Chapter 273 Hell Gate Opened
Millions of people, driven by faith and loyalty, became victims of their own devotion. The once-thriving island country fell into chaos as the majority, now aware of the fatal consequence, struggled to break free from the ritual's grip. The air echoed with desperate pleas and cries as the citizens, afraid to meet their untimely end, grappled with the cruel reality of their blind allegiance.
In the end, only a minority managed to escape the clutches of the ritual, their survival a testament to the few who recognized the impending danger in time. The royal square, once filled with the hum of prayers, now stood as a haunting testament to the cost of blind faith and the devastating consequences of loyalty gone awry.
The intense, concentrated red demonic mana was visible even to those without magical training, a vivid manifestation of the dark forces unleashed.
In the square, those who survived the cataclysmic deception of the king desperately fled, attempting to preserve their lives. Unfortunately, some less fortunate individuals succumbed to the chaos, becoming victims of their panicked fellow citizens as the crowd trampled over each other in their frantic escape from the accursed square.
Homer, a witness to the horrifying spectacle orchestrated by his king, was struck dumb with shock. His mental defenses and twisted pride kicked in simultaneously. He knelt to the ground, facing his deceitful king, offering prayers and praises for this abominable ritual and the king's heinous actions.
"HAHAHAHAHA!!! Long live the king! LOOOONG!!! LIVE! THE KING!!! AAAAHHHHAHAHAHA!!!" Homer's maniacal laughter reverberated at the precipice of insanity as the godly image of his king shattered, rendering all his sacrifices futile. He unwittingly served this abomination, propagating itself as a wise ruler.
Tears streamed down his eyes as regret, guilt, self-loathing, and fear engulfed him. His body couldn't cease its praises, desperately seeking the favor of the abomination, as if attempting to fill the void in his heart and embody the ideal citizen of the kingdom.
At that moment, as if in response to Homer's twisted prayers, a strand of red mana pierced his body, mutating him into a new form of abomination. Homer's body contorted into unbelievable angles, defying human anatomy.
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The sound of spine and ribcage cracking echoed under the unholy force. It was evident that if a human body were to turn upside down while the legs remained on the ground to such a degree, the spine would snap, resulting in death. Despite the grotesque and painful transformation, Homer cried out in agony.
Tears ran down his distorted cheeks as his skin gradually turned red and became more rough and thick, resembling rhino hide but many times more durable. His body grew larger, and his uniform, adorned with medals and signs of rank built upon innocent lives, burned, and the searing heat melded them into his skin and muscles, becoming a permanent part of his form.
"It hurts… it hurts… long live…." Homer uttered in pain as his body twisted under the demonic power rampaging through him.
Homer's body had already contorted into a bizarre angle, as if perpetually kneeling in praise for his king. It seemed impossible for him to stand and walk again, but in a macabre twist of hellish humor, the demonic energy drew a nearby tank toward Homer. The demonic energy dismantled the tank and combined its treads with Homer's legs.
The tank treads, instead of being made of steel, were crafted from Homer's leg skin and bone, deeply corrupted by demonic influences. Cannons and an array of weapons dropped by guards who had fled became integrated into Homer's form, with bone, sinew, and nerve cords from his back manipulating and controlling these weapons.
Now resembling a human tank forged from the grotesque and twisted humor of hell, Homer's oversized head hovered slightly above the ground. Maintaining a deep respect, as if perpetually in a kneeling posture toward the king, but instead of immobilization due to showing his respect, the tank thread allows him to possess the ability to move and eliminate his enemies on behalf of the king, all while incessantly praising him.
In this formidable form, Homer experiences both reward and punishment—a manifestation of his blind loyalty and futile pride in a faith full of deceit, deliberately designed for individuals like Homer to serve and find happiness despite being exploited and deprived of human dignity.
Homer is not the only one subjected to the powerful demonic forces twisting bodies; numerous loyal soldiers, blinded by faith and unwavering loyalty, transform into various unholy weapons. The cries of agony, as their grotesque forms contort and transform akin to Homer, reverberate within the square.
All of them adopt demonic postures, seemingly mocking their loyalty. However, Homer attains the most potent form, having absorbed an entire strand of demonic mana into his body, making him the largest at 10 meters in height.
As for Lucian, he absorbs all the demonic power into his body, growing progressively more demonic. Horns protrude from his head like a king's crown, while eight pairs of demonic tentacles emerge from his back like wings—although incapable of flight, they wriggle akin to octopus tentacles. Standing at a towering twenty meters, his muscular body infused with demonic power rises tall amidst the ruins of the royal palace.
In the square, a rift between hell and the mortal world opens. The gate, constructed from countless human skulls and bones, erects from the ground. Hellish mana pours into the world alongside an army of demons marching forth from the gate.
As the hellish mana surged forth from the open gate, a malevolent force radiated outward, corrupting the very fabric of the surrounding environment. The once serene atmosphere of the capital city now twisted into a nightmarish realm.
Sinister shadows stretched and contorted, manifesting grotesque shapes that danced upon the walls. The air itself seemed to recoil, charged with an otherworldly energy that turned the once clear sky into a canvas of swirling, ominous hues.
Life forms in the vicinity bore the brunt of the corruption. Birds, once soaring freely in the sky, now faltered in their flight. Feathers turned ashen, and haunting cries echoed as their once vibrant plumage dulled into a morbid gray.
Insects, the tiny architects of nature's harmony, fell prey to the corrupting influence. Wings that once fluttered with delicate grace now became twisted appendages, and the once gentle hum of wings transformed into an eerie cacophony.
Trees, pillars of strength and life, now stood as skeletal remnants of their former selves. Leaves withered and crumbled, and the bark darkened as if stained by the very essence of malevolence. The ground itself, once teeming with the vibrancy of life, succumbed to the corruption, giving birth to grotesque formations that writhed and pulsated with unholy energy.
Citizens who were unable to escape the encroaching darkness witnessed their surroundings metamorphosing into a nightmarish landscape. Fear gripped their hearts as the world they knew twisted into an unrecognizable nightmare. The once pristine city, now turns into a hellish apocalypse in a mere hour.
Lucian, towering amidst the chaos, reveled in the transformation, the corrupted mana enhancing his senses, feeling the massive power rushing from the hell gate filling the air of the mortal world. The excitement filled his heart as he felt the demonic power surged within him. He tried to summon a hellfire and the red demonic flame was conjured within his palm.
"HAHAHAHA!! My power! My power is back! I can finally wield this strength!" Lucian laughed triumphantly.
He transformed himself into a demon, turning the entire city into a nightmarish hellscape. All of this was orchestrated to circumvent Daniel's seal that bound him. Now, drawing power directly from the hellish mana pool that leaked into the mortal world, the seal posed no hindrance, as it primarily affected his mana vein.
From a rooftop not far from the royal square, Cyrus observed the transformation with a satisfied smirk. Daniel's interference had prompted Cyrus to alter his plans. Instead of merely opening a small hell gate to infuse the world with Hell mana and replenish its energies, Cyrus decided on a grander scheme – opening a hell invasion gate, introducing a substantial amount of hell mana to rejuvenate the world's mana in one fell swoop.
However, Cyrus knew this was not the end of his strategy. He needed to retreat before Daniel arrived or Mammon emerged from the other side of the gate and discovered him. Cyrus had surreptitiously left the ship during its journey, heading to Tessia Kingdom leaving Mammon behind, acting as bait for Daniel, while Cyrus assisted Lucian in opening the hell gate. The intricate web of plans and deceptions was set in motion, but Cyrus was aware that time was of the essence.
Cyrus inhaled the air saturated with hellish mana, sensing the surge of demonic power coursing through him. He harnessed this energy to manipulate his own form, and a pair of crimson demonic wings tore through his suit, swiftly transforming into wings ready to carry him into the sky.
Once his wings had fully taken shape, Cyrus ascended into the reddish sky tainted by the demonic mana from hell.
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