Chapter 319: Tampering

“The illusion demon Redina resembles a spider. The hardness of its body, strength, speed, and overall physical capabilities far surpass other illusion demons. In terms of just its physical prowess, it’s capable of rivaling equally powerful demonic beasts, while also possessing formidable mental attacks. They have two weaknesses: first, once removed from the void, they struggle to survive in the outside world. Second, although they live as long as a normal human, only during the middle third of their lifespan are they truly active. The first third is spent as an egg, while the final third is devoted to laying eggs.”

After Ashley finished introducing Redina, Vintral asked, “Then they should be extremely rare, right? Are they really willing to spend so much on this exam?”

There were still ten squads remaining, which meant ten Redinas would have to be released.

Ashley answered, “Redinas are not divided between male and female, and all of them can lay eggs. On average, each Redina can lay ten eggs, so they really can’t be considered rare.”

Bart said, “A third spent inside the egg, and a third spent laying eggs? Isn’t that the same as humans?”

Blanche agreed, “Indeed. Humans spend their time from childhood to adulthood learning, and after middle age, they generally continue working to support their children and descendants.”

Karon smiled. “That’s only because your family conditions are good.”

Bart and Blanche both turned to look at Karon. They did not really understand what he meant by that, but no one wanted to argue with him.

He enjoyed reading as a pastime, and quite a few authors had started expressing concern in their works regarding the increasingly fragile family relationships of the present age, especially in the cities. In major urban centers, like York City, this phenomenon was even more pronounced. Parents and their adult children often no longer lived together, and when they interacted, at times they even seemed like strangers, with clear and rigid boundaries dividing them.

Despite this, in the Veynic colonies, this very phenomenon was enthusiastically praised by local literary circles, who regarded an emotional distance between parents and children as natural, correct, and even progressive. This reaction was much the same as how Veynic cuisine was terrible, yet had still become wildly fashionable throughout the colonies.

The reality was that Veyn’s truly upper-class families had always placed great importance on familial bonds, as well as the inheritance of family traditions and culture. Having grown up within such environments since childhood, Bart and Blanche naturally assumed that all families sought to function in this manner.

The appearance of the storm clouds signaled the start of the countdown. Karon gave some directions, quickly repositioning the entire squad.

Vintral remained beneath the storm clouds, but Bart was no longer behind him. Instead, he moved to another flank. Karon decided that since a Redina possessed physical abilities that far surpassed those of ordinary illusion demons, it was unlikely they would be able to pin it down as soon as it appeared, as they had with the previous two targets. As a result, their encirclement strategy could no longer rely on a single interceptor.

Blanche stood behind the two to create an inverted triangle formation.

As for Mars, he activated the Kendos Triple Defensive Array. Three layers of luminous barriers overlapped one another. The sheer visual dominance of the defensive array was enough on its own to offer people an overwhelming sense of security.

“Mars, continue with the Mental Bridge Array, though you now need to pay some attention to the general situation.”

“Yes, Captain. I understand.”

Karon looked at Ashley, who stood beside him. She went ahead and spread both of her arms out again, allowing him to choose. “Ashley, can you tell me which of these demonic beasts is relatively strong?”

“Relatively strong?” Ashley looked down and started searching the totems.

“You need to think about that?” Karon was somewhat surprised.

“Um... it’s because my parents arranged for everything they were able to ask for, regardless of whether it’s useful or useless.”

Hearing this explanation, Karon was very worried that her next answer would be: actually, all of them are pretty weak.

Fortunately, Ashley pointed at a wolf totem on her right arm with her left hand. “Stormwolf Monras! That one’s powerful. It’s the strongest demonic beast my parents have ever handled, but...”

“But what?”

“But even my dad never expected Monras would actually leave its mark on me.”

“Hmm? Don’t these all involve favors?”

“There are. My dad once performed surgery on it...”

“What’s the problem with that?”

“A sterilization.”

Karon fell silent.

“Also, summoning Monras’s projection puts too much of a burden on my soul. On top of that, before I left, my dad specifically reminded me to try to not summon Monras for help unless absolutely necessary, because he’s worried that the reason Monras agreed to leave a mark on me is that it wants to find an opportunity to get revenge on our family.”

“And yet your dad still let it mark you?”

“Every totem they could get, they absolutely did. The most important detail is that my dad told me to say to Monras, when summoning it at the most desperate moment, I can promise it, no, swear in the name of my family, that if it helps me, when I return, my dad will castrate himself.”

“...Ashley, your dad really loves you.”

“Yes, I know.”

“Stay inside the array and rest.”

“Captain, the summons just now didn’t consume much of me—”

“I understand that. If we need you, I’ll come over and help you summon that Stormwolf together. Until then, stay here. You said yourself that Monras is very powerful, so I need you to be in your best condition.”

“Yes, Captain.”

Karon left the array and went over to Blanche. “Blanche, when I’m next to you, focus on enhancing those two. If a problem appears on the frontline, as soon as I go up, you retreat into the array.”

“Yes, Captain!”

Because Redina possessed overwhelming physical capabilities, it was highly likely to employ a more physically aggressive fighting style that stressed picking off enemies one by one.

Finally, another crack opened up within the storm clouds. A gigantic white spider emerged from it, but it did not immediately descend. Instead, its limbs quickly slashed through the air, each one sending out rippling patterns. At the same time, its enormous body shot across the sky.

This meant that Vintral and Bart, who were supposed to be the first line of interception, were already bypassed by the Redina.

The extremely fast Redina appeared above Karon and Blanche, and fell upon them. This demonic beast was highly intelligent, even understanding the importance of eliminating the squad’s supporter first. If Karon had not chosen to stand beside Blanche, she would have faced the Redina’s first attack on her own.

“Retreat!”

“Yes, Captain!”

A rapid stream of Arts that Karon had memorized ran through his mind. At his current level, the restrictions his realm placed on the Arts he used was becoming increasingly irrelevant. Normally speaking, the realm that one needed to possess to use a given Art was not a hard rule, but more of a rough standard based on the average strength of people with that realm. In reality, although Karon was currently an Inquisitor, his true strength had long since surpassed what an Inquisitor should possess.

However, he was not used to using Arts that he had studied during meals in actual combat, simply because the Darkmoon Blade and the Sea God’s Armor were too useful. One specialized in overwhelming offense, while the other offered overwhelming defense. When fighting, those two combined allowed Karon to discard all unnecessary burdens and fight in the most efficient way possible.

This time, he had to make some changes.

Karon crouched down and slapped one hand to the ground. It trembled, and black flames burst out from the gaps between the tiles. Just as the Redina descended halfway, Karon rose back to his feet as towering pillars of black fire erupted around him.

Seeing this, one of the Redina’s legs detached and shot away. Its body abruptly accelerated through the air, not only dodging Karon’s attack, but also moving towards Blanche along a curved trajectory as she retreated to the defensive array.

It was still determined to attack Blanche.

Karon’s left eye turned a deep black as the power of Order was amplified. As he stretched out a hand towards the Redina, and the surging pillars of black fire that surrounded him shifted direction to twist towards the demonic beast.

The Redina’s eyes darted about. Between being attacked and striking its own target, it made its decision almost instantly. It still chose to attack Blanche.

She also sensed danger rushing towards her from behind. She had obeyed the captain’s order and already fled towards the ritual array as soon as she heard her orders, but as a priest with relatively weak physical abilities and little skill in close combat, she had already lost any chance to defend herself. The moment you choose to expose your back to the enemy, you also abandon any opportunity for self-defense, unless you had something more to rely on.

Blanche could only place her hopes on her captain to intercept the Redina in time.

Karon’s left hand rose.

Boom! A sharp black cone spiked up from the floor tiles, aimed directly at the Redina.

Seeing this, the demonic beast hesitated briefly, but quickly severed another leg. It again gained a sudden burst of speed and shot forward once more. It bypassed the enormous black cone and continued towards Blanche.

Its objective was extremely clear: eliminate one opponent first.

This Redina’s intelligence was clearly far beyond that of the Meka or the Zoge. Karon even suspected that the organizers had deliberately adjusted the difficulty for his squad and assigned them a higher-grade Redina in retaliation for the stunt he had pulled at the start of the exam. After all, with ten Redinas, there was no doubt some difference in quality between them. This was a gray area that was entirely under the organizers’ control, and there was no way to review or appeal such a thing. Just as everything was allowed after the participants passed through the security inspection, whatever under-the-table manipulations the organizers conducted behind the scenes could similarly not count as them violating the rules.

Although the demonic beast’s momentum was briefly obstructed by the cone, the Redina was descending upon Blanche once more.

The Eye of Order in Karon’s left eye grew even more pronounced as he opened his right hand. As that happened, the pillars of black fire exploded, and a gigantic hand extended from within the flames.

Karon did not risk trying to grab the creature, as it might very well dodge again. Not only that, even if he did catch it, he might not be able to instantly burn it to death, which might allow it to break free once more.

Thus, Karon chose the safest method. He scissored the fingers of his right hand together and flicked them sharply to the side. The gigantic black hand of flames mirrored the motion.

Smack! With a crisp sound, the Redina was sent flying.

Very little time had passed since the Redina had first emerged from the crack, but by slapping it away, Karon managed to buy some time for his squad. Vintral and Bart managed to reposition themselves and reset the defensive line. This time, they would not ignore the possibility that the Redina could move through the air. It would now be very difficult for it to completely bypass them again.

Very quickly, they were entangled in battle.

Karon rubbed his hand. The back of it was now red, and it burned. “That really is... inconvenient.”

If he could freely use the Darkmoon Blade and the Sea God’s Armor, he would have simply charged the creature earlier, and smashed the Redina to the ground. He would have chased it and smashed it.

After reaching the array, Blanche spun back around to observe the battle’s current situation. However, Karon had not given her any further orders, so for a moment, she was also unsure of whether she should step out again. After all, using Arts from within the ritual array would drastically weaken their effects.

Vintral grew still larger. He raised both arms, bringing up two Protective Walls in an attempt to pin the illusion demon in place. The Redina evaded Vintral’s grasp, and when Bart cut in from an angle to launch his own attack, the Redina fired a red beam from its eyes.

Bart avoided the beam, but while he was not struck, the red beam blasted next to him, and then turned into strands that twined around his body. Bart’s eyes instantly started growing red. Clearly, he was affected mentally.

Karon appeared, and he cast Purification on Bart six times in succession. Although each one quickly shattered, each one was still able to win Bart intermittent moments of clarity, which helped him to leave the area affected by the attack.

“Captain, I’m good!” Bart looked at Karon. There was no forced bravado to be seen.

Bart closed his eyes, and black runes started to manifest on his face and neck. These were the result of runes that were carved onto his bones overflowing with power.

“Bart, this isn’t the decisive battle! Stop!”

Bart opened his eyes. He had been preparing to use a secret technique that would draw out the power of the runes within his body, helping him to temporarily block the mental interference. In that state, he would also gain greater combat strength. However, the moment Karon told him to stop, Bart terminated the process.

Karon had no intention of letting Bart consume a secret technique, only to collapse unconscious afterward. After the Redina, there was still the Psyen, and after the Psyen, a divine artifact that might appear. Yet after releasing a large burst of heightened power, Bart would simply become a burden to the rest of the squad.

Since they were fighting as a squad, they needed to use the most balanced and efficient tactics possible.

It was precisely because Karon was able to keep Bart under control that Bart did not lose his temper. If anyone else had been his captain, Bart would not have stopped when so ordered. Young people who got carried away were the hardest to rein in.

Vintral was still tangling with the Redina, but given the illusion demons’ exceptional agility, the man looked as clumsy as an elephant trying to swat a fly. Every attack he attempted looked fierce and imposing, yet he never managed to pin the Redina down. Instead, the demonic beast found two opportunities to counterattack. Vintral dodged the first, but the second opened up three bleeding marks on his back from claws.

If his body were not already petrified, that single blow would have left him seriously wounded and eliminated him from the fight.

Vintral was also getting carried away. After letting out an angry roar, his body actually began taking on a reddish hue, and he still showed that he wanted to charge the Redina to fight it head-on.

Karon appeared in front of Vintral, blocking his charge. “Fall back and cast purification on yourself! You, in particular, cannot be corrupted!”

The corruption in Vintral’s body was merely under control due to Tiz’s efforts, as well as Vintral’s own, or rather, it had formed a kind of dynamic equilibrium with him. Under this equilibrium, he could turn that corruption into something that could assist him, but this did not mean that since he had already been corrupted, he could ignore other corruption. In fact, if new corruption infiltrated his body, the equilibrium that had been established would be broken, and the backlash would be far more severe.

Vintral raised both arms, as though wanting to express his dissatisfaction at Karon stopping him, but his eyes regained their clarity in an instant. He slowly lowered his arms and retreated to follow his orders. Bart was afraid of Karon, while Vintral carried a sort of reverence that surpassed Bart’s fear.

When Karon turned back to the Redina again, it no longer dared to attempt another surprise attack. It could sense that this person was the strongest of everyone present, and the demonic beast even had a faint premonition that this human had been restraining himself all along and had never revealed his full strength.

However, just because the Redina did not dare to launch another surprise attack did not mean it would stop moving. As the other two men were retreating to stabilize their conditions, the Redina also tried to pull back while harassing Karon. Red beams continuously shot at him.

Karon needed to stay close to the Redina, which made it afraid to attack Bart or Vintral. That caused Karon to be struck by a sweeping red beam.

Mental attacks truly had little effect on him. His eyes merely took on a slight bit of red before the color was overwhelmed by the Eye of Order.

Yet it was this brief contact that allowed Karon to sense an abnormality. The Redina’s mental attack was certainly strong, but it also felt extremely chaotic. When mental powers were used to attack others, it was actually also a moment when the attacker presented their own mental state to their target. Why is it like this? When it attacked Blanche earlier, it seemed so decisive and steady, so why is its mind in such chaos now? This isn’t panic... so what is it?

Karon wiped his fingertips across both eyes, and an Order prism appeared before him. This was a low-level detection Art, and it revealed that the Redina was suffering from various unusual conditions and was not in a stable state at all.

“Ashley, check the Redina’s condition!”

“Yes, Captain!” Still standing inside the array, Ashley placed an index finger between her eyes. A clear light began circulating in them. This was an Art specifically used to investigate the condition of demonic beasts. She helped her parents in the research institute to prepare daily physical reports on the physical conditions of the demonic beasts they were working on, so she naturally knew this Art.

“Captain, there are problems with every aspect of its body, blood, and mental state. I suspect—”

Before Ashley could finish, Karon shouted at Vintral and Bart, “Break contact! Retreat into the array!”

“Yes, Captain!”

“Yes, Captain!”

Vintral and Bart immediately retreated, and Karon fell back behind them. Seeing this, the Redina wanted to press the attack and continue harassing the people, but because Karon was the one covering the rear, and because he pointedly raised his right hand, the illusion beast was deterred from its pursuit.

Once everyone was back inside the defensive array, the Redina started launching continuous attacks against it. However, the Kendos Triple Defensive Array that Mars had set up had no particular advantages aside from its exceptionally strong defenses. The array showed nothing more than ripples when struck by multiple waves of attack, and then stabilized again. Overall, it remained completely solid.

Karon turned to check on the other squads. In some areas, Redinas were already restrained, clearly indicating that their squads had been eliminated. Other squads were being completely overwhelmed by their Redina, and elimination was simply a matter of time.

As for Squad 1 and 7, they were fighting long, arduous battles against their Redinas.

At present, the quietest stage belonged to Squad 3, because they had set up a sturdy defensive array.

This was an advantage that others might envy, but would struggle to imitate. First, they would need to deliberately free enough time and energy for their array master to complete the ritual array, and second... the squad needed to have a professional array master present.

Bart asked, “Captain, we’re not attacking anymore?”

Karon nodded. “We’re not attacking for now. We’ll wait for the drugs to wear off.”

“Drugs?” Bart and Vintral looked completely bewildered.

Karon hid his left hand inside his sleeve and summoned the Cube Key as he helped Mars reinforce and maintain the array. At the same time, he kept his eyes locked on the Redina outside, which was still searching for any opening. “Can you believe it... they actually pumped every one of these Redinas full of stimulants.”