Desperate Prayer, with... the Thrones

"Tilis!!"

Eleya stared fixedly at the figure in the magical projection, her eyes bloodshot.

Tilis had not only shattered the last line of defense but also completely broken the morale of the faithful. Despair now filled the hallowed halls of the Radiant Cathedral.

"Oh God, save us... save me..."

"Saintess, please help me... I'm in so much pain..."

"It's so cold... Am I dying...?"

"Saintess, are you truly watching over us? Why do you stand by as this happens? Have you abandoned us?"

The agonized cries and desperate prayers of the faithful reverberated in Eleya's mind, pushing her to the brink. Her pale golden eyes nearly turned crimson with fury.

"Tilis! You witch! I'll kill you!!"

She turned her wrath toward Luo Wei, her voice trembling with rage. "Was this your doing? Did you order her to do this?!"

"Of course," Luo Wei replied coldly. "The plan to destroy Mount Siston was mine. Tilis was merely the executor. Only by stripping you of most of your faith could we truly weaken you."

"You're insane!! Do you have any idea what you've done? Butcher!!" Eleya's mind teetered on the edge of collapse. The despairing voices of her followers echoed endlessly in her skull, overlapping into an unbearable cacophony. She clutched her head in agony.

"Pot calling the kettle black," Luo Wei retorted, his gaze unwavering. "If you hadn't pushed me so relentlessly, this tragedy would never have happened. In the end, you're the one who doomed them. You and I are no different."

"It was me... I killed them..." Eleya raked her fingers through her hair, muttering in disbelief. "No... no, that can't be. You're twisting the truth! I didn’t kill them—I’m their Saintess! I’m their savior! I bring them happiness and order! How could I have...?"

[Eleya Christine (Primary)]

[Affection: 100]

[Corruption: 75↑]

After finally encountering Eleya’s true form, her status reappeared for the first time in four years. Luo Wei watched as her corruption surged rapidly.

Yet the desperate prayers of the faithful showed no sign of abating.

"Stop... please, stop..." Eleya begged, her voice breaking. "I’ll save you... I swear I will..."

[Corruption: 80↑]

Eleya fought to suppress the storm of emotions raging within her. A radiant aura of divine magic enveloped her body.

She had to return to the Siston Church immediately. Though it was too late, she had to try—some might still be alive. And above all, she couldn’t let Tilis continue her destruction across Norsgul.

But damn Luo Wei blocked her path yet again!

"What are you doing?! Move!" Eleya dodged his spell, her expression twisting into something monstrous. "Do you truly wish to die?!"

[Corruption: 90↑]

Luo Wei had no death wish, but he had no choice—he had to stall her. The longer this dragged on, the weaker Eleya would become as her faith dwindled.

The surviving superhuman agents, who had been observing the battle, seemed to grasp the situation. At Fred’s command, they rushed forward in unison, joining Luo Wei in buying time.

Fred, despite his injuries and the cumbersome black greatsword in his grip, proved the most effective. His movements were startlingly agile, evading every one of Eleya’s divine strikes.

He realized this battle was nothing like their first encounter. Her radiant glow had dimmed, and her attacks lacked their former lethality.

A surge of excitement filled him.

"Just hold her back! She’s weakening—prioritize survival!"

"Yes!" The agents’ faces mirrored his fervor.

With their shift in tactics, the tide of battle turned. No longer engaging Eleya head-on, they harried her relentlessly, preventing her from teleporting away.

Luo Wei watched as Eleya, now surrounded, deteriorated further.

But her descent into madness only made her more terrifying...

"AAAAAAAAHHHH—!!"

With a furious scream, Eleya’s body underwent a horrifying transformation.

Luo Wei noticed her bloodshot golden eyes suddenly go blank, devoid of emotion. Her face grew expressionless—no more rage, no more pain. Only cold divinity remained.

Then came the true horror.

Eleya’s body, enveloped in a faint glow, began to swell grotesquely. She rose into the air, and in moments, her human form vanished entirely. In its place was...

An eye.

To be precise, a massive eye, surrounded by countless smaller ones.

The central eye, pure white, gazed down impassively at the humans below. The smaller eyes were arranged in wheel-like rings, layered like celestial orbs, spinning around the central pupil. The sheer number of eyes—clustered, writhing—was enough to induce visceral revulsion.

(Illustration)

Everyone froze, transfixed by the sight. Despite its grotesquery, the entity exuded an eerie, almost sacred beauty.

[Eleya Christine (Secondary)]

[Ophanim]

[Affection: 0]

[Corruption: 0]

The sight of Eleya in this form sent waves of terror through the onlookers. Even Luo Wei and Ophelia recoiled.

Luo Wei studied the colossal eye, perplexed. Eleya’s race was that of an exotic, near-extinct winged demi-human from the southern continent—akin to an angel, but still a demi-human. How had she become a true celestial?

What had happened to her four years ago?

Her cryptic behavior back then must be linked to this. Her obsession with godhood couldn’t be without reason.

As Luo Wei pondered, the massive eye hovering above remained motionless.

It simply watched the earth below, posing no threat.