Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 146: Revenge

Behind a boulder not far from the altar, Eugene’s face was so gloomy that it seemed like it could wring out water. Beside him, Billy watched with great interest. “Wow, that guy really dares to wear anything.”

Not long ago, their group galloped to the vicinity of the Claw Scar Mountains and wandered around aimlessly like headless flies. Just when the humans were at their wits’ end, Knight Saint Bernard sniffed the air. “It stinks! A very bad scent of blood and flesh.”

What followed made Eugene feel incredibly complicated—they followed Knight Saint Bernard and indeed encountered exceptionally strong protective and concealment magic.

Once concealment magic is exposed, it’s practically non-existent. The real challenge was the protective magic, but fortunately, the Investigation Knights had conducted in-depth research on the spells of the Eternal Church—

According to the standard procedure of the Investigation Knights, Eugene needed to spend time deciphering part of the magic circuit, create a small opening with a counter-curse, and thus sneak in silently. Just as he was about to start dispelling the curse, Billy hummed seriously and took out a fist-sized magic gem from his backpack.

The gem burned with a brilliant platinum glow inside—clearly, it was no ordinary item. Eugene estimated that it was worth about ten years of his salary, enough to support a normal family in Grape Collar for two generations.

The next moment, Billy threw the gem at the protective magic shield. The gem exploded on the shield, scattering light and corroding a doorway-sized hole. The edges of the hole wavered, emitting a soft white light.

“It’s called ‘Caster’s Blind Spot’. Don’t worry, the people inside won’t notice.”

Billy clapped his hands and then took out a slightly smaller gem, crushing it. A halo circled the three of them, erasing their presence and aura on the spot.

“This is ‘A Glimpse in the Dream’. It erases our magical fluctuations and aura—the effect only lasts for twelve hours. Mr. Eugene, I’m afraid we need to act quickly.”

Without looking back, Billy dove into the hole.

Eugene: “……”

Watching Billy spend money like water, he thought he had become numb to it. Indeed, as the Golden Sword of the Alva Merchant Company, their expenditures along the way, conservatively estimated, amounted to forty thousand gold wheels.

“It stinks!”

Knight Saint Bernard covered his nose with a paw, his eyes becoming watery. “I’ve never smelled such disgusting meat—even rotten musk deer smell better than this.”

Its tail hung low as it followed closely behind Golden Sword Billy.

Eugene gripped his long sword tightly, entering the protective shield last. He didn’t smell anything special. Perhaps only dog-headed beastmen could detect it, making it a loophole in the protective magic.

Everything went smoothly… until this moment.

Just after Eugene hid behind the rock, he witnessed Mr. Painter, dressed in a nun’s attire, interacting with the Eternal Pope—amid the swamp-like flesh, surrounded by the strange flock of goats, the Eternal Pope held Sister Teesti with both hands while speaking with Painter.

They were too far away for Eugene to hear the conversation. He could only be sure of one thing—Painter had tricked him again.

If “Sister Holly” was Painter in disguise… then Noli and Teesti, even Fischer, couldn’t possibly be real Evergreen Nuns.

Eugene knew that even if Painter had defected from the Temple of Life, he would never involve innocents. And regarding their identities, Eugene had a terrifying guess.

“Are you okay? You look terrible.” Golden Sword Billy inquired timely. “Now that I know where the altar is, the situation doesn’t look right. If you want to leave—”

“I’ll prepare a short-distance teleportation device.” Eugene interrupted Billy. “Proceed as usual with the rescue.”

Billy raised an eyebrow. “You know who that is.”

“Punishing traitors is the Temple’s task. We haven’t become so pathetic as to let the Eternal Church act on our behalf,” Eugene answered flatly. “Painter carries the Goddess’ oracle. As long as he’s alive, there’s a possibility for repentance and allegiance.”

“Your courage is commendable, but considering the attire, that’s the legendary Eternal Pope over there, right?” Billy whispered, “How about we leave it to Painter to solve and wait for the Pope to leave—whether the Pope continues the sacrifice or leaves, we can safely retreat.”

He perfectly avoided the topic of “Painter’s fate”.

“If I remember correctly, you once received quite a favor from Godfrey Painter,” Eugene sneered.

Billy’s mouth twitched twice. “Of course, I remember Mr. Painter’s kindness! It’s just my level, uh… I don’t want to stand by and watch him die, but this isn’t a fight I can influence. I have a wife and kids at home.”

After saying that, he glanced at Eugene. “If I remember correctly, the Investigation Knights detest evil and wouldn’t risk their lives to save a sinner.”

“I’m not saving a sinner. The Goddess once chose Godfrey Painter. His oracle… he should fulfill greater value than dying here.”

Eugene turned his gaze back to the battlefield. His fingers gripped the hilt of his sword.

“From now on, all expenses used for the fight will be covered by the Fifth Brigade of the Investigation Knights. If anything goes wrong, I won’t implicate you.”

“Ah, alright… Wait?! What’s that?”

Something round and rolling tumbled down the slope—a small, worn sheepskin ball.

While the two men talked, Knight Saint Bernard hid nearby. He wrinkled his nose at the Pope, growling unhappily in his throat, but couldn’t suppress the shivering of his body.

Knight Saint Bernard’s small ball had slowly shaken out of its pocket. The moment it gained freedom, the little sheepskin ball rolled down the slabs, bouncing off rocks, heading towards the center of the battlefield.

Knight Saint Bernard was startled. He apologetically glanced at the two humans, and then revealed himself, dashing down the hill on all fours.

‘This was to divert their attention,’ Eugene thought.

As knights, he didn’t need the protection of the weaker—blessed by the Goddess, her knights should wield their swords for the weak.

Taking advantage of Billy’s magic device still in effect, Eugene leaped out from behind the rock, sneaking through the shadows. He moved quietly in everyone’s blind spot, his eyes fixed on Painter and Teest’s direction.

……

In front of the altar.

“’His existence brings glory to God, and his disappearance will fulfill divinity…’ What a sad oracle.” The old Pope still smiled.

“Right? I don’t really like it either.” Painter spread his hands. “It doesn’t suit me at all.”

The old Pope ignored Painter’s playful words. “The oracle is not bad. It’s useful. When the time is right, you will become a glorious step for my God.”

“Ah, I guess the Temple of Life thought the same.” Painter smiled bitterly.

He stood there honestly, looking ready to be captured.

“Fischer, control Painter. Continue the sacrifice.” The old Pope commanded the remaining followers.

Most of the Eternalists had died, and the missing guards at the altar were now replaced by the strange black goats.

“Yes.” High Priest Fischer bowed his head, his gaze flickering towards Teest. Teest suspected he was waiting for a command—not yet, he thought.

Without a response, Fischer could only raise his sleeve. Black and red chains shot out from his sleeve, instantly wrapping around Painter. The chains were so heavy that Painter couldn’t stand, kneeling on one knee.

A dozen steps away, the dog-headed beastman’s sheepskin ball rolled quickly. Every time it was about to stop, it would be kicked away by jumping chunks of meat. The brownish-yellow ball gradually turned deep red from the blood and flesh.

The old Pope personally held Teest, stepping towards the altar.

‘Not good,’ Teest thought. At such a time, the old thing was still cautious—Painter was a mage, known thoroughly by the church, and was left for Fischer to capture. But for himself, this guy insisted on personally securing him, clearly not trusting High Priest Fischer to completely restrain him.

It seemed that having an oracle that sounds too destructive wasn’t necessarily a good thing.

If Teest wasn’t mistaken, this old bag was probably going to be harsh on him—when facing an unknown and powerful target, the strategy is to cripple them until they are completely immobile, then take them back to the prison for treatment. Teest was taught this a thousand times while in the Eternal Church and witnessed such tragedies over a hundred times.

Being captured with such an oracle, he would definitely receive top-level imprisonment treatment. Whether he could get his limbs back before he was absolutely obedient was questionable.

Teest instinctively looked towards Nol’s direction… How miraculous. It was a critical moment of fate, yet he felt much calmer than he had imagined.

The two stopped in front of the stacked offerings, with the old pope still firmly grasping Teest, beginning to chant strange incantations.

The upper and lower magic circles were lit up again, and the air vibrated continuously, becoming dense and ominous. The nearby chunks of flesh wriggled more crazily, like caterpillars thrown alive onto a hot iron plate.

The sheepskin ball was fiercely hit by the crazed chunks of flesh. Being an inanimate object without life or breath, it bounced all the way to the Pope’s feet.

The Pope calmly ignored it.

Teest, however, looked down at it. The crudely stitched leather ball was soaked with fresh blood, the dark red blood shimmering at the seams like a bizarre apple.

Blood is part of a corpse, and if he could control the creatures he killed… What about controlling a part of them?

He wasn’t Nol so he didn’t understand the system’s logic for skill determination. Just looking at the system’s skill description, it was very likely not possible—the prerequisite for Dominion was killing, and one cannot kill blood.

No, that’s not right. One should say “under normal circumstances”, one cannot kill blood.

…It seems like he really found a loophole to exploit.

The sacrificial magic circle emitted a bright light.

In the blinding brilliance, Teest retracted his aura, silently throwing a [King of Eternal Sleep] at the blood-soaked ball.

‘Come on.’ Teest focused on the blood-soaked ball.

Come on, since you were once part of a living being, let me bestow upon you the absolute concept of “death”… Let me dominate you.

At the same time, Knight Saint Bernard slipped on the flesh-covered ground. The ground was slick with sticky viscera, and the dog-headed knight couldn’t stop sliding. He slid down the muddy slope, heading straight for the bizarre flock of goats.

Knight Saint Bernard had never seen such strange creatures. His animal instincts were screaming, and his fur stood on end. In a panic, he instinctively used his most common innate skill—

[Shepherding: Control a flock of up to 200 sheep.

※Effective on all breeds of sheep.]

The system explicitly defined it. Facing the divinely gifted skill of the Eternal Son, the outcome was obvious—

In the shocked gaze of the Eternalists, the strange flock obediently parted. The dog-headed knight tumbled and scrambled towards the altar, towards the Pope holding Teest.

Knight Saint Bernard was tossed about, not thinking about the enemy’s strength or the battlefield situation. When it reached the altar, it had only one simple thought.

This old man has captured a guest from the Sheepskin Ball Village!

It leaped up, biting at the pope’s arm with hostility.

A weak and laughable creature.

The Eternal Pope remained unmoved, continuing the sacrificial chant—the sacrifice was about to be completed. He would not stop for such a lowly creature, making his God wait.

In a brief instant, four things nearly happened simultaneously.

The moment Knight Saint Bernard attacked, the Eternal Pope casually stepped back half a step, just enough to avoid the bite. But in doing so, he stepped on something—wet, slightly hard, a small leather ball soaked in the scent of blood.

It wasn’t there before.

The Eternal Pope lost his balance for a moment. In that second, he chose not to interrupt the ceremony but to persist and finish the last of the prayers.

Instantly, the offerings on the altar turned to mush, disappearing like melting snow. In the explosive white light, the old Pope raised his hand, setting up a defense in the direction of the strongest hostility.

There was a clang as Eugene’s attack hit the shield.

The sacrifice was partially successful. The Eternal Pope smiled, just waiting another thirty seconds for the ancient altar to be fully activated, and he could go to the oracle’s land.

From this moment on, he need not focus on the sacrifice. In this short half-minute before departure, he would personally deal with these blasphemers.

In a sense, the old pope wasn’t wrong. Among all the “people” present, Eugene’s hostility was indeed the strongest.

The problem is, a “God” can hide his killing intent.

Taking advantage of the moment the old Pope raised his hand in defense, Teest managed to break free. With a twist of his body, golden threads quietly wound around the limbs of the Eternal Pope. At the same time, the altar shook incessantly. Accompanied by thunderous roars, something was returning to its place—

Above the altar, two large clusters of blue flames ignited. They burned so fiercely that they even pierced through the surrounding dazzling white light. Chains broke, and stone sculptures collapsed. Far from diminishing, the shaking of the altar became even more exaggerated. Accompanied by a bone-chilling murderous intent, a terrifying aura spread out. Without a doubt, it was the unique bloodline pressure of a dragon.

After two hundred years, the undead dragon, Telistam, awoke.

“Painter, [Mercy Countdown]. Eugene, Fischer, Saint Bernard.”

Nol stood up from the chaos on the altar platform, his tone frighteningly calm. [Mercy Countdown] transports the designated target and oneself to an alternate space. Painter had used it as an hourly room before, and now it was just right.

“…Telistam, seek your revenge.”

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The author has something to say:

Nol: Everyone’s dead. I wonder to whom you’ll pass the cost to (.

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