Gareth reached up and felt at his neck, immediately growing flustered.
The armor on his body had been forged with all the bone dragon clan's might—a top-tier enchanted suit not far from an artifact.
Yet the helmet resting upon his neck was something he had fashioned himself to snap on as a decorative piece; even the soul fire glowing within was merely for cosmetic effect, originally meant to disguise himself as a Death Knight when running away from home.
As it turned out, that strike just now had made Gareth fail to notice the helmet's clasp, and the shockwave of the Divine Smite had blasted it away.
Flustered, Gareth snapped the helmet back on. Even though the fierce battle had kept anyone nearby from spectating, if someone did happen to see and discovered he was a Headless Horseman, the news would surely reach his wife once it leaked.
Once he got back, he would weld the helmet directly onto his neck; he couldn't afford any more slip-ups.
Seeing Gareth's anxious demeanor, Anbaixiu felt embarrassed to tell him the truth.
Although Rose of Decay hadn't shared specifics, Anbaixiu could more or less guess that she had teamed up with Gareth's wife to hunt down this runaway husband; otherwise, she wouldn't suddenly know the paladins' movements so well.
Perhaps the two of them were already watching Gareth from some corner right now.
Marriage truly was a grave—one that even the undead yearned to escape.
Anbaixiu glanced back at the Slag Ember bar. By now, the tavern had been utterly flattened by the shockwaves of their battle, its ruins looking no different from what was foretold in the prophecy.
The first prophecy had come to pass, though Anbaixiu had originally assumed the bone dragon lady would wreck the tavern while catching her cheating husband.
In reality, it had been destroyed during Gareth's fight with Fanxing.
Then was the prophecy about a head being severed also a mistaken deduction?
Pondering this, Anbaixiu fished the dying Fanxing out of the crater.
Although Fanxing had nearly burnt out his lifespan, a body honed by years of rigorous training allowed him to cling to life, though he had lost all capacity to resist. This suited Anbaixiu just fine: a living paladin was worth far more; dead, he could only sell the soul.
Anbaixiu skillfully stripped Fanxing of all his gear and stuffed it into a dimensional pocket. However, when taking off the silver-white helmet on his head, Anbaixiu's hands were severely scalded, wisping with green smoke.
Ignoring the pain, Anbaixiu summoned a Mage Hand to lift the helmet off. After examining it closely, he said excitedly, "Such potent Holy Light! What a treasure!"
He did not yet know this was an imitation of the Crown of Lathander, but Anbaixiu could feel the divine power within; it was definitely a treasure worth tens of thousands in gold.
Resolutely stashing it away, Anbaixiu turned to Fanxing and said, "Admit your defeat thoroughly, then? If you don't want any needless casualties, why not cooperate with me to convince your companions to surrender?"
Such intense Holy Light earlier had undoubtedly alerted the other paladins. Anbaixiu could sense them rushing over. Though Gareth was formidable, continuing the fight could easily destroy half the City of Alchemy, at which point those lunatics would surely seize the chance to cause trouble.
Fanxing was so weak he couldn't even lift a finger, yet hearing Anbaixiu's words, he still spoke firmly: "We... never... fear death... The Holy Light... will guide us... to the divine realm."
"Tsk, I knew you'd say that."
Just as Anbaixiu finished speaking, several beams of Holy Light flared at the end of the long street. Fanxing's companions had arrived.
This time, nine paladins appeared—meaning all the remaining ones were here.
Anbaixiu layered several bindings and seals onto Fanxing, then cast Dimension Door to send him to the castle, locking him into a cage prepared long in advance.
By this time, the nine paladins were already charging toward Anbaixiu and Gareth, shouting about the Holy Light and the like.
The soul fire in Anbaixiu's eyes narrowed into two points, and he said seriously to Gareth, "End this quickly! Finish them off before those alchemists lose their patience."
Gareth snapped his deformed helmet back into place and said, "Give me some cover. Don't let anyone see."
Anbaixiu thought, *Your wife already knows, so why bother keeping up appearances?* Nevertheless, he complied with Gareth's request, casting a spell to isolate the entire city block, completely shielding it from outside perception.
The celestial steeds moved with incredible speed, crossing several hundred meters in the blink of an eye. The longswords in their hands blazed with Holy Light, poised to obliterate Gareth entirely.
Yet very quickly, they realized they were far too foolish and naive.
Gareth smashed a fist into the ground. Terrifying force shattered the earth, sending a shockwave laced with flying rubble hurtling toward them with immense weight.
The nine paladins swiftly adjusted their formation, their Holy Light fusing into a colossal shield that blocked the dreadful onslaught.
Though unscathed, their charging momentum had been slowed.
However, Gareth's punch was not truly an attack; vast dark magic had surged into the earth along with his fist, tracing out a massive magic circle.
And before the paladins' shocked eyes, an exceedingly magnificent eight-legged steed leaped forth from the magic circle.
Gareth leaped high into the air as well, mounting the steed midair. The eight-legged steed was so colossal that it easily bore Gareth's four-meter-tall frame. When its hooves struck the ground, every stride felt like an earthquake.
Gray smoke billowed from the eight-legged steed's nostrils, its eyes blazing with raging soul fire. Its dark blue-black body was covered in dense dragon scales—one look made it clear this was another undead mount crafted specially for him by the bone dragon clan.
A Headless Horseman without a mount was hardly a horseman at all.
Anbaixiu looked on with utter envy. Being kept by a wealthy woman was truly enviable; even if Anbaixiu bankrupted himself, he might not be able to procure such a steed.
Tugging at the reins, Gareth said excitedly, "Old friend, it's been a while since we stretched our bones, hasn't it? Let's warm up a bit today!"
The chained blade pulled taut, transforming directly into a lance over ten meters long. This was Gareth's true weapon; toying around with a chained blade earlier had been purely a disguise for fear of his wife recognizing him.
Now he simply gave up pretending and attacked in his strongest form.
The eight-legged steed roared, its eight legs churning with immense power as it charged at the paladins.
The charge shook heaven and earth. With Gareth and the eight-legged steed together weighing over a thousand tons, even the city walls of the City of Alchemy might not have withstood them.
During the charge, Gareth and his mount were enveloped in dark magic, leaving behind only the aura of rot and ruin wherever they passed.
Be it Warding Bond, Divine Favor, magical shields, or Auras of Protection... no matter how many defensive divine spells the paladins had layered on themselves, none held any meaning before Gareth's charge.
Anbaixiu watched as all nine paladins were sent flying in a single charge. When they hit the ground, they were utterly incapacitated; not a single one could stand back up. Every paladin suffered full-body fractures, their Holy Light dimmed to a flicker, and even their armor was corroded by heavy dark magic, reduced to look like rusted iron.
The sight pained Anbaixiu deeply. How much would all that armor have fetched if stripped intact? Headless Bro really didn't run a household and had no idea how expensive bread and butter were.
Still, Gareth hadn't used his full strength; he knew Anbaixiu wanted them alive, so he had held back during the charge. The nine paladins were completely broken, but all of them had survived.
Anbaixiu felt somewhat relieved, yet found it a bit strange.
Why hadn't the remaining paladins used that trick of burning their lifespans to forcefully elevate their realm?
Even mortals could sacrifice their lives in exchange for power—there was no way they didn't know how, right?
Or were there specific conditions required to activate it?
Anbaixiu shook his head, pushing down his curiosity. A scholar's habits felt ill-timed right now. The paladins had been dealt with, and next came the main event: making the trade with the City of Alchemy.
Was the Wishing Machine, prized so dearly by the City of Alchemy, truly that miraculous?
Chapter 66