Ritual and Battle

The allied bombardment continued. Shells kept falling near the altar and exploding with thunderous force, brilliant firelight swallowing countless Dragon Worship Cultists.

"Gregory!"

With an enraged shout, Kargas became a blurred afterimage and lunged at the old man at a speed far beyond that of ordinary people, enhanced by draconic bloodline energy.

In Gregory's clouded eyes, that trace of confusion was utterly swallowed by boundless terror the moment Felipe rushed toward him.

He seemed to want to scream, retreat, and draw his weapon to fight back—but it was all too late.

The scorpion-stinger-like venom needle at the tail of the Scepter of Calamity in Felipe's hand tore through the air with a shriek and pierced the old man's chest with merciless precision!

"Urgh—!"

A brief, broken scream was squeezed from the old man's throat.

His body convulsed violently.

Then a horrifying scene unfolded.

The red scale armor on his body seemed to become alive in an instant. Like countless tiny, starving worms, it crazily burrowed back into his flesh, greedily sucking at him!

His skin turned gray and shriveled at a visible rate, as if instantly dehydrated.

Gregory's eyes bulged wide, and the last thing reflected in his pupils was Felipe's inhuman eyes beneath the shadows, gleaming with frenzied red light.

Then came the light!

Blinding, pure red light!

It did not shine in from outside, but erupted from within the old man's rapidly withering body!

Gregory's flesh, bones, and even the final echoes of his soul were completely broken down and devoured by that red light!

In the blink of an eye, only an empty set of red scale armor remained, clattering to the ground.

And that crimson pillar of light, condensed to the utmost and brimming with destruction and brutality, erupted from the top of the altar like