Chapter 412 - 386: Override

Through their spiritual link, Ronin could sense the pain Carlos was in.

His eyes swept across the battlefield, quickly locking onto the black-robed figure who had sounded the Horn.

"You’re the one behind this?"

Ronin kicked off the ground, the immense Power sending dirt flying. He shot forward at incredible speed, charging toward Mephisto.

"Haha, so it really is an enslaved Giant Dragon!"

Mephisto roared with laughter.

He had come to the Oduin Kingdom not only to stir up chaos but also on the orders of the Shadow Lord, Salonas, to find the Giant Dragon sealed in the Shadow Secret Realm over a thousand years ago by the previous Shadow Lord, Alyot.

Individuals transformed by the Witch Soul Pearl were normally cut off from any means of growing stronger. However, Alyot’s special method, though time-consuming and demanding, allowed the enslaved Giant Dragon to continue growing on its own. It could even receive assistance to accelerate that growth through special channels.

He had originally thought it an impossible mission. After all, so much time had passed, and the continent had changed beyond recognition. Even a member of the Royal Family like Jesus was ignorant of past history, making it incredibly difficult to find any valuable clues.

He never expected to find it so quickly, let alone run into the Giant Dragon on a battlefield.

What surprised him, however, was that this Giant Dragon didn’t seem to have been fully subjugated by Witch Soul Power. Otherwise, it should have obeyed his command the moment he sounded the Horn.

But that didn’t matter. As long as he had found the Giant Dragon, he could report his success to Lord Salonas.

A fierce gust of wind rushed toward him, and Mephisto’s mind sharpened. ’It’s the human who was on the Giant Dragon’s back. What’s their relationship?’

Ronin’s Longsword came slashing down. Mephisto’s body suddenly went limp, melting into his own shadow before vanishing from Ronin’s sight.

’Where did he go?’

An instantly cast Wind of Inquiry revealed his opponent’s position. Ronin leaped forward, smashing his fist into a black shadow that was speeding across the ground.

BOOM!

The Fire Fist Bombing cracked the ground open, forcing the hidden Mephisto to reveal himself.

"If I’m not mistaken, you’re the one who turned Ossen and the people of Black Python City into members of the Witch Soul Race."

Ronin demanded, "Who are you?"

Mephisto let out a strange, grating laugh.

As he laughed, dark portals opened all around him. Four fully-armed Golden Skeleton Warriors leaped out and charged at Ronin in unison.

’This is similar to Blanche’s Skeleton Summoning Skill, but these skeletons are a higher Level and much stronger.’

’But no matter how strong they were, they were no match for the current Ronin.’

He used Wind Instant Step to evade the attacks of two Skeleton Warriors, then his Flame Stream Sword unleashed a sharp glint of light that sent the other two flying. In less than five seconds, he had broken through their defensive line.

But those few seconds were all Mephisto needed to take out the Soul Horn and sound it.

BWOOOOOM~

The eerie sound had a peculiar, piercing quality, reaching the ears of the Witch Soul Race members still locked in fierce combat.

At that moment, all of them—including Ossen and Black Wound—flew into an even greater frenzy. Some even tackled an Infantry soldier to the ground and began to gnaw on them. The scene was utterly bloody and brutal!

But just then, Lurans took out the black Horn Ronin had given him. He mobilized the Dark Energy that had been nurtured within his Sea of Qi and channeled it into the Horn.

The Horn that Ronin had been unable to sound was now successfully blown by Lurans.

As the deep, low sound spread across the battlefield, an eerie silence fell.

The members of the Witch Soul Race, who should have been rampaging, froze in place. Like Puppets that had suddenly lost their master, they seemed unsure of whose command to follow.

Lurans himself was startled by the scene. When he’d sounded the Horn, he had only been thinking of stopping the battle. He never expected it to actually make the Witch Soul Race soldiers halt their attacks.

The enemy’s movements ceased, but the attacks from the Knight Order and the others showed no signs of stopping. They cut down many in an instant. Broel even managed to capture Ossen alive. At the same time, Melonika ran her sword through Black Wound’s body. As Thunderbolt roared, the Knight who followed Mephisto was reduced to dust.

Mephisto’s expression turned grim. Clearly, these people had not only stolen the Giant Dragon but had also taken the Soul Horn that had belonged to Alyot’s subordinates.

What he couldn’t understand, however, was that only someone with Witch Soul Power should be able to sound the Horn.

’Why could Lurans sound the Horn when he showed no signs of possessing Witch Soul Power?’

’He had ways to override the Horn’s most basic commands, but not in his current form.’

Ronin glanced at the battlefield, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly.

’He’d had the idea yesterday when he saw Barrington use the Horn. He hadn’t actually expected Lurans to be able to sound it.’

’He’d only had him try it today on a whim, not expecting it to actually work.’

"Surprised?"

Ronin dodged the pouncing Golden Skeleton Warriors and used Wind Instant Step to appear at Mephisto’s side, thrusting his sword straight for his opponent’s heart.

PFFT!

The Longsword passed through his body, drawing no blood. As Ronin activated his Fighting Qi, intending to tear his opponent apart...

"I’m not like them."

A wicked smile played on Mephisto’s lips. His body split in two, transforming into twin streaks of black light that shot across the battlefield at a speed the naked eye could not follow. Both slammed into Ossen.

BOOM~

An eerie Dark Energy surged, and Ossen instantly became the eye of a storm. The tremendous gale forced even Broel to use his Fighting Qi to defend himself. Those around them who didn’t react in time were thrown into the air before crashing heavily back to the ground.

During this process, Ossen’s body began to swell like an inflating balloon, growing larger and larger.

’Is he going to explode?’

Alarmed, Broel leaped back. "Fall back!"

Everyone fell back.

Ossen roared at the sky as if in endless agony, and black ripples pulsed from his mouth.

At the same time, the members of the Witch Soul Race seemed to answer his call, tilting their heads back to roar in unison. Orbs of Dark Energy flew from their mouths, all of them merging into Ossen’s body.

Deprived of their Dark Energy, they collapsed to the ground one by one, their lives extinguished.

After absorbing all that Energy, Ossen continued to expand. Three meters, five meters, seven meters...

In the blink of an eye, he had become a monster over ten meters tall, with barely a trace of his human form remaining.

’Is he going to blow?’

Ronin had also retreated to his original position.

But just then, Ossen’s massive body began to shrink at an incredible speed. In an instant, he returned to his original human form, though his clothes had been torn to shreds, leaving him completely naked.

Ronin was stunned.

’He wasn’t exploding. He absorbed the Energy of all the Witch Soul Race members.’

’His Power has grown!’

Ossen slowly opened his eyes. A chuckle escaped his lips, which grew into a laugh, and then into a wild, maniacal cackle.

He looked at his hands. "So this is the great Power Mephisto spoke of. I’ve finally obtained it!"

He clenched his fists, and the dispersing Fighting Qi tore up the ground around him.

Ossen stared directly at Broel, who stood in his way. He then shot forward, becoming a blur.

Broel snorted. "Let’s see just how much stronger you’ve really become!"

Their fists collided. Broel felt a soul-crushing Power and was sent flying backward.

His expression darkened. "Silver Moon Level... and not just any ordinary Silver Moon Level!"