Volume Five: Return from the Other Shore - Chapter 396: Nid's Spring (5)

"Nice to meet you, Nid Bradwich. I am the current Director of the Inquisition of the Divine Law Cult. Just call me Selace."

Selace looked at Nid with a teasing smile, as if he were looking at a small insect stuck in a spider web.

"Inquisition...!"

Nid knew perfectly well what the Inquisition meant; it was the most sordid and darkest place in the Holy See, and its members were all cold-blooded monsters who could kill anyone, regardless of age or gender—a very troublesome entity!

And this tattooed, bald man in front of me... is the head of the courthouse!?

"If possible, please don't resort to violence. Our entire Inquisition has mobilized to capture you, Big Figure like you. Killing you would be relatively easy, but the Pope said, 'Try to capture at least one alive if possible,' so I can only resort to gentle methods."

Clang! Clang! Clang! Several short knives immediately pointed at Nid. The men in black had already surrounded him, but hadn't made a move yet.

"Surrender, Nid Bradwich. Brad already informed me of the attendee list, guard arrangements, and defensive vulnerabilities. He even helped me choose the exit location for the miniature teleportation array."

Selace spread his hands, revealing a confident smile.

"A wise man submits to circumstances, doesn't he? Learn from Brad, you brat. Surrender obediently and you might save your life, right? As long as you cooperate—"

Nid didn't let him finish.

He suddenly ducked, narrowly dodging the dagger inscribed with Divine Word thrust at him, and charged into the nearest member of the Inquisition. As the others attacked, he used that man's body as cover, circled around him, and delivered a powerful knee strike to the man's hand, forcing the dagger out of his grasp. These seemingly simple movements contained the essence of everything Nid had learned—

"--Damn it! Don't let him get his weapon!!!"

But it was a fraction too late. Just before the next wave of divine magic reached Nid's body, he had already firmly grasped the dagger in his hand! A flash of silver light, and several slashing waves spread out like ripples on water. The men in black immediately changed their expressions and retreated hastily—but it was too late! In the face of Nid's attack, now that he had the weapon, all defense and evasion were meaningless!

Clang! Clang!! Clang!!!

Blood blossomed from the necks of the men in black, and they fell to the ground screaming in agony. Nid had no time to think; with a roar, he thrust his dagger at the barrier! The faintly silver tip of the dagger clashed violently with the dark purple light membrane. With a loud bang, the dagger was deflected and shattered into pieces, but the barrier remained intact!

(--So hard!)

Nid's heart skipped a beat. His attack power was directly linked to his weapon, and this short sword, standard issue for Tribunal members, was utterly inadequate! Meanwhile, his sister's body temperature was gradually dropping in his arms, and he was nearly frantic with worry!

"A cornered beast's struggle isn't a good look! Get up, all of you!"

"Huh--!?"

The black-clad men, whose throats had just been slashed by Nid, stood up again. Blurry halos of light enveloped the wounds on their necks—a secret technique that temporarily replaced the damaged organs! Although they couldn't maintain this for long, it was enough to continue the fight!

(No, it's not just a secret technique to barely prolong life; is it a body modified by special divine magic? It's practically like a marionette!)

The men in black charged again, seemingly completely blocking out their pain; their movements were not at all sluggish despite their previous injuries! Meanwhile, Brad began to shrink the barrier, and a dark purple light membrane pressed in from all directions, leaving Nid with nowhere to escape!

It's all sorted out—just when Selace and Brad both thought so,

"Form 52-- "

Nid suddenly freed one hand and pressed his clenched fist close to the ground.

"--Collapse into chaos!!!"

With a deafening roar, the floor, which had been relatively intact just moments before, shattered into pieces, jagged cracks spreading outwards from the point of contact between the fist and the floor! At the same time, Nid's hand emitted a piercing creak; this impact had broken at least three of his finger bones! But this injury was not in vain; using the "inch-crushing" technique to destroy solid structures was remarkably effective, and the floor that had taken this hit was now extremely fragile!

(Good!!!)

Nid lifted his foot and stomped down with all the strength of his enhanced physical abilities. The cracked floor finally split open, creating a small hole just big enough for two people to pass through. Below was the basement beneath the hall! Without hesitation, he immediately grabbed Loxue and jumped into the hole!

While in the military camp, Nid and Xiao Wu did have some interaction.

With his enhanced physical abilities, Nid would certainly not miss the opportunity to learn from the martial arts master Xiao Wu.

Fortunately, Xiao Wu had a good impression of Nid, so she taught him a few moves, one of which was the "Cun Cun" technique, which can shatter a solid from the inside. Originally, Xiao Wu only taught him the most basic and simple parts, since the Night Nether Style cannot be easily passed on to outsiders. However, she did not expect that Nid, as a genius, would actually master this technique with only the most basic movements.

She also never imagined that this move would one day become Nid's lifeline.

"Brad, what were you thinking! How could you let that guy escape from down there!"

Selace, seeing his prize slip away, was so angry he almost vomited blood. Brad, however, twitched violently and retorted sarcastically, "He didn't bring that bunch of swords; who would have thought he could break the floor with his bare hands! Do you know how thick that is?"

"Doesn't he also have physical enhancement abilities? Didn't you consider that?"

"I know his physical strength better than anyone. I can confirm that he can't be broken by brute force alone! Heaven knows when he mastered that special martial art! And you should also reflect on yourself; it was your bunch of idiots who let him escape!"

"Damn it! You—forget it, this isn't the time to argue about this."

Selace frowned as he watched his men frantically jump down into the hole to give chase. He roared, "Don't all of you stupidly follow him! He's trying to escape to another place through the basement! First and second squads, go down! Third squad, stay on this floor! Fourth and fifth squads, move upstairs! The rest of you, stay outside and be ready to meet the approaching main force! Get the hell moving!"

He roared out a series of instructions, then glared at Brad.

"Don't just stand there, quickly set up a protective barrier covering the entire house. You must have already made arrangements, right? Also, where is he most likely to move to? Do you have any clues?"

"No need for your nagging, I've already prepared the barrier, and I also put a slow-acting poison in the wine I gave Nid yesterday. It won't kill him, but it will slowly drain his strength... Oh, and hurry up and tell them to go to the third floor! Nid's stuff is all there! And--"

And--

Thinking of this, Brad suddenly shuddered.

Nid brought with him on this trip was not just the Greatsword he usually carried.

Dark blue longsword, rusty broadsword, knight's broadsword, dagger...

Also, "that thing" that had been locked at the bottom of the box was brought along as well.

"No way, Nid... you're not really going to use that, are you...?"

That thing only obeys the commands of those it acknowledges. Nid, Loxue, and Brad had all tried using it before, with Nid trying more than once. Loxue and Brad each tried once, but not only did they fail, they also fainted in bed for more than half a month. Nid did manage to succeed once, but he was left half-dead.

After that, no one dared to use it anymore.

But what if?

If Nid is truly pushed to the limit... who knows what he might do?