Chapter 610: The Return of the Feathered People and the Call

Boom!!!

The instant the blue-white plasma collided with the orange-red flames.

The erupting shockwave suddenly expanded outward into a giant energy sphere, with lightning and fire snakes twisting madly within the energy cocoon.

Then it quickly burst, the energy released in an instant carbonizing and charring all the weeds on the nearby ground.

Massive black smoke rose up, and wild winds obscured everyone's vision.

"Damn!"

Rod cursed angrily at the sky, his whole body bursting out of the black smoke like a cannonball.

He crashed into the ground with a boom, kicking up a wave of dirt several meters high, and was instantly buried.

Cardinal David was no better off; the flame currents accumulated by 【Scorching Wind Leap】 were not few, and the explosive impact forced him to retreat dozens of meters, his body covered in burning bloodstains.

But after all, he was a Tier Nine Spiritual Warrior, and his physical recovery speed was needless to say incredibly fast.

The wounds were healing at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Pfft!

Rod's right hand broke through the soft covering soil, pressing against the compacted rock at the edge.

He pushed his body up, and dirt cascaded down from him with a rustle.

His gaze remained cold and sharp.

Unlike this Cardinal, apart from some scorch marks from electric arcs, he bore no injuries whatsoever.

The +18 【Dragon Scale Art】 gave him defense superior even to a Tier Nine Warrior.

Of course, it was also because the opponent was not skilled in defense, that was all.

"He is much stronger than me in power, a burst-type, his endurance isn't great, and I even overtook him in the later stages."

Rod looked up.

The Cardinal in mid-air looked ancient and decrepit; his exposed upper body was dark and emaciated, with no muscles visible, bones almost pressing against the skin.

This Tier Nine was a symbol of physical decay.

Hiss!

A flash of lightning shifted, and David vanished in an instant.

The next moment he appeared before Rod, a lean fist flowing with plasma already colliding toward him.

Behind Rod, the Astral Ambusher War Soul with its pitch-black body flashed.

The effects of 【Reflective Evasion】 and 【Prey Hunger】 were immediately maxed out.

He barely managed to tilt his head to dodge the punch; the wild wind carried by the electric arcs slapped his face, tingling and numb.

The electric arcs on the opponent's body possessed a strong paralysis attribute.

But Rod's 【Giant Dragon Heart】 naturally carried an immunity to paralysis, so there was little effect.

Black-gold attachment on his right hand wrapped around the drawn 【Sacrificial Body Sword】, creating a blur.

【Twelve Flashes】!

Twelve black-gold sword lights flashed and passed, striking at the same instant, with the sword shadows almost overlapping each other.

And David seemed to sense the threat; the Lei Guang in his eyes flashed again.

His entire body was wrapped in lightning.

As the sword body swung out.

Rod felt no sensation of cutting into flesh at all, more uncomfortable than hacking at cotton.

Lightning flashed back and forth before his eyes; he couldn't even see a human figure, let alone hit a person.

"Holy shit!?"

Rod couldn't help but cry out in surprise.

He dodged them all??

That's a bit ridiculous, isn't it?

The old man carrying plasma happened to catch Rod's slight, brief backswing, and with a seasoned angle, threw his whole body directly into Rod's embrace.

Then came a relentless barrage of close-quarters strikes like a storm.

Fists, elbows, knees; every part of the body could serve as a weapon, striking wildly, carrying violent spiritual and electric attribute damage impacts.

If the long spear in melee is considered a long-range weapon, then the long sword is mid-range, while short daggers, knuckle-dusters, and bare hands are the close-range within melee.

An inch shorter, an inch more dangerous.

Rod's reaction was not slow; a powerful 【Repulsion Art】 exploded, creating distance.

Only then did he look down and discover several flashing Lei Ting marks had appeared on his body.

Boom!!!

Plasma erupted!

The surging Lei Ting directly submerged Rod's entire body.

Rod's lightning resistance was not high; at least it was much lower than his resistance to fire, poison, strong acid, and frost.

The +18 【Dragon Scale Art】 mostly provided defense against physical and magical damage; this surging Lei Ting truly made him suffer enough pain.

Blue-white soul mist surged.

The Bronze Dragon War Soul suddenly solidified, roaring at the sky, and barely managed to scatter the plasma.

"Is the speed not too fast, old thing?"

Rod grunted, smoke rising from his whole body, and stumbled half a step.

The Dragon Scale Art was not broken.

But with insufficient resistance, it still inflicted the negative statuses of 【Spiritual Turmoil】, 【Magic Interference】, and 【Agility Weakening】 upon him.

"Truly a chip off the old block — a seventh-tier with such impressive defense. Apart from that Minotaur committee member from the Demon Control Alliance, this is the first time I've seen it!"

David exclaimed in admiration.

He then smiled kindly, "Good thing I have a few tricks of my own. Brace yourself."

he said.

A crystal ball suddenly appeared in his palm.

As the light flickered, the sphere shattered, and the released radiance swiftly coalesced into a pair of enormous white wings—

No.

It was a Wingfolk with flawless snow-white skin radiating a halo.

Delicate and slender, limbs slightly longer than a normal person's.

Light armor, long sword, utterly sanctified.

But the familiar face of this Wingfolk swordsman made Shi Ying startle slightly.

"Caroline?"

The Wingfolk who had once attacked Shi Ying Town alongside the demon Atu!

But though the present Caroline radiated the aura of an early eighth-tier, her eyes were hollow — like a puppet, utterly devoid of consciousness.

She was seen swinging her long sword single-handedly.

"Radiant Flash."

A pillar of light descended from the sky, landing squarely on Shi Ying.

【'Dragon Scale Art +18' has been struck by the powerful dispel skill 'Radiant Flash'!】

【Dispel Huo Mian Cheng Gong! Negative effects halved!】

【Dragon Scale Art +10 (-8)!】

"Heh, still this tough?"

Shi Ying laughed.

He'd thought David was about to launch a fierce assault.

But instead he hesitated, seemingly dissatisfied with the effect of 【Radiant Flash】.

Shi Ying couldn't be bothered to care.

Even 【Aetheron Flash】, that ultra-fast sword swing, couldn't land a hit.

He immediately switched tactics.

Crack—

Frost spread rapidly outward across the ground, a tornado of ice blades stirred without wind, and a 【Wailing Ice Tree】 sprouted forth.

At the same time, the toxic miasma of 【Plague Domain】 on his body spread outward.

David's brow furrowed, and crackling bolts of electricity flashed.

In the blink of an eye, he pulled his body beyond the range of the ice blade domain.

He sighed softly: "Mr. Vincent, I'm an old man now, not as strong as you young folks. Another look and I'd be the one falling."

In midair, a three-meter-tall white-robed mage had appeared at some unknown moment.

A bone-formed staff in his hand, his face encased in bone, and through the hollowed bonework one could see the arrogant eyes looking down at Shi Ying.

Behind him was the Ring of Truth, missing a quarter.

Indicating he had already used up one opportunity for a spell's metamagic.

"The Campbell family is useless, old man. Wouldn't it be better to let me help you lot?"

"What does Mr. Vincent mean?"

"I want to join the Yige Sect. Count me in on your new world, but you have to help me kill that bitch Mystra one more time."

"The false god's Weave is just a passing cloud, a token show — it can't withstand the erosion of the Outer Planes. Taking her down is only a matter of time."

"Good!"

The piercing mage Vincent's gaze was dark and deep as he turned toward Shi Ying:

"Boy, let me show you what a true ninth-tier can do."

Shi Ying couldn't help but laugh: "Two-on-one, two ninth-tiers ganging up on a single seventh-tier — aren't you two embarrassed?"

David shook his head: "As long as justice can be carried out, I don't mind employing somewhat underhanded means. I'm old; let the sins fall on me. One last time shielding the younger generation from the storm."

Shi Ying curled his lip.

Couldn't be bothered with that sanctimonious bastard.

"As if you're the only ones who can call for help?"

"So you mean those few seventh-tiers? That halfling is somewhat interesting, the rest? Hmph." Vincent sneered.

Shi Ying straightened up again, chuckling.

A lava-roiling 【Myriad Phenomena Furnace】 appeared in his hand.

"Dora A — no, Lady Hera, it's your time to make an entrance."

(End of chapter)