NOVEL NEXT Chapter 54
Chapter 53: Here They Come, They’re All on the Way
In the Tapeya Basin, in a certain area among the outer peaks.
The once lush forest lay in ruins, with the old and sturdy trunks riddled with arrow holes, and broken branches and fallen leaves scattered everywhere.
In the central area, where the marks of arrows were densest, it seemed a fierce energy surge had just erupted, uprooting many trees which lay in tatters on the ground, with only the firmly rooted old trees spared from destruction.
The charred earth looked as though it had been scorched by flames of extremely high temperature, but it abruptly ceased at a certain point.
Like the marks of shockwaves spreading out, from the end of the burn marks erupted a reverse flow, forming a sharp and terrifying arc-shaped pit in the ground, as if a great force had struck down upon it.
At the center of that sunken ground, there were two figures: one standing, one lying.
“…I win, Antonio Stevenson.”
Hua held a short bow, her expression cold, but a barely noticeable sadness lurked in her eyes.
She looked down at the fallen old man and the long bow that lay broken beside him, yet did not press further.
“Cough, cough… ah, yes, you won. Liuguang… Haha, what a Liuguang.”
The old ranger, nearly unrecognizable and in tatters, kept coughing out black liquid, looking quite hideous, yet his expression was one of immense satisfaction, even excitement and joy.
“Little Hua… Miss Fiery Blossom, congratulations, you’ve completely surpassed me, this old failure, and taken the first step into the realm of the gods… In the end, can you tell me how you did it?”
The old man’s attitude was exceedingly humble, as if he were now the disciple of the girl before him.
“It’s nothing special… I just had good luck and witnessed the true existence of that realm, which gave me a bit of insight.”
Antonio’s eyes widened, and his breath grew hurried, “W-who is she?! Where is that existence?! A true god, equal to the creator of the Crimson Lotus Six Techniques, has descended into this world?!!!”
Seeing the old man’s eager expression for knowledge, Hua remained silent for a moment before sighing.
“I can only say, you’ve already met her. That’s all I can say.”
“…Oh, is that so? Haha, so it is…”
The old man suddenly relaxed, as if a lifelong pursuit was instantly fulfilled, and he gained peace and calm.
“It must be… that priestess, right? I knew my feelings back then were not wrong. It’s just a pity I can’t personally go and pay my respects. The power of the gods, the trace I’ve pursued my entire life, can actually be realized at this moment…”
“Whether it’s a true god or not, I’m not sure, but in reality, she’s just like us humans, a being with emotions. At least, that’s what I saw.”
“Is that so… Hehe, perhaps. In any case, give the legacy of the Crimson Lotus Archery to you. If it’s Miss Fiery Blossom, I’m sure in the future you will…”
The old man’s words were not finished; his voice, along with his body, turned to dust in the next gentle breeze, forever scattered.
With a warm smile.
Time flows swiftly, shadows are hard to find, that arrow has thoroughly killed the existence once known as Antonio Stevenson in every sense, and being able to say a few final words was already the limit.
“May you be able to pay respects to the true god before the ancestral spirits, rest well, teacher…”
The girl performed her final bow as a disciple towards the sky, picked up the broken bow once used by Antonio, and carefully tied it to her back.
Then, Fiery Blossom turned and left the place where her mentor perished.
Gathering a few scattered arrows nearby, Hua hurriedly made her way down the hillside of the basin, just as she bumped into the troops from the United Kingdom retreating from within.
About a hundred Black Cloaks still lingered behind them, stalling for time, while a batch of cavalry mounted on unicorns was dashing back and forth among them, trying to completely sever the connection between the two teams and help the troops escape.
In a certain battle group, about thirty or forty shadow guards clad in tight-fitting night gear were entangled in combat with a dozen female foxes dressed similarly.
One must say, fighting between women is exceedingly treacherous and vicious, with a focus on all sorts of underhanded tactics, from throwing smoke bombs to darts, even resorting to hair-pulling, how shameless is that!
Both sides were firing with fervor, the sound of clashing weapons ringing non-stop, it looked incredibly perilous.
Not far away, a few shadow guards weren’t joining the fight but were huddled together, anxiously discussing something.
“What more is there to say? We need to fight back and rescue the princess! Even if the shadow guards all die here, the princess cannot be harmed! Isn’t this our reason for existence?!”
“Right!”
“Exactly…”
“Deputy leader, can you stop holding us back!”
“Alright, everyone, shut up!”
Emily interrupted the chattering protesting sisters irritably, whispering in a low growl.
“Do you think I don’t want to go? But the master’s order is that no one is allowed to leave and return to find her! Though I hate to admit it, facing that legendary Fox-Human leader, we’re just walking to our deaths, at most we can delay a little time…”
“Isn’t it enough to delay time…”
“Exactly! Just enough for the master to take the opportunity to escape!”
“Go back! Go back!”
The deputy leader of the shadow guards was at her wit’s end; although these guys were making noise like chattering birds, she couldn’t deny they had a point.
If the shadow guards risked everything to fight back, it could indeed buy Liliya a good amount of time to escape, but clearly, the princess wouldn’t agree to that; she must have other plans.
Damn, just at this moment, if only Miss Vilyric or Miss Fiery Blossom were still around…
“What happened? Where’s the princess?!”
“Who!!”
Seeing a figure suddenly darting out from the forest, several shadow guards immediately reached for their weapons, but upon recognizing the appearance of the newcomer, Emily was unexpectedly delighted. She signaled to her companions not to be tense and then turned her gaze to the red-haired girl who suddenly appeared beside her.
“Miss Fiery Blossom! You’re back; does that mean the enemy has…”
Hua lowered her gaze, expressionless, as she nodded slightly.
“Mm, it’s been resolved. Where’s the princess?”
“Great! You quickly go save the princess! There’s a bunch of suddenly appearing foxes…”
Emily succinctly explained the situation as briefly as possible, and when she mentioned Liliya blocking the legendary Fox-Human leader alone, even Hua couldn’t help but change her expression.
“Ridiculous! Relying on a bit of newly acquired skill to act recklessly, does she really think she can mess with a legendary being at her level?!”
Though Hua had no idea what Vilyric had actually taught the princess, leading to her astonishing rise in overall combat power within such a short time, Liliya had only been dabbling in combat for less than a month.
Fighting between strong beings was not just about wounding each other, but one’s experience, combat quality, and adaptability were all crucial, and Liliya was clearly still at a novice stage for these.
Let alone the fact that legendary beings were, for ordinary life, almost a leap in ascent, their power far exceeds that of the skies; they generally possess some unfathomable killing techniques.
Liliya would die.
Thinking of this, Hua could hardly conceal her anxiousness; while she had used the princess to a certain extent, they were indeed close friends, and that bond was not feigned.
“Where is she now?!”
“Over there! Just go straight!”
Emily pointed decisively in one direction inside the basin; Hua barely had time to nod before she disappeared from the girls’ view with a few leaps.
“She must be safe, Princess…”
The deputy leader of the shadow guards silently prayed.