Book 21 Chapter 13
To the land of decisive battle!
The city of beginning and end,
The Battle of Laphtas (9)
Where should one begin to describe this Battle of Laphtas?
At least until before this Battle of Laphtas, Lynn might have secretly underestimated the <Forgotten Kings>.
The <Forgotten Kings> are a calamity (災厄) to the world just by their existence. Their mere existence corrupts the very rules of nature.
"100℃ Celsius… Crazy, if it weren't for Sbal, my body would have already melted away."
In the case of the Lizard Lord, abnormal high heat rages throughout the entire area.
To the extent that rocks melt into soil, and that soil loses all its moisture and turns into sand.
Historians seem to have tried to describe this Battle of Laphtas as detailed as possible based on the testimonies of the participants, but…
"We are approaching the epicenter of the Anti-Dragon Barrier soon!"
Wouldn't it be impossible for any sentence to explain the remnants of the atrocity (悖惡) they had to face relentlessly that day?
"Let's see how magnificent the one who blocks the dragons' approach looks."
The first atrocity appeared when they approached the triangular foundation of the Anti-Dragon Barrier, the source of the abnormal phenomenon.
"What is that…?"
It was a spire built using bones of humans and dragons, of various kinds, as its framework, and their blood and fat as mortar.
'It's utterly cruel, but unlike Goltavir's, it even possesses an artistic flair…!'
'Among the Six Great Demon Races, there's only one who pursues such archaic rituals…!'
'Is it a Blood Clan member…!'
As the train sped to collide with the spire, a Blood Clan member appeared, as everyone expected.
The ancient Blood Clan member, Jakaran of the Blood Cloud Army!
Befitting his epithet, he appeared enveloped in a blood cloud (血雲)… that is, a thick mist of blood. And, as befits a Blood Clan member, with a profound greeting in the common tongue!
"If you've come to pay homage before the ascension of the royal capital, I would welcome you, Sarandis… but you wouldn't have come here for such a purpose."
The Blood Cloud Army appears in the 『Conquest Records』, which deals with the narrative of the 'Great Demon Conquest,' just like Kyral and Goltavir.
In other words, the arch-nemesis of Sarandis's party!
As the Blood Clan leader of his era, known to be 384 years old when Sarandis's party subjugated him, he is a monster who has lived since before the age of origin.
"That mist! Friede, don't touch that mist! Just touching it will turn you into a Blood Thrall!"
It is said that the Blood Cloud Army's mist, merely by contact with skin, infiltrates the body, injects alien blood into the veins, and transforms the target into a Blood Thrall.
The 『Conquest Records』 state.
That during the engagement between the Blood Cloud Army and Sarandis's party, nearly 20,000 elite soldiers instantly became Blood Thralls and attacked Sarandis's party.
"Crazy… How do we protect all these people from that mist?"
Since Xuan and Shimian's barrier was protecting the train in this extreme high heat, only Friede and Lynn could fight.
"Lynn! You heard that, right! Come out!"
At that moment, Lynn, who had been meticulously carving square formations (方陣) one by one onto his abdomen with a knife, rushed out from a corner of the engine room.
"So, as long as it doesn't touch, right?"
"Hey, if you're going to do that, stop! What if you unleash lightning here and this train flips over?!"
"No, leave it to me. Osarius-style Hand Seal Five-Star!"
No, he wasn't trying to use lightning magic.
Lynn had reached a realization while completing his research on the 'Juyeosogye Dae-ban' and carving it onto his abdomen.
It was how to keep the freezing phenomenon from transmitting into the body, making it remain only on the outside… He never imagined he'd have a chance to use it like this.
"That bastard's power seems to be correlated with blood flow, but no matter how much it's Blood Clan blood, if it freezes, it's useless."
Due to the cold outburst of the Ice Dragon Asruba, a white layer of frost covered the skin surface of the train passengers.
No, not just the surface.
Between where the frost formed and the skin, there was a minute but distinct layer of air, minimizing the possibility of the cold negatively affecting the skin. What insane genius!
"!"
The blood cloud immediately tangled with the frost and began to condense along with it, truly an ice shield that fundamentally blocked the very possibility of alien blood infiltrating the body!
"Julak, you bastard…"
Kyral had done so, and this Jakaran was also mistaking Lista's party for Sarandis's party.
Even at a glance, their appearances were different.
Lista reached a conclusion there.
To deal with these arrogant ancient demon races, Zernix must have performed brainwashing rituals on them.
'The trigger for the brainwashing… in my case, it must be Shirphin, the twin holy sword of Naisemon. It made them mistake the one holding Shirphin for Senior Sarandis.'
That's why Lista temporarily entrusted Shirphin to Paladin Rivin.
Just before entrusting it, she activated Shirphin's internal time acceleration… taking advantage of the momentary confusion Lynn had caused Jakaran, she swiftly approached.
In the eyes of others, it could be summarized as, 'Lista vanished the moment she drew her dagger and then appeared behind Jakaran.'
'What is this guy… Two Sarandis? No, this one looks similar but isn't Sarandis.'
A dazzling, swirling blade of magical power on the dagger's edge severed Jakaran's right arm.
It was swift enough to target the ancient Blood Clan's weak point for an instant, but it was merely a feint.
Since it wasn't a holy sword, it couldn't inflict a fatal wound, so if she were to be counterattacked the next moment, Lista would be the one driven into a corner.
'No, this one second… if I could distract him for just one second, that would be enough.'
The moment Jakaran's blood cloud converged like a blade and surged towards Lista, the very instant the magical blade that was blocking it faltered helplessly!
Flaming Arrows (火箭)!
A dozen or so verdant arrows, imbued with flame, pierced the Blood Cloud Army's blind spots. The joints, internal organs, heart, and even the head of key areas!
"Do you think the Hero's party is a joke? It's not enough even if all of them attack together, yet they're coming at us one by one!"
Friede was also a genius comparable to Lynn.
The verdant arrows imbued with 5-star sorcery were burning, yet not burning. There was a slight gap between the arrows and the flames.
Thus, intense flames spread around the pierced areas, specifically into the trunk and branches of the World Tree extending into the body! Flames into the Blood Cloud Army's body!
"Kuaaaaaaaaaaah…!"
Although it was a situation where victory could be guaranteed, Ryuminik, an expert in battles against the Blood Clan, shook his head.
"No, it's not enough! To completely eliminate them, you must use the Changmyeong Sipyen or infuse them with sunlight!"
As he said, Jakaran wasn't consumed by fire and vanishing, but rather…
"Indeed… Sarandis, I shouldn't have underestimated you."
His body grotesquely swelled up in various colors, and then, the next instant, it exploded.
It was a sea of blood.
Not a metaphorical sea of blood, but truly a sea made of blood.
"Behold, the bloody battle waged by a Blood Clan member who has truly received holy blood from the King!"
That sea of blood scattered over the train rushing through the sandstorm.
And within that blood…
Ancient vengeful spirits awaken…
The lingering resentments of those who were drained of blood and killed by Jakaran over the ages, both before and after the origin, rose with their original forms and abilities!
"Blood is the very essence (精髓)! Through blood, life becomes life, and the qualities, aptitudes, and other talents of ancestors are inherited and manifested!"
That crimson hell, the requiem of the specters, was, the next instant, covered in a stark blue silence.
"Are you an idiot?"
It was ultra-high-speed freezing!
Within the blood, the vengeful spirits, who were originally destined to fight tooth and nail for those who were their enemies and foes…!
…had frozen along with the sea of blood!
"Sbal and I are the top experts in freezing attributes. This is practically begging to be killed."
"Kkyu-u-u-u-i-i-it!"
Over 90% of blood is water.
This means it is the perfect catalyst for freezing magic.
'Originally, with my strength alone, it would be impossible to freeze that vast sea of blood entirely in an instant…'
Now the boy was with the Ice Dragon Asruba.
The boy didn't precisely realize it, but it was akin to wielding the power of a magic orb (Yeouiju).
Although the Ice Dragon Asruba was a creature designed as a divine dragon and was still a sub-adult, its power to control ice easily surpassed common sense.
'Lynn, you're always so cool!'
'Eoh-heung (Cool)!'
'Eoh-heung (Cool)!'
Leonia's sudden expression of affection, clasping both hands!
"And ice has a faster magic conductivity than ordinary blood! Take this, Illyangseollun! Flow away with your corrupted body in the sunlight, ancient Blood Clan member!"
The sunlight, infused into the ice by Muchen Ryuminik, instantly reached Jakaran's body, which was 'frozen exactly as it was erupting the sea of blood.'
"A new kingdom… the lost millennium era would return… the kings would awaken again… the time of illusion… it was about to arrive… but despicable worms of the governed class like youuuu──!"
The Blood Clan members were originally a more arrogant race than anyone else, and all their profound etiquette could be seen as a mask.
"Its filthy true nature is revealed before death."
The next moment, the train crushed Jakaran's body, which was melting in the sunlight, and the spire that formed the core of the Anti-Dragon Barrier head-on as it advanced.
"The Anti-Dragon Barrier… it's starting to shake! That power is fading away!"
Friede, clenching her fists, turned to Pipie to celebrate the victory, but realizing she had left Pipie with Tureina, she felt a little lonely.
"I will slightly reduce the speed! The Red Dragon Legion and the White Dragon Legion will be joining us soon!"
Lista grabbed Xuan's shoulder as he was about to operate the artifact's control terminal.
"No, Xuan! Increase the speed even more! The Dragon Legions will match our speed. We must not stop, but keep moving forward! To the end of our mission!"