Aiya was somewhat renowned within the Judgment Church, being one of the seven Chosen of the Goddess of Judgment, with a unique identity and responsibility.
However, across the entire continent, she was rather insignificant, as she was only level 30, far from standing out compared to true powerhouses above level 60.
Yet these black-clad figures recognized her, suggesting their identities were far from ordinary.
“Kill her!”
One of the black-clad figures said in a hushed voice.
They split half their group to confront Aiya, while the rest hacked at the vines with even greater ferocity, their eyes brimming with unmasked killing intent.
“Save… save me!” the priestess in the center cried, her delicate frame trembling.
“My mana’s almost gone!”
Aiya’s sword-like brows furrowed.
She wanted to use a skill to relieve the priestess, but most of her abilities were area-of-effect attacks.
With the black-clad figures so close to the priestess, acting rashly could harm her.
While she hesitated, the other group of black-clad figures charged at her.
Aiya aimed for a quick victory, but these attackers seemed intimately familiar with her moves and skills, effortlessly countering every strike.
“Don’t get bogged down—kill the priestess and retreat!”
A black-clad figure shouted.
The priestess was in grave danger, her life hanging by a thread, but Aiya, the strongest fighter, was tied up, unable to break free to help.
Rip!
The vines protecting the priestess were finally severed by the curved blades, writhing powerlessly on the ground, much like the trembling priestess herself.
The black-clad figures sneered, their eyes flashing with scarlet killing intent, raising their blades high.
The priestess, too weak to dodge, closed her eyes, a single tear trailing down her cheek.
***
‘Sisters, I’m coming to join you…’
She curled up, quietly awaiting death’s embrace.
At that moment, a dark figure flashed by, moving with light, swift grace, scooping the priestess up by the waist and leaping to safety in an instant.
“Who’s there?!” the black-clad figures roared in fury.
Ying Ye, carrying the priestess, rejoined Bai Yue Ling and gently set her down.
The priestess opened her eyes, her voice faint.
“Thank you for saving me… who are you…?”
Ying Ye smiled softly.
“I’m Ying Ye, an assassin.”
Bai Yue Ling patted her ample chest.
“Just a priest hero acting on a whim. Call me Little White.”
“Thank you… I’m Trineph… a novice priestess from the Goddess of Nature’s Followers…”
The priestess named Trineph spoke weakly, her voice heavy with sorrow and helplessness, tears falling like broken pearls.
“Waaah… everyone… everyone was killed… I was the only one who escaped… I’m so scared…”
“You’re safe now,” Ying Ye soothed.
Trineph?
Bai Yue Ling frowned slightly, feeling the name was vaguely familiar but unable to place where she’d heard it.
At that moment, the black-clad figures closed in, their voices cold.
“We thought the Goddess of Nature’s Followers sent reinforcements, but it’s just two little girls.”
Bai Yue Ling raised her Charm Wound Staff, a mocking smile on her lips.
“Little girls can still take your lives, you know.”
“Just you?” the lead black-clad figure scoffed.
“We wiped out the nature priestesses—what can a priest and an assassin do?”
“Stop wasting words,” another black-clad figure said, raising a curved blade that gleamed with cold light.
“Since they love meddling, send them to hell together!”
With that, the black-clad figures charged with murderous intent, utterly dismissing them.
“You two, stay back,” Bai Yue Ling whispered.
Ying Ye nodded, but Trineph couldn’t hide her worry.
“Little White… you should escape. They’re trained fighters, the weakest at level 20. A priest like you has no chance against them…”
“Priestess big sister, are you underestimating me?”
Bai Yue Ling lifted her Charm Wound Staff, her lips curving.
“Just a bunch of clueless trash. Watch me crush them underfoot.”
At that moment, the black-clad figures’ charge slowed, as if their shoes were stuck in glue, each step a struggle.
One stumbled and fell, glancing at her soles in rage.
“Where did this slime come from…?”
Before she could finish, a strange heat surged through her, her throat feeling like it swallowed a pound of sand, her skin cracking, her black clothes catching fire, burning her flesh.
She saw a faintly dim golden light radiate from the unassuming little priest, brimming with majesty and power, illuminating the bloodstained black-clad figures.
“Run… run!”
In panic, the black-clad figures tried to flee the light, but their feet were stuck fast by slimes hidden in the soil.
They could only scream and roll on the ground, trying to extinguish the soul-searing burn.
Bai Yue Ling gazed down at them haughtily, like a divine arbiter delivering judgment on sinners in the name of the Goddess of Judgment.
Watching this, Trineph, hiding behind, widened her eyes, her chest heaving with indescribable awe.
So beautiful…
The silver-haired girl bathed in holy light was breathtaking, leaving Trineph dazed.
She felt as if she were seeing a true angel, with illusory wings and a halo behind her, radiating divine radiance, delivering holy judgment on the sinners below.
The angel’s sacred light contrasted starkly with the sinners’ anguished screams, etching the scene deep into Trineph’s mind.
So this is true power… only this can protect my sisters…
Trineph murmured, feeling an unprecedented sense of safety.
She turned abruptly, noticing the black-haired ninja beside her staring at Little White’s back, her eyes soft like a pool of melted spring water.
Ying Ye… she’s Little White’s companion, right?
What’s she thinking?
***
Dark Holy Light lasted only five seconds, but to the black-clad figures, it felt like a year.
As a sustained damage skill, it didn’t kill them outright, leaving them with a sliver of life but stripped of all ability to act.
At this moment, living was their greatest torment.
Meanwhile, the other black-clad figures shouted anxiously.
“Is that priestess dead? We can’t hold out much longer!”
Though Aiya was alone, she exerted immense pressure on them.
They turned to check on the priestess, only to see their comrades writhing in agony on the ground, as if baked in a desert for days.
“What happened? Why are they down?!”
“I… I don’t know…”
One fallen black-clad figure muttered.
“That holy light was like the sun… who is that priest…?”
The situation flipped dramatically.
Under Bai Yue Ling’s Dark Holy Light, the once-dominant black-clad figures were halved in strength, and their target, the nature priestess, was safely protected.
“These useless fools—damn it, is this mission doomed to fail?!”
One black-clad figure growled through gritted teeth.
But they still had one last trump card.
“Where’s that red dragon?!”
One shouted furiously.
“We paid you a fortune in treasure—was it just to watch?!”
“Roar—”
All this time, the juvenile red dragon had been circling above, indifferently observing the chaos below.
At the black-clad figure’s call, it let out a roar, its wings beating fiercely.
Was it finally joining the fight…?
But then, the juvenile red dragon shot off toward the distant sky, vanishing into a tiny red dot under the black-clad figures’ stunned gazes.
It had unhesitatingly abandoned its plastic partners.