Chapter 351

Chapter 137 Light and Darkness Thirty-Four

The candlelight flickered in her pupils, as if dyeing the entire world crimson.

The massive, blazing fireball descended from the sky with an earth-shattering force, causing the whole city to tremble under its unstoppable heat.

“It’s divine retribution! Those sinners have brought down divine retribution—”

“Run!”

“Great Goddess of Sin! Please spare us… we are innocent…”

A wave of hot air swept through the streets; the tightly shut doors of the houses opened one by one. People who had not escaped yet could no longer hide; they screamed and rushed out. Women with terrified faces, men flustered and lost, even the elderly who could barely walk were desperately fleeing onto the streets. Young children wailed loudly, crying as they ran. Some were dragged to the ground by their panicked mothers, mouths bloody from the impact.

“Damn scoundrel—”

Beside me, Margaret was filled with grief and anger. She looked up at the sky, eyes red. She took off the necklace hanging on her chest and gripped it tightly.

In the next moment, dazzling light burst forth from within the thin cover, dyeing everything golden.

Buzzing…

As the golden glow illuminated, that strong sense of reassurance washed over me again. My heart skipped a beat, and I instinctively wanted to stop her.

Damn woman… Trying to control me now!?

But this thought only flashed through my mind for a moment before I calmed down.

No, that’s…

The golden light inside the shield became even more dazzling.

The scorching waves pressing from outside were suffocating. The hair on my forehead curled from the heat, and every breath was filled with the smell of burnt flesh. I condensed a faint frost mist with both hands and swung my arms around, lowering the temperature. Then I stepped forward, attempting to bring Yilusha into the shield at the risk of it all.

“Don’t!”

Margaret grabbed me hurriedly to stop me.

I frowned at her, “You—”

Bam—!!!

In the next moment, a horrifying shockwave surged from the shattered bone pendant in her palm, striking my chest with incredible force. I gasped for air and staggered back two steps, almost falling.

My head spun…

I shook my head hard.

Then, I heard Margaret’s faint, enchanting voice, like a spell.

[Mother God’s muddy coffin…]

Buzz—

A sharp ringing suddenly echoed in my ears, and the world slowed down in my vision.

Beyond the golden light, the civilians fleeing in the streets still held their forward positions, their feet not yet touching the ground. Some stared in fear towards here, mouths agape, eyes wide. Closer people were lifted off the ground by the impact, bodies twisting slowly in mid-air.

Inside the nearest house by the street, a curious little girl was being carried away by a pair of large hands behind her. She turned her head, her bewildered gaze reluctant to leave the window.

At the center of the street, a blinding white light burst from Yilusha’s petite body. Her skin seemed to be peeling off, and her eyes, devoid of color, looked towards here through the rising black fog from beneath her feet. Further away, the old Duke lay motionless on the side of the street, completely unaware of what was happening.

In an instant.

I steadied myself.

The next moment, the scene in front of me began to sway.

Rumbling…

The city trembled with a deafening sound. Houses and alleys shook violently, dust flying everywhere and settling down in the next second. The sharp, buzzing noise in my ears grew sharper, almost piercing my eardrums, making me feel dizzy and nauseous.

But my body couldn’t react at all.

It was a strange sensation.

It felt as if the entire world, including myself, was trembling at a high frequency, yet bound by this vibration. The sensation was similar to an earthquake but completely different… It was as if everything was sinking deep into a muddy swamp, unable to struggle or breathe, gradually sinking.

This feeling lasted only a moment.

“Margaret!”

When I gritted my teeth and called out her name, the holy maiden covered in golden light quickly raised the dazzling bone fragment towards the sky.

Buzzing—!!!

In an instant, the air around Margaret twisted visibly.

Her radiant silhouette became distorted in my eyes.

A strange “energy” burst from my line of sight, carrying an invisible flood that suddenly rose from the entire street and crashed into the sky.

Then, that suffocating muddy feeling disappeared.

“Hah—”

I took a deep breath.

At the same time, the huge fireball in the sky, which almost seemed boundless, suddenly slowed its descent by a measurable two hundred meters away from the city. The earth-shattering attack was seemingly torn apart and stopped in just two seconds by some invisible force.

Rumble—

The loud noise still echoed in my ears.

People on the street regained their mobility.

They were clearly terrified by the strange power they had just experienced, screaming in fear as they fled desperately, trying to escape the area covered by the fireball.

“Aaah—!!!”

Margaret shouted hoarsely, her golden light inside the shield intensifying even more. I couldn’t help but raise my hand to shield my eyes.

She held up the bright pendant, but she seemed to be under immense pressure. Her almond-shaped eyes widened, her arms trembled, and her legs shook uncontrollably. Yet, despite this, Margaret still raised her head high, her face flushed red by the flames, resolute and determined.

The dizziness in my head gradually dissipated.

“Giggles…”

I felt a bit happy and couldn’t help but laugh.

“Hahaha—!”

What kind of power is this…

Why… the familiar and warm feeling in my heart is about to overflow…

Interesting… I feel so happy!

“Margaret, what exactly is that necklace?!”

I asked her loudly, unable to contain my excitement.

“Leave…”

But the response from the Holy Maiden was through gritted teeth, clearly showing she had no time to worry about me or anyone else.

“Leave here… I can’t hold it… too sudden… can’t hold it… Nero… walk—!”

A trickle of fresh blood slowly flowed out of her nose.

Bang!

The green stone road beneath our feet couldn’t bear the pressure and cracked inch by inch around the Holy Maiden.

I ignored her words and looked up.

The hovering fireball was restless, its flames swaying violently with the wind, as if about to break free from its restraints and descend again at an excruciatingly slow pace.

“Nero—!!”

In just a few seconds, blood started seeping out of Margaret’s ears and eyes.

She bent her waist, her slender body almost collapsing under the immense force. As if in one last desperate attempt, she shouted to the sky, “You, damned lunatic! Do you want to… involve how many innocents… cough—”

Blood spattered from the Holy Maiden’s mouth, staining her chest.

And in the sky, the fireball’s descent became unstoppable. Streams of fire kept falling everywhere, and a small tree by the roadside caught fire, with smoke rising from many rooftops.

Nero…

I narrowed my eyes slowly.

“Margaret, hold on a little longer.”

With such a grand scene… old man, this time you won’t be able to run away easily.

I slightly moved my limbs, and my gaze inadvertently glanced towards Eirush. My foot suddenly stepped out in moonwalk.

Swish—

The wind whistled past my ears.

In an instant, I stepped into the blinding white light and stood in front of the little girl.

As expected.

The white light bursting from Eirush’s body was harmless… at least to me.

I faced no obstruction and easily grabbed the little girl’s shoulder.

“Eirush, can you hear me?”

“Uh… ah…”

The response was still meaningless groaning.

The little girl couldn’t hold on anymore.

The moment my hand touched her shoulder, I realized this fact.

Her chaotic energy inside was already in disarray, with uncontrollable power surging wildly within her body, destroying organs, tearing skin, and engulfing consciousness. The “soul” previously devoured had not been fully converted and absorbed, and now surged out of her body all at once. It was like…

a “hunter” being devoured by the “food.”

I couldn’t understand why it turned out this way. But I knew that there was no way I could save her.

And the little girl…

probably wouldn’t be able to hear me anymore.

Since that’s the case…

“Lend me your power.”