Chapter 25: No Escape!
The Black-Cloaked Guards of Moon Lake Castle were all elites, high-level gods selected through rigorous screening.
Cromptom and his three demons had only barely managed to defeat a single Black-Cloaked Guard. Of course, this was mainly because Cromptom was too weak, and the other two demons were merely average among high-level gods.
"We've only killed one, and now two more are coming? If they catch up, we're dead for sure!" Cromptom was terrified to the point of madness, frantically fleeing upward along the secret passage.
"What's going on?" Cromptom's expression changed.
The end of the secret passage ahead was actually sealed shut!
"How is this possible? How could this passage be blocked? There should be an exit!" How could Cromptom know that Linley and his three companions, while fleeing earlier, had moved the wall to seal the passage in order to prevent Cromptom from chasing them?
At this moment, Cromptom was flying for his life!
How could he have time to check whether the wall at the end of the secret passage had a mechanism? He didn't have time! Two Black-Cloaked Guards were chasing him from behind; a moment's hesitation could mean his doom.
He had only one option—to charge straight through!
Cromptom, frantic and disregarding everything else, punched the wall at the end of the passage with all his might, holding nothing back—
"Boom!" The wall shattered with a loud crash. Cromptom broke through and burst into the room, but this slowed him down slightly. The two Black-Cloaked Guards behind him, already stronger than him, caught up in that instant!
"Trying to escape!" an enraged roar echoed. A black figure shot through the broken wall and, midair, swung a massive blade with the force of splitting heaven and earth. The space around them twisted violently, trembling intensely, and spatial ripples spread outward like water waves.
Cromptom's face turned pale.
"No!" His expression twisted in fury as he roared in a desperate struggle before death.
"Clang!"
Cromptom raised his battle blade above his head, barely blocking the furious strike, preventing the blade from pressing down further.
But then...
The Black-Cloaked Guard's blade carried a strange fluctuation. This fluctuation passed through the blade and transmitted directly into Cromptom's head. With a "hum," Cromptom's head vibrated countless times in an instant, turning into dust!
"No!" Cromptom's piercing scream still echoed in the room.
The vibration spread from his head downward to his waist, reducing everything to fine powder.
The black figure steadied himself. It was a cold, silver-haired man holding a battle blade. The other Black-Cloaked Guard behind him whispered, "Big brother, earlier we only saw Old Five's divine clone, but this bald guy didn't die then. Old Five should be dead."
Both Black-Cloaked Guards felt deep sorrow in their hearts.
The cold, silver-haired man said in a low voice, "Of our ten brothers, most are probably dead. Those demons—if it were one-on-one, they might not be our match. But the demons outnumber us!"
Indeed, there were over twenty demons, while only ten Black-Cloaked Guards.
Weak demons could still take on a Black-Cloaked Guard two or three at a time. Among the demons, there were also strong ones. Not to mention the three five-star demons, even among the four-star demons, many could match the Black-Cloaked Guards in strength.
Suddenly, the sounds of intense fighting came from other areas on the fourth floor.
"Let's go." The two Black-Cloaked Guards didn't hesitate and immediately rushed toward that area.
On the fourth floor of Moon Lake Castle, there was a grand hall about a hundred meters wide, filled with long tables. These tables could seat hundreds of people, likely a place for the Gold-Cloaked Guards to gather and celebrate.
In a small room beside this grand hall.
Linley, Delia, Bebe, and Regina were all staying there.
Hearing the piercing scream, Bebe raised an eyebrow and said excitedly, "Boss, that voice sounds like that bald guy's."
Linley's heart stirred, and a hint of joy appeared on his face. "Yes, the sound came from around the room at the entrance of the secret passage. Cromptom probably found the body missing and wanted to chase us, but he ran into someone else at the passage's entrance." Linley knew that if Cromptom didn't die, he would definitely come after him.
Linley had been prepared to fight Cromptom.
Now it seemed someone had taken care of him for him.
Delia smiled at Regina and asked, "Regina, did you get the Moon Ring?"
"Not yet. If I had, I would have left the castle already. Why would I still be taking risks here? But it seems the Gold-Cloaked Guards have all been killed. We couldn't find any more of them later." Regina shook her head helplessly.
Linley noticed this too.
"Although some demons died during the assessment at the start, our numbers still exceeded the Gold-Cloaked Guards," Regina remarked. "And most importantly, many demons probably killed Gold-Cloaked Guards along the way."
Linley agreed in his heart.
When the demons went after the Black-Cloaked Guards, they wouldn't spare any Gold-Cloaked Guards they encountered.
"Boom!" A violent tremor shook the ground, even rattling the floor of the room Linley and his group were in.
"It's right next door." Linley was startled.
Fighting was frequent in Moon Lake Castle, and distant battles didn't bother Linley. But this fight was happening in the hall right beside them. Linley and the others carefully opened the door a crack and peered outside through the gap.
"Three Black-Cloaked Guards and eleven demons?" Linley and the others were shocked.
The three Black-Cloaked Guards had fled here first, with the demons chasing after them.
"The Black-Cloaked Guards are too few in number. They're definitely going to lose." Bebe made his judgment. Although Linley and the others were talking, they had activated their divine domains to isolate the sound, ensuring it wouldn't reach the hall outside.
Linley was amazed. "That Black-Cloaked Guard, especially the one with silver hair, is really strong. He... cultivates the Wind Elemental Laws?"
Linley's attention immediately focused on the leader of the Black-Cloaked Guards.
After the two Black-Cloaked Guards killed Cromptom, they heard the sounds of fighting and rushed over, only to find another Black-Cloaked Guard being besieged by three demons. Naturally, they joined in to help. But as soon as they acted, more demons arrived.
There were too many demons!
In the end, it became eleven against three.
In the spacious hall, eleven people fought against three.
A low, unpleasant sound like a heavy hammer pounding against the heart echoed through the hall.
It was the leader of the Black-Cloaked Guards, the silver-haired man.
Holding his battle blade, he fully unleashed the profound mysteries of the Wind Elemental Laws. Among the ten Black-Cloaked Guard brothers, they were ranked by strength. As the eldest brother, his power was nearly on par with the steward.
As his blade danced, the strange sound continued.
"What kind of noise is that?" The demons grew irritated. Even if they tried to block out external sounds, this strange noise still reached their minds, unsettling them again and again.
"Die!"
The black battle blade swung, his silver hair covering his cold eyes. The blade slashed directly at a demon.
"Clang." The blade was blocked.
"Hum!" A strange vibration transmitted into the demon's head, turning it into dust. A divine spark fell to the ground.
"Everyone be careful! He has fully fused the Sound Melody and Sound Wave profound mysteries!" Among the demons, someone knowledgeable immediately recognized it. Only by fully fusing the Sound Melody and Sound Wave profound mysteries and comprehending the Sound Essence could one achieve such terrifying attack power.
With a single strike, it not only shook the soul but also delivered both spiritual and physical attacks!
The Wind Elemental Laws had nine profound mysteries, and fusing any two had special effects. However, the fusion of Sound Melody and Sound Wave was the most famous, with incredibly fearsome power.
"That is..."
Linley, who was also studying the Sound Melody and Sound Wave profound mysteries, noticed something from the attack of the Black-Cloaked Guard leader.
"Just sound waves alone can reach this level?" Linley was extremely shocked. "And that sound—why does it have the effect of low-frequency sound waves?" Linley grew confused, his mind full of questions.
At this point, Linley had only just begun to grasp the Sound Wave and Sound Melody profound mysteries; neither had reached mastery, let alone fusion.
"It seems this Black-Cloaked Guard leader has already comprehended the Sound Essence," Linley speculated. "Even a high-level god was directly shaken into dust. How can sound waves have such power?" Linley was full of doubts. The various intricacies of Sound Melody and Sound Wave kept surfacing in his mind. Combined with the Black-Cloaked Guard leader's attack, Linley seemed to understand something. "Ah, no, that's wrong. The Sound Wave profound mystery isn't like that. So it's not just internal vibration, but also external physical attacks..."
The Black-Cloaked Guard leader's attack made Linley realize something in an instant.
And through that realization, he took the first step into fusing the Sound Wave and Sound Melody profound mysteries!
Delia, Bebe, and Regina were stunned to see Linley sit down cross-legged on the spot.
"What's wrong with him?" Regina was surprised.
Bebe's expression was strange as he whispered, "Boss, Boss might have had an epiphany again."
"An epiphany?" Regina was also amazed.
Although the Black-Cloaked Guard leader was powerful, there were also strong demons among the eleven. In the fierce battle, two of the three Black-Cloaked Guards fell, leaving only their leader. The demons were reduced to seven.
Seven demons surrounded and attacked him alone.
"They're all dead. Second Brother, Third Brother... they're all dead!" The Black-Cloaked Guard leader went berserk.
"Ah—!" He threw his head back and let out a mad roar.
Visible spatial ripples spread from around the Black-Cloaked Guard leader, radiating toward the seven surrounding demons. As his strongest desperate move, this roar unleashed the full power of the Sound Essence.
With that single roar, two of the seven demons became completely dazed, their heads spinning, unable to stay alert.
"Swish!" "Swish!"...
At the same moment, the Black-Cloaked Guard leader hurled three arrows with his hand, aiming directly at one of the dazed demons.
"Thud!"
That demon, defenseless, was pierced by the three arrows.
"Boom!" The demon fell to the ground.
"Too bad I only had three arrows. Otherwise, I could have killed another demon," the Black-Cloaked Guard leader thought silently. Even if a high-level god was dazed, a single God-Slaying Arrow coated with soul poison wasn't enough to kill them.
So, he used three arrows on one.
The other dazed demon escaped unscathed.
"Kill!" The five demons who were less affected by the roar attacked the Black-Cloaked Guard leader simultaneously.
"Boom!" The Black-Cloaked Guard leader's body exploded.
The hall was littered with corpses, and the six remaining demons breathed a sigh of relief.
"Cultivating the Wind Elemental Laws, fast and unpredictable, and fusing Sound Wave and Sound Melody," one demon shook his head and sighed. "We were really unlucky to run into this guy. I wonder if even ten demons survived this time."
Linley, immersed in his epiphany, didn't know the Black-Cloaked Guard leader had died. Lost in the myriad mysteries, he felt a deep connection with nature.
But—
"Boss, wake up!" Bebe sent a soul message directly, snapping Linley out of it.
"What's wrong, Bebe?" Linley looked at Bebe in surprise.
"The most intense battle is happening, and it's also the most dangerous. We could get caught up in it at any moment," Bebe whispered.
At this moment, not only Bebe but also Delia and Regina were staring outside in shock. Linley peered through the door crack and saw—outside, a black dragon covered in spikes coiled in the hall.
Loyce and another five-star demon hovered in midair, facing off against the black dragon.
The other six demons stood in the corners of the hall.
"You can't escape," Loyce said in a low voice.
"Tell me, what's the bounty for your mission? I'll pay you ten times that. Just leave now," the black dragon said in a deep voice.
"So the castle's owner is a divine beast," Loyce sneered. "But you'll pay us ten times the bounty? Hmph, if we kill you, everything in your spatial ring will be ours. Besides..." Loyce's face was as cold as frost. "You killed my second sister!"