Why must the devil be Defeated?-Chapter 1102 - 966: Mutual Expectations

Even now, around the Elf Country, countless pairs of eyes are still watching.

They are the magic beings residing in the Taiger Forest, the minions of the newly born [Primordial Demon], or rather, Danas’s servants, constantly monitoring the entire Elf Country for Danas, ready to relay information back at any moment.

Eliminating them is futile.

Even if you eliminate one batch, another will quickly appear to replace them.

As magic beings, as long as there are enough materials, with Danas’s expertise in Biological Creation Magic, he can create as many as he wants.

And the foundation of the [Primordial Demon] is so deep that even if Danas squandered it, it would be difficult to deplete the magic life army under his command in a short time.

If it weren’t for the barrier around the Elf Country already repaired by Nadura, outsiders would not be able to break in without the Elf Clan’s permission. Otherwise, they would have organized wave after wave of invasions, causing the Elves to become exhausted in their response, making it impossible to rebuild their homeland.

With such spies around, even if there is the slightest commotion in the Elf Country, the other side would immediately notice and take action, right?

Therefore, Sophie couldn’t even send people out to support or search for Carol and the others, only able to wait anxiously here.

"Could something have happened to them?"

Sophie couldn’t help but worry.

Nadura consoled Sophie, saying, "Don’t worry too much, maybe they are just having trouble getting past the spies around them and coming in."

When Carol and the others left, the countless magic beings around them must have noticed the spies in place.

However, though Carol is the Deputy Commander of the Elf Corps, she hasn’t reached Legendary level. Even if there was a reaction, the other side wouldn’t likely dispatch very strong or numerous forces to deal with them.

With Carol and the others’ abilities, slipping away before the enemy reacts might not be easy, but it’s not too hard either.

But returning would not be as easy for them.

With so many spies around, once they discover Carol and the others returning, they will surely intervene and even surround them.

Especially when Carol and the others return, they will surely carry those stone tablets with them. If detected, they could face frenzied attacks at all costs.

As such, it’s also possible that Carol and the others have already returned, only troubled by how to get back to the Elf Country.

"I hope that’s the case." Sophie sighed, then turned to Nadura, saying, "If you are okay, with your authority, monitoring the entire Taiger Forest to provide support to Carol and the others should be a piece of cake."

As long as Nadura uses her authority, fusing with nature, becoming one with nature, she could not only monitor the entire Taiger Forest but also guide Carol and the others, helping them return smoothly.

However, unfortunately, Nadura’s current state isn’t very good.

"Demon Danas, I never expected he would have such means." Nadura smiled wryly, "I’m fine, it’s just that a part of my authority was sealed, temporarily preventing me from becoming one with nature itself. Artemis’s situation is more serious."

Upon hearing this, a shadow fell over Sophie’s face.

In the battle against Danas and the others, both Artemis and Nadura suffered significant setbacks.

Nadura was initially suppressed by the sudden outburst of demonic power from Danas and unexpectedly had part of her authority’s power sealed. Artemis was even ambushed by that necromancer hidden in the shadows, sustaining serious injuries directly.

If it weren’t for a Transcendent Level Existence being a formidable threat even when wounded, able to fight and retreat, Artemis might have fallen.

And now, even though nearly a month has passed since that battle, Artemis’s condition still isn’t very good.

As for her injuries, Artemis has basically recovered.

As the top-level Goddess, Artemis has strong life force and recovery abilities. After sufficient healing, she can quickly regain full health under normal circumstances.

The problem is, aside from injuries, Artemis got entangled with another problem.

"Has the death qi inside Artemis still not been removed?"

Sophie brought up the issue.

That’s right.

Artemis was invaded by death qi.

When ambushed and severely injured by that Princess, a large amount of death qi was infused into Artemis’s body, entangling her ever since.

This is no small matter.

Death qi is the absolute nemesis of life qi, capable of absorbing all life force and corroding all creatures.

Once touched by death qi, even a slight mishap could turn one into a dried corpse, dead beyond death.

With her body invaded by death qi, the typical outcome is but one.

That is being completely corroded from the inside out, becoming mere bones.

Though Artemis suppressed the death qi’s erosion with her extraordinary power and the authority of justice and law, she couldn’t expel it from her body.

"I don’t know if it’s because that necromancer transcended or not, but her death qi is not only terrifying in quantity but also in quality, having undergone some metamorphosis. It’s unsure if it was specially refined or due to the effect of the Branch of Resurgence left by the Mother Goddess on earth."

Nadura lowered her eyes.

"Because of this, the death qi has been dreadfully persistent, even the top-level purification magic of the Holy Series had no effect on it, only able to suppress it from erupting."

It is certain that if Artemis’s power wasn’t on par with that necromancer’s, her body would have been riddled with decay from the death qi.

Now, Artemis can still suppress the death qi within her, proving that for the time being, the death qi is powerless against her.

But...

"Given her current state, if she expends too much strength, the death qi within her will definitely erupt, won’t it?" Nadura’s face also clouded over with a layer of gloom, as she spoke, "If a battle occurs, she should be fine if she doesn’t exert all her strength. But if she does, Artemis won’t be able to fight for long."

"... Is that so?" Sophie spoke in a deep voice, "Even the nearly omnipotent Goddess Lidas and the unsurpassed Goddess Anima in life healing can’t do anything about it?"

"That’s correct." Nadura spoke with a hint of bitterness, "After all, Nadura’s authority cannot affect the power of the Demon King or the Supreme God, and it is almost ineffective against the death qi of that necromancer who achieved transcendence with the Secret Treasure left by the Mother Goddess. Anima’s healing is based on life itself, requiring a massive infusion of life force. If that’s done, not only will it fail to remove the death qi, but it might even empower it."

To absorb vital energy and then transform it into the opposite, negative death qi is the characteristic of death qi and death magic.

Given this, Anima’s healing not only doesn’t benefit Artemis, it might even kill her.

The death qi within Artemis can only be dispelled through purification.

But typical Holy Magic is ineffective against this transcended death qi.

In this case, there are only two conceivable methods.

"Either the Mother Goddess must personally intervene, or the Hero’s Holy Sword must be used to purify this evil."

This is the only plan that the Three Great Goddesses, including Lidas and Anima, could conceive.

The former, of course, goes without saying; the omnipotent Goddess could easily dispel such death qi.

As for the latter, the Hero’s Holy Sword is the nemesis of all evil. Even if the Demon King has its heart pierced, there’s only a path to death. Even without transcendence, its holy power can purify mere death qi.

"So, we can only wait for the situation in the Royal Capital to stabilize, for Lord Shane or Princess Luosilusti not to be needed there anymore, then they can come over to help Goddess Artemis dispel the death qi?"

So said Sophie.

"That’s correct." Nadura nodded, "We can’t leave the Elf Country for the time being, so we can only wait for them to come over."

"Do those two know about Goddess Artemis’s situation?" Sophie asked.

"No, Artemis requested Lidas and Anima not to tell them." Nadura sighed, "That child has too strong a sense of justice. She doesn’t want those two to leave their needed Royal Capital solely to come here to help her."

This is something the Justice Goddess Artemis would never compromise on, even the Three Great Goddesses can’t do anything about her and have to accommodate her.

Fortunately...

"The situation in the Royal Capital has stabilized, and Lidas and Anima are also planning to reclaim the Dwarf Clan. They mentioned in yesterday’s communication that they have guided Shane to visit the Elf Country soon."

Nadura revealed the rare good news.

"Once he comes, not only the death qi within Artemis can be dispelled, but also the sealing upon me can be severed with the Holy Sword."

By then, both the Nature Goddess and Justice Goddess can return to their peak states.

Furthermore...

"The curse within you can also be resolved with the help of Shane." Nadura gently said to Sophie, "Previously you didn’t know he was the Hero, so you never asked for his help. Now you should be able to ask for his help, right?"

Nadura’s words made Sophie place her hand on her chest, her mood becoming somewhat complicated.

Due to the past conflicts between the Elf Clan and the Demon Spirit Clan, in order to completely prevent the birth of more Demon Spirits, Sophie sacrificed herself by absorbing the curse from the birthplace of Demon Spirits into her body, resulting in her being unable to receive the Blessing of the Nature Goddess as a member of the Elf Royal Family, nor use her Unique Skill.

The curse, too, is related to the magic power left by the Demon King.

Because of this, no one could do anything about the curse within Sophie.

Only the Hero’s Holy Sword might be able to remove the curse from Sophie.

If it can be done, not only can Sophie use her Unique Skill again, but she will also have the chance to regain Nadura’s Blessing.

If that happens, Sophie’s strength will be entirely on par with Merica, possibly even surpassing Merica due to her more abundant battle experience despite Merica possessing the Staff of Nature.

Nadura seemed to be hopeful about this.

"What Hero Mithra couldn’t accomplish, Shane perhaps can."

Nadura gently spoke.

"He is special, even more so than Mithra. Even the Blessing of the Mother Goddess appears on him. I’m confident he will find a way to help you dispel the curse."

Listening to Nadura’s words, feeling the anticipation within them, Sophie remained silent.

She does not lack expectations.

However...

"Alas..."

With a soft sigh, Sophie no longer spoke.

Nadura also worried that excess might lead to complications, so she stopped mentioning the matter.

The two fell into silence.

Until...

"Hmm?"

At a certain moment, a shadow came from the other side of the sky, causing both the Elf Queen and the Nature Goddess to be taken aback.

"Roar!"

The dragon’s roar approached from afar.