A Pawn's Passage

Hendrick was standing in front of the magic blood circle at this time. He placed thirteen gems on the thirteen nodes in sequence. A vague illusion of a person in pain, trying to break free from the shackles, could be seen in each gem.

With a solemn expression, Hendrick opened his arms, raised his head slightly, and began to recite an ancient and obscure spell. His voice was melodic and captivating. Suddenly, the wind picked up, making his clothes and silver hair flutter wildly. The blood circle and gems under the coffin lit up.

Zhang Yuelu immediately noticed a change deep in the dungeon. She did not wait for the fire to be extinguished. Instead, she used her qi to part the flames, creating a path in the sea of ??fire.

When Zhang Yuelu walked through the sea of ??fire, Hendrick still maintained his posture with his arms wide open, but he was no longer chanting. When he turned around, Zhang Yuelu could see countless blood vessels protruding on his handsome face, like earthworms swimming under his skin.

Hendrick smiled and said, “Prudence is the chain that binds you. You’re a step too late.”

Immediately after he spoke, the thirteen gems in the blood circle shattered. An oppressive spiritual force invaded the space, preventing both Lingquanzi and Arthur from moving a muscle. Even Zhang Yuelu was forced to retreat. Although she did not lose the ability to move, she could not attack. Qi Xuansu did not cross the sea of ??fire, but even so, he still felt suffocated, as if a boulder had fallen on him.

As they had expected, the reason this group of sinners attacked Bishan Temple was to seize the souls of Xiantian Beings so they could offer them to the mighty Ancient Immortals.

Hendrick lamented. “Unfortunately, we didn’t get enough souls. It would have been a greater effect if we had twice as many souls.”

The invisible spiritual force became stronger and heavier. Zhang Yuelu was knowledgeable and had seen many true masters at close range. Some of them were as powerful as the Ancient Immortals, such as the Deputy Grand Masters. Her direct superior, the Tiangang Hall Master, was a Heavenly Being.

However, these experts had never shown their power in front of Zhang Yuelu. Aside from their authoritative stance, they seemed no different from ordinary elders. It was only at this moment that Zhang Yuelu truly realized the terrifying power of a high-ranking Heavenly Being or deity who could exert a spiritual force enough to incapacitate a Xiantian Being.

Fortunately, this descending spiritual force was not directed at Zhang Yuelu and her group. It was just a side effect, like a drought that spread hundreds of kilometers when a drought demon was born. Such a powerful existence could cause drastic changes to the environment.

Like a tall mountain that protected the grasslands from cold winds and the sea that always provided moisture and rain to the surrounding shore, their existence affected everything around them.

When God Luwu appeared in his true form, the colossal energy and heat generated unintentionally as he breathed could burn all ghosts and spirits. If God Luwu stayed in one place for too long, the vegetation there would absorb the energy from God Luwu and mutate, turning into Celestial Grass that contained intense fire energy.

Before the Daoist Order hunted dragons on a large scale, wind and rain would follow wherever the dragons passed. The Ancient Immortal’s spiritual force was the same concept.

Since Hendrick was the one making the sacrifice, he was not affected by the spiritual force and was able to move around. He looked calm as he plunged his right hand into his chest without any hesitation.

As he withdrew his right hand, he pulled out a beating heart with it. Blood dripped from his hand and heart.

According to Arthur, the heart was a vital organ for sinners, as it was the source of their strength. At this time, Hendrick’s body weakened rapidly when he took out his heart, almost collapsing to the ground.

However, he still tried his best to raise his still-beating heart with both hands. He recited, “With my blood as sacrifice, I implore thee, the Supreme Existence, to bestow upon my master a new life.”

After his incantation, Hendrick’s beating heart left his hands and flew toward the corpse lying in the coffin.

"This is the circle of life.” A loud voice boomed, making everyone shudder in shock. The voice echoed and reverberated in the dungeon. The oppressive force grew stronger, which made Lingquanzi and Arthur groan in pain. Qi Xuansu even had blood trickling out of his ears, but Zhang Yuelu managed to withstand the force. Even the burning flames gradually extinguished under this immense pressure.

Hendrick’s heart resembled a bloodied, blooming lotus as it slowly descended on the corpse’s chest and fused into it. Right after, a pair of blood-red eyes lit up in the corpse’s eye sockets, and the corpse slowly sat up from the coffin.

The next moment, the shriveled corpse rapidly turned plump. The wrinkles from its dryness gradually disappeared, and its skin regained its pinkish tone. Well-defined muscles grew underneath the skin.

The corpse had the typical appearance of people from the Western Continent. He looked to be in his fifties. His looks were not damaged over time, but his temperament was more refined, making him extremely charming. He was a little dazed, as if he had just woken up from a nap. After a while, the man gradually opened his eyes and looked at Hendrick, who was about to lose balance.

At the same time, the Ancient Immortal’s spiritual force gradually dissipated, so the overwhelming pressure receded, allowing Qi Xuansu and others to finally breathe. They were almost crushed to death by that force.

Hendrick stretched out his hand to cover his chest. His body swayed as he spoke. “Master, I’m glad that you’re finally awake.”

Hendrick’s master finally noticed Zhang Yuelu and the others. His gaze landed on Zhang Yuelu. His voice was low as he said, “Hendrick, my loyal servant, is this the gift you prepared for me?”

He did not speak Mandarin, but the language of the Western Continent. However, when it reached the ears of Qi Xuansu and his group, it mysteriously turned into Mandarin.

Hendrick smiled bitterly and replied, “Sorry to disappoint you, Master. They are from the Eastern Holy Court.”

"The Eastern Holy Court? I see.” Hendrick’s master nodded.

Hendrick turned to Zhang Yuelu and introduced his master with a raised voice. “This is my master, Desmond Montlude Ravnos, the ruler of the Helwindsor Territory. He is a noble duke, like a blade that dances in the darkness and shadows.”

Arthur blurted out. “Duke? Impossible!”

Somehow, his Mandarin was smoother due to his agitation.

Zhang Yuelu’s face remained solemn.

Hendrick was a Viscount, equivalent to a Xiantian Being in the Guizhen stage. If they went by the title of the peerage in descending order of precedence—Duke, Marquess, Earl, Viscount, Baron—then a Duke was equivalent to a Heavenly Being, at the level of a Hall Master.

According to Arthur, the thirteen third-generation sinners were honored as princes and had power comparable to gods. There were ordinary Dukes and Grand Dukes, just as Heavenly Beings were also divided into two levels. Aside from ordinary Heavenly Beings, there was a higher level of Heavenly Beings known as the Pseudo-Immortals. These Heavenly Beings were almost at an immortal level, hence their name.

Sage Qingwei of the TaipingSect and Sage Donghua of the Quanzhen Sect were both Pseudo-Immortals. Many weaker Ancient Immortals were also at this level.

Regardless of whether Desmond was a Duke or a Grand Duke, he was an existence that was hard to defeat.

At this moment, Qi Xuansu shouted a reminder from a distance. “He is very weak!”

Zhang Yuelu was startled. She then turned to Duke Desmond with purple energy flowing in her eyes. The invincible Immortal Eye of Providence failed for the first time. This powerful sinner seemed to be shrouded in a layer of mist, making it impossible for Zhang Yuelu to see through it.

However, Zhang Yuelu did not give up and continued to use the Divine Observation Technique with more intensity, as shown by the deep purple energy in her eyes. Eventually, her eyes turned completely purple. At this moment, she finally managed to penetrate through the fog that shrouded Desmond.

Zhang Yuelu’s brows relaxed slightly because this duke was not unfathomable. He was just at a level higher than Zhang Yuelu, which was the Xiaoyao stage of Heavenly Beings. Xiaoyao stage was when Heavenly Beings were free from the constraints of the earth and could fly in the air.

For Zhang Yuelu, although Heavenly Beings in the Xiaoyao stage were tough to defeat, she still stood a fighting chance.

With Qi Xuansu’s level of cultivation, he could not see through Desmond’s level of cultivation, but he could guess that this Duke was probably not very powerful. If this Duke was powerful, why would he need to hide in a coffin and pretend to be dead? Why would he need to seek help from the Ancient Immortals?

Arthur spoke fluently in his mother tongue. “No member of the Ravnos family above the Baron rank can be spared. This is a joint decision of the Parthian Parliament.”

Desmond did not deny this statement and said calmly, “I did die, but with the help of my descendants and the powerful ancient gods of the East, I was reborn again. Although I only have the strength of a Baron now, it is enough to kill you all. Your blood will restore my strength to that of a Marquess.”

Zhang Yuelu scoffed. “I’m afraid it’s still too early to tell who among us will win.”

"Oh?” Desmond curled the corners of his mouth and dragged his tone.

Before he finished speaking, Zhang Yuelu’s face suddenly turned red, as if the blood in her body was boiling through her skin. She used the Six Void Tribulations Technique to counter the strange magic that Desmond used on her and suppress her restless blood. Then she leaped across the floor and attacked Desmond.

After Hendrick pulled out his heart, he had lost most of his strength and had retreated to the side, unable to stop Zhang Yuelu.

As per Hendrick’s introduction, Desmond was indeed the blade that danced in the darkness and shadows. Desmond was skilled. He conjured a Blood Sword from his hand and thrust it at Zhang Yuelu.

Zhang Yuelu dared not underestimate her opponent. She pulled out a roll of white paper, which turned into a sword.

The Blood Sword collided with the paper sword, but the paper sword was not damaged. On the contrary, the Blood Sword recoiled like a snake that had been hit. Blood spattered everywhere.

Desmond’s expression changed slightly. “That’s a sub-artifact!”

This roll of paper was called the Amorphous Paper, which could transform into a meter-long sword and eighteen kinds of weapons. Its hardness was comparable to that of a diamond, and it was invulnerable to water and fire. This was the semi-immortal object that the Daoist Order gave Zhang Yuelu.

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