“Haa… Haa… Haa…”
Hugging the invisible sword in her arms, Angelina dashed into the deep tunnel without looking back. She was so anxious that she felt an illusion of pain from rapidly breathing. As an undead creature, she didn’t need to breathe at all. But now, she felt as though she had restored her flesh and blood, like a living creature. But now, she wasn’t in the leisure mood to care about that. She sprinted desperately, and her wings could no longer flap. Even though that attack earlier didn’t hit her, the freezing current brushed past her and damaged her wings severely. At that moment, her flat, sleek wings seemed as though they had been through countless storms, fluttering behind her like a tattered curtain. It was a ghastly sight that pained one.
“Phew…”
After sprinting for a long time, Angelina slowed down her pace and held onto the wall for support, turning back to confirm that nothing was pursuing her. Although she felt relieved, she didn’t let her guard down yet. She gripped the sword, scanned around her cautiously, and continued advancing.
If it were possible, Angelina hoped to use this sword in battle. As a descendant of an ancient vampire family, she possessed their unique swordsmanship. Besides, she also clearly felt the energy accumulating on that invisible sword. If she were to wield the sword, she would be stronger in battles at the very least. But it was a pity that even though this sword allowed her to hug it, everything else was off limits. Angelina tried wielding the sword as a weapon and hung it on her waist, but either her head or arm was slashed off afterward. With no other choice, Angelina could only embrace the sword in her arms.
“Sigh… Seems like I can only rely upon myself now. I wonder how much farther I have to walk. I sure hope I don’t face any more forks ahead…”
Angelina soliloquized as she proceeded ahead, taking light, nimble steps like a specter drifting across the air. Fortunately, as though her prayer were answered, there weren’t any forks like before or winding tunnels that led to dead-ends. On the contrary, she was glad that after sauntering across flat paths for a long time, she realized the slopes were starting to incline upward, which meant that she was getting closer to the surface and wasn’t heading farther to the underground. Frankly, Angelina was terrified that what awaited her at the end of this tunnel was an even more deadly underground prison. She was no match for the Undead Skeletal Dragon earlier. If she faced another foe who was more powerful, she would undoubtedly be instant-killed.
After some time, Angelina finally saw something she yearned for a long time—a sealed, heavy stone door. It emanated a faint magical radiance and was seemingly enhanced by powerful sealing spells. If Angelina didn’t guess it wrongly, this should be the exit of this damn underground maze. As for how she should open the stone door, she didn’t give it much thought. She gazed subconsciously at the transparent sword that was bound by green, flickering spiritual light. Up until that moment, she didn’t know what its origin was. However, since it possessed self-consciousness and was found in this deep underground maze, it should more or less possess some ways around the seals.
And just as Angelina thought, the moment she approached the stone door. The faint radiance circling the invisible sword grew intense. Shortly after, the stone door in front of her emanated a similar brilliance. In a series of rumbles, the stone door opened gradually. Glacial steam escaped the gap, blowing on Angelina’s cheeks. The petite vampire braced herself up instantly. She stared with wide, blood-red eyes at what was behind the door. But apart from a natural grotto, there didn’t seem to be any dangers. After ensuring there was nothing except her around, she shuttled into the stone door like a wild animal, swiftly concealing herself into the nearest shadow. She turned and instantly scanned her surroundings. At that moment, the wide-open stone door beside her creaked as it closed itself.
Boom.
The stone door closed and the pitch-black cave restored its peace. However, Angelina didn’t move off right away. She remained hidden in the darkness, holding her breath as she scanned the place. As a vampire who had gotten herself into dangers and pursuits in the past, Angelina was an expert in this field. She wasn’t that foolish to fall into any avoidable dangers. Due to that reason, even though she was in an extremely unfavorable environment, she had ways to protect herself with her meticulous behavior.
After several hours and confirming there was nothing lurking in the darkness, Angelina strolled out of the shadows. She took a glance at the stalactites above, before metamorphosing into a shadow and zoomed ahead.
There were no traces of anything man made in the paths ahead. At a glance, she was inside a natural mountain cave. But this time, she wasn’t stupefied by winding tunnels and forks. With a clear target and without the restrictions of the green spirit boulders, she could take advantage of her abilities to effortlessly overcome obstacles.
Just ahead. It’s just ahead. I’m almost there!
At this thought, Angelina smelled the scent of soil in the wind. She had never been so agitated. She subconsciously picked up her pace and agilely passed through the natural cave. At the next moment, the petite vampire sprung up abruptly, changing into a bat that flew across the cave. The gloomy cave was finally disappearing from her sight! And what presented before her was the long-awaited…
“Wha—?”
After restoring her human form and landing on her feet, Angelina wasn’t as joyous as she imagined. On the contrary, she gazed at the sky dubiously. Her scarlet eyes glinted in confusion.
In her memories, the sky hovering above the Country of Darkness was boundless, pitch-black, and beautiful. The red, full moon was as dazzling and mesmerizing as a shining diamond, and it left a deep impression on her. It had always been that way since the Country of Darkness was born. But now, what unveiled before Angelina was nothing like that picturesque view. On the contrary, the sky seemed as though someone had mixed black and white paint together and violently smeared it onto an originally heavenly canvas. Just the sight of it was enough disgust one. The revulsion felt so distinct that it succeeded in wiping out the trace of happiness from escaping the dark underground in Angelina. Not only that, but also the moment she gazed at the sky, she had this thought—perhaps it might be better to remain underground.
This was totally unprecedented and unimaginable for the Angelina from a few seconds ago. She thought that as long as she left the underground, she could do anything. She didn’t expect to be disappointed so soon.
“What exactly is going on?”
Angelina shifted her gaze away from the bizarre night sky. After staring at it for some time, she felt a little giddy, and she couldn’t distinguish between sky and ground. At that moment, she stood on a path that was half-way up a barren mountain. One thing she felt fortunate about was that the cave exit led to safety outside the Darkness Capital. From her perspective, the entire Darkness Capital was shrouded in a pitch-dark barrier, which meant that Ion had no intention of stopping the Dark Curtain, the ultimate defensive mechanism. She wasn’t surprised by it. Instead, she was stunned by the scene around her.
It was total chaos outside the Darkness Capital. Blazing flames, death, and ruins spread across the land as though terrifying monsters had devastated the region. It made Angelina feel like she was in hell. The aura of death and disorder and the putrid smell of blood blended into one like a magical concoction prepared by a witch. Everything was thrown in the huge pot and stirred vigorously. No one could recognize its original shape.
“… Master, can you hear me? Master?”
After confirming that she left the envelopment of the pitch-black curtain, Angelina contacted Rhode using the spiritual communication. But what was weird was that even though she had gone away, she still couldn’t reach Rhode properly. She barely sensed Rhode’s position. The signals she sent were unclear and also disrupted. Not only that, but Angelina also didn’t know whether Rhode heard her.
It seems like the problem doesn’t only stem from the Dark Curtain.
At this thought, Angelina shook her head and turned to the other side.
Since I can’t reach His Majesty Rhode, I’m only left with one choice.
