Lord of Prayer

Chapter 130: Chapter 107: Disguise (Part 2)

As for himself… Corrupters were also Abyssal Creatures, and with the stealth granted by his shadow travel, he didn’t need to worry too much.

Zhou Chen watched the stampeding, roaring Abyssal Monsters, and his heart sank.

The endless sea of eyes revealed the deepest ferocity and malevolence. They formed a dark, oppressive torrent, a horrifying and shocking sight. Faced with such an overwhelming swarm of Abyssal Creatures, even an Ascender would seem utterly insignificant.

’I’ll die. I’ll definitely die!’

The heavy shadow of death enveloped his Soul. Zhou Chen forced himself to calm down as his thoughts raced, making a wish in his heart.

’I wish to simulate Li Xiaoxiao’s corrupted aura!’

In the next second, a mote of starlight bloomed. A cold, evil, dark aura radiated from Zhou Chen’s body, identical to Li Xiaoxiao’s after she had embraced the Abyss and fully accepted the Power bestowed by the King of Chaos.

It was a perfect match.

A flicker of joy ignited in Zhou Chen’s heart, and he hurriedly made another wish. ’I wish for the Holy Fire Ring to simulate Li Xiaoxiao’s corrupted aura!’

Immediately, the Holy Fire Ring on his finger began to emit the same evil fluctuations.

In the blink of an eye, he had transformed from a normal Ascender into a Divine Favored of the King of Chaos—a being who spread death and Darkness, brought endless suffering and despair to the World, and made it know pain.

In the distance, the surging Abyssal Army faltered. This was clearly one of the King of Chaos’s favored!

“Go deal with that fellow from Fallen Paradise. He seeks to obstruct our lord’s plan! He must be torn limb from limb!” Zhou Chen commanded, pointing coldly at the utterly stunned Gentleman.

’What’s going on? Why did he suddenly become a Corrupter of the Abyss? Why did he suddenly become a Divine Favored of the King of Chaos?’

A thousand questions swirled in Gentleman’s mind, but he had no time to ponder them.

The Abyssal Army, having received its orders, roared and charged forward.

Gentleman’s face turned grim. He decisively retreated into the Shadow Demon Pool, transforming into a dark shadow and vanishing in an instant.

“Zhou Chen, Erin is a dead woman!”

His resentful voice drifted back, only to be swiftly drowned out by the trampling of countless Abyssal Creatures.

Zhou Chen turned and fled. ’The disguised aura probably has a time limit,’ he thought. ’I have to get away before those Abyssal Creatures figure it out. If they discover I’m a fake, the consequences will be unimaginable…’

After he had gotten a safe distance away, countless missiles streaked across the sky, whistling as they descended. Amidst the deafening explosions, an entire city block was engulfed in a sea of fire, instantly razed to the ground.

Zhou Chen dropped the aura disguise, terrified that a missile might zero in on him and blow him to smithereens.

After several minutes of frantic running, he finally saw the temporary command post.

To be precise, it was the ruins of the Jinzhu City Star Association—or rather, what was left of its underground levels.

The above-ground sections had been completely annihilated during the King of Chaos’s Divine Descent.

Currently, under the tireless work of countless Alchemists, the temporary command post was rapidly being fortified. Massive Alchemy Matrices now enveloped it, strong enough to withstand a frontal assault from the Abyssal Army.

Large-scale troop movements and reorganization were proceeding in an orderly fashion. The Raven Legion’s Third Legion was fully prepared for battle, and some of its combat squads had already engaged the Abyssal Army.

Reinforcements and high-level combatants were steadily arriving at the battlefield, with even more powerful support on the way.

They were about to wage all-out war against Chaos Purgatory!

Zhou Chen found Jiang Che in the command room. Her expression was stern as she directed the battle, completely engrossed in her work.

In the command room was another man, middle-aged with graying temples, slouched weakly in a chair and gasping for breath. Streaks of dried blood traced from his eyes, nose, mouth, and ears. An IV line ran into one arm, feeding him a golden liquid that pulsed with rich life energy from a bottle. His other hand held up a magnificent Crystal Ball, its surface covered in cracks.

Without disturbing Jiang Che, Zhou Chen found a technician. “Excuse me, can you pull up the location of Erin Elizabeth for me?”

The technician typed for a moment and quickly confirmed Erin’s status and location.

Life signs are stable. Mental fluctuations are stable. No immediate danger to her life. Her location is currently moving toward Jinzhu University.

“That’s the main site of the summoning ritual, and the origin point of the Curse’s corruption,” the technician said with a frown. ’Why would she be heading to a place like that?’

“She ran into Lover and Gentleman after she was teleported. She’s being held hostage… What exactly happened earlier?”

“The King of Chaos’s Divine Descent struck the Star Association. At the critical moment, the King of Mirrors pulled the whole Association into the Mirror World and teleported everyone to safety, allowing us to escape certain death. However, due to the influence of the King of Chaos’s Power, space became distorted in that instant, so many people’s teleportation coordinates were scrambled,” the technician explained.

’King of Mirrors, Mirror World…’ Zhou Chen recalled some files he had read previously. He suddenly turned to look at the gasping man in the chair and recognized him. He was the King of Mirrors.

“Senior King of Mirrors,” Zhou Chen began, stepping forward. His voice was respectful but tinged with urgency, his expression earnest. “A young woman named Erin Elizabeth has been kidnapped by Fallen Paradise. They’re taking her to the source of the summoning ritual, the origin point of the corruption. Is it possible for you to teleport her back?”

The King of Mirrors sized him up for a moment, then glanced down at the cracked Crystal Ball in his hand. After a long pause, he shook his head and coughed. “She’s already been taken inside the source of the corruption. There’s too much interference there; the Authority of the Mirror Realm can’t reach it. Otherwise, I would have teleported that thing here long ago.”

“Erin was taken?”

Hearing this, Jiang Che turned her head and sighed softly. “Zhou Chen, the Curse is beginning to take effect.”

“Erin Elizabeth…” The King of Mirrors seemed to recall something. “I’ve heard that name. The young lady who was afflicted with the Destined Death Curse?” He shook his head helplessly. “If it’s her… then I’m afraid this is her destiny.”

Just then, a technician shouted, “The system just received a new message! The sender is… it’s Gentleman, from Fallen Paradise! He says the message is specifically for Zhou Chen!”

“Put it on the main screen,” Jiang Che commanded.

A video began to play on the large screen.

“Zhou Chen, you may have escaped, but don’t forget, Erin is in our hands.”

A somewhat disheveled-looking Gentleman tapped on a massive piece of amber. Erin could be seen clearly, sealed within it.

He gave a sinister smile. “Since you chose to abandon her, there’s nothing to be done. I recall she’s under the Curse of Destined Death, isn’t she? It seems today is her fated day to die.

But you must remember: she is dying because of you. Because you abandoned her.”

The camera panned to Erin inside the amber, and Gentleman’s cheerful voice could be heard from off-screen:

“Miss Erin, do you have any last words for Zhou Chen? Some heart-wrenching curses would be best. If you curse him well enough, I might even consider letting you live.”

“…” Erin stared at the camera, her eyes rimmed with red. After a long, long moment, a smile of release spread across her face as her lips moved without a sound.

She was mouthing the words: “—Thank you.”

Thank you for spending these last few days with me. I was very happy.

“Such a pity…” Even without seeing him, anyone could imagine Gentleman shaking his head in mock regret, and…

…a smile of ever-growing delight spreading across his face!

“A Curse this immense should be enough to wear down the Life Amber. Can you feel it, Miss Erin? The despair and suffering of those Undead…”

A viscous black tide of the Curse continued to spread, filled with the wails and screams of tens of thousands. Even through the screen, it sent a bone-deep chill and a tremor of fear through the viewers.

“…Soon, you will become one of them.”

Finally, Gentleman gave the camera a silent, mocking smile.

Zhou Chen watched the video to the end, his expression calm. He stood motionless amidst the clamor of the command room, like a statue carved from stone.