Chapter Eighty-Six: Wilson’s Death
Li Wen felt no pity as he watched Wilson writhe in agony. Compared to the atrocities Wilson had committed, this level of torment was but a drizzle. Li Wen, too lazy to count Wilson’s sins, unleashed the Spell-less Arc Light towards him. The dazzling arc light immediately captivated Wilson, freezing him in place, completely immersed in the brilliance of the radiance until the blade, carrying the arc light, struck his neck. Despite the buffs from “Sacred Rites of Practice” and the 20% bonus from the radiant spell of “Thirst for Light,” Li Wen’s strike failed to decapitate Wilson; the Raven Feather Dagger was only halfway embedded before being firmly stuck by muscle.
But it was enough. Wilson fell to the ground, and the wound on his neck began to burn with an orange-red flame, instantly igniting Wilson’s entire body. The fire could not be extinguished. When the “Thirst for Light” state lasted for ten minutes, the target would be ignited by the light until death. Li Wen’s Spell-less Arc Light was also light, and it could naturally ignite Wilson. Burning all over his body, Wilson’s frenzied mind actually calmed down. He was not yet dead, only due to his privilege as the ritual’s host, but this wouldn’t last long. As long as the flames didn’t die out, Wilson would eventually die. He looked at Li Wen from under the cloak, never expecting that this outsider not participating in the ritual would be the one to disrupt his grand ritual. “I should have killed you from the start…” Wilson whispered coldly. But it didn’t matter; he had already prepared a backup. Even if the ritual was disrupted, even if this body was reduced to ashes by the flames…
“You don’t still expect that ‘Rebirth Ritual’ to save your life, do you?” Li Wen said. His calm voice was like the sharpest blade, shattering Wilson’s defenses and reason.
“You… what did you do!” Wilson’s eyes widened, and he struggled to crawl towards Li Wen. The Rebirth Ritual was his prepared backup. He wouldn’t be arrogant enough to believe the ritual would surely succeed. Members of Dark Dawn and the Great Rite had contacted him, one refining the ritual for him, the other helping him set it up. As a layman, Wilson could only arrange the Crimson Feast ritual thanks to them. But this didn’t mean Wilson fully trusted them not to tamper with it. He himself was a scumbag who believed in the doctrines of the Blood Lust Cult, and he understood the psychology of those heretical churches and societies far too well. Therefore, before starting the ritual, he had prepared the “Rebirth Ritual,” a mysterious ritual also from the Blood Lust Cult, in a place no one in the mansion could find.
“By offering half of one’s flesh and blood, the father’s corpse, and one’s deceased own child, one can exchange for a chance at rebirth after death… such a bloody and cruel ritual is called the Rebirth Ritual,” Li Wen said calmly. “But for most rituals, if the magic circle is destroyed, it loses its efficacy.”
“You… you destroyed it?” Wilson’s hoarse voice trembled incessantly. “How is that possible! How is that possible! How could you destroy my ritual!”
Li Wen wouldn’t explain. After dealing with the Ghost, he had entered a room where the Rebirth Ritual was openly set up. From then on, he understood Wilson’s intentions and did not hesitate to destroy the ritual. Li Wen was babbling these things to Wilson to extinguish Wilson’s unrealistic hopes. The sight of Wilson desperately struggling on the ground, utterly in vain, would bring him pleasure. This person was telling the truth; there was no need for them to lie. Upon confirming this, all of Wilson’s rage dissipated in an instant. He slumped to the ground and, like the most humiliated slave, begged, “No, no! Please! Spare me! I can give you all the Wilson family’s fortune, the Black Dragon Territory too, anything you want, I can give it to you… including those knowledge, those rituals… as long as you let me live!”
Li Wen did not answer. Instead, he raised the Raven Feather Dagger and severed the hand Wilson was extending towards him, then used a Divine Strike to render Wilson completely speechless. Wilson’s body, which he considered nearly perfect, turned into wisps of ashes under the scorching flames. Finally, he was completely engulfed in fire amidst the pain and despair of death. “May your soul be feasted upon by demons in hell,” Li Wen said in a low voice.
After confirming Wilson’s complete demise, Li Wen looked towards Takebitori. At this time, the other players had also finished dealing with the remaining Dwarves and were coming to meet Li Wen. “So tired, so tired…” Takebitori felt that even playing intense full-body games before hadn’t made her this tired. She was only clearing mobs and didn’t contribute much to attacking the boss, feeling a little ashamed. “Ah, as expected of boss Mei Fei, easily took down the boss, unlike some Beta Player who had no presence throughout…”
Li Lin, who was called out, ignored Takebitori and looked regretfully at the pile of ashes left by Wilson’s death. He had come to the Black Dragon Territory not only to bring the Great Blood back to the Truth Society but also to use Wilson’s Crimson Feast ritual to help Takebitori level up quickly. The original meaning of Crimson Feast was as a promotion ritual for the Blood Lust Cult. Simply put, it was a ritual similar to a “battle royale.” Eighteen people would each hold a symbolically significant identity and then begin to slay each other. Once seventeen people died, the last survivor would complete their promotion. Wilson, based on legends, wanted to use this ritual to transform his mortal body and awaken his divinity, so he modified the ritual. However, the general framework remained the same: only the last survivor could enjoy the victory. Li Lin’s plan was for Wilson to kill everyone, including himself, and then have Takebitori deliver the final blow to Wilson, thereby seizing Wilson’s spoils, which would essentially grant Takebitori an immeasurable amount of experience. He hadn’t expected Li Wen to inadvertently disrupt it. Now that the ritual host had died first, the ritual naturally couldn’t proceed, essentially wasting the Crimson Feast.
However, failure was normal. Even if Wilson hadn’t died at Li Wen’s hands, the Holy See Knight wouldn’t have been easy to deal with. Even if the Holy See Knight was killed and successfully became a sacrifice, someone else would have stepped in to take down Wilson. Perhaps from the very beginning, no one would have claimed the ritual’s spoils… No, it should be said that there would be no spoils at all. “It’s a case of one wrong step leading to every step being wrong,” Li Lin smiled.
“It’s good you know you were wrong!” Takebitori smugly patted his shoulder. She didn’t know what she was so proud of. Meanwhile, Xu En was also anxious, worried about not dying because of the Candle of Cherishing Light.
