While Theia was carrying Lin Gui on her back, hauling the heavy backpack, and sprinting desperately toward the outer boundary of the forest,
the depression deep within the forest had already turned into a bloody purgatory.
Moragus had fully awakened. His overwhelming malice, combined with the terrifying pressure of a Legendary demon, erupted like a tsunami.
It crushed the remaining members of the knights, leaving them almost suffocating, their teeth chattering uncontrollably.
The face of the conscripted guild scout was as pale as paper.
Looking at the tide of demons surging around them and the terrifying giant beast,
he cried out to Lyon, his voice trembling on the verge of tears.
“Knight Commander! The demon tide! The demon tide is here! Why aren't we running?!”
Just moments ago, when he had tried to flee on his own, one of the knights beside him had grabbed his arm in a death grip.
Right then, a flash of resolve crossed the eyes of the silent assassin among the knights.
He suddenly pulled an ominous gemstone radiating a faint green glow from his coat.
As he pressed the gemstone tightly against his chest,
a pure, dense wave of demonic energy suddenly erupted from his body!
Forcing down the primal terror shaking his very soul, his legs trembling violently,
he walked step by step toward the Legendary demon, Moragus, who was on the verge of going completely berserk.
At the final moment before Moragus's destructive attack could land,
he fell heavily to his knees in the mud with a thud.
Summoning every ounce of his strength, he cried out in a hoarse voice:
“Great Legendary Demon! Please calm your anger! It is me! I am the one who offered you a plan some time ago!”
“Hehehe... A plan?”
Moragus's massive body paused slightly.
His glowing green eyes, filled with endless malice, locked onto the assassin.
The twisted human faces on the tree trunk let out mocking voices.
“Oh... So it is you, you cunning little bug... The little thing who told me where to find more 'balloons'...”
“Yes! Yes, yes! It's me! It's me!”
The assassin kowtowed frantically in wild joy, as if grasping at a final lifeline.
“I am your ally! We are friends!”
“Then just now... the one who disturbed my slumber... was also you?!”
Moragus's voice suddenly turned bone-chillingly cold.
The terrifying pressure that had eased slightly erupted once more, crashing down upon the assassin like a mountain!
Knowing there was no way to explain his way out of this, the assassin decided to stake it all and screamed at the top of his lungs.
“Great Lord Moragus! I have brought you sacrifices! New, even richer sacrifices!”
“Sacrifices?”
The word seemed to possess a strange magic, and Moragus's violent aura indeed faltered slightly.
His massive eyes swept past the assassin.
He looked at the knights behind him, who, despite having suffered casualties, still exuded an extraordinary presence.
Especially Lyon, who stood at their head.
Sensing the “delicious” power contained within these nearly ten Transcendent experts, the demon instantly shrieked with excitement.
All the human faces on the trunk stretched into greedy, twisted grins.
“Heavens! Hehehe... You actually brought me such a bountiful harvest of sacrifices!”
“You truly are... my loyal friend. How should I reward you, my dear friend? Hehehe...”
The ecstatic smile on the assassin's face froze instantly. Reward?
He whipped his head around to look at Lyon, a flash of ruthlessness and urgency crossing his eyes.
Lyon understood the look instantly, and his expression turned cold.
His icy gaze, like a venomous snake, locked onto the guild scout who was still paralyzed by shock and fear.
The scout's extraordinary instincts immediately warned him of a fatal danger!
Without a second thought, he lunged to the side.
He narrowly avoided a lethal, perfectly coordinated strike from the two knights beside him!
“You guys...!”
Furious and terrified, the scout erupted with vital energy, turning to flee into the depths of the dense forest.
However, a brilliant and domineering cross-shaped sword qi, carrying the full force of Lyon's strike, tore through the air, arriving first!
Splat!
The sound of a sharp blade piercing flesh was sickening.
The fleeing scout's body stiffened abruptly. He looked down in disbelief
at the blood-stained sword tip protruding from his chest.
Summoning the last of his strength, he turned his head to look at Lyon, who was expressionlessly drawing back his longsword.
His eyes bulged horribly as he squeezed out a final, raspy accusation:
“It was... you... all of you... who destroyed... the Gold Rank group... Wh-Why...”
Lyon merely snorted coldly and flicked his wrist.
The longsword flashed with cold light, cleanly severing the scout's head.
Warm blood splattered across half of his body.
Holding the severed head—whose eyes remained wide open, its expression frozen in terror and rage—
he walked expressionlessly to Moragus and respectfully presented it.
A pitch-black tentacle covered in sharp thorns slithered out, wrapping around the head.
It easily stuffed the head into Moragus's massive, hollow-like mouth.
Crunch... Gulp...
The hair-raising sound of chewing echoed with terrible clarity in the silent forest.
Before long, the scout's face, filled with despair and terror,
slowly and agonizingly manifested upon Moragus's trunk,
becoming a part of his horrific collection.
Moragus smacked his lips in satisfaction, his voice sounding like rubbing decayed wood.
“Not bad... Hehehe... Nice and crunchy, and still warm...”
His glowing green eyes turned once more toward the remaining members of the knights.
His greedy gaze was entirely undisguised, as if he were sizing up a row of moving delicacies.
A bone-chilling dread instantly washed over the knights.
They stirred uneasily, instinctively crowding closer together.
The assassin quickly spoke up again, his voice dripping with flattery.
“My Lord! Them! They all came specifically to escort these sacrifices to you! They are on our side! We are on the same side!”
The knights immediately forced out smiles that looked worse than crying.
They nodded frantically at Moragus, terrified that a second's delay would turn them into a snack.
“So...”
Moragus dragged out his words, his tone carrying a cruel, cat-and-mouse playfulness.
“There is... only this single sacrifice???”
His aura looked ready to erupt once more.
In the distance, the vanguard of the demon tide was already clearly visible, their roars deafening!
Lyon's face instantly twisted into an expression of sheer, maddened desperation.
A murderous resolve flashed in his eyes as he drew his sword. Yet, instead of rushing at Moragus, he...
slashed like lightning toward another knight beside him who was caught completely off guard!
“For the future of the kingdom! For the ultimate victory! Offer up everything you have!”
Lyon roared like a madman.
Civil war erupted instantly among the former comrades!
To prove they were “on the same side,”
and to secure a sliver of hope for survival, they had to offer up more blood tributes!
When the last knight collapsed with a look of unbelievable despair in his eyes,
both Lyon and the assassin were drenched in blood, panting heavily.
They had offered up the heads and souls of a full eight Transcendent experts!
Moragus devoured them eagerly, and several more twisted, agonizing faces appeared on his trunk.
His aura surged higher and higher, growing even more terrifying.
Yet, his glowing green eyes remained greedily locked onto the only two survivors in the clearing:
the strongest, Lyon, and the scheming assassin.
Lyon's heart sank to rock bottom.
He traded a glance with the assassin, both seeing utter despair in the other's eyes.
This demon lord had never intended to let anyone go!
In the midst of this suffocating standoff,
Lyon's gaze inadvertently swept over the top of Moragus's massive head.
There, the faintly glowing 【Umbral Tree Flower】 was still swaying gently.
A mad idea flashed through his mind like lightning!
“Now!”
A forbidden power within Lyon's body suddenly ignited!
His life force fluctuated violently like a boiling pot of oil.
Eerie blood-red veins surfaced on his skin as his aura exploded with terrifying intensity.
For a brief moment, he broke through the limits of the Transcendent Rank, touching the very edge of the Legendary Rank!
Stomping his foot down, the ground exploded into a shallow crater.
His figure turned into a crimson meteor, shooting straight toward the top of Moragus's head at a speed nearly invisible to the naked eye!
“Roar?!!”
Moragus had clearly not expected this tiny bug to dare launch an offensive.
Much less that he would unleash such bizarre power!
In the blink of an eye, Lyon's hand grabbed the Umbral Tree Flower and yanked hard, tearing it out by its roots!
“Insignificant ant! You court death!!”
Moragus let out an earth-shattering roar.
A massive, spike-covered thorny tentacle whipped toward Lyon with devastating force!
“Soul-Burning Slash!!!”
His eyes bloodshot, Lyon burned his life and soul to swing the strongest strike of his life!
The brilliant crimson sword light clashed violently with the demonic tentacle!
Boom!!!
A massive explosion rang out, sending shockwaves rippling through the air!
To everyone's astonishment,
that terrifying thorny tentacle was actually sliced open with a massive gash by Lyon's desperate strike!
Even Moragus's massive head was split with a deep fissure.
Disgusting green sap sprayed everywhere!
“Argh!!” Moragus shrieked in agony.
Lyon himself spat out a large mouthful of blood, his internal organs feeling as though they had been shaken out of place.
Yet, utilizing the recoil of the explosion and the demon's brief pause from the injury,
he gripped the small flower tightly, transformed into a streak of crimson light, and fled for his life toward the outer boundary of the forest without looking back!
The assassin was utterly dumbfounded, but his survival instinct kicked in instantly. This was their only chance!
He immediately burst forth with his maximum speed, desperately running behind the crimson light that was Lyon!
“Roar!!!”
Behind them, Moragus's completely enraged, maddened roar echoed throughout the entire forest!
His massive body twisted frantically as he began to move,
vowing to crush these two bugs who had desecrated and harmed him into fine powder!
The power obtained by burning his life force gave Lyon a speed and destructive power close to the Legendary Rank for a short duration.
Like a crazed crimson bull, he plowed through countless low-tier demons attempting to block him,
tearing open a path through the demon tide by sheer force!
Following closely behind, the assassin was highly thrilled by Lyon's invincible, heroic display.
He believed that as long as the commander, their guiding light, remained standing, they had a hope of escaping alive!
However, just as they were about to break through a patch of dense woods and saw a faint light in the distance,
a dull, thunderous sound rumbled from the earth ahead of them!
Rumble!
The ground shook violently as a massive figure composed of countless ores, metals, and earth—Gorog Ironjaw—
rose abruptly from the ground like a mountain forced awake from its slumber, blocking their path!
With a casual sweep of his massive rocky arm, generating a terrifying sonic boom,
he swatted Lyon, who was sprinting at high speed and utterly unable to dodge!
Splat!
Like swatting a fly, the crimson light enveloping Lyon dimmed instantly.
He was sent flying like a broken kite,
snapping countless trees before disappearing into the depths of the forest.
The assassin screeched to a halt, staring at the suddenly awakened Legendary stone monster before him, who radiated an aura not a single bit weaker than Moragus's.
The color drained completely from his face, and he fell into absolute despair.
In an instant, he understood.
The sudden awakening of this colossal entity was definitely connected to that strangely vanished high-tier mage brat!
No wonder the boy had asked that question before leaving.
Who could have ever imagined that a mere Low-tier High Rank mage would completely annihilate an entire squad of Transcendent knights?
Endless regret and terror washed over him.
Closing his eyes, he collapsed limply to the ground,
abandoning all resistance and preparing to accept his death.
...
Meanwhile, Lyon, who had been swatted away, had his trajectory altered by the massive impact, a blessing in disguise.
He had coincidentally shaken off most of the pursuers behind him,
even deviating from Moragus's main pursuit path.
The Soul Burning power within his body was rapidly fading.
The agonizing backlash pierced his soul and heart like tens of thousands of steel needles.
His arms had long since lost all sensation, and he was relying solely on his sheer will to survive.
He had no idea how long he had run, nor how many demons he had slain with his sword.
His consciousness was blurring; he only knew how to move forward mechanically, step by step.
Until finally, he stumbled out of a thick patch of shrubs, and the view before him suddenly opened up!
Dazzling sunlight poured down—no longer the dappled beams filtering through the leaves,
but the warm, unobstructed rays of the bright sun!
Beneath his feet was no longer decaying leaves and mud, but soft green grass!
The nauseating stench of sulfur and blood in the air had also been replaced by the freshness of vegetation!
He... he had broken through! He had escaped the Black Demon Forest!
“Ha... Haha... Hahaha!!!”
Unable to hold himself up any longer, Lyon's knees buckled, and he collapsed onto the grass.
Looking up at the clear blue sky and the bright sun, he greedily inhaled the air of freedom.
The ecstasy of surviving a disaster and the indescribable excitement made him want to scream at the top of his lungs!
He had made it! He was alive! And he had even obtained...
However, at the exact moment his mind relaxed,
an extremely dangerous premonition struck him like a bucket of ice water poured over his head!
He whipped his head around, only to see a sharp arrow enveloped in green energy
hovering silently right before his brow like a venomous snake!
The cold intent to kill radiating from the arrow tip sent a shiver through his skin.
Looking along the arrow, he saw a silver-haired, crimson-eyed elven ranger of peerless beauty.
She was holding her longbow expressionlessly, her eyes looking down at him coldly.
Beside the elf, the high-tier mage Lin Gui, whom he had assumed had long since perished in the mouths of demons,
was sitting comfortably on a rock, leisurely swinging his legs with a playful smirk on his face.
“It seems that just as Theia said, there are only three exits out of the Black Demon Forest.”
Lin Gui said with a soft chuckle, his tone as relaxed as if they were discussing the weather.
Lyon's pupils contracted sharply, his chapped lips trembling as he rasped out,
“You... how... are you... here...”
Lin Gui hopped down from the rock and slowly walked over to him.
Looking down at the utterly disheveled, extremely weakened knight commander,
the smile on his face grew even brighter.
“Well, I had absolute faith in your peerless bravery, Commander. I knew you would definitely break through, so I specifically waited here to welcome you back in triumph.”
“Please... I beg of you... spare me...”
Lyon's eyes were filled with terror and supplication, completely stripped of his former arrogance and dignity.
The backlash of the Soul Burning and his severe injuries had robbed him of any ability to resist.
Lin Gui smiled at him, a smile that was clean yet bone-chillingly cold.
“If our positions were reversed and I were the one kneeling here begging you, respected Knight Commander, would you spare me?”
Lyon's expression froze instantly.
“And so,”
Lin Gui said flatly, his smile fading.
“farewell, Commander.”
The moment his voice fell,
Whoosh!
the arrow that had been hovering for so long instantly pierced clean through Lyon's brow!
The shock and terror on Lyon's face froze completely.
His body swayed before collapsing heavily onto the soft grass with a thud.
His wide-open eyes stared blankly at the blue sky and white clouds he had been cheering for just moments before.
Lin Gui walked over to Lyon's corpse, bent down, and easily pried open the palm that was still clenched in a tight grip.
He retrieved the 【Umbral Tree Flower】 that was still radiating a faint, dark glow.
He weighed the little flower that had caused so many bloody tragedies in his hand and whistled.
“Oh? An unexpected bonus.”
Rate on N.U.
