The Paladin in the Abyss-Chapter 739 - 760: The Land of Devouring

The Flomos that descended from the sky attempted to leverage its powerful talons to grasp the enticing elf, but it suddenly found itself unable to do so—a mysterious magic effect prevented it from translating the thought of "attacking that elf" into action. The demon tried to focus its will to counteract the spell effect, but the priest’s conviction was stronger, forcing it to change targets.

What Alamir had cast was a simple First Circle spell: the Sanctuary spell. The effect required that anyone wishing to attack the spell’s protected target must first overcome the spellcaster’s will in a contest, or else they had to switch their target or simply stand there like a fool. As an earthly representative of the divine, the priest’s will was exceedingly strong, and even a demon with innate magic resistance found it difficult to prevail in such a contest.

Of course, if the protected being launched an attack, cast a spell that affected the enemy, or inflicted harm on any creature, the Sanctuary spell’s effect would consequently end. However, in the current situation, Alamir knew he needed to do nothing but hold on a little longer, as there were others in the group better suited to dispatch this enemy.

Little Isa by his side had already prepared to evade; however, the Flomos showed no interest in the young girl and bypassed her to attack Kalalin—being a vampire, Isa did not evoke the demon’s craving for flesh.

Lancelot, standing next to the scholar, naturally wouldn’t stand idly by. He moved swiftly, blocking the way in front of Kalalin; his hand half sword swiftly flicked upward, sealing off the demon’s line of attack.

The cold iron sword blade clashed with the hard talons. Despite the terrifying momentum brought by the Flomos’s dive, Lancelot, relying solely on his physical strength, blocked the strike, causing the demon’s rush to dissipate like waves crashing against a rock. Had he activated the Sword Aura of the QingYuan, the opponent would likely have been cut in two immediately, but Lancelot believed he could save the True Yuan needed for that.

Behind the demon, little Isa leapt lightly, her silhouette floating upwards like a nimble swallow, her dual short swords precisely stabbed into the joint where the vulture demon’s wings met its back. Then with a vicious twist under gravity’s force, the demon immediately let out a piercing shriek. It turned violently backward, but Isa kept a firm grip on the short swords embedded in its flesh, swung around in mid-air, and remained on the demon’s back, rendering the Flomos’s attack utterly futile.

The opponent didn’t have time to make a new move, Lancelot’s attack was already there. His longsword, like a toxic snake, thrust into the demon’s ribs and into its chest cavity, then swiftly withdrew; that brief moment was enough to seal its fate.

The fight wasn’t over yet; the giant-sized Bruto was still grappling with his opponent, but Lancelot knew it was only a matter of time before the Dwarf won. Not far from him, the demon that Kalalin had first hit fell into a large pit on the ground, which, like some monstrous feeding organ, swiftly closed with a rumbling sound, completely swallowing the prey delivered to its maw.

"Oh, damn," Kalalin, pale-faced, watched as the Flomos vanished into the unknown, "This place is really wonderful…"

After witnessing that scene, everyone wanted to end the battle quickly, surged forward, and instantly tore the Dwarf’s enemy to shreds. Feeling a slight tremor underfoot, everyone’s face changed color, and they sprinted toward the distance, Lancelot going so far as to scoop up the still breathless Bruto from the ground and dash to the front of the group within a few strides.

Behind them, the ground where they had stood seconds before cracked open, numerous soil-formed giant mouths appeared out of nowhere, like whirlpools on the sea, swallowing the still-steaming demon bodies below and extending toward the direction of the group as if a massive shark were swimming through a sea of soil in their direction.

Fortunately, their speed was even faster, and after running several hundred feet, the ground finally calmed down. Everyone gradually slowed their pace, but they all looked like frightened birds, ready to sprint at any moment.

"This might be the worst place I’ve ever been," Alamir said, hands on his knees, yet still maintaining that characteristic elven grace, "What did Tijana say again? The Lord of this Circle is still asleep, so it shouldn’t be too dangerous?"

"We’re all still alive, and no one is injured, right?" Lancelot said as he set down the Dwarf, who was biting his lips and looked about to vomit, "’Eternal Hunger’ Tulaglas, what kind of being is this really? Why is his territory so... strange?"

"’Strange’ is the norm in the Abyss, don’t be misled by the state of the Plains of the Abyss," Kalalin shook his head, "As for the Lord of this Circle... shall we talk while we walk? Standing still feels too awful..."

"Alright," Lancelot nodded, "If I say run later, you all must sprint forward with all your might, understand?"

"Understood!"

"Trust my warning ability, it will be alright," Lancelot said as he slung the Hand Half Sword back over his shoulder and stepped forward, "Dear Kalalin, share your knowledge with us..."

"Numerous powerful Lords have been born in the Abyss, we’ve all heard of the ’Demon Prince’ Dimogorgen, ’The Undying Overlord’ Orcus, ’Lord of the Gnolls’ Yenogu, and ’Beast Roar Lord’ Baphoment. But these are all Tanari Demons, the product of mortal souls that entered the Abyss," Kalalin pulled out a short stick no more than a foot long from his magic backpack, swung it vigorously in the air, and it turned into a walking stick over four feet long, "Before them, the Abyss was ruled by the Obyrith Demons..."

"So Tulaglas is an ancient Lord of Obyrith?" Lancelot asked curiously, "Is it because he refused to follow the post-chaos leadership that he was driven from the Plains of the Abyss to this Circle?"

"Most of the lasting Obyrith Demons are indeed in such a situation, but Tulaglas is an exception; it appeared after Tanari had already dominated the Abyss," the Scholar followed closely behind the Human Knight, carefully navigating around some suspicious bumps on the ground, "If Tanari Demons are just a twisted reflection of their mortal pasts, then Obyrith Demons are the rage, bloodlust, and physiological need for destruction of the Abyss itself... at least, that’s the mainstream view in the Dark Cult, and Tulaglas is the evidence of this view, a malicious presence, an embodiment of chaos, a manifestation of the endless hunger of the Abyss."

"Sounds less like a Demon and more like some sort of calamitous Evil Relic," Alamir commented with a smirk, "Only nasty things like these in the Abyss... so why would it fall asleep? A group of legendary adventurers?"

"No," the Scholar shook his head, "The answer might sound incredible, but it was indeed killed by a team-up of the mortal enemies Dimogorgen and Orcus..."