"No-!"
Aurelius let out a scream so sharp it seemed to tear itself apart.
There was refusal in it, confusion in it, and thest copse of a man who had run out of road.
Until the moment he died, he still could not understand why Skr was killing him.
He had obviously been helping Skr. He had obviously wanted to work with him. He had obviously lowered himself and cast aside his dignity, so why...
The demonic mes finally withdrew.
Aurelius''s body had already turned to ash and scattered between heaven and earth.
As for the few Elders who hade out with Aurelius, they did not even get the chance to scream before the demonic mes caught them too and killed them on
the spot.
Their bodies burned in the demonic mes for less than a breath before they were erasedpletely.
Not even bone was left behind.
But the demonic mes did not stop there.
After devouring Aurelius, the Fire Dragon kept going forward and mmed straight into the Mountain-Guarding Grand Array of Saintlight Peak.
Boom!
The whole of Saintlight Peak shook.
That Mountain-Guarding Grand Array, strengthened by countless Celestial Basilica ancestors over tens of thousands of years, looked like it was made of paper in front of Skr''s demonic mes. A huge gash was ripped open through it in an instant. The golden barrier melted and evaporated under the ze of the demonic fire.
It burst apart into a sky full of golden motes, like golden rain pouring down. Cracks spread out from the breach in every direction, dense and tangled like a spiderweb.
In no more than a few breaths, the entire array copsed with a thunderous crash.
The golden barrier vanishedpletely, exposing the Saintlight Peak hidden inside, shaking where it stood.
The buildings on the peak swayed under the aftershock of the demonic mes.
Countless pces and pavilions copsed with deafening crashes as shattered stone sprayed through the air and dust rolled everywhere.
The Basilica disciples scattered and ran.
Crying, screams, and desperate pleas for mercy tangled together and rang across the entire mountain peak.
Skr lowered his hand and looked at the scene in front of him.
His face stayed t, like what he had just done was nothing worth mentioning.
The whole ce went dead silent.
On Saintlight Peak, the surviving Basilica disciples sat copsed on the ground, their whole bodies shaking.
None of them even had the nerve to run anymore.
They stared at the ck-d figure at the mountain foot as if they were looking at an unbeatable demon god.
Lydia looked at Skr, caution packed in her eyes, and without thinking she shifted Jared behind her.
Luther tightened his grip on the wraithde and stood in front of Grace.
His palm was slick with sweat.
Evelyn hid behind Jared, shaking from head to toe, unable to force out a single word.
Jared stood there and watched Skr in silence.
Something unreadable passed through his eyes.
Skr turned and looked at Jared. "What, you didn''t see thating?"
Jared said nothing.
Skr spoke in an even voice. "Aurelius got what he deserved. People like him love to call
themselves righteous, then do filthy things behind everyone''s back m not a good man either, but at least I know better than to respect trash like that."
He paused.
His gaze turned cold.
"That''s enough for today. When we get another chance, we''ll finish our fight."
With that, he turned away.
His body became a streak of ck light and vanished into the distance.
The ck streak ripped across the sky.
Where it passed, even the clouds were torn open into a long gash that hung there for a long time without closing.
Skr wasn''t stupid.
He knew that if things turned into a fight to the death, Lydia would definitely step in.
And once Jared joined forces with Lydia, he wouldn''t stand a chance.
And Skr wasn''t worried about Jared running, either.
As long as Josephine was with him, Jared could never walk away.
Skr still wanted to see Jared die by Josephine''s hand.
Jared remained where he was.
He watched Skr''s back fade into the distance and stayed quiet for a long time.
Lydia walked to his side and lowered her voice. "This Skr... what is he, exactly?"
Jared stayed silent for a moment before he finally opened his mouth.
"A lunatic."
He turned and looked toward Saintlight Peak.
That mountain had once stood
towering and sacred. Now its
Mountain Guarding Grand Array was
broken, more than half of the
pces and pavilions had copsed, and Basilica disciples were
in every direction.
There was nothing left of a holy sanctuary.
"Let''s go. I still have business with the Celestial Basilica."
He stepped forward and headed for Saintlight Peak.
His left arm still hung useless at his side. Blood still stained the corner of his mouth.
Every step still pulled at his wounds.
But his back stayed straight, sharp as a drawn sword.
Lydia followed behind him. Luther and Grace came up as well.
Evelyn wiped her tears away, forced herself to keep moving, and followed too.
Five figures walked toward that ruined mountain.
Before long, Jared found a Guardian Elder inside one of the Celestial Basilica''s wrecked pces, just as the man was trying to flee.
The second the Guardian Elder saw Jared in front of him, he dropped to his knees with a thud and burst into tears.
"Grandpa, spare me! Grandpa, spare me..."
The Guardian Elder had seen Jared''s strength with his own eyes. He was already
half scared out of his wits.
"Do one thing for me now, and I can let you live."
Jared said it to the Guardian Elder.
"Grandpa, just say it. I''ll do anything..."
The Guardian Elder nodded again and again as he spoke.
Jared took out a soul crystal that held the remnant souls of Sidney and his wife, then
held it in front of Cedric Vale.
"This is a soul crystal refined by the
Celestial Pce. There are two remnant souls inside it. I know the Celestial Basilica has the ability to release the remnant souls sealed in a soul crystal, let them directly take shape again, and then restore their physical bodies." Content