The Crippled Vampire Prince Walks The Heavenly Demon Path Chapter 195: An Old Friend

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After defeating a Raid Boss, Vlad and his companions hoped things might calm down, but they were gravely mistaken. Another Raid Boss, surrounded by its own group of powerful monsters, erupted from the ground. 

[The {Raid Boss: 3/5}: [Aberrant Sand Worm Chimera Golem King: Sahandorian 3 (Tier 7: Rank 7)] has decided to destroy you first before going anywhere else, deeming you a threat.]

[Its imposing presence and power further boost the Strength and Vitality of all other Worm-type Golems by 50%.]

[If you can defeat the Raid Boss, you will be granted Bonus Raid Points and a Special Reward.] 

These golems were all sandworm-type, specifically designed by their King to burrow underground and attack Elderbridge from below rather than above. Ezekiel had clearly put more thought into his strategy this time, but his golems retained a fatal flaw: they were easily provoked.

Perhaps due to the Neburias King’s resentment imbued into his Arcana during their creation, the golems inherited his short temper. They responded furiously to provocation, prioritizing the defeat of foes over their mission when the opportunity arose. 

“Damn it! When is this going to end?!” 

RUMBLE! 

“Huh?!” 

As Alitheus complained, a gigantic silver dragon clawed through hundreds of golems with ease, charging toward his master. He leaped into the air and swooped down, using his massive body to crush the nearest sandworm-type golem as close to Alitheus as possible. 

CRAAASH! 

“My priestess, don’t worry! I have come to your aid!” 

It was Argentia’s moment to shine. He pulverized the monstrous golem into fragments, stone boulders scattering everywhere. The creature’s core shattered instantly under the dragon’s sheer force and weight. 

“Argentia?! What are you even doing here? We told you to guard that section of the walls!” Alitheus snapped, pointing into the distance. 

“I know, but Lady Insecta and Lady Teressa are handling things splendidly! With the help of that nun, they’ve pushed back wonderfully. With the army of Players and Insects, the golems are being repelled even further. One of the Raid Bosses has already been slain by the nun as well!” 

“Looks like we don’t have any choice but to let him stick around,” Vlad said. “His strength will be needed, Chris!” 

“I know, I know!” Chris nodded, looking at Argentia. “I can’t temporarily evolve you right now, though, as I can only do that using my transformation, Argentia.” 

“That’s fine, my lady,” Argentia replied with a confident smile, facing four gigantic sandworm-type golems. “I’ve been growing stronger myself as well! Through all these battles, and my intense meditation and practice of my abilities, my Dragon Heart is steadily progressing toward new heights never seen before.” 

“Is that so?” Chris asked. “Then show me!” 

“On it, Master!” 

Argentia roared mightily, swinging his silver claws at the incoming attackers. One of the sandworm golems had its head cleaved and shattered by his claw attack, exploding into boulders everywhere. 

CRASH! 

As he demolished one foe, the three remaining sandworm-type golems lunged at Argentia. 

“GRUOOHHH!” 

Two coiled around his legs, attempting to pierce his scales with their sharp spikes, but Argentia intercepted them with his razor-sharp claws, tearing both golems to shreds.

Simultaneously, he opened his jaws, gathering Arcana and unleashing an explosive dragon breath composed primarily of moonlight energy. 

BOOOM! 

The explosion was devastating, obliterating the sandworm-type golems swarming him one after another until only the Raid Boss remained.

The monster roared furiously, charging toward Argentia—a larger target than the vampire prince and his group—shaking the ground around it. 

RUMBLE! 

The earth trembled and split open as giant boulders, studded with sharp crimson crystals, erupted one after another, aiming to impale Argentia.

The dragon barely escaped, leaping into the skies and attempting to fly using his Arcana and the Soar Spell alone.

However, his immense weight made graceful flight impossible. Unlike smaller, lighter beings like Vlad and the others, his efforts resulted in high leaps rather than true flight. 

“GRUOOHHH!” 

The Raid Boss roared angrily as Argentia dove toward it, delivering a powerful kick to its head. The blow sent the creature flying, crashing into the ground and rolling through a forest, flattening the trees it crushed. 

“Ugh…?!” 

However, as everyone cheered Argentia’s triumph, they noticed him groaning in pain. He glanced at his foot, where the leg he’d used to kick the creature was bleeding. Several small red jewels had pierced his scales and were blazing with flames, burning him. 

“What is this?! Some sort of magic? The flames spread too quickly!” 

Argentia groaned in agony as Alitheus and Vlad’s eyes widened. They rushed to help him alongside Ermelinda and Gofumina, who cast healing magic on him while Vlad used Grand Geomancy to extract the crystals from his wounds, merging them into a giant ball.

The ball trembled, suddenly forming a blazing eye. 

“What…?!” 

“I knew it…!” 

Vlad’s paranoid fears proved true. The moment he noticed red crystals and flames conjured by the Raid Boss, he’d dreaded the worst, though he’d hoped it was a coincidence. Alitheus had thought the same—it had been a long time since they’d last encountered him, after all.

But their fears became reality. 

A malevolent, burning presence enveloped everyone as the giant Raid Boss rose again. Its shattered head revealed a humanoid face made of blazing red and orange crystals.

As fire engulfed the monster’s body, turning its blue crystals red, it became unmistakably clear who this was. 

“Are you kidding me? No, it can’t be, right?” Alitheus asked. 

“You’d better believe it! I’m back! I want to see more of your struggles! I wonder, how long can you resist my blazing passion for you?!” 

The floating crystal ball spoke, hovering above them. Its voice was both malevolent and flippant, as if everything was a joke or a game to this entity. 

[The {Unending Crimson}’s presence has become clearer. His blazing flames burn through the Raid Boss’s soul, taking over it.]

[Only by burning all things will you achieve true peace and harmony. Let the flames consume your body and soul, and ascend into the endless hell of perpetual agony, where all things become clearer amidst eternal pain.] 

The crystal ball surged toward the Raid Boss, embedding itself into the humanoid face’s mouth, moving and blinking like an actual eye. 

“Let it all be consumed by flames! Burn! Burn it all! Once everything has become ashes, you will truly understand the truth about the world—no, the universe! Eternal Harmony can only be achieved through Eternal Suffering!” 

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