Leoric’s bold claim came as a surprise to everyone.

But before even Dyne could react, the mad king stepped forward and held on to the rock.

“Knights, warriors, and mages. I am King Ciroel!” The mad king shouted.

The shout was heard all over the mine. The survivors who were sealed all heard the call of Leoric.

The power was not an ordinary application of his voice being sent through his martial cultivation; it was a call of the soul.

“King Ciroel?!” The knights were amazed at what they heard.

Those who were mercenaries or who were soldiers that did not take an oath did not hear the demented call.

“I command the massive undead army that attacked you. This is my judgment! Many of you have abandoned your oath and followed the will of the Serpentari. Maybe there are those among you who even obeyed their secret orders and followed the lust of your desires! You even made the people turn their hearts from me! I know the secret plots of the Serpentari now! And you even kept from me the truth! You dared raise your hand and allowed the serpent to coil around my child!”

The knights all over the mine could feel the dark call dragging them into madness.

They felt the rage, the vengeance, the insanity of the king.

Chrone and the rest even felt it.

Dyne frowned and called out to Jedo to harness the power. He created two energies, darkness that continued to absorb and a powerful Brimstone energy that repelled the madness this darkness brought. The two energies appeared on each hand of Dyne. Dyne waved the Brimstone, which fell onto the nearby soldiers. The energy passed by Leoric, and it caused Leoric to frown as if an extremely uncomfortable sensation overtook him.

“Tha-thank you…” Ardnula spoke as the energy passed by him.

Chrone also had thankful eyes.

Ussylys were not among the warriors who made vows to King Leoric. But even then, the shivering horrors of the mad king could be felt.

“What’s going on?!” Ussylys asked his sister.

“Such mad power! He is using the darkness of this mine to spread out his power! This mad king is strong! And dangerous! His lust for power is too great! He might even rebel against lord Dyne!” Emera was amazed.

“I like him!” Dyne gave a hearty laugh that was as insane as that of King Leoric.

He summoned the two magic to purify the maddening call to the knights nearby. Even they were drawn in by the call.

Jaden stood at the side. He had not made the oath of a knight since he was the son of the king. But Chad and the rest were greatly shaken by his call.

Strafe was also amazed at the display of power Leoric had.

“He’s a genius! A summoner genius! A one-in-a-billion summoner genius! This is amazing! To command all these souls who had taken a weak vow! His soul is different! There is something definitely suspicious about this place and the arrangements of Basileus Basileon! Dyne! From now on, you have to chase the games you played! In these games are the allies and powerful people that will aid you in the coming wars!”

“You think I didn’t know that? This was my plan all along! I will play all of them!” Dyne laughed.

Leoric was holding on to the artifacts that Dyne gave him and continued to harness the power.

“I see… all of you…” Leoric smiled.

“I call you to your oaths! You either confess your crimes and serve me or die and serve me!” Leoric laughed.

The skeletons around them began to shout and howl.

The entire mine trembled from the roar of all the cultivators.

“He’s binding them! Amazing power! I have to study this!” Dyne was excited. For the first time, he witnessed a genius that surpassed him in capability. Leoric was calling and binding all these souls.

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In Dyne’s Eye of Destiny, he could see the changing in the air.

“What power is this? His altering the Fate of men!”

“The vow and oaths that these men made are being questioned. They didn’t know that this artifact that they vowed on to had such power.”Strafe explained.

“What exactly is this pillar then? How does it make monsters follow and obey the rules?”

“It’s definitely an artifact that surpasses the meteors that crashed landed here. If anything, that could be a legacy of a god! And considering it allows powerful summoners like Leoric to call and wield the wills of these half-sprite men! And that’s all so that you can play!”

“Then the Lord loves me,” Dyne concluded.

As the dark call began to happen, the men inside the rooms began to scream and shout as if they were talking to someone else. The madness continued to affect them, and their nearby allies began to shout and restrain them.

But there were too many of them. The number of people falling into the madness of Leoric was more than those who had not made any vow.

“Come to me, all you traitors! Come to me all you who have reviled the Kingdom! Come to me, and I will give you a chance to fulfill your vows! Serve the Kingdom and me! I will make everything anew! No longer will then the dignity of Martisrt be dragged in the dust! No longer will the name of the king be treated as mud! Martisrt will be reborn as Tristram! The Kingdom that will challenge the devils who are trying to take hold of this world! If you fear the demons, then see what their power is compared to the power I command! I am no longer Ciroel! I am King Leoric! Become my knights!”

The power of darkness invaded all corners of the mine.

Dyne saw the exact areas where the darkness was and concluded that the Serpentari had been doing more experiments here.

“Ironic. They used it to experiment on how to harness these powers. But a single genius can eat it up. But Jedo, let’s not let him take all the spoils, shall we? Let’s make the mad king never forget who holds the scepter around here!” Dyne smiled and raised his arm high, and darkness that devoured began to appear.

The potent energy of the madness that Leoric awakened in the dark corners of the area also awakened the lingering souls of those who were slain or killed.

Even within the prison chambers were people loyal to Ciroel. They had seen the evil of the Serpantari and knew they were deceived. Some died with great regrets for not honoring the king they thought was corrupt.

The darkness, the death, and everything else gave birth to that power.

The Mist of Legaia appeared once more.

“Jedo! Devour all! You should be able to do it, right?”

“Yami could. She was the only Ra-Seru who could wield the evil madness of the Mist. Other Ra-Seru’s would be weakened by it! But I am only half of the darkness! I still have yet to master the dark element!” Jedo exclaimed.

“Then let’s learn together! Leoric is also learning how to control his power. You should also take this opportunity to take in this Mist! It’s a weaker version of the one at Legaia, but this can help you in training! I can help you keep your mind sane and protect you with Brimstone!”

“Then I trust you, Master Dyne!” Jedo answered and unleashed it.

Dyne turned to the rest.

“You better get out of here. From here on out, only Leoric, me, and Emera can stay. The rest will be driven mad.” Dyne smiled.

The group began to move.

Jaden was about to leave when Dyne suddenly called out to him.

“Jaden. Wait. I just remembered that you need to stay here. You are your father’s son. You have his potential. And because of that… there is a chance for you to control the Afarit that haunts this place!”

“What are you saying, Lord Dyne?!” Chrone argued.

“The Afarit’s soul is sealed within an object called the Soul Stone. But only part of it. The other half is sealed here. You have a choice. You can either allow this stone to be destroyed, or you can take it and use it to strengthen yourself in a way similar to Chrone’s spirit stone. But the catch is, you will keep the soul of the demon in you. If it were anyone else, I would have rejected it. But you, who is your father's blood, should have the bloodline and the potential to contain it!” Dyne explained.

“Why not my father?” Jaden asked.

“Because master Dyne is afraid it would consume me. The darkness in me is already too much. I’ve lived a life of pain and betrayal. The rage and vengeance that I long and desire are so great. I was not made mad, Jaden. I allowed this madness to control me. But you don’t have that madness, and it is perfect for containing a demon!” Leoric explained.

“Well… Yeah, sure. Let’s put it that way.” Dyne chuckled.

“The power of the Afarit is strong. It would have easily conquered you. But with half a soul left, and with you having experience in taming it, it might just be possible.” Dyne smiled.

Jaden turned to Chrone.

“You better go. I’ll do as Lord Dyne says.” Jaden decided.

“Hahaha! That’s my son!” Leoric laughed.

“Jaden, this ability to resist this approaching evil is also soul cultivation. Right now, your soul will be attacked. You have to find a way not only to resist this but also to fight back! Resist the madness and keep your mind clear at all times. Right now, the despair of a thousand men ought to fall on you. But don’t think that this is an impossible task. I know someone, a boy, just older than me by a year, who has walked on the Mist that you will experience for two weeks and survived!” Dyne spoke as he recalled Vahn’s young feature who braved the Mist when his mother died.

Jaden nodded and closed his eyes as he took several deep breaths.

The rest had already left.

“Emera. Try to look for strong souls to make them your wights.”

“I know, master Dyne. I’ll also protect Jaden from the more dangerous souls.” Emera smiled.

Strafe observed everything and frowned. He knew that beyond all the advantages, the real reason why Dyne wanted Jaden to contain the Afarit was to stick with the story of Diablo.

Aiden, the knight, defeats Diablo and saves Leoric's son. But then he plunges the soul stone into his head, thinking he could contain the darkness.

"Let's hope your insanity pays off, Dyne." Strafe sighed.

The Mist continued to approach.

As this was happening, the people beyond the closed doors and sealed behind the strong stone walls began to attack each other.

“Open the gates!” One of the soldiers demanded as he ran towards the lever to open the stone wall.