Chapter 421: Misjudgment

Chapter 421: Misjudgment

"Lord Rayen, the enemy is Pierce, the 'Multiarm' from the Limb Cult. Be cautious of his Blood Witchcraft and third arm." Upon seeing Lord Rayen's arrival, Baldwin heaved a sigh of relief and spoke.

"Also, that box over there..." Baldwin pointed at the leather chest on the ground in the distance.

Although not explicitly stated, Lord Rayen understood the importance of the Rift Closer within the chest.

Lord Rayen nodded and said, "Lord Baldwin, rest assured. Leave this to me, and you should tend to your wounds."

As he spoke, Lord Rayen took a moment to assess his opponent, 'Multiarm' Pierce.

Pierce had removed his hood, revealing a relatively delicate face with thin lips and a sinister expression.

Around his sorcerer's robe, several streams of flowing crimson liquid seemed to be a defensive innate Sorcery.

However, what caught Lord Rayen's attention was the dual-bladed sword in Pierce's hand, emanating a faint red glow.

Lord Rayen realized that Pierce might not just be a third-stage crystallized sorcerer but also a knight or an elementalist.

"It seems this box is of great importance to the Dragon Empire."

"This has indeed piqued my curiosity."

Pierce overheard Baldwin's words and, while sizing up Lord Rayen, glanced at the chest on the ground with a hint of ridicule.

"Oh? That's not good. Haven't you heard the saying?" Lord Rayen smiled.

"Hmm? What saying?"

"Curiosity killed the cat," Lord Rayen said with a slight smile.

Just as Pierce's smile faltered, and he was about to respond, heavy footsteps approached from a distance, creating a loud commotion. Simultaneously, the forest echoed with the continuous sound of breaking branches and the calls of various unknown beasts and birds.

Lord Rayen knew the newcomers were the Arida sisters, riding on a golem weighing over twenty tons. The noise was inevitable due to the golem's weight.

However, Pierce was unaware of this.

Pierce's expression darkened, seemingly concerned that the newcomers might be reinforcements for the Empire.

At that moment, the beautiful Arida and Ailia sisters emerged from the forest, riding on two Hellfire Enhanced Golems.

Upon seeing the sisters, Pierce was not alarmed but instead delighted. He glanced at Lord Rayen and then at Baldwin, smiling as he said, "It seems I have reinforcements too!"

Pierce was momentarily surprised that the 'Twin Serpents,' the third-ranked among the Twelve Serpents of the Twin Serpent Cult, had obtained metal golems.

However, he didn't question their origin, assuming the sisters had come well-prepared.

More importantly, the sisters were from the Twin Serpent Cult, naturally making them his allies and reinforcements.

The arrival of his 'allies' seemed to lift Pierce's spirits, and he immediately devised a clever plan.

On the other side, Captain Baldwin, severely injured and lying on the ground, grew paler due to excessive blood loss. He was familiar with the Twin Serpent Cult and had heard of their top powerhouses, even if he hadn't fought them personally.

The Arida sisters, known as the 'Twin Serpents,' were likely no weaker than the 'Multiarm' Pierce from the Limb Cult.

Baldwin had just read the message on the Communication Tablet, learning that the young Lord Rayen was a legendary powerhouse from the Empire's Swordbearer Organization. He had also heard of Lord Rayen's impressive feats.

However, the situation was concerning. If it were only Pierce, it might be manageable.

But with the addition of the 'Twin Serpents,' the Arida sisters, Baldwin had no confidence in the young Lord Rayen's ability to withstand them.

'Damn, if I don't want to become a traitor to the Empire, I must fight with all my might.' Baldwin's expression turned solemn as he silently grabbed a red potion from his chest, ready to consume it at any moment.

'But first, I should warn the young Lord Rayen.'

"Lord Rayen, be cautious! Those two women are the 'Twin Serpents' of the Twin Serpent Cult!" Baldwin spoke in a low voice.

Just as Baldwin finished speaking, Pierce suddenly lunged towards Lord Rayen!

Pierce lifted his hand, and the three streams of blood-colored liquid swirling around him transformed into blood serpents, rushing towards Lord Rayen. Following closely behind, Pierce slashed diagonally with his sword, aiming for a powerful downward strike.

"Steel Armor!"

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Lord Rayen's body was instantly covered in a layer of silver metal defense, deflecting the attacks of the three blood serpents without any effect.

However, the blood serpents were merely a distraction, as Pierce's true attack was the downward slash that followed.

"Clang!!!"

Lord Rayen raised his hand, and the tempered mithril transformed into a dual-bladed sword, blocking Pierce's strike.

The intense collision caused both of them to stagger slightly.

Lord Rayen was surprised by the immense strength hidden within Pierce's seemingly slender frame. In terms of raw power, Pierce even surpassed Barnes, whom he had faced earlier.

Pierce's eyes flickered, as this was the first time he had encountered someone who could withstand his powerful slash without budging.

Additionally, Lord Rayen's Sorcery caught Pierce's attention.

'Metal Witchcraft? That's quite rare.'

(End of Chapter 421)

However, his surprise attack was perfectly blocked by Ren. Pierce remained undeterred, as his true purpose lay elsewhere.

"Slap!"

Suddenly, a thin, long arm extended from his back, slamming a box on the ground towards the Aidas Sisters.

Hmm?

Ren was about to intercept, but as soon as the thought arose, he stopped.

Because he realized that the box was smashed in the direction of the Aidas Sisters.

Huh?

"The two of you from the Twin Serpent Cult, this box is very important to the Empire. Naturally, we can't let them get it, so you must keep it safe."

"If there's something good in it, we can split it equally," Pierce said with a greedy smile.

Throwing the box to the Aidas Sisters was, in Pierce's eyes, a brilliant strategy to kill two birds with one stone.

Although the various churches were allies in this operation, they were also wary of each other.

He was concerned that the Aidas Sisters would watch from the sidelines, letting him and this newly appeared young man fight it out, only to reap the benefits later.

While this move made him give up half the benefits inside the box, it successfully dragged the Aidas Sisters into the water.

Additionally, from the Empire's emphasis on the box, the Aidas Sisters might attract more attention from the Empire than him.

In that case, they would help him divert a significant portion of the enemy's firepower.

On the other hand, the Aidas Sisters...

Sister Aidas, who had intended to attack, saw 'Multiarm' Pierce confronting their new master, Ren. She was about to instruct her younger sister to attack from both sides.

They had met 'Multiarm' Pierce once before and knew he was a legendary powerhouse from the Limb Cult.

Although they hadn't fought him, they had heard of his reputation and knew he wasn't easy to deal with.

But they didn't expect the box to fly into her hands.

This left Sister Aidas and her younger sister momentarily stunned.

However, they had also overheard the conversation between Baldwin and their master, Ren.

This box seemed quite important.

The current situation was a bit unexpected.

Apparently, 'Multiarm' Pierce had mistaken them for reinforcements.

Indeed!

If it were ten minutes ago, they would have belonged to the Twin Serpent Cult and naturally been allies of the Limb Cult.

But in reality, a few minutes ago, they had already switched sides.

Now, they were followers of Lord Ren!

"Sister, I have an idea," said the younger Ailia, her clear black-and-white eyes suddenly turning as she communicated telepathically with her older sister.

"Be careful!" Sister Aidas nodded, reminding her.

Ailia's tall figure stood on the golem, and with a light touch of her long legs, she shot forward like an arrow towards the battle between Pierce and Ren.

Seeing Ailia launching an attack from behind Ren, Pierce couldn't help but smile.

In Pierce's eyes, Ailia's action was a result of his strategy of giving up the box, and it was working.

The Twin Serpent Cult's 'Twin Sisters' decided to cooperate with him.

As a legendary powerhouse, Pierce was adept at seizing opportunities. Seeing this, he immediately launched another attack on Ren.

This time, he was determined to attack without holding back. With the 'Twin Sisters' support, he was confident he could swiftly defeat the young man before him.

Suddenly, Pierce's arm flashed with a crimson glow, his veins bulging like worms, and his muscles rapidly swelling.

"Swish!"

The slashing power of this strike was at least five times stronger than before!

"Clang!!!"

But once again, it was blocked by Ren's greatsword.

Pierce wasn't concerned. After a failed strike, he continued to slash repeatedly.

Especially when he saw Ailia's figure flash and appear behind Ren, a sinister smile crept onto his face.

"Swoosh!"

A pale hand holding a black dagger suddenly emerged from Pierce's spacious sorcerer robe, stabbing towards Ren's waist and abdomen like a black lightning bolt.

Pierce was certain this strike would break through Ren's metal defense spell, creating an opportunity for Ailia to attack.

Indeed, he felt a sense of obstruction from his third hand, and Ren's shield wavered, its metallic luster dimming as if it had reached a defensive limit.

But the next second, his expression changed.

He realized that the attack he had expected from Ailia behind Ren hadn't come!

What was even stranger was that Ailia's aura seemed to flash behind Ren and then disappear.

In other words, she was no longer behind Ren?

What was going on?

Before he could react, Pierce felt a gust of wind behind him, and his heart sounded an alarm.

"Swoosh!"

It was the sound of a blade slicing through the air!

Pierce, with his extensive combat experience, instinctively began to dodge.

But he suddenly realized that his third hand, which had just stabbed towards Ren's abdomen, seemed to be clamped tightly by a pair of pliers.

It was Ren's left hand!

This brief obstruction prevented Pierce from completely dodging the attack from behind.

Li En could only slightly sidestep, trying to dodge the vital points, while at the same time, the fourth arm, once again, emerged from his waistcoat, holding a dagger, and blocked the attack.

However, it was evident that this slightly frail arm was not able to exert its full strength in the rush.

"Pfft!"

Aiya's long battle blade flashed with a cold light, slicing down from above, instantly breaking through the defense of the Blood Shield and cleaving the dagger held by the fourth arm, directly stabbing into Pierce's back.

Fortunately, Pierce had just slightly swayed his body, otherwise, this strike would have pierced his spine.

In that case, no matter how strong he was, it would have been a fatal blow!

As the intense pain in his back surged, Pierce couldn't help but grunt, immediately severing the third hand restrained by Rayen, and casting some kind of explosive secret technique, quickly staggering away.

However, he really didn't understand what had just happened.

It wasn't until he glanced at Ailia, who had launched the attack on him, that Pierce realized what was going on.

He extended his trembling index finger, looking astonished, and said, "You Twin Serpent Cultists have joined forces with the Empire?!"

"You actually attacked us, the Limb Cult!"

This scene naturally stunned Baldwin, the army commander who had just swallowed a burst potion with severe side effects.

He had just finished drinking the potion, head tilted back, and witnessed the scene before him.

This left Baldwin standing there in a daze.

It wasn't Ailia's fault, after all, when her sister launched the attack, she couldn't very well warn Baldwin, who was standing beside her.

If Pierce, the 'Multiarm,' had heard it, wouldn't it have put her sister in danger?

Of course, now that the situation was under control, she could remind him.

"Your Excellency, the two of us are actually followers of Lord Rayen." The older sister, Ailia, apologized to Baldwin, who had just taken the potion.

"You, you two are followers of Lord Rayen?"

Baldwin's eyes widened, his mouth slightly agape, as he looked at Rayen, then at the two sisters, still looking incredulous.

"Yes, soon after entering the Mystic Realm, we encountered Lord Rayen and became his followers." Ailia didn't want to go into the details, so she briefly explained.

"But..." For a moment, the army commander, Baldwin, stammered, wanting to say something but not knowing how to put it into words.

His mind was in a bit of a jumble.

What was going on? The top legendary powerhouse of the Limb Cult, the Twin Serpent sisters, had become followers of Lord Rayen.

As for Pierce's question, naturally, no one paid any attention to it.

Instead, the older sister, Ailia, responded with her sorcery, the Shadow Grasp.

A pair of dark, shadowy hands immediately grabbed Pierce's arms, and at the same time, Rayen charged from the front, delivering a slashing strike towards Pierce!

At this critical moment, Pierce's expression turned even more ferocious, his body surging with blood energy, his muscles swelling, and the shadowy hands holding him were instantly broken free. Simultaneously, he crossed his arms to block Rayen's strike!

"Clang!!!"

Pierce was directly cleaved by Rayen and sent flying more than ten meters, his entire body slamming into the ground, half of his body buried in the soil.

But it didn't end there. Ailia's slender figure flickered, appearing beside Pierce, who had just gotten up. Her battle blade spun in the air, creating a dazzling display of sword flowers, and she swiftly slashed down at Pierce.

Pierce, having just endured Rayen's heavy blow, instinctively raised his right hand to block, and as a silvery arc of light flashed by, his right palm was instantly severed with a 'swish' sound.

"Ahhhh!"

With a scream, Pierce's right palm fell to the ground with a 'clatter,' his fingers still reflexively curling as if trying to grasp something.

Although Ailia and her sister had just said that they had become Rayen's followers, Baldwin, standing nearby, felt that the coordination between the three of them was seamless, almost like a well-rehearsed dance.

Baldwin had just taken the potion, intending to join the attack.

But he had stood there, rooted to the spot, for several seconds, unable to find an opening to intervene.

It was as if they were a loving couple, and he, the third party, or rather, the fourth party, had no place in their harmonious dance.

The seamless transition between Rayen and the sisters' combat styles was so perfect that even a well-trained special combat squad couldn't have done better.

In less than a minute, they had reduced Pierce, the top powerhouse of the Limb Cult, to this pitiful state.

"Whoosh!"

Pierce, with his severed hand, seemed to have a moment of clarity, and his body darted, reaching a nearby slain adolescent green dragon.

This underage green dragon had been slain by Pierce when he first entered the secret realm, and it was his task to kill as many young dragons as possible within the realm.

Pierce's left-hand sword glowed, and he chopped off the dragon's head, then inserted his severed right hand into the cut beneath the dragon's head.

The next second, the interface between the two surged with energy, and the recently deceased green dragon's head suddenly opened its eyes.

In an instant, Pierce transformed into a bizarre and bloody figure, with a green dragon's head in place of his right hand, and a double-bladed sword in his left.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end