Chapter 72: Bathing in Fire (Part Four)
…Angels!
The moment I spotted that bloodied hand, this thought burst into my mind. Ailna… this woman can also transform into an angel! Back in the Western Continent, she hadn’t used it once, and suddenly pulling it out now caught me completely off guard. It meant she was about to become much more dangerous and far more troublesome.
My heart sank, and I wanted to dodge, but I suddenly noticed that my right hand had been firmly grasped by the woman. I tried to pull away, but to no avail. I could see that bloodied hand looming over me, ready to smash down. The scorching wind was scattered, and at that critical moment, I gritted my teeth and rolled to the side—
Rip!
That putrid arm slapped against my right shoulder. The immense bloodied hand squeezed me into its palm, sharp claws shredding my robe and drawing bl**d from my side and chest. A jolt of pain shot through me, and I gasped, breath constricted in my chest. My right arm shot out from between the fingers of that bl**d hand, fist clenched, with an expression of sheer determination wrapped in thick black mist, ready to smash down on the wrist of that bl**d hand!
Buzz—
Suddenly, my head started to spin, an overwhelming wave of nausea and dizziness crashed over me.
What…
My vision blurred, the scene before me suddenly felt unreal. My entire body burned like I was on fire, a constant buzzing ringing in my ears. I raised my hand, but it felt so heavy, almost as if it had suddenly turned to jelly, and it dropped limply by my side.
What’s going on…
It felt like my consciousness was slipping away from my body… I… couldn’t move anymore…
What’s happening…
What is happening!!
In a daze, I saw that woman adjusting her broken neck with her hand, her face appearing as a myriad of overlapping images in my vision. Something was flowing steadily from a dull ache in my wound. I looked down to see large amounts of scarlet liquid oozing from the bl**d hand gripping me, like a living entity, seeping into my body and wound, absorbing everything.
What is this…
…bl**d?
My body was absorbing the bl**d released by Ailna…
What’s going on…
Ah…
So hot…
So hot, so hot, SO HOT!
“Ughhhhh!”
I yelled with all my might, panic flooding through me, my body thrashing in a desperate attempt to escape, but it was utterly useless.
I’m out of strength…
My brain, slowly being consumed by that burning sensation, could no longer control my movements. I could only stare wide-eyed at that woman’s increasingly indistinct face. My vision was now a sea of crimson.
“What have you… done to me…”
d*ath smoke dissipated in my heated breath, a wave of intense drowsiness washed over me, and I struggled to even speak clearly.
“…The essence of the deity.”
Faintly, Ailna’s voice drifted into my ears, echoing like whispers from a distant valley, like a dreamtalk.
“Isn’t it incredible… something like this? You know, it’s actually not as physical as you imagine. It transcends human understanding and exists in some purely spiritual form. Even if it separates from its flesh, it doesn’t d*e or disappear; it’s immortal… a true god.”
“Ugh…”
Rumble rumble—
The sound of flowing bl**d swelled around me. The scarlet in my vision became blinding. The foul, thick liquid rapidly spread, wrapping around my waist, my legs, and ankles, beginning to drown me toward my chest.
I could barely breathe…
“It was originally a pure existence, a symbol of order in the world, but it was tainted by humanity’s greed, turning murky, developing selfishness and desire, even learning to use lies to achieve its goals.”
I can’t sleep…
d*mn it…
I can’t sleep here…
“Ugh… mmm…”
I tried desperately to activate the Frost Order, releasing all the Chaotic Power I could muster. However, wrapped in this boiling bl**d, the increasingly intense burning pain and drowsiness made it impossible to focus. I felt hollowed out from within; my head was starting to nod off, even my eyelids were getting heavy…
The woman’s bizarre words became muddled in my ears.
“It possesses… the ability to bestow strength upon all living beings… even… the ability to create life… They create for themselves… the most powerful flesh, capable of containing and releasing the terrifying energy contained in the essence… such flesh… is not easy to form… so the Goddess needed me to revive her previous body… but it failed…”
“She deceived me… I never imagined she would deceive me, but she definitely did… Deities do not lie, unless they’ve lost their sanity… Since she has lost her mind, we no longer need such a deity… So when I returned, I deceived her once more.”
“Glug… glug…”
Thick bl**d climbed up my neck from my chest, the stench flooding my mouth.
I slowly closed my eyes, no longer able to break free.
So… tired…
“I lied to her saying the divine body was destroyed by the Church, but that I brought back a piece… enough for her to recreate a new divine body— that piece is you… Silvya…”
“You are the new divine body… and the essence of the goddess… is actually within your body…”
The woman’s voice gradually faded away.
In the next moment, I slipped into chaos.
…………
The night was eerily still.
In the small town under the yellow sand, flames blazed alongside the road, a mud house crumbled with a thunderous crash. Covered in bl**d and cloaked, the woman named Ailna withdrew her bloodied hand. That dried-up, terrifying arm shriveled back to her back, writhing beneath the tattered cloak before settling down.
“Devoured from the ancient deity’s spine, refined with Sin Fire, extracting the bl**d of thousands to unlock the seal of Dragon Town… the power of that orb. Next, it devoured the true goddess’s corporeal form, merging with its flesh and bl**d, and ultimately survived… What do you think your body is missing to become a deity?”
Before the woman floated a giant sphere made of dark brown bl**d, suspended in mid-air. The sphere resembled an undelivered red egg, encasing the unconscious body of a young girl. The woman stared at that egg, murmuring, “Hmm, just missing one essence to fuse.”
She pulled her hood back over her head, obscuring her charred and withered face, along with her blinded eye: “But it can’t be the essence of the Goddess of Sin; she’s gone mad…”
“So I took your body, well… to be precise, I took the remains of your flesh and bl**d, and went to the Sand Valley, right before the semi-awake essence, telling it this: This is the remains of the divine body I brought from the Western Continent… Heh. Our dear goddess isn’t very bright; even though she’s learned to lie, her ability to discern falsehoods is still as naive as a three-year-old.”
“She merged herself with you; she believes you are her body because you devoured the divine body. She only recognizes that kind of… connection which I can’t even describe. But little did she know, there’s more than just the Power of Sin in your body… Especially since your consciousness didn’t actually vanish in that moment. I noticed this, so I decided to take one more gamble…”
As she spoke, she let out a soft sigh: “My body is failing me. Having been implanted with the Angel’s Egg, I will inevitably reach a moment in the future, on the true day of the goddess’s resurrection, when my consciousness will completely vanish, becoming her minion… Us at the Gate of Truth likely can’t escape this fate, but perhaps no one will ever witness that day…”
“I hope so.”
