The black light above the teleportation platform had completely dissipated.
Yisela’s presence had vanished entirely from everyone’s perception.
The three silver dragons stood quietly behind her.
Seraphina knelt on the cold stone slab.
In Orikxis’s vertical pupils, cold fury burned.
And Zephion—his chest heaved violently, a low growl pressing in his throat.
Ailiya was the first to turn around. Her crimson eyes fixed on the black figure leaning against the broken stone pillar.
That fallen angel still maintained the pose from activating the teleportation: one hand extended forward, fingertips still trailing the residual black magic power from the runes. She lowered her head, silver hair covering her face, making her expression unreadable.
“You…”
Ailiya walked toward the fallen angel step by step, sword in hand.
“Give her back to me.”
The fallen angel seemed not to hear her, not moving a muscle.
“I said—give her back to me!!”
Boom!
Crimson lotus aura exploded from Ailiya’s body. A pillar of deep red light shot straight into the sky, shattering all the remaining red crystals on the dome.
She gripped her longsword with both hands; the flames coiling around the blade had turned red to black—a sign that the Battle Qi was compressed to its limit, on the verge of breaking through the critical point.
Suddenly, a hand pressed down on her sword hilt. It was Seraphina. No one knew when she had stood up.
Her golden hair fell in disarray, her broken-nailed hands still trembling slightly. But her golden eyes were fixed on the fallen angel, on that face half-hidden by silver hair.
“Wait, Ailiya.”
She released Ailiya’s sword and staggered forward step by step. With each step closer to the fallen angel, her face grew paler.
“You… your face!!”
The fallen angel slowly raised her head. Silver hair slid to both sides, revealing a face so delicate it seemed carved by the gods themselves.
“Shirley…”
Seraphina’s voice trembled.
“The most favored Sheng Nu in the history of the Holy Kingdom… You are that Shirley.”
“Shirley?” Ailiya frowned. “You mean the previous Sheng Nu? But shouldn’t she have already…”
She didn’t finish. The answer was already obvious. The person standing before them now was no longer human. Her pale golden eyes held none of the warmth a living person should have. All that remained was a puppet’s hollow obedience.
Seraphina refused to believe it. She formed hand seals, and a golden holy light coalesced at her brow into a golden eye.
That was the eye of holy light. A forbidden art only the Sheng Nu could perform—it could read memories lingering on souls and perceive the deepest emotional fluctuations of all living things.
The eye of holy light slowly opened. Golden light enveloped the entire fallen angel. The result? Nothing at all.
Seraphina sensed nothing. No emotion, no memory, no soul. The person standing before her was like a moving empty shell. Inside, there was nothing.
“How can this be…” Her voice trembled continuously. “Impossible! The eye of holy light can perceive all souls! Why is there nothing?!”
A hand fell on her shoulder. Ailiya wasn’t looking at her, but the warmth from that palm through the holy robe was steady and firm.
“Stop perceiving. She’s nothing but a soulless puppet. Your teacher turned her body into a weapon.”
Ailiya slowly raised her sword, pointing it at the fallen angel. Seraphina’s body went rigid.
“But that makes things very clear now. That death knight, those platinum-tier magical beasts, this fallen angel, and Yisela being taken away… Your teacher, the Master of the Hall of Holy Light, Victor Beylan, is the mastermind behind all of this. It’s all his doing. His goal is to obtain Yisela’s Dragon God’s bloodline.”
Seraphina said nothing. Her shoulders shook violently.
So that was it. From the very beginning, it was a lie. That teacher who taught her the holy light doctrine. That elder in the Temple, gentle and compassionate. That person who guided her when she was lost.
From the start, he had been using her. Using her holy light to feed the curse inside Yisela. Using her trust to push Yisela step by step into the abyss of sacrifice.
Using her loyalty to secure his position as Temple Master. And she herself had personally brought Yisela to the Holy Kingdom. She had personally pushed Yisela into that trap. She had personally—
“AHHHHHHH!!!”
A roar tore from Seraphina. Golden holy light exploded from within her body. It was no longer the gentle, healing light of before, but a storm of light filled with destructive impact. The stone slabs beneath her feet shattered inch by inch, erupting with deafening cracks.
“Give Yisela back to me!!!”
She turned all her fury and resentment into raw power. Her fist, wrapped in dazzling holy light, slammed into the former Sheng Nu—the one once favored by holy light, now reduced to a puppet.
The fallen angel lifted her eyes slightly. Then slowly raised her hand. Black magic power surged from her palm, instantly condensing into a semi-transparent shadow shield.
Boom!!
Seraphina’s fist struck the shield with a heavy impact. Holy light and shadow clashed violently. The stalemate lasted less than half a second before the shadow shield swelled abruptly.
An irresistible force erupted, sending Seraphina flying. Her body arced through the air and slammed heavily into the wall.
The fallen angel slowly withdrew her hand.
“Master told me to play with you all. Hope you survive.”
She lifted her right foot and stepped down lightly.
Hum—
From the tip of the fallen angel’s foot, countless black veins spread rapidly in all directions like living things.
They crawled over the stone slabs, climbed the walls, covered the entire dome. The entire Chamber of Sacrifice instantly transformed into a massive, still-pulsating black spiderweb.
“No good!” Orikxis’s vertical pupils contracted sharply. “She set up an energy magic array in advance! This dark energy… It’s too vast! Everyone, full defense immediately!”
Before his words faded, all the black veins simultaneously burst with blinding dark light. The entire ruins trembled violently.
Visible black magic power gushed from every vein, transforming into countless black currents that swirled madly throughout the space.
The fallen angel slowly raised both hands. The black wings behind her spread fully.
“Domain expansion—”
“Light·Dark Wing Fallen Aurora.”