Chapter 137: Cemetery and Acorn(1)

On the western plains of Nightfall Domain, Rosalia moved swiftly through the gray mist.

She had returned to her youthful form again. Perhaps she was worried that her more mature, voluptuous body might affect her combat performance.

All around them were only Nongying’s writhing tentacles and the roaming corpses. Filth and decay covered everything. From within the dense, corrupted black forest came occasional shrill screams that made Phield shiver violently. The goosebumps he had just managed to calm rose up again, even though he was only controlling the black crow from far away.

“These corpses died not long ago. Someone killed them with brutal methods.”

Rosalia suddenly stopped. She crouched down and carefully examined the wounds on one of the dead corpses.

“Oh? Could adventurers have already come here? That was fast.”

“Doesn’t seem like it. It looks more like the work of my kind.” Rosalia licked the corner of her lips. “Very likely a Divine Chosen. Just like I used to be. When we’re hungry, we kill our own kind. They’ll always find some kind of excuse to slaughter.”

“Divine Chosen? Then let me take a look.”

Phield guided the black crow upward, circling high in the sky. In less than five minutes, he spotted obvious traces of fierce combat.

“Found it. Follow me!”

Following the trail of the battle, the two quickly arrived at a two-story stone building.

The building was covered with corrupted plants, and around it lay a vast cemetery. The ground was filled with gravestones—some made of stone, others of rotting wood.

The broken door of the stone house was slightly ajar. A striking trail of blood, accompanied by drag marks, extended all the way inside.

“This is the great cemetery of Nightfall Domain. That house belongs to the gravekeeper. Farewell ceremonies are also held there. The gravekeeper here was an old man. He was always helpful and often assisted people from nearby villages, but everyone disliked him because his eyes were always red and flies constantly surrounded him.”

Rosalia knew Nightfall Domain like the back of her hand. After all, according to the law, she was technically the rightful heir to it.

“Maybe the gravekeeper had conjunctivitis.”

“Conjunctivitis? What’s that? I heard he was cursed by a demon. His wife and daughter died from the same curse.” Rosalia shrank her shoulders slightly and tightened the black ribbon around her neck. “A terrifying story. When I was alive, I didn’t even dare pass by this place.”

“Haha. Hearing the word ’afraid’ come from your mouth feels strangely out of place.” Phield guided the black crow onto a tree branch. “Enough reminiscing. Do you hear that disgusting noise coming from inside? Be careful.”

Unfortunately, the black crow could not inherit his minimap ability, so Phield had no idea whether danger was waiting inside.

“I will.”

Rosalia blinked her right eye hard, shouldered the Greatsword of Gluttony, and approached the stone house on tiptoe with elegant steps.

“Squelch… crunch, crunch…”

A spine-chilling chewing sound came from behind the door.

“The smell of fresh flesh—but not human.” Rosalia inhaled deeply like a deranged gourmet and sneered. “It reminds me of a delicious old acquaintance.”

With a humming roar, her greatsword shattered the stone door into pieces.

Through the terrifying vision of the black crow, Phield could clearly see the scene inside.

“Holy—” Phield’s whole body trembled, a chill running down his spine.

A bloated monster stood there, its entire body covered in rotting flesh that reeked of decay, countless strange worms writhing across its skin. It was clutching a beautiful figure and tearing into her flesh with savage bites. The sight was horrifying.

“Huh? Isn’t that Violet? Long time no see. Why are you so weak now?” Rosalia showed no fear at all. Instead, she looked surprised.

“If you’re not dead, make a sound.”

Violet was the corrupted Divine Chosen who had once hunted Sherry.

“My kind. Get lost. This is my food.”

The bloated monster twisted its head toward them. Divine power burst from its body, carrying a thick stench of blood as it revealed the strength of a second-tier Divine Chosen.

Phield quickly judged its approximate combat strength, but then something felt wrong. He exclaimed in shock,

“Can Divine Chosen really be this ugly? Wait—why is the voice male?”

Rosalia shook her head.

“The real Divine Chosen is probably attached to him. It’s quite unusual. It’s a fusion of a fourth-tier corrupted creature, two second-tier corrupted creatures, and a Divine Chosen.”

The monster grinned. It turned its back toward them, revealing a horrifying sight: a face both beautiful and terrifying had been stitched onto the monster’s spine.

Facing Rosalia, the face spoke in a pitiful voice.

“Hello. My name is Acorn. Please don’t disturb our family while we’re eating.”

“Hehe. Your family… sounds like it might be delicious.” Rosalia licked her lips. “I’ll give you a choice—submit, or be killed by me.”

Not even a second of hesitation passed.

The monster’s figure blurred forward at an unbelievable speed, carrying a terrifying gust of wind as it crashed straight toward her.

“Ah, I almost forgot. After forming a contract with the baron, I’ve already taken on the baron’s… shape—ah, no, I mean the baron’s aura.”

Rosalia was not surprised at all. Ever since forming a contract with Phield, even ordinary corpses would instinctively treat her as an enemy—let alone something like this that already devoured its own kind.

Boom!

A sharp tearing sound split the air as Rosalia was smashed and sent flying.

She had countless chances to dodge, but she simply didn’t bother.

“You’re too weak. I’ll find another food.”

Acorn looked at its twisted hand in confusion. It hadn’t even used its full strength, yet the attack had landed. That could only mean the enemy was weak.

If it could eat a second-tier prey, it would never settle for first-tier food.

Acorn casually released its control over Violet and tossed the half-eaten body aside.

What happened next made Phield’s pupils tremble in shock.

Violet instantly dissolved into a puddle of blood and slipped into the grass, fleeing.

“What? She’s still alive? The vitality of corrupted Divine Chosen is truly terrifying.” Phield’s mouth twitched. He had originally planned to loot her divine artifact.

“Hehe. Whether I’m weak or not, you’ll find out very soon.”

Rosalia stood up without even a speck of dust on her body and gave an elegant bow.

Divine Skill: Crimson Ascendancy

(The more injuries she sustains, the more her combat power increases exponentially.)

“Since I’ll get injured anyway fighting someone of the same tier, I can’t be bothered to dodge.”

Rosalia revealed a row of white teeth as blazing black-red flames ignited around her body. Her aura surged upward again and again.

“Miss Acorn, you may begin resisting now. The more you struggle, the more excited I become.”

A trace of confusion appeared on Acorn’s childish face.

Suddenly—

A thunderous explosion erupted above its head.

“When did—?!”

Acorn immediately looked up, only to see Rosalia staring down at her with a sickly grin.

Following Rosalia’s descending figure were countless phantom images of the Greatsword of Gluttony filling the sky.

“Roar—!”

Acorn instantly turned around.

For a corrupted creature, merging with other lifeforms was perfectly normal.

She, however, had fused together with every member of her family—her entire family stitched together into a single body.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep