Chapter 144: Charge
Ji Ma didn’t know where the strength and impulse came from, but she suddenly charged to the railing on the second floor, looking toward the striking white light that was so bright it seemed to divide this grim world in two. The white light was approaching at a speed far beyond that of a small boat, and she vaguely saw a figure of a horseman within it.
Ji Ma widened her eyes and, as she peered through the white light, she clearly saw the figure.
A majestic knight, riding a powerful steed. It must be George; he no longer needed to hide his identity, so he had replaced his worn, non-magical armor with a set of powerful armor bearing the symbol of the Sanctuary.
His bucket helm was adorned with golden edges, topped with a silver-winged angel. The breastplate was silvery white, and a golden sun was painted in yellow enamel on his chest, shining brilliantly and radiating white light. His divine war horse was clad in large pieces of silver armor, its entire body shimmering with a silver glow.
In this city that loathed the Sanctuary, George displayed the Sanctuary’s banner, holding a lance with one arm and waving the triangular flag of the Sanctuary with the other. The divine war horse galloped fiercely, the flag fluttered in the wind, making a flapping sound, and the massive hooves slammed into the water’s surface, causing it to concave dramatically and showcasing its astonishing elasticity. A punch of cold, white ice rapidly spread from the horse’s hooves.
George, using some extraordinary ability, was running through the waterway. A war horse weighing over a ton moved as fast as a silver flash, charging directly toward the flower ship of the Grand Benefactor, the lance aimed straight at the chest of the Grand Benefactor on the high flower ship.
Majestic, solemn, and sacred; Ji Ma instinctively felt a twinge of fear, leaning back slightly before remembering that she was now the princess waiting to be rescued by the hero.
How ironic; I am clearly the Demon King… she thought deliberately. Yet her heart raced excitedly, heat flushing her face as she couldn’t help but glance at George more than once.
The Grand Benefactor Bransy clenched his teeth tightly, becoming somewhat irritable as he shouted, “What are you standing there for? Quickly hide the succubus! You two, hurry!”
The Grand Benefactor assigned the elderly maid and another young maid, and the two maids shivered as they immediately grabbed Ji Ma’s hands, pulling her toward the ship’s hold.
The Grand Benefactor Bransy did not send ordinary soldiers because he valued the succubus Ji Ma. The noble guests were watching, and they had an extraordinary possessiveness over their own women; they couldn’t let the men come into too much physical contact with Ji Ma in front of them.
For some reason, he was very mindful of this point at this critical moment.
The Grand Benefactor Bransy scarcely had time to think any further as he looked over at the noble guests seated in the VIP area. They wore various expressions—everything except fear. The majority wore expressions of surprise and even admiration.
“What an impressive paladin.”
“Women love men like that, they love them to death.”
“Truly deserving of being the youngest hero.”
They seemed detached, commenting on George as if discussing some item that could be bought.
The Grand Benefactor Bransy let out a sigh of relief, knowing that his “story” selling strategy was very popular among the customers. The new type of slave contract could completely deceive the slaves. This meant that as long as the noble guests signed a slave contract with Ji Ma, in her eyes, they would transform into the silver-armored knight rushing to rescue her through the waterways.
The more powerful and majestic George became, the happier the noble guests were, as they would be able to steal George’s image and gain an ultimate experience through the succubus Ji Ma.
Thinking of this, the Grand Benefactor Bransy felt exhilarated. This was both a challenge and an opportunity; George’s arrival was a good chance to raise Ji Ma’s value!
The Grand Benefactor Bransy said, “I apologize for the disturbance, please step back for safety. The core defense forces of Shalin City are all here; we should be able to repel the paladin’s invasion.”
“Can we continue the auction?”
Another noble guest asked eagerly.
“Of course.”
The Grand Benefactor replied evenly, as if George posed no threat.
In less than a minute of this conversation, George had already breached the layers of the Grand Benefactor’s carefully prepared blockade.
The chains used to block the waterway couldn’t contain George at all; he easily vaulted over them with a lift of his hooves.
There were twelve small boats filled with soldiers in between, half of which were occupied by soldiers bickering and fighting. Their slow speed couldn’t possibly block George’s advance. George had already closed in on the core defense circle, less than fifty meters away from the Grand Benefactor’s flower ship.
A flat-bottomed boat carrying thirty fully armored spear-wielding soldiers crossed directly in front of George. The soldiers quickly stood up, raising their long spears towards George and loudly shouting at him as he charged.
George crashed straight through, several long spears breaking against his armor, the spear tips flying away. The lance pierced into the soldiers’ breastplate as the divine war horse shattered the barriers on the boat, splintering wood in all directions and knocking aside those in its way. The soldiers screamed as they fell into the water, the entire flat-bottomed boat being split in half.
George pressed his lance down, causing the soldier attached to it to fall into the water. As the war horse passed over the pierced soldier, George smoothly pulled out the lance, its bloodied tip raised, directly pointing at the flower ship.
“Fire! Fire! Shoot quickly!”
A hoarse, terrified voice came from above.
On the ship’s rail stood around a hundred soldiers, all shooting at George. The bolts rained down like locusts, and upon hitting George’s armor, they behaved pathetically weak like locusts. The bolts either grazed against the steel or broke apart, falling into the water.
George disregarded the bolts, keeping his lance firmly aimed at the Grand Benefactor on the flower ship. Although the ship’s rail was two stories above the water, theoretically, George would be like a clumsy wild boar crashing into the ship. Yet no one dared to slacken, all nervously watching George.
George drew closer, and the triangular flag of the Sanctuary on his lance was now clearly visible to the soldiers on the ship. Three large ballistae turned and aimed at George. The soldiers believed they could pierce through the scales of a dragon with these fearsome ballistae.
“Whoosh! Whoosh!”
As the ballistae shot, Chamberlain also struck. A fireball rolled toward George, exploding in the air and enveloping him in a blinding fireball, obscuring his vision and hiding the path of the bolts. The bolts shot through the flames and crashed into George; two missed their target, but one fat bolt aimed directly at the chest of the divine war horse.
Shoot the man, but first shoot the horse! Chamberlain specifically ordered the anxious soldiers to do this, believing that although George must have protection, his horse might not.
The bolt struck the breastplate on the horse’s chest, and a layer of white light suddenly materialized. The bolt’s tip tilted, twisting the shaft, and snapped off. The divine war horse merely stumbled back, neighed once, and continued galloping, less than ten meters away from the flower ship.
“George! Come up and die!”
Chamberlain drew his fiery great sword, standing before the soldiers with his shield directed at George. Meanwhile, the Grand Benefactor, with his demon-like monstrous hand, drew out a pristine bone sword, purposely standing behind the two walls of muscle that the soldiers had formed.
The divine war horse pushed off with its hind legs, leaping up, and George suddenly transformed into a flash of light, zipping past. In the blink of an eye, he appeared in front of Chamberlain, the white light coalescing into George riding his horse. The divine war horse leaped toward Chamberlain, and the lance struck the edge of Chamberlain’s shield, causing a thunderous roar.
Chamberlain’s shield was knocked aside, exposing his chest, and the lance crashed against the breastplate. George felt a restraint under his arm, the metal lance hung on the hook under his armpit stretching out into a curved arc, its tip bending. Chamberlain flew backward, crashing into the wall of flesh behind him, creating a hole, and the soldiers hurried to help their beloved commander, while a lance lodged in Chamberlain’s chest, leaving him wide-eyed and momentarily unresponsive to the soldiers’ calls.
Paladins can only unleash their full power with a steed.
George discarded his lance, while the divine war horse bore him, lowering its head and charging toward the gap Chamberlain created in the wall of flesh. It smashed through three human barriers in a row before losing its momentum and coming to a stop.
Those transformed by flesh and blood, towering muscular men surged towards George, wielding halberds from all directions. George drew the massive golden sword hanging beneath his saddle, its blade ablaze with white flames, directly slicing through several of the resilient halberd shafts.
Finally, the Grand Benefactor Bransy made his move; he had been waiting for George to stop, taking advantage of that brief moment of vulnerability after an attack. Holding his bone sword with both hands, he leaped from behind a muscular man, swinging his sword in mid-air, slicing through the air with a whooshing sound, aimed directly at George’s elbow joint.
The joint is nearly the weak point of all armor, and the Grand Benefactor’s trick of converting a slash into a thrust was his signature move. With his “borrowed” eyesight resembling that of a fly, he aimed with absolute precision, infusing his monstrous hand with immense power. Countless heroes and champions had already fallen victim to this move.
Moreover, he had deliberately hidden behind the muscular man to attack from George’s blind spot beneath his bucket helm.
Yet George seemed to have eyes on the side of his face; he turned his head, wielding the massive sword to defend as he cut down toward the incoming bone sword, narrowly avoiding a miscalculation.
Too young.
The Grand Benefactor Bransy couldn’t help but imagine George’s relaxed expression under the bucket helm.
Suddenly, the bone sword flicked like a lizard’s tongue, swiftly springing forward with such speed that it left only an afterimage, aimed directly at George’s elbow.
The Grand Benefactor could almost hear the sound of George’s bones breaking, envisioning how his forearm hung loosely from his arm.
“Clang!”
The bone sword met the powerful body of the golden sword, deflecting helplessly while leaving a deep scratch on George’s gauntlet.
The Grand Benefactor’s pupils dilated, and in shock, he instinctively began to step back. George jumped off the divine war horse and chased after the Grand Benefactor to slash. The two muscular men immediately blocked George in front of him, while the divine war horse lifted its front hooves and kicked, sending them flying. George advanced, catching up to the Grand Benefactor, pressing him further into a corner with several swift strikes.
The sword radiated brilliant light, embodying supreme rage as it came crashing down on the Grand Benefactor.
The white light seemed to become the background, and the Grand Benefactor leaned back as he saw his demon-like right hand severed, his forearm flying high into the air…
