Chapter 34: Death?
The images of that ‘world-destroying’ scene were still fresh in the minds of the assembled experts—countless Abyssal Blade Demons diving down… Linley and the others were completely stunned, their minds blank, filled with shock and disbelief… They felt as if they were going mad.
“How could there be so many Abyssal Blade Demons?” Linley shook his head, unable to accept it.
Tulily shook his head and sighed softly, “I’m afraid even if the Flame Sovereign or the Mother Empress came, countless Abyssal Blade Demons would swarm them and grind them into dust. It’s too terrifying… truly too terrifying.”
“With so many Abyssal Blade Demons on the eleventh floor, who can possibly obtain the divine spark?” Olivier’s face was grim.
“Perhaps the Sovereign who built this Necropolis of the Gods is deliberately toying with us.” The Six-Eyed Golden Lion ‘Kleo’ was filled with grief and indignation. Of the five brothers from the Gebados Planar Prison, two had died there, one had died here, and only two remained.
“No, there might still be a chance of success.” Desri shook his head and sighed. “The Elemental Laws contain countless profound mysteries. Most of what we’ve comprehended are relatively low-level. For example, Linley’s attack that killed the Flame Sovereign is considered high-level. If someone, say, in the Laws of Light, comprehended movement techniques to the extreme, becoming much faster than all the Abyssal Blade Demons, then… they might have a chance at obtaining the divine spark.”
Neither Desri nor Olivier had delved deeply into light-speed movement techniques, despite their own speed.
“Let’s not discuss this now. The most important thing is to figure out what to do. Does anyone have any ideas?” Desri looked around at the assembled experts.
“What can we do? It would be good enough just to get back to the tenth floor.” Rosarie sighed. “This Necropolis of the Gods is the most dangerous one. Isn’t it on a three-thousand-year cycle? There are two other large Necropolises of the Gods. Those two aren’t this dangerous.”
Fain, Desri, Tulily, and the others all nodded.
The three passages led to different Necropolises of the Gods. This one was the most dangerous and difficult.
“The most dangerous, but also the richest in treasures,” Tulily remarked. “In those other Necropolises, we didn’t get a single true divine artifact. Here, we’ve already obtained two Life Source Pearls. I believe there should be more than one divine spark on this eleventh floor.”
The assembled experts silently agreed.
The greater the danger, the greater the reward if you succeed.
But…
When the danger is so great that there’s no hope at all, what use are even the most abundant divine sparks?
“What if we hide underground for a few months until the ten-year period is up?” the Black-Armored Giant Scorpion suggested.
Linley’s eyes lit up.
A person’s worth lies in knowing their limits. After seeing the countless Abyssal Blade Demons, Linley had already given up on the divine sparks on the eleventh floor. After all… there were just too many Abyssal Blade Demons.
“I’m afraid that won’t work,” Olivier shook his head. “Press your ear against the metal walls and feel.”
Linley immediately pressed his ear against the metal wall. A very faint vibration was continuously transmitting through it.
All the experts’ hearts sank.
“There must be an enormous number of Abyssal Blade Demons advancing downward together,” the third Six-Eyed Golden Lion ‘Kleivo’ said in a low voice. “Their speed isn’t fast, but they move in unison. Once that many Abyssal Blade Demons surround us…”
“We can’t stay here,” Tulily said.
Linley looked at Bebe, who was curled up in his arms, and his gaze hardened. He looked around at the group and said, “We have no choice now. If we stay underground, we probably won’t last a day before countless Abyssal Blade Demons surround us completely.”
“The only way to survive is to return to the tenth floor,” Linley said firmly.
“How? Linley, you saw how many Abyssal Blade Demons are blocking the passage entrance,” Fain immediately retorted.
Linley took a deep breath and said, “There’s one more way.”
All the experts looked at Linley.
“We’ll take a detour underground, then approach the passage entrance from below. When we get there, you all hold the line first. I’ll prepare to cast ‘Dimensional Edge’ and kill all the Abyssal Blade Demons blocking the passage entrance.”
The experts around him looked at Linley. They didn’t think this plan had much chance of success.
After all, how many Abyssal Blade Demons could a Dimensional Edge kill?
“The Dimensional Edge will clear a path from us to the passage entrance. That path will quickly be blocked by surrounding Abyssal Blade Demons. We need to rush into the tenth floor through that path before they can seal it,” Linley said.
All the experts fell silent.
Use a Dimensional Edge to create a path, then charge into the tenth floor in an instant.
If they were even one step slow, the surrounding Abyssal Blade Demons would swarm in and kill them.
It was a race against time.
“We have no choice,” Linley said, looking around at the assembled experts.
By now, the vibration in the metal walls had grown stronger. The massive horde of Abyssal Blade Demons was getting closer and closer.
“I agree. Let’s take the gamble. At least there’s a sliver of hope,” Tulily was the first to speak.
Desri, Rosarie, and Fain exchanged glances, then nodded slightly. The two Six-Eyed Golden Lions, the Black-Armored Giant Scorpion, and Olivier also nodded in agreement. As for Bebe… he had no objections either.
“The most critical thing now is that when we return to the surface, we must not be discovered by any other Abyssal Blade Demons. And when we get close to the surface, I’ll be chanting the magic incantation. I won’t be able to defend myself against the Abyssal Blade Demons,” Linley said.
“Don’t worry. While you’re casting the ‘Dimensional Edge’, even if Abyssal Blade Demons come, we’ll hold them off even if it costs us our lives,” Desri said.
All the experts’ gazes hardened.
They would seize this last thread of hope.
“Let’s move out,” Linley said.
The Black-Armored Giant Scorpion took the lead, clearing the way. This time, the experts didn’t go straight up. Instead, they took a detour underground before approaching the surface. Whether by luck or not, they only encountered their first Abyssal Blade Demon after flying most of the way.
“Puchi.” Bebe’s claw shattered the Abyssal Blade Demon’s head before it could even make a sound.
“Everyone be careful. We’re only about five hundred meters from the surface now. The higher we go, the more Abyssal Blade Demons there will be,” Desri warned. Linley was in the center of the group, protected by the others, silently chanting his magic incantation.
“Not good.” When they were about three hundred meters from the surface, the Black-Armored Giant Scorpion stopped.
“These Abyssal Blade Demons have dug a massive pit around the passage entrance.” The Black-Armored Giant Scorpion’s voice echoed in the minds of all the experts. Everyone’s heart trembled. Linley’s face changed color, and he immediately stopped chanting the magic incantation.
“With such a large pit, once we charge out, we’ll be several hundred meters from the passage entrance. We probably won’t make it in time before we’re killed by the mass of Abyssal Blade Demons.”
The ten experts felt a sense of despair.
…
Above the surface, countless Abyssal Blade Demons hovered in the air. The two red Abyssal Blade Demons also floated in midair. The ones hunting Linley and the others underground numbered only about three hundred thousand. The majority were waiting on the surface.
The pit, several miles in radius, naturally included the passage entrance.
This passage to the tenth floor had originally been on the surface. But because the metal ground had been dug into a massive pit, the passage entrance now hung like a window above the pit, faint black light swirling around it.
None of the Abyssal Blade Demons dared to enter it.
Among them, nearly ten thousand Abyssal Blade Demons surrounded the passage, blocking it completely. It seemed impossible for Linley and the others to break through.
“Swish!” “Swish!” “Swish!”…
Suddenly, ten figures shot out of the pit almost simultaneously, each moving at maximum speed. Linley and the others had no choice but to fight desperately, hoping to seize a chance and charge into the tenth floor!
A massive number of Abyssal Blade Demons spotted Linley’s group at almost the same time.
“Kill!” The Abyssal Blade Demons reacted quickly.
But that brief reaction time allowed Linley and the others to fly two to three hundred meters. Now, they were only a few dozen meters from the passage entrance. However, those few dozen meters were packed with Abyssal Blade Demons.
Having finished chanting his incantation, Linley extended one hand.
Violent wind elements rapidly gathered around Linley, and the wind within several miles fell completely still. Linley’s expression was ferocious. Through the ‘Dragonblood Ring’, he desperately absorbed the surrounding wind elements, draining his magical power dry. A terrifying pale green Dimensional Edge, nearly twenty meters long, materialized.
It was nearly ten times larger than a normal Dimensional Edge.
“Crackle~~”
The Dimensional Edge flew forward like a massive blade wheel. Wherever it passed, a huge rift was torn in space itself.
“Die.” Through the Dragonblood Ring, Linley used his spiritual energy to carefully control the Dimensional Edge’s trajectory. He could clearly feel the countless winds spinning inside it, fast and slow, forming this ‘Dimensional Edge’.
“Ah!” “Ah!”… Countless terrified screams rang out.
Where the massive Dimensional Edge passed, all Abyssal Blade Demons in its path were sliced into fragments.
Linley strained to slow the Dimensional Edge down, hoping to keep it just ahead of them. But the Dimensional Edge was too fast. Even with Linley’s desperate control, by the time the Dimensional Edge shot past the passage entrance and flew into the distance, Linley and the others were still about ten meters away.
Yes, just ten meters!
The floating passage entrance was right in front of them. The Abyssal Blade Demons that had been blocking the entrance were all dead!
But there were still ten meters to go.
Because the Dimensional Edge was twenty meters long, the nearest Abyssal Blade Demons on either side were also about ten meters away. They couldn’t intercept in time. However, the massive number of Abyssal Blade Demons above them were diving down. After all, the Dimensional Edge had flown horizontally.
Many of the Abyssal Blade Demons above were very close to Linley’s group.
“Hurry!”
Linley and the others all pushed themselves to the limit, but the Abyssal Blade Demons above poured down like an endless flood, threatening to engulf them. Linley judged from the distance that if those Abyssal Blade Demons reached them, only three would escape.
Those three were Fain, Bebe, and Desri, who were in the lead.
The others wouldn’t make it in time.
Tulily, the two Six-Eyed Golden Lions, the Black-Armored Giant Scorpion, Olivier… they were all frantic, but a glimmer of despair showed in their eyes. So close, yet too late!
“Go now!”
Fain suddenly roared, transforming into a bolt of lightning as he charged madly at the Abyssal Blade Demons above, trying to hold them back for a moment. But he was instantly knocked back by the sheer force of the swarm.
“Ahhh~~” Olivier roared in fury.
A massive illusory sword, black and white fused together, slashed out, killing four Abyssal Blade Demons in one blow. Then Olivier landed, his face deathly pale. By now, only Desri and Bebe had made it into the passage. The others were too late.
“Is this death?”
Olivier, the Black-Armored Giant Scorpion, Tulily, Rosarie, the two Six-Eyed Golden Lions…
Despair filled their eyes.
In that moment of utter hopelessness—
“Go now!” A furious roar echoed in the minds of all the experts.
An eerie purple light flared. Countless purple sword shadows, twisting like serpents, spun to cover the area above them like a canopy, holding back the mass of Abyssal Blade Demons. Strangest of all…
The Abyssal Blade Demons above seemed to be shocked by something, their speed drastically slowing.
Linley was now enveloped in a faint red aura of killing intent.
He had triggered the killing intent within the Bloodviolet Godsword.
“Linley!”
Olivier, Tulily, Rosarie, the two Six-Eyed Golden Lions, and the others were all stunned, but seeing a chance to survive, they frantically charged into the passage entrance. Just as Olivier and the others escaped into the passage—
Linley hadn’t yet entered.
A massive number of Abyssal Blade Demons from below and the sides had completely blocked the passage entrance. Linley could hold off the ones above, but not those from below and the sides.
The entrance was sealed!
Nowhere to run!
“Boss! Boss!!!” A black shadow actually charged out from inside the passage, a piercing wail rising. “Bebe, go!” Linley’s furious roar echoed in Bebe’s mind. Bebe had barely emerged from the passage entrance when countless blade shadows struck him, sending him tumbling back down.
And then, countless Abyssal Blade Demons, like a swarm of locusts, completely engulfed Linley. On all sides, there were only Abyssal Blade Demons, blocking out even the sunlight.