Elden Ring, building a legion of ashes

Chapter 136 Do you still remember what Marlene's boots smelled like? (Thanks to Mo Shang Ling Yuan for the donation!)

Seeing Greck charging toward them with that suffocating aura, Kenneth Hyde's aristocratic instincts made his eyes narrow instantly, and he unconsciously took a slow step back behind the group.

Grek's twisted and terrifying posture instantly became the focus of the entire battlefield.

The first to rush forward was none other than "Forge Knight" Cambri.

He had been imprisoned by Greck for too long.

During those long, dark years, he could only huddle in the small sealed prison of Storm Hill, watching helplessly as his power slipped away like sand through an hourglass.

At this moment, facing Grik's massive, mountain-like body, Cambri not only did not back down in the slightest, but stood there steadily, like a war god reborn from the ashes.

When Grik charged towards him with a violent gust of wind, reaching within three zhang of him, the Forge Knight finally moved.

His left arm steadily held up the heavy furnace horn shield, while his right hand gripped the furnace greatsword tightly, the tip of which pointed diagonally at the ground.

His crimson-gold armor suddenly shone with a dazzling light, the wrath of the furnace's life force.

"clang--!!!"

A deafening clang of metal clashing rang out.

Without a word, Greck came up with a powerful vertical slash.

However, Cambri did not choose to dodge when faced with the giant golden axe that was almost half the size of his body.

He simply crouched down slightly, lowered his waist, and thrust the horn shield in his hand upwards with a sudden force.

Then, to everyone's astonishment, the seemingly small horn shield actually managed to block Grek's earth-shattering strike.

The immense impact traveled down the shield, instantly shattering the bricks beneath Cambri's feet, which sank straight into the ground up to his ankles.

"Drink!"

Cambri roared and suddenly shifted his left arm to the side to deflect the force.

Grek's giant axe slid down and crashed heavily into the ground beside him, creating a large crater.

Taking advantage of this opening, Cambri's Furnace Greatsword shot forward like a venomous snake emerging from its hole.

The sword strike was incredibly precise, aimed directly at Grek's abdomen, which was covered in flabby flesh and had an extension arm.

However, Greck let out a wild laugh.

Suddenly, several strange arms emerged from his abdomen and clamped down hard on the blade of the Furnace Greatsword, which was thrusting forward.

Although these arms looked thin and withered, they possessed incredible strength, as if they had been given some kind of secret technique.

Just as the sword tip pierced half a foot into the skin, it was firmly stuck and could not advance any further.

"You monster!"

Cambri glared at Grek, whose body was covered in limbs, his eyes filled with disgust.

Because the wound couldn't penetrate deeply, as the Greatsword was forcibly pulled out, only a little black blood flowed from Grik's abdominal wound, which quickly stopped bleeding due to the contraction of his muscles.

Combat Skill - Summon the Storm!

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Taking advantage of the situation, Greck swung his golden giant axe.

The numerous extensions and arms covering his body began to spin wildly at a peculiar frequency.

Soon, a violent storm rose up from beneath Grek's feet.

The golden giant axe, fueled by the storm's power, slammed into the furnace horn shield with even greater force.

"Bang!"

Upon the first impact, Cambri was thrown back several steps, each step leaving a deep footprint in the ground.

Before he could regain his balance, a second, even more violent impact followed.

With sheer strength and size, Grek clearly had the upper hand.

Cambri was furious about this.

Even with the power of the Great Rune, this is by no means a reason for Grik to back down.

A wild, primal aura of life suddenly erupted from Cambri's dark golden pupils.

"Don't underestimate the power of the furnace!!"

"Buzz"

Cambri's left shoulder armor suddenly burst forth with a dazzling crimson light.

The light instantly coalesced into a gigantic horn of light covered with ancient runes.

It was none other than the combat technique that Perm had just used—the Furnace of a Hundred Forms.

No one even saw how Cambri exerted his strength.

With a sudden stomp of his feet, he propelled himself like a cannonball, propelling himself forward against the massive beam of light, instantly covering a distance of over ten meters.

Cambri slammed violently into Grek, who was surrounded by a storm.

"What?!"

Grek had been keeping a close eye on Cambury, but he never expected his explosive power to be so terrifying.

He didn't even have time to raise his axe to defend himself.

"BOOM—!!"

A dull, loud bang.

Cambri's savage charge landed squarely on Greke's swollen abdomen.

Fortunately, the dozens of arms on Grek's abdomen instinctively straightened, layer upon layer, blocking in front of him and firmly grasping the giant horn of light.

It was accompanied by a sickening sound of bones cracking and muscles tearing.

Grek's massive body was actually sent flying two zhang (approximately 6.6 meters) away by this attack, before he crashed to the ground in a sorry state.

"Bang!"

Dust flew everywhere.

The demi-humans and Grik soldiers present were so shocked their eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

Even the descendants of the aristocratic family who were fighting each other couldn't help but turn their heads to look this way.

"Uh...cough!!"

Grek coughed painfully and vomited a mouthful of yellowish-green sour liquid.

The blow broke several of his abdominal limbs, which hung limply at his sides, making him look particularly pitiful.

"You bastard—you bastard!!"

Enraged, Greck swung his battle axe and prepared to retaliate.

However, Cambrie seemed to have not experienced such a thrilling battle in a long time.

His fighting spirit had reached its peak.

A brilliant golden light shone from his back.

Combat Technique - The End of the Hundred Phases of the Forge!

A thick, crimson-gold tail materialized out of thin air behind him.

*Smack!*

With a whooshing sound, the giant tail swept fiercely towards Grik, who was just trying to get up, as if splitting mountains and shattering rocks.

The golden giant axe that Grek had just raised was whipped to the side by the tail, causing him to lose his balance once again.

Cambury was unforgiving once he gained power.

He raised the Greatsword of the Furnace high with both hands, and lifted his right foot high, with crimson light condensing beneath his foot.

trample!

"Boom!"

With that powerful stomp, the ground in front of him instantly shattered, turning into countless sharp spikes.

The massive tremor from the ground caused even the enormous Grik to lose his balance and stumble.

Take advantage of the opponent's weaknesses.

Cambri's Greatsword slashed fiercely down toward Grek's side.

"Splash!"

Those arms, whether thick or thin, that were trying to block were directly severed.

Seven or eight severed limbs fell to the ground, and blood gushed from Grek's body like a torrent.

"Aaaaaah—!!"

The excruciating pain of having his arm severed caused Grek to let out a piercing roar.

But the pain did not deter him; instead, it ignited the extreme madness within him.

"Good—very good!"

"As expected of a Forge Knight who once followed their ancestor, Griffith, in countless battles—he's truly formidable!"

Greck's bloodshot eyes were fixed on Cambri, and he grinned maliciously, "How long can your power last?"

As Grek said, Cambri has unleashed several high-intensity Furnace Hundred Phases of Power in succession.

At this moment, his breathing became as rapid as a bellows.

The power of the furnace that once arose at will has become somewhat depleted due to the centuries of sealing it away in Stormhill.

"Right now—kneel down!!"

Grik gripped the golden axe tightly with both hands, and began to spin like a top, creating an even more violent storm.

"Bang! Bang! Boom!"

This time, the golden giant axe, imbued with the power of the Great Rune, struck down with far greater force than before.

"clang!"

Cambri's furnace shield was shattered by the blow, and his hand was split open.

Then, with his other arm on the same side, holding the golden axe, Grek followed closely and slammed it hard into Cambri's breastplate.

"Bang!"

Faced with an absolute disparity in size and strength, the already exhausted Cambri was sent flying backward.

Just then, another crimson figure rushed towards them.

Perm leaped up and caught Cambri, who was flying backwards, in mid-air.

Then, he held the latter's body and spun around in the air to dissipate the force, landing steadily on the ground.

"It's been too long since I've fought—I feel a bit weak."

Cambri gave a bitter laugh, looked at Perm, and a trickle of blood flowed from the corner of his mouth.

Perm put Cambri down, slowly stood up, and faced Greke.

His eyes held a complex expression.

"What? Are you going to treat me the same way he did, Perm?"

Greck looked at his former subordinate and asked a meaningful question.

Under Greck's intense gaze, Perm finally hesitated.

Although he led the Knights of Lost Home against Stoneville, when it came to actually dealing with this king with golden blood flowing through his veins, something ingrained in his bones still made him somewhat hesitant.

"Let me do it, Lord Perm."

Just then, a young yet composed voice rang out.

Xia Tong walked up from behind, picked up the Holy Grail bottle, tilted her head back, and took a sip.

As the dew dripped into his throat, his strength and spirit were rapidly recovering, and some of his minor wounds were visibly healing.

Looking at Xia Tong, who was eager to try and whose eyes revealed a fierce spirit, Perm nodded slightly.

For some reason, he could never see through this faded being.

Although he doesn't look very old, he seems to possess a composure and vicissitudes that come with the passage of time.

At the same time, it also carries the spirit of youth.

This contradictory temperament, present in the same person, remained a mystery to Perm.

"Hey kid, are you going to go alone?"

Cambri wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and asked loudly.

"Of course not!"

Xia Tong smiled slightly and gently shook the Soul Summoning Bell.

Accompanied by the clear sound of bells, the figure of the lost knight Ingwell slowly materialized beside him.

Then, he looked at Neferi Lou, the dark-skinned female warrior, not far away.

"You guys are in charge of those guys around here."

2

Xia Tong glanced at Perm.

The latter nodded knowingly, his whole body flashing with crimson-gold light, and turned to face the descendants of the limb-splitting nobles who were trying to surround him.

On the distant tower, the black raven still darted its blue eyes, taking in everything on the battlefield.

"Rutil!"

Xia Tong shouted.

Then, the headless knight Ruthel, who was fighting among the allied forces, instantly transformed into a phantom and appeared in front of Xia Tong.

Xia Tong sensed it briefly and found that after a long battle, Ruthel's spiritual strength had also decreased, and she was only about 85% of her original strength.

As for Oreg in the distance, Xia Tong did not recall him for the time being. Oreg's aggressive, meat-grinding fighting style would be more effective in clearing out the large number of Stoneville City defenders than in participating in the siege.

"Whoosh!"

Ruthel made the first move.

She slowly disappeared beside Xia Tong, and the next instant she was directly above Grek.

-

Faced with this enormous enemy, Ruthel chose to hurl the Flame Spear, which was wreathed in the aura of death, into the air.

"call out-

'

The spear sliced ​​through the air, and even under the midday sun, the black and gold trail was particularly dazzling.

"Temple Knights? So what?!"

Greck was clearly well-informed.

Upon seeing the eclipse pattern on Ruthel's enormous shield and her headless feature, I instantly recognized her true identity.

Facing the flaming spear hurtling towards him, he blocked it with the golden giant axe in his hand.

"clang!"

A crisp sound.

The massive golden axe swung forward with tremendous force, sending the spear flying.

Behind his body, there were two smaller, extended arms tightly gripping two axes.

Including the one in his main hand, he was equipped with a total of three giant axes!

Then, Ruth disappeared again.

This time, she materialized from behind Greck.

Instead of throwing, he gripped the spear tightly in his right hand and thrust it out like a poisonous drill, aiming straight for Grek's back.

However, Greck seemed to have anticipated Ruth's sneak attack from behind.

He reversed the giant golden axe and slammed it hard into the ground.

"Boom! Boom!"

It was smashed twice.

The ground suddenly collapsed, and rubble surged out.

A golden shockwave, accompanied by an invisible gust of air, surged up from the ground and shot out indiscriminately in all directions.

Ruthel's determined thrust missed its mark in an instant.

Because the shockwave had a very large range, she stumbled and lost her footing.

Fortunately, she reacted quickly and used teleportation to leave the spot again.

"call"

At the same time, a giant axe from the side struck her squarely where she had just been, a near miss.

In the brief exchange of blows, Ruthel gained no advantage whatsoever.

Then, Xia Tong, Neferi Lou, and Ingwell immediately rushed towards Greck.

Nearby, dozens of Faded Ones were fighting among the Allied forces, but their eyes kept glancing this way from time to time.

They had already witnessed Greck's terrifying strength.

Even the Forge Knights were forced to retreat; someone of my size would probably just be chopped into mincemeat by those three giant axes if I went forward.

Of course, there were still some powerful Faded Ones who had the energy to keep a close eye on the battle situation on Grek's side.

This includes Nekaros, who had just defeated his opponent.

He was clearly exhausted and was panting heavily as he tried to regain his strength.

It took too long to get to the border.

Xia Tong silently calculated in her mind that in a little over a month, it would be half a year.

.

Over this long period of time, through working alongside the ashes, he discovered that "ganging up" is truly an art.

For example, right now.

If we're talking about dealing with Ruthel alone, then Grek could be considered to have no problem at all.

Faced with the combined attack of Xia Tong and her three companions, this "Golden King" began to struggle to keep up.

"Get out of here! You flies!!"

Greck roared hysterically, like a sick lion surrounded by a pack of hounds.

He wielded the three enormous golden axes on his body, slashing at Ingwell and Ruthel in front of him.

However, those two guys were just too tough.

The halberd in the hands of the lost knight Ingwell whipped up a whirlwind, and with his rich combat experience, each counter-slash precisely caught Grek in the blind spot where he was about to strike, making him extremely uncomfortable.

On the other side, the female warrior Neferi Lou was even more ferocious.

Wielding two eagle-patterned battle axes, her body crackling with golden lightning, she furiously slashed at Grek's cumbersome extended arms.

Like Ingwell, she is also adept at harnessing the power of storms.

However, her storms are more ferocious and direct, often mixed with explosive thunder.

But what annoyed and even terrified Greck the most was Xia Tong, who stood silently in the distance, elegantly waving her staff.

"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"

With each swing of his staff, several massive, cannonball-sized Brilliant Stone Demon Shards shot towards him.

These magic pebbles were positioned at extremely tricky angles, each time specifically targeting Grik's knees, elbows, and even the back of his head—vital points.

The precision is outrageous!

This annoyed Greck, but also gave him a chill.

This faded one's mastery of magic was in no way inferior to the orthodox radiance mage he had encountered at the Academy of Realucalia.

Even worse!

"Bang!"

Another surprise attack by the Demon Shard.

It materialized out of thin air from behind Greke's head and then slammed into the back of his head.

With three melee fighters tightly holding him back, Grek couldn't possibly guard against the sneak attack from behind.

"Thump!"

A muffled thud.

The white hair inherited from "The First King" Gavri was stained with some blood.

The blow even created a shallow dent in the back of his head.

If it weren't for the demigod's incredibly hard skull, this attack would probably have pierced his brain.

"Aaaaaah!!"

The extreme humiliation finally broke Greck's reason.

He looked at the increasing number of fine wounds on his body, and then at Xia Tong in the distance, who was unharmed and casually waving her staff.

"Despicable faders!!"

"Is all you ever going to do just swarm in?!"

"This isn't fair—this isn't fair at all!!"

Xia Tong lowered her staff slightly, a mocking smile playing on her lips.

"Who would have thought that someone as prestigious as 'Gold' Grick would dare to talk about fairness?"

"Back during the defense of the royal city, when you used a veil of mimicry to disguise yourself as a woman and fled Rodel like a stray dog—"

"Have you ever spoken fairly to those soldiers who fought to the death for the capital?"

"Back then, when you knelt before Malenia, groveling and begging for your life while licking her boots—"

"Have you ever spoken fairly to those soldiers who shed their blood for you?!"

Upon hearing these words, Grek was stunned. He opened his mouth slightly but could not utter a word, yet his blood and qi surged within him.

These words were like the most vicious curse, precisely piercing into the deepest, most unbearable past of Greck's heart.

Extreme shame and rage instantly overwhelmed his remaining rationality.

The pale dough had swollen to a horrifying purplish-black from the blood engorgement.

The bulging veins on his forehead, like several twisted earthworms, throbbed on his broad forehead, as if they were about to burst at any moment.

"shut up----

'

A growl, like that of a dying beast, escaped from Greck's throat.

"You lowly bastard!! Shut up!!"

On the spine, the dozens of deformed extended arms seemed to sense the madness of the host and began to spasm and scratch violently without any order.

Some of his fingernails dug deep into his own flesh, leaving bloody scratches.

There are at least a thousand people in the inner courtyard square right now!

This is tantamount to public execution!

The humiliation of having his wounds exposed in public made him feel like the blood in his body was flowing backward, and his eyeballs were about to pop out of their sockets.

"I'm going to tear you to pieces!!"

"I'm going to cut your tongue off—and skin you alive!!"

Greck has completely lost his mind.

He no longer cared about any defense, and even ignored the eagle-patterned battle axe slashing down from his side. Like a mad bull that had lost its mind, he swung the three golden giant axes in his hands and smashed them wildly in the direction of Xia Tong.

Boom—!

The hard stone floor shattered into dust in an instant under his chaotic and disorderly bombardment.