The professor let out a painful sound, trying to stop him.
But Monet was a warrior, a warrior who charges forward without turning back, preferring to die on the way to attack.
"My Elemental Thunder Slash excels in penetrating and moving swiftly; in just a moment, I can save Anderson, then burn life energy to escape. He still has a loved one, children... he absolutely cannot die here..."
The flickering thunderbolt stopped instantly in mid-air.
A tangible malice engulfed him like cold seawater.
Monet's facial skin trembled slightly, his mouth opened wide, looking in utter horror at the absurd scene before him.
In the sky above the forest, at an unknown time, appeared a giant.
He was like a moving mountain, his size commanding awe.
The thick crimson muscles intertwined like jagged rocks, resembling a flayed eight-armed giant.
Only that face bore a distorted human skin, with eyebrows knit together like a ferocious centipede.
His eyes were sunken into deep sockets, his hand gripping a massive cross.
The blood-colored ropes hanging from the cross connected to corpses scattered throughout the forest.
Only then did he realize, they... had been fighting on the belly of that monster all along.
It gently shook the cross, and the corpses Monet had decapitated instantly reassembled like time flowing backward.
Like puppets made of human skin, the corpses all around twisted their necks, with ghastly grins on their pale dead faces, staring intently at the two.
The Elemental Thunder Slash entwined around Monet's sword shattered at this moment, leaving him frozen in place.
Strings of blood-colored thread, like embroidery needles, silently pierced his body.
He wailed:
"My Origin."
His Extraordinary Origin had been torn apart.
Suddenly, Anderson's white papers spread out again, pulling at those threads. His despairing cry echoed:
"Rebels of the Patrol Hunting Church, hereby I declare—"
"I shall hunt, I shall resurrect, I shall destroy, I shall end; no one can escape my grasp, no one can evade my gaze."
"The King of Hunting, master of pain and hunt, the followers are willing to offer themselves, becoming marked prey."
"Please... grant an equal death."
The earth suddenly shook, in the void, the Lord of the Hunt's shadow threaded through.
He slowly turned, drawing a long bow.
Holy Arrow, projection begins.
The arrow, like a crimson meteor, descended from the sky, tearing a small passage through the blood mist, significantly diminishing the malice suppressing the two.
Monet suddenly threw the large sword in his hand to the ground, burning life as he fled to the distance.
Anderson seized this moment of respite, with papers swirling around him, expanding instantly, blocking the blood threads reaching for the warrior.
"Run! Don't look back!"
His body was pierced by blood threads, in a daze, he saw a scene of his loved one holding the hand of their eldest and embracing their second, welcoming him.
Fear, despair, guilt, distortion...
Countless emotions surfaced on his face, which he quickly covered with his remaining hand, muttering sounds only he could hear.
"Please, help me..."
The blood threads expanded his body.
With a boom.
Blood and flesh exploded like fireworks.
The blood scattered along the forest, and time seemed to slow slightly in Monet's eyes.
Those blood flowers drifted, and the sunlight sprinkling from the sky seemed to turn every drop of blood into amber, reflecting the city below.
The forest swayed by the wind, the old castle and the collapsed village...
Under the giant's foot, a white flower was stained red.
At some point, there was a faint metallic taste in Monet's mouth.
He recognized it.
It was Sequence Four.
The Demigod Flesh Titan of the Crimson Church.
He only wanted to try his best to run, entangle for a few more seconds.
He had to fight for more time for the students.
Even if it was just a few seconds.
These few seconds felt as long as years.
He saw a blood sun rise with a wave of destruction, about to engulf the Maze.
He was utterly desperate.
But at this moment, the world suddenly fell silent.
Thousands of silver arms, gleaming with a cold shine, floated in midair.
An old man in a white robe quietly confronted the Titan.
It was Ethereal Emblem Director, Alfredo.
"Greetings, Fallen Titan."
The first breath, Destruction Fist Force shattered the Flesh and Blood Magic.
The second breath, a thousand silver arms tore through the Titan's body.
Loud booming sounds emanated from the giant's body.
Soon, everything returned to calm.
...
Location: Duel Plaza
Most students hadn't had time to complete combat exercises, leaving the place in darkness.
In front of the Teleportation Gate, countless pillars of light bloomed.
One by one, students stumbled and fell onto the plaza.
"What's going on?"
"Why was the combat training suddenly halted?"
"Damn it, where are my underpants?"
"Rooney, they're with me."
"Why are my brother's underpants with my girlfriend?"
...
The scene was a complete chaos.
But seeing the mentors brandishing weapons and rushing into the teleportation gate, the atmosphere turned deathly silent.
The students didn't dare to leave and could only wander around the Duel Plaza.
Only one team seemed carefree.
Chloe finished a small pot of Ceylon milk tea in one gulp and, looking at the pitch-black plaza, softly said:
"It's so quiet."
Teresa pressed her lips together and said nothing.
Having experienced training in the association, she vaguely guessed what was going on.
Rephya and Fratiss, however, were unaware of the potential risks.
The latter was pulling the former along for a chat.
"Can I touch your tail?"
"No, you can't."
"That's such a shame."
"Shame about what?"
"I wanted to try out the Enchanting Demon's magic-like skill. I've only heard about it on the frontier, never seen it."
"It would shoot out, I mean the blood."
"I saw it, that demon looked like a fountain."
"Hehe, just because you praise me doesn't mean I'm happy."
"By the way, the senior isn't an Evil God's follower, right?"
"Now, now he's definitely not!"
Can't say for sure about the future.
Then Chloe's fist came down.
"Ouch!"
Rephya squatted down holding her head and looked at Chloe with a grievance as if to say, "I was defending you, why hit me?"
The Gourmet Knight seized the chance to grab her tail.
Rephya shuddered and dared not move.
She was scared her legs might go weak.
Chloe rolled her eyes and ignored the two of them.
After a while, she spoke again quietly:
"Senior Chloe."
"Hmm?"
"Did something happen in the Maze?"
"Ask whatever you want," Chloe said, patting her chest, "I certainly won't answer."
"I'll treat you to a meal tomorrow."
Chloe straightened up: "All you can eat?"
"I can carry five bags at the port in one go!"
"You better save your money."
Poor kid, Chloe couldn't even bear to exploit her.
"Did someone die?" Rephya asked in a small voice.
She was referring to Professor Anderson, who appeared in their dreams.
"He's dead."
Chloe only knew that something major had happened in the Maze this time.
But what exactly, he truly didn't know.
In the simulation, he didn't have the chance to investigate before getting entangled with the Flesh and Blood Hermitage.
Now he understood.
The Howling Castle Maze, at some point, had become a den for the Crimson Church.
A mentor had died there, most likely Professor Anderson from the Disciplinary Department.
Rephya remained silent.
It was her first time participating in a Maze expedition, and already a mentor had lost their life.
Teresa, standing nearby, came over and said:
"Don't worry. This was an accident. Normally, Maze raids aren't this deadly."
Chloe interjected, "Really? I don't believe it."
"Get lost! If there were that many problems, adventurers wouldn't survive either."
Chloe said nothing.
You laugh at me for not understanding the Maze.
I laugh at you for not understanding the warrior.
He knew what the girl was about to face.
"Go and become stronger, Rephya. Until you reach Sequence Six, you don't even have the strength to protect others."
"Sequence Six?" The girl's voice was filled with disbelief, "During the Ethereal Emblem period?"
"Yes." Chloe looked at the teleportation gate and said, "This is the Maze..."
"Welcome to the Maze."