99: The limb-grafting noble who resisted the annihilation of the great fire?

“······The fallen leaves bring tidings:”

“Beyond the fog, our home, The Lands Between.”

“The great elden ring has been shattered.”

“Queen Marika, the Eternal, has vanished.”

“The lost grace has once again returned to the unassuming Tarnished.”

“Advance beyond the fog, reach The Lands Between.”

“Behold the elden ring…”

“Become the Elden Lord.”

A passage of unclear meaning was spoken by Joa.

Kaguya, Fallen Seraphimon, Ancient One, Stark, Hashirama, Madara Uchiha, and Danzo, all seven of them, were utterly bewildered.

“Tsk, it’s a pity I can’t see the grace.”

In the dim, dilapidated Lord's Chamber, Joa’s expression held a touch of regret, but he didn't dwell on it too much.

With his dozens of playthroughs before transmigration, he could find his way to any desired location with his eyes closed.

Looking around, Joa’s gaze fell upon the figure lying on the ground, beneath the wall to the right of the tightly shut main door.

Stepping forward, he looked down at the last words left by the Finger Witch on the ground.

“Even if the guidance has long been shattered, please become the Elden Lord.”

“Joa, do you recognize the words on the ground?”

Stark, who was beside Joa, stared at the words on the ground, looking left and right, repeatedly, but he couldn't understand what was written.

“No, but I know what she wrote.”

With that, Joa took a deep breath.

‘I hope the combat power in this despairingly oppressive World isn't too high.’

He turned to look at Ancient One, who was sensing something, and Kaguya and Hashirama, who were full of curiosity and constantly surveying the dilapidated Lord's Chamber.

Joa spoke lightly, “Let’s go.”

With that, he pushed open the heavy, decaying door, walked out of the chapel, and looked towards Stormveil Castle in the distance, a sense of emotion in his expression.

“I never thought I’d personally come to The Lands Between one day.”

The Lord's Chamber is located outside Stormveil Castle, on a cliff overlooking a vast sea.

In such a desolate place, it would be impossible for an ordinary person to arrive by barge.

As soon as they exited the chapel, Stark, clad in his armor, flew into the air, curiously observing the so-called new World.

“This chapel… is built on a cliff?”

“That statue on the base, entangled with tree roots, is holding a tree spear? And what does that posture mean?”

Slowly descending beside Joa, Stark voiced his confusion.

Hearing this, Joa looked in the direction Stark was pointing.

“That’s a statue of a Royal Knight, and that posture is a prayer called Golden Tree Vow.”

His gaze swept over the others, seeing that everyone, including Ancient One, was looking at him curiously.

As Joa walked down the wooden stairs, he began to recount what he knew about this World.

From the birth of various life forms in The Lands Between from the Crucible of Life, all the way to Marika shattering the elden ring.

Several hours passed.

Having heard the entire story, the group remained lost in thought for a long time.

“No wonder you’re so cautious.”

“If it’s truly as you described, merely the Dragonlord, who is a deity’s representative, possesses the ability to hold dominion over the temporal rift.”

“Then the gods worshipped by the people of this World might not be much weaker than Dormammu.”

Hearing Ancient One’s words, Joa smiled and nodded.

“Exactly, that’s why I chose this place.”

Saying this, Joa pointed to the entrance at the other end of the suspension bridge ahead, and turned to look at Madara Uchiha, Hashirama, and Danzo.

“Which of you wants to test the strength of the creatures in this World?”

“After crossing that door ahead, and walking a few more steps, there will be a Grafted Noble descendant.”

“I need more specific combat data, so don’t use your full power to kill them right away.”

Hearing this, Madara Uchiha immediately stepped forward without hesitation, getting ahead of the others.

“I will!”

“Haha, good, Madara, then I’ll leave it to you.”

With a smirk, Madara Uchiha didn’t take the so-called Grafted Noble descendant seriously at all.

He soared into the air, swiftly flew over the drawbridge, rushed through the archway, and landed in front of the Marika statue.

Joa and the others followed closely, landing at the entrance.

The next moment.

Whoosh!

A massive, hairless spider, at least four times the size of a normal human.

With a thud, it slammed down in front of Madara.

The Grafted Noble descendant is a subordinate of the weakest demigod, Godrick the Grafted.

Its grotesque and terrifying body is covered with the limbs of other creatures and humans, either stolen or plundered.

It has a handsome, doll-like face, golden eyes, and wears a golden circlet symbolizing its status.

Its right arm is still intact, while its left arm is replaced by several grafted arms clutching each other.

The entire body, covered by a blanket, has almost no physiological structure.

Arms and limbs dangle everywhere.

And to support its huge and bloated body, it has grafted many legs, each with more than one foot, some even with hands.

Overall, it’s a creature that would cause some discomfort in a game, and in reality, would make one instantly nauseous.

“How ugly!”

Madara Uchiha frowned and just finished speaking when he saw the Grafted Noble.

The Grafted Noble immediately raised the two ritual straight swords in its hands and swiftly swung them horizontally towards Madara.

The speed of this horizontal slash was extremely fast, much faster than the sluggish movements in the game.

A flash of surprise crossed Madara Uchiha’s eyes as he lightly leaped up, dodging the two horizontal slashes, while forming hand seals with both hands.

‘Fire Release: Great Fireball…’

His cheeks puffed out, but before the ninjutsu could be released.

Madara saw the Grafted Noble raise the beast-emblazoned golden shield in its other hand and violently charge towards him.

‘Such quick reflexes.’

A smirk played on Madara’s lips as his body rapidly ascended in mid-air, dodging the Grafted Noble’s shield charge, while he exhaled a wide-range torrent of flames.

“Hmph, a good attack indeed, but…”

‘Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation!’

‘Let me see if, with the strength you’ve shown, you’ll be easily burned to ashes by me.’

Whoosh!

A vast expanse of flames instantly engulfed the Grafted Noble holding its shield.

The moment it was enveloped by the flames.

A crackling sound, as if something was burning, emanated from the Grafted Noble’s body.

Maintaining his chakra output.

Just as Madara thought the opponent was nothing special.

A whooshing sound echoed.

Two ritual straight swords broke through the flames, fiercely slashing towards Madara Uchiha in mid-air.

“Oh? Great Fire Annihilation didn’t work?”

Dodging the slash, Madara Uchiha calmly watched the flames on the Grafted Noble’s body gradually extinguish.

At this moment, Joa, who was observing the battle, couldn’t help but frown.

‘Is it because chakra, as an energy, is too low-level? So the ninjutsu released by chakra cannot cause much damage to the creatures in The Lands Between?’

Once the flames on the Grafted Noble’s body were completely extinguished, and the blanket covering its body was burned away.

Its body beneath the blanket appeared before everyone’s eyes.

It was a twisted, grotesque body that would absolutely make one lose their appetite upon sight.

Numerous spinal protrusions could be seen on its back.

This indicated that its main body was also formed by different torsos haphazardly grafted together from various directions.

And its entire torso was significantly larger than its other parts.

It was evident at a glance that its torso did not come from a human, but from some non-human monster or giant.

His gaze falling on the Grafted Noble’s golden eyes, Joa spoke to Madara Uchiha.

“Don’t hold back too much; let me see the true strength of that thing.”