Chapter 241: The Global Purge

Chapter 241: Chapter 241: The Global Purge

The world was burning.

New Miami, USA — Knights of the Horizon Headquarters.

BOOOOM! CRACK!

A massive, translucent blue barrier flickered violently over the Knights’ main base. Outside, more than fifteen Peak Grand Core demons hovered in the sky, their leathery wings blotting out the sun. They rained down torrents of black fire and demonic energy.

BAM! BAM! BAM!

The barrier cracked like shattering glass. Inside, Knights scrambled to defensive positions. Grand Core masters poured their mana into the barrier, but the sheer, relentless bombardment from the demons was pushing them to their limits.

Berlin, Germany — Knights of the Horizon Base.

CRASH!

The reinforced steel doors were ripped off their hinges. A swarm of horned demons poured into the underground bunker, their guttural roars echoing through the halls. Human agents fought back with plasma rifles and elemental abilities, but the demons were relentless, their demonic mana devouring the humans’ attacks.

Barcelona, Spain — Knights of the Horizon Base.

SQUELCH!

A Peak Grand Core agent was impaled by a demon’s bone spear, his blood spraying across the marble floor. The base was in ruins, smoke billowing from every window.

Beijing, China — Knights of the Horizon Base.

ZAP! BOOM!

Lightning mixed with demonic fire as the Chinese branch of the Knights fought desperately. Their barrier had already fallen. It was a slaughterhouse.

Simultaneously, across the globe, field agents of the Knights of the Horizon were being ambushed. In London, a covert operative was ambushed in an alleyway. In Tokyo, an intelligence officer was assassinated in her apartment. In Cairo, a squad of Knights was wiped out in a desert canyon.

It was a coordinated, global decapitation strike. Someone wanted the Knights of the Horizon wiped from existence.

Loire Valley, France — The Du Maurier Estate.

The Chateau de Sang et d’Ombre stood like a dark, gothic fortress amidst the rolling vineyards. Its black spires pierced the grey sky, and ancient, blood-red wards pulsed along the stone walls.

Inside the grand study, Louisa Du Maurier sat in a velvet chair, scrolling through a holographic report. She was fuming.

After the destruction of the Khamsins and the Apeps, the Dark King had remained utterly silent. He had not reached out, nor had he offered any support to the remaining vampire families.

The most logical suspects for the coordinated destruction were the Knights of the Horizon. Using her clan’s ancient summoning circles, combined with the Medallion of Anvil—a powerful artifact stolen from the Starveil Tower in New Geneva by the Dark Order—Louisa had successfully summoned and bound a horde of Peak Grand Core demons.

With the Dark Order’s spy embedded deep within the Knights’ ranks, Louisa had been provided with a recent, comprehensive roster of the Knights’ agents. She was scanning through the names and faces, looking for anyone of interest, when she froze.

Lucian Grimaud.

Louisa’s breath hitched. Her eyes widened in absolute shock. The face staring back at her from the holographic file was older but it was unmistakably him.

She connected the dots instantly. The destruction of the Apeps and the Khamsins. The brutal, efficient tactics. The Knights generally avoided attacking major vampire clans due to the fear of retaliation from the big three. But Lucian? Lucian wouldn’t care. He was hunting them.

"Prepare my armor," Louisa barked at the servant. Her voice was tight with a mix of fury and dark, obsessive excitement. "I want the exact location of Lucian Grimaud. Now!"

Before the servant could bow, another maid burst into the room, her face pale with panic. "My lady! Lemora has escaped! The maid guarding her was found unconscious—"

"WHAT?!" Louisa’s composure shattered. She stood up, her Early Astral Realm aura exploding outward, shattering the nearby furniture. CRASH!

"Find her! Find my daughter!" Louisa roared. She immediately activated a communication rune. "Colette! Lemora has fled. Track her down and bring her back to me!"

A dark, mocking laugh echoed from the rune. "Oh, dear sister-in-law. Losing control of your own bloodline? How embarrassing. I’m on it. But don’t expect me to be gentle with the little brat."

Colette’s presence vanished from the rune. Louisa stood in the center of the ruined room, her chest heaving. A servant timidly approached with her black, bone-crafted armor. Louisa snatched it, her eyes burning with a terrifying, crimson light.

"Lucian," she whispered, a manic smile stretching across her face. "If you want a war... I will give you one."

Meanwhile, France — The Ruins of the Beach House.

BOOOOM!

Lucian and Clara stood back-to-back amidst the smoldering rubble. The five demons split their forces. Two launched themselves at Lucian, while the remaining three surged toward Clara.

But Lucian was faster.

ZING!

He extended his left hand, and a thick, golden Light Chain shot out, wrapping around the ankle of one of the demons charging Clara. With a powerful yank, he dragged the demon backward through the air.

CRASH! The demon tumbled across the ground, but the other two were already in his face, their massive fists coated in demonic black flames, aiming directly for his head.

Lucian formed a hand seal with his free hand. "Mental Shockwave."

HUM!

A 30-meter radius of invisible mental energy exploded outward. The two demons froze mid-air, their eyes rolling back. They dropped to their knees, clutching their heads and screaming in agony as Lucian’s SS-Rank Mind Manipulation tore into their consciousness.

SSSSHING!

Lucian drew the Blood Reaver, the blade elongating into a massive greatsword. His Sword Intent, the dark light, blazed violently along the edge. He aimed at the chained demon on the ground and fired.

"Sword Art: Heaven’s Severance."

CRACK!

The spatial slash tore through reality, cleaving deeply into the chained demon’s chest. Black blood sprayed into the air. The wound was deep, severing ribs and organs, but the demon’s terrifying regeneration was already knitting the flesh back together.

Lucian clicked his tongue. "I don’t have time for this."

He bit his thumb, slamming his palm onto the air. "Blood Clones."

SQUELCH! SPLAT!

Three identical clones made of condensed, crimson blood materialized from his body. Unlike before, these clones radiated a terrifying aura—each possessed the power of a Late Grand Core cultivator.

"Handle the injured one," Lucian commanded. The three clones blurred, rushing the chained demon with blood blades extended.

Lucian turned his attention back to the other two demons, who had already recovered from the Mental Shockwave. Their red eyes burned with feral rage, and they charged him simultaneously.

BAM! CLANG!

Lucian met them with his sword, the shockwaves from their clashes flattening the remaining debris of the beach house.

Meanwhile, Clara faced the other two demons.

They lunged at her with bone spears, but as they entered a ten-meter radius around her, they were instantly met with a crushing field of gravity. THUD! The demons slammed into the ground, their bodies pinned down as if they weighed a thousand tons.

Clara’s silver eyes glowed with an ethereal light. She raised her hands, the air around her warping and tearing. She was tapping into the deepest, most destructive reserves of her Gravity Star Palace.

"Gravity Art," Clara’s voice echoed, cold and divine. "Orbital Singularity."

WHOOOOOOSH!

A tiny, pitch-black orb materialized between her palms. It was no bigger than a marble, but it possessed the terrifying, crushing density of a collapsing star. The air around it was sucked in, creating a localized vacuum.

The demon pinned on the ground looked up, its demonic eyes widening in pure, unadulterated terror. It opened its mouth to scream, but no sound came out as the very air was ripped from its lungs.

Clara thrust her hands forward.

The tiny black orb shot forward like a bullet.

SQUELCH!

It struck the first demon directly between the horns. The orb didn’t just pierce the skin; it collapsed the demon’s head into a single, infinitely dense point. The creature’s massive body crumpled inward, its skull, brains, and demonic core crushing into a literal bloody paste. The body spasmed once before going limp.

Clara turned her gaze to the second demon, the black orb still hovering in the air, humming with the terrifying weight of a dying star.