The First Pope - Chapter 46
Chapter 46
The sudden eruption of dark power from a third-generation vampire instantly turned the bottom of the Ice Lake into a massive crater. The blood pool collapsed, and the tunnels caved in, becoming a field of ruins. Dark red blood flowed out, staining the earth nearly black, while the mountains surrounding the lake were instantly reduced to dust and ash.
Chloe, Darcy, and the other God Race members sat in the crater, looking at the pulverized mountains with lingering fear. In front of them, a golden barrier had shielded them from the blast of dark power.
The barrier's creator was Cynthia, who was so completely enveloped in a blood-red mist that she was almost invisible.
Darcy and Chloe had overheard some of the conversation between Cynthia and Andre, but this was their first time meeting Cynthia, so they had no idea what kind of Light Magic she was using. They could only infer from Andre's furious curses coming from within the golden light that the spell terrified him.
Golden light and blood-red light shrouded the two of them, and the powerful aura they emitted made it impossible for anyone to get close. Darcy and Chloe were worried, but they could only stand by and watch the blood-red mist, which showed no signs of dissipating.
The network of tunnels collapsed in an instant. Avira, who had been investigating the blood pool, raised a hand to dispel the dark power from Andre's indiscriminate attack. She leaped out of the ruins and floated in mid-air, her gaze sweeping around before landing, filled with surprise and doubt, on the distant golden and blood-red lights.
The area beneath the Ice Lake was vast. Although Avira, who had been exploring near the blood pool, had sensed fluctuations of light-based energy, she hadn't paid them much mind.
While she was intrigued by a God Race member who could use the Grand Light Spell, that interest wasn't enough to make her save one.
After all, dying because you were weak was the most common thing in this world.
And once someone was dead, no one would care whether they could use the Grand Light Spell or not.
But as the fluctuations of dark and light power grew stronger and more violent, Avira sensed that something was wrong. Before she could go and investigate, Andre's dark power suddenly erupted.
The dark power contained within that pillar of blood-red light was nearly at the peak of a third-generation vampire. But that wasn't what surprised Avira most. What truly astonished her was the golden light opposing it.
The Power of Light within it was no less potent than the opposing pillar of blood, and it even seemed to be suppressing it.
What kind of spell is this? Avira stared at the silver-haired God Race member within the dense, blood-red mist, her eyes flickering. The dark power couldn't obstruct her vision, so she could clearly see the current state of both Cynthia and Andre.
The dark power had already corroded Cynthia's arm, but her expression remained calm, her golden eyes shining exceptionally bright amidst the blood-red haze. In contrast, the Power of Light had already burned through to Andre's chest.
That was a vampire's fatal weakness.
This spell had unleashed the Power of Light several times greater than Cynthia's own strength, which was why it could suppress a third-generation vampire who was stronger than her.
Avira narrowed her eyes slightly. The hand hanging at her side twitched as she was about to go and test the power of the golden light for herself, but a sound of something slicing through the air suddenly reached her ears.
A pale green arrow flew from the horizon like a bolt of lightning, piercing into the golden light with thunderous momentum. It was neither as dazzling and domineering as the Power of Light, nor as sinister and savage as the Power of Darkness. The pale green glow seemed gentle, yet it forcefully separated the golden and blood-red lights.
Avira caught a glimpse of dozens of figures rushing toward them. She raised an eyebrow, turned, and vanished into the ruins.
The power of nature exploded between the golden and blood-red lights. Seeing the blood-red light surrounding Cynthia gradually dissipate, Chloe and Darcy quickly got up and ran over. They plunged into the bloody mist, enduring the pressure of the dark power as they searched for Cynthia.
In the center of the mist, Cynthia was kneeling on the ground, her long silver hair obscuring her face. An ordinary-looking stone lay beside her leg. The hand she had pressed to the ground had barely any intact skin left, while her other arm, hanging at her side, was nothing but white bone.
Chloe and Darcy stopped abruptly. Looking at Cynthia's back, they turned their heads away, unable to bear the sight.
"...If you're done staring, come help me up." A hoarse voice suddenly came from Cynthia. She turned her head slightly and said weakly, "I can't hold on much longer."
Discovering that Cynthia was still alive, Darcy and Chloe, though shocked, quickly ran to her side. Darcy put an arm around Cynthia's shoulders and looked down at her hand, hesitating. "You…"
Cynthia leaned against Darcy and slowly exhaled. "I'm fine." She glanced at Chloe, who was standing nearby, and said in a low voice, "Go see if that vampire is still alive."
Chloe gave Cynthia a complicated look before turning to check on Andre.
The golden light around Andre had also faded. He lay on the ground, burned to a black crisp by the Power of Light, his heart long since turned to ash.
Chloe checked carefully one more time to confirm that Andre was truly dead before returning. "He's dead," she said in a low voice.
She paused, then looked at Cynthia and asked, "Was that Light Magic you used?"
Cynthia looked down at her own hand without speaking. Chloe waited for a moment, and when she still got no response, she looked at Darcy in confusion.
"Your hand…" Darcy, head bowed, didn't notice Chloe's gaze. Instead, she was staring along with Cynthia at the hand that had been so severely corroded by dark power. "It's healing?" she asked in astonishment.
Cynthia tried to flex her stiff fingers. A faint smile touched her lips as she murmured, "Good thing this spell isn't a one-time use."
Otherwise, the price would have been far too high.
Not long after the blood-red light dissipated, many new guests arrived at the crater. White and grey wolves stood at the edge, observing the situation below, while the elves had already leaped down.
As Darcy and Chloe were examining Cynthia's injuries, an elf with a pale green longbow suddenly appeared before them. She was beautiful, but her expression was icy cold. The two instinctively looked up, and upon seeing Olivia, they were first stunned by her beauty, but soon they found it hard to breathe under the pressure of her powerful aura.
Thinking Olivia had hostile intentions, Darcy grew vigilant, her hand around Cynthia slowly tightening.
Cynthia heard the sound and looked up. Her golden eyes lit up, and she called out with a smile, "Olivia."
Darcy was taken aback. She looked down and asked, "You know each other?"
Cynthia nodded, her gaze fixed on Olivia as she said with a smile, "Her Majesty the Queen is here to save me."
Being stared at so directly by Cynthia, Olivia subconsciously averted her gaze, but the coldness on her face thawed a few degrees.
Although Olivia just stood there without speaking, the moment Darcy met her icy gaze, she instinctively released her arm from Cynthia's shoulder and sensibly made way.
Olivia put away her longbow and flashed over, taking Darcy's place to support Cynthia. She looked down at Cynthia's hand, which had been corroded down to the bone, and her fine brows furrowed tightly.
Her gaze shifted down to Cynthia's leg, where the robe seemed somewhat empty. She reached out, wanting to check Cynthia's injuries, but her wrist was caught in a grip.
The grip on her wrist wasn't strong, but Olivia didn't pull away. Instead, she lowered her eyes to meet Cynthia's.
"Don't worry." A faint smile graced Cynthia's face. She held up her left hand, which was already almost fully healed. "See? It'll recover soon," she said softly.
Olivia was silent for a moment before withdrawing her hand. "You used Sacrifice," she stated flatly.
Her tone was one of certainty, not a question. She knew all the Light Magic spells Cynthia was capable of, but as for Sacrifice… neither she nor Cynthia knew the full extent of its power or its consequences.
Such immense Power of Light was beyond what any other Light Magic spell could produce, and no normal spell would have left Cynthia in such a state.
With Olivia's arrival, Cynthia's taut nerves finally began to slacken. As her mind relaxed, she started to feel drowsy. The embrace behind her radiated a warmth that seemed to soothe her still-aching body.
Cynthia shifted into a more comfortable position in Olivia's arms, then rested her head on her shoulder. Closing her eyes, she said, "I hope I never have to use that spell again."
She rubbed her forehead against Olivia's shoulder and murmured, "It hurt so much."
This unconscious act of affection made Olivia's straight back stiffen for a moment. She looked down at the red, unhealed cracks on Cynthia's face, then at her bloodless lips. The hand on Cynthia's shoulder clenched and unclenched helplessly a few times before her rigid body slowly relaxed.
The person in her arms had already fallen asleep. Olivia silently hooked an arm under Cynthia's legs and lifted her into her arms. Cynthia's head lolled from her shoulder to the crook of her neck. Her warm breath made Olivia press her lips together uncomfortably as a faint blush crept up the tips of her ears.
Polly arrived with the elven guards. Seeing the unconscious and injured Cynthia, she asked with concern, "Is Cynthia alright?"
As she spoke, she reached out. "Her Majesty the Queen, let me carry her back."
Olivia dodged Polly's outstretched hand. She lowered her gaze slightly, her voice cool. "I'll take her back. You and the werewolves search the area for any remaining vampires. If you catch any, kill them on the spot."
Then, as if remembering something, she turned her head to look at Chloe, Darcy, and the others. "Take the other God Race members with you."
With that, Olivia walked away, carrying Cynthia, her figure quickly disappearing from sight.
Polly withdrew her gaze from the direction Olivia had gone, then led the other elven guards to the edge of the crater to find the werewolves and ask for their help in searching for vampires.
Just as they had found this place, the werewolves had suddenly sensed Hanni's domain nearby. The Wolf Race leader had taken some of her people to investigate and had not yet returned. The werewolves left at the crater's edge had been sent by their leader to assist them.
After Andre died, his subordinates scattered and fled in disarray.
But the werewolves had already established their domain on their way here, and they knew all the vampires' escape routes.
One fourth-generation vampire was lucky enough to reach the edge of the wolf domain. Just as she was about to shatter the barrier and escape, she heard wolf howls and the sound of elven arrows slicing through the air behind her.
Just as the fourth-generation vampire felt a sense of despair, a cloud of blood-red mist enveloped her and carried her out of the wolf domain.
The pursuing werewolves and elven guards came up empty. After searching the surrounding area and finding no trace of the vampire, they had no choice but to give up and leave.
After the werewolves and elves were gone, a dense, blood-red mist slowly materialized. A hand formed from the mist pressed against the vampire's chest, holding her motionless.
Avira emerged from behind the bloody mist. She looked the vampire up and down, a slight, meaningful smile on her lips. "The Tzimisce clan…"
The vampire looked at her in panic, completely unable to discern which clan she belonged to from her aura. She tried to remain calm and asked, "Which clan are you from?"
Avira walked over and hooked a finger under the vampire's chin. "This is the first time a fourth-generation has dared to speak to me in that tone," she said softly.
The vampire trembled in fear under the pressure of her aura. Just as she was about to beg for mercy, a sharp pain erupted in her chest. She looked down in disbelief as Avira's pale hand pulled a heart from her chest.
With her heart removed, the vampire lost consciousness and collapsed. Avira bent down slightly, and a wisp of black energy suddenly rose from the vampire's body. The black energy floated up, circled Avira's hand once, and then drilled into the heart.
In Avira's hand, the heart slowly disintegrated into a red mist and then merged into her body. Avira's aura gradually retracted, eventually transforming into that of a fourth-generation vampire—identical to the one she had just killed.
The Tzimisce clan pursued perfection. Whenever they encountered a body they liked, they always wanted to claim it for themselves, and their clan's natural talent conveniently fulfilled this desire.
The Tzimisce clan had always identified their own by their aura, so impersonating a Tzimisce vampire was the easiest thing in the world.
Avira raised her arm and sniffed her own aura, nodding in satisfaction.
She had already aroused the suspicions of that silver-haired God Race member and the Elf Queen. Returning now would only lead to endless trouble, even though Avira's interest in Cynthia had grown even stronger.
She would just have to find another opportunity later. If she had known this God Race member held so many secrets, she would have been more careful with her disguise from the start.
What a pity.
The commotion from Andre and Cynthia's battle had also attracted the attention of Iman and the other vampires. However, because the elves and werewolves were there, they could only observe from a distance, not daring to get too close.
But seeing the Ice Lake blown into a crater and witnessing the dark power Andre had unleashed made their hearts sink. Although they couldn't go over to check, they had already guessed the outcome.
They just had no clue who the golden light belonged to.
The vampires, who had been confident and even a little dismissive of this mission, were all silent. Not only had they suffered heavy casualties this time, but their mission had also been a failure.
Seeing the somber atmosphere, a third-generation vampire spoke up to break the silence. "The real Blood Coffins aren't with us. Even if we failed, it won't affect anything."
"The elders probably won't blame us."
They were just sent out as a diversion. There were several other teams just like them.
Although the mission was a failure, if they could draw the attention of the vampires sent from the Blood Domain, then the diversion could be considered a success.
Quite a few vampires shared his sentiment. Listening to their discussion, Iman interrupted them with displeasure. "Enough. Two out of six third-generation vampires are dead. You still have the nerve to report back to the elders?"
Finding out how Andre died might earn them some leniency from the elders.
As they were speaking, a fourth-generation vampire approached Iman's side and said in a low voice, "Elder Andre's subordinate has returned."
"Oh?" Iman's expression shifted. "Bring her here."
The fourth-generation vampire went and brought Avira over. Avira looked utterly wretched. Although she had no visible injuries, her aura was extremely weak.
Because the Tzimisce clan's talent allowed them to freely take over others' bodies, if they were severely injured, they were usually too lazy to wait for their wounds to heal and would simply switch to an intact body.
This was very common within the Tzimisce clan, and only their clan could do it.
Iman confirmed that Avira's aura was indeed from Andre's lineage and held no suspicion about her identity. "What did you encounter at the Ice Lake? How did Andre die?"
Avira kept her head down, feigning a fearful expression as she answered, "It was the God Race… We met a very strange God Race member. She used an incredibly powerful spell to kill Elder Andre."
God Race… Iman frowned. Although she didn't believe a God Race member could kill a third-generation vampire, the golden light that had erupted over there was indeed extremely powerful.
"We must report this to the elders." Iman took one last, deep look in the direction of the Ice Lake, then turned. "Let's go," she said coldly.
The vampires all fell in line behind Iman. Avira, having successfully infiltrated their ranks, followed at the very back, a faint smile playing on her lips.
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