Chapter 137: One warlock is already troublesome enough.

"Why? How is it possible?" Jess looked at the jubilant crowd over there and said casually, "You can beat me so easily. Have you forgotten how we sparred outside the city gate?"

"What I mean is that you use your full strength." Gerred added.

Jess's gaze turned back. He knew what Gerred meant by "full strength".

The dwarf continued, "If there is a distance between us before we start fighting, I don't think I can stop you before you finish casting a spell. Your spellcasting level... Anyway, once you start chanting a spell, I will either be completely confused like that black panther and not know which way is up, or be so scared that I can't move on the spot. In any case, you will have plenty of time to give me a stab."

"You can throw your axe or sword while I'm chanting." Jess said.

"Yeah." Gerred said, "That's true. But that means it depends on luck, Jess. I gave up the opportunity to quickly approach you just for the hope of hitting you with a throwing weapon. Once I fail, it means my defeat. Even if I succeed, it doesn't mean your defeat."

"What does this mean? It means that now if I want to defeat you, I can only take a gamble. Don't forget that I only have one eye now. I can only guess at distances. And you have always been good at dodging and attacking, whether it's against swords or anything else. Even by dwarf standards, I know your level. With this ebb and flow, I'm not optimistic about my luck."

Jess looked into Gerred's eyes. What kind of look was it? He couldn't see through it. But he had a vague premonition. Especially considering when Gerred mentioned wanting to learn some kind of magic before, could it be that he was eyeing the power of shadow again? Did he want to become a Dark Iron dwarf?

"I don't really want to discuss the comparison between us." Jess said, "Shall we eat something?"

"Don't change the subject." Gerred said in a low voice, "I didn't say I don't like this, Jess. Your growth rate exceeds my imagination. And in the two months since you learned shadow magic, I have been observing you, but I haven't noticed any changes in you. You are still that Jess. Perhaps there are really many people in this world who can overcome the corruption brought by shadow magic like you. Perhaps the legend of Grim Batol has been exaggerated from the beginning..."

"The legend of Grim Batol is not exaggerated." Jess interrupted the dwarf and said, "I have spent a lot of time and energy to restrain the negative effects that shadow brings to me, Gerred. Don't make it sound so easy. I spend a long time every day recalling my previous thoughts and emotions, thinking about whether I need to be angry, thinking about whether I need to be jealous, and whether there are some unnecessary desires. Because I am afraid that these are not spontaneously generated by me but brought by shadow. If I succumb to these things, I may never go back to the past, that is, become a Seth that you don't know."

He wasn't exaggerating his worry at all. Because he knew the fate of those negative examples, he didn't want to become one of them.

It was also because of this that he could grow in a little bit of training and self-suggestion. Even when that black panther was staring at him tightly and tensing its muscles to exert force, he could still remain calm and chant the spell accurately as planned.

He didn't want fear, nor anger, nor anxiety and irritability. He just wanted to try his best to maintain his original self.

Gerred's eyes flickered and he said, "Look at you. You talk as if you know Grim Batol so well."

"I might know a little more than you think." Jess couldn't help but say.

He now felt that Gerred was really attracted by shadow magic. Of course, it might just be a simple emotion like envy.

Perhaps even more terrifying is what Jess has considered. The shadow energy around him has affected Gerred during long-term interaction, making him have an unnatural longing for the power of shadow. Hopefully not.

"Well." Gerred said, "I haven't been to Grim Batol either. For me, it's just a legendary mountain city. You can go to the library in Stormwind to look up history. Knowing more than me is nothing. Now it's a bit serious, isn't it? We defeated a fierce beast and neither of us was seriously injured. This should be something to celebrate. But now we are here talking about such depressing things. It's really... The wine is all gone. I'll go find someone to buy some more. Don't you think just chatting like this is really a waste of topic?"

The dwarf smiled, patted Jess on the shoulder, stood up and walked towards the other side of the passenger cabin. When he came back, Jess coughed to clear his throat and asked, "Do you want to learn black magic?"

Gerred sighed and said, "I don't know."

"Damn it." Jess leaned forward, grabbed Gerred's beard and forced him to look at himself. "It's only been a year or two since the end of the war, Gerred. What kind of world is Azeroth? Here, some people can die but still be alive. Some people are alive but are no different from being dead. Some people can destroy a city with tens of thousands of people in a few minutes with a wave of their hands. Some people can make thousands of troops unconditionally obey his will, and he can do it without even speaking. Some people can destroy a race or even a civilization with a few words. Some people can lurk deep in the sea or desert for tens of thousands of years. Some people can manipulate everyone's dreams. Some people can split the entire planet with a sword!"

"Now you are just blind in one eye. Have two years made you give up the hope of being cured? Is curing this eye harder than blowing up ancient Kalimdor? Maybe there is a mage in Dalaran who can create a new eye for you with magic? Maybe it's even easier for him than making a crab meat bread!"

Gerred was pulled by Jess's beard, and his lips were forced to bump as he said, "I didn't expect you to hate shadow so much."

"Perhaps I just know a little more about shadow than you." Jess continued, "In short, don't make such a deadly decision casually, Gerred. Let's try to cure your problem first. At least now we still have many, many possibilities that we haven't tried. Whether it's magic or elves, let's walk to a dead end on these safer methods first, and then consider those ideas of yours that pop up out of nowhere, okay?"

"I listened to you and went to fight that leopard and almost got my throat torn open. Then you listen to me without any risk. This isn't an excessive request, is it?"

Gerred nodded vigorously.

Jess realized that he had been excited enough. He let go of his hand, sat back in his seat, and took a sip of beer. That faint hint of alcohol also made him a little calmer.