"Cover me!"
Seeing that Gorgon, empowered by the Blood Temple itself, was growing fiercer with every clash, Samael—his strength bolstered by "Hero Creation"—decided to take a gamble.
"Got it! Go!"
The Jaguar Warrior shattered a serpent's head with her enlarged claw, then crouched and held out her spear horizontally.
Samael, sprinting forward, caught on instantly and launched himself off the spear.
With a powerful push, the Jaguar Warrior sent the ancient serpent flying like a cannonball, straight at the Goddess of Demonic Beasts.
"Final Move... Flame Sword... Amplify... Volley!"
Samael, if you don't pay me back for this, I swear I'll bite you to death!
Watching the rapidly draining "shinies" inside her ship, Maanna, Ishtar winced in agony, gritting her teeth as she tried to convince herself it was just a necessary upfront investment.
"Filthy insects! Get out of my sight!"
"Gorgon! Don't even think about it!"
Sensing her enemy's rapid approach, the Goddess of Demonic Beasts instinctively summoned multiple magic arrays.
Ana's eyes flared with fury as she poured everything into countering Gorgon's magic. Purple-red ghostly light exploded between them, and streaks of blood trickled from the corners of her eyes.
But immediately, Gorgon relied on her bug-level immortality to multiply the serpents behind her. One after another, giant purple-red snakes coiled and slithered down, closing in on Samael.
Creak...
The battered round shield barely held off a serpent's bite before twisting and groaning under the pressure, emitting a sickening metallic shriek.
You want to eat me? Let's see if you can stomach it!
Samael's snake-like eyes flared wide. With a furious roar, he drove his spear upward, piercing the grotesque serpent's head from jaw to skull.
But these were lifeless extensions, born from her hair, devoid of pain or instinct, constantly regenerating.
The berserk serpents swung their heads, trying to crush him sideways.
Samael immediately let go, abandoning his shield and spear. He drew the short blade from his waist and rammed it upward into the serpent's neck.
Twisting his wrist, he carved off the stubborn serpent's head in one fluid motion.
Using the recoil of the strike, Samael leaned back, body taut like a drawn bow. At the apex of that tension, he swung his arm forward and hurled his final throwing spear.
The weapon, whistling through the air like a heavy ballista bolt, shimmered with Zeus's lapis-colored lightning. Gorgon, sensing danger, instinctively stiffened.
But it was too late. Wrapped in crackling arcs of electricity, the spear pierced through two serpents in its path and slammed into Gorgon's chest, boring a gory hole nearly twenty centimeters wide.
"Argh! Damn you!"
Howling in agony, Gorgon's eyes flared with murderous rage as she glared at the insect that dared to strike her.
But Samael's delay had taken its toll. Exhausted, he could do nothing as the circling serpents closed in.
"Damn it! Don't underestimate a jaguar!"
"Killer technique!! Great Death Claw: The Inescapable Claw of Death!"
Just in time, the Jaguar Warrior dove in, her claws flaring with light and extending several dozen meters. With a sweeping strike, she tore through the serpents around Samael, reducing them to raining chunks of flesh.
"All illusion is but a bubble; the flowers you see—both real and not!"
At the same moment, Merlin chanted solemnly, gripping his staff with both hands and pressing it down hard.
In a burst of starlight, Samael's charging figure split in two, then four, then into hundreds—illusions rushing forward from every direction.
"Die! Die! All of you, die!"
Gorgon shrieked, her rage boiling over. The blood vessel-like structure clinging to the inner temple wall above began to pulse, sucking frantically.
In an instant, a ball of thick, blood-black Mana condensed—then exploded.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
All the advancing figures were wiped out in a sweeping blast of magic.
"Samael!"
Seeing every clone obliterated without a trace, Ana's eyes went wide with horror. Letting out a furious scream, she broke from the formation, racing across the serpent hair as she slashed her way forward.
"Ana, get back!"
Everyone's expression changed, ready to stop her—until a clawed foot, covered in pale yellow scales, slammed into the ground.
They barely dodged before the temple trembled violently.
Then, the purple-red magical beast eggs clinging to the vessel-like walls dropped all around them.
Splurt! Splurt! Splurt!
With the wet sound of sacs bursting, dozens of magical beasts of varying sizes burst free, roaring as they charged the intruders who had dared to hurt their mother.
They can replenish Mana and churn out grunts on demand?! We are blowing this cursed temple sky-high!
Merlin's pupils contracted as more monsters swarmed into view. Eyes twitching, he quickly drew the Holy Sword tied behind his staff.
For now, both Ishtar and the Jaguar Warrior were cut off by the newborn beasts, unable to aid Ana...
"No one can stop my revenge! No one!"
"Die, monster!"
Gorgon, having nearly drained the Blood Fort of all its power, let out a furious roar as she lunged at the goddess larva—her very nemesis.
The little girl, just as spent, had already severed several grotesque serpent heads but was now too exhausted to evade. She could only watch helplessly as the monstrous shadow came crashing down.
"Pff!"
In a flash, Gorgon's claw, covered in pale yellow scales, froze in midair. She coughed up a mouthful of purplish-red blood.
Staring in disbelief, the Goddess of Demonic Beasts looked down and saw something wormlike squirming and drilling through her flesh.
What... is inside me?!
And it's poisonous!
Her eyes locked on the pink flesh at her chest—where tendrils of muscle intertwined over a bloodied hole just about to fully close. Her expression twisted.
Don't tell me... it was from before!
Damn it! I've been tricked!
That Magecraft earlier—it was just a diversion! That kid who rushed in... he's not one of the illusions!
"Gorgon! Unforgivable! Absolutely unforgivable!"
In the moment Gorgon froze in shock, Ana broke free from the entangling snake hair and leapt upward. Her immortal divine weapon slashed across Gorgon's pale chest, carving a savage bloody gash.
"That sickle... Harpe!"
"Traitor!"
Fractures of light spread from the wound across her entire body like a shattered mirror. Gorgon's eyes widened in fury as she let out a deafening roar.
In an instant, she swung her serpent-scaled arm sideways, smashing Ana—who had aimed to strike deeper toward the divine core—clear across the battlefield.
The purple-haired girl shot through the air like a cannonball, crashing hard into the inner wall of the Blood Fort.
But before the Goddess of Demonic Beasts could press the attack, her power began to ebb rapidly, retreating like a vanishing tide.
"My divine power!"
"No! This can't be happening!"
Gorgon thrashed wildly, screaming in disbelief.
But the pain in her chest was undeniable. Deep inside, her divine core was collapsing, shrinking at an alarming rate.
"Get out... come out!"
Madness flashed in her eyes. With a scream, her claws tore along the incision left by Harpe, plunging into her own chest.
At almost the same moment, a red-and-black ancient serpent slithered through the narrowing gap between her fingers and dove into the depths of her heaving chest.
...
(50 Chapters Ahead)
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