### Chapter 143: Red and Black (Part Five)
A massive impact sent his head thrown back, launching him into the air, while the roaring flames quickly engulfed him. In the blink of an eye, the golden aura surrounding Cardinal Nero flickered, his figure twisted, and disappeared into the wave of licking flames.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—
Scarlet flows of fire whirled with rubble and dirt, carving a blazing trench on the ground before soaring away from the street. The air temperature shot up, making the street feel like a sauna. Ahead, the nearby half-charred houses caught fire again, engulfed in flames.
I tilted my head.
Did I hit… or not? Just a little, maybe?
Why does the fire feel so… “unfluid”? It’s not as smooth as using the Frost Order or Dead Smoke; I can’t handle it as well… Is it because I’m not skilled enough? Or is my body just not adapting?
Looks like that old perv got away…
Quick reflexes, I’ll give him that.
I felt a flicker of caution, my eyes darting around, scanning the street and buildings, before glancing up at the sky, ears perked to listen, but there wasn’t a sound to be heard.
I raised the severed hand before my eyes for inspection.
Cardinal Nero’s hand wasn’t the delicate, pampered kind I imagined. It looked more like that of an old farmer who’s always been hard at work—rough skin, bulging veins, knobby knuckles… A quick glance and you’d understand he’s a practical man, one who doesn’t know how to enjoy life.
Dark red bl**d flowed from the wrist’s severed end, the smell wafting up to my nose… it felt strangely unsettling.
But that wasn’t what I was focused on.
My attention was entirely on the ring on his thumb; I blinked and stared at it intently.
This is…
The ring was bone-white, polished to a smooth, bright finish. No complicated patterns or decorations, it looked like an extremely plain plain white ring at first glance.
But I could sense the immense, awe-inspiring energy swirling within it… Yet there was also this subtle feeling of resistance.
That annoying sensation of resistance rose in me, inexplicably grating on my nerves. But this emotion was fleeting; within half a second, the irritating feeling was suppressed by the fiery energy within me, replaced by a twinge of joy toward the ring.
This thing… must be the Divine Reliquary? Can’t tell what it’s made of. Dragon bone, maybe?
The strange itch at my chest began to fade.
I looked down absentmindedly at my chest.
The wounds had probably healed completely.
On the pitch-black armor, the last crack was swiftly mended by the wriggling Abyss Mud, the interlocking plates sealing tightly, and dark red patterns like flowing bl**d moved across them, flickering in and out of view, the colors deepening with each moment.
I gently patted my chest with my left palm, a grin creeping onto my lips.
Not a bit of pain left…
Such terrifying regenerative capabilities.
That last blow surely hit my heart, yet I was completely unaffected… And I’m not even in Abyss mode; this body has already transcended humanity, just like those Gate of Truth guys. I just wonder how far I can push it—would my head even be able to recover if it got smashed?
Maybe Cardinal Nero is right.
I think I really have become an unholy monster…
…Thinking about it, it’s actually quite amusing.
As my thoughts tumbled, I stepped forward, expanding my senses to search for Cardinal Nero’s whereabouts while I struggled to slip the ring off my thumb. I unleashed flames from my palm, igniting the severed hand, tossed it to the ground to turn to ashes, and proceeded to try to fit the ring onto my fingers.
Ring finger, index finger, thumb…
I tried every finger. Unfortunately, the ring was too big, and my fingers were far too slender; even cloaked in armor, I couldn’t get it on, which made me a bit annoyed.
How the heck do you use this thing…?
Clunk.
Suddenly, from about thirty meters away, behind a collapsed small building, I heard the faint sound of stones shifting.
“Hehe~” I couldn’t help but laugh.
Found you…
With a resounding “boom,” I raised my left hand and spewed out scarlet flames, the fire roaring towards the source of the sound and igniting the ruins.
At the same time—
Bang!
As rubble cracked and flew, I used Moon Step, swept through the burning flames, and in an instant, landed in front of the small building. I steadied myself and leaped over the broken walls and smoking embers, landing “thump!” in the narrow alley behind the building.
Tendrils of black mist rose from my body, and my brow furrowed.
“Uh?”
Where is everyone…?
The Narrow Path was utterly deserted, just a few scattered drops of bl**d glaringly obvious against the ground.
Gone again…
Teleportation really is a convenient ability.
I raised my left hand in front of me, fingers curling as if to grasp something.
I feel like I’m still missing something with this new power…
I instinctively turned, glancing back at the roaring scarlet flames in the ruins behind me.
That long-distance attack earlier, I intended to condense the fire into a fireball to create a larger area of high-temperature explosion impact and maximize the damage. Yet, thinking is one thing; I still can’t wield this power freely, and as a result, I only managed to spray flames.
Something feels off…
Bzzz—
Suddenly, a damp thrum echoed from afar behind me, a familiar warmth rushing to my heart.
Rumble, rumble, rumble…
The ground began to shake.
Nearby buildings and debris erupted in flying rubble, and a mysterious force kicked up dust into the air, sending it soaring four to five meters high, enveloping the narrow alley in a gray haze.
“Cough, cough…”
A bit choking.
I wanted to get out of there, but it felt as though I was stuck in quicksand, completely unable to move, not even able to lift my hand to cover my mouth and nose.
“Uh… mm…”
My mouth wouldn’t open; I couldn’t even speak.
Just then, from the corner of my eye, a flash of gold caught my attention, and Cardinal Nero’s voice rang from above.
“I got careless; I was too eager to k*ll you… and ended up at a disadvantage, allowing you to snatch away “The Goddess’s Judgment”… how embarrassing…”
The stout figure floated down gracefully not far in front of me, his Pope Knight cape billowing in the wind amid the dust.
“I shouldn’t have underestimated a monster like you… I made a grave mistake,” Cardinal Nero croaked as he stepped closer to me, “But I won’t make that same mistake… ever again.”
Bzzz, bzzz, bzzz…
Margaret’s necklace hung around his neck, the bone pendant glowing radiantly in his hand.
Cardinal Nero slowly materialized through the swirling dust.
In the golden light, green strands fluttered from his broken right wrist, and the terrifying wound had healed significantly, no longer bleeding.
“Your power is very strong… stronger than most of the Abyss I’ve killed. But… that alone won’t defeat me… don’t underestimate me, Cardinal. I’ve killed monsters far more powerful than you, and after you d*e, I’ll continue to hunt down monsters like you… In the face of the pure power of the Deity, you half-baked beings have absolutely no way to resist… Now, give me the ring.”
He stepped right in front of me and slowly extended his left hand.
…Trying to snatch back the ring?
“Ha…”
I trembled slightly, exhaling with all my might to part my lips just a tiny bit.
“Ugh…”
My fingers shook violently.
The ring in my palm wobbled slightly and slid onto the nail of my thumb, barely brushing against my curved index finger.
Come on, move…
I pushed my thumb upwards with all my strength.
“You…”
The ghostly white ring flew high into the air, and in the moment Cardinal Nero stood frozen, I let out a satisfied “ah-woo,” and gulped it down.
Glug.
Swallowed it whole.
“…d*mn it!”
“What did you just do—!!!”
