Completely covered by the "black spots," Baron Conva looked like he was wearing a set of pitch-black armor. When he discovered the aura of Sefirah Castle flash nearby, he immediately hid in the shadows and chased after it.
To his surprise, just as he turned a corner, he seemed to accidentally enter a peach forest. The way he came was gone.
Looking at the different scenery that suddenly appeared in front of him, the baron's remaining bit of rationality told him that he was in a sealed space that had been man-made. Just like when he was trapped by MI9 and the Church of Steam and Machinery, if he wanted to leave, he had to either break through it with brute force or find the exit.
He first tried the first method. He condensed a huge, gloomy sword in his hand and ruthlessly slashed around.
This was the Black Knight's "Blade of Spiritual Flesh." Not only could it corrode flesh and obliterate souls, but it could also tear through barriers, causing any creature with degenerate thoughts to lose their defenses. It was the core Beyonder power of the Black Knight, stemming from the "Degeneration" domain.
Unfortunately, this artificial space wasn't something "alive," and its potency far exceeded the baron's imagination. Previously, even the Numinous Episcopate's true demigod was unable to break through it, much less a fake Black Knight who could barely use his demigod powers thanks to the underground corruption.
Hence, the baron, who had been cleaving the air with his broadsword for half a day, became crazier. Even the black spots couldn't hide his warped expression.
However, he ultimately stopped his meaningless actions and followed the trail in the woods towards the foot of the mountain.
Soon, the baron arrived at a small village at the foot of the mountain.
The people in the village came and went in the fields, farming and working. The elders and children were all at ease, chatting and playing.
However, on careful inspection, these people weren't real living people. Instead, they were dolls with exquisite craftsmanship.
The baron, who had fallen into madness, had no intention of communicating with the dolls in the village. He pulled out their shadows and wrapped them up with his own shadows, breaking their limbs and necks.
A beautiful doll girl who was dancing immediately screamed and collapsed to the ground when she saw this terrifying scene.
And the baron had no intention of showing mercy to a doll. Nor would he show mercy to a doll, not to mention that Lady Aston was still attached to him.
Hence, he gave a cruel smile and raised the Blade of Spiritual Flesh to cleave the doll girl in half.
But at that moment, a toy soldier with one leg suddenly rushed out from a nearby house. He wore a well-ironed military uniform as he stood in front of the lady and raised his rifle to shoot at the baron.
The gun was only a toy, and the bullet it fired was only a small lead ball. However, such an attack caused the baronet, who was covered in black spots, to stagger. He had no choice but to stop his slashing actions.
Although the bullet was ordinary, it contained a firm "protective" belief, as well as the courage and tenacious will of a soldier.
These were the nemesis of degeneration!
The baron, who was shrouded in the shadow of "Degeneration," was extremely disgusted by these qualities. Therefore, he became even crazier and condensed a wind blade, slicing off the soldier's head.
However, after a soldier died, new soldiers quickly walked out of the house with guns. They were equally determined and fearless. They were also the nemesis of "degeneration."
"As long as the faith to protect is there, then we will fight to the death, never giving up.
"This is the fairy tale magic, 'Firm tin soldier.'"
On a small mountain deep in the peach blossom forest, Queen Mystic Bernadette, who had long chestnut hair and wore a shirt with lace flowers and a bow tie, stood beside a natural swing formed from green plants. She seemed to be talking to herself and explaining.
She looked deeply at Miss Sharron, who was circling the edge of the peach forest with Xio, as well as the man covered in black spots who had already entered the hamlet at the foot of the mountain.
At this moment, Jane was standing quietly beside her, looking very obedient.
As for Cattleya… she had vanished.
"I originally didn't want to interfere with your 'hunt,' but this person has clearly exceeded the limits of your abilities. Even approaching him might be dangerous."
As Bernadette spoke, she pointed at the increasingly impatient baron. Jane looked over and saw him scatter some of his "black spots" onto the soldier, instantly corrupting his "will to protect" and causing his body to split into a "degenerate" will and shadow, forming an independent existence that looked like a soldier but had a distorted face.
When the "fallen" soldier's shadow saw the sobbing doll girl, he couldn't stop his evil thoughts. He wanted to go forward, but he was stopped by the soldier. After a short but intense battle, they perished together.
And this time, the soldier wasn't able to be reborn… His "determined heart" was no longer that pure.
Jane frowned when she saw this. For the first time, she felt the terror of the "black spots."
Previously, although Xio had been corrupted by the "black spots," she had seen how easily Abner had used ritualistic magic to remove them. Therefore, she had the misconception that the black spots weren't difficult to deal with and that they could be resisted as long as she was prepared…
But now, a soldier who was determined and purer than the Priest of Light and Guardian was so easily "corrupted"…
Although it was only a creature created by magic, it was precisely because of this that he was even purer. He wasn't like a real person who had different thoughts and evil thoughts.
But even so, he still "degenerated" in front of the black spots!
If it were me or Captain, I might not end up any better than the soldiers…
While feeling a lingering sense of fear, Jane also felt puzzled. What method did Ebner use to remove the corruption on Xio so completely?
However, this thought only flashed through her mind for a moment. After all, it was a secret that belonged to Abner, so there was no need for her to delve deeper into it.
Coming back to her senses, Jane saw that, after the baron "killed" the toy soldiers and doll girls, he seemed to vent his madness and began a massacre in the village. Momentarily, broken wood and torn cotton flew in all directions. Although the scene wasn't bloody, it was still a mess.
Jane looked at the originally exquisite dolls in pity, turned back, and respectfully asked Queen Mystic for advice, "What should we do now?"
"Let's play some chess first… It's impossible for him to maintain that state for too long. Even if it's a high-level corruption, it can't be produced out of thin air without the source being lost." Queen Mystic Bernadette pointed at the nineteen chess boards and the black-and-white chess pieces in front of her as she said with a gentle but emotionless voice.
Chess? At this time?
Although she was mumbling inwardly, Jane obediently sat opposite Queen Mystic.
However, when she picked up the stone-like chess piece, she looked blankly at the nineteen lines of chess. After a long while, she asked in embarrassment, "How… should I play this?"
She had never seen such a move before!
Upon hearing that, Bernadette nodded slightly and said in her gentle voice,
"My father taught me that it's actually very simple. Regardless of the direction, as long as you connect five chess pieces, it's considered a win…"