Evolution: From Little Devil to Devil Empress

Chapter 55: First Place [3] - Clash

The changes in Blasphemer’s aura and his subsequent actions didn’t escape Liora’s eyes.

She didn’t choose to meet his blow head-on, knowing that even though she possessed the Myriad Devils Armor, coming into contact with holy power could still be fatal.

With a move of her mind, a sword that mirrored that of Blasphemer appeared in her hand, shaped by pure darkness.

As its sharp edge shimmered with a brilliant light, she flicked her wrist and thrust it forward.

With a clang, the nearly identical swords met in the air.

A myriad of lights flashed at the point of their collision as the holy power and demonic energy clashed against each other.

Neither of them overpowered the other, causing both parties—Liora and the Blasphemer—to step back in unison.

The air around them trembled as they relieved the force while the clouds tumbled, evidence of the powerful strength they both possessed.

Clearly, if this battle were taking place in the outside world rather than in this white expanse, the mere collision of their swords would have brought devastation to the land around them.

As Liora steadied herself, she shook her head slightly, somewhat surprised by the Blasphemer’s strength.

Although she had long known that this second-ranked Devil was bound to be extraordinary, she found that she may have still underestimated him.

Thinking of this, she stepped on the clouds and tried to merge with the shadows beneath her, only to discover that there were actually none.

The bright sun shone brilliantly in the sky, dispelling any potential source of darkness.

She didn’t panic, but tried to analyze what was happening.

”I can feel that the Blasphemer’s power increased dramatically the moment we stepped into this space.”

”Is the source of this newfound power this space?”, she wondered before her gaze shifted to the believers’ images looming behind him.

”... Or is it those people?”

Unfortunately, Liora didn’t have time to give it further thought.

The moment the Blasphemer regained his balance, he rushed forward again.

He didn’t speak, rather choosing to remain silent, but each of his attacks was precise and ruthless, accurately targeting Liora’s weak spots.

Under his constant onslaught, Liora soon found herself at a disadvantage.

Faintly, she realized something.

”With my current strength, I should have easily overpowered him. Apart from the difference in combat and swordsmanship experience, the main reason why I haven’t is the endless power he seems to possess.”, she thought while fending off another one of the Blasphemer’s attacks.

In Liora’s senses, the Blasphemer put his entire strength into each and every sword strike. Doing this indeed improved his combat power temporarily, but this improvement should not last very long.

By now, the Blasphemer should have long exhausted every last bit of his energy.

Yet, every time his aura showed signs of weakening, the white expanse and souls behind him would tremble before an inexplicable energy poured into him.

Obviously, the so-called Holy Domain and this seemingly endless power were what gave the Blasphemer the confidence to peacefully converse with her in the outside world.

”Why don’t you surrender? As long as you agree to join me, we can become companions. We can bring forth a new Order together!”

While Liora was deep in thought, the Blasphemer actually opened his mouth to speak.

His voice was sincere, as if he really wished for Liora to join him, but his words sounded more like a taunt than an attempt to convince her when they fell in her ears.

Ignoring his temptations, Liora continued defending, while observing the white expanse, as well as the many souls surrounding her opponent.

Before long, she recalled bits of information contained in her inherited memories and, coupled with the memories of her past life, she guessed something.

”So that’s how it is... A method to integrate the beliefs, the will, and the faith of other people with oneself?”, she whispered subconsciously.

Her words stunned the Blasphemer, who paused for a brief second before his attacks became even more ruthless. It was as if he were afraid that something unexpected would occur if he let Liora live for too long.

Unfortunately, what he didn’t know was that it was already too late.

Liora’s eyes narrowed, and she waved her hand casually, a Devil Rune flashing within her palm before fading away.

Although the rune’s appearance was very brief, it failed to escape the Blasphemer’s eyes.

Coupled with Liora’s subconscious mutter, a bad premonition arose within him.

”What did you do?”, he couldn’t help but ask, his voice becoming stern for the first time.

To his fury, though, Liora didn’t reply but smiled slightly and kept defending, looking determined to stall for time.

The Blasphemer’s expression turned fierce as the wings behind his back flapped a couple of times, boosting his momentum and further increasing his strength.

As he charged forward, the fight between the two carried on.

--

In the outside world, the residents of the ”Holy” City didn’t know that their Saint and Savior, the Blasphemer, was currently battling against a ”heretic”.

The many Young Devils mindlessly continued their lives as usual, working like ordinary people.

However, what no one—including the Blasphemer—knew was that unbeknownst to them, two unfamiliar figures had quietly slipped into the city.

In a small room on the top floor of an inn, Scurry constantly walked back and forth, biting his sharp nails in anxiety.

”Did something happen to the Lord? Why hasn’t she contacted us yet? Why has there been no news?”

”Did the Blasphemer discover her? Should we go save her?”, Scurry’s panicked voice rang continuously in the room.

The more he spoke, the more nervous he became, as if he was hypnotizing himself, that the worst was about to happen.

In complete contrast with him was Alpha, who sat quietly on the bed and stared out of the window with an indifferent expression.

The fact that Liora had gone missing didn’t seem to faze her at all.

However, if anyone were to take a closer look at Alpha, they would discover that her body was tense while her right hand was sneakily tugging on her own shirt.

Time slowly passed, as the concern of the two servants about their Lord gradually grew.

Just when they were getting impatient and Scurry looked ready to go out and search for Liora, Alpha’s eyes flashed with a crimson glow.

Her expression twisted for a brief moment, as if an invisible hand was controlling her, before it returned to normal.

”I’ve received the Lord’s message.”, she turned to Scurry and said before explaining:

”The Lord has instructed that the plan shall remain the same. We can start at any moment.”

”You should go. Time is of the essence.”, she ordered.

The moment she finished those words, the heavy weight on Scurry’s shoulders seemed to disappear, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

”Thank goodness.”, he patted his chest and whispered.

”I knew that nothing would happen to the Lord. How could a mere Blasphemer do anything to her—”, he began praising Liora loudly, as if wanting to make up for his previous gaffe.

But before he could speak for long, Alpha’s gaze landed on him.

Although she didn’t say anything, her cold eyes instantly reminded him of her previous instructions, or rather, Liora’s.

Thinking of this, Scurry didn’t dare to hesitate for long.

After a dark light flashed, his terrifying figure vanished, replaced by a tiny, cute-looking white mouse.

After nodding his head at Alpha, the cute mouse slipped away, ready to perform the task assigned to him by his Lord.