"Not good, that damned Celt! Everyone be careful!" Cecilia's pretty face paled as she saw Celt's sudden change of direction. Celt led the group of knights, as well as Arlen and his dark elves, in an about face towards the stunned Cecilia.
"Master, this Bryan is also a member of the Dark Mantle. He won't dare act impudently as long as we capture these woman." Kassel urged Celt on. The Ancient Lizard King's appearance and subsequent brutality had struck a deep chord of fear in him.
"If they're with Bryan, we can use them to force him to submit." Celt replied harshly. Coldly, he rushed towards Cecilia as he drew 'Starry Sky' from his space ring.
From his position on the old lizard king's shoulder, Han Shuo quickly identified Emily from a distance. Since the Redbud Knights and the Dark Elves had made such a conspicuous mess of things, it was impossible to keep Dark Mantle in the dark. Her appearance at this time was well within Han Shuo's expectations.
"You can't let them leave alive, otherwise you can definitely expect this place to turn into a war zone in the near future!" Han Shuo whispered urgently into the old lizard king's ear. His eyes were fixed on the two leaders, a murderous gleam flashing through his eyes.
"I don't need you to remind me." The Ancient Lizard King didn't bother with an audible speech, letting his voice echo in Han Shuo's mind.
By this time, the Ancient Lizard King had left the corpses of over a thousand knights and dark elves in his wake as he rampaged through the combined army. The lucky survivors fled in all directions, doing their best to put as much distance as possible between themselves and the ferocious figure of the Lizard King.
Suddenly, a rust-coloured light shone over the massive body of the Ancient Lizard King. Astonishingly, his huge body began to shrink, the light folding inwards.
Still on the Lizard King's shoulder, Han Shuo had a front row seat to this transformation. A quick mental message from the old Lizard King eased his worries; the Lizard King was simply transforming into his human form. Han Shuo leapt from his perch and floated in the air.
Dagassi's colossal body shrank rapidly under the auburn light. The twenty metre tall form of the prehistoric apex predator was replaced by a one hundred seventy centimetre tall old man within ten breaths. His face was flushed and the only remnant of his former form was a lizard man's tail protruding from his spine. A red cloak appeared out of nowhere and casually draped itself over him.
Dagassi's transformation had indeed resulted in such an earth-shattering change to his features. Nowhere could the behemoth that had slaughtered knights and elves like flies be seen in this small, normal looking old man. He looked up to see Han Shuo hovering in the sky above him. He stretched out and shouted in human language, "Take your friends to safety, I will exact my blood price from these intruders.
The old Lizard King had abandoned mental transmission in favour of the common tongue. It seemed that the ancient magical formation that bound him had also sealed his ability to transform freely. Now that he could shift into human form, he'd regained the ability to use the common human tongue.
As he spoke, he lifted himself haltingly from the ground. His actions seemed a little out of practice, as if he was searching for the familiarity he once had in the air, the sense he'd lost from being sealed underground for so long.
Dagassi's reminder broke Han Shuo's fascination with the Lizard King's transformation. He looked up to see Celt and his group almost on the heels of Cecilia and her group. Kassel had taken the opportunity to transform into his favourite large earth bear, causing the ground to crack beneath his feet as he charged towards Cecilia.
The noble dark elf, Arlen, stared dumbfounded, his eyes wide, at Kassel's transformation. Turning his head, he saw Starry Sky in Celt's hands. Apprehension grew in his heart as he remembered how arrogant he'd been in front of them earlier.
He broke into a cold sweat. Arlen had been rudely awakened to the fact that his men's strength paled in comparison to that of the Redbud Knights during the Elder Lizard King's earlier rampage. With Starry Sky, he could admit that he was no longer Celt's equal. Now that the Druid's minion had revealed a transformation skill that allowed him to turn into a large earth bear, Arlen realised that if he'd really come to blows with Celt, he would have been soundly defeated.
While Arlen's heart trembled with fear, Cecilia's was filled with a different kind of emotion. She cursed vehemently as she floated in the air, shouting, "Move! Don't just stand there, Celt's coming!"
Even in his current state, Celt was known throughout the Profound Continent as the leader of the Redbud Knights, one of the top ten knightly forces. The loss of his green dragon didn't cause him to lose any of his power when wielding Starry Sky. Cecilia may be one of the Dark Mantle's three heavyweights, but she hasn't specialised in combat. With little experience to draw on, she panicked when she saw Celt and his band forming a charge.
"Annoying women, don't expect to leave here alive today!" Celt shouted. "Starry Sky" began to emit a blinding light as his charge turned into a full assault. It was as if the stars had descended upon the entire underground world. Off to the side, the great earth bear, Kassel, also launched his own attack, pressuring Cecilia and her band.
In the face of this twin onslaught, a crimson light suddenly streaked across the sky. Even as it raced through the sky, its point quickly coalesced into a dense ball of bloodlust. The bloody-coloured ball of light began to spin rapidly as its shards began to rattle in warning. The huge ball of spiky crimson light shook as it continued to spin rapidly in the air. Han Shuo had finally unleashed the Bloody Radiance of Ten Thousand Cuts.
The wailing of weeping ghosts and howling wolves accompanied the Bloody Radiance of Ten Thousand Cuts as it shot out from the Demonslayer's Edge. It hurtled through the air towards Kassel's great earth bear form. He was about to strike a powerful blow at Emily when he felt the dense aura of killing intent closing in on him from behind. Quick as a flash, Kassel changed his target, skidding to a halt as he turned to face the scarlet orb screaming towards him through the air.
Emily was no slouch, quickly using her levitation skills to throw herself out of harm's way. Her dark hair danced in the wind as she chanted under her breath, staff in hand. Two massive Hands of Death appeared in the air, slashing at Kassel's transformed feet.
Kassel had focused on Han Shuo's Demonslayer Edge as the biggest threat and hadn't expected Emily to counterattack in the middle of a retreat. Both of his feet were firmly grasped by her two Hands of Death.
There was no time to try to free himself. Kassel could only grit his teeth and use his front claws to catch the spinning scarlet orb. The crimson light spun madly in the bear's claws, fiery sparks shooting from his palms as he stamped his feet in agony.
Having used up thirty percent of its energy reserves in this one attack on Kassel, the Demonslayer's Edge transformed back into a streak of red light and returned to Han Shuo, leaving the wailing Kassel with his two mangled bear arms behind.
Emily suddenly decided not to pursue the Celt and the dark elf Arlen as she sped away.
Boom!
A powerful force crashed down from the sky, trampling the ten-metre tall bear to the ground. Dozens of waves of attacking force entered Kassel's body simultaneously. He bled profusely from his nose and mouth as his body shrank back to human form.
The one who'd attacked Kassel from above was indeed the ancient lizard king Dagassi, who descended from a red dot in the middle of the sky to land beside Kassel. "You are one of the main culprits, how could I let you escape?" Dagassi still used the form of a ruddy old man, so he stomped on Kassel's head.
Kassel's skull shattered like a rotten watermelon with a crunching sound.
End of part 1 of the chapter.
On the other side, Cecilia and the members of the Dark Mantle were desperately trying to evade Celt and Arlen's pursuit. The latter two were obviously unaware of Han Shuo and Cecilia's dubious relationship. The only reason Han Shuo had rushed over was to save Emily. He didn't care about the rest and watched Cecilia's group flee without offering a helping hand.
Only when he saw the fire mage Chrissie almost caught by a Redbud Knight's killing move did Han Shuo make a move to block the attack for her. He called from a distance, "Chrissie, come to my side! I will protect you!"
"Bryan, hurry and help Mistress Cecilia. Hurry!" Chrissie seemed to care very much for Cecilia. She didn't run to Han Shuo, but disregarded her own safety to ask him to save Cecilia.
Emily was not too far away from Han Shuo at that moment. Knowing the grudge between him and Cecilia, her elegant black eyebrows furrowed. She didn't say anything to convince him, but instead flew directly to Cecilia.
Standing proudly in the air, Han Shuo watched as Emily flew to Cecilia without another word. He couldn't help but let out a low curse before rushing after her. He didn't care if Cecilia lived or died. But Emily was his woman. He didn't want anything to happen to her.
In reality, Emily was secretly watching Han Shuo's actions. A sweet feeling surged through her heart when she saw him flying after her. She knew that Han Shuo had only followed her to ensure her safety. He wouldn't interfere even if Cecilia was in grave danger.
Celt was busy pursuing Cecilia, but Arlen saw Emily flying overhead. He immediately gave an order to the two dark elven archers behind him. The archers raised their bows and aimed at Emily, magical fluctuations appearing around the arrowheads.
The black magic sceptre in Arlen's hand waved once as he chanted a spell in the dark elven tongue. A huge black python, formed from the dark elements, slithered out of the sceptre. It shook its head and tail and leapt towards Emily, its blood maw gaping.
"You want to die?!" Han Shuo roared, the Demonslayer Edge flying out of his right hand. Bloody light exploded in the middle of the giant python.
The Demonslayer Edge was like a bloody quagmire, a terrifying sucking force that devoured everything around it. Even the air was no exception as the vacuum force began to increase. The black python was helpless in the face of such power and was sucked in completely.
The two archers beside Arlen couldn't resist either. They screamed, but couldn't control their bodies and were sucked into the mire. The archers, along with the surrounding gravel and vegetation, swirled into the air, heading straight for the mire created by the Demonslayer's Edge.
Arlen's soul seemed to have fled his body in terror. He stabbed the black magic sceptre into the ground, holding it firmly with one hand. With the other hand, he pulled out a dark magic scroll. He quickly drew something on the scroll and a mass of black mist rose from it, enveloping his body.
From the black mist, many gaseous creatures resembling Arlen formed and flew with the slightest gust of wind. These gas beings twisted and turned like leaves in the wind, but they didn't seem to be affected by the pull of the Demonslayer's Edge. Soon they were drifting farther and farther away, almost disappearing into the distance.
Arlen, however, had apparently forgotten about the old lizard king Dagassi. He'd been watching the scene change without making a move. Suddenly, he shot dozens of forceful waves underground.
From the depths of the earth came a mournful wail. Hearing that it was indeed Arlen's scream, Dagassi cackled and murmured, "You despicable dark elves still dare to flee in my presence?"
"Dagassi, why are you just standing there? Killing them was your responsibility, when did it become mine?" Han Shuo had long since seen that the Ancient Lizard King had taken the position of a spectator, watching with an interested eye. He couldn't help but yell out when he saw Arlen being killed underground.
"Funny little human, you alone seem to be able to handle them. I'll just be your assistant." Dagassi had suddenly developed an interest in Han Shuo and continued, "I've lived for countless years, but this is the first time I've come across something like your fighting style. This cultivation method of yours seems to be quite special, so I'm waiting to see how many more miraculous areas there are for you."
Dagassi was very powerful, and of course his eyesight was quite sharp. It only took a little time for him to realise that Han Shuo's magical cultivation didn't resemble combat aura, nor did it follow the principles of magic elements. He'd never seen anything like it in his life. As a result, Dagassi was immediately interested in Han Shuo and decided to see what depths this human had. That was why he hadn't rushed to go on the offensive.
Upon hearing his words, Han Shuo snorted coldly, "If that is the case, then just watch."
Han Shuo moved like lightning to Emily's side as his words fell on Dagassi's ears, grabbing her waist and stopping her from flying. Then he shouted to Celt, "Celt, chasing after these people is pointless. I don't care if they die. If you don't run, you'll be dead for sure. Are you crazy?"
Celt, who had been diligently chasing after Cecilia and her team, nearly vomited blood in anger when he heard Han Shuo's words. He looked back and saw no trace of Arlen, only Han Shuo standing there with a mocking look on his face. Han Shuo seemed to have no intention of saving these people. He obviously wasn't joking.
"Damned Kassel, giving me false information!" Celt spat out a low curse. He took a moment to think and stopped following Cecilia. Gathering the remnants of his Redbud Knights, he forged a path deep into the bushes.
"Emily, how did this Cecilia become one of the three heavyweights of the Dark Mantle? Her strength is nothing compared to Candide or your brother Amyes!" Han Shuo asked Emily in surprise when he saw that Cecilia only knew how to duck and weave.
Han Shuo's jeers had forced Celt to give up his pursuit of Cecilia. Emily struggled out of his embrace in embarrassment when she saw that Cecilia was safe and sound. She timidly looked around and slowly floated down before finally replying to Han Shuo, who was still closely following her.
"Sister Cecilia doesn't specialise in combat. Besides, her grandfather is one of the oldest veterans of the Dark Mantle and the only Sacred magus in the Empire. You've even met him before."
Han Shuo was stunned by her words. He exclaimed, "No wonder! I thought her power was too weak for her to hold such a position at such a young age. She has so many strange magical artefacts, so it's all thanks to her Sacred Magus Grandfather. Oh, right, I don't remember meeting a Sacred Magus, where did I meet him? You're not pulling my string, are you?"
"Of course not, but I can't tell you who he is because it's a rule. Anyway, you'll definitely meet him when you reach a certain rank in the Dark Mantle." Emily smiled softly and said, seemingly amused by Han Shuo's confused expression.
"Your grandfather, I met him...?" Han Shuo's thoughts raced. When he came up empty handed after a moment, he spared no effort to think about it.
"You little brat, you are definitely a first-rate scoundrel, forcing an old man like me to take action myself!" The old lizard king's voice rolled in waves from behind him. Han Shuo then saw a red shadow shoot through the air in Celt's direction.
"Right, Celt has an artefact and a space ring, we still need to take a look." Han Shuo suddenly remembered the wealth Celt was carrying. He hurriedly pulled Emily along and flew towards them.
The Earth Elite Zombie was still deep underground, following Han Shuo's orders. It tunneled towards Arlen's corpse, ready to rob him of his valuables.
As for Kassel, whose head had been crushed by Dagassi, Han Shuo couldn't care less. The Druids worshipped nature, and didn't like to collect wealth. The traitor Kassel hadn't had a chance to collect magic crystal ores, and Han Shuo hadn't seen a space ring on his hands either. Obviously, he was not a generous person.