Dekan’s punishment was given.
Chloix stood by Dekan just like a substitute wielder, while Dekan calmly stared at Fahim, bringing Fahim considerable and unusual pressure.
“DEKAN!! Is it necessary to exterminate every last one of us?”
Fahim appeared extremely nervous. His body was as tense as an abnormally rigid ice block, his face twisted in an ugly grimace. Unlike Krey, Fahim lacked the ability to regenerate. Krey’s desperate attack had already left Fahim’s body in a state much like a candle flickering in the wind.
Currently, Fahim could only manage with some remaining magical energy. But under this condition, he couldn’t afford to drag the fight out.
Ordinarily, in a true one-on-one fight, Fahim wouldn’t have feared Dekan at all. However, Dekan with a high-ranked mage made things troublesome. Moreover, this mage was a healer whose healing capacities remained enigmatic.
Fahim detested any healer who could survive under his lethal magic. Low-ranked healers were like ants to him, easily ignored and crushed. But high-ranked healers could complicate direct combat against Fahim.
Based on the Rebirth Church’s known intelligence, Chloix’s healing wasn’t small. He had previously managed to heal the Ice Snow Princess who was under the oppressive negative effects of the Destruction Demon King, sustaining her for a period of time. But after that battle, Isabel, their combat main sent by the Rebirth Church, disappeared mysteriously. It was suspected that she had fallen in battle or possibly defected. Therefore, the details of the battle in Tristin City remained unclear, with the Rebirth Church unable to accurately gauge Chloix’s healing capacity. They could only assume it to be as high as possible.
Still, even if blessed by deities, the conversion ratio between damage and healing would likely not exceed 20%.
Even the most devout followers or the greatest heroes wouldn’t receive excessively exaggerated blessings from their gods, a rule even deities must follow. If violated, even the gods would suffer dire consequences.
“Ho ho, Fahim, what polite words you say.”
Hearing Fahim’s absurd statement, Dekan couldn’t help but laugh, shaking his head and then looking at Fahim. The surrounding air seemed to have become a few degrees colder at that moment.
“You’ve blocked my peaceful life, making you an enemy I cannot let go. I’ll deal with you before you can harm me or my comrades.”
Despite his mask concealing his face, Dekan’s cold tone revealed everything he wished to convey.
” Alright, let’s finish this.”
As soon as Dekan finished speaking, Chloix cast a spell card. Shadows exploded around him like waves, covering the vicinity in a pitch-black, half-spherical area. Auxiliary forces outside immediately tensed up.
Dekan was obviously preparing to decide the ultimate outcome against Fahim. But now they couldn’t see what was happening inside due to this black barrier blocking their sight.
[Shadow Forbidden Zone]
[Category: Spell Card]
[Rarity: Purple Rare]
[Rank: 5]
[Effect: Creates a dark shadow barrier with a radius of 50 meters that blocks all vision. Maintaining the barrier requires sustained expenditure of a large amount of mana. When any unit first touches the barrier boundary, it will experience a brief immobilization effect.]
[Note: A free-range creation from the Shadow series.]
This was a spell card Dekan purchased expensively through special channels within the Rebirth Church. Dekan then traded this with Chloix.
Dekan actually liked Minos’s cards; some could coordinate well with his tactics. While Dekan couldn’t craft high-rank cards for Chloix, providing him with usable cards from the Shadow series was definitely the best solution.
The effect of the [Shadow Forbidden Zone] was similar to [Sun Fist]; though it didn’t have the mind-games of [Sun Fist], it could counter it. Additionally, [Sun Fist] caused momentary vision interference, while [Shadow Forbidden Zone] continuously blocked vision.
As long as one didn’t leave the barrier’s range, those outside wouldn’t be able to see what was happening inside. The darkness within the barrier exerted pressure on one’s psyche.
Here, whoever was more terrifying would make the other more fearful.
“Tap, tap…”
It was dark and gloomy. Fahim couldn’t see anything in this total darkness and could only judge Dekan’s approach by sound. Meanwhile, Chloix appeared to stay in place, supporting Dekan from behind.
Fahim was certain of who was advancing and who remained stationary because the auras surrounding these two were completely different.
After losing his vision, Fahim could even more clearly sense the unnatural danger emanating from Dekan!
Clearly, Dekan wanted to resolve Fahim before the cooldowns on Fahim’s [Corrosive Destruction] and [Body Destruction] ended.
“DEKAN…!!”
Fahim wanted to flee; he didn’t want to engage in this unfair duel any longer. The unbearable feeling was that, despite him seemingly making no mistakes and usually holding absolute advantage, his real sense was of incessant struggle. Regardless of whether it was an advantage or disadvantage, he felt he had been manipulated all along!
This terrible experience of being caught in combat akin to a living prison, he didn’t want to experience even a second longer. But now, Fahim found he couldn’t run.
Because once a bishop’s duel started, if either party chose to flee and moved beyond a certain distance from the other, it was considered fleeing, and that person would be judged as losing and receive a backlash as punishment. Thus, he could only fight Dekan to the death.
At this point, Fahim could only make his final stand. This was his remaining chance to win – using his remaining magic force and practicing the forbidden magics he himself mastered, to fight a decisive battle against Dekan!
Even with an auxiliary mage helping Dekan, the latter had overlooked something significant. No matter how poor Fahim’s state was, even with key cards under cooldown, he was still a rank eight mage, the most lethal to humans!
Dekan himself couldn’t withstand Fahim’s damage! His only weakness against Fahim was merely a shorter range.
But from the start, Dekan had recklessly approached him!
Once Dekan got closer, Fahim could use the spells he had to inflict effects similar to [Corrosion] on Dekan, causing him to endure an anomalous state, gradually decaying to death!
Currently, Chloix’s [Forced Dispell] was on cooldown. It couldn’t immediately clear Dekan’s anomalous state!
After a few seconds, verifying that Dekan had entered the casting range, Fahim didn’t hesitate to cast the corrosive magic on Dekan!
The casting was successful, the impact confirmed!
Yet Fahim immediately sensed it wouldn’t be so easy to succeed.
Dekan appeared to stop advancing forward, seemingly in a bad state. However, he remained shielded from the pain under the [Pain Sensation Block], relying on Chloix’s healing. Now, Dekan couldn’t feel the pain, nor his condition. Whether he could survive relied entirely on Chloix!
“Let’s see how long you can hold on! Dekan!! Do you trust that much in your companion’s healing capacity?!”
Fahim confirmed that Dekan had fallen into a war of attrition with him, and with great effort began dragging his battered body toward Dekan, anticipating the latter’s downfall under a state without pain sensation.
Because at this closer range, Fahim could also impose himself with treatment reduction spells and human body destruction spells!
Even if Dekan could survive now, once subjected to the therapy reduction effect, the balance between healing and corrosion would be broken!
If then subjected to a fatal burst damage human destruction spell, Dekan was destined to die!
The situation had changed again in a moment.
As if an extraordinary vitality had been injected into Fahim’s heart, breaking the shackles of his reluctance to fight before! The light of hope rekindled in his eyes, the prospect of imminent victory burning once more.
Within just a second or two, Fahim successfully reinforced Dekan with additional spells. Confident the spell effects, including treatment reduction and body destruction, had successfully landed on Dekan, Fahim felt his expectations rising!
This was truly the moment he would turn the tables.
“Hahahaha!! Dekan, you’re still too weak!”
Rank and basic attributes were fundamental flaws Dekan couldn’t overcome. He seemingly controlled the situation but could allow for only one mistake!
“Chuckle…”
Again, Dekan’s mockery filled Fahim’s ears, plunging him into a nightmare from which he couldn’t escape.
“Fahim, do you think once more that you’re about to win?”
“Why… WHY?!”
Fahim screamed in despair, repeatedly experiencing incomprehensible changes!
Now, Fahim felt his heart was about to freeze completely. Clearly, Dekan had been intentionally toying with him, offering him just a taste of hope to make him think he could win and then dragging him down into a deeper despair!
Now Fahim hardly believed he could win anymore. Even if he glimpsed the smallest chance of victory, he didn’t trust himself to achieve it. All of this was merely a method of torture devised by Dekan!
Fahim gradually understood one thing. Since Dekan could withstand [Corrosion] and [Healing Reduction], it indicated that Chloix’s healing-damage conversion ratio was likely the world’s rule limit – one-to-one!
This level of divine blessing was akin to the gods not wanting Chloix to die at any cost, granting such favor to a human.
If the conversion ratio was indeed that astonishing, Fahim could understand why Chloix had managed to keep Dekan alive.
Generally, priests equipped their cards with healing spells, learning all the healing magic possible, but the number of high-level healing spells was limited. Using spells in the same category would cause them to go on cooldown.
Chloix’s healing process was different, converting damage to healing, with attack spells not sharing cooldown times. The number of such spells could be numerous!
If Chloix mastered multiple spells aside from his spell cards, and with his significant mana growth, he could maintain an almost continuous stream of healing as long as he still possessed mana!
Wanting to kill Dekan in a short time while Chloix still supported him was impossible. Dekan had to be killed instantly.
“DEKAN!! Die already!!!”
Fahim roared with the last ounce of his strength, though he no longer wanted to win. He still harbored the slightest hope.
The body destruction magic Fahim had utilized earlier hadn’t killed Dekan, presumably because Dekan’s [Thorn Crown] had triggered its life-saving effect! Only one more forbidden human destruction magic would suffice to kill Dekan!
However…
When Fahim attempted to use human destruction magic again, everything was eerily quiet.
Fahim couldn’t immediately judge if Dekan had fallen.
And so, after his heart raced for over ten seconds…
“Chuckle, although I can’t see your struggles anymore, I can finally smell the scent of despair.”
Dekan’s pleasant laugh informed Fahim that his turnaround hope was lost again. Dekan had deliberately paused for a moment. He didn’t want to pass up any opportunity to mess with Fahim’s mind and apparently relished watching Fahim’s grotesque fantasies of victory.
“You… can’t possibly… be human?”
Fahim was sure that his human destruction magic had hit Dekan, yet it didn’t affect him in any way!
[Body Destruction], a forbidden magic spell causing instant massive damage, had an additional restriction compared to [Corrosive Destruction], the type that hung abnormal states – it targeted only humans.
Of course, through Fahim’s long-term modifications, even races such as beastmen or elves that had been subject to his live experiments would be affected by the modified version.
Unless…
Faced with beings he couldn’t possibly understand…
“What do you think I am now?”
Dekan’s eerie voice entered Fahim’s ears. The dual tones, male and female, were demonic, like cold winds on miles of ice. Though his pace wasn’t fast, it left Fahim dizzy, feeling almost dreamlike.
In that moment,
Fahim felt death creeping towards him, helplessly letting out a desperate cry,
“No, impossible… there shouldn’t be such things…”
However,
Dekan said nothing more to Fahim.
Dekan was savoring the moment. For him, taking a villain’s life wasn’t a particularly enjoyable matter—he hated killing, unless necessary. What truly pleased him was breaking the spirits of the gravely wicked and savoring their despair.
This feeling was one he couldn’t forget once he had tasted it. Dekan found himself increasingly unable to resist tormenting the adherents of the Rebirth Church.
“Your forbidden magic is ultimately just some underhanded tricks, let me purify your foul body and mind with divine magic.”
As Dekan said this, he took out [Purification of Blood].
“!!!”
Fahim, shocked and perplexed, could feel that the magical essence around Dekan, although despised, was not a blessing or a benevolent addition!
Instead, it was a magic that made one feel uneasy, desperate, and cold, sinister and horrifying, invoking a deep, innate fear from one’s soul.
Instinctively, Fahim stepped back twice.
In that moment, he realized he had completely lost his will to fight. He couldn’t take it any longer since coming to the Capital City. Everything had felt like being caught up in an inescapable web.
Everything had been running smoothly, only suddenly veering off dramatically.
Step by step, he had gradually fallen into a dead end and had no clue where he had gone wrong!
Fahim finally realized that, up until now, not a single step had gone according to his will, but they all appeared to have followed Dekan’s scheme.
This feeling was an abyss of despair without bottom.
Maybe from the moment Fahim had chosen to undertake this assignment against Dekan, everything after that had become inescapable.
However,
Fahim hadn’t taken three steps before his body collapsed uncontrollably. His legs lost function, pinned down by some spikes!
On falling, Fahim discovered his body penetrated by more spikes. These spikes were highly toxic!
Because of the [Pain Sensation Block], and also due to the lack of vision, Fahim hadn’t noticed the numerous spike traps on the ground.
And by the time he realized he was in a poisoned state, it was already too late.
Even this poison couldn’t be cleansed by purification spells!
“Chuckle, how does it feel to be our first user of my [Poisonous Ground Spike 4.1]?”
[Poisonous Ground Spike 4.1]
[Category: Spell Card]
[Rarity: Purple Rare]
[Rank: 4]
[Effect: Causes continuous mild poison and severe bleeding state, cannot be purified by spells. Spells can trigger from a distance.]
[Note: Current version is 4.1, with the new “High Durability of Blood Case Files” technology, which reinforces the spikes’ toughness and sharpness! Guaranteed to bleed profusely!—Developer’s Diary.]
While asking for customer feedback, Dekan finally cast the [Purification of Blood] on Fahim.
Although Fahim couldn’t feel pain, he, obsessed with studying body magic, could clearly sense his body becoming lighter! The air gradually filled with a bloody smell, the smell of his own blood, which he’d never before tasted!
Always, he destroyed the bodies of others!
Never had he imagined being so brutally harmed in return!
“One hit can’t kill you; we can continue our fair match later. Once [Corrosive Destruction] or [Body Destruction] are on cooldown, feel free to use them against me. Only this time, I won’t allow Chloix to cast [Forced Dispell] on me.”
Dekan, with a calm tone, announced Fahim’s fate like this.
“No, don’t!!”
Fahim finally screamed in agony. He understood Dekan’s words.
Dekan no longer relied on [Forced Dispell] from Chloix since he had no fear of Fahim’s [Corrosion]. This time, the target of [Forced Dispell] would be Fahim himself, driving away his shield of [Pain Sensation Block] and allowing Fahim to feel the full weight of Dekan’s punishment.
Fahim was convinced of his defeat.
However, he couldn’t imagine what suffering he’d endure in his current state, if Chloix dispelled his [Pain Sensation Block] and Dekan summoned a [Ruined Bard]!
“Fahim, do you feel happy dying in your favorite manner?”
Dekan questioned calmly.
“No!! This isn’t what I like!”
“Oh? Isn’t it? I thought you rather enjoyed it, considering how you treat others.”
After hearing Dekan’s words, Fahim was certain.
Dekan intended to torture him. Even if he was near death, while under the poisoned state, Dekan would need several [Purification of Blood] spells to finally kill him!
Endless fear and coldness surged in Fahim’s heart, as if at the end point of a nightmare wrapping around his mind, making him almost suffocating and unable to breathe.
“I choose death!!”
Furious and desperate, Fahim cast the [Body Destruction] spell on himself! Determined not to fall further to Dekan’s torment.
Nevertheless,
He couldn’t die as he had wished. Chloix had started healing him, helping to sustain his last breath.
“Hmph? Want to escape to the Underworld? Did I let you die?”
Dekan scoffed.
“No!!!”
Fahim finally realized Dekan had deliberately waited for more than ten seconds, prolonging the conversation with him until Chloix’s [Forced Dispell] was back up.
Moreover, from the start, Dekan had never been worried about Fahim’s [Corrosive Destruction] and [Body Destruction].
As Fahim prepared to recast the [Body Destruction] spell on himself,
Dekan summoned a [Ruined Bard].
Chloix also cast a [Forced Dispell] on Fahim, removing Fahim’s [Pain Sensation Block].
Instantly, unbearable pain surged through Fahim’s entire body, a pain so severe it felt as though his internal organs were being shredded and his bone marrow extracted. Even his nerves were being torn out one by one, causing Fahim’s screams to become wild and chaotic.
At this moment, Fahim finally understood the sensations that those he had cruelly tormented felt before they died.
As his gradually weakening screams subsided, Fahim finally lost his final spark of life.
…
Outside the shadow barrier, the onlookers listened to Fahim’s agonizing, desperate screams from within the barrier, unable to help but swallow their saliva. Though they didn’t know what had occurred inside, no one present failed to feel a sense of trembling.
No one could have possibly imagined, or even thought, that the ultimate outcome of Dekan and Fahim’s duel would be this terrifying—hundreds of times more horrifying than any scenario they’d previously envisioned.
“Could it be… Is he really not the Bishop of Pain?”
“Shut up… If he is, those who want to live should pretend to be ignorant!”
