Killing Blow

"Ah---!!!"

Accompanied by a shrill screech that sounded as if hundreds of people were screaming in unison, the originally pure white ground began to split and shake. Only then did Lize realize with astonishment that the pristine white covering the entire room wasn't stone slabs, but individual human bones! They were packed so tightly together without a single gap that, at a glance, one would mistake them for ordinary flooring. A chill ran down Lize's spine at the thought; she could well imagine what kind of end awaited her had she walked into this room without any precautions. Gazing at the writhing sea of bones before her, Lize couldn't help but cast a surprised look at Rhode beside her. How did he know?

Noticing the girl's surprised gaze, Rhode offered no explanation. He could hardly tell her he knew because he had already died here once...

Besides, now was not the time to dwell on such things.

"Lize, prepare to attack. Use everything you've got."

The white sea of bones had receded, revealing the pitch-black, filthy stone floor beneath. The atmosphere of the entire room shifted drastically; the dreamlike, beautiful scene had finally torn off its veil to reveal its hideous face. The only thing that felt discordant was the statue. Even wrapped in countless bones, it remained beautiful and holy, as if untainted by the filth surrounding it.

Rhode, however, had no time to admire this beautiful bane. After issuing his command to Lize, he charged into the room. Simultaneously, a crimson card emerged from his hand, transforming into the Crimson Lotus Fire that enveloped his body.

"---!!!"

Dozens of arms made of connected bones lunged at Rhode, but they were scorched by the flames and forced to retreat before they could even reach him. Although summoned spirits do not truly die, the pain of being torn apart previously did not stop the Flame Slayer from baring its fangs and claws to express its fury.

Regrettably, the Black Hound hadn't managed to do much before being sent back into the fray by Rhode. While the bone sea's attacks weren't particularly threatening, their sheer numbers were a problem. Rhode currently lacked large-scale area-of-effect spells, and Lize's positive energy could only inflict minor damage. While a steady, cautious approach was a valid option, it would exponentially increase the time and energy consumed.

Thus, Rhode decisively opted for a suicide squad tactic, treating the Flame Slayer like a living bomb.

The poor Black Hound, though unwilling, had no choice but to charge forward. Rhode helped it deflect the arms coming from all directions—not out of kindness, but purely to force it deeper into the mass.

As expected, the sheer number of bone arms soon forced Rhode onto the defensive. Facing the claws attempting to grab him, Rhode decisively pulled back, throwing his summoned spirit to the front. The mindless things didn't seem to notice anything amiss; soon, dozens more arms flew out from the bone sea, tightly gripping the Black Hound and dragging it inside.

"BOOM!!!"

A violent explosion rang out once more. The bone sea shuddered violently, and hundreds of fragments flew out, scattering like a rain of petals and settling on the ground like snowflakes.

Rhode flipped his palm, and the crimson card appeared once again.

It was fortunate that summoned spirits were incapable of rebellion. Otherwise, looking at the Black Hound that had reappeared from the flames—now lacking its previous ferocity and staring at Rhode with an incredibly aggrieved expression—one might suspect that if not for the constraints of the contract, this poor "kamikaze pilot" would have turned and run as far as possible, leaving its insane master to fend for himself.

However, Rhode completely ignored the Black Hound's "grievance." He simply whistled, signaling the Flame Slayer to charge again.

Thus, the battle resumed.

Mindless undead could never understand why the thing they had killed kept appearing again and again. Facing the repeatedly lunging Black Hound, they tore it apart without hesitation, and the price was suffering yet another explosion. The Flame Slayer's self-detonation was not easily resisted. After several rounds, the bone sea had lost a third of its mass. They began to subconsciously roll and congeal, attempting to fill the sudden gaps, completely failing to notice that Rhode, who had been lingering in the back, had already silently crept forward.

As someone who had already completed this mission once, Rhode knew exactly where the problem lay. The bone sea, which appeared so lethal, was merely a diversion. The true mastermind was the statue in the center, surrounded by the bones, looking holy and inviolable.

"Lize, shield!"

His hand was limited in cards, but that didn't stump Rhode. He quickly made his decision and issued the command to the girl standing in the rear.

Soon, a faint golden barrier enveloped Rhode. This time, facing the bone arms lunging at him again, Rhode did not choose to retreat. Instead, he gripped his longsword and met them head-on.

As the sword light flashed, the bone claws near Rhode scattered. In that split second of an opening, Rhode's figure flickered, transforming into a shadow as he leaped into the air.

Rhode's speed increased several times over after activating Shadow Blink, but it did not reduce the danger he faced. As monsters that relied on numbers, speed was not an insurmountable problem for them. Soon, countless arms reached out from the sea again, clawing at Rhode. Sharp finger-bones scraped against the golden barrier, emitting a harsh, grating sound. But quickly, these arms recoiled as if touching a scorching furnace, letting out low, mournful cries.

Lize had made her move.

She raised her hands high, and beams of potent positive energy descended from the sky, shattering the bone arms that attempted to block Rhode's path. For a moment, bone fragments flew everywhere.

Although this wasn't a formal positive energy attack spell, Lize's Half-Angel bloodline compensated for the lack of refinement. The bone sea, as if burned by fire and doused in oil, began to tremble, its overlapping screams filled with rage. Soon, a "stream" of bones snaked out from the side, rushing toward the doorway.

At this moment, Rhode's body began to plummet.

He was not an angel, after all. Shadow Blink could boost his speed to the limit in an instant, but it still had a time limit, and gravity was no joke—it was clear that Uncle Newton was quite displeased with Rhode's attempt to challenge his authority and intended to use a real-world example to teach him a lesson he would never forget.

The jagged bones were right before his eyes. Having lost his momentum, Rhode hadn't been able to clear the barrier to reach his target. If he fell into it, he would certainly be torn to shreds.

But Rhode didn't think so.

He reached out, a summoning circle appearing in an instant, and an Azure Green card spun out.

Soul Bird.

The azure bird circled around Rhode, and the gust of wind it stirred up immediately halted his descent. This gave Rhode a moment to catch his breath, and then, gritting his teeth, he leaped forward once more.

This pause bought Rhode the space he needed to secure victory. When he leaped up again, he had already reached the top of the statue. Looking at the smooth, white statue just a short distance below, Rhode apologized in his heart, then gripped his longsword and slashed downward.

But things did not go as smoothly as Rhode had imagined.

"Swish! Swish!!"

Just as Rhode gripped his sword to slash down, dozens of bone spikes suddenly shot out from below, aimed directly at the young swordsman in the air. But quickly, a pair of folded wings appeared out of thin air, blocking Rhode.

"Thud, thud, thud, thud, thud, thud!!!"

Muffled collision sounds rang out. The wings under attack by the bone spikes began to flicker, and glowing feathers fell from them, drifting slowly in the air, adding a touch of beauty to the scene. At that moment, the longsword in Rhode's hand was less than a meter away from the statue.

"Whoosh!!!"

A gust of wind appeared.

Rhode only felt a black shadow flash past the corner of his eye, followed by a massive impact from the side. Unable to maintain his balance, he was sent flying, crashing into the wall on the side. Seeing this, Lize, who was nearby, was struck with terror. She took two steps forward, attempting to help Rhode, but sharp bone spikes and arms attacked again, forcing the girl to retreat to her original position.

"Mr. Rhode!"

"Ugh..."

Rhode groaned, leaning against the wall as he struggled to stand. He felt an aching pain throughout his entire body, and his feet felt as if he were stepping on soft cotton; he couldn't find his center of gravity at all. Just then, the sound of wind rose again.

Relying almost entirely on his seven years of gaming instinct, Rhode tilted his head, narrowly dodging the sharp object that came with the wind. Only then did he see the true form of the thing.

It was a long, bone-made tail. It was raised high, coiling around the statue like a venomous snake. Having missed twice, the tail appeared much more cautious. It quickly retracted and coiled into a ball, with only the sharp bone spike at the tip raised high, waiting like a viper for the perfect moment to strike.

Five meters.

Rhode calculated the distance in his mind, and a plan quickly took shape.

Just then, the opponent seemed to lose all patience with this intruder in its forbidden zone. The sea of white bones, which had already gathered and solidified, rose high like waves and lunged toward Rhode, who was pressed against the wall. In the blink of an eye, the white torrent surged forth like a flash flood, completely swallowing that corner.

"Mr. Rhode!"

Taking in the scene before her, Lize felt her vision blur, and she nearly fainted. Her mind went almost blank, and she had no idea what to do next. Although Lize knew it was dangerous, the confidence Rhode had exuded along the way made her subconsciously believe he would have the ability to handle it. Now, the stark contrast between reality and her expectations left Lize completely frozen in place, not even noticing the bone claws drawing ever closer to her.

But that was only for an instant.

The surging waves suddenly heaved, and accompanied by spinning, shattered blades of light, the once-solid cage immediately began to teeter. Faced with its prey's struggle, the sea of white bones let out an angry roar, then lunged forward again, attempting to annihilate this unstable element once and for all.

But this time, they failed.

The white waves were split in two. A violently erupting whirlwind swept up the scattered fragments, howling as it tore a shocking rift through the mass. Rhode, standing in the center, held his longsword high, a dazzling point of starlight flickering at the tip of the blade.

Rhode stepped forward and swung his right hand, which had been raised above his head, downward.

The pristine white blade flew from his hand.

As if sensing danger, the shrieking sea of white bones did not retreat but advanced instead, stacking layer upon layer of bone walls that rushed toward Rhode with a clattering sound. The slender tail bone lashed out violently, stabbing sharply toward Rhode's face.

Rhode lowered his hand and tilted his head slightly.

"Swish."

The cold, sharp bone spike brushed past him once again, but this time, it would have no chance to correct its mistake.

Because at that very moment, those aggressive waves of white bones collapsed with a roar, like building blocks smashed by a child's palm. They scattered and fell apart, and after the momentum carried them two more meters forward, they finally came to a halt at Rhode's feet, posing no further threat.

Rhode looked up, following the direction of the bone spike, and saw the sharp blade embedded deep within the beautiful sculpture that had been hidden behind it.

Soon, spiderweb-like cracks began to spread. At the same time, a system notification appeared before Rhode's eyes.

[Stronghold Unlocked]

"Click."

Accompanied by this soft sound, the bone spike that had grazed Rhode's cheek and embedded itself deep into the wall also crumbled to pieces.