I gripped the Cyan Netherworld Sword tightly. I felt like my heart was about to jump out of my throat. Finally, one of the legendary Nine Sovereigns of h.e.l.l, the strongest expert of the Roland Empire, the former legend who single-handedly killed his own ruler and buried his entire kingdom, Thunder the Blade of Death, was about to appear before my eyes!
Crack crack crack...
The b.l.o.o.d.y hole was about two hundred meters wide. Countless purple lightning bolts could be seen shooting across its interior. It also proved my suspicions because it was well known that Thunder was an expert of controlling lightning. He must"ve used his powerful mastery of lightning to tear a spatial rift and connect the purgatory and the human world.
A series of rumbles later, a steady but shrill voice entered my ears, "Mengchuan, my old friend, what are you up to again?"
A figure clad in dark blue armor suddenly emerged from the center of the web of lightning. There was a runic sword surrounded by lightning in his hand. Clearly, this was the legendary sword that corrupted Thunder, the Blade of Thunder!
I used Dark Pupils, and Thunder"s stats appeared before my eyes—
Thunder the Blade of Death (Immortal Rank Boss)
Level: 195
Attack: ???
Defense: ???
HP: ???
Skills: ???
Introduction: Thunder the Blade of Death was once the strongest expert of the Roland Empire. He was famed throughout the continent as the man who single-handedly killed the three-headed ancient dragon who invaded the kingdom, and honored as the empire"s greatest brave. Unfortunately, a unique divine weapon named the Blade of Thunder appeared from the cracks of purgatory not long after his achievements, and it was so powerful that it could corrupt anyone who touched it. Thunder was no exception, lost within its power the second he touched the weapon. He killed his own ruler, the guard captain Mengchuan, conquered half the continent with the Blade of Thunder, and turned the Roland Empire into a place of desolation.
……
The truth was finally revealed, and I was ready to fight at a moment"s notice. At the same time, I groaned inside my head, "Xinran, you"re killing me again. How on earth am I going to beat a Level 195 Immortal Rank boss?"
However, Thunder didn"t even seem to notice me. He simply stared at Mengchuan and sneered tauntingly, "Old friend, do you know how pitiful and saddening you look right now? What a joke. Look at me, I now possess enough power to rival heaven and earth. In the purgatory, I am wors.h.i.+pped like a G.o.d, and in the human world, I am the G.o.d of slaughter. I can annihilate a human empire with a turn of my palm!"
But Mengchuan simply smiled pityingly at Thunder. "Thunder, there is not a bone of loyalty in your despicable soul. You had killed the king, destroyed the empire and killed millions of people. If only I had the strength to cut off your head with my own two hands…"
Thunder erupted in anger. "You stubborn fool! Why would I serve under that foolish and decrepit ruler when I can wield unrivaled power instead? Even now, you are just a prisoner, and I, Thunder, am the G.o.d, the king, the ruler of everything! How can you not see who is the final victor, Mengchuan?"
Mengchuan retorted disdainfully, "I am not yet savage enough to gain power through betrayal. Thunder, I"ve seen through your despicable nature a long time ago. My only regret is not advising the king to execute you when I still had the chance!"
Lightning raged around Thunder as pointed his sword angrily at Mengchuan. "What impudence even in your moment of death! Hmph, I"ve had enough of your blind loyalty. I don"t wish to hear your voice ever again. Come, I shall release you from your misery right now!"
Mengchuan sneered. "Blind loyalty? My loyalty lies with the Roland Empire. That is why I hate you more for your inhuman murder of our people than your loathsome murder of our king! Thunder, you heartless devil, when will you realize that the ultimate power is to protect, not destroy!"
Thunder sneered right back. "Is that so? Why don"t you show me how strong the power to protect is, then?"
Thunder abruptly descended from the sky and landed on the ground. His dark blue war boots rasped loudly against the grainy ground as he walked toward Mengchuan. It was clear from his lightning sword and his killing intent that he planned to murder his former friend.
……
"Arf arf arf…"
Dada jumped out of its master"s embrace and blocked in front of him even before me. It glared at Thunder with ferocious eyes.
"Oh? Are you looking to die as well, tiny animal?"
Thunder"s eyes sharpened. He abruptly kicked Dada and launched at the wall where Mengchuan was sealed earlier like a cannonball. The unpleasant sound of breaking bones entered my ears, and Dada collapsed limply by its master"s side. Even now, it was barking, wagging its tail weakly and trying to lick its master"s palm.
"Dada, my friend…"
Mengchuan tried to crawl to Dada with all his might.
I blocked in front of Thunder and stopped him from approaching the duo. One, allowing Thunder to kill Mengchuan meant that I would fail my quest. Two, there was no way in h.e.l.l I was allowing anyone to kill Mengchuan and Dada before my eyes.
"d.a.m.n adventurer!"
Thunder shouted in anger before swinging the Blade of Thunder at me. Knowing that there was no chance I could endure or parry the attack, I hurriedly a.s.sumed a Guard stance!
Bang!
My arms shook violently from the impact. A seemingly infinite amount of lightning flooded my senses and turned almost half my body fully numb. As the powerful blow threw against the wall, I lost more than half of my HP—31092!
What the f.u.c.k, he did how much damage to me in one hit?! If I wasn"t guarding, I wouldn"t even be able to withstand one hit from him!
……
Thunder chuckled disdainfully before throwing Mengchuan"s body into the air with his sword. Then, he slashed him in half and sent his body flying at least over ten meters away.
"Arf arf…"
Dada slowly got to its feet and walked toward Mengchuan. It was wobbling, but its eyes were still s.h.i.+ning with a fierce light. It growled mournfully and painfully as it tried to make it to its master.
Thunder simply watched indifferently from the side.
Mengchuan was also looking up at Dada. When he saw how his pet was swaying on its feet, tears actually dripped out of his murky eyes, and his mouth was open in a hoa.r.s.e, powerless scream. It sounded even worse than a person"s wails.
Step by step, Dada walked toward Mengchuan. Second by second, time was sapping away its life energy. In the end, it dropped powerlessly to the ground before it could rejoin its master.
It died… it died just like that...
"Dada…"
Mengchuan roared hoa.r.s.ely as if he was crying, "My friend, my eternal friend…"
……
Thunder laughed arrogantly before walking toward me. I was the only one left who could be a threat to him, no matter how small. I drank a health potion and used Tenacity of the Dead immediately.
+8617!
+5000!
Thunder"s sword was br.i.m.m.i.n.g with intimidating power. Energetic thorns sprouted from the blade as if he was planning to deal me the fatal blow.
"Roar roar…"
Suddenly, the Sky Obsidian Greedy Wolf blocked in front of me, hair raised and glaring hatefully at Thunder. I was surprised. The little wolf I knew was a cowardly animal, and this was the first time it risked its life for me. Was it affected by Dada"s death?
"Heh, another animal!"
Thunder laughed disdainfully and kicked the Sky Obsidian Greedy Wolf into the air. The gap of power was way too big, and it bounced multiple times across the walls before it finally landed back on the ground, yelping in pain. It so happened that it landed right next to Dada, their heads touching.
……
"You motherf.u.c.ker!"
Furious, I raised the Cyan Netherworld Sword and used the G.o.d Binding Art!
MISS!
I wasn"t surprised by this result in the slightest. With my current level and stats, there was not a chance in h.e.l.l I could"ve shackled Thunder. I hurriedly activated the s.h.i.+eld of Evening and made myself invulnerable for 12 seconds. Against a boss like this, every second I didn"t die was a second earned. Plus, what else could I do in a situation like this?
I launched my most powerful combo, Universe Break + Burning Blade Slash at the boss"s head. It was also everything I had. Thunder"s level was so high that not even Dark Pupils could identify a so-called weak point. In fact, a super boss at his level might not even have a weak point to speak of. The only way to beat him was with absolute power.
Clang clang clang!
A bunch of sparks exploded from Thunder"s body as four damage numbers appeared—
8074!
904!
1035!
1290!
It was such a pitiful amount of damage that it was depressing. Universe Break was the only skill that did a noteworthy amount of damage because it basically ignored Defense. As for the Burning Blade Slash, Thunder didn"t even bother reacting to it.
Despair and shock filled my heart. I could teleport back to the city now, but I was reluctant to do so. I couldn"t and wouldn"t give up on Mengchuan, Dada, and the Sky Obsidian Greedy Wolf no matter what!
"Haha, you d.a.m.ned kid!"
Thunder swung his sword and hit the s.h.i.+eld of Evening seven or eight times in a row. If this s.h.i.+eld wasn"t unbreakable, I would"ve been cut into shreds by his ridiculous power already!
My eyes were almost bloodshot with urgency as Thunder knocked me back repeatedly.
Suddenly, a draconic roar suddenly broke from the sky. Then, an ugly dragon"s head poked out of the clouds, stared at me and said sincerely, "Oh, my beloved master"s big brother, master and I have come to save you. Hey you, despicable Thunder the Blade of Death, your days as a despicable man have come to an end…"
Joy overwhelmed me when I looked into the sky. Xinran had finally arrived on the Winged Silver Dragon. If she was even a few seconds late, I would"ve been decapitated by Thunder already.
Xinran abruptly jumped off the dragon"s back and floated into the sky. Her b.l.o.o.d.y cape flapped loudly against the wind, and the way she was holding the Dragonbone Spear looked ridiculously cool. She smiled at me and said, "Sorry for putting you on such a harrowing journey, big bro. I"ll take care of this…"
Completely caught off-guard by this sudden turn of events, Thunder murmured, "Wind… Wind Singer Xinran? Why are you here, you traitor?"
Xinran pointed her spear at him. "Remember that time I cut your ribs in half, stupid? Come, Blade of Death, it is time we end our fight. This time, I won"t allow you to escape."
……
I was br.i.m.m.i.n.g with excitement when a sudden burst of red light behind me caught my attention. I was stunned when I turned around and saw what it was.
The Sky Obsidian Greedy Wolf had gotten up to its feet before I realized it. Next to it, Dada"s body was dissolving into red light and concentrating on the Sky Obsidian Greedy Wolf"s body. The wolf"s fur was dyed red in color, and it looked more fearsome and deadly than before!
Ding~!
System Notice: Please be informed that your pet "Sky Obsidian Greedy Wolf" is absorbing the soul of the loyal guardian dog!