Chapter 92: Void Church (3)
Crash crash crash!
The sudden shattering of glass and the abrupt intrusion of a figure made Vritra instinctively leap to his feet.
An intruder who had entered without any presence at all—and through the window instead of the door—naturally left him flustered.
This was the top floor of the tallest 49-story building in Nine City.
A place no wingless being could easily reach.
“Torture, huh. I’ve met all sorts of otherworldly scum so far, but you’re the first interesting one.”
Vritra spoke calmly, as if he had never been startled.
As the branch manager of Red Industry—the corporation driving Nine City—and one of the few high-grade devils in the city, he had no reason to fear some otherworldly being.
Of course, infiltrating without any trace was surprising, but the power he sensed from the opponent was nothing remarkable.
Still, he didn’t let his guard down and was ready to unleash his power at any moment.
Then the otherworldly being in the black suit spoke.
“I’ll ask directly. Do you know about the Void Church?”
The moment the words ‘Void Church’ left the intruder’s mouth, Vritra’s face hardened.
How could some otherworldly being who had just fallen into hell know about the Void Church?
But judging from the way he was asking, he didn’t seem to know much.
“How dare you utter the name of the Church. You fearless—”
“I see you do know.”
The moment Vritra started to speak, he sensed danger.
There had been no warning signs, yet he felt something gripping his arm.
Crack!
“……!”
Sure enough, an unknown force twisted his forearm 360 degrees, bones contorting.
At the same time, his sleeve twisted like wrung-out laundry.
The attack was so sudden that not even a scream escaped.
“I don’t have much time right now. So I’d appreciate it if you only answered the questions I ask.”
Faced with the otherworldly being’s threat, Vritra let out a scoff rather than fear.
This bastard clearly knew nothing about hell.
Otherwise, he couldn’t possibly be this reckless.
“Some otherworldly trash dares threaten and torture me in hell? I don’t know what your world was like, but this is hell—Nine City. You will never! Get what you want.”
Kuwaaaak!
Dark-crimson hellfire erupted from Vritra’s broken and twisted arm.
The useless arm vanished along with the unknown force.
Sss—
In an instant, a new arm regenerated.
Vritra lifted the regenerated arm as if showing it off and curled his lip into a sneer.
“No matter what you do, the result will be the same as now.”
“So you’re saying I can’t kill you no matter what I do?”
“You know it well. Yes—as long as the blessing of hellfire is with me, I will not die.”
At that, the corners of the otherworldly being’s mouth also rose.
In that instant, Vritra felt a chill from the opponent’s smile.
“Nice. Let’s test it.”
The next moment.
Kwadudududuk!
Vritra’s limbs twisted grotesquely.
The pain that flooded in was incomparable to before.
“Kraaak!”
Vritra screamed.
“Still okay?”
“……”
“Feel free to talk whenever you feel like it.”
Hwarrrrr!
Vritra once again spewed hellfire, burning away his ruined body and regenerating it.
But—
Crack! Zzzt—
The otherworldly being’s power showed no sign of weakening, continuously inflicting massive agony throughout his entire body.
“Being a devil must help. You’re holding up well.”
Vritra couldn’t understand why a monster like this had come here.
With this level of power, it wouldn’t have been strange if he had fallen straight into the heart of hell—the ‘Gehenna’ region where the great volcano ‘Flameheart Mountain’ existed.
Then, he suddenly recalled what the Cult Leader had said earlier.
‘So that’s why they’re pouring everything into this ritual.’
Normally, the Church never asked for any help when preparing or conducting rituals.
But this time, the Cult Leader had personally come to Vritra to speak.
Considering the power this otherworldly being possessed, there had to be something going on.
Of course, he had no leisure to think about that right now.
Zzt—
“Kuh… damn it…”
Even while regenerating his body, Vritra was steadily accumulating power.
This was Nine City.
As long as the hellfire power flowing from the mountain range never ceased, his strength would never be depleted.
Kuwaaaaak—
Soon after, hellfire swirled from both of Vritra’s arms and shot toward the otherworldly intruder like a bolt.
Blocking it was impossible.
Hellfire burned through anything.
Dodging was equally futile.
Hellfire would pursue until it completely incinerated its target, never extinguishing.
It was a shame to lose the offering like this, but the Cult Leader would surely understand.
“Farewell, you damned otherworldly scum.”
Just as the hellfire was about to engulf the intruder—
Shuuuoot—
A black portal opened, and in an instant, the flames were sucked inside.
“……?”
Vritra’s eyes widened in shock at the unexpected sight.
Immediately after, pure white light burst from the otherworldly being’s body and began to swirl violently.
“Th-that power is…”
The core energy of hellfire itself—Cyclic energy.
And it was pure white, completely free of any impurities.
“Since I’m here anyway, I might as well recharge my energy too. If you don’t want to talk about the Void Church, go ahead and shoot that hellfire again.”
At the intruder’s words, Vritra’s face contorted in rage.
***
Pukwakwakwakwak!
Blue mana exploded from Yoon Soo-ho’s body, tearing through the air and bursting apart the monsters’ forms.
The horde of monsters wandering the hellish wasteland was being wiped out in an instant by his Pulverize ability.
Choi Hee-yeon, too, unleashed blue lightning in every direction, dominating the battlefield.
“Wow…”
“Unbelievable speed.”
The Watchmen watched the scene in stunned silence.
Even though they had already witnessed the otherworldly beings’ combat prowess earlier, they couldn’t help but marvel again.
The awkwardness and discomfort they had felt right after leaving Nine City had long since vanished, replaced once more by goodwill.
Of course, recalling the moment the Void Church was mentioned still sent chills down their spines.
Fortunately, the topic hadn’t come up again since then.
Originally, their mission had been simple: teach the otherworldly beings the basics of being a Watchman, patrol only near the city, and return.
But now they had pushed all the way into a monster den with unstoppable momentum.
“Association President-nim.”
“I’m ready.”
The moment Yoon Soo-ho’s reply came, Choi Hee-yeon fired a bolt of lightning.
Zzzzzzt—
“Kiiiiik!”
An angel attempting to soar high into the sky was electrocuted, its four wings trembling violently.
Whoosh—
Yoon Soo-ho leaped upward by stepping on nearby rocks, swinging a hammer far larger than himself with full force.
Crack crack crack—Pukwak!
The angel’s head exploded along with a tear in space, brain matter and blood splattering everywhere.
“Waaaaah!”
The Watchmen watching from afar erupted in cheers.
Eliminating one of the highest-ranking mid-grade angels—the Archangel—was an incredible feat.
One of Nine City’s long-standing threats had been eradicated.
[Secondary Objective Achieved]
[Your reputation has improved (MAX)]
[The Watchmen now fully trust and follow you]
Yoon Soo-ho and Choi Hee-yeon checked the System Board at the same time.
By following the secondary objective to the end, they had earned the full trust of the Watchmen as a reward.
And that wasn’t all.
[Archangel Regael Defeated]
[Hidden Objective Achieved]
[Clear rewards will be increased]
Thanks to defeating the Archangel, a hidden objective had been completed, adding extra rewards.
They didn’t know what the rewards would be yet, but in a 1st-grade dungeon, they were worth looking forward to.
While Yoon Soo-ho collected the angel’s brain and heart, Choi Hee-yeon approached the Watchmen.
“Truly impressive. To take down an Archangel like that.”
Guard Captain Ulan shook his head in admiration.
“It was quite strong. Of course, the Association President was even stronger.”
Choi Hee-yeon thought that without Yoon Soo-ho, she never would have even considered hunting an Archangel.
“That Association President otherworlder really is on another level.”
While Ulan was still marveling at Yoon Soo-ho, Choi Hee-yeon spoke with a changed look in her eyes.
“Isn’t it about time you told us? About the Void Church.”
“……”
The moment the Void Church was mentioned again, Ulan and the other Watchmen flinched.
But unlike the first time, they no longer froze in rigid fear.
“The God we serve created hell, then gave birth to monsters and to us. And then He suddenly vanished.”
“A Creator God, then…”
Choi Hee-yeon was recording everything she needed to report to Psycho hoobae on her watch.
“There are many titles used to refer to Him. Creator of Hell, Lord of the Abyss, Ruler of the Void, Ma■…”
Zzt—
The moment Choi Hee-yeon heard the syllable “Ma,” a sharp ringing filled her ears, and for an instant, it felt as though they had gone numb.
Because of that, she couldn’t even catch the rest of the word.
Her ears felt wet. When she wiped them with her index finger, red blood stained it.
“Are you alright? It looks like aftereffects from the battle.”
Ulan looked worriedly at Choi Hee-yeon, whose face had turned pale.
But she immediately shook her head and said,
“I’m fine. Please continue.”
“Hm… Anyway, the Void Church is one sect of the Hell God Religion. It’s also a cult with enough power to manipulate Nine City from the shadows.”
“How did it become a cult?”
“I’ve heard they plan to offer sacrifices to summon a god into hell. It’s an act of blasphemy strictly forbidden by the main Church.”
“Summon a god…”
A sudden sense of unease rose in Choi Hee-yeon.
If the Void Church’s plan was real and they succeeded, no one could predict what would happen.
If a god truly descended into hell, clearing this dungeon might fail right then and there.
And that failure would likely lead to a Gate outburst.
“The Church’s eyes and ears are spread throughout all of Nine City. Once we return to the city, it would be wise to watch your words. If you get entangled with them, the rest of your life in hell will become very difficult.”
Ulan would never have spoken about the Void Church at all if they hadn’t come to the Archangel’s lair.
This was a dangerous area where even the Church’s fanatics dared not approach carelessly, so he had felt safe enough to speak freely.
But at Choi Hee-yeon’s next question, his expression darkened sharply.
“Do you know the Church’s location and how to infiltrate it?”
“You really intend to walk straight into the lion’s den.”
“You just need to tell us the location and then step back.”
“Fools are brave, they say…”
Ulan pressed his forehead and muttered.
Even though they were otherworldly beings, he thought it was a shame to lose such talented individuals to the Church.
While Choi Hee-yeon gathered information, Yoon Soo-ho returned after collecting the monster parts.
“Did you get information about the Church?”
“Yes. Now we just need to find the Church’s location and a way to infiltrate.”
Ulan stared at the returning Yoon Soo-ho for a long moment before speaking, as if he had made up his mind.
“I’ll tell you where the Church is.”
“Lead the way.”
Yoon Soo-ho gave a slight nod.
“But promise me one thing.”
“What is it?”
“Kill the Cult Leader.”
***
[Main Objective Updated]
[Main Objective: Eliminate the Void Church Cult Leader]
“Oh, looks like our sunbae and the Association President pulled something off.”
Jin-young muttered while looking at the System Board that appeared before him.
Beyond it, Vritra—gasping for breath—looked up at Jin-young with slightly unfocused pupils.
Slumped against the wall, he looked utterly pathetic.
But Jin-young gave him a thumbs-up.
“I’ll give you credit. Out of everyone I’ve tortured, you’re the most tenacious.”
Even while his mind teetered on the edge of breaking from pain, Vritra hadn’t breathed a single word about the Void Church.
Instead, Jin-young had only gotten a few useless pieces of information matching the devil’s name.
On the bright side, he had absorbed quite a large amount of hellfire.
Hwarrrrr—
Hellfire poured endlessly into the Brazier of Life that once contained Lyle’s soul, steadily intensifying the heat.
Of course, Lyle’s soul had already been completely devoured by the tentacle, so revival was impossible.
It was now nothing more than a machine that produced Cyclic energy.
The tentacle began extracting Cyclic energy from the hellfire contained in the brazier.
Meanwhile, Jin-young approached the exhausted Vritra.
His mind wasn’t fully intact, so he couldn’t counterattack, but his body looked perfectly fine.
As long as Nine City itself didn’t cease to exist, the devil’s body would keep regenerating.
One option was to simply leave him here and walk away, but that would leave a bad aftertaste.
He was curious what would happen if he erased him with an energy explosion, but that would be far too conspicuous.
“In the end, putting him in sub-space seems best. I can experiment whether he can produce infinite hellfire while I’m at it.”
Tsutsuts—
A portal opened, and black tentacles shot out.
At that moment, Vritra—slumped and drained—caught a familiar scent from the unfamiliar presence.
An unfathomable abyss. An endless void.
And mana so profoundly evil it was almost tangible.
This was unmistakably the same faint scent he had felt during the Church’s rituals.
But compared to then, this was incomparably thicker and more viscous—enough to make his entire body and mind tremble.
“Th-this is…”
Life flashed back into Vritra’s dead eyes.
And then he threw himself flat on the floor.
“Ahh… O God. Have You finally descended?”