The Night Had Ended, and the Rising Sun Appeared

The growing sense of fear caused Grape's body to tremble uncontrollably.

She had a similar experience.

When she was a child, she witnessed her parents being murdered by two guests who had been invited to a meeting. After killing Grape's parents, the guests searched the house for something, staging the scene to look like a home invasion robbery.

At that moment, she tried to curl up and hide inside the half-assembled corpse that her mother had made.

Because this is the only place that can escape the detection of the ritual... and because it is too bloody and filthy, it will not be investigated carefully.

She didn't dare make a sound, clenched her teeth, and her body trembled uncontrollably.

—The fear I feel now is just as it was back then.

The grapes dared not move an inch, not even daring to breathe. It was as if the slightest movement would violate some taboo. They were like standing on a narrow log bridge over a cliff.

Even when your legs are weak, you have to stand still—even though you know rationally that this will only make your legs stiff and make it more difficult to move later, you just can't move your legs.

If she hadn't become a superhuman, she might have been scared to death.

It wasn't because she was cowardly—quite the opposite, her ability to remain rational in that situation demonstrated her considerable courage and composure. For the increasingly intense Fear Aura had already seeped from the crimson egg.

The next moment, the crimson egg suddenly burst open.

Lancelot, still looking up at the sky, kept his eyes closed, as if taking a bath. His upper body was also naked, his skin covered with savage purple battle markings, his originally fair skin turned a sun-kissed brown, and his hair turned blood red.

It is very clear that he has a red "zero" shaped ring on his chest and a purple "infinity" shaped ring on his back.

The blood-red storm spread outwards from him in all directions—the already gloomy midnight sky was engulfed by the storm.

In just a few breaths, a blood-smelling hurricane began to sweep across the entire city of Glass Island.

The sky at dawn turned an ominous dark red. It was a glow like embers, like red-hot coals.

"Hiss..."

Lancelot inhaled slowly, making a sound as if he were smoking. He slowly opened his blood-red pupils.

With each breath he took, the storm grew stronger.

They spread outwards, beginning to extend beyond the Glass Island.

At this moment, Grape noticed that... Iver, who had been wrapped up inside, had completely disappeared without her noticing.

There wasn't even a corpse.

"... Did they die without a complete corpse?"

Grape's lips twitched slightly, emitting a helpless sound that only she could hear.

Being caught up in such a grand ceremony, one would likely only end up melting away.

And she will die here...

--choke.

The sharp blade of the holy sword was mercilessly plunged into the ground by Lancelot.

At this moment, what Lancelot holds in his hand is no longer the dagger of Arondight, but the "Holy Sword Arondight" which has been restored to a longsword.

It has a beautiful blue-green blade, like the surface of a lake, or like a fine sapphire. In the dim candlelight, you can see the gradient of colors from deep blue to dim yellow from the side.

"—It's not convenient."

He made overlapping sounds.

Grape keenly discerned that it was a triple voice—the voices of Iver, Lancelot, and a woman overlapping.

At this moment, Lancelot slowly turned his head.

Just being stared at by his scarlet gaze made Grape tremble uncontrollably and feel intensely suffocated. The fear that numbed her brain made her completely still, and then she convulsed—and actually urinated.

"Oh."

Lancelot let out a sneer.

His bloodshot eyes were full of mockery. "Cowardly pig."

—That was the Fear Aura.

It has the ability to scare ordinary people to death and render those far weaker than itself unable to move.

Such extraordinary power, which allows one to bully the weak, is one of the unique symbols of the Path of Strength.

The next moment, he reached out and grasped at the void, pulling out something invisible.

In terms of its outline, it resembles a hammer, an axe, or a fan. And simply swinging it stirs up a storm within the Small Chapel —a howling storm echoes within the building, causing the entire structure to shake violently and shattering the glass windows instantly.

"[The Formless One]..."

The knowledgeable grape immediately recognized the iconic weapon.

This is... the weapon of Enyo "City Breaker"! It is the wicked goddess who revels in the carnage of war.

After victory, revelry, wanton destruction, murder, and rampage in conquered cities were seen as rituals to serve Enyo, which provided an excuse for the undisciplined, irregular army to vent their lust.

At this moment, Enyo looked to be in a rather bad mood.

Lancelot's body vanished in the blink of an eye, and he reappeared in front of Grape, carrying a pungent smell of blood.

He wore an evil and tyrannical expression and raised his right hand high.

But at that moment, his expression and the movements of his hands froze.

It's disrespectful to say...

But that feeling reminded Grape of a hunting dog with an iron chain around its neck. The moment it roared and charged forward, the chain snapped as it reached the edge, and its entire movement froze on the spot.

The next moment, Lancelot stiffly grabbed Mycroft by the collar with his left hand and flung the grape away.

The grape flew high into the air, swirling past the shattered window and disappearing outside the Small Chapel in the blink of an eye. Although Mycroft's obese, ball-shaped body was still cut by shards of glass as he passed the window, he at least made it safely out of the scene.

She enveloped herself in a force field sphere in mid-air. This rubber-like, highly elastic sphere bounced up immediately upon landing, bouncy and rolling rapidly across the street.

Lancelot looked at the Paradox Flame Butterfly was flying quietly in the air.

"Are you the one who came to stop me?"

Lancelot's lips curled up slightly as he mocked, "Young lady, you shouldn't be going to the battlefield wearing a dress."

"My master, my father... is inside you."

But the Paradox Flame Butterfly simply said calmly.

Upon hearing this, Lancelot's expression suddenly turned gloomy.

"I see."

The knight, now with brown skin, red hair, and bloodshot eyes, casually swung his hammer, sending the holy sword stuck in the ground flying backward. It didn't bend or shatter, but it instantly lost its jewel-like color.

The Paradox Flame Butterfly witnessed this scene, its pupils twitching slightly.

Lancelot didn't say anything particularly harsh.

He simply stretched his neck, and without warning, he charged towards the Paradox Flame Butterfly.

Then, he swung the giant hammer and smashed it down with all his might!

The four wings behind the Paradox Flame Butterfly suddenly converged into a shield.

Those seemingly incredibly thin wings actually managed to block the hurricane! Naturally, the earth suddenly shattered.

The spreading cracks tore the entire Small Chapel apart, the ground collapsing and shattering in concentric circles. Soil and rubble burst forth and exploded, a storm howling out and hurling the entire Small Chapel away!

The high-quality roof remained intact, flying outwards and spinning wildly in the air.

The next moment, the Paradox Flame Butterfly flew into the night sky.

Like a final judgment—twelve slender yet extremely long beams of scorching heat swept back and forth at lightning speed. The seemingly casual sweeping attacks were like a net gathering from all directions, converging on "Lancelot" from its edges.

They easily tore the storm apart, with the furthest strike even ripping apart the dark clouds in the sky and the distant Silver and Tin Palace! Explosions followed as the beams swept across the area.

When they converged into a single point, the beam of fire became extremely hot and bright.

Lancelot was immediately pushed through the wall by the flames and blasted away!

Faced with such a powerful attack, Lancelot had no choice but to cover his face with his hands. Thick white smoke billowed from his body—his flesh was already charred and smelly, and sticky flames could be seen burning on his skin, like ignited metal.

... Such powerful firepower.

Lancelot was somewhat wary.

The Small Chapel, along with the surrounding Candle Holder Cathedral, had been reduced to ruins. The swept-through buildings were sliced open like butter cut by a hot knife before exploding. The remaining structural elements were still burning.

Even the distant Silver and Tin Palace was Paradox Flame Butterfly from afar!

"... That's all there is to it."

Lancelot, his entire body steaming with white smoke, gritted his teeth and spoke each word clearly.

The flames did injure him, but they weren't fatal.

Fortunately, after blasting him away, the Paradox Flame Butterfly couldn't follow up immediately...

If we could do it a few more times—

Just then.

He suddenly sensed something and turned around abruptly.

An old man dressed in a black robe was standing near the Silver and Tin Palace, observing him from a distance.

That's quite far—at least two kilometers away.

He was watching Lancelot warily, his brow furrowed.

Looking at this face, it seems somewhat familiar...

But the next moment, when "Lancelot" turned around and looked at him, Xiao Fernando's already small eyes widened and a chill ran down his spine.

Without thinking, he tried to run away, but Lancelot charged straight at him!

His initially stiff movements gradually became fluid— Iver's control over his body was waning. He swung his giant hammer, charging forward amidst the storm! But running was definitely out of the question...

In his haste, Xiao Fernando reached out and touched the ground. A force field, stronger than grapes, instantly formed and began to reinforce itself layer by layer in the blink of an eye...

At the same time, he forcefully threw out a strange eyeball he was holding.

Before it even hit the ground, it began to petrify the surrounding earth, and a dim yellow light illuminated the entire space like stars.

—However, it was completely useless.

Lancelot completely ignored the Petrification Demon Eye, leaping high into the air and bringing his hammer down! The barrier was barely stronger than the cardboard box in front of the hammer, shattering the instant it made contact. Xiao Fernando's instantly petrified body was also crushed like tofu by the hammer!

Sixth Level phantom demon wielding a Greater Phantom Demon artifact, compared to Fifth Level human... there's at least a two-level difference in suppressive power.

As a result, Xiao Fernando couldn't even withstand a single blow and was smashed into powder from head to toe! The intense killing intent allowed Lancelot to take his control of his body to a whole new level.

"Don't you regret it?"

Lancelot mocked "himself" with a sarcastic laugh, "With your precious control, you saved your enemy—she should be your enemy, right?"

Naturally, Iver couldn't say anything.

He kept suppressing Iver's will—like pressing the face of a struggling person underwater while they are wrestling by a lake, causing them to choke and suffocate.

A mortal soul cannot compete with an apostle who is clearly hostile to him—or even murderous.

In such a violent conflict, it will only be gradually torn apart.

However, Iver's will did not give up.

Lancelot sneered, "What are you waiting for?"

"Let me tell you, I'm here to kill you, Iver. I will not let you go until I have completely torn your soul apart—and you actually dared to crawl into this body to try and interfere with me?"

"I don't know where you got the nerve—look closely! You think you've caught me? Wrong, I've caught you! I am the stronger one!"

At that moment, the Paradox Flame Butterfly, which had finally arrived, flew over, enveloped in golden-red flames.

It was a golden-red halo of flames, formed from the condensation of life force—a surge of heat roaring out.

... Dawnfire? Of course, Lancelot recognized this technique.

By burning one's life force to obtain a purer flame of dedication, one enhances the penetrating power of all fire-based abilities, causing even enemies who would otherwise be immune to harm to be damaged.

—If it is said that "Lancelot" is too active and will constantly suppress Iver's soul.

As long as he's too busy to focus on suppressing Iver, that's enough! "I'm sorry, Father. Although you said I shouldn't use it, this situation is special..."

The crimson pupils of the Paradox Flame Butterfly Lia, gradually ignited, transforming into flowing liquid gold. "I just wanted to try..."

"... Just how far can I go?"

As she spoke, the scorching halo of flames suddenly expanded, enveloping "Lancelot" within it.

It was like an invisible crimson barrier, and everything within it began to burn—even Lancelot was no exception.

This is the power of "Dawnfire"!

At this moment, Lancelot had already guessed what she was going to do.

But just as he was about to leave, he stopped again.

Of course it is...

Iver's faint voice rang in his ears, calm and firm.

"—Of course, I caught you."

On the other side.

Amidst the terrifying, thunderous storm, the Grand Guardian charged toward the gargoyles.

But that was not a charge into death.

That was charging towards hope—

—He smashed right through that dark cloud! And the small boat that Isabel was in was hovering in mid-air, followed closely behind by a ball of silver light.

Shafiya noticed what the Grand Guardian was doing in the distance.

Without hesitation, she dispelled the invisibility spell and used all her magic to make the ship fly!

The bow of the ship rose slightly, like a silver comet, arcing as it descended towards the sea where the Eternal Theocracy was located.

However, the gargoyles had no time to bother with them.

They rained down projectiles at the Grand Guardian, but gradually went out amidst the dense thunderstorm.

The White Griffin, flying downwards at an angle, met the ship, which was rising from below, in mid-air and noticed each other's presence.

Shafiya, holding her staff, looked up and met the gaze of the Grand Guardian was looking down at the ships with a look of surprise on his face.

Isabel, leaning against the mast, also had bright eyes, confident and full of hope.

The stranger stared at the scene, his mind seemingly frozen.

No...

It's not an illusion; it's simply stagnant.

A rough, hoarse voice rang in the ears of all the survivors:

"Princess Isabel has arrived at the designated location. The Necessary Task have been completed, and the ceremony can be concluded ahead of schedule."

Just then, a sliver of dawn appeared in the East direction of the sea, towards Avalon.

—Night has ended, Rising Sun is rising.