The Adventures of an Overpowered Knight in Another World

Chapter 756- Cattles for Slaughter, the Powerful Sacred Sanctum (7)

The moment the dome was completed, the atmosphere changed. The oppressive demonic energy that had filled the camp suddenly began to recede. The darkness itself seemed to tremble before the golden dome.

[Divine Sanctum]

It was one of Reinhardt’s most powerful support-type abilities. Once used to hold the corruption feeding on the roots of the World Tree at bay.

[Divine Sanctum] - The paladin designates a fixed area as Divine Territory.

Effects: Absolute Rejection.Any form of demonic, abyssal, or corrupted energy is instantly nullified upon contact. Hostile entities and energies within proximity are disintegrated.

Within the domain, the laws of corruption, decay, and fear are overwritten by divine authority.

Furthermore, all allies within are immune to fear, despair, illusion, and spiritual erosion.

And now... Reinhardt had created a way to use it even when he wasn’t present.

This was something they had already considered before launching their attack on the demon encampment. Reinhardt and the others had known that the demons would almost certainly seize this opportunity to attack the human camp.

After all, the Dawnbringers had taken most of their strongest forces with them. The defense of the camp would inevitably become thin.

Rather than passively wait for the demons to attack, Reinhardt had come up with another solution.

He had engraved the foundation of Divine Sanctum into the central array and connected it to the branches of the World Tree. The branches acted as enormous reservoirs of divine energy, continuously supplying the formation.

As long as the array remained intact, the Sanctum could continue functioning even without Reinhardt personally maintaining it.

Of course, Reinhardt could have activated the Divine Sanctum himself and maintained it throughout the battle. But there was little reason to waste his own energy when another method was available.

More importantly, if he had activated the Sanctum from the beginning, the demons would have immediately realized that entering the human camp was suicidal.

That wasn’t what Reinhardt wanted.

He wanted them to come. He wanted the demons to believe that the human camp had been left vulnerable. He wanted them to advance as deeply as possible before revealing the trap.

Like a hunter ensnaring its prey, choking them until they suffocated.

Reinhardt was, in essence, a true demon extremist. Hell-bent on exterminating every vile demon from this world.

For that reason, someone had to remain behind.

Vanessa had volunteered for this in yesterday’s meeting.

As the Saintess, there were few people in the entire Dawnbringers who could rival her ability to manipulate Holy Energy. If Reinhardt was the strongest user of divine power among them, then Vanessa, who used the inferior Holy Energy, was undoubtedly the second.

Vanessa stood quietly within the central formation, her silver-white hair fluttering with the power fluctuation.

She looked toward the battlefield where a huge colossus, like an eerie earthworm, was wreaking havoc.

Across the battlefield, the Blightheart Colossus crawled through the earth. Its enormous, worm-like body twisted beneath the surface before erupting again, throwing mountains of corrupted soil into the air.

Wherever its grotesque body passed, the ground blackened and vegetation withered instantly.

Two Extreme Knights along with a team of Elite and High-ranking knights, tried to engage it. But they were no match. Its hide was simply too strong, and any damage was negligible against the overwhelming mass of fat. Plus the rapid regeneration.

It truly made one miserable.

Vanessa stared at the creature for a moment. It was not her first time facing this creature.

More than a week ago, right when the curses first started affecting them, it was this Abomination that caused them to suffer major losses in the subsequent battles.

Inside the Tainted Lands, the purified lands were their safety nets as well as the grounds to wage battles. Demons can fight in the purified land without issue, but the same cannot be said for the knights if the situation was reversed.

The demons understood this very well, which is why they brought the Blightheart Colossus that could corrupt the land faster than anything to seize any grounds the knights could rely on to fight them.

For the knights, if all the purified land was gone, the war was more or less lost.

What’s more, they were in the heart of the Tainted Lands, surrounded by enemies all around. The situation was the same as the previous expedition, the Bloody Rain, perhaps even more dire.

Knowing this, many knights sacrificed themselves to defeat this Abomination. Numerous high-ranking knights, Elite and Extreme Knights, along with a Hero, were lost. All because of this creature.

"You are the one responsible for all this."

Perhaps the Colossus heard her, or perhaps it sensed the imminent danger from the dome covering the camp, but it answered with a horrifying roar.

Its enormous body suddenly coiled. Then it launched itself forward.

BAM...

Just as it was about to hit Vanessa, a glowing barrier appeared in front of the Colossus in an instant, causing it to slam into it with all its momentum.

The barrier fluctuated but easily held off the impact.

As for the Colossus, its massive body shot backwards, its momentum carrying it hundreds of meters backward.

"I can’t let you damage the formation. [Holy Barrier]."

As she spoke, Vanessa disappeared from her position and appeared high above its back, her white robes fluttering in the golden radiance of the Divine Sanctum.

She raised one hand and spoke in a cold voice.

"[Holy Disintegration]."

A pillar of pure Holy Energy descended. The Colossus twisted violently, but the beam still struck its side.

BOOOOOOM...

A huge chunk of its flesh instantly dissolved.

KIEEEEE...

The creature issued a piercing cry. Its fury-filled eyes locked on Vanessa.

Before the debris could even hit the ground, the creature’s enormous tail whipped around and hit her.

BANG...

Vanessa crossed her arms. The impact sent her flying through the air. She spun several times before stopping herself.

But... the damage was lacking.

No, more accurately, the Abomination had become weaker.

Her eyes widened slightly.

So this is the power of [Divine Sanctum]...

She could feel it. Every breath she took was filled with pure divine energy. The World Tree branches surrounding the camp continuously supplied the formation, and the Sanctum transformed that energy into an environment where demonic power itself was being rejected.

The Blightheart Colossus wasn’t merely fighting her anymore. It was fighting the entire domain.

Every fragment of demonic energy it released was immediately weakened. Every wound it attempted to regenerate from was disrupted. Every movement became heavier.

Even the corrupted aura surrounding its body was being peeled away layer by layer.

And that was not all.

Vanessa felt her own Holy Energy boiling, overflowing at this moment.

Inside this dome, she was being continuously strengthened. Every mana she spent, every stamina used, was replenished at an extremely fast speed.

"Such a skill..."

It made one wonder what attainment the user of the skill himself had achieved.

"Then..."

Vanessa shifted her gaze toward the Blightheart Colossus.

A golden spear formed above her.

"Let’s see how long you can last."

The next instant, she waved her hand.

[Holy Spearfall.]

Hundreds of white spears descended from the sky, bringing forth a terrible power fluctuation.

This move, although not as exaggerated as Reinhardt’s [Arsenal of the Gods], still possessed considerable power. Especially under the buff of the [Sacred Sanctum].

Sensing the danger, the Colossus burrowed underground, swiftly dodging the attack.

The next second, the battlefield shook violently. Then its enormous head burst from the earth beneath Vanessa.

ROAR...

With a furious roar, it opened its hideous mouth and snapped.

BANG...

But nothing.

Vanessa had already appeared above its head.

"Too slow."

It was true that the Blightheart Colossus was the fastest when underground. However, under the dome of [Divine Sanctum], even the land was completely purified.

The Abomination had to spend triple the effort just to burrow into the ground.

Vanessa, atop the creature’s massive head, slammed her palm downward.

[Holy Rupture].

A concentrated explosion of Holy Energy erupted from the Colossus’ skull. Its enormous body was blasted into the ground, causing the earth to split for hundreds of meters.

KIEEEE...

The Colossus struggled to rise. Its flesh was smoking, its regeneration was slowing. It was slowly dying.

Vanessa, who had relaxed for a moment, suddenly tensed up once again.

The creature’s eyes flashed open, and dense demonic energy overflowed out of its body.

The sudden surge was not concealed. She could clearly feel the creature’s power rising.

The Blightheart Colossus roared, its body began convulsing and thrashing like an earthworm sprayed with salt.

Cracks spread across its enormous flesh, oozing disgusting fluid. Its body was visibly shriveled.

Then the creature’s outer body suddenly split apart.

"What...?"

A tremendous amount of black matter erupted from within.

BOOM...

A black wave hit the surroundings. From within it, something emerged, something far more horrifying.

Seeing this, Vanessa wasn’t particularly surprised.

Some demons or demonic creatures who possess a rather strong ancient bloodline can shift into a far more powerful and stronger form. The most classic examples are the Heavenly Kings, all of which possess a second form or transformation, typically more combat-oriented.