Chapter 241: Hell Rift: Demon Gula

In the base.

A frail, bald man in a blue-and-white hospital gown, wearing an oxygen mask, stared hungrily at the center of the array.

Jack, from the Brinks Jewish dynasty, was young—only fifty years old.

Compared to those faction elders in their sixties, seventies, or eighties, he was truly young, but that didn’t mean he didn’t crave life; in fact, his desire for life was no less than any older man’s.

Because he was sick—with an incurable disease—cancer.

He had less than two years left to live, and he couldn’t accept it—he was one of the key members of the Brinks dynasty, and he hadn’t even finished enjoying lavish feasts, wine pools, and meat forests!

How could he possibly die so willingly?

So when he learned his family had long been investing in a company called Watershed, which explored mystical forces, he bet everything he had on it.

Finally, this might have been his last investment that succeeded—only God knew how ecstatic he was when he learned the Gluttony Array had been completed.

Thank the Lord.

As a Jew who considered himself part of the chosen race, Brinks thought this.

What?

Gluttony Demon King?

So what? Demons are all defeated servants of the Lord. Now, the Lord’s chosen have a need—you fallen ones must strive to satisfy it to escape Hell!

A smile appeared on Jack’s face.

He could already see himself restored to health.

Gluttony Demon King Beelzebub, in legend, is the demon lord who governs plague. Since he governs plague, then take this damned cancer away from me!

At that moment, the last girl placed at the array’s center had her throat crushed, her wrists and ankles twisted, and her body set ablaze—exactly as the Gluttony Witch had died.

The middle-aged supervisor bowed his head. “Mr. Jack, the ritual is ready. Please take your place at the main altar.”

“Good, good. When I’m healed, go work at one of our media companies—I’ll make you general manager with dry shares. That should suit you well.”

The supervisor’s eyes instantly lit up.

Wasn’t this sycophancy all for the benefit?

The Brinks Jewish dynasty is one of the media giants of America’s East Coast, a rising faction—general manager with dry shares? That’s nearly escaping the rank of high-level employee and entering the capitalist class.

Perfect!

“Sir, let me take you there.”

The supervisor immediately wheeled Jack toward the central position of the array.

Looking at the flowing blood and scattered limbs on the ground, Jack showed no trace of revulsion—he knew these sacrifices were necessary. After all, he had money, and those vagrants had willingly signed agreements. Their deaths weren’t his fault.

“Death will surely depart from me.”

Heh, those old bastards, worried the array wasn’t mature, worried the Bureau had set traps, worried about accidents…

Worried about this, worried about that—so none of them came.

A bunch of cowards.

Now, the fruit of victory will be mine to claim.

“Begin the ritual.”

A hoarse, ancient voice rang out.

The surrounding staff stepped forward, beginning to chant incantations and prayers drawn from the Sin-Eater Array and the Gluttony Array.

“Unclean and impure ones of Hell… ruler of plague transmission, instigator of malice and strife among mortals…”

Vast patches of filthy stains appeared on the ashen stone surface.

“At midnight when stomach acid boils, in the corner where bread molds—O putrid flood surging from the Hell rift, heed the buzzing of the fly swarm…”

One after another, stomachs of humans, cattle, and pigs rolled in the blood channels, stomach acid flowing through the blood grooves with a faint hissing sound.

Above the array, a large number of flies, pre-prepared, were released—but strangely, not a single one flew wildly; instead, they merely followed the blood channels, circling above the array.

The buzzing of the fly swarm grew grand and terrifying amid the increasingly massive chanting.

“Great Beelzebub! King of Gluttony! Enemy of the Demon Kings!”

“Your tentacles coil around decaying things, your pupils reflect endless chewing—grant me fangs that chew all things, grant me…”

Boom… boom…

The ground trembled faintly.

The blood channels, formed by circles and pentagrams, also quivered, then began to bubble—boiling!!!

Jack and countless staff and soldiers stared at this scene, eyes wide.

For Westerners deeply influenced by the Bible, miracles were irresistible—even if they were demons’ “miracles.”

Bang!

Bang bang bang!

One after another, people knelt to the ground, bowing before the array.

From this moment on,

This place had become a land abandoned by Jesus.

“I offer the power of my flesh as bait—tear open the Hell rift and descend upon this ravenous world!!!!”

When the final prayer ended,

The ground ceased trembling, even slowly settling.

???

Feeling the stillness beneath his feet, Jack’s face filled with confusion. Where was the commotion? Where were the followers? Where was his wish? Where was the demon?

Where had they all gone?

Had the ritual failed?

No, this couldn’t happen!

Wait!

Jack’s fierce gaze locked onto the center of the array.

Beneath the chosen woman, the blood-covered ground suddenly expanded, spread, and churned—the woman’s body sank into the blood.

Crack crack crack…

The ground truly cracked open a fissure.

Pale ghostly hands reached out, gripping the woman tightly, pulling her desperately downward. Within the fissure, clusters of orange-yellow flames rose, exploded, and spread; patches of earth flowed like lava—but beside them flowed a murky green, bubbling, putrid river.

Among the rotting river and lava patches, countless phantom souls writhed, screaming in agony, waving their arms—each pair of eyes brimmed with emotion so intense, it surpassed even the greatest actors’ performances, piercing straight into the soul!!

And even in this horrific environment, life was far from absent.

Dozens of black, horned demons, barely one meter and a half tall, with thick, chitinous skin, leapt about, waving their stumps of rotting claws, as if trying to crawl through the fissure into the mortal world.

This was Hell’s true scene, laid bare.

Jack’s face turned pale. At this moment, he finally understood why those older men had been so stubborn in their desire to escape sin—descending into Hell was truly terrifying!!

But then, he brightened.

He succeeded! He succeeded!

Now, he would regain his health—and even become a powerful follower!

Crack crack crack… crack crack crack…

The woman was fully dragged into the pale hands.

This was the offering—the meaning behind “offering the power of the flesh” in the prayer.

As the woman was completely consumed, a foul-smelling claw, covered in pus-filled sores and dripping green fluid, emerged—then a second claw. Both gripped the ground and pulled outward, as if trying to widen the fissure so its body could fully emerge.

But as if bound by some restriction, it could only let out a frustrated roar, then its arm violently tore free and flew out.

Bang!

A massive arm, two meters long, landed on the ground.

Gloop gloop… gurgle gurgle…

The green arm twisted and deformed—in an instant, it became a demon two and a half meters tall, bloated belly, two fly wings on its back, swarms of green-headed flies swirling around it, radiating a stench of decay.

“Damn it, why couldn’t the offering be of better quality? Now I can only manifest in one-sixth of my true form.”

“And this damn restriction from God—this Hell rift is so small…”

The demon spoke, venting its complaints, then turned its orange-yellow eyes toward Jack at the main altar, gleaming with cunning. “My dear summoner, your ability to summon me is your honor.”

The communication between demon and human began.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

It stomped heavily toward Jack, swatting aside the paralyzed men in its path.

Gulp—

Jack swallowed hard, frozen—then snapped back to awareness.

He knelt on the ground. “Great Demon King Beelzebub, it is I—I summoned you.”

!!!

The demon’s eyes flared. “I am not Demon King Beelzebub!”

Huh?

Jack opened his mouth, his mind suddenly snapping back to the days of building his empire. “Whoever you are, you are a great demon—summoning you is my honor. May I humbly ask your name?”

The demon grinned, uttering words that sent chills down Jack’s spine: “Human, your brain smells delicious.”

“Remember, my name is Gula, servant demon of the great Demon King Beelzebub, and one of the leaders of the fly swarms.”

“Well, state your wish.”

Glara looked at the array, seemed to recognize it, and spoke to Jack.

Jack’s eyes lit up. “I want to become your retainer! Free myself from sin! Extend my life! If possible, I wish to…”

“Hahaha!! Human, with such greed, perhaps you should seek the demons under Mowang Mamen. Yes, everything is possible—if you satisfy just one tiny condition of mine.”

Glara lowered his head and leaned close to Jack.

The stench was so intense it knocked the others unconscious; his gaping mouth was filled with rotting teeth and wriggling maggots—too repulsive to look at.

But Jack ignored it entirely.

“Tell me, my lord.”

Glara extended a tongue half a meter long, licking his cracked gray lips, his bloated belly gurgling loudly.

Jack suddenly understood. “Your offerings are already prepared.”

“Hey! Call the warehouse and have them bring the offerings over.”

“No need. These here will do fine.”

Huh?

Before he could react—

Glara opened his massive mouth.

A flood of green-headed flies poured out, like vomit, swarming in every direction.

Each fly was twice the normal size, coated in corrosive fluid to aid in feeding.

Buzzzzzz!

A locust-like swarm of flies descended.

(End of Chapter)