Chapter 271: Then Let's Go Down Together
The Priest's current thought was to end the fight as quickly as possible.
After all, the three Fire-Clad Believers who had come with him had already been dealt with. He could also tell that although Asagiri's willpower was terrifyingly strong, his injuries were far too severe. They had already begun affecting his movements.
Although the Priest did not know whether Black Watch possessed a way to heal such injuries, the most sensible choice, and his only opportunity, was to kill the man in front of him as quickly as possible before the people upstairs arrived.
And Asagiri's thoughts happened to be the same.
A quick battle.
There were about two and a half minutes left before Blood Burst ended. Once the effect ended, he would fall into a weakened state.
Supreme Magic Bullet?
If he used Supreme Magic Bullet, the excessive mental energy consumption, combined with the backlash after Blood Burst ended, might make him die on the spot. Even if he did not die, he would fall into a coma from mental exhaustion.
The system had indeed issued a Recovery Potion earlier, but it had never said it would hand out the same potion after every battle. Asagiri could not gamble on the chance that the system would definitely provide another one. Even less could he entrust his life and death to this game system.
Any privilege granted by the system was based on the value of being a "Player."
If the system judged that a Player no longer had value worth assisting, then it would not grant any preferential treatment.
After all, this game's system was emotionless, absolutely rational, and cold.
Just then, a muffled sound came from the ceiling.
In the next instant, the entire lobby on the First Floor of the Hotel was covered by a rapidly descending curtain of water.
"Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle…"
When the water droplets fell onto the Priest, his heavy armor, the greatsword in his hand, and his skin all began making the sound of flames being extinguished.
Like a normal person splashed with sulfuric acid, his skin quickly suffered large areas of damage.
"You… you people…"
Before the Priest could finish speaking, Asagiri raised his left hand.
"Let's begin."
The moment Asagiri's voice fell, Kato Megumi, who had been lurking in the shadows, finally appeared.
At the same time, Yuuki Asuna and Iwanaga Kotoko passed directly through the barrier, which could be entered but not exited, and burst into the Hotel lobby on the First Floor from the fire escape.
"IBM."
While Iwanaga Kotoko condensed two IBMs, Kato Megumi had already drawn her bow and nocked an arrow. Three pitch black arrows shot out in succession, almost simultaneously approaching the Priest's face, chest, and abdomen.
The Priest endured the intense pain of his skin being corroded and quickly retreated, dodging the three arrows Kato Megumi had fired. He tightened his grip on the great flaming zweihander and glared at Asagiri.
"You actually intend to fight me with multiple people? How despicable and shameless…"
"Bang!"
Asagiri instantly appeared before the Priest and punched him.
Although the Priest raised the great flaming zweihander in time to block, under the constant downpour of the Hotel's sprinkler system, his strength had clearly been affected. Even though he defended in time, his body still slid back several meters and nearly collapsed to the ground.
Looking at the Priest's disheveled appearance, Asagiri casually shook his hand and said indifferently,
"That's just how we Black Watch operate. We'll use any means necessary."
The Priest could not refute it.
After all, the Black Watch in his impression was indeed an organization that would stop at nothing to achieve its goals. More importantly, had he not come here with three Fire-Clad Believers in the first place, intending to overwhelm them with numbers?
"I can only use that move…"
The Priest seemed to make some kind of decision.
After taking a deep breath, the great flaming zweihander in his hand vanished, and flames once again burned across the surface of his body. He roared in a voice that was almost a wail and a scream.
"Divine Descent!"
The moment the Priest uttered those words, Iwanaga Kotoko, who had the strongest perception toward Cursed auras, could not help but change expression.
Asagiri, Yuuki Asuna, Kato Megumi, and the Fox Mask Woman maintaining the barrier did not possess senses as sharp as Iwanaga Kotoko's, but they still felt the temperature in the lobby rise instantly and realized how serious the situation had become.
After a brief blaze, the flames on the Priest's body seeped back into his flesh.
He seemed to have returned to his normal appearance, but through his eyes and the something different hidden within them, Asagiri vaguely sensed that the one before him was no longer the Priest.
Rather, it was…
"God… God…"
Feeling an aura similar in nature to the one she had felt before, the Fox Mask Woman's pupils widened in shock. Her body trembled uncontrollably from fear.
"He actually used himself as a sacrifice to let a 'God' possess him. How are we supposed to defeat something like this…"
"Wind Blessing!"
"Netherworld Grip!"
"Throw!"
While the Fox Mask Woman was still frozen in terror from sensing the aura of a God, her body unable to move as if trapped in an ice cellar, Iwanaga Kotoko, Yuuki Asuna, Kato Megumi, and Asagiri had already launched their attack.
The four of them faced the so called "God" without the slightest trace of fear.
Seeing the two black IBMs, the oppressive Human Asura, Yuuki Asuna moving like a crimson flash, Kato Megumi's thrown Indian tomahawk, the Pale Ghost Hand reaching out from the void, and Asagiri attacking with the Rope Dart from multiple angles, the Priest, now partially possessed by a "God," stared back with empty eyes, devoid of emotion.
He merely swung the great flaming zweihander in silence.
A wave of fire swept outward with overwhelming force, carried by a violent gust and forming a barrier of flames that could not be approached.
The next second, the God directly ignored the attacks from Kato Megumi and Iwanaga Kotoko. His gaze locked onto Asagiri and Yuuki Asuna as they rushed forward, and He swung the greatsword horizontally.
"Bang!"
Iwanaga Kotoko and Kato Megumi saw two figures fly backward out of the sea of fire.
Yuuki Asuna and Asagiri made the same motion. One blocked with the rapier in her hand, while the other used the Rope Dart chain wrapped around his arm as a defense.
After retreating more than ten meters, Asagiri and Yuuki Asuna finally stabilized themselves.
Yuuki Asuna's sword arm hung low. She silently switched Gleaming Light to her left hand.
Asagiri tried to clench the fingers of his right hand, only for piercing pain to shoot through his arm.
"It's broken."
Hearing Yuuki Asuna's words, Asagiri nodded slightly and replied with a smile,
"Yeah, mine too."
If someone who did not understand the situation were present, just from watching Yuuki Asuna and Asagiri talk, they might think the two had simply gone out on a date.
There was no despair, no heaviness.
Only casual conversation.
"You… are very interesting."
"Oh?"
Hearing the "God" speak through the Priest's body, Asagiri let out a surprised sound.
"You can talk too?"
The God fell silent for a few seconds, seemingly unsure how to respond to Asagiri's slightly abstract remark. Then He slowly spoke.
"You are very interesting. Come and become my followers, and I will grant you power beyond your imagination…"
"Move."
The moment Asagiri's voice fell, he forcibly broke through the flame barrier.
Just as the God was about to swing the greatsword to counterattack, Asagiri made an unexpected move.
He bent down slightly, taking a posture like a professional UFC fighter going for a takedown. Then he circled behind the God and immediately locked his neck.
"Naive."
Because it was a greatsword, the God could not counterattack with the weapon in His hand.
Furthermore, the power boost He received from possessing the Priest's body was not enough to forcibly break free from Asagiri's restraint. However, He immediately came up with a solution.
Surging flames appeared across His body, beginning to burn Asagiri.
"Do it."
Asagiri's body was being scorched by fierce flames, but his voice remained steady.
He simply repeated his command.
Although Yuuki Asuna, Kato Megumi, and Iwanaga Kotoko all showed reluctance, they knew they absolutely could not hesitate at a moment like this. They immediately launched their attacks.
What the God had not expected was that the Pale Ghost Hand summoned by Iwanaga Kotoko showed no hesitation whatsoever.
It clenched down on both Him and Asagiri behind Him.
Under the Ghost Hand's terrifying strength, the bones in both their bodies emitted faint cracking sounds as they were squeezed and fractured.
Yuuki Asuna also bit her silver teeth slightly.
After breaking through the flame barrier, she directly used her strongest Sword Skill.
"Flashing Pierce."
Gleaming Light pierced through both Asagiri and the Priest's bodies.
"You… are you insane!?"
Hearing the God's voice, filled with shock and faint panic, Asagiri tightened his grip slightly.
Even as his body burned in the raging flames, his voice still carried a faint laugh.
"Let's try it. This body you're possessing, and mine…"
"Which one will reach its end first?"
Hearing those words, fluctuations finally appeared in the God's previously emotionless eyes.
This man… was he insane?
He had only possessed a part of this body, yet this man actually wanted to drag Him down together!?
What kind of lunatic was this!?
The main attack did not come from Yuuki Asuna or Iwanaga Kotoko.
It came from Kato Megumi.
The first black arrow failed to pierce the defense.
The second left a shallow mark.
The third embedded its arrowhead slightly.
The fourth.
The fifth.
It was not until the thirteenth black arrow.
Watching the sharp arrowhead gradually enlarge in His vision, the God's eyes finally revealed terror.
"It's over."
As Asagiri's voice fell, the black arrow shot by Kato Megumi pierced the God's heart.
At the same time, it pierced Asagiri's chest.
"Thump."
The surrounding flames gradually dissipated.
The Priest's eyes slowly regained clarity. He lay on the ground, his breath weak, while his cheeks and body rapidly shriveled.
In the final moments of his life, the God he had summoned through sacrifice had abandoned him.
That cruel truth made him, a devout believer, feel a despair deeper than death.
But thankfully…
"Heh heh… let's die together."
The Priest looked at Asagiri, lying beside him with his chest pierced and his body burned by flames, someone who should no longer have any possibility of survival.
A fanatical light appeared in his eyes.
"This time, you won't survive…"
Before the Priest could finish speaking, he witnessed a scene that was impossible to believe.
The blood holes in Asagiri's chest and abdomen rapidly healed.
The burns on his body vanished.
Even his damaged black trench coat returned to its original state.
In less than half a second, Asagiri stood up directly, even raising a hand to brush the dust from his clothes, looking completely unharmed.
"How is that possible…"
Hearing the Priest's low murmur, Asagiri glanced at his shock-twisted face and shook his head with a light chuckle.
"Too naive. I lied to you earlier."
"Even if you aimed for the head…"
Asagiri knelt on one knee before the Priest, looked straight into his eyes, and spoke slowly.
"I still wouldn't die. From beginning to end, you never had any chance of killing me."
.....
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