Chapter 129: The Road to Heaven, You Don't Take

Chapter 129: The Road to Heaven, You Don't Take



Just now, this thing blocked a rapid slash from Rayen.

Although Rayen's sword was swung swiftly without much power behind it, under normal circumstances, anyone not wearing plate armor but chainmail or thick leather armor would have been struck down by Rayen's sword.

Additionally, judging from the opponent's state after being hit, it seemed that they were not injured by the Radiant Stone Weapon, the Radiant Greatsword.

This situation had never occurred with the previous Black Flame Adepts, causing Rayen's eyes to narrow in concentration.

The Great Scythe Black Flame Adept, for the first time, lifted his head, revealing a pale, handsome face beneath the hood. Judging by his age, he seemed to be only around twenty years old.

Rayen's eyes flickered slightly, unsure if the opponent was genuinely that age or if it was the effect of some sinister sorcery.

"Young man, you have impressive talent, but this is where it ends." A sinister smile suddenly appeared on the opponent's pale face as he spoke.

As soon as the words left his mouth, the opponent's body underwent a sudden transformation! The black robe suddenly puffed up, like an overinflated balloon, and in the next second, it burst open.

With a loud "Bang!", a grayish-white waistcoat robe was revealed underneath.

The moment Rayen saw the robe, his pupils constricted. His keen eyesight had already noticed the peculiarity of the opponent's clothing. On the grayish-white waistcoat robe, he spotted six or seven distorted faces, twisted in agony and ferocity. Judging by the ages of these faces, they seemed to belong to children around ten years old.

In other words, this was a grayish-white waistcoat robe made from multiple pieces of human skin.

"Motherfucker, it's indeed a cult, so damn cruel!" Rayen cursed in his mind.

He finally understood the purpose behind the Black Flame Cult's encouragement of gang members to kidnap children.

Their objective might not be that simple, but this was undoubtedly one of their goals.

Moreover, the opponent's robe had undoubtedly undergone some special 'processing' to achieve such an effect. It wasn't merely tanning that could create this; even Rayen's greatsword had struck it without tearing it.

But revealing this terrifying robe was just the first step.

The opponent's body suddenly began to elongate, growing from around 1.9 meters to an astonishing 2.2 meters...

2.4 meters...

2.6 meters...

Rayen watched this transformation, his mouth agape.

Anyone would be stunned to see their opponent suddenly grow from 1.9 meters to 2.6 meters.

Rayen felt like his original opponent had transformed from a small Yao Ming into a giant Yao Ming!

Was he made of rubber?

At this moment, the opponent's two-meter-long, double-handed weapon, the giant scythe, was now wielded single-handedly. Yes, the double-handed weapon had become a single-handed weapon.

"Cyclone Slash!"

The opponent spun the giant scythe vertically with one hand, like a standing electric fan, instantly creating a black-gray whirlwind that rushed towards Rayen.

This time, Rayen didn't choose to resist head-on, even with his Extraordinary Trait 'Iron Skin Level 2'. He didn't want to directly block what seemed like a secret technique.

If his 'Iron Skin' were to be broken, it would be disastrous.

So, Rayen immediately performed a sideways roll, quickly dodging the attack.

The black-gray whirlwind grazed past Rayen, instantly slicing several fleeing town residents behind him into chunks, which then ignited into black flames!

Rayen furrowed his brows. After the opponent's transformation, their attacks became more diverse and bizarre!

This was clearly not a physical attack but a blend of mysterious energy!

Just as Rayen thought he had dodged the attack with his sideways roll, his Level 3 Danger Perception went off, warning him of imminent danger. Simultaneously, Rayen's peripheral vision caught a glimpse of a cold glint, like lightning, streaking towards his face.

Rayen immediately raised his Radiant Greatsword horizontally to block.

"Clang!"

Sparks flew!

Rayen was instantly knocked back four to five meters.

"Damn! The opponent's strength has increased too!"

At this moment, Rayen's eyes widened, as if witnessing an unbelievable sight.

The opponent's body had already been 2.6 meters tall for a while, but now it was 12.6 meters tall!!!

The Great Scythe Black Flame Adept's waist seemed to have transformed into a ten-meter-long python, making the entire person look incredibly bizarre and terrifying!

It's important to note that this ten-meter measurement is literal, not figurative.

The previous attack was possible because the opponent's waist was like rubber, stretching to ten meters, allowing the upper body to reach Rayen's position and deliver the scythe slash.

As Rayen was still in shock, the opponent's waist retracted like a spring, pulling the lower body back to the original position.

"Motherfucker, this is too bizarre. Is this still a human?"

"Rubber Man Luffy?"

"True Water Snake Waist!"

Rayen cursed silently.

On the side, Jennifer Cesi watched Rayen's battle with the Great Scythe Black Robe Adept with bated breath, her eyes wide with horror.

Although she had heard of the cult's deeds and various evils, witnessing such a bizarre and terrifying display left her in awe.

"This is not human at all!"

"What if Lord Rain can't beat him?"

At this moment, Jenny's fair hands tightly gripped her long skirt, her face tense as she peered through the carriage window, watching the battle in the church courtyard. She wondered if there was anything she could do to help Lord Rain.

She glanced to the side and saw two family knights who were also scared pale. She couldn't help but shake her head.

"Family cavalry, alas! They're only Rank 2 Knight Attendants, completely useless! Too weak!"

"Huh!"

At this moment, Jenny saw a short man dressed as a Night Watch Captain blocking a middle-aged woman dressed as a farmhand. He had a pleading expression on his face.

Since Jenny wasn't far from the two, she could still hear their conversation, despite the noisy and scattered crowd.

"Let me go see Lord Rain."

"Mrs. Emma, if you go, Lord Rain will worry. It's better to..."

Huh?

Is this Rain's mother?

Jenny's eyes lit up, and she immediately thought of something. She jumped down from the carriage, holding her skirt, and ran over, while the two family knights quickly followed to protect their young mistress.

"Ma'am, are you Lord Rain's mother?"

"Yes, may I ask who you are?" Seeing a young lady dressed as a noble, followed by two fully armed knights, Emma couldn't help but take a step back and ask.

"I'm Jenny from the Crowley family, Mrs. Emma. I'm a friend of Lord Rain."

"If you're worried about Lord Rain and don't want to leave, you can watch from my carriage. It'll be much safer." Jenny pointed to the carriage beside her as she spoke.

Mateo couldn't help but nod in agreement at the suggestion of the beautiful noble lady. "Mrs. Emma, if you still want to stay here, then listen to Miss Jenny's suggestion."

After all, in the carriage, with two additional cavalry guards, it would be much safer.

Secondly, Mrs. Emma could also observe Lord Rain's fight in the church courtyard from the carriage window.

"This...won't it dirty your carriage? I'm dressed like this..." Emma looked at herself and then at the luxurious carriage, hesitating.

She had never ridden such a luxurious noble carriage before.

When she had fled earlier, her clothes had also gotten dirty.

Mateo, standing nearby, couldn't help but feel anxious, thinking, Mrs. Emma, you were once a farmhand, but now you're the honorable 'Mother of Lord Rain', why worry about such things!

"Mrs. Emma, just call me Jenny." Jenny smiled warmly, not at all bothered by the dirt on Emma's clothes, and offered her arm to support her.

"Mrs. Emma, look, I'm not clean either. Let's not be too particular about this." Jenny said, rubbing her white skirt against Emma's dirty clothes.

"Come quickly!"

Ah?

Such a kind noble lady!

Emma might have hesitated more under normal circumstances, but in this situation, she wasn't too reserved, and she nodded in agreement.

The two quickly entered the carriage together.

Jenny's two cavalry guards exchanged a glance, then looked at the powerful Lord Rain, and immediately understood their young mistress's intention.

Miss, you've really broadened your options!

The battle in the center of the church courtyard continued.

However, at this moment, the giant scythe-wielding Black Flame Adept across from Rain didn't rush to attack. Instead, he said, "Young man, you have impressive talent. Joining the embrace of my lord is the best choice for you."

Rain was surprised that his opponent was suddenly offering him a chance to join their side.

Join the Black Flame Church and worship an evil god?

And then become like him?

Rain's head shook like a rattle drum at the thought of this. Seeing Rain's refusal, the 'Apostle' seemed furious and immediately followed up with a leaping slash attack towards Rain!

"Whoosh!"

The 2.6-meter-tall enemy unleashed a leaping slash attack, creating a large attack radius. Rain dodged by rolling to the side, barely avoiding the attack.

But before Rain could stand up, a black flame fireball shot from the left hand of the giant scythe-wielding Black Flame Adept, hitting Rain with a 'whoosh'.

"Boom!"

Rain was blown away several meters, his body enveloped in streaks of black flame.

"Ouch! That really hurts!"

This was a combo attack, and 'Danger Perception Level 3' had already warned him, but he couldn't dodge it in time!

Although he was at a disadvantage, Rain had tested out the opponent's moves during the previous fight.

Perhaps the opponent still had a hidden move or two, but Rain had a good understanding of their overall fighting style.

It wasn't in his nature to just take a beating without fighting back.

Several combat strategies flashed through his mind, but Rain dismissed them all when he thought of the opponent's human skin armor and its ridiculously high defense, which even his Radiant Greatsword couldn't penetrate.

At this moment, Rain slightly regretted his overly simplistic combat style. He should have learned the 'Toccal's Hammer Technique' for dealing with such tough and thick-skinned enemies.

With the shockwave of a heavy hammer, he could bypass the opponent's surface defense and directly damage their internal body.

However, he still had a chance.

Rain keenly noticed a brief moment of weakness in the enemy's armor.

When the opponent stretched their waist like a rubber man to attack, the wrinkled human skin armor also stretched, just like an ironed pair of pleated trousers.

At that moment, the human skin armor became exceptionally smooth and taut.

Perhaps the reason for using children's skin to make armor was to take advantage of the elasticity of their skin.

Of course, a single piece of human skin wouldn't achieve this effect; there must be some sinister sorcery involved.

So, if Rain could seize the moment when the opponent used this rubber-like technique again, he might have a high chance of directly bisecting the opponent's waist with a powerful slash!

---

Shangjin Town, Meister County.

Inside a luxurious mansion.

The beautiful Baroness Crowley, originally Jennifer Cesi, now Jennifer Crowley after marrying Baron Crowley, was relaxing in the mansion's rear garden, basking in the warm winter sun on a lambskin lounge chair.

Beside her, a maid carefully peeled grapes with her slender fingers, while another attentively covered her with a thin wool blanket.

The baroness's voluptuous upper body and exaggerated waist-to-hip ratio drew occasional comparisons from the maids, who couldn't help but feel envious.

Suddenly, a female servant rushed over, her voice slightly hurried, "Milady, Miss Jenny has sent urgent news via a Helm Dove."

She presented a tube, like a pigeon's leg binding, to the baroness.

Jennifer was surprised, immediately standing up to receive the tube.

Unrolling it, she recognized her daughter Jenny's handwriting, which read:

"Mother: Shangjin Town is under attack by heretics. Please send reinforcements from the county city! Jenny!"

This immediately alarmed Jennifer.

Her first thought was, "Jenny's in danger!"

But the next second, she realized that it might not be the case. If Jenny were truly in danger, she would have sent more than just a plea for help; she would have included a farewell letter for her mother.

This realization calmed Jennifer down.

'Shangjin Town?'

'Rain!' A flash of insight crossed Jennifer's mind, and she quickly guessed her daughter's intentions.

"Get me into formal attire, I'm going to visit a guest."

"Yes, milady."

---

Shangjin Town.

The church courtyard, where the white-hot battle continued.

"Clang!"

Rain blocked another 'Serpent Waist' attack from his opponent, his eyes narrowing.

Now was the moment!

With his Limit Break at 35%, Rain activated his Extraordinary Trait, 'Gigastrength,' causing his power to surge from 15 (+5) to 15 (+29), an increase of 195%, almost doubling his strength.

The Great Scythe Black Robe Cultivator realized something was wrong.

For the 'little one' before him had also transformed, but unlike his vertical growth, Rain had become both taller and more robust, like a mountain gorilla compared to a monkey.

Facing Rain's powerful slash, the cultivator couldn't withstand it.

It wasn't possible!

His strength had skyrocketed from 20 to 44 points.

"Clang!"

The moment their weapons made contact, Rain's power was transmitted to the cultivator's giant scythe.

The giant scythe couldn't withstand it for even a hundredth of a second and was sent flying.

Rain continued his downward slash, and a sound like tearing leather followed.

"Plop!"

A heavy object fell to the ground.

The human skin armor, in its stretched state, indeed had reduced defensive capabilities. Rain's downward slash with the Radiant Greatsword bisected the cultivator's serpent waist, and the sound from before was the cultivator's upper body hitting the ground.

"Ahh!" The cultivator's agonized scream echoed.

It seemed like some kind of backlash was occurring.

The cultivator's body spontaneously ignited with black flames, growing more intense by the second.

Inside the church hall, the Black Flame Adept Metri, who had been performing the blood sacrifice ritual, was just concluding the final stage.

At the tip of his staff was a blood-red, intensely colored diamond-shaped crystal.

Although nearly half of the town's residents had fled, there were still around seventy to eighty people whose life force had been absorbed into this crystal.

At this moment, the church hall's floor was littered with the town's residents, their bodies resembling thousand-year-old mummies.

"This can't be a human!"

As Mitri took a leisurely stride towards the 'Apostle', he was greeted by an astonishing sight. A young man with muscles bulging like a monster, his veins popping out, and with a single swing of his sword, he directly sliced the 'Apostle' in half at the waist! Mitri's eyes widened in shock at the scene before him.

Mitri stood frozen for several seconds, his mind reeling. "Impossible!" he muttered.

"This is absolutely impossible."

"Unless he's a Peak Knight, there's no way the Apostle could have lost!"

After delivering the 'Peak Sword' blow, Rain's body deflated like a punctured balloon. He leaned on his greatsword, panting heavily, looking exhausted.

This wasn't an act; he was genuinely spent.

At this moment, Rain had almost no fighting power left.

Although Rain had increased his Constitution from 16 to 17 points after his battle with Andrews, compared to the 44 points of Strength he had during his power surge, this Constitution boost was like a drop in the ocean.

So when Rain saw the Black Flame Adept walking towards him in the church hall, he inwardly groaned, "Oh no!"

However, the Constitution boost did have its uses.

At the very least, Rain could now endure the pain, straighten his back, and calmly face his opponent.

When Mitri saw Rain's calm gaze, perhaps due to Rain's aura of having slain the Apostle, Mitri's forehead broke out in sweat, with beads of sweat the size of soybeans popping up.

The next second, Mitri cautiously took a step back, then quickly turned and ran behind him, his speed resembling a black lightning bolt! But after running for over ten meters, Mitri suddenly stopped and turned around, his gaze once again falling on Rain.

At this moment, Mitri seemed to have snapped out of his daze, thinking:

"That's not right! Even if Rain is strong, there's no way he could have maintained his physical condition after fighting the Apostle!"

So, Mitri carefully observed Rain's body, and indeed, Rain's entire body was trembling, and his clothes were barely holding his upright posture.

The Knight's plate armor was also in tatters, with almost no defensive power left!

Additionally, there were several scorched areas on his exposed body.

"This..."

"I mean, this guy might have been lucky enough to slay the Apostle, but he's completely exhausted!"

"Damn, I almost got fooled by this guy!"

"Now, it's my turn. I'll take advantage of his exhaustion, thanks to the great God of the Hunt!"

"As the one who disrupted the blood sacrifice and killed the Apostle, I'm sure the High Priestess will greatly reward me!"

"Maybe I'll even be promoted to the new Apostle, haha!"

A smug smile appeared on Mitri's face.

When Rain saw Mitri returning, his heart skipped a beat, and he inwardly exclaimed, "Oh no!"

After all, among the powerhouses in the area of Shining Town, aside from Rain, there was no one else capable of facing a Black Flame Adept.

However, when the anxious Rain checked his occupation panel, his eyes widened in surprise.

The system prompted:

【Your skill, Grizzly Sword Technique, has improved. Experience gained: +121】

【You have engaged in combat. Knight (Extraordinary) experience gained: +40】

【Your skill, Grizzly Sword Technique, has improved. Experience gained: +542】

【You have engaged in combat. Knight (Extraordinary) experience gained: +233】

【Congratulations! Your Knight (Extraordinary) occupation level has increased!】

"What the hell? I just leveled up?"

"The experience gained from slaying the Apostle and this Great Scythe Black Flame Adept is insane!"

Rain never expected that after leveling up by killing Andrews, he would level up again so soon! It hadn't even been half an hour since the last level up.

Moreover, after the previous level up, his Knight (Extraordinary) occupation level was lv2 (43/300), and leveling up required 257 points.

Rain couldn't believe that by killing the previous Black Flame Adept and this Great Scythe Black Flame Adept, he had gained a total of 40+233 experience points, a whopping 273 points!

At this moment, his Knight (Extraordinary) level had increased to lv3 (16/500).

Of course, these weren't the most important things.

What mattered most was the attribute point gained from leveling up.

Without hesitation, Rain added this attribute point to his Constitution.

Instantly, his Constitution increased from 17 to 18 points.

A surge of heat rushed from his heart and quickly spread throughout his body.

Rain immediately felt like he had returned to his peak condition, full of vigor! The aftereffects of using the 'Triple Overlap State' at full power had completely vanished.

He was in the best condition possible.

Facing the approaching Black Flame Adept, Rain's lips curled upwards, and he silently chanted:

"You chose the path to hell when heaven's door was open to you."

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end