Chapter 276
Sera hurtled backward, her entire being shaken by the impact.
It didn’t feel like she had been struck by a single blade—it felt like a tidal wave had slammed into her, hundreds of unseen hands driving her backward.
The air trembled. The battlefield itself seemed to recoil.
She crashed through the air, the force rippling outward in violent shockwaves.
The ground cracked beneath her when she landed.
For the first time, a sliver of doubt wormed its way into her mind.
Had she… underestimated him?
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Oliver didn’t hesitate.
His body blurred into motion, light and precise, his steps barely leaving imprints on the broken battlefield.
He had forced Sera back—if only for a moment.
And that was enough.
His espera was nearly depleted—his body felt it, his mind felt it. He couldn’t keep this up.
Seizing the opportunity, he dashed backward, activating [Six Thoughtful Steps of the Spirits], his movements so fluid that it seemed as if the wind itself carried him.
The battlefield turned eerily silent for a second, as if acknowledging his brief victory—until Sera’s furious growl cut through the air.
A low, guttural sound, brimming with frustration.
Her voice, dark and commanding, cut through the air:
“Come forth…”
Her hands weaved intricate demonic sigils in the air. The symbols pulsed, each stroke carrying a deep, unnatural resonance.
A fissure ripped open beneath her feet.
From its depths—
Something ancient stirred.
HISSSSSSS—
A thirteen-meter monstrosity slithered forth.
Its obsidian scales gleamed, lined with veins of pulsating venom, its six golden eyes brimming with malice.
The sheer force of its arrival ruptured the ground, the impact sending jagged cracks splintering outward. Its massive coils crushed the battlefield beneath its weight, sinking into the shattered terrain.
A toxic mist hissed forth, its ghostly tendrils curling and seeping into the air, carrying the sharp scent of decay.
Its tail whipped toward Oliver with terrifying speed, a dark blur slicing through the chaotic backdrop.
Fast. Too fast.
Oliver barely saw it before—
Crack!
A sickening snap echoed as the tail slammed into his ribs.
Pain—sharp, all-consuming pain—tore through him.
“Aarghh-!!”
Oliver couldn’t help but scream, his voice raw, torn from his throat in agony.
He coughed, violently, a thick gush of blood spilling past his lips, staining the ground below. Each breath became a jagged knife in his chest.
The sheer power of the blow sent him airborne, his body twisting uncontrollably, limbs flailing as he tumbled like a broken marionette.
And then—
Boom!
He slammed onto the rocky ground, the jarring impact rattling his bones and igniting new waves of pain throughout his body
A low groan escaped his lips. His vision pulsed, fading in and out as blood pooled between his teeth.
Oliver, possessing an exorcist’s physique capable of withstanding forces that would obliterate ordinary people, now found himself pinned beneath the weight of his own agony.
One could see the disparity in strength. Even when fighting Sera, someone a rank above him, he had not been wounded this badly—yet a single strike from this monster had nearly broken him.
Dazed and gasping, he fought to push himself up, his vision warped, swimming in and out of darkness.
His head buzzed, a relentless ringing in his ears. His tongue felt thick, his saliva heavy with the metallic taste of blood.
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Slither!
Slither!
A shadow loomed.
The serpent moved.
And then—
Boom!
It disappeared.
Only to reemerge—beneath him.
‘Ugh—!’
Oliver’s eyes widened.
His muscles screamed in protest, but he rolled away at the last possible second.
A dark, scaled body erupted from the earth, massive jaws snapping shut just inches from where he had been.
His heart pounded violently.
Too close.
He had nearly been eaten alive.
The serpent hissed.
Hiss!
The serpent loomed, its shadow swallowing him whole.
Its six golden eyes darted in different directions, scanning, watching, calculating. But Oliver could feel it.
No matter which way he moved—he was already trapped.
His heartbeat pounded, thunderous in his own ears.
For the first time—a genuine, suffocating fear curled in his chest.
He had never felt like this before. Never
The serpent’s maw gaped open, rows upon rows of razor-sharp, elongated teeth glistening with venom.
At the back of its throat—
A colorless crystal pulsed faintly, oozing a viscous, toxic slime.
Its breath reeked of decay.
A chill crept up his spine.
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“How is it?”
“How is it?”
Sera’s voice.
She stood behind the serpent, her expression unreadable.
“No one has ever forced me to call it yet…”
She paused—
Her gaze flickering.
“Except you.”
She traced the serpent’s scales with a languid, contemplative touch.
“My greatest summon… Few have lived after seeing it.”
Her words echoed, sinking deep into the cold air between them.
Yet—
She didn’t sound proud.
She didn’t even look satisfied.
Beneath her calm facade, a storm brewed.
She had summoned her most powerful beast—
And yet…
She couldn’t shake the weight pressing against her chest.
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Her mind whispered, over and over—
‘He actually forced my hand.’
Her breathing steadied, each inhale and exhale measured and deliberate.
She caressed the creature’s rugged armor, her movements unhurried, lost in thought.
She had never experienced such intense, visceral emotions as she had in this short time.
Her mind replayed each moment of their battle.
The feints, the deceptions, the impossibly precise counters.
A human.
A mere human had done this.
She had fought both humans and demons alike, but never someone like him.
And more than anything—
She felt it.
The rush.
The exhilaration.
Each moment, each second burned into her.
The clever feints.
The precise deception.
The unpredictable techniques.
Oliver was unlike any human she had ever fought.
She exhaled slowly.
Had they been equals in strength…
Would she have already lost?
A strange thought crept into her mind—
Was it a pity… that they were not?
No.
She shook the thought away.
It didn’t matter.
It was fate.
She was stronger, and thus she won.
She had met him at this point in time—before he had the chance to surpass her.
And now, it was over.
Everything was coming to an end.
It had to be.
She had achieved what she wanted.
She was now just one step away.
From capturing him.
From taking him back.
From finally ending this battle.
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