Five pillars emerged from the sand, surpassing the running group. The pillars gradually elongated and increased in size. The surrounding sand also began to move as if a powerful earthquake was taking place. Even a Japanese guy would be stunned if he were here. Unfortunately, the Japanese are known for their special ability to enter the world of the "special."

Alexander made a huge leap to one of the pillars and, using it as support, made another jump. That was his plan. However, he didn't expect that where he would land, there would be a hole for his legs, which would trap him. Vallynor immediately saw this and attacked the bricks holding Alexander. Fortunately, Vallynor quickly dealt with them.

Alexander managed to free himself before the army of bricks started destroying them. Five huge pillars, getting longer and longer, connected to form a hand and lunged straight at Alexander and his group.

"I AM THE CHOSEN ONE!" echoed a powerful shout behind Alexander.

Vallynor, looking at the source of the cry, saw a gigantic dragon flying right above them. And the longer he looked at it, the clearer the dragon became visible.

"Damn, it's too fast," cursed Vallynor at the dragon, continuing to defend himself and counterattack with the help of his soul hands. He was getting used to using them.

Glazik, with a more perceptive gaze, noticed red lines running all over the mutated dragon's body and relayed this information to Vallynor.

"It mutated," said Glazik.

"You mean these creatures can mutate even more?" Vallynor exclaimed in surprise.

"Seems like it," Alexander unexpectedly replied.

"How can you communicate with us?" Vallynor asked, watching as Alexander slowed down his running pace.

"Even if I'm silent, everything was written on your face."

"But I'm mostly undead. My face should always be emotionless."

"Now this guy will approach, and we'll attack the enemy. Then we'll escape. You'll be..." Alexander ignored Vallynor's words and explained his plan.

The white dragon, holding something resembling tentacles in its hands, still adorned with red lines, was swiftly approaching the group of four beings who were fleeing from flying bricks, stone blocks, and a huge, grotesque stone hand.

The dragon with a human face and a long crocodile-like mouth landed directly on the stone hand, causing it to fall onto the black sand. With its head turned towards Alexander, who was looking at it intently when bricks fell on him. He turned in the direction they came from and saw hundreds of flying bricks.

He snorted and turned back to Alexander. Seeing its eyes, Alexander quickly dodged. At the same time, the dragon opened its mouth and released something resembling a dragon's fiery breath, engulfing the spot where Alexander had just been.

"He missed. Damned scaly creature," cursed Alexander at the dragon and its tooth that grazed him.

"Perhaps if the wall attacks him more frequently, he will get angry and retaliate," suggested Vallynor, who controlled the bricks and attacked the dragon. For that, he had to thank the old woman and her lessons in creating a grimoire.

"We can try that while we run to the nearest city. By using teleportation, we'll be able to escape from these guys," Alexander agreed to Vallynor's suggestion and started running at full speed to avoid falling into the enemy's clutches.

The dragon, watching the fleeing enemy, used its tail to destroy the flying red bricks that were headed straight towards it. After the first wave of bricks was destroyed, no more came at it. Instead, huge blocks made of multiple bricks started falling. The dragon destroyed each one with its paw or tail.

Then, taking flight in the air, it attempted to attack the enemy. However, its limbs felt something that held them back and made them heavier. Looking at them, it realized they were caught. The finger-shaped columns began merging to form a fist.

Vallynor, tired, mentally observed as the bricks attacked the dragon and smiled satisfied with the results.

He knew the dragon was easily provoked and lacked tact. What would happen if the wall were directed against it? Vallynor realized that the wall wasn't as smart as he had thought. What could be dumber than its obnoxious "I am the Chosen One" cry?

Using all his knowledge and cunning, Vallynor made the wall perceive the dragon as its enemy. He applied the spell of soul hands and influenced the fragments of soul embedded in the bricks.

The dragon angrily shrugged off the wall's attacks and flew straight at Alexander. Alexander ran with all his might, evading the wall's attacks, which seemed to not have forgotten about him.

Approaching, the dragon shattered all the stones and bricks that flew towards it. It attacked with its tentacles growing from its head. The tentacles were thick and strong like rods, and as they passed by Alexander, they pierced through the black sand. It would have been fine if a powerful earthquake hadn't occurred after the impact, lifting all the sand into the air. Alexander jumped left and right, always dodging a few centimeters away from the tentacles. If he couldn't avoid them, he summoned his weapon and used it as a shield, giving him a few extra seconds. Then the weapon, crumbling, caused a weak explosion.

Vallynor contemplated how to escape, simultaneously manipulating the bricks, causing the wall to focus its attention on the dragon and show it all its love.

"Ghaaa..." Unbearable and familiar pain engulfed Vallynor. The pain he always felt when his soul was wounded. But why wasn't it healing?

The soul hands stopped and should have disappeared, but they remained. Black cracks, like tar, emerged from Vallynor's soul, resembling fire. They began moving across all the soul hands, filling them with dark fissures.

Alexander, sensing the changes, looked at Vallynor and his soul and let out a surprised sigh. He saw a soul composed of parts of different entities mixed together like a construction set.

This surprised him because when he previously looked at Vallynor's soul, he saw it as a fusion of a human and a dragon soul, tainted with dirt, a lot of dirt.

But now he saw a soul consisting of a human soul, a dragon soul, another dragon but different, parts of a demon, and a parasite. There were other things he couldn't recognize, but their size didn't matter. He was frightened by the parasite that had become one with Vallynor. Was he to blame for not being able to see the true face of the soul?

Vallynor began to whimper, blaming himself for everything that was happening and his own weakness. One hunt was not enough.

Glazik became frightened for herself and began devising an escape plan, but remembering the contract, she started worrying about Vallynor and the fool, Annino.

"Aaaaah..." When the soul hands were completely surrounded, they began moving on their own and all lunged at the dragon.

Until this moment, Vallynor hadn't attempted to directly attack the dragon because he couldn't harm it and would only harm himself. His soul was much stronger than Vallynor's.

And even now, when the soul hands were out of Vallynor's control, Vallynor's soul was still being damaged. It wasn't the kind of horrifying wounds that tear apart parts of the soul and humanity, but they still caused pain and wounds that made the soul suffer. And only these wounds could influence the path of development. Fortunately, Vallynor hadn't yet reached the first stage.

Glazik, looking at Vallynor, was able to connect the current incident with a past occurrence when Vallynor fell into a similar state for some time. He only recovered after extracting the soul with drops of demonic power from within him, which slowly changed his soul.

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"Release one soul near Vallynor," Glazik shouted to Alexander, who was running away from the dragon and the wall.

"What?" Alexander was surprised, but there was no time for questioning. He grabbed one of the stones and destroyed it with brute force.

The dragon, fiercely attacking the fleeing Alexander, began receiving repeated attacks from Vallynor. Now the dragon turned on itself.

A soul emerged from the destroyed stone, immediately wanting to soar. It turned into mist and entered Vallynor. The soul was shattered and transformed into energy for his soul, aided by demonic power, and at the same time, the madness caused by the parasite began to subside.

A tremendous earthquake enveloped everyone. Then, from the spot where the dragon had recently been, a claw emerged. With each passing second, the claw increased in size. A second claw appeared, then a third... All five claws emerged from the sand. They were of such gigantic proportions that Vallynor couldn't see the forest through them. Slowly, a base started appearing from the sand, from which these claws emerged.

At the same time, the furious attacks on the wall quickly subsided. Occasionally, they sporadically appeared to deliver one or two blows.

The enormous, giant claw emerging from the sand overshadowed the recently formed brick hand. This claw slowly lunged at the dragon, and from the claw, a reddish-dark mist began emanating, rapidly spreading everywhere.

"Damn, our luck with this guy is terrible. And now this appeared... But how? The seals and chains should keep it locked," Alexander began to panic and curse upon seeing this enormous claw.

The red mist quickly spread and managed to reach the dragon and the fleeing Alexander. The mist enveloped everyone and began slowing down movements, like thick honey, making everyone vulnerable to the giant claw.

"Hey, Glazik, what's happening to me?" Vallynor asked in astonishment, but within a few seconds, he understood what was happening, all thanks to the knowledge from the old woman.

"What is it this time?... This?" Alexander felt new changes in his hand. He had already begun to doubt whether he was Vallynor or the source of the trouble.

Demonic energy surged into Vallynor's soul, using the existing demonic energy as a point of entry. It was like a socket, and the demonic energy used it to bypass all walls and limitations and enter Vallynor's soul. This triggered the frozen process of deionization.

Annino watched the enormous claw or palm. Due to its immense size and close proximity to Vallynor, she couldn't connect this clawed hand to what had appeared in the spider-infested temple.

Glazik had already realized that the deionization process had begun. She quickly started considering various options to stop it. Many ideas and suggestions came up, but each one was rejected due to a lack of energy, resources, and the like.

Looking at Annino, her dark pupil filled with light. She quickly sent a message, using the contract as a familiar with a shared master and using rights she didn't possess. She conveyed:

"Annino, do you want to save your master?"

"Awwoo..." Annino began nodding her head, filled with excitement and the desire to save the master who realized he was in danger.

"Then you must suck out the incoming demonic energy from Vallynor. You're a demon, even if artificial. You must use the soul of the master as an energy source and not let it settle in his soul."

Annino listened attentively and understood most of it. Thanks to Baba Yaga's personal guidance while Vallynor trained himself, she had to thank her for that.

Annino closed her eyes and began grasping the connection she had with him since his appearance. From the moment she woke up in this desolate world and received a name from the master, she used this thread that connected their souls to draw energy from his soul.

The demonic energy that had invaded Vallynor's soul was quickly sucked out of his being. All that energy swiftly transferred from Vallynor's soul into Annino, filling him with demonic energy that could harm his master.

Annino, as he absorbed this energy, began mutating rapidly. His black fur became even darker, and a reddish hue could be noticed. He also significantly increased in size, reaching the dimensions of a horse.

These changes didn't hinder Alexander too much, except for the inconvenience of holding onto him, and the fact that Annino was now almost at his level. If this continued, Alexander wouldn't be able to hold on for long.

Annino felt his body changing along with his soul. He felt this malevolent energy flowing into his being like water returning to long-abandoned land. He felt something long lost returning to him.

Vallynor stopped feeling pain, except for a slight tingling, as if a needle had pricked his heart. This pain was nothing compared to what he had experienced before, so Vallynor could easily ignore it.

It took him a few seconds to realize what had happened. Quickly glancing at Annino, he began to worry and question what was happening to him. Various thoughts and assumptions raced through his mind. Some speculated that something was wrong with Annino, while others believed it could be part of his nature since Annino was a demonic creature. All these thoughts clashed in his mind.

"Glazik, what's happening with Annino?" Vallynor couldn't remain ignorant anymore and decided to seek help from an expert, relying on his own knowledge and the knowledge acquired from the Old Woman and Him.

"It's both good and bad... Annino is a demonic hound who previously didn't possess demonic energy. Instead, it had necrotic energy for unknown reasons. The characteristics of these energies don't differ much from each other. But now, the necrotic energy is mixing with the demonic energy and slowly rising. For a creature from hell, it's good because the barriers that hindered its development and mutations disappear or weaken. It will become even stronger. However, since Annino has never had contact with this energy before, it may lose itself and become a completely different creature. More savage, more evil. To prevent that, you need to maintain contact with it and not let it fade away. However, changes in its personality are still possible." Glazik, knowing all these details, didn't regret making Annino suck the energy from Vallynor. She didn't feel guilty when explaining all this. And she had two reasons for that. Firstly, Annino is a demonic creature and will have contact with demonic energy. Secondly, losing Vallynor is unacceptable since he is her master, and Baba Yaga asked her to deliver one thing to him...

"Awwooo!" Annino began wildly resisting, trying to free himself from Alexander's grip. However, Alexander wasn't just a warrior. He was the commander-in-chief of the entire army and knew how to restrain an ally from foolish actions and escape.

The dragon evaded the attack of the enormous claw and rid itself of the accursed energy. Then it was able to see Alexander, who held a creature almost equal in size to himself in one hand, preparing fire in his chest. He intensified the fire, readying it for a shot, approaching Alexander and dodging another enemy's attack.

He ripped off numerous arms from his body and threw them onto the sand. The arms, like worms, burrowed into the sand and, like lightning, shot out of it to attack, seize, or slow down Alexander.

Summoning his swords, Alexander grabbed Annino with his mouth, while a whip appeared in his other hand. With the whip, he attacked the side arms, and with the swords, the front ones. Vallynor, on the other hand, attacked the arms at the back. However, he was more on the defensive than on the offensive. Annino, who had been trying to break free all this time, calmed down and ceased resisting.

The dragon, sensing its opportunity, released its fire, intensified to the maximum. The fire spread in all directions like a sea wave. Alexander couldn't dodge it.

Pulling shields out of his ring, Alexander infused them with his energy. At the same time, he took out a small round shield and handed it to Vallynor, saying:

"Infuse it with your energy and activate it."

Vallynor already understood what shield it was and how to use it. He thanked the memories of the Old Woman and her twisted son.

Alexander and everyone else were enveloped in several domes, and then by several shields of enormous size.

Vallynor activated the shield after infusing it with his energy. Corpses emerged from the ground, using their decaying bodies to wrap around each dome and shield.

Before all the shields were fully enveloped, they were engulfed in a sea of fire. Each shield held up for a few seconds, giving Alexander a few seconds to continue the battle.

Assessing the situation, Alexander took a parchment out of his ring and began whispering a prayer, seeking the old man's help. Ripping the parchment into pieces, they formed a magic circle, into which all four entered and disappeared.

The dragon felt its enemies vanish. It let out a furious cry: "I AM THE CHOSEN ONE!" and started attacking with its enormous claw. But upon hearing the sound of chains, the gigantic claw returned to the sand.

Left alone, the dragon began roaring with rage, flying back and forth, trying to locate the bodies of those flying stones and unleash its fury upon them.

***

Five to ten minutes ago.

Caesar sat at his desk, writing various forms of runes and symbols on paper. He then tore them up and crumpled the sheets into balls, tossing them into a corner where a pile of such balls had already accumulated.

After drawing another rune, his face contorted, and he sharply looked towards the doors. In the next second, a tall young elf entered the room, followed by a small bearded gnome. They continued their argument even while being in the mayor's office.

"You, unkempt to a shine arse, how did you manage to defeat me and become the best of all!" the gnome yelled furiously, looking at the elf in front of him.

"Ha, I just had to drink more, that's all. Nothing complicated," the elf proudly replied, smirking at his interlocutor.

While they were talking, they both placed two sheets of paper on Caesar's desk and glanced at him momentarily to ensure that he noticed them. They wanted him to read them quickly and give instructions. Meanwhile, as Caesar read both reports, one from the dirty gnome and the other from the neat elf, they continued shouting at each other.

"I'll be waiting for you tonight, as usual, for a rematch. I've beaten you a thousand times, and you, baby-faced without a beard, managed to beat me. You, cursed elf, ruined everything. Do you even realize how sacred it is? And you, blasphemer, violated the sacred. You should be thrown into the fire. No, drowned..."

"In beer," the elf finished the gnome's sentence.

"In beer! What? Oh, you creatures, so you also want to drink my beer," the gnome exclaimed indignantly.

"Pffft, because of you hairy dwarves, who stumble because of your own beards, there's practically nothing left. We guard the wine and other beverages as if they were our souls, so that if 'she' comes, we have something to indulge in and avoid falling into her cruel clutches," when the elf finished speaking, all three of them felt a chill run down their spines.

"Eri and Hork, stop it. It's clear from the report that she has started her antics again," Caesar interrupted them before Eri and Hork could say anything with their mouths wide open.

"Yes, it seems our runes have weakened to the point that they have become susceptible to manipulation with her energy," Eri replied.