Chapter 81: Holy

The warriors' frenzied shouts continued, and in the midst of their cries, two more lives were lost. The number of warriors rapidly dwindled to single digits, yet Chopin's legs remained rooted to the ground like nails.

He was the third prince of the Dragon Moon Empire, one of the top five human powers within the League of Blades. His status as the third prince was incredibly prestigious.

These people around him were his classmates from the Holy Sanctuary, his good friends and brothers-in-arms. Watching them die one by one before his eyes, all because of a single wrong decision he had made.

This was a trial arranged by the Holy Sanctuary, designed to enhance their chances of winning this year's Hero Tournament. The plan had been very successful; his teammates had all made significant progress. But when they discovered the trail of the succubus, he became overconfident...

He had judged the succubus to be a Tiger-level beast, and knowing that two royal guards were secretly protecting him, he felt confident enough to pursue it. However, he had forgotten the cunning of the succubus.

This creature had an extremely high growth rate and even higher intelligence. It thrived on devouring the souls and energies of other beings. In textbooks, it was always classified as one of the most dangerous and insidious types. At the time, it was likely at the peak of the Ghost level, disguised to lure them deeper in. After consuming twenty or so people, especially those two royal guards, it had become semi-corporeal, meaning it was just a step away from becoming Dragon-level.

And any Dragon-level succubus in history brought nothing but carnage and bloodshed. It was more terrifying than some other types of Dragon-level beasts due to its intelligence and ability to create terror.

Originally, there were over thirty people in their group, but now only about ten remained, the rest having been drained dry by the succubus. The two royal guards who had been secretly protecting him had only managed to hold the succubus back for a few minutes, allowing the remnants of their group to flee to this valley. But once the succubus broke free and gained immense power, those two royal guards were undoubtedly devoured.

No rescue, no hope—only death awaited them.

"Ah! Ah!"

More screams echoed as the black shadow darted through the air. The warriors' formation had already broken, leaving them defenseless. A strong hand reached out to push Chopin away, as he was the last remaining member of the team.

But the hand never touched Chopin.

"Your Highness!" The warrior was lifted high by a tentacle, his outstretched hand quickly pulled away. His eyes filled with terror and despair, as if pleading for help or urging Chopin to flee.

The succubus's human-like gaze seemed to tell Chopin: "Run, it's more fun this way."

The succubus drew strength from souls and fear, so it enjoyed playing with its prey.

But Chopin did not run. He knew he could not defeat the succubus, but he was prepared to fight to the death.

He could not leave; heroes do not run away. A hero's fate is to die on the battlefield!

Extreme fear turned into madness, and at this moment, faith took hold.

Energy flowed from the last warrior's body into the tentacle, draining him within seconds until his body turned dry and black, lifeless, and then discarded like trash.

The succubus stared hungrily at the last person standing.

He might not have been the strongest among the group, but his soul was undoubtedly the most delicious and nourishing.

The best is saved for last. The succubus licked its lips, its seductive face breaking into a sinister grin. Once fully corporeal, it could transform into human form and freely hunt in the human world—a dream for every succubus.

Clang!

Chopin threw his shield to the side. Even the enhanced shield wall provided by the exorcist had been useless, and his single shield was even less effective.

He gripped the golden greatsword tightly, his eyes filled with determination to face death.

"Holy Sanctuary honor,

Charge!" Chopin roared, pouring all his soul power into the golden greatsword.

In this life-or-death moment, he unleashed his full strength, causing the sword to burst with blinding golden light.

Chopin's eyes widened with fury as he swung the sword down with all his might.

Sky Moon Slash!

Boom!

The golden greatsword extended half a meter in length, carrying an overwhelming force. This power would have been overwhelming in the Rose Sanctuary, but here it seemed pale and ineffective.

The succubus stood still, allowing the sword to strike it. Not only did it fail to penetrate, but the impact caused Chopin's hands to bleed, and the sword flew out of his grip.

At the same moment, a black tentacle descended from the sky toward the helpless Chopin.

The succubus was ecstatic, ready to savor its final meal. Today was a great day; after devouring the last human, it would achieve Dragon-level status, making it a formidable presence even in the Demon Swinging Mountains, where powerful beasts roamed.

Bang!

A golden shield instantly blocked the succubus's tentacle, jolting its wrist.

...A soul artifact?

The necklace hanging from Chopin's chest suddenly emitted brilliant light, forming a golden protective barrier around him.

It was a top-tier defensive artifact crafted by a master craftsman, standard issue for the royal family of the Dragon Moon Empire—the Golden Bastion!

It automatically activated when its wearer faced a fatal attack, providing almost impenetrable protection against both physical and magical attacks.

As long as the energy lasted, the wearer was safe, but also immobile, as the immense energy was beyond their control.

In essence, the Golden Bastion was a super-defense artifact tailor-made for nobles.

They were deep in the trial mountains, far from any possible rescue.

All fighting spirit had left Chopin's eyes.

That previous strike had been his all, even managing to master the strongest move of the Dragon Moon Sword Technique in the face of death, yet it failed to scratch the succubus. The gap between them was too vast, and he was now powerless to continue.

Through the protection of the Golden Bastion, he could clearly see the succubus's beautiful yet grotesque face.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The succubus screamed and attacked relentlessly, but its usually unstoppable tentacles were ineffective against Chopin. Seeing the despair in its prey's eyes, the succubus waved its tentacles faster and more frantically.

Chopin's body trembled. In his final moments, he looked at the corpses strewn across the ground. Perhaps death was the best release; it was his sin.

Time ticked by, and the golden barrier's defensive glow suddenly dimmed significantly. The succubus let out an excited scream.

Just as Chopin was about to close his eyes and await death, a strange vortex appeared a few meters away from him, emitting intense light. Following that, a man who seemed incredibly holy walked out of the vortex of light!

Was this the holy light he had faith in? An angel? Or a deity?

Chopin looked at everything in a daze, and the man who appeared in the pillar of light also seemed...

Energy!

Powerful energy!

The succubus's eyes sparkled brightly; she had noticed it right away and was drawn to that human.

This was a delicacy far more delicious than the prince, exuding endless energy, seemingly inexhaustible.

This temptation was like a drug addict unable to resist their addiction—pure instinct. Without hesitation, the succubus abandoned Chopin, gathering all her energy and reaching out towards the man in the holy light.

That handsome man in the holy light was naturally Old Wang.

He had been so close to the exit back to Earth, but just as the energy limit was reached, he failed at the last moment. The teleportation array randomly teleported him, leaving Old Wang almost in tears.

This random teleportation definitely wouldn't lead back to Earth. All the hard work on the teleportation array had gone to waste.

Well, at least there should be some compensation, Old Wang prayed during the teleportation.

Teleporting into the treasure vault of the Sea Clan? Or even the Eight Tribes would do! At least let me steal, no, borrow something to cover the cost of the teleportation array.

When he emerged, he saw a glimmer of gold, which gave him a bit of joy, but then shadows blotted out the sky, and several octopus-like black tentacles enveloped him.

What is this?!

Before Old Wang could react, he was tightly bound by the succubus's tentacles.

Damn, a succubus!

Old Wang nearly wet himself. This thing was something players tried to avoid in "Nine Heavens," extremely troublesome. With his current state, he'd be drained in seconds.

Although he knew random teleportation was dangerous, he never expected it to be this hellish right off the bat!

The succubus didn't rest for even half a second. Powerful energy was an irresistible instinct for it. Unless it transcended all demonic traits and reached the divine level, any demon couldn't suppress its primal urges.

Its eyes were bloodshot red.

Gurgling...

Like a pump, large amounts of energy flowed through the long black tentacles into its body.

Its originally black energy form quickly turned gray, then white.

The succubus's eyes showed uncontrollable delight. This energy was far more powerful than it imagined or sensed, almost unimaginably vast. If it absorbed it all, not only could it reach the dragon level, but even becoming a god wasn't impossible!

But in the next second, the succubus's body swelled up.

Too much energy!

The succubus tried to stop, but immediately realized it couldn't.

It had merely opened a small gap to absorb energy, but now it wasn't absorbing; the terrifying energy was pouring in on its own!

In less than a second, the succubus's body had inflated into a huge balloon, its terrified eyes unable to move.

The next moment!

Bang!

The almost pure white "balloon" exploded, scattering countless specks of energy in the air.

The succubus burst...

Old Wang was genuinely stunned.

Forget swallowing mountains and rivers or having the courage to touch the clouds; Old Wang was just an ordinary person who wanted to be a billionaire.

This wasn't "Nine Heavens"; he only had one life. Suddenly encountering such a creature after teleporting would shock anyone.

By the time he figured out what was happening, it was already over. It had all happened in the blink of an eye. The teleportation hadn't even ended when the succubus felt the power of the soul space. Although it was just a crack, the leaking energy was too much for a single creature to absorb.

Even if there were ten thousand or a hundred million succubi, they would all be blown up in seconds without batting an eye.

Realizing what had happened, Old Wang breathed a sigh of relief.

He was safe.

Thankfully, thankfully, it was just a succubus!