613
Chapter 613
Baron approached the glass case containing the black book.
As he reached toward the glass case, Harvey Draker stepped forward from behind to block him.
"Wait."
As Harvey Draker released his energy while speaking, illuminating the glass case, a hidden barrier revealed itself.
The barrier, woven like a dense net, spread out in all directions around the glass case.
Seeing this, Baron furrowed his brow and said,
"Can you disable it with your seal? We cannot keep Him waiting any longer."
Harvey Draker frowned at the fanatic's impatience before speaking.
"This isn't a barrier that can be directly broken with my seal. We need to bypass it and neutralize the security barrier. Otherwise, the barrier might send the Book of the Dead somewhere else."
Baron clenched his jaw at Harvey Draker's words.
But having no other choice, he soon nodded.
"I'll guard the front, so hurry and disable the barrier."
Without responding to Baron's words, Harvey Draker turned toward the glass case and raised both hands.
TZZZZZT!
White light flowed from his ten fingers, seeping into the net and beginning to infiltrate the security barrier.
Once breaking through the barrier, Harvey Draker's seal could neutralize the security system itself.
Seeing Harvey Draker's energy slowly penetrating the barrier, Baron stood in front of the arch-shaped entrance to this space.
He then removed his gloves and dripped black energy onto the floor.
CRACKKKK
The black energy he dropped soon clumped together, forming a shape like a black ghost.
It soon took on a form similar to the Black Angel that was destroyed by the Spirit King.
Except for having no wings, it looked almost identical.
Baron spoke to the black form,
"Stop Zeke Draker and his companions from entering here."
As if responding, the black form's surface trembled and rippled before its body split like mud and began dispersing into multiple entities.
In an instant, they multiplied to over ten entities and stood guarding the arch-shaped entrance as Baron ordered.
Nodding as he watched the situation, Baron now removed both gloves and again dripped black energy onto the floor.
The area touched by the energy transformed into a black swamp, stained with endless darkness.
Baron turned his gaze toward Harvey Draker, hoping he would quickly break the barrier while maintaining the dark swamp.
But then….
CRACKLE!
White lightning struck from the ceiling where Baron was guarding.
Sensing something was wrong, Baron immediately raised his hand toward the ceiling.
A massive tentacle shot up from the darkness swamp laid out in front.
RAAAAAR!
The tentacle struck the ceiling where lightning flickered with a horrific cry.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The ceiling collapsed, with rubble sinking into the dark swamp.
But there was no other movement from the ceiling.
'A decoy?'
Baron turned his head to look behind.
He saw a shadow rippling toward Harvey Draker who was standing there trying to break the barrier.
Seeing this, Baron shouted,
"Zeke Draker! He's coming!"
Simultaneously, Zeke emerged from the shadows holding his sword and leaped up from the floor.
CRACKLE
Lightning containing the power of the Holy Spirit technique coiled around his sword, targeting Harvey Draker.
The tentacles Baron launched flew to block Zeke, but they were a step too late.
Zeke's sword flew toward Harvey Draker.
Infinite Sword Technique Special Form
Holy Spirit Technique
Light Breaking Slash
The light of the Holy Spirit technique exploded outward in all directions.
Harvey Draker, who had been standing guard while disabling the barrier, took a direct hit from Zeke's Light Breaking Slash.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The spot where Harvey Draker had been standing was completely destroyed, leaving a massive hole.
But then Zeke got up from his position, clenching his teeth.
"Harvey Draker! You used such a cheap trick!"
Surprisingly, the Harvey Draker who had been standing to break the barrier was a clone created as an illusion.
The real Harvey Draker had hidden himself somewhere out of sight.
Baron, watching from behind, also frowned. He too felt deceived.
'He never deserved baptism in the first place. It's not strange that he would use such unholy tactics.'
Baron immediately called in the black forms he had stationed outside the arch-shaped entrance. They naturally passed through the black swamp as they approached.
Though he gave no order, the black forms revealed sharp claws and gradually approached Zeke's position, pressuring him.
Watching them, Zeke spoke to Baron,
"Baron, now that Harvey Draker has fled, it's impossible to take the Book of the Dead. Give up already."
In response to Zeke's words, Baron raised both hands and moved the black figures without replying.
GRRRR!
The faces of the black figures, which appeared to be wearing masks, split open to reveal sharp teeth.
KAAARK!
Dozens of black figures instantly transformed into monsters and charged at Zeke while dripping acidic saliva.
Zeke raised the holy sword Ascalon and launched an attack filled with purifying power toward the monsters.
SWOOSH!
As the golden aura swept past, black smoke flowed from the bodies of the dark monsters as they writhed in agony.
Just as Zeke raised his sword to launch another attack.
SWOOSH!
Something rushed at Zeke from behind.
It was Harvey Draker who had been hiding.
He had transformed back into a dragon being form and charged at Zeke with his dragon scaled body and sharp claws exposed.
Zeke turned around, changed his attack direction, and swung his sword at Harvey Draker.
CLANG!
Harvey Draker's claws and Zeke's sword collided.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Powerful shockwaves spread in all directions.
Simultaneously, those shockwaves disturbed the barrier around the glass case containing the Book of the Dead.
CRACKLE!
The net-like barrier wrapping around the glass case began to fluctuate.
Baron, who was behind them, shouted upon seeing this.
"Harvey Draker! The security barrier is activating! Stop it quickly!"
But Harvey Draker ignored Baron's words and focused only on pressuring Zeke.
As a result, the barrier in the glass case gradually spread outward and enveloped Zeke and Harvey Draker who were nearby.
BZZT! BZZT! BZZT!
Zeke and Harvey Draker, who were in combat, were instantly submerged into the expanding net.
The net didn't stop there but stretched further to wrap around the monsters and even swallowed up the dark swamp spread across the floor.
Baron saw this and stepped back, temporarily escaping the barrier's range.
WOONG! WOONG! WOONG!
More than half of the stone chamber, including the space where the glass case was, filled with a net made of light.
Baron clenched his teeth watching this.
'I must take the Book of the Dead for my Lord.'
Just as he was about to examine from the entrance again to find a way.
[Come. To me.]
Someone's voice echoed in Baron's ears.
[Come quickly.]
In that moment, Baron's eyes lost focus.
Dark energy crept up from his shadow.
Baron, with his unfocused eyes, was enveloped in that darkness and disappeared like smoke.
And shortly after Baron disappeared, surprisingly, the space near the stone chamber's ceiling rippled and revealed Nabu and Nigel who had been hiding there.
Riding the magic carpet Nabu summoned, Nigel urged him.
"Like Zeke said, he was drawn to the Book of the Dead and disappeared, so track him quickly."
At Nigel's words, Nabu ground his teeth and said.
"You think that's as easy as it sounds? How can an old hag who only knows how to swing a sword understand the delicate world of spirit commands... ACK! Stop hitting me! You're breaking my concentration!"
Only after getting hit by Nigel several times was Nabu finally able to track where Baron had disappeared to through spirit commands.
And Baron was heading to a completely unexpected place.
Nigel clicked her tongue at this and said.
"The leader really hid it well. Let's hurry. Before he awakens the Book of the Dead."
* * *
Harvey Draker opened his eyes.
Looking around, the scenery had completely changed from before.
Taking advantage of the widened barrier gap, he had broken through security and entered where the sealed object was.
Looking around, his current location appeared to be like an ancient ruin, with a massive dragon statue carved into the stone wall ahead.
And in that dragon statue's mouth was embedded a black stone.
Harvey Draker smiled upon seeing that stone.
'The Black Star.'
It was one of the treasures hidden here along with the Book of the Dead, the final heart fragment of the Elder Dragon.
'If I can just absorb this...'
At that moment, Harvey Draker turned his head toward something he sensed, and someone walked out.
After confirming who it was, Harvey Draker frowned and said.
"You're truly tiresome, Zeke Draker."
Zeke had followed right behind him after he had burrowed through the barrier gap.
Zeke raised his sword, pointed it at Harvey Draker, and spoke.
"Harvey Draker, I already knew that what you wanted wasn't the Book of the Dead but the Black Star."
At Zeke's words, Harvey Draker furrowed his brow.
Arthur Draker had ordered him to retrieve the Book of the Dead, but as Zeke said, he was actually more interested in something else.
The Black Star containing the Elder Dragon's power.
Zeke had already absorbed one, and Arthur Draker had absorbed another.
For ordinary humans, absorbing the Black Star, the heart of the Elder Dragon, was impossible.
But Harvey Draker was also a clone of the original Draker and human form Nephilim, and had already transplanted a Holy Dragon's heart.
So he planned to steal the Black Star to escape Arthur Draker's influence and develop his own power again.
And Zeke had noticed Harvey Draker's plan early on.
That's why he left the Book of the Dead tracking to the High Table and personally followed Harvey Draker inside.
Harvey Draker looked at Zeke and said.
"Very well, Zeke Draker. Given the situation, I have a proposal for you."
He caught his breath and continued.
"You can't absorb any more of that Black Star anyway. Even with divine status, as a human, there's a limit to how much power you can absorb."
He paused briefly and his dragon face lit up.
"Hand it over to me. Then I'll help you fight Arthur Draker."
He meant to form a united front against Arthur Draker.
Zeke spoke to Harvey Draker with an incredulous tone.
"As if you would actually help me."
Given everything he had done so far, there was no way he would willingly join hands with Zeke.
Rather, backstabbing and deceiving him would be more natural.
Harvey Draker shook his head at Zeke's words.
"You don't see the big picture. You don't know Arthur Draker's true power. Only I have seen through that power."
Zeke scoffed at Harvey Draker's words.
"Seen through it? What nonsense. Just hurry up and come here."
As if not wanting to hear any more from Harvey Draker, he immediately raised his sword and emitted energy.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Harvey Draker tensed at the energy flowing from Zeke's body.
Unlike before, after absorbing all the Arrogant Savior's souls, Zeke's level was truly much higher than his own.
Therefore, Harvey Draker had no intention of facing Zeke head-on.
'I had hoped to sneak in and just extract the Black Star.'
Since Zeke had seen through his plan, he had no choice but to use another method.
'No, this might actually be better.'
His eyes glowed as he raised his left hand and bent his pinky finger sideways.
CRACK!
Harvey Draker twisted off his broken pinky finger, gripped it tightly, muttered something, and tossed it in front of himself.
Then black fog-like substance flowed from the fallen finger.
Zeke noticed this fog was distorted causality.
However, this time the distorted causality began working differently than before.
BZZT! BZZT! BZZT!
The black smoke wrapped around Harvey Draker's body and seeped inside.
WOONG! WOONG! WOONG!
Harvey Draker's dragon being form soon returned to his original human appearance.
But surprisingly, a different energy emanated from his body.
'This is?'
Zeke couldn't help but be startled as he realized the nature of this energy.
The energy felt from Harvey Draker's body was none other than the Arrogant Savior's authority.