Chapter 139

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Chapter 139: Giant Snake

Something else is coming.

Small patches of shadows crept through the passage, disappearing into the air. The shadow assassins, at the peak of their evolution as Shadow Fiends, used to be able to assassinate even gods in past wars. The alarm set by the black-robed wizard blared as these stealthy demons with the ability to sneak around appeared sporadically within the energy line array. Aryan’s assassins also blurred in the air, setting the stage for a hunt and counter-hunt.

This was not something Tasha needed to worry about.

The entity of the dungeon had been waiting underground for a long time. Tasha’s body would not be infected by the mere Corpse Beasts, her blade was sharp enough to cut down Horn Demons and giant monsters. If she spread her wings, soared into the sky, and charged into the Demonic Sorcerers, those abyss wizards casting curses and plagues would be scattered, crushed to pieces.

If Tasha entered the battlefield like Victor, the fierce battle would soon reach a conclusion, putting an end to the defeat in the local area and greatly reducing casualties. They themselves wouldn’t need to pay a high price – but it was not possible. Tasha’s significance was far greater than just a battlefield trump card. In this evenly matched, or possibly disadvantaged war, every move, including Tasha herself, must be carefully considered. Even a minor mistake in the deployment of high-level combat power could be fatal.

Much like the dragon and Dragon Knight who had yet to meet their end, Tasha and Victor lingered in the dungeon, waiting for the right moment.

The moment had arrived.

The passage between the Abyss and the Primary Material Plane had strict traffic regulations: the Abyss beings that could come over ranged from weak to strong, and the same applied to the creatures from the Primary Material Plane that could go over. The powerful entities of the dungeon, Abyss Lords exiled and reshaped by the Abyss, were so strong that they, like the "big guys" blocked at the Abyss end of the portal not yet fully opened, were rejected from passing through.

This passage partially relied on Victor’s power. By utilizing methods similar to backdoor programs, he managed to get them across before monsters of the Demon Lord caliber arrived. Enduring and waiting for such a long time, they finally seized their opportunity.

The Shadow Fiend was the pinnacle of evolution for a branch of demons, a species of greater demons. The high-level demon Shadow Assassins were a previous link in the evolutionary tree leading to Shadow Fiends and were a step below the demonic lords.

Tasha took a step forward and hugged Victor. Victor wrapped his arms around her waist and held her tightly behind. Suddenly, a black tattoo on Tasha’s fair skin behind her battle armor opened up into a pair of sharp-edged huge wings.

A hidden trapdoor opened, revealing a deep hole in the middle of the battlefield. A Horn Demon, having just defeated its opponent, swung an iron chain and charged towards the large hole below. It leaped down and turned into a splatter of flesh. Victor withdrew his fist, watching the battlefield shrink rapidly, then looked at Tasha flying high with him and said, "Too bad we can’t ‘fly side by side’ like you."

The four characters behind were in proper Chinese. Since Tasha started teaching him another language from a different world, Victor had been enthusiastically using idioms improperly. "That’s not how you use that word," Tasha chuckled.

"But my pronunciation is correct, right? Doesn’t hearing the language of my homeland feel warm to you?" Victor predictably shifted the focus.

"And you? How does it feel to return to your homeland?" Tasha raised her chin towards the approaching gateway to the abyss, "Does it make your heart swell with excitement?"

"More than excitement, my blood is boiling." Victor chuckled, revealing his jagged teeth, "I can’t wait to see those old friends of mine."

Demonic Sorcerers fluttered around them like a flock of startled birds. These demons stared puzzled at the visitors on the ground, unable to determine what they were: demons with black curved horns that lacked the scent of the abyss, women with bony horns emanating the abyss, demon wings, dragon claws, and other mixed auras.

The native Abyssal Creations were confused, the oppressive aura of the upper beings causing the demons to flutter aimlessly. The vague sense of "not belonging to the same kind" made them restless, conflicting intents of obedience, evasion, and attack tangled in their minds, none of the spells hitting them for the moment.

It didn’t matter, Tasha carried enough talismans that had limited effects on their enemies from the abyss, just right to deal with these pesky creatures.

Her long arms, seemingly like any other human’s, could easily hold a big demon in her embrace and lift it thousands of meters above the ground, allowing Victor to free his hands to deal with the passage between the abyss and the Primary Material Plane. With all preparations made, only the final step remained. With a gentle touch in the air, Victor manipulated an invisible touch screen as if stirring a pond.

The ripple of magic spread out.

The "back door" left by the Snake of Lies was now used by the Demon Lords to divide Victor’s legacy, constructing the passage on his corpse. These thieves benefited from the convenience but also paid a price.

"Come." Victor whispered in Tasha’s ear, "Let me introduce you to my terribly flawed hometown."

The passage opened before them like a hole in a spaceship. The attraction suddenly increased, pulling Tasha and Victor in without the need to flap their wings.

Darkness.

Whether called a portal or a passage, neither term truly fit this scar connecting the two worlds. It was the final point of connection between the abyss and the Primary Material Plane, where the two planes overlapped like connecting train carriages. The natural connection had been severed, making this passage unnatural. Crossing through felt like squeezing into a paper and slipping through a crack in the door. Tasha felt pressure in her eardrums, like diving deep into the sea.

All around was darkness. Even her eye with dark vision was useless, as there was nothing here to see, like a void caused by modeling errors. There was no up, down, left, or right. Time and space were unfelt. Passage through the crack only took a brief moment in reality, but time seemed to stretch for seconds, even minutes. Suddenly, Tasha felt an emptiness in her arms. Victor was gone, replaced by a sudden bright image.

Unsure if she "saw" or "felt," the thing appeared terrifyingly close to her, less than a step away. Tasha saw—

Black, mountains?

The whole view was dominated, whether looking down or up, only the same scene could be seen. Layers upon layers of smooth, mirror-like huge black scales obstructed the vision, overlapping each other to form a semi-fan shape. After a few seconds, Tasha realized that they were scales.

This is a very, very large snake.

No, it’s just something like a snake, a real snake wouldn’t grow such fierce spines nor have a pair of curved, jet-black horns.

It felt really strange, Tasha stood in front of this huge being, so small that she could only see a small part in front of her, yet could also see the whole, seeing clearly the thousands of meters long giant snake, from its sharp tail to its horned head. She knew what it looked like, what it was, who it was. Tasha reached out her hand towards it, before her fingertips touched, the scales quivered, lifted up, revealing a huge yellow eye.

Its eye was right in front of Tasha, its diameter longer than her height, like an amber floor-to-ceiling window. In the yellowish iris, there were radial fascinating patterns, sparkling like jewels, brilliant like stained glass windows in a church. The eye with vertical pupils stared at Tasha, through it, Tasha saw reason and beastliness, saw stars, saw herself.

How does it feel to look into the eyes of a giant beast?

Her heart skipped a beat, feeling her own existence as tiny as dust, yet vast as a ruler. That feeling was like soaring in the morning sky at thousands of meters high, seeing the fog dispersing, a red sun bursting out, the world vast and boundless, yet under your feet. The towering colossal snake was so terrifying, making one shudder yet unable to look away, Tasha suddenly understood the thrill Dragon Knight felt when seeing a giant dragon. So beautiful, she thought, like a captivating nightmare.

"A slight side effect." A soft rustling voice sounded in her ear, "A tiny illusion, did you see ‘me’?"

The huge snake disappeared, and the human-like Victor appeared in Tasha’s arms. His skin was warm, his eyes were yellowish, reflecting the colors of the stained glass windows. He was never gone, just an illusion. Tasha saw the pivot of the channel and Victor’s true self.

"Your eyes…" Tasha said, searching for the right words, "look like dusk."

Victor’s amber eyes squinted, and he smiled like a lively fox, not a cold-blooded creature. "Sounds nice," he said. "Much cooler than ‘chocolate’."

The surrounding darkness was thinning out, the pressure on them was easing. The sound of flowing air returned to their ears, and brightness appeared before their eyes. As they left, the blue sky turned into a dizzying purple, indicating they had successfully reached the abyss.

This was a place in the abyss.

They did not take the usual path because only fools would take the route invaded by the abyss army. Apart from Victor’s special case, all demons could only travel through the single passage between the abyss and the Primary Material Plane. At the human end of the passage, it had turned into a battlefield, while the abyss end was crowded with demons trying to come through. If they appeared at that entrance, they would plunge into the midst of the enemy and might have to face a group of big demons waiting for them.

Tasha and Victor were not here for a one-on-one fight. Their only task was to sneak in, destroy the pivot of the channel before the Demon Lord could enter the Primary Material Plane, and end the war. After completing their mission, they could use Victor’s "shadow door" to escape.

This was the best and almost impossible scenario.

Victor’s shadow door spell had teleported them to a random place in the abyss. As they arrived, they immediately activated the invisibility scroll for a short period of time.

Tasha used to be favored by the Abyss, and in that favor she "saw" the Abyss. Now Tasha looked around, and the Abyss looked just like that.

Here there is a purple sky, with three strange-colored suns in the distance, somewhere the sun shining brightly, and somewhere lightning mixed with hail. The soil here is purple-black, soaked in all kinds of demons’ blood, from Abyssal Demon Seeds to remains of great demons, none are eternal victors, none are not food for the Abyss. She saw a blood-red river flowing beneath her feet, passing through smoky hot land, suddenly, a rumbling sound came from nearby, a land dragon turned, and the river of blood changed direction.

This is the Abyss, similar to the place seen by Tasha from the Abyssal Will, similar to Victor’s homeland in memory – but completely different. The more they looked around, the more solemn their expressions became.

Too quiet, too clean.

The environment of the Abyss is extremely harsh, and a crucial part of this harsh environment is the Abyssal creatures.

Demon Seeds are born in certain soils in the Abyss, with the Abyss being so vast, these points are as numerous as the stars. They start killing each other without even opening their eyes, sacrificing to the Abyss as soon as they are born. Demons in various stages of evolution, entering various evolutionary branches, occupy every corner of the Abyss, with countless lucky survivors evolving and countless unfortunate souls torn to pieces, becoming nutrients. From the sky to the depths, be it lava or blood rivers, every corner is a battlefield. Everywhere is blood and screams, this chaotic plane runs so fast, everywhere is a carnival of the apocalypse, filled with wild vitality.

It should not be like this now.

Tasha flew under the purple sky, with only the sound of wind and lightning in the sky, besides them, there was no other creature flying. The ground was vast, looking down from this height, Tasha saw mountains and deep valleys, rivers and deserts, but no demons.

The Abyss was in complete silence.

"Have all the demons gone near the passage?" Tasha muttered to herself.

"We’re really far from the passage," Victor said with a smile, but it quickly disappeared. "I wish I could say that to you." He shook his head, "But even during the busiest battles in the Primary Material Plane, the Abyss has never been this desolate… It’s never been this empty."

Driving the Decaying Disaster is not a powerful ruler, but the demon’s instinct, the Abyssal Will. It’s like cutting a wound on a person, blood gushing out: the cut is the passage between the Abyss and the Primary Material Plane, the blood is the nearby demons. No matter how much periodic blood loss, it’s impossible to drain every drop of blood from a person.

Even in the most threatening Decaying Disaster, demons will not swarm out.

Before the Decaying Disaster arrives, the Abyssal Demon Seed will be born in large numbers to provide a large number of cannon fodder for the upcoming disaster. But when the Abyss attacks the Primary Material Plane, all the Demon Seeds that haven’t evolved will no longer be attracted to the passage. They will orderly fight and grow. Demons far from the passage, driven by their desire for souls and flesh, are unable to easily move closer to the passage, are completely unaware of its existence, and won’t waste time on long journeys.

The Abyss’s invasion is chaotic, but the Abyss has its own set of rules that ensure the existence of Abyssal Creation. Even if the core is a "disordered" plane, it still has its natural laws.

What is happening in the Abyss?

"Should we continue?" Victor asked, "I can feel where my body is, but looking at this situation, I don’t think charging ahead is a good idea."

"Of course, we must continue," Tasha said.

Cutting off the path is the best way, and the only way, to deal with the strange happenings in the abyss. Tasha and Victor knew that waiting until the path closes would be too risky. They were certain that when resources run out, the abyss would wreak havoc, leaving no living beings on the Primary Material Plane.

"If I hadn’t been banished to the abyss, I could have tried to figure out what happened," Victor said. "I have the power and the means now, but I don’t have enough authority to even reach the surface of the abyss."

"Do we need to make contact with the abyss?" Tasha asked.

"Yes, just the surface, the deeper the better," Victor said regretfully. "We don’t have an Abyssal Creation here…"

"I’ll do it."

"What?"

"I said I’ll do it," Tasha said. "I have received the Abyssal Gaze."

The dungeon now had abyssal properties.

Abyss: You were once favored by the Abyssal Will. Even though His gaze has long departed, your soul will always bear the mark of having once belonged to the abyss.

The protection of the abyss had long disappeared, but the mark of the abyss remained in Tasha’s soul. Tasha was like having her name written in the abyss, and she received some special treatment when dealing with the abyss.

"Do you know there will be dangers?" Victor asked.

Tasha, with abyssal qualities, was not created by the abyss, she did not belong to the abyss, but she had some level of authority from the abyss. The abyss granted her special treatment, like a person loaning money with an expectation of collateral from the debtor.

The abyss longed for Tasha’s soul.

"I know," Tasha said, "I was prepared before coming here."

"It’s not the same as before," Victor warned again, "we are inside the abyss now, this is the Abyssal Will’s domain."

Tasha kissed him, gesturing to stop him. The demon sighed and said, "Let’s get started then."

Tasha carefully started to make contact with the abyss.

As the progress of upgrades and mergers increased, the titles that appeared played a significant role, making the presence of "attributes" seem somewhat low. However, titles needed to be used under certain conditions, while attributes were always present, much like the difference between active skills and passive skills.

Abyss, nature, dragon, all have useful qualities. When Tasha possesses a certain quality, she can communicate with beings that share the same quality. The proud soul of the mighty dragon can also interact with her on an equal footing, the Heart of Nature and the Tree of Life grow peacefully in her courtyard, and when she opens her soul in the abyss, she can briefly intervene in the Abyssal Will.

This is a kind of dangerous yet useful power.

Tasha’s will quietly and slowly seeped into the abyss. However careful she was, at the moment of true contact, the impact was still fiercer than a tsunami.

He is here.

He comes from all directions, every corner, from a gentle breeze brushing the face, from a ray of light cast down by three suns… Tasha immediately understands what "home field" means. During the confrontation with Ragehorn Simon, the Abyssal Will appeared out of nowhere, despite His sudden appearance still having a process. But now it’s not the same, Tasha is within Him.

Like the air enveloping the body suddenly turning into viscous gel, like the ground under your feet suddenly opening countless eyes, this plane is alive, just haven’t noticed you before. The Abyssal Will once left a mark of favor on Tasha’s soul, and when Tasha calls out again, He comes, carrying a frenzy of passion and chaotic desire.

Tasha once again feels the abyss, her senses sweeping across the entire plane with this surging tide.

She sees vast empty lands, where harmless plants are hard to find, where demon spots look like desolate surfaces of dead stars. Many places have circular depressions, once nurseries for Demon Seeds, now dry and devoid of any insects. The beings of the entire plane seem to be crowded in one small area, towards the passage leading to the Primary Material Plane, signs of the former prosperity of the abyss can still be seen, they jostle each other but do not attack. The forever hungry mobile stomach hovers quietly next to a group of flapping Obituary Birds, Felhounds and Skeletal Ghosts coexist peacefully – as if lions and antelopes sat in one place, quietly lining up.

Tasha suddenly breaks free, unharmed, her emotions high, taking nearly half a minute to break away from that sickly joy and feeling nauseous.

Slowly separating from her Abyssal Will, a sigh seemed to come through.

It felt like crawling out of thick tar, the strong smell and stickiness lingered on. The Abyss’s ability to "dye" was so strong, all the benefits it offered were traps; the more you took, the deeper you fell.

Luckily, this brief contact had already yielded results.

Victor was Tasha’s covenantor, he could borrow Tasha’s senses as long as she was willing. As a former Demon Lord, just a quick glimpse at the Abyss earlier was enough to give him a lot of information.

"It’s both good news and bad news," Victor said, "which one do you want to hear first?"

"Let’s start with the good news," Tasha replied this time.

"The good news is, all the Demon Lords no longer have the ‘devil generals’," Victor said, "in the decline of the planes over the past few hundred years, the new Abyssal Demon Seeds are becoming fewer, high-level demons are struggling to advance, and the top demons, in order not to degrade themselves, have consumed all their subordinates. Yet, even so, they could not escape decline."

"No more Demon Lords?" Tasha asked, not very hopefully.

"There are, but they have slightly downgraded by half a level, equivalent to the devil generals of the past," Victor sighed, "but the bad news is here too. They have downgraded, meaning these powers that are just slightly weaker than the top demons of the past, have also jumped ahead of the game."

When Tasha and Victor were entering the abyss, the first Demon Lord arrived in the Primary Material Plane.