A dull longsword and a heartbroken villager

The elder bled black blood, which was then dried out in an instant.

"Ah, ahh." The elder's body gradually shrank, but did not revert to the hunched old man's form.

That's for sure. If he were to revert back, the elder would be burned to death by flames or poisoned to death in an instant.

Betley approached the elder and looked down at him.

The cold look in his eyes had already told the elder how Betley would deal with him.

“Question one,” Beatrix began.

"What is your real purpose in capturing the White Dragon?"

"Heh..." the elder sneered.

That dragon's smile was terrifying.

However, Beatrix's expression was no less dramatic than the elder's.

Betley stepped on the elder's head.

The flames and poison couldn't harm Betley in the slightest.

"Answer my questions, or I'll torture you to death."

"Aa ...

Betley cast a divine spell directly on the elder, deepening the elder's fear.

Only people who are extremely fearful will reveal information.

"I'll talk, I'll talk, I'll talk," the elder said, his voice trembling slightly.

The venom began to flow into his bloodstream, robbing him of his already dwindling life force.

"We want to corrupt the white dragon..."

"Ah ah ah ah ah ah ah--"

“Go on,” Betley said, carrying out the cruel act with a blank expression.

“After corrupting the white dragon, there will be an opportunity to control Him,” the elder answered Betley’s question with anguish.

“Question two.” Betley narrowed his eyes, not pursuing the first question further.

"Who is helping you behind the scenes?"

"!?!" The elder's eyes widened in surprise.

Only people within the Dragon Claw Cult would know about this. Why would this man in the trench coat know?

“To answer that question,” Beattie said.

“It was a masked man, a masked man who helped us,” the elder said with difficulty.

“The masked man?” Betley frowned, feeling a vague sense of familiarity about him.

At this crucial moment, Betley's thoughts were interrupted.

Many Dragon Claw cult members poured in from outside.

"Has it been going on for too long?" Betley's heart sank.

Then the elder, who had been suppressed by Betley, suddenly unleashed a powerful burst of strength and got up.

That's the explosive power of the Dragon Claw Cult, which even dragons find troublesome.

However, the elders used it to escape.

"!?!" Betley hadn't expected that the elder, who was so badly injured, would still have the strength to resist.

"Stop this intruder!" the elder roared hysterically, then ran away without looking back.

His sudden outburst was simply a desperate attempt to survive.

"Afrena!" Seeing the Dragon Claw Cult elder flee in such an unseemly manner, Betley's eyes turned cold.

“Deal with these guys.”

After saying that, Betley chased after the elder in the direction he had left.

However, the elder spread his wings and flew in the sky, making it a bit troublesome for Betley to catch up.

"Don't treat me like a servant," Afrena replied, frowning her pretty eyebrows in displeasure.

But Beatrix didn't reply to Aphrena; he had already left.

Aphrena was speechless.

Looking at the densely packed cultists in front of her, Avrena became increasingly agitated.

"So annoying." Huge wings spread open, and feathers fell like snow.

The tip of each white feather was stained with black.

The surroundings seemed to be enveloped in black and white in an instant.

The believers who had come to support their elders stared in disbelief at the strange phenomenon caused by Afrena.

“It’s perfect for taking my anger out on you.” Afrena’s voice was as cold as snow.

With a light touch of her jade-like feet, she rose to the very top.

A circular magic circle, unique to angels, appeared above Afrena's head.

The legendary angel halo is essentially a magic circle.

"The Spear of Judgment"

She was really angry.

But unable to vent her anger on Betley, Afrena could only use the people in front of her as punching bags.

"BOOM!!!!" Countless particles, enough to form spears, slammed into the ground, creating a deep crater.

Everyone within a hundred meters of the crater was affected by the attack.

"Get up! I haven't finished venting yet," Afrena said ruthlessly, looking down at the cultists lying on the ground, their fates unknown.

---

The elders could feel the commotion caused by Aphrena's attack even from a great distance.

"Damn it..." The elder struggled to flap his wings.

The venom has already corroded his internal organs. It won't be long before the elder dies suddenly and rots on the ground.

It was only the will to survive that drove the elders away from Betley.

Barring any unforeseen circumstances, no matter how far the elder escapes, he will die from the deadly poison.

But even in death, Beatrix still had many questions left unanswered.

The elder was extremely familiar with his sect's headquarters and quickly managed to shake off Betley.

However, given some time, Beatrix will still be able to find the elder.

"I can't die yet... I've even caught the dragon..." the elder said unwillingly.

Unfortunately, the poison was coursing through his body, and foul-smelling blood seeped out through his scales.

"Hiss—" The elder was too weak to continue flying and fell straight to the ground.

Due to the momentum from before, the elder, now a dragon, slid a considerable distance on the ground.

The bricks and stones on the ground were shoveled up and scattered around the elder.

The dragon's body kept changing shape, and finally the elder turned back into the old man.

The magic power within him was already depleted, and he could no longer support the form of that dragon.

"Cough cough..." The elder curled up, spitting out black blood with each cough.

The blue flames had long been extinguished.

However, the poison could not be dispelled no matter what, and could only be allowed to run rampant in the body.

"Why is this happening... ah..." The elder's throat became extremely dry, making it difficult for him to speak.

The Dragon Claw Cult, which was doing well, has suddenly turned into this.

It was all because of that man in the trench coat.

Anger and resentment filled the elder's chest.

But what can anger or resentment do?

The elder knew very well that he had no time left to burn.

The deadly poison attached to that divine spell was already too much for even a dragon's body to resist; now that it has turned back into an old man, its fate will likely be even more tragic.

The elder's already wrinkled skin became even drier.

He turned his head and glanced behind him.

Although there was no one in sight, he could feel Betty getting closer and closer.

He lay helplessly on the ground, seemingly resigned to his fate.

It's over, everything is over, the Dragon Claw Cult will cease to exist.

"Da da da—" A series of rapid, crisp sounds rang in the elder's ears.

The elder instinctively looked in the direction of the sound.

Although his vision was blurry, the person in front of him was so conspicuous and so familiar.

A mask with a half-smile appeared before the elder.

He is Jonathan.

"Haha, Elder, what a pitiful sight," Jonathan said with a shrug and a regretful tone.

The tuxedo was perfectly straight, without a single wrinkle.

Such attire makes it seem as if one is attending some important banquet.

“It’s you, the masked man…” The elder looked at Jonathan with an incredulous expression.

“Yes, it’s me, you seem a little confused,” Jonathan said casually.

Even with the elder in such a state, Jonathan did not make any move and calmly chatted with the elder.

"Save me, save me, the Dragon Claw Cult needs your help..." The elder grabbed Jonathan's trouser leg as if he were grasping at a straw.

The elder didn't even consider why Jonathan was there.

All he wanted was for Jonathan to save him.

Whether it's the Dragon Claw Cult's ability to unleash its power, the methods for capturing the White Dragon, or the White Dragon's weaknesses, everything was provided by Jonathan.

The mysterious masked man is the one providing support behind the Dragon Claw Cult.

The masked man did not ask for any reward from the Dragon Claw Cult, but generously provided assistance to them.

In fact, the elders had wondered if the masked man had some unspeakable secret.

However, the Dragon Claw Cult was profiting so much that the elders chose to ignore the masked man's hidden motives.

"Oh dear, please don't wrinkle the little man's pants." Jonathan kicked away Zhang Kai and took a small step back.

"Although I have met you many times, please don't be too enthusiastic."

"I'm still not used to people being too enthusiastic." Jonathan pressed down on his hat, looking at his trouser legs with a pained expression.

It was all crumpled up from the elder's grasp.

Jonathan is very enthusiastic towards people, but he's not used to others being enthusiastic towards him too.

"Save me...save me..." The elder's voice grew weaker and weaker.

"Oh dear, I got so caught up in chatting that I forgot you're about to die."

No sooner had he finished speaking than Jonathan tapped the elder on the forehead with his cane.

With a small action, the deadly poison in the elder's body was completely cleared away.

The elder's breathing gradually calmed down, but the rotting parts of his body did not recover.