Summoning the Holy Sword

Chapter 1166: Door of the Fantasy World

Boom!

The exploded dragon breath blasted the body of that massive Chaos creature. This formidable might was so unbearable that it forced the creature to screech in retreat. Several tentacles that were about to attack Marybelle were burned to bits by the blazing heat. The speed of Chaos erosion decreased correspondingly. Marybelle's strength took the upper hand. Along with the impact of the dragon breath, the entire underground cave rumbled in violent trembles. The arm-wide fissures extended along the walls and grounds and huge stones fell from the ceiling. Looking at this scene, Rhode couldn't help but exclaim in shock. The reason why he didn't attack earlier was because he was afraid of causing too much damage to the place. If they were on the surface, he would have attacked however he wanted. But it was a pity that they were underground. If the place crumbled, perhaps they would be buried alive before the enemy had a chance to annihilate them. The only thing he could do now was to hope that his side was stronger than the enemy's and they could repel the enormous creature in the shortest time possible. As long as they were able to open the door of the fantasy world, he had nothing to be afraid of.

"Watch above you and don't get buried! Bubble, activate the enchanted field!"

"Aye-aye, Leader!"

Upon hearing Rhode's command, the two Mini Bubble Gums turned grim and chanted a spell together. Shortly after, the empty space around them flickered in a bright light, where hundreds of golden lines appeared out of nowhere, coalescing into an enormous, semi-circular barrier over everyone. Upon witnessing their actions, the other clerics stood to their feet and in an instant, blinding spiritual lights enfolded the entire underground cave, stabilizing the area on their side.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

However, the other areas weren't as fortunate. Rhode saw large stones collapsing from the ceiling, shattering the steel bridge and tower into bits. It was apparent that Erin's dragon breath almost destroyed the base of this cave. If they didn't open and get into the door in time, there would be huge troubles!

"How much longer do you need?!"

"Three minutes!"

Three minutes—neither too long nor short.

Rhode gripped his sword and zoomed ahead. The Chaos creature that was struck by Erin's attack slowed down and attacked steadily. Hundreds of blade-like tentacles drilled out of its body and swept across the plaza. However, the ones present on the plaza weren't hopeless fools either. Even though they weren't able to defeat the Chaos creature with their strength, eliminating the tentacles wasn't tough for them at all. Besides, with Rhode, Gracier, and Madaras providing support, they could help one get away from the entanglement of the tentacles immediately if needed. Therefore, facing the Chaos creature's attack, Rhode's side didn't struggle too much.

But the problem was that time wasn't on his side.

Due to the erosion from the Chaos creature, the 10 minutes that Marybelle needed were long over. 15 minutes were gone now. There was only one rune left circulating the door of the fantasy world. This was their final hurdle. Even though Erin's attack repelled the Chaos creature, the latter gained control over the power of Chaos, which hadn't subsided entirely, and once again stopped Marybelle's power.

"This is getting really troublesome."

Rhode grunted at the sight of the Chaos creature's swaying tentacles. Even though he could get Erin to release another dragon breath, they might get buried alive before the door was opened. However, they couldn't defeat the creature if their side wasn't strong enough. Rhode was caught in a tough spot now. His side clearly had formidable power and yet, he had to act cautiously. If Marybelle weren't occupied with opening the door and he had spell casters who specialized in the earth element to stabilize the crumbling underground cave, he wouldn't be watching helplessly now. But if Marybelle failed to open the door at this crucial moment, they would be doomed.

"Everyone, use all your strength to stabilize this place!"

Rhode made up his mind. He yelled and pushed his right arm forward as a card appeared in his hand. He turned to Erin and Lydia.

"Your Highness Erin and Your Highness Lydia, I'm going to attack now. You two, continue to stabilize the space!"

"Yes, Your Majesty Rhode."

Upon hearing his command, the two young ladies turned solemn. They exchanged looks with each other and simultaneously raised their swords high up. In an instant, the golden radiance of the sun and silver-whitish illumination of the moon exploded. The duo of blinding and gentle lights fused as one. In this all-out attack from them, the collapsing place instantly stopped rumbling. The falling stones from above also hovered in space as though time had stopped.

But the truth was otherwise.

The moment they attacked, the elves behind Rhode also gathered in a circle, raised their right arms, and drew an incredibly simple rune in midair. Shortly after, an enormous tree broke through the ground and grew upward in violent trembles. Countless thick, strong, green vines shuttled out of the branches and stabbed into the stone walls and ceiling that were on the verge of collapse. In the blink of an eye, a small, green world appeared in this underground madness filled with scorching, high temperature lavas. The brilliance of the sun and moon erupted, shrouding the Chaos creature completely in a sparkling brilliance. The Chaos creature shivered and its fluttering tentacles slowed down drastically.

What a perfect duo.

Looking at this magnificent view, Rhode couldn't help but lift his head and sweep a glance at Erin and Lydia. Of course, he knew that their strength was weaker than the Creator Dragons, but was still surprised that the combined forces of the sun and moon had reached the mightiness of the Creator Dragons, which wasn't easily achievable by anyone.

Come to think of it, shouldn't these two head back and do a test to see if they are long-lost sisters?

This thought appeared in Rhode's head for a split second when suddenly, he tossed the card in his hand. The black card exploded, releasing a circle of dazzling light. Shortly after, in loud, thunderous booms, an enormous steel cannon burst out of the ground and aimed at the Chaos creature ahead.

Boom!

At the next moment, a glaring brilliance erupted, causing even the radiance of the sun and moon to look dim in comparison. In an instant, it was as though the end of the world were here as everyone sunk into the illusion of complete darkness. Violent trembles and deafening explosions filled their ears as they engulfed the underground cave.

"Roarrrrr!"

Upon being struck by this lethal attack, the Chaos creature retreated quickly. At the same time, the underground cave that was on the verge of collapse began to crumble. Countless bits of gravel and stone broke off from the ceiling and in the blink of an eye, it buried the lava lake underneath, along with the enormous creature. Even though Rhode's group was prepared for this and wasn't impacted heavily, they also lost their footing as though they were on a boat struggling to stay alive in rough seas.

"———!"

At that moment, they suddenly heard the sound of bursting flames. As the Chaos creature retreated, the final rune was finally completed under Marybelle's lead. The pure, white door gradually opened with scorching aura slipping in from behind the door, metamorphosing into tempests that blustered across the land like a curtain of flames. In an instant, the ground around them withered. Looking at this scene, Rhode knew he had no time to waste anymore. He had already heard the booming rumbles of the cracking earth's crust. It was apparent that this was what Marybelle warned him about—not to use the power of the Creator Dragon as it would attract even bigger trouble.

Strictly speaking, even though Rhode didn't use the power of the Creator Dragon, Erin's and Lydia's combined attack was as though the power of a newborn Creator Dragon. It was obvious that there was something in the gap between Order and Chaos that sensed this power and was charging toward them right now.

"Everyone get in!"

Under Rhode's command, the group abandoned the battle and dashed straight for the opened stone door. Lydia and Erin also detected the mysterious and terrifying presence chasing them. They withdrew their attacking realm without any hesitation. After losing the envelopment of the sun's and moon's realm, the underground cave crumbled and the earth shattered, sending sand rushing downward. The ancient trees that the elves summoned barely lasted for seconds as it vanished upon down the mudslide. Just as the underground cave was buried completely, the white, heavy stone door finally closed behind them.

Boom!

Gazing at the stone door that closed heavily behind them, Rhode heaved a long sigh of relief. But he didn't let loose yet because he continued to sense the mysterious strength approaching them. Even though he wasn't sure if it was able to shatter the plane of existence barrier of the Seven Fantasy Boundaries, he apparently had no intention of confirming this doubt now. He turned around, gathered the rest, and left immediately.

The Fiery Plains.

As one of the regions in the Seven Fantasy Boundaries, the Fiery Plains could be considered the common border of the fire elemental plane and hell. Just as the name suggested, it was a plain burning in flames. The fire element here was plentiful, while other elements were pitiful and almost non-existent in comparison. At a glance, everywhere was covered in scarlet. Be it flowers, grass, or tree bark, they were all in a dazzling hue of red. The sky looked like a burning iron furnace, while the heat on the ground could scald one's hand. Most creatures that lived here were fire elemental creatures and some creatures from hell also resided here.

Of course, these elemental creatures couldn't match up to Rhode's group. Moreover, as Lydia's attribute was the 'sun', she was somehow related to this place, which allowed her to grasp the authority of the fire elemental plane to a certain degree. Marybelle, as the Presence Deity Warden, naturally wouldn't be affected by the elements. As long as she tapped her magic wand, she could create a fountain in the middle of the dry, burning plains to quench everyone's thirst. The harsh environments of the Seven Fantasy Boundaries also wouldn't affect Rhode's group too much.

But…

"Fortunately, we found ourselves at the Fiery Plains and not the Silver Ocean or Shadow Ravine."

Mini Bubble Gum shook her head and lamented, before lifting her head and gazing at the sky. Upon hearing her remarks, Rhode agreed. Apart from the harsh environmental conditions of the Fiery Plains, they could treat this journey as though they were walking in a desert. But if they were in the Silver Ocean or Shadow Ravine instead, they would be in bigger trouble. The Shadow Ravine was filled with aggressive and bothersome shadowy creatures who lurked in darkness and attacked anyone in sight. On the other hand, just as the name suggested,the Silver Ocean was a wide ocean. Rhode's group of around 100 people didn't even own a boat now, so they couldn't possibly dog-paddle their way to shore, right?

But it wouldn't be bad if they were to arrive in the Astral Temple. After all, it was under Christie's jurisdiction and Rhode had always wanted to meet the real 'Christie'. But according to the rest, Christie was unable to leave the Astral Temple for now, so Rhode felt like it was somewhat of a wasted opportunity.

After journeying for around half a day and ensuring that no troubles were following them, Rhode finally ordered everyone to take a break. At that moment, he received news from Lydia about the woman he saved earlier.

"What's the situation with her?"

As soon as Rhode arrived at the tent, he saw his group surrounding the woman, gazing at her with strange looks. Upon hearing his question, Lydia knitted her brows and turned to him curiously.

"Your Majesty Rhode, where did you find her?"

"This was what happened…"

Rhode had no intention of hiding the truth and explained the happenings inside that tower. After hearing his narration, Canary and Mini Bubble Gum were taken aback, while Erin and Lydia remained unfazed. It was apparent that they also witnessed the imprisoned primitive men, but since they were eroded by Chaos, they knew that they couldn't be rescued. Rhode also told them about what happened with the woman, and even Marybelle couldn't help but feel astounded. After all, subconsciously resisting the invasion of Chaos wasn't easily achievable by just anyone, and her body even turned Chaos into Order.

"By the way, what's the issue with her?"

Rhode returned to the main topic and asked curiously. Upon hearing his question, Lydia and Mini Bubble Gum revealed some awkward expressions. Then, Lydia took a step forward and said.

"This… Your Majesty Rhode, even though I don't know the exact situation with her… according to our observations, she is indeed dead."

"Dead?"

Rhode was gobsmacked.

"It's impossible. I clearly feel her heart beating."

"Her heart is indeed beating. But Leader, I'm sure she is dead… The system prompt also tells me that."

Even though Bubble No. 2 didn't clarify her words, Rhode understood what she meant. As a projection, she shared the same system with him, so it went without saying that she received the same information as him. It was similar to when a cleric healed someone. When the target was already dead, healing would be for nothing and the system prompt of [Target Is Dead] would show up before her eyes. But now… Rhode turned to the woman with an odd expression. Not only did he feel her heart beating, but her chest was also undulating in plain sight. No matter how he saw it, she seemed just like a person in deep sleep. Could it be that the system had an error? Even though it wasn't entirely impossible, Rhode felt like the possibilities were too small.

"She doesn't seem to be alive, Your Majesty Rhode."

At that moment, Lydia said.

"I tried it. Her body is completely healthy. No, rather than saying that she's healthy, I would rather say that she gives me a feeling similar to construct-vehicles. Everything seems normal, but it can't work without its core."

"In other words, it is a battle between clones! Leader, I suspect she's a clone of a driver-less, human-shaped robot, just that she doesn't look like one."

Facing Mini Bubble Gum's remarks, Rhode pondered for a bit and finally understood what she meant.

In other words, this woman is only a body without a spirit? Is her spirit asleep? Or is her spirit already dead?

Rhode considered the possibilities. But eventually, another thought appeared in his head all of a sudden.

"Let me give it a shot."

Rhode said and went up to the woman. He stretched out his arm.

Shortly after, a line of system prompt appeared before him.

[Activate Spirit Language]

A silver-whitish magical radiance emanated from his palm, metamorphosing into an intricate magical ritual. At that moment, everyone else stepped away, gazing at him curiously from the side. Rhode stared solemnly at the woman. After confirming his target, he switched his thoughts and along with his movements, the summoning ritual erupted in a golden brilliance! Then…

It disappeared completely.

"Ugh…"

Rhode laid down his right hand. He gazed awkwardly at the woman, looked at the group around him as they stared blankly, and forced a smile.

"It seems like I can't awaken her soul…"

Rhode said and couldn't help but gaze at the system prompt before his eyes. There was only one statement.

[Unable to detect target. Activation failed]