To enter the underworld, Luke currently knew of only two ways: wearing the One Ring or being stabbed by the Blade of Morgul. Both methods, however, were clearly unrealistic. Even Gandalf dared not succumb to the corrupting temptation of the One Ring; while wearing it could grant access to the underworld, the ultimate outcome was almost certainly corruption and enslavement to Sauron.
Not to mention, the Ring remained securely in Tom Bombadil's custody. As for intentionally being stabbed by a Morgul blade, this act of self-harm was entirely out of the question for Luke. The Morgul Blade was virulently poisonous; after striking an enemy, a fragment of the blade would remain in the wound, inexorably drilling deeper into the body until it pierced the heart. If left untreated, as the blade fragments advanced, the injured individual would gradually transform into a wraith-like being, becoming a lesser ghost under Sauron's dominion, at the mercy of the Ringwraiths and Sauron himself.
Even if the injured person received medical attention and the blade fragments were removed, the wound was unlikely to ever fully heal. For instance, even after Frodo received treatment from Elrond, Middle-earth's greatest healer, he continued to suffer severe discomfort every year on the anniversary of his stab wound, only able to find complete healing by traveling to Valinor. Luke was certainly not going to stab himself merely to enter the Underworld.
Since these two methods were infeasible, Luke could only seek assistance from his father-in-law, Elrond, renowned for his vast knowledge. In the serene, winding corridors within the valley's forest, Luke walked alongside Elrond. Upon hearing Luke's inquiry, Elrond paused, turned, and frowned slightly. "You wish to enter the underworld?"
Luke nodded. "I intend to capture the substance of death from the underworld to forge a magical item that breaches the boundary between life and death." He then explained the principle of the Resurrection Stone to Elrond.
Elrond was surprised to learn that the Resurrection Stone could summon the deceased. "The souls of the dead enter the Halls of Mandos to face their fate. No soul can depart from there and return to the living world without Mandos's permission. If your Resurrection Stone possesses that ability, it would be a treasure no less valuable than the Philosopher's Stone!"
Luke shook his head, clarifying, "It's not that it truly summons the soul back, but rather a projection of the soul. They are more tangible than ghosts, yet more illusory than true entities. They are, in essence, a projection of the memories and thoughts of the living."
"That is very good," Elrond conceded. "If it truly could summon the dead, only Mandos, the Lord of the Dead, could wield such power." Their conversation then shifted back to the practicalities of entering the underworld. Elrond explained, "The Underworld is essentially a spiritual dimension of this world. Those deceased who have not been summoned by Mandos and remain in this world will enter the Underworld. For example, the Nazgûl are typical Underworld creatures; when not disguised by Sauron in the real world, they are illusory and invisible." He continued, "Of course, this doesn't mean the Underworld is inherently an evil place. It contains both dark and light spiritual beings, neither of which is inherently good or evil. Even powerful beings like Lady Galadriel and Lord Glorfindel are able to perceive and exist freely in the Underworld without external aid, and remain unharmed."
Elrond looked at Luke with a serious expression, warning him, "But if you wish to enter the Dark Realm, you will require external assistance, and you must ensure you remain unharmed within it. The Underworld is not safe. If a living person enters, they will be sensed by its creatures. Furthermore, in the Underworld , your magic will lose its meaning. You will become like an ordinary person, vulnerable to attack from its inhabitants. And you cannot remain there for too long, or your body will be transformed into a creature of the Underworld , preventing your return to the real world! Are you still willing to take that risk?" Luke was unfazed. He offered a faint smile, nodding. "For the sake of the Resurrection Stone, we must try." Elrond did not dissuade him further.
He led Luke to his palace, retrieved a scroll from his collection of books, and handed it to Luke. "This is an ancient magic circle that connects to the underworld. It was created by an elf who sought to find the spirits of elves who had refused Mandos's summons."
He then produced a black sword, wrapped in leather with a sealing spell inscribed upon it, and presented it to Luke. Luke recognized this black sword; it was the Blade of Morgul, originally given to Gandalf by the wizard Radagast, and the weapon of the Witch-king of Angmar, leader of the Ringwraiths.
"You must find a place imbued with the breath of death, then activate the magic circle at midnight, using this Morgul Blade as a guide to enter the underworld," Elrond instructed very seriously. "But you must remember that after entering the Underworld , you must not remain there for more than a quarter of an hour. Most importantly, you absolutely cannot allow the creatures of the Underworld to harm you. Once injured, your body will rapidly weaken and gradually transform into an invisible ghost, condemned to wander the Underworld forever!" Luke became serious upon hearing this, nodding. "I understand. I will be extremely careful!" Elrond knew Luke was aware of the gravity of the situation, so after providing detailed instructions, he said no more.
Bidding farewell to Elrond, Luke returned to Weathertop with the scroll of magic circles and the Blade of Morgul. Arwen was also aware of Luke's plan. Though her face showed worry, she did not dissuade him, only gently urged him to be cautious. After studying the magic circle scroll for a time, Luke began preparing to enter the underworld. First, he needed a place steeped in the aura of death, a site where many had perished.
In such locations, the boundary between the underworld and the real world would be at its thinnest, occasionally allowing Underworld creatures like ghosts to wander, leading to terrifying sightings by ordinary people in the real world. Luke's first thought was the Barrow-downs. However, the Barrow-downs had been largely cleansed by Luke himself. Now, the aura of death there was faint, and even the Barrow-wights had grown weak and fallen into a deep slumber, unable to emerge and wreak havoc. Therefore, the ancient tomb mound was immediately ruled out.
Secondly, Luke considered the northern hill of Fornost, once the royal city of Arthedain. The Witch-king of Angmar had led his evil army to capture this place, resulting in the destruction of the Kingdom of Arthedain. The two sides had engaged in a bloody battle there, where countless Dúnedain warriors, human soldiers, and the evil creatures of the Witch-king of Angmar had died, leaving the battlefield strewn with corpses.
The battle was so brutal that many of the dead were hastily interred near the defensive dikes or their remains were piled directly upon them, thus earning the name "Dead Man's Dike." Luke did not hesitate and immediately chose this location as his entry point into the underworld.
After a final farewell to Arwen, Luke used Apparition to return to Fornost. He selected the area near the defensive dike where the fiercest battles had taken place. This ground had been a veritable meat grinder, every inch stained with the blood of Arthedain warriors and the Legion of Angmar. Even after a thousand years, the scars of death could not be erased, and a potent stench of death lingered. Luke meticulously drew the magic circle on the ground, designed to communicate with the underworld. Once completed, he placed the Blade of Morgul in its center and then waited quietly for the sky to darken.
As time gradually approached midnight, Luke activated the magic circle. The thick aura of death in the surroundings converged upon the formation, generating an invisible wave with the Blade of Morgul at its core. The environment around him grew dim, as if veiled by a hazy gauze, and at this moment, the boundary between life and death seemed to rupture. The moon in the sky turned blood-red, and the previously silent surroundings now filled with faint whispers and chilling, strange laughter. Gazing at the gray, mirage-like scene within the magic circle, as if the space inside and outside the circle delineated two separate worlds, Luke stepped in without hesitation.
For a moment, he felt as if he had plunged into ice water. He couldn't help but shiver, his limbs feeling frozen. Resisting the intense chill, he walked to the center of the formation and picked up the Blade of Morgul. As soon as Luke touched the Blade of Morgul, the environment around him instantly transformed dramatically, shifting into a gray world. The surrounding scenery and objects had not physically changed, yet they seemed to have faded in color, becoming uniformly gray and dark, as if shrouded in an eternal shadow, imbuing everything with a cold, dead sensation. This was the underworld, a realm suspended between life and death. The Morgul blade, it seemed, was indeed the key to this realm.
As he entered the underworld, Luke carefully assessed his situation, finding that everything on him was intact. However, when he tried to wave his wand, it felt inert, like a mere stick, completely unresponsive. He couldn't even sense the magic power within his body. Although Elrond had warned him, Luke still felt profoundly insecure. His greatest reliance, magic, was useless in the underworld. He seemed to have become a mortal once more.
What made the situation even more dire was that while the real world around him had been empty, in this underworld, the area was teeming with densely packed underworld creatures—evil ghosts! These ghosts included Orcs, Ogres, Wargs, and even humans. The Halls of Mandos only summoned the spirits of Elves, Men, and Dwarves. Evil creatures such as Orcs, Ogres, and Wargs, their souls remained in Middle-earth after death, either entering the underworld or wandering until they eventually dissipated. And these human ghosts before him were not the Arthedain soldiers who had died in battle, but the wicked humans who had followed the Witch-king of Angmar.
When they died in battle, they feared judgment in the Hall of Mandos, so they refused the summons and chose to become ghosts, lingering in the underworld. In this underworld, these ghosts were more stable, exuded a dark aura, and seemed more real and evil than the ghosts he had encountered on the Road of the Dead. They stared at him with murderous eyes and ravenous greed, as if seeing delicious meat. "It's a living person! I smell his breath!" Then these eerie, terrifying, and twisted creatures from the netherworld swarmed him densely from all directions. They exuded the stench of death and decay, their bodies rotten and hideous, shaped like skeletal figures, and they charged at him with menacing momentum.
Despite being unable to use magic, Luke remained calm, facing hundreds of ghostly creatures from his position within the magic circle. As the ghosts surged towards him, they crashed headfirst into an invisible barrier, the magic circle holding firm. Though Luke was only inches away, they could not penetrate its protection.
The ghosts roared in frustration, slashing with their spectral weapons, attempting to dismantle the magical shield. But no matter their efforts, the circle remained unyielding. Luke secretly breathed a sigh of relief, offering silent thanks to Elrond for providing such a potent defense.
While the ghosts couldn't breach the magic circle, their continuous assault would eventually wear it down. Moreover, his primary mission on this trip was to collect death matter, and he couldn't afford to waste a second entangled with these underworld creatures. Luke then took out the Phial of Galadriel, which contained the Light of Eärendil, and shook it.
The dazzling, holy white light emitted by the Phial became the sole color in the otherwise monochromatic underworld. The Light of Eärendil, stemming from the brilliance of the Two Trees, was inherently anathema to the creatures of the underworld, causing them great discomfort. The ghosts instinctively recoiled from the light, roaring as they retreated, their rotten and hideous faces contorted with reluctance and greed.
Luke ignored these spirits, stepping out of the magic circle with the Phial held high, then looked around, searching for the substance of death. The surrounding wargs, Orcs, and evil human ghosts trailed Luke from a distance, relentlessly seeking opportunities to attack. Luke's eyes soon lit up, and he quickened his pace, moving towards a nearby area.
He spotted a wisp of black mist floating in the distance, surging like a living entity. Though tiny and difficult to detect without careful observation, it radiated the pure aura of death, seemingly containing death's very essence. Even the surrounding ghosts appeared to fear this mist, daring not to approach it.
Luke did not touch it with his hands. Instead, he produced a black bottle he had prepared long ago and carefully guided the mist into it. The raw material for this bottle came from fragments of the black stone wall Luke had cut from the Path of the Dead.
According to Elrond, this was obsidian with special properties, capable of not only clarifying the minds of ghosts on the Path of the Dead but also preserving invisible matter. As death matter was itself invisible, it was ideally suited for containment in an obsidian vessel.
Luke was not satisfied with just one wisp of death matter. As far as he knew, Peverell, who crafted the Resurrection Stone, had guarded the Gate of Death for several years before accumulating enough death matter to create the stone. Thus, a single strand would not suffice. However, death matter was no ordinary substance in the underworld.
Luke searched around Fornost for a while, managing to collect only a few more strands. Meanwhile, the evil spirits continued to follow him from a distance, their eyes filled with covetous greed. Luke wished to venture further to gather more death matter, but seeing the small hourglass he used for timing nearly empty, he reluctantly stopped and quickly returned to the magic circle. As a living being, he could not remain in the underworld for too long; otherwise, he risked being eroded and transformed into a creature of the underworld, losing any chance of return.
The underworld and the real world were two sides of the same coin, like parallel lines that mostly remained undisturbed by each other. Ordinary beings could not perceive the underworld, and its creatures could not affect the real world; each existed in its own sphere. The only reason underworld creatures like the Ringwraiths could appear in the real world was through the power of Sauron and the One Ring, which granted them the ability to traverse between realms. Alternatively, like the Oathbreakers of the Path of the Dead in the White Mountains, they were bound there by curses and oaths.
Luke quickly returned to the magic circle. Amidst the unwilling roars and malicious gazes of the evil spirits, he inserted the Morgul Blade into the circle before the hourglass ran out, then released it. As his hand left the Morgul Blade, the surroundings instantly transformed. The figures and roars of the evil spirits swiftly vanished. The previously gray and dark environment regained its color and brightness, and he found himself back in the real world. He was the only one left around. There was dead silence, not even the sound of insects; only the full moon in the sky remained bright and clear.
Luke exhaled. The atmosphere in the underworld was oppressive, dark, and cold. It felt like being submerged in ice-cold water, making even breathing difficult. The icy temperature slowly penetrated his body as time passed, making it feel as if his blood and bones were freezing. By the time the hourglass was almost empty, his heart already felt like ice. Moreover, his greatest reliance, magic, was powerless in the underworld.
If not for the Light of Eärendil provided by Lady Galadriel, facing so many underworld creatures, he would have struggled to return safely, let alone collect the death matter. He looked at the magic circle, noting that the death energy around it had been almost entirely depleted. It was clear he could no longer enter the underworld from this spot, which was a pity.
"It seems we have to look somewhere else," Luke muttered, frowning. However, looking at the obsidian bottle in his hand, Luke smiled again. The trip had been safe and successful, and he had finally managed to collect some death matter. Death matter was invisible and intangible; to ordinary people in the real world, the bottle would appear empty. But Luke could sense a small ball of cold, deathly energy within. Luke looked around again, waved his hand to erase the traces of the formation, and then used Apparition to return to Weathertop.
Although he had left the underworld in time, Luke was not entirely unaffected. He basked in the sun on the castle lawn for a few days, allowing his skin to tan slightly, finally dispelling the last trace of coldness in his body. Then, he planned to enter the underworld again. To do so, he needed to find another place where many had died and which was permeated with deathly energy. Luke's first thought was the Dead Marshes. It had been the battlefield of the Last Alliance War, where countless Elves, Men, Orcs, and others were buried. The deathly aura there was extremely dense, with the faces of the dead and will-o'-the-wisps appearing on the water. It was a place of death haunted by the undead.
Therefore, the barrier between the underworld and the real world was thinnest here, and even creatures of the underworld could be seen breaching the boundary between life and death and appearing in the physical realm. The only problem was that the Dead Marshes were too close to Mordor. If Luke went there, he would not only face a large number of underworld ghosts but would also likely attract Sauron's attention, making it even more perilous. So Luke reluctantly abandoned the Dead Marshes as an option.
He then set his sights on Dol Guldur. Dol Guldur was the stronghold where Sauron resided when he was incarnated as the Necromancer. It was steeped in evil and death. It had once been a fortress built by the Elves of the Woodland Realm but was occupied by Sauron, forcing the Elves to relocate north. Luke first traveled to Lothlórien via the fireplace, then used Apparition to reach Dol Guldur. Simply sensing the dark atmosphere pervading Dol Guldur, he couldn't help but frown. Ever since they had last joined forces to exile Sauron, Luke had assumed the city of Dol Guldur would fade into obscurity. Yet, after so much time, he was surprised to find that the dark atmosphere still lingered persistently. This was clearly abnormal.
Luke cast an illusion spell on himself, teleported into the fortress, and vigilantly observed the surroundings. He then discovered that inside the fortress, there were a large number of Orcs and giant Olog-hai (Trolls capable of tolerating sunlight), as well as some giant spiders, wargs, and other evil creatures. These creatures hid inside the fortress, and had even dug extensive underground caves beneath it for shelter and movement. Suddenly, a gust of wind blew, and several wargs sniffed the air, detecting an unfamiliar scent. They immediately looked in the direction of Luke's unseen presence with renewed vigilance and let out fierce howls. The other Orcs and Olog-hai snatched up their weapons and scanned their surroundings. Luke no longer concealed himself, waving his hand to lift the disillusionment spell.
The first time they saw Luke, the Orcs grinned grimly, as if mocking him for overestimating his abilities. But the next second, as if a realization struck them, they suddenly showed looks of terror, retreating in panic, shouting in trembling voices: "It's that man! It's Orc's nemesis, the black-robed wizard!" Hearing their words, the other Orcs took a deep breath, and an atmosphere of fear enveloped them. "Run! It's that black-robed wizard! He's here to take my life again!" The Orcs had no courage to resist whatsoever and simply began to flee in panic. The Olog-hai, not very intelligent, reacted slowly. They watched the Orcs flee, then looked at Luke on the city wall, scratched their heads, and were momentarily confused.
Luke did not give the Orcs a chance to escape. He was already an enemy of Sauron. Now that he encountered Sauron's forces, he naturally had to continue weakening the adversary's power. So he removed the Ring of Power from his chest, slipped it onto his finger, and summoned Fiendfyre with all his might. With the blessing of the Ring of Power, the ferocious and terrifying Fiendfyre directly transformed into a raging inferno, spreading everywhere, attempting to take the forms of a fire demon, a dragon, and a basilisk, swiftly burning all combustible objects around it, including Orcs, Olog-hai, giant spiders, and other creatures. The flames engulfed the entire Dol Guldur fortress, incinerating all the dark creatures inside the fortress and in the underground caves to ashes. The flames shot up into the sky, visible from the highest platform of the Mirrormere in Lothlórien.
The inferno burned for a long time, until the last dark creature was annihilated. Luke waved his hand to quell the raging fire, and the simulated fire demons, dragons, and basilisks all obediently dissipated without any resistance or host-devouring behavior. Luke looked at the Ring of Power on his hand, satisfied. This was the first time he had truly utilized the Ring of Power to its full potential, and its power was indeed extraordinary. Without the Ring of Power, he alone would not have been able to control such a colossal Fiendfyre, or even command the three anthropomorphic Fiendfyre creatures—the demon, the dragon, and the basilisk—to obey him. After dealing with the evil creatures in Dol Guldur, Luke looked at the sky and began to prepare to draw a magic circle to enter the underworld.
Dol Guldur, once a place where countless lives were lost and where Sauron, in his guise as the Necromancer, delved into dark magic and evil sorcery, possessed an aura of death and malevolence far more intense than Fornost in the north. Luke chose an empty platform within the fortress and meticulously drew a magic circle upon it. He then waited for midnight to activate the formation.
As the surrounding death energy converged into the circle, the barrier between the real world and the underworld was breached. The magic circle became the conduit, or channel, connecting the two realms. Luke walked towards the formation and picked up the Morgul Blade, which served as his key. The moment Luke touched the Blade of Morgul, a new world instantly transformed around him. The vibrant colors of the world faded, becoming gray and gloomy. Real objects around him grew illusory and transparent, as if everything in the physical world had become mere phantoms in the underworld. Conversely, the ghosts around him seemed more real and solid.
Luke was not surprised to encounter creatures from the underworld, but the sight of the densely packed ghosts still made him gasp. To his shock, the very Orcs, Olog-hai, and Wargs he had just incinerated with Fiendfyre had reappeared as ghosts, surrounding him! Logically, not all deceased souls entered the underworld in this manner. What was happening? Luke was filled with doubt and heightened vigilance. Furthermore, for some unknown reason, these ghosts all had dull, lifeless eyes, like puppets. Could this be a consequence of their recent demise at his hands?
Beyond the ghosts of the evil creatures he had just vanquished, there were also many pre-existing underworld creatures present—a multitude of ghosts with twisted souls, including humans, dwarves, Orcs, Ogres, and even Elves! These spirits appeared to have been distorted by evil witchcraft, becoming utterly grotesque and completely irrational. Luke instantly understood their plight. These ghosts were likely the undead Sauron had secretly captured during his time as the Necromancer, using them in dark experiments and manipulating them with evil spells. No one knew how it had happened, but the souls of these humans, dwarves, and elves could not be summoned to the Halls of Mandos; instead, they remained trapped in the underworld as tormented ghosts. These irrational spirits, upon seeing Luke—a living person—immediately lunged at him, madly trying to bite and devour him. However, they were all blocked by the magic circle, unable to reach Luke.
Luke had no time to waste engaging with these ghosts. His time in the underworld was limited, and he needed to collect more death matter as quickly as possible. So, he retrieved the Phial of Galadriel and unleashed the Light of Eärendil to repel the surrounding spirits. He then stepped out of the magic circle and began his search for death matter. To Luke's surprise, the underworld of Dol Guldur contained significantly more death matter than the northern hill of Fornost. Luke continued to collect the death matter with his obsidian bottle, using the Light of Eärendil to keep the eager ghosts at bay.
But just as Luke persisted in his collection, the surrounding environment suddenly became distorted and dark, and a cold, suffocating, desperate atmosphere spread through the air. The surrounding darkness thickened like insoluble ink, pressing in on Luke, attempting to suppress the Light of Eärendil in his hand. At this moment, an arrow of pure darkness suddenly shot towards Luke. Luke swiftly drew his sword and blocked the arrow.
"Morgul Arrow!" Luke looked at the dark arrow on the ground, his face cold and solemn, identifying it in a clear voice. This magical arrow was different from the Morgul arrows used by Orcs; it was a far more dangerous and poisonous weapon, belonging to the Nazgûl. And as far as he knew, the Nazgûl most skilled in archery was Khamûl, the former leader of the Easterlings. Indeed, as the ghosts parted automatically, the Nazgûl Khamûl emerged, riding a ghostly steed. The Nazgûl, at this moment, appeared far more real and defined than any he had previously seen. Its body was tall and gaunt, like a skeleton, draped in a black cloak, its rotting skin stretched taut over its skull, and its hollow eye sockets flickered with red hellfire. An oppressive aura of fear surrounded the Nazgûl, its breath filled with poisonous black air, as it whispered evil curses all around them. It held a bow and arrow made of some unknown bone, and its red eyes gleamed with mockery.
"Black-robed wizard, Luke, your entry into the underworld today is undoubtedly the gravest mistake of your life!" Khamûl, the Nazgûl, sneered in a voice that seemed to echo from hell itself. "The Underworld is my domain. Your magic poses no threat here. Angmar failed to turn you into a slave, so let me claim you as my treasure. I believe my master will be very pleased!" Khamûl's tone was brimming with pride, as if Luke were already his captive.
Khamûl was the Ninth Nazgûl, second only to the Witch-king of Angmar. He was known as the "Shadow of the East," the "Deputy Commander," and the "Black Easterling." Among the Nine Nazgûl, his strength was surpassed only by their leader. In the real world, Khamûl the Nazgûl would still fear Luke, but in the Underworld, his private territory, he not only possessed his full power but could also command the creatures of the Underworld. He was, in essence, an uncrowned king here. This was the source of the Nazgûl's immense confidence.
And just as the Nazgûl predicted, the surrounding ghosts, who had initially feared the Light of Eärendil, now—under Khamûl's control—lost their instinct for fear and surged madly towards Luke. Even under the radiant light, the ghosts slowly melted like thawing snow, weakening and dissipating. But they showed no fear, relentlessly pressing forward, advancing upon Luke. The Light of Eärendil, which had once reassured Luke, shrank and dimmed under the reckless assault of these spirits. Luke's pupils constricted, and his expression darkened. If these ghosts were allowed to continue, the Light of Eärendil would be exhausted. After all, the Light of Eärendil was a finite resource, not an endless supply.
The only thing that brought Luke a measure of relief was that his flaming sword remained effective in the underworld. As he continuously hacked, the surrounding ghosts dissipated and disintegrated. But there were simply too many ghosts, an endless tide, making it impossible to cut them all down. More critically, the Nazgûl Khamûl watched closely. The Nazgûl was cunning and also wary of the Light of Eärendil, so he did not initiate a direct attack. Instead, he remained in place, planning a war of attrition, using the surrounding ghosts as cannon fodder to deplete all the Light of Eärendil in Luke's hands.
By then, Luke would be like meat on a chopping block, entirely at the mercy of the tiger, or even become its slave. Simultaneously, Khamûl relentlessly launched sneak attacks. Once an arrow struck its target, it would act like the Morgul Blade of the Witch-king of Angmar. The arrow's poison would rapidly transform the victim into a wraith, thus becoming a ghost under Khamûl's control.
Luke swung his sword, blocking another Morgul arrow from Khamûl. Thanks to the training he had received from Elrohir and Elladan, and the invigorating effects of the Ent Draught, coupled with the blessing of the Crown of Wisdom on his head, Luke's reaction speed was exceptionally fast, allowing him to successfully block cold arrow after cold arrow. But Luke also knew this was not a sustainable solution. He watched the sand in the alchemy hourglass dwindle, and began to fight and retreat, moving steadily towards the magic circle.
The Nazgûl Khamûl noticed Luke's movements and immediately rushed towards the magic circle. He swung a mace from his horse's back, smashing it heavily into Luke's magic circle, attempting to destroy Luke's escape route. But the magic circle proved incredibly resilient. When the mace struck, it merely created a ripple effect, failing to break the formation. Luke sneered. "Idiot, this magic circle was set up in the real world. How can you destroy something in the real world from the Underworld?"
Khamûl, the Nazgûl, was momentarily stunned by this, but then a realization dawned, and he thanked Luke sarcastically. "Thank you for reminding me. I almost forgot." As he spoke, his entire body gradually became transparent and illusory, and then he appeared directly in the real world. As servants of the Ring of Power, the Nazgûl could freely travel between the real world and the underworld without the aid of external objects.
When the Nazgûl appeared in the real world, he swung his mace and destroyed the magic circle drawn by Luke with one blow. The magic circle was instantly shattered, and the magic circle in the underworld that had blocked ghosts completely lost its effect. Khamûl, the Nazgûl, could still perceive the Underworld from the real world. He mocked Luke, "Your magic circle has been broken. You will stay in the Underworld forever, become a ghost, and become my slave!"
"Idiot!" Luke was completely unconcerned, his face full of ridicule and mockery. He released the Morgul Blade in his hand, and the surrounding environment immediately regained its full color and brightness. He was back in the real world, with only himself and the astonished Nazgûl Khamûl remaining. "Who said that I have to pass through the magic circle to leave the underworld?" Luke said, looking at the Nazgûl with a sneer.
As he spoke, he swiftly cast a spell: "Expecto Patronus!" The Ring of Power on his finger gleamed brightly, and a huge, dazzling owl Patronus flew out. Its size was comparable to that of the giant eagle Thorondor, and it transformed the surroundings into a blindingly white, holy area.
Without giving the Nazgûl a chance to escape back to the Underworld, the Owl Patronus snatched Khamûl and swallowed him in one gulp. Seeing the struggling Nazgûl inside the body of the transparent owl Patronus, Luke sneered. "Khamûl, your entry into the real world today is definitely the biggest mistake of your life!" He returned the Nazgûl's earlier words without altering them. At the same time, Luke raised the Phial of Galadriel and continuously injected magical power into it. The originally dim Light of Eärendil became intensely bright and dazzling, releasing a sacred light that began to incinerate the Nazgûl.
The Nazgûl screamed in agony, and under the Light of Eärendil, its black cloak dissipated like carbonized paper, its withered and twisted body peeling away layer by layer as if being burned. Seeing that the Nazgûl was getting weaker and weaker, Luke produced a dagger and threw it at Khamûl like a dart. The dagger was one of the four obtained from the Barrow-downs, far more effective against the Nazgûl than any other magic or weapon. The dagger struck the Nazgûl's head straight and accurately.
Khamûl the Nazgûl was immediately struck hard, letting out a piercing wail that echoed throughout Dol Guldur. Its body quickly twisted and collapsed like a deflated balloon, then exploded, sending out a massive shockwave. Ding... The Nazgûl disappeared, leaving only a ring that rolled down and stopped at Luke's feet.