Chapter 131: The God Behind the Angel

Hilda Graywing spread her wings, and a terrifying pressure surged forth. Everyone, except Vilyric and Xiao Guang, let out a muffled groan as they were forced to kneel beneath that overwhelming power.

“Why is there no courtesy towards the divine?”

The familiar yet monotonous voice came from the angel formerly known as Hilda. It sounded less like a voice born of her own will and more like a mechanical utterance triggered by a pre-set command.

Vilyric had heard similar words from the Earth Mother Goddess, the Southern Disaster, deep within the Forest of Calamity, but compared to that time, Hilda now seemed merely to be asking a question without any divine intent interfering with others’ will.

This appeared to be part of a fixed ritual.

“H-Hilda, what exactly happened?”

The pressure radiating from Angel Hilda was immense. Even someone as legendary as Sigrid could only tremble and struggle to resist, unable to break free for the moment.

“Master, should I take her down?”

Little Dragon Daughter volunteered eagerly, but Vilyric just shook her head, signaling that there was no rush.

Okay, watching this unfold any longer would be pushing it.

The Priestess waved her hand, and a golden curtain once again isolated them from the deathly mist and oppressive force outside, allowing everyone to heave a sigh of relief as they stood up.

“How could Hilda have become this strong? This overwhelming sensation is approaching that of a High Priest…”

The voice belonged to Leona, one of the four Temple Guardians. Although she kept her voice low, Vilyric could hear her clearly.

Approaching a High Priest… that would be the High Priestess, right?

“Vilyric! Hilda, she…”

“Yeah, as you can see, this level of power couldn’t be reached by Hilda on her own. Given her appearance and mental state, she probably lost to the Abyss and was captured and… polluted. I’ve seen something like this before.”

It was essentially those who were parasitized by the Calamity or magical beasts.

But Hilda’s condition, while just visually assessed, seemed even more profound and severe than theirs. The power representing decay was entirely fused with her being, radically altering her race.

She now resembled a puppet of some existence, and trying to communicate with Hilda in this state was utterly unrealistic, especially given the level of her power.

A Pseudo-God.

Yes, merely a puppet controlled by authority had already reached such levels; the entity controlling and significantly enhancing Hilda was likely a true deity.

As for which deity it was, just look at the power flowing through Hilda and the idol worshipped nearby—it was already obvious.

The Earth Mother Goddess has actually been resurrected…

“Though it may seem ruthless, you all should just stay put here. Hilda has reached heights you cannot fathom, and interfering recklessly will only lead to death.”

“Vilyric, are you… going to fight alone again?”

Sigrid clenched her teeth stubbornly, though she held onto her gun with a firm grip, her feet remained steadfast.

She knew black-haired girl was speaking the truth; rushing in would only complicate things for Vilyric.

Sigrid just struggled with the feeling of helplessness in leaving everything to her companions.

The Priestess took two steps forward, but hearing that, turned back with a somewhat puzzled expression.

“Who said I was going to fight alone? There’s still one more, right?”

Before she could point out her partner, the angel on the altar, due to the golden light illuminating below, showed further signs of action.

“Desecrators, must be eliminated!”

The same emotionless, monotonous tone, but this time Hilda did not just radiate pressure; the strange staff in her hand burst forth with light, and countless ash-grey vines surged out like thousands of spears, crashing against the Radiant Protection shield!

*Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!*

As a Pseudo-God who surpassed level 70, and was even approaching level 80, Hilda’s attack was naturally far superior to those of the depraved beings. A massive cloud of dust erupted over the Radiant Protection, and in the locations that were bombarded repeatedly, even slight cracks began to form.

Noticing this, Vilyric frowned.

Though Radiant Protection was merely a 6th-tier spell, and its defensive power was even lesser than her own form clad in the Feather Dress of Glalaria, it was usually employed to ward off various dirty things or protect her companions—there was no enhancement or strengthening for anyone besides her…

However, this was Vilyric’s 6th-tier magic, in terms of intensity, far exceeding any ultra-level standards. Just as Rebecca and those depraved beings could not harm her even slightly, how could this angelic Hilda create cracks with a single strike?

At the very least, she must have been close to level 80.

Under the constant magical support from Vilyric, the barely visible crack on the golden shield instantly restored to its initial state, and the angel, realizing her attack had failed, immediately fell silent before launching a second strike.

This time, there wasn’t a multitude of spear-like vines, just one, yet it emanated a force comparable to that of the Death Star’s “The End of the World’s Sevenfold Circular Rings.” It was an attack capable of breaching the artifact’s automatic defensive threshold, one that would inflict damage on Vilyric.

The angelic Hilda had probably already surpassed the Death Star; at least the speed of her charged strike was far quicker than that large eye, which was likely just a fledgling Pseudo-God at level 70.

The ash-grey vine spear crackled in the air, the surrounding elements unable to endure the enormous power and destruction it carried, echoing a lament of almost shattering.

“Pierce of Death.”

With a spell name capable of perfecting and amplifying magical power as the finale, the vine sliced through the air, barreling towards the holy light barrier set by the Priestess!

But at that moment, a figure leaped out from the protective shield, unafraid, charging toward that deathly representative of decay!

“Hey!”

Sigrid instinctively let out a cry of surprise. She never expected someone would use their body to withstand such a terrifying attack at that moment; wasn’t that just asking for death?!

However.

“Break the Evil!”

A tall girl with flowing golden hair, whose hands seemed as if they were made of feathers, slashed through the air with a blade-like motion.

Accompanied by a bizarre silence and sense of pause, after an inexplicable stillness, the fast-flying vine spear was cleaved in two from the tip.

Then, as if a butcher had broken down a cow, it shattered into dozens of neatly cut, thin slices!

   

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