Elden Ring, building a legion of ashes

Chapter 27 The Baptistery of Karl

Xia Tong then packed her bags and prepared to leave.

All the ashes have been properly refrigerated and restored to their original state.

Xia Tong stroked the intelligence report on the demi-human group in his hand, and embarked on the journey again with Miss Elena.

The intelligence report was accompanied by a map, which showed the route to the Demi-human Ruins where the Demi-human Queen was located.

Xia Tong dared not delay any longer.

Elena sat in front, and Xia Tong sat behind. The spirit horse Toret moved at a fairly fast pace, carrying the two of them with ease.

They walked forward for a while, and through the thin mist, they could vaguely see the outline of Moen Castle.

Following the instructions on the map, Xia Tong pulled the reins and turned to the right.

He tried to stay on the main road, which would make his journey faster and reduce the risk of being ambushed.

They occasionally encountered a few scattered winged hybrids on the road, but Xia Tong easily eliminated them without causing any obstacles.

As we walked, the terrain gradually rose, the surrounding forests became denser, and the light became dappled and dim.

Xia Tong would consciously collect any items she encountered along the way, such as fallen leaves, flowers, or Yero's eyeballs.

Including the Martian Butterflies, which always appear near flames, representing Melina's imagery.

Every time Xia Tong saw it, she would carefully put it into her possession.

Suddenly, I heard the sharp cry characteristic of rodents.

"Squeak!"

"Squeak!"

Xia Tong glanced to the side and spotted a gray-black rat, about the size of a mongrel, staring intently at Xia Tong and her group with its bright yellow eyes in the bushes to the left.

"Damn, it's huge!"

Xia Tong was shocked. Even as a veteran player, seeing such a large rat in real life for the first time was still quite a shock.

Compared to the bright red eyes of an ordinary rat, this rat's bright yellow eyes seemed even more terrifying, overflowing with madness and bloodlust.

This bright yellow is not a simple color; it's like flames burning inside an eyeball, appearing particularly glaring and eerie in the dimly lit forest.

"Fire Rat!"

As a veteran player of the Old Man Ring, Xia Tong naturally recognized it at a glance.

Although these monsters are not particularly strong, their unique eyes indicate that they carry the terrifying Madfire virus.

A lone wolf is the perfect tool to deal with these rats.

With the clear ringing of the summoning bell, three stray wolves were summoned and pounced on the attack as white shadows.

Then, to play it safe, Xia Tong summoned two more fanged little devils.

In just a few breaths, the fiery rat was completely wiped out by the attack of the five ashes.

After the rat died, a semi-fluid, semi-solid luminescent substance was released from its body.

It emitted a faint, bright yellow light. Xia Tong touched it with her hand, but it wasn't warm at all.

"This should be the yellow ember."

Xia Tong collected them, knowing she might use them to make props sometime in the future.

"They were infected by the mad fire."

Looking at the dead mad fire rat, Melina's figure appeared, and she spoke slowly, her tone tinged with solemnity.

"Madfire?"

Xia Tong repeated it in a low voice.

He was extremely familiar with the concept of "mad fire".

In his past life, when he was playing with the old man's ring, in order to prevent Melina from burning herself in the giant's cauldron, he went to the underground of the royal city to be given the mad fire, following Vic's old path.

Naturally, in the end, Melina opened her purple night-colored eyes and vowed to offer him her "destined death".

(ಥ_ಥ)

Xia Tong shook her head vigorously, trying to stop thinking about this upsetting matter.

Turning to look at Melina, he noticed a hint of confusion in her eyes, as if wondering what she was daydreaming about.

They continued their exploration and found several more fire rats along the way, which they then directed the ashes to eliminate one by one.

Gradually, deep in the woods, a church-like building came into view—the Chapel of Karl.

"There is some powerful aura nearby."

Melina whispered a reminder.

Xia Tong wasn't stupid; he had a general idea of ​​what was inside the church.

After all, he's a veteran gamer, and he knows the setup here by heart.

As I slowly walked into the interior of the Chapel of Charles, I saw that the walls on all four sides were already broken and collapsed, exuding a desolate atmosphere.

At the very front is a damaged statue of Queen Marika.

In the shadows beside the statue lay an outrageously large body, almost the size of two adults.

Its enormous tail lashed out like a whip, kicking up clouds of dust.

Giant Fire Rat.

Seemingly sensing the presence of living people, the giant fiery rat slowly turned around and looked at Xia Tong and the others.

At the same time, it emitted a sharp, piercing "squeak" sound.

Then, from the cracks in the dilapidated ruins, a dozen or so ordinary-sized fire rats crawled out.

"A human wave tactic?"

Xia Tong sneered.

"Me too."

Ring ring.

Ring ring.

In order to be on the safe side and to resolve the battle quickly, Xia Tong always goes all out.

The spirit jellyfish Kurala and two Grik soldiers were also resummoned.

The Legion of Bones quickly clashed with the ordinary Fire Rats, and the scene became extremely chaotic.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Xia Tong took off the light crossbow from his back and fired several arrows at the giant fire rat.

The difference between crossbow bolts and bows is that crossbow bolts only require aiming and do not require any advanced charging techniques.

In addition, the fading one's strong physique allowed Xia Tong to shoot the arrow quickly and accurately.

However, the skin of this giant fire rat is so thick.

Xia Tong's three crossbow bolts pierced its body, causing only a slight oozing of blood and no serious injury.

Even so, the intense pain still made the giant, fiery rat become agitated.

Its powerful hind legs slowly crouched down, gathering strength, and then it shot up from the ground like a cannonball!

It leaped straight past the ashes in front of it and pounced on Xia Tong!

The speed is so fast!

Xia Tong certainly didn't dare to take it head-on; this rat was as big and strong as a small calf!

Its sharp teeth protruded outwards, and its body emitted a rotten and burnt smell. Many parts of its fur were ulcerated, oozing pus and blood.

Faced with the collision, Xia Tong took a step to the side and slid sharply to the left.

The giant, fiery rat missed its target and slid straight toward the entrance of the Chapel of Karl!

Enraged by its failed attack, the giant rat squeaked loudly.

Its claws scratched the ground frantically, making a sharp and piercing sound that made one's sanity plummet.

......

Meanwhile, in the distance, Miss Elena, riding a Torret, listened intently, wanting to know every moment of the battlefield.

She clenched her fists tightly, very worried about Lord Xia Tong.

Toret, however, heeded Xia Tong's instructions and did not approach.

Some escaped fire rats rushed out of the Karl Baptistery and began to bite and tear at Torret and Elena.

However, these old fiery rats were far slower than the Spirit Horse Torret.

With a simple double jump, Torret easily dodged the attack.

......

Inside the church, the battle situation suddenly changed.

"It's gathering its companions!"

Seemingly due to the howling of the giant fire rat, the five or six ordinary fire rats that were originally lingering on the periphery suddenly turned their guns and, with red eyes, attacked Xia Tong together.

A giant rat was in front, and a swarm of rats was on the side.

Xia Tong felt a chill run down her spine; the dense, visually overwhelming sensation was nauseating.

Because five or six mad fire rats broke away from the battle and surrounded Xia Tong in an instant, the pressure on the ash side was much less, but Xia Tong was now in danger.

Just then, a "pfft" sound!

A stream of purplish-red acid shot out in a parabolic arc, landing precisely on the fiery rats.

Immediately, the smell of proteins being burned by strong acid filled the Chapel of Karl.

It's Kurara!

Upon seeing Xia Tong in danger, the adorable jellyfish Kurala was the first to react.

"I'm so touched."

Xia Tong's eyes welled up with tears; this was his little darling.

Taking advantage of the fact that the Fire Rat was writhing in pain from the corrosive venom, Xia Tong decisively drew his King's Army Straight Sword and stabbed it fiercely at the Fire Rat.

This time he didn't choose to use the greatsword, because against these agile and disgusting creatures, the heavy greatsword would easily miss its mark, which would undoubtedly be suicide.

Two hissing sounds.

Xia Tong precisely pierced the vital points of both mad fire rats, killing them instantly!

Meanwhile, the giant fire rat that had rushed out of the door turned around and lunged at Xia Tong again!

This time, the yellow flames in its eyes became even brighter and more frenzied, faintly veiled in a bloody hue.

Even the speed has increased significantly!

Beside him, several surviving ordinary fire rats were also tearing at him.

"Oh no, there's no escaping it!"

Xia Tong cursed under his breath and gripped the shield tightly.