The Grotesque Miss’s End Story v2c90

Chapter 90: A Mad Gamble

“This should do it.”

After initially dominating the stone sphere Sacred Tool, disabling its effect, Luo Ling breathed a sigh of relief.

At least, if another spatial slash attack occurred, the ascension ritual itself would bear the brunt of it, not the priests and followers connected to the Sacred Tool.

Luo Ling quickened her pace.

To avoid being detected, she carefully avoided all active battle zones.

She knew that being discovered by either side would be incredibly troublesome.

For the Order-side Awakened Ones, compared to the Harbingers, she, the White Witch, who had “slaughtered” most of Victoria’s Awakened Ones, would be a higher priority target.

“Just a little further…”

Luo Ling sensed the Sacred Tool’s location, strengthening her control as she approached.

But then, she suddenly stopped, a familiar, strange feeling washing over her.

“This is…”

Luo Ling tilted her head slightly, subconsciously looking in a certain direction, her grey eyes widening slightly.

She saw a black light emanating from the ascension ritual, reaching towards the sky.

At the same time, the crimson in her vision gradually faded, replaced by a dull grey.

The grey came and went quickly. As it dissipated, the black light in the distance also vanished.

“…What was that?”

Luo Ling murmured softly, then startled by her own voice.

A childish, cute voice overlapped with her cold, indifferent tone, as if two Luo Lings were speaking simultaneously.

Through her Spore vision, Luo Ling saw her two forms merging.

No, or rather, while in her White Witch form, her original form had suddenly appeared uncontrollably, along with an unstoppable Grotesquification.

Her grey eyes were tinged with a faint dark gold, the ends of her silver hair turning pitch black, even her small hands were covered in grotesque, teal-black scales.

Something similar had happened before…

…Luo Ling remembered.

When she used Ensnare to return to the past and save Linna.

Within the Purgatory Incubation Barrier where the Hunt team had been sacrificed, the moment the Boundary collapsed, as she uncontrollably Devoured the unstable Boundary, the situation had been almost identical.

Remembering the consequences, Luo Ling panicked.

She looked up and saw a lazy, red figure looming in the sky, seemingly watching the unfolding disaster with amusement.

—One of the Four Premonitions of the Speakers, the Harbinger of Disaster, the Gypsy Girl.

So…

“At this moment, the Company has initiated the Boundary collapse in Victoria.”

The source was the black light that had suddenly emerged from the ascension ritual.

Last time, Luo Ling had Devoured the entire Purgatory Incubation Barrier. And now…

Was Devour’s target the entire Blood Refining Barrier?

Including… everyone within it?

“…….”

Within the ascension ritual, the Woman knelt on the ground, looking incredibly weak.

“Madmen, no, you are the madmen…”

Educator, severely injured, murmured in disbelief.

He stared at the Woman, equally injured, his breathing becoming labored.

“I never thought, Woman, you could use such a terrifying power, even more terrifying than a Taboo, with a mere human body… So, you’re Historian, aren’t you?”

“Guess.”

The Woman struggled to raise her head, looking at Educator with a defiant smirk, blood trickling from her orifices.

Although her external injuries didn’t seem severe, her internal organs were practically mangled, barely clinging to life thanks to the Blood Refining Barrier.

Using this power that surpassed even a Taboo had severely injured Educator in an instant, but the burden on her was also immense.

Moreover, at this moment, the Woman also activated the result of her recent efforts.

All the Boundary collapse nodes across Victoria, activated.

Combined with the Blood Refining Barrier, an unprecedented Boundary collapse had begun.

Within the dilapidated cabin, two old men sat facing each other before the fireplace.

The Old Man on the stool slowly raised his head, his face illuminated by the faint firelight, his expression serious and solemn. He said gravely,

“Brother, you spoke too soon. Our game isn’t over yet. Even in the face of certain defeat, a desperate gamble… can still offer a chance of survival… didn’t you always say that?”

“…My misjudgment,” Philosopher, huddled on the sofa, was silent for a moment, then suddenly laughed. “Single-handedly completing all the preparations for a Boundary collapse…

“My apologies, brother, I underestimated her… and all of you.”

Philosopher coughed violently, his empty shell nearing its end, yet still retaining a semblance of humanity.

He looked at the fire in the fireplace, an unreadable emotion flickering in his cloudy eyes.

Then, he sighed softly.

“Lend me… fifteen more minutes.”

As his voice fell, the fire in the fireplace intensified.

The old man’s casual words within the small cabin somehow halted the Boundary collapse across Victoria.

The process was forcibly interrupted, all changes frozen in time, unable to continue.

The Gypsy Girl, who had been yawning out of boredom in the sky above, finally became interested.

She shifted her position, resting her chin on her hand and looking down at the battlefield below. After carefully sensing the situation in Victoria, she chuckled softly.

“Hmph… finally… a bit of a ‘disaster.'”

Meanwhile, within the Blood Refining Barrier.

“Surprise, Woman. Before Philosopher, your schemes… are all for naught.”

Educator sneered, his severely injured body gradually recovering.

Although the unknown power that surpassed even a Taboo had inflicted unbearable damage, even now preventing his wounds from healing completely…

He was within the Blood Refining Barrier, surrounded by healing blood mist. He was practically immortal, as long as the barrier’s energy wasn’t exhausted.

More importantly, due to the casualties among the teams outside the barrier, its power hadn’t weakened, but instead increased slightly.

In contrast, although the Woman was also recovering, it was barely noticeable. The barrier’s main function for her was simply sustaining her life.

First, although the Woman could use a portion of the barrier’s power, it ultimately wasn’t hers. Her usage wasn’t on the same level as Educator’s.

Second, the Woman’s injuries were comparable to Educator’s. The backlash from using that unknown power had been immense, almost annihilating her on the spot. She had only survived thanks to the barrier’s life support.

This trade of injuries, if the battle couldn’t be ended quickly, would only disadvantage the Woman.

If the Boundary collapse had succeeded, the ascension ritual would have been interrupted, and the Harbingers’ plans would have been thwarted.

But it had failed.

Even a short delay…

Was enough to complete the ascension ritual.

Once the ritual was complete, whether the Boundary collapsed or not was irrelevant.

But now, the severely injured Woman could do nothing but watch.

The Woman had intentionally stalled with her words, something Educator had noticed, but he hadn’t cared, as time was on the Harbingers’ side. The completion of the ascension ritual would render all their trump cards useless.

“Is that so? Are you sure?” the Woman said, a rare, seductive smile appearing on her usually indifferent face. “Educator, have you forgotten what I just said?

“The most important little guest at this feast… is just arriving…”

The Woman glanced at the stone sphere Sacred Tool, now enveloped in fungal threads, then looked up in a certain direction. Seeing a faint, silver figure approaching, a smile appeared on her lips.

—It was the White Witch, the most prominent High-Risk Grotesquery in Victoria recently, a Grotesquery in human form.

Since the Boy’s decapitation, the directors hadn’t ignored the White Witch.

All their subsequent plans considered her a crucial factor.

When Li Shaoheng inexplicably received the ascension ritual’s location, the Woman, standing beside him, had realized it was sent by the White Witch. Only she possessed the ability to learn the Harbingers’ secrets.

As for why the Woman was certain it was the White Witch, not Historian…

The reason was simple: at this point, Historian’s identity was clear.

The Woman was Historian.

And now, Historian had chosen to side with the Company, even though the Harbingers’ chances of victory were incredibly high.

However, another question remained: wasn’t the White Witch allied with the Harbingers?

Hadn’t she even decapitated the Boy because of this alliance?

Why was she now secretly helping the Company?

The Woman didn’t know, but she was willing to gamble.

She was gambling that the White Witch wasn’t truly allied with the Harbingers, only temporarily cooperating for some unknown purpose.

As both a Harbinger leader and a Company director, the Woman was all too familiar with such situations.

She was betting that the White Witch simply wanted to create chaos in Victoria to achieve her own objectives.

In that case…

She should utilize all available means and resources.

Even the terrifying and cruel White Witch could become a pawn on the chessboard.

Using herself as bait, luring the Grotesquery into the trap.

At this critical juncture, hesitation would only lead to a more devastating defeat.

Now, the Woman’s gamble had paid off.

“Shaoheng, take me away, now,” the Woman whispered.

The next moment, her severely injured figure vanished, teleported away by Length Contraction.

The Woman had dismissed Li Shaoheng beforehand precisely for this moment. The uncontrollable power she had just unleashed would severely injure everyone present, including Li Shaoheng.

And now, the only one left to face the White Witch… was Educator.

Borrowing a knife to kill.

Last time, the victim was the Boy.

This time, it was Educator’s turn.

The Company’s scheme was now revealed, a desperate gamble that had created a chance for survival.

“Damn it…”

Educator saw the White Witch approaching, but his injuries hadn’t fully healed.

Because at this moment, an invisible domain unfolded, gradually enveloping the area, adding a grey tinge to the crimson, severing Educator’s connection to the Blood Refining Barrier, preventing him from controlling it as easily as before.

This place… was now the White Witch’s domain. Her Authority, Kingdom, seized from her predecessor, the Puppet Ballad, was gradually dominating everything within its range.

“……”

The Boundary collapse being interrupted was unexpected for Luo Ling. Her condition also stabilized, the risk of Devouring the entire Blood Refining Barrier temporarily gone.

Whether those killed would be resurrected in the new world, Luo Ling didn’t know, but those Devoured by the unstable Boundary would surely die.

Not everyone was like her sister, a High-Risk Grotesquery personality with a mysterious past, whose secrets were yet to be fully revealed.

The Doomsday Authority, Devour, wasn’t meant for salvation…

“However, what exactly was that… black light?”

Luo Ling’s expression darkened. Due to the Boundary collapse activation, her condition had been affected, preventing her from carefully sensing the power of the black light that reached the sky. She only felt a strange sense of familiarity.

However, as she entered the ascension ritual, these questions were temporarily put aside, as she witnessed a more interesting scene.

Educator, reduced to almost just a head.

…A fitting counterpart to the headless Boy.

The black light had obliterated most of Educator’s body. He was slowly regenerating, but the black light’s lingering power hindered his healing.

Coupled with Luo Ling’s Kingdom, which had dominated the surrounding Blood Refining Barrier, Educator’s regeneration was further impeded, stopping at his shoulders.

“White Witch!”

The terrified scream wasn’t from Educator, but from Religious within the ascension ritual.

Most of Religious’s body had merged with the ritual, practically becoming a part of it, but at the same time, a continuous stream of Authority flowed into him.

Under normal circumstances, Religious wasn’t qualified to receive such a powerful Authority, so it was channeled through the ascension ritual, forcibly infused into him, the excess energy dissipating into the ritual and its surrounding barriers.

It was an incredibly intricate ritual, even Luo Ling, present here and partially controlling it through the stone sphere Sacred Tool, couldn’t fully comprehend it.

But one thing was certain: this ascension ritual wasn’t meant for Religious’s ascension.

Or rather, Religious… was just a part of the ritual.

“Your Excellency, White Witch, it’s a pleasure to meet you, although I apologize for the… circumstances,” Educator said calmly, maintaining his composure.

“Your cruel and brutal reputation precedes you, from Jiangcheng County to Victoria, but I never imagined you would be such a beautiful young lady.”

Luo Ling ignored Educator, her gaze fixed on the ascension ritual.

Because she knew Educator was panicking. His true concern wasn’t himself, but the ritual.

Educator was confident he could be reborn from blood countless times, but the ascension ritual couldn’t.

He understood the Company, the Order-side forces. He knew they didn’t have the power to destroy the ritual.

But he didn’t understand the White Witch.

Or rather, no one dared claim to understand a human-like Grotesquery.

Her thoughts were a mix of human and Grotesquery, yet she possessed power far beyond human comprehension, always unpredictable.

The unknown… was the source of all fear.

Although the White Witch only wielded the Authority ranked forty-ninth in the Sequence, she didn’t need to pay any price to use it, because she was the source of the price.

Imagine if Luo Ling had to pay a price every time she dominated a person or an area, limiting her usage.

Under such restrictions, even the terrifying Puppet Ballad’s abilities would become less significant.

This was the greatest difference between a Grotesquery in the Sequence and a human forcefully wielding an Authority.

Philosopher’s ascension ritual was to become such a Sequence Grotesquery, to truly “ascend to godhood.”

Luo Ling was silent for a moment, raising her hand slightly. The surrounding grey began to seep into the ascension ritual, her Kingdom gradually dominating it.

“No, no…”

Religious was terrified. He wasn’t a combat-type Harbinger, always handling logistical tasks within the organization.

Other Shore Path Awakened Ones, below Philosopher’s level, generally lacked combat power.

Facing a High-Risk Grotesquery, the infamous White Witch, known for her brutality and cruelty, having slaughtered countless Awakened Ones and ordinary people, the only reason Religious hadn’t collapsed was because half of his body had already merged with the ascension ritual.

“Idiot!”

Educator cursed inwardly. He had always known Religious was a coward, useless in a fight.

Handling logistics was fine, but on the battlefield, simply not running away was already commendable.

Of course, if Religious was useful, he wouldn’t be here now, serving as the first sacrifice on the path to godhood.

Educator knew that if he didn’t act, under Kingdom’s domination, the ascension ritual might truly fail.

“Sigh…”

A long sigh echoed, and Educator’s expression turned serious. “I didn’t want to use this.”

“Hmm?”

Luo Ling, sensing the drastic change in Educator’s inspiration, tilted her head slightly, looking at him.

Educator was no longer trying to regenerate his body, instead gathering the surrounding blood mist, forming a crimson body.

At the same time, a bloody figure emerged behind him, a cloaked, bloodthirsty figure.

“White Witch of Silent Demise, Sequence 49,” Educator said calmly, “You are about to face the Blood Lord of Silent Demise, Sequence 20.

“There’s a difference of twenty-nine Sequences between us.”