Goblin Heavy Dependence

Chapter 374 Embers Rekindled
A sharp, mournful wail, formed from high-frequency vibrational energy, that could not possibly be emitted by a living being, echoed above the church.

The priest Moen, whose entire body was covered in pink crystals, could only be vaguely human in terms of his outline; otherwise, he was almost unrecognizable as human.

But clearly, judging from the pain he is currently emitting and the blood gushing from the wound on his neck, he still has at least the most basic sense of pain, and his body has not been completely crystallized.

With his keen observation skills and keen sense of timing in battle, Xia Nan would never miss the opportunity to take advantage of his opponent's paralysis due to serious injuries.

Not to mention that he had already realized the special attack effect of the force field energy of [Gravity Etching] on the Crystal Man. Referring to the sword just now, as long as he hit it again, he could completely sever the opponent's neck.

Amidst the howling of wolves, he drew his sword and stepped forward, about to slash down.

And that's when.

hum-

The sharp, noisy sound, which had rang out many times during the battle and made Xia Nan instinctively feel uneasy whenever he heard it, burst forth in front of him.

Centered on the gem in the very center of Moen's chest, a dazzling light shone forth, and a translucent pink light shield suddenly expanded outwards!
"Thump..."

The incredibly sharp blade landed on it, but the feeling was even more disgusting than cutting cotton. All the force in the body was quickly absorbed in an instant by the energy ripples on the surface of the light shield, leaving it with no power whatsoever.

The body that was swinging the sword was pushed away by the expanding shield, like a wall of light coming straight at him.

Xia Nan was forced to retreat.

When he finally broke free from the shield's range and stood still, the distance between him and Moen was even greater than before.

"It's that trick again..."

When he was unable to break through the semi-transparent pink light shield with all the power he currently possessed, it had already transcended the realm of "numerical values" and was more like a kind of "mechanism".

Once Moen is released, Xia Nan will have to retreat and will find it difficult to get close.

Fortunately, his perception was sharp, and the moment the energy surged in the air, he withdrew the [Gravity Etching] that was about to be released, thus preserving this precious last chance to use it.

Moreover, this move doesn't seem to be a regular skill for Moen, and it only consumes slightly less energy than the extremely powerful beam of light from before.

After being released, the light shimmering from the pink gem on her chest dimmed even more, almost extinguishing itself.

This made Xia Nan feel a little more at ease.

With the final strike, [Gravity Etching], he had undoubtedly seized the initiative on the battlefield without anyone noticing. He only needed to use the flexibility of [Fang Hunt] to probe further and, ideally, force out all the remaining energy from his opponent's body.

Thus, without the protection of the light shield, the straight sword, which concentrates force field energy, can...

Rumbling--

The sudden tremor of the church abruptly broke Xia Nan's train of thought.

What came from Moen's mouth seemed to be more than just painful cries; those sharp, high-frequency sounds seemed to resonate with the entire church as they rippled through the air.

This is Moen's venue.

Through countless days and nights of devout prayer, he became more familiar with this church than with his hometown, which he had left many years ago.

And since that day, a "miracle" has occurred.

The church became the source of all his hope and motivation.

When you truly feel the pain in the back of your neck, and realize how close "death" is to you, and that all your previous efforts are about to be in vain.

Moen had no more reservations.

"Fuck."

It was the faint sound of pure white flames burning on the surface of the statue.

The goddess statue, which had stood quietly on the altar since the start of the battle, began to tremble gently in the resonance of the entire church.

Grayish-white stone powder fell off in a flurry.

A strange pink light, like a deep shadow flowing through the dark sea, rippled up from beneath the stone vines carved on its chest.

The statue shook more and more violently.

It's not just dust.

"Crack."

A slight crack appeared on the surface of his palm, which was holding the rosebud.

Beneath it, a pure and translucent pink hue is revealed.

Like some crudely made cement sculpture, the cracks spread rapidly with the resonant vibrations, branching out like tree twigs, and finally turning into pieces of shattered gray-white skin.

It hasn't completely withered.

The merciful and great goddess, her fixed eyes, shimmering with pure white holy flames, remain compassionate and benevolent, bestowing upon all things in the world her most tolerant blessings.

But from the eyes down, the lips, jawline, shoulders, chest, and abdomen have all been replaced by clear gemstones that shimmer with a bewitching pink light.

The strange creature, parasitic on the stone skin and the divine essence, revealed its true form at the moment of its survival.

Boom——

The pink energy surging in the air suddenly unleashed a violent surge.

If what Xia Nan easily absorbed from his fingertips just now was the subtle ripples of water flowing through a stream, then now it is the raging storm and towering waves whipped up in the depths of the ocean.

The gruesome wound on the back of the neck quickly stopped bleeding, and under the pressure of the force field energy, the shattered pink crystal clusters grew and condensed, once again protecting the fragile flesh behind it.
The pastel gemstone in the center of her chest, which had been dull and lifeless just moments before, now seemed to be greedily absorbing the pink energy in the air as if it were being charged, growing brighter and brighter at a speed visible to the naked eye.

The pain in his howl had dissipated at some point. Moen stood there, his pupils completely obscured from his glowing eyes, and his body, covered in crystal particles, emitted a pink glow as if breathing.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Xia Nan...

The mechanical notification sound from the [Dream Corridor] kept ringing in his mind.

"Ding!"

"Energy-generating material detected, replenishing itself..."

"[Remaining Energy] +0.05%"

"[Remaining Energy] +0.04%"

"[Remaining Energy] +0.06%"

"..."

The pink energy surging in the air, originating from the source of pollution, has undergone a qualitative change compared to before, both in terms of its concentration and overall scale.

In terms of the energy absorbed by the [Dream Corridor], it is represented by two decimal places.

It's no longer almost nothing; it's now a fraction of a million, with three more zeros added after it.

Measured in seconds, the Dream Corridor is frantically absorbing the pastel energy in the air at an alarming rate.

In just one second, he could equal all the energy he gained after arriving in Gieshorn.
One hundred seconds is enough to double its charging progress.

Regarding combat skill proficiency, even without finding the key, Xia Nan naturally hoped that the [Dream Corridor] would be charged as much as possible.

But right now, he no longer has the mind to pay attention to these things.

Accompanying the goddess statue is a powerful, wave-like energy that creates a deeper, equally transformative, alluring effect.

【Dream Corridor】may be able to completely offset all the mental effects Xia Nan has suffered, but on a practical level, the sudden increase in the density of pink energy in the air is stirring up magical particles, adding some pressure to his body.

To be honest, the pressure wasn't that heavy. With Xia Nan's current physical condition, he could adapt completely and regain his freedom of movement in just a few breaths.

But it was precisely these few pauses and stiffness that created an opportunity for Moen, whose body had recovered and whose strength had even increased to a higher level.

The intense wind generated by the high-speed movement stung my cheeks, and my crystal-encased body left only a blurry silhouette on a visual level.

Xia Nan only felt a flash of pink light before his eyes, and the next second, a fist made of pink crystal particles was already falling towards his face.

With a flicker of thought, a faint light appeared on the surface of the silver-white ring on the index finger of his right hand.

[Deadline] - "Deflection Field"!
An ochre-red shield made of chaotic force field energy instantly enveloped Xia Nan's body, colliding violently with the falling fist.

As a protective 2nd-level spell, there is no doubt that Morn's punch, which is purely forceful and contains no other special damage, is not enough to break through his defenses.

The force field shield shook violently, eventually shattering into scattered light fragments, but in doing so, it completely absorbed the damage from the punch.

But for Moen at this moment, it was just an ordinary punch.

Almost the instant after he realized his attack had been blocked, his previously empty left hand clenched into a fist.

The pastel gemstones shimmered intensely, and pink energy was suddenly poured into the surface of the knuckles, causing the power to surge once again.

It slammed forward, striking Xia Nan's chest armor hard.

Barn's craftsmanship is undeniable, and every piece of equipment Xia Nan wears, produced by his blacksmith shop, is a top-quality item of its kind.

The [Purgatory Pulse] armor he is currently wearing was specially forged by his opponent to win back his heart, which had been shaken by the youth's excessively high rate of armor breakage. The opponent even went so far as to not make a profit and personally added several special materials to it as a testament to their confidence.

Its defensive capabilities surpass all the armor Xia Nan had ever worn before.

Now, what lands on it is not Moen's gleaming pink fist, but a longsword of equal strength, or some kind of arrow.

【Purgatory Pulse】might actually block it directly.

However... blunt force damage is completely different from slashing and piercing damage.

It does not rely on cutting or penetrating, and does not require completely destroying the armor itself.

The enormous kinetic energy contained in a fist cannot be dispersed by the curved surface of the armor like a sword blade. Even with an inner lining as a separator, most of the energy will still be conducted into the body through the iron plates on the surface of the armor.

"boom!"

The fist, glowing with pink light, slammed into the surface of the dark silver armor, leaving a deep dent visible to the naked eye.

It doesn't seem particularly serious on the surface, and is entirely within the scope of repair.

But for Xia Nan, what he felt was a powerful impact coming from his chest, followed by intense pain.

Suppressing his slightly dazed mind due to the intense pain, he rallied his body, which had just regained its mobility, and calmly used the impact of the opponent's punch to push off the floor, retreating backward amidst the howling of wolves.

Until a safe distance is reached...

"puff!"

He suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood, his body swayed slightly, and then he stood still.

He held the sword in his right hand and casually wiped the remaining blood from the corner of his mouth with his left.

Xia Nan stared intently at the priest in front of him, paying close attention to his every move.

In his mind, however, he was urgently assessing his injuries.

An explosive pain spread through my chest, accompanied by an indescribable feeling of suffocation—several of my ribs must have been broken.
Breathing has become somewhat difficult, with each inhalation accompanied by a stinging pain and weakness—a contusion to the chest and lungs, possibly with some pneumothorax;
You can feel a distinct warmth and fluid gushing out of your chest cavity – your internal organs are losing blood continuously, causing blood to accumulate inside your chest cavity.

Xia Nan has many defensive measures, including arm shields, the [Death Line] ring, and even enchanted armor.

But that doesn't mean he has any kind of physical defense.

Even with the bonuses from several specializations, the [Meteor Blade Hunter] class itself, as well as the combat skills it possesses, are all geared towards offense.

It boasts high attack and speed, but its defense relies entirely on its equipment.

Furthermore, Moen's power and explosiveness are further enhanced by the blessing of the goddess statue.

That's how he actually got hit head-on.

With just one punch, he was reduced to a state just one step away from serious injury.

But Xia Nan felt no panic whatsoever.

Instead, they became even calmer.

What he's considering now is which card to reveal first.

[Healing Potion]? [Tears of Spring Breath]?
still is……

"Young adventurer, you simply cannot understand."

The sound, composed of energy frequency modulation, came from in front.

The once beloved old man, now a monster covered in crystals, is still babbling incessantly:
“I dedicated my life to this land, offered my entire faith to the goddess, but she didn’t care…she didn’t care at all!”

"Now, I have truly grasped what can truly protect them and this land. This is the real miracle!"

Xia Nan didn't care either.

He couldn't even be bothered to listen to these bastards, who could be found anywhere and hear hundreds of almost identical ravings.

They also lack the patience to listen to the other party's grievances in this life-or-death situation.

Once the battle is completely over, if the priest has any logs or notes on him while he's holding his head, he might be interested in finding out what caused him to end up like this.

But now, Xia Nan only wants him to die.

He didn't waste a single word with Moen.

In front of the other party, Xia Nan drew out his small and exquisite dagger, which he often used to cut up trophies, from his waist.

He gestured slightly towards his abdomen, and then...

"laugh."

At a precise angle that avoids all internal organs, the sharp short blade pierces deep into the flesh in an instant, leaving only a handle on the surface of the skin.

With his eyes fixed straight ahead on Moen, Xia Nan's blood-stained face remained expressionless as he gripped the hilt of a dagger in his left hand and pulled it from his abdomen.

Let the blood flow.

He was already one step away from being seriously injured.

After such a strike, his vitality also plummeted below a certain limit.

“Ding-dang…”

The bloodstained dagger lay on the ground.

From the front, Moen's incessant complaining abruptly stopped.

Instead, the air gradually filled with a muffled sound, like the beating of a heart.

And, from Xia Nan's quietly burning clothes, a strange sense of sorrow lingered...

Ashes drifting in the air and crimson sparks.

(End of this chapter)