"What exquisite offerings... the Vampire Progenitor, the Cyclops, and the Northern warriors."
Stanley's expression grew increasingly excited.
"Such a delightful harvest. Are you all ready to embrace death?"
He greatly enjoyed watching his prey step by step march toward death.
This thrilling sensation intoxicated him.
Those who became followers of the Evil Gods were rarely sane; they had long lost themselves in the darkness. Slaughter and power were their only pursuits.
Crack!
Stanley stepped forward, and a Vampire who had just gotten up was directly stomped, his head crushed underfoot.
The scene was bloody and brutal.
Li De turned his head and cast a deep glance at the yet-to-awaken Bronze Cyclops, Kosso, then slowly stood up, his gaze cold as he looked at the two enemies.
"I am the Vampire Progenitor Kachar, a follower of the Tyrant God. State your purpose."
Hearing this, both Stanley and Cologne were taken aback. They exchanged glances and then sneered.
Stanley shook his head full of disdain. "Stupid vampire, now all of you are my spoils, sacrifices for the great Tyrant God!"
His eyes were filled with indescribable fanaticism. He had a premonition that once he sacrificed this batch of precious offerings, his power would grow even stronger.
Praise the Tyrant God!
"Everyone shall become an offering for my God!"
Li De's expression remained unchanged upon hearing those words, his deep gaze continuing to bore into Stanley.
"So that means the Evening Bell Church intends to become an enemy of the Vampires? Are you prepared?"
A sinister grin appeared on Stanley's face hidden beneath his cloak.
"Prepared? Just you lowly vampires?? I—"
The Dark Archbishop Cologne furrowed his brow at this moment and shook his head. "Stanley, kill him. This vampire is stalling for time."
Stanley froze for a moment, then looked somewhat embarrassed. "Damn vampire, I'll make you taste death personally."
Li De shrugged. "Such low intelligence. You can't even recognize such an obvious tactic. I truly wonder how the Evening Bell Church has survived until now."
"Are all followers of the Evil Gods this brainless?"
Stanley's face turned livid. He ripped off his black cloak, revealing a face marred by a terrifying centipede-like scar that made one's heart shudder.
The still-burning fire around faintly illuminated his surroundings, and in the dim light, his face looked even more horrifying.
"You damn bastard!!"
Stanley roared in rage. Magic instantly surged from his body, and within a second, a Tier 3 spell, Dark Orb, formed in his hand, ready to be cast.
Just then. Rumble!
The ground trembled.
Without anyone noticing, the Cyclops Kosso, who had been believed near death after being roasted at thousands of degrees for minutes, suddenly opened his giant eye.
His arm, as hard as a mountain, pressed against the scorched earth as he pushed himself up.
The atmosphere instantly became oppressive; the surroundings noticeably dimmed.
The giant eye was filled with ferocity and violence. Two upturned nostrils spewed hot breaths, and razor-sharp fangs glistened in his slightly opened mouth.
His massive body was covered with grayish-white wrinkled skin that shimmered with a metallic luster. Towering at 7 Blades tall, his entire frame seemed forged from iron.
Having now fully awakened his Ancient Giant bloodline, Kosso exuded an indescribable sense of power.
Bronze Cyclops—Kosso Thunder.
He had awakened.
Stanley's pupils contracted sharply, and he immediately released the two Tier 3 spells in his hands.
Boom boom!
The Dark Orbs devoured all surrounding energy.
The heavily wounded Li De had no time to dodge.
Seeing this, Kosso's single eye widened, a violent gleam flashing through it. With two strides, he swung his giant hand toward the sky.
Squelch.
His massive palm collided with the Dark Orb. To Stanley's shock, the Tier 3 spell was slapped away like a fly, completely extinguished!
The two Tier 3 spells didn't even leave a mark on this Cyclops.
"Impossible! Even if Cyclopses have high magic resistance, they shouldn't be able to just ignore the damage from Tier 3 spells!!"
Stanley stared in disbelief.
The Cyclops's strength was far beyond his expectations.
Moreover, he had been watching from the shadows earlier and had seen this Cyclops being roasted by vampire magic for minutes.
Even if it didn't die, how could it possibly recover to a normal state in just a few minutes? His mind was full of confusion and shock.
But Li De paid it no mind, his gaze cold as a killing intent burst forth.
"Kosso, kill them."
"Kosso obeys your command."
The heavy, rumbling voice, spoken in Ancient Giant Language, penetrated directly into the soul.
Cologne behind Stanley looked equally grim. He hadn't expected that the Cyclops, whom he thought had at least lost the ability to fight if not dead, would not only recover but seem even stronger now.
What the hell was going on? Could magic attacks even distinguish friend from foe?
This Level 17 Dark Archbishop, Cologne, was full of confusion and disbelief.
Flap flap flap.
Meanwhile, the Whispering Bats that had previously been driven back by Grote once again filled the sky.
The Vampires on the ground, despite their heavy injuries, seized the chance to transform into bats and scatter in escape, while the more severely wounded Cyclopses dragged their battered bodies to retreat.
Stanley's moment of boasting due to his twisted pride caused the battlefield to shift dramatically.
Villains always seem to die from talking too much.
"Attack!"
Despite his severe injuries, Li De did not retreat a single step.
Even though the Vampires and Cyclopses were already exhausted and weakened, they couldn't afford to lose this battle. Losing now would be a hundred times worse than losing to Grote.
If they lost, all the Vampires and Cyclopses here would be slaughtered.
No one could accept such an outcome.
Under the Vampires' command, the Whispering Bats began to frantically dive and attack the two Evil God followers.
The Vampires who could still fight regrouped and began sporadic spell support.
Kosso, upon receiving the order, charged toward the two Evil God followers.
Having become a Bronze Cyclops, he felt an incredible surge in strength and needed a battle to test it.
For the sake of Dawn City!!
Boom boom boom!
The ground shook with every step Kosso took.
The moment Li De issued the command, Stanley and Cologne were immediately entangled by the fearless Whispering Bats.
Even if they wanted to ignore these massive bats to attack Li De and the others, they simply couldn't.
Although the Whispering Bats weren't high-level, their sheer size couldn't be ignored.
This was no video game world; there were no hit point bars. Even though the Whispering Bats were only Level 7, if they struck the neck of a Level 15 Dark Priest, it could still be fatal.
Despite being bogged down, the two Evil God followers were still top-tier combatants, and the Whispering Bats couldn't truly match their strength.
Moreover, unlike normal spellcasters, the spells they used had extremely short casting times. Even Tier 3 spells took only a second or two, essentially making them spell-casting machine guns.
Every few seconds, a Whispering Bat would fall from the sky. The ground never ceased trembling.
The Whispering Bats suffered heavy casualties after a brief engagement.
Yet Li De showed no softness. The Whispering Bats were not irreplaceable resources; he could create as many as needed given time.
If they didn't kill these two Evil God followers now, they would be the ones to die.
Mercy has no place on the battlefield.
Nearby, Emi's face was full of bitterness as he watched the scene. As a fellow spellcaster, he realized just how much more destructive divine-backed priests were compared to himself.
At the same time, he swore internally that after this, he would learn more spells to strengthen himself, so that he wouldn't need Lord Progenitor's protection again.
After Li De gave the order, the battle immediately entered a fever pitch.
The Vampires, having thrown all caution to the wind, fought with reckless abandon.
The Whispering Bats risked their lives to tie down the two enemies, while Kosso, the Bronze Cyclops, became the main force of offense.
Wielding a spiked club from another Cyclops, his terrifying physique shattered the ground with every strike.
Countless giant craters formed across the battlefield.
Moreover, after his advancement, Kosso's magic resistance had reached a ridiculous level. Stanley and Cologne's dark magic couldn't hurt him at all.
The Bronze Cyclops bloodline directly granted immunity to Tier 4 spells, and the two's strongest spells were merely Tier 4.
Thus, Stanley and Cologne, who had been so aggressive moments ago, were immediately suppressed under Kosso's assault with the help of the Whispering Bats.
Boom!
Magic exploded, a terrifying energy tide spreading outward.
Stanley desperately dragged on Kosso, buying a moment for the Dark Archbishop Cologne.
After a brief casting, Cologne unleashed his most powerful spell. Tier 4 Spell: Void Devour.
Void Devour: Create a void that swallows enemies, banishing them into another dimension.
In front of Kosso, the space suddenly shattered. A massive black hole formed and swallowed the 7 Blades-tall Kosso inside.
Several Whispering Bats nearby were torn apart into shreds by the collapsing space.
Seeing this, Stanley let out a huge sigh of relief. That Cyclops was too savage; he alone couldn't counter him.
Void Devour was a space-type banishment spell; it wasn't cast directly onto the target, so no matter how high the magic resistance, it couldn't block it.
"Kill that damn Vampire Progenitor!"
---
[T/N: Gonna take a break on the 21/06/2025, need to rest up the heat is getting to me.]