C16 Despair! Darkness! Hatred!!

At the rear of Thvelond, the courtyard loomed in the distance.

"Bang!"

Zopyrus, heedless of anything else, kicked the wooden gate of the courtyard into splinters.

"You're asking for death!"

A sudden roar, primal and fierce, reverberated through the courtyard.

Zopyrus's gaze fixed on the scene before him, his eyes bloodshot, veins nearly bursting.

Inside, Judas had pinned Kallisto to the table where they typically dined, intent on committing a vile act.

Kallisto was unconscious, likely knocked out by Judas. Her dress was disheveled, revealing her snow-white arms, while her torn skirt exposed her long, elegant legs.

Judas, who had been pressing Kallisto down, saw Zopyrus burst in and his face twisted in panic. He turned to leap over the wall and escape.

"Damn you!" Zopyrus bellowed, his black hair standing on end, his face contorted like a demon unleashed from hell.

He pulled a small cauldron from his chest, its surface a blend of white and jade. Enlarging it instantly, he hurled this hidden weapon directly at Judas.

The Immortal Cauldron was formidable, a mysterious artifact that Clements had stolen to fortify Zopyrus's physique. It could change size at will, and only Zopyrus could wield it.

As the Immortal Cauldron expanded, it loomed like a small mountain, casting a shadow over Judas as the world around them grew dim.

"Zopyrus, you can't kill me! My brother is Licinius, the Young Lord of Nirvana. If you kill me, you'll trigger the Epic Great War!" Judas shrieked in terror, his voice quivering on the edge of tears.

But Zopyrus was unmoved. The Immortal Cauldron descended with the fury of a thunderclap, shrouded in Void Mist.

"No!"

In a desperate move, Judas yanked Kallisto's slender form in front of him, using her as a shield against the Immortal Cauldron.

"Crash!"

In that instant, Zopyrus felt his heart wrench. With raw power, he twisted his body and, with a thunderous crash, he and the Immortal Cauldron collided with the courtyard's corner, narrowly missing Kallisto and Judas.

"Hahaha, you little calf, you nearly scared me to death. Get on your knees!" Judas's face was ashen as he erupted into laughter, his fingers tightening around Kallisto's pale neck, slowly increasing the pressure.

"Bam!"

Without a second thought, Zopyrus, clutching the Immortal Cauldron, dropped to his knees before Judas.

"Please, let Kallisto go, I'm begging you!" Tears streamed down his face. He couldn't bear the thought of losing Kallisto; she was his entire world.

"Bam!"

A foot slammed into Zopyrus's face as Judas sneered, "Is that the look of someone begging? What's wrong, little mouse brother?"

Judas's laughter echoed as his fine boots ground Zopyrus's face into the dirt. Agony ripped through him as his face tore open, the excruciating pain obliterating all other thoughts.

"I said no one would ever step on my face again!"

With a ferocious roar, Zopyrus's jaws clamped down on Judas's calf.

"Ah!"

A blood-curdling scream tore through the air as Judas howled in agony, his calf torn by Zopyrus's bite. In pain, he let go of Kallisto's neck, stumbling backward until he collapsed onto the ground.

"Die!" Zopyrus bellowed, the Immortal Cauldron expanding in his hands, dispersing the Void Mist as it hurtled toward Judas.

In a flash, without even a scream, the demonic prodigy was no more. Smashed into a pulp by the Immortal Cauldron, not even his body remained intact.

"Die, die, die, ah!" Zopyrus, fueled by rage, repeatedly slammed the Immortal Cauldron down onto Judas's remains. Blood splattered, staining his face a gruesome red, as if he were possessed by a demon.

Exhausted, his arms aching and powerless to lift the Immortal Cauldron any longer, Zopyrus finally ceased his frenzied assault.

Staring at the thick pool of blood before him, Zopyrus's heart quivered with a mix of shock and exhilaration. In that moment, he grasped something intangible yet profound—it was his dignity.

"Are some rats fated never to become cats?" Zopyrus pondered, gazing at the meat paste reeking of blood.

He had managed to kill Judas, turning him into a paste, but Judas was a Fellbeast, merely lured into Thvelond by the Lord's letter.

What if he were to kill an actual disciple of the Thvelond Sect, a human mage? The thought sent a shiver through Zopyrus's heart, and he dared not contemplate it further.

He only knew the moment his dignity was at stake, his blood boiled with fervor.

He had reclaimed a fraction of his dignity, but ultimately, he sought to regain all he had lost.

"Kallisto!" Not sparing another glance at the revolting remains, Zopyrus rushed to her side, frantically checking for breath. Thankfully, she was unharmed, merely unconscious.

Cradling Kallisto's fragile form, Zopyrus seethed with rage. A fierce inferno raged within him, threatening to reduce him to ashes.

Yet, he was at a loss for where to direct this indignation and fury.

Kallisto was safe, but had he been even a moment later, and Judas had defiled her, he would have razed Thvelond to the ground without hesitation.

"Scoundrel, what have you done?" In that instant, an enraged shout pierced the air as a rainbow streaked down from the heavens, landing squarely in the courtyard.

In the nick of time, the noble and righteous Hephaistos arrived, embodying the image of a stern teacher and a caring father.

Upon seeing the pale purple carnage in the corner, Hephaistos's face blanched with rage, his robust frame quaking.

"You... You've killed Judas!" Hephaistos accused, pointing at Zopyrus with trembling fingers, his voice laced with fury.

"No, he tried to defile Kallisto!" Zopyrus bellowed in defense.

"Die, traitor of Thvelond!" Hephaistos thundered, beyond reason. Clutching a golden long blade, he lunged at Zopyrus with lethal intent.

In that moment, Zopyrus realized that Thvelond, the sect he once called home, was his no longer.

"Roar!"

He let out a roar filled with grief and despair, raising the Immortal Cauldron in his hands and slamming it against the long saber wielded by Hephaistos.

"Boom!"

A deafening explosion echoed as a small, sun-like orb rose from behind Thvelond Mountain, only to shatter into nothingness moments later. A terrifying wave of energy rolled out in all directions, like a tempestuous sea.

It ravaged the land, peeling back a thick layer of earth, and reduced the courtyard to mere ashes that vanished into the wind.

Meanwhile, millions of miles away in the sky above Thvelond Mount, Clements, clad in a black robe, surveyed the silent Ten Direction Mountain Range with a dark, foreboding look. A tidal wave of murderous intent swirled around him.

"The Sound Transmission Sword wasn't sent by the Lord!" As he gazed upon the deserted mountains, a sudden realization caused Clements' face to pale, and he hastened his return to Thvelond Mount.

A subtle tremor of unease had taken root in his heart, and the many coincidences and anomalies of recent days weighed heavily on his mind.

The presence of the exceedingly rare Sound Transmission Sword today only served to confirm his suspicions.

Clements didn't know the specifics, but he was certain that something terrible was afoot—of that, there was no question.

With a sense of urgency, he rode the rainbow, cutting through the howling winds at breakneck speed, racing towards Thvelond Mount.

In the dense forests at the foot of Thvelond Mountain.

"Boom!"

A disciple of the Dipl-Mountain unleashed a pale blue sword aura, filled with an unparalleled intent to kill, striking at Zopyrus.

"Whoosh!"

The sword aura passed in a flash, piercing Zopyrus's abdomen. He spat out a mouthful of blood and, clutching Kallisto's body, dashed wildly deeper into the forest without a backward glance.

"Whoosh!" "Whoosh!" "Whoosh!"

In pursuit, more than twenty mages, all with the strength surpassing that of the Dipl-Mountain, followed Hephaistos' lead in a relentless and brutal assault on Zopyrus.

"Boom!"

Hephaistos unleashed his blade aura—a golden arc of destruction that effortlessly cleaved through a swath of towering trees as if they were mere twigs, leaving nothing in its path unscathed.

In a critical moment, Zopyrus clutched Kallisto's body and sprinted diagonally away.

"Puchi!"

A deadly slash struck Zopyrus's calf, causing blood to spray vividly as flesh tore open. Amidst excruciating pain, he collapsed onto the damp earth.

Mud filled his mouth as he coughed up blood, his small frame riddled with wounds, resembling a mouse on the brink of death, tormented by seasoned cats.

Yet, he refused to give in; he would not perish here.

Struggling to his feet, Zopyrus held Kallisto's slender form close and hobbled desperately toward the deeper reaches of the mountain.

"I have to survive, I will survive!" Zopyrus fiercely vowed within.