Volume Four: Withering in the Mortal World - Dissolving (Second Update)

A king sat high atop a rocky mountain.

Looking out over Salamis, it stands tall overseas;

Millions of ships were moored at the foot of the mountain.

How many more teams are under his command!

He counted them at dawn.

But where are they at sunset?

--Byron, "Lament for Greece," Section 3

The land of Sadington has been reduced to a mosaic of blood and ruins, a true reflection of widespread suffering and rivers of blood. The Revolutionary Army has completely lost the domineering spirit it had when it first stormed into the city, and can only scatter and flee in the rain of light, fearing, lamenting, and praying that they can live a little longer, but all they receive in return is ruthless annihilation and purge.

Unlike the tragedies on the ground, in the pure and unpolluted high sky, holy light woven from white and gold descended from the sky like a silk curtain. The wings of a pure white angel slowly unfurled, and a beautiful woman in the center of the wings looked down at the world from the sky, softly singing a sacred hymn that has been passed down for thousands of years.

"Under the whole heaven, all is the territory of the gods..."

Golden lightning, transformed into a waterfall of plasma, crashed down from the heavens, burning hundreds of houses to ashes amidst the thunder. All living things, including countless humans, were reduced to ash and dissipated into the polluted atmosphere. The stench of burning permeated the air, and thick smoke, like a deathly cloud, shrouded every corner.

"The Lord's wisdom has shaped humanity, the Lord's glory shines upon the earth, and the Lord's mercy shelters all beings..."

A massive blade of light extending from the arm sliced across the earth, tearing apart any soldier who was even slightly slow to react. Even those who managed to escape were pierced by the subsequent barrage of Light Gun. Thousands of Light Gun were embedded in the ground like golden branches, and the soldiers impaled on them resembled mushroom caps—a bizarre and bloody sight.

"We sing with joy, we leap for happiness, for the Lord dispels the gloom with His holy light, cleanses the bloodshed with peace, and spreads happiness with love, so that all living beings on earth may no longer be ravaged by death and fear..."

Fine, dense white rain fell from the sky, dyeing the ground, streets, and all buildings a pure, immaculate white, making one feel as if they were in a sacred realm. The white of this sacred realm spread serenely and rapidly; any fleeing soldier who came into contact with it would have strands of white light enter their body, causing their skin tissue to fester and shrink as if corroded by strong acid. The pain was enough to make someone faint and collapse in an instant, and within seconds their entire body would vanish into nothingness.

"Praise the Lord, praise the world, praise the Commander for making the world so beautiful..."

The holy light high in the sky coalesced into gigantic golden crosses, each a hundred meters long. Commanded by the heavens, these crosses rained down as kinetic weapons, leaving gruesome scars on the ground. Not only the Revolutionary Army suffered; their immense weight shattered the earth, some even breaching underground shelters. Innocent civilians, who thought they could escape by hiding underground, were exposed to the holy light and rubble, meeting a gruesome end. But the Heavenly Law didn't care. Annihilating the Revolutionary Army was the top priority; ensuring the safety of the civilians was secondary. No matter how many innocent civilians she killed, she could simply have the spirits perform a ritual for them upon returning to Gloria.

"We will serve you with the utmost devotion."

Above the living hell, the hymn echoes slowly with its unchanging rhythm.

"Retreat! Retreat! Teams three through seven, proceed through the residential area! The rest of you, advance in a straight line with me!"

"Lord Brad, the shortcut on the left has been blocked by a light wall! And the one on the right too—"

"Then let's forge another path and advance in a roundabout way! Don't slow down, and definitely don't stop!!!"

On the streets ravaged by the raging holy flames, the core of the Revolutionary Army was marching at full speed. With Nid absent, only Uncle Brad, the deputy commander of the 1st Division, could lead the retreat. Every soldier had been wounded to varying degrees, and some were seriously injured, making it difficult for them to even stand up. This group severely slowed down the retreat!

"Behind us! Those crosses are getting closer and closer!"

"Tsk--"

The nearest cross was only a hundred meters away from them; if it fell from that distance—

"Defense barrier!"

Dark purple light surged in Brad's hand, transforming into a gigantic shield a hundred meters tall, completed in the instant the shockwave of the explosion arrived! The collision of the two shook the atmosphere, and the powerful shockwave and scattered debris added to the already wounded warriors' burden! Cracks spread across the shield, and Brad gritted his teeth and held on. Just as the shield shattered, the impact of the shockwave finally dissipated.

"Brad!"

"Lord Brad!"

"I'm alright... cough cough, don't worry about me! Have you made contact with Nid?" Brad wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth with his sleeve, grabbed the messenger beside him and asked, his expression contorted with pain and internal injuries.

"No! I'm so sorry, but Lord Nid's signal has been constantly interfered with!"

"That kid Nid... tsk!"

"You need to calm down, Uncle Brad! It would be bad if Nid got the signal and came over!" Little Ying was running beside him, finally spoke up. She had been using bubbles to blast open the single-lane ruins under Brad's command.

"What did you say!?"

"Judging from that wicked woman's leisurely pace, she doesn't intend to kill us all right away. She's definitely trying to lure Nid out! If she captures or even kills Nid, then we're all doomed!"

"..."

"Miss Si Nan is right! It seems that Lord Nid is indeed no match for Tian Lu! If anything happens to him, the entire Blood Blade Knights will be rendered meaningless! Moreover, once we capture him, Tian Lu will definitely not let us go, and we will all be killed!"

"... But at this rate, we'll all be wiped out! The soldiers are nearing their limit, and our marching speed is slowing down. Only Nid has the potential to lead us out of this predicament! Do you really want to abandon our seriously wounded comrades?"

""This...""

Indeed, though it's hard to admit, the ever-increasing number of seriously wounded is a heavy burden, hindering those who can still move. The simplest solution in this situation is to discard them—eliminate all unfavorable factors that would slow things down, prioritizing speed as much as possible!

"Got it? If you don't want things to escalate to that point, contact Nid quickly! Repeated attempts will eventually work!"

"But—wait!? Look at the sky!"

"How?"

Little Ying suddenly looked up and pointed to the sky. Everyone looked in the direction she was pointing and saw that Tianlu's seemingly endless giant wings of light had suddenly shrunk to twice the size of an ordinary bird of prey. The lightning and flames that had been emanating directly from the wings of light also stopped being released, as if a beast had sheathed its fangs.

"The attack has... stopped?"

The sacrifice of offensive power was exchanged for increased speed. With a flap of its wings, Tianlu transformed into a streak of light that streaked across the sky at a speed that left everyone speechless.

"--All personnel prepare for battle! That woman intends to finish us off at close range!!!"

Just moments before, the soldiers were bewildered by Tianlu's sudden actions. They immediately went into battle mode. Although they knew they were no match for her, fighting to the death was far better than being slaughtered in a humiliating one-sided massacre!

Although the soldiers were prepared, the anticipated attack did not occur.

After shrinking its wings to stop attacking and accelerating, Tianlu flew away into the distance, not even glancing down as it passed overhead, completely ignoring them. It left behind only a gust of wind that blew everyone off balance.

The soldiers were even more confused now. Some even stared at their own hands and feet, looking left and right, as if trying to confirm whether they had really escaped from Tian Lu's clutches without losing any limbs.

"Her target isn't us at all..."

"But, looking in the direction she went... Ah!!!"

A terrifying possibility arose, and upon realizing this, the commander of the Second Division and Little Ying felt a chill run down their spines.

"She... is probably aiming for the Gate of Books..."

The Heavenly Law unleashed a barrage of attacks from the sky, but these attacks were actually held back, keeping the rate at which the number of the Revolutionary Army decreased at a constant level, preventing them from being wiped out quickly.

Otherwise, it would be very difficult to find the culprit who committed the Blasphemers.

But--

"... No, it hasn't appeared yet."

The culprit has yet to reveal his true identity.

All she could see were scattered Rebel Army fleeing on the ground, including several who appeared to be leaders, but clearly none of them were the people she was looking for. If possible, Tianlu would love to use the most powerful mass destruction divine magic to wipe out the entire Sadington in one fell swoop, but for the sake of long-term considerations, it would be better to capture the culprit alive.

But he hasn't shown up... Is it because of rational judgment, or is it his evil nature that makes him hesitate to appear?

"Fine, if we can't force it out immediately, we'll have to put it aside for now and proceed with the second plan."

Tianlu raised her hand, and a pale golden light screen appeared before her—a map of Sadington. Small white dots moved in groups within it; these were the Revolutionary Army units whose movements she had already confirmed. To mislead her, these units were quite scattered, and their routes were winding and complex, but this was of course no obstacle for Tianlu. Once she "marked" them, no one could escape.

"Um..."

She narrowed her eyes slightly, carefully observing the movements of the tiny white dots. Although their individual movement routes were circuitous, by analyzing them as a whole, she could discern the overall direction of the Revolutionary Army's retreat.

"... That's a bit strange."

Normally, they would flee out of the city in this situation, but in fact, their overall direction of movement was towards the warehouse district.

So it is --

Tianlu recalled an important issue: the report stated that the Revolutionary Army was not hindered by the Boundary Protection Saint Domain; their sudden appearance was as if they had teleported directly into the city, causing chaos and defeat to the garrison.

What methods were used and how was it achieved remains a mystery.

"Could it be...?"

Tianlu's lips twitched slightly.

Perhaps the answer lies hidden in the warehouse district.

With that thought in mind, Tianlu didn't delay any longer. With a thought, the enormous wings of light immediately shrank, becoming a size that wouldn't look out of place growing on a person's back.

"Divine Speed!"

With a whistle, the small light wings accelerated toward their destination—the warehouse district.

The sky was darkening, and night was approaching.

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Two updates in a row... Sigh, extra updates are fun for a while, but exams are a nightmare.