The viscous light pouring from the "Azure Secret Key" surged like an ocean tide, ceaselessly washing over the formless mass of the "Ancient Devil Aggregate," dissolving the nauseating layers of twisted darkness and dispersing the dense negative emotions that permeated the surrounding area.
Helix's desperate, indiscriminate eruption at the critical moment seemed to have had some effect—it slowed the Aggregate, which harbored the will of the "Lord of Hell" Maldimous, preventing it from fully merging with his body. Yet the portions that had already begun fusing together merely swayed gently in the azure torrent, showing not the slightest sign of dissolving.
All of this seemed to reveal Maldimous's plan: patiently wait for Helix's burst of power to subside, then seize the interval before he could cast again to achieve complete fusion!
"It's no use, Helix. If you had realized earlier, you might have still broken free. But at this point, the negative emotions within you have already merged with me. You face only death—or becoming my 'Vessel of Descent.'" The Lord of Hell continued to speak in his trademark tone of mockery. This wasn't because he was long-winded, arrogant, or foolish; rather, in this kind of mental battleground, the denser the opponent's negative emotions became, the easier they were to control. So verbal provocation was a highly effective tool.
Moreover, at this moment, Lucian and Natasha were still separated from him by the ceaselessly surging ocean of viscous azure light, and there was no way to break through the barrier anytime soon. If this azure torrent were so easily dispelled, the quasi-divine Lord of Hell Maldimous would have already pierced through it and ended Helix's struggle long ago.
Without exchanging glances, without any communication through their mental link, Lucian and Natasha moved almost simultaneously—one uttered strange, arcane syllables and cast "Grand Disintegration" augmented by the "Hand of Uncertainty" at the viscous ocean, while the other gripped the "Sword of Truth" and transformed into a relentless streak of silver-gray sword light, slashing into the azure torrent before Lucian!
Their shared thought was this: before the fusion was complete, they had to prevent the Lord of Hell from seizing Helix's body. They couldn't allow him to descend into the Primary Material World at will, or there would be countless troubles in the future. Of course, if nothing could be done to reverse the situation, they would immediately withdraw—they couldn't afford to remain within the gaze of a hostile quasi-deity.
Crack, crack, crack—the azure light, which was no true seawater, burst and fizzled out layer by layer. Then, above it appeared a phantom crack, ghastly and savage, a rift that seemed capable of splitting everything apart!
This rift—something that should not exist in this world—branched into countless fissures that tore apart the "Viscous Ocean," already on the verge of collapse under the Grand Disintegration, shattering it into flying fragments.
Crack—the "Azure Ocean" first split into several larger "lakes," then the lakes shattered again, breaking into scattered puddles.
But the "Viscous Light" from the "Azure Secret Key" flowed forth without cease, rushing and surging endlessly. The moment Lucian and Natasha broke through the barrier before them, they saw yet another violent torrent sweeping in, once again blocking them outside.
Helix poured everything he had into forcing the Ancient Devil Aggregate off his body, but to no avail. A thought of mutual destruction inevitably rose in his heart: you want to seize my body? Then I'll make sure you can't descend into the Primary Material World for decades to come!
When that time came, the force of his self-detonation would transform the surrounding ocean for hundreds of kilometers into a dead wasteland, shatter the descending will of the Lord of Hell Maldimous, inflict devastating injuries upon it, and drag Lucian and Natasha down with him!
He had dominated the boundless oceans for nearly a millennium, wielding supreme authority over the sea clans. His pride ran impossibly deep—how could he ever tolerate losing his own consciousness and becoming the "Vessel of Descent" for the Lord of Hell Maldimous?
Sometimes, death was not the worst choice.
But the moment the thought of mutual destruction surfaced, Helix felt a sudden chill surge from the depths of his soul. His entire body stiffened involuntarily, and at that very instant, reflected in his crimson pupils was the mass of countless tiny black insects that composed the "Ancient Devil Aggregate"—it had inexplicably broken free from the wash of the azure torrent and was now writhing toward his body, crawling deeper into the depths of his soul!
This formless mass writhed into something resembling a human face, the corners of its mouth twisting into a mocking smile: "Choosing self-destruction is an act of 'despair,' and so I sensed the invitation from within you. Now there are no more barriers between us."
For the first time, terror appeared in Helix's cold eyes, and such emotions only allowed the dark mass to fuse further.
The Lord of Hell Maldimous's understanding of ancient devils and mastery of their corresponding abilities was truly unmatched—no wonder he had mocked Pope Vican!
Lucian's expression grew grim. He cast Grand Disintegration augmented by the Hand of Uncertainty in rapid succession, and with Natasha's Sword of Truth working in concert, they continuously tore apart the "Viscous Ocean" before them. Yet this azure torrent showed no signs of drying up, flowing on without end, allowing them to advance only a few thousand meters.
Though Lucian and Natasha were separated from Helix by only a stretch of azure ocean perhaps dozens of meters wide, it might as well have been an entire boundless sea—impossible to cross.
"Heh, your wariness and suspicion have only hurt yourself, Lucian. They were clearly trying to expel me, but now..." Maldimous let out a laugh, and the writhing darkness seemed to pulse momentarily toward Lucian and Natasha's direction. "You have no chance of reaching him before I do. If your Grand Disintegration were at Heatherway's level, if your Sword of Truth were one of the thirteen Legendary fourth-tier artifacts, then perhaps there might be a sliver of possibility. Unfortunately, neither is the case. Run. If you don't run now, I won't show mercy."
Despair—profound despair. Maldimous's words, combined with the fact that Helix had already been partially possessed by the ancient devil, made him foresee his own end. Why had he made one mistake after another at the critical moment? Was it truly greed that had blinded his reason?
The deep, sinister darkness pressed against Helix's face, leaving only endless darkness and despair within his crimson pupils.
"Leave this place." Seeing Helix being consumed step by step by Maldimous, Lucian urgently said through the mental link to Natasha. If they didn't leave now, they never would!
Though it was somewhat unbearable, a careful weighing of the pros and cons was necessary. The Lord of Hell, manifesting through "Helix's" body, could clearly command a fraction of the "Azure Gate's" power and seal off the area. Having lost his primary advantage of escape, Lucian would be utterly crushed when facing a quasi-deity—at that point, total annihilation was all but certain. Even without a true-body descent, Maldimous operating through Helix's form possessed at minimum the preliminary strength of a quasi-deity.
Natasha didn't hesitate. She withdrew her long sword, turned, and flew toward the exit of the cavern. By now, Helix and the "Ancient Devil Aggregate" had become almost entirely overlapping—in a matter of seconds, the "Ancient Devil State Transformation" and "Lord of Hell Will Occupation" would both be complete.
Lucian teleported after Natasha, beginning to contemplate the journey to the "Dark Night Plateau." To deal with the descended Lord of Hell, relying solely on the Council's four Legendary Apex powerhouses would be sufficient for defense but not for offense, and they also had to guard against ambushes from the likes of Pope Vican and other formidable opponents. Therefore, a visit to Rhein to request the aid of the "Silver Moon" Aitena was absolutely necessary.
It was at that moment that an ethereal, otherworldly "song" suddenly rang out. From within the "Viscous Ocean" centered on the "Azure Secret Key," tiny phantom seeds of verdant green began to sprout!
"Elvish? 'Growth of Life'?" Lucian stopped immediately. His spiritual field expanded in concert with the instant-cast ninth-circle spell, and at the edge of the cavern he spotted a breathtakingly beautiful woman in a skirt of leaves. At some point she had drifted into position there—her golden hair swept up high, a wondrous fusion of innocence and maturity that made her beauty almost impossible to describe. "Elven Empress Aglaya? She's here too?"
Behind Aglaya hovered the phantom of a towering ancient tree, real yet illusory. Its brown-green hues carried both the weight of ages and the vigor of life, and at the very center of the great tree, a translucent emerald heart formed of condensed light pulsed with powerful beats.
Her mouth had already closed, yet that hauntingly beautiful song seemed to linger in the air all around. And the verdant phantom seeds drifting through the "Azure Ocean" greedily absorbed the surrounding "moisture" like any ordinary plant—then took root, sprouted, unfurled branches, and grew leaves. In mere moments, each phantom seed had become a fully formed tree of emerald green. They intertwined together, collectively forming a shadow that bore a striking resemblance to the World Tree.
Under this frenzied "absorption," the "Azure Secret Key," already nearing its limits, could no longer sustain itself. The "Viscous Ocean" rapidly drained away, revealing Helix upon the altar and the dark shadow overlapped with him.
Maldimous seemed to have anticipated this change. The moment the song began, he accelerated his fusion with Helix. The merman's body grew increasingly translucent, while the dark figure showed signs of solidifying.
Without pausing to consider why Aglaya had arrived at precisely the right moment and place, Lucian made his decision instantly. He raised his left hand, his voice as cold and cutting as a bone-deep gale: "Forgiveness of the Goddess of Ice and Snow!"
There was no time to create a vacuum. Maldimous was on the verge of success!
So Lucian chose neither the "Positron Cannon" nor his own "Eternal Blazing Sun"—the latter of which still fell a tier below the Council Chairman's.
A crystalline pillar of light was released with deliberate grace, seemingly bound by countless microscopic currents and lasers invisible to the naked eye. Wherever it passed, a profound stillness spread from the inside out.
Natasha stood before Lucian with the Sword of Truth raised, not attacking Maldimous in coordination—the extreme cold made no distinction between friend and foe. It would be soon enough to strike once the freezing began to thaw. Moreover, she had to guard against the sudden appearance of Elven Empress Aglaya and could not afford any carelessness.
This was the composure a knight devoted to protection had to master.
The dark mass that had almost completely merged with Helix suddenly expelled bursts of phantom ichor—foul, rancid, and seemingly the olfactory manifestation of negative emotions!
These secretions were impossibly viscous, spreading across the altar to form a phantom membrane in an attempt to block the "Forgiveness of the Goddess of Ice and Snow."
At that moment, Aglaya held in her hands an exquisite bow of green, and with practiced ease she drew the string taut, aiming it directly at Maldimous.
The "Heart of Nature" behind her suddenly blazed with brilliant light, illuminating a realm of harmony and peace within the natural world.