Chapter 280: I Forgot to Tell You

Chapter 280: I Forgot to Tell You



Cannon's eyes narrowed as he watched the scene before him, feeling a sense of disbelief.

Had all the elite forces of the Darkflame Church, including Laksoor, been defeated so easily?

Although Laksoor belonged to a different sect, the cooperation between them over the past two days had been enjoyable. Cannon recognized Laksoor's strength, which was only slightly inferior to his own.

But had it been barely a minute since they had separated? And now, Laksoor had been taken down by Rain?

"As expected, Laksoor's style of relying heavily on magic and favoring long-range attacks makes him too easy to target," Cannon analyzed in his mind.

"When facing an opponent whose magic cannot be instantly defeated or controlled, it puts you at a disadvantage."

However, the current situation was giving Cannon a headache.

For this surprise attack, the Darkflame Church was responsible for nine-tenths of the personnel, while the Serpent Sect had only sent him.

Now, Laksoor, the leader of the Darkflame Church, was dead, and most of their elite forces had also fallen.

Despite the thirty-plus people still present, they all looked like startled birds, ready to flee at the slightest provocation.

Without someone to stabilize the situation, they would scatter like birds and beasts.

Cannon hadn't yet rescued Holand, who was imprisoned in a room. Although the Swordbearer Squad of three before him wasn't particularly strong, they had already delayed him by almost a minute.

At this moment, the two to three dozen Darkflame Adepts on the field had stopped their actions, their faces filled with fear.

They exchanged glances, seemingly waiting for someone to make the first move and flee. Once someone took the lead, the rest would immediately retreat.

The first to run would undoubtedly face severe consequences, likely death. Those who followed would bear less responsibility, facing only punishment, but that was still better than losing their lives.

The current situation was vastly different from what Laksoor had described.

According to the plan, this battle should have been a one-sided affair. They were supposed to clean up the minions while the higher-ups dealt with the enemy's elite forces.

But now, it was their own leaders who had been eliminated, and the minions were left untouched.

Inside the main building of the villa.

"Lord Rain is truly formidable," Olenna, the capable young matron, was also stunned.

"Laksoor's displayed strength should have been at the brink of legendary status, yet he died at Lord Rain's hands."

"Brink of legendary?" Kraya nodded, now understanding why she felt as if his gaze had substance when she looked at him.

"Is he about to enter the liquefaction stage?"

Kraya couldn't help but feel a bit disheartened. She had thought that reaching the Grand Knight rank would narrow the power gap between her and Rain, but it seemed the gap had only widened.

However, there was something else on Kraya's mind.

She recalled the unusual changes in her body after becoming a Grand Knight and realized that it must be the initial awakening of her bloodline.

At the entrance to the holding cell, Aleks witnessed this scene, his heart filled with joy.

He had been shocked by the strength of the Serpent Sect's High Priest, Cannon, and thought their chances were slim.

But Rain had eliminated the Darkflame Church's main forces in such a short time.

Aleks tore the gilt-edged book in his hand, releasing a powerful surge of energy that visibly strengthened the magical aura of the holding cell's defensive array.

Wiping a trace of blood from the corner of his mouth, Aleks smiled and said, "Rescuing your companion is probably out of the question."

"I've further reinforced the defensive array."

Sensing the surge of energy, Rain immediately turned around, his gaze piercing through the window as he pointed his skull warhammer directly at Cannon.

Cannon, in turn, stared back at Rain, narrowing his eyes.

"Self-destructing your magical weapon to strengthen your defense?"

"Hehe, but your personal defense hasn't improved."

Before his words could land, a gust of wind swept through the area, leaving behind a residual image.

In the next instant, Cannon appeared abruptly in front of Aleks, his fist still extended from the punch.

Aleks's eyes bulged, and his mouth hung open. His entire body was folded over, and a distinct bowl-sized bulge protruded from his back.

"Boom!"

Aleks was embedded into the corridor wall.

With just one punch, Cannon had shattered Aleks's defensive magic, rendering him combat-ineffective.

"Provocation requires strength."

"Otherwise, you'll only pay the price."

Cannon spoke calmly and turned to walk towards Rain in the center of the field.

In Cannon's eyes, Rain's actions were also a form of provocation.

Unlike Laksoor, who relied on magic and preferred long-range attacks, Cannon believed that relying solely on long-range combat was a specialization.

Sometimes, specialization could get you killed.

Laksoor was a prime example.

But if it had been him instead, he wouldn't have feared Rain's close-quarters combat.

As Cannon walked out of the villa's main entrance, Rain's gaze was fixed intently on him.

Even before the fight, he had vaguely sensed that the High Priestess of the Serpent Sect possessed strength beyond Laksoor's.

However, the current situation was much better than he had anticipated.

Initially, the worst-case scenario was that the two would attack him together, but they both held back, considering their identities, and didn't join forces against him, giving Rain the opportunity to defeat them one by one.

Suddenly, in the midst of everyone's gaze, Cannon's entire body vanished.

As everyone was left bewildered, Rain's pupils constricted, and his sense of danger surged!

"Iron Wall!" he exclaimed.

A fist covered in snake scales, surrounded by a black aura, struck Rain's Crane Shield, which was formed from hardened refined gold, leaving a shallow fist imprint.

Suddenly!

Although Rain managed to block the attack, the ominous sign in his heart intensified, causing him to narrow his eyes and become more vigilant.

"Swish!"

A red shadow, bypassing the shield, aimed to spew something at Rain's head from above the shield.

In the blink of an eye, Rain lifted his Skull Warhammer, and as he did, the warhammer extended, blocking the red shadow's lower jaw.

This block caused the red shadow's breath attack to graze Rain's head and hit the bushes behind him, instantly turning the flowers into charred remains.

Only then did everyone realize that it was a long snake covered in red scales. It had just emerged from behind Cannon's collar, its body as thick as a human wrist, and was attacking Rain.

The previous attack had been a perfectly coordinated move between the man and the snake.

At that moment, Roland, inside the villa, having been treated by Kraya, struggled to his feet and shouted out the window, "Your Excellency Rain, be cautious of his..."

But the next second, he couldn't finish his sentence.

Roland saw the red snake standing tall, its tongue flicking out.

Apparently, the snake had already used this move, and it seemed to have no effect on Rain.

It was known that the red snake had some effect, and it seemed to have no effect on Rain.

Cannon's voice echoed uncertainly, "You blocked it. Good reaction, but too slow."

After missing his strike, Cannon didn't stop. Instead, he took a step back and then diagonally retreated, moving with incredible speed. To onlookers, he seemed to leave behind seven or eight shadows in an instant, but he had already moved over ten meters away.

Naturally, Rain wouldn't let Cannon create distance. From the previous situation, it was clear that Cannon excelled in close-range attacks. Moreover, with the red snake's assistance, he could also launch powerful sorcery attacks.

Two blurry figures clashed rapidly. From above, one could see a black line and a silver line intertwining and separating, moving at incredible speed.

"Bang! Clap! Ding-ding-dong!"

The intense sounds of combat filled the air! But only the sounds could be heard, not the figures! And in an instant, several pits appeared on the ground, kicking up dust.

In just over ten seconds, dozens of pits of various sizes had appeared in the garden!

Cannon's speed was slightly faster, and he currently had the upper hand. Rain alternated between using 'Iron Wall', 'Flash Slash', and 'Crushing Hammer', three intermediate and advanced High Techniques, to fight back against Cannon.

This process was extremely exhausting, and Rain had once again increased his Agility by one point, smoothly raising his Agility attribute to 39 points and restoring his Stamina to its peak.

"Bang!!!"

After another heavy clash, the two quickly sprang apart and stood firm.

"Indeed, you possess some kind of Stamina talent. Otherwise, your Stamina would have been depleted by now," Cannon said, taking a deep breath and squinting at Rain.

Cannon was actually feeling quite uncomfortable from the fight.

He had known in advance that Rain had a Stamina talent or some kind of specialty.

But he had never imagined that Rain's Stamina would be this formidable!

During their fight, Rain would use a High Technique every two or three moves, whether it was a defensive shield technique or an offensive axe or hammer technique.

Moreover, the power of these High Techniques was considerable; they weren't at the level of someone who had just grasped High Techniques but were at least of intermediate level.

Additionally, Rain's strength was also impressive, even slightly surpassing Cannon's.

This was like an adult facing a twelve or thirteen-year-old child with a sharp knife; if the adult couldn't take away the knife, they might get injured at any moment.

Rain's eyes shone with intense focus as he stared intently at Cannon.

Fighting up to this point, he felt exhilarated!

Simultaneously, Rain also experienced the benefits of mastering multiple High Techniques.

When facing different enemies, he could adopt various tactics.

Cannon was incredibly challenging to deal with, not just because of his extreme speed but also because his short, powerful attacks seemed to be enhanced by some special force, making it extremely difficult to counter.

The Red Snake was a formidable opponent, appearing and disappearing unpredictably, striking from various angles with its breath attack. Fortunately, Cannon could transform his weapons, elongating them or forming a shield, allowing him to deflect or block the Red Snake's attacks before it could breathe fire.

Unlike when he only wielded dual-wield weapons, where his only option was to attack aggressively, Cannon now had more options. Especially against an opponent with superior speed, even trading blows was challenging.

After a brief pause of a few seconds, the two resumed their rapid exchange. About twenty to thirty seconds later, Cannon felt agitated, as Rain seemed to grow more energized with each blow, contrary to his expectations.

Moreover, Rain's speed had increased even further since the start of the fight. Cannon was certain that this wasn't due to his own declining stamina; rather, Rain was genuinely getting faster. This was evident from how he dodged the Red Snake's attacks with increasing ease.

Cannon was perplexed; wasn't Rain supposed to excel in stamina? Shouldn't that translate to endurance?

As the fight progressed, Rain's speed only increased, leaving Cannon feeling as if a mysterious fog surrounded the young man, exuding an eerie aura. Cannon decided not to prolong the fight any further; he was willing to pay a small price to end this battle swiftly. He still had to break the Dark Magic Array, rescue Holand, and then control the Earth Snake to escape. Time was of the essence.

Suddenly, Cannon's snake-scaled arm extended by about ten centimeters, and his palm, which had been of normal size, abruptly expanded to the size of a washbasin.

Cannon grabbed Rain's elbow as he was about to execute a downward axe strike, using his palm to lift and deflect the attack. However, Rain was in the midst of performing the axe technique 'Flash Slash', an intermediate secret technique, and the force behind it was immense, making it difficult to block.

Rain's axe blade still descended heavily towards Cannon's shoulder.

At the same time, Cannon's shoulder muscles tensed, his deltoids bulged, and the snake scales on his skin vibrated intensely.

"Bang!" A dull cutting sound rang out as Cannon's palm deflected the blow, and his shoulder muscles absorbed the impact.

Rain's intermediate secret technique 'Flash Slash' failed to sever Cannon's right arm; instead, it penetrated about three to four centimeters into Cannon's shoulder before getting stuck in the muscle.

At this moment, Cannon's left hand, which had been holding Rain's forearm, exerted force, and he quickly leaned towards Rain, grabbing Rain's shield arm with his right hand.

The Red Snake, instead of breathing fire, darted from above and bit down on Rain's neck with lightning speed.

In an instant, Rain barely managed to move his body slightly, shifting the Red Snake's attack from his neck to his shoulder.

Upon seeing this, Cannon's face broke into a smile. His Red Snake was incredibly venomous, and once it bit down...

But suddenly, Cannon's smile froze.

A sound of cracking bone echoed, and the Red Snake writhed in pain, its mouth agape, hissing.

Its two fangs had broken off.

Cannon was shocked. How was this possible?

Rain's shoulder armor, with its water membrane and steel shoulder guards, already had two large holes bitten by Cannon's Red Snake, yet there was no blood flowing from the wounds.

Instead, the Red Snake's fangs had broken? Cannon didn't sense any magical energy fluctuations, so he wondered if Rain possessed some kind of bloodline talent, like a rock-like body, or if he wore some peculiar inner armor.

One surprise followed another.

At this point, Cannon no longer cared about saving face.

The fight had progressed to such a degree that he felt he had already lost enough face.

So, he decided to end it, even if it meant sacrificing a little.

Cannon released his grip with both hands, and his left foot stomped heavily on Rain's shield, using the force to leap backward.

As Rain absorbed the impact and prepared to pursue, something caught his attention.

"Boom!"

Beneath where Rain had been standing, an enormous Earth Snake emerged, its petal-like mouthparts gaping.

This time, after the attack, the Earth Snake didn't retreat underground but stood upright like a cobra, its body rising to a height of over two stories, its shadow engulfing Rain.

From above, the figure of Cannon, the High Priest of the Serpent Sect, appeared.

Looking down at Rain, Cannon smiled and commented, "Impressive strength. Considering your age, I'd say you have great potential. If given more time to grow, I might not even be your match."

"But unfortunately, your journey ends here."

"Dying at the hands of a legendary 'Earth Snake' is an honor, isn't it?"

Seeing the massive Earth Snake, the remaining Black Flame Adepts exchanged glances and retreated through the tunnel they had dug.

The Cannons, despite being allies, were outsiders to them, lacking the hierarchical command structure. Moreover, their presence here was of little use, as they couldn't actively engage in the fight, and might even become cannon fodder.

So, they decided it was better to retreat for now.

As a legendary Epic, the Earth Snake's aura was almost tangible, and Rain felt like he was immersed in a thick, viscous substance, the air's resistance seemingly doubling or more.

In this state, fighting an ancient legendary creature was an immense challenge.

"This feeling..." Rain couldn't help but recall his encounter with the High Priest in Maistre County who had used a Dark Magic Array to ascend.

Scanning his surroundings, Rain had initially planned to casually eliminate a Black Flame Adept of Knight-level strength, intending to collect ten portions to test his newly learned core skill, 'Soul Shatter Impact'.

Unfortunately, the so-called elite of the Darkflame Church had already fled, leaving no one behind.

If that was the case, then the solution seemed to be using that particular item.

Rain swiftly drew out the replica Imperial Staff from his waist and hurled it towards the giant snake.

Instantly, a white meteor shot towards the massive snake.

At the same time, the human's representation of power, the Imperial Power, instantly dispelled the snake's comparatively faint legendary aura.

"Argh!"

A deafening scream filled the air.

The platinum replica Imperial Staff easily hit the giant snake's massive body.

Instantly, it smashed a bucket-sized hole in the size of a bucket, but considering the snake's enormous size, this wound was insignificant.

However, the Imperial Power within the staff seemed to cause immense pain.

The snake writhed in agony, rolling on the ground as if causing an earthquake. Then, it quickly retreated underground, escaping.

The High Priest of the Serpent Sect, Cannon, also hurriedly retreated.

The situation made it impossible for him to use his Command Art.

Moreover, he realized that the Imperial Power within the staff clashed with the snake's Divine Power, weakening his Command Art significantly, and it would likely take some time to recover.

This made Cannon's gaze towards Rain turn angry!

He didn't expect Rain to possess such an item.

His plan to control the snake and rescue Holden had now become a pipe dream.

Holden was not rescued.

And the instigator of all this was Rain!

Damn it! Die!

"Great Devouring Snake, I beseech thee," Cannon's voice pleaded.

But it seemed the solution was to use that object.

Rain's speed suddenly surged, and a white arc descended from above, smashing towards Cannon.

At this moment, Cannon, already multitasking, was reciting a spell while focusing on Rain's weapon, waiting for it to transform.

He never expected Rain's speed to suddenly increase again, becoming abnormally fast.

Facing Rain's sudden advanced secret technique, 'Crushing Hammer', he could only instinctively cross his arms to block.

But without time to gather strength, the consequence of Rain's strike was

'Bang!'

Instantly, both wrists exploded!

The shattered bones, torn flesh, and blood violently struck Cannon's face, causing searing pain.

His eyes turned bloodshot, unable to see.

Retreat!

Retreat now!

Cannon, with a terrified soul, had only one thought!

Forget about saving people or the snake, he just wanted to escape.

But with blood gushing from his wrists and his inability to see, how fast could he retreat?

A silver arc flashed horizontally.

"Plop!"

The sound of a heavy object hitting the ground echoed.

Cannon's legs were cut off at the knees.

Lying on the ground, Cannon still tried to escape, his legless stumps flailing rapidly like a fish on a chopping block.

Rain had stopped and seemed to have realized something, walking towards Cannon as he spoke, "By the way, I forgot to tell you, Holden is already dead."

"The detention cell has a wizard array, but it only contains his corpse."

Upon hearing this, Cannon's eyes widened, his lips parted as if to speak, but no sound came out.

"Splat!"

The sound of a watermelon splitting echoed.

"The tenth portion is complete!"

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end