Chapter 326: A Flash Of Light

Leon froze and immediately jumped backward.

The head of a great serpent dangled from the ceiling, its enormous body hidden in the darkness. Its blue eyes narrowed as it scanned him, and its thin lips curved slightly.

"An alien was allowed into this world? Hmm..."

Leon’s expression hardened as he heard the serpent speak again, and he finally confirmed that it could indeed speak.

He glanced at the Heart again.

’If I teleport over there and grab it, then slip back into the shadows, I can escape. However...’

He turned his gaze back to the serpent—specifically the red soul crystal on its forehead.

He didn’t need anyone to tell him what that meant.

’Tier Four.’

The serpent continued staring at him, then hummed. "Very strange. Does your kind not speak? Or are you actually thinking you can still... escape?"

Leon’s eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"

"Oh, so you can speak." The serpent chuckled, its tongue flashing. "You probably think you can escape with a spatial ability, don’t you? I’ve seen that look in your eyes. It won’t work."

Leon frowned and activated Minor Teleportation.

Nothing.

His eyes widened in shock. He felt his mana drain, but nothing happened. Somehow, the space around him had been locked.

’Spatial lock or something? Damnit.’

He shot another glance at the Heart, then turned back to the serpent.

"You’re a Tier Four beast. Why are you protecting something that belongs to the Vaelari?"

Hearing his question, the serpent hummed. "The Vaelari? The Heart of our world does not belong to them. It belongs to everyone. I’m only guarding it to ensure evildoers like you can’t reach it."

Leon managed to roll his eyes. "Evildoer? You’re definitely mistaken."

The serpent hissed, probably its own version of a laugh.

"You amuse me, alien," It said. "Don’t worry, I will tell that king to keep you alive so you can entertain me occasionally."

Leon scowled. "You’re on some twisted shit, aren’t you? Sorry, but I don’t do beasts."

The serpent blinked, aghast. "Alien, I definitely didn’t mean what you’re thinking."

Leon rolled his eyes. "Yeah, ri—"

Boom!

The main entrance to the shrine exploded as a gaunt figure stepped through. King Jared merely glanced at the serpent before his gaze fell on Leon.

"A non-Vaelari...? You must be one of those alien species reported to me. A human."

Leon sized up the new arrival, his expression dark. The man’s body radiated immense power, leaving him tense and wary.

’He’s definitely peak Tier Three. Nothing less.’

Forming a strained smile, Leon replied politely. "You heard of me? I’m flattered."

The serpent turned its head to him. "Really?"

Leon shot it a glare. "No."

King Jared stepped forward, his gaze sharp. "So you harmed my daughter and came here to steal something."

"No?" Leon tilted his head. "Technically, she harmed herself by lying and I only came here to obtain something, not steal it."

The serpent tilted its head, confused. "So you’re not a thief?"

Leon nodded. "Yes. I’m an obtainer man."

The king scowled, irritated. "You shouldn’t even be talking at the moment. First, let me cripple you."

Leon’s eyes narrowed. "You really don’t believe me? I’m just here to hold it. Once I do that for a few seconds, I’ll drop it and we can call it a truce."

"Not happening," King Jared spat, pulling out a large battle-axe from his storage ring.

"Sigh. You leave me no choice, then." Leon sighed and took out a torch from his storage ring.

The king paused, wary. Could that thing really give a Tier One human the confidence to beat a Tier Three being?

Leon’s expression became indifferent as he said to the king. "Since you’re hell-bent on being a dickhead, don’t blame me for the possible destruction of your entire race."

With that, he switched on the torch, directly aiming it at the man’s eyes. The king squinted against the sudden brightness, then watched as the torch fell to the ground.

’What?’

Looking around, he realized Leon was nowhere to be found.

"Where did he go?!"

The serpent replied, its voice grim. "He sank into his own shadow. I didn’t expect that."

Livid, the king immediately turned around and stormed out of the shrine.

"Guard the Heart with your life. I’m going to find him and end him."

Meanwhile, Leon escaped back into the underground drainage, and immediately headed for the secret passage connecting the princess’s room to the castle walls.

A few minutes later, he made it outside and immediately ran into two soldiers on patrol duty. Without hesitation, they attacked him.

Leon flashed past them, and their heads flew into the air. He shook the blood off his hands and sprinted, dashing through the buildings and heading for the inner city’s gate.

It didn’t take long for the alarms to sound and he was quickly spotted. Several Vaelari guards began chasing him, and he switched to jumping from roof to roof.

Several ranged abilities rained down on him, but he was faster than them all and easily dodged. Many houses were destroyed in the process, but it wasn’t like he cared.

’I should reach the gate in less than a mi—’

Suddenly, his hair stood on end, and he felt like he was going to die. Turning back mid-run, he saw the Vaelari King flying through the air straight at him.

Leon’s expression changed. He immediately increased his pace, but was still no match for the man.

The large battle-axe quickly came down upon him. Gritting his teeth, Leon took out his spear and turned around to block.

Clang! BOOOM!!!

The building beneath him was razed to the ground, and the surrounding buildings collapsed from the shockwave.

King Jared’s expression changed when he realized he hadn’t actually crushed the human. Leon had managed to escape again.

"HUMAN!!!"

He bellowed and immediately shot into the air, scanning the area. When he finally spotted the human again, it was in the outer city.

The man immediately locked onto him and shot forward.

Sensing danger again, Leon turned around with his spear, ready to use the block-and-run strategy again.

However, he had barely even turned when the battle-axe dug into his shoulder, even partially slicing into his shoulder bone.

He gasped in pain as he shifted, narrowly avoiding his entire arm being cut off. As he rolled to the ground, he didn’t hesitate to use Shadow Teleportation again.

His body disappeared into his shadow, leaving King Jared enraged. The man growled and muttered to a device hanging from his collar.

"Lock down the city. No one is leaving until he’s dead."