Chapter 130: Transformation (Part II)

Not only was her character level 55, but even her current base attributes were at a level that Zhao Nan found utterly unbelievable. A wave of dizziness washed over him.

Even with attributes that far exceeded his expectations, and even with the triple boost granted by the Pandora transformation, the speed he unleashed still failed to pose any real threat to Countess Rose.

She continued to evade his attacks with ease, repeatedly urging Finina to stop, her expression of panic appearing entirely genuine.

"What on earth..." Zhao Nan’s heart skipped a beat.

***

Zhao Nan gritted his teeth hard. Regardless of what was happening, he could not stand by and watch his woman fight while he remained idle. Even if he didn’t understand the reason behind Finina’s abnormal power boost, the current enemy was clear enough.

The cooldown for his Thorny Vines had ended. Since his offensive skills were ineffective against Countess Rose, he would take on a support role!

He swung his Soul-Eater Staff with force. As Countess Rose dodged, she was once again ensnared by the Thorny Vines. Seizing the opportunity, Finina unleashed eighteen strikes with her longsword, severing the vines in an instant.

Countess Rose didn’t even furrow her brow at the 2,000 points of damage lost. In her subsequent movement, she finally drew the knight’s sword from her waist. As she parried Finina’s blade, she sighed during the moment their weapons locked: "Your Highness, please forgive me!"

With a powerful twist, she effortlessly disarmed Finina, sending her sword spinning through the air until it plunged into the ground.

Countess Rose said softly, "Your Highness, you are not yet grown; do not use the power of the Imperial bloodline recklessly. It is harmful to your body."

"I don't care!"

Finina instantly pulled a spare sword from her inventory and struck backhand. Countess Rose sighed again, easily blocking the attack. She whispered, "Your Highness, you are currently no match for me. Your body is the most noble existence; do not do this, lest you suffer harm."

Suddenly, Countess Rose’s body stiffened. Her speed dropped significantly. It felt as though a mysterious force in the surrounding area was completely suppressing her.

A flash of sword light surged before her eyes. Instinctively, she moved to block, but exclaimed in surprise, "Eh..."

During this parry, she found herself unable to exert any power. Her knight’s sword was knocked aside, and the incoming strike carved a wound of over 1,000 damage into her body.

Yet, it did not even deplete one of her three health bars.

Countess Rose retreated a few steps, her eyes fixed. Behind Finina, the man’s palm was emitting a brilliant azure light that completely enveloped the area. The force suppressing her body originated from this radiance.

It was the Frost Domain! Within this field, enemies were unable to use skills, and their speed was reduced by 200 percent!

"You again!" Countess Rose sneered. "You have blocked me time and again; I cannot spare you!"

With that, she took a step forward, bypassing Finina with terrifying speed. Before Zhao Nan could react, she reached out and gripped his throat. She scoffed, "Do you think that by preventing me from using my powers, you have a way to deal with me? My raw physical strength alone is enough to kill you!"

Deep down, however, she was wary of the power that had restricted her abilities. If this man were weak now, it was fine, but if he were to reach her level and still utilize such strange powers, the consequences would be unimaginable!

Zhao Nan choked, gasping for air as his throat was crushed. Naturally, the Frost Domain could no longer be maintained. He pulled at the Countess's arm with all his might, but it didn't budge. Just as she had said, her physical strength was terrifyingly powerful!

"I cannot leave you alive!" Countess Rose tightened her grip!

***

Zhao Nan struggled to raise his hand. His fingers trembled violently in the air. Suddenly, a brilliant golden light erupted from his forehead, and a golden seal manifested.

His lips parted with great difficulty as he spat out, word by word: "Heavenly... Punishment..."

Then, he swung his finger down with all his remaining strength!

In an instant, a massive bolt of golden lightning tore through the clear sky from the void above. The thunderous roar shook the entire map of Tianfeng City!

The lightning struck!

It hit both Countess Rose and Zhao Nan simultaneously.

***

The lightning vanished as quickly as it had appeared. Half of the great terrace of the Chuchen Palace had simply ceased to exist! The shockwave blew Finina away, and the area that had vanished was replaced by a terrifying, deep crater.

In the depths of the crater, Zhao Nan gasped for breath, yet he was completely unharmed. The golden seal on his forehead gradually faded until it receded back into his skin.

Heavenly Punishment!

It was an ability Zhao Nan had obtained after becoming the Lord of Tianfeng City. He had never told anyone about it, keeping it hidden in his heart as his ultimate trump card.

Using Heavenly Punishment, he could summon a bolt of divine lightning to strike anywhere in the non-safe zones of the Tianfeng City map, dealing a devastating blow to his enemies!

This was an ability every City Lord possessed.

However, such a terrifying power could not be used lightly. It had a cooldown of 30 days, and it could not be shortened by any of his professional skills! Furthermore, each use caused the City Lord’s level to automatically drop by one.

Usually, most City Lords would carefully reserve the Heavenly Punishment ability, only using it when facing insurmountable monsters during a city siege.

***

Suddenly, a figure erupted from the dirt in the crater—it was Countess Rose! She was covered in wounds, and her red-and-white knight’s uniform was in tatters, barely covering her. Having been exposed and humiliated like this since she first debuted, a flash of shamed rage crossed her face!

At that moment, her three health bars had lost more than one full segment... yet, the majority of her health remained!

Even Heavenly Punishment couldn't kill her!

Zhao Nan could only offer a bitter smile; he blamed the low level of Tianfeng City for the insufficient power of the lightning. If the city level could be raised to level 3, the lightning of Heavenly Punishment would surely have crushed her to dust!

"People of the Dynasty, I cannot let you live even more!"

That lightning strike had nearly cost her her life. She was shocked, and even more furious!

Countess Rose roared in mid-air. A pair of fiery red wings sprouted from her back, and she transformed into a bolt of red lightning. With lightning speed, she pressed her fingers together like a sharp blade and pierced directly through Zhao Nan’s chest!

In that instant, Zhao Nan felt the approach of death as never before.

"Stop!"

Suddenly, a shrill cry pierced the sky. Finina’s eyes surged with black light, and a terrifying black aura erupted, rising from the Chuchen Palace into the sky, churning the white clouds. With immense malice, she shrieked, "If you kill him, I will tear you to pieces and scatter you to the ends of the earth!!!"

The black aura grew even more intense, turning into a terrifying flow of energy that began to erase everything around Finina into nothingness.

Countess Rose turned pale with fright. "Your Highness, stop! If you overstimulate the Imperial power, your body will collapse!"

Blood tears streamed from Finina’s eyes as she cried out in agony, "I don't know anything about collapsing... but if he dies, there is nothing left in this world worth cherishing."

Seeing the destructive power radiating outward, Countess Rose said anxiously, "Your Highness, I won't kill him!"

With that, she pulled her hand out, but she did not release Zhao Nan. Instead, she pinned him down and said in a deep voice, "I can spare him, but Your Highness must return with me!"

"You dare threaten me?"

Countess Rose swallowed hard. "Does Your Highness no longer care for this man's life?"

Seeing Finina’s increasingly violent expression, Countess Rose quickly softened her tone. "Your Highness, just come back with me. I swear in the name of the Imperial Countess of Roses that I will never kill him with my own hands. If I break this oath, may I be struck down by the heavens! This is the highest oath of the Empire; as your guardian, I would never dare to deceive you!"

Seeing Finina waver, Countess Rose pressed harder, "Your Highness, think about it. If you die, wouldn't this man be sad too? I am merely taking you back; Your Highness will have the chance to see him again in the future!"

The terrifying black aura suddenly retracted, flowing back into Finina’s body. She said weakly, "Do not lie to me... otherwise..."

Before she could finish, her body gave out, and she collapsed to the ground.

Countess Rose breathed a sigh of relief and released Zhao Nan. However, his chest had been pierced, leaving a bloody hole. He was extremely weak, and his health was down to a sliver.

Countess Rose said coldly, "Don't worry. Since I promised Her Highness I wouldn't kill you, I won't do it myself. How could someone like you be worthy of Her Highness's love? Hmph!"

She kicked Zhao Nan aside carelessly, but she controlled the force well enough to ensure his health didn't hit zero.

Zhao Nan lay on the ground, twitching in agony, but he forced his eyes open, staring fixedly at Countess Rose. He watched as she reached out to Finina, gathered her into her arms, and then soared into the sky, looking down at him.

"However... leaving you alive is still a major threat. Although I cannot kill you myself... it is not a breach of my oath if it is not my hand that strikes you."

Countess Rose waved her hand. Inside the main hall, the remaining monsters that had not yet been cleared were dragged out, then crushed together by a massive force.

There were two or three hundred monsters in total. One by one, they exploded, their flesh and blood fusing together to form a gigantic, pulsating tumor.

"Enjoy yourself..."

Leaving behind a burst of laughter, she transformed into a streak of light and collided into the thick fog, disappearing completely.