Mystery: The Undead Don't Die from Linking the Fire

Chapter 172 Peaceful Times

In the northern part of Backlund, Ariana, dressed simply in running clothes and barefoot, calmly gazes at the distant Sodrak Palace.

The royal angels divided Sodrak Palace into different 'locations,' making it impossible even for her to fully see the battle taking place within the palace. For example, she couldn't currently see what was happening in the main hall where George III was.

However, that was none of her business; she only needed to keep an eye on the battle in the sky.

As long as the royal angels do not actively seek help, and as long as the dark star does not leave its place, none of this concerns her.

At this very moment, the sky there had been dyed a brilliant purple, resembling a magnificent nebula descending to earth from afar, a truly beautiful sight. But beneath this idyllic environment lay a chilling terror and pollution.

Even a single glance from an ordinary person can cause their soul to be unknowingly tainted.

But the next moment, the pervasive darkness spread rapidly like a tide, seemingly without end, enveloping the sky of Backlund. The magnificent purple nebula was also shrouded and isolated by the darkness. Even if the residents of Backlund looked up, they could only see an endless expanse of night, unable to perceive the danger hidden above that 'night'.

It was Archbishop St. Anthony who took action.

Although he was only a Sequence 3 Saint, his strength was insufficient to directly confront the Dark Star. However, merely resisting and isolating the pollution it leaked was not a problem.

-

Rumble!

Above the Sodrak Palace, Delink Augustus was already locked in a fierce battle.

Every casual wave of Dark Star's hand summons vast nebulae that blanket the entire sky. But within these seemingly beautiful and dazzling nebulae lies not only profound pollution, but more importantly, these nebulae are volatile and prone to exploding at the slightest touch, potentially triggering a chain reaction of explosions!

Long before these celestial creations first visited this world, the extraordinary beings revealed a truth to posterity through countless bloody examples:

Never underestimate these creations of the stars, even if it's just a casual strike from them!

Even for those extraordinary individuals known for their physical strength, such as the Warrior Path, and even for the Sequence 2 Angels 'Glory' who are most skilled in direct combat, if they were to find themselves unprepared in an entire 'Nebula,' the consequences would be either death or serious injury!

Even if they were lucky enough to survive, they would suffer terribly from the pollution of the starry sky.

Unless the gods intervene personally, they will suffer greatly from the pollution for the rest of their lives, and may even lose control!

The former Sequence 2 'Glory' was protected by the God of War and could easily cleanse himself of the corruption within. But Delink cannot. The Loen royal family does not have its own deity, and requesting the intervention of the gods of the three major orthodox churches is not so easy. This is the price they, as a royal family, must pay for enjoying the right to rival the orthodox churches.

Fortunately, Dlink, as a Sequence 2 angel of the Judgement pathway, possesses extraordinary abilities symbolizing balance that are sufficient to suppress the Dark Star, an anomaly in the cosmos! Rather, those within the Order sequence are usually the natural enemies of cosmic creations!

No matter how densely packed the meteorites and nebulae summoned by the Dark Star may be, as long as he isolates them in different 'locations,' these seemingly terrifying pollution and attacks will never have any effect.

The Derlink in the sky and the dark stars seem to be not far apart, even close at hand, but in reality they are separated into different 'spaces'.

As long as the Dark Stars cannot directly disrupt the order that has long existed between them in different spaces, no matter how fierce their attacks are, they can only wreak havoc in their own 'space' and cannot affect Delink, who is nearby but located in another 'space'.

But if the Dark Stars were only like this, the battle wouldn't have been so difficult!

boom!

Suddenly, a surge of immense energy was released from the body of the distorted Dark Star. A dazzling purple sphere quickly enveloped it, and along with all the surrounding energy, it returned to the void, shrinking from infinitely large to infinitely small, and finally disappearing into thin air.

When it reappeared, it was already in the space where Delink was!

It appeared silently behind Delink, its two withered yet incredibly thick and ferocious arms reaching out to grab Delink's body!

Snapped!

The outstretched arms suddenly clasped together, as if to crush Delink, who was trapped within them. Simultaneously, as the arms swung, a vast expanse of dazzling purple nebula was summoned.

Rumble!

The continuous explosions made it clear that once you were inside, death was your only fate.

However, Drinker remained standing in the same spot.

The moment the dark stars disappeared, he once again divided the 'space', placing himself in another different 'location'.

-

In the main hall of Sodrak Palace, George III still sat on his throne.

It was as if no matter what unexpected event occurred, it could not move him an inch, much less make him step down from that throne.

Before him stood six assassins shrouded in hoods. They wore identical black scale armor, hoods, and veils, and held strangely shaped, twisted, yet seemingly ordinary black knives in their hands.

Judging from their appearance, they are much taller than ordinary people, or even the Fusak people who claim to be descendants of giants, yet they are far from being as tall as giants. Their figures are slender and graceful, unlike the bulky and enormous giants, giving them a unique kind of beauty.

But just like their profession, they are elegant yet deadly.

King George III looked down at the black-knife assassins below, his eyes icy cold, yet seemingly tinged with deep worry.

What are they hesitating about?

The moment they appeared, a battle was inevitable.

George III knew very well that they were there to kill him, and he could not simply surrender and give up the fight.

He is a Sequence 1 angel, the strongest being below the true god!

No one can kill him unless a true god comes in person!

The only question is, what are they waiting for?

George III's eyes narrowed. Whatever they were waiting for, it was extremely disadvantageous to him.

and so--

George III raised his right hand and pointed at the assassin in front of him.

Everything has rules and follows certain patterns.

If the 'Judge' pathway, controlled by the Royal Family of Rune, exists as an implementer of order, then the Black Emperor pathway is a distortion of that order!

Extraordinary beings on the Judgement pathway, as practitioners of order, can create rules that benefit them within a region, building upon the underlying rules. Conversely, Extraordinary beings on the Black Emperor pathway can also act as disruptors of order, adept at finding loopholes in order and rules, altering, adding to, or exploiting existing rules to their own advantage!

In a sense, the two are diametrically opposed, yet not entirely the same.

George III, however, was the culmination of both approaches!

This is not only because he switched from the Judgement Path to the Black Emperor Path midway, but also because while he was the Black Emperor Path Sequence 1 'Prince of Slaughter', he also possessed a magical item comparable to a level 0 sealed item, a magical item made from the extraordinary characteristics of the angel 'Balancer' of the Judgement Path Sequence 2.

"Hiding is prohibited here."

A majestic voice solemnly announced that the rules of the entire main hall changed in an instant!

Quite abruptly, a figure appeared silently before George III—

She stood in the main hall, right behind the six female assassins, yet George III was completely unaware of her presence! This meant that even if she secretly circled around to his side, or even silently stabbed him in the back, George III would be completely oblivious. Such a threat was undoubtedly fatal to George III.

This was the replica teardrop that had silently infiltrated the main hall; she had originally intended to act directly—

But she couldn't bear to disrupt the scene of filial piety between father and son, which is why she's been watching the play until now.

George III's face remained cold as he raised his hand again toward the black-knife assassins, but this time, his brow furrowed almost imperceptibly—he could not lock onto multiple targets at the same time.

But under the constraints of rules and order, all concealment will be exposed.

Assassins who have lost their ability to "steal" are nothing more than lambs to the slaughter!

George III quickly regained his composure, realizing that killing him would only be a little more troublesome.

Just in case, let's start with the one who poses the greatest threat.

King George III turned his gaze to the last figure to appear, extended his palm, and calmly pronounced his verdict:

"Trespassing on the royal palace is a capital offense."

The king's hand clenched loosely, and the rules were instantly distorted in sync.

Under his grasp, an invisible, terrifying force was relentlessly approaching the android teardrop that was being targeted, leaving no doubt that she would be 'crushed' into a pulp by this terrifying force, leaving no trace of her body!

when!

With a crisp sound, deep blue energy materialized into a surging circular barrier at the tip of the staff. At the same time, the power of the rules that had been crowding in from all directions, seemingly trying to crush the teardrop into mincemeat, vanished instantly, as if nothing had happened.

[Kalia-style retaliation]

One of the magics of the Kalia royal family.

He can wave his staff, dispel magic, and pray.

Then, the force of the impact is transformed into a floating, radiant sword.

The magic possessed by the Royal Family of Caria and Andy's Defense Academy.

When did the moon and the stars part ways?

The neutralized power of the rules vanished without a trace, but it condensed into a series of transparent, floating radiant swords, each about a foot long, in front of the emulated teardrop. These swords acted as loyal guardians, forming a dense array of countless radiant swords, resembling a net!

call out!call out!call out!

One after another, pale blue swords streaked across the sky like meteors, their sharp edges and cold light flashing as they nimbly shot toward the king on his throne!

Snapped!

George III's eyes were cold and indifferent, as if they held a sharp blade drawn from its sheath, captivating and terrifying.

The next moment, the "rain of swords" that had originally transformed into a sky full of sword light that completely covered George III suddenly changed direction and shot towards the black-knife assassins surrounding him!

He forcibly distorted the rules of this place and changed the target of Huijian's attack.

A flurry of radiant swords swept in, but the black-bladed assassins had already vanished without a trace.

The radiant swords rained down like a storm, their clanging sounds echoing endlessly, piercing the ground in an instant!

Although the extraordinary individuals of the Black Emperor and the Judge's Path were not as adept at escaping as the Gou family, under the rules they established or distorted, as the sole beneficiaries of those rules, they were at least invincible, if not invincible at the time!

Unless, of course, the other party can completely disregard the rules.

Only the gods can do this.

A fierce wind howled in, and George III shifted his gaze forward.

The six assassins who were just dodging the rain of swords had somehow appeared in front of him, wielding black blades—it wasn't a flash, but a speed used to its fullest extent, making it impossible for ordinary people to catch their figures!

King George III snorted coldly.

Six black-bladed assassins attacked simultaneously, their blades gleaming with a chilling light that seemed to hold the power of death—the very weapons that had once killed the golden 'Golden'!

King George III remained seated on his throne, never moving an inch from beginning to end.

Amidst the flashing blades, the assassins stabbed their comrades and sisters with their sharp blades!

The demigods of the Black Emperor sequence can distort the rules to deflect attacks that should hit their mark.

The 'Prince of Killing' goes a step further, able to freely control the direction and target of all attacks within his range—

No matter who they want to attack, their ultimate target can only be each other!

Within the black blade of the Sharp-Eyed Tower, the power of destined death flickers with a deathly light; whoever is stabbed by it will surely die.

Ding ding!

The blades clashed, and the black knives were flung away by each other, veering off course.

King George III was not surprised at all and simply waved his hand.

The figures of the black-knife assassins vanished one after another, as if they had never existed! But in fact, their figures never moved from beginning to end. It was just that the power of the rules stretched the distance between them and George III to an infinite distance, making it impossible for them to ever truly get close to George III.

hum!

The blade in the hand of the sole surviving black-knife assassin emitted a piercing hum, and his destined death shattered the rules at that moment!

The figure that was about to dissipate solidified again, and without the slightest hesitation, she thrust the sharp blade in her hand towards George III.

However, in an instant, the rules changed again:

She was clearly swinging her blade at George III, but the blade stopped right in front of him, even though they were inches apart!

They belong to different worlds, so close yet so far, and could never harm George III.

The power of the black blade can shatter the constraints of rules, but only before the black blade hums again.

The assassin's figure faded and disappeared into the main hall.

In the end, only three players remained on the field.

George III's expression remained indifferent; he could have easily killed the assassins.

But there wasn't enough time.

He could only deal with the main problems first, and then deal with the rats in the gutter one by one.

Beneath the throne, the teardrop-shaped figure silently observed all of this, gaining some understanding.

She has figured out the rules.

(End of this chapter)