Episode 418

Zeke stood motionless, his body bristling with blades. Despite this, Rahim hesitated to approach him.

“Who knows what tricks he might have up his sleeve,” Rahim thought, deciding to wait until he was sure Zeke had drawn his last breath.

But then, something strange happened. A chill crept up from the ground, snaking around Rahim and Najim’s legs, freezing them in place.

“What the…!”

To their shock, Zeke, whom they thought dead, rose to his feet, casually pulling the embedded blades from his body. As the blades clattered to the ground, his wounds healed instantly.

Rahim’s face twisted in disbelief. “This can’t be… How can a human possess such immortality?”

Zeke rotated his neck, fixing Rahim with a cold stare. “Is this the extent of the Fallen Holy Blood’s power? I’ve seen enough. Let’s end this.”

He retrieved a sacred spear from his inventory, its power palpable, sending a shiver of fear through Rahim and Najim.

“What is that? Who… what are you?”

Zeke smirked. “You don’t even know the true identity of the Nostra Family’s boss, do you? No need to trouble yourself with questions.”

With that, he hurled the spear with all his might.

Rahim and Najim struggled to escape, but their frozen legs refused to budge.

“Argh!”

The spear, imbued with divine power, pierced Najim’s chest and continued into Rahim, eradicating the corrupted Holy Blood within them. The chimera’s body, which had been regenerating endlessly, began to crumble.

Najim’s body disintegrated first, followed by Rahim, whose body started to crack. He reached out to Zeke.

“No, please… spare me…”

But before he could finish his plea, his body too turned to dust.

Zeke watched the dust settle, then picked up the fallen spear, returning it to his inventory. He glanced down at his tattered uniform.

“A blade that can tear through dragon-hide fabric, huh.”

The chimera, created with the power of the Four Fiends, had enhanced bloodline abilities, rivaling at least a Red Knight’s strength. If the Nostra Family developed a more stable drug and found a bloodline user stronger than Six, they might even reach the power of a Black Knight.

Still, knowing the sacred spear could destroy the chimera gave Zeke a strategic advantage.

“I need to learn more about these Nostra Family bastards creating such abominations.”

Zeke approached Masa, one of Six’s members, who lay unconscious on the floor. It seemed she had fainted from the battle’s aftermath, her physical abilities lacking.

“She doesn’t seem to have become a chimera.”

Just then, Shadia entered the hall, kneeling before Zeke.

“My lord, we’ve subdued everyone in the castle.”

Zeke nodded at her report. “The remaining disciples and the Salmakju have fallen into the Abyss. Separate those willing to defect from the captives, and imprison any suspicious ones for interrogation.”

“Understood, boss.”

Zeke handed the unconscious Masa to Shadia, instructing her to send Masa to Arina upon their return. Arina would be able to break Masa’s brainwashing and find her a place at the academy.

After entrusting Shadia with the cleanup, Zeke used the Sage’s Eye to locate the sealed Earth God. Descending into the castle’s depths, he discovered a hidden passage behind a wall, which he smashed open with a hammer.

The secret passage, concealed for centuries, revealed itself under Zeke’s hand. He descended the spiral staircase, examining the murals on the walls.

“What is this…?”

The murals depicted a chronicle of a certain figure, and Zeke recognized some of the scenes.

“A knight extracting a dragon’s heart and placing it in his own chest. A commander leading orc and dark elf legions.”

Amazingly, the murals told the story of Siemens Apollyon, deified as the true successor of the Hero King, who gained transcendent power by implanting a dragon’s heart.

“History is written by the victors, but this is a bit much.”

The murals portrayed a world corrupted by humans after the Hero King left for the Fairy Realm, with Siemens Apollyon rising to lead other races against the fallen Chronos Kingdom. The allied forces were depicted as monstrous, while Apollyon was shown as a holy knight.

“Perspective really changes everything.”

Had it been from the allied forces’ viewpoint, Apollyon would surely have been depicted as the ultimate villain.

Zeke realized something as he studied the murals.

“So this castle was once the stronghold of Siemens Apollyon’s demon army.”

Unlike the other divine dragons, whose bodies and souls were sealed separately, the Earth God’s soul was hidden without a physical form. If Apollyon had hidden it in his stronghold, it showed how much he feared and respected the Earth God.

“Apollion must have been wary of the Earth God.”

Zeke reached the bottom of the stairs, noting the sturdy gray brick walls, distinct from the dwarven architecture. The Sage’s Eye provided information on the style.

“An orc-built fortress, huh. Impressive.”

Though not widely known, orcs were skilled with metal and tools. Unlike dwarves, who valued aesthetics, orcs focused solely on practicality, leading to robust, quickly constructed buildings.

Zeke walked through the large, rugged corridor built in the orc style, reaching a massive door at the end. He extended his hand and commanded the system.

“System, open the door.”

The system attempted to access the administrator system to open the door, but instead, a warning message appeared.

[Administrator system for this area cannot be found.]

Zeke recalled that this was not a dragon’s sanctuary but a space belonging to Siemens Apollyon.

“So the system doesn’t connect here.”

He tried using a lock-picking skill, but the door remained unresponsive. Puzzled, Zeke scratched his head.

“When in doubt, ask.”

He summoned Arataso with the green sword.

With a flash of green light, Arataso appeared, stretching.

“Ahhh, I was having a good nap. Why’d you call me?”

“You’re quite the expert at being sealed. Should I just bind you to Solomon’s Ring?”

Arataso recoiled at the suggestion. “Don’t even joke about that! What do you need?”

Zeke pointed at the door. “Know how to open this? Seems like a demon army fortress, but my usual methods aren’t working.”

Arataso approached the door, examining it closely before tilting his head.

“This is… just a door?”

Zeke gritted his teeth. “I didn’t summon you to tell me it’s a door. I asked if there’s a special way to open it in the demon realm.”

Arataso backed away, waving his hands. “There’s no special way to open a door! You just open it or use a key if it’s locked.”

“A key? You mean channeling magic or entering a code?”

“What are you talking about? I mean a key. You put it in and turn it. Don’t humans have keys?”

Accustomed to using codes to open doors in other ruins, Zeke hadn’t considered a simple key.

“So the demon realm uses keys too.”

Feeling a bit sheepish, Zeke examined the door again, finding a keyhole at the bottom.

He turned to Arataso. “What do you do if you don’t have a key in the demon realm?”

Arataso pondered before answering. “Usually, you’d call a locksmith. Demon realm locks are complex, and without the right key, they lock even tighter. This looks like a typical demon realm lock.”

In the end, it was clear that without the key, opening the door would be a challenge.

“What to do…”

After racking his brain for a while, Zeke made up his mind. He pulled a hammer out of his inventory.

“When nothing else works, sometimes you just have to smash it.”

Zeke wasn’t one for overthinking things.

Seeing Zeke suddenly brandish a hammer, Arataso was taken aback.

[W-wait, you’re not seriously going to break it, are you? Hold on. This door was brought directly from the demon realm. It’s not something you can just smash open…]

Before Arataso could finish, Zeke swung the hammer, infused with his energy.

CRASH!

Despite the power behind the swing, the hammer rebounded, sending Zeke staggering back.

Arataso shook his head, exasperated.

[See, I told you. This isn’t something you can just break.]

Ignoring him, Zeke gripped the hammer tighter, channeling all his energy into it.

VROOOOM!

The hammer vibrated with a fierce intensity.

“One of these has to work.”

With so many skills at his disposal, Zeke was determined to try them all until something succeeded. He summoned the spirit of destruction into the hammer.

A massive image of a crusher appeared above the hammer.

“Take this!”

With a battle cry, Zeke slammed the hammer into the door.

BOOM!

The impact echoed powerfully, and to Arataso’s astonishment, the door began to buckle.

[No way… This shouldn’t be possible!]

The door wasn’t just made of solid metal; it was reinforced with various enchantments. Yet, Zeke’s spirit-infused technique seemed to be working.

Grinning, Zeke raised the hammer again.

“Alright, I’ve got the hang of it.”

He poured more energy into the hammer and struck the door with all his might.

BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!

With each blow, the door, which had held firm for so long, finally gave way.

CRASH!

With a deafening noise, the door shattered.

“Whew! That was a great stress reliever.”

[Unbelievable…]

Arataso was in shock, never having imagined that Zeke would actually break down a door from the demon realm with a hammer.

Zeke stepped over the broken door and entered the room beyond. It was a vast circular space with a domed ceiling, and in the center stood an altar.

The walls were adorned with bas-reliefs depicting the achievements of Siemens Apollyon, and statues that seemed to represent him lined the room.

Arataso followed Zeke inside, marveling at the statues and the intricate carvings.

[Wow, this feels like a museum in the demon realm.]

Zeke, bemused, replied, “They have museums in the demon realm?”

Arataso, slightly annoyed, retorted.

[I’d like to remind you that it’s us who bring the beauty of art to humans.]

Arataso’s master, a celestial being with a particular love for art, had instilled in him a deep appreciation for artistic works.

After snapping at Zeke, Arataso leisurely examined the sculptures, then tilted his head in curiosity.

[Hmm?]

He turned to Zeke.

[These statues… they kind of look like you, don’t they?]