Chapter 19: The Examiner’s Last Stand

“Fire Magic!”

A whoosh of air accompanied the sudden eruption of flames around the examiner, the intense heat scorching the woman’s form.

She recoiled a few steps, casually batting away the lingering flames on her person. A flicker of amusement danced in her eyes. “Cease these pointless struggles. You cannot hope to defeat me.”

Unyielding, the examiner pulled several Holy Light scrolls from his storage ring. Activating them with a surge of power, he hurled them towards the woman.

Yet, the woman effortlessly evaded the examiner’s assault. Her toes barely grazed the ground, revealing calves of condensed black mist—straight, slender, and utterly captivating in their feminine allure. “Behold this exquisite form of mine, Sir Knight? Join our ranks, and you too shall possess such a magnificent body.”

“Cease your incessant chatter! If you wish to fight, then fight. Spare me your superfluous words.”

The examiner pursed his lips, hefting his greatsword as he plunged back into fierce combat with the woman.

Yet, the examiner’s movements had noticeably slowed compared to moments prior, a clear indication of his waning stamina.

“Ah, you see? Your body grows weary. Become a thrall of the Chaos God, and fatigue shall never again touch you.”

The woman’s fingers provocatively grazed the examiner’s cheek, yet a faint smile played upon his lips.

“Tell me, has this ‘Chaos God’ of yours also rendered your minds chaotic?”

“Hm?”

Even as confusion flickered across the woman’s face, a Holy Light scroll was already pressed against her chest. With a resounding boom, searing flames instantly engulfed her entire being.

The Holy Light’s power began to purge the chaotic energy coursing through her veins.

The examiner finally exhaled, a sense of relief washing over him. It appeared he had emerged victorious.

Yet, in the very next moment, a spectral voice whispered from directly behind him.

“My apologies, Sir Knight, but it seems you’ve walked right into my trap.”

An unseen force instantly breached the Holy Light amulet adorning his person, plunging directly into his body.

The examiner stiffened completely. That insidious wisp of energy—it was the power of Chaos.

“Damn you!”

He frantically attempted to rally the power within his own body, desperate to purge the invading force.

However, the power of Chaos was indiscriminate; be it battle aura, mana, or even vital essence, any force that touched it was instantly assimilated and transformed into Chaos.

Realizing his predicament, the examiner resorted to drawing another Holy Light scroll, hoping to use its power to expel the encroaching Chaos.

“Oh, my dear companion, how could you possibly affix such a filthy thing to yourself?”

The woman’s immense strength held the examiner’s movements captive. Gritting his teeth, the examiner struggled, straining to press his hand towards his dantian.

Alas, the woman’s power proved too overwhelming, and combined with the insidious corruption of Chaos, he swiftly found himself succumbing to its influence.

“Now, now, don’t fret. Very, very soon, you too shall become one of us.”

A hint of morbidity gleamed within the woman’s blood-red eyes, lending her an unsettling, eerie appearance.

The examiner clenched his jaw, sensing the precipitous drain of power from his body. At last, he steeled his resolve.

As a revered teacher of Theoviga Academy, he absolutely could not allow himself to be defiled by an evil god. Even if death was his only escape, he would face it unblemished.

“Then come… and be buried with me!”

In that instant, a network of cracks erupted across the examiner’s body, and a torrent of wild magic and battle aura cascaded forth along these fissures.

A terrifying surge of power instantly enveloped the woman’s entire form. This immense force, meticulously controlled by the examiner, did not dissipate outwards but focused its entirety upon her.

****

For a fleeting moment, silence descended upon this section of the mine. Eliza, hearing the commotion, lifted her gaze.

Peering through a narrow crevice, she beheld the examiner, now scattered into fragments, and the woman, undeniably caught in the blast.

Wiping away the tendrils of black mist that oozed from the corner of her mouth, the woman felt a profound weakness ripple through her body.

The examiner’s self-detonation had struck at her very core, leaving her appearing somewhat ethereal, almost translucent.

But just like the man had implied, as long as she wasn’t utterly annihilated in a single strike, she would regenerate, drawing upon the power of Chaos to restore herself.

A torrent of black mist surged into her, even drawing in the lingering chaotic energies from the deceased cultists of the evil god nearby.

Before long, her form solidified once more. She turned her gaze to Eliza, a slow smile spreading across her lips.

“Little sister, it’s your turn now. Don’t worry, I won’t allow you the luxury of self-detonation.”

The woman raised her hand and gave a gentle wave. The rubble that had separated them instantly dissolved into dense black mist, which then surged into her form.

Taking a step closer, she condensed a wisp of black mist at her fingertip, aiming it precisely at Eliza’s brow.

Eliza gritted her silver teeth, pushing her defensive shield to its absolute limit.

Yet, this encroaching power utterly disregarded her shield, shattering even her Holy Light amulet with a single, devastating strike.

The black mist pierced directly into Eliza’s brow, a terrifying force assaulting her very mind.

Her consciousness reeled, feeling a profound disorientation. A tyrannical voice seemed to whisper in her ear, luring her, urging her mind to surrender completely.

Eliza clenched her teeth, but her awareness grew progressively hazy.

“Oh, my, my, little sister’s willpower is quite formidable. I can barely wait to witness your complete transformation.”

The woman’s power was no mere corruption by an evil god; it was an insidious erosion, capable of consuming a person’s very essence and reshaping it into the raw form of Chaos.

For a considerable time, Eliza continued to resist. Each instance she felt herself on the precipice of succumbing, an inexplicable power would stir within her, pulling her back to consciousness.

This power felt strikingly familiar to her; it seemed to be none other than the Goddess of Magic Light who had once bestowed her blessing.

The woman’s patience was clearly wearing thin. Just as she prepared to intensify her assault on Eliza, an unexpected event transpired.

The colossal figure in the center of the cavern suddenly stirred, and a wave of immense power instantly swept through the entire space.

Eliza, though still in a haze, faintly sensed the disturbance from that direction. In her eyes, now tinged with black mist, the slowly moving monstrosity was reflected.

The Chaos Scion had awakened prematurely.

“Who! Who dared to do this!”

The woman was visibly thrown into a panic. Forgetting Eliza completely, she hastily dashed towards the Chaos Scion.

Eliza, finally unable to sustain herself, collapsed to the ground. Yet, her eyes remained open, allowing her to glimpse a familiar silhouette emerging in the distance.

Focusing her gaze, she recognized the figure: it was Gern, the suspected cultist of the evil god whom she had apprehended just days prior.

‘Is she here to help as well…?’ Eliza thought despairingly, tears already streaming from her eyes.

But in the very next moment, Gern’s actions utterly stunned her.

Gern was seen flipping a middle finger towards the woman, then casually patted the Chaos Scion on the shoulder.

“Hey, big guy, see that old hag? Later, just aim for her backside.”

Gern harbored an intense, burning hatred for the woman before her, for it was this very woman who had transformed her into an evil god cultist in her past life.

Every ounce of her past suffering had begun with this woman; how could Gern not despise her?

After a period of diligent research, Gern had finally managed to grasp some methods for controlling the Chaos Scion.

The Chaos Scion’s power far surpassed that of a Chaos God cult bishop. While this particular scion hadn’t yet achieved its complete form and hadn’t even developed self-awareness, Gern felt quite confident in this.

Yet, Gern had overlooked one crucial detail: the control methods she had gleaned were merely fragments, whereas the woman possessed the complete knowledge.

The Chaos Scion had taken but a few steps when it abruptly halted, turning its massive form to face Gern directly.