Chapter 129: The Devil’s Followers Attack

“If, if the Heart-Gouging Demon is backed by a devil, then everything makes sense.” Little Weir felt a chill throughout his body. Everyone had a clear understanding of demons: they were a race from hell, originally called the Demon Race. Due to people’s aversion to their invasion of this world, they were called demons. Devils, on the other hand, were like an upgraded version of vengeful spirits; they possessed extremely extreme emotions, as well as high intelligence and a strange sense of order.

That’s right, devils were evil entities of the lawful alignment. Their existence was peculiar, but they would always adhere to certain orders. These orders might seem absurd, yet devils had to follow them. Seemingly powerful and almost unassailable, devils could sometimes be constrained or even destroyed by the very rules they followed. The existence of devils could be said to be very strange.

The power bestowed by demons was tangible and could quickly help the recipient increase their strength. Hellish magic was, after all, a truly existing transcendent power. However, the power bestowed by devils was ethereal; it could make you seem invincible one moment and as fragile as a twig the next. The devil’s power was ethereal, or one could even call it idealistic. If the Heart-Gouging Demon was not truly a demon worshipper but a victim of a devil, then perhaps a glimmer of light still remained in his heart.

“Quick! Quickly tell the Church about this speculation. The focus of dealing with demons and dealing with devils is completely different.” Little Weir’s face was filled with anxiety. The devil’s power was too sinister, sinister enough to instantly kill someone beyond its level. If this devil carefully planned, it might be able to instantly turn the entire city of Drake into a ghost realm.

Of course, devils also had a hierarchy: Archdevils, Greater Devils, Lesser Devils, and Soul Reapers. As for whether there were higher-level devils above Archdevils, no one knew; at least, history had never seen a devil more powerful than an Archdevil. Devils were different from demons; they were more cunning, more insidious, but devils also had their own weaknesses, which was a disadvantage in numbers. Devils seemingly couldn’t be generated on a large scale; their numbers were very scarce, so they were more inclined to destroy rather than occupy a world. If the invasion of hellish demons would eventually conquer and enslave the beings of this world, then the invasion of devils would destroy all beings in this world, including the world itself, turning it into a dead world.

Senior Knight Molly left the Rose Knight Guild Hall with Little Weir, instructing the others to be extremely careful and not to leave casually before she returned. “Besides the division of strength, devils generally have their own attributes. The sacrifices ten years ago and this time were all mercenary hearts from Mabuster County, or rather, the hearts of Mabuster County thugs. This devil’s attribute might be wrath. People influenced by devils will exhibit corresponding personalities, but there don’t seem to be many hot-tempered people in Mirdis Intermediate Academy.”

“No! Little Weir, you might be misunderstanding. Besides being called thugs, Mabuster County mercenaries have other character flaws, such as greed and envy. You should know that Mabuster County thugs often do things that violate contracts; more than half of the mercenaries who betray their employers due to greed come from Mabuster County.” Senior Knight Molly was not familiar with Mirdis Intermediate Academy. Devils were very good at disguising themselves, and devil cultists were not necessarily fools; in fact, devil cultists were generally more cunning and also very good at disguising themselves.

“There aren’t any particularly extreme personalities in the school. If we’re talking about obvious character flaws, well, or rather, conspicuous ones, that would be Director of Studies Grinsen. He seems to be quite strict, likes to be noticed by everyone, and lacks self-awareness. But this clearly doesn’t align with the behavior of a devil cultist. You should know that devil cultists generally exhibit two types of behavior: one is very conspicuous and dazzling, using the false abilities bestowed by the devil to gain vanity; the other is completely ordinary, and if they don’t reveal their true nature, they are usually undetectable.” Little Weir felt a slight headache. If it really was a devil, it would probably be very troublesome. He might as well just use the Eye of Appraisal and sweep everyone in the school in front of them all. Although this didn’t fit his habit as a wise man, it was the most direct and straightforward method.

“Is the moon particularly bright tonight?” Senior Knight Molly suddenly looked up, her gaze directed at the sky. A bright moon in the sky was not wrong, but was it a full moon tonight?

Little Weir couldn’t help but narrow his eyes, looking up at the sky. The moon was indeed very round, but he couldn’t say it was bright, could he? Wait, why was such a round moon not bright enough? “A false full moon!” Little Weir’s mouth twitched slightly as he cried out loudly, “This isn’t a real full moon, it’s an illusion! The devil’s ritual might be starting early!”

“What?! How could it be so sudden?!” Senior Knight Molly grabbed Little Weir by the collar, her speed suddenly soaring. A loud bang erupted not far away, with smoke and dust rising accompanied by streaks of pure white light—the radiance of divine magic. The battle had already begun! But she didn’t know who they were besieging. Judging by the intensity of the battle, the opponent was definitely not an ordinary person, otherwise, it wouldn’t be so fierce.

“What is that place?” Little Weir was slightly surprised. The battle was clearly not happening at Mirdis Intermediate Academy, but why was the ritual already about to begin? Could there be other ritual sites besides the school pond? Or, had the Church’s forces been misled? The true devil cultists were currently secretly performing a ritual to the devil at Mirdis Intermediate Academy, while the Church’s forces were entangled with others elsewhere.

“Buzz~” A piercing sound suddenly appeared, and Senior Knight Molly’s head roared. A powerful force struck from an oblique angle, and she was completely unprepared, knocked flying by a single blow and falling heavily to the ground. Little Weir was flung out, struggling to maintain balance in the air. Just as he was about to land, a pungent smell of blood assailed him. His neck was grabbed by a blood-red hand, and all his strength instantly vanished.

“Heart-Gouging Demon?!” Senior Knight Molly coughed up a mouthful of blood, her gaze fiercely directed at the tall figure that had suddenly appeared. Its face was hideous, its features strange, and its hands could already be described as claws. Behind it were a pair of demon wings—no! At first glance, they looked very similar to demon wings, but upon closer inspection, one would realize that these were not demon wings at all, but two blood wings, eerie wings pieced together from flesh and bone.

“Gagagaga, Heart-Gouging Demon, are you talking about me?” The monster’s face seemed to be wearing a mask, a grotesque mask carved or assembled from bone, with faint wisps of blood-red within it. Its entire body below seemed to be covered in bone, and its claws also had a distinct boney texture.

“What an excellent little fellow, truly a favorite of heaven, with an ordinary and happy family, a strong father, a gentle and beautiful mother, and a sweet and lovely younger sister. Not only is he good at studying, but his knight training is also outstanding. Ah, such excellent flesh and blood, such a wonderful soul, absolutely the unparalleled best main sacrifice.” The monster exhaled a bloody smell, its gaze directed at Senior Knight Molly. The latter shifted her feet, instantly appearing before him, her longsword sweeping towards him with a strong aura of battle qi.

“Clang!” The monster’s claw caught the sword’s edge, and with a flick of its hand, it flung Senior Knight Molly more than ten meters away. The Senior Knight’s slash had failed to leave even a scratch on it.

“Thorn Thicket!” As Senior Knight Molly was flung away, several seeds fell at the monster’s feet. She pressed one hand to the ground, and the seeds quickly took root, sprouted, and waved thorny branches, coiling around the monster.

“Boom!” Amidst a sudden loud noise, with just one punch from the monster, a two-meter deep, ten-meter wide crater appeared in the solid rock ground. The thorn thicket shattered into countless fragments. “Little bug, you jump around a lot.” The monster’s figure suddenly charged forward, its sharp claws whistling as they went straight for Senior Knight Molly’s heart.

Its body was very hard, its strength was definitely monstrous, and it was fast, but its agility was not as high as imagined. Senior Knight Molly dodged the monster’s heart-gouging attack sideways, and her sword, following the motion, slashed at the arm holding Little Weir, but to no effect. The monster stopped abruptly, swinging its arm horizontally, intending to knock Senior Knight Molly flying. However, the now-alert Molly was not so easy to deal with. She ducked, letting the arm pass over her head, and her sword suddenly struck upwards from below.

“Thorn Entanglement!” Molly transformed into a whirlwind, circling the monster’s body. She slapped him on the back, and a thorn quickly appeared, tightly entangling the monster. The latter’s body suddenly shook, and the thorn shattered. The monster spread its wings and quickly ascended, Little Weir held like a rag doll in its grasp. The constant influx of bloody qi into his body made him unable to move. This bloody qi, filled with resentment, made him feel cold all over.

“Ding~, the Apostle has been invaded by the bloody qi of the devil’s flesh puppet. The resentful bloody qi will impact the Apostle’s body and mind. Do you wish to purify the resentful bloody qi and convert it into pure bloody qi?” The voice of the proxy elf was like a heavenly melody.

“Convert!” Little Weir didn’t even have time to ask the price, but his mind was still relatively clear. “Keep the appearance of the bloody qi, don’t let the other party see anything unusual.” Right now, the enemy was strong and he was weak. If the other party noticed anything abnormal, they would probably just tear out his heart. This guy was not a good sort. Although he was the main sacrifice, and devils liked living main sacrifices, he might not be the only candidate.

“Ding~, initiating conversion. Converting resentful bloody qi into pure bloody qi. Consumes ten contribution points per second. Timer starts.” The proxy elf’s voice sounded, and Little Weir suddenly felt something was wrong. Why was the fee so high this time?