Chapter 552 - 553: First Heretic Commander

The commander’s gaze moved between Leon and the three girls, lingering briefly on Violet before returning to the young man.

"Welcome to our island! It’s always a pleasure to receive new people who have managed to reach this place."

Leon remained silent, allowing him to continue.

"We heard about what happened in the [Island Kingdom]," the man said, his expression showing no particular concern. "You destroyed the buildings belonging to the three factions and killed their leaders, didn’t you?"

Emilia raised an eyebrow, surprised by how casually he spoke about the destruction.

The commander simply laughed.

"Don’t worry about it. Those people were never worthy of receiving the blessings of the gods in the first place. They believed that merely worshipping them was enough to make them important, but only those who possess true strength deserve their blessings."

Several heretics behind him nodded in agreement, seemingly sharing his opinion.

"Our gods have chosen us for a reason," the commander continued. "We understand the importance of strength, obedience, and devotion. If you join us, you can receive the same blessings and become far stronger than you are now."

He looked directly at Leon, his smile widening.

"You have already demonstrated considerable strength by reaching this island. Perhaps you are exactly the kind of person our gods wish to welcome."

Leon listened patiently, although he had no intention of accepting the offer.

The commander seemed to interpret his silence as interest and continued explaining how joining the heretics would allow them to receive divine blessings and become part of a powerful organization.

However, Leon eventually interrupted him with a single question.

"Where is the [Heretic King]?"

The commander blinked before laughing.

"He lies at the very center of this island," he answered proudly, gesturing toward the enormous skull in the distance. "If you agree to join us, you can meet him right now and receive a blessing as well!"

Leon smiled, "Alright, let’s do that."

The commander looked pleased, apparently believing that he had successfully convinced the newcomers to join their ranks.

Leon, however, had a completely different reason for agreeing.

If he could reach the [Heretic King] and kill him directly without wasting time fighting the other inhabitants, it would make destroying the remaining villages considerably easier.

He didn’t need to go through everyone right now if the death of their leader caused the entire thing to collapse.

"Excellent!" the commander exclaimed. "But before we proceed, there is one thing you must do."

He raised his hand, causing the heretics behind him to spread out and surround the four newcomers.

"You will need to pledge yourselves to the gods."

Leon tilted his head slightly, "What does that do?"

The commander smiled as though the answer were obvious.

"It removes your powers and ensures that you will obey our orders without hesitation. Once you have pledged yourselves, you will no longer be able to resist the will of the gods."

For a moment, Leon simply stared at him. Then his expression gradually changed.

He couldn’t help smiling, and the more he thought about what the commander had just said, the more difficult it became for him to suppress his laughter.

The commander frowned.

"What seems so funny?" he demanded, his voice growing colder as the divine energy around him began to intensify. The other heretics immediately followed his example, and their beasts growled threateningly. "Are you making fun of the gods?"

"Nah," Leon replied, shaking his head.

His eyes began glowing as he looked at the commander and the surrounding followers.

"I just thought that you guys were very stupid."

SLASH!

Leon moved before anyone could react.

His sword swept through the surrounding heretics, releasing an enormous wave of destructive energy that instantly cut down several followers and their beasts.

Their bodies collapsed across the ground, while the remaining heretics barely managed to understand what had happened.

The commander, however, reacted quickly enough to pull his beast backward, narrowly avoiding the attack.

His expression changed completely.

"You are a fool!" he shouted, staring at Leon with disbelief. "You are attempting to breach through the most dangerous place across all domains!"

Leon smiled, "I think I’ve already gone through harder places."

Eye of Truth!

---

[Heretic Commander #1, Rokhan]

[Level: 100]

[Exclusive Talent: Sea Servant (S-Level)]

[Combat Power: 36,400,000]

[Details: The commander of the outer village of the heretics, he has already alerted the others.]

---

Leon examined the panel for a moment.

Thirty-six million combat power was certainly impressive. However, it wasn’t enough to make Leon reconsider his decision.

Rokhan continued speaking, seemingly convinced that his strength would be enough to intimidate the intruders.

"Your strength is commendable," he said as he raised his hand.

Water gathered around his palm before rapidly condensing into a long spear.

The liquid solidified, forming a weapon that appeared to be made entirely from blue crystal, and the surrounding air became filled with moisture as his power continued rising.

"You managed to kill a dozen of my men instantly, even though each of them possessed around 25 million combat power."

"Just shut up," Leon groaned before launching another attack.

Rokhan’s expression darkened as he deflected the blow with his spear, which exploded, forcing him to summon another.

"...But I know for a fact that you will never defeat the king, as his combat power surpasses 45 million!"

"...!" Leon actually seemed surprised by that information, ’Holy shit? Over 45 million? That guy indeed doesn’t seem beatable.’

Although Leon had expected the [Heretic King] to be powerful, exceeding 45 million combat power was considerably more than he had anticipated.

The three divine blessings had clearly granted the man an extraordinary level of strength.

Rokhan seemed pleased by Leon’s reaction.

"That is the power given by the gods!" he shouted, raising his spear as a massive wave suddenly appeared behind him.

The sea seemed to respond to his command, and an enormous wall of water rose into the air before rushing toward Leon.

The wave was large enough to engulf the surrounding area, and its tremendous pressure threatened to crush everything in its path.

"Now DIE!"

Time Stop!

The world immediately froze.

The massive wave stopped in midair, and Rokhan’s body as well as the beast he rode became motionless as Leon disappeared from his original position.

He quickly moved behind the commander, his sword glowing with overwhelming energy as he prepared to unleash his attack.

Time resumed and...

Eclipse Annihilation!

Hundreds of slashes erupted around Rokhan’s body, filling the surrounding space with destructive sword energy.

The attack struck from every direction, leaving the commander with no opportunity to escape.

Rokhan’s eyes widened as he finally realized what was happening.

A sea barrier instantly formed around his body, using the power of his S-Level talent to protect him from the incoming attack.

However, the barrier couldn’t withstand Leon’s overwhelming strength.

The hundreds of slashes tore through the water, shattering the defense and cutting into Rokhan’s body before he could react.

When time resumed, the massive wave collapsed, and the commander staggered backward as blood spilled from his wounds.

"Y-You... fool... my d-death m-means nothing... in the..."

SLASH!

Leon didn’t even allow him to finish speaking.

His sword swept across the commander’s neck, and Rokhan’s head fell to the ground.

Ding!

[You have killed "Heretic Commander #1, Rokhan" and gained...]

[You have killed x15 "Village Heretic" and gained...]

[You have killed x7 "Heretic Beast" and gained...]

[100% Drop Rate has triggered...]