Chapter 45: The Flame of Rebirth
The altar fell silent. Su Xiao dispelled his crystal shield as blood dripped from his chin. He wanted to move forward, but excruciating pain surged from every part of his body.
Amu and the Wrathful Orphan were the most severely injured, especially Amu. The Dark Rings and Light Blades had spread from the Archbishop's scepter, and during the final two seconds, over 80% of those attacks were endured by Amu.
"We won... cough, cough, cough."
Qis knelt on one knee, blood spilling from his mouth, yet he was laughing—a laugh of pure exhilaration.
"You... did well. I thought no one could kill me anymore. You deserve a reward."
The Archbishop's severed head spoke. The Wrathful Orphan's eyes widened as it swallowed the head whole, chewing with all its might.
"Heh heh heh heh~"
Even as the Archbishop's head was being crushed, it let out a chilling laugh. Anyone faint of heart witnessing this scene would either collapse in terror or flee outright.
"Light illuminates darkness. Shadows are born within light and dark. Fire dispels shadows..."
Crack.
The Archbishop's skull was shattered, but his headless body seized the Wrathful Orphan by the throat as flames erupted.
The Wrathful Orphan let out a pained howl, its claws tearing at the Archbishop's headless corpse. The body rose, hurling the Wrathful Orphan against the wall like trash. A splatter of black-red blood exploded across the stone, resembling a tomato violently smashed against a surface.
The Archbishop's headless torso leaned forward, arms hanging limp as flames engulfed his body. The fire swirled like smoke.
As the Archbishop's form was consumed by flames, Su Xiao immediately retreated. Advancing now would mean certain death.
He pulled out a recovery item, but the moment he used Dragon-Slaying Flash to cut open the vial's seal, flames rose from the bottle.
He discarded the potion. If it were one of his own concoctions, this wouldn't happen—he would have already used it the instant he drew it. In combat, his first choice was skin-permeable types, crushed instantly in his palm. Second was injectable types, administered by clenching his fist to inject through his palm.
Drinkable potions like this were usable at lower ranks, but by the Seventh Rank, enemies never gave you the chance to drink.
When the flames dissipated, a figure emerged—the Archbishop, reborn through his "Light/Dark: Fire of Rebirth" ability. His robes were slightly damaged, his scepter covered in fire patterns, its tip radiating both darkness and light.
A flicker of anger appeared in the Archbishop's eyes. He pointed at Amu, darkness gathering at his fingertip. He knew Amu was an ice-type and needed to be eliminated first.
A hair-thin, perfectly straight black line shot from the Archbishop's fingertip, racing toward Amu's chest.
In that moment, Amu knew—it was going to die. No other possibility. The instant that black line struck, death would follow. Its health was only 12.6%. This was an execution ability.
Boom!
A palm blocked the black line. Shockwaves spread, dust billowing. Within the haze, short black hair fluttered, and a pair of crimson-glowing eyes flickered faintly.
Space fluctuations dissipated. Su Xiao clenched his hand, and the black line shattered with a crackling sound. He was immune to execution abilities.
Blade Grandmaster Lv.20 Ultimate Ability: Soul Blade (Passive) — Immune to 50% soul damage. Nullifies one fatal execution effect.
As the dust settled, Su Xiao exhaled a faint wisp of blood energy, locking eyes with the Archbishop.
For an instant, the Archbishop was stunned. He couldn't understand why this man hadn't died.
Inside the Dawn Adventure Team's channel:
Su Xiao: "Amu, grab me and retreat immediately. Head to the Saint."
Amu saw the message instantly. Ice spread as it grabbed Su Xiao's arm and charged toward the doorway of the empty room.
After Su Xiao withstood the Archbishop's execution ability, the execution was indeed nullified, but dark energy rampaged through his body, rendering him unable to move even a finger for a short time.
Soon, Su Xiao heard explosions behind him. For now, that was none of his concern.
Amu pushed Su Xiao through the corridor, reaching the church outside.
"Saint, heal my injuries."
"As you wish, Lord Bai Ye."
The Saint grasped Su Xiao's right hand. Compared to her soft, delicate touch, Su Xiao was more focused on the holy energy merging into his body.
The Archbishop probably never dreamed that the tool he considered worthless would now aid his enemy. Qis and the Wrathful Orphan were locked in battle with the Archbishop, the thunderous sounds indicating a fierce struggle.
Su Xiao's health rapidly recovered, his wounds healing. Soon, his health was fully restored.
After healing Su Xiao, the Saint began treating Amu. Su Xiao wasted no time, sprinting back through the corridor to the empty room.
Upon returning, Su Xiao saw that the area had become a sea of flames. Qis was barely holding on within the inferno, while the Wrathful Orphan had transformed into a four-limbed, fanged monster, clashing head-on with the Archbishop—it was immune to fire.
Seeing Su Xiao return, Qis felt a wave of relief. But when he noticed Su Xiao's fully healed injuries, his eyes went wide.
"You... how did you do that? Give me some too."
"It was the Saint."
"Hold them off for a bit. I'll be right back."
"The Saint's power is exhausted."
"I..."
A torrent of curses churned in Qis's throat, but he couldn't voice them. Su Xiao was already charging through the flames toward the Archbishop.
Su Xiao was in the best condition now. He had to single-handedly draw the Archbishop's full firepower, or this battle would surely be lost.
[Warning: You are being burned by the "Flame of Rebirth." You will take 272 burn damage per second.]
[Warning: For every 0.5 meters the Hunter approaches the Archbishop, flame damage increases.]
...
When Su Xiao closed to within a few meters of the Archbishop, the burn damage had reached 470 per second. In a few minutes, he would be burned to death.
Checking the Archbishop's health—36% remaining. Good news: the Archbishop wasn't at full strength after his "rebirth."
Within the flames, figures formed of fire lunged at the Wrathful Orphan. The Archbishop's condition was poor, but his health was rapidly recovering.
Scanning above, Su Xiao spotted a female phantom, wings spread, less than 50 centimeters tall. This must be the Light Source Spirit.
Finally, this ability had appeared. Fighting the current Archbishop required a swift resolution.
[Blood Feather] shattered, surging toward the Light Source Spirit. As an energy lifeform and a healing type, it was naturally affected by Blood Feather.
The Blood Feather silently adhered to the Light Source Spirit's surface. A tinge of red seeped into the white light it emitted. The Archbishop immediately sensed something wrong—his entire body was stinging. His combat instincts kicked in, and he ordered the Light Source Spirit to retreat and extinguish.
The Light Source Spirit let out a mournful cry, its body rapidly splitting apart. It cast a furious glance at the Archbishop before dissipating.
"Blade Path: Azure Demon."
A cyan-blue blade arc shot forth. Su Xiao closed in on the Archbishop in a few steps.
Boom! Flames converged. Su Xiao felt the surrounding temperature spike dramatically. The Archbishop was in a weakened state, unable to use dark energy and most of his light abilities.
Clang.
The long blade swept past, its tip grazing the Archbishop's neck. The Archbishop clenched his fist, flames thickening until Su Xiao could see nothing ahead.
A whistling sound came from the side. A massive black arrow pierced through part of the flames, embedding itself in the Archbishop's chest. He staggered back several steps. The Wrathful Orphan had somehow appeared behind him.
Pfft.
A sharp, elongated tail pierced through the Archbishop's back. After fighting Su Xiao, Qis, and the Wrathful Orphan to such an extent, the Archbishop's apparent rebirth was merely a facade—his injuries were severe.
Even with the tail piercing him, the Archbishop's expression remained calm. His Light/Dark abilities had recovered.
"Darkness, Repent."
Darkness spread. Within it, a short figure charged forward, wielding a staff-blade.
"For the Blacksmith."
Qis muttered under his breath as the staff-blade thrust forward. Cracks appeared on his arm gripping the weapon. A cold gleam flashed in the Archbishop's eyes.
Shrrrk! The staff-blade pierced through the Archbishop's skull. Remarkably, Qis had been at least seven meters away from the Archbishop moments ago. This was Qis's trump card: Dark Walk: Silence.
Su Xiao's long blade emitted dark blue smoke as he pushed forward through the flames. Then, a sudden change occurred.
Darkness, light, and the newborn flame converged simultaneously—all surging toward Su Xiao.
[You have been hit by an unknown ability. You take 17,229 points of Light/Dark damage.]
[Your burn status intensifies. You will take 895 burn damage per second.]
[You are subject to a control effect. Nullified.]
[You are subject to...]
...
A cascade of notifications appeared. Su Xiao's health plummeted to the brink of death. The Archbishop had sensed the threat.
Su Xiao didn't retreat a single step. Instead, he advanced, delivering a diagonal slash. The Wrathful Orphan was restraining the Archbishop—this strike would definitely land.
The long blade tore through the flames, leaving a dark blue slash mark. Then, everything fell silent.
"This is..."
The Archbishop raised his right arm, staring at the cut on it. Black smoke drifted from the wound.
Thud. The Archbishop collapsed onto his back, slain by the Demon Blade.
The flames dissipated. Su Xiao gasped for breath, his entire body burning with pain. Sparks flickered on his long leather coat.
"We won?"
"We won."
"Roar."
Seconds later, Su Xiao, Qis, and the Wrathful Orphan all slowly backed away.
"How fascinating. I've never experienced anything as interesting as today in my entire life. Hahaha~"
Qis laughed heartily. The Wrathful Orphan grinned as well. Different goals, even mutual hostility—combat was inevitable.
"Wrathful, I want your heart. You wouldn't give it to me, would you?"
Qis spoke with a smile. He needed the Wrathful Orphan's heart, along with the World Seed inside the Archbishop.
"Roar!"
The Wrathful Orphan bellowed. It wanted the Furnace, the Saint's Holy Heart energy, and the Archbishop's World Seed. It hadn't had the chance to kill the Saint before—now it did.
"Hey, I never asked your name. What's your goal?"
"The Archbishop's World Seed."
"What a coincidence. We all want the same thing. No wonder we could fight together."
Bone hands emerged beside Qis. Sparks flickered on the Wrathful Orphan's body. Blood energy spread around Su Xiao.
The second round began. Three severely wounded powerhouses clashed. Today, only one would walk out alive.