Chapter 136
Spear of the Vanguard · Rungömniade
This death experience for Eivass was entirely different from the one he had during his Ascension to the Path of Devotion. Even though he was killed by the Shadow Demon, his consciousness didn’t leave his body. His perspective didn’t ascend upwards or descend into darkness. His consciousness remained within his shell. Although the shell was dead, Eivass could still feel the agonizing pain of being stewed. It was as if he wasn’t thrown into the demon cauldron after being killed by the Shadow Demon, but was being cooked alive.
This nearly three-meter-tall cauldron, with a diameter exceeding six meters, looked like a shallow crucible or a giant bowl on the outside. Its exterior was dark gold, adorned with the contorted, pained faces of various races. They resembled death masks cast in gold onto their faces, or as if someone was struggling to emerge from the pot, the faces of vengeful spirits protruding from the pot’s surface. The pupils of all these human heads were made of dark red garnets, like dried, solidified blood droplets. Barton clearly saw… after Mr. Alistair entered the demon cauldron, those dark red jewels suddenly began to glow.
Eivass’s corpse curled into itself, slumbering like an infant. Invisible heat flowed into Eivass’s body through every pore. First, his skin felt as if it were soaked in a strong, hot ginger or chili juice, gradually heating up and becoming scalding. After a brief period of comfort, it transitioned into an increasingly intense and uncontrollable pain. His flesh seemed to melt, or perhaps it was scorched and solidified. The bones were the hottest, and he could even clearly feel the outline of his bones within his body. When the heat reached his chest, abdomen, and brain, Eivass suddenly felt the entire world grow quiet. It was as if the whole world had been burned to ashes, and a raging flame ignited within his chest. —Then, his stopped heart began to beat erratically, and the muscles in his whole body started to writhe and swell. It became more and more intense, more and more violent.
Footsteps approached from the entrance, and a roar erupted from the demon cauldron. It sounded like a cry of pain, or the war cry of a warrior charging to their death. A giant humanoid figure, entirely dark red, gradually rose from the cauldron—he appeared to be about three to four meters tall, his clothes completely torn. As he stood up from the cauldron, his chest was fully revealed. A gaping hole ran through his heart, front to back—the very wound left by the Shadow Demon’s killing blow. This wound hadn’t healed; instead, waves of scorching heat continuously pumped from it. The steaming white heat, along with his dark red heart resembling dying embers, made this giant “Alistair” look less like a person and more like some kind of monster. Or rather, this *was* a monster.
Crimson radiance from “Power” continuously poured into him. The tall warrior, resurrected and still emitting the strong aroma of vegetable broth, remained silent. Having returned from the realm of the dead, he had lost the ability to speak.
“What’s going on?” a low, muffled female voice rang out. It was a Valkyrie with a beautiful appearance, indistinguishable from a human, and of immense size. She had fiery red hair, a dignified and resolute face, and stood about ten meters tall, reaching only the chest of the red-haired giant. The giantess had just woken up and was unclothed, with visibly vine-like muscles on her abdomen and thighs. Her body was free of any excess fat. However, contrary to her human-like appearance and physique, her skin was extremely dry and rough. Her pale white skin resembled waxed tree bark or a plaster statue, reflecting a bright white light under the lamp. Because of Eivass in the demon cauldron, she hadn’t noticed Barton hiding in the corner. The giantess’s entire attention was focused on Eivass.
“A slave has escaped!” she quickly understood what had happened. The giantess roared, her first instinct being to run to the bedside to grab her weapon. For humans, it would be a great-axe—nearly two meters long, made of fine steel that didn’t match the bronze architecture. But for the giantess, it was merely a lightweight handaxe. However, at that very moment, black liquid suddenly shot out from Eivass’s hand, beating the handaxe to it, sticking to one of them, and dragging it back to Eivass’s hand. He tried to hack at the demon cauldron beneath him with the handaxe, but it couldn’t inflict any damage. It even chipped the axe blade. Eivass roared, and the Shadow Demon returned, reaching for the Holy Lance. In battles of mortal scale, the coiled spear formed by the Shadow Demon was enormous. But in giant-scale combat, the Shadow Demon was as tiny as a thread. —But even a thread could serve as an adequate assist. Even if the axe couldn’t damage the giant, it could at least disarm them. And now, as the Holy Lance fell into Eivass’s hand, a piece of information appeared before his eyes. It was the name and attributes of the Holy Lance.
【Spear of the Vanguard · Rungömniade】
【Holy Weapon (Candlemaster): This weapon was forged by the Candlemaster, and only those who acknowledge the Candlemaster’s ideals can wield it】
【Lance, Heavy, Tough, Sharp, Piercing, Adaptive】
【Divine Trait: Its attacks ignore resistance bonuses of the ‘Divine’, ‘Unholy’, and ‘Force Field’ categories】
【Extraordinary Module – Challenger’s Courage: When confronting a stronger enemy, the Holder will not waver】
【Divine Module – Life Devotion: Immediately sacrifice 99% of one’s maximum HP to activate its Mythic form, “Mythic · Rungömniade”】
【Divine Module – I Am the Vanguard: When without teammates, all attacks initiated by you with Rungömniade automatically gain maximum advantage; you will not be flanked by enemies; the more enemies within your attack range, the higher all your damage becomes】
【Divine Module – No Retreat: You cannot retreat; every time an enemy attempts to leave your attack range, a Divine Counterattack is automatically triggered. The additional damage of the counterattack is determined by your current HP ratio, with lower HP ratios dealing higher damage; if the Divine Counterattack is sufficient to kill the opponent, the excess damage will heal you for an equivalent amount】
【Rungömniade · Mythic: Draws upon the Candlemaster’s might to protect the Eternal Vanguard. Whenever the Holder receives an attack that could lead to death, they automatically enter a three-second “Eternal Vanguard” state.】
【In the “Eternal Vanguard” state, all incoming damage is absorbed and converted into equivalent healing; this effect goes into cooldown for three seconds after the “Eternal Vanguard” ends.】
【-“I am the Eternal Vanguard of the Stag, unyielding, unretreating, undefeated, immortal.”】
When this Holy Lance fell into the hands of the Eivass who had transformed into a giant, it suddenly shrunk by a size, becoming a length suitable for Eivass to wield. Undoubtedly, this was a divine artifact in the truest sense. A divine artifact trial card! This was a Holy Weapon tailor-made by the Candlemaster for His beloved “Eternal Vanguard”—the apostle who originally resided in this Candlemaster’s Shrine, who was over twenty meters tall, lived a simple life, and never left his home. Eivass also understood why only this spear could damage the “Giant Couple” and destroy this demon cauldron. As an apostle of Supreme Heaven and with a divine artifact bestowed by Him, only this weapon, capable of ignoring “Divine” resistance, could shatter them! Even as an Extraordinary of the First Tier, with a warrior’s body enhanced by the demon cauldron, coupled with this Holy Lance personally blessed by the Candlemaster, he could stand toe-to-toe with a giant apostle! Although many of this weapon’s attributes were invalid… its mythical form, if utilized reasonably, was practically equivalent to lock-on invincibility! With this thought, Eivass turned the lance and slashed down heavily. The gleaming golden Holy Lance shattered the demon cauldron with ease! Like striking a clay pot with an iron hammer, the demon cauldron offered no resistance, cracking and shattering with just a single, light blow. The food that continuously emerged from the demon cauldron, along with the shattered cauldron and splashing soup, scattered across the floor. They hissed and vanished like ashes. After the demon cauldron was shattered, the red garnets cracked simultaneously, even though they were not directly attacked. Countless white souls were released from the jewels, mixing with the steaming white vapor, causing the room’s temperature to suddenly drop.
“—The Holy Lance of Karstenning!” the giantess exclaimed, “How did you pick it up!” The giantess clearly recognized the spear and visibly hesitated. However, Eivass had already launched his attack. Although the giantess greatly feared the spear, she did not cower. With a roar, she lunged at Eivass. Just with that single roar, Barton, huddled in the corner, began to bleed from all seven orifices. His brain buzzed, and the intense dizziness and nausea made him unable to stand. Even the temple’s walls, solidified by divine power, couldn’t withstand the giantess’s strength. She lowered her head and launched a series of attacks at Eivass. Her ten-meter-tall body moved with the agility of a cat. As she moved, she stirred up howling winds, and her handaxe swung viciously towards Eivass’s head! A sonic boom echoed through the air, and gusting winds roared outwards from the point of impact in all directions. The entire room was utterly destroyed by the typhoon. But just then, the Holy Lance in Eivass’s hand suddenly erupted with divine radiance—Black, hollow thorns spread out from the grip, like the roots of an ancient tree, embedding themselves into Eivass’s arm. Dark red blood instantly stained the black thorns crimson. The Holy Lance seemed to gain fuel, and pure white flames ignited with a whoosh, distorting the air. A surge of heat swept through, causing all the cloth and paper in the room to spontaneously combust. Eivass, who had been struck by the heavy axe, did not retreat or suffer grievous injury. Instead, pure white flames erupted in his pupils, and he instantly recovered his health. Eivass roared and thrust the Holy Lance, burning with holy fire, heavily towards the giantess! And at that very moment, a silvery-white scale appeared on Eivass’s left hand.
【Authority – Silver Scale: When you attack any oathbreaker, gain +1 advantage (Divine)】
It was the mark of the Silver Crown Dragon, proof that it was watching Eivass. It also represented that the giant before him was an oathbreaker, whom the Silver Crown Dragon detested.
These two chapters were written slowly and are not yet complete! The second chapter will be released at 6 PM tonight, and if written earlier, it might be released ahead of schedule!
The dungeon is cleared today~
