Chapter 384

The knights of the swordsmanship house also drew their swords.

"Master, please go with the Hero!!"

"We will take care of things here!!"

Chris and Evan's eyes met.

Just as they were about to depart for the Glass Lake, a familiar voice was heard.

"I will go, too."

It was Ranya.

Chris's eyes widened in surprise.

She was completely different from the last time he had seen her.

She had finally achieved her goal.

"Huhu, do you finally recognize my greatness? For a genius like me, this is a simple matter. Gaze upon me with more fervent admiration!"

"......"

Lightly ignoring her antics, Chris said.

"Let's go."

***

The road to the Glass Lake was not smooth.

The closer they got, the thicker the encroachment became.

Demons blocked their path.

Though ordinary demons were no longer a threat, they caused delays.

'The encroachment is getting stronger.'

Chris wore an anxious expression.

'Can this even be reversed?'

He did not know.

It was something that had not happened in his previous life.

There was one unsettling point.

'Why were the gates made into these kinds of ruins?'

The gates scattered across the continent had one thing in common.

The end of the ruins could not be reached.

'The deeper you go, the more insurmountable the obstacles become.'

Taking the underground garden he had visited in the past as an example, the lower the floor, the stronger the guardians that appeared, until eventually, an existence that could never be defeated blocked the way.

Other ruins were similar.

Guardians, or some other obstacle that a mortal could never overcome, blocked the path.

'No matter the obstacle, I have to stop it.'

If he could not, it would be no different from the end of the world.

"So this is the Glass Lake."

Ranya let out a surprised voice.

The surface of the water, transparent like glass without a hint of blue, came into view.

'Something's wrong.'

Unlike its usual calm state, the surface was boiling ominously, like lava.

"We have to go inside. Ranya, cast your life support magic on me and Evan."

Both Chris and Evan could survive for a long time underwater without the aid of magic, but the Glass Lake was different.

They had to be thoroughly prepared before entering.

"The deeper we go, the stronger the water's pressure becomes. Ranya, you'll have to support us well."

This was the challenge of the Glass Lake.

Even just 5 meters below the surface, the pressure became so heavy that even a decent knight could not withstand it.

The pressure compounded and grew stronger the deeper they went, making it difficult for even high-ranking knights to endure beyond 10 meters.

'Beyond 30 meters is tough even for a peak 7-Star knight. Beyond 40 meters, even an 8-Star. Was the deepest record 50 meters?'

50 meters was a pressure that even a 9-Star would find difficult to endure.

The problem was that even at 50 meters, it was not the bottom of the lake.

The 9-Star transcendent who had explored the lake at the time had said that an even more unfathomable bottom existed.

'Let's go down first. Only then can we find a solution.'

Fwoooosh!

Ranya's magic enveloped them all.

Kwad.

As they entered the lake, a noise like striking coarse steel, rather than water, echoed.

[Christian, this energy is?]

[Yes, it's the evil energy of Gehenna.]

From the bottom of the lake, a hideous energy was rising.

As if it were connected to Gehenna by a gate.

'Faintly, the celestial energy of the Celestial Realm is also mixed in.'

It was a sign that the boundaries of the three realms were collapsing.

'We have to hurry.'

He grit his teeth and headed down.

10 meters, 20 meters, 30 meters.

The deeper they went, the more intense pressure crushed them.

Ranya's magic was protecting them, but they were starting to feel the strain.

[My magic won't last long from here on out. We need to find a way to resolve this situation as quickly as possible.]

Ranya said with a slightly pale complexion at a point past 40 meters.

It was a point known to be difficult even for those at the absolute peak of 8-Star to endure.

'Both of them have high enlightenment, but their vessels themselves are only at the level of a low 8-Star, so it's tough to go down any further from here.'

It was when Chris was making a troubled face.

Suddenly, a voice filled with an eerie killing intent was heard.

[Ah. What a pleasant surprise.]

[!!]

It was Sherad!

Chris's eyes widened in surprise.

'Why is this bastard here? Don't tell me? He became a fiend of the Mystic Demonic House?'

He knew that Sherad was alive.

But for him to become a fiend of the Mystic Demonic House?

And he wasn't just an ordinary fiend. Judging from the energy he was exuding, he was a priest, and an apostle-class one at that.

[How did you become an apostle of the Mystic Demonic House?]

[Huhu, it's all thanks to you.]

Sherad licked his lips.

[After our last fight, I realized that I could no longer reach you with my own power. Ah, the despair I felt then.]

Sherad sent a shimmering gaze towards Chris.

[But I didn't give up. I wanted to tear you to pieces and kill you with my own hands, to hear your screams.]

[......]

[So I used my authority of gluttony on the demon I had a contract with. Huhu, it was a gamble, but perhaps because my feelings for you were so deep? In the end, I succeeded, I became a demon, and an apostle of the Mystic Demonic House.]

It was a crazy story.

To have devoured the demon he had a contract with to achieve demonization.

[Ah. You have no idea how much I've missed you. Seeing you approach from afar, I just couldn't contain my excitement.]

Chris frowned.

[Shut your disgusting mouth. In any case, it seems the gate hasn't opened yet.]

Sherad did not deny it.

[That's right. It's not something that can be finished in one go. Above all, although I offered two Holy Masters, the sacrifices are still insufficient.]

Sherad gave Chris an eerie smile.

[Christian, you'll be more than enough as a sacrifice to mark the grand finale.]

Chris realized the Mystic Demonic House's scheme.

'So they lured me to the gate with this plan from the beginning.'

Since it had become impossible to make him a 'vessel', they were trying to make him a sacrifice to open the gate.

[Well, there's nothing to worry about. If I kill you here, everything will be resolved.]

[Kekek, yes, that's my Christian. That's how you should be. Ah, how I have longed for this moment.]

Just then, a rough voice was heard from the side.

[Shut up.]

It was Evan.

He raised his sword in anger.

[How dare that perverted son of a bitch who deserves to be chewed to death say such things to Christian! I'll kill you.]

Sherad looked at Evan with cold eyes.

[I'm having a moving reunion, and a mere stray dares to interrupt.]

Originally, in his past life, the object of Sherad's obsession had been Evan, but his gaze showed no interest.

[Get lost.]

Fwoooosh!!

An intense evil energy raged towards Evan.

However.

Flash. Slice.

The moment Evan's sword flashed, a miracle occurred.

The evil energy split into two, and a flash of sword light struck Sherad.

[!!]

Sherad flinched.

[No, how?]

Sherad's current power was at a low 9-Star.

It was the same level as the priest Chris had fought not long ago, but they were by no means on the same level.

If the priests were a general low 9-Star, the apostles were at a level that had reached the wall within the low 9-Star.

Just as there was a significant difference between a high 8-Star who had reached the wall and one who had not, the same was true for a low 9-Star.

And yet, Evan's sword, which had not even reached 9-Star, had neutralized Sherad's attack.

That was how deep the meaning imbued in Evan's sword was.

[I'm here, too. Die, you pervert!!]

Fwoooosh!!

A shining domain unfolded around Ranya.

Coordinator of Phases.

It was the Domain of Dominion that Ranya had obtained.

The authority to freely manipulate the phases that are the source of white magic.

With this power, she could not only use high-level white magic, which was difficult to cast, as easily as her own limbs, but she could also amplify its power far more than the original magic.

[Take this, you pervert!! This is the power of this genius mage!!]

High-level white magic of water, lightning, and space was manifested and flew at once.

Evan moved along with her.

Master of the Sword.

Union of Sword Principles.

Sword intents were simultaneously overlapped.

Light, fast, and at the same time, heavy.

While being able to sever anything and destroy anything, the meaning was imbued in a single sword strike.

Sherad defended against the attack with his evil energy, but he was not completely unharmed.

His neat hair was disheveled.

He let out a chuckle and licked his lips grotesquely with his tongue.

[Huhu, this is an unexpected pleasure. To think that worms would try so hard. Of course, it's all for naught.]

Srrrrk.

An even more intense evil energy stretched out.

[What a shame. You two would make a tasty meal if you ripened a little more. But not yet.]

Evan and Ranya frowned.

It was as he said.

Of course, their enlightenment was high enough to be a threat even to a 9-Star.

The problem was their vessels.

Unlike their lofty enlightenment, they were still at the level of a low 8-Star.

Their vessels could not keep up with their enlightenment, so they could not fully manifest their power.

Just then, Christian stepped forward.

[Well now? It's a different story when I'm here.]

He stretched out his hand.

Darkness spread around him.

It was the Advent of Creation, the Throne.

[Are you trying to strengthen them with your authority? Even so, there's a limit...]

Sherad's sneering face hardened.

It was not a simple Advent of Creation.

Chris held out an artifact.

[At my level, I can utilize the abilities of an artifact to their fullest.]

It was the Vampiric Ring!

A top-grade artifact that could absorb the surrounding energy and use it as its own.

'The water of this Glass Lake is a mass of energy.'

It was water that contained enough energy to pressure even an absolute peak 8-Star.

Absorbing even a part of it would be an enormous amount.

'Of course, it's not the kind of water that can be easily absorbed.'

But Chris had the Throne.

The one that dominated everything in the world under his feet.

The authority of the Throne dominated the water of the Glass Lake, and the Vampiric Ring absorbed the energy and transferred it to Evan and Ranya.

[!!]

Evan and Ranya's eyes widened at the surging energy.

[Leave it to me. That pervert's neck is mine!]

[I hate perverts, too, so I'll join in and beat him up!!]

Fwoooosh!!!

As if the reins had been released, a fierce storm of sword and magic raged.

Sherad showed signs of being pushed back for a moment, then burst into a loud, mad laugh.

[Ahaha!! Good!! Ah. This is more fun than I thought. How long has it been since my heart pounded like this!!]

Srrrrk.

The evil energy encroached on the surroundings, recreating it into an eerie space.

Sherad's Advent of Creation.

It was the 'Hell of the Eaten'.

An authority that reduces all beings within its range to prey.

[!!]

Ranya and Evan's eyes became bloodshot.

The energy that had been filled to the brim began to be sucked into Sherad.

That was not all.

'The movement of my limbs?'

It was as if they were tightly bound, like prey caught in a spider's web.