Sacrificial Purification

Lombaton's demeanor was assertive, yet not without cause. A mission as perilous as a suicide squad demanded not only formidable strength but also the unyielding courage to face certain death! Among those present, only the Pontiff's personal guard, the beastmen factions, and the adherents of Du Chen's Divine Cult possessed the requisite power for such a suicidal undertaking.

From these three formidable groups, if one were to be singled out for a near-certain death mission, whom else could Lombaton choose but Du Chen? Surely not His Holiness the Pontiff, his superior, nor Hawkins, his own brother. The answer could only be Du Chen!

Du Chen's expression became as still as water. 'Family Head Lombaton,' he stated, 'you cast doubt upon the divine might of my God and profane His glory! However, as my God and Orbach, the Divine, were once lifelong companions, I shall, on my God's behalf, grant you absolution!'

Lombaton's face instantly contorted. 'Supreme Father God'—that very title bespoke Orbach's exalted standing within the hearts of the beastmen. Besides him, who else possessed the authority to bestow 'absolution' upon the beastmen!?

Hawkins knew his Eldest Brother all too well. Firmly gripping Lombaton's arm, he urgently declared, 'His Holiness the Pontiff, issue your command! The Crimson Mausoleum Guards and I shall brave any peril, even a myriad deaths! Eldest Brother, I have already volunteered for this suicide squad mission. Would you have me push this deadly task onto others, and earn myself the ignominy of cowardice?'

Lombaton, too, understood his brother implicitly. The situation was irreversible, he knew, but his gaze remained chillingly fixed on Du Chen. 'Very well! Hawkins, you fight for the Supreme Father God, and regardless of victory or defeat, you shall remain worthy of being called a descendant of the Supreme Father God! But Francis,' he continued, 'I still question the abilities of your Du Chen, the Divine. Hmph, if you insist on this wager, I shall oblige!'

Du Chen stroked his nose thoughtfully. Didn't he, after all, hold the title of a 'God of Gamblers'? It seemed he had never once lost a wager to another soul! 'Then it's settled,' he affirmed. 'Should my God crush the one hundred thousand Undead, then you shall assist me in a matter that does not contradict the tenets of the Supreme Father God!'

Hawkins and Du Chen sealed the pact with a firm palm-strike. 'And if you fall before the one hundred thousand Undead, hmph, then your Durkes City shall undertake a task for me that does not contravene the doctrines of Du Chen's Divine Cult!'

'His Holiness the Pontiff shall bear witness!'

Their eyes met—one sinister, the other unfathomable.

The Pontiff observed them calmly. 'Since that is the case, Francis, you shall proceed with Du Chen, the Divine, to the Earth Burial Sacred Tomb to confront the Undead. The beastmen and the main army shall accompany me to the Auerbach Grand Canyon to strike down Bonis! Whichever side achieves victory first shall immediately advance into the Labyrinth of Life, coordinating with the masters I have already positioned there to ensnare the Fiendkind in a pincer attack!'

'As you command!'

The provisional command center immediately split into two. The main force, under the Pontiff's leadership, ordered the McAllen Imperial Guards to abandon their encirclement of the Undead. They advanced cautiously, step by step, gradually closing in on the Auerbach Grand Canyon!

Meanwhile, Du Chen, accompanied by the two Grand Matriarchs and Deboning, journeyed north. They arrived at the Earth Burial Sacred Tomb, directly confronting the one hundred thousand Undead surging forth.

Along the way, Du Chen summoned Dus, instructing him to assume his own likeness. Du Chen himself, however, sat enthroned upon a Lotus Pedestal. Behind him, the Water Veil Shield stood erect, radiating boundless light, while the Fire Lotus Lantern orbited before him, its myriad sparks twinkling with dazzling brilliance.

This time, Du Chen would play the role of Du Chen, the Divine, while Dus would impersonate Francis!

'Brook, you and the two young ladies enter my Precious Lotus Scripture! Andy, get out here! The time below belongs to us!'

The chaotic Undead, inherently devoid of order, had now finally found an outlet. They shrieked and swarmed out immediately. The troop transport passage carved by Bonis was indeed vast enough, for within the short span of time it took the command center to make its decision, virtually all one hundred thousand Undead had surged onto the surface!

The McAllen Imperial Guards had suffered heavy casualties during Bonis's earth-shattering strike, but reinforcements swiftly arrived, surrounding and engaging the Undead. Yet, the situation remained grim…

Both sides were locked in a desperate melee. The immensely powerful sacred artifacts of war could no longer be freely deployed; instead, it was a battle to the death with blades and swords, relying on the armor protecting their torsos. A McAllen officer bellowed, swinging his twin axes like a whirlwind, their cold blades glinting. In the blink of an eye, a circle around him cleared, and over a dozen Undead toppled to the ground!

'Hahaha! These wretches are too weak! Brothers, fight for the Supreme Father God!' The officer roared, raising his axes!

Suddenly, those dozen fallen Undead scrambled to their feet with lightning speed. Before the officer could react, 'Wooo! Wooo! Wooo…' a dozen gaping, blood-soaked mouths tore him apart, reducing him to a skeleton dripping with flesh and gore!

Then, the officer's skeleton, too, rose. His great axe remained in its skeletal grip, but his eye sockets held a vacant stare—a crucial step in the Undead creation process involved dousing with a black-green liquid, a step he had not undergone. Thus, he was merely a frenzied Undead, not one of Philip's meticulously crafted Undead Legion soldiers!

Yet, this was sufficient. The officer's reanimated skeleton gazed around blankly, finding the grim and terrifying Undead around him strangely familiar, while the tall, robust beastmen seemed so… succulent!

He joined the ranks of those devouring the beastman soldiers!

Similar scenes unfolded across every corner of the battlefield. Once a large-scale passage delivered a sufficient number of Undead, these powers, which ought not to exist in the mortal realm, fully unleashed their terrifying might!

The McAllen soldiers dwindled, while the Undead grew in number with every clash!

But just then, orders arrived from command—the McAllen Imperial Guards were to leave one division to seal off the tomb, preventing the Undead from escaping and harming civilians. All remaining forces were to reinforce the Auerbach Grand Canyon!

'Damn it, what kind of order is this? Can a single division hold back so many Undead? Can we even safely reinforce the Grand Canyon with these Undead at our backs!?'

'Enough talk! Didn't you hear the command? The Supreme Father God's tomb in the Grand Canyon must be under attack! Even if we die, we shall die by the Supreme Father God's side!'

'Aye, the Supreme Father God… Dammit, we'll fight to the death! Forget these Undead at our backs; we go to protect the Supreme Father God!'

The McAllen soldiers began to withdraw. Just then, a golden lotus holy light soared toward them. The brilliant Lotus Pedestal emanated dazzling golden radiance, rivaling the scorching sun, while from behind the figure on the pedestal, a gentle blue light diffused. Wherever its glow touched, it was like a mother's tender hand caressing a wound, soothing a child's suffering…

'It's… it's the one who tamed the ferocious beast last time!'

'Could it be, could it be the Supreme Father God manifesting once more!?'

Some McAllen soldiers recognized him. Just then, a 'whooshing' tremor shook the sky as a ferocious beast descended from above. Its twelve Umbra-gold dragon wings flapped, stirring up gales; its roaring tiger head bore savage fangs; and its powerfully built torso was reminiscent of a Silver-maned Behemoth. The clang of metal resonated ceaselessly from its Deep Abyss Armor and thorny tail segments, clashing like steel…

'It's that ferocious beast! The Supreme Father God enslaved it last time! Hahaha, the Supreme Father God has manifested!'

Immediately, some beastmen prostrated themselves!

Du Chen sat regally upon the Lotus Pedestal, still shrouded in the golden mist that had veiled him during his last appearance in the Auerbach Grand Canyon. His divine voice resonated across the land! 'I am not Orbach, my elder brother. I am Du Chen, Orbach's brother-in-arms!'

'Du Chen?' The beastmen were startled.

Du Chen continued with his solemn Divine Edicts, 'Do not worship me. The Fiendkind have reappeared in the mortal realm, and my elder brother's mausoleum is in peril. Hasten to guard my elder brother's remains! These wicked Undead, which ought not to exist in this world, shall be purified by me alone!'

'You… you alone challenge one hundred thousand Undead?'

The beastmen were incredulous!

However, with the Military Edict before them and the Undead at their backs, the elite McAllen Imperial Guards dared not falter!

The Undead still yearned to pursue these delectable 'delicacies.' But from atop his Lotus Pedestal, Du Chen lightly tossed forth the Water Veil Shield and the Fire Lotus Lantern. One covered the earth, one the sky. The rippling aquatic light of the Water Veil Shield sliced across the ground, severing the Undead's path of pursuit. The Fire Lotus Lantern, dazzlingly bright in the heavens, became like a scorching sun, purifying the Undead!

'Hiss! Hiss!'

The dual-colored light of water and fire caused the Undead to begin melting. They acutely sensed that this radiance was a thousandfold more sacred than the Holy Light that had previously sown chaos!

Naturally, this was unleashed personally by Du Chen!

The Undead were dumbfounded, their only thought was where to flee for their lives!

But then, Du Chen dismantled the Fire Lotus Lantern. Its wick, like an unbroken crimson ribbon, circled around the Sacred Tomb, astonishingly encircling all the Undead. Meanwhile, the Water Veil Shield expanded ten millionfold, completely blocking the troop transport passage carved by Bonis from beneath!

The Undead had no retreat, left only to await… purification!

Du Chen, high above, commanded, 'My Divine Pet, hasten these wretched souls, who ought not to have come to the mortal realm, back to their rightful forms!'

Andy nodded slightly, his dragon wings beating as he plunged into the swirling horde of Undead!

At this point, there was no longer any suspense on this side of the battlefield!

Du Chen let out a sigh of relief. He picked up his son and daughter from within the Precious Lotus Scripture, settling in to watch the spectacle. 'Damn it, purifying one hundred thousand Undead at once is still quite a strenuous task!' He then communicated to Andy through their Battle Soul link, 'Andy, mind your image. You absolutely must make those who see you believe that you possess the strength of the Composite Aberrant Beast from that day, and not merely be a fellow who only devoured half a Golden Behemoth and is merely at Ninth-rank peak strength!'

'I, Chris Andy, darling of the Moon Goddess, am a noble Snow Wolf with dreams! Master, my dreams require you to bestow upon them wings to soar!'

'Mmm, when we return, I'll have Gode fetch you Southern Sea shark fin to go with your wine!'

'Roar! For my dreams, Frigid Dragon Hurricane Array! Deep Abyss Erosion Technique! Goddess of Earth’s Lament… Hehe, Master, how do you like these two and a half techniques I've learned now?'

Du Chen didn't answer Andy. With one hand stroking his nose and the other his backside, he chuckled heartily!

To deliver one hundred thousand Undead—what an immense act of benevolence!

This was a truly significant act of kindness. Everyone present had witnessed the Undead's depredations. If they were allowed to disperse among the common folk, what an unimaginable catastrophe that would be! This disaster wouldn't be limited to humans; dwarves, beastmen, demi-humans, mountain gnomes, elves… none would escape it!

The Fourteenth Lotus, which had not blossomed for a long time, began to stir. Though Du Chen's current strength wasn't enough to instantly purify one hundred thousand Undead, the sacred light still slowly, visibly melted the Undead, transforming them from fierce beings of the mortal realm into wisps of black smoke…

As Du Chen reveled in the joy of the blossoming, Dus's voice transmitted, 'Francis, I have good news and bad news. Which would you like to hear first?'

Du Chen, in his buoyant mood, couldn't help but complain, 'Can you not vary your delivery? It's the same routine every single time; I'm quite tired of it!'

Dus, unfazed, continued, 'Very well then, I'll start with the good news: after a third of the Undead vanished, the Fourteenth blossomed…'