinger towards his prey, uttered a magical incantation, and felt a surge of power rushing through his blood.A white light shot out from his hand and hit his target accurately. "Venison," he announced, and without a second thought, mentally lifted the deer from the far side and flew in front of him.Even his mentor, the red wizard Mo Kai, was not capable of casting such a teleportation spell.The greedy Kessell didn't stop to wonder why he had far more power than he could, and the Crystal Shard wouldn't let him think about it.

Now he had food, and the warmth of the Crystal Shard.But wizards should have a castle of their own, he reasoned.A place where he could study his dark secrets to his heart's content without being disturbed.He looked at the Crystal Shard, hoping it would solve his problem, but found an identical crystal next to the Crystal Shard.Intuitively, Kessell understood his role in the wish-fulfillment (although this was just a hint given to him by another Crystal Shard).The warmth and power he radiated from the Crystal Shard knew it was the original one, but the second crystal also intrigued him, shrouded in a powerful magic.He took the second crystal to the center of the pit and set it up in the snow.

"Ibsan da Abuda!" Even he himself didn't know why, but he read a few words slowly. Kessell backed away involuntarily as he felt the power within the crystal expand rapidly.It absorbs sunlight into its depths.The surrounding area of ​​the pothole suddenly darkened, because the sunlight was absorbed by the crystal.Gradually, the crystal began to sparkle and twinkle from within. Then the crystal actually started to grow bigger. Its bottom keeps widening and takes up almost the entire pothole.For a moment Kessell was even afraid that he himself would be crushed against the stone wall.While the bottom changes, the top of the crystal gradually stretches towards the sky, as if echoing the power contained within it.After the process is over, it still maintains the same shape as the Crystal Shard, but tens of millions of times larger.

A crystal tower.For some reason, Kessell knew its name, as he knew everything about the Crystal Shard. Krisha--Tillis.Cryshal-Tirith (Cryshal-Tirith): The name of the magic crystal tower.    If it was just Kessell himself, he might be very satisfied.He lives in the magic crystal tower and eats all the unfortunate food that passes by.He is just an unambitious farmer's son, even if he is trying hard to pursue the vanity that does not match his identity, he is just being used under the power struggle.He did not understand how those who came from humble beginnings succeeded, and he blamed fate for his own failure. Now he is full of strength, but he doesn't know what to do. But Clinshinibon waited so long to return to the world because he was unwilling to be a hunting tool for a small person.Kessell's mediocrity and cowardice are actually more in line with the broken magic crystal.Given time, the Crystal Shard can use the hints in the dream to direct Kessell to do what it wants. And there's plenty of time for the Crystal Shard.This ancient magic weapon really wants to taste the thrill of conquest again, but for this magic stone that has been created since ancient times, one or two years is not too long.It will transform the incompetent Kessell into a representative of its emissary, turning the weakling into an iron fist of its destruction.It has done this hundreds of times since ancient times. It will do it again. Just that night, Kessell, who was sleeping peacefully on the second floor of the Magic Crystal Tower, had a dream of conquest.It wasn't a big fight like the capture of Luskan, or even a war with the ten border towns.His dreams were less ambitious and more realistic for his own kingdom.He dreamed that he forced a group of goblins to be his servants, forcing them to serve him and feed him.When he awoke the next morning, he remembered the dream well and appreciated the idea. Later that morning, Kessell entered the third floor of the Magic Crystal Tower to explore.A room made of solid crystal that looks like any other room, but is filled with all sorts of magical items.Suddenly, on an impulse, Kessell made a movement and uttered an ancient incantation he supposed he might have heard Morkai say.He was surprised to see that the surface of a mirror in the room was suddenly filled with swirling gray fog.When the fog cleared, an image appeared in the mirror. Kessell recognized it as a small canyon near the pothole where he had been dumped. In the video, a group of goblins are building a camp.These are just some wandering goblins, because the general goblin raiding party does not bring women and children.There are hundreds of caves in these mountains, but not enough to house goblins, orcs, ogres, or even stronger monsters.The battle for the cave is fierce, and the weaker goblin tribes are usually driven to the surface, or they are treated as slaves, and in the worst case, they are slaughtered. "How convenient!" Kessell chuckled, wondering if the vision in the dream was an omen.On another impulse, it sent his will through that mirror.The effect surprised even him. All the goblins turned simultaneously, visibly confused, to face the unseen force.The goblin warriors nervously drew out their sticks and stone axes, while the women and children hid behind the line. A particularly large goblin, who appeared to be the leader, moved a little ahead of the other warriors, swinging his stick protectively in front of him. Kessell scratched his chin, pondering the nature of his newfound power. "Come to me," he said to the goblin chieftain, "you can't resist me."    The goblin horde arrived at the pit some time later, keeping a safe distance, wondering where the tower came from.Kessell surprised them with the splendor of his new home, then summoned the chief again, summoning the goblins into the Crystal Tower. Against its own will, the larger goblin stepped out of the line.Resisting the involuntary footsteps, it walked to the base of the tower.It can't see any doors, because the entrance of the magic crystal tower can only be entered by residents of other worlds or people authorized by the crystal shard or its holder. Kessell guided the terrified goblin into the first floor of the crystal's tower.When it stepped inside the magic crystal tower, the goblin chief remained motionless, his eyes searching for traces of the superpower that summoned it in this crystal building. The sorcerer (a title worthy of a crystal shatterer, although Kessell himself would never reach that status) made the poor little thing wait there, in order to heighten its fear.Then he emerges from the top of the stairs through a secret mirror door.He looked down at the poor thing and smiled with pleasure. The goblin trembled visibly when he saw Kessell.It felt the wizard's will imposed upon it again, forcing it to its knees. "Who am I?" Kessell asked the goblin, who was kneeling and moaning. The goblin chieftain felt an irresistible force manipulating it, tearing at its will and forcing it to speak. "Owner!"