The Sacred-Demon Wall was breached. The Sacred-Demon City had fallen.
The news sent shockwaves through the entire human world.
The Great Barrier was humanity’s ultimate line of defense, built with immense effort, countless treasures, and divine materials.
And now, the Sacred-Demon Wall had been pierced!
“Damn it! Doesn’t this mean the demons can pour into our world through the gap at full force?”
“Can that breach even be repaired under these circumstances?”
“To be able to pierce the Sacred-Demon Wall, this offensive must have cost the Demon King, even the entire demon race, dearly.”
“These guys… are truly insane.”
For a time, high-level discussions erupted among the various races.
Opinions differed, but almost everyone reached a consensus—
This was a turning point for an era.
The outer Sacred-Demon Wall was broken.
No matter what, the inner wall must be held.
Hold this final line of defense!
After that day, a massive number of powerful individuals rushed to garrison the inner Sacred-Demon Wall.
Resources were transported in a continuous stream for reinforcement and strengthening.
People’s fighting spirit was completely ignited.
Simultaneously, the rewards for slaying demons at the inner wall were significantly increased.
Lu Mina remained at the inner wall, taking over the duties of the former city lord.
Humans attempted multiple counterattacks to retake the Sacred-Demon City and the outer wall.
But they all failed.
The power of corruption had already altered that land, making it more suitable for demons to linger.
Demon morale was high, and they launched frequent assaults.
Nobles, fortress lords, even duke-level existences, constantly appeared on the battlefield.
Many human powerhouses were injured in battle.
But some grew fiercer the more they fought, their strength skyrocketing.
Solaris, Yuxia, and—Lu Mo.
“A little one with no talent for sacred power can grow to this extent?”
Lu Mina noticed Lu Mo.
She was an exceptionally beautiful girl.
She didn’t smile much, her expression always cool and detached.
Yet she carried a unique aura.
Like a sheathed sword.
Once drawn—
Its edge could sever anything.
The first time she saw Lu Mo was at the Sacred-Demon Core.
That day, she was handling affairs.
Lu Mo walked in.
Cecilia followed behind her like a little puppy, sometimes holding her hand, sometimes smiling.
Those clear eyes seemed to hold only Lu Mo.
Though Lu Mina held an extremely high status, she was often away on missions and wasn’t overly sensitive to high-level affairs.
She didn’t recognize Cecilia immediately.
But she could tell—that was the Saintess.
As for Lu Mo…
She mistook her for the Hero.
After all, only the Hero would be so close to the Saintess.
And that sword-like aura belonged only to an existence of the Hero’s caliber.
She had always been an excellent judge of character.
Never wrong.
That day, however, her judgment was off.
When Lu Mo completed the commission and the light screen displayed the “Knight” class, she was visibly stunned.
Knight?
The Saintess’s attendant?
These two girls of vastly different statuses were this intimate?
And also—
Since when were Knights this strong?
It was an extremely difficult commission.
Completing it required at least Earth Vein Realm strength!
“This little one…”
Lu Mina’s breathing grew slightly rapid.
From that moment, she began paying attention to Lu Mo.
She had seen Lu Mo practicing sword alone.
Her swordsmanship was ever-changing, her sword intent razor-sharp, giving off a faint sense of pressure.
She had also seen her venture deep into the ruins.
Slaying demons one sword strike at a time, with casual ease.
Blood pooling into puddles.
She had also seen Yuxia pestering her relentlessly.
“Mo! I won’t give up!”
Yuxia stomped her foot angrily, her twin-tails flying.
At that moment, Lu Mina appeared beside her.
“Is the ‘Mo’ you speak of, Lu Mo?”
Yuxia was startled and immediately bowed.
“Lady Valkyrie!”
“No need for formalities.”
“Yes, she is Mo.”
“Why call her that?”
Mentioning “Mo,” Yuxia instantly became excited.
She recounted the story of Lu Mo challenging noble families and participating in the Prodigy War under the identity of “Mo.”
It was a story full of twists and turns.
In the final evaluation, “Mo” was not first.
First place was herself, undeservedly so.
“Because she had no powerful talent, no one was willing to take her as a disciple.”
“Later, she suddenly disappeared.”
“Everyone thought she was just a flash in the pan.”
“But I didn’t believe it.”
“I will definitely find her, and then defeat her!”
By the end, she sighed again.
“But she never admits she is ‘Mo’.”
“Even though her aura is exactly the same…”
After listening, even Lu Mina felt somewhat stirred.
She had loved hearing Hero biographies since childhood.
And Lu Mo’s story was more thrilling than those biographies.
“Quite interesting.”
She commented lightly and turned to leave.
In comparison—
Solaris seemed perfect, yet unreal.
Lu Mo and Cecilia felt more vivid and alive.
This reminded Lu Mina of the past.
Back then, she also had a Saintess by her side.
The two had promised to survive together.
But in the end…
She witnessed the Abyssal Duke torture and kill her companion.
Crushing the Saintess’s skull and extracting her spine along with it.
Until the very end, that girl was still telling her to run.
Lu Mina’s body trembled slightly.
Intense killing intent flashed in her eyes.
Time passed.
Over a year went by.
Cecilia stepped into the Earth Vein Realm.
And the way Solaris looked at her also quietly changed.
Gaining a trace of… greed.
An Earth Vein Realm Saintess provided a qualitative leap in the team’s combat power.
But her value didn’t end there.
—Sacrifice.
A Saintess possessed a special ability to offer her own talent and sacred power to the Hero, allowing for a further sublimation.
Solaris had always remembered this.
Before, Cecilia was too weak; sacrifice would have been meaningless.
But now—
She had condensed an Earth Vein.
The timing was ripening.
Solaris gazed at Cecilia.
As if looking at a—
Golden flower about to bloom.