Chapter 145: Temple of the Spiritual Fox Priestess

Suddenly, the golden-haired giant dog in front halted for a moment, turned its head, and sent a low thought.

【My lord, there’s more life essence nearby. This time it’s truly living beings, and they seem restless. They’re probably engaged in battle with an enemy.】

“Ah… seems to be the main forces of the Black Scale Army. What’s their location?”

【Not far ahead, a few turns and we can reach them.】

“Good.”

Having found a new lead, Miss Vilyric naturally wouldn’t let such an opportunity slip away. After a brief discussion with her companions, she decisively abandoned the scattered unexplored areas and quickened her pace, heading straight for the target location with Ya Zi.

After turning a few corners, the scene before them finally became less maze-like, replaced instead by a vast underground hall that opened up!

This hall resembled a pilgrimage temple, its overall layout closely resembling the various temples the Priestess had seen across different worlds and regions. Tall stone pillars stood guard on both sides, flanking the main pathway that extended forward, leading to what looked like a solemn end in the distance.

But what truly caught the attention of Miss Vilyric and her companions was the nearly ten-meter high statue standing gracefully in the center of the temple.

It was obviously a woman.

She wore a beautifully crafted gown, with wide sleeves that weren’t cumbersome, fluttering gracefully like a rainbow, radiant as the clouds at dawn.

A long satin ribbon seemingly for decoration and support was tied around her waist. Though her attire wasn’t revealing, it expertly showcased her delicate shoulders and legs, lacking the lofty majesty typical of ordinary statues, instead exuding a marvelous youthful vitality.

With her hands behind her back, she stood tall, gazing ahead calmly, the curve of her chest not causing waves but still inspiring beautiful fantasies.

Though she looked just like a human, crowned with a pair of sharp fox ears, the surface of her stone sculpture seemed to be lacquered, making it lifelike, with the texture of her furry ears perfectly replicated.

Yet, the most striking feature was the fox-shaped mask covering most of her face, a symbolic representation of a splendid past, a myth confined to legends.

“…Spiritual Fox Priestess?”

“Indeed, it’s her remnants.”

“…”

Listening to the varied voices around her, the Priestess quickly regained her composure.

Of course.

On the surface, this area seemed like a tomb, but essentially, it was a temple built by the Spiritual Fox Priestess to seal and suppress the Nameless Demon Lord, preventing its resurrection.

It was only logical that such a large temple would house a statue of her, as she wouldn’t worship any demon lord…

But to create a statue for herself and make it so exquisite… was she perhaps a bit vain?

【Spiritual Fox Priestess, it’s been a long time since I last heard her name. I remember I had some interaction with her back then.】

Curious, Miss Vilyric glanced at Ya Zi, who had rarely made a sound.

“Did little Ya have contact with the Spiritual Fox Priestess?”

The golden-haired giant dog slightly nodded, with a rare hint of nostalgia in its fierce gaze.

【That was long ago, probably back when we, the nine children of the dragon, were just born. If my lord is interested, I can tell you about it in detail when we have some free time.】

“Uh… Speaking of which, how old is little Ya this year?”

【I haven’t counted my age in a long while, but I think it should be around two thousand years.】

“Eh? So the Spiritual Fox Priestess really is…”

She glanced again at the youthful, vibrant statue of the Priestess in the center of the temple, and the Priestess’s heart felt a bit bashful.

Sensing… it’s perhaps better not to dwell on that.

Clearing her mind of distractions, the black-haired girl gazed towards the source of the commotion.

The temple was undeniably large, but the surroundings were clearly completely sealed off. Aside from the main entrance they had entered, there were no other exit channels, and the temple itself was at the end of this tomb’s main path.

In other words, this must be the deepest point.

Ya Zi had sensed that there were indeed living beings in this temple dedicated to the Spiritual Fox Priestess, and two forces were fiercely clashing.

To be precise, one side was up against a single entity.

The larger group was, of course, the Black Scale Army, all clad in the attire of mid to high-ranking leaders, totaling over a hundred, deploying an imposing formation in this temple. Yet, they were simply the side defending against an onslaught and were entirely on the losing end.

They were being firmly suppressed by that single individual.

It was a formidable warrior clad entirely in shining white armor, even its head completely encased in hard armor, wielding a heavy sword, and sporting iron-like white wings on its back.

Utilizing the seemingly innate steel wings, it exhibited mobility that was utterly contrary to its heavy appearance; each dive resulted in it sending several members of the Black Scale Army flying with its massive sword, forcing them to constantly adjust their formation just to barely maintain their ground.

Miss Vilyric was not surprised the Black Scale Army was there; rather, if they weren’t, it would indeed be quite strange.

But that white-armored warrior… left the Priestess feeling genuinely astonished.

“…Lucas?”

Almost whispering, just as she contemplated this thought, Miss Vilyric dismissed it.

Impossible. This wasn’t Lucas.

Though both the armor’s form, the sword’s style, the appearance of the wings, and even the height and fighting style were remarkably similar, this could not be Lucas.

Not merely because of differences in color or strength, but more importantly, Miss Vilyric sensed none of the Holy Light attributes that this suspected Guardian of Heaven warrior should possess—something Lucas would never lack.

But they resembled each other so closely; why…

“What’s wrong, Vilyric? Do you know this guard?”

Miss Xiao Kong’s seemingly casual remark jolted the Priestess back to reality, and she finally came to the realization.

Right… this must be the guard left by the Spiritual Fox Priestess in this temple, akin to those roaming scarecrow warriors outside, a more advanced, more powerful type of warrior.

Having only just arrived, Miss Vilyric had basically grasped the situation.

Undoubtedly, this white-armored warrior possessed individual strength far surpassing that of the Black Scale Army, but instead of being an all-out attacker like Lucas, it seemed to excel in defense, not possessing overly strong offensive capabilities, and its level was noticeably lower, probably just over level 70.

Meanwhile, the Black Scale Army was employing some sort of combined formation, accumulating everyone’s strength through their formation to collectively bear every attack from the warrior, thus sustaining themselves despite their individual weaknesses.

As long as the battle continued and resources were exhausted, victory would undoubtedly belong to that white-armored warrior.

However, Miss Vilyric couldn’t quite understand why these two sides were fighting.

Had the Black Scale Army broken some taboo, or were they plotting something?

If the white-armored guardian was indeed left by the Spiritual Fox Priestess, given her understanding of that Priestess, she wouldn’t issue some unreasonable orders like “slay all who enter the temple.” Yet, it was clear that the white-armored warrior was attacking with lethal intent.

“Strange…”

Just as the Priestess quietly pondered whether to intervene, a few of her companions also showed signs of restlessness when suddenly…

The statue of the Spiritual Fox Priestess in the center of the temple erupted with a burst of brilliant light!

   

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