Chapter Sixty-Seven
"Although it's not comfortable here, I hope you two can bear with it for a little while." A strange sound came from a hoarse throat, echoing in the sewers.
No one answered him, and it was best not to answer; this was a time to hide. Speaking too loudly while hiding would attract attention.
This is one of the few platforms in the sewer system. Although the ground has been simply cleaned, the surrounding dirt still makes the smell unbearable.
Although none of the people here are human.
Furthermore, they are unable to react to their discomfort.
Here are Yan, the two red demon siblings. Also there are Twelve, Nameless, and Shadow.
The last one is the guy whose name sounds like a spell. Because of his appearance and how he refers to his past, everyone unanimously decided to call him that.
However, they did protest because the name didn't sound like that of a good person at all. Coupled with that equally eerie color scheme, it's likely that anyone who shows up at the scene of a bad deed will be framed.
We also have to count the others; apart from the nameless one, who at least looks like a human, the rest are all monsters.
Such a group would almost never go to any crowded place; there is no better place for evil people to hide than the sewers.
Of course, this place is not suitable for healing.
There are two people here who need healing, but it's just a matter of waiting for natural healing; no one can help them.
These are the two red demons. They look to be in very poor condition, covered in wounds, with their red skin full of damage.
Because they had been captured by Alpha, Twelve intercepted them on the way. And during the kidnapping, the two guys who said they were going to do their own thing also returned.
They failed to defeat Alpha; the ascetics' combat power had reached an incomprehensible level. Even with only a few people in the twelve-member group, they were unable to defeat that monster.
They fled to Nidra. Biaak and his crew had arrived a few days earlier and found a place they could at least stay in, even if it was just a sewer.
There was a simple cave behind them, which they had dug out. The rock was not solid and could be easily broken by the people here.
The cave entrance was blocked by a magical barrier, allowing them to breathe relatively tolerable air. They remained there, unsure of what to do next. The general consensus was to wait for Yan and her brother Yan to recover from their injuries before considering their next move.
However, since they are monsters, they will most likely have to find a way to settle down in a relatively safe but chaotic area. They're used to not eating and surviving on magic power.
"Let's play something, I'm so bored." Xie Ying leaned against the wall, then put his arm around Twelve's neck: "Handsome, do you have any good suggestions?"
She deliberately drew out her words, while half of her soft body pressed against Twelve's body—because of the cramped space, the five of them were almost completely pressed together.
As someone with a female body, Xie Ying was undeniably beautiful, except for her entirely black body (like a shadow) and eerie eyes. However, because she was still wearing the same outfit as Twelve, much of her stunning beauty was overshadowed.
"What are you doing now?" Twelve frowned. He had no interest in this guy's behavior. In fact, this guy didn't like this type of woman in the first place. "If you're bored, you don't have to come with us. You said yourself that you want to act alone."
"Hey, hey, hey, how heartless! They pulled you back from the world of the dead. I only realized I had nowhere to go after I left."
"Well, thank you for taking me back to hell after I was free." Twelve touched the horn on his head, looking at the nameless person dozing off beside him: "You were also given abilities by her, right? Why don't you have anything growing on your head?"
"Me?" Wuming hesitated for a moment and said, "I don't know either. You should ask her that question."
"Because he received my blessing while he was alive, while you were resurrected by necromancy after you died, and then I imposed the blessing on you. The more you resist the blessing, the more severe the mutation will be. It's just that the horns on your head mean that you yourself also hope to receive such a blessing." Xie Ying made a face, then closed his eyes and yawned.
"What exactly are you?" Yan frowned as he looked at Xie Ying. This guy really looked like a creation of the devil, yet he spoke words of blessing. This strange discrepancy made him want to figure out who this guy was.
"Me? I'm an angel, but only a shadow of an angel. Because I'm a degraded, negative version of angelic power, I'm a subordinate angel, more like a demon. But I'm actually categorized as one of the gods. Doesn't that sound complicated?"
"A fallen angel?" Flame said with some surprise. The existence of fallen angels is also a legend, and the chance of seeing one alive is extremely rare.
"No. The prerequisite for becoming a fallen angel is to be an angel in the first place, but to be corrupted by greed for power. If someone like me were corrupted, I'd probably become a disgusting monster." Shadow said self-deprecatingly, "But I can probably use some angelic abilities. See these two cute boys? I can probably only give blessings to ordinary people."
"Then why don't you use this method to build an army? It would be an invincible force, and maybe it could even stand against the Church."
"You're overthinking it. Going against the church, huh?" Xie Ying stuck out his tongue and said helplessly, "This kind of blessing requires the recipient to have something unique about them. And they need to have a strong obsession. Even so, the success rate is less than 10%. Take these two guys as examples. Do you know how many people have received my blessing and died before them? There must be at least twenty."
But she still smiled as she said this: "Of course I've considered what you said. I'll check if there are any suitable candidates in each city I visit. Maybe I'll gradually find more and more suitable people, around thirty or forty, which should be enough to establish my own demon realm. The Church will need resources for their campaigns, so they'll choose to negotiate first, and I'll accept all their conditions without hesitation. That way, I can be considered a queen with my own demon realm. If you two survive until then, I guarantee I'll give you a position!"
"To submit to the church?" Yan frowned, about to say something, when he felt his sister grasp his wrist and lean on his shoulder.
"Brother, they saved us," she whispered.
"It's not related to that, but I still want to say something." Yan patted her head, then turned fiercely to look at Xie Ying: "Are we destined to be kept like livestock for the rest of our lives? This reminds me of their lambs, so weak and powerless."
"Ha, haha." Xie Ying looked at his serious expression and said with a laugh, "So what else do you want? To rebel against the church after I really establish such a small village?"
"If it were me, I would do that."
"So you're just you. I'm not that stupid." Xie Ying shrugged, closed his eyes, and leaned against the wall, saying, "Three days, at most three days, and they'll be completely wiped out, without even a chance to resist. What do you think the Church is thinking to allow monsters across the entire world to operate with approval? They just don't want another war in this world, so they use this method to maintain order."
Even if there's only a sliver of a chance...
"There is absolutely no chance of winning."
Why are you so sure?
"Because the Church has been accumulating power all along," Xie Ying said leisurely. "High-ranking clergy can't die; they'll keep living. They'll accumulate more and more. Do you know how many high-ranking clergy they had a thousand years ago? That guy named Alpha would have been a very important figure a thousand years ago. But now, he's just a guy who came to help, and even just that guy is extremely difficult for us to fight. How many such clergy do you think there are in those big cities?"
There was a deathly silence; no one spoke for a very long time.
The conversation died at this point because there was no way to continue it. He had no reason to object.
"How do you know so much?" Twelve turned to look at the shadowy figure who was resting with his eyes closed. "Weren't you always locked in a coffin?"
“Because I still retain some of the authority of an angel, I can separate a sensory entity from a state of unconsciousness to understand what’s happening around me. And I have a very good memory; I don’t forget things, so I remember many, many details of the present.” Xie Ying hesitated for a moment and said, “Yan, after hearing what I just said, do you still intend to deal with the Church?”
"Yes." Yan nodded. "I plan to leave alone."
"Brother," Flame said in a pleading voice, "It's okay to bow down to the church, right? They don't restrict us much, they just don't allow us to start any unrest."
"They're just not restricting us right now. As Xieying said, they've been accumulating their power. The reason they aren't yet is because there isn't enough time; their power isn't enough to bind the entire world with rules." Yan paused for a moment and said, "We can't hesitate about this. If we don't try to resist now, then in the future... I don't know what will happen. But if they really are watching over the world as guardians, then who will watch over them? One day, one day they will change."
“What a child with lofty ideals. I don’t mind showing you a way.” Xie Ying suddenly laughed. She stood up helplessly and then drew a few simple incantations on the ground with her finger.
"What's this?"
"Go here." Xie Ying pointed to the incantation on the ground, and suddenly a stream of black energy shot out from the ground and rushed into Yan's ear.
Yan stared blankly for a moment, then looked at her with a bewildered expression.
“To fight against the Church, you need matching strength, and the high-ranking clergy shouldn’t be your target. Your target should be the participants in the Central Council. The ones who, according to legend, are bestowed upon by angels.” Shadowy sat back down and turned to look at Flame: “Only the Demon King has that kind of power.”
"The Demon King?"
"Yes, it's the Demon King, not the Demon Grand Duke. That's not something you can become through your efforts. You must gain the approval of Flame Demon Fralos, the source of your ancestor's burning flames, and have his mark engraved on your soul. That's the prerequisite. Without that prerequisite, you're just a brat with unrealistic delusions."
"Thank you." Yan suddenly stood up, but Yan grabbed his arm.
This time, she didn't say anything, she just held on, wouldn't let go, and lowered her head to hug her legs.
"At least wait until the injury heals." Yan finally thought of something to say to dissuade him.
“I am now able to move.”
"A few more days won't make a difference." Wuming also felt he should help persuade him; if this stubborn guy really left, he'd probably be dead.
Twelve didn't say anything, just stared at the guy.
After all, you can't persuade someone who's really made up their mind. Even his sister couldn't persuade him, so naturally he can't persuade someone who's already made up their mind.
"If you really leave, you might lose even your last hope," Xie Ying suddenly said. "Silly child, don't be willful."
What can I do here right now?
"There really are people who can do it."
"explain."
"Ha, you remember that monster we saw when we came here?" Xie Ying suddenly laughed, looking at him and asking, "What element do you think that thing was?"
Flame paused, recalling the twisted, bloated figure, and a light suddenly shone in his eyes.
"Its magic core."
"Yes, you need to find a way to obtain the magic core of that thing. As long as you can get it, you can at least undergo a qualitative change in your magic power to the level of a Demon Lord or above. And as long as you can gain recognition... Demon King, do you need someone to warm your bed?"
Yan didn't answer, but slowly sat down, and Yan breathed a sigh of relief.
He suddenly turned his head, looked at Xie Ying, and after a long while slowly said:
"You are a demon."
"Ha, I think I've explained my background in enough detail already, so we can stop discussing who I am now."
“No, it means something else.” Yan paused and said, “You’re always stirring up trouble, but you don’t want to get involved yourself. You’re a warmonger, but also a coward.”
“I’d prefer you change the second adjective to cautious,” Shadow said with a smile, not trying to refute the statement. “But, putting this aside for a moment, don’t you guys think the rats in this sewer are a bit strange?”
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