Chapter 197 - 192: Who Says Destiny Cannot Be Defied?
Chapter 197: Chapter 192: Who Says Destiny Cannot Be Defied?
The luxurious hall of the Lord of Birch’s Mansion was currently shrouded in a deathly, oppressive silence.
The nobles cowered in corners or behind pillars, like frightened quails. Their faces were a mixture of the lingering fear of having just survived and awe at the scene before them. Without exception, their gazes were fixed on the area in the center of the hall, where a faint light still lingered.
Reya was kneeling on the ground, clutching Yed tightly. Her slender shoulders trembled slightly with silent sobs. Teardrops traced wet paths down her pale cheeks, washing over the faint golden markings that had yet to completely fade.
In her arms, Yed’s face was ashen and his breathing was faint. On his lower abdomen was a wound that looked as if it had been gnawed by some venomous insect. No blood flowed from it. Instead, a mass of dark green energy, seeming to possess a will of its own, pulsed slowly, deliberately corroding the flesh around it.
Reed was kneeling on one knee beside them, attempting to use a Divine Technique to stabilize Yed’s condition. But from the fine beads of sweat on his forehead, it was clear the process was not going smoothly.
And before them, a young man with short, gray-white hair was pinned fast to the ground by several corporeal golden Light Guns. Yet even so, his face was still twisted in a near-maniacal excitement and the satisfaction of a successful assassination.
And in front of this gray-haired youth, Ivory was gripping a Shadow Hook Saber, slowly peeling the skin from his face.
"The antidote."
This lady, who usually presented herself with an elegant demeanor, had now lost all her calm and composure. Her hoarse voice was like a cold wind blowing through the cracks of dry bones, steeped in a chilling killing intent.
"I will only ask once."
The sharp hook saber slowly cut into his flesh. Blood instantly seeped out, trickling down the cold blade.
The young man’s smile twisted in agony, but it only made him look more savage.
A strange, guttural laugh escaped his throat, "Heh... heh...", as if he were enjoying the inhuman torture. The words he spat out sent a chill down everyone’s spine.
"Heh... heh heh... No... no antidote... This is... ’Wither’s Embrace,’ you know of it, don’t you? A poison with no cure..."
When Jon kicked down the doors to the Lord’s Mansion’s hall and burst in, this was the scene that greeted him.
Reya was fine, but Yed’s situation looked grim.
His heart sank at the sight.
’I rescued Yed from Heta County City, but he still got assassinated... Is he destined to die after all?’
His sudden appearance broke the heavy atmosphere in the hall.
"Mr. Jon!"
Reya called out his name almost instinctively, as if she had finally seen a ray of light.
"Save my father! Please... save him!"
At the same time, Reed looked up abruptly and explained.
"Mr. Jon! Quickly... please, come! My mastery of Divine Techniques isn’t high enough. I can only barely slow it down. I can’t completely seal this malevolent energy!"
Jon didn’t waste any time with words.
He strode to Yed’s side in a single step, knelt on one knee, and without hesitation, pressed his open right hand onto the wound on Yed’s abdomen.
VMM—!
Several streams of golden light, far more condensed and brilliant than Reed’s, surged from his palm. They instantly transformed into countless fine threads, wrapping around the dark green energy layer by layer.
The golden light and the toxic aura clashed violently, emitting a grating SIZZLE.
However, the dark green energy was exceptionally stubborn. It twisted madly like a living creature, still tenaciously seeping into the surrounding healthy flesh!
Jon’s brow furrowed instantly.
"Heh heh... heh..."
Seeing this, the gray-haired young man on the ground immediately burst into hoarse, wild laughter. Even though his face was sliced open by the hook saber and contorted in agony, his crazed smugness didn’t diminish in the slightest.
"It’s useless... you idiot! Don’t waste your energy!"
Jon ignored the provocation.
As a former max-level Alchemist, he had encountered his fair share of poisons. But this one was clearly not a conventional poison; it was likely mixed with some... less-than-harmonious powers.
For example... the Power of Evil...
’This specific characteristic... I wonder which entity it belongs to...’
If it were anyone else here, they would likely have to watch helplessly as Yed was corroded to death by the poison.
’Could it be... that in the other ’history,’ this is the poison that killed Yed?’
The thought flashed through his mind, but Jon didn’t dwell on it.
Whether that was the case or not, and whether this assassination was a correction from so-called "Destiny," as long as he was here, he wouldn’t let it happen!
The outlander’s gaze hardened, his focus shifting to the system panel.
[Consume 30,000 general Experience Points to raise ’Light’s Protective Seal’ to LV.9?]
’Yes!’
The experience he had painstakingly accumulated over the past few days was wiped clean. To be certain, he even used one of his precious Skill Points for the first time.
[Consume 1 Skill Point to raise ’Light’s Protective Seal’ to LV.10?]
’Yes!’
[’Light’s Protective Seal’ has been upgraded to LV.10 (MAX)]!
As the skill level increased, a vast, irresistible torrent of knowledge about energy binding and the construction of order flooded his Spirit, causing him to stiffen for a moment.
But it was only for a moment. When Jon came to his senses, the difficulties he had encountered while trying to seal the poison instantly became clear!
"Seal!"
This time, what erupted from his palm was not a stream of golden light, but threads of pale white light that seemed woven from pure "order" itself!
They were as fine as hairs, yet contained a magnificent power capable of stabilizing all things. Ignoring the poison energy’s struggles, they pierced precisely into the center of the wound with unstoppable force, then rapidly wrapped and coiled around it!
In just an instant, the Skill was complete!
Yed’s entire body was enveloped in a layer of pale white light, falling into a stable stasis. At his wound, the energy threads formed an additional sealing sphere, completely imprisoning the poison energy.
"It’s done."
"HUUUH—!"
Hearing Jon’s words, Reya let out a long, shuddering sigh of relief, her tense body instantly going limp as if drained of all strength.
Nearby, Ivory’s grip on the Shadow Hook Saber suddenly loosened. Her body swayed almost imperceptibly, as if the string holding her taut had snapped, allowing the fear and exhaustion she had been forcefully suppressing to wash over her.
She looked at the stable golden seal on Yed’s abdomen, a flash of alarm and lingering fear in her eyes, which was quickly replaced by a wave of gratitude for Jon.
The veteran Official Level Shadow Mage gave a respectful bow to the young man who was more than ten years her junior.
"Thank you, Mr. Jon... If it weren’t for you, we... we would have been truly helpless..."
As for the gray-haired youth who had witnessed everything, the crazed laughter on his face abruptly froze, then turned into a disbelieving shriek.
"Impossible! This is impossible!!"
"Wither’s Embrace... how could it be sealed?! You... how in the world did you do that?!"
Jon pulled his hand back from Yed, stood up, and looked down at the crazed assassin on the floor. He calmly tossed out three words.
"Nothing is impossible."
Then his gaze shifted to Reed, who was still standing by in shock, not yet fully recovered.
"Pastor Reed, tell me, what exactly happened here?"