Sword of Salvation-Chapter 111: - Battle; Pawn and Bishop (2)

The spell was originally designed to fuse other sacred weapons into the Sword of Salvation by drawing pure energy from the spirit as a unifying force.

However, anticipating that the wielder of the Sword of Salvation might not be able to fully draw their spirit’s power, Ruthlemia had modified the spell so that the user could enter unification mode without being acknowledged by the spirit.

The incantation "I’m the void of the world" had appeared in Mariel’s mind when he activated the spell. It reflected his spirit’s power. If Celinee had used the spell, her incantation would have been different. The spell automatically provided Mariel with the appropriate words. 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

However, since this spell forcibly extracted the spirit’s power, it came with a risk.

After using this forced power, the user’s body would be pushed beyond its limits. The mildest consequence would be Mariel losing consciousness for a while. The worst-case scenario—he could die. But Ruthlemia had added another spell within the sword, so Mariel didn’t need to worry about the worst-case outcome.

"Khahahahahahahaha."

Rahvada’s laughter echoed through the air. Mariel ignored him. He was too busy analyzing the difference between his current state and his normal self. Aside from the immense energy amplifying his strength and speed, the only notable change was the gray aura surrounding his skin. As for his abilities... the information seemed to be flooding into his mind.

"Your unification mode feels different from the usual ones," Rahvada said after his laughter faded. "There’s no change in your appearance at all. Or is it not unification mode? Do you have another ability that boosts your strength?"

Mariel could only theorize that it was because his unification mode was unnatural—or incomplete.

"But that doesn’t matter," Rahvada continued, clenching both fists. "You may be stronger than me in this form, but that won’t change anything. You’re still going to die."

As soon as he said that, the black skeleton behind Rahvada let out a deafening roar. Instantly, skeletal monsters emerged in front of Rahvada. They were identical to the one behind him, only smaller, and they all had legs.

All the black skeletons charged at Mariel simultaneously.

However, before they could take their third step, they were all obliterated—every single one of them. Mariel had already launched his attack on Rahvada. Two wind swords, coated with spatial barriers, had formed in his hands. In mere milliseconds, he was already in front of Rahvada, aiming one of his swords at his opponent’s neck.

Rahvada was unfazed by Mariel’s sudden speed. He used his left arm to deflect Mariel’s wind sword. The red chains wrapped around his arm prevented the blade from injuring him. At the same time, the black skeleton’s hands lashed out at Mariel with red whips.

Mariel ignored the whips. They would never reach him.

In his current state, nothing could touch Mariel. There was an infinite distance between him and everything else. Even if someone was just one centimeter away, that one centimeter would never become zero. It would stretch into infinity. No matter how hard someone tried to hit him, they never could.

However, Mariel could strike others freely. Because of that, he had no reason to focus on anything but offense. He unleashed a flurry of slashes. Rahvada, who had previously been confident—especially after shattering Mariel’s spatial barrier—was now overcome with confusion.

Unfortunately, Mariel still couldn’t break the red chains binding Rahvada’s arms and legs. Meanwhile, Rahvada—despite being stronger—couldn’t land a single hit. They were at a stalemate. Whoever ran out of stamina or prana first would lose.

"So, no matter how strong I am, no matter if this red whip can directly pull out your soul upon contact, no matter how many chains I use, no matter how many skeleton monsters I summon... none of it matters if I can’t even hit you, huh?"

Mariel smirked at Rahvada’s frustration but said nothing. He dispelled both wind swords and pressed his palms together. If he couldn’t break through the red chains, if he couldn’t remove the restraints binding Rahvada, he had only one option—his deadliest technique.

"No matter how strong someone is," Mariel said, "as long as they need to breathe, they can be defeated."

Rahvada didn’t understand how Mariel intended to beat him. Mariel could nullify the miasma skeletons and chains, but he couldn’t erase the skeletal entity behind Rahvada or the chains binding his limbs. Meanwhile, Rahvada would win the moment Mariel let his guard down. So, Rahvada had no idea what—

"—?!"

Shock washed over Rahvada’s face.

Now he understood why Mariel had said, as long as they need to breathe. Rahvada instinctively held his breath and jumped back. But he still couldn’t inhale. He tried once—his lungs immediately felt like they were bursting. His throat tightened. His energy weakened.

He held his breath and tried to escape, but his body collapsed after just a few dozen meters. The attempt to breathe had been a fatal mistake. He was no longer in origin mode. The miasma skeleton behind him had vanished. His vision blurred, and darkness crept in.

He needed air, but his lungs would explode if he tried. Rahvada cursed Mariel in his mind. He hadn’t expected the brat to use such a cheap trick. His comrades would laugh at him if they found out he died because he couldn’t breathe.

Rahvada Sakha, one of the strongest members of World Order, defeated by someone weaker than him... and dying in the most pathetic way imaginable.

Rahvada wanted to bury his face in shame. But he lacked the strength. His chest felt like it was caving in. His veins burned. And before he realized it, he had lost consciousness.

Mariel restored the air to its normal state as soon as he could no longer hold his breath. He immediately fell to his knees, exhaling the breath he had been holding. A wave of relief washed over his entire body. However, he had no time to relax. He had only managed to hold his breath for five minutes, so he needed to make sure Rahvada was truly dead.

Still in his forced unification mode, Mariel stood up and walked toward Rahvada. However, his feet stopped abruptly when a hooded man in a black robe suddenly appeared beside Rahvada. The stranger lifted Rahvada’s body and placed him over his shoulder. Then, he slightly turned his head back, but Mariel couldn’t see his face.

"The sword you just used... that was the Sword of Salvation, wasn’t it?"

Mariel struggled to keep his expression neutral. But he failed. His eyes widened slightly. That question implied that the man had been watching his battle with Rahvada from the very beginning.

This was dangerous; Mariel couldn’t let him leave with that knowledge.

Without answering the man’s question, Mariel attacked immediately. Both of his hands now gripped wind swords once more.

However, before Mariel’s blade could reach its target, the man vanished in a burst of red and black lightning. Mariel’s wind sword slashed through nothing but empty air. Even though Mariel had moved incredibly fast, the man had disappeared even faster. Mariel couldn’t see him anywhere. It was as if he had teleported away.

"Could he be Siegra Vermalloven?"

Mariel frowned. He had made a mistake in his plan this time. He hadn’t expected Rahvada to be that strong. Now, both World Order and Great Human Council knew that the Sword of Salvation was in his hands. Mariel worried that they would come after him as a group.

However, for now, he had no time to dwell on that. He needed to find a safe place to deactivate the spell that was enhancing him. He wouldn’t die from its effects, but he wouldn’t be able to defend himself if someone attacked him in this state. That was Mariel’s priority right now.