Warlock Apprentice

Chapter 2725: Chapter 2726: Descent of the Holy Light

A straightforward spear attack, such a simple offensive method... Dox should be able to block it, right?

Though Vay thought so, his expression clearly began to tense up. Despite the usual banter and rivalry between Vay and Dox, akin to frenemies, at critical moments, Vay still feels concern.

Just like now, Vay’s heart was hanging high, his gaze unblinking, eager to see how Dox would manage a desperate counterstrike.

According to Vay’s understanding of Dox, this face-to-face attack should definitely be blocked. If nothing else works, activating the bloodline, bolstered by the thick as Enigmatic Gold skin of the sword-backed Sandworm should make defense not difficult.

However, an unexpected change occurred at a crucial moment.

That bizarre call of "Yuna" echoed as if passing through mountains, resonating in the sky above the dueling platform.

Upon hearing this call, Vay’s expression became even more tense. Previously, Dox had continually reduced the number of sword thrusts due to this strange voice; appearing again at such a critical juncture, would it affect Dox again?

Vay’s guess was right.

Under the echo of "Yuna’s" call, Dox lost his focus.

Even if it’s just less than one-tenth of a second, an irrecoverable fatal crisis appeared.

Accompanied by the sharp and manic laughter of the vile woman, the blood-colored light spear suddenly accelerated. It was already as fast as lightning, but now it reached a speed nearly capable of penetrating space.

Thud—

The air was split with a violent sound, as the blood-colored light spear, at a speed not visible to the naked eye, instantly pierced through Dox’s chest!

Seeing Dox pierced, both Kaier and Vay were stunned.

At that moment, in their eyes, even time seemed to slow down. They could distinctly see the perplexed expression on Dox’s face, as he lowered his head to look at the large hole in his chest, transitioning from bewilderment to astonishment, and finally complete helplessness.

Judging by Dox’s changes in expression, they could probably guess that even Dox himself didn’t know what happened at that moment.

The slowed-down time was ultimately just a sensory delay; it cannot remain stagnant forever.

When they regained the sense of passing time, the first thing they saw was the fountain-like spray of blood bursting from Dox’s chest.

Then, only hearing a soft thud, Dox powerlessly half-kneeled to the ground, using the Red Sword as a crutch, stubbornly keeping himself from collapsing.

The fighting spirit on him remained undissipated, and his gaze at the vile woman in the sky grew increasingly blood-red.

Still, it was all in vain.

This scene had a tragic sense of a hero defeated by old age.

Kaier and Vay couldn’t bear to look directly, averting their gaze. Only Angel and the Black Earl were still pondering, continuing to watch.

The vile woman’s laughter grew more rampant, looking down from above, using a condescending gaze to scornfully watch Dox.

"Does the brink of death feel great?" The strange and insane voice emerged from the vile woman’s mouth: "It’s a feeling that can become addictive, like countless hands pulling you from the harsh human world into a soft, comfortable, worry-free underground realm... Do you want to go?"

"Do you want to go? Haha, thud, of course, I want to." Dox said while spitting blood, lifting his bloodshot eyes: "But I want more to take you down, then return myself!"

From the strands of her hair, the vile woman squinted her eyes, hostility surging: "Still struggling? Then I’ll send you on your final journey!"

The vile woman’s words were harsh, but when it came to action, she remained cautious. She hadn’t forgotten that the referee above might be on the same side with Dox; if he intervenes, she would immediately react and withdraw.

However, the vile woman was overthinking.

The Wise Sovereign indeed stood on Angel’s side, but he had his principles; without breaking the rules, he wouldn’t impact the duel.

Even if the vile woman executed Dox on the spot, the Wise Sovereign would merely watch coldly.

Besides, Dox was not important. The truly important ones hadn’t entered the stage yet.

After feigning an attack and seeing no response from the black-robed referee, the vile woman’s mouth twisted into a grin, feigning attack becoming real: "Your sword stabs hurt so badly, let me savor my Blood Spear, consider it tit for tat?"

With a mocking tone, the vile woman’s wounds beneath the bandages bled profusely, transforming into blood-colored spears. These blood-colored spears looked exactly like the one previously piercing through Dox.

But previously it was just one; now in front of the vile woman, there were ten, each aimed at Dox’s weak spots.

If these ten stabbed down, Dox would have no chance of survival.

And now Dox’s current state, in everyone’s view, left little room for a comeback.

Vay had kept a tense face without speaking before, but now seeing Dox in mortal danger, he couldn’t hold back. He turned, seeking help with pleading eyes from the Black Earl.

In his eyes, the only one who could save Dox now was their esteemed lord.

Vay and the Black Earl were already in tune, needing no words; the Black Earl understood his meaning.

However, the Black Earl gently shook his head, communicating with Vay through their mental connection: "Intervening in the duel now would break the rules. The person behind the scenes desires nothing more than the heir of Noah to break the rules; according to protocol, even the Wise Sovereign would take action against us."

Vay: "But... Dox is my only friend."

Black Earl: "Even so, I cannot save him."

Vay’s face filled with astonishment: "Why?"

Black Earl: "Because... the curse."

In all major branches, there are different types of curse abilities, based on blood, hair, skin, nails... etc., to curse others.

However, this curse is not as effective on Official Wizards. A curse is a kill skill; once such a skill descends upon a Wizard’s head, even from a thousand miles away, a Wizard’s instincts would sense danger and dodge.

Therefore, in the Southern Domain, curses are the means of lower-level Wizards.

Of course, there are curses capable of affecting Official Wizards, such as Wizards from the Efa Lineage of Western Lands; their curses can affect not only Official Wizards, but even Legends.

But the Efa Lineage has never set foot in the Southern Domain, so this can be ignored.

In the eyes of the Black Earl, Dox appears cursed. Moreover, cursed in battle.

With the Black Earl’s experience, it was almost immediately clear that the vile woman’s curse ability was not strong.

Success in casting on Dox was entirely due to favorable timing, location, and conditions. Additionally, the vile woman attacked while cursing, confusing the Wizard’s intuition, making it hard to immediately discern if the danger came from the vile woman’s attack or the curse.

Plus, the vile woman mentioned Yuna, distracting Dox’s mind; even a second’s hesitation gave the vile woman a chance to curse.

Estimated, when the vile woman struck Dox to the floor with her bandage, that hit contained the curse.

And the vile woman’s curse hardly needs speculation; it comes from her transplanted Transcendent organ.

This curse isn’t strong but is quite tenacious.

With the Black Earl’s ability to sense, direct removal isn’t possible. The only way is to act against the vile woman, removing her cursed organ.

Going to rescue Dox already breaks the rules. And to save Dox, directly attacking the opponent’s player breaks the rules further.

Not to mention the reaction of the Wise Sovereign, even the Black Earl is embarrassed to do so.

The conversation between the Black Earl and Vay quickly flowed in their minds. This mental exchange almost had no time limitation, and in a short instant, Vay understood the current situation.

Yet the more he understood, the more desolate Vay felt.

According to what his lord said, was Dox completely beyond saving?

Perhaps sensing Vay’s despondent mood, the Black Earl added, "The self-healing ability on the bloodline side is very strong. Even if only his head remains, he might not die."

Whether the Black Earl’s comfort had an effect remains to be seen. On the dueling platform, the malicious woman had already turned the ten blood-red light spears in front of her into streams of light aiming at Dox.

The Black Earl guessed right; the malicious woman did hold back a bit. Although all the blood-red light spears targeted weak points, the most important head was not aimed at by her.

In such a scenario, Dox might be on the brink of death, but not necessarily dead.

The reason for holding back a bit was actually due to the Black Earl.

Before going on stage, Gray Merchant had reminded her that the opponent might be from that family, and even that lord’s avatar might be present.

To not anger the Black Earl, the malicious woman ultimately held back a bit.

However, whether the malicious woman held back or not, the result would be the same.

The variables in a duel are never something you can predict.

When the ten blood-red light spears lashed out towards Dox, despair flashed in Dox’s eyes...like a horse lamp, snippets of life flashed in Dox’s mind.

When a certain scene flashed through his mind, the horse lamp hesitated slightly.

This scene occurred not long ago.

The backdrop was the illusionary realm of that extravagant banquet hall, with Angel smiling warmly at him...

The image abruptly stopped. Seeing the blood-red light spears almost upon him, Dox gritted his teeth as a sword stabbed through his chest, a parchment-like object pinned on the sword’s tip.

Without hesitation, Dox reached out and directly pulled down the parchment.

The parchment revealed a long and winding true form. As it unfolded, a halo flickered.

The halo was extremely dazzling and carried an extraordinarily strange energy. Being closest, Dox even had to close his eyes.

Upon closing his eyes, he felt like everything around him disappeared, and the world became...so peaceful.

All the clamor was excluded, all worries seemed to disappear, past discomforts, worries, deceptions, and grievances all seemed to turn into mist, dissipating.

All spiritual trauma was soothed in this moment of tranquility. This feeling was even more comforting than using Windsor’s high-level Witch’s Soup, like the Spirit Sea clearing from hazy fog to a bright blue sky under a gentle breeze.

Moreover, not just spiritually; his body felt immensely satisfied as well.

Those places that should have been painful suddenly itched. This itchiness was not unpleasant but rather like a delicate finger lightly brushing the spine, causing an involuntary tingling sensation. His scalp tingled tightly, yet his spirit was extraordinarily pleasant.

Dox resisted that pleasing sensation and opened his eyes.

He still didn’t know what exactly had happened. Also, what was it that Angel gave him? Could this effect really allow him to make a desperate counterattack?

Upon opening his eyes, Dox found the scene in front of him had completely changed.

In front of him appeared a circular light barrier, encasing him tightly. Everything outside, including the noise, chaos, energy, and even those magic monsters roaring in the void, was blocked by the light barrier.

Moreover, the ten blood-red light spears gathered by the malicious woman were also excluded outside the light barrier.

Even more astonishing to Dox, the blood-red light spears on his body had also vanished.

The large hole in his chest had completely healed.

His body, spirit, and magic vortex had all reached their usual maximum!

Furthermore, a fact so unbelievable to Dox: his inspiration talent had been restored! And the effect of his inspiration had reached its clearest point ever.

In the past, inspiration was only a vague direction. But now, his inspiration had reached an unimaginable level, allowing him to discern various weaknesses of the malicious woman through it.

Though this feeling might be an illusion or just temporary, for his inspiration to reach such a level upon restoration was something Dox couldn’t have imagined.

What exactly was the Magic Rune Scroll that Angel gave him?

Wasn’t it the Sunlight Garden?

Dox stared blankly around, finding that after the light barrier flickered, it slowly condensed into a phantom shadow resembling a Holy Temple, with Dox right in the center.

At the topmost point of the Holy Temple phantom, a divine light descended, shining directly on Dox.

The warm feeling returned once more.

Dox felt puzzled—hadn’t his physical and spiritual injuries already healed? Why was it happening again?

While he was still confused, a scream suddenly rang out.

Glancing back, he saw the malicious woman, who had been hovering mid-air outside the light barrier, suddenly hunch over, clutching the only eye exposed.

Blood spilled from between her fingers.

"Why...why..." The malicious woman’s voice was filled with anguish: "Why is my eye retaliating...ahhhhh!"

The malicious woman’s piercing screams, her hair began to grow wildly. Numerous strands of hair aimed at Dox.

However, all were blocked by that outer layer of the light barrier.

No matter what the malicious woman tried, the light barrier remained unmoved.

"Damn it, damn it! What is this? Why did the associated curse break, why, why?!"

The malicious woman raved and questioned, but this answer...even Dox didn’t know.

However, everyone present, aside from the malicious woman, including Dox, had already vaguely guessed some answers once the light barrier appeared.

Because, within that light barrier, there was a rich, mysterious energy.

And this energy...was the Mysterious Power.

That is to say, what Dox had activated was indeed a Mysterious Parchment!