Chapter 66: Surge in Power, The End (3)
Lia stared at the scene of Grey plunging his sword deep into the Abyssal being — into Zeryth’s chest — ending his life with mixed emotions.
The things that had happened today, if she told anyone, nobody would believe them.
An evolver who had just awakened a week ago had subdued a late-stage first-ranker.
The man she thought incapable of becoming an evolver a week ago had now already surpassed her in strength.
From afar, Grey looked like a menacing death god; the longsword pulsed with energy as he coldly stared down at Zeryth with a grim smile.
This scene would forever be etched into Lia’s memory. Never to be forgotten, even in the moment of death.
A being who defied all odds to rise beyond his enemies — that was Grey Lockhart.
An unstoppable force of nature that not even death could take hold of.
Just then, Lia noticed movement from behind her. Because she couldn’t turn her head around, she couldn’t see who it was.
Swoosh!
The next moment, she was yanked upward and she subtly caught the color of the person’s hair. It was blonde.
There was no doubt about it — the man was none other than Cedric Duskwood, who now stood with a knife at Lia’s throat. He wore a fearful expression as he shouted at Grey.
"Y-you! Whoever you are, d-don’t come any closer!" Cedric exclaimed as he inched the knife closer to Lia’s throat.
"If you dare to make a move, I—I’ll kill this woman!" Cedric threatened, his voice trembling with fear.
Cedric had been observing everything that had happened so far with growing dread.
First he had been trapped inside a formation, suffering heavy injuries, but it hadn’t taken long for him to heal completely after drinking a healing potion. However, just as he escaped the formation, two terrifying powers had erupted from the warehouse.
He’d seen Young Master Zeryth fighting against a being that looked nothing like a human — a god that descended into the mortal world to eliminate evil.
His moves had never been seen before. A being capable of using both energy and telekinesis and physically strong too, he had effortlessly dragged Young Master Zeryth across the ground, and his cat had sent the young master flying with a single slap from its tiny paw.
But that wasn’t what shocked Cedric the most; it was the sudden increase in the other party’s power. With every step, his power rose step by step until it evenly matched Young Master Zeryth.
The mere sight made Cedric’s body tremble with fear.
As an Abyssal creature, Young Master Zeryth had been an apex being in the same level — yet he had still been defeated.
Under Grey’s onslaught, he could do nothing but die under his blade.
This made Cedric believe that the man in front of him was a reincarnation of an ancient god.
There was no other way to explain Grey’s abilities.
With no choice left but a will to live, Cedric decided to take Lia hostage and leave the corruption field to get to safety.
He knew that this guy had a connection with Lia; that must mean he wouldn’t act if Lia were taken hostage.
Hearing the shout, Grey glanced at Cedric with a blank look on his face.
He looked at Cedric as if he were looking at an idiot.
On the other hand, Lia wore a calm expression.
She already knew nothing was going to happen to her.
"Hey! I’m talking to you!" Cedric immediately flinched when Grey’s unnaturally glowing purple eyes gazed at him. But he mustered up his courage and spoke. "If you don’t do as I say, I’ll kill her."
However, just as he said that, the knife in his hand began to tremble and soon flew out of his control. He had the knife gripped with all his strength, yet he still couldn’t contest control against the powerful presence that descended onto him.
The next moment Grey’s figure flickered from his spot — and he was right beside Cedric, his longsword pulsating with energy.
With Lia out of harm’s way and Cedric’s grip on her collapsing, Grey swiftly caught her using Heaven Seizing Hand and put her a short distance away.
"Do it." Grey spoke with a playful smile. "Kill her. Let’s see you do it."
"Y-you!" Cedric’s expression was aghast.
"I—If you let me leave here today, we of the High Order will personally welcome you into the organization and give you immense benefits. With your talent, the High Order will rise again and you will obtain high status! Our Duskwood family has been in the organization for years; if we recommend you, you will definitely get in!" Cedric stammered with a fearful expression as he took a step back and tried to bargain with Grey.
To this, Grey merely snorted. "I don’t want to affiliate with a bunch of otherworlders and pieces of garbage from the Abyss who are trying to destroy this world."
"Enough chit-chat." Grey brandished his longsword. "It’s time for you to die. Since you are a member of the High Order, you naturally will have no chance of escaping here alive."
"You!" Cedric’s expression twisted when he heard Grey’s words.
The last trace of his sanity slipped away when he heard his death sentence pronounced. With madness descending into his mind, a black pill suddenly appeared in his hand.
"If I take this pill, I’ll fully transform into an Abyssal being!" Cedric thought with a crazed expression as he popped the pill into his mouth.
He was already a half-transformed Abyssal being — every High Order member was. These transformations boosted their physical strength and altered their evolutionary paths.
Cedric, for example, followed the Bloodline Evolutionary Path; he had fused with the powerful bloodline of a third-rank mutated beast, the Shadow Wolf King.
But with the Abyssal transformation, he would evolve into an Abyssal Shadow Wolf Bloodline Evolutionary Pathstrider — a being who could utilize Abyssal energy.
"This is the final product of the High Order!" Cedric exclaimed as his eyes flashed red and a dense black energy erupted from him. "Before, these pills only allowed one to use corruption energy, but with the combined efforts of the High Order, we humans too can ascend into higher beings and become Abyssal!"
As he finished his words, his form began to twist.