"This is the ruins of a very small temple, probably built by an individual," Lucilia said.
She had already inspected this place before Alka had gone to the Demon Hunter Fortress.
She led Alka inside the ruins.
Although it was called a ruin, only the ceiling and outer walls had collapsed; some parts had been preserved.
Reaching the inner area, stepping over the rubble, they could see a statue used for worship at the innermost part.
Alka looked at the statue.
It was a faceless goddess holding a round sphere.
A crescent moon, representing the full moon, floated above the goddess' head.
Alka closed her eyes, then opened them again, her eyes penetrating secrets, and gazed at the statue.
The sculpture still lingered with the aura of faith that could be seen on prayer statues in various churches.
Alka could sense the presence above, a faint, murmuring sound.
Listen carefully.
It seemed to be calling out, using a language similar to the moon, the language of the White Crocodile.
On the surrounding walls that hadn't completely collapsed, there were still various murals depicting the moon.
"Any interpretation of these murals?"
Lucelia shook her head. "No, it's mainly because they're disjointed, and many have been destroyed."
"From these signs of destruction, we can tell that this temple has been invaded. Judging by the traces of battle, it's likely demonic."
Alka nodded. He had observed this upon entering.
But the so-called signs of demonic destruction weren't from a demonic invasion millennia ago, but from a sudden demonic attack that had become a scar on the world.
The orange light, then, must be the scepter-level treasure known as the Pale Moon.
But the question is how to obtain it?
A Moon Power, literally speaking, means possessing the power of the moon.
Arka and the others knew about the moon-related spells, but they seemed to have little to do with the Moon Power.
Furthermore, according to some information about gods they had previously read in the Magnificent Library, there was indeed a moon-related god in the Golden Age, but this god was also considered a traitor.
He left this world long ago.
Clearly, the so-called Moon Power is not someone who possesses the moon's divine power, nor is he a patron of the Moon God.
However, judging by the legend, someone definitely took this treasure and used it.
Given the size of this temple, there must have been no fewer than 20 people living here hundreds of years ago.
The ruins of the temple still exist, the treasure is still there, but the people are gone.
In other words... "Alka, maybe you should come take a look."
Jason's voice came from outside. Hearing this, Alka took Lucelia out and came to where Jason and the others were.
This should be the temple's former courtyard.
Sofia pointed to a small mound in front of him. "There's a body in here. Judging by the placement of the bones, someone must have been buried."
He gestured to the area nearby.
"There are all over this area. Someone must have buried these bodies."
Alka nodded at this. It was not much different from what he had imagined.
This temple was clearly destroyed by a sudden attack, but the treasures were still there.
It was clear that there were still people alive in the temple.
The treasures shouldn't be there. Since it was a temple, only the temple's leaders, or higher-ups, would know how the treasures were stored.
It's impossible for everyone within the temple to know how to obtain the treasure.
If the believers here consider the treasure a gift from the gods, then they certainly can't use it at will.
They likely keep it enshrined most of the time, as befits a believer's behavior.
In other words, if they want to find the hidden treasure, they have to rely on themselves.
"If only we could find this temple, the living would be happy," Alka said.
"But so much time has passed."
Hearing this, Alka felt a little helpless.
Yes, perhaps the living have already left this place.
Of course, Alka thought it was also possible that the living might have gone to the front lines to fight the demon head-on. That would be a form of revenge, wouldn't it?
But after decades or even centuries, who knows if this person is still alive, or if he has any descendants.
Because Alka wanted to know how this temple operated and how prayers were conducted there. Even knowing some of their teachings would be helpful.
It's very likely that the key to unlocking it lies within this common information.
In particular, it's likely to lie in prayer and rituals.
Also, the so-called Moon Power was likely a term used by the temple itself. It didn't necessarily have to be related to the moon.
After pondering this, Alka turned and said, "Forget it, let's head to the front lines first."
"Which area are you heading to?" Sofia asked curiously.
After all, the length of the anti-magic wall at the front line is staggering, with various fortress nodes located atop it.
"The Demon Hunter Fortress is fine, as is the Holy Sword Fortress," Alka said.
The Demon Hunter Fortress was, of course, because Greyfard was there. If they went there to provide support, they could ask Greyfard some questions.
The Holy Sword Fortress was where members of the Mother Church gathered. Almost every powerful member of the Church of the Mother Church in the entire World Scar was there.
It was the Mother Church's headquarters here, so there was no difference.
It was just that Alka preferred the Demon Hunter Fortress. There was no reason, he simply felt it was a better choice.
As his strength grew, his eyes, which could see through secrets, always gave him these intuitive premonitions.
"Let's ask the others later."
As he spoke, he headed for the vehicle's station.
They quickly identified their target.
To the Demon Hunter Fortress.
They boarded the truck.
...
The two truck-like vehicles that had originally carried them were reduced to a pile of scrap metal.
Vaku and Kavala were also transported into the space by Alka.
The intensity of the battle far exceeded their imagination.
A pink mist filled the air, occupying the area. Alka's figure moved within the pink mist. His presence was visible, but in reality, he was hidden within the intervening layers of the dream world.
Additionally, the pink mist made it extremely difficult for anyone to spot him.
In the area obscured by the pink mist, there were three demons.
One, a slender-looking demon, wielded two short blades in each hand. It was so slender that it looked like it was made entirely of bone, its red skin merely covering the bones.
On either side stood two incredibly powerful-looking force demons, one holding a two-handed axe, the other holding two one-handed axes.
They watched their surroundings warily, wary of Alka's surprise attack.
Alka looked at the slender, frail demon. This seemingly weakest demon was actually the most powerful of the three.
By analogy, their strength was equivalent to that of a sixth-level demon.
A very dangerous enemy. This time, four such three-man demon squads arrived.
The destroyed vehicles not far away were caused by them, and the situation was extremely dangerous.
It was clear that they were heading directly for Alka and his men, but it was unclear why a sixth-stage enemy had rushed behind the city wall.
"Human, I am very pleased with what you have done to the Devouring Mouth. Now, leave your soul behind, and I will be even happier," the slender demon shouted in a shrill, piercing voice.
He knew clearly that the three demons were facing only Alka.
The battlefield was immediately divided by these demons.
The resounding sound of explosions and bombardments could be heard not far away; Sofia and his men had already engaged in battle.
"You must be their leader, right? Hiding here, listening to the cries of your own men?"
The slender demon, wielding two short blades, gazed warily at the surrounding fog, taunting them constantly.
The fog suddenly erupted. Instantly, the power of the dream began to invade the three demons, and the slender demon broke free in an instant.
It was clear they had been prepared, but even so, the other two demons were still dragged into the dream. This kind of thing couldn't be resisted simply by preparation.
Perhaps it would only last a second or two, but it was enough. In a moment of dizziness, a purple-red blade pierced the burly demon's chest.
It was a powerfully destructive attack, a combination of wind, lightning, and fire.
The blade formed by these three elements was pure destruction.
The demon, barely dragged into the dream, was awakened by the pain outside, screaming and gushing blood.
The slender demon's figure vanished, and it slashed at Alka with its sword.
The moment the dagger struck, another followed, piercing Alka's body.
"Bang!"
An explosion echoed.
The massive demon was shattered by the piercing blow.
The three destructive elements converged, not because of their perfect fusion, but because of their inherent instability.
The force of the explosion rippled through the surroundings, injuring the slender demon and another power demon.
Alka's figure appeared in the distance, wounds appearing on his shoulders and arms, frozen by ice crystals.
He could sense a contamination from the abyss spreading through the wounds.
The slender demon watched Alka from a distance before escaping once again into the interlayer of dreams.
"Go!"
With a roar, he and the power demon charged towards Alka.
A sword struck Alka's area through the air, but Alka remained unaffected, hidden within the dream's interlayer.
Several of his attacks hit nothing but empty air.
"How long can you hide? I've marked you."
The slender demon's crimson eyes fixed intently on Alka's hiding area, moving with him.
If Alka dared to leave the dream, he would be killed instantly.
Watching this, Alka stood still, motionless, staring at his wound.
The aura of the Abyss stained it signaled he had been marked.
After a brief moment of preparation, Alka left the dream's interlayer.
The moment he left, two demons pounced on him.
This time, Alka didn't dodge, charging directly at the slender demons swinging their blades at him. His sword pierced Alka directly, and Alka's right hand pressed directly against the demon's chest.
The power in his hand pierced the demon directly, leaving a mixture of magical energy within its chest.
"Bang!"
Wild wind, lightning, and flames spread in the surroundings as the explosion spread.
The nearby force demon swung its massive axe at Alka.
"Idiot! He's a fake!"
The slender demon, missing a large piece of its body from the direct explosion, cursed. But Alka was not about to let him go.
An aura of icy cold enveloped him, freezing him in ice crystals.
An iceberg rose, freezing the two demons within it. The iceberg reached a height of over ten meters.
It was only then that they realized that Alka's true body had been outside the pink mist the entire time.
It had never been within the mist at all. These demons had been deceived from the beginning.
Seeing the demons within the iceberg, seemingly about to break free, Alka pressed an ice-blue elemental card against it, sending more icy power pouring in.
It pierced through the iceberg and poured into the two frozen demons within, visibly turning them into ice sculptures.
"Why do you think I've been hanging around here for so long?"
These demons were more or less reckless. With one clear target in mind, it was difficult for them to notice another, even one deeply hidden, target.
The iceberg exploded, and the bodies of the two demons were shattered into pieces in the explosion.
After confirming the two demons were dead, Alka quickly stood on the mirror and flew off into the distance.
Another loud bang.
Alka arrived at another battlefield.
When he arrived, he saw several demons lying dead in various places. Some were embedded in the ground, some were stuck in the bushes.
Some were even smashed to pieces.
A massive, powerful sixth-stage force demon, with two enormous arms, was clashing with Sofia.
But the demon's left arm was completely broken, nearly ripped off. It was clear the result of pure force.
Another punch, accompanied by a shockwave, crushed the demon.
A blue meteor slammed directly into their path.
Blood scalding like molten lava fell, and Alka waved his hand to cool it.
Sofia, his body stained with demonic blood, took a few breaths and looked at Alka as he approached.
The demon, renowned for its strength, was crushed in the battle of power against Sofia.
Seeing this, Alka rushed elsewhere; he no longer needed to worry about Sofia.
A blue meteor slid past him, and Sofia was moving even faster.
Looking in the direction Sofia flew, Alka followed closely behind.
The moment he arrived at the battlefield, he gripped the purple chuck tightly, and a bolt of lightning struck from the sky.
It paralyzed a demon, and the violent power raged through his body, causing him to drop his weapon to the ground.
Seizing this opportunity, the sphere's massive mouth bit into the demon's head, digesting it completely.
Then, demon horns sprouted from the sphere's head, a pair of short demon wings, and a curved demon tail sprouted from its back.
Instantly, Juanlu's strength intensified, even his skin turning red.
He backhandedly punched the demon behind him, and the demon's movements were noticeably slow.
It must have been affected by one of Juanlu's emotion-influencing spheres.
After being hit by a punch, the other ball bit the demon's head and neck, making a huge
A gap.
The headless corpse fell to the ground.
With the two joining in, the intense battle immediately shifted to their side.
Seeing things were going badly, one of the injured sixth-stage demons spread its wings and fled.
"Damn it!" another demon roared, finally being overwhelmed by Alka and the others' attacks.
"One got away."
Sofia looked at the corpses around him, but he couldn't tell where the other demon had gone.
Clearly it wasn't just the speed.
Alka looked at the crowd; almost everyone had some kind of injury.
Even he himself was injured. Although he hadn't been attacked later, he had inevitably been attacked during the sudden attack.
As the demon was destroyed, the aura of the abyss began to emanate from his wounds.
He suppressed the abyssal aura with the pink mist from his dreams. Under Matlisa's control, a golden stream of water covered the area around his wound.
‐‐This was a healing fluid mixed with the power of the Virgin Mary.
‐‐A sulfurous orange-yellow aura could be seen emanating from the wound.
‐‐It took a long time for it to dissipate, and Alka's wound finally healed.
‐‐Matlisa was already beside the others, healing their wounds.
‐‐"Why did so many of them rush out all at once?" Jason asked, perplexed, as he sat on the ground.
‐‐This time, four powerful demons of various sixth-stage strengths arrived, along with eight fifth-stage force demons.
‐‐Until they approached, Alka and the others hadn't noticed much, only barely dodging the final attack. Although they dodged most of the attacks, they were able to avoid being hit by some.
‐‐These demons had clearly come prepared for them, using their respective powers to divide the battlefield.
The first step was to hold back Alka and Sofia.
Thankfully, although Bororo Juanlu's side was only at the fifth stage of strength, they possessed a considerable number of treasures.
While they might not be able to defeat these demons, they should have no problem holding them back.
Of course, injuries were inevitable in this situation.
Thus, Juanlu and his companions were slightly more seriously injured than Alka and his companions.
"Alright, let's speed up. The Devouring Mouth must be taking advantage of the current intense battle to send out so many demons," Alka said.
He immediately constructed a giant mirror.
Drag them into the distance.