The Elven Cultivator

”So you lured them to the Thousand-Rock Hills to use them as fuel for an Undead Transformation Ritual, didn’t you?”

Anton didn’t continue arguing with Casius. Instead, he casually tore away the pretense.

”...It seems you know a great deal about our organization.”

Casius’s gaze toward Anton shifted, his caution now mixed with stunned suspicion.

The man even knew about the Undead Transformation Ritual, one of their organization’s most guarded secrets. If not for the fact that Casius couldn’t sense a member’s token on him, he would have assumed Anton was one of them.

Meanwhile, as Casius finished speaking, Harvey and his three companions shot to their feet, grabbing their weapons and glaring at Casius with looks of shock and rage.

”No wonder the pay you offered was so generous! You were up to no good!”

”You despicable bastard!”

”Greed is the original sin of life, the filth of the soul.” Casius’s cold gaze swept over the four of them, his tone as flat as if he were reading a death sentence. ”Don’t worry. You will soon be purified. In the name of death, you will return to eternal tranquility.”

”Purify my ass!”

A hot-tempered young man on the team named Sta could no longer hold back. He raised his short axe and brought it down hard on Casius’s head.

However, the axe blade was stopped by a faint shimmer of light just a dozen centimeters from Casius’s head.

Anton’s eyes fell on Casius’s chest, where the gray stone pendant was glowing with a pale halo.

”A Magic Item!” Harvey also noticed the strange state of the gray stone pendant, and his expression turned ugly.

Magical Items were extremely rare, and legend had it that every single one possessed immense power.

Even the weakest Micro-Light Level Magic Item possessed the terrifying power to easily kill a Black Iron Tier expert, or defensive capabilities of equivalent strength.

”Don’t worry,” Anton calmly reminded them. ”That’s just a Sub-magical Item. As for its defensive effect... it can probably withstand ten full-power blows from someone at the lower Black Iron Tier.”

Casius’s expression changed slightly, and he shot Anton a cold glare.

Harvey saw this and knew instantly that Anton was telling the truth. He breathed a sigh of relief and gave his companions a meaningful look. The four of them spread out silently, fanning out to surround Casius.

Although he was the only one on their team at the lower Black Iron Tier, the other three were all at the upper White Rank. With their years of coordination and perfect teamwork, they were confident they could win as long as their opponent didn’t have a true Magic Item—even against a mid-level Black Iron Tier foe.

Casius sneered, reaching into his robes and pulling out a Long Sword that glinted coldly. He was clearly prepared.

”Even without the Gray Stone Necklace, it won’t take much effort to deal with you.”

”I was originally planning to go a little deeper into the hills before making my move, to make it easier to dispose of the bodies. But never mind. Performing the ritual here isn’t a bad idea either...”

Before his voice had even faded, Harvey and his three companions shot forward like arrows loosed from a bowstring.

Harvey charged from the front while two companions flanked from the left and right. Vergil fell back, raising his short crossbow, the cold glint of the Crossbow Arrow aimed at Casius’s vital points.

In that brief instant, their teamwork was on full display.

Unfortunately, the being they faced was not someone who could be defeated by teamwork alone.

In the very first exchange, Harvey was sent flying. If the other two hadn’t dodged quickly, their heads would have been sliced in half by the vicious sword light.

THWANG!

A low thrum suddenly came from the crossbow string as a glint of cold light precisely struck Casius in the chest.

But before a look of joy could appear on Vergil’s face, he watched in horror as Casius nonchalantly pulled the Crossbow Arrow from his body, then tore off his cumbersome robes to reveal his bare upper torso.

The flickering firelight carved his torso into a bizarre tableau of light and shadow.

The lower half of his chest, his abdomen, his shoulders, and the upper parts of his arms were a grayish-white, the color of an old wax figure. Purplish-black patches of livor mortis spread across the skin like mold. From his chest upward, however, his skin retained the healthy, ruddy complexion of a living man, creating a shocking demarcation.

This wasn’t the body of a living person at all. It looked more like an Undead.

’Undead transformation? No, that’s not right... It’s like he’s only halfway transformed.’

Anton narrowed his eyes, a glint in their depths.

The Undead Transformation Ritual was a bloody method used by the Ring of Annihilation to mass-produce its core fighting force.

Members who underwent the ritual would transform into Undead creatures existing between life and death. They would gain bronze skin and iron bones like a ghoul, as well as a terrifying resilience that knew no fatigue or pain.

Although Casius appeared to have only halfway transformed, he still possessed a formidable defense, impervious to blades.

The proof was that the point-blank shot from the Crossbow Arrow had only left a peanut-sized dent on his chest, without even drawing a drop of blood.

”W-What the hell is that thing?!”

Sta’s face was a mask of horror.

The faces of the others were also etched with shock and terror.

They had traveled far and wide for many years, but this was the first time they had ever encountered such a bizarre and terrifying creature.

Just as Harvey gritted his teeth, preparing for a fight to the death, a figure moved past them and stood in front.

”Stand back,” Anton said without turning his head, his voice calm and steady. ”I’ll take care of this guy.”

’They gave me some good intel, after all. I can’t just stand by and watch them become ritual fodder.’

Casius’s gaze fell on Anton, cold and grim. ”I was planning to deal with you last,” he said icily, ”but since you’re in such a hurry to die...”

”You talk too much.”

Anton flicked his wrist. His black-steel sword let out a clear, crisp dragon’s cry as its light tore through the night like a bolt of lightning, shooting toward Casius.

’Based on the previous exchange, Casius is at least at the Black Iron Peak level.’

’Against any other enemy, I’d slap a Divine Movement Talisman on myself and run without a second thought.’

’But it’s different when the opponent is a Half-Undead.’

’Everyone knows that the best way to deal with Undead is with holy-type Magic and combat skills, followed by fire.’

’And my Divine Sun Sword Skill and Melting Hand are both martial arts of pure, radiant power—perfect for dealing with a Half-Undead.’

BOOM!

A radiant sun bloomed out of thin air.

That wasn’t a metaphor. As Harvey and his three companions watched in shock, a blazing wheel of light over a meter in diameter rose from the blade of Anton’s sword. It was as if the midday sun itself had been compressed and trapped within that tiny space.

The air around the wheel of light distorted as if boiling, and the searing flow of flames formed a tangible wave that crushed down upon Casius.

Supreme light and power, banishing all evil.

The sneer on Casius’s face instantly froze, twisting into horrified terror.

He tried to dodge, but it was too late. The next moment, the rolling torrent of flames slammed into him.

”AHHH!!”

A blood-curdling scream tore through the night. Casius was thrown backward, crashing heavily into a pile of rubble a dozen meters away. His body was charred black as charcoal, and wisps of green smoke rose from his cracked flesh, filling the air with the nauseating stench of burnt protein.

Nearby, Harvey and his companions had been hesitating, wondering whether to help. After all, the enemy was too formidable, and they weren’t sure if Anton was his match.

But in the blink of an eye, they witnessed this scene, and their eyes nearly popped out of their heads.

”S-So powerful!”

”What was that combat skill?”

Harvey stared in shock at the Long Sword in Anton’s hand. The red glow on its blade had not yet fully subsided, resembling a dormant volcano. Even from a dozen meters away, it made his eyes sting, as if he were looking at the afterglow of the blazing sun.