The Moon Beast was massive and had multiple esophagi. When it slept, the entrances to these esophagi automatically sealed, becoming green orbs of light. When it awoke, the green orbs would transform into vortexes. As long as one could rush out of a vortex, there was a chance to escape.

Eros stared at the green orbs above. Seeing one of them begin to transform into a vortex, its eyes lit up, and it charged straight for it. But before it could get close, it was pelted by a chaotic mess of rocks, monsters, and other things spat out by the vortex, forcing it to flee with its head in its hands.

While dodging the things falling from the sky and enduring the powerful suction from below, Eros stubbornly charged toward the vortex. Just as it was getting closer and closer, a transparent barrier suddenly appeared outside the vortex. Eros slammed headfirst into it, its body freezing in mid-air before being pulled back by the suction below.

The demonic dragon crashed heavily to the ground, kicking up clouds of dust. Erin looked up at Eros and asked with some concern, “Are you hurt?”

Eros lay stunned on the ground for a few seconds before leaping up in a rage, circling above Erin and Wolf Fang’s heads. “Damn it, why is the Moon Beast so agitated this time it’s woken up?”

That barrier only appeared when the Moon Beast saw coveted food. It was the monster’s greed at work; they didn’t want their food to have any chance of escaping from their bodies.

But what coveted food could it possibly have? It slept for thousands of years at a time. Eros was getting anxious. It circled several more times, and a glimpse of Wolf Fang’s calm expression sparked an idea. It shoved its large head in front of Wolf Fang and shrieked, “The Dark Stones! Did you have someone take the Dark Stones out of the temple?”

If the Moon Beast had a favorite food, it would definitely be Dark Stones. And seeing how agitated it was, Wolf Fang must have taken out a significant number of them.

The thought that there might be a large quantity of Dark Stones outside made Eros even more restless. It excitedly turned and flew toward the vortex again.

Erin looked at the excited Eros, then at the calm Wolf Fang, and asked tentatively, “Shouldn’t we try to go with it?”

Although the barrier looked hard to break, what if the Moon Beast went back to sleep before they could even try?

Wolf Fang shook her head slightly. “Even if Eros and I joined forces, we couldn’t break this barrier.” Neither of them could use much of their dark power.

“Huh?” Erin frowned. “Then we can’t get out?”

“Wait a little longer.” Wolf Fang calculated the time and said thoughtfully, “Once the Moon Beast swallows the Dark Stones, Eros and I can use the dark power within them to shatter the barrier.”

The dark power inside the Moon Beast’s stomach was too sparse, only enough for Erin to summon a few skeletons.

Although Erin only half-understood, she gripped Wolf Fang’s sleeve and nodded earnestly.

Wolf Fang turned to look at her, and as if remembering something, her expression grew a little strange. “Those Dark Stones…”

Erin looked at her, puzzled. “What’s wrong?”

“…It’s nothing.” Wolf Fang avoided Erin’s gaze, looking down and speaking in a low voice. “Stay with me in a bit. Don’t run off and don’t…” Before she could finish the word “look,” a red figure, tiny compared to the monsters, leaped down from the vortex above.

Appearing with the red figure was a thick, bloody mist. The mist spread at Erin and Wolf Fang’s feet and rose rapidly, soon enveloping them completely.

Wolf Fang froze for a second, almost instantly recognizing the aura of the bloody mist as belonging to the vampire who was always with the new Pope. A sense of foreboding washed over her. She subconsciously reached for Erin’s wrist, but it was too late. The person who had been standing beside her just a moment ago had vanished.

Wolf Fang’s face darkened. Forcing down her anger, she calmed herself and began to search for Erin’s aura, which was almost completely obscured by the blood mist.

Erin was startled when the sudden blood mist swept her away. When the mist cleared, she was startled again by the person standing before her, but her eyes quickly lit up. She called out the other’s name excitedly, “Lucille!”

Lucille glanced at her, her expression somewhat subtle. She gave a cool nod and asked flatly, “Do you know Grace?”

Erin stared at her blankly, confused. “Of course I do.”

Lucille sized her up a few more times before looking away. “She’s very worried about you,” she said faintly.

Although Erin knew Tang Qiu would be worried about her, hearing it from Lucille still touched her heart. She rubbed her sore eyes and said softly, “I’m sorry for making you worry.”

A gray beast suddenly appeared, interrupting their conversation. Unable to shake off the blood mist, the beast furiously tore it to shreds. Lucille gestured for Erin to stand behind her, her expression slightly grave as she watched the beast rip apart the Blood Domain she had created.

The gray beast’s low growl snapped Erin out of her joyful surprise at seeing Lucille. She looked up at the gray beast and hurriedly explained to Lucille, “That’s Little Fur Ball! She’s not an enemy.”

Lucille slowly shook her head. “She is Wolf Fang.”

“Wolf Fang?” Erin was stunned, unable to process it. “I know she’s Wolf Fang, but she’s also Little Fur Ball.”

She knew Little Fur Ball was Wolf Fang, a general of the Dark God, but… Little Fur Ball had always been dorky and clumsy. Even after gaining intelligence, her personality had changed greatly, but she had never revealed her identity to Erin or done anything to harm her. In fact, she had always protected her.

So, Erin had naturally come to think of her as just an intelligent Little Fur Ball.

Was there a difference between Wolf Fang and Little Fur Ball? Erin looked up at the gray beast, a hint of confusion in her heart.

Inside the Moon Beast’s stomach, Lucille’s Blood Domain was also restricted. After the gray beast tore the domain apart, it charged straight for Lucille. Lucille pulled Erin aside to dodge the attack, her eyes scanning the area. She locked onto a green orb that had not yet turned into a vortex and teleported nearby with Erin.

Erin watched as Lucille dodged the beast’s attacks, attacked the green orb, and protected her all at the same time. Her brow furrowed. She looked down at the gray beast lunging at them again, and with a surge of determination, she jumped out from behind Lucille.

The gray beast’s attack paused. The claw that was about to descend on Erin’s head froze in mid-air. It hastily retracted its sharp nails and transformed into a human in the air. Wolf Fang reached out and pulled Erin into her arms.

Lucille, who had been attacking the green orb, frowned at the scene. Seeing that the two were about to fight again, Erin waved her hands frantically. “Don’t fight, don’t fight! Let’s get out of here first.”

She looked at Lucille, her face full of expectation. “Does Grace have a way to get us out?”

Otherwise, Lucille would never have just jumped in like that.

Lucille glanced at Wolf Fang and gave a cold nod. “Rona said the Moon Beast fears the Power of Light.”

If it feared the Power of Light, then things were simple. Tang Qiu’s light magic was incredibly powerful. Erin felt a wave of relief. Then, remembering what Lucille had just said, she asked in surprise, “Rona is here too?”

Lucille glanced at Wolf Fang but said nothing.

Wolf Fang lowered her gaze slightly, her hands clenched tightly behind her back. She felt an uncharacteristic trace of nervousness.

The stomach of the Moon Beast was hardly a suitable place for conversation. Knowing that Tang Qiu was waiting outside for Lucille to guide her attack, Erin temporarily pushed aside the matter of Wolf Fang’s identity. She pushed her to help Lucille attack the green orb, and not only that, she also called Eros over.

A second-generation vampire, a general of the Dark God, and a powerful demonic dragon all focused their attacks on a single point. Even the Moon Beast couldn’t remain immune to that.

Floating in mid-air with her staff, Tang Qiu calmly observed the Moon Beast. She saw a section of its continuous, mountain-like body churning violently. A glint flashed in her eyes. A slight smile touched her lips as she raised her staff and began to chant in a low voice.

It was difficult to gather the Power of Light in the dark world. The gem at the top of the staff in Tang Qiu’s hand was already cracked, but she paid it no mind. A golden light slowly coalesced before her into a long blade. Tang Qiu took out a Light Crystal and crushed it. The crystal dust transformed into specks of golden light that merged with the blade.

The immense Power of Light gave the monsters fighting over the Dark Stones a strong sense of crisis. They looked up warily at the long blade, a hint of fear in their hearts.

The Moon Beast also sensed the threat from the golden blade. Its towering peaks continued to rise, and the mountain tip split open as it opened its great mouth, attempting to swallow Tang Qiu whole.

Tang Qiu looked at the abyss-like fissure and smiled faintly. She raised her left hand, her slender fingers flicking lightly in the air. Guided by her movements, the long blade slowly slashed down toward the Moon Beast’s body.

Before the blade even got close, the Moon Beast could already feel the terrifying Power of Light. It struggled to dodge, but its body was too massive to move in time. It could only watch as the blade fell.

A golden light brighter than the sun struck the Moon Beast’s body, carving a fissure hundreds of meters deep. The Moon Beast let out an angry, low roar. Its body rolled, attempting to bury the severed part underneath.

Tang Qiu’s brow furrowed slightly. She waited quietly for a moment, and only when she saw a red figure fly out from the fissure did her brow slowly relax.

Lucille, Erin, and the others managed to escape the suction inside the Moon Beast’s stomach just before the fissure closed. The moment Eros burst out, its sharp eyes spotted the Dark Stones being fought over by the monsters. It hastily descended to join the fray.

Rona and the others, who had been using the Dark Stones to distract the Moon Beast, breathed a sigh of relief when they saw Wolf Fang emerge. They were about to abandon the stones and head toward her, but Wolf Fang stopped them with a look.

Wolf Fang turned, intending to quickly lead Erin away from this place, but when she looked up, she found that Lucille had already taken Erin over to Tang Qiu.

She stared at Erin, who was hugging Tang Qiu tightly, and her eyes darkened slightly.

Seeing Tang Qiu, Erin finally felt truly relieved. She reluctantly let go of Tang Qiu, though her hands were unwilling to leave her shoulders. “I thought I’d never see you again, Grace.”

Tang Qiu reached out to straighten Erin’s slightly crooked cloak, then looked her over carefully. Seeing that she was only a little pale and otherwise unharmed, she said with a smile, “It really wasn’t easy finding the real you.”

“If I hadn’t seen Rona, I would have thought you were created by Glanna.” Otherwise, how could there be so many of her?

“Huh?” Erin looked utterly baffled. “What are you talking about?”

Seeing her confusion, Tang Qiu shook her head. She placed her hands on Erin’s shoulders and turned her around to face the scene below. “See that?”

At first, Erin didn’t know what Tang Qiu wanted her to see. Her gaze darted around until it landed on a familiar, petite figure. She froze, her face a mask of astonishment. “Is that… me?”

Tang Qiu looked at the “Erin” walking among the monsters below, stroking her chin with a smile. “To be precise, it’s a Dark Stone.”

But these “Erins” created by the Dark Stones were almost indistinguishable from the real person. Tang Qiu had been fooled at first, but after making contact, she realized they were fakes.

Because these Dark Stones just walked around. They were just stones, without any thoughts.

Dark Stones… Erin remembered something and murmured, “It was Wolf Fang…”

Hearing Wolf Fang’s name from her lips, Tang Qiu looked over at her, her expression turning serious. “You already know she’s Wolf Fang?”

“Then do you know why she wants to capture you?”

“Capture me?”

Tang Qiu nodded. “She’s still in a soul state. She needs you to use a dark array to break her seal.”

“She’s a general of the Dark God, just like the Blood Demon. After she gets her body back, the first thing she’ll do is conquer the Statu continent.”

Tang Qiu had been keeping a close watch on Wolf Fang’s movements. After all, this person was as dangerous as the Blood Demon, especially given her intricate connection to Erin.

Before coming to the dark world, she had already pried Wolf Fang’s motive for seeking Erin out of Abel.

Tang Qiu’s words sent a chill through Erin’s body. She pulled her cloak tighter around herself, shivering as if she couldn’t withstand a cold wind. Erin lowered her head, carefully processing Tang Qiu’s words. Just as she was about to say something, she heard familiar footsteps approaching from behind.

Erin turned and stared blankly at Wolf Fang, asking softly, “Is what Grace said true?”

“You were looking for me to capture me and make me break your seal?”

“Do you want to invade the Statu continent?”

Erin’s questions stunned Wolf Fang for a moment, and then she fell into silence.

Seeing her say nothing, the hope in Erin’s heart slowly cooled. She lowered her head and hid behind Tang Qiu.

When Wolf Fang saw her hiding, she instinctively reached out to stop her, but under Tang Qiu’s gentle gaze, she scowled and pulled her hand back.

She couldn’t deny any of the questions Erin had asked. Because before she met Erin, that was indeed what she had planned.

Capture Erin, break the seal, and then invade the Statu continent.

But… after Erin’s questioning, she suddenly realized that since meeting Erin, she had completely cast aside these things that were once most important to her. She hadn’t thought of them even once.

Wolf Fang raised a hand to cover her mouth in disbelief. Across from her, Tang Qiu noticed this strange gesture and studied her for several moments with a probing gaze.

Wolf Fang sensed her stare and immediately turned her head away, not wanting the perceptive new Pope to see the unconcealable embarrassment and anger on her face.

What was wrong with her?