Holy Light is Tricking You

Leiluo had received no response from the Holy Light for a long time, yet the initial anxiety in his heart had faded, replaced by a sense of relief.

"My goal is to make the orcs strong, so their spines will not be shattered at the Dark Portal. My goal is to make the orcs independent, not become lackeys of the Burning Legion. My goal is for orcs to never be slaves!"

The conviction in his heart grew firmer and firmer. Leiluo no longer tried to turn the situation around by gaining the Holy Light. He merely endured the pain, failed time and again, and then tried again and again to stand up.

After another failure, Leiluo had no strength left. He could no longer hear the Behemoth's low growls either. It was probably at its limit as well.

Yet Leiluo did not give up. For the last time, he raised his head and held on, refusing to let it touch the ground. Just as he grew dizzy and his vision gradually darkened, a beam of light pierced the darkness like a road. That light carried visible motes of radiance as it entered Leiluo's body.

"So this is the power of the Holy Light!"

The instant the Holy Light entered his body, Leiluo understood. As long as one possessed unwavering faith and knew of the Holy Light's existence, anyone could wield its power.

Strength returned to his body, and the wound in his chest eased. Leiluo finally rose to his feet—not merely because of the Holy Light's healing, but because of his own unwavering conviction.

"The Holy Light fooled you!" Having risen again, Leiluo knew he had become the first Paladin among the orcs. Though still unskilled, he nevertheless shouted the cringeworthy line before hurling a Hammer of Rage at Saiyba. In truth, this so-called Hammer of Rage was merely Holy Light condensed into the shape of a hammer and launched outward.

With his back to Leiluo, Saiyba had not expected the Gold Tier orc struck by his fireball to still be alive, much less to possess a ranged attack. As a result, he was decisively struck in the head by the Hammer of Rage, and the scorching power of the Holy Light left him dizzy and disoriented.

Seeing his chance, Leiluo grabbed his battle axe and swiftly finished off the three badly wounded ogres. Just as he was about to continue his assault, a fireball flew toward him. It came at the exact moment his old strength was spent and new strength had yet to arise. With no other choice, Leiluo raised his battle axe to block it. Then he felt an immense force slam into him. Already injured, Leiluo could not withstand it and was knocked to the ground.

Saiyba had awakened from his daze and immediately hurled a fireball at Leiluo.

Leiluo watched Saiyba carefully, wary of being struck by another fireball. The Holy Light was powerful, but it was not omnipotent. It could not restore Leiluo to peak condition in an instant.

Leiluo knew that if he could not defeat Saiyba, everything would be over. The key to defeating Saiyba lay in freeing the Behemoth from its shackles. Otherwise, an injured Leiluo could never defeat a Heroic Rank mage.

Saiyba stared at the orc who had taken one of his fireballs head-on at the start, yet was now trembling as he stood before him. He could not imagine how a Gold Tier orc had survived a direct hit from his fireball spell.

Saiyba did not dare act rashly either. He feared that this orc, who had just attacked him with an unknown energy, might have more tricks up his sleeve. All he needed to do now was wait for the Behemoth to fall fully under his spell. Once that happened, no matter what abilities this orc possessed, he would not survive.

Thus, amid a field of corpses, an orc and a Two-Headed Ogre faced each other in a strange standoff.

"Saxi, do you think something happened to the Chieftain? There hasn't been any movement in the valley for a while. Should we go in and take a look?" A group of orcs conversed outside the valley. They were precisely the group led by Saxi, whom Leiluo had dismissed.

"Alright. There's been no movement for so long. It should be safe enough." Hearing his companion's question, Saxi hesitated for a moment. Thinking of the supplies that were enough to see the tribe through winter, he decided to go in and have a look. Even if the Chieftain was dead, it would still be good if they could bring the supplies out. "You come with me. You stay here. Someone has to remain outside to support us."

Saxi had the group of orcs who had joined them on the wasteland follow him inside. He still did not fully trust these orcs who had joined so suddenly, so he entrusted their retreat route to the warriors from his own tribe, whose backgrounds he knew well.

The warriors recruited by Leiluo said nothing. Since Leiluo had told them to obey Saxi, then as long as Leiluo gave no new orders, even if Saxi ordered them to die, they would not hesitate in the slightest.

Once the arrangements were made, Saxi led the small group in a sprint into the valley.

"Saiyba, it seems your goal is to enslave this Behemoth. If the other clans learned that you did not defeat the Behemoth but enslaved it instead, do you think the Twilight Hammer Clan could withstand the fury of every orc clan?" Watching Saiyba stand there in silence without making any moves, Leiluo knew time was precious. But since there was nothing else he could do besides stall for time, he voiced the question in his heart while using his still-unfamiliar Holy Light to heal his injuries.

"Orc, if you die here, then no one will know that I enslaved the Behemoth," Saiyba replied disdainfully.

"But tell me, how did you take one of my fireball spells head-on without dying?" Perhaps because he felt his goal was close at hand, Saiyba appeared rather relaxed as he paced back and forth. "And that mysterious power you used to stun me just now. If you tell me everything, I can consider letting you return to the embrace of the Ancestral Spirit instead of having the Behemoth eat you."

"Can two heads really make someone smarter?! Even an ogre knows how to make a deal now." Leiluo was stunned by Saiyba's words. "The Ancestral Spirit may be the orcs' faith, but who in their right mind wants to return to that old man's embrace? Looks like even with more intelligence, you still haven't passed."

Though he mocked him inwardly, Leiluo answered aloud, "Mighty Ogre Lord Saiyba, if I tell you, will you truly allow me to return to the embrace of the Ancestral Spirit? Rather than feeding me to this Behemoth for dinner to vent your anger?"

Perhaps because Leiluo had struck a nerve, or perhaps because of Leiluo's distrust, Saiyba roared angrily, "You trash of an orc, insignificant as an ant, dare doubt the mighty Ogre Lord Saiyba?"

Damn, that's shameless. It was disgusting enough when it came out of my mouth, yet you just stole it and started using it yourself. Regarding Saiyba's narcissistic title, Leiluo guessed that Saiyba had never heard such shameless praise within an ogre clan full of idiots, so after hearing Leiluo say it, he had immediately claimed it for himself.

"Rest assured, orc. The mighty Ogre Lord Saiyba will certainly allow you to return to the embrace of the Ancestral Spirit."

Consider it repayment for giving Lord Saiyba such an excellent title, Saiyba thought.