Chapter 718

Chapter 103 Rebirth Twelve

The vision had become blurry.

With each breath, he could feel the burning pain.

Carlos raised his head.

Above, not far away, the floating black sun was wrapped in red lightning. The dark smoke on its surface continued to churn, but it seemed… as if there were no further actions.

What’s going on…

If you don’t come out soon…

The man gritted his teeth and stood up. Someone rushed forward and hugged him again. This time, he lacked the strength to resist, allowing himself to be knocked down. The sword with numerous nicks fell to the side with a clatter. The knight who charged at him pinned him down, tightly gripping his hands.

“Faith Corps—”

The knight shouted loudly, only to be shattered by the sudden surge of lightning, his body stiffening as he bit back a groan, then collapsed softly to the side.

“Cough…”

Carlos coughed up blood, struggling to push the knight’s leg off his body. As he half sat up, he saw more people rushing over. In the clanking sound of chains, his waist and legs were bound, followed by his right arm.

Buzz—

On the hovering cross above the gray sky, golden light shone with an unbearable brilliance. Serpentine chains entwined around Carlos’s body, binding him tightly. The knight captain grabbed his still movable left arm and twisted it forcefully, dislocating his elbow with a snap. Others restrained his struggling legs, while someone from behind grabbed his head and choked his throat.

“Lock him up! Lock him up!”

“Don’t give him any chance to escape—”

Clank-clank-clank…

In the chaos, the chains continued to twist, lifting Carlos from the ground to mid-air, one end flying towards the dazzling cross above. Several chains wrapped around the cross. The knight captain and others quickly released their grip, stepping back, and looked up.

In his line of sight, that formidable, revered knight of the Pope now looked like a tortured criminal, bound by several golden chains, hanging upside down, dragged into the air, soon immobilized on the judgment cross, unable to struggle anymore.

Blood dripped “splash, splash” from his body and tangled hair.

The knight captain watched silently, expressionless.

Behind him, in the crowd, Laryx, a monk, couldn’t help but reveal a satisfied smile at the corner of his mouth.

“Haha.”

Further away, outside the ruins, Bishop Alersta clapped and laughed loudly, “It seems we don’t need to finish things off completely. I thought he would last longer!”

“He’s injured worse than we imagined.” The nearby monk nodded in agreement, “Bishop, what do we do next?”

“Of course, continue the deployment of ‘God’s Chains’.” Alersta said excitedly, looking up at the distant black sun in the sky, “The troublemaker has been dealt with, take him away for now… Don’t heal his injuries for now, just leave him be, let him bleed more, lose all his fighting ability… Humph, what does it matter if he’s a Pope knight? Dare to oppose me…”

His voice trailed off as his gaze searched among the knights. Spotting the knight captain, he pointed and said, “Tell him to start ‘God’s Chains’ immediately—”

Before the young bishop could finish his sentence, suddenly, from about 200 meters to the left, where the third knight squad was stationed, a rumbling sound like thunder exploded from the flank of the team.

Sound.

“What?”

The sudden explosion startled everyone, and the chaotic noise quickly subsided. The smile on Aresta’s face froze as he instinctively turned his head towards the direction of the blast.

Boom—

At the same time, a second explosion erupted from that area.

The immense sound made even the earth tremble. In the distance, the third squad of knights suddenly erupted into chaos; people were screaming, hornhorses braying loudly, and figures were launched into the air amidst the rising dust. The golden-armored warriors created a wave nearly ten meters high. Aresta saw human figures, like cannonballs, crashing through the crowd, wielding hammers and leaping into the sky.

Whoosh—

With a sharp wind whistle, the figure flew over the heads of countless gazing knights and landed near Aresta and the others in an instant. Amidst the stunned gazes, she emerged slowly from the rising dust.

“Hey, I’m saying… What are you doing? Huh?”

She spoke, her massive, shattered hammer resting on her shoulder. Her plump body was shrouded in dark mist, and her clothes were tattered. Her arms, stomach, neck, and face were almost entirely covered in hideous burns and scars, blackened and twisted by hellfire and death smoke. Her right cheek was so badly burned that it had penetrated, revealing her mouth, half of her teeth, and even her tongue.

She looked like a hateful monster crawling out of hell, causing everyone to gasp in horror.

“…A-Apfel?”

“Lord Apfel…”

The plump and terrifying old woman limped forward slowly. The knights were all terrified. Despite recognizing her at a glance, they subconsciously assumed defensive postures and stepped back. Some cautiously asked questions, while others glanced at Aresta, seeking orders from the bishop.

Aresta’s face had already turned grim, his eyes fixed on the demon approaching him, murderous intent evident in his gaze.

“Lord Apfel, what has happened to you?”

“It’s none of your business.”

The demonic old woman sneered, her voice hoarse and eerie due to a slight leak in her mouth: “Boy, I’m asking you what you’re doing, why you’ve bound Carlos. Answer me.”

With wisps of death smoke rising from her body, a constant “sizzling” sound echoed, making her facial muscles twitch violently as if she were enduring great pain. She appeared to be in a critical state, but the old woman seemed completely unaware.

Aresta was somewhat frightened.

“W-What am I doing… Mr. Carlos tried to stop us from sealing—”

“I told you and your people not to act rashly.”

Before he could finish, the old woman interrupted: “How dare you let them injure him and bind him to the cross? You truly underestimate the Pontiff Knights.”

“Cursed old thing…”

“…What did you say?”

“I said—”

“Bishop!!!”

Suddenly, urgent hoofbeats came from the left. Several golden-armored warriors riding hornhorses charged through the crowd. One of them shouted angrily, “Step back! Step back! She’s lost her mind! She’s gone crazy—”

“Old woman, how dare you kill Bernie!”

Buzz—

The divine light suddenly illuminated the beast’s back. Amidst the howling wind, a sharp holy spear swept towards the old woman!

The knights watched in shock as the battle unfolded before their eyes.