Chapter 596: Astaroth’s Warning

Damian and Astaroth sat several meters apart, a desk positioned before each of them with jugs of wine resting on the polished surfaces. The room was quiet, its atmosphere considerably more relaxed than the political chaos unfolding across the Underworld.

Astaroth sat comfortably in his chair, while Kaja and Cain stood on either side of him, their expressions tense as they watched Damian. Neither had forgotten the destruction surrounding the battle for Velmora, nor the fact that the demon sitting before them had recently killed a Prince of Greed and claimed his inheritance.

Even with Damian appearing calm, there was something unsettling about his presence that made it difficult to treat this meeting as an ordinary visit between allies.

"I apologize for not being able to make it here personally. The nobles of Gildreach Vault are trying to split the empire’s resources amongst them, including the God vein crystals. I need to murder a God or two to set things straight," Damian said, pouring himself some wine as though he were discussing an inconvenience rather than contemplating another massacre.

Astaroth burst into laughter, leaning back in his chair before nodding with an amused smile. The news hardly surprised him. Gildreach Vault had spent thousands of years accumulating wealth under Lazarus, and the noble clans had grown accustomed to enjoying the benefits without answering to anyone.

With their former master dead and a new ruler occupying the throne, it was only natural that they would attempt to secure as much of the empire’s wealth as possible before Damian could consolidate his authority.

If Velmora had still possessed its reserves of God vein crystals when Damian first arrived in the Underworld, the struggle for his throne would have been considerably bloodier.

Resources of that caliber could transform even an ordinary demon into a threat, and the prospect of losing them would have made the old nobles fight with far greater desperation.

"It’s expected you would meet resistance in Gildreach. Those nobles spent centuries serving a God who allowed them to grow fat on his wealth. They were never going to surrender their privileges simply because their master died. What I’m more interested in is what you plan to do now," Astaroth asked, his amusement fading into genuine curiosity.

"It mostly depends on what happens at the council of princes. If there’s nothing important, I plan to secretly explore the Dark Continent for more God veins to boost my strength to the God realm and also look for a cure to my ailing soul," Damian explained.

Astaroth slowly nodded, his gaze drifting toward the wine on his desk as he considered the situation. For a brief moment, he seemed lost in thought, weighing what he knew against the risks Damian was willing to take. When he finally spoke, the humor had disappeared from his voice.

"Be careful. It’s not safe out there. There are reports that the creatures of the Dark Continent are growing restless and more violent by the day, and the Dark Continent itself is spreading further. It should be a major topic to be discussed during the council of princes."

Damian blinked in surprise. He had assumed that the growing instability of the Dark Continent and the expansion of the darkness surrounding the Mother Stream were dangers known only to a handful of beings. The fact that reports were already circulating throughout the Underworld suggested that the problem was much harder to conceal than he had imagined.

He released a quiet sigh of relief. At least he would not have to convince the other princes that the threat existed, although that did not necessarily mean they would do anything about it. Powerful beings had a habit of ignoring disasters until those disasters reached their doorsteps.

"Unfortunately, that’s the only viable option I have. Lazarus’s wife did bring up the option of the Tree of Life in Abode. What do you think of it?" Damian asked, deciding there was little reason to conceal the suggestion Elsa had made.

He wanted to know whether Astaroth considered it a genuine solution or another dangerous undertaking disguised as an opportunity.

Bang!

Damian had barely finished speaking when Astaroth slammed his palm against the desk, shattering the thick wooden surface beneath it. The wine jug toppled, spilling its contents across the broken wood and dripping onto the floor, but Astaroth paid it no attention.

His face twisted into a deadly frown, and the murderous intent radiating from him was so intense that Kaja and Cain instinctively stiffened. Yet the killing intent was not directed at Damian or anyone else in the room. It was the unmistakable fury of someone whose deepest resentment had been stirred by the mention of a particular name.

"That vile bitch. She truly inherited the mad Greed of her husband!" Astaroth hissed, his voice thick with contempt.

Damian stared at him, genuinely taken aback. He had seen Astaroth angry before, but never like this. The man was usually capable of maintaining his composure even when discussing matters involving the princes, and his sudden outburst suggested that Elsa had touched upon something far more dangerous than Damian understood.

He placed his wine cup on the desk and resisted the urge to question him immediately. Whatever history lay behind Astaroth’s reaction, he needed to understand it before drawing any conclusions.

"I’m certain that bitch did not mention the existence of Sealed Artifact 000... Adam," Astaroth said, his expression darkening further as he turned his attention back to Damian.

Damian’s face twisted into an ugly frown. "Adam?"

Astaroth erupted into another bout of laughter, raising a palm to cover his face as though the revelation were too absurd to take seriously. The sound carried none of the warmth of his earlier amusement. It was the bitter laughter of someone who had just confirmed a suspicion he had held for a long time.

"That bitch is a real devil. It’s always the innocent looking ones with the darkest hearts," Astaroth laughed, shaking his head in disbelief.

Damian frowned but maintained his composure. He had no intention of allowing Astaroth’s emotions to dictate his own judgment, especially when the subject concerned a potential remedy for his damaged soul. Elsa had already told him about the Tree of Creation in Eden, the artifact that could grant true immortality and heal his soul. If she had withheld something important, he needed to know exactly what it was and why it mattered.

"What or who is Adam?" he asked, keeping his voice steady.

Astaroth’s laughter finally subsided. He lowered his hand and leaned forward, his expression becoming serious enough that even Kaja and Cain appeared more attentive.

"Adam is the name of Sealed Artifact 000, a being that existed even before the Tree of Life, living in Eden and is rumored to be as old as the World Tree itself. He is known as the Perfect Seed, capable of repeatedly housing the Supreme Deity’s soul for an endless period of time without breaking."

Buzz!

Damian abruptly rose from his chair. His irises trembled, and his eyes widened as he tried to comprehend what he had just heard.

Even a seed like Corbin, despite his extraordinary potential, could only house the soul of a God once before his body and soul broke down, leaving him dead permanently. That was the limitation of using another being as a vessel for divine power. The strain eventually destroyed the host, no matter how exceptional the host’s talent might be.

Yet Adam could repeatedly house the soul of a Supreme Deity without breaking, apparently without any limit to how long the process could continue. The concept was almost impossible to grasp.

Kaja leaned forward, his nervous expression giving way to grim seriousness as he joined the explanation. "Adam is loyal to the faction that wields control over Abode, and by default, that’s the Supreme Deity. That is why, no matter how many times Lazarus tried to wage war in that world, he never got through the gates of Eden!"

He paused briefly, allowing the significance of his words to settle before continuing.

"It may sound silly, but as a deity, you have a better chance of gaining Abode through direct confrontation with the Supreme Deity than by entering Abode itself. Like every other planet, Abode restricts the powers of Gods and limits the freedom of demigods. The Supreme Deity suffers no such restriction because he has an unkillable seed he can hide behind."

Damian’s eyes widened further. "Unkillable?"

Astaroth nodded firmly, the anger in his expression settling into a cold, uncompromising certainty. "Of course. Adam was the first to ever eat from the Tree of Life!"

Astaroth’s gaze hardened as he addressed Damian again. "Don’t listen to that wench. Forgo any idea of healing your soul with the Tree of Life, at least until you become the Perfect Demon Lord," he warned sternly.

"Until then, you would be throwing yourself into a war you have no reasonable chance of winning. If Lazarus, with all his wealth and the power of Greed, couldn’t overcome that obstacle, you should think very carefully before deciding you can succeed where he failed."