At the same time, the brutal battle between the Remains of the Flame Demon Dragon and the Old Witch, who had already lost an arm, reached its conclusion.
The dragon's corpse pushed the Old Witch to her limit.
But in the end, she crushed the beast with her massive hammer.
The dragon's remains shattered completely, vanishing into nothing.
Seizing the moment, Don made his move.
With a clean strike, he killed the severely wounded Old Witch.
"Gift of the Hunter Badge: Teleportation Lantern."
"Gift of the Resentment Badge: Old Witch's Remnants."
Now, only one enemy remained.
Don continued slashing through the grotesque flesh creatures that tried to ambush Scela and the others.
His gaze turned toward Germain and the Prophet of Lies.
The Prophet had finally finished his incantation.
RUMBLE—
More than thirty cube-shaped stone pillars tore themselves from the floor of the ancient labyrinth.
They floated upward, forming a barrier before the Prophet of Lies.
Meanwhile, a red beam of light engulfed Germain.
The stone pillars instantly locked onto the red light, whistling through the air as they shot toward him!
But before they reached him—
Germain leapt into the air.
In his hand, the Sacred Moonlight Sword suddenly shifted form.
It transformed into the Thunder Warhammer.
BOOM—
Like the beating of war drums, flashes of lightning burst forth with thunderous roars.
Over thirty cube-shaped stone pillars were instantly shattered to dust beneath the crackling storm.
"The Prophet of Lies" stood frozen, staring blankly at the destruction of the pillars—pillars he had chanted to summon, pillars paid for with the life force of the "Lord of the Dead."
All gone in the blink of an eye.
Above, Germain rode the head of a dragon forged from condensed lightning.
He roared as he descended, obliterating the three wooden barricades in his path with the force of a storm.
The thunder dragon opened its massive jaws and lunged forward, clamping down on the Prophet and the absurdly large shackles that bound him.
Crackling electric screeches filled the air.
The Prophet's body convulsed under the horrifying surge of electricity.
He opened his mouth in agony, but that once-deceiving tongue would never speak again.
Life drained from his body.
His form crumbled into ash.
「Hunter's Badge Reward: Teleportation Lantern」
「Resentment Badge Reward: Remains of the Prophet of Lies」
With the fall of the four massive beasts that had driven this blood-soaked battle, the tide of war shifted.
Mindless flesh monsters quickly turned into prey.
From that moment, as the expedition team led by Ging and Bisky entered the ancient labyrinth, the battle neared its end.
Germain gave a swift and clear explanation of everything that had occurred.
He asked them to clean up the remaining flesh monsters and help rescue the wounded.
Cheadle, Gel, and Sanbica's medical teams immediately began treating the injured—including Scela, Kioris, and Mikhael.
However, these three weren't human.
They were demi-humans, each with strange and unique forms.
The medics needed time to study their biology and understand how to treat them properly.
Meanwhile, Bisky, Morel, Knov, and the others took to clearing the battlefield.
They tossed every slain flesh creature into the nearby bloodstained reed swamp.
Unlike the professional Hunters who acted quickly and with clear roles, Steiner and most of the exploration team stood there, completely confused by the scene before them.
Everywhere were the remains of flesh monsters and demi-humans.
Everywhere were the signs of terrifying battles.
And everywhere hung an overwhelmingly oppressive atmosphere.
Steiner almost thought he had arrived in hell.
He had believed that the more than one month journey through the Sea of Trees was already terrifying and dangerous enough.
But compared to this place, that journey was just a light breeze.
He hurriedly found the supposed leader of the exploration team, Germain, hoping to get the truth and answers from him.
What exactly were these flesh monsters they kept encountering inside this ancient labyrinth?
They were obviously not normal creatures.
"You will know soon enough," Germain said, deciding there was no point in hiding it anymore.
"When everything here settles down, we will explain it clearly."
By then, it would depend on Steiner and most of the people forced into this war whether they could accept the truth.
But right now, they were in the Dark Continent.
Without the help of Germain and others, it would be very difficult for them to survive and return.
Sometimes, even if you don't want to believe, you have no choice but to believe.
This was the situation they were about to face.
Steiner had no choice but to start commanding the exploration team members on site, actively supporting the work of the professional Hunters.
Germain turned around and saw Don and Ging, an ancestor and descendant pair, walking toward him.
They had been standing together talking for quite a while.
"I've explained everything to Don," Ging said.
"We need to ensure this exploration team safely enters the ancient labyrinth, so that's why we came now."
Don still habitually kept some distance from everyone else.
He wore a black robe and shook his head.
"The timing of your arrival was actually perfect. You caught them all in one net."
Saying this, Don himself could hardly believe it.
He had feared the four large-type monsters, but three of them fell to Germain's hands.
The fourth was also seriously injured by a creature Don had manifested.
Don was certain that over a year ago, Germain's combat strength was not as good as his own.
Such a leap was truly astonishing.
"I think, given the urgency of the situation, there is no need to say more," Germain said.
"Don, tell us—what exactly is happening on the Dark Continent?"
Don nodded and began to explain in detail.
"It's actually quite obvious. Any living creature on this land can vaguely sense what is really happening."
"In fact, strictly speaking, the current ominous signs mainly come from the flesh monsters on the west coast beginning to erode the living beings on the east coast. Inside the walls and within Mobius Lake, things are still peaceful."
"There is no doubt that the 'God of Flesh and Blood' believes the time has come to completely consume both shores of Mobius Lake. And this time, He will not face the great enemy, the 'God of Resentment'."
"The four large monster beasts are undoubtedly the vanguard generals of the flesh monster army. But they failed to penetrate the east coast and were defeated here."
"However, although we made the northern forces taste defeat, it cannot stop the southern front. By now, they have probably already advanced deeply into the east coast."
"It won't be long before the entire east coast falls into the hands of the flesh monsters. The creatures that are devoured will be reduced to that grotesque state—neither human nor ghost."
Ging felt heavy at heart. Before coming, he had already roughly guessed what was happening, and now the reality was not far from his guess.
Germain had the same thought, but he only furrowed his brows briefly before relaxing them.
"Don, you said that if I wanted to go to the west coast, you would go with me. Does that promise still hold?"
"Of course," Don said softly under his hood, smiling gently. "I know what you're thinking. In fact, that's another reason I've been waiting for you here."
"Germain, to stop this terrifying invasion, we must stop its source... To be honest with you, I know how to weaken the power of the 'God of Flesh.'"
"That journey will be extremely difficult. Once we set foot on it, we might never return. I'm not even sure if it's possible."
"If that's the case, would you still be willing to accompany me?"
*******
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