NOVPUBAt the topmost floor of the Congressional Building, inside Franklin Hall, the deep purple magical luminescence of the Desperate Arena sliced through every inch of the air.
The gazes of congressmen, nobles, and influential officials were all firmly locked on the Protoss Congressional Center, where the deadly duel was about to take place.
The divine era symbols continuously reorganized on the surface of the semi-spatial barrier, and even if no one was able to translate them, they could understand their meaning — a countdown — through the soul-stirring light.
The arena was completely isolated from the outside world. Once the final preparatory time of more than ten seconds was up, the deathmatch would commence.
On the right side of the barrier, a tall figure under a deep gray coat projected a gloomy and unusual feeling, as if he belonged to a different world.
When Asksan stood there, ready for battle, the invisible magic power radiating from him could make ordinary people feel humiliated and helpless, causing their sense of stability to tremble because of him.
"A mere month’s preparation, can you defy heaven’s will? Sigrid. If you have the ability, let your Saint Heir take down the Protoss Empire."
Asksan laughed, looking at his palm, unsure of how he would kill Sigrid.
If he gave Sigrid and the Saint of Hegemony a chance to hide for ten, twenty years, perhaps they might have a chance of overturning the situation.
But time was too short.
The rate of growth and evolution had a limit, an unalterable rule of the world.
Just like how a student couldn’t become a principal overnight, nobody could erode the colossal Protoss Empire in such a short amount of time measured in days!
"Asksan, to be honest, this is the only time I feel grateful toward you, because without your help, I might not have found such a superb man."
Sigrid, dressed in silver-white skirt armor, stood on this vast battlefield, facing off against her ultimate foe, Asksan, without any fear.
Her figure was tall, her light-colored hair fell down like a waterfall over her steel armor, pure as silver moonlight.
The time of more than ten seconds passed in a flash.
Finally, as the divine era characters emitted increasingly intense light, a circular space of hundreds of square meters filled with semi-transparent, rock-like magic particles which, under the effect of the ancient Proof of the Bishop, became as hard as steel.
The air between the two, interwoven with lightning, was so tense it was almost audible.
With every breath of the people present, with each heartbeat, it became more oppressive around the arena.
In this enclosed space, the duel between the two Cardinal Bishops ignited instantly!
Asksan’s figure under the deep gray coat nearly turned into a shadow, he twisted his finger joints slightly, reciting cryptic ancient incantations, enveloping the Desperate Arena with ominous fluctuations in an instant.
Deep gray vines and leaves quietly blossomed from his palm, spreading quickly, forming a huge seal barrier around Sigrid, not only trapping her but more importantly, it started shrinking, isolating her in an inescapable void, and then strangling her!
This made the Grand Sage of the outer arena, Isis, slightly wrinkle her brows.
According to previous information, when Bishop of Nirvana, Asksan, faced Bishop of Hegemony, Sigrid, he would certainly try to keep distance first, then give himself absolute safety space, setting traps to restrict her actions and prevent Sigrid from ambush and breakout.
However, now — Asksan’s fighting style could be described as aggressive while steady, he used continuous damage with control to first grasp Sigrid while also testing Sigrid’s move.
In the battlefield, as Asksan’s sealing barrier rapidly contracted, Sigrid’s situation seemed increasingly urgent.
Based on Bishop of Hegemony’s original strength, it was possible to either directly break through the vines or evade them before the barrier completely formed. But now, Sigrid’s aura was evidently weak, not giving off any oppressive force of a Valkyrie, but more like a sheep ready for slaughter.
Many spectators on the seats lean forward, feeling the tension of this scene.
It seemed that Asksan was indeed truthful in his words. If Sigrid lost her power, the match between the two Cardinal Bishops would determine the winner and loser in an instant.
If Sigrid had any trump cards left, she had to use them now.
It seemed Sigrid indeed didn’t wave her invincible fists to break everything as usual.
Instead, she was holding a few golden Magic Cards, their patterns filled with mysterious totems, almost as if she had predicted Asksan’s opening move.
"Sigrid, I knew you’re going to resort to the Call Card, hurry up and use it!"
Upon seeing this, Asksan finally burst into crazed laughter, waiting for Sigrid to attempt a suicide pact with him by using the wolf, erasing both their Lifesaving Cards.
The wolf needed to devour as many summons as possible to unleash its ultimate power.
Death was certain without the wolf, but using the wolf would mean death too—the deep grey vines had both a backlash and immunity effect. Regardless of how many lifesaving spells and equipment she had, even if the wolf exploded on Sigrid at this moment, she would still die from the successive blows.
He had already preempted Sigrid’s anticipation!
No matter how extraordinary the Saint of Hegemony was, it couldn’t possibly give Sigrid anything more extraordinary than the wolf!
Sigrid still hadn’t shown any Valkyrie-like prowess when she was about to lose right after the start.
Her aura remained feeble, showing no trace of the Valkyrie. The barrier was quickly dwindling, seemingly indicating her imminent defeat.
But at that moment, the Magic Card in Sigrid’s hand finally dissipated in the wind.
Three orange cards, like the brightest stars in the night sky, gradually formed into dots and totems.
Immediately, a storm took over the Desperate Arena, with lightning and gusty winds!
The orange light was dazzling, transforming into the first beam of sunrise. The ancient pact was awakened, and an unparalleled power was bred in the darkness.
The heavy drumming echoed in the Desperate Arena, as if striking everyone’s heart.
Within the black fog and thunder-light storm, three figures descended.
In the black fog, they were both like living beings and phantoms, their shapes incredibly towering and terrifying. Only their eyes looking at Asksan were vivid, full of contempt and ridicule.
They were equally nefarious.
But they were the purest form of evil incarnate.
"Hahaha, so this human is our opponent."
"How many pieces do you think we should slice him into?"
"I heard you are cold-blooded, brutal, and evil?"
Under the demon force, the deep grey vines gradually cracked until they completely collapsed.
Asksan’s Eighth-order spell was easily broken, turning frail as thin ice before the power of these three demons.
Everyone at the scene was dumbfounded, staring incredulously into the Desperate Arena.
Asksan included.
As a mage, he could deeply feel the magic power of these three Epic Demons.
If he was still in his full form, he could fight.
But at this moment, all the Magic Cards he carried were specifically chosen to counter the physical attacks of Sigrid, and he was still nursing injuries.
The terrifying figures of the three demons reflected in his eyes became even more fearsome.
Even before fighting that unreasonable wolf in the Northern Tundra, Asksan had already been driven mad.
And now, the damn wolf didn’t even bother pretending, it gave Sigrid three Eighth-order Epic Demons outright. It was absurd!
"Saint of Hegemony, I’ll * you * —!!!"
Asksan, the Bishop of Nirvana who never expressed his inner feelings or understood love, finally learned what it’s like to wish someone were dead.
