Primordial Villain with a Slave Harem

Chapter 1156: Formation of a Deadly Duo

A ripple passed through the air behind them. Quinlan’s head snapped back just in time to see the skies warp and tear.

The Scarlet Lilies were giving chase.

It wasn’t flight that allowed them to pursue; it was not the kind of movement that was granted by wings or wind magic.

This was something wholly unnatural. The lead woman, clad in midnight-black robes, didn’t glide or soar - she blinked.

Each move of her skipped reality itself, with her body vanishing into nothingness only to reappear ahead in the blink of an eye.

And the others? They didn’t even have to move. Threads of warped magic tethered them to her, dragging them along. One moment, they were miles beneath. In the next, they were nearly upon him.

The sheer absurdity of their advance made Quinlan raise a concerned eyebrow. He was hoping that being so high in the skies meant that they were safe due to Morgana’s absence.

"... Alright," Quinlan muttered under his breath. "That’s pretty scary. I knew a woman with the name Void would be a badass one, but her lazy attitude made me forget for a moment."

Black Fang didn’t disagree. Her expression hardened.

"Void, estimated level 69. Her class is Void Mage."

She glanced at him with those venom-dark purple eyes, examining him. "We need to fight back."

Quinlan was in full agreement. He was swift, but was he swift enough to outspeed someone skipping through space? He didn’t want to find out. But there was a problem. "You are in no condition to fight."

"My condition matters not."

That much was true. If they allowed them to catch up, then she wouldn’t even be allowed to bleed out. "Fine, you’re right. I’ll back you up, Black Fang. Let’s do this together."

The faintest of motions could be seen at the edges of her lips, looking almost as if she was looking forward to partaking in this battle in the skies, fighting alongside a primordial with powers some of which even she herself didn’t quite understand just yet.

"Hold tight."

He loosened his grip, sliding her free. His wind magic caught onto her instantly in the form of a howling current that wrapped her body and repositioned her with surgical precision until her boots landed squarely between his shoulder blades.

Her balance was instantly perfect despite her heavy injuries.

"Equip battle position and don’t lift your feet." Quinlan’s voice carried no hesitation, but was steady just like Black Fang’s. Despite both of their lives being in extreme danger due to an Adamantite adventurer team chasing them using void magic, they were calm and collected.

She did as instructed, equipping the stance she wanted to fight in.

"Done."

Earth mana instantly arrived from his body, weaving into rough bindings that snapped around her ankles.

Stone anchors, forged from mana, gave her the feeling of ground even as the skies tore around them. It wasn’t elegant, but it was solid.

Quinlan hoped that this allowed the woman to exert her real strength, unlike if he flew her using wind magic.

Black Fang tilted her head with curiosity for the beyond unique situation she’d found herself in, testing her weight against the "earth" beneath her feet, namely her Vesper Phenom subordinate, the husband of her disciple, and target of her extreme fascination.

The man who made her feel curious again after having thought she’d seen and heard all this world had to offer, the man who ignited her long-dead wanderlust.

The previous invisible little smirk gave way to an uncharacteristic grin as she tested her foothold on his back.

"Good."

This ’standing saddle’ strategy was the best Quinlan could come up with. He thought of creating an entire earth platform for Black Fang to stand on, which he would float using wind magic, but that would’ve been much slower, heavier, and an easier target for them to hit.

His goal was to get rid of the Scarlet Lilies, using Black Fang to create distance as he continued soaring. It was for the best, but only if he gave her just enough ground to be effective. The more earth he had to haul, the easier it would be for their pursuers to catch up.

He also thought of floating her beside him as he often did, but then she would not be able to exert her full strength. He hoped that this small ground to stand on would be the ideal balance between his speed and her ability to fight them off.

Behind them, Void blinked again, dragging the Scarlet Lilies through ruptured skies.

And then Black Fang moved.

Her purple eyes flared open, burning with such brightness it was as though twin stars had ignited in her sockets.

Her hand slid to her katana. With a slow, deliberate motion that once again let Quinlan know just how eerily calm she felt despite the absurdity of their pressing situation. She drew her katana free, raising it above her head as though in offering.

"[The Great Serpent Orochi’s Howl]!"

The air rippled.

A serpent’s head, colossal and spectral, began to manifest above her. Its entire form was a haze of dark smoke except for the head, which was sharp, defined, and most certainly alive. The phantom serpent lowered, and its enormous forked tongue flicked out.

It licked her blade and released an ear-shattering howl.

The magic took effect instantly, but this time, the blade didn’t glow with her usual poisonous sheen, the sickly purple miasma Quinlan had seen coat her katana. This was something different; purer, sharper, and more focused.

The light that ran down the blade was violet fire condensed to an edge, searing with a brilliance that promised distance and destruction.

With its howl done, the serpent’s head dissolved into motes of light, leaving only her katana burning with power.

Black Fang lowered her weapon and aimed it at Lilith directly.

"I won’t let my disciple become a widow."

Quinlan actually smiled at that, caught off guard by her words. The grim Black Fang wasn’t one to make declarations like this, much less about him. It felt great, amazing even.

"And I won’t let my wife become masterless," he replied.

The aerial battle of the century was about to go down.