Chapter 933 Battle at the Selnes Country: Hoei Methal


    "''n Leader of Methal n...''" Souta turned to look on the other side. ''And another one of the Deadly Sins...''


    Poisonous Vine nced at Souta before flying beside Ice Death. Silence enveloped them for a few seconds as they observed each other''s movements.


    Suddenly, Ice Death opened his mouth, "It''s time..."


    Souta widened his eyes, and his energy surged instantly. Thousands of ice spears flew toward him while seven shadows emerged beside him, quickly rushing toward the ice spears.


    Bang! Bang! Bang!


    Souta maneuvered through the air, skillfully dodging all the ice spears. He focused his gaze on Poisonous Vine and Ice Death. Gripping the vajra sword tightly, he arrived a few meters away from the two.


    Swoosh!!


    Poisonous Vine smiled seductively as she swung the whip in her hand. The whip tore through the air, swiftly approaching Souta''s position.


    It carried an enormous amount of energy, evident to Souta. He abruptly halted in midair, contorting his body to narrowly evade the vicious whip. Nevertheless, the energy within it grazed his neck.


    Whoosh!!


    Sensing its threat, Souta didn''t hesitate. His aura surged once more.


    Boom!!


    Simultaneously, Ice Death, seeing Poisonous Vine miss her target, waved his hand, unleashing a white beam aimed directly at Souta. It froze everything it touched, including time and space.


    In that moment, a figure appeared beside Souta, intercepting the white beam.


    It was Hoei Methal.


    Souta merely nodded at Hoei before pressing forward. His elemental power expanded, causing the sea of blood to surge alongside him.


    Boom!!


    Souta shed with Ice Death in mid-air. A shockwave radiated outwards, apanied by an immense surge of energy. The entire area quivered, as though on the verge of copse. Bothbatants were propelled several hundred meters away from each other.


    Ice Death halted, refraining fromunching further attacks. Instead, he merely fixed his gaze on Souta and Hoei.


    "Today, both of you will fall, and the All-Filter Barrier Formation will crumble," Poisonous Vine stated, a serene smile on her face.


    "Well, let''s see you try," Souta replied calmly.


    "The All-Filter Barrier Formation shall never falter! It is the legacy bestowed by our god!" Hoei proimed loudly.


    Souta''s attention was diverted as he sensed Ice Death preparing to make another move.


    Swoosh!!


    A giant block of ice appeared in the sky, colossal enough to obstruct the entire expanse. Its tremendous size and the vast energy it contained distorted space and time.


    "Fall. [Death Beyond cier]!" Ice Death uttered in a low voice, pointing his finger downward as the colossal ice block began its descent.


    Swoosh!!


    Hoei widened his eyes, struck by the immense scale of this impending attack. Dodging was an unviable option; his only chance was to neutralize it. He unfurled his palm, conjuring a sharp de that slowly took form. His aura surged as he used his [Element Drive].


    Boom!


    Souta remained undeterred. A tremendous amount of energy coalesced around his de, a maelstrom of darkness and light swirling around it. The blood fused into the de as elemental power surged within.


    Suddenly, an intense pang of pain assailed his body.


    Ugh!


    Souta groaned in pain as he spun around, swinging his sword.


    Swoosh!!


    The figure deftly evaded his de and withdrew.


    Looking up, Souta saw Hoei, who had stabbed him in the back. Gritting his teeth, he copsed to the ground.


    Thud!


    A peculiar sensation coursed through his body, and his vision began to blur.


    "This... poison..."


    Realization struck Souta: he had been poisoned. Though potent, the poison wasn''t fatal. Instead, it weakened his body to a certain extent.


    "Do you like my poison? I gave one of my strongest poisons to n Leader Hoei, so what do you think about it?" Poisonous Vine remarked, observing Souta''s suffering from her poison. "You really are strong, Blood Lightning Monster. You could still move even after taking it."


    "Did you finish the mission?" Ice Death inquired of Poisonous Vine and Hoei.


    Hoei responded by presenting the cores of the Methal n and em n.


    "Good. With these, we have three cores in our possession," Ice Death nodded, looking satisfied as he took the cores from Hoei and examined them carefully. "Thest remaining cores are from the Botani n and the Darkna n. We should concentrate our forces once we discover their whereabouts."


    "What about the Blood Lightning Monster?" Poisonous Vine inquired.


    Souta, lying on the ground, narrowed his eyes upon hearing their conversation. He prepared himself to summon all his strength, ready to fight his way out of this ce.


    ''I could deal with the poison, but it will take some time...'' He thought to himself. His body was wracked with extreme pain due to the poison''s effects.


    Souta was poised to retaliate if they made a move against him.


    "I''ll kill him," Hoei dered, turning his head slowly towards Souta. Energy gathered intensely around his de, emitting a bright light.


    "Finish him. I''ll take these cores," Ice Deathmanded before turning away.


    "Okay, I''ll kill him. The poison isn''t enough to kill him, but it weakened his body so he isn''t my match," Hoei remarked as he approached Souta. He pressed his thumb against the de''s surface. "I''ll end this quickly. You won''t feel any pain as I kill you."


    ''Huh?'' Souta paused, realizing something. Inwardly, he smiled, and his tense body gradually rxed. ''So that''s how it is...''


    In the next instant, Hoei closed the distance between them, thrusting his de into Souta''s chest.


    With a swoosh, Hoei withdrew his de as Souta copsed to the ground. The floating blood in the air descended, pooling beneath them, forming a sea of crimson.


    "Let''s go," Hoei dered, turning away without looking back.


    ...


    Four figures traversed the deste terrain: Vashno, Franklin, Eztein, and Erkigal.


    "So, you were the previous n Leader of the em n?" Eztein inquired, casting a nce at Erkigal''s back.


    "Yes," Erkigal confirmed.


    "What led to your disappearance?" Eztein probed further.


    "In brief, I attempted to nullify the contract, ventured beyond the borders of Selnes Country, and encountered an ident. I then concealed myself, and everyone assumed I died," Erkigal recounted.


    Vashno surveyed the surroundings and posed another question, "What about n Leader Hono? She was with us before the space opened up, but then vanished. It appears you had foreseen this. What''s your strategy?"


    Erkigal halted, turning to face Vashno with a smile before resuming her stride. "My n is straightforward. I aim to dissolve the contract and depart from Selnes Country. I dispatched Hono outside with the core of the em n. By now, it''s likely that the Deadly Sins'' experts have taken the core from her possession."


    "What?!" Vashno and Eztein eximed simultaneously.


    "Don''t fret, I have someone handling it. He won''t harm Hono or anyone else," Erkigal assured them with a smile.


    "Who is this person?" Eztein inquired.


    "Hoei Methal," Erkigal revealed. "I''ve enlisted his cooperation with the Deadly Sins. Their entry into the barrier was key tomencing my n. We''re set to dismantle the barrier, but safeguarding our god''s secret is crucial. It''s a generational curse we carry."


    "A curse?" Vashno expressed confusion.


    "Yes, a curse that binds us. We''re barred from disclosing certain information, or darkness will consume us," Erkigal exined.


    "Then, what about this space? Does it hold secrets rted to your god?" Eztein inquired further.


    "Yeah, it''s a livingbyrinth. But it''s different from the typical one; our god made modifications. When thebyrinth opened, it absorbed those fragmented worlds, creating this ce," Erkigal rified.


    "A livingbyrinth?!" Eztein and Franklin were visibly stunned.


    Vashno nced at the two, puzzled by the concept.


    "A livingbyrinth is a divine legacy where you can ess things rted to the creating god," Eztein exined to Vashno. Turning to Erkigal, he queried, "Any idea what we might find in this livingbyrinth left by your god?"


    Erkigal shook her head. "Possibly crucial artifacts. Thebat arts and spells of the Five Master ns are remnants from our god, so it might not just be techniques or skills."


    "Is n Leader Hoei your only ally?" Vashno asked.


    "Yeah, he was the sole voice suggesting breaking the All-Filter Barrier Formation during the n Leaders'' meeting. The others were too conservative, rejecting his proposal," Erkigal exined. She paused, recollecting something. "Oh, Paente knows I''m alive. He''s been engaged in something for years now. I''ve tried to contact him, but he''s refused. It seems he has his own n."