They are all characters I control.

She buried a large number of ordinary heretics in the cellar, and by this time she had also killed all the armed heretics. Lord Mel was also taken hostage by her.

How did this guy get beaten half to death before? He was crushed by other heretics, but he's killing them indiscriminately here?

At this moment, the old village chief, Ge Lei, was filled with indescribable anger and humiliation.

"There are many things you don't know. Do you need me to tell you everything?" Claire used the brief moment of conversation to cast a divine healing spell on herself.

Although a lot of magic has been used up, now is not the time to conserve magic.

It seems that only the old village chief and Mel in his hand are left, but the old village chief is still so calm, so he must have some backup plan.

Whether he could call in reinforcements or had some leverage over her, it was a last resort, and Claire naturally didn't want to be overturned.

"Hehehe, is that so? That's really a difficult situation." Old Village Chief Gray wasn't really expecting Claire to tell the truth.

He sighed, untied his coat, and tossed his cane aside.

The old man, who looks to be in his seventies or eighties, is warming up.

Claire wasn't surprised. Since the old man was a minor leader of this heretical organization, he must have some skills.

After all, in this cult that has no morals whatsoever, those without power are easily replaced by various means. Besides, the fact that he can remain so calm while reaping the benefits from heretics suggests that he must have prepared a plan.

"However, you'll regret doing this later!"

"If you had drunk that Philosopher's Stone potion from the beginning, you might have been chosen. That was an opportunity given to you by Lord Mel."

"If you don't resist, and those guys catch you, you'll only suffer a little. In the end, they'll still give you a chance to be chosen by the goddess."

"But you chose the wrong path, which was to make me take action!"

As she said this, Claire saw the old village chief Gray take something out of his pocket.

That is none other than the Philosopher's Stone.

However, that 'Philosopher's Stone' wasn't in the shape of a potion, nor was it the kind that Mel pulled out of the cellar to attract those heretics.

It was a red magic stone the size of an egg, crystal clear, with a viscous, bright red liquid slowly flowing inside, radiating a powerful life force far exceeding that of any previous "Philosopher's Stone".

Simply by taking it out, the surrounding air seemed to become scorching and sweet, and the blood on the wounds of the nearby corpses began to boil and evaporate slightly.

"Is this the Philosopher's Stone?" Claire asked gravely.

Although he only learned about the so-called 'Philosopher's Stone' today, he still doesn't know much about it.

Even so, he could tell that the Philosopher's Stone that the old village chief Gray had taken out was completely different from the potion-shaped one he had seen before and the dull, lifeless Philosopher's Stone in the cellar.

It seems that even the Philosopher's Stone has different qualities.

"Hehehehe, how foolish! You even called it the 'Philosopher's Stone'? You really don't know its value." The old village chief looked at Eleanor, who was only staring at the 'Philosopher's Stone', with displeasure.

“The Philosopher’s Stone is indeed precious, but those who are qualified and can receive the favor of the goddess are even more precious. And what is more precious than the Philosopher’s Stone is my ‘Primordial Blood’.”

“I will be able to use this near-perfect ‘Primordial Blood’.”

"You have no idea what you are facing! What you are about to witness is the true power of being blessed by the goddess, not the empty power of those heretics in the goddess's church!"

The last shred of reason in Gray's eyes was completely swallowed up by greed and fanaticism.

Under Claire's watchful gaze, he shoved the blood-red "Primordial Blood" crystal into his wide-open mouth.

Without swallowing, it was only seen that the 'Primordial Blood' seemed to have already taken effect as soon as it entered the mouth.

"Gurgle... Ughh ...

Similar to the two village girl heretics from before, the old village chief Gray underwent a dramatic transformation a hundredfold when he consumed the Philosopher's Stone.

Old Grey's body swelled wildly as if inflated, and his gray robe instantly turned to ashes.

His skin was no longer human skin, but quickly turned red and transparent, as if lava was flowing under his skin.

Thick, bulging blood vessels and meridians, burning with crimson-gold flames, jutted out and twisted, radiating terrifying heat and light.

His bones cracked, and his body grew to nearly three meters tall.

A scorching wave of heat spread outwards from him, instantly vaporizing the surrounding snow and leaving the ground charred and cracked.

The terrifying pressure, mixed with violent life force and destructive aura, made Claire feel breathless, as if she were facing not a monster, but a volcano about to erupt!

"Do you see that? Ants! This is true divine favor! This is the power that leads to immortality!"

Old Grey roared like a fire demon as he reached out and grabbed a nearby tree.

All that could be seen was the eerie flames instantly burning away the excess branches and leaves on the tree, transforming them into a thick, massive log. This log, now transformed, was held in the hands of the village chief Gray, who looked like a thick wooden stick.

With fangs bared at the corners of his mouth, the old village chief Gray, in his demon form, walked step by step toward Claire.

"Feel honored, Church Knight. You will die at the hands of a true chosen one! Your blood will become a stepping stone for me to reach higher realms!"

Chapter 121 Completely powerless to fight back

The situation reversed, and it turned out that the seemingly least combat-capable old village chief was actually the strongest.

Although it wasn't his own power, it was the power he gained by consuming the 'Primordial Blood,' an advancement of the 'Philosopher's Stone.'

However, even with the help of external forces,

At this moment, the old village chief Gray, transformed into something resembling a demon, is incredibly powerful.

"...Feel honored, Church Knight. You will die at the hands of a true chosen one! Your blood will become a stepping stone for me to reach higher realms!"

Old Gray, now a fiery demon, spoke with a voice like rolling lava. He raised the burning giant log in his hand and smashed it down on Claire, who was already battered and bruised from several battles.

Claire dodged with all his might, but the giant tree crashed down where he had just stood, creating an irresistible shockwave.

Even though she wasn't directly hit, the shockwave from the transformed village chief's attack still sent Claire flying.

The gap is as wide as an insurmountable chasm.

Claire could clearly feel the terrifying pressure and high temperature emanating from the other party. It was not just a crushing force, but also a completely different level of life.

After consuming the "Primal Blood," Old Grey had transcended the realm of "humanity."

Wiping the blood from the corner of her mouth, Claire struggled to her feet again, gripping her knight's sword tightly and staring intently at the charging old village chief.

Just as the burning log in the old village chief's hand fell again, Claire dodged it with a quick movement.

He gripped the knight's sword tightly and slashed it straight at the old village chief Gray's chin.

Although the old village chief Gray's transformed form was incredibly powerful, he was ultimately not a knight who had undergone rigorous training, and those few moves just now showed that he didn't have any combat skills.

All the strength he possessed at this moment was nothing but brute force.

Claire's attack caught the old village chief Gray off guard. He had no time to dodge the incoming cold light, but his astonished expression vanished just as Claire's sword was about to strike.

Instead, he gave her a smug yet disdainful look, and Claire immediately understood the reason for the old village chief's confidence.

"Clang!"

Claire's sword pierced the skin of the old village chief, Gray, but failed to penetrate.

Although the skin was slightly dented, the sword tip failed to tear through the old village chief's skin and pierce his flesh, let alone pierce his skull and kill him.

This time, it was Claire's turn to look bewildered.

"Ridiculous! Do you think such an ordinary weapon can hurt me?" Old Village Chief Gray grabbed Claire's knight's sword, and no matter how hard Claire tried, she couldn't break free.

Seeing Claire still trying to resist him, the old village chief Gray exerted a little force.

With a crisp snap, the knight's sword was easily broken like a small wooden board.

Enjoying the ugly expression on Claire's face, the old village chief Gray reached out and grabbed Claire's face. Claire quickly raised the unconscious Mel in her hands to shield herself.

"Isn't it a bit too late to beg for mercy now?" The old village chief changed his target, grabbing Mel and ignoring Claire who was trying to escape.

"If you had been more sensible earlier, you wouldn't be suffering like this now."

"After witnessing my power, you are the first church knight who can still continue fighting. I now understand why Lord Mel has taken a liking to you."

"If you join us, as long as you obey us, you can also have the same power as me, although you may not be as strong as me."

After placing Mel on the branch, the old village chief Gray turned to look at 'Eleanor,' who was panting heavily, with a hint of admiration.

After all, countless people were terrified or even driven mad after witnessing his power at that moment.

The female knight of the church before him was not only not powerful, but could even pose a threat to him. It was just a pity that he was not strong enough and did not yet understand how powerful the 'Primordial Blood' was.

"Is that so? That's not necessarily true." Claire gripped the broken sword in her hand and unleashed the [Intermediate Burst Rune] at the old village chief Gray in front of her.

Immediately, black smoke billowed out, the thick smoke spreading from the center of the rune released by Claire.

In an instant, Claire disappeared.

"Oh? You still have the fighting spirit?" The old village chief turned around and protected Mel behind him, preventing Mel from being captured by Claire again.

Sure enough, an electric tentacle emerged from somewhere.

The tentacles seemed to be heading towards Mel, and the old village chief Gray reached out to stop them, but halfway there the electric tentacles suddenly changed direction and wrapped around the old village chief's arm.

The old village chief gasped in surprise, but in the blink of an eye, the electric tentacles had already enveloped his face.

Before the old village chief could reach out to tear off the electric tentacles on his face, a violent tremor came from the ground. Although the old village chief was strong enough, the ground beneath his feet shook.

The unsteady old village chief could only squat down and use the giant log in his hand to support his body.

But the moment he squatted down, an invisible pressure was poured onto him.

His already heavy body suddenly felt as if it had been doubled in weight, and the giant burning log he was using as a weapon was slowly being moved away.

"Again, it's this kind of thing again... Ah!" The old village chief hadn't finished speaking.

A sharp pain suddenly shot through his head.

Whether it's the inexplicable pressure pressing down on you, the dizzying ground shaking beneath your feet, the electric tentacles wrapped around your face, or the black smoke irritating your nose and eyes.

These sensations, which were not originally considered painful, were suddenly magnified tenfold, causing the old village chief to actually feel pain.

"Your home..."

The old village chief was furious.

He actually felt pain after using the power of the Chosen One for the first time.

With a low growl, he began to struggle violently, burying his feet deep into the ground, exhaling fiery breath to dispel the black mist, and reaching out to pull at the electric tentacles wrapped around his face.

Although he was caught off guard at first, the old village chief gradually adapted and began to withstand the attacks of these strange magics.

But just then, Claire, who had been missing all along, reappeared.

He flashed behind the old village chief and thrust his short sword with all his might into the old village chief's eye socket. This was Claire's last strike, using all her means.

"Click!" Although the sound was different this time.

But without a doubt, this is still a voice of failure.

Claire's broken sword couldn't even pierce the old village chief's eye; instead, a scorching flame traveled along the broken sword and burned Claire's palm.

Then the old village chief grabbed him and lifted him high up like a rag doll.

"Fool, since you believe in the Goddess Church so much, why don't you let the Goddess Church save you?"

Chapter 122 Do you also worship the Holy Son Claire?

"How pathetic, you church knights, all you ever say is 'for the sake of faith'."

Claire (Eleanor), held firmly in the air by the old village chief Gray, felt every bone in her body groaning under the unbearable weight.

The burning pain of the flames, the injuries accumulated from previous battles, and the suffocating feeling of being completely controlled by others overwhelmed him like a tidal wave.

My vision started to darken at the edges, and I started to hear a buzzing sound in my ears.

"However, when the goddess's help was truly needed, no miracle occurred."

"With your abilities, you dare to claim to be worshipping a goddess?"

"If we're talking about faith, then it should be like mine. Only those who possess the life-giving blood bestowed by the goddess are truly favored by her. You are the heretics."

The old village chief's mocking words echoed in my ears.

Claire could only gasp for breath, looking at the grotesque and twisted face so close to his face. What bothered him more than being mocked for his faith as a church knight was having his fate so manipulated.

Ever since he was transported to this broken game world, he has been constantly being manipulated and turned into a puppet.

Whether he was a prince or an emperor, the identities of those who tried to manipulate him changed constantly, but there were always people trying to do so.