The maid squad is too strong, what use is there for me, the Demon King?

“You… how dare you…” Baturu’s voice was as deep as thunder from the earth’s core, each syllable causing the rocks beneath his feet to vibrate.

It was not just anger, but a violent, intense pain from the deepest part of one's bloodline and soul—a pain that came from the defilement of sacred objects and the severing of the foundations of one's homeland!

He seemed to see the figures of countless orc ancestors struggling to survive in the desert, the sorrow and hope of the Gruk shaman when he exhausted his life to find the Blood Spring, and the countless cubs that were able to survive because of this spring... All of this was trampled and burned by the pale and filthy flames in front of him!

Elder Gomur did not speak, but the killing intent emanating from him had solidified into a tangible form, and the air around him emitted a sharp, compressed whistling sound.

The ashes of the blood fountain, the ashes of the warriors, pierced his nerves like the sharpest ice picks.

Beneath his bronze skin, obsidian-like crystals shimmered wildly, like the destructive energy surging within a volcano about to erupt.

Elder Baturu roared and slammed his giant fist, covered in rock-like patterns, into the ground.

Boom——! ! !

Centered on the point where his fist landed, a massive wall of blazing, golden rock burst forth from the earth like a dragon of the earth, instantly blocking the path between the remaining orc warriors and the pale fire line.

That was not ordinary rock, but a semi-lava-like substance smelted by high-level magic using magical power to extract substances from the earth's veins.

"Sizzle sizzle sizzle—!!!"

The pale fire crashed violently against the lava barrier! A piercing corrosive sound rang out, and large patches of grayish-white marks were instantly burned onto the surface of the barrier as the rock melted and vaporized.

However, this barrier contains not only hard material, but also the violent magic power driven by Elder Baturu's boundless rage stemming from his guarding of the Blood Spring.

The ashes burned fiercely, and the lava barrier regenerated and thickened at an astonishing rate.

Behind the fortress, the remaining parts of the blood spring, almost extinguished by the pale flames, temporarily preserved the last glimmer of life.

"The blasphemer shall be punished by the earth splitting apart!" Elder Gomur's figure suddenly blurred in place, and in the next instant he appeared like a ghost above and to the side of Bishop Morris.

His speed was so fast that it was beyond the reach of sight, leaving only a black afterimage that tore through the air.

"Shattering Star Claw - Abyss Rift!" Gomur formed a claw with his five fingers, and the obsidian crystal at his fingertips burst forth with a blinding light, accompanied by a terrifying shriek that seemed to tear through space, as he fiercely grabbed at Bishop Morris's head, which was burning with pale flames.

Before the claw wind even arrived, its extreme sharpness and icy killing intent had already caused the incineration field surrounding Bishop Morris to fluctuate violently.

For the first time, a hint of seriousness appeared in Bishop Maurice's burning pupils. He suddenly raised his withered hand, and a shield of ash made of extremely compressed pale flames instantly condensed in his palm.

"clang--!!!"

It was a deafening sound that pierced eardrums, completely unlike the sound of flesh colliding.

Gomur's black claws slammed into the Ash Shield, the ghostly light and pale flames clashing and annihilating each other.

The terrifying shockwave exploded in a ring, instantly turning rocks within dozens of meters and low-level cultists who had no time to escape into dust.

The ground beneath Bishop Morris's feet collapsed with a deafening roar, his body swayed slightly, and several clear cracks appeared on the Ash Shield.

Elder Gomur was also thrown back by the recoil, and landed with a nimble flip in the air. The eerie light on his claws dimmed slightly, but his killing intent intensified.

At the same time, Elder Baturu's massive lava barrier temporarily blocked the fire line of the Burning Spring, and his lava-like gaze turned to another gray-robed bishop.

"You! The culprit!" Baturu's voice was like a rolling stone crushing everything in its path. He took a deep breath, his chest bulging like a volcano, and a golden magical light shot into the sky.

"Core Blast!" He clenched his fists and unleashed a powerful punch towards the gray-robed bishop.

There was no actual force of the punch, but the gray-robed bishop and the space around him suddenly froze.

Immediately afterwards, the gray-robed bishop felt as if his heart had been gripped tightly by an invisible, giant rock hand, which squeezed it violently.

The incineration field around him instantly went awry, the blazing sun symbol on his chest flashed wildly, and he coughed up a mouthful of scalding blood, which smelled of ashes. He staggered back, his face filled with pain and horror.

The two eighth-level elders, enraged, intervened and instantly reversed the near-collapse of the battle.

Elder Baturu used a lava barrier to protect the remaining spring and to keep the fire line at bay.

Elder Gomur's unparalleled speed and sharp claws forced Bishop Morris to defend himself with all his might, while Baturu severely injured the gray-robed bishop with a shockwave from a distance.

On the battlefield, the remaining orc warriors saw the elders descend, saw the lava barrier protecting life, and saw the once invincible bishop forced back and wounded. Their despair instantly turned into a frenzied fighting spirit.

"The elders are here! For Shad Munting! Kill!!!" Ignoring his shattered shield and wounded arm, Gotan picked up the broken stone spear from the ground and roared as he charged toward the chaotic cultists.

Brock spat out the blood and foam from his mouth, gathered his magic power once more, and though the stone hammer was broken, his fighting spirit was even more ferocious.

The hidden shadowy servants emerged silently from the shadows once more, like deadly ghosts, precisely targeting the ordinary cultists who were panicked by the bishop's setback.

In the valley, the golden light of lava, the pale white of ashes, the gloom of shadows, the ochre red of the remaining blood spring, and the blood-soaked roars of orc warriors once again intertwine to create a tragic and violent scene.

Elder Baturu's lava-like gaze swept over the blood spring remains, which were still churning with gray bubbles. His deep-seated anger was like an inextinguishable fire from the earth's core, vowing to burn these heretics who had desecrated the sacred spring to ashes!

"Use their ashes to pay homage to the Holy Spring!" Elder Gomur's icy voice, like a chilling declaration, once again locked onto Morris, who had just regained his footing.

Elder Gomur's claws tore through the air once more, forcing Bishop Morris to do everything in his power to maintain the cracked ash shield, the pale flames flickering uncertainly beneath the claw shadows.

Elder Baturu's lava-like gaze locked onto the coughing Kuro, his massive rock fist clenched, preparing for the next shockwave powerful enough to shatter mountains.

The orc warriors roared and retaliated under the elder's imposing presence, while the shadow of the black-robed figure reaped the bewildered cultists like venomous snakes. Though the fountain of blood was waning, the fury of the rocks burned fiercely.

However, just as this wave of counterattack was about to engulf the Ash Twins—

A completely different kind of deathly silence enveloped the entire valley without warning.

The wind stopped.

The sounds of fighting seemed to be choked by an invisible giant hand, and suddenly disappeared.

Even the gurgling sound of the blood spring's bubbling gray water fell silent.

The air was no longer scorching, but became thick, cold, and heavy, like solidified lead, pressing down on the souls of all living beings, causing them to tremble.

Bishop Maurice's burning pupils suddenly contracted, and his unchanging coldness was completely overwhelmed by an emotion called "fear".

Ignoring Gomur's deadly claws, he suddenly flew backward, his withered body trembling slightly, bowing his head deeply in a certain direction, his posture extremely humble.

Another gray-robed bishop also stopped coughing up blood, struggled to his feet, his face a mixture of ecstasy, awe, and deep fear, and bowed his head deeply as well.

The battlefield fell into an eerie stillness.