Summoning the Holy Sword

Chapter 1253: The Valkyrie's Test

Rhode wasn't interested in the aftermath of the battle between the Crystal Ape and the pitch-black tentacles. The moment he witnessed the Crystal Ape being wrapped by the dozen tentacles, he turned around and ran toward the other end of the stream. Even though shadowy creatures continued to give chase, Rhode spent no effort eliminating them without the worrisome threats of the Crystal Ape. In just a few seconds, he slaughtered every single one of the brazen shadowy creatures, before turning around and sprinting toward the Crystal Tower.

After fleeing from the Crystal Ape, Rhode didn't face any bothersome characters along the way. He arrived at the perimeter of the Crystal Tower. This place was just as he remembered it to be. The surroundings of the Crystal Tower were empty, except for three tall and burly construct guards defending the tower. Their entire body was as though engraved from sparkling and translucent crystals. What was most eye-catching about them was their arms. They wielded shields on the left and swords on the right. This was the most annoying part of the construct guards in the Crystal Tower. Every single one of them had thick flesh and were tough to kill. Besides, even if they were killed, they wouldn't drop any valuable items. At the very most, trash like 'crystal fragment', 'crystal chip', and 'broken core' that were only worthy of being sold to NPCs would drop.

If it weren't for the fact that the Crystal Tower was linked to the trial, Rhode would never come to this place.

It's a pity I'm not a thief-class.

Gazing at the construct guards patrolling the Crystal Tower, Rhode couldn't help but let out a sigh. If he were a thief-class, he could sneak into the tower as the construct guards had poor perceptions. But it was a pity that Rhode was a Spirit Swordsman, so…

Hmmm? No, that might work.

At this thought, an idea cropped up in his mind. He stretched out his right arm and motioned his fingers gently. At the next second, an aquamarine card appeared in his hand. This was precisely the Queen of Blades that he recovered earlier. If he recalled correctly, this card came equipped with an ability to turn the holder into spiritual form. From a certain angle, turning into spiritual form was similar to the concealment of thieves.

Give it a shot then.

While observing the three construct guards, Rhode nodded to himself. He wasn't in the mood to waste time messing with these thick-fleshed enemies. Moreover, apart from the three construct guards here, there were another dozen inside the tower. If Rhode brought a party with him, perhaps he would need to take them on. But now, he could only rely upon himself. Even if he were to summon his card spirits, they would spend more than 10 minutes demolishing each of them. He knew that long delays would cause more complications, which was why he pondered for a few moments before making up his mind. He squinted and clenched his right hand.

Shatter…

Along with this action, the aquamarine card broke and metamorphosed into green light dust that enfolded Rhode's body. In just a few moments, he disappeared in sight. He lost his physical form completely and turned into a specter.

"Great. It worked."

Rhode nodded in satisfaction. The instant he turned into spiritual form, the world in his vision also transformed. The omnipresent black and white turned bright and multi-colored. At a glance, he witnessed the aquamarine aura of life exuding from the forest, as well as the azure hue of the river. It could also be said that after becoming a specter, his vision of the land became clearer and more beautiful.

If I knew this would work, I should have made equipment that could turn all the elites in Starlight into spiritual form. Perhaps we would have been able to open up Shadow Ravine successfully.

While this thought came up in his mind, Rhode drifted out of the forest silently toward the construct guards. The construct guards continued to patrol the area quietly, seemingly unaware of his presence. Rhode heaved a sigh of relief. Even though he knew that construct guards had poor perceptions, he made the judgment from a human perspective, after all. In the Dragon Soul Continent, there were many extreme creatures that were used to search for specific presences. And if other non-related presences were present, the creatures wouldn't even detect them as though they were blind. But if it happened to be the presence they were searching in their field of vision, the construct guards would definitely pounce on the target straightaway. Rhode suspected that even though construct guards had poor perceptions, they were created to deal with undead creatures. But now, it seemed like they didn't have any reaction toward him in the spiritual form. This proved that maybe he wasn't part of their objective, which was naturally a good news for Rhode.

Rhode arranged his thoughts and drifted toward the tower entrance through the gap between the three construct guards. Even though he could pass through walls in spiritual form, the walls of magical towers like the Crystal Tower were protected by a layer of magical barriers. If he were to barge in, he would be stopped and even restrained. The only way left for him was to enter through the main entrance.

Although Rhode was certain that the construct guards wouldn't notice him, he still put up his guard. He came to a standstill before the three construct guards and it was only until they continued with their patrol that he picked up his pace and flew toward the entrance. The moment he arrived at the entrance, he came to a halt, swept glances to his left and right, and entered the door after ensuring there were no traps laying and waiting for him.

Even after Rhode entered the tower, the construct guards didn't react at all.

"Phew…"

After confirming that the enemies didn't detect him, Rhode let out a sigh of relief. He had witnessed sinister traps in the game. Sometimes, players entered an empty space happily after spotting no traps. But in the end, the emergency siren blared and gathered all the surrounding creatures that hid themselves. The pitiful players were wiped out before they could even scream, which was truly a tragic sight… Rhode was concerned that there were similar traps in the Crystal Tower, but it seemed like luck was good for him today.

But even so, he remained cautious. After all, there were several guards within the Crystal Tower. Moreover, Rhode wasn't crushing his way through this like in the game. If he were discovered, he would face several construct guards within the tower at once. When that happened, he definitely couldn't rely upon his current state to defeat them. Perhaps he would be forced to break the seal and unleash all his strength.

Almost there…

At this thought, Rhode sneaked to the second floor, dodging two other construct guards. He was only several steps away from his destination. As long as he turned the corner at the end of this corridor, he would arrive at that mysterious and gorgeous magical ritual in the middle of the second floor. He drifted to the side silently. The moment he witnessed another construct guard marching along in the corridor, he brushed past it and turned the corner.

I have 30 seconds left in spiritual form. Time should be sufficient…

Hmm? What's that?

As he was about to step onto that wide, circular magical ritual, he came to a standstill abruptly and gazed ahead in astonishment. In the middle of the magical ritual stood a huge construct guard that was three-to-four-meters-tall. Unlike the other 'ordinary' construct guards, this construct guard was like an exquisite artwork—a sculpture of an armored woman. She gripped a huge spear and circular shield in her hands, resembling a formidable valkyrie. Her body emanated a dazzling, magical radiance from top to bottom.

Who's that?

Gazing at the construct guard, Rhode was taken aback. This unique construct guard seemed just like a final BOSS. But in his memories, he couldn't recall facing someone like her. He clearly remembered that back then, apart from ordinary construct guards, there was nothing else in the entire Crystal Tower. Rhode had even led his party and searched the tower repeatedly. Logically speaking, they shouldn't have missed out on anything.

But now… A construct guard that he had no impression on was waiting for him?

Seems like this is the real deal.

Sizing up the construct guard, Rhode rolled up his sleeves for battle. It was too late for him to back off now. His spiritual form could last for only 10 minutes in one day and he had less than 20 seconds remaining. That was why it was no longer possible for him to retreat and start over. At that point in time, he could only give it a shot and see whether this space would be sealed upon entering the magical ritual. Normally, BOSSes in the game would be kind enough to seal off the entrance in order to prevent players from fleeing. Of course, this move also blocked off critters from entering from outside. If this was the case for the valkyrie, it would be more convenient for Rhode. He was more concerned that when he took on the valkyrie, huge waves of construct guards would swarm him at the same time. It would be utterly annoying when that happened.

I need to give it a shot!

At this thought, Rhode calmed himself down. At the next moment, he dashed straight into the hall!

The moment he entered the hall, the construct guard in the middle also seemed to detect his presence. She turned toward him immediately, raising and pointing the spear forward, as well as widening her mouth to yell.

"Come forth, Challenger. Let me see your worth!"

As the valkyrie bellowed, the beautiful magical ritual on the floor emanated a blinding, golden radiance. Shortly after, countless runes appeared in midair, sealing the entire battleground. Almost at the same time, Rhode emerged out of nowhere and leaped up.

Thank God!

He felt assured after witnessing the surroundings being sealed by the runes. At the very least, he didn't need to worry about waves of construct guards charging at him anymore. Even though the valkyrie wasn't easy to deal with, taking on a BOSS head-on wasn't difficult for a Spirit Swordsman!

"Go!"

Rhode screamed, raising his arms and tossing out black and green cards from his hands. Shortly after, a specter young lady wielding an invisible sword and a young lady donned in a tattered dress, raising a huge longsword, and bound by steel chains appeared in midair. They dashed to the left and right in a pincer movement toward the valkyrie.

"Come forth, Challenger! Shall me your strength and prove your courage and determination!"

Facing this attack from Rhode, the valkyrie shrieked once again. Swish! She brandished the spear at her enemies. At the same time, the specter young lady's invisible blade and Shira's longsword slashed through the air and collided heavily against the valkyrie's weapon and shield.

Clang! Clang!

Along with two deep, resounding clashes, the huge, scarlet longsword deflected the spear, while the specter young lady who struck the valkyrie's shield flickered. She retreated in her barely visible form as though she were about to dissipate into air. She rotated her wrist and swung the invisible blade in a trail of gloomy blade light, launching another attack on the valkyrie.

At the same time, Rhode seized the opportunity to strike at the valkyrie's opening. He flourished the dazzling holy sword, Star Mark, in the air, where a blade ray emanating spots of light dust charged straight at the gorgeous sapphire in the middle of valkyrie's chest. Rhode had lots of experience dealing with construct guards. According to his experience, shattering the sapphire was the key to defeat the valkyrie!

The instant his blade ray was about to penetrate the sapphire, a rune transformed into a barrier that negated his attack. Rhode felt like his sword had punctured a thick layer of rubber and he couldn't exert more force. At the same time, he caught a glimpse of the valkyrie widening her jaw, where golden flames coalesced in her mouth.

Boom!

Gushing flames slammed onto the ground. The scorching heat dispersed, raising the temperature of the air. The air became so hot that it twisted and warped. But at that moment, Rhode had already withdrawn to the side. He narrowed his eyes and stared at the valkyrie, while slashing multiple blade arcs with his right hand. Meanwhile, he held his left arm down. A blue card appeared in his hand, before vanishing in a bright flash.

The little mermaid who was swimming in the water ball showed up behind him. She raised her arms and along with this action, bone-piercing chilliness coalesced and filled the air, spreading white frost across the battlefield to curb the blazing flames. Meanwhile, Rhode's blade rays slammed onto the valkyrie one after another.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Along with deep explosions, the burly valkyrie shook. But it was apparent that this attack didn't deal enough damage to her. The valkyrie flourished the spear, striking Shira and the specter young lady away. Meanwhile, innumerable runes started swirling and operating around her body.

"Not enough, Challenger! You are not strong enough to defeat me!"

"She's just a robot and yet she speaks so much crap!"

Rhode turned grim upon witnessing the cracks on the valkyrie left behind by his blade rays healing in an instant. He swung his left arm again and this time, the heavily-armored Centaur Knight appeared in midair. Rhode gestured to the specter young lady and Shira and in an instant, all three of them pounced on the valkyrie at once!

Ssss——!

Chilly winds rose from the ground, while ice edges coalesced and flew toward the valkyrie like swift arrows. Upon spotting the ice edges released by the little mermaid, the valkyrie let out a fierce bellow. The blazing barrier over her body devoured the ice edges mercilessly before they caused any damage. The valkyrie raised the spear with force and slammed its rear toward the ground, striking the Centaur Knight below her. Even though the heavily-armored Centaur Knight had raised its shield and resisted the assault, it was pounded flat in an instant, before metamorphosing into a faint spiritual radiance and returning as a card that vanished in sight.

But despite that, the sacrifice of the Centaur Knight gave Rhode another opportunity!

"Shira!"

"Heh, heh… Hahahaha!"

Upon hearing her master yelling her name, Shira burst into a crazy laughter. She raised her arms and all of a sudden, a dozen pitch-black steel chains flew out from her back, binding the valkyrie's arms like strong, unbreakable vines that restrained her movements. The valkyrie erupted in rage, turning around to launch her attack on Shira. However, she didn't notice the aquamarine brilliance that flitted across the air. It was the specter young lady. Her invisible sword flickered in a dazzling radiance in front of the valkyrie, enveloping her vision.

"Ahhhhhhh!"

For the first time, the valkyrie let out a blood-curdling scream. Her eyes were punctured mercilessly by the transparent sword, while her body was held down by Shira and she couldn't budge at all. The only thing she could do was to raise her shield in front of her helplessly. But at that moment, she heard a deep, thunderous rumble approaching her, closer and closer…

Rumble…!

At the next moment, a magical cannon that appeared in midair slammed into her body, smashing her onto the wall. Then, spurts of steam erupted from the enormous barrel.

Shortly after, a blinding magical brilliance enfolded the entire hall.