Chapter 1190: Section 1191: Cut Off at the Waist
Fafnir had once warned Angel that, with his strength, it was best not to directly watch battles of a high level. If he really wanted to, he had to use an indirect medium, like the strand of wind Fafnir had used previously as an indirect tie to view the battle.
The reason Fafnir had advised so persistently was that, firstly, with Angel’s power, rashly watching high-level battles wouldn’t teach him anything; secondly, it might affect his future choices and could also cause lingering damage to his own energy operation.
Angel hadn’t taken it seriously at first because when he was above the Void Tower, he had also watched part of a high-level battle and didn’t feel any discomfort.
But now, as he watched the battle between Aoluxiya and the Lord of the Flameless, not only could he not catch a glimpse of their figures, but he also felt increasingly uncomfortable the more he watched.
His chest felt like it was filled with a nameless restlessness, disrupting the circulation of energy within him.
Angel immediately closed his eyes and strained to suppress this sensation of unease, but the discomfort followed him like a shadow, growing more and more severe.
Angel knew that the operation of his own energy had definitely been affected.
This was actually a low-probability event, but with Toby’s Icebound Hex having been unsealed and under the influence of the Calamity Curse, even low-probability events became incredibly likely.
To solve this problem was not difficult; he just needed to find a quiet room and through meditation adjust the operation of his Magic Power.
However, under the oppressive force, he could not move at all and was unable to find this so-called quiet room. Moreover, the noisy environment outside, along with the loud sounds of battle, made it impossible for Angel to calm down and meditate.
Under these circumstances, the discomfort made him feel increasingly unwell, to the point where even his blood circulation started to falter.
Angel even began to wonder, could he possibly be suffocated to death due to this disruption in his energy operation?
Considering the terrifying curse that Toby carried, this possibility was quite real.
Just as a sense of panic began to rise in Angel’s heart, a lively energy suddenly came from behind him and entered his body.
This energy, like a warm flame, illuminated and purged the impurities within his body. When the ‘flame’ had made one full circulation within him, the discomfort in Angel’s chest vanished without a trace.
“Thank you,” Angel exhaled a breath of turbid air. From the nature of the energy and its source, he almost instinctively knew it was transmitted by Greerwu.
However, Angel’s thanks went unanswered for a long time.
Just as Angel wondered if Greerwu might have fallen unconscious due to his severe injuries, he finally heard a faint voice from behind: “Shopkeeper, are you a human?”
Angel was taken aback. Back at the Misty Cabin, Aoluxiya had seen through his human disguise at first glance, so he had assumed Greerwu knew he was human too. Moreover, during his previous conversation with Popota, Angel hadn’t deliberately concealed his identity, but it seemed that Greerwu hadn’t picked up on it.
Although humans and the Abyss Indigenous People appeared similar, their internal organs were actually different. Greerwu had discovered something amiss when his energy probed into Angel’s body.
Thinking about the natural enmity between demons and humans, Angel fell silent.
After a while, Angel finally said, “Yes, I am a human.”
“…Then are you with that group from before?”
“As a human, I’ve naturally heard their names, but I am not with them. Besides, do you think with my strength, I could be in their company?” Angel carefully chose his words.
It was some time later before Angel heard Greerwu’s voice again: “That’s true, the shopkeeper is too weak.”
Angel: “…”
“Do you hate humans?” Angel suddenly asked.
“I don’t know… but I hate that group from before.” After a moment of contemplation, the sharpness in Greerwu’s voice gradually softened.
Angel didn’t say anything more. The worldviews of humans and demons would ultimately differ, and he wouldn’t impose his own concepts on Greerwu. When it started to consider likes and dislikes, it had already established a personal sense of right and wrong in its heart, and that was enough.
In the ensuing silence, Angel didn’t know if Greerwu was contemplating or watching the battle situation on the other side.
Angel, on his own, was calming his mind, silently connecting to the Land of the Soul through the Path of Soul Threads.
Time passed, and as Angel quietly restored his Soul Force, Greerwu suddenly said from behind: “Although I despise humans, I don’t dislike the shopkeeper.”
Angel was startled for a moment, then chuckled: “That’s only natural, after all, I promised you that if we safely get away, I will let you experience a complete Rhythm Journey. If you hated me, then that chance would be lost.”
Greerwu also let out a laugh.
As the atmosphere on one side started to ease, on one end of the battlefield, the air became slightly stagnant.
Aoluxiya was drenched in blood, eyes swollen, his body bruised and battered, even the porcelain mask cracked, looking utterly wretched.
In stark contrast was the other “Aoluxiya” opposite to him, like a mirror. The external Aoluxiya was severely injured, but the one within the ‘mirror’ remained as pristine as before.
It wasn’t completely without change, just then a “sizzle” was heard.
Aoluxiya suddenly split his lips into a grin, releasing a string of unrestrained laughter.
But the Lord of the Flameless, his face grew colder than before because a slight cut had appeared on His face, with a trace of fresh blood seeping out.
This, however, was a minor wound inflicted by Aoluxiya using a stratagem during their previous clash.
Even though the injury caused by the Lord of the Flameless just seemed like a trivial wound, Aoluxiya’s injuries were quite severe. Yet, it laughed uproariously as if it had already emerged as the victor.
“Hahahahaha——” After a hearty laugh, Aoluxiya’s momentum gradually started to rise.
The Lord of the Flameless watched Aoluxiya calmly, speaking indifferently, “I had forgotten that even young leopards have sharp claws. It seems I need to get serious as well.”
As the words of the Lord of the Flameless fell, the porcelain white shell covering its body emitted a lustrous glow, transforming into a strange, liquid-like substance. This porcelain white liquid was restructuring and altering the Lord of the Flameless’s form.
In just a short moment, the form of the Lord of the Flameless underwent a drastic transmutation.
Not only did its size increase several folds, but it also sprouted porcelain white wings on its back; its tail and abdomen joined together, resembling some kind of mantis, but with an extremely lustrous white color, devoid of any fieriness, instead filled with an elegant grace.
Aoluxiya was momentarily stunned, “Unsealing the true form?!”
“I have never sealed my true form, what unsealing are you talking about?” the Lord of the Flameless replied blandly: “To me, this is my true form.”
As the Lord of the Flameless revealed its true form, the oppressive aura that surrounded it suddenly vanished, and the previously overt terrifying aura began to dissipate.
Angel and Greerwu were finally able to move, but they dared not make any sudden movements, only quietly shifting away from the center of the battle.
With the oppressive aura gone, Aoluxiya became even more vigilant than before.
Without any sound of wind, the figure of the Lord of the Flameless suddenly appeared on the other side of Aoluxiya, lightly swinging its arm-like scythes.
In this process, there was no trace of pyrotechnics, nor did it stir up any energy fluctuations. Yet with just such a light flick, it tore a fissure through the space itself!
A terrifying suction force emerged from the crack, instantly causing the surrounding space to collapse.
Having retracted all external energies, every movement of the Lord of the Flameless caused no wind sound, no ripples.
Even though Aoluxiya was extremely cautious, facing such ripple-less attacks, it still got caught in the aftermath. Its right shoulder was slashed with a penetrating crack, its bones almost instantly shattered, and the only reason the arm didn’t fall off was due to a thin layer of skin holding it together.
Aoluxiya tore off its nearly useless right hand, and with a sound of drumming skin friction, a new arm grew out from its severed limb.
However, after the limb’s regrowth, Aoluxiya’s complexion turned even paler.
Aoluxiya was now completely being suppressed in the fight.
Faced with this situation, Aoluxiya also planned to unseal its own powers. When Aoluxiya returned from the ancient world, it felt that while its true form had been damaged and its True Spirit had fallen, only the power of its true name had not suffered any harm.
Thus, its only choice at the moment, was to unseal its true name!
But when it tried to do so, it found that the power of its true name had mysteriously disappeared… Aoluxiya was stunned for a moment, it could not even recall what its true name was.
Just in that moment of distraction, the figure of the Lord of the Flameless appeared behind it without a ripple.
A light sweep.
…
At this time, Angel was walking carefully with Greerwu toward the outskirts of the battle ring.
He didn’t dare to leave, firstly because he feared that any major action might draw the attention of the Lord of the Flameless; Angel had already faced its speed and knew that even if he fully activated his Gravity Meridian, he would not match it.
Secondly, Angel had a vague feeling that Greerwu was right; this realm harbored an inexplicable strangeness. Angel always had an indefinable sense that somewhere in the distant darkness, a gaze was fixed upon him.
This was a foreboding just as perilous as the current situation.
With ominous signs both before and after, Angel glanced at Toby, who was resting calmly in his breastplate pocket, thinking that even if calamity struck, at least it would not target him alone here.
After walking a short distance, Angel suddenly felt that the sounds behind him faded almost to nothing.
As he wondered about this, Greerwu at his side suddenly cried out in alarm.
“Don’t!”
Because of the previous ordeal, Angel had stopped watching the battle until Greerwu revealed that terrified expression; only then did Angel turn to look back.
Aoluxiya was facing in their direction at that moment.
At first, Angel didn’t notice anything amiss, but suddenly, a burst of blood exploded from Aoluxiya’s waist.
In a displacement, Aoluxiya’s body was split in two — it had been cleaved in half at the waist by the Lord of the Flameless!