This eerie scene made all the Blood Race tremble with fear. A bone structure, resembling insect limbs, pierced down from the heavens, splattering a layer of dim yellow lightning! The true body was still hidden within the white mist; one could only imagine its immense size!
At the same time, a more violent wind suddenly swept over them, grazing past the Blood Race and leaving them motionless.
In Chu Yi’s eyes, the Life Force of these Blood Race members weakened instantly, like candles flickering in the wind, their Fire of Life snatched away by the eerie gale.
"This is a ’Beast,’ an aberration born from the Nether River, fond of seizing the living’s Fire of Life," Lias quickly explained, her lips slightly parted. She gripped Chu Yi’s palm tightly, her voice laced with uncontrollable panic. "This is the Land of the Dead, the Realm of the Dead—a forbidden city built upon the Nether River, where even gods and demons must halt."
"What!" Those words left the high-ranking nobles in shock, and it took them a moment to react.
This involved the most ancient river, the final resting place of the dead, forbidden to the living—the Realm of the Dead, the great Nether River!
And to dare establish a city above the Nether River... what this entailed was beyond what these minor figures could imagine.
Fear gripped them. The Frenzy that had driven them to follow the Blood Race Queen, to claw their way into the high nobility, was now doused as if by a bucket of cold water, utterly extinguished.
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Are the gods playing for such high stakes now?
Using the ruins of a city above the Nether River as a venue for their games... this is completely different from what we imagined!
"Oh my~ I didn’t expect your first game, Lias, to actually be such a high-stakes one."
「In the world where the Lily Flower blooms.」
A golden-haired, flawless little girl, as delicate as Lias and looking like her twin, sat on a swing, an astonished expression on her face.
Her lips curled into a charming smile.
In the games hosted by the Divine War, war itself is the lowest level. Higher-tier games involve gods sending participants into Secret Realms—places even deities cannot enter—to seize benefits.
The ruins of this Holy City atop the Nether River were one such place.
This also indicated that this particular game was extremely cruel. It featured not only unknown entities but also a series of formidable competitors.
Teacher, what should I do? Lias communicated mentally, her exchange with her teacher happening in an instant.
"Activate the card. The Ancestor will never allow a pawn who has entered the game to be eliminated in the first encounter."
Oh. Lias’s thoughts shifted. Following her teacher’s instructions, the card gushed out crimson Blood Wine, which spread over a hundred-meter radius, providing protection within the area.
The wind that seized the Fire of Life only created a slight ripple against the barrier.
"We’re saved." The nobles sighed with relief. However, seeing those thick bones hovering above, they couldn’t help but shiver.
To encounter such a bizarre attack right after entering... our luck is terrible, Chu Yi thought. He squinted, his human skin squirming as it absorbed a field of souls from the surroundings.
He discovered that, if not for the Soul-Calling Banner’s attraction, these souls would drift in one direction. Though "drifting" wasn’t quite accurate; it was more like they were flowing.
There... were masses of souls!
Commonly known as experience packages!
Chu Yi had a gut feeling this was an opportunity for the Soul-Calling Banner.
The core material for its next stage is there!
"SQUEAK!" Bika bounced onto his shoulder. Its golden-brown vertical pupils stared at the towering bones, not in fear, but with eager anticipation for a battle. I could take on ten of them!
"We can’t beat it. Let’s just observe for now."
Chu Yi flicked its little head. Attacking this ’Beast’ might draw more of them over.
"AWOO~" Fine. Bika dejectedly retracted its aura and, under Chu Yi’s command, moved to protect Lias closely.
Then, a second bone slowly emerged.
A third, then a fourth...
They were jointed appendages, like those of a spider, each stretching for hundreds of meters and wreathed in dim yellow lightning.
The next moment, before the eyes of the surviving Blood Race, a colossal Beast appeared. Only a small fraction of it was visible; the majority of its body remained shrouded in white mist, its true enormity unimaginable.
"Father, I want to go home!" Jean, engulfed in fear, trembled from head to toe. His sanity was rapidly unraveling; he smelled the stench of death, a presence they absolutely could not contend with.
Even survival would depend on the faintest shred of the opponent’s mercy, hoping it would perceive them as nothing more than harmless ants!
"This..." The Count of Milan’s expression darkened. Using this as an excuse, he tentatively said to Lias, "Your Majesty, although we are utterly loyal to you, we must preserve our strength to fight the Duke."
Just casually encountering a ’Beast’ this terrifying... how can anyone play this game!
The Divine War he wanted was one of cavalry charges and visceral, close-quarters combat, not this existence steeped in unknown, eerie terror, where death felt absolutely certain!
Lias said calmly, "Once you participate in the Divine War, you cannot retreat."
Her words crushed any lingering thoughts of escape the remaining individuals might have harbored.
Entry into a Divine War game permitted no withdrawal, except through death.
Jean’s face, already pale with fear, now darkened with anger.
He didn’t dare confront the Queen. Instead, he approached a dazed Blood Race Knight and kicked him.
The Blood Race Knight shriveled up, leaving behind only a complete human skin. All the blood and flesh inside had been devoured by some unknown entity!
"What!" Jean’s pupils shrank. That Knight had been fine just moments ago, within the protective range of the Blood Wine! How could he have been killed so silently?
A chill ran down everyone’s spine.
"So that’s how it is." Among the stupefied crowd, Chu Yi’s eyes brightened. He had discovered something.
This scene seemed reminiscent of that bizarre banquet... there’s a Power of Rules at play here!
"Your Majesty, I will resolve this trouble," Chu Yi said with a smile.
Earlier, he’d used the Blood Race as cannon fodder. If this is also governed by some eerie rule, then it can be handled.
"You... perhaps you shouldn’t go." Lias clasped his hand, unease in her voice. "The card has only revealed information for the first stage. Subsequent stages might reveal a way to deal with the ’Beast’."
"Rest assured." Chu Yi’s gaze burned. He withdrew his hand and, leaving an afterimage, walked towards the spider-like Beast whose bones sprawled across the void. When it comes to dealing with the eerie, I’m quite familiar.
As he spoke, the Divine Hand flared with a dazzling white light, wielding a pale flame.
The ’Beast,’ born from the Nether River, was fundamentally an aberration of souls. It had evolved to its current form through countless acts of slaughter and fusion.
"ROAR—!" A fierce wind, mingled with rage and what sounded like fear, howled forth. It swept through as a raging tempest, accompanied by a dense, chaotic rustling, as if the great wind itself were a unique living entity, intent on devouring all existence!
BOOM—! Under the complex gazes of the crowd, the hurricane engulfed Chu Yi’s figure, unleashing a terrifying blast wave far more intense than the earlier winds!