Versatile Mage c1-2021, page 650
When the ring made contact with the shadow, thick rocks emerged from the wall and formed a cage around it, entrapping the Blue Deacon with the Shadow Element.
The Blue Deacon was forced to reveal himself. He was about to escape through an opening when Zhang Xiaohou arrived. He immediately lost his balance when the strong wind blew at him. He fell half the Wall's height down from where he was.
Luckily, he was on the back side of the wall. If he was at the front, the starving creatures of the Underworld would have immediately torn him to pieces!
"Please, spare me, I was forced to join them!" The Blue Deacon knelt on the ground and begged for mercy. He realized it was impossible to run away from Zhang Xiaohou.
Zhang Xiaohou was stunned for a moment. The guy had lost his will to fight before he attacked. Was every member of the Black Vatican a coward?
As Zhang Xiaohou was thinking, something the same color as the wall was wriggling behind him, silently approaching the flying Zhang Xiaohou from behind like a spider approaching its prey.
The Blue Deacon was distracting Zhang Xiaohou with his words while controlling a Dark Beast to sneak up to him...
He had to wait until the Dark Beast was close enough to deliver the killing blow. He had to make sure the guy did not have a chance to dodge the attack, nor a chance to cast a defensive spell or activate his defensive Equipment!
The Blue Deacon believed the creature was close enough. The begging look in his eyes turned vicious!
"Die, you fool!" the Blue Deacon screamed.
Zhang Xiaohou had a curious look when he saw the shift in the Blue Deacon's expression.
A deadly claw swiped at his neck from behind at a tricky angle. However, Zhang Xiaohou nimbly moved to the side without turning his head...
He even moved at the perfect time and was well aware of the reach of the Dark Beast's attack. He did not move a centimeter further than what was necessary.
The Blue Deacon gaped. He did not expect the guy could dodge the attack so easily.
"I really despise your kind, especially when I see these ugly creatures killing people under your command. Why do you never understand how important the people that you have killed cold-bloodedly are to others!?" Zhang Xiaohou swore icily, floating in the air with the help of the wind.
The Wind Wings had left his back while he was speaking. The Wind Wings turned into wind blades circling around the Blue Deacon and the Dark Beast.
The Blue Deacon was extremely scared of dying, and immediately fled for his life. The ambush had failed. He would only die if he tried to fight this man!
The wind blades slashed at their targets from different directions and angles. There was no escape from them, nor was there any way to defend against them. The Blue Deacon that naively thought he could run away and his Dark Beast were sliced into pieces. Their blood spattered across the place.
The Blue Deacon and his Dark Beast died to Zhang Xiaohou's wind blades in less than two seconds!
The Wind Magic, slightly stained with blood, returned swiftly to Zhang Xiaohou's back and reformed into wings. Zhang Xiaohou took a deep breath. He beat his wings and returned to the top of the Wall and the Magic Fire Beacon, where fighting was still taking place.
Chapter 1394 - The Sphinx
Translated by XephiZ
Edited by Aelryinth
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The ghostlight shone down upon the land as the army of undead advanced. Anyone watching them would be overwhelmed by a fear of falling into a deep abyss where they would never see peace again.
"The almighty Osiris, I am Unas..." Unas stood in front of the magnificent pyramid under the mysterious light it was emitting. She had an eerie, inhuman presence.
Mo Fan was standing not far away from her. He closely observed her confusing actions.
Was Unas the main reason why the Cold Prince was able to collude with the Underworld?
Besides, wasn't Unas the name of a Pyramid, too? Judging from what she was doing, there was a great chance that she was a Medium!
Egypt had many talented Undead Mages. It was very likely that some of them were born with the innate talent to communicate with the Underworld.
"Your prey is still resisting their death. The army of undead is struggling to advance further because of the Great Wall that is blocking the way. It is China's ancient shield; it has been around for a long time, but the truth is, it's nothing but a little hill in front of you. We need your power to destroy it!" Unas called out to the Pyramid in a loud voice.
Unas was tiny compared to the magnificent Pyramid. Ten Dark Swordmasters in full armor were standing around the Pyramid. They were guarding the entrance of the Pyramid like its most loyal servants. Any creature that did not submit to the Pyramid was not allowed to enter its vicinity!
Ten Dark Swordmasters at the Ruler-level were only guards of the Pyramid. How terrifying would the Lord of the Underworld inside the Pyramid be?
"Leave a petty matter like that to the Sphinx," a misty yet thick voice came out from the Pyramid.
The others quickly covered their ears. It felt like their heads were about to explode!
Mo Fan was struggling to believe it. A single sentence was already troubling their mind to such an extent! Were there really gods in this world? Was it true that normal people could not listen to them directly?
"Splendid! I hope you are satisfied with the gift I've prepared for you, even if a little accident is in the way," Unas answered.
The Lord of the Underworld inside the Pyramid did not respond.
Unas did not dare say a further word. She tactfully left the place.
The Jagged Bones Cursed Beast beat its wings and swept past the ocean of undead. It was heading toward a specific spot on Squaretrek Plain.
"Master Unas, didn't Osiris send a powerful undead to help us? Why haven't I seen him yet?" Crow asked.
"The Sphinx was already here when the Underworld Monarch Frogs showed up, but he only takes orders from one person. If he wanted to destroy the wall, it would have long fallen," Unas replied.
After flying for some time, they could still see the army of undead densely filling up Squaretrek Plain underneath them. They were currently around twenty kilometers to the north of Northguard Fortress.
It went without saying that the number of undead was the highest in this area. After all, Northguard Fortress was the key point of their enemy's line of defense. Once they destroyed Northguard Fortress, the Great Wall would collapse too!
"A huge area has cleared up," Blue Bat exclaimed, suddenly pointing into the valley.
Mo Fan looked in that direction and was surprised that there was not a single undead in the area. It was like a rapid-flowing river encountering a sandbank. The water was avoiding the area and flowing past it on both sides.
Mo Fan was utterly confused. It was clearly not a deep canyon. The undead could just travel across it, yet they had purposely taken a long way around instead, as if it was a forbidden area!
Unas smiled. She ordered the Jagged Bones Cursed Beast to land on the spacious area.
Mo Fan suddenly realized an enormous creature was lying in the valley. Its color was very similar to the terrain nearby. It was unlikely that anyone would notice it when it concealed its presence. However, he was already brimming with fear when he was still a hundred meters away from the creature!
He could hear the creature snoring. Its breathing was very long and slow. Every inhalation and exhalation took around three minutes. An overwhelming force would surge inward and outward during the process. No ordinary undead could withstand it.
It was lying on the ground sleeping. It had arrived earlier than the massive army of undead. Even the Scorpion Lord Medusa had taken the long way around when the undead army was passing by. It showed how terrifying the creature was!
"You, go down there," Unas pointed at Crow and ordered.
"Me?" Crow stammered, pointing at himself.
The creature lying below was absolutely terrifying. Crow was no idiot. Every undead, including those at the Ruler-level, were avoiding it. He knew what was going to happen if a mere Advanced Mage like him went down there!
"Go wake him up," Unas said.
"Don't you have the ability to communicate with the creatures of the Underworld?" Crow knew his life was in danger if he went and woke the creature up.
"The Sphinx has a strange temper. Apart from Osiris, he will eat anyone that dares disturb his sleep straight away," Unas blatantly told Crow what was going to happen.
"Then why..." Crow had a twisted face.
"I'm ordering you to go down there. You just need to obey what I say obediently!" Unas' eyes turned cold.
"I don't want to die, you can ask someone else," Crow looked at Blue Bat, Mo Fan, and the others. He was not the only person around. Why did she have to pick him?
"Go down!" Unas' eyes were abnormal. Somehow, the look in her eyes became irresistible.
It was an order originating from her mind. Her order went right into Crow's soul like a sword.
"A Soul Contract..." Mo Fan was shocked when he sensed the energy.
There was obviously a Soul Contract between Crow and Unas, forcing Crow to obey Unas' commands!
"If you go down now, you are still going to earn merits. If I break your limbs and toss you down, you will just be a nobody," Unas said in a serious voice.
Crow knew he had no other choice. He jumped down to the ground unwillingly.
He landed right in front of the enormous creature. His tiny figure was as insignificant as a little insect. It felt like the creature could easily devour him with a little sip.
"Sphinx..." Crow called oiut in a soft, trembling voice.
Crow was hoping that the creature did not hear him, yet unfortunately, he actually woke it up. It opened his eyes and stared at Crow murderously.
Crow's will shattered in an instant. He froze like a statue under the creature's gaze.
The Sphinx did not give the petty human any chance to speak at all. He took a deep breath and s.u.c.k.e.d Crow straight into his mouth...
He did not even bother to open his mouth. Crow ended up smashing into the Sphinx's teeth and turned into pulp.
The Sphinx licked his teeth to taste the human indifferently.
He slowly lifted his head and noticed several other humans above him.
"Sphinx, the Lord of the Underworld has asked you to work together with us to destroy Northguard Fortress. Let's hope we have a great time working together!" Unas was able to communicate with the creatures of the Underworld, and smiled and quickly mentioned Osiris' plan to the Sphinx.
Unas was acting very casually, as if nothing was worth her attention at all.
Osiris had indeed given the order to the Sphinx. The massive creature slowly rose to his feet. The moment he stood up, the army of undead started moving underneath his body. He was like an island that had been lifted up into the sky!
Mo Fan was stunned, not because he realized Northguard Fortress was soon going to be trampled by the Sphinx, but by the fact Violet Ghost was not the host of his Soul Contract. It was in Unas' hands instead!
Crow was similar to Mo Fan. He had joined the ceremony after signing a Soul Contract with Violet Ghost. Unas had clearly used the power of the contract to give Crow an order.
"Violet Ghost is dead… but my contract isn't terminated yet..."
Mo Fan could vaguely sense that Violet Ghost was dead through the Dark Material. He initially thought there would be a delay before the Soul Contract was terminated, as the chains binding his soul would take some time to disappear. To his surprise, the host of the contract was never Violet Ghost, but Unas, and Crow had clearly proven it just a moment ago!
Damn it, he was set up by Violet Ghost! The person they were supposed to kill was Unas!
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Northguard Fortress...
Zhao Manyan and Lingling did not stay at Shenmu Keep after killing Violet Ghost. Shenmu Keep had survived the attack from the Black Vatican. They just needed to clean up the rest of Violet Ghost's men.
Shenmu Keep might be safe, but it did not necessarily mean the other ancient keeps were fine!
Northguard Fortress was clearly bearing greater pressure compared to the rest of the ancient keeps.
"We are almost at Northguard Fortress. Let's hope they are still fine!" Zhao Manyan flew along the Wall while setting his eyes on the magnificent tower of Northguard Fortress in the distance!
"Mmm, we must hold Northguard Fortress at all costs," Lingling nodded. She was about to talk about Mo Fan's situation when Zhao Manyan suddenly came to a stop.
Zhao Manyan was initially flying along the Wall, but he suddenly lowered himself to the path on the Wall and hid in one of the towers.
"What's wrong?" Lingling asked after seeing Zhao Manyan's unusual behavior.
Zhao Manyan had a strange look on his face. He was trembling, too!
"The...the human face!" Even Zhao Manyan's voice changed too. He cautiously looked out of the tower.
Lingling followed his gaze and saw a human face among the huge army of undead. It was grinning faintly!
Zhao Manyan was sure that it was the same human face he had seen behind the Underworld Monarch Frogs before. He initially thought it belonged to a titan, as its body was concealed by the dust. However, it had now revealed its true appearance as it came closer. It was a terrifying monster with a human face and the body of a lion!
"It's the Sphinx of Giza!" Zhao Manyan exclaimed. "Egypt's mystical beast!"
Chapter 1395 - Full Attack on Northguard Fortress
Translated by XephiZ
Edited by Aelryinth
If the God of Death representing Greece was Hayla, the God of Death representing Egypt was the Sphinx!
Osiris might have been just a legend, since no one had ever seen his true appearance, but the Sphinx did exist. He had been lying not far away from the Great Pyramid of Giza in deep slumber for years, just like a giant lifeless statue...
However, many people witnessed how vicious the beast was whenever he was awakened. For many years, countless cities had lived in fear of the Sphinx. They had no chance of defending themselves. The Sphinx was indeed a God of Death; no one could survive his stare!
Zhao Manyan finally understood why he was shivering in fear when he first saw the face; he now realized behind the face was the body of a lion as massive as a mountain!
The Sphinx of Giza was an ancient being that had existed for thousands of years. The Egyptians had worshiped him as a deity for a long time!
Such an existence known for his dominance throughout the history of Egypt had shown up here. Could the Great Wall really hold it back?
The sand drifted wildly in the howling wind. The Sphinx spat out an amount of sand equal to a sandhill at the Great Wall from a few kilometers away.
The sand surged fiercely and smashed onto the Great Wall. The wall was clearly at its limit. Both Zhao Manyan and Lingling, hidden in a tower, could feel the insane force of the impact!
The raging sand kept smashing into the Great Wall. Pieces of the wall began to fall as its thickness rapidly decreased.
The Earth Fountain Spring Water was already depleting at an insane rate as the army of undead was attacking the Great Wall. The wall immediately suffered serious damage after it was attacked by the Sphinx.
Once the wall was damaged, the Realm of the Heavens became less effective, too. A huge bunch of Underworld creatures started climbing up the wall, stacking on top of one another in the sandstorm!
Meanwhile, the Black Vatican was aggressively attacking the Magic Fire Beacons on the wall...
Northguard Fortress had the highest number of defenders, but the Black Vatican's troops, led by Tall Sparrow, were remarkably strong too. The wall was scattered with the corpses and remains of soldiers, Dark Beast Monsters, and members of the Black Vatican. The intense battle had been going on for quite some time. How could the defenders not be overwhelmed by fatigue?
"The Magic Fire Beacon… we've lost the Magic Fire Beacon of Double Mountain Keep!" Lingling said, pointing into the distance.
Only five Magic Fire Beacons were clearly visible amid the sandstorm. Their brilliance represented the determination of the defenders as they continued to fight the Black Vatican and the Underworld creatures to the very end. Some time later, another fire pillar vanished. The Great Wall, already on the verge of collapsing, shrank rapidly once again!
"We can't hold for much longer," Zhao Manyan murmured.
The appearance of the Sphinx was like adding hail to snow. They were already struggling to hold back the Black Vatican with the mere numbers they had, and now a deadly existence that could easily pose a threat to the Great Wall had shown up, too! The North Valley was going to experience a bloodbath soon!
"I thought we could at least hold them off for a day or two. I didn't expect them to break through our defense so quickly," Lingling smiled wryly.
The Great Wall had to stand for two days. Most of the people in the cities in the North Valley would be evacuated to Feihuang City within two days. Since Feihuang City was located on higher ground, it was easier to defend the place than invade it. There were other hordes of demon creatures in the other places, too. If the army of undead insisted on marching onward, the demon creatures would put up some resistance, too!
Many Mages were gathered in Feihuang City, so they just needed to buy enough time for the people to evacuate to Feihuang City, even if it meant giving a huge amount of land away. Staying alive was more important than anything else!
However, judging from the current situation, the Great Wall would only last for a few hours. It had only been a day since the battle started, but they had already lost three Magic Fire Beacons. It was likely that they would lose the remaining Magic Fire Beacons even faster!
Most importantly, the situation did not look too good for Northguard Fortress. Once the fortress fell, the line of defense was going to collapse instantly. The army of undead would chase down the people that were slowly being evacuated recklessly. Their blood would spray across the land, and their bones would pile up into mountains!
