The cold wind whipped up dust, slapping against Lianna’s pale face, but she seemed utterly oblivious to it.
Watching the colossal bone dragon, akin to a battleship, tear through the night sky and descend upon them, her mind went blank, and she sat there dazed until engulfed by the dragon’s immense shadow.
She recalled Firefly’s descriptions of the bone dragon, knowing it was one of the Holy Spirit Sect’s closely guarded secrets—not merely a skeletal undead like typical summons but a genuine magical creature with its own will and intelligence.
It was rumored to be a war weapon second only to aerial carriers, of which the Holy Spirit Sect possessed no more than four. Each one had to be forged from authentic ancient dragon bones, their skeletal strength so high they could withstand super missiles unscathed, and they could wield certain types of innate magic beyond human comprehension.
What kind of monster could appear here?
Moments later, the bone dragon’s wings flapped, and it landed silently in the open field, finely controlling its immense weight, seeming as light as a feather.
Only then did Lianna notice that two middle-aged men in ceremonial robes were perched atop the dragon’s skull.
But this was the Holy Spirit Sect’s bone dragon, signifying mastery over necromantic magic!
Who had the right to stand atop such a beast?
“I am ‘Will Leopold,’ the Ghoul High Priest of the Holy Spirit Sect,” one of the men stated. His square face bore a cold expression, exuding an aura that kept others at arm’s length.
Without allowing Lianna and Firefly a chance to respond, he immediately turned his attention to the weakened Ducha, coldly asking, “What happened to you like this?”
“Lord High Priest, I—I underestimated the situation… I am sincerely sorry…” Ducha stammered, panic clear in his voice.
The Ghoul High Priest shot him a disinterested glance before his attention returned to the two little girls. Upon noticing Firefly, he exclaimed, “An automaton with a spirit? Could it be an awakened AI?”
“…I didn’t expect such a coincidence; quite fortunate,” the Soulfire High Priest remarked, also turning to look.
Awakened AIs endowed with spirits were exceedingly rare, as they were adept at concealing themselves and were therefore difficult to detect. Yet, precisely in necromantic studies, these awakened AIs held immense importance. By researching how they could hold spirits within insulators, the Holy Spirit Sect stood to discover new technological pathways for future necromantic materials.
With that thought in mind, both Priests smiled, their grins somewhat unsettling under the dim moonlight. They showed no hesitation in their conversation, as it was hard to imagine such a mission could fail with both High Priests present, not to mention a bone dragon at their disposal.
Suddenly, a crisp yet determined voice broke through, seizing everyone’s attention.
“I can go with you, but you have to release Yvette and Firefly.”
The Ghoul High Priest looked down, noticing the blonde girl, code-named “One,” who now held a rune firearm—presumably taken from the fallen automaton.
However, instead of aiming at the two High Priests atop the bone dragon, she had the gun pointed at her own temple, her little face tense with both fear and resolute determination.
The Ghoul High Priest bowed his head, observing the situation, while Firefly’s voice trembled in shock, “Lianna, what are you saying? Are you crazy?”
Lianna remained focused, her gaze still locked onto the Ghoul High Priest as she reiterated, “Let them go! Otherwise, I’ll pull the trigger!”
The atmosphere thickened instantly, descending into an eerie silence, with only the cold wind swirling around them.
“One, you should understand that in front of a necromancer, death holds no meaning. You’ll resurrect as a zombie, taking all your secrets with you,” the Ghoul High Priest replied with a derisive smile.
“But the living me and the zombie version of me are undoubtedly different,” Lianna retorted.
“But even if you die, Zero will still be alive. The outcome will be the same; we’ll still get what we want.” The Ghoul High Priest smiled. “Moreover, living is better than dying. While you’re alive, you carry value, and the Sect will, of course, protect you both with the utmost care. Aside from losing a bit of freedom, life will be quite comfortable—what’s so hard about accepting that?”
Then, shifting his tone, a cruel and sinister expression overtook him: “But if you choose suicide, Zero and that automaton will also fall into our hands. Because of your actions, we’ll be angry. Can you guess how we’ll vent that anger? Your friends will suffer for your choice.”
“After you die, your friends will endure torture every day, subjected to torment. That scrap-metal spirit will be drawn out and perpetually scorched by Soul Flames, while we’ll keep pulling off Zero’s fingernails, constantly stitching them back on, enjoying her cries of despair… And the reason they’ll suffer, it’s all because of you, all your doing. They will despise you for choosing your own ease at the cost of their lives…” The Ghoul High Priest smirked. “Now, will you still consider suicide?”
“How can you be like this…” Lianna’s voice trembled with anger. She had never imagined that a figure revered, praised, and worshiped by countless followers could be so malevolent, so despicable and lacking in morals—far beyond her understanding.
“Little girl, is this your first encounter with the world?” the Ghoul High Priest mocked.
Lianna fell silent, having since leaving the Abyss Base, where Zero had kept all darkness and malice at bay. She had lived like an ordinary child, harboring sweet fantasies about the world. She had even viewed Zero’s persistent fatigue as a positive thing, granting her the opportunity to stretch her wings and experience the world. Yet her first foray into it had delivered a crushing blow.
Under the moonlight, the shadows cast by the abandoned furnaces enveloped her, making her feel as if everything around her had vanished—there was no light nor escape, only an overwhelming coldness and suffocation.
Until suddenly, someone hugged her, wrapping her in a warm flow.
Lianna turned her head to see Zero’s beautiful face. With a smile, she said, “Silly girl, if you die, you lose everything. How can you make such a foolish decision?”
Lianna didn’t understand why Zero could smile at this moment, feeling hurt, she said, “What can I do?”
“Of course, the priority is to stay alive. We can talk about the rest later,” Zero said with a beaming smile. “I’ve said it many times, living is what matters most; death means everything is gone. No one in this world is worth sacrificing your life for—not even me.”
“Even at a time like this, you still talk like that…” Lianna’s eyes glimmered red, looking as if she might cry at any moment.
“Don’t rush; we can take our time to discuss things.” The Ghoul High Priest stood on the bone dragon’s skull, seemingly amused. As long as he could persuade “One” to drop the gun, he would be fine spending some extra time.
However, what the Ghoul High Priest did not expect was that his interruption would catch Zero’s attention.
She turned her head, her playful smile erased, replaced by cold, piercing eyes that were colder than the winter tundra.
In the next moment, the Ghoul High Priest felt his thoughts explode in his mind!
The world in front of him spun into a kaleidoscope, frantically swirling, tearing apart, and collapsing, while he felt something like a billion ants invading him, devouring everything within his once-invincible ghoul body!
“AHHHHHHHHH—” he screamed, collapsing on the head of the bone dragon, rolling and convulsing wildly, drawing the attention of everyone around him.
The Soulfire High Priest hurriedly snapped his consciousness back, preparing to question what was happening, but he discovered that the Ghoul High Priest exhibited an extraordinarily bizarre demeanor. Countless masses of purple-red flesh rolled and writhed across his body, transforming his pale ghoul appearance into something resembling a grotesque monster. His eyeballs rol led erratically, alternating between expressions of pain, terror, and vacant stares, as if battling another personality for control over his body.
How could this be?
The Soulfire High Priest was dumbfounded, only to see that the Ghoul High Priest suddenly stopped moving, warping like a true zombie. He twisted his head a full 180 degrees, staring mechanically and lifelessly at him.
In that instant, the Soulfire High Priest’s pupils shrank dramatically, gripped by an unprecedented wave of terror. He immediately sent a mental command to the bone dragon, urging it to take flight.
But at the same time, the now fully transformed abominable Ghoul High Priest reacted as well. He crouched low like a hunting dog, then, with a powerful push from his limbs, leaped into the air. Just then, his head split apart from the center, transforming into a gaping maw lined with spiral teeth that lunged toward the Soulfire High Priest!
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Book 2: Chapter 129: A Glimpse
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