Chapter 362
Countless curses materialized in the air, tracing the arc of the scythe.
The Jester’s Trap.
The moment that scythe swung, the curse it unleashed created a domain of control that made evasion and defense impossible.
Because it was a domain that interfered with the laws themselves, Chris couldn’t simply ignore it.
Frozen in place, he was on the verge of becoming the Jester’s prey.
But—
“Whether it’s annihilation or unavoidable evasion, you just break it.”
A brilliant light erupted!
The domain of light engulfed their cursed territory.
The World of Radiance.
Chris’s domain, encompassing the full power of Radiance, was incomparable to the typical domains of an 8-star mage.
Like a flame snuffed out by a strong wind, their domain lost its power, and screams erupted once more.
“Aaaahhh!!”
It was the Jester.
One of his hands was severed, blood splattering.
Desperately, the Jester tried to reattach his arm with curse magic, but Chris gave no opening.
World of Radiance—Transformation.
Judgment of Light.
Chris’s power radiated a dazzling brilliance.
It was the light of divine judgment, purging evil.
The Jester’s curse magic to heal his arm was nullified, and the severed limb that had hovered in the air was consumed by holy fire and vanished.
Chris moved to finish him off, but the enemies weren’t standing still.
[You bastard! Destroy that one! Army of evil, attack!]
True to the title of Lord of the Dead, powerful death spirits surged forward.
Dozens of 6-star Elder Death Knights and high-ranking Dullahans charged at Chris.
“It’s useless.”
A veil of light covered the death spirits, shattering them into pieces.
It was a sight both astonishing and awe-inspiring.
Yet the Lord of the Dead grinned darkly.
[Gotcha! No matter how strong you are, using that power leaves a gap!]
Flash!
Four magic circles appeared around Chris—north, south, east, and west—and from Gehenna, powerful evil beings were summoned.
Three 7-star Death Lords.
An 8-star Demon Shadow.
These were death spirits on par with the highest demons, requiring intense purifying energy to counter—but Chris had just expended a massive amount of power, so his response was sluggish.
[Grrrrr.]
The Death Lords, apex of all death spirits, roared, radiating overwhelming death energy.
The Demon Shadow didn’t stay idle either.
True to its name, the demon’s shadow extended a chilling, sinister instrument toward Chris.
At this critical moment, Chris’s domain shifted again.
World of Radiance—Transformation.
Overview.
Not a domain with spectacular effects.
As the name suggested, it simply allowed multiple types of Radiance techniques to flow seamlessly without conflict.
But in Chris’s hands, it became an incredibly potent power.
Thwack!
A transparent hexagonal shield blocked one Death Lord.
It was Amanda’s Shield, a 7-star Radiance magic Chris had recently learned from the Sage’s Tome.
At the same time, a brilliant light incinerated another Death Lord.
The holy fire of the sacred mages.
Chris’s hands moved, weaving together two supreme magics from entirely different domains.
This time, it was a secret sword technique from a renowned swordsmanship family.
The Sword of the Boundless Sea.
Evan’s spiritual technique, with absolute advantage over evil beings, flashed against the backdrop of the World of Radiance.
One Death Lord vanished.
Only one Death Lord, blocked by Amanda’s Shield, and one Demon Shadow remained.
But the Demon Shadow’s reaction was strange.
It froze in place, still radiating its aura, as if it feared Chris.
Chris smirked.
—Just a shadow, huh?
Demonic power stems from the soul’s rank. Shadows are no different.
So it was natural that the Demon Shadow couldn’t stand up to Chris, whose soul rank was already at noble demon level or higher.
“Is that all you’ve got?”
Leaving the Demon Shadow and Death Lord behind, Chris advanced toward the Lord of the Dead who had summoned them.
[!!]
Just as the Lord of the Dead’s face tightened in alarm, the Sculptor moved.
“Arrogant fool. This ends now.”
A wooden doll appeared before the Sculptor.
He slashed it with a blade—and something astonishing happened.
Flash!
Chris’s body mirrored the wound, blood spurting out in a fountain!
‘Materialized Curse.’
The Sculptor’s specialty.
He gave curses physical form, inflicting tangible damage on his opponent.
It wasn’t a high-level curse—rather, a very basic one.
But the Sculptor had reached the upper echelons of 8-star mastery with this simple curse.
It was far deadlier than other curses.
Especially because the Sculptor’s curse had ‘absoluteness.’
When he cut the wooden doll, the opponent suffered the exact same injury.
It wasn’t some flimsy “unavoidable” effect—it functioned like an absolute law.
‘But it has limits. It can’t instantly kill or sever limbs with the doll.’
Death or permanent bodily harm were far more advanced curses, so absoluteness couldn’t apply there.
That didn’t mean the Sculptor was weak.
His eyes gleamed.
Chaos.
Bam! Bam! Bam!
The wooden doll was mercilessly hacked to pieces.
Blood gushed from Chris’s body in the same way.
The wounds were so severe he could no longer continue fighting.
[As expected of the Sculptor!]
The Lord of the Dead breathed a sigh of relief.
Then, something unexpected happened.
“You’ve been deceived.”
Flash!
Chris’s body was bathed in light.
It was the medical qigong of the Medical Sword family!
At the level of a Medical Saint.
Unable to block the curse, Chris instead used an even stronger healing power to recover.
His wounds healed instantly, and he raised his sword.
[Th-this…!]
The Lord of the Dead tried desperately to defend but was too late.
Chris’s sword pierced the Lord of the Dead’s throat.
Normally, the Archlich wouldn’t die from such a strike, but Chris’s assault didn’t stop there.
The Star Radiance Sword.
A blade that cuts through all concepts, it sliced through the Archlich’s core.
[Kyaaaaaaah!]
The Lord of the Dead’s body crumbled to dust.
The arena fell into a deathly silence.
Among the survivors, the Assassin of Silence and the Jester swallowed their shock.
Chris’s power had far surpassed their expectations.
[…It seems we can’t handle this alone.]
“Hehe. I may be crazy, but that guy’s crazier.”
Unexpectedly, the highest-ranking Sculptor spoke.
“No, we can win. He’s already exhausted.”
[!!]
“No matter how much he’s reached the wall, facing all four of us at once isn’t easy.”
A precise observation.
Though he didn’t show it, Chris had indeed spent a lot of energy.
They weren’t easy opponents.
Especially the recent use of the Star Radiance Sword to eliminate the Lord of the Dead had taken a heavy toll.
“Still, I think you could handle guys like us easily.”
“If it were just us, maybe.”
The Sculptor replied coldly.
“You seem to have forgotten where you are—the Fortress of the Four Kings. I’ve summoned the Executors. You’re finished.”
He meant the highest-level 7-star demons.
Another pillar of the Fortress of the Four Kings.
Already on the edge, if reinforcements arrived, the outcome would be decided.
“Looks like they’re here.”
Footsteps echoed from above.
But the Sculptor’s expression shifted.
Only one set of footsteps.
At least ten should have come.
That wasn’t the only odd thing.
The footsteps were light, as if from a small figure, yet carried a heavy, imposing presence.
Enough to make even the Three Flames of the Four Kings tense.
As the figure drew closer, the eyes of the Sculptor and others widened.
They all realized who was approaching.
Chris chuckled softly.
“You seem to have forgotten something. The Fortress of the Four Kings isn’t just about death spirit curses.”
“!!”
At last, a girl with beautiful blood-red hair appeared.
“I’m here, my friend! It’s time to show those bastards the power of friendship.”
Idrinne smiled brightly, holding a blood-dripping twin sword in one hand.
“W-what?”
The Sculptor’s face turned pale.
“Are you crazy, Grand Princess? That guy is our enemy here.”
“Enemy? You mean the enemy of your death spirit curses.”
Idrinne’s tone was icy, completely different from when she spoke to Chris.
“And your death spirit curses are the enemy of my Blood Sword Maga. I don’t know why you keep talking about the Fortress of the Four Kings as if we’re close.”
Originally, the Blood Sword Maga had sided with the Dark Alliance in the last war.
Later, when the Dark Alliance and the Fortress of the Four Kings formed an alliance, the Blood Sword Maga returned to the Fortress—but the enmity between death spirit curses and the Blood Sword remained.
“Leaving aside that Christian, the Grand Duke, is my dearest friend, as the master of the Blood Sword Maga, I can’t miss this opportunity. If I kill all of you here, the power of the death spirit curses will be greatly weakened.”
Idrinne raised her twin swords, aiming at them.
“Now, decide who dies first.”
A chilling aura flowed from Idrinne’s body.
Even Chris flinched at the intensity.
It was demonic energy.
Idrinne’s level was originally 8-star Advanced.
But borrowing demonic power, she could reach 8-star Supreme—the same level as those who had reached the wall.
It was thanks to Idrinne’s power that the Blood Sword Maga had endured despite overwhelming odds.
Together with Chris, they could wipe these guys out in an instant.
But Chris took Idrinne’s hand.
“Let’s withdraw the demonic power.”
“Why do you ask?”
“Do you think I’m asking because I don’t know? It’s dangerous.”
Not long ago, Idrene’s soul was almost consumed by a demon, nearly awakening her as the Blood King of the Sacrificial Blood.
Chris had taken partial ownership of her soul as a desperate measure to stop it, but using any more demonic power was absolutely off-limits.
“Are you worried about me? I’m touched, you know.”
“…”
“Hehe, your concern means a lot to me.”
For a moment, she let her guard down and smiled playfully, but then Idrene shook her head seriously again.
“I know it’s dangerous. But the situation isn’t good. I dealt with the ones who swarmed me on the way here, but we can’t afford to drag this out.”
Idrene understood the need to avoid demonic power.
The problem was, time was not on their side.
“I left the Blood Sword Mage’s subordinates at the entrance to hold the line, but they won’t last long.”
Once the reinforcements cursed by the commander arrived, defeat was inevitable.
Then Chris said something unexpected.
“It’s fine. I can take care of those guys quickly.”
“!!”
The faces of the enemies, including the Sculptor, hardened.
“How arrogant. Do you really underestimate us that much?”
“Five minutes.”
“…What?”
“In five minutes, Sculptor, I’ll be cutting off your head.”
The Sculptor let out a bitter laugh, then his anger flared up like a blazing fire.