Outside the Vampire Castle, as Ling Xiaoxiao and her group approached once more, the cursed land beneath their feet stirred restlessly.
A tall, mature woman in pure white holy robes walked up to Ling Xiaoxiao, her demeanor somewhat awkward and bashful.
“Sister Ling, we meet again.”
Her eyes held a trace of unconcealed admiration, yet an embarrassed flush appeared on her elegant, mature face, lending her a touch of girlish shyness.
‘Someone so grown-up, acting like a child.’ Ling Xiaoxiao’s brow furrowed slightly as she inwardly sighed.
She disliked anyone other than Xue Ji acting this way in front of her.
Ling Xiaoxiao’s life had been so long, the people she had known and the things she had forgotten were countless.
Just as she was about to brush the woman off casually, the image of a little golden-haired girl flashed before her eyes. It was a village blanketed in snow and ice, where the villagers were kept like livestock by vampires.
Ling Xiaoxiao, who was wandering the mortal world at the time, happened to pass by. She saw the little girl walking barefoot through the frozen wilderness, shackles on her ankles, her steps limping and unsteady.
The little girl pleaded for help from the seemingly lost traveler. Eyes that should have been innocent were instead filled with terror and hatred.
“Please, save my mother, save our village.” Her tears traced paths down her small face, red and raw from the cold; she looked on the verge of death.
Ling Xiaoxiao noticed her flimsy clothing. Even if someone found her, the icy wilderness would claim her life before help could arrive.
An impulse made her instinctively gather the girl into her arms, using her own warmth to drive away the cold.
Several tall, thin figures in black appeared as if from nowhere, moving without a sound, casting no shadows even in the light.
“Madam…? Please step aside. A slave of my household has escaped, and we must take her back now.” He spoke while trying hard to maintain a gentlemanly demeanor, even though Ling Xiaoxiao’s disheveled appearance at the time made her gender hard to discern.
“A slave? I think not.”
A horrifying scar on the girl’s wrist looked as if it had been torn open repeatedly after healing. Even in temperatures dozens of degrees below zero, the wound was infected and festering.
In her dazed state, the girl murmured, “Run, big sister, run. Don’t let them catch you.”
What followed was Ling Xiaoxiao, alone with her sword, purging the vampires controlling the village, then guarding the settlement for half a year.
The little girl who once followed persistently behind Ling Xiaoxiao was now a mature Pope.
Ling Xiaoxiao rarely smiled at people, but she offered one now, though it went no further.
Pope Aliyah couldn’t hide the disappointment in her heart, especially after glimpsing the photo of a white-haired girl on Ling Xiaoxiao’s communicator.
“Is she… your sister?” Aliyah asked, a faint hope in her voice.
At the question, a radiant smile blossomed on Ling Xiaoxiao’s face. “No,” she said, inexplicably proud. “She is my beloved.”
“I see. She’s very cute.” Aliyah said quickly before walking away, afraid Ling Xiaoxiao might see her expression.
No one saw the tears that began to fall steadily down her cheeks.
…
The group stepped into the castle’s domain.
The bloody mist in the sky began to coalesce and take shape. Swarms of crimson bats darkened the sky, swirling above the strike force.
[Welcome to my divine realm.]
Cain’s voice echoed through the air. The strike force of over a hundred people swiftly assumed combat stances.
Above, strange black lightning, like the claws of demons, enveloped the entire castle.
Cain stood there, dressed in ornate black and gold formal wear, a high-collared cloak black on the outside and red within draped over his shoulders. His androgynous features were marked by strikingly conspicuous eyes—black sclera with crimson irises.
“Greetings, honored guests of the United Organization.”
“To think the Guardian of Huaxia and the Pope of the Sacred Inquisition would grace us with your presence. I am truly flattered.”
He walked along a red carpet and performed a flawlessly standard gentleman’s bow.
If not for the immense, ocean-like pressure radiating from him, everyone might have thought him merely an elegant nobleman.
“Attack!” Pope Aliyah had no intention of wasting words, initiating the battle first.
A pillar of holy light descended from the heavens. Its tremendous impact shook the entire castle, and the sacred power forcibly carved out a domain of their own within this cursed land.
At the Pope’s command, a formation of thirty nuns began an exorcism ritual.
Sacred hymns spread through the space. A mithril cross, responding to the call, manifested ethereal chains that bound Cain with unerring accuracy.
“Oh? My friends, why must we not converse peacefully?” Although restricted by the holy hymns and silver chains, Cain maintained his gentlemanly demeanor. “Guardian of Huaxia, will you join the fray as well?”
Before his words even finished echoing, Ling Xiaoxiao, spiritual sword in hand, had already beheaded this manifestation of Cain with one slash, then pierced through it with another strike, causing an internal explosion of Chongming Flame.
Cain, who had just made his appearance, was utterly annihilated.
Everyone present was an elite transferred from various nations, each possessing strength far surpassing high-level Awakened, reaching another tier altogether. Even so, Ling Xiaoxiao’s single sword stroke left them all in awe.
“Oh, my God!”
“Ura!”
“Did you know, actually, the Chongming Bird originated from our great Korea.”
Aliyah gestured for them to quiet down. The situation was not that simple.
A grave expression also settled on Ling Xiaoxiao’s face.
“You brought this upon yourselves. Now prostrate yourselves before the might of a god!” Cain’s voice held an inexplicable, irresistible authority.
He spread his arms, unleashing his pressure. It fell upon those present like a mountain, crushing the air from their lungs.
Except for Ling Xiaoxiao and Aliyah. The two swiftly employed their abilities—the cultivator’s arrays and the Pope’s blessings activated simultaneously, dissolving the immense pressure.
But this placed a tremendous burden on Aliyah. Frowning, she gritted her teeth to keep pace with Ling Xiaoxiao.
“You don’t have to force yourself to follow me.” Ling Xiaoxiao’s aura surged violently as she pointed her sword at Cain atop the castle.
Aliyah lowered her head with a bitter smile. Choosing not to hold Ling Xiaoxiao back, she led the others to provide support from the flank.
‘Is it still not enough? I’ve worked so hard, yet I still can’t remain by your side?’ A pang of heartache shot through Aliyah. Ling Xiaoxiao was like a star on the horizon, visible yet forever out of reach.
Ling Xiaoxiao thrust her sword forth. Icy sword energy transformed into a sky-full of sword light, enveloping Cain.
Immediately after, the others unleashed their own unique skills. Following that sword stroke, elemental-based supernatural attacks bombarded Cain’s castle in an endless stream.
“How truly tedious…”
Cain’s voice echoed within their minds. Facing the onslaught of elemental assaults, he merely made a casual grasping motion, and time seemed to freeze.
With a gentle clench and release, all the supernatural attacks in the air snuffed out like candles. The assault capable of leveling a city was effortlessly neutralized by Cain.
He raised a hand. The ground began to writhe. Blood-red soil erupted from beneath the castle’s flagstones, morphing into ferocious demons clad in heavy armor, charging towards the group in an endless tide.
It was as if hell had descended. An unceasing stream of crimson demons poured from the earth. Not only that, but holy-attribute powers were suppressed here; even Ling Xiaoxiao’s Chongming Flame found it difficult to ignite.
‘This is troublesome.’
Ling Xiaoxiao swung her sword relentlessly. Each wave of sword energy could slay a hundred foes, yet even this couldn’t stem the tide of the bloody hellscape.