Chapter 173: The Price of Divine Power

“Hahahahaha!!”

Lawrence laughed maniacally. He had succeeded; he had truly succeeded.

All his efforts had not been in vain; life itself had answered him.

Just moments ago, in the throes of agony, he had heard the voice of a god. In exchange for his soul and flesh, he had momentarily attained Tier 5 strength.

Yet, this sacrifice mattered little. As long as he could defeat the rogue before him, any price was worth paying.

Moreover, returning to the embrace of the gods was his greatest wish. How could this be considered death?

This was rebirth, a new beginning!

Lawrence’s serpentine head grew abnormally frenzied, his long, forked tongue flicking out repeatedly as terrifying spiritual energy radiated around him.

Ellie Roth did not squander this opening; she seized the moment and charged forward.

The runes on her Curse Seal Blade continued to glow, purple lightning coiling around it.

[Purple Lightning]

Ellie Roth frowned. This arcanist skill was a secret art of the Charlotte Family from two generations prior, belonging to her grandfather. By all accounts, this skill should pierce through nearly any defense of an equal tier.

Lawrence raised his scaly hands, effortlessly blocking Ellie Roth’s attack.

However, the purple lightning directly pierced through his body.

Intense pain surged through Lawrence, turning his eyes blood-red.

“Roar! Roar! Roar!”

Lawrence roared, forcefully tearing himself free from Ellie Roth’s assault.

He gasped for breath, a sinister smile spreading across his face.

His massive serpent maw opened, stretching to a terrifying size.

Ellie Roth frowned, not advancing rashly, instead adopting a defensive stance.

But Lawrence did not attack. Instead, he plunged a hand into his own mouth, rummaging within.

“This is?!”

Ellie Roth felt a wave of nausea at the disgusting sight before her. All she wanted was to cleave this snake monster in two.

Lawrence pulled out a gigantic, purple blade coated in venom from his mouth. Its grotesque, snake-head-like design made Ellie Roth instinctively recoil.

“How can you resist the power of the great god?”

Lawrence gripped the blade with both hands, a sinister smile twisting his serpentine face. He felt utterly brimming with power.

His enormous serpent tail rapidly slithered across the ground, charging towards Ellie Roth with surprising agility.

Ellie Roth dodged with a swift movement, effortlessly evading Lawrence’s attack, which was accompanied by protruding earth spikes.

Frustration gnawed at Ellie Roth. Though her spiritual energy reserves were still abundant, Lawrence proved to be an incredibly troublesome opponent.

He was like an unkillable insect, always reviving after taking damage.

‘Must I resort to *that*?’

Ellie Roth pondered. It had been a long time since she had used that particular move.

It wasn’t for any other reason than its sheer destructive power and immense consumption, which usually deterred Ellie Roth from employing it.

After all, with her Eye of Truth, she could easily handle any situation.

However, her Eye of Truth was uncharacteristically experiencing issues at this moment.

‘So be it.’

Ellie Roth closed her eyes, then pushed backward, shifting from a one-handed grip to wielding her sword with both hands.

Her gray eyes gleamed brightly.

While she couldn’t alter the opponent’s arcanist skill, her insight remained effective.

This technique was Ellie Roth’s unique swordsmanship, channeled through that very eye.

At this moment, the environment around Ellie Roth seemed to freeze.

Simultaneously, Ellie Roth’s senses were magnified exponentially.

Every subtle movement in her surroundings was effortlessly perceived by Ellie Roth.

‘What’s happening?’

Lawrence gripped his sword with difficulty. In truth, he was already at his limit.

The cost of fighting above his tier was immense; both his spiritual energy and physical stamina were completely depleted.

He could only hold on for two more minutes at most before reverting entirely to Tier 4, suffering irreversible damage to his body.

The most terrifying part was that everything he possessed would be offered to the gods.

‘No time left…’

Lawrence knew that if he didn’t eliminate the maiden before him soon, all his efforts would have been in vain.

However, just as Lawrence prepared to launch another attack,

Ellie Roth moved.

She moved with an eerie speed, a speed Lawrence’s eyes couldn’t even follow.

‘How is this possible!’

He was currently under the divine protection of the great god! His physical prowess and perception were many times stronger than before. How could he not even discern her movements?

Lawrence felt this had to be an illusion. She must have used some special ability or spell to deceive him; it had to be.

Lawrence clung to a sliver of hope, standing still and observing his surroundings, searching for Ellie Roth’s trace.

However, it was already too late.

Ellie Roth appeared behind Lawrence. With a flash of her blade, the Curse Seal Blade delivered countless swift slashes, and then Ellie Roth vanished instantly from her spot.

[Blade Cleaves Water]

This was Ellie Roth’s unique swordsmanship—a terrifying technique combining her Eye of Truth, physical prowess, and spiritual energy, capable of even distorting space for a brief moment.

In an instant, Lawrence felt a sharp pain in both his arms.

‘What happened…’

Just as Lawrence tried to look at his arms, he realized they had completely vanished.

The massive purple blade dropped to the ground, dissolving into a puddle of purple liquid.

His arms had been instantly shredded into a bloody paste, scattered haphazardly on the ground.

Purple blood gushed from the wounds, accompanied by excruciating pain.

“Ahhhhhh!”

Lawrence instantly collapsed, falling to the ground as the divine protection completely dissipated.

Ellie Roth watched Lawrence, who lay on the ground, with cold eyes.

Had it not been for the need to capture him alive, that single strike could have turned Lawrence into a bloody pulp.

Ellie Roth used her Curse Seal Blade, and immense flames seared Lawrence’s severed arms.

This inflicted pain but also stemmed the bleeding, preventing him from dying too quickly. He still held many important pieces of information that needed to be extracted; he couldn’t die yet.

“Ahhh…”

Lawrence, scorched by the intense heat, felt excruciating pain, his eyes now completely blood-red.

“Kill me!”

Knowing he had utterly failed, Lawrence gave up all resistance, shouting at Ellie Roth to kill him.

But Ellie Roth paid him no mind, simply turning her back.

She couldn’t understand what Lawrence was saying, nor did she care to.

As for interrogating him, that task would fall to the people of God’s Great Enemy. After all, she couldn’t understand the language spoken here.

At that moment, Bai Yu also arrived, swooping down from the sky.

“Ellie Roth, are you alright?”

Bai Yu circled Ellie Roth, only feeling relieved after confirming she had no injuries. She knew Ellie Roth’s strength; there was no way she couldn’t handle such a foe.

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