Victory or Defeat!
In the thick fog-shrouded Square, the dense darkness silently swallowed everything.
Leomaster stood in the center of the thick, dark shadows, carrying a deep, cold Greatsword; his Red Light eyes were the only light in the darkness.
The Red Light fixed its gaze on Luther.
"Whoosh--"
The shadows surged like Tide, rushing towards Luther and instantly enveloping him. They sought to assimilate his shadow and lead his Spirituality toward Degeneration and madness.
Another powerful ability of the "Black Knight" is "Shadow Dominion"!
Luther stood still, facing the vast darkness that was engulfing him.
"Brush!"
His shadow instantly came to life and began to move rapidly. Like a small whirlwind, it swirled quickly beneath his feet, resisting Leomaster's Corrosion.
"Snort"
The Red Light of the "Saint of Darkness" flickered slightly, seemingly amused by Luther's reckless actions. Indeed, under the suppression of a higher-ranking opponent of the same Sequence, how could Luther's shadow abilities possibly be effective against the "Black Knight," who specializes in shadow abilities?
But Leomaster's smile soon faded.
"Boom!"
The two shadows collided, and he froze.
That swirling black mass was so heavy that I couldn't even budge it!
Moreover, he sensed extremely intense emotions from the shadows. These were the Distortion resentments left behind by tens of thousands of deaths, gathered in Luther's shadow, which he bore and carried. The intense emotional imprints within even affected the spirit of the "Saint of Darkness".
How is that possible?!
Leomaster was deeply surprised, and the confrontation between the two in the shadow realm was thus locked in a stalemate.
This guy... completed the "Black Knight" Ritual ahead of schedule?!
Moreover, the feeling within that shadow.
"You're insane!"
Leomaster stared directly at Luther and roared excitedly, "You devoured all those Degeneration Ones? You 'Aurora Order!"
Don't lump me in with you.
Luther sneered, "I willingly bore their pain and sins—unlike you, who spread Distortion values with Error doctrines, bewitching the world into Degeneration. Your Lord is wrong, and you who carry out His will are utter fools!"
How to break down a believer's defenses?
That would be a direct attack on his ideology, shattering the very foundation of his beliefs!
I--not--allow--you--
Leomaster roared, and the surrounding shadows surged violently in response. He charged forward, driven mad by the shadows. His Greatsword flashed, and the dark Tide responded in kind, raising waves that engulfed everything.
Very good, very good!
He's getting increasingly insane!
As Luther faced the incoming black Greatsword, he thought to himself.
The Desire Apostle's abilities allowed him to sense the other party's continuously deteriorating emotions. From beginning to end, he tried various methods to cause the "Saint of Darkness's " mental problems to erupt prematurely!
Next, should we use the "Corrosion" power of the "Baron of Corruption" to Distortion his mind, or use the "Judge's " Pathway of "Mental Piercing" to increase the pain in his soul?
No, we can talk about that later. Right now, our top priority is to dodge Leomaster's attack.
The vast shadows created by the Black Knight were thick and heavy. If it were an ordinary extraordinary being, they would probably be trapped in them and unable to escape, only able to watch helplessly as they were cleaved in two by the Greatsword —but for Luther, that was not a problem.
Let's continue with "Flaming Jump". Because of the Spirituality connection, even if the Paper Figurine Substitute doll is hit, it will still be harmed on a soul level.
In a flash, Luther made up his mind and then activated the Lamb Soul within him—
Suddenly, his body momentarily froze.
Everything before his eyes began to slow down, and the dark, deep Greatsword magnified frame by frame in front of him. This feeling was familiar; yes, it was the same ability Rosago had used on him back then.
"Marionettist"
Leomaster Grazing a Marionettist!
He maintained his black swordsman form, successfully making Luther overlook one point—that the Black Knight also possessed the ability to "Grazing," and was even stronger than the "Shepherd"!
"Whoosh!"
The sound of the Tide followed immediately, dispelling the sluggishness and restoring everything to its normal pace. This sluggishness lasted only a brief moment, but it had extremely serious consequences.
Luther's process of driving the Lamb was interrupted!
By the time he activated "Flaming Jump" again, it was too late. Leomaster suddenly accelerated while "Grazing," hoping to seize the opportunity to deliver a fatal blow. His deep black Greatsword down in front of Luther!
"Boom!"
The black Greatsword cleanly cleaved Luther's body in two at the waist. Moments later, his body began to flatten and shrink, eventually turning into a Corrosion, pitch-black paper figure. Luze himself appeared a dozen meters behind Leomaster.
He dodged it?
No, it wasn't completely avoided.
A dark slit silently tore open at Luther's waist.
"Clatter."
His massive body slowly shrank, and the Devil features vanished. The "Abyss" card fell from Luther's gaping wound, and his body returned to normal. The wound continued to widen and Corrosion!
"Smack!"
Just as Luther's body was about to split in two, he forcefully pressed down on the wound with his hand, then activated the healing ability of his Flesh and Blood Domain to the fullest extent, allowing his body to grow rapidly and fight against the remaining Degeneration aura of the sword mark.
Damn it, damn it!
Anger surged in Luther's eyes, and he felt the sound of the Tide in his mind instantly subside.
The sound of the Tide shielded him from the damage the black Greatsword inflicted on his soul, but in return, most of his own soul was also eroded, and he couldn't last much longer!
"Blasphemer! I'm about to kill you!"
Leomaster turned his head, revealing a ferocious and Distortion smile, "All those who defy the Lord's will will... cough cough!"
He suddenly bent over and coughed violently.
"Disease"!
After lurking in his body for a long time, the pathogen finally broke out at this moment, followed by symptoms such as high fever and sneezing!
As a Sequence 4, Leomaster shouldn't be so fragile as to be unable to resist the "Demoness of Affliction's" Plague. However, he had been locked in a stalemate with Luther for a long time, and his mental state was also very poor, which gave him an opportunity to be attacked by a Sequence 5 "Plague".
"Cough cough."
Leomaster stared coldly at Luther. He didn't launch another attack, but stood still, pressing his hand to his chest.
He was healing himself using Flesh and Blood Magic.
This Plague must be taken seriously, otherwise even the "Saint of Darkness" will find it difficult to cope with the increasingly severe symptoms. With his strength, treatment would probably take several minutes.
An awkward stalemate ensued, with Luther clutching his lacerated wound as he recovered, and Leomaster standing still, treating his ailment.
The two stared at each other coldly, both knowing their time was running out.
The outcome could be decided in the blink of an eye after the recovery!