Chapter 354

Chapter 140 – Red and Black Part Two

I wasn’t quite sure…

… It didn’t feel real.

My head was still a bit fuzzy.

With a drowsy lethargy, I took two steps forward through the broken exit, turning my aching neck as I walked.

“Hmm…”

The uncontrollable weakness earlier had gone. The surging energy within me had calmed, and I no longer felt the painful heat.

My eyes gradually adjusted to the light. The dilapidated civilian house tightly wrapped by vines reappeared before me—I had forgotten what it looked like before I fell into a deep sleep. But there were clearly changes… Ashes were everywhere, and the space around was filled with occasional short wooden stumps covered by black soot where tables and chairs used to be.

The wooden stumps were charred black, blending with the scattered rubble, all turned pitch-black… Was it on fire?

… Speaking of which, who was that person just now?

Where did he go?

As I thought about these chaotic things, I stepped out from the broken opening in the vines.

Thin sunlight bathed my face.

Ahead was still the familiar street.

But it seemed, perhaps due to an illusion, that the road and buildings in front of me appeared even more disordered than before. Most of the structures were in ruins, with signs of destruction everywhere, thick smoke rising from various places. On the left side of my vision, there was a crack running across the entire road, as if something terrible had crushed it, slicing through the earth and stone, leaving a deep ravine that extended to the opposite building, splitting it in two.

A gentle breeze blew slowly down the desolate road, leaving only a clear sensation on my cheeks and forehead.

Ah, armor…

I lowered my head.

In sight, the pitch-black armor, the streamlined body of which was adorned with countless fine dark red patterns, flowed like blood vessels… a liquid with a sweet and pungent smell.

What’s this… blood?

???

Suddenly, a strand of hair was blown onto my mouth by the wind.

I raised my hand, brushing it behind my ear.

… Huh?

A slight thought stirred, and the chaotic power quietly circulated, transforming the helmet covering my head back into primordial mud, merging into my body. My long hair instantly fluttered in the wind; I grabbed a large handful and pulled it in front of me, blinking my eyes.

… White.

My hair was now silver-white like snow.

Hmm?!

This change…

Whoosh—

Just as I was lost in confusion, a piercing whistling sound came from above to my left, a fierce attack suddenly arriving and striking instantly.

Before I could turn my head to confirm, I instinctively let go of my hair, moving my right arm horizontally toward the direction of the screeching attack, using the armor on my forearm to block this sudden strike.

Clang clang clang…

A deafening roar exploded beside my ears, an incredible force transmitted from my forearm throughout my body. As my feet left the ground, I reacted swiftly, twisting my body and bending at the waist, rotating half a circle to deflect the overwhelming force to the side.

Whoosh!

The sharp holy spear almost grazed my nose as it flew past, heading towards the wall on the other side of the street, shattering it with a loud “boom,” sending bricks and dust flying everywhere.

“Ouch ouch ouch!”

My arm went numb…

But before I could steady myself, I saw a blinding white light suddenly appear in the sky.

“Aha…”

An unprecedented sense of danger made me feel as though I had been electrocuted; a chill ran from my spine to my brain, my heart pounding wildly. Without hesitation, I leaped into Moon Step.

Bam—

A gust of fierce wind hit my face, and my body retreated twenty meters in an instant. In the next moment, searing white light shot towards where I had previously stood, melting the ground and creating two wide, deep holes, wisps of smoke curling out of the openings.

I lifted my head.

Above the sky, a figure with a golden glow slowly descended, his white cloak fluttering in the wind—the style I was most familiar with.

And in his hand, he seemed to be holding… a woman.

Who is this…

Following this, the deep, profound eyes hidden beneath the wide hood met mine.

There was a moment of eye contact.

The figure raised its right hand.

Buzzing…

In the next moment, dazzling golden light lit up from the sky, quickly gathering into countless orbs, raining down on me like a sudden storm.

“How interesting…”

I gently raised my right hand, and dense dead smoke surged from my surroundings, transforming into several black smoke serpents that roared past the streets and buildings, sweeping towards the figure that had yet to touch the ground.

The two forces, pitch-black and blazing white, collided violently in the shattered street above.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

Intense explosions triggered a massive wave, with gales ravaging the fragmented road. In an instant, blinding radiance illuminated the sky.

I couldn’t help but squint my eyes, waiting quietly for the golden light to dissipate.

Step… Step…

Solid footsteps approached from ahead.

Whoosh—

With a slight breeze, a figure was thrown out from the light, landing with a thud less than ten meters in front of me, rolling twice before lying still.

…That was Margaret.

I recognized her from the tattered nun’s habit on her body.

Despite the garment being filthy, shapeless, and soaked with blood, mostly turning nearly dark brown—yet I could still recognize it, the unique golden hem of the Saint Joan’s habit swaying gently in the wind.

It was indeed that hateful woman.

But at this moment… she could no longer maintain her usual stern, yet extremely annoying, hypocritical facade.

She couldn’t even stand up anymore. Like a dirty dead dog, her face pressed against the ground. I couldn’t see her face, but I could clearly see the blood constantly flowing, mixing with dirt and dust, dyeing her distinctive short water-blue hair into an unpleasant color.

Step… Step…

The light gradually dissipated, and the footsteps grew closer.

Vaguely, the figure wrapped in a white cloak emerged from the dust rising in the street.

“Hey…”

I stepped forward, approaching Margaret’s side, crouched down to look for a moment, then extended a finger to lightly prod her head.

“Wake up.”

“Why do you fall asleep right after I just woke up?”

Margaret showed no reaction.

“…Wake up, there are chicken legs to eat.”

“Chicken… legs?”

A low, hoarse, somewhat eerie voice came from ahead.

“She has… already died.”

“Bullshit!”

I stood up, shifting my gaze from the saintly figure, and looked straight ahead.

The golden light dissipated, the storm halted, and the dust settled.

A slightly plump figure stood quietly in the middle of the street.

He had shed his former cardinal’s robe, now clad in heavy Milanese armor encircled by gold scales, with a pure white papal knight’s cloak fluttering down from his back. The hood was lifted, revealing a face so ugly it was barely recognizable.

It could no longer be called a face.

Where the nose and mouth should have been, rotten black flesh had already transformed into exposed blackened teeth and bones, with all hair completely fallen off, making the entire head look like a mass of dead rotting flesh. Residual dead smoke slowly rose from his face, emitting a grating “hiss,” constantly approaching his only remaining eye. Thin golden light flowed across his face, as if it were his final struggle.

Of course, I could still recognize him despite this.

“Nero.”

Looking at him, a smile gradually appeared in my eyes, followed by a nod toward Margaret at my feet.

“Did you do this?”

“Not bad… surprisingly, it was quite easy…”

Nero seemed to laugh as well… Was he laughing? His mouth opened, but with most of his lips gone, I wasn’t entirely sure.

“She sacrificed herself to save you, knowing full well… she couldn’t win, yet still confronted me… Unfortunately… she saved a monster…”

“Can you talk without letting air through your mouth? I can’t hear you properly…”

Damn thing.