Putrid, bitter, pungent... an indescribable stench filled their nostrils like a tidal wave. Fortunately, the smell wasn’t toxic, or they wouldn't have had time to react.
“Cough, cough! Spit! What kind of shameful things are hidden in here... what kind of madman did this!” Po Kong coughed violently as he struggled to open his eyes.
But when he finally saw the scene behind the door, a wave of intense cold rose from the soles of his feet to the top of his head, cutting his cursing short.
At the same time, Starlight suppressed his discomfort and slowly opened his eyes.
The sight before him caused a surge of intense nausea, as if an invisible hand were wrenching his stomach.
Compared to the dim tunnel, the world behind the door was completely different. It was a circular hall dozens of meters in diameter, with countless candles lining the walls, lighting the hall as bright as day, yet adding a layer of eerie horror to the atmosphere.
The walls were almost entirely covered in dark red stains that looked exceptionally sinister under the flickering candlelight.
On the pitch-black floor, a bright red magic formation was inscribed. The lines of the formation seemed to possess a life of their own, pulsing slowly. One could even see liquid flowing within them, emitting a hair-raising glow.
At the center of the formation was a massive red sphere composed of a mixture of countless severed limbs, blood, and internal organs.
The interior of this sphere was constantly churning, emitting a sickening stench—it was a living portrait of hell.
Within the sphere, there were not only the remains of beasts and birds but also many human torsos slowly squirming, as if telling a tale of endless pain and despair.
Judging by the size of the sphere, hundreds, perhaps thousands of lives had perished here, becoming sacrifices for this evil ritual.
The black-robed figures who had fled earlier were now scattered in the corners of the room, kneeling on the ground as if worshipping the terrifying sphere of blood in the center.
At the deepest part of the room, a figure wearing a black and red robe sat atop a bone altar.
He was muttering something, seemingly chanting an ancient incantation. His raspy voice echoed through the room, making the scene even more unsettling.
“This... what kind of ritual is this? I’m guessing it’s not exactly a spell that’s good for one’s health,” Po Kong said, his voice dry as he fought the urge to vomit.
As soon as Starlight’s eyes landed on the magic formation on the floor, he instantly grasped its secret and shouted urgently.
“Quick! We must move! We have to stop their casting! We cannot let this evil magic formation be completed!”
Although he didn't fully understand the intricate workings of the formation, he could tell from the basic runes that this monstrosity was a carefully prepared summoning circle. Given the materials used, its evil nature was self-evident.
The kidnapped merchants, the empty beast pens, and the abnormally behaving bandits were all fuel for this formation.
Every life that died here had been cruelly gathered to become an indispensable part of the ritual.
No matter what the black-robed figures intended to summon, it was definitely not something he wanted to see.
Just as the two were about to charge and disrupt the caster’s rhythm, the red sphere of blood in the center of the room churned violently. Grotesque figures burst forth from the viscous blood and slammed onto the ground.
Leading them were human puppets identical to the ones before, but this time, they were dripping with nauseating blood, their frames were even more hulking, and there were seven of them.
Appearing alongside them were over a dozen monstrous aberrations fused from various beasts. Most were the size of hounds, staring at the intruders with crimson eyes as they slowly formed a perimeter.
“This... this is a bit much, isn't it?” Seeing himself surrounded, cold sweat broke out on Po Kong’s forehead. He asked Starlight with a grave expression, “Starlight, how about you handle the small fry? I’ll focus on the big guys.”
“No problem, but we must act fast!” Starlight replied, already condensing his magic.
With a sharp shout, dozens of palm-sized fireballs manifested out of thin air, fluttering like fiery butterflies toward the oncoming monsters.
Unlike the human puppets, the smaller monsters didn't have high magic resistance. Seeing the heatwave approaching, they immediately scattered, using agile movements to dodge most of the fireballs. However, under Starlight’s carpet-bombing, a third of them were still reduced to charred husks.
Po Kong took advantage of the opening to break through the encirclement, coming face-to-face with the seven hulking human puppets.
However, after several waves of magical attacks, Starlight noticed something was wrong.
He was certain that each attack destroyed several monsters, yet their numbers did not seem to decrease.
It was then he noticed that every time he killed a monster, a new one would leap out from that disgusting blood sphere to fill the gap.
If this dragged on, even with his massive magic reserves, he might be ground down to exhaustion.
“Are they trying to exhaust our strength? No... there seems to be a limit to the number of monsters. New ones only spawn when the old ones are destroyed!” Starlight quickly made his judgment and shouted his theory to Po Kong.
Po Kong, who had been about to cleave a human puppet in two, heard Starlight’s shout and forced himself to pull back his strike.
His blade only severed one of the human puppet’s arms, and he was hit by the puppet’s heavy fist, staggering back several meters before steadying himself.
“Are you serious? If we can't kill them, we just have to incapacitate them?” Po Kong frowned, looking at his arm where he had been hit.
Since the battle began, he hadn't taken any real damage. Although that punch was minor, it had actually pierced his battle qi defense, indicating these human puppets were indeed stronger than the initial two.
“That should be it. Watch!” Starlight clapped his hands, and the light elements he had been gathering burst from his body. In an instant, countless light spikes erupted in all directions from him.
Through careful calculation, the energy in each light spike was not lethal, but enough to pierce the flesh of the smaller monsters.
The dozen or so monsters lunging at them were instantly turned into pincushions, collapsing to the ground and howling in agony.
While this level of magic failed to kill them outright, it clung to them like maggots on a corpse.
Wisps of black mist could be seen seeping from where the light spikes had pierced them; clearly, the light elements were performing a purification.
If those monsters felt pain, they were currently enduring a fate worse than death. The light spikes tore through their limbs and torsos, leaving them to roll and writhe helplessly on the ground, letting out shrill, pathetic cries.
Just as Starlight predicted, once all the smaller monsters were contained, the blood sphere stopped producing new ones.
“You’re amazing! You saw through their weakness just like that. As long as there’s a way, these big guys are just targets!”
Seeing Starlight discern the enemy’s flaw in such a short time, Po Kong couldn't help but shout in praise before lunging forward again.
With a strategy in place, dealing with the human puppets became much easier. Although these seven puppets were far stronger than the previous two, they only lasted a few moments longer against Po Kong’s sharp sword.
These brainless muscle monsters were nothing to fear once a bit of wit was applied. With Starlight’s long-range assistance, Po Kong quickly severed the limbs of each human puppet, leaving them to collapse and roar in despair.
From the moment they stepped into the room to the end of the battle, only a few minutes had passed—an incredible feat.
By Starlight’s estimation, the evil summoning circle was now two-thirds complete. Based on the timing, they still had hope of stopping it.
However, just as they were about to step forward to disrupt the black-robed man’s casting, the figure in the black and red robe at the back of the room suddenly let out a cold laugh.
“I truly did not expect you two youths to possess such strength, but the time those trash bought for me is enough! Come, my servants, it is time to offer your everything to the Lord of Darkness!”
As his words fell, the black-robed figures who had been casting around the room stood up in unison. Each drew a dagger made of the bones of some unknown creature from beneath their robes.
Puchi!
Without the slightest hesitation, and under the shocked gazes of Starlight and Po Kong, they plunged the bone daggers into their own chests.
Rate on N.U.
