Chapter 344
Chapter 344: Deathly pursuit
“Not good, that blasted Celt! Everyone, be careful!” Cecilia’s pretty face paled when she saw Celt’s sudden change in direction. Celt led the group of knights as well as Arlen and his dark elves in an about face towards the stunned Cecilia.
“Master, that Bryan is also a member of Dark Mantle. He won’t dare to act impudently as long as we capture those women.” Kassel vigorously urged Celt along. The Ancient Lizard King’s appearance and subsequent brutality had struck a deep chord of fear within him.
“If they’re with Bryan, we can use them to force him to submit.” Celt responded tightly. He coldly rushed towards Cecilia as he drew “Starry Sky” from his space ring.
From his position atop the old Lizard King’s shoulder, Han Shuo quickly identified Emily from afar. Since the Redbud Knights and dark elves had made such a flashy mess of things, it was impossible to keep Dark Mantle in the dark. Their appearance at this juncture was well within Han Shuo’s expectations.
“You can’t let those ones leave alive, otherwise you can definitely expect this place to turn into a warzone in the near future!” Han Shuo whispered urgently in the old Lizard King’s ear. His eyes were fixed on the two leaders, a murderous glint flashing through his eyes.
“I don’t need you to remind me.” The Ancient Lizard King didn’t bother with audible speech, letting his voice echo within Han Shuo’s mind.
At this point, the Ancient Lizard King had left the corpses of more than a thousand knights and dark elves in his wake as he rampaged through the combined army. The lucky survivors bolted in every direction, doing their damnedest to put as much distance as they could between them and the ferocious figure of the Lizard King.
Suddenly, russet colored light shone over the massive body of the Ancient Lizard King. Astonishingly, his enormous body began to shrink, the light folding inwards.
Still atop the Lizard King’s shoulder, Han Shuo had front row seats to witness this transformation. A quick mental message from the old Lizard King assuaged his worries, the Lizard King was simply transforming into his human form. Han Shuo leaped off his perch, hovering in the air.
Kassel’s skull shattered like a rotten watermelon with a crunching sound.
End of Part 1 of the chapter.
On the other side, Cecilia and the Dark Mantle members were desperately trying to evade Celt and Arlen’s pursuit. The latter two were obviously unaware of Han Shuo and Cecilia’s dubious relationship. The only reason Han Shuo had rushed over was to rescue Emily. He didn’t care for the rest, and he watched Cecilia’s group fleeing without offering a helping hand.
Only when he saw the fire journeyman mage Chrissie almost caught by a Redbud Knight’s killing move did Han Shuo make a move, blocking the attack for her. He shouted from afar, “Chrissie, come over to my side! I will keep you safe!”
“Bryan, hurry and help Mistress Cecilia. Hurry!” Chrissie seemed to care very much for Cecilia. She didn’t run to Han Shuo, instead disregarding her own safety to ask him to save Cecilia.
Emily was not too far away from Han Shuo at this moment. Knowing the grudge between him and Cecilia, her elegant black brows furrowed. She didn’t say anything to persuade him, flying directly to Cecilia instead.
Standing proudly in the air, Han Shuo saw Emily flying to Cecilia without another word. He couldn’t help but let out a low curse before rushing after her. He couldn’t care less whether Cecilia lived or died. Emily however, was his woman. He absolutely didn’t want anything to happen to her.
In actuality, Emily was secretly paying attention to Han Shuo’s actions. A sweet feeling surged in her heart when she saw him fly after her. She knew Han Shuo had only followed to ensure her safety. He still wouldn’t interfere even if Cecilia was in grave danger.
Celt was busily pursuing Cecilia, but Arlen saw Emily fly over. He immediately gave an order to the two dark elven archers behind him. The archers raised their bows and aimed at Emily, magical fluctuations coming into existence around the arrowheads.
The black magic scepter in Arlen’s hand waved once as he chanted a spell in the dark elven tongue. An enormous black python formed from dark elements slithered out from the magic scepter. It shook its head and tail and sprang towards Emily, its blood maw gaping open.
“You want to die?!” Han Shuo roared, the Demonslayer Edge flying out of his right hand. Bloody light exploded out right in the middle of the enormous python.
The Demonslayer Edge was like a bloody mire, a terrifying suction force devouring everything around it. Even the air was no exception as the vacuum force began to increase. The black python was helpless in the face of such a power and was sucked in whole.
The two archers next to Arlen couldn’t resist either. They shrieked, but simply couldn’t control their bodies and were involuntarily sucked into the mire. The archers, along with the surrounding gravel and plants whirled into the air, heading straight onto the mire created by the Demonslayer Edge.
Arlen’s soul seemed to have fled his body in his fright. He decisively stabbed the black magic scepter into the ground, tightly holding onto it with one hand. He took out a dark magic scroll with another hand. He quickly drew something on the scroll, and a mass of black mist rose from it to wrap around his body.
Many gas beings that resembled Arlen formed from the black mist, sent flying with the slightest gust of wind. These gaseous beings twisted like leaves in the wind, but they didn’t seem affected by the Demonslayer Edge’s suction force. Soon, they were drifting further and further away, about to vanish into the distance.
However, Arlen had obviously forgotten about the existence of the old Lizard King Dagassi. He’d been observing the changes in the scene without making a move. All of a sudden, he shot dozens of force waves underground.
A mournful cry came from the depths of the earth. When he heard it was indeed Arlen’s scream, Dagassi cackled and murmured, “You despicable dark elves still dare to try and flee in my presence?”
“Dagassi, what are you just standing there for? Killing them was your responsibility, when did it shift to me?!” Han Shuo had long seen that the Ancient Lizard King had taken the position of a bystander, watching with an eye of interest. He couldn’t help but yell loudly when he sensed Arlen being killed underground.
“Funny little human fellow, you alone seem capable of handling them. I’ll just act as your assistant.” Dagassi had suddenly developed an interest in Han Shuo, continuing, “I’ve lived for countless years, but this is the first time I’m coming across something like your combat style. This cultivation method of yours seems rather special, so I’m waiting to see how many more miraculous areas there are to you.”
Dagassi was very powerful, and naturally his eyesight was rather sharp. He only needed a little bit of time to realize that Han Shuo’s magic cultivation didn’t resemble fighting aura nor follow the tenets of magical elements. He’d never seen anything like it in his life. As a result, Dagassi was immediately interested in Han Shuo, and decided to see what depths this human had. This was why he hadn’t hurried to go on the offensive.
Hearing his words, Han Shuo snorted coldly, “If so, then just watch.”
Han Shuo moved like lightning to Emily’s side as his words fell on Dagassi’s ears, grabbing her waist and stopping her from flying. He then shouted to Celt, “Celt, chasing those people is useless. I don’t care if they die. If you don’t run away, you’ll be dead without a doubt. Are you crazy?”
Celt, who was diligently chasing Cecilia and her team, almost vomited blood in anger upon hearing Han Shuo’s words. He looked back and saw no trace of Arlen, just Han Shuo standing there with a mocking look. Han Shuo appeared to have no intention of saving those people. He obviously wasn’t joking.
“Damned Kassel, giving me false information!” Celt spat out a low curse. He took a moment to think, and quit chasing Cecilia. He gathered the remnants of his Redbud Knights and forged a path deep into the bushes.
“Emily, how did that Cecilia become one of the Dark Mantle’s three heavyweights? Her strength can’t compare with Candide or your brother Amyes!” Han Shuo asked Emily in surprise when he saw that Cecilia only knew how to duck and weave.
Han Shuo’s jeering had forced Celt to give up on chasing Cecilia. Emily struggled out of his embrace in embarrassment when she saw Cecilia was safe and sound. She timidly looked around, slowly floating down before finally replying to Han Shuo, who was still closely following her.
“Sister Cecilia doesn’t specialize in fighting. Moreover, her grandfather is one of the oldest veterans of Dark Mantle, and is also the only sacred magus of the Empire. You’ve even met him before.”
Han Shuo was stunned by her words. He exclaimed, “No wonder! I thought her power was too weak for her to hold this position at such a young age. She has so many strange magic artifacts, so it’s all thanks to her sacred magus grandfather. Oh right, I don’t remember meeting any sacred magus, where have I met him? You aren’t kidding me, are you?”
“Of course not, but I can’t tell you who he is since it’s a rule. Anyway, you’ll definitely meet him after you reach a certain rank in Dark Mantle.” Emily smiled delicately and said, seemingly amused at Han Shuo’s confused expression.
“Her grandfather, I have met him…?” Han Shuo’s thoughts raced. When he came up empty handed after a moment, he no longer spared effort thinking about it.
“You little brat, you’re definitely a scoundrel of the first degree, making an old man like me take action myself!” The old Lizard King’s voice rolled in waves from behind. Han Shuo then saw a red shadow shoot through the air in Celt’s direction.
“Right, Celt has an artifact and a space ring, we still need to take a look.” Han Shuo suddenly remembered the wealth that Celt carried. He hurriedly pulled Emily along and flew towards the two.
The earth elite zombie was still deep underground, following Han Shuo’s orders. It tunneled towards Arlen’s corpse, ready to strip him bare of his valuables.
As for Kassel, whose head had been crushed by Dagassi, Han Shuo couldn’t care less. The druids worshipped nature and didn’t like to collect weath. The traitor Kassel hadn’t had any opportunities to collect magic crystal ores, and Han Shuo hadn’t seen a space ring on his hands either. Obviously, he wasn’t a generous sort.