Chapter 456: Tacit Cooperation

Sss! Sss!

Thick emerald vines burst from the ground, some of them encircling Li Ci, others sprouting sharp barbs, and they thrashed forward at the figure ahead.

The opponent's solid body briefly turned back into a hazy scarlet moonbeam, which, under the vines' strike, shattered into shards of red phosphorus and quickly reassembled a short distance away.

Under the blood moon, the abilities of extraordinary beings of the Moon Path were significantly enhanced, especially since the opponent was already a follower of the primal Moonlight.

The gaunt figure repeatedly vanished and reformed in the scarlet moonlight, easily closing in on Tu Ba Ge, who was manipulating the vines.

A flash of scarlet moonlight passed, and behind Tu Ba Ge, a hand with long, sharp claws suddenly swung down.

Bang!

Guided by his spiritual intuition and a stroke of luck, Tu Ba Ge happened to swing his branch staff to block the attack, and the huge force flung it straight upward.

"Meow!" a sharp, piercing sound rang out, coming from Li Ci who emerged through a gap in the vines.

A mechanical armor on its head emitted a pale white glow, converting its roar into a "Wailing Spirit Shriek" that could pierce eardrums and harm spirits.

The sting on the spirit made the original Moonlight follower pause his forward step; his head throbbed, and his thoughts became hazy.

Bu Li, not far away, was unaffected by the "Wailing Spirit Shriek"; the metal ring around its neck shone with a dawn‑like radiance, completely isolating it from the outside and averting the shriek's effect.

In the next instant, Bu Li, who had been waiting for the moment, darted forward swiftly, then leapt high; the metal devices on its two front paws suddenly glowed with a vivid blue light, silver‑white arcs crackling over them.

When it reached the briefly rigid figure, its two front paws clawed fiercely at the opponent's face; a thick silver‑white bolt of electricity materialized out of nowhere, striking the target directly, and dense electric serpents erupted from the surrounding ground.

The paralyzing effect of the lightning caused the original Moonlight follower, who had just recovered from the "Wailing Spirit Shriek," to become paralyzed again.

Sss! Sss!

Thick vines quickly erupted from the ground around them, intertwining in midair and sprouting broad dark‑green leaves that completely blocked the blood moon's light.

Seeing the surroundings suddenly darken, the still‑paralyzed original Moonlight follower felt an ominous premonition rise within.

Bu Li landed lightly; the earlier current left some paralysis in its body, but a magical item it carried mitigated the effect.

Li Ci, covered entirely in mechanical devices, jogged forward; the mechanisms on its legs and flanks expelled scorching steam, propelling it to leap from the ground and press its face against the paralyzed original Moonlight follower.

"Meow!" another mournful shriek rang out, piercing the soul.

The paralyzed original Moonlight follower briefly lost consciousness; blood seeped from his eyes, nose, and ears, his thoughts inevitably hazed, and the fleeting ideas in his mind vanished instantly.

The ground around them suddenly sprouted thumb‑thick thorns, each bearing fine barbs.

The thorns coiled tightly around the original Moonlight follower's body, dark red specks of blood oozing from where they clung, and a toxin causing paralysis and weakness seeped in through the wounds.

Bu Li retrieved a brilliant golden talisman from the sack hanging on its body and whispered in ancient Hermes language:

"Sun!"

Golden illusory flames instantly ignited in the air, exuding a massive solar aura, forming a dense sea that completely enveloped the original Moonlight follower, instantly turning him into a fire being.

Under the pure, sacred blaze, the original Moonlight follower's body showed faint signs of melting.

Hohoho~

The searing pain sweeping his body made the paralyzed original Moonlight follower emit a rumbling, hoarse, ugly sound.

"Meow!" Li Ci timely added another "Wailing Spirit Shriek," preventing the original Moonlight follower from mounting any effective resistance.

Seeing Bu Li and Li Ci had the situation under control, Tu Ba Ge casually picked up a handful of weed‑mixed leaves from the ground, infused them with spirit, and hurled them forward.

The leaves rapidly mutated in midair, turning into numerous jet‑black sharp wooden spikes that sliced through the air at high speed, piercing the figure scorched by golden flames.

After piercing flesh and bone, the wooden spikes did not stop; instead, they began to draw life force from the bloodied tissue, rooting and sprouting.

"Meow!"

Li Ci let out another "Wailing Spirit Shriek," causing the briefly lucid original Moonlight follower to lapse into a dazed state again.

His body, scorched by the bright fire, twisted rapidly into a scarlet paper figure, which quickly turned to ash and vanished.

Tu Ba Ge swiftly tossed the probability dice he kept in his pocket, then his body expanded rapidly, transforming into a gray‑furred, long‑eared rabbit the size of a brown bear.

The branch staff that had fit perfectly in his hand now resembled a small twig; without hesitation, he hurled it with full force.

Whoosh! Pff!

A slicing sound tore through the air, followed by the sharp sting of an object piercing flesh.

"Uh" the freshly materialized charred humanoid stared in disbelief at his left chest.

A staff resembling a branch freshly torn from a tree was slanted into that spot, narrowly missing the ribs and stabbing straight into the heart from his weakest point.

"Meow!" another mournful, piercing cat cry rang out; his mind grew foggy, no thoughts stirred, only a deep discomfort.

That damned cat. Its cry is so awful.

Rumble!

A thick silver‑white bolt of electricity descended from nowhere, and the charred figure of the original Moonlight follower collapsed instantly, with chunks of blackened flesh falling from him.

Tiny, blood‑rich glimmers seeped from the charred corpse, drifting up and down around it.

Tu Ba Ge observed the emerging traits and finally confirmed the original Moonlight follower was truly dead; the bear‑sized body quickly contracted back to a normal‑sized rabbit, then stepped forward to pull his staff from the corpse's chest.

He even added, "That crimson scholar is so weak."

"He was already injured before meeting us, and his luck is truly terrible."

Bu Li followed with a remark, skillfully rummaging the corpse of the original Moonlight follower for loot.

In the end he only uncovered a slightly melted golden pocket watch, and, dissatisfied, kicked the corpse's legs, saying:

"So poor, not even a single magical item."

"We shouldn't hunt extraordinary beings of the Moon Path; most of them were once beast tamers, and fighting them always makes us uneasy."

On the south bank of the Pass River Valley, a figure entirely covered in metal parts hurried toward the Indis military under the scarlet blood moon.

"Wua!"

A sound resembling a baby's wail suddenly echoed in the air, layered with reverberations that disturbed the surrounding deep‑red moonlight; a single eerie, indifferent eye sprouted from the void, gazing at the figure surrounded in the middle with boundless malice.

The surrounding light dimmed rapidly, even the spiritual growth, inspiration, and death‑enhancing effects brought by the blood moon were cut off.

"Moss Ascetic Society? You've teamed up with those lunatics from the Aurora Sect?"

The figure entirely covered with precise metal parts spoke in a low but vigorous voice.

Around, no figure appeared, and no one answered his question; only more and more eyes stretched out from the shadows, from the dust floating in the air.

After a moment of silence, the figure entirely covered by the metal spirit realm extended both hands forward; his arms quickly deformed and reorganized, his right hand turning into a barrel shaped like a honeycomb made of many gun barrels combined, his left hand turning into something somewhat like a single‑tube rocket launcher.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Countless ammunition instantly poured out from the right hand, forming a continuous sheet, and exploded in mid‑air, forming a splendid blaze of fire.

These flames, as soon as they appeared, were quickly covered with a brilliant color, kept thinning, and finally turned into a splendid and realistic scroll.

The figure entirely covered in metal slowly raised his left hand, aiming toward his front‑side, and violent spiritual energy and crimson radiance began to appear on his arm like a cannon barrel.

The next moment, a clear, brilliant light fell from mid‑air, covering his hands, quickly dissolving the metal on his body.

In just a moment, his hands that had become cannon barrels were completely dissolved and scattered.

A figure cloaked in a classical mage's robe quietly appeared beside him; she had a pair of highly distinctive brown eyes, her light‑brown hair thick and fluffy, hanging loose, and with a smile she looked at the doll before her and said:

"Just watch the show; this doll of yours was costly to make—what a shame I broke it!"

The metallic doll before her voice turned hoarse like old machinery and said:

"Gran Pars? Former high‑ranking deacon of the Trier diocese of the Church of the God of Artificers, later defected to the Moses Ascetic Order; I never expected you to have already become an angel!"

"I don't want to hear you talk; you'd better stay silent, or I won't mind preparing an alchemist's trait for my artisan cat in advance."

"Even if your true body remains in the steam church, killing you and getting away unscathed is no trouble; don't put too much trust in your god, after all storms can be snatched right before your eyes from the Wave Church."

Gran brushed aside the hair that had fallen over her shoulders, her voice carrying a hint of nonchalance and teasing as she threatened.

The mechanical doll before her fell silent for a moment, then lowered its gaze to the ground; the mechanical parts at its eyes shifted and reorganized, as if it had temporarily assembled a telescope for itself.

(End of chapter)