Chapter 669: Abyss Knight

"Do we rescue them?"

Yizite whispered to his teammates, yet everyone could tell from his expression that the dark elf was inclined to intervene and rescue.

Dao En Suosi immediately responded, picking up the hammer at his side, and said gravely: "Eradicating evil and saving the good are the duties of a follower of the Mother Goddess."

Belak also nodded in agreement.

The three looked at Reslin and Asina, awaiting their support. Asina's face already showed eagerness, clearly leaning toward rescue, and she said softly: "Reslin?"

Reslin was actually indifferent; he could rescue or not.

Since the teammates' stance was so clear, opposing it was useless; killing these Abyss Knights to recharge himself wasn't a bad thing either.

"Fine," he agreed in a calm voice.

The party moved at once, already highly coordinated after yesterday's battle.

The barbarian priest swiftly flipped through the Earth Scripture, bestowing a Divine Technique on each teammate; Belak also wielded the power of holy light, Reslin waved his staff to cast rapidly, and four auxiliary spells of the Seven Rings settled on everyone, boosting combat ability across the board.

The tent glowed, and in less than ten seconds the blessings were complete, the whole team's strength surged.

Reslin first stepped out of the shelter, releasing an Invisibility Field; after the teammates emerged, Yizite quickly retracted the Liyomeng shelter.

"Let's go."

Reslin floated up and sped toward the forest's edge.

The Invisibility Field moved with him, and the teammates hurried to stay within its range, soon reaching the forest's border.

The group hid behind low shrubs, watching the source of the pursuit sounds.

On the dim horizon a group of people fled in disarray, about seven or eight li away; the poor light and ground foliage made them hard to see. From their build they were certainly human, roughly fifteen, all riding teal warhorses at a desperate gallop.

Half a minute later, they were a bit closer.

"I recognize them,"

Dao En Suosi could barely hide his surprise, whispering quickly: "They are the 'Fearless Fist', a Soul Hunt Team under the Oke Blue City lord 'One Punch Martial Saint' Brus, overall extremely powerful, members at least Mid-stage Transcendents, their professions and weapons are top‑tier in Albert Bay, answering only to the city lord, their status comparable to the Rage Fist Knights."

Reslin gave a slight nod.

The three Saint Rank city lords of Albert Bay, besides each commanding a Transcendent Legion, also founded several smaller private forces, usually operating as Soul Hunt Teams or Mercenary Corps.

These private forces are few in number and highly mobile, sometimes serving as the lord's personal guard, sometimes leaving the city to purge monsters, and when needed bearing the heavy duty of defending the city.

Of course, they also often do some unsavory tasks for the lord.

"So it's them," the dark elf recognized, puzzled: "How did the Fearless Fist end up here?"

The others were equally puzzled.

This place lies deep in the interior of the New Continent, over five thousand li from Albert Bay.

Soul Hunt Teams usually operate only near human cities and outposts on the western coast; the farther they go, the riskier it becomes, and they rarely cross the Rokqis Mountains. Even though the Fearless Fist's strength far exceeds ordinary Soul Hunt Teams, traveling this far from Albert Bay would be too dangerous for them.

The facts before them confirmed this.

Soon, the Fearless Fist members became clearly visible; almost everyone bore wounds, their spirits exhausted and desperate.

Their class composition was complex yet complete.

Iron Guard, Greatsword Master, Berserker, Fighter, Warlock, Ranger, Gunner, Demon‑blade Warrior, Priest, and Cultivator, covering melee to ranged, plus casters and healers, each category fielding three to four members, enough to handle any combat scenario.

Moreover, the team contained three legendary strongmen.

One was a legendary Mid-stage Greatsword Master, another a legendary Fighter, and the third a legendary Demon‑blade Warrior.

Their wind‑scale horses were also among the finest mounts—fast, strong‑bearing, and enduring. Yet at this moment they seemed as exhausted as after three days and nights of continuous running; their manes soaked with sweat, they gasped heavily, stamina depleted to the brink of collapse, and no matter how their riders urged them with whips, they could not quicken.

"Faster, faster!"

"Even faster…"

The Transcendents on the wind‑scale horses shouted desperately, glancing back anxiously, as if a terrifying monster pursued them from behind.

In fact, what chased them was more horrifying than any monster.

Reslin's gaze turned to the distance, where another group of human cavalry rode; their warhorses were taller, sturdier, and faster, and the knights on them wore uniformly rugged black‑and‑red armor, towering and wild‑cold, their evil aura so overwhelming that even several li away it slammed into the senses.

His pupils contracted slightly.

These were the Abyss Knights Yizite had spoken of, their aura being pure evil energy.

Yet the evil energy that is lethal to ordinary humans is the source of these knights' power; the ubiquitous evil energy of the Abyss wasteland fuels their aura, merging into a single force, like a tiger gaining wings.

Black flames roared, and hooves thundered.

Over a hundred and twenty Abyss Knights surged forward, their momentum like ten thousand horses galloping!

The squad members fell silent for a few seconds, their expressions heavy.

Abyss Knights!

Almost all Abyss Knights are Netif, one of the purest branches of humanity. Tens of thousands of years ago, when Ai Lun E Si was still in the Prehistoric Era, a group of humans migrated from the Old Continent to the New Continent, gradually developing their own civilization and nation.

This human branch called themselves Netif, meaning "indigenous people."

In the early Third Epoch, elves and dwarves discovered the New Continent, landing on its east and west coasts.

At that time the Netif were far weaker in both strength and culture than the two races, and their lands were swiftly seized, their territory eroded step by step.

Especially the Netif on the New Continent's east coast, whom the arrogant elves regarded as a backward, barbaric inferior race, akin to uncivilized trolls, unworthy of the continent's precious lands, prompting the elves to launch massive slaughter and expulsion against the Netif.

The entire Third Epoch became a blood‑tear history of the Netif.

By the end of the epoch, when the Abyss invasion came, the Netif of the New Continent had dwindled to less than one percent of their peak, nearly extinct, with only a few hundred thousand survivors forced into a wilderness east of the Chikros Mountains.

The Abyss invasion gave the Netif hope for revenge.

They unhesitatingly turned to the Abyss, offering their lives and faith to the ancient evil god, embracing evil energy for power, and launching a bloody revenge against the elves.

The elves' cities and territories fell so swiftly, in part due to the Netif's contribution.

The Netif's loyalty was rewarded.

When the chief of the Abyss's four evil gods, the Lord of Darkness "Yuksoen", cast the Blood Soul Curse upon all humanity, the Netif were no exception. Yet for Netif who had already become Abyss believers, the Blood Soul Curse caused no harm; instead it was a blessing.

In fact, the Netif called the Blood Soul Curse the "Abyss Blessing".

Other humans go mad hearing the Lord of Darkness's ramblings; to Netifu ears they are divine revelations, and those of outstanding talent can even grasp the nature of the Abyss and evil energy from the ramblings, causing their power to surge.

Their lifespan is not shortened by the curse's torment.

On the contrary, they live longer; even the most mediocre Netifu can reach five hundred years.

Their bodies become stronger, the innate potential is fully awakened by evil energy, granting them power comparable to transcendent beings from birth, making them one of the world's strongest races.

Of course, none of this comes without a price.

Evil energy makes Netifu personalities as brutal, blood‑thirsty, cold and ruthless as demons, with a soul‑deep tendency to destroy all things. They retain human intellect and desires, showing them openly, and practice jungle law within their tribe: the strong dominate the weak in everything—property, freedom, even life.

Moreover, the bodies of demon‑transformed Netifu undergo varying degrees of mutation. Since they worship different Abyssal evil gods, the mutations differ.

To the wise races of the Old Continent, Netifu are no longer human and are called "Demonkin".

That does not diminish their might. From birth they practice controlling evil energy, deliberately inducing bodily mutations and taking pride in it.

Netifu are similar to Old Continent humans and have developed many transcendent professions.

The most common is the Abyss Knight, who strengthens the body with evil energy.

They, along with Purgatory Wizards and Shadow Priests, are followers of the Lord of Darkness. There are also Death Knights and Undead Mages under the Lord of the Dead, Evil Spellcasters and Nightmare Assassins who worship the Lord of Chaos, and Plague Warlocks, Contaminators, Pus Warriors who spread disease and mercy for the Plague Lord, and so on.

In the Abyss, Netifu's status is equal to demons, and they are even more favored by the Abyssal Four Gods than most demons.

Almost all Netifu worship the Lord of Darkness, so Abyss Knights are the most numerous.

Today Netifu's population has recovered to its peak, even surpassing its golden age, occupying seventy percent of the eastern plains of the New Continent.

According to some veteran adventurers, there are at least thirty million Netifu Demons on the New Continent.

Whether by individual strength, population, or territory, Netifu rank first among the Abyssal Four Tribes on the New Continent, stronger than Evil Beastmen, demon‑transformed elves and Abyss Dwarves combined.

The number of Abyss Knights alone may reach three million!

If it were not for the constant internal strife of the Netifu—splintered into dozens of powerful clans that war each other for power—there has never been a single ruler to unite the whole race, and humans could never have established bases or cities on the New Continent.

Should the Netifu unite and strike the Old Continent, it would be an utter catastrophe.

At this moment, a group of Abyss Knights is pursuing the "Fearless Fist".

This Abyssal faction's transcendent profession looks similar to the human Iron Guard, and is common among Netifu; both are outstanding in strength, have solid defense, and focus on close‑range attacks.

In fact, an Abyss Knight's power is several times that of an Iron Guard.

Four Iron Guards together may still not defeat a single same‑rank Abyss Knight.

Besides great strength and defense, the evil‑energy they wield has many uses: it can burst into lethal force, boost protection, resist magical damage, restore stamina, corrupt an enemy's mind and soul, and has virtually no weakness.

Moreover, Abyss Knights can summon from the Abyss a "Hell Warhorse".

This steed, with two eyes, four hooves and a mane wreathed in black evil flame, is actually a special demon; its strength grows with its master, and if slain it will revive in the Abyss.

A Hell Warhorse's own power rivals that of a transcendent of the same tier.

In battle, it shares a mental link with its master and connects with the auras of nearby warhorses; the more there are, the stronger they become as a whole.

Amid the thunderous hoofbeats, the Abyss Knights draw ever closer.

"They are not ordinary Abyss Knights," Yizite said after a few glances, his expression darkening slightly as he whispered a warning to his teammates.

Without him speaking, Reslin also noticed.

These Abyss Knights are at least high‑rank; the party includes five legends, and the strongest leader is a Legendary High‑rank Abyss Knight.

His mount stands a meter taller than other Hell Warhorses, its head three meters above the ground; the Abyss Knight cloaked in black flame wears jet‑black armor, is tall and broad‑shouldered, with a pair of massive spiral demon horns protruding from the sides of his helmet, and he wields a black‑iron greatsword as large as a door panel.

The Soul Eye in the Abyss Knight's soul saw an endless blood‑red hue.

Reslin's spirit trembled for a heartbeat.

This Abyss Knight is a Divine Chosen blessed by the Lord of Darkness, a terrifying Abyss Divine Chosen that strikes fear into countless hearts!

He said lightly, "He is an Abyss Divine Chosen!"

The teammates' eyes widened; indeed, an Abyss Divine Chosen!

Every Abyss Divine Chosen is stained with countless drops of blood, has wrought killings beyond ordinary imagination, and thus earned the Abyssal Four Gods' commendation, receiving personal blessings that grant them terrifying power beyond their peers.

No wonder the Abyss Divine Chosen‑led Abyss Knights can hunt the Fearless Fist so mercilessly.

Beside that terrifying Abyss Divine Chosen stood a Purgatory Wizard, at least legendary mid‑stage. Purgatory Wizards are not as frail as human Wizards or elf Mages; their bodies are robust, their melee power rivals that of Abyss Knights, and may even surpass it.

The other three legendary early‑stage Abyss Knights are also far stronger than ordinary legendary transcendants.

The Fearless Fist's members number far more than fifteen.

They have clearly endured a hard fight, suffering heavy casualties, with only a few escaping. Lacking specialists in teleportation magic, they will inevitably be caught by the Abyss Knights and be annihilated.

Netifu are well aware of this, so they are not in a hurry.

Like cats playing with mice, they slowly close in on fleeing humans; the despair shown by the enemy when looking back gives them great pleasure, and they occasionally burst into mocking laughter.

Yet these Abyss Knights do not relax because of that.

Reslin and the others exchanged a few words through Mind Link and quickly made a decision.

Two waves, one fleeing, one pursuing, drew nearer to the forest. Two minutes later, the Fearless Fist was less than three li from Reslin's hideout, suddenly changed direction, and used its last strength to accelerate toward the forest.

The Abyss Knights behind seemed to sense the clue, and immediately quickened their chase.

The distance between the sides shrank rapidly.

When the Wind‑scaled Horse was only a few hundred meters from the forest, the Abyss Knights behind were even closer, their warhorses nearing exhaustion, speed inevitably slowing, leaving the transcendants with eyes full of despair, ready to make a final stand.

"Ho!"

A crisp battle cry rang through the woods.

Then the transcendants saw a tall figure soaring above the trees ahead, flashing like lightning, leaping over their heads in an instant and landing on the Abyss Knights behind.

In that instant they glimpsed a human female warrior wielding a long sword and round shield!

(End of Chapter)