216 Shadow World: The Infinite Persecution Inferno
The cool raindrops made Dekan feel a slight chill on his skin.
As his vision gradually returned, he saw raindrops falling from the sky, accompanied by a pitch-black scene and howling winds.
“BOOM!!”
The sudden flash of lightning illuminated the sky, prompting Dekan to instinctively close his eyes, followed by the continuous rumble of thunder.
When Dekan frowned and opened his eyes again, he finally recognized where he was.
This was a world painted in a bleak black and crimson, as if it would forever remain night.
Magnificent golem statues stood erect but were all stained with crimson blood.
Vast demonic castles stood in this ghastly inferno, with countless floating bones all around.
Pitch-black mountains, as if burning with an eternal flame, towered high, while the River of Oblivion surged beneath the statues, castles, and bone heaps.
“This isn’t the Holy Country…”
Dekan thought with disappointment.
He had thought this time he would have a chance to revisit the beautiful landscapes of the Holy Country, and perhaps fight a couple of vampires for fun.
Looking at this place now, Dekan knew without a doubt where he was.
There was something indescribably familiar about this place.
Unfortunately, this location didn’t seem much like a demon castle…
It lacked the extravagant opulence of the Demon Academy.
It rather resembled a haunted wasteland.
Just as Dekan was trying to make sense of his surroundings, a gaping fissure suddenly appeared beneath the colossal golem statue, violently shaking as if a gate to hell had been opened.
Then a shadowy figure emerged from within the gate, clad entirely in black leather armor, leaving only a pair of blood-red eyes exposed.
“Ah, so you’re the new prison guard?”
A chilling, eerie laugh emanated from the high-ranking demon’s mouth.
It seemed he had no intention of attacking Dekan.
This laugh made Dekan feel oddly nostalgic.
He fondly remembered how his teacher, Bachelor, used to laugh this way.
Dekan missed those times.
However, a prison guard?
Was he coming here to work as a warden in the Demon Realm’s prison?
Not bad, fast-forwarding straight to an excellent graduate’s direct employment.
While feeling quite moved inside, Dekan nodded.
This Shadow World prompt seemed a bit delayed.
So far, no message had appeared.
“Once you enter this gate, you might not be able to leave,” said the guiding demon, glancing around at the surroundings with a grotesque smirk.
The entrance to the Demon Realm’s prison was the “Hellgate,” inscribed with a phrase:
[O traveler, abandon all hope!]
It wasn’t a joke.
“Screech! Screech!”
The creatures imprisoned within the Hellgate, upon sensing the gate’s opening, all began emitting terrifying grinding sounds, as if trying to break free from the great prison. However, this prison seemed to be sealed with spellwork of unimaginably high rank, so immovable as to be utterly indestructible.
An ordinary person might, by now, be paralyzed by the oppressive atmosphere, already contemplating ways to escape.
But Dekan was different.
Even with demons blocking the Hellgate, he wanted to enter!
Much like him being unable to turn down enrolling in the Demon Academy!
Seeing Dekan’s fearless expression — even one of restrained excitement — the guiding demon was momentarily taken aback.
Generally speaking, new demons at this prison were usually quite afraid.
This new demon seemed… unusual.
“Heh, hopefully you’ll survive a little longer. Follow me,” came another disturbing laugh before the demon dissipated from sight.
Without hesitation, Dekan stepped through the Hellgate.
The moment he walked in, the familiar prompts finally appeared.
[Shadow World: The Infinite Persecution Inferno]
[Rank: Tier 7]
[Number of Challengers: 6]
[Regular Challengers: 5]
[Special Challenger: 1]
[The Special Challenger possesses an extraordinary identity and status, facing an initial situation different from other Challengers. The death of the Special Challenger will significantly affect the success rate of the mission.]
[After the holy war between the Demon Realm and humanity began, years have passed, and many human heroes are imprisoned in the Demon Realm’s prison.]
[The current war has entered a stalemate or a balance point. If the status quo continues, both the demons and humans can’t withstand it, so both sides are seeking to break the balance.]
[In the Demon Realm’s prison, known as “Inferno” or “Hell” by humans, there’s a human hero whose release will greatly impact the situation — the Dark Saintess.]
[The human side wouldn’t have dared plan a rescue operation for the Dark Saintess, and there’s no precedent of any human escaping from this Demon Realm prison.]
[But the Demon King didn’t anticipate that there would be a traitor…]
[Objective 1: Rescue and assist the sealed Dark Saintess in escaping the Demon Realm.]
[Objective 2: All Challengers must survive until the end of the Shadow World and successfully escape the Demon Realm.]
[Objective 3 is hidden, requiring Challengers to explore and exchange information to unlock.]
[Time Remaining: 13 days 23 hours 59 minutes]
[Since this map is large and open, starting locations vary depending on the identity assigned to the Challengers.]
Special Challenger…
There was no doubt it was himself.
Dekan thought.
“So, as the Special Challenger, my special role is a prison guard, and my special state is that I’ve been disguised through demonization…?”
From the provided character data, it was clear that the Challengers’ starting locations were all different this time.
The mission was clear — it would center around this prison.
Which meant there was a high probability that the others would also be inside this prison.
Unlike in the Demon Academy, the storyline made no mention of everyone assuming disguises this time.
If the others remained in their human forms, they were most likely prisoners of this jail!
Right now, his teammates were likely waiting for him to rescue them!
Dekan felt as if an important mission had been entrusted to him.
He felt like a lone warrior, with little time to hesitate before he had to die fighting.
However.
Upon further reflection.
Since earlier.
Dekan had noticed a subtle sense of discord.
His body seemed a bit lighter somehow.
His gaze even felt a bit lower than usual.
A closer look revealed his hair had grown significantly longer — gray, sleek strands that now rested on his shoulders.
It suddenly dawned on Dekan.
He wasn’t just disguised as a demon…
“Sir, this can’t be happening while I’m live-streaming…”
Dekan’s expression grew complicated.
If his guess was correct, it was hard for him to imagine the commotion his live-stream audience would be in…
