Chapter 293

The brilliant, star-like grey sword qi struck down the tall sun statue; the surging magical torrents that burst forth destroyed everything with ease, slapping the shield formation's light curtain erected by the Holy Light Knights with a sharp crackling sound.

At this moment, the Sheng Guang Jiao Tang had lost its former tranquility and solemnity; heavy black clouds loomed, as if they would crush its dome, and even the iconic fountain square before its gates was completely reduced to ruins by the battle's aftermath.

If one stood on high ground of the church and looked around, they would see layers upon layers of corpses, led by high-ranking undead, encircling the place completely, and furthermore, corpses from other districts of the city kept flowing in incessantly through the city's thoroughfares.

Compared to this, the knights who formed the shield formation and stubbornly held the church's entrance were like mantises trying to stop a chariot; no matter how brave, tenacious, loyal, and united they were, they still appeared as if they could be drowned at any moment in this sea of death.

And this was exactly what Bishop Tenisi saw at this moment; she gripped her staff and anxiously paced before the window.

"Ah, the battle situation is terribly unfavorable for our warriors..."

Although each Holy Light Knight is an elite who underwent strict training at the Holy See, the speed at which this corpse plague spreads is simply too terrifying.

In less than half an hour, even though the Church's reaction speed was already fast enough, the Inner City quickly fell into a city of corpses; the squads sent out to support and search for survivors all vanished within it, and to this day not a word has been heard from them.

Behind this there must be an insider aiding their assault; they know all sorts of intelligence about Sunlight City, have laid out numerous plans in advance, and it is absolutely not something that can be counted as just one or two……

"Hey, you pathetic Holy Light Worms, aren't you going to surrender yet?"

Among the corpse horde, a black-armored figure emanating a grim, hoarse voice sounded; whether it was the skeletal warhorse beneath him or the painful long sword in his hand, both burned with violet netherworld flames—indeed, it was a Death Knight.

As an Aberrant Powerhouse who had become one of the six councilors of the Aberrant Council, this was his first battle after attaining that position; moreover, to win further favor from Lord Wendigo, he volunteered to lead the undead great army here.

With the Adventurers' Association in name only, and its human bone core strength all drained by Ke Li Si Ting, the only thing capable of obstructing the Aberrant Council from taking over the entire Sunlight City was the so-called Hillfolk Mercenaries and the Holy Light Worms before us.

But for them, although their nominal combat strength remains first, the Hillfolk Mercenaries, who likewise suffered heavy losses in the chaos of Sunlight City, are actually nothing to worry about.

After all, if nothing unexpected happens, Suo La, transformed into a corpse behemoth, needs only to make a slight move and employ a little trick to be enough to dispose of them all.

Therefore, the sole obstacle preventing the Council from taking over Sunlight City now is this very Sheng Guang Jiao Tang before us, which has stood apart from the chaos the whole time, its strength not diminished but increased, and the cultivators hidden within it who, because they believe in the Holy Light, each possess a special advantage against the Aberrant.

And as an old friend of the Lord of All Living Things, the Shadow God Wendigo, who has tried every means, suffered every setback, and been humiliated countless times, for tonight's operation he can be said to have made full preparations.

In the Inner City, the high-ranking, powerful great insider contacted An De Lu and Suo La, while the traitorous spies developed and planted in secret are countless.

Only then could, after a previous experimental assault, they launch this current operation that can be called perfect and yet utterly unstoppable—a corpse-born natural disaster.

And in order to take the Sheng Guang Jiao Tang in one fell swoop, to quell the organization's internal fear of the Holy Light God, Wendigo, while pouring large numbers of undead soldiers into the fight, also dispatched three combat‑skilled councilors from the seven‑person council—truly a luxurious heavenly troupe.

Ji Ming's guess was also not wrong; this second teleportation gate is indeed located beneath the City Lord's Mansion, serving as Suo La's base of operations, and it quickly fell when the disaster first began, becoming a bridgehead for the Aberrant Council's assault on Sunlight City.

Therefore, when the Sheng Guang Jiao Tang detected the sudden outbreak of the corpse plague and sent several squads of Holy Light Knights to reinforce, they were ambushed and slaughtered by the Aberrant on the way.

It was a case of scheming against the unsuspecting, and moreover a saturating attack for fear the enemy would not drown; even the strong and loyal Holy Light Knights could not cope with the undead regular army's assault, especially after more than half of their magical power had been drained by the incessantly flowing corpses blocking the road.

Thus the dispatched knights achieved no strategic purpose and suffered heavy losses; only the squad led by Priest Sitelin could still fight, barely holding their ground amid wave after wave of the corpse tide.

But how could the Council, which had fully mastered intelligence on Sunlight City, possibly lack a countermeasure against him? Thus, in the very next second, Sitelin heard a howling wind coming from above his head.

"Heh, so there really is a killing move after all?"

No matter how you say it, Sitelin once served as commander of the Carson Region Knight Corps; how could he possibly be unprepared?

He swung his battle hammer, cutting down the skeletal soldiers before him, then, using the momentum, twisted his waist and spun, striking the hidden weapon that had come down from the sky with the edge of his sword just right to knock it away.

The two collided, scattering brilliant sparks; he looked closely and discovered that they were actually several feathers as hard as steel.

"As expected of a priest, this skill set is still pretty formidable."

In a laugh devoid of praise, another black shadow swooped down from mid‑air at high speed, landing among the skeletons and corpses that already completely blocked the intersection.

It turned out that the one ambushing Sitelin was a strange bird that stood upright, bore a pair of wings on its back, was covered in feathers, and had a sharp‑eyed, pointed beak and a hawk‑like head.

As a Holy Light Knight who had experienced countless battles, Sitelin instantly recognized the opponent's race—Shadow Feather Person.

They were once Feather People, but a sudden change thousands of years ago gradually polluted them, transforming them entirely into Aberrants.

Moreover, as an old retainer who, together with Wendigo, founded the Aberrant Council ages ago, this Feather Person, who possesses the Dragon's Skill and whose species name is quite pleasing, needs no further introduction—he is already a high‑level professional of level forty or above.

Sitelin's level, however, is only a mere thirty‑six; such a huge level gap is already enough to nullify the advantage granted by "Holy Light versus Aberrant," even putting him at a disadvantage in battle—thus this Feather Person is definitely a strong enough to kill him.

But Stirling was not panicking at all, for the Sheng Guang Jiao Tang had long guessed that after the chaos in Sunshine City, it was very likely a barbaric primordial force connected to the weird.

So he was instead composed, having expected this, paid no heed to the Feather Person, and led his knights in continuing to try to break out.

——What's there to talk about with this bird person (literally)? The Holy Light God said, when encountering difficulty, survival is paramount!

Holy Light God: "When did I ever… well, I actually did say that, though my wording was a bit…"

One of the most embarrassing things in the world is failing to show off, and even more embarrassing is that no one notices him showing off; this scene, seen through the Feather Person's eyes, practically made him explode with rage like an exploding chicken!

His noble self took the initiative to praise his opponent, yet he didn't even modestly return the praise! This isn't just a spanking on my butt—it's clearly a slap in the face of Lord Wendigo!

……

Sometimes feigning deafness and muteness can be a form of wisdom; upon hearing this chief fanatic say that his Wendigo had chosen to wear earplugs and pretend to hear nothing.

"How dare you ignore me—I am the envoy of the great deity!"

In order to regain his pride, the Feather Person furiously spread his wings and rose to chase after Stirling; then, with a flick of his wing, countless sharp, icy‑glinting feathers rained down like heavenly blades.

With the situation now urgent, Stirling, who was busy rushing back to the church to regain his footing, didn't indulge him at all; as he shattered the first blow with a hammer, he immediately followed with a backhand strike, trying to smash the Feather Person's bird head.

No matter how high its rank, a weird entity would not willingly take a hit from this Holy Light hammer, just as no matter how awesome a person is, they wouldn't willingly eat… In any case, the Feather Person hastily regained altitude to dodge the strike.

Stirling won another round, but it meant nothing; now that wings grew on the other side, the Feather Person, dead set on going all out against Stirling, began relentless harassment.

Who could tolerate having an angry big bird constantly swooping down, chirping and demanding a hammer while playing the path of survival? Even the usually silent iron‑blooded knights couldn't help but speak up.

"Filthy weird entity, is that all you can do—use such vile, low‑down tactics?"

The Feather Person was about to celebrate having forced this tin can to speak, but instead heard a string of profanity; being especially sensitive about face, he exploded with rage on the spot, then flung a burst of shed feathers and hair toward Stirling.

"Shameless human, didn't your mother teach you how to speak properly to others?"

Stirling was not to be outdone either, swinging the weighted Holy Light hammer with the force of a light shield; the steel feathers that collided were utterly shattered, turning into scattered sparks that fell upon the snow and corpses below.

First, you're not human; second…

He was quick‑eyed and quick‑handed, seizing the moment while the Feather Person was still listening to his words, he erupted suddenly and flung out an extremely swift Holy Light wave.

"I've been collecting bird eggs with my mother since I was a kid—I don't need you to help me reminisce about my childhood!"

Stirling the priest is an honest fellow; today, if he's digging for bird eggs, he's digging for bird eggs—this scared the Feather Person into flying up a few inches higher to avoid the two brothers bidding farewell right there.

"Damn, your Holy Light hearts are truly black!"

Now the Feather Person was utterly enraged, not caring whether he would end up eating the Holy Light heavy hammer's 'shit' today, he swooped down directly to engage Stirling in close‑quarters combat.

And this also happens to be part of Stirling's plan; he doesn't fear high-level enemies, he fears enemies with good scheming; as long as this Feather Person breaks through his defense, not to mention high-level professionals, even if he's a class-changer, Stirling dares to take on two moves!

And this Feather Person has been able to follow Wendigo steadily to this day, unlike the lich Rodrigues and the elven bloodline Andal, those two 'substitute seventh seats' who were used as disposable scouting fodder; naturally, he is not an arrogant monster with no utilitarian value at all.

Only when Stirling and he first engaged did he realize that, although this Feather Person's thinking is crude and his tactics old, pitifully being toyed with in his palm, his combat instinct when truly fighting is remarkably strong.

A pair of wings blessed with shadow protection is not only as tough as iron, but can also regenerate at any moment after being shattered or damaged, possessing a terrifying talent that could bring countless middle-aged men to tears.

Stirling employed every technique he had learned over years of campaigning from seniors, juniors, teachers, comrades, and classmates, just barely able to block the opponent's furious strike with his weapon.

Moreover, the Feather Person's methods aren't clean either; in the midst of fighting he even started using his feet—a pair of massive eagle talons that are essentially a combination of several sickles; if Stirling fails to catch them properly, even his hammer will end up with several gouges.

The thrifty Stirling felt his heart bleeding; this was a precious asset provided by the Church, and if it were damaged he would have to feel guilty for the rest of his life.

The Feather Person also felt that not only his talons, but even his two legs were about to be cooked by this scorching holy light; if this continued, he would inevitably start giving off a meaty aroma.

But who made him like to be stubborn? This bird's beak is indeed hard; not only did it not slow his attack, it actually made him more excited, even shouting mockery.

"Hahaha, could it be that nowadays holy knights can't even afford a good hammer?"

He couldn't see Stirling's expression hidden beneath the helmet, but he could hear a helpless, extreme curse issuing from the black seam.

"I fucking..."

"Hiss... waah!"

The Feather Person neither retorted nor continued attacking; instead he flew up a bit more and, feeling satisfied, inhaled a breath of cold air.

He felt his life's worth was complete; he had actually shattered the mindset of a holy light knight brigade leader, and when he went back he would have to brag about it for ten years!

Just as he was about to rally his spirit, using his invincible wings and legs to completely suppress this holy knight who had already become a clown, he heard a low shout.

"Lord Feather Person, how... how come you didn't kill this priest?"

"Huh?"

The Feather Person came to his senses, looked around, and saw before him a quite massive structure; at a glance its construction screamed Church style, with many sun-patterned buildings.

Only then did he realize that, during his and Stirling's fervent battle, the knights' horse hooves had apparently never stopped, continually charging to break through.

In other words...

"Hahaha, you Feather Person, how filial of you—you accidentally escorted my grandfather home!"

Stirling laughed loudly, mocking the Feather Person's failure, while feeling sorry for his hammer, which was already about to be carved into floral patterns.

Even the garrison knights who were being pressed and beaten by the death knight had their morale greatly bolstered; with the help of the reinforcing knights, even the shield wall that was about to deform became orderly again.

But morale boost aside, Stirling's return meant that the enemies who had set out to kill him also joined the ranks besieging the church.

The death knight, upon arrival, certainly wouldn't dare provoke the high-ranking officials close to the emperor, so after hesitating and asking a question, he continued leading the undead army to charge the shield formation.

Moreover, the Feather Person, subjected to a chain of soul‑questioning from both enemies and allies, let out a terrifying shriek, turning into a black shadow that swooped toward the damned holy knight leader.

The disparity in combat power between the two sides is so great that even if the Sheng Guang Jiao Tang had prepared in advance, it would hardly be able to withstand it; although unwilling, Tennith let out a soft sigh and could only choose to intervene.

However, at that very moment, a commotion suddenly came from a nearby district; amidst the successive barrages of holy light and magic, she recalled that there seemed to be another holy knight unit operating outside.

That was the unit tasked with protecting the God‑Chosen, but he had refused to follow him in the evening, so it had been left on standby in the commercial street!