Chapter 314 All Tactics Converter (5.9k)

At the same time, as the temple was destroyed, the ether dragon that was fighting fiercely with Loen in the sky was struck by lightning, and the divine light emanating from its body sharply decreased.

Seeing this good opportunity, a fierce look flashed in Luo En's eyes. He leaned back and his body was like a giant bow stretched to the extreme, and the Spear of Nation-Building in his hand was like the arrow on the bowstring.

The next moment, a blood-red light pierced through the sky and shot into the chest of the Ether Dragon at lightning speed, directly hitting the dark red heart that was beating in the chest.

The core was severely damaged, and the Ether Dragon let out a sharp roar. Its body composed of flesh, blood, stones, and bones quickly disintegrated, and its huge body fell uncontrollably to the ground.

Above the rift, the Typhon Temple, which was already on the verge of collapse, was hit directly by the dragon's huge body and collapsed instantly. Dense rubble and bones were shot in all directions with violent impact force, like a sudden meteor shower.

“BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM!”

With smoke and dust all over the ground and bursts of explosions, a petite figure holding the Dark Moon Staff rushed left and right on the continuously collapsing and falling rocks, trying to escape from the temple that was about to collapse completely.

However, due to the repeated fierce battles and the continuous advances, both her magic power and physical strength were close to the limit. An accidental step on air caused her to drift and fall into the abyss in an instant.

Looking at a huge rock falling rapidly towards her, Medea closed her eyes in horror, waiting sadly for the end of her fate.

"Bang!"

At this moment, a dull explosion sounded above, and the falling boulder was smashed into pieces by one blow. A figure wrapped in golden light leaped and dodged among the falling stones, as fast as lightning.

And when his searching eyes locked on Medea, he stomped hard on the gravel under his feet without hesitation, using the recoil force to accelerate his fall, and opened his arms to tightly embrace the little witch who closed her eyes and waited for death.

Medea opened her eyes tremblingly, and seeing the familiar face in front of her, she couldn't help but hug the other's neck and cheered with excitement.

“Senior Brother!”

"Well, hold me tight..."

Loen uttered a vague syllable, and then in a solemn reminder, he opened a pair of golden light-like wings behind him, and carried the two of them into the air, lightly avoiding the falling debris above, and landed steadily on the edge of the crack.

As they were out of danger, Medea shyly loosened her arms, only to notice that dense, light-like cracks had spread from Lorne's arms to his neck, making him look like a piece of fine porcelain that was about to break.

At this moment, the girl suddenly understood why her senior brother had made those vague syllables just now.

Maybe it’s because of the pain…

"Shh!"

Lorne raised his index finger in front of his lips and quietly made a gesture of silence.

Medea nodded in understanding, jumped down from Loen's arms obediently, stood obediently behind her senior brother, and said nothing about what she had just seen and heard.

At this time, on the battlefield.

With the fall of the Ether Dragon and the collapse of the Typhon Temple, the monsters driven by Typhon's power fell into chaos. Without the blessing of the temple, their combat power and endurance were further reduced.

The crusaders took this opportunity to spontaneously assemble, using the coordination of arms to play the advantages of team combat, gradually turning the situation around, and methodically began to clear out the monsters that were still resisting at the scene.

Seeing that the situation had been effectively controlled, Loen was about to breathe a sigh of relief, but his pupils suddenly shrank and his eyes fell on the bronze spear that was nailed into the tree trunk a hundred meters away.

No, where is the body? Where is Hippomenes?

Then, a thunderclap exploded in Loen's head and his expression froze.

He is not dead yet!

~~

rustle……

Amid the misty bushes, a dishevelled figure ran at high speed, covering his squirming chest with his left hand, and staggered out of the vast mountains of Arcadia.

Due to being in too much haste, the white robe covering the armor was torn by the branches and vines lying diagonally on the road, and it hung on the body in tatters, and the once elegant and calm demeanor was gone.

Hippomenes activated the [Extreme Speed] talent of his descendant of Hermes and escaped more than a hundred miles in one breath. Only then did he dare to stop and look behind him with fear in his heart.

That was a close call!

Even the awakened King of Typhon was no match for him. That guy is too terrifying!

Hippomenes could not help but feel a lingering fear when he thought of the thrilling moment when he was pierced through the heart by a bullet and nailed to the tree. He also felt phantom pain in his chest and heart, which had already healed.

Yes, he did die once.

But fortunately, something he prepared in advance saved his life.

Hippomenes spread out his fingers and looked at the pigeon egg-sized, dull red crystal covered with cracks in his palm, his eyes filled with fear and relief.

——Eleusinite, a special substance extracted from life, can give the user the power of rebirth.

The powder scraped off from it is the medicine that His Majesty the King takes.

The pursuit of immortal life has always been the ultimate goal and eternal subject of the Eleusinian Mysticism. They have been working hard for this, but have never been able to find the right method.

But it was such an irony that this miracle was finally accomplished by a pagan like him.

What is even more hilarious is that those idiots of the Eleusinian Mysticism keep praising life, but they don’t know that the price of entering eternity is to desecrate life!

Because only life can exchange life...

These are the truths taught to him by the Great Being.

In order to create this eternal key, he opened the gate of the abyss, awakened the [Great Being], built a temple for it, and used its power to launch a tide of beasts to complete the harvest of life.

Roughly speaking, there are at least thousands of humans who have died directly or indirectly from this, right?

Hippomenes looked at the cracked Eleusinian stone in his palm, raised his hand and crushed it into pieces, then scattered them to the ground. He thought to himself what a pity it was, and shook his head and sneered.

It seems that those idiots of the Eleusinian cult have given such a bloody thing a noble and elegant nickname.

What is it called——[Philosopher's Stone]?

~~

At this time, Loen came to the tree, pulled out the bronze javelin stained with blood and flesh, bent down to pick up a dark red chip from the ground, and looked at it with a frown.

"The Philosopher's Stone!"

An Eleusinian who came forward saw this and his face was filled with shock.

Hearing this, Loen felt the rich breath of life left on the dark red chip, his eyes filled with thought.

The Philosopher's Stone is a mythical substance that has long been considered the "holy grail" of Western alchemists. It is believed that it can be used to turn ordinary base metals into precious metals (such as gold) or to create an elixir of immortality.

Therefore, it is called "Philosopher's Stone, Stone from Heaven, Philosopher's Stone, Raw Material of Gold and Silver, Red Liquid, Fifth Element" and so on.

In various legends and myths, this thing often appears in different forms, including solid, liquid or powder, and is believed to be the color of blood, but most of the time it appears in a ruby-like shape.

Due to the alchemists' unremitting pursuit of this substance, it has also been given titles such as great miracle, great creation, etc. Sometimes, these titles are also used to refer to the makers of the Philosopher's Stone, in order to vividly express that they are at the pinnacle of alchemy.

Not only can it create all kinds of alchemical miracles, it can even change the laws of nature and bring the dead back to life.

When Loen thought of this, he turned to look at the Eleusinian believer beside him and asked solemnly.

"Do you know this thing?"

"Of course! Creating the Philosopher's Stone to gain immortality is the ultimate goal of our Eleusinian religion. Almost every member of the religion knows this. However, there is only one person in the entire cult who can create such a miracle."

"who?"

"Master Cult Leader!"

The Eleusinians answered automatically, their eyes showing worship.

However, Loen's expression turned a little ugly.

If the fragment left at the scene really came from the Philosopher's Stone, does it mean that Hippomenes was in collusion with the Eleusinians?

Is the occurrence of [beast disaster] related to the Eleusinian Mysticism?

Just as Loen was becoming alert and preparing to ask the Eleusinians who were accompanying everyone present to be on guard, the Hermetic magician who had been fighting alongside the crusaders suddenly froze, raised his caduceus like a puppet, and chanted in unison.

"The shape of a star. The shape of the sky. The shape of God. My shape..."

The ancient star map appeared in the sky, and bright starlight fell on the devastated battlefield.

When Luo En saw this, he vaguely realized that something was wrong and immediately shouted in a solemn voice.

"Knock them out!"

However, it was too late.

A group of Hermetic believers with empty eyes chanted the last high-pitched syllables.

"...I offer my blood as a sacrifice. O wreckage, I give you life!"

As the last note fell, dozens of Hermes believers who were standing in a circle exploded, and their bodies turned into blood mist.

Then, scarlet blood mist painted the ground, outlining red and black lines corresponding to the stars. The battlefield filled with corpses was like a swamp of mud, and traces of filth were spreading all around.

The broken pieces of flesh and bones were pieced together and fused together, turning into pale figures with hideous and distorted faces. They crawled out from the pile of corpses, like soul-catchers from hell, carrying the smell of corruption and death.

Faced with this sudden change, many people were stunned on the spot.

“Get out of the way!”

Loen roared and rushed forward, sweeping the Spear of Nation-Building, wrapped in a tragic stream of etheric light, rushing forward. Dozens of humanoid white monsters that had just gathered, along with the surrounding grass and trees, were instantly blasted into pieces.

However, this battlefield, which had been stained with the blood of the Hermetic followers, had now turned into a living flesh and blood factory, constantly creating all kinds of distorted life.

Its function is quite similar to that of the Typhon Temple where the demon fetus was conceived before.

“Roar, roar, roar!”

Low roars came one after another, and distorted human figures rushed out from the dense forest, thick fog, boulders, swamps, and caves, one after another, as if endless.

These things had human-like appearances, but their dark eye sockets were empty, and their faces were twisted, with only three holes that could barely be called eye sockets.

At the same time, there was no skin tissue on the pale body, and muscle-like accumulations were layered and intertwined without any aesthetic appeal. The deformed body was like a piece of wax melted by flames. The various organs and bones came from some humans and some from monsters.

As soon as they were born, they couldn't wait to join the Warcraft camp and started to strangle the humans on the field.

"Holm Cruise..."

The chief priestess of the Moon Temple looked at the strange white creatures twisting and wriggling in front of her and couldn't help but mutter some awkward words.

Holmkros, also known as "artificial life", is a kind of artificial creature proposed by the Hermetic alchemists. It symbolizes the connection between the microcosm and the macrocosm. It is born with a certain mind and a nearly immortal body, and can serve humans.

However, since this idea exceeded human responsibility and offended the authority of the gods, even the most radical alchemists in the Hermetic Church did not dare to try it easily.

Therefore, things like "Holm Cruise" are usually regarded as just a rumor.

In order to unite all the forces that can be united and work together to fight against the beast disaster, the Moon Temple also turned a blind eye to some small actions of the Hermes faction.

However, when the facts lay before her, the high priestess found that she had seriously underestimated the madness of those Hermes followers.

At this moment, Loen looked at the "white waves" composed of artificial life in his field of vision, as well as the magical beasts that automatically recognized them as the same kind, and his eyes narrowed slightly.

It seems that Arcadia's [Beast Disaster] is likely related to the Hermetic sect's [Artificial Life Experiment].

Moreover, it is definitely related to Hippomenes!

On the one hand, the blessing that the traitor chanted when he activated the Temple of Typhon and awakened the etheric dragon seemed similar to the sacred words of the Hermetic sect.

On the other hand, Hippomenes claimed to be a descendant of Hermes, and the main god worshipped by the Hermetic sect, the Triple Great Hermes, was based on Hermes.

Although judging from the confused reactions and tragic end of the Hermetic followers, they were most likely kept in the dark and were just abandoned pawns.

But the forbidden artificial life experiments, the building of the Flesh and Blood Temple for the Demon Ancestor Typhon, and the launching of the beast tide to try to awaken him... all these big troubles, if investigated later, would definitely make Hermes, the leader of the sect, suffer!

Moreover, considering the [Philosopher's Stone] just now, the Eleusinian Cult might also be involved.

Strictly speaking, Demeter, the goddess of agriculture, and Persephone, the queen of the underworld, are also involved.

How long has it been since the war of gods ended, and you guys have already caused such a big mess?

Loen cursed inwardly and looked at the battlefield which had once again fallen into a stalemate.

Since these artificial lives, created through collective sacrifices of Hermetic followers, abandoned human appearance in pursuit of ultimate destructiveness and combat power, they were quite difficult for everyone to deal with.

On the one hand, these monsters' limbs can be transformed into swords, spears, and halberds, and they possess savage instincts and fighting talents like killing weapons;

On the other hand, they have extremely tenacious vitality and are difficult to kill, no matter whether you cut off their heads or limbs. Injured individuals can also recover from their injuries by absorbing the flesh and blood of the surrounding corpses.

Only by destroying the core can the enemy be killed in one blow.

But there are hundreds and thousands of these ghost creatures, and they are constantly being bred from this active land over time.

As the situation became more and more difficult, the attackers found it increasingly difficult to cope.

Loen frowned and looked around, then decisively dematerialized the Gun of Nation-Building in his hand.

"Its source is light, its power is flame; it judges with sword, and punishes with fire!"

A solemn murmur echoed across the devastated battlefield. A golden roulette wheel appeared behind Loen, and its pointer moved to the empty space of "White Horse".

"——I will restore your light!"

As the holy words were chanted, a majestic white horse leaped out from behind him and galloped across the sky, like a scorching sun illuminating the dark night sky.

Then, the galloping [White Horse] crashed into the huge magic array formed in the sky, and a number of blazing white swords appeared from it, and then fell like a meteor rain.

“Puff, puff, puff!”

In an instant, the sound of penetration was endless. The artificial life forms that swarmed over were accurately hit at their soul cores by the dense rain of swords of light and nailed to the ground, like wheat falling down in patches after being cut by a sickle.

Due to the damage to the core, the combat weapons lost their support, and their wax-like bodies gradually dissolved and turned into pools of stains that seeped into the ground.

Most of the threats were eliminated in an instant, and everyone couldn't help but look at the figure with golden wings, with a mixture of surprise and awe in their eyes.

Seeing everyone's eyes focused on him, Loen immediately gave a solemn order in order to avoid repeating the mistake of the Hermes magicians' mass sacrifice.

"Listen, there may be spies among the Eleusinians present. Send some people from the Dionysian Church and the Moon Temple to keep an eye on them. If anyone is found to be behaving abnormally, kill them on the spot!"

However, when these words were spoken, the Eleusinians, who had just experienced a fierce battle with the monsters, were furious.

"Suspect us?"

"Why?"

"You want us to listen to you? No way!"

Just as the excited Eleusinians wanted to seek an explanation for their innocence, a golden goat horn was thrown into the arms of the leader with a low voice.

"Is this enough?"

Feeling some kind of life divinity hidden in it, the leader's face changed, and he hurriedly handed the golden goat horn to Loen in front of him, as if he was holding a hot potato, and then turned around and shouted at the angry and noisy followers.

"Shut up! Everyone, obey this master's orders, stay where you are and don't make any moves! Otherwise, you will be expelled from the cult!"

A few sharp-eyed believers saw the full view of the golden horn and changed their attitudes, assisting the leader in maintaining order.

The Horn of Plenty is the original artifact of Demeter, the goddess of agriculture, and Persephone, the queen of the underworld.

This thing appeared in the hands of the person in front of him. Even if he was not a member of the Eleusinian Church, he must have a close relationship with those two adults.

Seeing that the chaotic scene was under control, Loen's depressed mood eased a little.

Although it is not clear how much involvement the Hermetic and Eleusinian sects had in this beast disaster, and whether the three main gods Hermes, Demeter and Persephone behind the scenes are aware of it, the top priority is to stabilize the situation and clean up the mess in the Arcadia Mountains.

However, before he could catch his breath, a series of thunder explosions were heard in the distance.

Low dark clouds covered the sky, boundless darkness spread everywhere, and the whole world seemed to be immersed in eternal silence.

The focus of all the changes was the Royal City of Arcadia.

Hippomenes? Damn it!

Seeing one wave of troubles rising after another, Loen looked through the water light condensed in his palm and saw the light-like cracks that had already climbed up one side of his cheek, and suddenly felt a headache.

At this time, the twin brothers stepped out from the crowd and spoke solemnly.

"You go first, leave this to us!"

Everyone nodded and agreed to stay behind to cover the retreat and put down the beast disaster together.

They came here to eliminate this disaster. If they return without accomplishing anything, how can they hold their heads up in front of those mortals?

Looking at the exhausted but high-spirited figures around him, Loen nodded slightly, took out the large golden cup from the magic circle with his empty right hand, poured the dark red wine onto the ground, and murmured silently.

"——The powerful flame of light is the most powerful of all origins. I would like to offer it to you with poetry and wine!"

In an instant, a ball of burning and dancing golden flame ignited on the ground, like a bright lamp that dispelled the cold, illuminated the darkness, and made people feel warm. Negative emotions were swept away, and endless courage burst out from the body.

At the same time, under the shining of this light, everyone seemed to drink a glass of fine wine, their blood was stimulated, and their exhausted divine power was condensed again.

Seeing this, Saint Polymonus seemed to realize something in a trance. He looked at Loen with eyes full of passion and piety. With endless heroism, he turned around to face the tide of beasts rushing in from behind the rift and sang loudly.

"Our blood is thicker than water!"

"We are connected by blood!"

The Dionysians responded loudly, stepped forward together, and launched a new round of blocking battle.

"Helen, I'm counting on you!"

The twin brothers made a low request and led the blood-god warriors gathered around them to rush to the battlefield.

Loen looked at the two people's backs, nodded solemnly, then pulled Atalanta up, spread the golden wings behind him, and flew towards the cloudy Arcadia Royal City.

Bang bang bang bang!

As they passed by, the earth cracked open layer by layer, and dark red water flowed as if seeping out from the abyss leading directly to the underworld, flooding the houses and streets, and gradually gathered into large and small springs. In the crimson soil where faint blue phosphorous flames floated, hundreds of white skeletons crawled out of the soil, their empty eyes filled with a cold and tyrannical aura.

The whole of Arcadia seemed to be sinking towards the underworld.

(End of this chapter)