In the midst of its progressive collapse, the sunken Bandera City had become like dust in the wind, liable to be swallowed whole by this battle at any moment.
In the sky, an immense vortex of energy began to form; the sun-devouring eclipse that darkened heaven and earth had finally arrived, poised to annihilate and engulf everything in its surroundings.
As the fighting flared once more, fissures spread across the remnants of the city-state's upper tier. Bottomless and dark, they spewed forth turbid gusts of air, as if the gates of hell had been thrown open.
The grand spires and magnificent ancient structures of the Protos Empire were as fragile as paper before this battle, crumbling one after another into the ruins of history.
The black chains wielded by the sudden robed newcomer were even harder for Sigrid to parry than Askesan's sealing magic, and her movements were now far more sluggish than before. Meanwhile, Askesan prepared his sealing arts with even greater ease, unleashing them instantaneously into areas where Sigrid had nowhere to evade.
Under their combined assault, Sigrid was driven into unprecedented disarray.
She was forced to evade continuously, yet each dodge took a grueling toll. Whenever she attempted to counterattack, one of the two would invariably disrupt her in time, preventing her from displaying even half her true strength.
Fighting two-on-one wasn't the worst of it; the worst of it was that her two opponents could actually coordinate.
That Tier 8 Epic summon caused her tremendous trouble on top of that.
Even so, she was still unwilling to prioritize killing the black worm.
With so little intelligence, rashly killing it could very well trigger even direr consequences.
There were several possibilities: it might inflict a fatal debuff on her, evolve into an even more troublesome form, or in an even more extreme case, slaying it might reflect catastrophic damage onto herself, ending in immediate defeat.
Furthermore, both enemies specialized in control and offense, making it impossible for her to shift the battlefield. She could only weather the negative aura of the summon while holding off the two of them, all while taking care not to accidentally kill the worm.
Even so, Sigrid refused to show weakness. Relying on her physical constitution and fist intent, she continuously searched for an opening between the two.
Though her victory condition was not to win but to escape, today even fleeing this city-state seemed as difficult as ascending to the heavens.
The only way forward now was to grievously wound the robed figure first, forcing him to the point where he could no longer sustain the summoning of a massive Tier 8 Epic creature like the [Abyssal Black Worm]. When one couldn't deal with the summon, the best strategy was to eliminate the summoner!
"Sigrid, you aren't foolishly dreaming of holding out until nightfall, are you? There are still several hours left."
Askesan watched the stubbornly resisting Sigrid, focusing magic power at his fingertips. In the direction he pointed, the air warped, forming dark gray fissures; anything they engulfed seemed as if it would be crushed in an instant.
Gray lines crisscrossed through space, sealing off Sigrid's dodging range.
He knew this woman's nature all too well. Even if she was at a disadvantage, so long as she dragged things out until nightfall, beneath the moonlight she would gain an absurd boost to all attributes along with terrifying regenerative power.
Once, he had nearly met his end at her hands.
It was just that today, they held every advantage of heaven, earth, and men—she would never see the moon rise!
Finally, amidst Askesan's attacks aimed at curtailing her movements, she caught a fleeting opening. Surging forward in silence, her body struck toward Askesan once more like silver lightning.
Yet at that crucial instant, the robed figure anticipated her move as well. Black chains erupted from the ground, weaving into a cage that shattered her offensive. Simultaneously, the gray lines Askesan had laid down expanded until they intersected and exploded.
The tremendous concussive force sent Sigrid flying. She crashed violently against the distant ground, tumbling several times before skidding to a halt.
She struggled to climb to her feet. Between her injuries and the oppressive weight of her two foes, her very consciousness felt sluggish.
The longer the battle dragged on, the clearer it became that holding out until nightfall would be far from easy.
"Bishop of Domination, your martial prowess is commendable, but you must know what your chances of winning are right now."
The robed figure's voice rang out like a freezing wind.
"Is that little brat waiting to die out there your new Holy Son? Why haven't you given up on him yet and summoned your [Telekinetic Golem] back to aid you?"
Askesan's spells never ceased their onslaught. Now, with plenty of room to spare, he set about rattling Sigrid's composure.
He had never imagined Sigrid would choose such a weakling as the new Holy Son of Domination. If not for that deadweight, her combat strength would have been several degrees higher, and her chances of escaping alone would have been a sliver better.
In all these years, Askesan had never found the Bishop of Domination so easy to fight.
Though he had long prepared a new sealing art intended to kill Sigrid in their next decisive clash, things were simply too serendipitous—she had taken the initiative to come all the way to this isolated, forsaken northern border of the empire.
"What a pity. I had wanted my Holy Son of Extinction to kill another Saintess of Domination, but after today, the Domination branch will cease to exist in this world."
"..."
No matter how infuriating Askesan's words were, Sigrid did not speak a word. Blood trickled down past her brow; in her icy eyes lingered only calm, undying battle intent.
She had promised to protect the Holy Son, and she would never break her word.
In this world, courage and credibility were what she lived by; she would never sacrifice them for mere survival!
...
At the distant edge of Bandera City's gate ruins.
From Lanqi's vantage point, Sigrid was no longer the carefree girl Side chatting casually with him, but a solitary god of war driven into a corner by godlike adversaries.
The unrecognizable city-state resounded with deafening roars at every moment, interspersed with bouts of lethal silence hanging in the air. If the silence ever lingered, it would mean Sigrid's life had been extinguished.
In a city that might plunge into total stillness at any second, Lanqi could distinctly sense that the unbridgeable distance between him and that distant battlefield was the chasm between mortal and god.
Even standing here, without the protection of the silver golem, he would have been severely injured at any moment by the aftershocks rolling from the battle.
To participate in a battle of this caliber required at least Tier 7. Otherwise, the moment one strayed into it, any minor detail or passing instant would vaporize a fragile human body immediately.
However, after the mysterious robed figure comparable to a Bishop appeared, Lanqi was also certain that his powerhouse backer was thoroughly outmatched. She needed a little help.
"Golem, do you have a consciousness of your own?" Lanqi asked, looking toward the silver golem beside him, whose silhouette was identical to Side's.
The silver golem nodded.
Though Sigrid controlled it most of the time, when Sigrid lacked the mental bandwidth to direct it, it operated autonomously, carrying out Sigrid's directive to protect Lanqi.
"In a moment, can you protect me while taking me somewhere else?" Lanqi gazed at it earnestly and pressed on.
The silver golem hesitated for a moment, but nodded nonetheless.
Its orders were to protect the Holy Son, and the Holy Son's priority was higher than its own judgment. Thus, in the absence of commands from Sigrid, it would heed the Holy Son's requests.
Lanqi lightly tapped his toe, staring down at his shadow.
Inside the shadow, Boss Cat was already weeping uncontrollably in terror.
"Boss Cat, get ready to help me cast spells. Also, do not carry [Counterfeit Slate - Wind]," he softly instructed.
If [Counterfeit Slate - Wind] were used in a situation like this, it might cause them to lose Sigrid's trust at a critical juncture, or severely disrupt her judgment.
In the worst-case scenario, given her fierce and fiery temperament, she would rather go all out to drag Askesan down with her than be saved by the High Priest and fall into his hands.
"O-okay..."
Even knowing Lanqi was playing with fire, Boss Cat could only reply in a trembling, faint voice.
Having finished briefing Boss Cat, Lanqi fixed his gaze unwaveringly on the Abyssal Black Worm.
He had never seen such a high-end summon!
Chapter 332