Chapter 181: Flame in The City of Lion Finale

Ethan arrived in the city of Mavelard, fully prepared to defeat every last one of them. The people in the city looked panicked, but they had no other choice.

Just like the members of Silver Star, they charged toward Ethan even though they were wounded. They had to fight him if they wanted to survive.

Ethan realized the entire city had turned hostile toward him. He knew this invasion would never be forgiven by them, but Ethan didn’t need their forgiveness.

As long as the city leader refused to hand over the City Authority Token, the battle would continue without end.

Ethan stabbed his Bloodblade Ashura into the ground, activating Bloodflare Cataclysm to wipe them all out.

A blood domain erupted outward, turning the earth of the city into a massive pool of thick, rippling blood.

Ethan instantly felt his strength and speed surging, while the enemies around him felt their attack power and movement speed being drained.

That happened because the Bloodblade Ashura had risen from Legendary rank to Dragonbone.

At this moment, Ethan might very well be the only player in the world who possessed a Dragonbone-ranked weapon.

“W-What is happening?”

“My strength… it’s dropping?”

“This is bad. We’re trapped inside his AoE skill,” another man said.

Ethan’s eyes glowed a bright, blood-crimson light. A total of forty-five people were caught inside the radius of Bloodflare Cataclysm.

Their only chance of escaping the skill was to reach the outer edges of the domain—only there would they recover and survive the threat of death.

But they were at a significant disadvantage. Their steps felt heavy, their power drained away, as if the blood flooding around their feet was sucking out their strength and stamina.

Ethan moved first. He yanked his sword from the ground and dashed forward. There were 45 enemies, yet the skill only lasted 20s.

Ethan originally wanted to use this moment to stack more Ashura Rift swings, but that was impossible.

Ashura Rift alone had a 7s cooldown, while Bloodflare Cataclysm only lasted 20s. Even with the 50% cooldown reduction during Cataclysm, it wasn’t enough.

His best option was to kill as many of them as possible using a single Ashura Rift.

Ethan reached the first man and slashed horizontally, then upward. In an instant, three crescent-shaped fiery claws shot forward, tearing through at least 7 enemies standing in its path.

“AGGGHHHH!”

Screams of pain echoed everywhere. Bodies split open, blood pooling across the ground, tears streaming from desperate faces, lips begging for mercy from Ethan’s cruelty.

Ethan did not stop. He lunged forward and activated Crimson Slash. That single attack killed at least 12 more people along its line of destruction. 19 enemies were already dead.

There were still twelve seconds before Bloodflare Cataclysm ended. Ethan used his third skill to finish off the rest.

He found a cluster of enemies, then leapt high and slammed his sword into the ground. A massive shockwave of slashing energy erupted outward, injuring and killing many of them.

Ethan kept moving. Until the timer truly ran out, he continued sprinting and slaughtering anyone still alive—even without skills.

Unlike killing monsters, killing players gave him nothing except PK status. It was a bit disappointing; if all these people had been monsters, Ethan would’ve earned a mountain of EXP and Gold.

They’re monsters to me—useless monsters. Even tower monsters are more valuable than them.

The twenty seconds ended. Bloodflare Cataclysm dispersed. The blood domain faded, the puddles receded, and the city streets were left covered with pieces of dismembered corpses—every one of them dead in horrific fashion.

Some people watching collapsed in shock, many vomiting on the spot, and countless others surrendered immediately, refusing to fight Ethan.

His brutality alone was enough to send them straight to the afterlife.

Ethan raised his head. From afar, he could see Sera still annihilating the southern and western districts of the city.

Through her blade of light, she fired massive beams of radiant energy that burned everything in their path—buildings ignited, and people turned into ash.

Sera’s presence was a tremendous help. Chaos erupted in two separate parts of Mavelard—north and east by Ethan, south and west by Sera.

It completely split the city’s focus. They knew they couldn’t defeat Sera, especially since she was flying in the sky.

But challenging Ethan meant certain death, and the death he delivered was cruel and inhuman.

As the fighting continued, the city was engulfed in destruction—ruins everywhere, fires spreading uncontrollably.

People began to retreat from the burning areas, and many fled the city entirely to save their lives.

Ethan swung his sword sideways, unleashing a Crimson Slash toward a group of enemies. They tried to defend themselves, but the power of Ethan’s strike was overwhelming.

BLAST!

The explosion sent many flying, injuring most and killing a few immediately.

With the northern area cleared, Ethan turned his aim toward the east. He headed for the LionArk headquarters, which was currently occupied by Silver Star.

He halted when he saw many Silver Star members lined up on the street near the headquarters. A man shouted from the back of the formation, demanding an explanation for Ethan’s attack.

“HAHAHAHAHA!” Ethan laughed, mocking the question with the cruel laughter of a villain.

“Isn’t it obvious? I’m taking this city back from all of you!” Ethan declared, pointing his sword at them.

“You’re insane! You can only take this city through the City Authority Challenge!” yelled the Silver Star city leader.

“The City Authority Challenge exists only for people who don’t want to sacrifice lives. In reality… a city can be taken through invasion!”

“Sera,” Ethan called out. Even from far away, she heard him.

“Destroy the south, west, and east gates. Don’t let a single person escape.”

“Understood, Ethan.”

Sera flew toward the city gates and obliterated them into towering piles of rubble, dangerous to climb. Not one, but three city gates were destroyed. Panic erupted instantly.

A Silver Star member rushed to tell their leader that three of the four gates were gone. Their only escape route was the northern gate.

“WHAT?!” the man yelled.

“Many of our allied guild members have been wiped out. We have to surrender,” said the guild member.

“I WILL NEVER SURRENDER!” the leader shouted, blinded by his lust for power.

He turned and ordered everyone to charge. Ethan had to die for him to preserve his pride.

Silver Star members rushed toward Ethan. Ethan narrowed his eyes and dashed forward, swinging his sword sideways and unleashing another Crimson Slash.

BLAST!

Another explosion. More bodies were thrown aside, many badly injured. The sight shook their resolve, but the leader’s order demanded Ethan’s death—even if it was impossible.

Cooldown finished. Ethan planted his sword into the ground again—activating Bloodflare Cataclysm for the second time.

This was the first moment Ethan had ever used the skill twice in a row.

Another blood domain erupted, its radius reaching all the way to the front of LionArk headquarters.

Many Silver Star members fell powerless, their strength drained, their legs too heavy to move.

With that overwhelming advantage, Ethan darted forward and struck everyone in his path with basic attacks.

He unleashed Crimson Slash again, slaughtering more people and deepening the chaos. Then he used Ashura Rift, carving a clean path through the streets.

“AAAGHHH!”

“We should surrender!”

“I don’t want to fight!”

“I want to live!”

Ethan kept killing them. Blood splashed everywhere, their pleas for mercy drowned beneath their own terror.

The city leader froze in horror—legs shaking, hands trembling, face pale as he watched Ethan butcher his members like a reaper descending from hell.

“WE HAVE TO DO SOMETHING!” someone shouted.

“Give him the City Authority Token! We can take it back later!” several yelled.

Ethan unleashed another Ashura Rift, tearing through everyone in front of him. Now, Ethan was standing near the city leader.

The leader stood paralyzed, unsure if he could ever defeat Ethan. The man was a monster.

Just before Ethan reached him, five Silver Star warriors stepped forward to shield their leader.

“Stop, Ethan! We negotiate!” one of them shouted.

“Negotiate?” Ethan asked.

He called for Sera. She responded immediately, streaking across the sky from west to east, landing beside Ethan in a burst of radiant wind.

The sight of Sera up close shocked everyone. Her appearance and power resembled a goddess.

Some even whispered that Seraphelis must be divine because of her beauty and strength.

Sera looked toward Ethan, startled by the sight of his blood-soaked clothes—only his face remained clean. It was clear Ethan had fought with merciless intent.

“What negotiation?” Ethan asked.

“We will give you the City Authority Token if you let us go,” the warrior replied.

“I will not—”

PUNCH!

One of the warriors punched the city leader in the stomach, sending him collapsing to his knees, groaning in pain.

Ethan was surprised—clearly the man had lost all patience for this invasion.

He extended his hand, demanding the token. He promised to guarantee the safety of all Silver Star members escaping through the northern gate.

But the city leader refused to hand it over. The negotiation stalled. Ethan began counting down.

“If I don’t receive that token in ten seconds, Servant Sera will burn every one of you into ash.”

Panic erupted instantly. The members began beating their own city leader, threatening to kill him if he didn’t surrender the token.

Ethan witnessed two opposing forces—the man desperate to cling to power, and the people desperate to survive.

But Ethan had no intention of sparing anyone. They deserved death for stealing Mavelard from LionArk.

“Three… two… one.”

Even at the final second, they did not hand it over. Ethan turned to Sera.

“Burn them.”

Sera raised her sword and thrust it forward. A massive beam of light roared outward, incinerating everyone on the street.

None escaped. The leader died screaming as he turned to ash—along with the city leader himself.

Every member of Silver Star in Mavelard was gone. Ethan had won the invasion.

He stepped forward and picked up the City Authority Token. A system panel appeared before him.

[You have obtained the City Authority Token]

[City: Mavelard]

[You are now the city leader]

[Starting city-wide attribute conversion to match guild logo and colors]

One by one, the buildings throughout the city changed color to blue. LionArk banners unfurled across every rooftop and at the northern gate.

Ethan took a long breath, exhaled slowly, and walked into the LionArk headquarters as its logo and colors replaced Silver Star’s.

“Mavelard will remain LionArk.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep