My Skills Can Evolve Infinitely in a Game-Like World

Chapter 39: Level 23 Dark Apostle

Before long, the door of the dungeon shut once more.

Yet this time, accompanying the three cultists were not nine women, but two pairs of a man and a woman.

All four people looked frightened.

Horror flashed across their faces, seemingly playing to the cultists’ morbid personalities.

"Haha! God’s sheep, you don’t have to fret!"

"Under the guidance of Priest Mayin, you’ll have the chance to face the power of Light once again!" one of them laughed.

The journey from the dungeon to their destination should have been short, only crossing a few corridors.

But in the senses of the captives, this short time seemed to have turned into hours.

Thankfully, things soon returned to normal.

Not long after, the cultists forced the captives to stop in front of a stone gate, whose surface was covered in the same carvings Aurelius had seen on the gate above.

The trio didn’t rush to enter. Instead, they first knocked on the door and lowered their heads, waiting for a response.

No one answered. Even so, none of the cultists dared to knock again.

They maintained their postures, only growing even more respectful as time passed.

Several minutes later, something finally changed. A soft voice echoed from inside,

"Enter!"

It was only then that the cultists’ tense postures relaxed.

After exchanging a quick glance, one of them stepped forward and placed his hand on the door’s handles.

Then, by pulling back on them, he forced it open.

The dark hall was soon revealed behind its stone surface.

However, Aurelius had little time to observe the interior.

The cultist behind him suddenly shoved his back and forcefully pushed him into the room before closing the door behind him.

It was only then that Aurelius had the chance to observe his surroundings.

Once his gaze swept across the room, everything within it became clear.

The first thing that caught his attention was the man standing at the room’s very center.

Wearing a long white silk robe, he held a small golden book in one hand and a scepter in the other.

Combined with his serene face and dignified demeanor, he looked like a faithful priest carrying the orders of their Lord.

But that comparison was shattered as soon as it surfaced in Aurelius’ mind.

Countless crimson symbols were reflected in his blue eyes, as they danced wildly beneath the Priest.

They writhed eerily along the ground as though they were alive, resembling bloodthirsty snakes chasing their prey.

The outline of these serpents blended together, creating a giant circle across the tiles.

Half of it glowed brightly, as though it were the morning sun, and the other half was dark, like the Blood Sun City during the night.

A stone statue could be seen every once in a while along the circle’s perimeter.

They all depicted humans. Yet their forms were terrifying.

With their knees pressing against the ground, the statues faced the ceiling with both their mouths and eyes wide open.

The terror on their faces was painted expertly, showcasing their horror in its entirety.

Just looking at this scene was enough to make an ordinary person know there was something wrong.

The interface hovering above his head only served to confirm this.

[Priest Mayin. Level 23 Dark Apostle (Rank 2)]

In Nova Roma, each Rank contained twenty Levels. To advance any further, an Awakener had to undergo a ritual and upgrade their overall Rank.

This meant that the Priest before them was not only a Rank 2 Awakener, but had been one for quite some time.

Selene had been correct in her past analysis. The leader of Sunless Sect’s forces in Blood Sun City was indeed terrifying!

"You came," Priest Mayin suddenly turned toward the cultists and spoke.

His gaze only briefly scanned across the captives before returning to the book in his hands.

"Place the people right there. Then, you can go."

Without taking his eyes off the book, the Priest pointed to one of the circle’s corners and calmly ordered.

The three cultists immediately did as told. Pushing the four people onto that spot, they forced them to kneel down just like the statues around them.

Then, without any hesitation, they bowed respectfully and hurriedly left.

Throughout the entire exchange, the Priest did not even look at them, much less speak any further.

It was only when the heavy thud of the door being closed echoed that the Priest closed his book.

Clank!

The sound of the pages slamming together rang out before he placed the small bible in his pocket.

"The time of the ceremony is growing closer... I can feel that the time for the Lord’s Descent is near..."

"Just a few more days... All it will take is a few more days..." he muttered under his breath.

He paid no attention to Aurelius and Selene, much less to the other captives. Taking a few steps to the left, he arrived at the center of the circle and retrieved two objects from his pockets.

A blade and a miniature statue.

The statue was palm-sized, built from the same material as the other statues in the room.

It depicted a breathtaking woman with a beautiful face, with long hair falling down her shoulders that resembled hissing snakes.

Although the two were far apart, Aurelius felt his soul being drawn to it once he tried to observe it.

The woman’s eyes seemed to have transformed into two giant whirlpools, sucking his consciousness into their depths.

Fortunately, he snapped out of it before it was too late.

Not out of his own volition, but because of Priest Mayin’s next actions.

Shrrrk!

Flesh was torn apart as the sharp blade landed on the palm holding the statue.

Blood splattered across the statue.

Drops of crimson liquid and minced flesh fell onto its surface and were promptly sucked in.

The woman’s hair began to move, as though performing a strange dance.

A high-pitched, hissing sound soon echoed. The writhing of the snakes along the floor grew even more intense.

They all opened their eyes in unison and stared at the captives before a gray light shot out of their pupils.

"Wha—what is this?"

"No! No!"

For the first time since they had entered the room, Aurelius and Selene’s companions finally spoke.

Yet their words were short-lived.

Only a moment later, their eyeballs melted apart. Then their skin on their feet and legs began to turn into stone, quickly spreading to the rest of their bodies.