Path To Godhood Begins With Marrying Wife And Gaining SSS Rank Skill Chapter 681:Sudden Reversal

Crown Prince Haster slowly walked forward while everyone quietly followed behind him. No one spoke for several moments because the strange place before them had already shaken everyone to the core. His eyes carefully moved across the enormous magic circles, the ancient pillars, the flowing miasma, and finally stopped on the gigantic crimson cocoon standing at the center. His brows slowly furrowed while a grim expression appeared on his face.

"This..."

He quietly muttered under his breath.

"I never imagined we would find something like this."

His voice carried clear surprise while he slowly circled around the outer edge of the barrier. Every now and then, he stopped to carefully examine another part of the formation before looking toward Duke Osantra.

"Did any of you touch the barrier?"

Duke Osantra shook his head.

"We tried to get past it, but it threw us back immediately."

"We couldn't even step inside. It was incredibly strong."

Haster slowly nodded before looking toward the Transcendent Knight standing behind him.

"Try it."

The armored knight gave a silent nod and stepped forward. A terrifying aura instantly erupted from his body while the surrounding miasma was blown away. He slowly raised his sword as endless power gathered around the blade. The pressure alone caused the nearby ground to crack while the surrounding rocks began trembling.

A moment later, he swung.

BOOOOOOM!

A massive slash crashed into the invisible barrier.

The entire mountain shook violently.

The earth split apart beneath everyone's feet while huge cracks spread across the rocky ground. Dust and broken stones exploded into the air as a powerful shockwave swept across the area and forced several nobles to shield themselves.

For several long moments, nothing could be seen.

As the dust slowly settled, everyone looked toward the center.

The barrier...

Remained completely untouched.

Not even a single ripple could be seen across its surface.

The expressions of everyone immediately changed.

Even Haster's face became noticeably grim.

"That's... tough."

He stared at the barrier for another moment before speaking again.

"It seems this formation was created to withstand even Ascension Realm experts."

He slowly looked toward Duke Osantra.

"Thankfully, none of you forced your way inside."

"That was the correct decision."

"If this formation has remained hidden until now, then trying to break it without understanding it would only increase the danger."

Ethan quietly stepped forward.

"Your Highness."

"Do you know anything about these strange symbols?"

Haster crouched slightly and carefully examined several runes carved into the ground before standing once again.

"These symbols are unlike the ordinary formations used by the Empire."

"They seem to have been prepared over a very long period of time."

One of the nobles frowned.

"Your Highness..."

"Do you know who could have created something like this?"

Haster slowly shook his head.

"I cannot say for certain."

"But whatever this is, it certainly wasn't created overnight."

"It has been planned for a very long time."

"Everything was put into motion while waiting for the right opportunity."

He slowly turned toward the giant cocoon once again.

"And I don't believe that thing should exist."

Everyone silently followed his gaze.

The crimson cocoon continued beating slowly while endless streams of dark essence flowed toward it through the surrounding formation. Even after seeing it several times, everyone still found it difficult to believe such a thing existed.

Ethan quietly stood beside the others while carefully observing both the cocoon and the formation. The uneasy feeling inside his heart only continued growing stronger.

One of the nobles finally spoke.

"If this thing continues absorbing the dead..."

"What will happen?"

Haster remained silent for several moments before answering.

"I don't know."

"And that is exactly what worries me."

His calm voice echoed softly.

"The greatest danger is never the enemy we understand."

"It is always the one we know nothing about."

Several people quietly nodded.

Nobody disagreed.

The group slowly continued walking around the outer edge of the barrier while discussing the strange formation and trying to understand its purpose. The Transcendent Knight accompanying Haster remained silent the entire time. His helmet completely hid his expression while he quietly followed a few steps behind the Crown Prince like a loyal guardian.

Everything appeared completely normal.

No one noticed anything unusual.

Without the slightest warning, the Transcendent Knight suddenly disappeared.

SWISH!

The sound was so faint that only a few people barely caught it.

Ethan's pupils instantly shrank.

His instincts screamed.

"Watch out!"

His warning had barely left his mouth when the armored figure appeared directly beside the group.

BOOOOM!

A tremendous burst of force exploded outward.

The sudden attack caught everyone completely off guard. Several nobles were thrown aside before they understood what had happened, while the others hurriedly raised their weapons.

"What?!"

"Enemy!"

The entire group erupted into confusion.

Duke Osantra reacted almost instantly.

His sword flashed from its sheath while powerful sword energy rushed forward to intercept the attacker.

CLAAANG!

A deafening collision echoed through the dead land.

The Transcendent Knight calmly blocked the attack before another violent shockwave burst outward.

BOOOOOOM!

Duke Osantra was forced backward and landed dozens of meters away before finally stopping himself.

Broken stones rolled across the ground.

The surrounding nobles stared in complete disbelief.

Nobody had expected this.

Nobody had imagined that one of the Crown Prince's own Transcendent Knights would suddenly attack them.

"Your Highness..."

Almost everyone instinctively turned toward Crown Prince Haster.

They wanted an explanation.

They wanted to see shock, anger, or confusion on his face.

Instead...

They froze.

A faint smile had slowly appeared on Haster's face.

It was calm and gentle yet for some reason, it sent a chill through everyone's heart.

The smile gave them an indescribable feeling of déjà vu, as though they had seen it somewhere before under very different circumstances.

One of the nobles felt his heart sink.

His face instantly turned pale.

He unconsciously took a step backward before pointing toward Haster with a trembling hand.

"You..."

His voice shook with fear.

"What is the meaning of this, Your Highness?"