Chapter 217: Sanitization

The multiverse is very dangerous.

Whether you exist or not, whether you continue or not, perhaps it has nothing to do with your survival of the fittest, nor with your winning or losing, your strength or weakness.

If you encounter it, you perish.

"Li En, do you know what is the most dangerous thing about an owl?"

"Uh, a sneak attack in the pitch-black night, silent and with shocking power; even if you luckily survive, it has already left, and the next one could arrive at any time."

When the Snake was chatting and rambling on ordinary days, he happened to mention owls.

"That is merely for you; it is not the main reason he must be torn to pieces. What is truly most dangerous about him is actually those eyes."

"Eyes?"

"He sees too far, too far; darkness cannot obscure his eyes, nor can the protection of planets or planes. And there are things where, when you see them, they see you."

The Owl's authority is night and dreams; within the darkness and the illusory night, his vision is nearly infinite.

He who controls the night can use his authority to cross that darkness which obscures vision; thus, he naturally observed some things that should not have been observed.

Or rather, he was captured by some things that should not have been observed.

Li En recalled that the Snake had mentioned something, intentionally or unintentionally; the smile on his face at that time was full of malice and pleasure.

It seemed he had seen through everything and knew Li En's destined encounter.

"Seeing too much, knowing too much, so... Crack! Torn to pieces, dying a terribly miserable death!"

Li En showed a bitter smile: Since you knew, why didn't you say it more clearly?

If I had known such a thing existed, I wouldn't have stepped right in; I almost capsized directly!

"Break Evil."

No need to hesitate anymore; pick up the sword and strike.

Li En narrowed his eyes and, for the first time, completely closed his Dragon Eyes. Just as the Snake said, sometimes, eyes that are too useful are not necessarily a good thing.

"Click-clack-click!"

The bell tower echoed constantly before him; twisted fantasies once again moved toward reality, and the ghouls and ghosts bound by chains recounted the greatness of the all-knowing Great One.

Sacred characters and patterns floated in the air; that infinite unknown and mystery attracted the thirst for knowledge of all life, as if one would fall in with a single misstep.

But Li En merely looked up, gazing at the darkness before and above him.

That blackness made people feel secure.

Perhaps the night and darkness that make people fearful are not only the source of evil, but also a care and protection for life.

"Regarding the unknown, maintain awe; do not pay attention, do not be curious; most importantly, do not learn from some stupid bird, strip away His cover or sealed shell, and be foolish enough to stare directly at Him..."

The brilliant holy sword coalesced once again; the paladin approaching the monster struck with one sword thrust after another.

Flesh and blood flew everywhere; scorching holy flames erupted continuously, causing the monster, half-undead and half-construct, to wail endlessly.

Discarding those indescribable buffs, the monster before his eyes was, after all, just a necromantic creation of a former library administrator.

"Ding-dong, ding-dong!"

The bell tower ticked again; that sacred bell sound brought knowledge and the enticements of sages.

Around Li En's ears, countless ancient sages returned to the mortal world; they recounted their insights and provided Li En with beautiful advice and a future.

The youth, however, paid them no mind at all.

The Snake had said: Do not look, do not listen, do not understand, do not remember, do not communicate, do not respond; killing the opponent solves all problems!

Li En closed his mouth, closed his eyes, and merely swung his sword blankly and rapidly.

"Aaaaaah!"

The monster kept screaming in agony; he could not understand why the knight before him, who had clearly sealed his eyes, was still so accurate.

And while Li En attacked, the patterns on the black armor transmitted fluctuating optical information back.

That fluctuation wrapping the entire body was the most accurate and sensitive sense of touch.

Touch; the sense of touch that ordinary eyes would see as reckless and dull was, in this situation, the most trustworthy and safest.

One slash, then another; Li En once again seized the initiative on the battlefield.

The "sacred bell sound" grew louder and louder; the knowledge of countless sages had already flooded into his brain, and Li En's movements slowed once again.

"Crack!"

Suddenly, the back of Li En's black armor opened, and a portion of the armor surged upward.

A black dragon-head-shaped winged helmet covered Li En's head; the side wing ear guards blocked the annoying bell sound.

"War Sword! Armor Erosion!"

The rage-filled Lightless Sword, carrying injustice and anger toward evil, swung out once again. Unlike the explosive light and flame of a normal Break Evil slash, this "Wall-Breaking" blade, which suppressed everything onto sharpness, produced little sound or light.

"Aaaah!"

But judging by the monster's screams, this pain was doubled.

A painless undead ghost only wails and screams like a goblin when facing the glorious holy damage.

The "Librarian" was still frantically ringing the bell, constantly shouting the holy words of the sages and recounting the omniscience of the Great Existence, but Li En no longer cared at all.

He merely swung his sword silently, one slash after another.

Watching the foul-smelling flesh and blood splash out, watching the brains pierced and splattered, watching the bell tower fitted with various accessories turn into minced meat, dregs, and fragments.

But even so, this monster would not die!

It had consumed too many lives; the countless life remains throughout the underground passage became the source of its immortality and a constantly regenerating life reservoir.

Although "Truth" is fair, the "Librarian" who uses Truth may not be; most life values have already been offered up, but even the portion merely deducted and taken as a commission can make it nearly immortal.

"Boom!"

Li En used fire and dragon fire; the effect improved somewhat, but it was still limited.

Even if part is destroyed, it will simply regenerate again.

"This won't work." Li En's blade remained sharp, but his stamina had already begun to decline slightly; the constant casting of Evil-Cleaving Slash consumed even more, and the erupting flames only accelerated the drain.

He must stop this monster's regeneration.

Perhaps he could use "that."

So, he took a deep breath, then was violently choked.

The next moment, he took another deep breath and felt the stench of decay rush into his nose.

Then, he breathed again.

"This is the scent of life's decay."

As the scent of life's decline was inhaled into his body, a part representing death gradually activated; it awakened.

Upon the winged helmet of the black dragon head, dim yellow pupils slowly opened; the dragon head's helmet trembled with its master's breath, and a vast amount of decaying aura became the catalyst for activating this Dragon of Decay.

"All things shall eventually perish."

The calm words echoed throughout the entire basement; an invisible black dragon covered the human-shaped knight, and at this moment, the black dragon's winged helmet seemed to transform into a true dragon head.

In the next instant, the great black dragon slowly took a deep breath.

"... Perish."

The black dragon completed its breath; an acrid and decaying aura devoured everything before it.

The gaseous cone of dragon breath swept away everything; after Li En stopped, the surrounding foul stench had vanished entirely, and the strong acid and aura of decay had even washed away the very scent of life's decay.

"Aaaah!"

It was still there, but already in a wretched state.

The strong acid and aura of decay covering its flesh not only halted regeneration but caused chunks of meat to constantly fall away, while the metal parts visibly rotted and rusted.

It was about to be ended, ended by the World-Devouring Black Dragon.

"Evil-Cleaving."

Taking a deep breath, he raised the Holy Sword again, revealing its radiance.

This time, armor-piercing was unnecessary, for the opponent's defense had long been breached; only the explosion of light and fire was needed to bury it completely.

"Shattering Sword... Realm-Breaking."

Holy power erupted once more; this time, every strike brought massive destruction, even vaporization, of limbs!

Finally, when he stood calmly leaning on his sword, only a pile of flesh and fragments remained around him.

"Evil."

The Detect Evil cast again received no response from a living being; the monster that sought eternity and wisdom had already been ended prematurely.

But on the "desk" made of flesh and bones where the monster originally lay, the eerie human-skin book responded with a faint red glow.

Perhaps this was what Li En had been searching for.

He silently walked over, glanced briefly, and then put it away.

"Snap!"

After he left the basement, the flames rising behind him granted life its final rest and dignity.

Of course, it was also to bury certain secrets and knowledge that should not appear in the mortal world.

(End of Chapter)