Chapter 484: Return Of The Fox Deity

Damain walked through the darkness in silence, following the narrow passage beyond the ancient doors as the faint glow behind him gradually disappeared. The air became colder with every step he took, carrying the scent of damp stone and something far older, as though this place had remained sealed away from the rest of the world for thousands of years. After several moments, the flat passage finally gave way to a wide spiral staircase carved directly into the earth.

Damain descended without hesitation.

The stone steps twisted downward for several minutes, and the deeper he went, the heavier the atmosphere became. The sound of his footsteps echoed through the endless stairway and eventually, the staircase came to an end, revealing a massive stone door.

Damain approached it and pushed. The door groaned as it slowly opened, revealing a dark chamber that waited beyond it.

Damain stepped inside, and the moment his foot crossed the threshold, torches positioned along the walls ignited violently. Purple flames burst into existence one after another, chasing away the darkness until the entire chamber became visible.

His eyes slowly widened.

The room was enormous.

Ancient stone pillars supported the ceiling while the walls stretched far into the distance. At the far end of the chamber stood a massive stone throne carved into the shape of a roaring fox. Its jaws were opened wide, its teeth exposed in an eternal snarl, while its enormous stone claws formed the armrests. There were no cushions, jewels or luxurious materials decorating it. It was simply stone, old and rough.

At the center of the room stood an enormous circular table made entirely of stone. Damain slowly approached it, his fingers moving along the edge as his frown deepened. Strange carvings covered its surface, stretching across the massive structure in complicated patterns. At first, they seemed meaningless, but as he studied them more closely, recognition slowly appeared in his eyes.

He had seen something similar before.

The carvings bore an unmistakable resemblance to the map of the universe William had shown him shortly after his arrival in Velmora. The circles, pathways and markings appeared to represent worlds scattered throughout existence, all connected through invisible lines that converged toward certain points.

Damain ran his fingers over one of the carvings.

"So this is the true purpose of this place..." he muttered.

Rin jumped from his arm onto the edge of the table and examined the carvings as well. "Every realm connected to the inheritance is represented here. Once you establish a proper connection, the Seat of Power allows you to monitor them and draw strength from the faith of the people who acknowledge you as their God."

Damain slowly nodded before turning his attention toward the walls.

That was when he noticed the portraits.

Massive paintings stretched along both sides of the chamber, each one depicting a former Sin of Lust. Damain walked toward them slowly, his eyes moving from one face to another. Each portrait was strangely decorated, with two candles positioned on either side. Most of the candles had long since burned out, leaving behind melted wax and blackened holders.

However, that was not what disturbed him, the faces did.

Damain stopped in front of the first portrait and frowned deeply. Then he moved to the next. And then another.

They all looked alike.

The differences were subtle. One possessed longer hair, another had sharper eyes, while some wore ancient robes and others wore clothing Damain could not immediately identify. Yet beneath those minor differences, their facial structures were remarkably similar.

It was almost as though the Sin itself had gradually sculpted its hosts into the same image.

Damain walked slowly through the hall of portraits until he stopped beside Lin Qui’s.

For several seconds, he stared at the man who had come before him. Lin Qui’s face looked calmer than Damain remembered, his expression carrying the confidence of a man who had once believed he could build something different. Two candles rested beside his portrait.

Both had burned out.

Damain’s gaze shifted farther down the wall. There was only one portrait whose candles remained lit.

His own.

Purple flames burned calmly on both sides of the painting, illuminating his face. The portrait had already changed to reflect his appearance, showing the same pale complexion, dark hair and familiar eyes. Damain stared at himself for several seconds before speaking.

"I will be the last face on this wall..."

Abel’s crimson eyes glowed faintly as the dragon tightened itself slightly around Damain’s shoulders.

"And that we can make possible. If your Majesty truly unites the power of the seven sins, there will be no more reincarnations of future sins. Your face will exist in all their chambers of secrets. You will be eternal."

Damain slowly nodded and whileRin rolled his eyes.

"Bro talks like it’s easy."

Abel showed no reaction. He did not even bother turning toward Rin. "A man’s dream is limited to his strength. It’s only natural you dare not dream as much as I do."

Rin’s ears immediately flattened.

"You motherfucking..."

"Enough," Damain sighed, rubbing his forehead. "Now is not the time to fight amongst each other."

Rin glared at Abel. "Then he better keep his mouth shut or there will be lots of fighting."

Abel remained completely indifferent. "There will only be one decisive battle, and I will emerge the victor. Don’t delude yourself, fox."

Damain exhaled loudly through his nose and walked away from them.

He had spent less than ten minutes with Abel and already understood that the dragon possessed the exact kind of personality capable of creating endless problems for everyone around him. Rin was already irritating enough when he wanted to be, and now there were apparently two spirit beasts in his life who considered insulting one another a perfectly acceptable pastime.

He approached the stone throne.

The closer he came, the more intense the pressure in the chamber became. Damain stood before the enormous fox for several seconds, studying its ancient features. Its stone eyes were dark and lifeless, yet he could feel something watching him from within the throne.

"Finally..." Damain whispered, his voice low and eerie. "I can take what is mine and more."

Without hesitation, he sat down. The moment his body touched the throne, the stone fox’s eyes lit up and Damain’s eyes widened.

Before he could move, the jaws carved into the sides of the throne suddenly snapped shut.

"Gah!"

Damain cried out as stone fangs pierced through his shoulders.

His body jerked violently against the throne while blood immediately began flowing down his robes. His fingers crushed against the armrests as he instinctively tried to pull away, but the moment he struggled, the connection intensified.

His eyes opened wide as the reflection of the universe appeared inside them.

Buzz!

The first world appeared before him.

___ Earth 112 ___

Damain’s breathing stopped, he could see it clearly.

Twenty stood inside a rusty cell surrounded by darkness, his body thinner than Damain remembered and his clothes stained with dirt. Several other familiar faces appeared in different locations, some imprisoned, some hiding and others desperately fighting to survive. The members of the Black Apostle Cartel had been scattered across the world, and many of the politicians who remained loyal to him were either in hiding or already in chains.

Before Damain could process everything, the vision shifted to another world.

A dark chamber filled with hooded figures came into view. Strange beings who did not look entirely human knelt around a massive statue of a fox, their heads lowered in prayer. Purple candles burned around the altar while the faint sound of chanting reached Damain’s mind.

Then the vision shifted again to a third world.

People walked through massive cities alongside strange beasts. Creatures Damain had never seen moved freely through the streets while enormous towers stretched into the sky.

Then another world appeared and another. The visions changed so rapidly that Damain’s mind struggled to process them.

At the center of the chamber, the massive stone table lit up. The carvings across its surface began glowing one after another as a holographic representation of the universe rose above it. Countless worlds appeared as glowing spheres connected by streams of light.

Each represented a successful connection.

"Gah!"

Blood flowed from the sides of Damain’s mouth.

His grip around the stone armrests tightened as the pressure inside his mind intensified. It felt as though someone had forced an entire universe into his skull and demanded that his brain process everything at once. Blood began flowing from his eyes and ears while his breathing became increasingly unstable.

The pain was unbearable, yet he remained seated. The throne continued forcing the connection deeper.

For an entire minute, Damain endured the flood of information. Every world, every follower and every prayer crashed against his consciousness until he could no longer separate one voice from another.

Then everything suddenly stopped and the visions vanished.

Huff!

Huff!

Huff!

Damain leaned forward heavily while his body remained pinned to the throne by the stone fangs in his shoulders. Sweat rolled down his face while blood continued dripping from his mouth. However, the pain was no longer the most overwhelming sensation.

He could feel them, all of them. Their prayers, fear and desperation.

For more than a decade, countless followers across the universe had existed without their God. Some had remained loyal, believing he would eventually return. Others had been hunted because of their faith. Entire groups had been forced into hiding, protecting ancient symbols and traditions connected to the Fox God while waiting for a sign that their belief had not been misplaced.

Damain could feel their suffering and it hurt.

His expression slowly hardened.

"Do I have to go through this every time I use it?" he asked.

Rin sat on the edge of the stone table and nodded. "Until you become a God, you have to rely on it. Even after you become a God, if you want to communicate with your followers intimately and help them directly, you would still need this Seat of Power unless you have a Seed whom you can possess."

Damain slowly nodded.

The pain was beginning to make sense. This throne was not simply a tool for gathering faith. It was a bridge connecting him directly to every realm under his authority.

"If that’s the case, I can keep this a secret and fake the entire process during my coronation?" Damain asked.

Rin nodded firmly.

"As long as none of the nobles speak, you can fool the people of Velmora. And of course, that will be enough to lure your enemies out. They will try to harm you the same way they did to Lin Qui when they believe you are establishing your connection."

Damain’s eyes narrowed.

"Good..." he muttered.

His body looked pale and exhausted. The Seat of Power was draining his stamina rapidly, and he could feel the strain spreading through every part of his body.

"Very well then," he said quietly. "But first... let me talk to my people."

His gaze moved toward the representation of Velmora. The world glowed brightly among the others.

Damain closed his fingers around the armrest and the light representing Velmora suddenly went dark.

He had severed his connection.

Damain still intended to keep this secret from the underworld. The message he wanted to give now was not meant for them.

He took a slow breath then his voice entered every connected world at once.

"FEAR NOT, GOD HAS RETURNED!"

Earth 112.

Twenty sat inside a rusty prison cell with his back against the cold wall. Only a thin amount of moonlight entered through the small window above him, illuminating part of his exhausted face. The cell was silent, and for several moments he remained completely still.

Then his eyes widened. The familiar voice echoed through his mind.

Twenty slowly lifted his head.

It was not possible.

For more than ten years, he had waited for this voice. He had even assumed Damian was truly dead.

"Big brother?!" Twenty immediately raised his head, tears forming in his eyes despite the disbelief still visible on his face.

The voice responded.

"I’ll be coming for you soon... Two more months. That’s all I need."

Twenty immediately sprang to his feet.

His hands pressed against the prison bars as his body trembled violently. For several seconds, he could not speak. He simply stared upward while tears ran down his face.

He was not the only one who heard it. Every surviving devotee of the Fox Diety heard it. Across the universe, ancient altars that had remained completely unresponsive suddenly lit up.

Purple flames erupted from symbols of the fox.

Pendants carried by Damain’s followers began burning so violently that many people tore them from their necks and threw them to the ground in panic. However, when they looked down, they saw the eyes carved into the pendants glowing with brilliant purple light.

Some fell to their knees and others began crying. Many simply stared in disbelief.

The God they had believed in had returned.

Back inside the chamber beneath Velmora, Damain felt it. The power of faith poured into his body.

His entire body shuddered as streams of purple energy flowed into him from the glowing worlds represented above the stone table. The crushing pressure inside his mind gradually weakened, and the unbearable mental burden created by the Seat of Power became lighter.

When was the last time he had actually grown stronger?

Since arriving in the underworld, he had been completely consumed by politics, assassinations, betrayals and preparations for war. He had barely stopped long enough to remember that he was supposed to be cultivating his power. Every day brought another crisis until the simple act of growing stronger had been pushed to the back of his mind.

Now the faith of his followers reminded him that the strength he had neglected was still there waiting for him. The mental burden continued decreasing as more prayers reached him.

Damain slowly shut his eyes and his body relaxed against the stone throne.

The stone fangs remained embedded in his shoulders, but the pain no longer bothered him as much. He had originally intended to leave immediately after sending the message. However, as he listened to the prayers, cries and celebrations of people scattered across the universe, a faint smile slowly appeared on his face.

Tonight, he simply wanted to sit here and listen.