Chapter 451: Locked On

The forbidden magic, Dragon's Breath, carried a terrifying storm of flames, striking the walls of Moonlight City with the swiftness of a sudden thunderbolt.

Had Rohning not drawn the attention of Honasang and the other Witch-Soul Knights atop the ramparts, they might have deployed battle techniques, magic, or magi-cannons to soften the blow of the spell.

Alas, reality harbors no ifs.

Sophia’s sudden onslaught left them entirely without time to react.

The grand and sturdy wall, constructed a mere twenty years prior, became as fragile as parchment consumed by raging fire before this magic.

Rumble—

Wherever the Dragon's Breath swept, masonry shattered, walls collapsed, and the very earth trembled!

The Witch-Soul soldiers holding the line were scattered like dust caught in a hurricane, dissolving into fine powder amidst a chorus of agonized shrieks and wails.

Honasang, the old knight, had believed upon receiving the orders to reinforce Moonlight Valley that he might yet win great merit on this battlefield in his twilight years.

Even after being turned into a Witch-Soul Knight by Mephistopheles and gaining greater power, he still felt a new life and a fresh glory beckoning to him.

He never anticipated that in this war, before he could unleash a single battle technique, he would be turned to ash by the furious flames.

Having breached the wall, the forbidden magic tore through the streets and structures behind it with irresistible might, its power only gradually fading nearly a thousand meters away.

The once-prosperous eastern district of Moonlight City was instantly reduced to ruins under the devastation of a single spell.

"So this is the power of a forbidden spell!"

Hovering in the air, Rohning looked down upon the scene wrought by the strike, his heart profoundly shaken.

In his calculations, the Dragon's Breath tearing open the wall and slaughtering over a thousand of the Witch-Soul race would have been highly effective, yet he never imagined such a spectacular and terrifying spectacle.

This was the power of Sovereign Element Force, a realm far above regular elemental power!

Not just Rohning, but Rulance and the other knights who had never witnessed the grandeur of a Legendary powerhouse were paralyzed in absolute shock.

Even Rhaegar, Petro, and those who had seen Legends or even Sages were awed by this single blow.

Yet swiftly, Rhaegar raised his longsword: "Everyone, charge!"

The others snapped to attention, the shock on their faces vanishing, replaced by boundless excitement.

To participate in a war of this echelon was an honor in itself, let alone when, in their eyes, the battle was already mostly won.

Rhaegar led the vanguard, taking a massive stride as the battle qi exploded beneath his feet, leaping directly onto the ruined wall before using several mid-air steps to land in the heart of the battlefield.

His Radiant-level strength was unleashed without restraint at this moment, thrusting left and charging right as if entering a desolate land.

The stunned Witch-Soul knights and soldiers had scarcely reacted before their bodies were pierced by battle qi, turning into flying ash.

Simultaneously, Rulance, Petro, and the host of knights followed close behind, initiating a thrilling battle upon this scorched earth laden with the breath of fire.

Sophia panted heavily, the rapid draining of her mental focus and mana leaving her suddenly exhausted.

"Your Highness, how are you?"

Anilu supported her; as Sophia's personal guard commander, she had not joined the charging ranks to slay the enemy.

"Though aided by the Sovereign Amulet, allowing me to barely utilize the Dragon's Breath spell scroll, the backlash is still too severe."

She looked up with difficulty toward the black speck in the distant sky, "The rest, dealing with Mephistopheles, is up to Rohning and the others."

For Sophia, risking an exhausting price to create an opportunity to slay the Shadow Emissary was a bargain entirely worthwhile.

...

Mephistopheles witnessed this scene from a high mountain in the distance, feeling a chill run down his spine as he thought, "Fortunately I was not standing on the wall, otherwise, facing a forbidden spell, even I could not resist!"

By a mere hair's breadth, he would have died.

"Allowing a Grand Mage to use a forbidden spell scroll without dying, this must be another creation of that undying old fool Ryan from the City of Dawn!"

Mephistopheles still harbored immense dread toward Sophia; he possessed no such treasures upon his person.

Beside him, Jesus was also scared half to death by the sight, equally relieved that he had not accompanied Honasang.

"Lord Emissary, that blow just now was too powerful, it wiped out nearly half our forces, and most of them elites! The remainder... are simply no match for them."

Besieging a city was a highly complex affair that easily exacted a bitter price.

Jesus and his kin had thought too simply, intending to use elites and heavy troops to hold the wall and force the enemy to pay dearly.

Consequently, it resulted in this current situation where their high-tier combatants were nearly wiped out in one fell swoop.

Yet Mephistopheles fixed his gaze upon Rhaegar, "That man..."

"That is Rohning's follower, Commander Rhaegar of the Northern Crow Domain. Garrett and I encountered him when we went to Shore City last time, he is also a Silver Moon Knight."

Mephistopheles frowned deeply; was this man merely a Silver Moon Knight?

Why did he not quite look like one?

Yet he could not easily judge, for the Witch-Soul knights engaging Rhaegar were at most Gold-tier, without a single Meteor-tier among them, requiring no full exertion of strength.

Just then, Rulance broke through a crowd of enemies, leaping onto a corner of a surviving high building; he pulled out the black Horn of Souls, channeling the unique energy within his qi sea to blow it.

The low resonance echoed across the battlefield, identical to the scene during the clash with Orson; every Witch-Soul knight and soldier who heard the sound halted their movements, allowing their opponents to slaughter them.

"Heh—"

Mephistopheles let out a furious, cold sneer: "I knew he would use the Horn of Souls, but unfortunately, before my Witch-Soul Orb, the horn is useless!"

He retrieved the Witch-Soul Orb from his spatial ring, and without any visible movement, a flash of dark light washed over, and all the Witch-Soul soldiers across the battlefield regained their movement, their eyes turning blood-red as they entered a state of frenzy.

"In that case, let the Gold and Silver-tier Witch-Soul knights on the battlefield devour more souls to ascend a rank!"

Mephistopheles knew well in his heart that this war could likely not be won.

But being unable to win did not mean he had lost.

So long as he severely crippled the Dark Mountain Domain, his objective would be achieved.

As for the deaths of these people and losing the base of Moonlight Valley, it brought him not a shred of heartache.

Just as Mephistopheles was controlling these Witch-Souls via the orb, Rohning, no longer under attack in the air, pulled out a purple, pocket-watch-shaped instrument.

This was a special extraordinary item given to him by Sophia, named the "Soul Power Sensor," designed to perceive the fluctuations of soul manipulation within a few miles and point out the direction.

It was said that to counter the troublesome Shadow Lords, Ryan Seallst, the leader of the City of Dawn, had specifically crafted these trinkets.

This time, the Sage had allowed his descendant of unknown generations to come to Orlant, carrying such items upon her person.

As Rohning infused his mana into it, the Soul Power Sensor was activated, a needle appearing upon it that spun before pointing toward the mountain peak where Mephistopheles stood.

Rohning turned his body, adjusting his orientation, and found that this sensor acted precisely like a compass, the needle's direction remaining entirely unchanged.

"On the mountain?"

His Wings of Wind flapped, and Rohning rushed toward the mountaintop, the sensor in his palm growing hotter and hotter, indicating that the distance between him and Mephistopheles was narrowing rapidly.

The Winds of Perception swept across the entire peak, and Rohning soon sensed the two figures upon the mountaintop.

"Not good!"

Mephistopheles's heart jolted, and he hurriedly stowed the Witch-Soul Orb into his spatial ring, subsequently turning into a cloud of black mist in an attempt to flee.

"Where do you think you're escaping!"

Rohning’s shouting voice advanced from afar to near, his entire being carrying a storm of battle qi as he crashed toward the mountain peak.

The massive force of the explosion generated a formidable shockwave, scattering the unresponsive Jesus and the fleeing black mist, sending them crashing heavily onto the ground.

Ronin fixed his gaze on the man in black robes and spoke coldly: "Mephistopheles, you cannot escape!" (End of chapter)