Cipher's legs moved so fast they left afterimages, the surrounding scenery blurring past her. Soon, she spotted a figure atop a tree. The moment she saw them, Cipher froze, stunned—this Warlock was simply too adorable.
Normally, the stronger a Warlock's power, the closer their connection to their Lord. As a result, some of the Lord's physical traits would often manifest in the Warlock themselves.
For example, if the Lord were a devil, the Warlock might exude a faint scent of sulfur, their skin might turn red, and horns might sprout from their head.
Therefore, stronger Warlocks were supposed to be uglier. Yet, the Warlock before Cipher was an elf girl with a waterfall of golden hair, standing about 1.6 meters tall, with a curvaceous figure.
As Cipher stared in astonishment at her appearance, the elf girl slowly turned her head, her eyes scanning the area as if trying to pinpoint Cipher's location.
Seeing this, Cipher was shocked again. She was in her Divine Speed State, so for the opponent to appear to be 'moving slowly' meant their actual speed was already incredibly fast.
For comparison, the last person to achieve this feat was the Legendary Monk, Pan Ming.
Cipher lowered her stance, pushing her speed even further. In the blink of an eye, she was behind the Warlock girl. Though the girl was beautiful, her identity as a Warlock and the fact that she had initiated the attack proved she was no ally. Cipher saw no reason to hold back.
She aimed a flying kick at the back of the girl's head. At that moment, the elf girl was still slowly tracking Cipher's long-gone afterimage with her eyes.
However, the instant Cipher's kick should have connected, she felt no impact. The girl before her was like an illusion; Cipher's heel, her right leg, and her entire body passed straight through the girl's 'body.'
"An illusion? No, that's not right." As the God of Trickery, Cipher had an extremely high resistance to illusions. After all, she was the one who deceived others—when had it ever been someone else's turn to trick her?
Therefore, this elf girl was definitely not an illusion. It was more like something else entirely—akin to Obito Uchiha's Kamui from Naruto. And during that process, Cipher clearly sensed a fluctuation of divine power.
This didn't mean the elf girl had reached the level of a Demigod. Rather... she possessed a Divine Artifact! A Warlock's Divine Artifact!
After the failed attack, Cipher didn't rush to strike again. Without understanding the principle behind this 'phasing' ability, any further kicks would be pointless.
Cipher flipped in mid-air, absorbing her momentum before landing steadily on a tree trunk opposite the elf girl. She then deactivated her Divine Speed State.
Only then did the elf girl, still tracking Cipher's afterimage, belatedly turn to look where the attack had come from. She rubbed the back of her head, her expression a mixture of lingering fear and shock. "What... what was that golden thing just now...?!"
The elf girl's back was turned, giving Cipher a perfect opportunity for another sneak attack. But she held back, instead asking, "Why did you attack us?"
The moment Cipher spoke, she saw the elf girl flinch violently. The girl spun around to face her, but instead of preparing to cast a spell, she drew two short swords from her waist and adopted a textbook warrior's combat stance.
So that's how it is, Cipher thought, stroking her chin as her cat tail swayed behind her. She didn't see my attack at all, yet she still activated her 'phasing' ability. Either it's a passive ability like a Trigger Spell, or someone else—perhaps this elf girl's Lord—activated it for her, saving her life at the critical moment.
The girl stared intently at Cipher, not daring to attack rashly. Then, her eyes widened in shock. "What?! She's a True God?!"
Cipher kept her expression and posture unchanged. Okay, of the two possibilities, the second one seems far more likely. This elf girl is clearly communicating with her Lord right now.
Perhaps because she now knew Cipher's identity, the elf girl didn't press her attack. Instead, she declared, "Our duty is to prevent any suspicious individuals from approaching the Father of Oaks!"
"Our?" So it's not just her? There's a whole group of them nearby? Cipher paused before asking, "And why are you so certain we're 'suspicious individuals'? I simply have some matters to discuss with the Ancient God, the Father of Oaks."
"No means no!" The elf girl's legs were trembling slightly, but she stood her ground. "No one is allowed near the Father of Oaks right now!"
Cipher narrowed her eyes. When the warlock first attacked, she had wondered if a group of villains had taken control of the Father of Oaks for some nefarious plot. But now, she reconsidered. How could a powerful Ancient God like the Father of Oaks be restrained by a group of ordinary people?
The current situation actually made it seem like this warlock was 'protecting' the Father of Oaks. Could it be that something had happened to the Father of Oaks, causing him to refuse all visitors?
But even so, Cipher hadn't abandoned her goal of seeing the Father of Oaks. If they insisted on blocking her, she would force her way through. She had to see what was really going on.
However, just as Cipher was about to make her move, the elf girl let out a strange cry. She clamped her legs together, her face flushing red. A moment later, a tiny green creature emerged from her chest, popping out from between her breasts.
It was a pixie, with a pair of wings on its back, looking as delicate and beautiful as a miniature figurine. It flapped its wings and flew over to Cipher, circling her while sniffing deeply, as if savoring her scent.
After two or three laps, the pixie's eyes lit up. "I think she's a good god! It's totally fine to let her in~"
Stunned for a moment, Cipher finally realized: this pixie was the Lord of the elf girl, the warlock???