Puchi!
Bryan was smashed to the ground mercilessly, spatting blood all over. If not for the magical powers holding the terrain, who knew how deep down he would have been lashed?
"Brat! You dare underestimate me. You should have known that we S-ranked warriors are on a whole new level once we mobilize our true powers. Even the one behind you isn't necessarily my match." Luther scoffed and smashed his fist.
Boom!
Shockwaves spread as Bryan was hit again. This time all of his bones cracked, and he could neither move nor lift any of his fingers. It seemed like he fucked up badly.
"Damn! Who could have guessed that he would be able to break free from the Lord's constraints? Isn't the Lord omnipotent?" He started doubting himself.
When another fist was approaching him rapidly, a calm voice filled with splendor diffused from above, catching their attention.
"It's time to stop."
When they turned in that direction, they saw an ancient-looking person walking in the air, nearing them steadily.
"My Lord!" Bryan addressed him, mustering his remaining strength. But it didn't sound too loud because of his injuries.
As for Luther, he merely sneered. "Did you emerge when my friend was at his end?"
"Let me return the favor." He slammed his palm straight at Bryan's head, hoping to kill him on the spot. He thirsted for revenge.
Seeing this, Cayden frowned. "Impudence."
With a wave of his hands, clouds of fog appeared in front of Bryan out of nowhere and enveloped him instantly.
At the same time, Luther's punch landed as well.
Whoosh!
A wide gap was made in the fog from where the previous scenery was visible. Nonetheless, the sad thing was that Bryan was missing.
"Where are you?" Furiously, Luther launched his fists everywhere. Yet, it was meaningless.
Realizing this, he finally focused on Cayden who had arrived directly above his head in mid-sky.
"You dare hide him." Luther had already let go of the purpose of today's visit. He simply desired blood at the moment.
"What do you want?" Cayden's expression became cold, sending shivers down Luther's spine.
However, how could Luther back away? He remained as calm as possible and said, "Since you can fly, it proves that you are an S-ranked warrior indeed."
"Is that so?" Cayden smirked at his foolishness.
"What are you laughing for? Do you think that I can't do anything to you?" He slapped his tail on the ground and rushed straight to the sky, floating a few meters away from Cayden.
Next, he locked his eyes on him. Only then did he understand the true terror brought by Cayden. The similar feeling he experienced a bit ago resurfaced. He felt naked with all his secrets exposed. Cold water was poured all over him as a result.
"You…" Before he could say anything more, he perceived huge hand prints raining upon him from the sky.
"Bastard! Who are you teaming up with? I didn't see you making any moves." Luther hurriedly shouted with panic written on his face.
How could he not be scared of the mysterious fog? Furthermore, who could have dreamt that the opponent had the means to focus all the fog on top of him? It looked like what Richard had foreseen was true.
This place might be the den of the cultists. Even S-ranked heroes weren't safe. Who knew how many S-ranked cultists were stationed here? His mind was in a mess due to these thoughts.
Moreover, if he had learned that everything was done by Cayden himself, he might have peed in his pants. That's how terrified he was right now.
Bang!Bang!
Hundreds of handprints crashed down on him in the blink of an eye, submerging him.
"Break!"
In response, Luther gathered every bit of mana in his flesh and took everything head-on. He whipped his tail, threw out his fists, blew energy beams from his mouth, and even burned his blood in the end.
Nevertheless, it was all futile. The power of this formation was not something an uneducated bum from this world could decipher.
A while later, everything subsided and a worn-out humanoid dragon eventually came into sight. He was disheveled with wounds everywhere on his body.
Clouds of fog, taking the shape of chains, were binding him tightly and suspending him a couple of meters above the ground. Occasionally, he would cough out a mouthful of blood and gasp for breath.
"Kill me," Luther uttered despairingly. He knew there was no point in talking since they didn't let go of Richard as well.
"Why? Don't you want to live?" Cayden asked, appearing in front of him unexpectedly.
"What?" Luther felt that he had heard wrong.
Instead, he had a bad premonition. Therefore, he yelled, "Do you think that I will join your cult? Fuck you all. The military will never let you go. You will be the enemy of the whole world.'
"Come kill me. There is no room for discussions." Luther forced an ugly smile. He was prepared to die as a hero, albeit filled with regrets.
"I see." Cayden nodded. He was too lazy to deny his accusations.
"Anyways, what if I say that you have some use for me?" Cayden put his hand on his shoulder and questioned interestingly.
"What?" Luther was puzzled.
"The dragon's blood inside you is fascinating." Immediately, Cayden grabbed his neck and squeezed it.
"Ahh!!!"
Luther uttered a horrible cry while the chains released him and rather began seeping into him through the pores of his skin, mouth, eyes, nose, and ears.
His face became paler as time passed and his aura started stagnating. Slowly, it disappeared, and his body became smaller and smaller. In a couple of seconds, he had turned into a weak dried-up dragon barely the size of a tiger. Even his skeleton was visible from the outside.
Who knew where his blood and Cayden's fog went? It was a total mystery.
"Cough, cough…"
"What did you do to me?" Luther attempted to stand up, emitting a meek wobbly voice.
"You will know later." Cayden lifted his foot and stepped on his head, causing the ground to ultimately crack.
"You dare humiliate me. I will better commit suicide." Making up his mind, he was about to bite his tongue when an unbearable force assaulted his brain.
"Ahh!"
Releasing white foam, he fainted directly.
"Trash!" Cayden clapped his hands, and the lingering fog drifted into the sky, restoring the scene to normal.
Only then was Bryan visible. Currently, he was lying flat on the floor fully exhausted. When he noticed Cayden, he pushed himself up and respectfully bowed.
"My Lord! Thank you for your grace."
Not only was he able to defeat Richard, but he was also saved from the fatal blow of Luther. In addition, most of his injuries were swiftly healed by the Lord's mana. Although he was sad that this power vanished, he was still looking forward to it.
Perhaps, he could experience this feeling again. He just had to bootlick the Lord.
"Humph! You are incapable as ever." Cayden disdained him.
"I am sorry. I will not let you down next time." Bryan apologized shamefully.
"Forget it. Lock him somewhere up." Cayden waved his hand in annoyance and proceeded to his quarters.
"Yes." Bryan fixated his eyes on Luther and sighed. "How could I have doubted the Lord? Even S-ranked warriors are miserable against him."
Shaking his head, he kicked Luther and said, "Hey! Wake up."
However, there was no reaction. "Damn! Don't tell me I have to carry this bastard?"
"Phew! It's better this way. The world would turn chaotic if this news leaked out." Considering this, he simply dragged him to the back of the courtyard and tied him up on the wall using a rope made from the tendons of an A-ranked wyvern.
Plus, he didn't forget to seal his mouth with a cloth. After making sure everything was okay, he left quietly, appearing in front of the worried gangsters waiting outside.
"Bryan! You are fine. It's good." Mike was the first one to speak.
"Haha, with the Lord here, how could I suffer?" He rubbed his nose awkwardly.
"I see. So, what about them?" When Mike asked this, everyone took a deep breath curiously. After all, two heroes were personally making a visit here. Primarily, it was not for good reasons either.
"They left a while ago. They just had some business with the Lord." Bryan smiled, not elaborating further.
Mike furrowed his brows, not believing it one bit. Nonetheless, he didn't cause a ruckus here. Instead, he commanded loudly, "Get back to business guys. It's over. As for Bryan, follow me."
How could he not be intrigued by what occurred inside the fog? If the matter was serious, he would have to make early preparations.
***
"Humm, another one." An emotionless deep voice rang in an endless ocean of water.
A humongous dark phantom could be seen hovering above, observing a blue land covered with a translucent dome with bewilderment.
"How can I be losing my divinities? Why aren't they returning to me? Did an immortal intervene?"