The First Pope - Chapter 38
Chapter 38
When Cynthia went down, Polly and the elf guards had already followed the sound of the wolf's howl. Sarah and the others, awakened by the noise, also scrambled up to check on the situation. They watched the elves' backs disappear into the darkness, feeling a little lost and unsure if they should follow.
"You all wait here." Cynthia emerged from the woods and handed two staves she had taken from her Space Gem to Sarah and another member of the God Race. She lifted her gaze, staring in the direction of the wolf's howl, and said to Sarah's group in a low voice, "If you encounter danger, run into the forest. Olivia will help you."
She was about to leave after speaking when Sarah, looking at her back, paused for a moment before quickly calling out, "Cynthia, aren't you keeping one of these staves for yourself?"
These staves were the parting gift Chelsea had given Cynthia before she left. Wielding one would significantly increase the power of Light Magic and Healing Spells.
But there were only two staves, and Cynthia had actually given both to them.
"I have something." Cynthia tossed a white stone in her hand and entered the darkness without looking back.
Avira, who had come over with Sarah's group, looked at the staff in Sarah's hand and asked with some interest, "May I have a look at this?"
The God Race had even managed to create staves? Such a major event as the reappearance of Light Magic, and the Lasombra and Tzimisce had actually failed to report it to the Blood Domain.
Sarah distractedly handed the staff to Avira, her worried gaze frequently drifting in the direction Cynthia had gone.
When Cynthia found Polly and the elf guards, they were locked in combat with Vampires. A blood-red domain had turned the night sinister and grim. As emerald-green arrows pierced the Blood Domain, the torn mist danced in the air like splattering blossoms of blood.
Cynthia's hand, toying with the Light Crystal, paused. Her expression gradually grew serious. She observed the number of Vampires, her brow slowly furrowing. There were as many as seven of them fighting the elves, and all were fourth-generation. They seemed quite experienced in dealing with elves; from the looks of it, Polly and the four guards wouldn't be able to handle them anytime soon.
"Cynthia," Polly, who was firing arrows from a treetop, spotted Cynthia and shouted to her, "Hanni is injured."
Cynthia followed the direction Polly pointed and saw a white wolf lying behind a tree. Its snow-white fur was almost completely soaked in blood. The flesh around its torn wounds was peeled back, revealing ghastly white bone in some places. Her sky-blue eyes were half-open, her gaze already losing focus. Only the slight rise and fall of her chest proved she was still alive.
With a solemn expression, Cynthia walked over and crouched down to carefully examine Hanni's injuries. She felt a slight sense of relief upon seeing that the torn wounds were slowly healing. The Wolf Race possessed a self-healing ability that was in no way inferior to that of the Vampires. As long as the wounds were healing on their own, it meant the injuries weren't fatal.
Her long, fair hand soothingly stroked the white wolf's neck. Cynthia chanted a spell in a low voice as the Power of Light gathered at her fingertips. A faint white light merged into the white wolf's body, helping to heal her wounds and ease the pain.
With the help of the Healing Spell, the wounds on the white wolf's body healed at an accelerated rate, and the bloodstains covering her were gradually purified by the Power of Light. Hanni's spirit lifted slightly, and a bit of life returned to her sky-blue eyes. She slowly stood up and pitifully nuzzled her head against Cynthia's shoulder.
Cynthia smiled at her, raised a hand to pat her head, and said softly, "Go find Olivia. It's safe over there."
The white wolf nodded at her and was about to turn and leave when a dark figure suddenly dropped from the treetops. The vampire's pale, bloodless hand shot straight for the white wolf's neck, as if intending to tear her in half.
Hanni's reaction was sluggish due to her severe injuries. The vampire's hand was already upon her before she realized she needed to dodge, but it was too late. She looked at the vampire closing in, a flash of anger in her eyes. Gritting her sharp teeth, she resolved to take this vampire down with her, even if it meant dying.
But the pain the white wolf anticipated never came. A white flame tinged with golden light appeared without warning in front of her, blocking her from rushing forward and also stopping the ambushing vampire. The flame appeared so suddenly that before the vampire could react, its hand had already plunged into the fire. The searing sensation of the Power of Light made the vampire's face change drastically.
The white wolf froze for a moment and instinctively turned around. Behind her, the silver-haired member of the God Race stood in the shadows of the trees. Shrouded in darkness, her golden eyes, which usually held a hint of a smile, appeared somewhat dim. Her long silver hair cascaded over her white cloak, and a faint golden light enveloped her.
She was chanting a spell in a low voice, and an unremarkable white stone clutched in her hand was now flashing with a dazzling golden light.
A vast expanse of Light Fire descended from the sky, quickly turning their location into a sea of flames. The vampire, having failed its ambush and gotten its arm burned, felt a sudden surge of rage. It raised its head, its cold gaze locking onto Cynthia as a blood-red mist slowly gathered to confront the white sea of fire.
The white wolf stared blankly at Cynthia, her mouth agape, her sky-blue eyes filled with shock. Since when had the God Race become so powerful?
What was this flame? What were this white light and golden light? Why was it so powerful? Why had she never seen anything like this before?
Hanni's mind was filled with questions she wanted to pull Cynthia aside and ask, but fortunately, she understood the current situation. These fourth-generation Vampires were all here to kill her. She had rescued many humans and other races recently, which had likely caused the Vampires considerable trouble.
Although Hanni was a very talented young wolf within her clan, she had only recently come of age and still lacked combat experience. She wasn't afraid to face a fourth-generation vampire one-on-one, but being besieged by seven of them at once put her at a disadvantage.
In her current state, Hanni couldn't help. Seeing that the Vampires didn't dare approach the white flames, she settled down safely inside the circle of fire, her eyes wide and fixed on Cynthia.
After comprehending the Grand Light Spell in the Beast God's temple, Cynthia found that her Power of Light had grown much stronger. Furthermore, the stone in her hand, "awakened" by the Grand Light Spell, seemed to contain an endless supply of the Power of Light for her to command at will. With it, using Light Magic was twice as effective for Cynthia.
In the confrontation between the blood-red mist and the white sea of fire, the former ultimately gained the upper hand. Seeing the white flames gradually being extinguished, the vampire sneered, thinking it was nothing special after all. With a flash, the vampire's figure shot straight for the silver-haired God Race member behind the sea of fire. The Power of Light instinctively repulsed the vampire. He had already forgotten about the troublesome little wolf and now only wanted to tear this God Race member, who reeked of that irritating aura, in two.
A fourth-generation vampire like him had actually been injured by a weak member of the God Race. To him, this was an utter disgrace. Even if this God Race member was very strange compared to those of the past, it didn't change her identity as one of the God Race, nor her status as prey.
The vampire shot through the blood-red mist like a bolt of lightning, arriving before Cynthia. After the white sea of fire was extinguished, the surroundings were plunged back into darkness. But the dark didn't affect the vampire's vision, so as soon as he got close to Cynthia, he discovered that this God Race member was actually smiling.
A chill ran through the vampire's heart. A horrifying burning sensation suddenly shot up from his feet as a dazzling golden light erupted. The vampire turned to flee, but the golden light was exceptionally domineering and swallowed him whole.
Watching the vampire get engulfed by the golden light, Cynthia unhurriedly continued to chant her spell.
After the vampire finally managed to escape the golden light, a cage woven from golden light descended from the sky and trapped him.
The Power of Light was an extremely strong counter to Vampires. Even though they possessed outstanding self-healing abilities, this regeneration couldn't be applied to wounds inflicted by the Power of Light.
The fourth-generation vampire's arm and right leg had been burned to charcoal. Although its heart was still intact, its wretched and miserable appearance made it look like it had already lost half its life.
"So strong!" An excited and thrilled voice suddenly rang out from behind Cynthia. Cynthia, who was methodically preparing another Light Magic spell, was startled. She turned slightly to see the white wolf happily waving its paws and shouting at her, "Kill him, Cynthia!"
Cynthia: "..."
Having someone cheer for you from the sidelines during such a tense and fierce battle... it felt a little strange.
Cynthia gave a slightly helpless smile and turned back to continue chanting her spell.
The white wolf crouched on the ground, watching with great interest as the vampire struggled within the golden light. If not for her own injuries, she would have loved to rush in and give the vampire a few swipes of her claws.
The vampire was ultimately worn down and killed by the continuous barrage of Light Magic spells. Compared to a direct death like being pierced through the heart by an elf's arrow or having its heart crushed by a werewolf, dying by the torment of Light Magic could only be described as miserable.
In the end, even its corpse turned to ash.
After dealing with one fourth-generation vampire, Cynthia didn't stop. Instead, she turned to face Polly's group and continued chanting. The Grand Light Spell descended from the sky, illuminating the darkness and dispelling layer after layer of the blood-red mist.
Sarah and the others could see the commotion on Cynthia's side. Avira, who had been studying the staff, instantly raised her head when the Grand Light Spell erupted, her brown eyes slowly narrowing.
"It's Cynthia!" Sarah's eyes lit up, and she happily said to the God Race member beside her, "That's the Grand Light Spell. She mentioned it before."
"So powerful."
"Yeah, if only we could learn it too."
As they were discussing, Avira suddenly interjected, "The Grand Light Spell? Where did Cynthia learn this spell?"
She knew of the Grand Light Spell. And... she had even seen it before.
"In the Beast God's temple." Sarah now completely treated Avira as one of their own. "Cynthia figured it out herself."
"Oh?"
"Cynthia is very smart," Sarah said with a serious expression.
But this wasn't something one could figure out just by being smart... Avira walked to a nearby clearing and lifted her gaze to the distant golden light. In the darkness, her brown eyes grew darker, and a faint trace of blood-red flickered deep within them.
She could still hear the excited discussion of the God Race members, with Cynthia, unsurprisingly, as the sole topic. While staring at the golden light, Avira devoted part of her attention to their conversation, gathering useful information.
Suddenly, a soft sound came from the darkness. Avira's expression shifted slightly as she glanced sideways at a certain spot.
Two Vampires who had fled from Cynthia and Polly's battle ran over to their location. These Vampires were seeing Light Magic for the first time, and their inherent disgust led them to underestimate it. Caught off guard, they had all been burned by the Power of Light.
The feeling of being burned by the Power of Light was agonizing and stirred the Vampires' desire to drink blood. Upon seeing Sarah and the others, they instantly closed in, wanting to alleviate their urgent thirst for blood.
The sudden appearance of the Vampires startled Sarah's group. One of the God Race reacted extremely quickly and began chanting a spell. A white flame rapidly coalesced and blocked their path.
Seeing the white flame, the two Vampires' first instinct was to retreat, but they soon discovered that this flame was not on the same level of power as the one they had just encountered.
A blood-red mist extinguished the flame. The vampire slipped into the mist and reached for the nearest prey. A sudden sound of something cutting through the air echoed by its ear. Before the vampire's hand could grab the God Race member, a sharp pain erupted in its chest as a pale green arrow pierced through its back.
Seeing its companion die right before its eyes, the other vampire retreated with extreme speed. But the pale green arrow pursued it relentlessly, its powerful aura causing the vampire's face to pale.
Avira, who had feigned fear and run behind Sarah's group when the Vampires appeared, glanced up at the vampire. Seeing that the arrow had already pierced its body, she moved her finger slightly. An invisible force knocked the pale green arrow off course, causing it to pass through the vampire, grazing its heart.
The vampire, having narrowly escaped death, fled without looking back, its figure quickly disappearing.
On a bridge in the woods, Olivia watched the direction the vampire had fled, her brow slightly furrowed. She slowly drew her bowstring, but after a moment's hesitation, she ultimately did not release the arrow.
The vampire was too fast. If she were in her peak condition, she wouldn't care where it ran, but right now, it was best for her not to use arrows that consumed so much of her nature power.
Olivia lowered her bow and raised a hand to gently rub the space between her eyebrows, a trace of fatigue reappearing in her eyes.
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