Chapter 95: Stubborn Resistance!
Vampires are powerful beings.
Because high-level vampires can rival liches, they inherently possess the ability to dominate humanity, can transform into bats, gas, monsters, etc., and can absorb energy to lower their enemies’ profession levels by two during an attack. Their natural racial traits grant them high damage reduction capabilities, and their minions are regarded as innate magical weapons. They possess the ability for rapid healing, have a base health of at least 12 points comparable to that of a barbarian, and have an inherent extra armor of +6. They are the “Children of the Night,” capable of creating offshoots, and once transformed into vampires, they gain +6 strength, +4 agility, +2 intelligence, +2 perception, and +4 charisma, among other benefits.
However!
All of the above is actually of no use!
The Vampire Son is still chased by Soren like a dog, cut down wherever he goes. All his erosion abilities can be completely ignored in the face of Soren’s immensely powerful save resistance. What domination of humanity, what absorption of energy, what transformation ability, what innate magical weapons, what rapid healing, what damage reduction—Soren spins his two-handed sword like a windmill. No matter how high your damage reduction is or how astonishing your recovery ability is, as long as you get touched by the Holy Avenger, it’ll definitely teach you how to be reborn in seconds!
There’s a saying—‘In the world of martial arts, only speed cannot be broken!’
Soren has no doubt that in his current explosive state, even if someone were to shoot at him madly with a machine gun, he feels confident he could block those bullets.
At this moment!
He finally begins to understand the feeling of that legendary Sword Saint blocking bullets with a blade while charging during the Golem War.
Undeniably!
Although Soren chose the path of the Wanderer, he has always been influenced by the Sword Saint. He harbors the same ultimate pursuit in his heart, but lacks the Sword Saint’s death-defying belief. In the pursuit of both lethality and self-preservation, that is why he chose the path of the Wanderer.
Perhaps all melee professionists have been influenced by the Sword Saint to some extent.
After all, the existence of the Sword Saint is itself a benchmark!
……………….
With speed, strength, explosion, resistance, damage, and opportunity in hand.
Soren has no doubt!
If he cannot kill the Vampire Son today, it will be even harder in the future. Such a divine opportunity, having obtained the fifth-tier artifact the Holy Avenger under these conditions, with a group of paladins backing him up, means he does not have to face the vampire church’s believer cannon fodder or worry about others interfering in his battle. In a sense, this opportunity is almost irreplaceable; Soren must seize this chance no matter what.
—“Shadow Leap!”
—“Sword Intent: Beheading!”
Soren wields the two-handed sword without any awkwardness. Because the Universal Skillful Hand allows him to easily use any weapon, more importantly, the combat skills he has mastered are extremely violent, relying on heavy weapons to unleash their fury. Whether it’s Sword Intent: Heavy Chop, Sword Intent: Beheading, Sword Intent: Beheading Slice, Sword Intent: Spinning Dance, or other combat techniques, almost all of them are reliant on large or heavy weapons.
Using two-handed weapons is more thrilling than using one-handed weapons!
Especially when executing Sword Intent: Beheading Slice and Sword Intent: Beheading. The Vampire Son doesn’t even dare to take any hits head-on.
Clang!
The sacred brilliance explodes like fireworks, and the expression of the Vampire Son becomes increasingly twisted and ferocious until he finally looks downright insane. At this moment, he no longer has the noble and suave demeanor he had at first; now, he is disheveled, wearing tattered clothes and looking wretched. His anger and madness cause his pupils to gradually turn red, as his face becomes an eerie pale with dark undertones. His mouth finally reveals distinct fangs, and the contours of his face become cold and cruel, with his jaw becoming obviously sharp and blackened claws emerging on his fingers. His skin even seems to have a metallic sheen.
—“Vampire Form!”
Soren’s second wave of explosion finally provokes the Vampire Son to the point where he can no longer maintain his handsome and elegant appearance, revealing his true vampire form.
“Damn you! I will tear you into pieces!”
In vampire form, Reinhardt’s speed significantly increases, his dark claws enveloped in an indescribable energy brilliance. If other vampires’ minions could be equivalent to ‘innate magical weapons,’ then as the Vampire God, his claws surely exceed the standards of legendary weapons.
Clang!
As expected, the Vampire Son blocks Soren’s attacks with his claws.
The collision produces a metallic sound, though it is clear that a notable sword mark appears on the Vampire Son’s claws, with traces of sacred energy burning the wound. While his recovery speed is fast, the suppression effect of the Holy Avenger is still quite evident. Conversely, Soren holding the Holy Avenger feels no problems, having taken no damage from the exchange, whereas the Vampire Son suffers 10 points of holy damage and 15 points of shadow erosion damage.
Shadow Assassination takes effect as long as it contacts the enemy.
Not all of the damage was fully exerted on the Vampire Son; the shield effect of the divine power field is still active, allowing him to absorb a portion of the damage with his powerful recovery abilities while transferring the other portion to his energy shield.
“I must break his protective threshold!”
Soren’s pupils slightly shrink as he once again disappears from his original location. The next moment, the brilliance of the Holy Avenger sweeps toward the Vampire Son like a whirlwind.
Clang! Clang!
Crack!
A clear cracking sound emerges, and the Vampire Son’s claws are directly severed halfway by Soren.
The divine power field weakens!
Soren’s relentless attacks continuously diminish the strength of the divine power field. As one of the strongest weapons in the material plane, the Holy Avenger can inflict nearly a hundred points of damage even when used against the Spider Queen. Although the Vampire Son possesses a divine power field shield, after enduring so many attacks, he is finally pushed to the brink of collapse.
………………
A hint of anxiety appears on the Hell Poet’s face.
He does not know who the suddenly emerging person is, but he knows that this person is exceedingly difficult to deal with. The Vampire Son in his saint form is being suppressed to such an extent by him; the Hell Poet even doubts he could withstand a few rounds of that guy’s attacks. But now, even if he wants to provide support, he has no means to do so—the Warden in front of him has him firmly in check. No matter how much he tries to gain the upper hand, it cannot change the fact that the paladins have a clear advantage, and the Warden before him is also a legendary figure with over a hundred years of fame.
Want to leave?
The Hell Poet has no doubt that the other party has the capability to keep him here, even taking the opportunity to ambush the already-injured Vampire Son.
However, the battle cannot continue like this.
He must give support to the Vampire Son. Otherwise, Reinhardt’s defeat is merely a matter of time; that suddenly emerged madman seems to be on a rampage.
—“Fallen Hymn: Legendary Battle Song!”
The Hell Poet finally gives up on relying on the “Prelude to Hell” to interfere with and kill the enemy, instead choosing to use “Fallen Hymn” to boost the Vampire Son’s abilities.
The battle’s uncertainty is still in play!
Although the Slayer was heavily injured by the Holy Avenger at the start, his power is still beyond what an ordinary paladin can suppress. As long as those young paladins can hold on, then the Slayer can free himself from their control. At this moment, the Hell Poet sees an opportunity. As long as the Slayer slightly interferes with the enemy, he can rush over and help the Vampire Son kill Soren!
Now.
It all depends on who can’t hold on any longer first!
Is it the group of young paladins, or the now fully suppressed Vampire Son?
To this,
The Hell Poet still has some confidence; no matter how battered Reinhardt is, he should at least be able to last longer than those paladins, right?
………………
The situation for the paladins is indeed quite dire.
Their casualties have already become severe. Initially, they were ambushed by the Vampire Son and the Hell Poet, losing the initiative. Later, they suffered from a ‘Time Stop’ effect, directly resulting in a few deaths and serious injuries; if it hadn’t been for Soren appearing at that moment, they would have likely been completely wiped out already. But now while Soren has suppressed the Vampire Son and influenced the battle situation, their condition has not improved much.
The Warden must hold the Hell Poet back.
The legendary cleric fell under the ‘Time Stop.’ The remaining young paladins, while all of high rank, must hold off the severely injured and seemingly more frenzied Aberrant Demon!
Dragging such a terrifying monster is incredibly difficult.
What else could they do to hold on?
By risking their lives!
The surviving young paladins are practically playing with their lives!
Among them, one figure stands out, clad in mottled silver armor, standing at the forefront, hard against the Slayer. The aura of hardships makes him appear somewhat youthful, yet his face reveals a sense of weariness. His injuries are quite severe, with crimson blood dripping from his fingertips, but he still doesn’t take a step back.
Because he cannot!
In this situation, if he retreats, everyone will die here!
Blood, fatigue, pain.
He has long since become accustomed to these things without realizing it. From the moment he left the City of Wealth, he has walked over ten thousand miles on foot, braving the elements, witnessing more than he could previously imagine. He has fallen in the past, lost his direction, but he has rediscovered his conviction. He finally understands why older paladins always show a hint of sadness in their eyes, because his heart starts to be filled with a sense of grief!
He has not lost his way, nor has he fallen; his conviction grows ever firmer, his will as strong as steel!
Yet.
His heart is still filled with grief, he has not abandoned justice; he simply does not know what is happening in this world… (To Be Continued ~^~)
