The black sun hangs high

Chapter 115 The Rat Swarm of "Betrayal"
It wasn't just the priests who were affected.

The tiny mice that had emerged from countless corners, summoned by the ritual, were now in a state of frenzy. Hugh saw them attacking indiscriminately, even lunging at their own relatives.

The black rat swarm that had been relentlessly attacking the sea monsters came to an end. And it wasn't just this battlefield that changed; all the surrounding battlefields seemed to have been affected in a similar way.

After losing the guidance and restraint of the will of the gods, those naturally timid yet extremely bloodthirsty rats naturally revealed their true nature.

Hugh stared in disbelief at what was happening before him. He hadn't expected that in just a moment, these battle lines would shift so dramatically. As the power and will of the Earth Mother weakened, towering waves, powerful enough to crash against entire mountains, reappeared on the distant sea. They were so magnificent that they almost merged with the sky, which was filled with black celestial bodies. Hugh also saw countless towering shadows swaying within this massive wall of waves...

Those all seem to be the touch of Caljon.

It is merely the Touch of Karron, which is similar in size and shape to the mountain peak.

However, the changes and impacts brought about by that figure were not over yet. As more complex patterns appeared in the air, a force that was extremely cold but also extremely firm swept across the ground. Under its influence, Hugh felt that he was abandoning all vigilance and caution. The image of the Earth Mother Goddess that should have been imprinted in his mind began to become blurred, and in its place was a very unfamiliar will.

This power was deeply imprinted in the minds of all living beings on the beach. With all the priests dead, the remaining rat swarm on the beach and the warriors who were still fighting were no match for this power.

Under a force that even Shug cannot comprehend, the faith of the Familia is being violently rewritten.

"..."

Hugh quietly sensed all of this. Although it was just a dream, it was actually a manifestation of past power and visions to some extent. Thus, the cold power acted directly on Hugh's mental world, but before it could take effect, the rotating metal disc forcibly neutralized the sudden interference.

"?"

A gaze fell upon them.

As if sensing something amiss, the figure turned its head and looked toward where Hugh was.

At this moment, this gaze actually crossed a vast expanse of time and space, arriving before Hugh.

However, in the next instant, the swarm of rats, whose instincts and minds had been completely rewritten, surged in. They had now become utter traitors among the rats, becoming tools and weapons of the enemy.

Thus, Hugh, the three-tailed giant rat, and the other wounded and dead lying on the battlefield were instantly swallowed up. The remains of the sea beasts were also included in their devouring list. In an instant, the vast battlefield was stained a deep black, like the reflection cast by the black celestial body in the sky.

The black swarm of rats was like a vast, boundless black brush; when they swept across the battlefield, everything was completely wiped clean.

The rat swarm, having devoured countless corpses and remains, began its own evolution.

They absorbed the power from the sea monsters, and their bodies began to shrink, becoming smaller and smaller. Their originally powerful hind legs completely broke apart, turning into fleshy tendrils like the tentacles of those soft-bodied creatures in the sea.

They devoured the bodies of many of their former kind, and naturally absorbed the power that originally came from the Earth Mother Goddess. With the return and replenishment of their original power, they finally gradually broke free from the manipulation of external forces.

However, to the gods, and all the beings gathered under their power, their previous actions were tantamount to betrayal.

Thus began a punishment devoid of any emotion or leniency.

Faced with the approaching towering waves, these rats were ruthlessly deprived of their sight; their eyes rapidly contracted and disappeared, leaving them with no way to choose the right direction to escape.

Faced with the harsh environment of the battlefield, their bodies began to shrink, and their sharp claws and teeth became extremely short, making it impossible for them to concentrate on digging burrows for shelter.

Faced with all sorts of potential enemies, their intelligence and instincts are quickly dismantled and scattered, which will prevent them from separating from their companions and groups. As individuals, they will never be able to act and think correctly.

The "human" figure standing on the giant tortoise's back silently cast a puzzled glance toward a certain part of the rat swarm, but she didn't waste much time, because the giant wave had already arrived.

As a result, the seawater continued to spread towards the land, and more sea creatures began to venture forth.

This war, which was unintentionally recorded, cannot be measured using the time scales used by humans.

It will continue.

…………

In the dark underground corridors, battles raged between swarms of rats and between waiters.

Vera realized that she had ultimately underestimated the impact of the "Mother Earth" ritual.

For the Ritual as a whole, this isolated fifth underground level was like a depression in a downpour; all the rainwater wanted to flow towards it. This was the most common phenomenon, since, according to the basic theories and principles of the Legal Council, the nature of magic was similar to that of water. Before flowing water, a dry depression should be filled and replenished first. The Ritual Rat swarm was pushing the line of defense in the corridor deeper and deeper. Their numbers were simply too many. Composed of these rats were innocent people who had become magical experiments for the Black Sun Society in the past, members of the Ernst family who had been forcibly transformed and completely stripped of their will, and fighters like Ludwig Ernst whose last vestiges of will had been worn away in the long struggle…

The number of individuals who, like Alexandra and Bernhardt, successfully withstood the erosion and impact of the Mystic Ritual and ultimately established a defensive line on this floor through their own efforts is extremely small.

The dark figures surging in from the spiral staircase were the real rat swarm.

Especially since these rat hordes also included servants and attendants whose bodies had undergone severe mutations and were no different from the "ratmen" that Hugh had mentioned, they seemed to have become a shelter in the rolling rat horde. In order to reduce the pressure on the Ernst family members as much as possible, Verin had to regard these dangerous magical mutants as her primary targets.

Destructive spells specifically designed to target important targets, such as "Shock Blade," "Flaming Arrow," and "Phosphorescent Touch," were quickly triggered one by one under Virin's control. Whenever these spells successfully "dealt with" key targets in the rat swarm, spells that had been buried in the walls, the ground, and even the ceiling would be activated in succession.

Each time spells like "Instant Fire," "Ice Explosion," and "Dragon Lizard Howl" were cast, they created a huge gap in the dark swarm of rats. The rats that "died" from the spells would almost immediately dissipate into wisps of magical mist. However, as soon as one swarm of rats was cleared, another would immediately fill the gap. Although they left no corpses when they died, under the continuous bombardment of magic, Verin still couldn't see the ground.

Even if it's just for a second.

The swarm of rats quickly advanced to the first bend in the corridor. After confirming through the summoned creatures' vision that all the "friendly forces" had retreated behind the first safety line, the Mage's Hand appeared beside Vilin and precisely triggered several intertwined magical threads embedded in the walls.

Thus, a chain reaction occurred instantly.

The first to take effect were two stream-level "Fuel Spring" spells. Although they were only stream-level spells, their specific effects and difficulty of use were more prominent than other spells that could produce grease. Just as its name suggests, the moment the spell was activated, two "springs" appeared in the corridor that was already full of rats. Then, a huge impact force accompanied by a huge amount of black fuel gushed out from the two "springs".

Within seconds, the pungent fuel was splashed into every corner of the corridor. It was not only an important fuel, but also a serious obstacle to the rats' movement, as the fuel was as sticky as glue and once it got on them, it was impossible to get rid of it easily.

Immediately afterwards, a series of protective spells took effect. Behind the pre-demarcated safety line, the gentle glow of various protective rituals began to flicker alternately. A magical wall, almost solid, rose from the ground with the aid of the "Fortification Reinforcement" spell. The raging horde of rats immediately crashed into this translucent wall. The pitch-black bodies of the deformed rats continued to press in with the advance of the waves, making the scene bizarre and disgusting.

Fortunately, this situation was quickly alleviated.

Four pages of magic appeared in the corridor. These "Instant Fire" spells, which Hugh had spent most of the night imprinting, formed an orderly whole under the connection of magic threads. With the infusion of magic, these magic pages, whose strokes were still somewhat unfamiliar, were ignited one by one. The complex magic runes flickered continuously in the light of flames and magic, and finally completed a complete explosion.

Recklessly "layering" magic is an extremely dangerous act.

For the vast majority of spellcasters below the Stream level, the act of forcibly layering the same spell using spellbooks and runes is absolutely forbidden, because for most spellcasters, this is tantamount to a severe test of the spellcaster's skill, experience, and control over magic power.

The method that Veraine used when she burned down Ernst’s old house seemed simple, but it was actually very extreme.

If an error occurs during the execution of this process, causing a mistake in the order in which the magic takes effect, the mutual interference and influence between the magical forces will be greatly altered, thus changing the final result of the magic. Sometimes, three simple "lighting" tricks combined can turn into blazing flames and successfully burn the eyes of passersby.

However, Vera had absolute confidence in her ability to calculate magic.

So, accompanied by the flickering flames, the rats that were busy attacking stopped their movements. The faint instincts hidden in their bodies made them make a choice at this moment. However, now, a large number of rats were piled up in the narrow corridor, and the constantly erupting oil fountains made it impossible for them to move forward. As for those rats that were forced to the deepest part, they lost the chance to turn their bodies.

Of course, Veraine hadn't originally intended to give them any chance.

A crisp snap of fingers echoed through the corridor.

A blinding, bright red light burst forth from the very center of the high-quality magic book pages, and the large bursts of fire seemed like terrifying ghosts wandering freely in the darkness. Because of the protective ritual that had been set up beforehand, Verine was unable to hear the sound of the explosion, but she could feel the terrible impact that the underground mansion had just experienced through the walls beside her and the ground beneath her.

Large clusters of flames filled half of the corridor, and countless rats that had been doused with fuel beforehand became the first to be roasted. Their bodies were ignited and destroyed in an instant, and a large amount of magical mist spread out. The protective ritual used to block the impact and the magical wall were both on the verge of collapse under this terrifying impact. The ritual set on the outermost edge to alleviate the impact on the magical wall disappeared on the spot.

Vera gently stroked the brand-new magic book she had taken from Hugh.

"His decision was indeed correct... In this situation, the more of this kind of magic, the better."

At this point, the first phase of the magical enclosure that Verin had constructed had fully come into play.

In fact, if needed, Verin could activate all the magic placed here in an instant—the result of which she herself could not predict, either a chain reaction of shocks and explosions, or the magic canceling each other out, or even a small-scale magical tide.

But as things stand now, Vera feels she doesn't need to take such a risk.

Because amidst those constantly flickering flames, the swarm of rats that had filled the entire corridor had largely disappeared, and the flames had even spread into the spiral staircase, engulfing even more targets that had been waiting in the shadows into the inferno.

The flames gradually dimmed, and amidst the drifting smoke and magical mist, an unbelievable scene slowly emerged.

Through the eyes of the summoned creature, she saw a huge "sphere" appear in the long corridor filled with flames. It was a black ball of flesh formed by countless rats embracing and connecting with each other, resisting the remaining flames in this way...

(End of this chapter)