Swoosh!
A dark figure shot through the crowd, swerving in and out, leaping up and down, and dodging the unending needle-like spears of light that continuously rained down from above.
Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!
Tink-tink-tink! Tink-tink-tink! Tink-tink-tink!
Each golden spear narrowly missed her body, before violently piercing the stone streets below and erupting into showers of radiant sparks and exploding fragments of rocky shrapnel.
BOOM!
The woman wore a dark cloak that had been tightly wrapped around her body. Her skin was a smooth light brown color, while her expressionless face was framed by deep, bottomless black eyes that seemed devoid of emotion. Long black hair had slipped free from beneath her hood at some point, which was now wildly swaying behind her back in twin braids styled with a faint, curved, scorpion-like aesthetic. Around her neck were strange black runes that wrapped upward in a spiraling pattern. They looked like coiling snakes, but they were drawn from strange runes and had been embedded deep within her flesh as a permanent, serpentine-like tattoo.
She moved like a cat, no sound was made, but each step seemed to propel her body forward unnaturally far, almost as if she were gliding across the ground rather than running atop it.
As she continued dodging the incoming attacks, she deliberately weaved in and out of the crowd, forcing civilians between herself and her pursuers at every opportunity.
Unfortunately—
The three figures that were relentlessly pursuing her did not seem to care!
These people were members of the Church of Light's infamous pursuit profession: the Light Chasers!
Two handsome young men and one beautifully mature woman, all three wore modified priest robes designed for quick movement and dexterous combat. Two golden petal-like wings protruded from their backs, while long lance-like weapons glowing with holy light were gripped firmly within their hands. Each lance was exquisitely designed, resembling more of an elven creation than any human weapon, yet they were still undoubtedly human!
The profession of 'Light Chaser' was a derivative of the 'Priest' profession, unique to the Church of Light.
Immortal Cultivator, Mage, Summoner, Controller, and Necromancer, these were all professions, and these five professions each followed one of the five pure energies: Natural, Spirit, Elemental, Mystic, and Soul. The Priest Class was a derivative of the Mage Pathway, meaning that when a second-order Mage was ready to advance to third-order, they could become a 'Priest' instead of a 'Great Mage'.
The Church of Light had pioneered its own set of unique pathways to better utilize its power when 'facing the forces of darkness', or so they repeatedly proclaimed…
It should be said here that creating an original pathway was both extremely difficult and relatively easy. For example, for a Mage (Second Order) to advance to a Great Mage (Third Order), they must form a Mana Core within the heart to act as a sort of battery.
If one wanted to create a derivative pathway, they could change the location of the core, for instance, turning a rib into the Mana Core instead. Alternatively, they could use an external object as a core and link it directly to the body.
This part of the process was relatively easy—
However, sustaining this unique pathway all the way to the Ninth Order was where the true difficulty lay! If you used your own bone as the core, who knew what unstable or volatile powers it might eventually manifest? If you used an external object, how would it affect your body over a long period of time? These were critical factors to consider, and that was only for the next realm!
As one continued to develop a new pathway, these small changes compounded on top of each other, and each successive realm created entirely new, unforeseen problems. Even with all of this said, it was still a step before even considering if the strength obtained through the new pathway could actually compete with the original pathway from which it was originally derived.
In short, if you didn't have a master at the Eighth or Ninth Order overseeing the entire process, the risk was far too high to even consider, not to mention attempt…
Throughout the long history of Pillomal, only the Church of Light, 'Old Demon Clan', and the High-Elves were recorded to have created unique pathways that diverged from the five pure paths.
The High Elves succeeded through the fusion of two pathways. The Church of Light succeeded by dual cultivating the 'Mage Pathway' and a 'Derivative Mage Pathway' side by side, and only the Old Demon Clan ever managed to create their own unique pathway entirely from scratch.
It was no secret that the Church of Light had many derivative pathways, such as 'Light Chaser', 'Demon Hunter', 'Divine Mage', and the 'Fallen…'
The foundation for the Church of Light's many unique pathways was the 'Priest Path'.
Although the Priest Path was three times harder to progress through than the Golden Core Realm and Great Mage Realm, the foundation it created was, truth be told, terrifying!
The Church of Light created the priest class by generating a 'second heart' opposite to the first, turning the body symmetrical. By doing this, they still followed the original mage pathway and formed a Mana Core in their original heart, but they also created a second core called the Holy Heart.
The Holy Heart was the foundation of the Church's many derivative pathways. It acted a little like a blank slate that wouldn't affect the body, because it wasn't actually connected to the body! The Holy Heart was a floating core that didn't 'initially' connect to the blood vessels, meridians, or Mana Channels. It was completely mouldable, which allowed the Church of Light to develop it as they pleased.
By doing this, each Priest could follow the original Mage Pathway and become a Light Mage, or they could modify their Holy Heart and follow more advanced pathways, like the Light Chaser pathway. Not only did they avoid cutting off their future paths, but it also allowed them to pursue a more personalized path that was unique to each person.
The Light Chaser Pathway (Fourth Order) was simple: by creating two channels linking their Holy Hearts to their backs, they could expel light-elemental energy from their bodies like two small jet engines.
This process formed the two petal-shaped wings that each of the three pursuers possessed.
The more powerful they were, the faster they became, resembling 'real angels'. This kind of visual projecting was also the reason so many people from the Church of Light became absolute fanatics.
-
The three figures continued to shoot through the air—
Like arrogant birds of prey, they flew over the crowd and slowly began closing the distance…
The Shadow Clan woman looked back over her shoulder and sneered!
Her eyes narrowed coldly.
Boom—
She planted her foot firmly against the wall of a nearby building, then launched herself forward with one explosive burst of violent force, nearly toppling the wall!
The surrounding crowd screamed!
The three Light Chasers sensed something wrong, but before they could fully react—
Ripple!
The woman's body suddenly vanished!
An ordinary bystander would not understand what had happened, but the Light Chasers knew immediately. As experienced hunters, they naturally knew everything there was to know about the Shadow Clan and all their innate abilities.
This Shadow Clan woman had dived directly into the shadow of a nearby pedestrian, but because there were too many people, they had not seen which one.
…She was testing them!
She wanted to know whether they were truly willing to massacre a large number of civilians in the middle of the capital just to drag her out!
The female Light Chaser's face twisted with malice.
"Heh!"
Without hesitation, she raised her radiant lance high into the sky, her flawless fingers twitched, then she violently thrusted it downward!
BOOM!
As it collided with the ground, a blinding light erupted from the weapon!
But instead of attacking the nearby civilians directly, the holy light spread outward in a strange wave-like resonance that merged with the environment. The sunlight overhead seemed to strangely distort, while nearby magical lights, glowing artifacts, and active magic all began flickering in unison.
Some immense force was applying itself to the surrounding light!
This aura seemed to stretch far into the horizon, affecting not only the capital but also its immediate surroundings in an uncontested wave of unspeakable power.
Many heads turned, and although this power was not directed at them, many people frowned.
Petra in particular could feel that when this power pressed against her body, it seemed to disappear, not because of her bloodline, instead, the King's Hand seemed to stir for a brief moment.
Soon—
A strange pulse spread through the air, like a gust of wind, but also like a silent storm! It was a strange contradiction, one that those unaware of the Void could not comprehend.
At the same time, hidden within the darkness, the Shadow Clan woman suddenly felt the shadows around her become thick and viscous. The shadow itself, the space she was concealed within, was solidifying, and what was worse, it was beginning to seal her body!
Feeling the surroundings begin to solidify, her eyes immediately shot open in terror.
Having never experienced this before, the dark-skinned woman did not know what was happening.
Following a drum-like palpitation in her chest, she leapt free from the darkness without hesitation—
Woosh!
—Only to find a glowing lance already thrusting directly toward her chest!
Clang—SCREEECH!
In that instant, with a flash of black light, the nearby shadows violently tore themselves free from the ground! Stone and debris were uprooted, and dust and dirt were scattered through the air. The last traces of darkness, those that had not solidified, twisted upward into tendril-like appendages before instantly blocking in front of her body.
Bang!
When the holy lance struck the darkness—
The sound resembled metal scraping against metal!
But the Shadow Clan woman had no time to recover!
Another figure had already appeared behind her!
The male Light Chaser thrust his lance forward, and—BANG! Only for the attack to be instantly parried by the same black dagger the assassin had used earlier during her encounter with Petra. With a snap of the wind, the long lance was deflected, its light dispersing into the air like a blinding haze.
Clang!
Blinding sparks of white light exploded outward!
At the same moment—
Hooong!!!
The third and final Light Chaser, high above, descended from the sky like a ray of holy judgment!
The petal-like wings on his back retracted, only to explode with a burst of compressed energy a moment later. Like a cannonball descending, he tore free from the sky, carving through the void with a blinding blur.
The Shadow Clan woman, her eyes wide, felt the oncoming danger and snapped her gaze upwards!
But it was already too late.
Without the slightest care for the surroundings, the young man smashed down directly onto the assassin's location, civilians and all!
Vaaarooooooooooooooooooooooooooooom! BOOM!
The nearby spectators immediately reacted!
Many people shot to their feet, shocked at what they saw!
They actually dared!
How dare they!
Those from the Dragon Clan watched on with mild amusement, but the Telltera openly snorted in disdain, clearly viewing the Church of Light unfavorably. Among the overseas experts, some showed reverence toward the Church, while others displayed obvious disgust toward their actions.
As for the City Guard—
Their faces darkened with rage!
This was the capital city!
Yet the Church of Light still acted without restraint!
Unfortunately, the remaining two Light Chasers had no time to care about the reactions around them!
Because in the very next instant—
Swish!
A streak of black light erupted from within the dust cloud at an impossible angle—
Slash!
—The head of the descending Light Chaser, silhouetted by the light, flew into the air!
…Silence!
What truly shocked the surrounding crowd was not the decapitation; instead, it was the complete absence of his two arms! When the dust cloud settled, what they saw was a dishevelled man, a fallen priest, weak and bloody, missing his head. But beyond even this, both arms had already been severed before the killing blow had even landed!
Nobody saw the attack!
Not even the nearby Fourth Order practitioners!
Clearly, this Shadow Clan woman had already counterattacked during the initial collision, and the decapitation was only a backup plan!
Each of the Light Chasers was an early Fourth Order practitioner, but this Shadow Clan assassin—
Was an elite Fourth Order practitioner!
She should already have a foot in the fifth order, only a small step away!
On the Cross Continent, existences like hers were considered absolutely terrifying!
But no one had time to think too much, because the remaining two Light Chasers immediately retreated, scanning the surroundings with ugly expressions.
At the same time, from within the fleeing crowd—
A black silhouette could once again be seen slipping through the streets!
She was still running and had no intention of staying!
The two Light Chasers felt a wave of frustration rise within their hearts. They gritted their teeth, looked at their fallen companion, then roared while shooting into the sky to continue.
Even after all that, they had still somehow returned right back to the beginning…
* * *