Chapter 161: Ambush (2700+ words)

Two blocks away from the water treatment plant.

Roberts stepped out from the shadows, insects still surging within his body.

One of his eyes was already bloodshot, filled with an intense sense of madness, while the other still maintained clarity: "Although that brat's interception at the end was somewhat unexpected, I still managed to escape!"

A smile curled at the corners of his mouth.

The situation at the time was indeed extremely dangerous; a moment of carelessness could have meant death.

Therefore, Roberts chose to abandon his own sanity and call upon that deity who governs the second month.

As an Extraordinary of the Fourth Primordial Substance who had turned toward the path of 'Scarlet', his call was already much more powerful than that of an average Extraordinary, and coupled with the preliminary preparations for the Flesh Sacrifice Ritual, the probability of receiving a response was high.

Aaron, possessing the Evil Spirit, immediately felt that Aokelaier's state had changed.

Although he had used the methods of the Investigation Bureau to severely damage the power and influence the Lord of Hidden Corpses had left upon him, how terrifying were such existences as deities?

Just a sliver of remaining power had already begun to violently erode him.

He had already exhausted all his strength to escape the Investigation Bureau's lethal trap, and for this, he had suffered heavy injuries.

"Overall, paying the price of half-madness to have Yagebu severely wounded by my Lord and to hold back the other two, allowing for a smooth escape, was still a success."

Indeed, for any Extraordinary path, if materials were lacking, an Extraordinary of the same path could be used as a substitute.

This was the final part of the Awakening Ritual; he had to awaken all the insect eggs he had scattered, causing them to hatch, parasitize, and share his burden!

Through the Evil Spirit Aokelaier, Aaron seemed to see a giant tree of white bone, the massive tree then collapsing with a boom, turning into countless pale bones that formed the corpse of a great serpent.

This was the manifestation of his madness, which could no longer be suppressed, beginning to affect his own body.

Roberts hunched his back, the bloodshot veins in his eyes spreading outward, occupying his entire face like a mask.

"The upper echelons of the Investigation Bureau... or... someone from a third party?"

【Corpse Eating Ceremony...】

Roberts' thoughts stuttered, giving rise to a sense of despair.

Some leaders of secret cults developed large numbers of members only to exist as reserve food or materials for ritual consumption.

Upon the bones, flesh and blood grew rapidly, filling the previously empty shell.

'And any path, perhaps upon reaching the end, will suffer the cruel hand of a deity...'

Just like those heretics of the Bone Worship Society, who could not expel Spirit Bodies on their own and could only purchase corresponding items in bulk!

At this moment, Roberts heard a voice echoing in his mind: "What just happened?"

Because the level of that power was extremely high, it came directly from a deity!

It was power belonging to the Lord of Hidden Corpses!

An intense chill emerged, nearly freezing his body, freezing every insect within him, causing his very thoughts to be iced over.

He had successfully called upon the Lord of Hidden Corpses and had even actively endured the other party's corruption.

'Looks like it's a third-party force... the 'Underworld' society?'

At this time, the Evil Spirit Aokelaier had already possessed Roberts, and it appeared that the other party had absolutely no power to resist.

A blinding scarlet color was constantly soaking into the other's transparent, illusory Spirit Body, something even the essence of an Evil Spirit could not block.

Aaron watched Roberts.

But even if he could still cast Curses or manipulate insects, it was of little use, because the enemy was inside his own body!

And an Extraordinary of the 'Scarlet' path was skilled in melee combat, but not in spirit expulsion!

Intense mental corruption came from the void, filled with babble that could drive one insane.

As a result, he had unexpectedly encountered an ambush by a Non-human Existence!

'But... he must still have a backup plan; the previous confessions were all to paralyze me... I think I've guessed it.'

Roberts' tone was frantic, as if he had suddenly understood many things.

And Roberts was also honestly confessing.

After all, he was also a Non-human Existence and had a certain resistance to Evil Spirit Possession.

Life and death, devouring and being devoured, a harmonious yet contradictory cycle, appeared upon this brand-new body.

'If I were an immortal god, I wouldn't let latecomers ascend to godhood to threaten me either...'

"This is... Evil Spirit... Possession?"

Amidst this endless corruption, some knowledge regarding 'Scarlet' flowed through; this was the lore unique to the mad!

【The 'Lord of Hidden Corpses' encompasses the Elements of 'Scarlet' and 'Darkness'...】

And the upper echelons of the Investigation Bureau, just as he had anticipated, had to initiate the final contingency plan, forcibly severing this sliver of connection.

'However, why has Roberts become so obedient?'

And the facts were exactly as such.

If the situation were allowed to continue, he might transform into an avatar of the Lord of Hidden Corpses, creating a disaster of God Descent in Green Forest City.

Speaking of this, he no longer suppressed his own madness, letting the bloodshot veins within his eyeballs spread in all directions.

Just like poor Nicholas back then!

Just as Roberts was preparing to perform the final ritual, his body suddenly turned cold, and he felt the intrusion of some foreign object!

Aaron thought of something, but did not stop it; instead, he felt a slight sense of anticipation.

"But it doesn't matter... as an 'Insect Nest', as the mother insect, I can vent the madness onto other insect servants... as long as the eggs hatch, all those parasitized will share my madness together..."

Roberts struggled, and although his body could not move, he was actually still able to speak.

And Aaron was somewhat silent.

【The method for crafting the High-level Blood Surge Spell...】

Roberts said halfway, a ferocious smile suddenly appearing on his face: "And you, this Evil Spirit, how dare you parasitize me? My body contains the corruption of a deity!... Let's go mad together!"

Various thoughts emerged in Roberts' heart, and finally, he answered seemingly honestly: "I was influenced, I suspect everything is a conspiracy... From the moment the Lotus Eaters contacted me, the Secret Transmissions they provided were problematic... Although I successfully advanced, the madness intensified abnormally... Perhaps... they were setting a trap for me from the beginning, wanting me to become the vessel for the descent of the 'Lord of Hidden Corpses'... Even if a deity cannot descend into the Mortal World for long, an avatar can allow them to linger in the Mortal World longer, letting the Lotus Eaters obtain more rewards..."

"No... I even suspect that all Extraordinary paths have problems! The Deities are not kind; why would they share the Mysterious with us? And the low-level Extraordinary of any path are merely fodder for those higher up the same path! Hahaha... even if one opens the Fourth Primordial Substance, so what? The Non-Humans feed on the Extraordinary, and the Deities feed on the Non-Humans!"

Roberts grabbed a golden beetle, put it into his mouth, and chewed it up quickly.

"The Mysterious System I founded seems to carry the seeds of madness, cruelty, and despair from its very roots..."

"As expected, this Deity is the Great Serpent I once saw, the God-Spawn birthed by the 【Mother Tree of Flesh and Blood】... Its state is somewhat wrong, approaching half-mad... 'Darkness'? Is it the lingering power of the injury from the Scarlet Creator?"

Aaron read the knowledge contained within the power of the 【Lord of Hidden Corpses】 and suddenly had a realization: "Perhaps... the 【Mother Tree of Flesh and Blood】 did not want to give birth to this child back then, but did so to purge pollution and madness?"

(End of chapter)